New skyscraper rises at Ground Zero, amid mosque flap |
- New skyscraper rises at Ground Zero, amid mosque flap
- Give private sector 18 months to get ready for GST: GAB
- Najib wants problems among BN leaders resolved in spirit of consensus
- Police, religious council asked to probe Guan Eng's name in doa
- Committee to probe principal's derogatory remarks
- Thai court grants extradition of 'Merchant of Death'
- Yellow Sea drill involves no aircraft carriers: US
- Taiwan's ex-leader Chen to be stripped of perks
- Nearly 60 whales dead in New Zealand mass stranding
- Indian military says 23 soldiers died in Himalaya floods
- Police officers held in Philippines 'torture' video probe
- Thai court rules to extradite Russian arms dealer
- Japan tells ships to be more vigilant in Hormuz Strait
- World urged to act on Pakistan or risk militant rise
- Police officers held in Philippines 'torture' video probe
- Thai court grants extradition of 'Merchant of Death'
- Strengthening economic fundamentals better than stimulus package: Najib
- Civil court has no jurisdiction to decide Moorthy's religious status
- Prolonged polemics could affect investment
- PM to push ahead with 1Malaysia despite resistance: Hishammuddin
| New skyscraper rises at Ground Zero, amid mosque flap Posted: 19 Aug 2010 04:34 PM PDT
Until last year, Ground Zero was a bleak gash of concrete and steel in the heart of the city's financial district, visited by tourists, friends and families of the 3,000 victims of the Sept 11, 2001 attacks, but showing no signs of rebuilding. Inertia, heated arguments between developers and property owners had slowed the reconstruction process, and the solemn 9/11 commemorations each year that have helped cement Ground Zero's status as hallowed ground, have made it difficult for the country to turn the page on the tragic memory of the attacks. And now new attention is now being focused on the site amid controversy over plans for a mosque and interfaith centre just blocks away that opponents say is offensive to the memory of those who died in the Sept 11, 2001 attacks. A recent poll found fully 68% of Americans oppose the multi-storey "Cordoba House" project, but it has won support from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who believes it will help to heal the 9/11 wounds. President Barack Obama last week stepped into the fray, supporting freedom of religion and the right to build on private property, in what political observers said was a risky move three months from key legislative elections. In the midst of the bitter dispute, work is proceeding apace on the One World Trade Center building that is intended to honour the memory of the nearly 3,000 people who died in the attacks, while moving the city past the tragedy. The brainchild of architect David Childs, the skyscraper will be the tallest in the Americas, rising 1,776 ft (541 metres) in homage to the year the US declared independence. So far, 32 storeys of steel girders are in place. 'Greenest' building The 104-storey building is scheduled for completion in 2013, according to Cushman & Wakefield real estate, the company that will lease its 269,000 sq m (2.9 million sq ft) of office space and 46,000 sq m (500,000 sq ft) of stores, restaurants and observation decks. Cushman vice-chairman Tara Stacom said that the mosque controversy has not harmed business. "There has not been any impact," she said, adding that as far as One World Trade Center was concerned, "demand is very strong". "This building will be transformative for this city and many companies want to be a part of it," she said. "We have a letter of intent with Conde Nast (publisher) for a significant portion of the building." By the end of the year the building should stand 50 stories high. "Here we are, after nine years of this, and this thing is moving forward at a terrific pace," the project's chief developer Larry Silverstein told NY1 news channel. Builders also promised that One WTC will be the "greenest" building in the world, with ultra-clear windows and a rainwater collection system, among other features. A Chinese firm was first to sign a lease for 17,000 sq m (183,000 sq ft) of office space in the tower. Five different high-rises will surround the building, including the 288-m (947-ft) Tower 4 which can also be seen sprouting at Ground Zero. The mega-project faced delays amid differences between Silverstein, who leased the entire World Trade Center site only weeks before 9/11, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. In March, they reached an agreement. "I think that everybody came to the realisation that this had to get done, and the Port Authority came to realise they cannot do this without us; we realised we can't do this without them," said Silverstein. The 79-year-old developer, who last year was uncertain he would be able to see the project to its end, is now confident it will be completed in five or six years. The new World Trade Center site will include a 9/11 memorial and a bus and train transportation hub designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava that "will be much larger than Grand Central", said Stacom. - AFP
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| Give private sector 18 months to get ready for GST: GAB Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:56 AM PDT The private should be given at least an 18-month grace period from the passing of Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill to get ready, says Guinness Anchor Bhd (GAB) managing director, Charles Ireland.
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| Najib wants problems among BN leaders resolved in spirit of consensus Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:55 AM PDT Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said today problems among leaders of Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties should be resolved in the BN spirit of consensus.
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| Police, religious council asked to probe Guan Eng's name in doa Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:54 AM PDT Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin wants the police and Penang Islamic Religious Council to investigate the claim that the name of Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin had been replaced by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's in the "doa khutbah" (prayer during the Friday sermon) recently.
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| Committee to probe principal's derogatory remarks Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:54 AM PDT Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said today a committee has been set up to investigate a Johor school principal over the alleged derogatory remarks she had directed at some of her students last week.
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| Thai court grants extradition of 'Merchant of Death' Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:37 AM PDT BANGKOK, Friday 20 August 2010 (AFP) -- A Thai appeals court on Friday granted a request by the United States to extradite Viktor Bout, an alleged Russian arms dealer dubbed the "Merchant of Death", on terrorism charges.
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| Yellow Sea drill involves no aircraft carriers: US Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:35 AM PDT SEOUL, Friday 20 August 2010 (AFP) -- A joint US-South Korea anti-submarine exercise in the sensitive Yellow Sea will not involve a US aircraft carrier, the US military said Friday.
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| Taiwan's ex-leader Chen to be stripped of perks Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:35 AM PDT TAIPEI, Friday 20 August 2010 (AFP) -- Taiwan's parliament has passed a bill to revoke perks enjoyed by former president Chen Shui-bian, who is appealing a 20-year jail term for corruption, the authorities said Friday.
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| Nearly 60 whales dead in New Zealand mass stranding Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:33 AM PDT WELLINGTON, Friday 20 August 2010 (AFP) -- Nearly 60 pilot whales have died after becoming stranded on a beach in New Zealand on Friday, conservation officials said.
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| Indian military says 23 soldiers died in Himalaya floods Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:32 AM PDT SRINAGAR, Friday 20 August 2010 (AFP) -- The Indian military said Friday 23 soldiers had died in flash floods that struck a mountainous region in the north of the country a fortnight ago.
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| Police officers held in Philippines 'torture' video probe Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:32 AM PDT MANILA, Friday 20 August 2010 (AFP) -- Philippine authorities have held 11 policemen amid a probe into an alleged torture video filmed at a Manila police station.
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| Thai court rules to extradite Russian arms dealer Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:41 AM PDT BANGKOK (Reuters) - A Thai appeals court ruled on Friday that alleged Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout be extradited to the United States to face charges of supplying weapons to Colombian rebels.
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| Japan tells ships to be more vigilant in Hormuz Strait Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:41 AM PDT TOKYO (Reuters) - The Japanese transport ministry has issued an advisory to Japanese ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz to be more alert, a source familiar with the issue said on Friday.
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| World urged to act on Pakistan or risk militant rise Posted: 19 Aug 2010 04:10 PM PDT  ISLAMABAD: UN chief Ban Ki-moon said Pakistan faces a "slow-motion tsunami" as the flood-ravaged nation pleaded for a massive injection of global aid, warning that extremists could exploit the crisis. Ban told a UN emergency fundraising session in New York on Thursday the world had a duty to act with millions still without shelter and a fifth of the country submerged by flood waters. "It is one of the greatest tests of global solidarity," Ban told the General Assembly meeting, adding that Pakistan was facing a "slow-motion tsunami". Although weather forecasters say the monsoon systems are easing off and water levels receding, the fallout from three weeks of devastating floods that have left nearly 1,500 people dead is likely to last for years. There are growing fears that extremists may harness the discontent to further destabilise Pakistan's embattled government. "I stand before you as the voice of 20 million Pakistanis devastated by the floods," Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told the meeting in New York. "The massive upheaval caused by the floods and the economic losses suffered by the millions of Pakistanis must be addressed urgently. We cannot allow this catastrophe to become an opportunity for the terrorists." The nuclear-armed nation of 167 million is a top US foreign policy priority due to concerns over Islamist extremism. Washington says its porous border with Afghanistan provides cover for extremists to launch attacks on US-led troops fighting a nine-year insurgency there. Pakistan is also locked in battle with homegrown Taliban who have been blamed over a three-year bombing campaign that has killed more than 3,570 people. In a poignant video message to the meeting, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged generosity, saying: "This is a defining moment -- not only for Pakistan, but for all of us." Clinton doubled US aid from US$90 million to US$150 million, while Britain said it planned to double its contribution to more than 64 million pounds. Humanitarian assistance The US pointman on Pakistan called on China to join the global effort, saying billions of dollars would be needed for the country's reconstruction. "I think the Chinese should step up to the plate," Richard Holbrooke told reporters at an Asia Society event before the UN meeting. At least six million flood survivors in desperate need of food, shelter and clean drinking water require humanitarian assistance to survive, as concerns grow over potential cholera, typhoid and hepatitis outbreaks. The floods wiped out villages, farmland and infrastructure, and UN aid coordination body OCHA said more than 650,000 homeless families were still without basic shelter. At camps for the displaced from across the country, survivors are battling with crippling heat, miserable sanitation and swarms of mosquitoes. Many fled their homes with just the clothes on their backs and have been forced to drink contaminated water, causing diarrhoea and heightening fears over outbreaks of cholera and other water-borne diseases. At a camp in Sukkor, Sindh province, women and children queued patiently yesterday for a cooked meal -- dished out from vats in the back of a truck -- while others waited for basic medical care at a makeshift clinic. Amid the huge economic losses faced by Pakistan, estimated by Qureshi as totalling more than US$43 billion, a report in the Financial Times Friday said the Pakistani government would ask the International Monetary Fund to restructure a US$10.5 billion loan agreed in 2008. The Asian Development Bank has said it will give US$2 billion to repair roads, bridges, power lines, homes, schools, medical facilities and farm structures, and the World Bank has promised to lend US$900 million. - AFP
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| Police officers held in Philippines 'torture' video probe Posted: 19 Aug 2010 04:07 PM PDT  MANILA: Philippine authorities have held 11 policemen amid a probe into an alleged torture video filmed at a Manila police station. The officers, among them a mid-ranking policeman, are to face a disciplinary hearing on Friday, according to Chief Superintendent Roberto Rongavilla, head of a police task force investigating the incident. The graphic recording, which has enraged the Philippine public since it was broadcast on Tuesday, showed a man in civilian clothes whipping a naked man writhing on a white tiled floor. In between blows the torturer yanked a rope that appeared to be tied to the victim's penis. "These people (the officers) are now under the custody of the Manila police," said Rongavilla, adding that a formal complaint will be read against the men. "The internal affairs office has issued summons and an initial hearing will be held this afternoon," he said. All 11 had been posted at the Asuncion community police precinct in the high-crime Manila slum district of Tondo, but were suspended after public outcry sparked a government investigation. While allegations of torture and extra-judicial killings carried out by police and military are nothing new, the broadcast of the video was the first time such an incident has been seen on public television. Local network ABS-CBN, which broadcast the clip, did not say when the incident took place, and the fate of the victim was unclear. It said an unnamed informant took the footage with a mobile phone. Rongavilla told ABS-CBN that the investigation will also look into allegations that the officer accused of torturing the naked man had committed similar offences. "Many people are coming out alleging their sons and husbands had been given similar treatment," he added. "The investigation will attempt to establish a time frame and the dates when the alleged actions took place," Rongavilla added. Local media have named the officer in the torture video as Senior Inspector Joselito Binayug, the former commander of the Asuncion precinct. Binayug has denied the allegations and said he will answer them in due course, according to reports. - AFP
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| Thai court grants extradition of 'Merchant of Death' Posted: 19 Aug 2010 04:03 PM PDT
Bout, said to have inspired the Hollywood film "Lord of War" starring Nicolas Cage, has been fighting extradition since his March 2008 arrest in Bangkok in a sting operation involving US agents posing as Colombian rebels. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted in the US on charges including conspiracy to kill US nationals and to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organisation. His young daughter broke down in tears after the Bangkok court delivered its ruling, which his wife Alla later criticised as "unfair" and made under political pressure from the US. "The court has decided to detain him for extradition to the US," judge Jitakorn Patanasiri said, overturning a ruling last year by a lower court which had refused to send him to the US. "This case is not political, it is a criminal matter," the judge said. The 43-year-old former Soviet air force pilot -- who is said to speak six languages and go by at least seven different aliases -- refused to talk to journalists as he was led out of court in shackles. The US, which has described Bout as "one of the world's most prolific arms traffickers"," had lobbied hard to have him handed over. The US State Department called in Thai ambassador Don Pramudwinai this week "to emphasise that this is of the highest priority of the United States", spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters yesterday. "We believe that we've presented significant evidence to justify his extradition to the US," he said. 'Fair and transparent' US lawmakers had urged the ambassador to let authorities in Bangkok know that rejecting the request would harm ties with Washington and said the kingdom's judiciary handling of the case had not been "fair and transparent". Bout allegedly agreed to supply millions of dollars of weapons to undercover US agents in Thailand posing as rebels from Colombia's Marxist FARC group, which Washington considers a terrorist organisation. US prosecutors allege he agreed to the sale with the understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack American helicopters. A US indictment accuses Bout of using a fleet of cargo planes to transport weapons and military equipment to parts of the world, including Africa, South America and the Middle East. It alleges that the arms he has sold or brokered have fuelled conflicts and supported regimes in Afghanistan, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Sudan. The US has linked him to ex-Liberian president Charles Taylor, who is currently on trial at a war crimes court in The Hague for his alleged role in the 1991-2001 Sierra Leone civil war, which claimed some 120,000 lives. Bout, who has been held at a maximum-security prison outside Bangkok, has denied the charges and says that he ran a legitimate air cargo business. A Thai criminal court ruled in August 2009 that it did not have the authority to extradite Bout because FARC was not listed as a terrorist group in Thailand -- a decision praised by Moscow. In February this year, US prosecutors announced new money laundering and fraud charges against him. The appeals court will hold a hearing on Oct 4 on those charges, which Bout denies, his lawyer said. - AFP
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| Strengthening economic fundamentals better than stimulus package: Najib Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:04 AM PDT It is better for the government to strengthen economic fundamentals rather than introduce stimulus packages frequently to overcome the economic slowdown, the Prime Minister said today.
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| Civil court has no jurisdiction to decide Moorthy's religious status Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:03 AM PDT The Court of Appeal here today ruled that the civil court has no jurisdiction to determine the religious status of the late Everest climber Sergeant M. Moorthy whose conversion to Islam has been a subject of dispute.
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| Prolonged polemics could affect investment Posted: 20 Aug 2010 12:02 AM PDT Uncertain political conditions and "prolonged polemics" could affect the government's effort to attract more foreign investors, International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said.
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| PM to push ahead with 1Malaysia despite resistance: Hishammuddin Posted: 19 Aug 2010 11:18 PM PDT Home minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein pointed out that no one would be like Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, who insisted to push ahead with his "1Malaysia" concept knowing very well that he would be facing some resistance.
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