Volume 23 | Number 7672 | 2 RiyalsSunday 7 October 2018 | 27 Moharram I 1440 www.thepeninsula.qa

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HMC launches two special services to prevent strokeFAZEENA SALEEM

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Hamad Medical Corpo-ration (HMC) has launched two new services to prevent and reduce the incidence of stroke among the population.

A Stroke Prevention Clinic and Rapid Assessment Stroke Unit (RASU) have been started at the Hamad General Hospital (HGH) since July this year, said Dr Maher Saqqour, Senior Con-sultant in Stroke Neurology at HGH.

“These services were intro-duced under the Stroke Pro-gramme which was developed by our team. The Stroke Pre-vention Clinic sees people at the high risk of getting a stroke. We do investigations and help to minimise risk factors,” he said speaking to media persons recently.

The Stroke Prevention Clinic sees an average of 15 to 20 persons on daily basis. At the RASU, patients who present with minor strokes and warning symptoms are treated to prevent

major stroke. Six to eight patients are treated daily at RASU.

“A major stroke can be pre-vented if patients with a minor stroke or transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) are treated in the next 24 to 48 hours, according to studies. At RASU any patient who has a minor stroke or reversible symptoms of stroke will be seen within 12 hours. We do appropriate and urgent follow-ups and make sure that none of the patients get missed out,” said Dr Saqqour.

“Some of the signs of a minor

stroke include slight facial weakness, weakness on one side or numbness, slight speech dif-ficulty, sensory problems and visual problems. These symptoms can develop to a major stroke,” he added.

HMC established the Stroke Programme few years ago, and it first introduced the Acute Stroke Service.

The treatment methods included giving thrombolysis, a medication given within four and a half hours of the onset of an acute stroke. This clot

breaking drug will open the artery and renew blood flow to the brain.

With at least 1,600 patients treated for stroke annually, Dr Saqqour has advised people to utilise the services provided by Primary Health Care Corpora-tion’s health centres to screen and get treated for lifestyle diseases.

“The most leading causes for stroke are uncontrolled hyper-tension, followed by diabetes, smoking and poor life style habits,” said Dr Saqqour.

Fourteen large bronze foetus sculptures have been unveiled again to the public at Sidra Medical and Research Center Doha. PIC:ABDUL BASIT/THE PENINSULA

Sidra unveils sculptures anew

Turkey opens probe, vows to find Jamal KhashoggiREUTERS

ANKARA: Turkish prosecutors have begun investigating the disappearance of prominent Saudi commentator Jamal Khashoggi (pictured), who has been missing for four days after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, and Ankara has vowed to uncover his whereabouts.

Khashoggi, who has lived in self-imposed exile in the US for the past year fearing retri-bution for his critical views on Saudi policies, entered the con-sulate on Tuesday.

Reuters has reported that Turkish authorities believe that Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate, two Turkish sources said yesterday. “The initial assessment of the Turkish police is that Khashoggi has been killed at the consulate of Saudi Arabia. We believe that the murder was premeditated and the body was subsequently moved out of the consulate,” one of the sources, a Turkish official, told Reuters.

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IPEC to open new avenues for businesses in QatarSACHIN KUMAR

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: The first International Product Exhibition and Conference (IPEC 2018) will open the new horizons of growth for businesses in the country by promoting trade between Qatar and countries across the globe.

The businessmen in Qatar believe that high-profile event will showcase investment oppor-tunities in Qatar and allow investors a direct access to projects in the country.

“Such events are very important platform for encour-aging public and private sector in the country. Qatar has created a very robust infrastructure which has played a very important role in defeating blockade imposed on Qatar by siege countries. Had we not created such a strong infra-structure, we probably would have faced problem in imports and exports,” Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Thani, Chairman of Sharaka Holdings and Member of Qatari Businessmen Associ-ation told The Peninsula.

Taking place from October 8 to 10 at Doha Exhibition and

Conferences Centre (DECC), the event will attract businessmen and entreprenoeurs from around the globe.

“Such events will play an important role in diversifying the source of import and exports. This event will attract importers and exporter from across the

world. It will help in increasing the number of countries we export to and import from. This exhibition-cum-conference will show the capabilities and strong infrastructure created by Qatar to the world,” Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Thani added.

He said that there was a need of an agency which can support importers and exporters in the country.

“In order to further boost export and imports from Qatar, we need to have a support agency or a regulating body to help exporters and importers. Having such an agency will also show a positive message to the importers and exporter around the world. Having such a local agency would be helpful in sup-porting exports and imports from Qatar,” said Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Thani.

The event will also have a positive impact on boosting Qatar’s relations with other countries.

“IPEC Qatar will play an important role in strengthening Qatar's relations with other coun-tries. Qatar has strong relations with many countries and there is big scope to boost relations with

some countries. This event will provide an opportunity to further strengthen our relations with other countries. Our leadership is very active in boosting relations with countries which is visible in H H the Amir’s visit to several countries. Qatari businessmen should use this platform to enhance their relations and form new partnerships,” Ali Hassan Al Khalaf, a prominent Qatari busi-nessman and Chairman of Qatar Consumers Complex Companies told The Peninsula.

He added that there will be several conferences and talks during the conference which will help in increasing the knowledge

of businessmen and entrepreneurs of Qatar. The conference will also be attracting scores of investors and businessmen from across the globe.

“The diverse assemblage of entrepreneurs from different countries will increase the exposure of Qatari businessmen and increase their understanding about doing business. The brain-storming between the entrepre-neurs will generate new ideas which will benefit entrepreneurs,” added Ali Hassan Al Khalaf.

He said that the conference would also highlight strength of Qatari economy to the investors. Qatar has created a strong infra-structure including world class

airport, ports, roads, special eco-nomic zones, he added.

A large number of politicians, business leaders and government officials from across the Middle East and North Africa will par-ticipate in the event.

Board member of Qatar Chamber Sheikh Hamad bin Ahmed bin Abdullah Al Thani, who is also a member of the con-ference’s organising committee, said that the exhibition is a cel-ebration of Qatar’s strong rela-tions with its prominent partners from around the world, QNA reported.

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“Such events are very important platform for encouraging public and private sector in the country. Qatar has created a very robust infrastructure which has played a very important role in defeating blockade imposed on Qatar by siege countries. Had we not created such a strong infrastructure, we probably would have faced problem in imports and exports,” said Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Thani

Reduction in stocks’ face value to impact market positivelyTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar exchange’s move to lower stock’s face value of listed companies to QR1 from QR10 will have a positive impact on the stock market, said experts. They stressed that it was important to raise awareness among investors in the stock market, whether inside or outside the country, on the goal and the nature of the new system.

Dean of Qatar University’s College Of Business and Eco-nomics Dr Khalid Al Abdulqader said that the new system will have a very positive impact, especially that the Qatari economy is a very attractive and promising one. He added that there are many benefits to implementing the

new system, most notably allowing a bigger number of small investors to gain access to shares, QNA reported.

He noted that this segment, after accessing the market, will help support liquidity. He pointed out that the Qatari market has the potential to implement this system, adding that one of the system’s advan-tages is reducing the risk of investors in the event of a decline in the shares.

The Dean of Qatar Univer-sity’s College Of Business and Economics pointed out that there is a need to educate investors on the new system, as some could be led to believe that the value of their holdings will decrease, something that is not true.

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IPEC 2018 will be the

largest trade event of the

year

Conference will highlight

investment opportunities in

Qatar

IPEC to open new horizons for Qatar's imports and exports

Several new collaborations are expected during

the event

Event to highlight strength of Qatari economy to the investors.

IPEC to boost Qatar relations with other countries

THE PENINSULA GRAPHIC

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Threats of chemical terrorism discussedDOHA: The National Committee for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons concluded yesterday the fifth annual meeting of representa-tives of chemicals industry, held in cooperation of the Organi-zation of the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

The meeting was attended by Head of the National Com-mittee for the Prohibition of Weapons Lieutenant Major (Air) Hassan Saleh Hassan Al Nisf, QNA reported.

The participants discussed how best to monitor the use of chemicals in light of the chal-lenges and threats of chemical terrorism in different groups. The results were then discussed by all participants.

Dr Selwan Aboud chaired the meetings three sessions. They discussed the role of the organisation’s executive council, in light of the threats posed by non-governmental entities. They said that such threats stress on the importance of the sixth, seventh, and 10th articles. Representatives from Algeria, Colombia, Malaysia, Nigeria, and Iran gave presen-tations on their expertise in the field of monitoring the use of chemicals.

The head of the national committee then honored the participants from the OPCW, and the International Council of Chemical Associations for their participation in the meeting.

Al Rumaihi visits KASHTA Exhibition

Minister of Environment and Municipality H E Mohamed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi visiting KASHTA Exhibition 2018, which is showcasing travel and camping supplies. The exhibition is being organised by the Simaisma Youth Center of the Ministry of Culture and Sports.

IPEC to open new avenues for businesses in QatarCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1He expressed hope that it

would contribute to enhancing trade ties with participating countries and open new horizons for Qatari investors to enhance their investments in these countries.

He stressed that the con-ference reflects the government’s interest in supporting Qatar’s trade and economic relations with other countries by exploring new markets for Qatari products and by enhancing the presence of foreign investments in Qatar.

Sheikh Hamad bin Ahmed bin Abdullah Al Thani high-lighted the importance of the exhibition in contributing to the development of trade and eco-nomic development in the world, as the conference’s events will focus more on shaping the future of development in the region by presenting ideas and

perspectives on various trade and economic matters. He also said that the conference will discuss a wide range of important global issues, with a greater focus on the challenges facing the region, notably the strategies for managing sus-tainable economic growth, developing international coop-eration among nations, reviewing the future of growth and innovation in airlines and travel trends.

One of the topics will focus on the potential of visa-free travel for the world’s citizens. Other topics will discuss embracing innovative start-ups in the region, and facilitating the activity of small and medium enterprises. He highlighted the role the exhibition will play in promoting Qatar’s tourism sector.

Second Vice-Chairman of

Qatar Chamber, Rashid bin Hamad Al Athba, said that the conference was a blow to the blockade imposed on the country for more than a year, and is a proof that it has failed in achieving its goals of weakening the country’s economy.

Al Athba stressed that the Qatari economy was not nega-tively affected by the blockade,

but has gotten more powerful instead. He added that Qatari companies participating in the exhibition will benefit from exchanging expertise with their counterparts in 11 countries par-ticipating in the event.

He noted that IPEC repre-sents an important platform for enhancing trade exchange between Qatar and these

countries, and opens new horizons of cooperation between Qatari business owners and their counterparts in the participating countries.

The Board Member of Qatar Chamber, Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Obaidly, said IPEC is an international platform involving government officials and private sector representa-tives from key MENA countries who will discuss the best mech-anisms for enhancing trade and economic cooperation for the benefit of Qatar’s economy and economies.

Qatar Chamber Board Member Ali Abdullatif Al Misnad said the conference will discuss the promotion of economic coop-eration among the participating countries, especially with regard to sustainable economic devel-opment, which is one of the pillars of the Qatar National Vision 2030.

He also stressed that the State of Qatar is on the right track to achieve this goal.

Qatar Chamber board member Khalid bin Jabor bin Towar Al Kuwari said that the conference will enhance com-munication between Qatari com-panies and the ones participating from abroad, which in turn would contribute to increasing trade exchange between Qatar and these countries. He added the Chamber, in its work on enhancing cooperation between Qatari busi-nessmen and their counterparts from participating countries, is working on promoting the Qatari product through exhibitions it organises or participates in. He added that the exhibition will help Qatari companies promote their products and enter into com-mercial deals and cooperation agreements with companies from different countries in the region.

Sheikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Thani (left) and Ali Hassan Al Khalaf

Qatar to take part in Science and Technology in Society ForumDOHA: Qatar will participate in the 15th edition of the Science and Technology in Society Forum, which will take place today in Japan. Qatar’s delegation will be led by the Undersecretary of the Minister of Education and Higher Education, Dr Ibrahim bin Saleh Al Nuaimi.

The four-day forum will discuss the role of science, technology and innovation in achieving the goals of sus-tainable development. Al Nuaimi will participate in a round-table discussion that will include ministers of science and technology from all over the world.

03SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 HOME

Police College holds graduation of diving and paragliding batch THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Police College yesterday celebrated the graduation of the second batch of diving and parag-liding courses.

The ceremony took place in the Sealine area, under the patronage of Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, who is also the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Police College.

Maj. Gen. Abdullah Yusuf Al Mal, Adviser to the Interior Min-ister and Vice-President of the Supreme Council of Police College, members of the Supreme Council of the Police College, directors of departments of the

Ministry of the Interior, parents of graduating students and a number of media representatives

attended the programme.Lt. Muhammad Ahmad Al

Bouainian, officer of Police Training section at Police College said that the college achieved suc-cesses and achievements at all levels of scientific and training aspects as a result of the advanced thinking that leads this academic entity. He pointed out that in the framework of promoting progress and specialised programmes with qualitative advantages, three mil-itary courses including parag-liding and diving were intro-duced, which aim to give the can-didates self confidence and the ability to withstand difficulties, improve their field efficiency in the future, and open the way to discover their skills by land, sea

and air. He said that the Police College in cooperation with the Qatari Amiri Air Force and the Lekhwiya provided all the requirements for the paragliding courses, in addition to the allo-cation of the most skilled trainers and experts to oversee the spe-cialised courses.

The diving and paragliding course is one of the most important courses implemented by the Police College for its stu-dents as it is significant in raising the level of physical training of students and providing them with more military and training skills.

The students of the second batch at the Police College carried out the paragliding shows off two 5,000-foot vertical planes, with

flags of the State of Qatar, Lekhwiya force and Qatar Police College . The high skills of the stu-dents gained during the training period showed the graduates’ ability to jump easily and land safely and confidently.

On the occasion, Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Al Mal expressed his hap-piness with the participation of the candidates from the second batch, who completed the diving and paragliding courses, noting that the Police College has been developing an academic and training plan for the college stu-dents to keep up with the latest training and academic fields of efficiency.

He pointed out that the first outputs of the College of Police

will come out in the next January by the graduation of the first batch of qualified officers and will be a real test of the capabilities of the College to provide the Min-istry of Interior with distinguished cadres.

Brig. Muhammad Abdullah Al Mohanna, Director General of Police College stressed that the Police College was always seeking to prepare its candidates and train them according to the latest methods of training for the benefit of their level of performance to reach the highest levels of read-iness in order to perform their duties and tasks entrusted to them to the fullest. Major General Abdullah Yousuf Al Mal, honoured the graduating students.

The graduating students of the second diving and paragliding batch of the Police College with the officials.

The diving and paragliding course is one of the most important courses implemented by the Police College for its students as it is significant in raising the level of physical training of students and providing them with more military and training skills.

Reduction in stocks’ face value to impact market positivelyCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

This is because the total number of shares held will increase, making up for the decline in per share value and leaving the total value of holdings unchanged.

Acting Manager of securities & IPO Listing Affairs at Qatar Financial Market Authority (QFMA) said in a workshop

that the new system would help increase the value and volume of shares traded. He added that the system would also help investors who hold stocks for long periods to overcome this and stimulate them to trade even a fraction of those shares after their split, stressing that the system will also allow the investor to diversify their portfolios.

He said that the reason behind the introduction of the new system was the desire to introduce new capital on the stock exchange and attract new investors to it, explaining that the decision to reduce face values is man-datory for all 45 companies listed on the Qatar Exchange and not optional. He noted that the stock exchange has

established a committee that will raise awareness among investors on how the new system will work.

Qatar Exchange’s Samer Abo Ghazla said that the new system will divide the face to QR1 a share, down from QR10 a share. He added that this means that any investor who has a share with a face value of QR10 will get 10 shares in the

new system, a 10-1 stock split. He noted that there were three main goals behind establishing the system. The first was increasing the breadth of the market, the second was increasing liquidity, and the third was attracting new investors. He added that the number of investors in the stock market has reached one million.

04 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018HOME

International aviation experts to gather for symposium in DohaTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: The 5th Global Aviation Training and Trainair Plus Symposium, organised by Qatar Aeronautical College in cooperation with the International Civil Aviation Organ-ization (ICAO), will begin in Doha on Wednesday and will last for three days.

The Symposium will provide a platform to all ICAO members to discover new programme features and ben-efits, develop new business opportunities, and promote their training organisation and products, QNA reported. A large number of companies and institutions are expected to attend this year’s event. Some of the prestigious insti-tutions that will attend are International Air Transport Asso-ciation (IATA), the Airports Council International (ACI) among others.

On this occasion, Minister of Transport and Commu-nications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti said that Qatar Aer-onautical College’s hosting of the 5th Global Aviation Training Symposium will contribute to its strategic vision to develop the human element of this vital sector in Qatar and in the region, as the event will see a distinguished presence of international aviation experts who will shed light on the best practices of the industry.

He stressed the Ministry’s commitment to providing the necessary support to ICAO in assisting different coun-tries around the world when they are applying their inter-national standards in civil aviation and recommended practices.

The Director-General of Qatar Aeronautical College, Sheikh Jabor bin Hamad Al Thani, praised the hosting of the 5th Global Aviation Training and Trainair Plus Sym-posium, saying the event will help focus a spotlight on the college’s work academically.

The Secretary-General of ICAO, Dr Fang Liu, said that the event will provide an opportunity for debate among the member states, who will meet with aviation-training specialised organisations to build and create new oppor-tunities for global partnership while increasing their knowledge and awareness of key priorities for short- and long-term capacity building and skills in the field of air transport. She said that the theme of this years Symposium will focus on building aviation training intelligence. She added that data collected through various sources needs to be structured and managed in a coherent and functional way, in order to generate decision-useful information. She noted that in the field of civil aviation training, it is critical to be able to identify the appropriate intelligence that will allow to provide optimal solutions for both individuals and groups.

UNRWA holds ‘Back to School’ event to celebrate Qatar supportTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has organised a ‘Back to School’ ceremony to celebrate support from Qatar through Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD).

The $50m contribution to the Agency’s education programme in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank was a vital component in the decision to open UNRWA schools without delay in August.

The ceremony, held at the UNRWA Baqa’a Basic Boys’ School, affirms the importance of the right to education for Pal-estine refugees in the presence of the Director-General of QFFD, Khalifa bin Jassim Al Kuwari.

The ceremony was attended by a high-level delegation from QFFD and Education Above All

Foundation, led by Khalifa bin Jassem Al Kuwari, Director General of the QFFD; the United Nations Resident Humanitarian Coordinator, Anders Pedersen; the Deputy Head of the Turkish Mission to Jordan Orkun Ersoy; in the capacity of current UNRWA Advisory Commission Chair, and Muwafaq Abdul Ruhman

Shreideh from the Department of Palestinian Affairs.

The ceremony is part of a series of events tailored to cele-brate the right to education for Palestine refugees, implemented by UNRWA in recognition of the generous support provided by Qatar to the Agency for 2018.

Speaking at the event, Al Kuwari, said, “What is more important is not the amount of the contribution, but the impact of this support to five million Pal-estine refugees. UNRWA is pro-viding assistance and humani-tarian protection to more than five million registered Pales-tinian refugees not only in the occupied Palestinian territories but also in the neighbouring countries such as Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. This Agency is unique in as it provides direct services to Palestinian beneficiaries.”

During a meeting held after the ceremony with Al Kuwari, the UNRWA’s Commissioner-General, Pierre Krähenbühl said: “We thank Qatar for the trust in our Agency and for a very gen-erous contribution. UNRWA highly values this important partnership and looks forward

to further strengthening our cooperation in the years to come.”

The Director of UNRWA operations in Jordan, Roger Davies expressed his gratitude to Qatar saying, “Education is a pillar of UNRWA services. This donation contributed to saving

the school year for more than 120,000 Palestine refugees in Jordan. The students in the Baqa’a Boys’ School were excited to be able to go back to their school. It is very important that our students are able to learn and have access to inclusive and quality education.”

The dignitaries at the ‘Back to School’ ceremony organised by UNRWA to celebrate support from QFFD.

The $50m contribution to the Agency’s education programme in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank was a vital component in the decision to open UNRWA schools without delay in August.

Armed Forces Languages Institute signs MoU with British Council on certified IELTS testingQNA

DOHA: The Languages Institute of the Qatari Armed Forces has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the British Council to accredit the Institute as a certified IELTS testing centre.

The memorandum was signed by Brigadier General Ibrahim Khalifa Al Mannai, Director of the Language Institute, and Samantha Ayton, Regional Director of the British Council, under the patronage of Major General Hamad bin Ahmed Al Nuaimi, Commander

of Colleges and Institutes, in the p r e s e n c e o f M a j o r General Fahd bin Mubarak Al Khayarin, Commander of Ahmed bin Mohammed Mil-itary College.

Al Mannai said that the IELTS Center at the Language Institute will work in cooper-ation with the British Council to support the strategy of the Qatari armed forces to develop and determine English lan-guage abilities by providing IELTS examinations to all members of the armed forces and all security authorities in the State of Qatar. The officials at the signing ceremony.

Strategic Studies Center of Qatari Armed Forces, NESA Center sign MoUDOHA: The Strategic Studies Center of the Qatari Armed Forces has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Near East South Asia (NESA) Center for Strategic Studies of US Department of Defence, as part of efforts to strengthen strategic relations between the two friendly countries’ defence ministries.

The MoU was signed by the Director of the Center for Strategic Studies Dr Hamad Mohammed Al Marri, and Deputy Director of NESA David Lamm. Al Marri said that the partnership between the two centres will serve the Qatari armed forces in the field of military and strategic studies and research that the two sides will cooperate in accomplishing them, in addition to the other aspects of cooperation.

The memorandum was signed on the sidelines of a workshop held by the Center for Strategic Studies with the NESA Center in Washington, DC, from October 1 to 5, under the title “Strategic Dialogue and the Future of Joint Cooperation”.

05SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 HOME

QDC to meet 100% Qatar’s detergent demandTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Detergent Company (QDC) has recently launched a new fully-auto-mated factory, giving them the potential to cater to 100 percent of Qatar’s laundry detergent requirements.

The new facility also enables them to exponentially increase their capacity, and further improve the quality of its product, matching interna-tional quality standards, said a statement.

QDC has been operating in Qatar since 1978, and has always strived to provide high quality cleaning products that are affordable to a wide cross-section of customers, throughout the country. The vision is to make QDC one of

the country’s’ most ‘valuable’ corporations through world-class products, quality, and innovations.

The new factory has been made fully automated in an effort to ensure that all the products are exclusively man-ufactured in Qatar, to world class production standards. All of QDC’s product formulas have been tested by industry experts in Germany, to ensure that product quality matches, or in some cases even exceeds, that of international brands available in the Qatari market.

QDC also ensures that all products go through rigorous internal quality assurance tests, and constant safety checks.

QDC’s flagship brand “Pearl” has now undergone a complete packaging revamp,

and has also further improved its product formulas. Pearl shall now focus only on the fabric care category, and will offer a variety of new products such as liquid detergents, abaya shampoos, fabric softeners, and new variants in the detergent powders.

QDC has also launched two new brands under the names of ‘Apex’, and ‘Clara’. Both the brands have been launched to cater specific market demands. ‘Apex’ will be operating in the home cleaning category, con-taining products such as all purpose cleaners, and bleach, which provide 99.9% germ killing properties. ‘Clara’ will be functional in the dish-washing liquid category, pro-viding a solution of effective grease cutting.

QDC, strongly believes in providing excellent customer service, innovations, new tech-niques, and regular progres-sions of the facilities, all of which has been the key factor in the company’s growth, brand equity and ever expanding its customer base. A QDC Factory building.

QCS educates over 4,000 workers about skin cancerTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Cancer Society (QCS) has launched ‘heat wave’ “campaign to raise a awareness among workers about skin cancer and addressed more than 4,000 workers in the industrial area, in cooperation with Qatar Volunteers.

The campaign focused on the importance of precautions when exposed to sun, especially during the summer. Malak Al Noaimi, Health Educator, Professional Development Office at QCS said, “Workers are at the risk of getting exposed to Ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sunlight which can cause skin cancer. Another risk factor for skin cancer includes exposure to chemicals especially at work-place The risk of skin cancer is much higher for people with

light-coloured skin than for dark-skinned, also infection with certain types of HPV, particularly those that affect the anal or genital area have increased chances of developing skin cancer.”

Early signs and symptoms include a sore that does not heal, change in sensation, itchiness, tenderness or pain, flat, firm, pale or yellow areas, which are similar to a scar, small, pink or red, translucent, shiny, pearly bumps, which might have blue, brown or black .

“Check any mole or birthmark you have by asym-metry. One half of a mole or birthmark does not match the other border, a spot larger than 6 millimeters across (about the size of a pencil) and the mole is evolving or changing in size, shape or color,” said Al Noaimi.

QDC has been operating in Qatar since 1978, and has always strived to provide high quality cleaning products that are affordable to a wide cross-section of customers, throughout the country.

SHATIU 2018 sees 30% rise in participationTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: The initial screening process of the submissions for the fourth edition 2018 of Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding (SHATIU 2018) has revealed a 30 percent increase in participation from across the world.

The screening reveals that the number of participation for this year has increased by 30 percent which means 70 new participants have taken part in the contest raising the total number of par-ticipants to 203 representing 32 Arab and foreign countries, said Dr Hanan Al Fayadh, the Award’s Media Consultant.

Dr Hanan pointed out that the awards steering committee has completed the initial screening and has begun sub-mitting the contributions of competitors to judging panels formed from different Arab and other nationalities.

The results will be announced during a ceremony that will be hold on December 12, 2018. Participation for this edition from Arab nations include Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Sudan, Libya, Tunis, Algeria, Morocco, and non Arab countries includes Japan, Russia, Tajikistan,

Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia, Mon-tenegro, German, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, South Africa and Tanzania.

The award was established in Doha, in 2015 as a global award supervised by a Board of Trustees, a Steering Committee and an independent judging panels. This year award

categories include Translation from Arabic into English; Trans-lation from English into Arabic; Translation from Arabic into German; Translation from German into Arabic.

The second category is Achievement Award which is granted to works on five lan-guages (Bosnian, Italian, Jap-anese, Russian and Swahili) into Arabic language and from Arabic to the same five languages.

The Third Category is a Prize for International Understanding which is awarded to individual(s) and/or institution(s) with sub-stantive contribution to building a culture of peace and promoting international understanding in two of the selected main lan-guages English and Germany.

The value of each prize of the awards for the first category is maximum ($200,000) of the total amount of the awards which is $2m.

Dr Hanan Al Fayadh

06 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018HOME

QBRI to boost region’s first cell-therapy for diabetes

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI), a premier research institute under Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), has signed a collabo-rative research and training agreement with the Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) in Boston, USA.

The five-year initiative includes technical training and research in stem cell biology, which are essential for discov-ering viable treatments for dia-betes, said a release.

The prevalence of diabetes type 1 and 2 is a rising global healthcare challenge. Recent advances in stem cell research, led by HSCI scientists, are set to help both type 1 and type 2 dia-betes patients cope with their condition by producing new insulin-producing cells. Such advances can be extended to

address many diseases that have a major impact on society.

In this new collaboration, QBRI scientists will work closely with HSCI researchers to exchange knowledge and best practice, and to accelerate the translation of discoveries into clinical applications. In addition to building scientific capacity in the region, the partnership will support ground-breaking research in stem cell biology. Clinical trials that arise from these endeavours will be conducted in collaboration with QBRI’s major stakeholders, including Hamad Medical Corporation and Sidra Medicine.

“This partnership with HSCI is another step towards our primary goal of conducting research that has tangible, mean-ingful impact on the wider com-munity. Innovation and entrepre-neurial vision are at the core of QBRI’s activities. This partnership with leading stem cell researchers at Harvard is a crucial step in spurring progress towards our strategic vision, to solve some of the critical challenges facing Qatar and the region. Thanks to this agreement, newly recruited investigators at QBRI will be engaging in research within the largest collaborative network of stem-cell researchers in the world,” said Dr Omar El Agnaf, acting executive director at QBRI.

HSCI – a network of 1,000 scientists at Harvard University and its eight affiliated hospitals – is a champion of research in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. It is a powerful partner for realising QBRI’s strategic plan to develop the first cell-therapy program in the region.

Brock Reeve, executive director of HSCI, said: “Qatar has been proactive in building sci-entific capacity in the Middle East, and its current focus on stem cell biology shows its com-mitment to supporting progress

in personalised medicine. Part-nering with QBRI allows us to share knowledge and expertise efficiently through advanced training, and to conduct mean-ingful research with a focus on translation. We are really looking forward to working together, and to seeing what new opportunities for discovery arise as a result.”

QBRI aims to address major health challenges over the long term by supporting scientific research into the molecular basis of various diseases, and bio-medical research that seeks to

translate those insights into solu-tions for diabetes, neurological disorders, and cancer. The part-nership with HSCI will facilitate progress in these areas.

Research is integral to HBKU’s mission to help build high-level skills capacity in Qatar. This new partnership allows the university to actively leverage synergies with local and international organizations to foster a world-class education ecosystem that promotes scien-tific discovery and benefits humankind.

HBKU’s QBRI is housed at the Researchery in Education City.

The five-year initiative includes technical training and research in stem cell biology, which are essential for discovering viable treatments for diabetes.

Ooredoo deploys eSIM technology by G+D Mobile SecurityDOHA: As part of Ooredoo’s continued investment in the latest technology for Qatar, the company announced yesterday a new partnership w i t h M u n i c h - b a s e d Giesecke+Devrient Mobile Security, to launch the eSIM ‘AirOn’ system.

eSIM is a revolutionary technology that allows a mobile phone to work without a physical SIM card and enables users to switch between their private and business numbers without needing to physically swap SIM cards.

With the new AirOn system provided by G+D Mobile Security, Ooredoo will be able to offer a seamless digital pur-chasing experience for the eSIM switch, as the entire eSIM transaction can be handled via the Ooredoo eShop for Ooredoo customers.

Talking about the part-nership, Waleed Al Sayed, Ooredoo’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “Thanks to this advanced solution from G+D Mobile Security, we will be able to ensure Ooredoo Qatar can connect to eSIM services effortlessly with superior safety and perfect control.’

07SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 HOME

Safari’s 10-20-30 promotion extended on popular demandTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Safari, the favourite shopping destination for citizens and expatriates for the past several years and a well-known hypermarket group in Doha, has extended the most popular 10-20-30 promotional offers adding more products with amazing price discounts.

The promotion which started on October 1, 2018 witnessed huge response in its first week itself and therefore has been extended, said a release. Safari has always ensured a very customer-friendly approach and the 10-20-30 promotional offers are also designed keeping this in mind. Products with superior quality at a lesser price are the speciality of this 10-20-30 promotion.

Safari has been a pioneer in holding such promotions throughout the year. Their first promotion was ‘Win QR1m in cash’ which was the first of its kind in Qatar. The ‘Safari Win 10 Nissan Patrol Cars’ promotion has proved to be a huge success too and was followed by the ongoing “Win 10kg Gold Promotion”, in which the customers can win gold through a raffle draw, and the now running 10-20-30 promotion all have been very successful.

Safari Group Director and General Manger Zainul Abideen said that Safari is the first establishment which has created a transparent relationship between the customer and the company. Safari has always introduced different varieties of daily promotions and offers.

The 10-20-30 promotion from Safari is the most popular among them. More than thousands of variety products are showcased as a part of this pro-motion. These include food products, daily usage products, health products, beauty care products, house hold, san-itary, cleaning products, electronics & electrical items, Readymade, Foot Wear, and Computer Accessories among many more.

Baskin-Robbins ice cream 500 ml bottle for just QR10, Nescafe jar 200 grams for only QR20, Kenwood brand steam Iron Box for only QR30 are the highlights of this 10-20-30 promotion.

In Safari Bakery & Hot food division combo offers including Western, South Indian, North Indian, Arabic & Chinese

food products are arranged. A 3-piece Chicken Fry + 4 Chapathy + Salad + 350ml Cola for just QR10, Safari fried Half Chicken + 2 Bun+ Ketchup + 350ml Cola for just QR10 are arranged in Safari bakery & Hot Food Division. Also Vanilla cake, Vegetable biriyani, Pathiri & chicken curry, Burger, Pizza etc. and so many Combo offers are available here.

In Fresh food, Delicatessen division different types of salads and cheese items are arranged for the customers. Fresh jam, Feta cheese, Rumi cheese, Turkish Labneh, Mixed pickles, Pasta salad, Strawberry spinach salad etc. are the highlights of this 10 -20-30 promotion.

In Frozen division, Sadiya Chicken, different types of fish like Tilapia, Rohu, Katla among others and Milk & Milk products are arranged for this pro-motion. In Grocery division, different types of Snacks and food items are

arranged for the customers. Coffee-Mate 400 gram for just QR10, Lancy milk powder 2.25 Kg for just QR30 are the highlights of this promotion.

In house-hold division wide vari-eties of daily use products, in Cosmetics division varieties of Soap, Face Wash, Body Lotion etc, are showcased in this promotion. Branded products of Pantene, Dove, Nivea, Olay, Johnson & Johnson are available for just QR10, 20, 30. Also Perfume, Body spray, Makeup

Sets are arranged for the same price.In Stationary division, different types

of stationary products for school children and offices are showcased in this promotion. Four-in-one stationary set, BMO A4 sheet, study table with chair etc. are arranged for this promotion. Also in Toys & Sports division wide variety of products are available at the price level of QR10-20-30. Remote Cars, Battery operated Dolls and also Neck shoulder massager for just QR30 are some of the items that included in this mega promotion.

In Garments division, wide varieties of products are arranged for the cus-tomers at a very low price. Tremendous offers are organized in Electronics division for the valuable customers. It includes different types of Emergency

lights for just QR30, Trimmers, Torches, Calculators, Headsets for QR10 & 20.

As a part of 10-20-30 promotion, Musical shows were held on October 2, 3 and 4, 2018 at 6:30pm. This program was led by Navas Palery, noted Malayalam singer and famous artistes from Doha. And also there was a Magic show by Francis. The entry for this show was free for all and the venue was the food court of Safari Mall located in Abu Hamour.

Safari mega promotions always introduce mind-blowing offers and gifts. The new fabulous promotion in which the customers can win 10 kg of gold was introduced in all Safari outlets from Sep-tember 10, 2018 onward. There will be 5 lucky draws and 4 winners in each lucky draw with 2 kg of gold the winning prize in each lucky draw.

The first prize winner will be awarded 1 kg of gold, 500 gm for second prize winner, 300 gm for third winner and 200 gm for the person in the fourth position. The first lucky draw will be held on October 29, 2018 at Safari Mall located at Abu Hamour. Anyone can participate in this event through the lucky draw of coupons which they receive while pur-chasing for every QR50 worth of goods.

Zainul Abideen, Safari Group Director and General Manager.

The 10-20-30 promotion from Safari is the most popular among customers. More than thousands of variety products are showcased as a part of this promotion.

A large number of customers at Safari Mall to avail the lucrative discount offers.

Seek medical advice for mental illness

Tributes paid to late Nigerian envoy at football tourneyTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: It was a sombre and solemn atmosphere at Aspire Dome in Doha on Friday as members of Nigerian community in Qatar gathered to watch the final match of a football compe-tition held to pay tribute to late Ambassador Dr Haruna Bawa-Abdullah Wase.

The competition, tagged Ambassador Dr. Haruna Wase Football Competition, was organised by the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Qatar (NIDO Qatar) in memory of the late ambassador who passed away in September, said a release.

The tournament was

organised as a little appreciation to the great work the envoy did within his short time in office between October, 2017 and Sep-tember 2018.

Speaking at the event, NIDO Qatar President Ikoli Victor said the organisation would make the football competition an event to immortalise the ambassador.

“Late Dr Haruna did not only serve as ambassador of Nigeria to Qatar but also as a father to all Nigerians in this great country with his open-door policy and amiable approach to issues,” Ikoli said, while struggling to push back tears.

He said Ambassador Haruna simplified consular processes for the community and showed that

ambassadorial position is an opportunity to serve fellow countrymen. Ikoli gave an example of the support the NIDO Qatar received from the late ambassador in bringing passport intervention team from Abu Dhabi in July this year.

He said the organisation can-celled the already planned activ-ities to mark Nigerian Inde-pendence Day in Doha because the community was still mourning the departure of the envoy. NIDO Qatar Social Sec-retary Precious Omogiate, who anchored the event, described late Dr Haruna as an embod-iment of humility and integrity.

He said plans have started to make the competition bigger to

accommodate more teams from next year. The final match saw a keenly contested and emo-tionally charged game the ended goalless at the end of 60 minutes of play, leading to penalty shootouts.

The winning team beat it’s worthy opponent 5-4 in the penalty shootouts.The ambassa-dor’s son Farouk Haruna, sup-ported by Consular at the Nigerian Embassy in Qatar Aliyu Mande presented medals, trophy, certificate of participation and a cash prize to the winners of the tournament.

The event, sponsored by Ethiopian Airlines, was attended by many dignitaries, represent-atives of foreign mission in Qatar

and a large number of members of Nigerian and African commu-nities in Qatar.Three lucky

individuals won free return air tickets to Nigeria courtesy of Ethiopian Airlines.

Players with certificates of participation in a football tournament organised to pay tributes to late Ambassador of Nigeria Dr Haruna Bawa-Abdullah Wase.

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Hamad Medical Corporation(HMC) has urged the public to seek immediate medical advice from a primary care doctor and get referred to a hospital, for symptoms of mental illness.

In the case of a mental health emergency people are requested to call 999 for the Ambulance Service.

“The symptoms or warning signs of mental illness vary and may present in a number of different ways, including a sudden change in moods, such as extreme joy to severe sadness, depression, a high level of anxiety, fear, anger, thoughts of self-harm, and violent or negative thoughts,” said Dr Majid Al Abdulla, Deputy Chair of Psy-

chiatry at HMC. According to Dr Al

Abdullah, the symptoms of a mental health illness can vary, depending on the illness and the individual. He said it is important to rec-ognize the warning signs as early intervention can help reduce the severity of an illness.

Dr Al Abdulla said that with appropriate treatment and support, mental illnesses are both manageable and treatable.

Dr Al Abdulla said in addition to treatment, his team places a strong focus on raising public awareness of mental health illnesses as a strategy to eliminating stigma and transforming the way mental illness is perceived and treated in Qatar.

QRCS to launch heart campaign for Afghan kidsTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) to launch the 13th edition of the ‘Little Hearts’ program.

Under the agreement, 45 children with congenital heart defect will undergo cardiac catheterization procedures, at a total cost of $151,000 (or QR550,000) raised from the con-tributions of benevolent donors in Qatar.

The project will run from October 9 to 17, and the operations will be performed by Afghan doctors and nurses at a well-equipped hospital in Kabul. It is closely coordinated with ARCS and Afghanistan’s Ministry of Health.

The MoU was signed by Ali bin Hassan Al Hammadi, Secretary General of QRCS, and Dr. Mir Wais Akram, Vice and Acting President of ARCS. This is planned to be the first of a series of similar projects in Afghanistan, to meet the high demand for this vital intervention, which is estimated by ARCS to exceed 7,000 children of poor families. QRCS’s representation mission in Afghanistan has completed all preparations and logistics, double-checked the list of

beneficiaries, and ensured the validity of the hospital to perform cardiac catheterization procedures.

Conducted for the first time in Afghanistan, the ‘Little Hearts’ program has been hosted by

seven countries: Sudan, Syria, Gaza, Mauri-tania, Morocco, Jordan, and Bangladesh. Since its inception in 2004, it has brought fresh hope to nearly 500 kids with ill hearts, who will grow up normally.

A beneficiary child of the program with a representative of QRCS.

08 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018HOME

QC launches ‘Give Them Your Experience’ programmeTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Charity, in coop-eration with the “Do Good” initi-ative, has launched the second edition of the “Give Them Your Experience” programme with the participation of four competing teams.

The programme aims at developing leadership abilities and capabilities of young people and establishing a culture of social responsibility, in cooper-ation with the prominent figures of the community, said a release.

This was followed by the for-mation of the competing teams, which was made through a link on the social media to register for the participation in the com-petition. Each team has 4-10 members, depending on the type of programme.

The first rounds of the com-petition started yesterday with

the participation of the “Heroes of the Earth” team interested in the environment. The last round of the competition will be held on October, 23. The participants aged 13-18 years will compete in the media, sports, environmental and economic fields to gain experience from influential figures and community stars.

Four competing teams

participating in the programme are Al Rayyan, Ektashef Deerti, Heroes of the Earth, and H.E.N.K.S, which will be led by Sabah Al Kuwari, Director of Al Rayyan Channel, Jawahar Al Mutawa, Founder and CEO of Ektashef Deerti Foundation, Mishaal Al Shammari, Director of the Qatar Green Building Council, and Khadija Al Buhailekh, an entrepreneur respectively.

The judging committee includes Dr Jassim Sultan, Director of Wijdan Cultural Center, Eng Ibrahim Al Sada, Advisor to the Minister of Culture and Sports, Hamad Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Youth Advisory Committee of the Minister of Culture and Sports.

Each of the four teams will present his own programme at the closing ceremony of the com-petition. The teams will compete

in presenting their experiences to the judging committee, who will evaluate their performance according to criteria including reaction, education, behavior and results. Then, the winning team will be announced and honoured, in addition to hon-ouring other competing teams.

The first round of the

competition began with a meeting between Eng Mishal Al Shammari, Captain of the Heroes of Earth team and the Director of the Qatar Green Building Council and members of the team in the presence of Walid Lutfi, Head of Initiatives and Vol-unteering Section at Qatar Charity.

Commenting on the meeting with the captain of the “Heroes of the Earth” team, Saleh Man-souri a member of the same team and a student at Noor Al Khaleej school said “The lecture bene-fited us a lot because it taught us the importance of the envi-ronment for the survival of mankind on face of the earth”.

Children receiving lessons under “Give Them Your Experience” programme launched by Qatar Charity.

The programme aims at developing leadership abilities and capabilities of young people and establishing a culture of social responsibility, in cooperation with the prominent figures of the community.

DIFI provides assessment of Wifaq’s pre-marital educationTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: The Doha International Family Institute (DIFI), a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), has submitted its evaluation of the special pre-marital education program offered by the Family Consulting Center (Wifaq), which equips newly-wed Qatari couples and those intending to marry with skills that will strengthen their relationship and enable them to nurture healthy, stable families.

The in-depth assessment, initiated in 2017 following an agreement between DIFI and Wifaq, was conducted over the past year, with the aim of enhancing the program’s content

and outcomes through a com-prehensive empirical study, and a multifaceted evaluation of its various components.

The study is the first of its kind since the establishment of Wifaq’s pre-marital education program in 2003, with research showing that successful com-pletion of such programs reduces the likelihood of divorce by 30 percent. The assessment, which took place in multiple phases, was con-ducted by DIFI’s Research Division in collaboration with an international expert on marital and family studies.

Through this assessment, DIFI has continued its efforts to support the formulation of

evidence-based family pro-grams that are based on best practices, and contribute to the health and stability of the Qatari family as a key social institution, an objective it shares with Wifaq. It delivered a number of recommendations for improving the program, as well as proposing a compre-hensive guide for enhancing the

impact of Wifaq’s existing offerings for soon-to-wed and newly-wed Qatari couples.

Noor Al Malki Al Jehani, Executive Director, DIFI, said: “Conducting this important assessment for Wifaq is another way in which DIFI aims to support strong, healthy Qatari families.Through examining the program’s impact on

family stability, and providing recommendations for strength-ening its empirical grounding to include more experiential learning and skills-based training, DIFI endeavours to assist Wifaq to better equip couples with the skills needed to form and maintain the secure, lasting marriages that are the cornerstones of healthy, stable societies.”

Rashid Al Dossari, Executive Director, Wifaq, said: “This expert assessment of Wifaq’s pre-marital education program, conducted by DIFI, is of para-mount importance, as suc-cessful marriage is a highly-valued goal to Qataris and many research studies have

shown that successful mar-riages promote mental, physical, and family health, while unstable marriages and marital conflicts undermine wellbeing.”

He added: “Wifaq provides this program in an effort to promote successful marriages, address marital distress, and prevent divorce. The results of the assessment will help Wifaq learn the extent to which such a program is effective, whether some pre-marital education pro-grams are more effective than others, which aspects need improvement, and which topics need to be covered, as pre-marital education programs are best defined as knowledge and skills-based training.”

The in-depth assessment, initiated in 2017 following an agreement between DIFI and Wifaq, was conducted over the past year, with the aim of enhancing the program’s content and outcomes through a comprehensive empirical study, and a multifaceted evaluation of its various components.

09SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 MIDDLE EAST

Turkey vows tofind missingKhashoggiREUTERS

ANKARA: Turkish prosecutors have begun investigating the disappearance of prominent Saudi commentator Jamal Khashoggi, who has been missing for four days after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, and Ankara has vowed to uncover his whereabouts.

Khashoggi, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Wash-ington for the past year fearing retribution for his critical views on Saudi policies, entered the consulate on Tuesday to secure documentation for his forth-coming marriage, according to his fiancée, who waited outside. He has not been heard of since.

Since then, Turkish and Saudi officials have offered conflicting accounts of his dis-appearance, with Ankara saying there was no evidence that he had left the diplomatic mission and Riyadh saying he exited the premises the same day.

On Friday, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said Saudi authorities would allow Turkey to search the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul for Khashoggi. Human rights groups have called on Saudi Arabia to verify Khashoggi’s whereabouts. Human Rights Watch called on Turkey to deepen its investigation into the

case, saying if Saudi Arabia had detained Khashoggi without acknowledging it, his detention would constitute an enforced disappearance. It was not immediately clear whether prosecutors in Istanbul had launched the investigation yes-terdayor earlier. The prosecu-tor’s office was not immediately available for comment.

However, the spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Party vowed that authorities would uncover the whereabouts of Khashoggi and the details of his disappearance through the investigation.

“A journalist disappearing in such a way is something a confident country like Turkey will look at sensitively. The con-dition of the lost journalist, details on him and who is responsible for this will be uncovered,” Omer Celik said.

Rebels shifting heavy arms from IdlibAFP

BEIRUT: Syrian rebels said yesterday they have begun with-drawing heavy arms from a planned buffer zone in north-western Idlib province, ahead of a deadline to set up the demil-itarised area.

The Turkey-backed National Liberation Front (NLF) “has started pulling out its heavy weapons from the zone”, the rebel coalition’s spokesman Naji Mustafa said. The buffer zone, agreed last month between rebel backer Ankara and government ally Moscow, aims to separate

regime fighters from the myriad rebel and militant forces of the Idlib region.

The accord, reached on Sep-tember 17, aims to stave off a massive regime assault on the last major rebel bastion by cre-ating a 15 to 20km buffer zone ringing the area.

All rebels in the demilita-rised zone must withdraw heavy arms by October 10, and radical groups must leave by October 15. NLF spokesman Mustafa said the rebel coalition was “main-taining its positions and head-quarters with medium and light weapons” inside the buffer zone.

The NLF is the main Turkey-backed rebel alliance in the Idlib region, but militant heavyweight Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) holds most of the province.

The HTS has yet to announce its stance on the buffer zone deal. Fighting erupted on Friday between Ankara-backed rebels and HTS hardliners near the planned demilitarisation zone, a monitor said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said fighting first began between HTS, led by former Al Qaeda fighters, and Nour Al Din Al Zinki rebels in the town of Kafr Halab.

Israel places new restrictions on GazaAP

JERUSALEM: Israel announced new restrictions on Gaza yesterday, weeks after the terri-tory’s Hamas rulers stepped up protests along the enclave’s land and sea borders with Israel.

Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has ordered the per-missible zone for Gaza fish-ermen to be scaled down from nine to six nautical miles and threatened “additional steps if the violent incidents continue,” according to a statement by COGAT, the Israeli defence body that coordinates civil affairs for the Palestinian territories.

Other measures could include more restrictions at Kerem Shalom, Gaza’s prime

commercial crossing point and the only one with Israel.

Lieberman cited Friday’s “riots” at the fence dividing Gaza and Israel as contributing to his decision, in addition to the midweek beach protests in which fishing boats and pro-testers gather at the northwest end of the Gaza Strip where its sea and land barriers meet with Israel. Hamas seized Gaza for-cibly from the Palestinian Authority in 2007 after winning legislative elections a year earlier.

The group has since March initiated protests on a weekly basis, demanding an end to an Israeli-Egyptian blockade that has made it increasingly difficult for the group to govern. Hamas

accuses Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who governs parts of the West Bank, of thwarting regional efforts to reach a Gaza cease-fire that could ease the closure.

Hamas has in response escalated and intensified the protests recently, adding loca-tions and leading night gath-erings near the fence where activists use sound bombs and laser lights to distract soldiers.

On Friday, three Pales-tinians, among them a 13-year-old boy, were killed by Israeli troops during protests along the frontier. Israel said the demon-strators threw grenades at the soldiers, adding that they also tore at parts of the fence with bolt cutters.

Palestinians run from tear gas fired by Israeli troops during a protest calling for lifting the Israeli blockade on Gaza and demanding the right to return to their homeland, at the Israel-Gaza border fence in the southern Gaza Strip.

A child stands at the entrance of a tent at a camp in the northern rural area of Idlib, Syria.

Houthi group arrests protesters in Sana’aREUTERS

YEMEN: Yemen’s Houthi group arrested a number of people demonstrating in Sana’a yesterday over plunging living standards, as soaring prices put basic commodities out of reach for many people amid a humanitarian crisis and war with neighbouring countries.

The Iran-aligned Houthis took control of the capital Sana’a in 2014, ousting the internationally recognised gov-ernment of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. A Saudi-led, US-backed international military coalition intervened in 2015 to restore it.

Sana’a residents said dozens were arrested yes-terday, including 16 female students.

The students were released at the end of the day after signing a pledge not to take part in demonstrations again, one of them said, asking not to be identified for fear of retribution. She said female Houthi sup-porters “attacked us with electric shock batons and clubs, supported by armed men”.

“They beat me until I fell to the ground and I received an electric shock in the back when

I stood up again. I wasn’t able to move when they took me to the police station,” she said.

The Houthi-controlled Saba news agency described the demonstrators as “merce-naries” looking to stir up public anger. “Security services in the capital detained a number of mercenaries tasked by the aggressors to plant rumours and disturb public peace,” Saba reported.

Both sides of the Yemen conflict have been accused of serious human rights violations. Some staple goods have become too expensive for many Yemenis, and the central bank has struggled to pay the public-sector salaries on which many depend as foreign exchange reserves dwindle.

Separately, the coalition, said the Houthis had shelled a camp for displaced people near the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, “killing a woman and injuring a large number of civilians”, according to a statement from its foreign min-istry in Manama.

Houthi representatives have not yet responded to that claim. Yemeni forces backed by the coalition launched a major offensive in Hodeidah in June.

‘Turkey stepped up when US cut aid to Palestine’: UNANATOLIA

ISTANBUL: The head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has hailed Turkey’s “increased solidarity” to support the agency after the US cut off funding.

“I very much value the lead-ership that Turkey is showing,” Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbühl said on the sidelines of this week’s TRT World Forum in Istanbul.

“I think it is sending a strong message at the time when the UNWRA is under pressure because we lost money from the United States.” In August, the T r u m p a d m i n i s t r a t i o n announced that Washington would no longer commit funding to the main UN program for Pal-estinian refugees.

The US had been the agency’s largest contributor by far, providing it with $350m annually — roughly one-quarter of the agency’s overall budget.

Praising Turkey showing “strong solidarity” for the Pales-tinians, Krahenbühl said: “Every time I come to Turkey, there is a very strong feeling, very big concern about Palestinians and about Palestinian refugees, which is very important to me.” “This year, because of the situ-ation that we’ve faced, there was increased solidarity and increased political engagement to support UNRWA by the Turkish leadership.”

Asked whether the agency

was affected by the recent US cut, he said: “We have an edu-cation system, for example, for 500,000 Palestinian refugee boys and girls in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, the West Bank, East Jeru-salem, and Gaza.

“We have to find the money. It’s not possible to imagine that their schools would close. These young students would no longer be able to get to have their edu-cation.” But the UNRWA head expressed gratitude over the “collective mobilisation” of some

countries in the Gulf, in Asia, and other countries in Europe.

“We called on all the rest of the international community. There has been a very strong reaction so far. The countries in the Gulf, but also in Asia, Turkey and other countries really stepped up and supported us very strongly.” In September, the foreign ministers of Jordan, Sweden, Turkey, Japan and Germany, as well as the EU foreign policy chief, held a min-isterial meeting in New York in

order to mobilize financial and political support for the agency.

“The ministerial meeting raised $122m, with Kuwait, the European Union, Germany, Norway, France, Belgium, and Ireland announcing additional funding commitments,” according to the agency’s website. On that event in New York, Krahenbühl said: “I am very encouraged by the very strong and collective mobili-zation.” “Right now, I think we are on a positive path,” he added.

Four civiliansdead in separate attacks in IraqANATOLIA

BAGHDAD: Four civilians were killed in two separate attacks in northern Iraq yesterday, according to local security officials.

Suspected IS militants attacked the town of Al Asadiyah, south of Mosul, killing three people before fleeing the scene unscathed, First Lieutenant Jamal al-Khalidi said.

Another civilian was killed when a vehicle hit a roadside bomb north of Tikrit in northern Iraq, Lieutenant Numan Al Jubouri said. Ten more people were injured in the blast.

Recent months have seen frequent attacks by IS mili-tants on civilian targets and security personnel stationed in northern and eastern Iraq.

Last year, officials in Baghdad said IS military capacity had been all destroyed following a three-year conflict with the Iraqi army and a US-led military coalition.

Nevertheless, the group still maintains a limited presence in certain parts of the country, against which security forces still carry out frequent operations.

Lebanon govt formation ‘back to zero’: Official REUTERS

B E I R U T : L e b a n e s e Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri yesterday said the process of forming a government more than five months after a national election had returned “to zero”, after saying earlier this week there had been a “glimmer of hope”.

In the five months since the parliamentary election, there has been no sign of the concessions sought by Prime Minister-designate Saad Al Hariri that would enable the formation of a unity gov-ernment that can get to work on badly needed economic reforms. Politicians are warning that Lebanon faces an economic crisis.

The main sticking point in negotiations has been seen as how to satisfy the com-peting demands of Maronite Christian President Michel Aoun and his Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) on the one hand, and their Maronite rival Samir Geagea and his Leb-anese Forces party on the other.

On Friday the Christian parties clashed over how power should be divided in the government, casting doubt over Hariri’s prediction on Thursday that an agreement would be reached soon.

“We have gone back to zero,” Berri told Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar.

The spokesman for AK Party vowed that authorities would uncover the whereabouts of Khashoggi and the details of his disappearance through the investigation.

10 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018VIEWS

QUOTE OF THE DAY

I am hopeful that there will be

decisive progress in the next two weeks to conclude a Brexit deal but that there

is still more work to be done

Leo Varadkar Irish Prime Minister

Doha Metro project will provide a comprehensive and seamless transport experience for all visitors in the run up to FIFA 2022.

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK AL-SHAFI

editorinchief@pen.com.qa

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM MOHAMED

m.salim@pen.com.qa

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI

osman@pen.com.qa

ESTABLISHED IN 1996

EDITORIAL

World-class transport

Qatar Railways Company (Qatar Rail) is moving fast in providing integrated sustainable transport solu-tions. Qatar Rail announced last week that it was procuring 35 additional trains for the Doha Metro

project. Doha Metro is one of the fastest driverless trains in the world and will be the fastest in the region. It will be able to reach a speed of 100km per hour. The project is one of the most advanced transportation projects in the region.

With the additional procurement, the total number of trains serving the project will rise to 110. The trains will serve to increase the capacity of the metro system, espe-cially when Qatar hosts the FIFA World Cup 2022, which is expected to attract over a million visitors during the tournament. The trains will also serve the future expansion of the Doha Metro lines, which Qatar Rail intends to carry out after the implementation of Phase 1 of the metro project.

Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti said: “The Doha Metro project is one of the most important pillars of the comprehensive transport plan that we seek to achieve. The move will

enhance the metro networks capacity to transport a large number of individuals, which will in turn support the public transport network.”

The Secretary-General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, Hassan Al Thawadi, said that Qatar Rail’s projects would undoubtedly contribute to the provision of an exceptional experience for fans and visitors during the FIFA World Cup 2022. This project will not only facilitate their transport between sta-diums, places of residence and touristic sites, but it will also

provide them world-class services that will enrich their overall experience during this mega event. “Furthermore, this project is considered a crucial pillar that contributes to economic development in the state of Qatar, to meet the community needs, achieve long-term economic diversity and move towards accomplishing Qatar National Vision 2030,” he added.

Qatar Rail Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Eng. Abdulla Abdulaziz Al Subaie said that among the most important goals of the Doha Metro is to provide a rapid transport network with widespread coverage between cities. The increase in the number of trains serving the Doha Metro project will undoubtedly boost the net-works capacity and decrease time spent between trips.

Qatar Rail recently announced that the progress of Doha Metro Phase 1 Program now stands at approximately 90 percent. It said that the civil works are substantially completing at all stations.

The MEP and Architectural works are progressing at all stations and the official opening of the network will be in 2020. All in all, the Doha Metro project will provide a comprehensive and seamless transport experience for all visitors in the run up to FIFA 2022 and for citizens and residents alike in the future.

The successful tour of H H the Amir strengthens relations and opens wide horizons of cooperation with Ecuador, Peru, Paraguay and Argentina

H H the Amir’s talks with leaders of the four countries dealt with consolidating cooperation relations and the main regional and international issues.

Agreements and memoranda of understanding with the four countries in various fields.

An agreement, two memoranda of understanding and a joint declaration of intent with Ecuador to promote cooperation in the fields of the environment, economy, trade, youth and sports.

Agreements with Peru on cancelling of visa requirements for the holders of diplomatic and special passports and on co-operation between the ministries of foreign affairs and the ministries of interior in both countries.

Agreements and memoranda of understanding with Paraguay in several fields including air transport, culture, tourism, youth and sports.

Agreements and memoranda of understanding with Argentina on various fields including education, higher education, scientific research, sports, livestock and fisheries.

17

3

6

5

We praise the position of Ecuador on the just causes in the Middle East.

We confirm our keenness on promoting and developing our relations with Paraguay.

The Qatari-Argentinean relations are witnessing significant development, especially after the exchanged visits.

Qatar is passing through regional challenges, but it has become stronger with the grace of Allah and thanks to the steadfastness and strength of its society and friends.

H H the Amir:

President of Ecuador President of Peru President of Argentina

We applaud Qatar’s steadfast stance on the Palestinian issue and its handling of the Gulfcrisis.

Qatar and the Republic of Peru are linked by a series of agreements on economic, trade and technical cooperation, and in the legal field, education, scientific research and mining.

Qatar is capable of organizing a successful football world cup final in 2022.

A joint statement confirming the commitment of Qatar and Paraguay to join efforts to maintain world peace and security within the framework of the United Nations system as well as fight terrorism and associated crimes.

Joint communique by Qatar & Paraguay

steadfast on the iand itsg of

Republic of d by a series on

de and eration,

al field, entific ining.g.........

izing a ssful all world nal in

The current calls for justice and accountability for the victims of the Myanmar genocide — ongoing still — must go beyond conceiving justice in a narrow technical judicial sense and consider the tangible and pressing need of the Rohingya, including the sitting duck Rohingya inside Myanmar, those in camps in Bangladesh and those on the verge of deportation.

11SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 OPINION

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Is Scottish independencestill possible?

Five concrete measures can end Rohingya genocide

JAMIE MAXWELL

AL JAZEERA

DR. MAUNG ZARNI

ANATOLIA

This weekend, the pro-inde-pendence Scottish National Party (SNP) meets in Glasgow for its fall conference.

After more than a decade in power at Holyrood — Scotland’s devolved par-liament in Edinburgh — the party con-tinues to defy all the established rules of mainstream politics. It is still riding high in the polls; its leader, Nicola Sturgeon,

remains Scotland’s most commanding politician; and, in the event of a snap Westminster election, it would stand a good chance of reversing the losses it suffered last year at the hands of Labour and the Tories. However, in recent months, the remarkable durability of Scottish nationalism has come under increasing strain. The SNP faces two sig-nificant, even potentially critical, challenges.

The first relates to independence: Sturgeon has to decide whether or not to stage a second referendum on separation from the UK. The first, in September 2014, returned a close-run victory for the union. For a while, her plan was to hold “indyref2” shortly before Britain leaves the EU in the spring of next year, with the aim of rescuing Scotland’s membership of the European bloc.

But the rapid shift in favour of inde-pendence that Brexit was expected to

provoke among Scotland’s staunchly europhile electorate simply never materialised.

As a result, Sturgeon has been forced to reassess her strategy, leaving many nationalist campaigners waiting anx-iously for a poll that could be delayed for years — or, indeed, called at a moment’s notice. The second — and arguably more acute — problem for the SNP is the #MeToo controversy that currently sur-rounds Sturgeon’s predecessor, Alex Salmond. Over the summer, it emerged that two separate allegations of mis-conduct had been made against Salmond by Scottish government staff members dating back to his time as SNP leader and Scottish first minister.

Unhappy with the way the claims had been handled internally by civil servants, Salmond launched a dramatic legal action against his successor’s gov-ernment. He then abruptly quit the SNP and set up a crowd-funder to cover his legal costs which directly, and perhaps cynically, linked his fate to that of the Scottish independence movement as a whole.

The fallout from this decision has, to put it mildly, divided nationalist opinion. Some activists believe Salmond is trying to leverage his political clout in an attempt to intimidate his accusers, while others — including senior party figures — see him as the victim of an opaque anti-nationalist conspiracy; the crowd-funder raised $131,200 in three days before Salmond closed off donations. Sturgeon, whose working relationship with Salmond stretches back to the 1990s, has dealt with the issue as sensi-tively as possible. The complaints should not be “swept aside because of the identity of the person involved,” she said

at the outset of the crisis, in reference to her ex-boss, and the ongoing police investigation into Salmond’s conduct must be fair to “all parties concerned”.

Nonetheless, the SNP now finds itself in a deeply uncomfortable position: just as the UK government’s Brexit negotiations with the EU reach the breaking point and grassroots demands for a second independence referendum escalate, the party has been plunged into a bitter dispute over the behaviour of its “talismanic” former leader. Sturgeon is grappling with obstacles on the domestic policy front, too. Last month, one of her administration’s flagship edu-cation reforms — standardised testing for pupils in their first year of primary school — was defeated in parliament.

And a recent report into the eco-nomics of independence commissioned by the SNP and led by Andrew Wilson, a private sector lobbyist with close ties to the party leadership, came under heavy fire from the left for its putative com-mitment to spending constraints and fiscal discipline. All these factors have contributed to a growing sense of rest-lessness and inertia among supporters of Scottish independence.

In the absence of a clear roadmap to national sovereignty, the so-called “Yes” coalition that brought Scotland within touching distance of independence four years ago has retreated back into its respective ideological subgroups.

In particular, the gap between tradi-tional nationalists who view inde-pendence as key to the survival of Scottish cultural identity and left-wing activists who see it in more practical terms — as a constitutional mechanism for social and economic change — has never been more obvious or entrenched.

Rohingya campaigners and human rights organisations welcomed the UN Human Rights Council’s vote on Sep-

tember 27 to set up a body to conduct a further investigation and future indictment of Myanmar for atrocity crimes, including genocide. The reso-lution, co-sponsored by the Organi-zation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the European Union, was passed by a vote of 35-3 with seven absten-tions, with only China, the Philippines and Burundi opposing it.

The current calls for justice and accountability for the victims of the Myanmar genocide — ongoing still — must go beyond conceiving justice in a narrow technical judicial sense and consider the tangible and pressing need of the Rohingya, including the sitting duck Rohingya inside Myanmar, those in camps in Bang-ladesh and those on the verge of deportation in India.

While the International Criminal Court and/or other ad hoc interna-tional tribunals in the style of the tri-bunals on Yugoslavia and Rwanda would be a welcome step in the right direction, none of the international judicial processes will likely alter the genocidal conditions in which Rohingya have been forced to exist for several decades.

In light of this realpolitik, the UN system, particularly the Security Council, is the last place where the Rohingya will find any meaningful support for either realising their long-term needs for justice and closure (such as criminal prosecution of the perpetra-tors of genocide) or the immediate need for safety and pro-tection of the remaining Rohingya populations inside Myanmar and in the refugee camps in Bangladesh.

The UN officials and ostensibly pro-human rights members have

been urging the creation of “safe con-ditions” so that 1 million Rohingya in Bangladesh who fled Myanmar’s periodic waves of genocidal terror could return and rebuild their communities.

Bangladesh’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, has consistently called for safety — and even “a safe zone” or international protection, “if nec-essary” — for the Rohingya population in-side Myanmar. She has made this sensible call at the UN General Assembly for the past two years since the genocidal killings hit world news headlines in August 2017.

No one has heeded these essential calls while promising to throw more aid money at the symptom, namely “the Rohingya humanitarian crisis”.

Meanwhile, echoing US President Donald Trump, Aung San Suu Kyi’s man of the hour at the UN, Minister Kyaw Tint Swe of the Myanmar State Counsellor’s Office, rejected the World Court’s jurisdiction and dis-missed the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar and its 440-page genocide report as having “no hard evidence”.

The Burmese rejection of evidence is beyond belief in the face of the sat-ellite images of nearly 400 destroyed Rohingya villages, consistently accurate and credible oral testimonies of thousands of genocide survivors and numerous legal and academic studies as well as journalistic investi-gations that reach a single conclusion: it is genocide, no less, that Myanmar is committing.

So what then needs to be done?There are five concrete steps that

can be undertaken with the view towards justice, repatriation and rebuilding of Rohingya communities inside Myanmar.

First, there is emerging a network of state actors — governments, that is,

— which can establish something along the lines of “an international coalition of governments for ending Myanmar’s genocide”. Con-ceivably, Canada, Sweden, Ireland, Bangladesh, the Netherlands, the UK, certain Rohingya-concerned OIC member states (such as Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indo-nesia, Turkey, Kuwait etc.) and those from Latin and Central America with expe-rience in atrocity crimes at home can form the core of this coalition.

This coalition can, in a more focused manner, explore concrete ways, with the requisite condition of safety, to facilitate Rohingya’s return and the

rebuilding of their lives once they are in their places of origin inside Western Myanmar adjacent to Bang-ladesh’s borders.

The job of providing for the returning Rohingya or those who remain inside Myanmar cannot be left in the exclusive hands of UN agencies. Besides being toothless even to secure their own unhindered access to the crime sites of Rakhine from where 725,000 fled in a span of a few months, the “UN as a whole” has been called out by the Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar for its categorical failures to implement the organization’s “Rights First” policies.

Second, the coalition needs to start inter-state conversation about de-militarisation of northern Rakhine state, where the persecution has been institutionalised by Myanmar’s mil-itary for several decades.

Concretely, there needs to be established a de-militarised zone where Myanmar will be forced to engage in community policing designed to minimise and prevent petty criminality in the communities within its border region of Western Myanmar. In this respect, UN member states — 35 in total — who vot-ed in favor of the UN Human Rights Council resolution last week to establish an international body tasked with collecting evidence for a future international tribunal on Myanmar may likely join this interna-tional coalition.

Third, as part of the neighboring state, Bangladeshi troops across the border need to step up their security functions to ease Myanmar’s (un-war-ranted) fear of Islamist “penetration” into the Rohingya communities. That should not be a problem for Dhaka, which has come under heavy interna-tional criticism for its heavy-handed if effective handling of radicalisation and violence among Bangladeshi communities.

Fourth, individual nations that are prepared to be a part of this coalition can take uni-lateral actions designed to signal to Myanmar — and the world — that genocide is the red line that no fellow UN member will be allowed to cross.

As a matter of fact, Canada took an exemplary action when its par-liament unanimously declared Myanmar a genocidal state while its executive stripped, in an unprece-dented move, Aung San Suu Kyi of Canada’s highest honor — honorary Canadian citizenship.

More concretely, other nations in the coalition can review their ties — commercial, military, intelligence, educational, etc. — with the view towards using them as leverage or simply suspending them as a signal of

In the absence of a clear roadmap to national sovereignty, the so-called “Yes” coalition that brought Scotland within touching distance of independence four years ago has retreated back into its respective ideological subgroups.

condemnation of Myanmar’s heinous Rohingya policies. These nations of conscience need to, at the bare minimum, suspend, down-grade or outright cut diplo-matic relations if Myanmar doesn’t change its genocidal course. Specif-ically, the coalition members need to send Myanmar ambassadors, counsel generals and military attaches packing.

These measures have been proven effective in the past: when worldwide ostracism of South Africa and its apartheid regime took place, the racists in power were eventually forced to dis-mantle their savage political system.

Fifth and finally, on the eco-nomic front, the governments within the coalition should advise their national investors to either divest from the Myanmar market or not to invest in the country.

To be sure, a commercial boycott of Myanmar may not bring about the needed behavioral change on the part of the country’s leaders if only because investments from Myanmar’s neighbors such as China, Singapore, South Korea and Japan make up the country’s largest foreign direct investment.

But Western and Middle Eastern investors and markets still have sufficient global influence that the medium and long-term impact of such collective action by the coa-lition partners will affect foreign economic actors from the gen-ocide-bystanding or collaborating states such as India, Japan, Sin-gapore, South Korea and China.

The writer is coordinator for strategic affairs at the Free Rohingya Coalition and adviser to the European Center for the Study of Extremism, Cambridge, UK.

12 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

Gabon votes for first time since violence-marred 2016 polls AFP

LIBREVILLE: Oil-rich Gabon, ruled by the same political dynasty for nearly half a century, voted yesterday in long-delayed legislative and municipal polls, the first since a presidential election two years ago that was marred by deadly violence and allegations of fraud.

A divided opposition is unlikely to mount a successful challenge to President Ali Bongo’s ruling Gabonese Dem-ocratic Party (PDG), polls suggest.

His key rival, Jean Ping, is boycotting the election, but most other opposition groups entered the contest.

Bongo himself voted in Libreville where, like elsewhere in the country, the election appeared to be proceeding calmly under grey skies and light rain. “Like everyone in Gabon, I’ve just done my civic duty, and all I hope is that everything goes well,” the president said after casting his ballot.

An early voter, 53-year old shopkeeper Stanislas Bidoubi said he was backing an oppo-sition party. “I want change in my country,” he said.

Another voter, 34-year old

civil servant Rodrigue Taika, said he was backing the ruling party.

“I’m voting for the party in power because today there are reforms that are painful, but they are for the benefit of the popu-lation,” he said in reference to recent austerity measures.

Others, meanwhile, decided to stay away, some giving their reasons on social media. “I’m not going to vote because the elec-toral process is biased, the dice are loaded,” wrote Samy Maghoumbou, a teacher, on Whatsapp.

“We know in advance who will win, so there’s no point in pretending,” he said. Posters

dotted Libreville asking the country’s 680,000 voters to turn up to elect 143 new MPs as well as other local officials.

Turnout in Gabon elections is usually low, but queues outside Libreville stations pointed to lively voter interest in the capital.

“I’ve never missed an election,” said 52-year-old Rainatou Wagne. “Even if there’s cheating in every African election, as a Gabonese citizen I prefer to vote,” she said.

The controversial re-election of Bongo in August 2016 by just a few thousand votes led Ping to claim that victory had been stolen from him. Violence broke out and dozens of people were killed according to the oppo-sition, but the government says only four died. Ping’s head-quarters was bombed and the opposition also claimed that widespread human rights abuses were committed by armed militias that took to the streets.

Yesterday, some opposition candidates were pointing to alleged irregularities, saying that voting papers had gone missing, there had been attempts to buy votes, and their representatives had been denied access.

Political divisions run deep

in the equatorial African nation, ruled by Omar Bongo from 1967 until his death in 2009, when his son Ali took over.

And Gabon’s oil-dependent economy has been hit by falling crude prices. “I am not sure that this election will ease tensions

because since 2016, the country has been torn by a crisis that has divided families and changed the political scenario,” said political expert Wilson Andre Ndombet.

The opposition, which rallied around Ping in 2016, is now frac-tured, easing the way for the

ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) which, however, is also facing party in-fighting.

Ping, a veteran diplomat who once headed the African Union Commission and has held senior UN posts, was a stalwart in Omar Bongo’s government.

Gabon’s President Ali Bongo casts his ballot at a polling station in Libreville during the first round of the country’s legislative and municipal elections, yesterday.

Opposition forms coalition ahead of Cameroon’s presidential polls AFP

YAOUNDÉ: Two Cameroonian opposition parties agreed a coalition yesterday to jointly contest this weekend’s presi-dential polls, a spokesman said, in an effort to dislodge six-term President Paul Biya.

The announcement con-firms rumours of an opposition manoeuvre to try to defeat 85-year-old Biya at today’s polls, but the new union will not include the main opposition Social Democratic Front’s hopeful Joshua Osih.

Akere Muna, leader of the People’s Development Front (FDP) agreed to “withdraw his candidacy... and to support Maurice Kamto,” leader of the Movement for the Rebirth of Cameroon (MRC), Muna’s spokesman said in a statement.

Kamto’s party alleged earlier on Friday that a “massive fraud” was underway to ensure the sitting president wins a seventh

term. Maurice Kamto’s cam-paign chief Paul-Eric Kingue said efforts to rig Sunday’s ballot “had the blessing” of the elec-toral commission.

“We won’t accept any result if this kind of fraud continues,” he said at a media briefing by Kamto’s MRC in the capital Yaounde.

Cameroon’s authorities have long faced accusations of unfairly favouring Biya, one of Africa’s longest serving rulers who won 78 percent of votes in 2011’s polls which were described as “flawed” by observers and the opposition.

Cameroon will vote amid tight security including a ban on internal travel by road, rail and air from 1700 GMT on Saturday until the conclusion of voting.

The borders of the central African nation of 25 million people will also be sealed 48 hours ahead of voting day, according to a decree. Kamto’s MRC has alleged that polling

cards have been forged and that voter registration has continued despite the process being offi-cially closed. “In 62 percent of areas, the (ruling) Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement party is still adding names to the voter roll,” said Kingue.

“We’re not preparing for war, but wherever there is fraud, there will be a firm response.” Communication Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary said in a statement that “measures have been taken... to prevent any actions that might create vio-lence or disorder around the elections”.

He added that “political figures linked to foreign interests were preparing groups of agitators to stir-up violence in the event that the results don’t go their way”. The minister did not specify who he was referring to. The authorities would “not tolerate any disorder before, during or after the presidential vote,” he added.

Supporters of Joshua Osih, the candidate in the Cameroonian presidential election of the SDF (Social Democratic Front), an opposition party to the ruling party, pose for a photograph in front of the Stadium ‘Omnisport‘ in Yaounde during an election rally, yesterday.

Nigeria’s main parties to select candidates for presidential polls AFP

ABUJA: Nigeria’s two main political parties met yesterday to pick their nominees for pres-idential polls scheduled for February 2019, as political heavyweights jostle for position to challenge President Muhammadu Buhari who is seeking a second term.

Next year’s presidential race appears to have tightened in recent months with Buhari’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party hit by a wave of defections over the leadership style of the 75-year-old former military ruler.

Buhari, seen as an anti-cor-ruption crusader in graft-tainted Nigeria, is due to be endorsed at a meeting of his party, which swept to power in 2015 with the first opposition victory at the ballot box in Nigeria’s history.

But all eyes are on the dozen candidates who are vying to be nominated to challenge him from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the former ruling party.

Officials said at least 4,000 delegates from the 36 states and the capital Abuja were expected to vote at the PDP primaries in the oil hub of Port Harcourt, in the heartland of the Niger delta, in an event due to extend to Sunday. Barring any surprise, the candidate will come from the Muslim-majority north, fol-lowing an unwritten rule in Nigeria that the presidency should alternate every two terms between a candidate from the north and south.

The frontliners include former vice president Atiku Abubakar, who has made four previous attempts at the top job, Senate president Bukola Saraki,

governor of northern Sokoto state Aminu Tambuwal and Rabiu Kwankwaso, a former governor in northern Kano state. Chairman of convention planning committee Ifeanyi Okowa, who is governor of southern Delta state, said all 12 contenders were still in the running.

“We are expecting a very good convention, we are working very hard to deliver a process that is credible, free, fair and acceptable,” he said.

Port Harcourt streets were festooned with conference banners, while police said thou-sands of officers were being deployed to the event.

“Our warning to political thugs and other hoodlums is that they should stay away from the venue and even the entire state,” state police spokesman Nnamdi Omoni said. Buhari indicated in April that he planned to run for a second term. The retired general, who headed a military regime in the 1980s, has faced growing pressure to step down because of failing health after spending several months in London last year treating an undisclosed ailment.

Dubbed “Baba Go Slow” because he took six months to appoint cabinet ministers, he has also faced attacks for his handling of the economy, which plunged into recession in 2016.

He has also come under criticism on security issues, including the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast, long-running farmer-herder clashes in the centre and mili-tancy and kidnapping in the south. But he is standing unop-posed to run again at his party’s convention in Abuja yesterday.

Six cops deadin Burkina Faso blastAFP

OUAGADOUGOU: Six police officers were killed in an ambush with an improvised explosive device in the northern Burkina Faso town of Solle near the border with Mali, security sources said yesterday.

“A police convoy was ambushed in Solle” late on Friday, a security source said. “The leading vehicle ran over a mine and six were killed.” The convoy then came under gunfire and some more police were injured, the source said.

Another security source said that “at least” six police had died, adding that a search for the attackers was under way in the area. The attack came a day after six soldiers were killed in the east of the country in s imilar circumstances.

Burkina Faso has seen regular jihadist attacks since the start of 2015, expecially the north and east of the country. According to an official count published last month, such attacks have killed 118 people so far, 70 of whom were civilians.

At least 60 dead, 100 suffer burns in Congo tanker truck fireAGENCIES

KINSHASA: At least 60 people were killed yesterday and more than 100 had second-degree burns when a tanker truck in Congo collided with a bus and, as villagers rushed to collect the leaking fuel, caught fire, witnesses and officials said.

“We deplore the deaths,” the interim governor of Kongo-Central province, Atu Matu-buana, said. Officials were pre-paring to identify the charred bodies and bury them, Matu-buana said.

The accident occurred in the village of Mbuba, not far from Kisantu city and about 200km

southwest of the capital, Kin-shasa. Kisantu is on the main highway between the capital and the country’s Matadi seaport.

Photos posted online by a local journalist show some of the injured, their skin raw from burns, piled into the back of a pickup truck and squeezed

between people on a motorbike.Health officials have been

instructed to prepare local hos-pitals to “do everything nec-essary” to treat all of the victims, the interim governor said.

The UN peacekeeping mission in Congo said it had offered the government assistance for the injured, with

nine ambulances en route to Kisantu to help with medical evacuations.

In 2010, more than 200 people were killed when a tanker truck overturned and burned in Congo’s South Kivu province. Many of the victims had been trying to collect the leaking fuel when it caught fire.

Zimbabwe puts national airline under administrationREUTERS

HARARE: Zimbabwe has appointed an independent administrator to run its loss-making national airline to try and revive its fortunes, according to an official notice.

Air Zimbabwe has been struggling with a $300m debt, including to foreign creditors. Only three of its planes are operational, with another three grounded, which has forced it to abandon interna-tional routes.

Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi appointed Harare-based chartered accountant Reggie Saruchera as admin-istrator with powers to “raise money in any way without the authority of shareholders for the purposes of the recon-struction,” according to a gov-ernment gazette.

Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said the government was hoping to sell stakes in Air Zimbabwe.

Yesterday, some opposition candidates were pointing to alleged irregularities, saying that voting papers had gone missing, there had been attempts to buy votes, and their representatives had been denied access.

13SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 ASIA

Schedule for Assembly pollsin five states announcedIANS

NEW DELHI: Setting the stage for the high-stakes battle between the BJP and the Congress in at least in three states ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year, the Election Commission yesterday announced the schedule for Assembly elections in five states, including Telangana, between November 12 and December 7.

Counting of votes in all the states will be done on December 11, Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat said announcing the schedule at a press conference here.

Voting will be held in a single phase in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram and Rajasthan and Telangana on November 28 and December 7 respectively while Chhattisgarh will have a two-phased elections on November 12 and 20 as the The BJP and the Congress will face head on in Madhya Pradesh (230 seats), Rajasthan (200) and Chattisgarh (90), where the saffron is in power while in Tel-angana (119) the ruling TRS is seeking a second term. In Mizoram (40) Congress is the ruling party.

The BJP is in power in Madhya Pradesh and Chhat-tisgarh for three consecutive terms while in Rajasthan power alternates between the two parties every election.

The Model Code of Conduct comes into force with imme-diate effect in four states while in Telangana it was in force from the date of dissolution of the Assembly last month.

In Chhattisgarh, where the Commission decided to go for two phases in view of the maoists problem, voting will be

held in the most affected areas of the 18 constituencies in the southern part on November 12 and in the remaining 72 seats, voting will take place on November 20.

Notification for the first phase will be issued on October 16 and the last date for nomina-tions would be October 23. Scrutiny will take place next day and the last date for the with-drawal of the nominations will be October 26.

The notification for the elec-tions in the rest of the 72 con-stituencies in the second phase would be issued on October 26, while the last day for nomina-tions would be November 2.

Scrutiny will be done on November 3 and the last date for the withdrawal of the nomina-tions will be November 5. The tenure of the Chhattisgarh Assembly comes to an end on January 5, 2019.

In Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram, the notification will be issued on November 2 while

the last date for nominations would be November 9. Scrutiny will be done on November 12 and last date of withdrawal will be November 14.

While the term of the Assembly in Madhya Pradesh expires on January 7, the tenure 40-member Assembly in Mizoram expires on December 15.

In Rajasthan and Telangana, which will go to the polls in a single phase on December 7, the notifiacation will be issued on November 12 and the last date for filing nominations will be November 19. Scrutiny will take place on November 20 while the last date for withdrawal of nom-inations will be November 22. The term of the Rajasthan Assembly expires on January 20, 2019.

Telangana Chief Minister and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader K. Chandrasekhar Rao dissolved the house last month — nearly nine months before its term was to end.

Asked about the criticism over rescheduling the time of the press conference from 12.30pm to 3pm and that it was done under pressure from Prime Minister to accommodate his election rally in Ajmer in Rajasthan, Rawat said there was no pressure from anywhere.

“There would not have been a delay of two-three hours but for the problem relating to elec-toral rolls in Telangana,” he said and added parties were free to complain to the Commission if somebody got a concession.

“It is the duty of the Com-mission to satisfy all the stake-holders. We will hold free, fair and credible elections which is our commitment and com-pulsion,” he said.

Indian Air Force paratroopers from the Akash Ganga team glide in to land during full dress rehearsal for the Air Force Day parade at the Air Force Station Hindon in Ghaziabad town on the outskirts of New Delhi, yesterday. The Indian Air Force will be celebrating its 86th anniversary tomorrow.

Air Force Day parade rehearsal

Cong attacks EC; Rawat says no pressureIANS

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission yesterday rejected the Congress allegation that it had rescheduled the press conference to declare the poll schedule in five states under “pressure” from the Prime Minister to accommodate his election rally in Ajmer in Rajasthan.

As the Commission came under attack, Chief Election Election Commissioner O P Rawat suo motu, in his press conference, referred to the delay in the media interaction and said technical experts of the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) informed the Commission in the morning that there were some technical

problems relating to electoral roll of one state and they needed more time to solve it.

He also mentioned the pending plea in the Hyderabad High Court and the Friday order of the court directing the Com-mission to show the final electoral rolls of Telangana to the bench on October 8, the next date fixed for hearing, before releasing it.

The CEC also said that Chief secretary of Tamil Nadu requested the Commission not to announce the schedule for by elections to two Assembly seats in the state as there is forecast of cyclone and rain. “All this things made us to change eve-rything,” he said.

Later during the question-answer session, Rawat was sked

about the criticism over resched-uling the time of the press con-ference from 12.30pm to 3pm and that it was done under pressure from Prime Minister to accommodate his election rally in Ajmer in Rajasthan.

He replied said there was no pressure from anywhere. “There would not have been a delay of two-three hours but for the problem relating to electoral rolls in Telangana,” he said and added parties were free to com-plain to the Commission if somebody got a concession.

“It is the duty of the Com-mission to satisfy all the stake-holders. We will hold free, fair and credible elections which is our commitment and com-pulsion,” he said.

Karnataka driver taken off duty for allowing monkey to steer busIANS

BENGALURU: A bus driver of the state road transport service has been taken off duty for allegedly allowing a monkey to steer its wheel in Karnataka’s Davangere district, an official said yesterday.

“Driver M Prakash, 36, who was at the wheel has been taken off duty for allowing the monkey to sit on the steering and handle it,” Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) spokesperson T S Latha said.

The incident occurred on October 1 when the bus was on a regular trip from Dav-angere to Halekall in the same district, about 30km away.

“An inquiry is being con-ducted into the incident. As safety of passengers is para-mount, a driver cannot risk the life of passengers by allowing a monkey to sit on the steering and handle it.” The monkey got into the bus along with a passenger, a school teacher, who boarded at Bettur Halla village en-route and sat along with him on the left seat before jumping onto the steering wheel.

About 30 passengers were on-board the bus when the incident occurred. “We learnt about the incident through social media on the next day (October 2) after a video clip showing Prakash and the monkey at the steering went viral on WhatsApp,” said Latha.

As October 2 was a public holiday in view of Gandhi Jayanti, the bus depot manager removed Prakash from duty on October 3 after seeing the video clip.

Opposition alliances to be formed state by state: CongressIANS

KOLKATA: The Congress yesterday said the alliances of different opposition parties will have to be formed state by state with the objective to remove the Narendra Modi government which is “at war with its own people” and the opposition will not crumble under the contra-dictions among the various parties.

“The alliances if they have to be formed will have to be formed state by state. There are states where the Congress is strong. There are states where perhaps we don’t even need to enter into

alliance. But there are states where the Congress is not so strong and so we will have to play a secondary role,” Congress Chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said at the India Today Conclave-East here.

He said the country and its people are “under attack today by a person and a party, who are ruling the nation”.

“This must be the first case of its kind when the people of the country are under attack by their government and Prime Minister,” he said.

Speaking on the possibility of a grand alliance of the oppo-sition, he said there would

always be competing claims by the different political parties in the states for political space.

“There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. To say that this is such an inherent contradiction that the entire force of oppo-sition will crumble under it, is perhaps wrong,” Surjewala said.

“We have, today, a gov-ernment which is at war with its own people. When a government is at war with its own people, does the responsibility lie upon the different political parties, while protecting their political space, to come together on an ideological platform to walk hand in hand to protect the ethos

of this country. Sometimes, it will happen pre-poll or post-poll,” he said.

Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Fuad Halim, however, said the coming together of the opposition will be “underlined by the concrete realities because the Left is fighting against the Congress in Kerala”.

“But don’t be disheartened. On the question of Modi, we will override because people are fed up with him. Secular forces, based on a concrete under-standing of how to dislodge the government at the centre, will definitely evolve,” he said.

Trinamool Congress MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said the Modi-led government and its people, which have unleashed a reign of terror and fear in the country, are the principal enemy of her party.

Pooh-poohing Surjewala’s claim, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said there will be “surprise results” in the upcoming general elections from the eastern states and the saffron party would do well.

Given the contradictions among the opposition parties, Sarma projected that the BJP might win even 400 seats.

Activists of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee shout slogans during a protest against the Rafale fighter jet deal, in Guwahati, yesterday. Former French president Francois Hollande has fuelled controversy over India’s multi-billion-dollar 2016 purchase of 36 Rafale fighter jets, saying that France was given no choice on the Indian partner for manufacturer Dassault.

Protest against Rafale deal

Bail granted to Rabri and Tejashwi YadavIANS

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court yesterday granted bail to former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi, her son Tejashwi Yadav and others in a money laundering case related to the 2006 IRCTC hotels maintenance contract.

Special Judge Arun Bhardawaj while granting bail to the accused, who were present in the court room, asked them to furnish a personal and surety bond of Rs1 lakh each.

Rabri Devi and Tejashwi Yadav appeared before the court in pursuance of summons issued against them last month. The court listed the matter for further hearing on November 19.

The case relates to alleged irregularities in the allotment of contracts of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) hotels in Ranchi and Puri in 2006 to a private firm, for which

a three-acre commercial plot at a prime location in Patna district was given as a bribe.

Former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad who failed to appear before the court on Saturday will appear before the court via video-conferencing on the next date fixed for hearing.

The Enforcement Direc-torate (ED) filed a charge sheet in August and had named Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, son Tejashwi, his party colleague P C Gupta and his wife Sarla Gupta, firm Lara Projects and 10 others as accused in the IRCTC hotels tender case.

All of them are booked under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The Central Bureau of Investigation in April filed the charge sheet in the IRCTC hotels maintenance contract case against 12 persons and two companies.

Voting will be held in a single phase in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram and Rajasthan and Telangana on November 28 and December 7 respectively while Chhattisgarh will have a two-phased elections on November 12 and 20. Counting of votes in all the states will be done on December 11.

14 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018ASIA

Pakistan to take ‘correctivesteps proposed by IMF’INTERNEWS

ISLAMABAD: The government of Pakistan said yesterday it was ready to take ‘further corrective measures’ proposed by the Inter-national Monetary Fund (IMF) to restore economic stability and inclusive growth, apparently setting the pitch for a coming bailout package from the fund.

After recently concluding a week-long dialogue with the Pakistani authorities, a visiting IMF mission has welcomed measures taken by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) gov-ernment like currency depreci-ation, hike in interest rate as well as gas and electricity tariffs and fiscal tightening, but said these were “not sufficient”.

The IMF staff team stressed the need for a decisive policy action on further exchange flex-ibility and tightening of fiscal and monetary policies along with structural reforms and “further increase in gas and power tariffs” to address the difficult economic situation Pakistan is facing, with high fiscal and current account deficits and low foreign exchange reserves.

After the departure of the fund mission, the ministry of finance said it largely shared this assessment and was “committed to take further corrective measures to restore stability and inclusive growth”.

Informed sources said in its wrap-up meeting with Finance Minister Asad Umar, the IMF mission was of the view that electricity and gas tariffs should fully meet the costs recoveries to enable the power companies

to simultaneously use additional funds for efficiency gains.

They also indicated to the government that based on eco-nomic fundamentals a new fund programme might require a full free float of the exchange rate and the policy rate in double digits.

The fund was also not sat-isfied with the outcome of the revenue measures introduced in the supplementary budget to deliver on revised targets along with insufficient provincial finances to meet fiscal deficit target of 5.1 percent.

Therefore, the fund expects the government to take “tough economic decisions”, including additional stability measures like revenue generation and utility price hikes.

The sources said the major problem with the government was the selection of timing for a formal request for an IMF support and it appeared the

formal request had been delayed until the end of this month.

They said Prime Minister Imran Khan was showing reluc-tance to seek an IMF pro-gramme during his first 100 days in office and the least before the October 14 by-elec-tions because his political cam-paign had been based on getting rid of begging bowl.

Most of the PM’s economic advisers, including the finance minister and the advisers on commerce and industries and government reforms, because of their traditional economic background, had a different point of view.

They insisted that the country required a fund pro-gramme more for credibility than funding requirement to ensure smooth flows from multilateral lending agencies like the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and other bilateral lenders.

Not only the lenders but the rating agencies treat IMF umbrella as a key factor in their decision making, ultimately reducing the cost of borrowing from bilateral, multilateral or capital market bond holders.

An official said some people close to the prime minister believed that the IMF pro-gramme would compromise the government’s ability to introduce policies envisioned in the PTI manifesto and hence it’s standing among the people.

Therefore, the funding requirements should be met from friendly nations and through bringing home foreign wealth of Pakistani nationals.

Hamza Shehbaz waves to supporters during the case hearing of his father and opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif in the corruption court in Lahore, yesterday.

Shehbaz Sharif jailed for 10 daysREUTERS

LAHORE: Pakistani opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif was ordered jailed yesterday for 10 days after being arrested in a corruption case, his lawyer said, meaning he will not be able to campaign for his party ahead of crucial by-elections next week.

Sharif is the younger brother of ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was sentenced earlier this year to 10 years in prison by an anti-corruption court after the Supreme Court removed him from power.

Friday’s arrest of Shehbaz Sharif by agents of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in Lahore involved a case of alleged corruption in a low-cost housing scheme when Sharif was chief minister of Punjab province.

A NAB court yeserday heard charges that Sharif in 2014 ille-gally cancelled a contract with a construction company and sought to award it to another company, allegedly for a bribe.

The court ordered him remanded in custody for 10 days to be interrogated, his lawyer Azam Nazir Tarar said.

Hundreds of activists from Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz gathered outside the court, chanting pro-Sharif slogans as police and army Rangers guarded the venue.

Sharif denies any wrong-doing, and his brother has denounced corruption cases against him and other party leaders as politically motivated.

Lawyer Tarar said that Sharif was improperly arrested on a warrant that was kept secret.

Sharif went to the court for ques-tioning in another corruption case involving a water purification scheme but instead was arrested on the housing project warrant.

“They cannot arrest the leader of the opposition in this manner,” the lawyer said.

Ex-premier Nawaz Sharif was arrested 10 days before the July 25 general election, which was won by cricket star turned politician Imran Khan, who now leads the new government. He was released from prison last month pending an appeal.

The Sharifs’ Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz came in second place in the general election. Their party denounced the polls as rigged, alleging the military and courts tipped the scale in favour of Khan’s party, a charge the army and judiciary deny.

Bomb blastsclaim lives oftwo Afghan security forcesAP

KABUL: At least two Afghan security forces were killed yesterday in Taliban attacks in the capital Kabul, officials said.

Basir Mujahid, spokesman for Kabul’s police chief, said that nine others, including six police officers and three civilians, were wounded in the bomb blasts.

Mujahid said a roadside bomb hit a military vehicle as police arrived to respond to an insurgent attack, then a second blast took place in the same area causing casualties.

The city’s district police chief was among the wounded, he said.

Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Elsewhere, in the western Ghor province, eleven people, including seven civilians and four police officers, were killed after security forces raided a village to arrest a militia commander, said Abdul Hai Khateby, spokesman for the provincial governor.

According to Khateby, security forces were tracking down the local commander known as Alipoor, who is accused of criminal activities in the Lal wa Sarjangal dis-trict. His gunmen battled with security forces causing casu-alties, he added.

Alipoor belongs to the ethnic Hazara minority, and his supporters in Ghor and elsewhere, including the central Bamyan province, protested the raid conducted by the security forces.

Khateby said security forces are in control of the area but still hunting down the commander who was able to flee the village.

Afghan forces, Taliban battle for control of Ghazni highwaysREUTERS

KABUL: Heavily armed Taliban fighters destroyed bridges near the central city of Ghazni yesterday, closing the main highway between the capital Kabul and southern Afghanistan, officials said.

Sporadic clashes erupted between Afghan soldiers and Taliban insurgents who were trying to gain control over parts of Ghazni province nearly two months after being pushed back

from the city by US-backed Afghan forces, officials added.

Mohammad Arif Noori, the governor’s spokesman in Ghazni, said fighting was ongoing and the Afghan army had deployed helicopters to prevent the mili-tants from entering the city centre.

“We are fully prepared to attack them. This time the province will not fall into the hands of the Taliban,” Noori said.

Five militants were killed as they were planting bombs on

three bridges on the Kabul-Kan-dahar highway, Noori added.

The attack on Ghazni was a show of strength for the Taliban, underscoring how volatile the security situation remains two weeks before the parliamentary elections.

Polling has already been called off in Ghazni province after the Taliban overran it in August and besieged the city for five days.

That confrontation killed 150 Afghan security forces and 95

civilians dead, as well as hun-dreds of Taliban fighters, said officials then.

President Ashraf Ghani’s Western-backed government pledged $20m for relief and reconstruction of Ghazni after security forces defeated the Taliban fighters in that battle.

Afghan forces said on Sat-urday they were also fighting Taliban insurgents to retake a highway linking Ghazni and Paktia provinces. The Taliban took control of the arterial road

in August and had imposed a tolls on civilians using the highway.

Rohullah Khalil Ughlo, an Afghan army commander, said 22 Taliban insurgents were killed and 17 were wounded in clashes to secure the highway.

Meanwhile, residents of Qarabagh district, 55km south of Ghazni city, said the militants had set up checkpoints and were preventing vehicles from passing through several resi-dential areas.

China tight-lipped on missing Interpol chiefAFP

BEIJING: China remained silent yesterday over the disap-pearance of the head of Interpol, deepening the mystery over the international police chief’s fate after reports said he was detained for questioning on arrival in his homeland.

Meng Hongwei, 64, was last seen leaving for China in late September from the Interpol headquarters in Lyon, southeast France, a source close to the enquiry said. His wife has since reported him missing.

It is the latest high-profile disappearance in China, where a number of top government officials, billionaire business magnates and even an A-list celebrity have vanished for weeks or months at a time.

Beijing has so far said nothing on Meng’s case. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to a request for comment.

But news of his absence was swiftly followed by spec-ulation that Meng — who also serves as a vice-minister of China’s Ministry of Public

Security — had been swept up in Beijing’s secretive anti-cor-ruption campaign.

Citing an anonymous source, the South China Morning Post said authorities from the country’s disciplinary commission had snatched Meng upon arrival in Beijing.

China’s recently established National Supervisory Com-mission holds sweeping powers to investigate the country’s public servants with few requirements for transparency.

While the law requires authorities to inform family members of a detention, it makes exceptions for cases involving national security, ter-rorism, or concerns over destruction of evidence or witness tampering.

People have been known to disappear into the commis-sion’s custody for weeks or even months without a word.

Interpol has also kept quiet on Meng’s whereabouts.

“This is a matter for the rel-evant authorities in both France and China,” the police agency said on Twitter, adding it would make no further comment.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party Chairperson Khaleda Zia (centre) looks on as she is escorted to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University in Dhaka, yesterday.

Jailed former Bangladesh PM moved to hospitalAFP

DHAKA: Jailed Bangladesh opposition leader Khaleda Zia was admitted to hospital in Dhaka yesterday, an official said, following a court order in response to her deteriorating health.

Former prime minister Zia, 73, was taken from the aban-doned 19th-century prison

where she is serving her sen-tence to a top medical university clinic in the heart of the capital.

“She has been admitted to the BSMMU (Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical Uni-versity) hospital,” Director of the clinic Brigadier General Abdullah Al Harun said.

Al Harun said a medical board comprising specialist doctors has been constituted.

Her transfer to the hospital came just days after the coun-try’s High Court ordered imme-diate hospital treatment for Zia after her lawyers said the gov-ernment was putting her health at risk by refusing her spe-cialised care.

Zia — who leads the Bang-ladesh Nationalist Party — was jailed in February for corruption.

After recently concluding a week-long dialogue with the Pakistani authorities, a visiting IMF mission has welcomed measures taken by the government such as currency depreciation, hike in interest rate as well as gas and electricity tariffs and fiscal tightening, but said these were “not sufficient”.

15SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 ASIA

Pompeo seeks unity on N Korea denuke effortAP

TOKYO: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pledged yesterday that the Trump administration’s effort to get North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons would be fully coordinated with allies Japan and South Korea, as he prepared to travel to Pyongyang under pressure to produce tangible progress toward that goal.

Pompeo met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on the eve of his fourth visit to North Korea, during which he’ll be looking to arrange a second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and plot a path forward on denucleari-zation. Japan, notably, has been wary of Trump’s initiative, fearing it could affect its long-standing security relationship with the US

Pompeo told Abe that it is important for him to hear from the Japanese leader “so we have a fully coordinated and unified view” and vowed to raise the cases of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea when he sees Kim and officials in Pyongyang today. Pompeo will

then travel to South Korea and China to review the negotiations.

“It is important for us to hear from you as I travel to Pyongyang to make sure that we are fully in sync with respect to missile pro-grams, (chemical and biological weapons) programs,” Pompeo told Abe.

“We will bring up the issue of the abductees as well and then we will share with you how we hope to proceed when we are in Pyongyang tomorrow.” Pom-peo’s diplomatic offensive comes as Trump presses to meet with Kim for a second time after their

June summit in Singapore pro-duced a vague agreement on denuclearization with few, if any, specifics. Despite the historic meeting, the two sides are dead-locked over how to achieve that goal and Trump cancelled Pom-peo’s initial planned return to North Korea last month.

In contrast with South Korea, whose President Moon Jae-in has been at the forefront of encour-aging Trump’s rapprochement with the North, Japan has been decidedly cautious, insisting that its interests and concerns be addressed.

Abe did not speak of differ-ences but highlighted the impor-tance of demonstrating to the world that the US-Japan alliance is “more robust than ever” and stressing the importance of “thorough coordination” with Washington on all aspects of North Korea policy.

Pompeo has repeatedly refused to discuss details of negotiations, including a US position on North Korea’s demand for a declared end to the Korean War and a proposal from Seoul for such a declaration to be accompanied by a shutdown of its main known nuclear facility.

Speaking aboard his plane on Friday, Pompeo said his mission was to “make sure that we understand what each side is truly trying to achieve... and how we can deliver against the com-mitments that were made” in

Singapore. He said they would develop options, if not finalise, the location and timing of a second Trump-Kim summit.

He has also distanced himself from an earlier stated goal of achieving North Korea’s nuclear

weapons abandonment by the end of Trump’s term in January 2021. Since the effort got underway with a secret visit to the North by then-CIA chief Pompeo in April, there has been only limited progress.

Pompeo told Abe that it is important for him to hear from the Japanese leader “so we have a fully coordinated and unified view” and vowed to raise the cases of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea when he sees Kim and officials in Pyongyang today.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (left) listens to Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Abe’s office in Tokyo, yesterday.

Seven foreigners among 8 militants held in Malaysia AP

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian police said yesterday that eight suspected militants, including seven foreigners, have been arrested for allegedly spreading religious extremism that could threaten national security and fan terrorism in the region.

National police chief Mohamad Fuzi Harun said the suspects are connected with a

school in Yemen. He said the for-eigners, aged between 24 and 38, include five people from a country in Europe, one from the Americas and one from the Middle East.

Fuzi said the September 24 arrests came after police received intelligence about attempts by a Yemen-based terror group to set up a school in Southeast Asia to promote their ideology, which is shared by

groups including the Islamic State. He said all eight are linked to a learning centre in northern Perlis state that has ties with the Yemen school, but didn’t give details of the Malaysian centre. He said initial investigations showed the eight rejected democracy and have extreme beliefs.

Six of them, students of the Perlis centre, were detained in the state and believed to have

ties with either the Islamic State terror group or extremist cells in their country, Fuzi said. The Middle Eastern man, a former teacher at the Perlis center, was picked up in Kuala Lumpur for conducting unlawful classes, he said.

A Malaysian businessman, a former student of the Perlis centre who wants to promote their ideology in Malaysia, was held in southern Johor state, he

said. Fuzi said this wasn’t the first time that suspected militants have tried to spread their teachings in Malaysia. In 1985, two leaders of the Jemaah Islamiyah radical group set up schools in two Malaysian states and recruit new members but authorities managed to put a stop to it, he said. Malaysia has been battling to curb the influence of militant cells linked to the Islamic State.

Japanese Ground Home Defence Forces disembark from their amphibious assault vehicles during an amphibious landing exercise at the beach of the Philippine navy training centre at San Antonio town, Zambales province, in the Philippines yesterday.

Japan military joins historic drills with Philippines & US AFP

SAN ANTONIO, PHILIPPINES: Japanese troops stormed a beach in the Philippines yesterday in joint exercises with US and Filipino troops that offi-cials said marked the first time Tokyo’s armoured vehicles rolled on foreign soil since World War II.

The small Japanese con-tingent played a humanitarian support role in the drill after US and Filipino marines made an amphibious landing to retake Philippine territory from a “ter-rorist” group.

Fifty unarmed Japanese sol-diers in camouflage marched behind their four armoured vehicles and picked up Filipino and American troops playing the role of wounded combatants while moving inland over sand and sparse bushland.

The exercise, codenamed Kamandag (Venom), marked the first time Japanese armoured military vehicles were used on foreign soil since the country adopted a pacifist constitution after its 1945 defeat, said Japan’s Major Koki Inoue.

“Our purpose is to improve our operational capability and this is a very good opportunity for us to improve our humani-tarian assistance and disaster relief training,” Inoue said, adding Japan was not involved in the drill’s combat component. The exercise was held at a Phil-ippine navy base facing the South China Sea some 250km from the Scarborough Shoal, a territory claimed by Manila that was seized by China during a 2012 naval stand-off.

The Philippines has since ramped up military cooperation with Washington, its long-time

ally, and also held joint naval exercises with Japan near Scar-borough Shoal in 2015.

Japan has its own maritime territorial dispute with Beijing in the East China Sea.

The US military stressed that Saturday’s exercise was not aimed at China, which has also built artificial islands on dis-puted areas of the South China Sea and installed military facil-ities on them.

“It has nothing to do with a foreign nation or any sort of foreign army. This is exclusively counter-terrorism within the Philippines,” US Marine com-munications officer First Lieu-tenant Zack Doherty told AFP.

About 150 US, Filipino and Japanese troops took part in Sat-urday’s landing, Doherty added.

This year’s 10-day Kamandag exercises will finish on Wednesday.

Indonesia mulls leaving quake-flattened villages as mass gravesAFP

PALU, INDONESIA: More bodies were unearthed from the earthquake-and-tsunami-ravaged Indonesian city of Palu yesterday, as authorities move closer to calling off the search for the dead trapped under flat-tened communities and declaring them mass graves.

Officials said yesterday the death toll had climbed to 1,649 with more than a thousand feared still missing in the seaside city on Sulawesi island.

But hopes of finding anyone alive a full eight days later have all but faded, as the search for survivors morphs into a grim gathering of the dead.

At the massive Balaroa gov-ernment housing complex, where the sheer force of the quake turned the earth tempo-rarily to mush, soldiers wearing masks to ward off the stench of death clambered over the giant mounds of mud, brick and

cement. Vast numbers of decomposing bodies could still be buried beneath this once-thriving neighbourhood, the search and rescue agency said.

Two soldiers who are part of the search emerged from a ditch with a body bag sagging in the middle but looking too light to be a corpse — they said they had found the heads of two adults and one child.

“There are no survivors here. We just find bodies, every day,” said Sergeant Sya-faruddin, from an army unit in Makassar south of Palu, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.

At the flattened Hotel Roa-Roa — where early optimism that survivors might be found faded as the days wore on — rescuers reviewed CCTV footage to get a sense of where the doomed guests could be buried.

The search for survivors has not officially been called off.

Aid rolls into Indonesian disaster cityAP

PALU, INDONESIA: More inter-national aid arrived and human-itarian workers fanned out in the countryside, yesterday

A Japanese Self Defence Force plane landed at Palu’s airport yesterday morning. Sol-diers unloaded tonnes of sup-plies including medicine and small portable generators in boxes emblazoned with the Jap-anese flag and the words “From

the People of Japan.” Several other nations have also sent planes.

In the dusty one-road village of Pewunu, excited children shouted “Red Cross! Red Cross!” as one of the aid group’s medical teams arrived and set up a makeshift clinic in a field where evacuees were sleeping under tarps. One villager said they sur-vived by ransacking shops.

Volunteers laid out a big white tarp on a stage in front of

the village office, plonked a green desk on it, and inter-viewed people about their needs as dozens milled around.

In a rare move, Indonesia’s government appealed for inter-national help to cope with the tragedy unfolding on Sulawesi island.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human-itarian Affairs says $50.5m is required to deliver “immediate, life-saving” aid.

Tokyo’s Tsukiji fish market holds last auctionREUTERS

TOKYO: Tokyo’s famed Tsukiji market, the world’s largest fish market and a major tourist attraction, held its final tuna auction yesterday before a contro-versial move to a new site next week.

Hundreds of fishmongers are packing up and preparing to leave Tsukiji for a gleaming new $5bn market set to open on Thursday on reclaimed land farther from central Tokyo.

The most expensive fish — a 162kg tuna sold for 4.3m yen at the early morning auction, Kyodo News said. Business at Tsukiji officially ended at noon.

“I am very grateful and happy that we could have continued business smoothly all these years until today. I would like to thank Tsukiji from the bottom of my heart,” Hiroyasu Itoh, Chairman of the Seafood Wholesalers’ Association, told reporters.

The 83-year-old Tsukiji market drew tens of thou-sands of visitors a year to its warren of stalls with exotic species of fish and fresh sushi. But it had become dilapidated and unsanitary, city officials said in planning the move to a new site in Toyosu, a man-made island in Tokyo Bay.

A survey taken by a group opposed to the relocation found that more than 80 percent of Tsukiji fish traders were against the move to Toyosu.

The old Tsukiji site will provide temporary parking for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and eventually become a tourist centre.

16 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018EUROPE

EU chief optimistic about Brexit dealREUTERS

VIENNA: The European Union will reach a deal with Britain on Brexit in November if it does not do so this month, European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker (pictured) told Austrian newspapers.

Juncker, whose optimism was echoed in comments yes-terday by European Council President Donald Tusk, said that the potential for a rap-prochement had grown in the last few days, confirming what diplomatic sources have told Reuters.

EU Brexit negotiators believe a deal with Britain on leaving the bloc is “very close”, the sources said, in a sign a compromise on the most contentious issue — the future Irish border — might be in the making, although details were scarce.

“We are not there yet. But our will to reach an

understanding with the British government is unbroken,” Juncker was quoted as saying by Der Standard and Kurier and Der Falter.

On Friday, EU Brexit negoti-ators told ambassadors of the 27 states remaining in the bloc that there was no breakthrough on the Irish issue and much would depend on what their British counterparts bring to Brussels next week.

“We have to get away from

this no-deal scenario. It wouldn’t be good for Britain or for the rest of the (European) Union,” Juncker was quoted as saying.

Britain and the EU are trying to push for the divorce deal, as well as an agreement on post-Brexit relations, in time for two leaders’ summits scheduled for October 17 to 18 and November 17 to 18.

“My assumption is that we will reach an accord which will achieve the conditions of the

withdrawal treaty,” Juncker said, adding that it was not possible to predict whether there will be a conclusion to the Brexit nego-tiations in October.

“If not, then we will do it in November.”

Tusk also said it was possible to agree a deal with Britain on leaving the European Union by the end of 2018.

“I have hope close to cer-tainty that we will manage to reach an agreement both on exit and on best possible future rela-tions ... I hope that it will be pos-sible to avoid major losses on both sides,” he said on the side-lines of a conference in Krakow, Poland.

“We will try for it in October ... and I think there is a chance to have an accord by the end of the year,” he added.

Juncker told the Austrian papers that a political decla-ration on future relations between Britain and its former

European partners was needed to accompany the Brexit deal.

“You can’t absolutely keep separate the withdrawal treaty and the declaration of the future relationship between the United Kingdom and Europe,” he said.

Apart from Brexit, one of the biggest headaches facing European Union leaders is the approach of Italy’s new gov-ernment to its public finances.

Asked about Italy’s recent budget plans, Juncker said it was up to Italian policymakers to find rules and measures that will allow Italy to remain within agreed budgetary targets.

“We will assess the Italian budget ... and propose changes if necessary,” he added.

The Italian government this week unveiled the core of its expansionary multi-year budget plan, raising the target for the fiscal deficit to 2.4 percent of gross domestic product in 2019.

Merkel backs ally for top EU jobBLOOMBERG

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel voiced her full support for Manfred Weber, head of the Christian Demo-crats in the European Parliament, to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker as commission president after European elec-tions in May.

At the same time, she called on the CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the CSU, to overcome internal divisions before decisive state elections in Bavaria and Hesse later this month.

Manfred Weber “has the chance to become commission president,” Merkel said yes-terday at a convention of the CDU/CSU youth organisation in the northern German city of Kiel. “We should support him with all our heart,” she stressed.

“This has to be our goal once again. Since Hallstein, we have not had a commission president,” she said, referring

to Walter Hallstein, the CDU politician who became head of the European Economic Com-munity, the forerunner to the EU, in 1958.

When Weber announced his candidacy for the European People’s Party for the EU election in September, Merkel voiced her support much more carefully, saying it was “time to see whether further EPP can-didates come forward.” Regarding Weber’s goal of becoming European Com-mission president, she said “there are many steps to get through to get there.”

The EPP will choose its lead candidate for the European elections in November in Hel-sinki. Former Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb has meanwhile also announced his candidacy.

The winner of the European elections will seek to become commission president, although the group of EU leaders will have the final word.

My assumption is that we will reach an accord which will achieve the conditions of the withdrawal treaty: Jean-Claude Juncker

Saravejo gears up for general electionsANATOLIA

BELGRADE: Voters in Bosnia and Herzegovina will choose a new government in the general election today.

Bosnia’s government structure is one of the most intricate political systems in the world. A total of 3.35 million Bos-nians are eligible to cast ballots in the election.

The vote will be held across the country at 5,794 polling sta-tions. Three-hundred-and-fourteen mobile teams will reach 10,000 citizens unable to step out to vote.

This year, some 78,000 reg-istered voters living abroad are eligible to vote at diplomatic and consular missions in Vienna,

Oslo, Belgrade, Chicago, Munich, Frankfurt, and Graz.

Election silence has been effective as of 7am local time yesterday and will last until all the polling stations are close at 7pm local time today.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has two entities, 10 cantons, and an autonomous region. The coun-try’s complex political structure, the crippling economic crisis, unemployment and memories of the war make the elections even more complicated.

Voters will choose a national parliament, three members of the national presidency, the par-liaments of the country’s two entities and other bodies.

They will elect the parliamen-tarians of the two councils — the

Federation of Bosnia and Herze-govina (FBIH) and the Republika Srpska (RS), the two constitu-tional entities of the country.

They will also vote for members of the Bosnian feder-

ation’s 10 cantons.Fifteen candidates — six Bos-

nians, five Croats, four Serbs —will compete for the rotating chairmanship of the three-member Presidency of Bosnia

and Herzegovina.In total nearly 7,500 candi-

dates will run for 518 posts which equals an average of 14 candi-dates for every single post up for grabs.

An elderly woman waits for a bus in front of an election billboard of Sefik Dzaferovic, candidate for the presidency, in Sarajevo, yesterday.

London Science Museum opens ‘Sun’ exhibitionANATOLIA

LONDON: A new exhibit on the Sun in a central London museum is attracting visitors as it displays the thousands-year-old relationship between the star and humankind.

London Science Museum has opened its doors to vis-itors yesterday for ‘The Sun: Living With Our Star’ exhi-bition which presents numerous artefacts showing the relations between the Sun and time, health and energy, as well as interactive experi-ences and visuals.

The exhibition — aiming to present humankind’s dependency on the star —exhibits many historic objects and scientific instruments, including British instrument maker John Rowley’s 1712 planetary model, sun-related prophecies on Babel tablets, and a 19th century portable solar energy panel.

A Chinese concave mirror dated back to 200 BC and used to ignite fire, a camera designed to take the star’s first photo in 1857, a 19th cen-tury-pocket watch ran on solar energy and a wooden barrel used to cure children with tuberculosis with sun-light are among other pieces exhibited at the museum.

Romania agency denies millions monitored in anti-graft fightAP

BUCHAREST: Romania’s anti-corruption agency said about 36,000 people have been wiretapped during anti-corruption investigation in the last decade.

The National Anti-Cor-ruption Directorate was responding yesterday to claims made by Premier Viorica Dancila to European lawmakers that Romania’s secret services had tapped “millions of Romanians,” sug-gesting the agency had over-reached in prosecuting graft.

The agency said it had been granted mandates to intercept 36,400 people in the past 11 years. It said it was releasing the information because of suspicions that millions had been under sur-veillance as part of Romania’s efforts to fight graft.

The government is under-taking a contentious overhaul of the judiciary that critics say will make it harder to tackle endemic graft.

Dutch fighter jets scrambled after airline passenger scareAFP

THE HAGUE: The Dutch air force scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to escort a flight from Abu Dhabi to Amsterdam after an onboard fight broke out with an aggressive American passenger, authorities said yesterday.

The scuffle broke out over Germany, about half-an-hour before the KLM Airbus A330-200

jet was to land at Schiphol airport early yesterday.

“A 29-year-old American man became aggressive after being asked by a purser to return to his seat,” said Joanna Hel-monds, a spokeswoman for the gendarmerie, which also serves as the country’s border police.

“A scuffle broke out and the cabin crew, together with other passengers managed to restrain

the man,” she said.A number of passengers

were lightly wounded including two passengers who were given black eyes, said Helmonds.

The Airbus was then given special clearance to land imme-diately at Schiphol airport with police arresting the man shortly afterwards.

Helmonds said the man was examined at the airport and

officers determined that he came across as disorientated.

The man has been admitted to a psychiatric institution for observation, she said.

A spokeswoman for KLM said the airline “regretted the unpleasant incident”, but that cabin crew followed the normal procedures when dealing with an unruly passenger.

“Passengers and crew have

laid a complaint against the man,” Heleen Makkinga said yesterday.

Although on high alert, Dutch fighter jets — which are armed with air-to-air missiles — are only scrambled in highly unusual cases, the Dutch air force said.

The Airbus A330-200 has a capacity of around 250 pas-sengers and has a range of almost 13,500km.

Support for migrant rescue shipSOS Mediterranee, a charity operating the Aquarius, the last migrant rescue ship in the Mediterranean Sea, calls for protests and a Europe-wide mobilisation to help them regain a flag to resume their rescue operations, in Marseille, France, yesterday.

Tina Turner reveals kidney transplantAP

LONDON: Tina Turner has revealed that she underwent a kidney transplant with an organ donated by her husband.

The 78-year-old singer says in an upcoming autobi-ography that she has suffered from kidney disease, and by 2016 her kidneys were at “20 percent and plunging rapidly.”

She says her husband, Erwin Bach, “shocked me by saying that he wanted to give me one of his kidneys.” Turner says she was “over-whelmed by the enormity of his offer.”

Extracts from “Tina Turner: My Love Story” were released yesterday by pub-lisher Penguin.

17SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 EUROPE

France probes case of missing Interpol chiefREUTERS

PARIS: French police are inves-tigating the disappearance of Interpol Chief, Meng Hongwei, who was reported missing after travelling from France to his native China, while his wife has been placed under police protection after receiving threats.

Meng’s wife contacted police in Lyon, the French city where the international police agency is based, after not hearing from him since September 25, and after receiving threats by phone and on social media, France’s interior ministry said.

A person familiar with the investigation said the initial working assumption was that Meng had antagonised Chinese authorities in some way and had been detained as a result.

“France is puzzled about the situation of Interpol’s president and concerned about the threats made to his wife,” the ministry said, adding that it was in contact with China.

Meng’s wife, who has remained in Lyon with their children according to police sources, was receiving pro-tection, it said.

It was not clear why Meng, 64, who was named Interpol’s president two years ago, had travelled to China, which has not commented officially on his disappearance.

China’s Ministry of Public Security did not immediately

respond to a faxed request for comment and there was no mention of him in official media yesterday.

There have been several cases in recent years of senior Chinese officials vanishing without explanation, only for the government to announce weeks or even months later that they have been put under investi-gation, often for suspected corruption.

Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post quoted an unnamed source as saying Meng had been taken for questioning as soon as he landed in China, but it was not clear why.

French police are investi-gating what is officially termed in France a “worrying disappearance”.

Interpol, which groups 192 countries and which is usually

focused on finding people who are missing or wanted, said in a statement from its secretary general, Juergen Stock, that it had asked China for clarification.

“Interpol has requested through off ic ia l law enforcement channels clarifi-cation from China’s authorities on the status of Interpol Pres-ident Meng Hongwei,” Stock, who is in charge Interpol’s day-to-day running, said.

Roderic Broadhurst, a pro-fessor of criminology at Australian National University, said Meng’s disappearance would be “pretty disconcerting” for people in inter-national bodies that work with China, and could ultimately damage China’s efforts to develop cooperative legal assistance measures with other countries.

Presidents of Interpol are seconded from their national administrations and remain in their home post while repre-senting the international policing body.

Meng is listed on the website of China’s Ministry of Public Security as a vice-minister, but lost his seat on its Communist Party Committee in April, the South China Morning Post reported.

Meng has almost 40 years’ experience in criminal justice and policing, and has overseen matters related to legal institu-tions, narcotics control and counter-terrorism, according to Interpol’s website.

Interpol Secretary-General Juergen Stock said: Interpol has requested through official law enforcement channels clarification from China’s authorities on the status of Interpol President Meng Hongwei.

Anti-coal protest in GermanyAFP

BUIR: Thousands of anti-coal demonstrators descended on Germany’s Hambach forest yesterday, celebrating an unex-pected court victory that suspended an energy company’s planned razing of the woodland for a growing open-cast mine.

The ancient forest near Cologne has been occupied by activists for the past six years, becoming a symbol of resistance against coal mining in Germany, a country that despite its green reputation remains heavily reliant on the polluting fossil fuel.

Young people, families and pensioners gathered on a field next to the forest in a festival-like atmosphere, a day after a higher administrative court

decided it needed more time to consider an environmental complaint against RWE’s upcoming clearing operations.

Chanting “Hambi bleibt!” (Hambi stays) and cheering loudly, demonstrators listened to live music and speeches, many holding up banners and balloons demanding an imme-diate exit from coal energy.

“The mood is great,” said Greenpeace spokeswoman Gesche Juergens, welcoming “the strong signal” sent by the court. “But it’s only a first step. The battle goes on to start phasing out coal.”

The forest’s days had appeared numbered after its owner RWE announced plans to clear half of the remaining 200 hectares from October 15

to expand its massive nearby open-pit coal mine.

Police last month began dis-mantling activists’ treehouses in a forced eviction that took nearly three weeks and sparked widespread outrage and fanned support for the activists’ cause.

In a second win for the forest occupiers on Friday, a separate court in Aachen overturned a police ban on Saturday’s dem-onstration, saying it did not see any security concerns.

By midday, a police spokesman at the demo esti-mated the turnout at some 5,000 people. Buoyed by both court decisions, activists said they were more determined than ever to save the forest even after police destroyed all 86 of their tree structures.

People holding banner that reads, “Hambacher Forest remains,” during a protest for the preservation of the ancient forest near the western German town of Kerpen-Buir west of Cologne, yesterday.

Renowned Spanish opera singer deadREUTERS

MADRID: Renowned soprano Montserrat Caballe (pictured), who brought opera into the pop charts by singing “Barcelona” with Freddie Mercury three decades ago, died aged 85 early yesterday, hospital officials said.

The Spanish singer, who was born in the Catalan capital, had been in ill health for a number of years and had been admitted to hospital in mid-September, an official said. She died in Sant

Pau hospital in Barcelona.The Gran Teatre del Liceu

opera house in Barcelona, where Caballe performed more than 200 times, described her as “one of the most important sopranos in history”.

Caballe released the song “Barcelona” with the Queen frontman Mercury in 1987 — and it was used again during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Renowed for her performances of Italian opera, she also worked with the late tenor Luciano Pavarotti.

Slovak PM says ‘deeds not words’ needed to restore trustREUTERS

STRBSKE PLESO: Slovakia must produce deeds not words to stamp out corruption and mafia-style crime, the prime minister said, after the murder of a journalist investigating EU subsidy fraud rattled the nation and prompted the resignation of his predecessor.

Prime Minister Peter Pel-legrini said the killing in Feb-ruary of 27-year-old reporter Jan Kuciak, who was found shot dead at his home along with his fiancee, had tarnished Slovakia’s image.

Kuciak brought attention to Italian businessmen in Slovakia with suspected mafia links and

their alleged subsidy fraud in eastern Slovakia.

Pellegrini said his cabinet had initiated legislation to strengthen the independence of the police chief to tackle cor-ruption. He said his government was looking at new systems to prevent subsidy fraud.

“We will not tolerate any mafia in Slovakia. Not in the field of (agricultural) subsidies, not in the field of EU funds. We will apply a zero-tolerance policy,” he said.

“We have to produce deeds, not words to restore trust in this government among those people who have lost it,” Pellegrini said.

After almost a decade-and-a-half in the European Union,

Slovakia has seen living standards jump among its 5.4 million people, thanks to strong economic growth driven by automotive production.

But many people complain about perceived public cor-ruption often involving well-connected businesspeople.

Kuciak’s murder led to massive nationwide protests against corruption and the gov-ernment, prompting the resig-nation of longtime prime min-ister Robert Fico. However, his government coalition remains intact, led by his former deputy Pellegrini.

Police made their first arrests in the case after raids last week, but prosecutors have yet to detail

motives in the killing.“The arrests of the (sus-

pected) murderers are not the end of the investigation,” Pel-legrini said.

“The only catharsis will be to identify who ordered the murder, convict him or her and deliver a fair verdict,” he said in an interview with Reuters.

Slovakia is a member of the Visegrad group of central European countries — along with the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland — that have battled with the EU executive over migration policy in recent years.

Their opposition to Brussels-imposed quotas to re-distribute asylum seekers led to the plan being dropped.

But Pellegrini said the Visegrad group, whose members are among the EU’s fastest eco-nomic growth engines, should not be labelled “troublemakers” and disputes should be resolved through dialogue.

Hungary and Poland have been under the threat of facing the bloc’s punitive Article 7 pro-cedure over rule of law concerns that could eventually strip them of voting rights.

“I strongly believe... that dia-logue will lead to concessions on both sides that will result in an agreement, avoiding the vote and activation of Article 7 that bans a member state from voting... That would be very bad,” he said.

Former Austrian chancellor quits politicsREUTERS

VIENNA: Opposition leader Christian Kern said yesterday he would leave politics and not run as the top candidate for the Austrian Social Democrats in European parliamentary elec-tions next year, giving in to pressure from party critics.

Just a few weeks after announcing his intention to run in the elections, the 52-year-old former chancellor blamed internal party disputes for his decision, saying he would be unable to focus on European politics.

“As a former head of gov-ernment, it is not possible to leave

the domestic political stage,” Kern said. “For me, this is the end as a professional politician.”

Since losing power last year, the Social Democrats have been preoccupied with internal struggles and have failed to benefit from unpopular reforms introduced under the far right coalition led by Sebastian Kurz.

Banksy’s artwork shreds itself after fetching $1.4mAFP

LONDON: British street artist Banksy has stunned the art world with arguably his most audacious prank yet, self-destructing one of his best-known works moments after it fetched more than a million pounds at auction in London.

“Girl with Balloon” had just sold at Sotheby’s for $1.4m — a joint record for the maverick artist — when it unexpectedly passed through a shredder hidden in the frame, according to the auction house.

“It appears we just got Banksy-ed,” said Alex Branczik, Sotheby’s head of contem-porary art for Europe, in a press release accompanied by a photo of the bizarre episode.

“The unexpected incident became instant art world folklore and certainly marks the first time in auction history that a work of art automatically shredded itself after coming under the hammer,” the auc-tioneers added in the statement.

Banksy posted his own photo from midway through the

shredding on his Instagram page early yesterday, showing onlookers aghast at the stunt.

The caption written below, imitating an auctioneer, read: “going, going, gone”.

Branczik said he was “not in on the ruse”, according to The Art Newspaper.

“We are busy figuring out what this means in an auction context,” he reportedly added.

“The shredding is now part of the integral art work.”

A Banksy’s painting “Girl with Red Balloon” is seen shredded after its sale at Sotheby’s auction, in London.

A file photo of Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe during the opening of an exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of her debut at the GranTeatre del Liceu, in Barcelona.

Land swap deal raises tensions in Russian region

AP

MOSCOW: The regional legis-lature in the Russian province of Ingushetia has decided to review a land swap deal that has raised tensions in the country’s volatile North Caucasus region.

Last month, Ingushetia and the neighbouring province of Chechnya agreed to exchange what they described as unpopulated plots of agricultural land. The agreement was approved by Ingushetia’s parliament earlier this week, triggering massive protests.

Yesterday, local law-maker Set-Salim Akhilgov told a rally in the provincial capital of Ingushetia that the vote had been annulled. Akhilgov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying that lawmakers decided to consider the issue again tomorrow.

The tensions over the land swap reflect deep-running dis-trust between the two regions, which share the same language but have been divided by land and other disputes.

18 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018AMERICAS

Man charged in ricin mail threat to TrumpREUTERS

WASHINGTON: A US Navy veteran from Utah was charged with threatening President Donald Trump, Defence Secretary James Mattis, the FBI director and an admiral by mailing them letters containing castor beans, from which the deadly poison ricin is derived.

The criminal complaint, filed in US District Court in Salt Lake City, charged William Clyde Allen III (pictured) with one count of threatening to use a bio-logical toxin as a weapon and four counts of mailing threat-ening communications.

Allen, 39, could face up to life in prison if convicted, said Melodie Rydalch, a spokes-woman for the US Attorney’s Office in Salt Lake City.

He is accused of mailing ground-up castor seeds in

separate envelopes addressed to Trump, Mattis, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Admiral John Richardson, chief of US naval operations. Each envelope contained a note reading “Jack and the Missile Bean Stock Powder,” according to an FBI affidavit filed in the case.

None of the letters reached

its intended recipient, and no one was hurt, officials said.

The accused perpetrator, who ended his four-year Navy stint in 2002 as a seaman apprentice, was not hard to find. The envelopes, all postmarked September 24, bore Allen’s name and return address, the affidavit said.

He was arrested on Wednesday at his home in

Logan, Utah, about 83 miles north of Salt Lake City, and con-fessed to sending the letters with castor beans he had purchased online, the affidavit said.

It said Allen told investi-gators that he mailed the letters “to send a message” but did not elaborate.

The FBI said each envelope tested positive for ricin in two different laboratory examina-tions, but neither the complaint nor the affidavit explicitly alleged that they were tainted with ricin itself.

The Pentagon has said the two envelopes intercepted there were found to contain only ground castor seeds, which are harmless but triggered the ricin alert.

Extracting ricin from castor beans “is relatively easy and does not require technical expertise” but is dangerous, the FBI affi-davit stated.

Tiny doses are lethal to humans if ingested, inhaled or injected, causing death within 36 to 72 hours of exposure. There is no known antidote.

Authorities said Allen has threatened the government before, including an email he sent the CIA in 2015 threatening to kill then-President Barack Obama, and a bomb threat he made against an Air Force Base in Texas last year.

Allen was presented the charges at his initial court appearance on Friday before a US magistrate in Salt Lake City and was ordered to remain in the custody of federal marshals at least until a detention hearing set for October 15, Rydalch said.

No plea was entered. A public defender appointed to represent him, Lynn Clark Don-aldson, declined comment on the case.

Mexico arrests couple for multiple murdersREUTERS

MEXICO CITY: Police in Mexico have arrested a couple suspected of involvement in the murder of at least 10 women, as well as the sale of a baby girl, authorities said.

Alejandro Gomez, attorney-general of the State of Mexico, which borders the capital, said in a video posted on Facebook that the couple were tracked down during a search for three missing women, one of whom disappeared along with her baby.

The couple, a man and a woman, were arrested on Thursday after they left a house in the Mexico City suburb of Ecatepec with a baby carriage in which investigators had hoped to find the missing child, Gomez said in the video.

Instead, they found a black

bag containing human remains.Subsequent investigations

found the couple had previ-ously deposited other human remains nearby. Under ques-tioning, the man identified as Juan Carlos N detailed taking part in the murders of at least 10 women, Gomez added.

The motive for the killings was unclear.

The couple admitted to having sold the missing two-month-old baby girl, who was found safe and returned to her grandmother. The couple who acquired the baby were arrested, Gomez said.

Thousands of women have disappeared or been murdered during a sharp increase in vio-lence in Mexico in recent years. According to government sta-tistics, there were at least 2,585 suspected murders of women last year, up from 1,755 in 2015.

1,000 wild horsesin Californiato be roundedup for adoptionREUTERS

SACRAMENTO: One thousand wild horses are to be rounded up in California by the US Forest Service and animal rights activists fear hundreds of them could be sold for slaughter.

The Modoc National Forest in northeast California plans to start the round up and removal of the horses on Tuesday from the Garden Plateau Wild Horse Territory, according to a statement on its website.

The more than 101,171 hectare territory was desig-nated for up to 402 adult horses, but their population has grown to almost 4,000. That has impacted the health of horses as they compete for limited food. It has also harmed scarce water sources, native grasses and other wildlife, the agency said.

“It’s time we took a more active approach taking care of the horses, taking care of the landscape,” Amanda McAdams, Modoc National Forest super-visor, said in a video.

Under the plan, horses aged 10 and older will be available for adoption or sale, with limitations, in November. Younger animals are also up for adoption, according to the national forest’s website.

A purchase agreement on the website states buyers must agree not to resell horses for slaughter, which is illegal under California law. According to The American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC), the Forest Service plans to exploit a legal loophole to eventually sell the older horses “without restriction,” thus allowing buyers to ship them to Canada for slaughter.

Judge rules against Trump in sanctuary cities caseAP

SAN FRANCISCO: A US judge in California struck down an immi-gration law that the Trump administration has used to go after cities and states that limit cooperation with immigration officials.

The ruling by Judge William Orrick also directed the US Department of Justice to give California $28m that was withheld over the state’s immi-gration policies.

It was at least the third decision by a US district court judge in recent months declaring the immigrat ion law unconstitutional.

However, none of the three rulings immediately invalidated

enforcement of the law nationwide. The law at issue forbids states and cities from blocking officials from reporting people’s immigration status to US authorities.

Orrick’s ruling in lawsuits by California and San Francisco may be the most significant yet because it applies to a major target of the administration’s opposition to sanctuary jurisdictions.

Orrick forbid Attorney General Jeff Sessions from enforcing the immigration law against California or any of its cities or counties.

DOJ spokesman Devin O’Malley declined comment.

The Trump administration said sanctuary cities and states

allow dangerous criminals back on the street.

San Francisco and other sanctuary cities counter that turning local police into immi-gration officers erodes the trust needed to get people to report local crimes.

Orrick said the immigration law “undermines existing state and local policies and strips local policy makers of the power to decide for themselves whether to communicate with” immi-gration officials. “It also shifts a portion of immigration enforcement costs onto states”.

“California expresses the legitimate concern that entan-glement with federal immi-gration enforcement erodes the trust Latino and undocumented

immigrant communities have in local law enforcement,” the judge said.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said the ruling was a victory.

“We will continue to stand up to the Trump administration’s attempts to force our law enforcement into changing its policies and practices in ways that that would make us less safe,” he said in a statement.

The administration cited the law in litigation filed against Cal-ifornia in March that sought to block three state laws.

One of the laws prevents police from providing release dates and personal information of jail inmates — information administration officials say they

need to safely remove dangerous people who are in the country illegally.

US Judge John Mendez in Sacramento has allowed Cali-fornia to continue enforcing that law.

Sessions announced more than a year ago that cities and states could only receive Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance grants if they allow federal immigration officials access to detention facilities and provide notice when someone in the country illegally is about to be released.

Orrick ruled the US Department of Justice could not require San Francisco and Cali-fornia to meet those require-ments to obtain the Byrne grant.

The criminal complaint charged William Clyde Allen III with one count of threatening to use a biological toxin as a weapon and four counts of mailing threatening communications.

Brazil election preparationsBrazil’s Electoral Court staff carrrying an eletronic ballot to be dispatched during preparations on the eve of general election, at the Regional Electoral Court Storage, in Jardim Botanico neighbourhood, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, yesterday.

Hurricane Sergio likely to hit Baja CaliforniaAP

MEXICO CITY: Forecasters are predicting that Hurricane Sergio will do an about-face in the Pacific Ocean and head back toward Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula.

The US National Hur-ricane Center says Sergio is a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 195 kph.

It was more than 1,500km from the southern tip of the peninsula yesterday, and the center said its “ragged eye” was “wobbling” even farther away, heading toward the west-southwest.

But over the weekend the storm is expected to make a U-turn and then pick up speed as it moves toward land.

Protesters celebrate verdict for Chicago copAP

CHICAGO: Hundreds of boisterous but peaceful demonstrators briefly blocked several streets in downtown Chicago after white police officer Jason Van Dyke was convicted of second-degree murder in the 2014 shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald.

Carrying signs reading “Justice for Laquan McDonald” while chanting “16 shots” and “guilty,” the marchers started outside City Hall and continued for many blocks. The tone was cele-bratory as demonstrators pushed past police officers lining the route.

The march ended in front of Trump International Hotel and Tower.

A relative of Laquan McDonald is thanking prosecutors for the second-degree murder conviction of the white Chicago police officer who shot the

black teenager in 2014.Rev Marvin Hunter, McDonald’s

uncle, blamed the teen’s death on a rogue police officer “who thought he could be judge, jury and executioner.”

Jason Van Dyke testified that McDonald was advancing on him and ignoring his orders to drop a knife. Video showed the 17-year-old crum-pling to the ground in a hail of 16 bullets as he walked away from officers.

Hunter said yesterday that the family can’t rejoice because Van Dyke is going to jail. He said his family could see the pain of the Van Dyke family, adding that what bothered him was that Van Dyke’s family couldn’t “see our pain.”

Hunter said Van Dyke has never asked McDonald’s family for

forgiveness.One legal expert said a white

Chicago police officer is likely looking at less than 10 years in prison for killing a black teenager rather than decades because jurors opted to convict him of second-degree murder and not first-degree murder.

Jurors on Friday also convicted Jason Van Dyke of 16 counts of aggra-vated battery for shooting Laquan McDonald 16 times.

Steve Greenberg has defended clients at more than 100 murder trials. He says Van Dyke would have faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 45 years on a first-degree murder conviction.

Second-degree murder carries sentences of between four and 20 years. Each count of aggravated battery carries between six and 30 years.

Demonstrators protest as they celebrate the verdict in the murder trial of Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke along Michigan Avenue, in Chicago, Illinois.

19SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 AMERICAS

US Senate confirms Kavanaugh to SC

Senator asks FEC to let campaign funds be used for cybersecurityBLOOMBERG

WASHINGTON: Citing Russian hacking in the 2016 election and ongoing threats from hackers, Senator Ron Wyden asked the Federal Election Commission (FEC) if campaign funds could be used to protect personal devices and online accounts of members of Congress from cyber threats.

Hackers tied to the Russian government stole emails and other documents from the servers of the Democratic National Committee, and gained

access to the personal email account of John Podesta, who was then managing Hillary Clin-ton’s presidential campaign, through a phishing scheme.

Wyden, an Oregon Dem-ocrat, fears similar efforts could target next month’s midterm elections, and cited experts who said that several senators and their staffs have been the subject of persistent cyberattacks starting in June 2017.

In his request, Wyden included an April 2017 letter from Michael Rogers, then director of the National Security

Agency, who said the personal devices and accounts of gov-ernment officials “remain prime targets for exploitation.”

Wyden also noted that the Senate Sergeant at Arms, the h i g h e s t - r a n k i n g l a w enforcement officer in the chamber, lacks the authority to protect them. Public funds cannot be used for personal devices.

Wyden wrote that an effective defence against cyber threats is prohibitively expensive, and that members of Congress shouldn’t have to bear

the costs to protect themselves.He listed secure mobile

phones and computers, secure home routers and networking equipment, anti-virus software, and cyber security consultants as some of the products and services members would have to pay for.

Under federal election laws, campaign money cannot be con-verted to personal use, though there have been exceptions. In July 2017, in response to a similar request from the House Sergeant at Arms that cited a rising number of threats against

members, the FEC ruled that campaign funds could pay for installing or upgrading security systems at lawmakers’ personal residences.

The FEC posted the request, opening a public comment period.

It hasn’t scheduled a public hearing on the matter. All four sitting commissioners will have to approve the request; there are currently two vacancies on the six-member panel, which can include no more than three members from a single political party.

Special FBI team to probe South Carolina attackAP

WASHINGTON: A special FBI team that investigated the slayings of five police officers in Dallas in 2016 and the deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas last year is helping local authorities gather evidence in what’s described as an ambush attack that killed one South Carolina law enforcement officer and wounded six others.

“This is a large crime scene. This is a very large, complex puzzle that we are still filling the pieces in,” Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said. His dep-uties, based in the state capital of Columbia, are investigating the case at the request of the sheriff in Florence County, about 90 miles to the east, where the slayings took place Wednesday afternoon.

The suspect, 74-year-old Frederick Hopkins, was charged with murder and six counts of attempted murder on Friday.

The decorated Vietnam War veteran had set an ambush for investigators coming to question his adult son about a

child sexual assault, Lott said.Hopkins was hospitalized

after he was taken into custody Wednesday, but was taken to jail Friday, Lott said.

Florence County investi-gators had called Hopkins’ home and arranged to speak to his 28-year-old son, Seth Hopkins, about an assault investigationon Wednesday afternoon, Lott said, adding that they had a search warrant. Offi-cials had previously given the son’s age as 27.

The three deputies were shot without warning as they got out of their car, he said.

Dozens of officers rushed to help, and the gunman shot four city of Florence officers. Police Sgt. Terrence Carraway was killed.

So many rounds were fired with such powerful weapons that it took up to 30 minutes to get an armored vehicle close enough to rescue the wounded officers, Florence Police Chief Allen Heidler said. The standoff lasted two hours.

Several children in the home were not harmed, authorities said.

Man pleads guilty for narcotics conspiracy in NYAFP

NEW YORK: A 30-year-old Irish man pled guilty in New York to narcotics conspiracy over the now-defunct “dark web” marketplace Silk Road, just months after being extra-dited to the United States.

US prosecutors said Gary Davis, who went by the alias “Libertas,” was a Silk Road administrator in 2013 — paid a weekly salary to carry out duties that included resolving disputes between drug dealers and buyers on the site.

The Wicklow man was arrested in Ireland on January 2014 and extradited to the US in July, where he had faced a battery of charges.

Yesterday, he pled guilty in a Manhattan federal court to one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics after cutting a plea deal.

One dead after Nashville shooting AP

NASHVILLE: Tennessee authorities said one person is dead and an officer is injured following a shooting at an apartment complex in Nash-ville.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation officials said officers from Nashville Police Department responded to a call of shots fired late Friday.

Officers approached the apartment door and for reasons still under investi-gation, TBI officials said, the situation escalated and resulted in gunfire between two officers and Sershawn Martez Dillon.

Dillon was shot and died later .

Migration crisisVenezuelans who had emigrated to the Dominican Republic to escape the economic crisis, arrive at Santo Domingo airport to get back to their country, yesterday. A group of about 80 migrants left to Venezuela on a flight financed by its government.

AFP

WASHINGTON: The US Senate confirmed President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh (pictured) yesterday in the closest such vote in more than a century, amid controversy over abuse allega-tions against him.

The Senate voted 50-48 to approve Kavanaugh as more than 1,000 protesters rallied in Washington against a nominee who had to overcome questions over his candor, partisan rhetoric and lifestyle as a young man.

The monthslong battle over the nomination has roiled American passions — the vote was disrupted on several occa-sions by angry protests in the gallery — but handed Trump one of the biggest victories of his presidency.

It drew the line under a bruising nomination process defined by harrowing testimony from a woman who says Kavanaugh tried to assault her when they were teenagers — and by his fiery rebuttal.

The two-vote margin of victory made it the closest con-firmation vote since 1881, when Stanley Matthews, President James Garfield’s pick, sealed a 24 to 23 win.

The confirmation means Trump has succeeded in having his two picks seated on the court — tilting it decidedly to the right in a major coup for the Repub-lican leader less than halfway through his term.

It reflects a high water mark of the Trump presidency:

Republican control of the White House, the Senate, the House of Representatives and the judici-ary’s top court.

But the Kavanaugh spectacle, fueled by extraordinary accusa-tions and counter-claims in nationally televised hearings, and tense battles over an 11th-hour FBI investigation to address the assault allegations, has

inflamed political passions.Just hours before the vote,

scores of protesters broke through barricades and staged a raucous sit-in protest on the US Capitol steps, just feet away from the imposing doors to the Rotunda.

As protesters chanted “Shame!” and “November is coming!” police took several dozen protesters down the steps and put them in plastic flex-cuffs.

Kavanaugh’s confirmation process has laid bare the partisan gridlock on Capitol Hill and the political polarisation of America just a month before midterm elections.

His promotion to the Supreme Court also stands as a demoralizing defeat for Demo-crats who had battled hard to block the 53-year-old judge at all costs.

But Senator Ed Markey insisted ahead of the confir-mation that it would only gal-vanize Democrats to deliver a “devastating” blow to Repub-licans at the ballot box.

“The Democrats are going to pivot to the election, and we’re going to turn this nomination into a referendum on whether or not Donald Trump can be trusted to name federal judges or to continue to control an absolute monopoly on creating public policy in the United States,” Markey told reporters.

Kavanaugh’s confirmation had already been all but sealed Friday, when he won the support of key Senate Republican Susan Collins and conservative Dem-

ocrat Joe Manchin.Kavanaugh’s confirmation as

a replacement for retiring justice Anthony Kennedy was contro-versial from the start — but the initial focus was solely on the conservative views held by the married father of two.

His ascent to the Supreme Court was thrown into doubt last week after university research psychologist Christine Blasey Ford testified that he had assaulted her at a Washington area gathering in the early 1980s.

The brutal hearing sparked a supplemental FBI dive into Kavanaugh’s background and a weeklong delay of the Senate vote.

While many senators said they were satisfied with the FBI probe, her lawyers called the investigation insufficient.

“An FBI investigation that did not include interviews of Dr Ford and Judge Kavanaugh is not a meaningful investigation in any

sense of the word,” they said in a statement quoted in US media.

Collins — a moderate Repub-lican from Maine — said Kavanaugh was entitled to the “presumption of innocence” as the allegations against him were not substantiated with corrobo-rating evidence.

While acknowledging that Blasey Ford’s testimony was “sincere, painful and com-pelling,” Collins added: “We will be ill-served in the long run if we abandon the presumption of innocence and fairness.”

Immediately after that speech, Manchin announced his support, calling Kavanaugh a “qualified jurist” who “will not allow the partisan nature this process took to follow him onto the court.”

Kavanaugh’s nomination seals a conservative majority on the nine-seat high court, possibly for decades to come.

There were loud protests,

both in Washington and in other cities across the United States as the vote went ahead.

Hundreds were arrested on Capitol Hill this week — including several dozen in the hours leading to the final vote.

Authorities took the rare step of putting up low metal fences around the Capitol, keeping the public some distance from the building. But protesters overran the barricades and defiantly claimed the Capitol steps.

Trump tweeted that the demonstrators included female Kavanaugh supporters who were “gathering all over Capitol Hill.” But they were not immediately visible in the area around the legislature.

The president claimed on Friday that billionaire financier George Soros, a Democratic funder and frequent target of conservatives, was behind the demonstrations against his nominee.

The Senate voted 50-48 to approve Kavanaugh as more than 1,000 protesters rallied in Washington against a nominee who had to overcome questions over his candor, partisan rhetoric and lifestyle as a young man. A still image of the final tally of votes by the US Senate on the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee

Judge Brett Kavanaugh, in Washington, DC, yesterday.

20 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018MORNING BREAK

FAJRSHOROOK

04. 12 AM

05. 28 AM

11. 22 AM

02. 44 PM

05. 17 PM

06. 47 PM

ZUHRASR

MAGHRIBISHA

PRAYER TIMINGS

HIGH TIDE 03:30 – 15:30 LOW TIDE 08:45 – 22:30

Misty at places by early morning, becomes

hot daytime with some clouds, relatively

humid by night.

WEATHER TODAY

Courtesy: Qatar Meteorology Department

Minimum Maximum 32oC 36oC Aishwarya mesmerises audience at FWI

FAZEENA SALEEM

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Fashion lovers were indulged in Qatar’s first Fashion Weekend Inter-national (FWI ‘18), the first of its kind event featured top class models and designers at Mondrian Doha.

Aishwarya Rai Bachan, the glo-bally acclaimed beauty queen walked the ramp wearing a pink and red gown designed by ace fashion designer Manish Malhotra. Astonishing Aish-warya mesmerised the audience with her beauty and charm.

The fashion show showcased designs exclusively by Manish, who is a synonymous with opulent crafts-manship, chic designs and dressing top celebrities around the world. At least 30 male and female models walked the ramp in glitzy designed, mainly wedding attires.

They included gowns and sub con-tinental attires such as saree, gagra or lehenga and choli (longs skirts and blouse).

Actor and reality show star, Karan Tacker was the host at FWI ‘18 fashion show. “A fashion destination is evident here. What is beautiful about fashion is you need to be original, don’t need to compare to any other destination. You are who you are, you are glorious and elegant. You blossom at the best of your potential. Going by this evening’s event the positivity is all there,” said Aishwarya addressing a press conference held following the fashion show.

Manish, who has been in Doha earlier for different events, said, “I see

the fashion industry getting better here. The way the audience were presented during the show is the first sign of it. I definitely see Doha as a big desti-nation for fashion.”

He also shared his experience about working with Aishwarya for many years and said, “She is beautiful in looks and within.” The event

organised by FAB Entertainment, a Qatar based entertainment company also featured stylist Nabila, actress Mahira Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi.

Alfardan Jewellery provided some of its finest collections and glammed Aishwarya and other models at the show. A collection of dazzling sets of jewels were also displayed during the

fashion show. Fashionistas also enjoyed a special trunk show by Manish. He also designed dream bridal gowns and custom made couture for ladies, only at Mondrian Doha’s Bridal Suite. Al Fardan Group, Qatar Airways, Salam, Mondrian Doha and Qatar Tourism Authority were co-partners of FWI’18.

Aishwarya Rai Bachan and celebrity fashion designer Manish Malhotra speaking to audience at the FWI2018, organised by Fab Entertainment Qatar at the Mondrian Hotel in Doha. PIC: SALIM MATRAMKOT / THE PENINSULA

Increasingly human-like robots spark fascination, fearAFP

MADRID: Sporting a trendy brown bob, a humanoid robot named Erica chats to a man in front of stunned audience members in Madrid.

She and others like her are a prime focus of robotic research, as their uncanny human form could be key to integrating such machines into our lives, said researchers gathered this week at the annual International Con-ference on Intelligent Robots.

“You mentioned project man-agement. Can you please tell me more?” Erica, who is playing the role of an employer, asks the man. She may not understand the con-versation, but she’s been trained to detect key words and respond to them.

A source of controversy due in part to fears for human employment, the presence of robots in our daily lives is never-theless inevitable, engineers at the conference said.

The trick to making them more palatable, they added, is to make them look and act more human so that we accept them into our lives more easily.

In ageing societies, “robots will coexist with humans sooner or later”, said Hiroko Kamide, a

Japanese psychologist who spe-cialises in relations between humans and robots.

Welcoming robots into households or workplaces involves developing “multi-purpose machines that are capable of interacting” with humans without being dangerous, said Philippe Soueres, head of the robotics department at a labo-ratory belonging to France’s CNRS scientific institute.

As such, robots must move around “in a supple way” despite their rigid mechanics and stop what they are doing in case of any unforeseen event, he added.

That’s why people are choosing “modular systems shaped like human bodies” which are meant to easily fit into real-world environments built for humans.

For instance Atlas, a humanoid robot made by Boston Dynamics, can run on different types of surfaces.

In Madrid, Marc Raibert, founder of the US firm, played a video showing Atlas doing a backflip. In a sign of fears over the potential future uses for these humanoids, Amnesty Interna-tional has accused Atlas, financed by an agency of the US Department of Defense, of being

a “killer robot” made for future warfare.

Another example of humanoids presented in Madrid is Talos, a robot made by Spanish company Pal Robotics shown testing his stability on a balance board. While it may not be the only form used for those coming into contact with humans, “it’s

easier for people to accept the robots when they have human-like faces because people can expect how the robots will move, will react,” said Kamide.

That’s comforting, but it also has its limits. Japanese researcher Masahiro Mori’s “uncanny valley” theory, which he developed in the 1970s, states that we react

positively to robots if they have physical features familiar to us but they disturb us if they start looking too much like us. “You can’t ever make a perfect human face” and this imperfection provokes a feeling of “rejection” among humans, said Miguel Salichs, a professor at the robotics lab of Madrid’s Carlos III University.

A robot called Erica (right), created by Japan’s Hiroshi Ishiguro Laboratories, conducts a job interview during its presentation at the IROS 2018 International Conference on Intelligent Robots in Madrid.

Team Qatar athletes and officials taking part in the opening ceremony of the 3rd Asian Para Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, yesterday. About 3,000 athletes from 43 countries and regions in Asia are competing in the 8-day competitions till October 13. The competitions feature 18 sports, including track and field, swimming, badminton, wheelchair basketball, volleyball, chess etc.

Team Qatar takes part in opening ceremony of 3rd Asian Para Games in Jakarta

IANS

TOKYO: Early signs of Type-2 diabetes can be detected 20 years before diagnosis, according to a new research.

Researchers from Aizawa Hospital in Japan found that increased fasting glucose, higher body mass index (BMI) and impaired insulin sensi-tivity were detectable 10 years before the diagnosis of diabetes as well as prediabetes.

As the vast majority of people with Type-2 diabetes go through the stage of pre-diabetes, our findings suggest that elevated metabolic markers for diabetes are detectable more than 20 years before its diagnosis, said Hiroyuki Sagesaka, lead researcher from the varsity.

According to present studies, diabetes can be detected 20 years before its diagnosis unlike the previous research which suggested that risk factors like obesity and elevated fasting glucose may be present up to 10 years before someone is diagnosed with the issue.

Diabetes may be detected 20 years before diagnosis

BUSINESSSunday 7 October 2018

PAGE | 23PAGE | 22

QIIB CEO wins GIFA Islamic Finance

leader award

Qatar has ambitious plans to invest in oil & gas sector

Manateq gives special focus to downstream SMEsMOHAMMAD SHOEB

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: The Economic Zones Company-Qatar (Manateq) is offering special focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) particularly those related to downstream industries such as aluminum, steel, and auto-motive sector, to accelerate the process of economic diversifi-cation.

The efforts are part of the ini-tiatives of Manateq which is working in cooperation with other state and private agencies to diversify Qatar’s economy through the provision of world-class infrastructures within

strategically placed economic zones and logistics parks, which are being developed in line with country’s long-term vision, said a top official of the company.

The state-backed entity is

overseeing the developments of several economic zones, indus-trial and warehousing complexes across the country. And it also works in close coordination with the recently established Free Zones Authority attracting investors and SMEs from all over the world.

“We have different manufac-turers such as steel structure, concrete supplier, ready-mix, petrochemicals and other down-stream industries related to alu-minum and automotive sector who will be manufacturing auto parts and other products,” Man-ateq’s CEO Fahad Rashid Al Kaabi (pictured) told The Peninsula.

Al Kaabi added: “We have more and more small and medium businesses either from

logistics or i n d u s t r i e s availing our services. We have different logistics and industrial parks such as Birkat Al Awamer, Jery Al S a m u r , A l Wakra (A&B), Aba Saleel, Mesaieed and others. And we are also working in close coordi-nation with the

Free Zones Authority for the companies who want to set up in the free zone areas such as

Ras Bufonta and Um Al Houl.”He said that Manateq is

focusing on the delivery of right infrastructure for any industries, including the logistics sector, as per their specific requirements.

He reiterated that Qatar, as part of efforts to attracting local and foreign investment, has put in place all the needful services, for the ease of doing business and establishing manufacturing facilities in the country, from registration and allocation of land plots to the easy access to project financing through Qatar Development Bank and other entities.

→ CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

Following the blockade, foreign firms & newly established trade partners are not only supplying their quality products & construction materials in a cost effective manner, but also setting up manufacturing facilities in Qatar.

22 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018BUSINESS

9,902.48 +13.01 PTS0.13%

QSE FTSE100 DOW BRENT7,318.54 -99.80 PTS1.35%

26,447.05 -180.43 PTS0.68% Dow & Brent before going to press

$74.29 -0.04

MarketWatchQIIB CEO wins GIFA Islamic Finance leader awardTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: At a high-profile ceremony in Sarajevo, graced by the presence of the President of Republic of Bosnia and Herze-govina Baker Izetbegovic; and President of Djibouti Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, QIIB Chief Exec-utive Officer Dr Abdulbasit Ahmad Al Shaibei (pictured) was honoured with the ‘Most Outstanding Leader in Islamic Finance Award- 2018’. The award is in recognition of his contributions to the success of Islamic banking and the consistent performance of financial institutions he has long been leading.

The award was presented by British Ambassador to the Republic of Bosnia and Herze-govina, Matthew Field. Senior offi-cials, and leaders in banking and representatives of the finance and business sectors were present at the ceremony held in in Sarajevo, the capital city of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

GIFA (Global Islamic Finance Awards) based its decision to honour Dr Al Shaibei with the award on several factors, such

as his personal and institutional achievements, contribution to the expansion of Islamic banking, innovation and mod-ernisation, formulation of visions for Islamic banking, raising awareness about the importance of Islamic banking, locally and internationally and role in taking this success to other countries. This, GIFA said, resulted in the growth of Islamic banking and an increase in its customer base, which catapulted the sector to new heights.

GIFA Awards are interna-tionally-recognised prestigious laurels, previously given to many leaders in Islamic banking, as well as many heads of state and prime ministers, for supporting the expansion and growth of

Islamic banking.Commenting of the ‘Most

Outstanding Leader in Islamic Finance Award 2018’, Dr Al Shaibei said, “Our work has been inspired by the vision of His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Amir of the State of Qatar. I dedicate the award to my dear country, which has been able to attain remarkable achievements in various fields, namely economy, thanks to the guidance, support and vision of His Highness the Amir.”

Dr Al Shaibei thanked GIFA Awards Committee for appreci-ating his work and granting him the award.

He noted, “The Qatari banking sector was able to accomplish continued successes and achievements, thus becoming the most prominent in the region, ranking high on the international arena and enjoying some of the best credit ratings, which confirms its ability to for-mulate an advanced banking concept at various levels in line with the best international standards.” “This has become possible due to the best regu-

latory environment in Qatar.” He pointed out that “Islamic

banking made steady progress in our country and led to the establishment of very strong financial institutions. This is due in part to the strength of the Qatari economy and the huge demand for Islamic banking services among the local popu-lation as they converge their aspirations and principles.”

Dr Al Shaibei stated: “We take pride in QIIB playing an active and influential role among Qatari and regional Islamic banks. We were able to continuously strengthen our financial position and con-tribute to the development and growth of our country. We also established large-scale local and international partnerships that have clearly contributed to enhancing the concept of Islamic banking and its growth in dif-ferent countries.”

QFC joins high-level dignitaries at IPEC ’18THE PENINSULA

DOHA: The Qatar Financial Centre (QFC), one of the world’s leading and fastest growing onshore business and financial centres, is set to participate at the International Products Exhibition & Conference (IPEC), which is being held from October 8 to 10, 2018.

The two-day conference will bring together high-level Qatari and international min-isters and dignitaries, along with investors and business leaders from around the world to explore investment and development opportunities in Qatar across different sectors.

IPEC 2018 will feature an international pavilion with exhibitions from Qatari institu-tions as well as partner coun-tries, and the QFC is expected to welcome business visitors and delegations at the pavilion. The event will also include panel discussions that address Qatar’s economic development, economic growth, and other vital topics.

As part of the event, the QFC will address the audience in a panel discussion entitled Strategies and Initiatives Towards National Vision 2030, which will be held on the first day of the conference.

Yousuf Mohamed Al Jaida (pictured), Chief Executive Officer, QFC Authority said: “The International Products Exhibition & Conference 2018 will undoubtedly provide an important platform to connect foreign investors with Qatar’s public and private sector. This will also enable us to collec-tively explore the many unique investment opportunities that

will help facilitate the sus-tainable economic growth of Qatar.”

Al Jaida added: “The QFC is fully committed to supporting Qatar’s economic diversifi-cation efforts by providing a world class commercial, legal and regulatory environment in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030.”

The QFC is an onshore jurisdiction, allowing com-panies to operate in and from Qatar within the QFC legal and tax environment. The QFC endeavours to promote Qatar as an attractive business desti-nation. Companies that wish to establish a business in the QFC are guided throughout by a dedicated QFC relationship manager who assists in the process of obtaining a licence and offers support in matters related to operating a business in Qatar.

QFC firms enjoy compet-itive benefits, such as working within a legal environment based on English common law, the right to trade in any cur-rency, up to 100 percent foreign ownership, 100 percent repa-triation of profits, 10 percent corporate tax on locally sourced profits, and an extensive double tax treaty agreement network with 60+ countries.

Al Meera delegation visits Turkey to forge new business opportunitiesTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: To further enhance bilateral trade relations between Qatar and Turkey, a business delegation headed by the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Al Meera Consumer Goods Company Salah Al Hammadi met with Istanbul and Samsun based investors and businesses who are looking to expand in Qatar. The Al Meera delegation also met with government officials, including the Governor of Samsun Osman Kaymak.

On the first day of their two-day official trip, Al Meera officials visited Happy Center where they met its Chairman Ismail Altun and Chief Executive Officer Yavuz Altun and dis-cussed strategic partnership and ways to improve mutual coop-eration. Following this, Salah Al Hammadi graced the opening ceremony of Happy Center’s 135th outlet.

The delegation also visited the Chamber of Commerce of Istanbul, the 3rd largest chamber in the world, which has about 420,000 members. The Al Meera delegation was welcomed by the Vice Chairman of Chamber of Commerce of Istanbul Ahmet Uzair. During the meeting, the two sides discussed the possibil-ities to developing a solid network of partners in Turkey, based on the recommendation of the Chamber of Commerce.

Al Meera signed MoU with Tekzen, a Turkish Corporation and part of Tekfen Group, to import non-food products. This

collaboration will enable Al Meera to increase its non-food offerings to the Qatar Market. The MoU was signed during a meeting between Al Meera’s del-egation and the Chairman of Tekzen, Murat Gigin and Onur Mertoglu, Board Member and General Manager of the company.

The delegation visited Samsun Governorship and took a tour around Koytour Chicken factory to assess the quality standards of their exclusive

partner, with its General Manager Yahiya Nafi.

During the visit to Samsun, the Al Meera delegation met with the Governor of Samsun Osman Kaymak and discussed how his region could support trade with Al Meera. In addition to this, the delegation also visited the Chamber Of Commerce of Samsun, and met with Salih Zaki Murzioglu, Vice Chairman of the Union of Chambers of Commerce of Turkey and Sinan Chakir, Chairman of Samsun Chamber

of Commerce and Stock Exchange.

Qatar and Turkey have always had strategic relations in many areas of cooperation, built upon a strong and friendly his-torical relationship. Trade rela-tions continued to increase in the first quarter of 2018. There are about 186 Turkish-Qatari firms operating in Qatar market and 19 firms with 100 percent Turkish capital.

Salah Al Hammadi said: “Our recent visit to Istanbul and

Samsun was highly productive. Qatar and Turkey’s economic and business interests continue to grow stronger and both regions are benefitting from one another. As one of the most com-petitive countries in the Arab region, Qatar’s business envi-ronment offers countless rewarding opportunities to busi-nesses and investors looking to expand.”

He continued, “Our meetings with Turkish businessmen and business entities were also very

positive and gave us the chance to discuss how we can help to increase the bilateral trade rela-tions between Qatar and Turkey.”

Al Hammadi added: “Qatar market is replete with investment opportunities, which attract Turkish investors and businessmen, affirming that Qatari business owners have real desire to establish trade alliances and partnerships with their Turkish counterparts.” Since its inception, Al Meera has placed immense thrust on community welfare, as social responsibility is considered an integral part of its programs. In lieu to its ongoing efforts, Al Meera Con-sumer Goods Company QSC, was recently recognized to bring forth a number of economic ini-tiatives designed to empower entrepreneurs in the country and contribute to Qatar’s economic diversification during the fifth S o c i a l R e s p o n s i b i l i t y Conference.

Al Meera was honoured for its efforts to support startups and entrepreneurs by launching the “National Product” initiative, in collaboration with Bedaya Center and the Ministry of Economy and Commerce (MEC). Under this initiative, local pro-ducers and startups in the food industry were offered with prominent shelf space at its Gulf Mall shopping center, thereby providing entrepreneurs in the country with a premium platform to introduce their products to the market and sell them to consumers.

Salah Al Hammadi (third left), Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Al Meera Consumer Goods Company, shakes hands with Murat Gigin (third right), Chairman of Tekzen, a Turkish Corporation and part of Tekfen Group,as other officials look on, after signing an MoU, in Turkey.

→ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21

“For instance we have intro-duced quick online registration system. Under this facility, pro-spective clients can avail most of our services online without having them required to come in person to our offices,” noted Al Kaabi.

When prodded for more details about the response of investors and the types of indus-tries, he added that there is a long list of a wide-range of i n d u s t r i e s w h i c h i s well-diversified.

“As far as the response and occupancy is concerned, we have released almost 100 percent of the land plots located in Birkat Al Awamer and Al Wakra (A&B). And yearly, we are opening more space to meet the growing demand.”

He also noted that Qatar, as a result of long-term strategy and meticulous planning, legis-lative changes and other reforms, has been attracting investors and companies from all over the world, including Asia, Europe such as Turkey, China, India, Bangladesh, Sri

Lanka, Germany, France, the UK, and many other countries.

“After the blockade, foreign companies and newly estab-lished trade partners are not only supplying their quality products and construction materials in a cost effective manner, but also setting up manufacturing facil-ities in Qatar. These firms include manufacturers special-ising in several key products such as steel pipe and aluminum products which will find use in a wide range of sectors, including oil & gas, construction and others,” said Al Kaabi.

Manateq gives special focus to downstream SMEs

GIFA Awards are internationally-recognised prestigious laurels, given to many leaders in Islamic banking and heads of state, for supporting the expansion and growth of the sector.

Canada’s jobless rate falls to 5.9%AFP

OTTAWA: Canada added 63,000 jobs in September, pushing the unemployment rate down 0.1 percentage points to 5.9 percent, according to government data.

Most of the gains were made in Ontario and British Columbia provinces, and were mostly attributable to part-time hiring, said Statistics Canada. At the same time, employment fell in information, culture and recreation; and business, building and other support services. Most of the jobs went to people aged 25 to 54 years.

23SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 BUSINESS

Qatar has ambitious plans to invest in oil & gas sectorSATISH KANADY

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: The Mena region will see a number of critical energy projects pushed through over the next five years. Around $345bn has already been committed to projects under execution while an additional $574bn worth of development is planned.

The Mena Energy Industry Investment Outlook released by The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) at the just-concluded 11th Arab Energy Con-ference being held in Marrakech, Morocco, forecasts that with Qatar lifting the North Field mor-atorium, the country is poised for higher investments in gas development.

“The majority of Qatar’s

investments have come into fru-ition, and with the lifting of the moratorium recently, we expect higher investments in gas devel-opment as the country plans to double the size of its planned expansion, increasing LNG capacity to 100m t/y by the end of the outlook or shortly after,” the Apicorp report, presented by

its Chief Executive Officer Dr Attiga Ali Attiga (pictured), noted.

Qatar has ambitious plans to invest in further oil and gas development, particularly the redevelopment of the Bul Hanine which is expected to more than double its existing capacity. Current committed investments

in the energy sector amount to around $13bn. Among the projects coming on line within Apicorp’s outlook include the Barzan gas field.

The power sector accounts for the largest share of invest-ments in the region, at $187bn. The oil and gas sectors will rep-resent $169bn and $150bn, respectively, with the remaining investments in petrochemicals. Projects under study represent by far the largest portion of planned investments, at $251bn. Contracts under design and EPC phases are more likely to mate-rialise in the medium term. Projects under contract bid amount to $92bn, while those under design reach $86bn.

Planned projects for the GCC countries, barring Qatar, will

reach $57bn. Oman’s planned projects are focused on the downstream and petrochemicals sectors. One of the largest projects is the Duqm petrochem-icals complex, which is expected to see a large portion of its $9bn budget invested over the next five years.

Total committed gas and power investments are approx-imately $106bn and $95bn respectively, followed by chem-icals at $14bn. The GCC repre-sents $171bn in committed invest-ments, approximately 50 percent of the Mena total. Iran leads the region with an estimated $67bn, mostly focused on the oil and gas sector. The country has priori-tised the development of phase 12 of the South Pars gas field, where around $10bn will be

invested over the outlook period. In upstream oil, the focus will be on the West Karun oil fields, par-ticularly South Yaran and South Azadegan, which will contribute further to Iran’s short-term output-capacity growth. In the downstream, the Siraf refinery project, with a budget of $2.4bn, will increase capacity by up to 480k b/d.

Second is Iraq, at $47bn. Oil investments account for $27bn with the ENI-led Zubair and the PetroChina-led Halfaya, two of the largest upstream devel-opment projects in the country. In downstream, the country has several projects under execution to boost refining capacity and reduce the import bill, with the Maysan and Faw refinery amongt the major projects.

Gulf Laboratorieslaunches jack-up drilling platform‘Ammonite’THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Gulf Laboratories Co, a local geotechnical and material testing laboratory, has recently added a new jack-up drilling platform—Ammonite— to its fleet of nearshore drilling equipment.

“The addition of this larger jack-up, together with our existing jack-up “Nautilus” now allows us to carry out geotech-nical drilling works from the inter-tidal area out to water depths of 20 metres”, said General Manager Andrew Slate.

Gulf Laboratories have carried out numerous nearshore geotechnical investigations in Qatar, including works for the Hamad International Airport and Hamad Port as well as other port, harbour and marine recla-mation and development schemes.

Fabricated in Qatar, the fully registered vessel is available for nearshore ground investigation

projects or for charter as a work barge.

Engineers and technicians working on the Gulf Laboratories Co’s new jack-up drilling platform—Ammonite.

Commercial Bank customer wins QR1m as reward for savingTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: One lucky customer has won QR1m in the grand prize draw of Commercial Bank’s Save & Win campaign.

Raymond Frangieh was awarded the QR1m prize by the Group CEO Joseph Abraham, at a special ceremony held at the Doha Festival City. Frangieh has been a Commercial Bank cus-tomer for 10 years.

Commercial Bank’s Save & Win campaign was launched in September 2017. It offered monthly and quarterly cash prizes to customers who main-tained a minimum average balance of QR10,000 or more in their Current or Savings account. The grand prize of QR1m con-cludes the campaign, throughout which Commercial Bank has awarded a total of 365 cash

prizes to customers exceeding QR3.2m in cash prizes.

Joseph Abraham, Group CEO of Commercial Bank, said: “On behalf of everyone at Com-mercial Bank, I would like to offer my congratulations to Frangieh as the winner of the Bank’s Save & Win campaign. I hope that the cash prize creates many opportunities for him.

Raymond Frangieh said: “This prize has come as a com-plete surprise! I knew that I may be eligible for one of the Save & Win cash prizes, but I had no idea I would win such a large amount. I am looking forward how deciding how to invest the money with Commercial Bank. I am so grateful to the Bank and its team for offering its cus-tomers this chance. I also would like to express my appreciation to the country of Qatar, which

offers plenty of opportunities for everybody to make anything possible.”

Amit Sah, Head of Retail Banking at Commercial Bank commented, “To qualify for the grand prize draw of one million Qatari Riyal, customers had to maintain a minimum average account balance of QR10,000 for three consec-utive months in order to earn an entry coupon into the draw. This meant that the more money customers saved, the greater their chance of winning a cash prize. Helping our customers save, invest and manage their wealth is core to our value proposition, and we have an ever-increasing number of qualified wealth management professionals to help our customers achieve their goals”.

Joseph Abraham (third right), Commercial Bank CEO; Amit Sah (second left), Head of Retail Banking at Commercial Bank, and other bank officials with Raymond Frangieh, grand prize winner of Commercial Bank’s Save & Win campaign, and family.

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: QNB, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa, has announced its platinum spon-sorship of International Products Exhibition & Conference (IPEC), to be held from October 8 to 10 2018 at DECC.

Under the patronage of the Prime Minister and Interior Min-ister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, IPEC

is an initiative that marks Qatar strong ties with distinguished partners. The conference will be a platform to invite foreign investors and business owners to explore investment and devel-opment opportunities in Qatar across diverse sectors.

IPEC represents an important gateway for strength-ening economic relations and accelerating trade across various industries. IPEC conference will host representatives and

business owners from different countries to help them explore business opportunities and new projects in Qatar.

The event affirms the Group’s commitment to imple-menting global financial prac-tices. The Bank’s sponsorship of the event is part of its com-mitment to push business opportunities in Qatar forward and aid in the prosperity of its economy in line with Qatar’s National vision 2030.

Worried Zimbabweans fill up cars and stockpile goodsREUTERS

HARARE: Zimbabwe’s central bank governor sought to reassure the public yesterday as people again formed long queues to fill up their cars in the capital, with others panic-buying basic goods like cooking oil and sugar.

The panic has been caused by recent changes introduced by the government and a worsening US dollar crunch, but the gov-ernor, John Mangudya (pic-tured), told Reuters that people should not be worried and that he expected an improvement in the next 48 hours. “The problem is that we did not explain things. This economy is a sentiment driven economy so we need to communicate more with the society,” he said.

The southern African nation dumped its hyperinflation-wrecked currency in favour of the US dollar in 2009 but a shortage of cash dollars has

worsened following a disputed election won by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in July.

Fuel queues started building up this week and yesterday outlets in Harare had either run out or had long queues as drivers patiently waited for their turn to fill up their tanks.

“I have been here for an hour because the queue is moving slowly. I have no choice because I need the petrol,” said one motorist, who identified himself

as Pascal, at a service station in the Avondale suburb in Harare.

At some outlets owned by Total, attendants only served motorists with pre-paid cards. Other outlets refused mobile payments, preferring bank cards and cash. Zimbabwe spends $80m on fuel imports every month. Mangudya told Reuters the fuel shortages had been caused by an introduction of a 2 percent tax on electronic pay-ments last Monday, which meant oil firms would incur weekly bank charges of $400,000 for fuel imports but were not allowed to pass the cost to consumers.

Zimbabweans were also stocking up on basic goods like rice, cooking oil, sugar and juice.

A shortage of US dollars in banks has forced importers to purchase them on the black market, which has pushed up premiums and the price of imports.

On the black market, the premium for the US dollar spiked to a new record yesterday, reaching 165 percent from 120 percent on last Monday, traders said.

That means buying $100 in cash via a bank transfer cost $265, up from $220 earlier this week.

The situation has not been helped by Mangudya’s decision early this week to order banks to open accounts for clients who earn foreign currency and sep-arate their money from dollars in the local banking system, known as “Zollars”.

Analysts said the move effec-tively makes the dollar surro-gates Zimbabwe’s de-facto local currency.

There are $9.3bn of Zollars in banks compared to $200m in reserves, official data showed, a mismatch that creates a premium for the US dollar and fans the black market.

Qatar’s current committed investments in the energy sector amount to around $13bn. Among the projects coming on line within Apicorp’s outlook include the Barzan gas field.

QNB Platinum sponsor of IPEC

Fidelity’s asset management Chief Morrison to retireREUTERS

BOSTON: Fidelity Investments said on Friday that its asset management chief, Charles Morrison (pictured), is leaving the company and that it plans to name a replacement in “the near term.”

Morrison, who has been with Fidelity for 32 years, has been president of the asset man-agement division since 2014. He is expected to retire at the end of the year, Fidelity said. During his tenure, assets under man-agement climbed by 37 percent to a record $2.6trillion at the end of August.

Fidelity said it has a suc-cession plan and expects to “be in a position to name Charlie’s replacement in the near term.” The Wall Street Journal first reported the news. Morrison is leaving Fidelity at a time the pri-vately-held firm has been

lowering fees, even eliminating management fees altogether on two recently launched index funds, as it battles industry rivals to attract and keep increasingly cost-conscious clients.

In his nearly five years as asset management chief, Mor-rison expanded the types of port-folios Fidelity offers, pushing more into exchange traded funds. Before being elevated to asset management chief, Mor-rison ran Fidelity’s fixed income division.

24 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018BUSINESS

A confident US Fed set to carry on hiking: QNBTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: With the decision to lift interest rates for an eight time since December 2016 to 2-2.5 percent a foregone conclusion, the US Federal Reserve continued confident about the need for further tightening, probably as soon as December.

The Fed hiked short-term interest rates by 25bp for the third time this year following its Sep-tember 26-27 meeting. The decision comes despite the con-tinued escalation of trade ten-sions between the US and China.

QNB noted in its weekly ‘eco-nomic commentary’ yesterday that both the policy statement accompanying the decision and Fed Chair Jay Powell’s remarks in the post-meeting press con-ference signalled that the Fed remains unusually bullish in its assessment of the economy and for the time being sees little impact on the economy from trade tensions.

Accordingly, the Fed strongly signalled its resolve to press on with its well-established policy of delivering a steady drip feed of interest rate hikes until short term interest rates get to at least the 3-3.25 percent zone that it regards as being the economy’s likely ‘neutral’ rate, if not even a tad higher.

In terms of the policy s t a t e m e n t , o n e

important development was that long-standing language referring to the stance of policy as being ‘accommodative’ was removed. This change probably should not be overinterpreted however. After eight rate hikes, the level of interest rates is clearly becoming more normal and the additional rate hikes that the Fed expects to deliver will further normalise policy settings.

The outlook for continued slow, but steady, interest-rate hikes was also confirmed by the Fed’s rate updated forecasts for the policy outlook – the so-called ‘dot plot’. These continue to show that the median, or average, expectation of the Fed’s rate-setting committee is for one further 25bp rate hike by the end of this year, a further three rate

hikes in 2019 and than one further rate increase in 2020. If delivered, these further five quarter point rate moves would lift the Fed’s short–term interest rate to 3¼-3½ percent; slightly above their current best estimate of the economy’s neutral short-term interest rate.

While these forecasts are, in reality, little changed from the Committee’s previous views, the confidence with which they are held appears solid. This is important given the emerging downside risks to the US economy from the escalating trade war between the US and China.

Despite the US imposing tariffs on additional $200bn of China imports since the Fed’s last meeting at the end of July, there was still no mention of the risks to the economy from the trade war in the Fed’s policy statement. Fed Chair Powell also emphasied the absence of trade tensions so far in his press conference. He stressed that Fed is ‘not seeing it yet – we just aren’t and we are watching really closely.’ His overall tone remained bullish, emphasising repeatedly that ‘our economy is strong.’

With the US economy seeming on course for back-to-back quarters of 4 percent annu-alised GDP growth, small business and consumer confi-dence either at, or near, 50 year

highs and trade tensions yet to bite, the bar to deflect the Fed from its intended course would seem to remain unusally high.

The Fed’s confident and increasingly uncluttered approach to monetary policy under Chair Powell is exemplified by the increasing brevity of its policy statement.

Excluding the roll call of how various members voted, the latest statement was cut to just 252 words. This is down nearly 500 words at the same meeting a year ago and is only around one third of the length of the bumper Sep-tember 2014 statement which clocked in at 748 words. Less is

increasingly more for the Powell Fed it seems.

For global investors, there are perhaps two stand out conclu-sions. First, the unprecedented decoupling of US monetary policy from most other developed econ-omies, especially the euro zone and Japan, looks set to continue. While the European Central Bank looks on course to end its bond-buying programme this time next year, any tightening of policy in the euro zone remains unlikely before 2020, at the earliest. T

ighter policy continues to look even further away in Japan where CPI inflation’s failure to pick up ensures that the Bank of

Japan remains fully committed to further quantitative easing.

There is therefore a real pos-sibility that the US rate hiking cycle may have finished in early 2020 before those in Europe and Japan have even begun. This unprecedented asymmetry should keep the US dollar firm against both the Euro and partic-ularly the Japanese yen in the coming months as interest-rate spreads, especially at shorter maturities, continue to move in the US dollar’s favour.

Second, the continued drip feed of US interest rate hikes and a firm US dollar will ensure that global liquidity continues to tighten.

Emerging markets with external financing requirements, who have already been under acute strain in recent months, are therefore unlikely to see much respite any time soon. They look set to remain under continued pressure to raise their interest rates in response to rising US rates to staunch capital outflows and defend their currencies. For its part the Fed has made clear that emerging market volatility cannot deflect it from its domestic policy goals.

All in all, rumours of the US dollar’s demise continue to be exaggerated in QNB’s view: a strong US dollar looks here to stay for the foreseeable future as the Fed carries on hiking.

ANH Trading to offer pioneering green solutions in QatarTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: ANH Trading has signed a representative contract with E24 company, a company specialized in alter-native and clean solar energy solutions which provides elec-tricity services around the clock without the use of generators inside the State of Qatar.

Whether the clients need direct hybrid solar energy or storage units for villas, buildings, offices, parking lots, factories or workshops, ANH trading can provide a clean environmental solution.

The clean smart solutions also include agronomic solu-tions for farms, telecom service providers, and solu-tions to power requirements across key networks. All E24 solutions are easy to transport, install and manufactured to withstand all climatic condi-tions. The advantages of its products, as well as the usual solar panels and integrated photovoltaic cells, the high-quality clay tiles with photo-electric cells to give one’s roof home an aesthetic touch.

Scooter company Bird enters LatAm with launch in Mexico CityREUTERS

SAN FRANCISCO: California startup Bird said on Friday it has launched its electric scooters in Mexico City, expanding its effort to shake up urban transportation globally.

The launch marks Bird’s entry into Latin America, a market that transportation startups and investors see as ripe for growth. The company also said it would expand its operations to Brazil.

Bird is operating out of a shared office space in Mexico City and has been recruiting locally for weeks, according to public job postings. It has hired some local staff and is building up a network of workers tasked with keeping the electric scooters charged, the company said.

Bird is still looking for a country manager, the company

said, and in the interim a general manager based in Austin, Texas, will oversee Mexico operations.

Latin America has in general fewer regulatory hurdles for electric scooters than for car-hailing companies such as Uber Technologies Inc, creating an easier path for growth, according to a Bird investor.

Bird has joined a trade asso-ciation of mobility companies in Latin America, known as MaaS Latam, which is working to promote its services with regu-lators and local authorities.

However, questions about where scooter users should ride the vehicles, the impact on bicycle lanes, helmet laws and liability have concerned regu-lators globally, leading some cities to limit scooter permits. The dockless scooters have also posed safety issues when they are

abandoned on sidewalks and in driveways.

Transportation startups of all kinds have looked to Mexico and Brazil for growth. The countries are two of Uber’s biggest markets globally, and China ride service Didi Chuxing last year acquired a Brazilian ride-hailing startup, 99, and in April brought its own ride-hailing network to Mexico.

Bird said last month that its e-scooter service has completed 10 million rides since launching a year ago. The company has raised $418m and is valued at $2bn, a large sum for a company just a year old.

Some scooter companies will struggle to live up to their valu-ations. In the last year, electric scooters have blanketed the

streets of American, European and Chinese cities, and this pro-liferation is widely expected to result in price competition that could eat into profits and force consolidation in the industry.

In Brazil, Bird will face an already crowded market of local competitors, including Yellow, started by the founders of 99, as well as startups Ride and Scoo.

Bird scooters are seen outside a restaurant in Santa Monica, California, US.

Rising use of plastics to drive oil demand to 2050: IEAREUTERS

LONDON: Plastics and other petrochemical products will drive global oil demand to 2050, offsetting slower consumption of motor fuel, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday.

Despite government efforts to cut pollution and carbon emis-sions from oil and gas, the Paris-based agency said it expected the rapid growth of emerging econ-omies, such as India and China, to propel demand for petro-chemical products.

Petrochemicals that are derived from oil and gas feed-stocks form the building blocks for products that range from plastic bottles and beauty products to fertilisers and explosives.

Oil demand for transport is expected to slow by 2050 due to the rise of electric vehicles and more-efficient combustion engines, but that would be offset by rising demand for petrochem-

icals, the IEA said in a report.“The petrochemical sector is

one of the blind spots of the global energy debate and there is no question that it will be the key driver of oil demand growth for many years to come,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol (pictured) told Reuters.

Petrochemicals are expected to account for more than a third of global oil demand growth by 2030 and nearly half of demand growth by 2050, according to the world’s energy watchdog.

Global demand for petro-chemical feedstock accounted for 12 million barrels per day (bpd), or roughly 12 percent of total demand for oil in 2017. The figure is forecast to grow to almost 18 million bpd in 2050.

Most demand growth will take place in the Middle East and China, where big petrochemical plants are being built.

Oil companies such as Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell plan to invest in new petrochemical plants in the coming decades,

betting on the rising demand for p last ics in emerging economies.

In the Middle East, major producers are also investing in large petrochemical plants because in some cases they can make more money by converting crude oil directly into plastics rather than oil products such as gasoline and diesel, Birol said.

Plastics use has come under increased scrutiny as waste makes its way into the oceans where it harms marine life, prompting several countries to ban, partly ban or tax single-use plastic bags.

But the IEA report said gov-ernment efforts to encourage recycling in order to curb carbon emissions would have only a minor impact on petrochemical growth.

“Although substantial increases in recycling and efforts to curb single-use plastics take place, especially led by Europe, Japan and Korea, these efforts will be far outweighed by the

sharp increase in developing economies of plastic con-sumption,” it said.

Under the IEA’s most aggressive scenario, recycling could hit around 5 percent of high-value chemical demand.

Petrochemical plants mainly run on light oil products such as naphtha and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). But natural gas is becoming an increasingly favoured feedstock, particularly in the United States where shale gas production has risen.

The report said petro-chemical projects would account for 7 percent of the roughly 850 billion cubic metres in gas demand increase between 2017 and 2030, and 4 percent of the increase projected for 2050.

Rumours of the US dollar’s demise continue to be exaggerated in QNB’s view: a strong US dollar looks here to stay for the foreseeable future as the Fed carries on hiking.

Canada posts first trade surplus in two yearsAFP

OTTAWA: Canada posted its first trade surplus in almost two years in August, the government statistical agency said Friday, beating econo-mists’ expectations.

The Can$526m ($407m) surplus followed a Can$189m deficit in July, as falling imports outpaced a drop in exports.

Exports in August, according to Statistics Canada, fell 1.1 percent to Can$50.5bn, mostly on lower sales of passenger cars and trucks to the US that coin-cided with “atypical shut-downs” in the industry.

The agency also noted lower exports of unwrought gold and crude oil to Britain, while exports of copper ores and concentrates were up mostly due to shipments to Japan, South Korea and India.

Panama loses WTO claim to trade sanctions on ColombiaREUTERS

GENEVA: A World Trade Organization (WTO) panel rejected Panama’s claim for $210m annual sanctions on Colombia for non-compliance with a previous ruling against tariffs on clothing, textile and footwear imposed by Bogota to target alleged “money laun-dering”. Panama won a judgment at the WTO in 2016 after complaining about Colombian tariffs on textiles, clothes and shoes. Colombia, which had imposed the high tariffs because it said the goods were imported at arti-ficially low prices in order to launder money, had until January 22 2017 to comply

25SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 BUSINESS

BREAK TIMEVILLAGGIO & CITY CENTER

Note: Programme is subject to change without prior notice.

96 (2D/Tamil) 2:00pm Varathan (Malayalam) 4:45pm Ente Mezhuthiri Athazhangal (2D/Malayalam) 2:15pm Venom (2D/Action) 5:00, 7:00 & 9:30pm Smallfoot (Animation) 5:45pm Andhadhun (2D/Hindi) 7:15pm Exes Baggage (2D/Tagalog) 7:30pm Love Yatri (2D/Hindi) 9:00pm Singularity (2D/Action) 9:45pm Turab El Mass (2D/Arabic) 11:30pm Nawab (2D/Telugu) 11:30pm Ratsasan (2D/Tamil) 11:30pm

Smallfoot (Animation) 2:15pm Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (Tamil) 2:15pm Harvie And The Magic Museum (2D/Animation) 3:00pmNawab (2D/Telugu) 4:00pmMaquia: When The Promised Flowers Bloom (Animation) 5:00pm Venom (2D/Action) 5:00, 6:45 & 9:00pm Exes Baggage (2D/Tagalog) 7:00 & 11:30pm Singularity (2D/Action) 7:00pm Love Yatri (2D/Hindi) 8:45pm Turab El Mass (2D/Arabic) 8:45pm 96 (2D/Tamil) 11:00pmEnte Mezhuthiri Athazhangal (2D/Malayalam) 11:15pm

Smallfoot (Animation) 3:00pm Varathan (Malayalam) 2:30pm Exes Baggage (2D/Tagalog) 5:00 & 7:00pm Venom (2D/Action) 5:00 & 9:00pm Little Italy (2D/Comedy) 7:00pmLove Yatri (2D/Hindi) 9:00pm 96 (2D/Tamil) 11:00pmFirst Reformed (2D/Drama) 11:30pm

Andhadhun (Hindi) 6:00pm Oru Mezhuthiri Athazhangal (Malayalam) 8:45pm Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (Tamil) 11:30pm Varathan (Malayalam) 6:00 & 8:30pm 96 (2D/Tamil) 6:00, 8:45 & 11:30pm Ratchasaan (Tamil) 6:00, 8:45 & 11:30pm

Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (Tamil) 3:45pmVenom (Action) 10:45am, 1:15, 6:45pm & 12:00midnight 96 (Tamil) 11:30am, 5:30 & 11:30pm Andhadhun (2D/Hindi) 10:30am & 9:00pm Varathan 9:15pmRatsasan (Tamil) 2:30 & 8:30pm Exes Baggage (Hindi) 1:30 & 6:45pmEnte Mezhuthiri (Malayalam) 3:45pm Love Yatri (Hindi) 12:00noon

Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (Tamil) 10:30am, 1:30 & 7:10pm Smallfoot (Animation) 10:30am, 12:40, 2:50, 5:00 & 7:20pm Sui Dhaaga (Hindi) 4:30 & 10:10pm The House With A Clock In Its Walls 9:30 & 11:45pm Tourab Al Mas 10:30, 11:00am, 6:50, 7:50pm & 12:20amVarathan (Malayalam) 1:40, 7:30 & 10:10pm Venom 10:30am, 12:50, 2:10, 3:10, 4:30, 5:30, 10:00 & 11:00pm

A series of mysterious events take place in the life of a blind pianist (Ayushmann Khurrana). Now, he must report a crime that he never actually witnessed.

ANDHADHUN

ROYAL PLAZA MALLCROSSWORD

LANDMARK

FLIK Mirqab AL KHOR

ROXY

ASIAN TOWN

96 (Tamil) 1:50, 8:20pm & 12:15am Tourab Al Mass (Arabic) 7:00 & 9:55pm Ente Mezhuthiri Athazhangal 5:05 & 11:40pm Exes Baggage 11:45am, 8:05 & 10:20pm Harvie And The Magic Museum (Animation) 10:30am, 1:00, 2:20 & 6:10pm Johnny English Strikes Again 11:10am, 2:20, 4:15, 7:35, 9:30, 11:25pm & 12:30am Maquia When The Promised Flowers Bloom 12:25 & 2:55pmSmall Foot 10:45am, 4:35, 5:15, 7:40pmThe House With A Clock In Its Walls 12:10, 1:05, 3:15, 5:25pmVenom 2D 11:20am, 12:20, 1:40, 2:40, 4:00, 6:20, 8:40 & 10:00pm 3D 5:00, 7:20, 9:40, 11:00pm & 12:00midnight

Ross eyes anti-China ‘poison pill’ for new trade dealsREUTERS

WASHINGTON: US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross (pictured) signaled on Friday that Washington may flex its muscle with additional trading partners in order to exert pressure on China to open its markets, saying that a “poison pill” provision in the recently completed pact with Canada and Mexico could be replicated.

Ross said in an interview that the provision was “another move to try to close loopholes” in trade deals that have served to “legit-imize” China’s trade, intellectual property and industrial subsidy practices.

The United States is now in the early stages of talks with Japan and the European Union to lower tariff and regulatory barriers and try to reduce large US trade deficits in autos and other goods.

If the EU and Japan signed on to provisions similar to the one in the new US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), it would signal that they are fully aligned with Washington in trying to increase pressure on China, the world’s No. 2 economy, for major economic policy changes.

The provision in USMCA, which is expected to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, effectively gives Washington a veto over Canada and Mexico’s other free trade partners to ensure that they are governed by market principles and lack the state dominance that is at the core of President Donald Trump’s tariff war against China.

Under the provision, if any of the three countries in the USMCA enters a trade deal with a “non-market country,” the other two are free to quit in six months and form their own bilateral trade deal.

“It’s logical, it’s a kind of a poison pill,” Ross said.

Ross, asked if the provision would be repeated in future trade deals, said: “We shall see. It certainly helps that we got it with Mexico and with Canada, independently of whether we get it with anyone else.”

He added that with a prec-edent now set, it will be easier for the provision to be added to other trade deals. “People can come to understand that this is one of your prerequisites to make a deal,” he said.

Hanging over the talks with the EU and with Japan is the threat of a 25 percent US tariff on imported autos and auto parts as the Commerce Department pursues a study on whether such imports pose a national security threat. The USMCA deal largely exempts Canada and Mexico from such tariffs.

The United States cited national security concerns when it announced tariffs on imported

steel and aluminum from a number of countries in early March.

Ross said Canada and Mexico are effectively “really not in a position to object to (the national security tariffs) anymore because they’ve signed an agreement that says if we put them in we’ll exempt the first 2.6 million” vehicle imports from each country.

Ross declined to discuss timing for releasing the “Section 232” auto probe’s findings, noting that Trump has said he would not impose car tariffs while the EU and Japan talks are under way.

But in a signal that the probe could take longer, Ross said the Commerce Department was now incorporating details on autos trade from the USMCA deal, including new provisions that will effectively require more automotive content to be made in the United States.

Ross also said Japan should take steps to “move manufac-turing into the US” to cut its $40bn automotive trade surplus with the United States. He declined to say if the Trump administration would seek a vol-untary autos export cap from Japan.

“The methodology that we’ll use will be determined by the negotiations. There are plenty of ways you can solve things,” Ross said. “We want more production of everything in the United States. That’s our theme song with everybody.” Ross said he did not expect much movement on China trade talks until after the November 6 US congres-sional elections, adding that

Chinese officials do not appear in a mood to talk at the moment.

He said the view among some Chinese officials that Trump will be weakened by Democratic Party gains in Con-gress is a miscalculation, because “the real farmers, the real ranchers are hanging in there” and are not likely to turn away from Trump and Repubulicans in Congress.

The November elections are being closely watched to see if the Democrats can wrest control of the Senate or the House of Representatives from Repub-licans. Some of the key races are in states and Congressional dis-tricts where farming dominates and that had voted for Trump in 2016.

Ross trumpeted the Com-merce Department’s June set-tlement with ZTE Corp China’s No 2 telecommunications equipment maker, saying it brought an unprecedented level of change and scrutiny to the company that could be used in other cases.

Commerce virtually put ZTE out of business in April when it banned US companies from sup-plying ZTE with components for its smart phones and networking gear for failing to comply with a deal to settle violations of US

sanctions on Iran. Under the set-tlement deal that allowed ZTE to resume shipments, the company replaced its board and senior management, allowing a Com-merce Department monitor access to the company for 10 years, in addition to agreeing to a $1bn penalty and a $400m escrow payment.

“We’ve set the pattern that a huge, publicly owned company…changed its management, changed its board and permitted extreme intrusion by a foreign government regulatory agency,” Ross said.

“I don’t think you’ll find any-thing comparable to that any-where in the world.” Ross also highlighted the current labour contract talks between US steel companies and the United Steel-workers union, saying that wage increases are a likely outcome and that they would be a bell-wether for the broader US labor market.

United States Steel Corp and ArcelorMittal USA, a unit of Arce-lorMittal, have been negotiating new labour contracts for about 31,000 workers represented by the United Steelworkers union since July. A deal, however, remains elusive as workers are demanding a share in the profits from soaring steel prices.

The new provision in USMCA effectively gives Washington a veto over Canada and Mexico’s other free trade partners to ensure that they are governed by market principles.

Samsung Electronics flags record Q3 operating profitAFP

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics flagged on Friday a third-quarter operating profit of 17.5trillion won ($15.4bn), a record for any-three month period, led by solid demand for its memory chips used in mobile devices.

Sales for July to Sep-tember are expected to reach 65trillion won, the world’s largest maker of smartphones and memory chips said in a regulatory filing.

Q3 operating profit was up 20.4 percent from a year ago while sales jumped by 4.7 percent.

Samsung Electronics has seen profits soar in recent years largely thanks to solid demand for memory chips for mobile devices which has helped offset weakening profits from its own mobile production.

The mobile unit suffered a heavy blow after a dam-aging worldwide recall of its Galaxy Note 7 devices over exploding batteries two years ago, which cost the firm billions of dollars.

Samsung is also facing mounting competition from Apple and Chinese rivals and is looking for ways to boost momentum in a sluggish smartphone market.

But the firm unveiled its latest Galaxy Note 9 model in August which has received favourable reviews and is due to launch a new line up of its flagship Galaxy devices later this month.

26 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018BUSINESS

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Liverpool vsManchester City

Atletico Madrid vs Real Betis

FOOTBALL FOOTBALL

27SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018

I think definitely as the weeks go by, I have this feeling of wanting

to prove myself. I think that sort of takes a toll on me a little bit because

I stress myself out in a way.

Naomi Osaka US Open winner

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Nishikori to face Medvedev in JapanREUTERS

TOKYO: Home favourite Kei Nishikori defeated Frenchman Richard Gasquet 7-6(2), 6-1 in the semi-finals of the Japan Open yesterday, setting up a final against Russian qualifier Daniil Medvedev.

The Japanese world number 12 was made to battle during a tough first set as Gasquet saved three break points to take Nishikori to a tie-break.

The Frenchman had won five tie-breaks already this week in Tokyo but couldn’t find the magic formula this time as Nishikori saved his best for when it counted winning 7-2 in the tie-break after a long first set lasting almost an hour.

Gasquet’s spirit appeared broken as Nishikori comfortably broke the 32-year-old’s serve at the first time of asking, wrapping up the second set in just 33 minutes.

“I think winning the tie-break was very big for me and also for him, because he has been playing great tie-breaks this week,” Nishikori told

reporters.“I tried to raise my level in

the tie-break and be more aggressive, focused and then I played the best tie-break I have played for a couple of months.”

“This gave me good

confidence.” Nishikori, who has won this event in 2012 and 2014, is aiming to win his first ATP event since February 2016.

He has battled with injuries and form since, losing seven consecutive ATP finals, most

recently to Rafa Nadal at Monte Carlo in April.

“I’m feeling 100 percent,” added Nishikori.

“I was feeling 100 percent before playing a good clay court season.” “But now I think I’m playing more consistent. I had a couple of bad weeks after clay court but now everything is feeling perfect.”

The 28-year-old is currently 10th in the race to reach the end of season ATP Finals in London. With the top eight players qual-ifying, he is hoping to catch South African Kevin Anderson, cur-rently in eighth, who lost to Gasquet in the quarters on Friday. Medvedev beat

19-year-old Denis Shapovalov 6-3 6-3 in the earlier semi-final.

Medvedev served 12 aces to Shapovalov’s four, with the young Canadian also serving five double faults throughout the match as he struggled to stay with the big-hitting Russian.

The world number 32, who has beaten Diego Schwartzmann and Milos Raonic already this week, wrapped up the victory with back-to-back aces in a time of 63 minutes to reach his third ATP final of the year.

“Dennis is an amazing player,” Medvedev said on court, noting he had been prepared for a tough match today after their previous meetings in which Shapovalov had a 2-0 record.

“But I managed to play good and hold my serve and I’m in the final,” he said.

“I hope I can make it three out of three this year.”

The Russian has won both of his previous finals this year at Winston-Salem and also Sydney, once again as a qualifier.

Shapovalov has yet to reach an ATP final in his young career, losing in three semi-finals this year.

Japan’s Kei Nishikori serves against France’s Richard Gasquet during their men’s singles semi-final at the Japan Opein Tokyo yesterday.

Sevastova to face Wozniacki in Beijing title clashREUTERS

BEIJING: Anastasija Sevastova defeated US Open champion Naomi Osaka 6-4, 6-4 in the China Open semi-finals yesterday and will take on Caroline Wozniacki in today’s title clash.

Sevastova, managing a stomach muscle problem and not quite at 100 percent, controlled the contest by winning three out of eight break point opportunities to knock out the error-prone Japanese player.

The Latvian said she had sustained the problem in her win over Croatia’s Donna Vekic in the last 16.

“Playing against Donna, I had some problems with my stomach muscle and never expected to go further. The physios did a good job and somehow I’m still hanging in there, serving OK,” world number 20 Sevastova said.

“It (muscle issue) changes the serve a bit. I didn’t go too much for aces or fast serves... just tried to hit the angles and placement and that helped.” Sevastova edged a tight first set with a solitary break as Osaka’s game showed signs of falling apart. The 20-year-old made 42 unforced errors in the contest.

Osaka also struggled with a lower back problem in the second set as Sevastova raced to a 5-2 lead before closing out the win.In the other semi-final, Australian Open champion Wozniacki converted five out of eight break point opportu-nities to thump local hope Wang Qiang 6-1 6-3 and reach her first hardcourt final since Melbourne.

Sevastova, who is looking for her second title of the season, has never beaten Wozniacki in four previous meetings.

Meanwhile, unseeded Nikoloz Basilashvili beat Briton Kyle Edmund 7-6(6) 6-4 in the men’s semi-finals to set up a title clash with top seed Juan Martin del Potro.

Russia’s Daniil Medvedev reacts following a point against Canada’s Milos Raonic during the men’s singles quarter-finals at the Japan Open in Tokyo yesterday.

Farah and Rupp face African challenge at Chicago MarathonREUTERS

CHICAGO: The spotlight will be on former training partners Mo Farah and Galen Rupp but African runners could prevail in what promises to be a stellar but wet Chicago Marathon today.

Ethiopians Mosinet Geremew and Birhanu Legese and Kenyans Dickson Chumba, Abel Kirui and Kenneth Kip-kemoi all have run faster than British marathon record holder Farah and reigning champion Rupp with Kirui and Chumba former Chicago winners.

Kenyan world championship gold medallist Geoffrey Kirui is also a major threat.

“You’ve got guys who’ve run 2:04,” Farah told Runner’s World. “There are seven or eight good guys. I don’t even know who to think could win that race.” But the intriguing story of two former partners chasing the same goal makes for high theatre.

US Olympic marathon bronze med-allist Rupp and Farah, four times an Olympic gold medallist on the track, trained together in Oregon for six years before Farah returned to Britain in 2017.

Now they face off on the roads with American Rupp still coached by Alberto Salazar and Farah, now 35, running his

first US marathon under the guidance of Gary Lough, the husband and former coach of women’s world marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe.

“It’s part of making the race exciting -- it’s what people want to see,” Farah said when asked about the rivalry.

“Like, when you go to watch boxing you want to see the best boxers fight

each other. There’s a lot of talk, you know? That’s how athletics is and why all the fans support us. Only the best man will do it on the day. It’s nice to give the people who’ve seen us throughout our careers something to watch.” Both profess to be in top shape.

Farah, who claimed the British record with his 2:06:21 for third in April’s

London Marathon, hopes to eclipse Nor-wegian Sondre Nor-d s t a d M o e n ’ s European record of 2:05:48.

“For me satis-faction will be to run a personal best,” he said.

R u p p , w h o clocked 2:06:07 at Prague in May, also wants to go faster.

“This is probably the best situation I’ve ever been in to run fast,” said the 3 2 - y e a r - o l d American, who won last year’s race in 2:09:20. The US record is 2:05:38.

Kenyans Brigid Kosgei, the 2017 runner-up, and Florence Kiplagat, a two-time Chicago winner, will likely headline the women’s field along with Ethiopians Roza Dereje and Birhane Dibaba. All have run 2:20 or better.

Wet weather, however, could affect racing. There is a 50 percent chance of showers.

Galen Rupp of the US and Mo Farah of Britain (right) compete during their men’s 5000 metres heat at the IAAF World Championships at the National Stadium in Beijing, China in this August 26, 2015 file picture.

Labanc scores in overtime, Sharks beat Kings 3-2AP

LOS ANGELES: The San Jose Sharks are looking like the Western Conference contenders that many are expecting this season.

The Sharks used Kevin Labanc’s goal 2:53 into overtime to beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 on Friday.

“The guys played like we needed to win this game and we found a way to do it,” San Jose coach Pete DeBoer said.

“We lost our home opener and found a way to come into a tough building and I thought we played well.” San Jose was defeated by Anaheim 5-2 in its opener on Wednesday, but looked better in its second game.

Meanwhile, the Kings struggled to put the puck into the net, which has been a theme of the past couple seasons. They were outshot 33-21 and came up empty in five power-play opportunities.

“We were trying to rush plays in the first period. Once we got the first goal we kind of settled down and started making plays,” said Kings forward Anze Kopitar, who had a first-period goal.

Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia hits a return during her semi-final match against Naomi Osaka of Japan at the China Open in Beijing yesterday.

28 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018SPORT

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton during practice at the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka, Japan, yesterday.

Unstoppable Hamilton storms to 80th career pole position REUTERS

SUZUKA: Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton seized a record-extending 80th pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix yesterday, timing his sole flying lap to perfection while Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel managed only ninth.

The Mercedes driver, in dominant form all weekend at the Suzuka circuit, pumped in a one minute 27.760 second lap on the super-soft tyres while it was still only just spitting with rain.

Vettel and Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, who went out on interme-diate tyres in the final part of qualifying with the track still dry, lost time coming back in to fit the super-soft tyres.

The German then made another mistake on his first flying lap and was unable to get another one in as the inter-mittent drizzle turned into a full-blown shower that drenched the track.

Meanwhile, Hamilton -- who along with team mate Valtteri Bottas had gone out straight away on the super-soft tyres

to beat the rain -- was lighting up the timing screens.

“The team have done an amazing job this weekend, and the call that we made for Q3 was probably the most difficult,” said the Briton, joined by Bottas on the front row after the Finn completed a second successive Mercedes front row lockout.

“It’s so difficult when the pressure is on to make the right call but that’s the big difference between us this year and that’s why we’re the best and the team deserve it,” added Hamilton.

Vettel trails his fellow four times champion by 50 points in the standings with just four races left after Japan. His hopes are fading fast and he needs a huge stroke of luck now to reignite his challenge.

“Obviously it’s not the position we deserve to be in,” said the 31-year-old. “I think we have better speed than ninth but we’ll start there and see how it goes.

“Anything can happen tomorrow. Tomorrow is a new day.”

Vettel’s misfortune allowed 21-year-old Dutch driver Max Verstappen to qualify third for Red Bull.

“We have a bigger chance now to be on the podium,” said Verstappen, doubting that he would need to worry too much about the others’ title battle: “Is it still a battle? I’m not sure,” he said.

While the Dutchman celebrated, team mate Daniel Ricciardo was left hoarse with anger after a power unit problem sidelined him during the second phase of qualifying before he had set a time.

The Australian, as a consequence, is set to start 15th.

“I just can’t catch a break,” said Ric-ciardo, who is leaving Red Bull for Renault at the end of the year.

Toro Rosso starred in what is a home race for engine-supplier Honda with New Zealander Brendon Hartley sixth ahead of French team mate Pierre Gasly in seventh.

“I’m stoked with that. I was actually a bit emotional on the in-lap,” said Hartley, who has had a tough time this

year and faces an uncertain future. Rivals McLaren, who dumped Honda for Renault after three frustrating years, meanwhile could do no better than 18th and 19th.

The retiring Fernando Alonso beat Stoffel Vandoorne but neither driver made it past the opening 18-minute part of the session.

Sweden’s Marcus Ericsson briefly brought out the red flags when he crashed his Sauber at the fast left-handed Dunlop curve early in the session.

Renault’s German Nico Hulkenberg, who crashed in the final practice session ahead of qualifying, made it back out on track but was also knocked out in the first phase having set the 16th quickest time.

That could be bad news for the fourth-placed French team, with their closest rivals Haas having Romain Grosjean qualify fifth.

Hamilton has won five of the last six races and is already in a position where he does not need to win again this year to clinch the title. The Briton won from pole in Japan last year.

Repsol Honda Team’s Spanish rider Marc Marquez rides during the final free practice session of the 2018 Thailand MotoGP at Buriram International Circuit in Buriram yesterday.

Japanese GP qualifying gridSUZUKA: Suzuka, Japan, Starting

grid for the Japanese Grand Prix

after qualifying yesterday:

1st row

Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes)

Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes)

2nd row

Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull-TAG

Heuer) Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari)

3rd row

Romain Grosjean (FRA/Haas-Ferra-

ri) Brendon Hartley (NZL/Toro Ros-

so-Honda)

4th row

Pierre Gasly (FRA/Toro Rosso-Hon-

da) Esteban Ocon (FRA/Force In-

dia-Mercedes)

5th row

Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) Ser-

gio Perez (MEX/Force India-Mer-

cedes)

6th row

Charles Leclerc (MON/Sauber-Fer-

rari) Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas-

Ferrari)

7th row

Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/Renault) Lance

Stroll (CAN/Williams-Mercedes)

8th row

Daniel Ricciardo (AUS/Red Bull-TAG

Heuer) Nico Hulkenberg (GER/Re-

nault)

9th row

Sergey Sirotkin (RUS/Williams-

Mercedes) Fernando Alonso (ESP/

McLaren-Renault)

10th row

Stoffel Vandoorne (BEL/McLaren-

Renault) Marcus Ericsson (SWE/

Sauber-Ferrari)

Vettel defends Ferrari as tyre gamble falls flatAFP

SUZUKA: Sebastian Vettel has refused to point fingers after Ferrari calamitously chose the wrong tyres in Japanese Grand Prix qual-ifying yesterday.

Ferrari’s decision to send Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen out on intermediates at the start of the top-10 shootout at Suzuka back-fired as the rain they were banking on held off for several crucial minutes.

“I’m not blaming anybody,” insisted Vettel, who slumped to eighth, leaving his fading Formula One title hopes hanging by a thread. “If it starts to rain five, six, seven minutes earlier, we did a miracle,” added the German, who trails Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton by 50 points with just 125 left in play.

“Because we’re the only clever ones. But if it’s like that obvi-ously we’re the only ones looking stupid. Therefore I defend the decision -- it’s our decision as a team.”

Vettel, whose dreams of pipping Hamilton to five world titles now look all but over, had barely left the garage on the harder compound tyres when he informed Ferrari of the error over team radio.

“Obviously it wasn’t wet enough to start with and then the rain didn’t come, it came later,” said a deflated Vettel, who qualified ninth but was bumped up to eighth after Esteban Ocon received a three-place penalty.

“I think we expected that there was more rain coming and obviously it didn’t. Then it was the wrong decision, but when the conditions are like this then obviously you either get it right or you get it wrong.”

A rampant Hamilton, who stormed to a record-extending 80th pole, could not resist a dig at his rival.

“The Ferraris pulled out of the garage on the inters and I hon-estly didn’t think it was the right decision,” said the Briton.

AFP

BURIRAM: Championship leader Marc Marquez made history as he became the first rider to climb out of Q1 and claim pole position at the inaugural Thailand MotoGP yesterday.

The Spaniard had to fight his way through the first qualifying session after a crash in practice, but in Q2 he stormed to a time of lmin 30.088secs for his 50th pole.

It underlined the superb form of the Honda rider, who holds a 72-point lead over Andrea Dovizioso with five races remaining as he closes on a fifth world

title.“Of course I was happy how I finished

the day,” Marquez, 25, told reporters, describing his morning practice session as “unlucky”.

Seven-time world champion Val-entino Rossi, who along with Marquez is a firm favourite among Thai fans, was 11-hundredths behind Marquez with Dovizioso third fastest.

Yamaha’s Rossi described his time as a “great result” after he qualified just 18th quickest last month in Aragon, his lowest grid position since 2006.

However MotoGP star Jorge Lorenzo, who arrived carrying a foot injury and

then damaged his wrist in a heavy crash during practice Friday, is out after he withdrew before qualifying.

Italian riders Marco Bezzecchi and Lorenzo Baldassarri will start from pole in the Moto3 and Moto2 races respectively.

Thailand’s first MotoGP is being held in the rural town of Buriram, which is several hours’ drive from Bangkok and has a population of only about 30,000.

More than double that size turned out yesterday, according to organisers.

The 25-lap race is at the Chang Inter-national Circuit, the only Formula One-grade track in the country.

Marquez tops Thailand qualifying

29SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 SPORT

India (I Innings) 649-9 dec

West Indies 1st innings K. Brathwaite b Shami ...................................... 2

K. Powell lbw b Shami .......................................1

S. Hope b Ashwin ............................................ 10

S. Hetmyer run out (Jadeja) ........................... 10

S. Ambris c Rahane b Jadeja ......................... 12

R. Chase b Ashwin .......................................... 53

S. Dowrich b K. Yadav ..................................... 10

K. Paul c Pujara b U. Yadav ............................47

D. Bishoo not out ............................................ 17

S. Lewis b Ashwin ..............................................0

S. Gabriel st Pant b Ashwin ...............................1

Extras (b16, lb2) ................................... 18 Total (all out, 48 overs) ...................... 181 Fall of wickets: 1-2 (Brathwaite), 2-7 (Shami), 3-21

(Hope), 4-32 (Hetmyer), 5-49 (Ambris), 6-74 (Dow-

rich), 7-147 (Paul), 8-159 (Chase), 9-159 (Lewis), 10-

181 (Gabriel)

Bowling: Shami 9-2-22-2, U. Yadav 11-3-20-1, Ash-

win 11-2-37-4, Jadeja 7-1-22-1, U. Yadav 10-1-62-1

West Indies (II innings) K. Brathwaite c Shaw b Ashwin .................... 10

K. Powell c Shaw b K. Yadav ..........................83

S. Hope lbw b K. Yadav ................................... 17

S. Hetmyer c Rahul b K. Yadav ....................... 11

S. Ambris st Pant b K. Yadav ............................0

R. Chase c Ashwin b K. Yadav ...................... 20

S. Dowrich not out ........................................... 16

K. Paul c U. Yadav n Jadeja ............................ 15

D. Bishoo c Pant b Ashwin ...............................9

S. Lewis lbw b Jadeja ........................................4

S. Gabriel c K. Yadav b Jadeja ..........................4

Extras (b5, lb1, nb1) ............................... 7 Total (all out, 50.5 overs) ................... 196 Fall of wickets: 1-32 (Brathwaite), 2-79 (Hope),

3-97 (Hetmyer), 4-97 (Ambris), 5-138 (Chase), 6-151

(Powell), 7-172 (Paul), 8-185 (Bishoo), 9-192 (Lewis),

10-196 (Gabriel)

Bowling: Shami 3-0-11-0 (nb1), Ashwin 18-2-71-2,

U. Yadav 3-0-16-0, K. Yadav 14-2-57-5, Jadeja 12.5-

1-35-3

Toss: India

Result: Indian won by an innings and 272 runs

Series: India lead the two-Test series 1-0

Man-of-the-Match: Prithvi Shaw (India)

SCOREBOARD

India hammer West Indies for its biggest Test victory

AP

RAJKOT: India crushed West Indies in their first Test by an innings and 272 runs on Saturday for its biggest margin of victory in test cricket.

The hosts dismissed West Indies for 196 runs just 20 minutes into the evening session on day three with left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav returning career-best Test figures of 5-57.

Ravichandran Ashwin (2-71) and Ravindra Jadeja (3-35) shared the other five wickets as the spinners ran amok against West Indies.

Resuming after tea, the match lasted only another 35 balls. Jadeja trapped Sherman Lewis (4) lbw in the 49th over with Ashwin wrapping up pro-ceedings 11 balls later as Shannon Gabriel (4) holed out in the deep.

India’s previous biggest innings victory came in June when it beat Test newcomers Afghanistan by an innings and 262 runs at Bengaluru within two days.

West Indies made 181 in its first innings after resuming on 94-6 yesterday and was asked to follow on.

“We cannot compare this with series (defeat) in England. That was a bigger challenge, and we knew the quality we have, we would dominate when playing at home again,” India captain Virat Kohli said.

“Our guys understand how to play in these conditions and were clinical. The West Indies’ performance is not for me to speak upon. I am sure they will want to rectify their errors.”

After India had declared on 649-9 in its first and only innings, it ran through the West Indies batting line-up in 48 overs to set up an imposing 468-run lead.

Resuming on 94-6, West Indies showed some fight as Roston Chase (53) and Keemo Paul (47) continued their seventh-wicket partnership from Friday evening and added 73 runs overall with some attacking batting.

Umesh Yadav ended the resistance when Paul fended off a bouncer in the 39th for a simple catch to mid-wicket.

The visitors unraveled quickly as Ashwin (4-37) ran through the tail. Chase and Sherman Lewis (0) fell in the space of four balls in the 44th over.

Devendra Bishoo (17 not out) threw his bat around to hit three fours before Gabriel was stumped off Ashwin to end the innings.

Kohli had no hesitation in sending the visitors back in and Ashwin, taking the new ball, made another breakthrough in the penultimate over before lunch having Kraigg Brathwaite caught by teenage debutant Prithvi Shaw at short leg for 10.

At lunch, West Indies was 33-1. After the break, Kieran Powell (83) tried to put the Indian attack to the sword with eight fours and four sixes in his 93-ball stay, reaching his sixth test half-century off 55 balls.

“I was surprised with the amount of high-risk shots that were played against the spinners,” Ashwin said.

“Maybe it was their strategy against our spinners, but it didn’t work.”

Powell added 47 runs for the second wicket with Shai Hope (17) and later another 41 runs with Chase (20) for the fifth wicket.

Yadav then took over.He trapped Hope lbw and

then Shimron Hetmyer (11) was caught flashing at short third man, an unnecessary shot. It became a quick triple blow when Sunil Ambris was stumped for a three-ball duck.

Yadav accounted for both Chase and Powell in the space of six overs, achieving his best figures in Test cricket since 4-40 against Sri Lanka at Pallekele in 2017.

Jadeja and Ashwin struck late in the session to remove Paul (15) and Devendra Bishoo (9) respectively.

“India showed us how to bat and credit to them. Quite disap-pointed with this loss and we didn’t get enough partnerships,” said stand-in skipper Kraigg Brathwaite. “We did talk about being positive in our team meetings.”

Shaw was named Man-of-the-Match for his first Test hundred. He scored 134 runs off 154 balls on day one and was the second-youngest Indian batsman to score a Test century after Sachin Tendulkar.

“I couldn’t have imagined my Test debut like this... I just wanted to play my natural game, like I do in first-class cricket,” said Shaw.

The second and final Test begins in Hyderabad on Friday.

Indian cricketers Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, Kuldeep Yadav, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara walk back after winning the first Test cricket match against the West Indies in Rajkot yesterday.

Indian bowler Kuldeep Yadav jumps in air in his delivery stride during the third day’s play of the first Test cricket match against the West Indies in Rajkot yesterday.

Paine-led Australia eager to move on from ‘sandpaper-gate’REUTERS

DUBAI: Australia’s hopes of winning back respect and moving on from a ball-tampering scandal that plunged the team into disgrace face their first Test today when Tim Paine’s rebuilding side meet Pakistan in the series-opener in Dubai.

With former captain Steve Smith, and opening batsmen David Warner and Cameron Bancroft, serving suspensions for ‘Sandpaper-gate’, the Australians have brought a vastly different squad to the Middle East from the one that was belted 3-1 in South Africa six months ago.

A whole third of the 15 in the United Arab Emirates have yet to play a Test, and Paine’s side could feature up to four uncapped players when they head out into the Dubai heat against Sarfraz Ahmed-captained Pakistan. Paine will be supported by a new vice-captain in all-rounder Mitchell Marsh and a new coach in former Test opener Justin Langer.

Change is also in the air back in Australia, with the nation’s cricket board announcing its successor to long-serving CEO James Suth-erland, even before the release of a review into the board’s culture and governance.

With a separate review into the culture of the men’s team also set to land, Australia will be under plenty of scrutiny during the two-Test series which finishes in Abu Dhabi.

Paine, who many feel is but a caretaker captain until Smith becomes eligible for the role again, has no illusions about the scale of the task.

“We want to build a culture that makes people want to be better and produce not only better cricketers but better people,” he told Fairfax Media.

“If we can do that, that’s the sort of envi-ronment people want to be involved in and that culture spreads really quickly through the team rather than having to try and sell your culture all the time -- just set that culture, live that culture, and guys that want to be involved will carry it through.”

Australia enjoyed a positive warmup, with opener Aaron Finch, middle order batsman Travis Head and the Marsh brothers all getting runs in the tour match against a Pakistan ‘A’ side.

That was enough for former opener Langer to confirm one-day specialist Finch and South Australia skipper Head would play their first Tests.

There could be further debuts, however.With Matt Renshaw having suffered a

head-knock when fielding in the tour match, selectors may opt for South Africa-born batsman Marnus Labuschagne.

Paceman Michael Neser could be a fourth debutant should selectors overlook work-horse Peter Siddle to support spearhead Mitchell Starc.

Pakistan are in the midst of their own rebuild in the wake of retirements to former skipper Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan, but having trounced a better resourced Aus-tralia 2-0 in the last UAE series in 2014, they will fancy themselves to win this one.

India’s biggest wins in Tests

Rajkot: India yesterday recorded their biggest-

ever Test win after thrashing the West Indies by

an innings and 272 runs in the opening match in

Rajkot. The world’s top Test side bowled out the

Caribbean side for 196 in the final session on

day three after enforcing the follow on.

Here’s a list of India’s previous five biggest

wins in Tests.

June 14, 2018India beat Afghanistan by an innings and 262

runs in Bangalore

May 25, 2007India beat Bangladesh by an innings and 239

runs in Dhaka

November 24, 2017India beat Sri Lanka by an innings and 239

runs in Nagpur

March 18, 1998India beat Australia by an innings and 219 runs

in Kolkata

November 20, 2010India beat New Zealand by an innings and 198

runs in Nagpur

Bangladesh’s Shakib fears infected finger will never fully recoverAFP

DHAKA: Injured Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan fears his finger will never fully recover from an infection despite a planned second surgery in Australia this month.

Shakib underwent an emergency operation on his finger on September 27 in Dhaka after it became affected by a bacterial infection while he was playing in the Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

Doctors cleared a large amount of pus from his infected finger and advised him to undergo a second surgery once the infection has cleared.

“The main point is how I can cure the infection because my finger will never get back to 100 per cent normal,” Shakib said at Dhaka airport late on Friday as he left for Australia.

“There is no chance of soft bone getting repaired again, it will not be com-pletely okay, but with surgery they will put the hand into a shape from where I will be able hold bat and continue playing cricket,” he said.

Shakib said he was unsure when his second surgery would be conducted as he was yet to fully recover from the infection.

“The infection is my biggest tension. Unless it comes down to zero per cent, no surgeon will put a hand on it.”

30 SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018SPORT

Team Qatar eye rich medals haul at Asian Para GamesTHE PENINSULA

JAKARTA, INDONESIA: When Nasser Al Sahoti carried Qatar’s flag at the opening ceremony of the Asian Para Games Jakarta 2018, he was leading a Team Qatar that traveled to Indonesia with the goal of building on recent international successes.

Al Sahoti and team-mates will be hoping to replicate the same form that won Team Qatar two silver medals in the Rio 2016 Summer Paralympics Games and five medals (three gold and two bronze) in the Incheon Asian Para Games 2014 four years before.

“We have had an outstanding success in the Rio 2016 Paral-ympic Games as well as the pre-vious Asian Para Games in South Korea and we are highly moti-vated for Jakarta. Our athletes trained hard and will do their best to win more medals for Team Qatar,” said Ameer Al Mulla, Executive Manager of Qatar Paralympic Committee.

Team Qatar boasts seven track and field athletes, including Paralympic medalist Abdul-rahman Abdulqadir who became Qatar’s first athlete to win a medal in any sport at the Paral-ympic Games when he claimed silver in the shot-put at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Abdulqadir is also the shot-put gold medal holder from the

2017 World Para Athletics Cham-pionships in London as well as the Asian Para Games 2014. To add to a long list of honors for the 30-year-old, He was Qatar’s flag-bearer at the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

The track and field team also features Sara Masoud who won silver in the women’s event of shot put in Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Like Abdulqadir, Masoud made history by becoming the first female Qatari athlete to win

a medal at the Paralympic Games.

Masoud, who made her senior international debut in 2011, won gold medal in shot put and discus throw in the 2014 Asian Para Games before claiming silver in the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships.

Flagbearer Al Sahoti will not be undertaking that honor for the first time as he carried the maroon flag at the opening cer-emony of the 2011 Pan Arab Games on home soil.

At 46 years of age, the athlete who competes in discus throw and javelin throw has bags of experience in major tourna-ments, having represented Qatar in the 2004 and 2008 Paralympic Games as well as five world championships. He also claimed the first medal for Qatar in IPC

Athletics World Champion-ships when he won a javelin throw bronze in Assen, Nether-lands in 2006.

Another Team Qatar athlete who will be looking to defend a

medal from the previous edition of Asian Para Games is Mohammed Rashid Al Kubaisi who competes in the 100m and 800m races.

Besides winning bronze medal in the 100m race in Incheon, Al Kubaisi’s best career achievements include carrying the Qatari flag at the opening cer-emony of the Rio 2016 Paral-ympic Games.

Al Kubaisi and fellow track wheelchair teammate Khaled Hamad Al Hajeri warmed up for the Asian Para Games with a training camp in Poland from July 20 to August 15.

Shot-put athlete Mohammed Al Abd and javelin thrower Dabyas Al Dosari, who both com-peted previously in the World Para Athletics Championships, make up the rest of Team Qatar’s track and field squad.

Meanwhile, Team Qatar’s goalball squad comprises six players and will be targeting to mark their achievement of par-ticipating in the competition with a strong performance. The team had a memorable involvement in the inaugural West Asian Para Games in 2017 by claiming the bronze medal.

Hosted in the Indonesian capital under, the third Asian Para Games will take place from October 6 -13 under the slogan “Inspiring the Spirit and Energy of Asia.

Team Qatar athletes during the opening ceremony of the Asian Para Games in Jakarta yesterday.

Team Qatar which is taking part in the Asian Para Games in Jakarta pose for a group picture.

Qatar’s Adel Abdulla in action during the Rally of Morocco yesterday.

Real Sociedad storm to easy 3-1 victory over BilbaoAFP

BILBAO, SPAIN: El Clasico sin argumentos’ is how one supporter described it and for more than a century it largely has been, save the odd spat here and there.

Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad first met in 1909 and the trajectories of two of Spain’s most historic clubs have been interwoven ever since.

They played again on Friday, Real Sociedad winning 3-1, thanks to some of the same players that have given extra spice to a rivalry traditionally defined by its good nature.

Within a mile of the new San Mames stadium, the streets were lined with striped shirts before kick-off, and not just the red and white kind, supposedly inherited from Southampton after one of Athletic’s earliest members picked up a new kit before boarding his ship back to Spain. But blue and white too, the fans of both teams spilling out of bars along the vibrant Poza street, where pintxos are as popular as beer and old photos of boxers and foot-ballers are screwed into the walls inside. As a band busks on the pavement, one sup-porter wearing red, pirouettes his girlfriend, wearing blue. Under a plume of Athletic red smoke, La Real fans clap and sing. Closer to the stadium, a young boy in red, is skipping, using his dad’s blue scarf as a rope.

The Basque derby is one of football’s most entrenched but its flavour feels unique. Some have said it is less a meeting of enemies, than of brothers that fall out once in a while.Perhaps the enduring image came before a meeting in 1976, shortly after the death of Franco, when the teams’ respective captains -- Jose Angel Iribar from Athletic and Real Sociedad’s Inaxio Korta-barria -- walked out holding the ‘Ikurrina’, the Basque flag, which was still illegal according to laws of the dictatorship.

On the pitch, their peak was probably the 1980s when the league title stayed in Euskadi for four consecutive seasons between 1981 and 1984, with both clubs claiming two successes each.

Qatar’s Adel suffers major setback in MoroccoTHE PENINSULA

ERFOUD MOROCCO: Qatar’s Adel Abdulla suffered a major setback to his goal of winning back the FIA T2 World Champi-onship title at the end of the opening desert selective section of the 2018 Rally of Morocco on Friday and the problems spilled into yesterday morning.

The Nissan Patrol Y62 driver and his French navigator Jean-Michel Polato opened their account at a cautious pace through the opening stage and slipped to third in the category behind Ahmed Al-Shegawi and Andrey Titov.

They then overcame a minor navigational mistake only to stop with an electrical problem near the finish of the shorter second section of the stage and that pre-vented them from beginning

Saturday’s competitive section on their due start time.

Adel Abdulla said: “We didn’t push on the opening stage. It was really tough. We made one mistake with the navigation. It was an issue with the GPS I think. We were slower in that first stage. I pushed from the start in the second one until the second part of the sandy track.

“Suddenly, it showed that my car was in two-wheel drive and we were stuck in one place, 300 metres before going out of a sandy place. One of the trucks arrived and pulled us out. We continued towards the finish with the two-wheel drive on the sandy road. But, 12km before the finish, the engine went off. I don’t know why. It was something to do with the electrics. It stopped completely. It did not want to start. We changed the fuse and

eventually managed to get to the bivouac.

“We found out that the ECU burned on the stage before the finish. That was why the engine went off. We tried to programme the other one because we needed the codes from Nissan to be able to do that. This was a long process and we missed the start of the stage this morning. Hope-fully we can start again on Sunday with time penalties.”

Titov held a 4min 46sec advantage over Al-Shegawi at the start of the loop stage of 328km through the deserts around Erfoud yesterday.

Time penalties pushed Adel Abdulla down into a distant third place as the team worked on the Nissan’s ECU replacement and Titov began to

extend his advantage over Al-Shegawi through the first check-points yeserday.

Adel Abdulla’s challenge for honours comes with the support of the Qatar Motor and Motor-cycle Federation (QMMF), Ooredoo Qatar and Nissan Qatar.

Action in the Rally of Morocco continues with a second loop stage of 289km through the tricky deserts close to Erfoud today. Adel Abdulla will be hoping for a clean run to keep his T2 challenge on track.

31SUNDAY 7 OCTOBER 2018 SPORT

THE PENINSULA

PARIS: His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa Al Thani, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Thani and His Excel-lency Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of Qatar Olympic Committee, were present at the race meeting held yesterday as part of the events of the annual Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris, which will culminate tomorrow with the two mega races; the Qatar Arabian World Cup and the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Yesterday, main races of the eight race-card were Qatar de Prix Chardonnay, Qatar Arabian Trophy for Fillies and Haras de

Bouquetot Qatar de Prix Chardonnay:

Brundtland, instead of the Arc!Brundtland justified his status

as favourite with a storming finish in the Qatar de Prix Chau-denay (Gr2), giving his supporters a lot to cheer about in the final furlong, when Lillian Russell seemed to be gaining the upper hand. However, the winner of the Qatar Prix de Niel (Gr2, prepa-ration for the Arc) courageously challenged the filly to dominate at the finish. My Swashbuckler made a convincing effort to come in third place. Brundtland is an unexposed horse, remaining undefeated in his first four races. Yesterday was his first time running over 3000 meters, his

connections preferring this to an attempt the Arc de Triomphe where he would have lacked a bit of experience.

Qatar Arabian Trophy for Fillies (4-year-old fillies) : Al Shamoos on top of the pack

There was little suspense throughout the Qatar Arabian Trophy for Fillies ( 4-year-old fillies) (Gr1 PA). Al Shamoos jumped to take the lead early on and then kept putting daylight between herself and the pack, not stopping to pose for the cameras at the post ! Joudh weakened at the finish but won the race to be placed, coming in second. She made the right decision to stick with her stable companion Wadeeaa who led the way. Al

Shamoos had just changed her colours, sporting the silks of the Cheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed and was coming off a second place, b e a t e n b y Belqees, who c a m e f i f t h yesterday.

Haras de Bouquetot - Cri-terium for the Arqana October yearling sale : Master Brewer won big time

Classe 1 race, but generously

rewarded (€137.500 to the winner), the second edition of the Haras de Bouquetot – Criterium of the Arqana October yearling Sale was awarded to Master Brewer, who proved to be authoritative in the final phase. With a stylish finish, Edinson came to snatch 2nd place from La Yaki.

Master Brewer, being trained by Michael Bell, had not run since the end of July. He finished fourth in a Listed at Ascot, after having opened his scorecard for his second outing to Newmarket. The horse was sold at the Arqana

October yearling sale (Sine qua non condition for entering in this race) for €85,000. He was pre-sented by Coulonces Sales and was sold to Alex Elliott.

Haras de Bouquetot - Cri-terium for the Arqana October yearling sale : Master Brewer won big time

Classe 1 race, but generously rewarded (€137.500 to the winner), the second edition of the Haras de Bouquetot – Criterium of the Arqana October yearling Sale was awarded to Master Brewer (Reliable Man), who proved to be authoritative in the

final phase. With a stylish finish, Edinson (Diamod Green) came to snatch 2nd place from La Yaki (Makfi).

Master Brewer, being trained by Michael Bell, had not run since the end of July. He fin-ished fourth in a Listed at Ascot, after having opened his scorecard for his second outing to Newmarket. The horse was sold at the Arqana October yearling sale (Sine qua non con-dition for entering in this race) for €85,000. He was presented by Coulonces Sales and was sold to Alex Elliott.

Fabre wary of ‘Messi’ Dettori in Arc showdownAFP

PARIS: French master trainer Andre Fabre has won a record seven Prix de l’Arc de Triomphes but he believes the “Lionel Messi” of racing Frankie Dettori could deny him an eighth today.

Fabre saddles three in today’s latest edition of Europe’s most prestigious race -- returning to its home of the refurbished Long-champ after a hiatus in 2016 and 2017 when it was at Chantilly -- but fears Dettori’s mount, last year’s winner Enable, could prove too good.

Indeed 72-year-old Fabre said that while he is pleased with the most favoured of his three runners Waldegeist, the Enable

team are a formidable outfit, comparing them to two football powerhouses.

“I don’t think the ground is a problem, it was quick when he (Waldegeist) won the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud -- he acts on any sort of ground,” said Fabre this week.

“He won a Group One at two and now he’s back to his best.

“However, it is like playing Barcelona, taking on Enable. Bar-celona do get beaten, but it’s like combining them with Manchester City having to take on Enable, Prince Khalid Abdullah (Enable’s owner), (trainer) John Gosden and the Messi -- Frankie Dettori.”

Dettori is the most successful jockey in the race with five

victories, who believes Enable, despite being restricted to just the one outing this season with victory in The September Stakes, is capable of emulating another filly Treve (2013 and 2014) in a repeat success.

The 47-year-old Italian, who also combined with Gosden to land the 2015 Arc with Golden Horn, says the filly is incredibly special.

“I actually told my wife (Catherine and mother to his five children) that I love Enable more than her and she just nodded,” said Dettori.

“She believes that as well! Without doubt Enable is the best filly I have ridden and she could write history on Sunday.

“Even in my long career she is a once-in-a-lifetime horse. To win the Arc for a second time on Enable would be pretty special.

“When she gets to the races, the adrenaline kicks in, the blood starts pumping and the heart starts beating. She grows a foot and all she wants to do is run like a wild horse.”

Enable has been drawn in a highly favourable six stall on the inside of the majority of the 19 runners but Waldegeist, drawn 13, and two of the other strong fancies from abroad have not fared so well.

English filly Sea of Class was supplemented by her trainer William Haggas for €120,000 but the Irish and Yorkshire Oaks

champion has been drawn in 15.Record-breaking Irish

handler Aidan O’Brien saddles five of the field and his number one Kew Gardens, who landed the English St Leger last time out, is in stall number 14.

Kew Gardens won over the course and distance in July winning the Group One Grand Prix de Paris.

“He knows the track and I’m looking forward to seeing him run,” the 48-year-old told Irish state broadcaster RTE.

“A horse is like any athlete. He was there and seemed to handle the track and the distance. “The way he’s naturally made, the track seems to suit him,” he said.

Al Attiyah lauds renovation workTHE PENINSULA

PARIS: Hamad bin Abdulrahman Al Attiyah, President of the Qatar Equestrian Federation (QEF) and the Asian Equestrian Federation (AEF), yesterday hailed the massive support from the country’s lead-ership to Qatar’s equestrian sport.

He emphasised that such support led to the huge successes realised in this field and expressed his hope that such success would continue.

Following the conclusion of the first day of the Qatar Prix de l’Arc

de Triomphe weekend at Paris-Longchamp Al Attiyah said: ‘No doubt, the presence of His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa Al Thani, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Thani and His Excellency Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani yesterday is a dem-onstration of the commitment to provide support and stress the value of this prestigious racing event and the role played by Qatar through the sponsorship over several years now, which helped promote the event as acknowledged by everyone.”

He added: “The ParisLong-champ has seen a great devel-opment and looked ideal after the renovations made and the huge development in all facilities. This has been, for sure, due to the part-nership between Qatar and France Galop as well as the keenness of the French side to invest this part-nership in a way that is in their favour in terms of of both organi-sation and facilities. ParisLong-champ has become a world-class racecourse in the full sense of the word. We are happy with this development.”

Manateq keen to continue partnership with QRECTHE PENINSULA

PARIS: Fahad Rashid Al Kaabi, Manateq CEO, attended the race meeting held yesterday, as part of the events of the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in France.

He stated that the Company is committed to contributing to the success of events bearing the name of Qatgar both in Doha and overseas.

“We are partners with QREC in the events organised by QREC both in Qatar and overseas, such as the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe,” he said.

“In fact, we are keen to present in such events held overseas bearing the name of Qatar due to their importance for the country. The Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is one of the greatest racing events, not only in France, but all over the world,” he said.

“We will work towards continuing this partnership with QREC because we also participate in sponsoring the HH The Emir’s Sword at QREC. Such contribution from our side is part of our role serving the interests of Qatar.”

QREC Chairman Eissa Al Mohannadi hands over the winner’s trophy after the Qatar Arabian Trophy Des Juments on the penultimate day of the 2018 Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

Fahad Rashid Al Kaabi, CEO of Manateq, presents a trophy in Paris yesterday.

QREC General Manager Nasser Sherida Al Kaabi giving trophy to winners of one of the races at the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris yesterday.

Action from one of the races at the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris yesterday.

Brundtland produces strong finish

SPORTSunday 7 October 2018

PAGE | 27 PAGE | 30

Nishikori to face Medvedev in

Japan

Qatar’s Adel suffers major setback in Morocco

Wagner strikes late as Al Khor stun Al RayyanRIZWAN REHMAT

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Struggling Al Khor, one of the two sides at the bottom of the QNB Stars League heap, saved it for last.

Just when club fans thought the match would end in a goal-less draw, the home team yes-terday stunned former cham-pions Al Rayyan with a late goal.

Brazilian Wagner Ferreira, who had been off-color in the early part of the clash, produced a neat finish to score the only goal of the match in the 90th minute at Al Khor Stadium.

The late goal, the first of the season for Wagner, helped Al Khor pick up their first win of the 2018-19 season in what was round 8 of the QNB Stars League.

“I am very happy to have scored the goal,” Wanger said yesterday after the clash.

“It was a tough match but we fought really well. We believed in ourselves and stuck to the task. This win feels really good,” the Brazilian added.

After receiving a loopy cross from the middle of the pitch, sub-stitute Adel Ahmad Mohmad picked up Wagner with a cross inside the Al Khor box. Wagner, despite marking by Ali Sanad Al-Nuaimi, managed shoot to the left of Al Rayyan keeper Oumar Barry. The ball hit the net after slipping through the outstretched hand of Barry.

The goal left Al Rayyan defenders clutching their heads as Al Khor coach celebrated with the players at the touchline.

In an enterprising first 10 minutes of the round 8 clash, Al Rayyan stitched a few threat-ening moves but on every occasion Al Khor defender well to block captain Rodrigo Tabata and veteran forward Sebastian Soria.

On one occasion, forward Tabata broke free off his marker but his effort was quickly waved off as off-side by the linesman. In the 13th minute, a short stoppage in play was caused by a rough foul by Daniel Goumou on Al Khor’s Mohammed Ahmed Buqshan as ball possession by

players from sides increased in intensity.

Four minutes later, Ahmed Yasin of Al Khor attempted a low shot at Al Rayyan goal from close range but Mohammed Juma - patrolling the backline - blocked the shot.

A few seconds later, Al Khor striker Diogo Da silva missed one of the easiest chances at the fag end of an indirect free-kick. With only the goalkeeper to beat, Diogo Da silva shot wide of the mark from inside the Al Rayyan box with keeper Barry beaten by the shot. At the half-hour mark,

Tabata curled in a beautifully-taken direct free-kick but his shot narrowly missed its target.

Close to the hour-mark, Al Rayyan’s Lucca curled in a pow-erful shot from outside the Al Khor box but keeper Mohammed Ahmed Al Bakr palmed the ball away to kill the move.

Things change in the last minute when Wagner produced the late stunner.

For Al Rayyan and their coach Rodolfo Martin Arruabarrena, there’s plenty to think about as the team struggles for goals this season.

In their last match, a Tabata goal helped them beat minnows Al Shahania 1-0. In the round before that, Al Rayyan were crushed 5-0 by Al Sadd in the ‘Qatar Clasico’ clash.

Meanwhile, Al Ahli yesterday produced a spirited display to beat Al Shahania 2-1 in their QNB Stars League clash.

Mohsine Moutaouali (13) and Mohammed Muntari (72) scored the goals for the winners at Grand Hamad Stadium under lights. For the losing side, a neat finish from Vazquez Luciano helped Al Shahania (79) reduce

the margin of defeat. After a fast-paced start, Al Ahli opened the scoring in the 12th minute. Moutaouali went to his right and after a few steps, he unleashed a great kick to beat Al Shahania keeper Amer Ahmad Al Amri with a powerful shot.

In the 34th minute, Hamad Saoud Al Jehaini of Al Shahania curled in a free-kick that nar-rowly missed the Al Ahli crossbar.

In the second half, a rough tackle by Luciano brought down Nigel De Jong causing a long stoppage in play.

Soon afterwards, Al Ahli scored their second goal. Muntari despite under pressure from Ayoub Mashhour scored the second goal for Al Ahli. It was Muntari’s second goal of the season that came from a left-footed drive.

In the 79th minute, Al Shaha-nia’s Luciano picked up a lose ball and flicked the ball towards Al Ahli goal. The ball hit keeper Yazan Naim’s leg and went into the net.

After a few feisty exchanges close to the final whistle, Al Ahli emerged 2-1 winners.

Dier fires Spurs to win over CardiffAFP

LONDON: TOTTENHAM got back on track after their European mauling at the hands of Lionel Messi as Eric Dier sealed a 1-0 win over Cardiff.

At Wembley, Tottenham recovered from Wednesday’s damaging 4-2 Champions League loss to Barcelona. Messi had tor-mented Tottenham with a mes-merising display, capped by two goals, that left the north Lon-doners in danger of missing the knockout stage.

But Mauricio Pochettino’s side recovered against Cardiff to move into third place in the table.

Cardiff boss Neil Warnock joked he would play 10 defenders in a bid to stifle Tottenham and he might have regretted not doing exactly that as the hosts went in front after eight minutes. Dav-inson Sanchez saw his header blocked by Joe Bennett and it span into the path of England midfielder Dier, who swept home from close-range for his first club goal since April 2017.

Cardiff were reduced to 10 men when Joe Ralls was sent off for chopping down Lucas Moura in the 58th minute, with Warnock incensed after Tottenham’s players surrounded the referee

to demand a red card.“After Barcelona on

Wednesday, the most important thing was to win. We created a lot of chances but we didn’t kill the game,” Pochettino said.

“It was a clear red card from my point of view. Neil Warnock can complain but it is not my business.” Matt Doherty con-demned Crystal Palace to more misery on home turf as Wolves won 1-0 at Selhurst Park.

Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo set a Premier League record by naming an unchanged starting line-up for an eighth

game in a row at the start of the season.

Doherty’s 56th-minute strike rewarded Nuno’s faith and left Palace without a goal or a win in their first four home games.

Everton’s Gylfi Sigurdsson scored a sublime goal to clinch his side a 2-1 win at 10-man Leicester.

Brazilian forward Bernard, signed from Shakhtar Donetsk in the close-season, marked his first Premier League start for Everton with an assist for his compatriot Richarlison, who bagged his fourth goal of the season with a simple finish in the seventh minute.

Portugal defender Ricardo Pereira equalised for Leicester in the 40th minute, firing home to celebrate his 25th birthday with his first goal since his pre-season move from Porto.

But Leicester centre-back Wes Morgan was sent off in the 63rd minute, booked twice for fouls on Richarlison, and Sig-urdsson ensured the visitors took advantage when he produced a superb turn and long-range strike into top corner in the 77th minute.

Bournemouth extended their surprising start as Eddie Howe’s team climbed to fifth place with a 4-0 win at Watford.

David Brooks opened the scoring and Joshua King struck twice before Callum Wilson sealed the rout.

Burnley drew 1-1 with Hud-dersfield after Sam Vokes puts the hosts ahead and Christopher Schindler snatched the equaliser.

Meanwhile, Under-pressure Manchester United manager Jose

Mourinho saw his side score three goals, including a late winner, as they beat lowly Newcastle 3-2 at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Saturday.

Amid newspaper speculation he could be sacked this weekend, Mourinho’s side fell 2-0 behind as early as the 10th minute after goals from Kenedy and Yoshinori

Muto fired the visitors -- who haven’t won in the league this season -- into a shock lead.

But Juan Mata pulled a goal back in the 70th minute with a fine free-kick, Anthony Martial equalised six minutes later and Alexis Sanchez scored in the 90th minute to end United’s run of four games without a win.

Players of Al Khor and Al Rayyan vie for ball possession during the QNB Stars League at Al Khor Stadium yesterday.

English Premier League results yesterday:

Burnley 1 (Vokes 20) Huddersfield 1 (Schindler

66)

Crystal Palace 0 Wolves 1 (Doherty 56)

Leicester 1 (Pereira 40) Everton 2 (Richarlison 7,

Sigurdsson 77)

Tottenham 1 (Dier 8) Cardiff 0

Watford 0 Bournemouth 4 (Brooks 14, King 33-

pen, 45, Wilson 47)

Manchester United 3 (Mata 70, Martial 76,

Sanchez 90) Newcastle 2 (Kenedy 7, Muto 10)

Playing Today:

Fulham vs Arsenal (1100 GMT), Liverpool vs

Manchester City (1530 GMT), Southampton vs

Chelsea (1315 GMT)

Played on Friday

Brighton 1 (Murray 25) West Ham 0

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

YESTERDAY,S RESULTS

Al Khor bt Al Rayyan 1-0

Al Ahli bt Al Shahania 2-1

ON FRIDAY

Al Gharafa bt Al Arabi 3-0

Qatar SC bt Al Kharaitiyat 2-0

TODAY,S MATCHES

5:40pm: Al Duhail vs Umm

Salal at Al Duhail Stadium

7:50pm: Al Sadd vs Al Sailiya

at Al Sadd Stadium

Tottenham Hotspur’s English defender Eric Dier (right) scores the team’s first goal during the English Premier League match against Cardiff at Wembley Stadium in London, yesterday.