Pakistan should talk to the Taliban: Imran Khan

LONDON — Cricketer turned politician Imran Khan called Thursday for the army to withdraw from Pakistan's tribal areas and for talks with the Taliban, warning that the country faced "catastrophe" otherwise.

Khan said the US-Pakistan military offensive in the areas bordering Afghanistan was turning locals massively against the United States and boosting support for the militants.

US drone strikes on militants were sparking "anger and hatred" in the area, said Khan, who leads the marginal Tehrik-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice).

"The solution is to hold a dialogue with the militants," he told an audience at the Chatham House foreign policy thinktank in London. "The solution is to win them onto our side, not to bomb them with airstrikes."

Otherwise, he warned: "If we continue with this military operation we are facing a catastrophe."

The militants operating in the tribal areas did not share the beliefs of the Afghan Taliban, who wanted to create an Islamist state, he said.

"In my opinion, they are political Taliban, they are not religious Taliban.

"They will fade away as soon as the Pakistan army moves back and dialogue is held," he added.

Khan said that Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf once described him as "a terrorist without a beard" for suggesting talks with the militants, but now it was an idea being promoted by others.

"Now even (Afghan President) Hamid Karzai considers (Taliban supreme leader) Mullah Omar to be a brother," Khan added, to laughter from the audience.

He also criticised the tactics of the US military surge in Afghanistan.

"The only way I see the surge being effective is if they use their muscle to get the Taliban to the negotiating table.

"If they use the surge for more bloodshed, I can guarantee they will leave behind -- because they will leave -- a far more radical government than the one it replaced."

A US drone strike in the lawless northwest border area Thursday targeted Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud, officials said, although the militia denied reports that he was among 10 killed.

French TV exec heads to Afghanistan after kidnapping

PARIS — A senior executive with France Television said Saturday he was flying to Kabul as efforts continued to free two of the station's journalists abducted in Afghanistan this week.

"I am going to Kabul to take stock of the situation," said director of news Paul Nahon. "I am going to meet with different Afghan authorities."

Nahon said the broadcaster had received no further news about its journalists following information on Friday that they were being treated well and were in good health.

There has been no claim of responsibility for the kidnapping but a colleague of the two journalists, who were snatched with three Afghan assistants on Wednesday, has blamed the Taliban militia.

The group was abducted while going to meet a contact 60 kilometres (40 miles) from the Afghan capital, according to the French colleague.

Criminal groups and Taliban insurgents have kidnapped several dozen foreigners, many of them journalists, since the 2001 US-led invasion ousted the Taliban regime in Kabul, sparking the current insurgency.

Canadian nuclear company strikes deal with Japan

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario — Atomic Energy of Canada Limited has signed a multimillion-dollar contract with Tokyo Electric Power Company, the Canadian government-owned corporation's first contract in Japan.

The Canadian energy company announced the deal Tuesday, but did not reveal specific financial details of the agreement.

AECL said the first pump seal was installed in early November on the boiler system of a Japanese nuclear power plant that began operations earlier this month.

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited is a full-service nuclear technology company, providing services to nuclear utilities around the world.

Canada's Conservative minority government is looking at the possibility of privatizing AECL and has sought bids for the government-owned company.

US House approves Iran energy sector sanctions bill

WASHINGTON — The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved sanctions legislation aimed at forcing Iran to freeze its nuclear program by depriving the Islamic republic of gasoline.

The measure would empower US President Barack Obama to effectively block firms that supply Iran with refined petroleum products, or the ability to import or produce them at home, from doing business in the United States.

"The prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran is the most serious and urgent strategic challenge faced by the United States, and we must use all of the diplomatic means at our disposal -- including tougher sanctions -- to prevent that from becoming a reality," said Democratic Representative Howard Berman.

The House passed the bill, which has yet to clear the Senate, by a 412-12 margin with four voting "present."

A top US senator said recently that body will not act on Iran sanctions in 2009.

Because of a lack of domestic refining capacity, oil-rich Iran is dependent on gasoline imports to meet about 40 percent of domestic consumption.

Iran gets most of those imports from the Swiss firm Vitol, the Swiss/Dutch firm Trafigura, France's Total, the Swiss firm Glencore and British Petroleum, as well as the Indian firm Reliance.

Berman, the measure's lead author and chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said US lawmakers had to act because Iran had rejected Obama's attempts at engagement with "contempt."

Democratic Representative Stephen Lynch criticized the bill, comparing it to the US embargo on Cuba and warning it would cause Iranians to "rally around the flag" against the United States and "undermine" pro-democracy protestors.

"This will unify the Iranian people against us," agreed Republican Representative Ron Paul, another foe of the measure.

But Representative Eric Cantor, the number two House Republican, called the legislation "one of our best chances to convince Iran that it is firmly in its interest to abandon its nuclear ambitions."

The measure calls for the US president to slap sanctions on individuals or entities that provide Iran goods, services, technology or information that helps Tehran boost its domestic production of refined petroleum products.

It also proposes sanctions on companies that help Iran import gasoline, including companies that fund the shipments, shipping firms, or their underwriters.

And it calls for sanctions on individuals or entities that invest at least 20 million dollars in Iran's energy sector, toughening a 1996 sanctions law.

The legislation includes fairly sweeping presidential powers to exempt a person or firm from sanctions, including the ability to spare citizens or residents of countries belonging to a US anti-proliferation initiative.

Iran says its nuclear program is for civilian energy purposes and denies Western charges that it seeks an atomic arsenal and could have one in a few years.

"This holiday season we must be careful not to give Iran what is at the top of its wish list and what it needs most to achieve its nuclear ambitions: The gift of time," said Mark Wallace, president of the United Against Nuclear Iran advocacy group.

The bill would also require six-month reports on any person aiding Iran to produce or obtain refined petroleum products.

Republican Representative Mark Kirk, who has been running for Obama's old Senate seat, said the sanctions, if properly enforced, could end the nuclear standoff "without a shot being fired."

The White House meanwhile Tuesday defended Obama's open hand policy towards Iran after Hillary Clinton said nearly a year of offering dialogue to the Islamic state had achieved little progress.

"I think that represents real and genuine progress that the president believes will pay dividends in the coming weeks," said spokesman Robert Gibbs, pointing to statements of the permanent five members of the United Nations Security Council and Germany condemning Iran's nuclear program, including Russia and China.

Afghan gov't says NATO attack killed 6 civilians

KABUL — The Afghan government said NATO forces killed six civilians during a pre-dawn operation Tuesday in eastern Afghanistan. NATO disputed the allegation, saying only militants died.

Hundreds of people marched on the provincial capital to protest the raid, and an official said one demonstrator died Tuesday in clashes with police.

International forces have pledged to avoid civilian deaths in recent months, but insurgents often live among villagers making them vulnerable during nighttime raids.

Some Afghans have expressed fear that the 30,000 additional U.S. troops slated to start arriving in days will result in more violence and civilian casualties.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates promised Afghans during a visit to the country Tuesday that the U.S. will do all it can to keep civilians out of the line of fire.

"Our top priority remains the safety of civilians," he said at a joint press conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

Seven insurgents were killed and four detained after the attack in Laghman province on a compound of a militant leader responsible for directing several suicide strikes in the region, NATO said in a statement.

Afghan and international forces came under fire as they assaulted the compound, sparking a gunbattle, it said.

However, a statement issued by the presidential palace said six civilians were killed during the firefight, including one woman. Provincial officials said 12 people were killed in the clash outside the provincial capital of Mehtar Lam, some of them civilians, but they did not specify a number.

However, NATO spokeswoman Capt. Jane Campbell said there were "no operational reports to substantiate those claims of harming civilians, including women and children, during this operation."

About 400 people marched on Mehtar Lam to protest the deaths, carrying bodies of some of the dead, said provincial government spokesman Said Ahead Safi.

Groups of men laid the blanket-wrapped bodies on wooden cots, which they hoisted above them as they walked, footage from Associated Press Television News showed.

"Whoever came onto the roof of their home, they killed them. Some were killed inside their houses," said Ismail, a villager who only gave one name and said he lost seven members of his family. "All those killed were innocent villagers, farmers. The Americans even killed our women."

The protest turned violent as the demonstrators tried to enter the city. They clashed with police and one protester was killed, Safi said.

Health bill survives first big test - on Medicare

WASHINGTON – Unflinching on a critical first test, Senate Democrats closed ranks Thursday behind $460 billion in politically risky Medicare cuts at the heart of health care legislation, thwarting a Republican attempt to doom President Barack Obama's sweeping overhaul.

The bid by the bill's critics to reverse cuts to the popular Medicare program failed on a vote of 58-42, drawing the support of two Democratic defectors. Approval would have stripped out money needed to pay for expanding coverage to tens of millions of uninsured Americans.

The broader legislation aims to extend health coverage to 31 million who now lack it, while barring insurance industry practices such as denying coverage on the basis of pre-existing medical conditions. Though the overhaul is estimated to cost about $1 trillion over a decade, the Congressional Budget Office has said it would cut federal deficits by $130 billion over that period, and probably reduce them further in the 10 years beyond that.

"Our bill does nothing to reduce guaranteed Medicare benefits," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., as several fellow Democrats accused Republican critics of making false claims of potential harm during three days of debate.

The AARP supported the 10-year package of cuts in projected spending, giving Democrats political cover for their decision to pare back subsidies to private Medicare plans as well as payments to hospitals, hospices, home health agencies and other providers.

Undergoing MyBlogLog Verification

Cambodian ex-prison chief pleads for release

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — After claiming to feel great remorse for his part in Khmer Rouge atrocities, the defendant in Cambodia's first genocide trial on Friday surprised the court with a last-minute plea for his freedom, saying he should not have been prosecuted and has already spent ten years in jail.

Kaing Guek Eav, who headed a torture center from which about 16,000 men, women and children were sent to their deaths, seemingly stepped back from previous assertions of responsibility for his actions and expressions of sorrow to his victims, as well as willingness to accept severe punishment.

His Cambodian lawyer, Kar Savuth, went a step further and stunned the tribunal by issuing the trial's first clear call for an acquittal of his client, even after his French lawyer, Francois Roux, denied seeking such a verdict.

Only when directly pressed by a frustrated Judge Dame Silvia Cartwright of New Zealand did Kar Savuth say that in calling for Duch's release he was seeking his acquittal.

After consultations, the judges at the U.N.-assisted tribunal accepted the plea for acquittal, even though the legal basis for it was unclear.

Acquittal in legal terms normally means a finding that the defendant is not guilty of the crimes he is charged with, while the defense case hinged generally on claims that Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, ought to have any punishment lightened in view of his cooperation with the court and expressions of remorse.

Cambodian-American human rights lawyer Theary Seng said the call for an acquittal was difficult to understand.

"What he did totally undermines his efforts up until now in terms of remorse and it undermines his request for forgiveness, which I thought was genuine," she said. "It's inexplicable and calls into question his previous efforts of remorse. This is really disturbing."

Friday's dramatic turn of events came as the trial was in its next to last stage, with prosecution and defense making rebuttals to the other's closing arguments. Judges are expected to issue their verdict early next year.

Duch is charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes, murder and torture.

The prosecution earlier this week asked the court to sentence Duch to 40 years in jail, taking into account his cooperation and time served while waiting for trial. The maximum sentence he could receive is life imprisonment. Cambodia has no death penalty.

Some 1.7 million Cambodians died of torture, execution, disease and starvation due to the radical communist policies of the 1975-79 Khmer Rouge regime. Four senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge are also in the tribunal's custody, and they are expected to be tried next year or later.

Even Friday, Duch spoke of acknowledging and apologizing for "the more than one million souls who perished" due to the crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge.

But he went on to claim that the tribunal's mandate was to prosecute senior Khmer Rouge leaders, and didn't apply to him, an argument that had already been rejected by the court.

Also pointing out the time he had already spent in custody, Duch said to the judges, "I ask the chamber to release me."

The tribunal earlier this year ruled that Duch had been held illegally for five of the eight years he was in the custody of Cambodia's military court before being transferred to the tribunal, and that if found guilty, he could get credit not only for time already served but also to compensate for the earlier violation of his rights.

The positions of Duch's two lawyers seemed to diverge in their closing arguments earlier this week, with Kar Savuth seeking an acquittal, and Roux pleading for a lenient prison sentence due to his client's contrition and cooperation with the court.

Russia president criticizes ruling party over vote

ST.PETERSBURG, Russia — Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev on Saturday sharply criticized officials in the ruling Kremlin-backed party for manipulating recent regional votes, saying it must learn to win fairly.

Medvedev's statement marked a rare criticism of the United Russia party led by his predecessor and mentor, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. United Russia is a power base for Putin, who has not ruled out a return to the presidency in 2012.

Speaking before a major party meeting in St. Petersburg also attended by Putin, Medvedev accused some of United Russia's regional branches of using their dominance and official connections to shape the election results in their favor.

He said the party must "free itself of such people and shed such bad political habits."

"Elections must express the people's will in free competition between ideas and programs, but they turn into a different story when democratic procedures are mixed with administrative ones," he said. He did not elaborate.

Most top federal and regional officials in Russia are United Russia members, and the opposition has accused the party of using its leverage to rig the vote. Independent election observers and opposition parties, including the Communists, protested what they said were mass electoral violations during October's local elections, citing evidence of multiple voting and ballot stuffing.

Opposition candidates claim they were hindered from campaigning and some were denied places on the ballot.

"Democracy isn't for parties, either ruling or opposition ones, it's for the people," Medvedev said. He added on a softer note that United Russia is strong enough to retain its dominance without undermining democratic standards.

"It's necessary to modernize the party, make it more flexible and open," Medvedev said. "You must learn to win in open struggle."

Both Putin and Medvedev previously defended United Russia in post-election comments, while adding that claims of violations need to be investigated and the culprits punished. Medvedev's statement Saturday was likely aimed at deflecting criticism of the vote rather than challenging Putin's dominance of Russia's political landscape.

Police on Saturday detained 13 members of the National Bolsheviks, a banned leftist opposition group, as they were heading to the meeting to hand Medvedev a letter urging him to fire Putin, said Andrei Dmitriyev, a group leader.

He said the petition also voiced support for Medvedev's modernization drive, urged the president to stop relying on United Russia and allow more political freedoms.

Since assuming the presidency last year, Medvedev has sought to cast himself as a more liberal-leaning politician than Putin, who rolled back many post-Soviet freedoms during his eight-year presidency.

But most observers point out that his call to liberalize has been limited to words rather than actions, and see Putin as the man who continues to call the shots.

Medvedev's state-of-the-nation speech earlier this month focused on the need to shed Russia's dependence on oil and gas exports and ease an inflated state role in the economy. It was interpreted by some analysts as a sign of his desire to distance himself from Putin and shed his legacy.

But Putin made similar calls for easing dependence on raw materials in his speech at Saturday's congress and hailed Medvedev's modernization goals.

Putin also took the credit for recent signs of economic recovery and pledged that his Cabinet would continue to support industries hit by the economic crisis.

He said that the government would continue to support the troubled carmaker AvtoVAZ. AvtoVAZ, Russia's largest automaker, has seen demand for its Lada cars fall sharply in 2009 due to the economic downturn and plans to lay off a quarter of its 102,000 workers.

Putin offered to stimulate demand for new cars though an initiative similar to the U.S. "cash-for-clunkers" program. He said the government would offer 50,000 rubles (about US$,1800 or $1,200) to car owners willing to trade in their old vehicles for new Russian-made ones.

He said that Russia's gross domestic product would fall by 8-8.5 percent this year, less than initially expected, and that the nation should regain the pre-crisis pace of growth in two or three years.

Associated Press writer Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.

Somali pirates get $3.3M ransom, free 36 hostages

MOGADISHU, Somalia — As a Spanish warship looked on, a $3.3 million ransom was delivered by boat Tuesday and Somali pirates freed a Spanish trawler and its 36 crew members.

Spain's prime minister did little to deny paying off the hijackers — one reason the lucrative attacks are on the rise.

"The government did what it had to do," Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero told a news conference in Madrid. "The important thing is that the sailors will be back with us. The first obligation of a country, of the government of a state, is to save the lives of its countrymen."

Somali pirates attacked two more ships on Monday and still hold about a dozen ships with more than 200 crew, including a British couple who were taken from their 38-foot sailboat last month.

Ali Gab, a self-described pirate, told The Associated Press the hijackers of the Spanish tuna boat Alakrana were paid $3.3 million in ransom, delivered by boat as sailors aboard a nearby warship watched.

After being freed, the trawler steamed away under the protection of two Spanish warships. All crew members were reported to be in good health after more than six weeks in captivity.

Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega told a news conference the Alakrana was headed for the Seychelles, where U.S. surveillance drones and several warships belonging to a multinational force are based.

The pirates had been pressing for the release of two colleagues captured by Spanish naval forces a day after the hijacking. The Spanish government had been trying to find some sort of legal formula that would allow it to try them and send them back to Somalia.

The two were charged with kidnapping and related charges Monday. De la Vega declined to say if Spain might seek some sort of agreement with Somalia.

"Now is the time for justice," she said. "Our prosecutors are acting in line with the principle of legality and impartiality, and our judges, who are an independent branch, will issue the verdict they deem appropriate."

Somali villager Ali Ahmed Salad said 12 armed pirates left the Alakrana shortly after noon on Tuesday and joined colleagues near the pirate-controlled town of Haradhere.

In April 2008, the Spanish government reportedly paid a ransom of $1.2 million to win the release of another Spanish trawler seized by pirates off Somalia with 26 crew members on board. That ordeal lasted a week.

Pirate attacks have been on the rise because the millions of dollars a successful hijacking can bring is a windfall in impoverished and war-ravaged Somalia.

The recent end of the monsoon season has brought calmer seas, allowing easier sailing for pirate skiffs that continue to take vessels despite the presence of an armada of warships from the United States, the European Union, NATO, Japan, South Korea and China.

The trawler had been seized Oct. 2 with 16 Spaniards, eight Indonesians and 12 crew from five African countries on board.

The sister of the second-in-command of the Alakrana spoke to her brother after his release.

"It took them by surprise and they still cannot really believe it," said Argi Galbarriatu, the sister of Iker Galbarriatu. "He told me the word to describe it is that they are relieved, and eager to get to port and come home."

Britain has refused to pay ransom for Paul and Rachel Chandler, whose boat — the Lynn Rival — was taken by pirates on Oct. 23.

Authorities believe the Chandlers, who are in their 50s, are being held on land in Somalia. Pirates have demanded $7 million for their release — money the Chandlers' relatives say the couple doesn't have.

Pirates attacked two vessels Monday, capturing the chemical tanker MV Theresa and its crew of 28 North Koreans, the EU anti-piracy force said. In the second incident, pirates attacked a Ukrainian cargo ship with AK-47 rifles and rocket-propelled grenades.

Cmdr. John Harbour, a spokesman for the EU's anti-piracy force, said the Ukrainian vessel got away after private security guards on board fired on the pirates, wounding two. However, a purported spokesman for the pirates, Gedi Ali, said the ship was captured.

Pirate attacks in 2009 already have exceeded last year's total off the Horn of Africa, an international maritime watchdog group reported last month. A total of 306 attacks were reported between January and September, surpassing the 293 incidents recorded throughout 2008, according to the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Associated Press Writer Daniel Woolls contributed from Madrid.

Human remains found in N.B.; believed to be that of missing girl, 16, police say

TRACADIE-SHEILA, N.B. — Human remains believed to be that of Hilary Bonnell, a 16-year-old girl whose disappearance gripped residents of a New Brunswick native community for two months, have been found, police said Friday.

Police announced they found the remains buried in a remote wooded location in the Tracadie-Sheila area, about an hour away from the Esgenoopetitj First Nation, more commonly known as Burnt Church, where Bonnell was last seen.

RCMP Insp. Roch Fortin said a suspect in her death is in custody, but no charges have been laid.

At a news conference, Fortin extended his sympathies to Bonnell's family, saying the past two months have been painful for them.

"They have been strong through this and patient," Fortin said.

"Some of the information they supplied contributed to help us find what happened to Hilary."

Fortin said evidence gathered last week during searches in Tabusintac and Burnt Church led police to the remote location.

"This investigation has been one of the most difficult and complicated that most senior investigators here have faced, and even the location where we recovered the human remains was difficult to reach," Fortin said, adding that an RCMP vehicle was damaged trying to navigate the difficult terrain.

Bonnell vanished on Sept. 5 after attending a house party the night before.

The girl's last confirmed sighting was recorded on surveillance footage that morning at a convenience store in the community.

Since then a major search was conducted and a combined reward of close to $18,000 was offered for information leading to her return.

The location where the remains were found is part of a former military training area.

Fortin said an autopsy would be conducted Saturday on the remains to confirm the identity, but he said other evidence gathered at the scene also suggested it was Bonnell.

Throughout the ordeal, Bonnell's mother Pamela Fillier has said that her daughter was not the type to run away, and that someone must have been responsible for her disappearance.

Fortin said that Fillier was a great benefit to the investigation with information and with spiritual support.

"A tobacco offering was given to us by the mother," he said Friday. "When she gave it to us, the same day, we got our major break in the investigation that allowed us to recover Hilary."

Fortin said there is still a lot of police work to complete, and would not suggest when charges might be laid.

"There is still some work to be done, but I think today the important part is the fact that Hilary has been found and has been brought home," he said.