Arabs to present draft of Palestinian state to Security Council

CAIRO: Arab League foreign ministers endorsed on Saturday a draft resolution setting a timeframe for the creation of a Palestinian state and said they would formally present it to the United Nations Security Council for a vote within days.

The ministers said in a statement after their meeting that a follow-up committee including Jordan, an Arab member of the Security Council, would begin to seek international backing for the resolution. Arab League chief Nabil al-Araby said Jordan would present the draft to the Security Council within days.

A proposed resolution on a Palestinian state is unlikely to gain the support of veto-wielding council member the United States, a key ally of Israel. It is not clear whether Washington would engage in formal negotiations on such a document.

Speaking at the opening of the session in Cairo, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Israel had left his people no option but to turn directly to the international community.

“The current situation in the Palestinian territories cannot continue,” he said. “There is no longer a partner for us in Israel and there is nothing for us but to internationalise the issue.” Jordan circulated a draft UN Security Council resolution to members early last month that calls for an end to Israeli occupation by November 2016. Some diplomats have described the Palestinian-drafted text as “unbalanced”.

France, Britain and Germany are also drafting their own resolution, diplomats said, which would set out parameters for trying to end the conflict. They have not yet circulated a text to the 15-council members.

Abbas warned in his speech that his government could limit contacts with Israel and suspend security coordination if the resolution failed to pass at the Security Council, and that Israel would bear responsibility for the consequences.

Abbas has previously described security coordination with Israel as necessary and even “sacred”.

Palestinians seek statehood in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and blockaded Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as their capital — lands captured by Israel in a 1967 war.

Israel accepts the idea of a “two-state solution” of an independent and democratic Palestinian state existing alongside Israel, but has not accepted the 1967 borders as the basis for final negotiations, citing security and other concerns.

The latest round of efforts to forge a two-state solution collapsed in April and relations between the two sides have worsened since a 50-day war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip this summer.

France said on Friday it would recognise a Palestinian state if a final international effort to overcome the impasse between Israelis and Palestinians failed.

French parliamentarians will hold a symbolic vote with no immediate policy impact on Dec 2 on whether the French government should recognise Palestine as a state, after similar moves in Sweden, Britain, Ireland and Spain.

Israeli umpire dies after being hit by ball

JERUSALEM: An umpire and former captain of Israel's national cricket team died on Saturday after being hit in the jaw by a ball, the country's cricket association said.

Israeli police ruled out foul play in the incident that led to the death of the umpire, named by the Israel Cricket Association as 55-year-old Hillel Oscar, in the southern port city of Ashdod.

ICA chief Naor Gudker told that Saturday's game was the last in the national league season.

“We're simply in shock,” he said from the hospital where Oscar was pronounced dead.

“He was an international umpire. He officiated in European championships, he officiated in games in Israel: his future was ahead of him,” Gudker said.

“He was a player for the national Israeli team and he was captain of the national team. “Police said they were investigating his death.”

“We know a ball was hit in his direction, he tried to escape it, he fell – what happened there is still being investigated,” Gudker told AFP.

“The entire Israel Cricket Association and players bow their heads in his memory. He was a wonderful man, cricketer, and umpire,” Gudker said

Egyptian court drops case against ex-president Hosani Mobarak

CAIRO: An Egyptian court has dismissed criminal charges against former president Hosni Mubarak in connection with the killing of protesters in the 2011 uprising that ended his nearly three-decade reign.

Mubarak, 86, was also acquitted of corruption charges that he faced along with his sons Alaa and Gamal.

Mubarak was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 2012, but the verdict was overturned on appeal.

Saturday's verdict concludes his retrial along with his two sons, his security chief and six of his aides, who were all acquitted. Also on trial was businessman Hussein Salem, a longtime Mubarak friend tried in absentia.

Hindu pilgrims take message of love peace to India

The Hindu pilgrims said they would take message of love and peace to India. As many as 85 Hindu pilgrims from various states of India came to Katas Raj, their holy site, on Wednesday evening and left for India on Friday. They were welcomed by District Coordination Officer (DCO) Asif Bilal Lodhi, Assistant Commissioner Choa Saidan Shah Samina Saif Niazi and other officials concerned.  

Two receptions, one on Wednesday night and the other on Thursday, were held for the pilgrims.

Speaking in one of the receptions Chairman Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) Saddiqul Farooq assured the Indian pilgrims that they would always be welcomed in Pakistan with warmth and affection.

“You can visit to your holy sites whenever you want. You would always be welcomed with love,” he said.

He stressed the need of interfaith harmony.

“We should respect every religion. If we respect humanity our problems will solve,” he maintained.

He urged the pilgrims to take the message of love and peace to their country.

Shiv Partab Bajaj the leader of the pilgrims while speaking on the occasion thanked the Pakistan government for making tremendous arrangements for the pilgrims. “The love and respect which you people gave us can never be forgotten,” he said. He added that when he came first time at Katas Raj in 1982 the temples were in pathetic condition , but now the holy site had been renovated.

“These temples are not just worship places but tourist spots as well as the area (Salt Range) in which they are located is fabulous and scenic,” he maintained.

DCO Asif Bilal Lodhi while addressing the pilgrims said they would be provided every facility.

The pilgrims and their Pakistani hosts exchanged gifts.

After the ceremony the pilgrims visited different temples and took bath at the holy pond. They offered their obeisance to Lord Shiva.

Talking to Dawn many pilgrims said they visited Katas for the first time.

Amit Chadha, who came from New Delhi, said, “The place is such a wonderful that I will keep on visiting,” he added.

Parveen Rani who came from Hariyana state along with his little daughter Jhanvi and husband Bilbir Singh also expressed her desire to visit Katas Raj again and again.

Indian air force sees threat neighbors

NEW DELHI: India does not have territorial ambitions except to possibly reclaim land it lost to unnamed neighbours as a consequence of history, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha said in Bangalore on Saturday.

Reports quoted him as speaking of Indian vulnerability because of a hostile neighbourhood left by colonial policies.

“India has no territorial ambition, except for recovering the territories that we lost, because of the history that we had, to our neighbours,” he was quoted by the Hindustan Times as saying. “So we might like to recover those. But otherwise we have no intention of any territory being occupied by us from our neighbours or otherwise,” Raha said.

Know more: Pakistani ‘state actors’ destabilising India: minister

Delivering the Air Chief Marshal L.M. Katre memorial lecture, he said: “But we have a hostile border, with the legacy of the British rule and the conflicts we have had in the past. So we are vulnerable in terms of our security.”

India had to have the capability not to wage war because its aim was to avoid conflict, “but to deter an adversary from launching operations against us or waging a war against us”, he said, adding that the air force could play a key role in it.

“So who is going to deter? What sort of capability do we re­quire which will give us this deterrence against our adversaries?”

Stating that there should be striking capability deep into the enemy’s heartland, Raha added it could be provided “through aerospace power, air forces of the country. That is how we can explore the vulnerabilities and criticalities of any adversary”.

“That means we have to build up our striking power which would deter an adversary from launching any offensive against the country,” he said. “To my mind that national instrument which will provide the best defence and deterrence would be in the shape of aerospace power of the nation.”

Speaking about the geopolitical environment which determines the role Indian Air Force should play in mitigating threats, Raha said, “If we take a broad scan we will realise that the strategic gravity has shifted in the recent times from the West to the East.”

Raha said that China was now asserting itself in making claims on international waters and island territories and the international airspace in South China Sea and East China Sea.

They are claiming new air defence identification zones, new areas of influence in the open ocean.

“It has got into conflicts with all its littoral neighbours. We are also having problems in terms of intrusion along the LAC (Line of Actual Control) in Leh-Ladakh sector as well as in Arunachal Pradesh.

So the situation is not very good for the environment that is there, and peaceful rise of China may remain a distant dream if the things go the way it is happening now,” he added.

Quoting from the article written by a prominent security analyst from Hong Kong, who mentions China is developing its capability to fight five important conflicts in the next 30-35 years that includes annexation of Taiwan, occupying Spratly Islands, annex south Tibet that is Arunachal Pradesh from India, get hold of Senkaku Islands from Japan and recover large territories in Russia and Mongolia, Raha said, “I hope it is not true, but there are doubts whether the rise of China is going to be peaceful or not”.

“But we have no option but to be prepared to meet such a challenge in the near future,” he added.

Raha said Afghanistan and Pakistan regions were also an issue. “We all know that Pakistan had been a fountainhead of terror though it is part of global war on terrorism, but it is also encouraging terrorist activities and today with the withdrawal of American and western forces from Afghanistan, I think the situation is going to be very, very delicate in terms of sub-conventional threats to India.”

He said “the ISIS which has grown with strength in Iraq and Syria and in the Middle East is going to be another challenge to the world”.

EU gives France, Italy last chance to fix budgets

BRUSSELS: The EU on Friday gave France, Italy and Belgium an extra three months until March to fix their bloated budgets, but warned it would still enforce humiliating sanctions if they fail to curb spending.

The three countries were singled out by the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, as it unveiled a tough assessment of eurozone budgets under new powers granted during the debt crisis.

But instead of immediately imposing penalties, Brussels gave them extra time to implement tough reforms, delaying a harsh verdict on national overspending amid global calls for Europe to ease up on austerity.

“The Commission will not hesitate to take its responsibilities” if they fail to take steps by March, Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said as he announced the assessments.

France in particular had made “limited progress”, the commission said, referring to the fact that Paris is set for a deficit of 4.3 per cent of GDP in 2015, way above the EU’s 3pc ceiling.

Four other countries — Spain, Malta, Austria and Portugal — were also way off meeting the rules, the commission said.

Last month, France and Italy barely avoided having their budgets sent back for serious breaches in what would have been a major blow to the eurozone’s second and third biggest economies.

‘A CLEAR CALENDAR’: New Eu­ro­­­pean Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker explained the decision to extend the deadline on the grounds that the countries concerned needed more time to fix their budgets.

“I made a choice not to sanction because that would have been easy,” Juncker told journalists from a group of European newspapers.

But he insisted that the Commission remained tough on budget overspending and the need for reform.

In conversations with the French and Italian leaders, “I made it clear that I don’t want only promises but a clear calendar,” the former Luxembourg premier said.

The pullback by Juncker, who took office on November 1, comes amid growing fears that problems in the 18-nation eurozone could spread to other parts of the world.

The bloc is caught in a slump of near-zero growth, near-deflation and high unemployment.

Data released on Friday showed inflation in the eurozone slowed to a five-year-low of 0.3pc in November, while unemployment held at 11.5pc.

The Commission’s tolerance however risks angering an impatient Germany, frustrated with the slow pace of reform in Paris and Rome.

But German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble acknowledged on Friday that “some of our most important partners are in a more difficult situation than we are.”

The international call for the EU to step away from austerity, championed by Berlin as well as Juncker’s predecessor Jose Manuel Barroso, is growing.

The OECD on Tuesday urged more flexibility in fiscal rules for France and Italy in order to prevent another recession in the eurozone.

Spurs make knockout stage after game halted

MANCHESTER: Tottenham were among nine teams to qualify for the knockout stage of the Europa League on Thursday after beating Partizan Belgrade 1-0 in a match that was briefly suspended because of three separate pitch invasions.

Inter Milan and Napoli also advanced to ensure there will be at least three Italian clubs in the last 32 of Europe’s secondary competition.

Spurs’ victory, secured by Benjamin Stambouli’s 49th-minute winner, was overshadowed by a succession of pitch invasions that forced the referee to halt the game after 41 minutes. It appeared to be an orchestrated PR campaign, with the individuals entering the field of play wearing shirts with the logo of a Tottenham sponsor.

Play resumed after a 10-minute delay but Tottenham face punishment by UEFA.

The club said on its Twitter page that the three pitch invaders were arrested and were assisting police with their inquiries.

Besiktas, Celtic, Everton, Dynamo Kiev, Feyenoord and Trabzonspor also progressed on Thursday with one group game to spare.

The Group ‘E’ game between Estoril and PSV Eindhoven was abandoned at halftime after torrential rain in Portugal made the pitch unplayable. UEFA said the game will be completed on Friday, with Estoril leading 3-2 and needing a win to stay alive in the competition.

Tottenham’s Group ‘C’ game against Partizan was tied at 0-0 when a third pitch invasion by an individual led referee Yevhen Aranovskiy to call players from both teams off the field. The second pitch invader had attempted to take a photo on his mobile phone of himself with Tottenham striker Roberto Soldado.

There were no further disruptions in the second half, during which Stambouli slotted home a rebound into an empty net for his first goal for the club after Soldado’s shot came back off the post.

Spurs top the group and are two points clear of Besiktas ahead of their meeting in two weeks. Besiktas squandered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at Asteras Tripolis but still progressed.

Inter coach Roberto Mancini celebrated his 50th birthday by seeing his team beat Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 2-1 and secure first place in Group ‘F’. Dani Osvaldo scored the winner in the 50th minute, soon after Andrea Ranocchia was sent off for Inter for a second yellow card.

Napoli’s 0-0 draw at Sparta Prague ensured the Rafa Benitez’s team cannot be denied a top-two finish in Group ‘I’.

Fiorentina are the other Italian team guaranteed to be in the knockout stage after qualifying following the fourth round of matches.

Everton will finish first in Group ‘H’ after beating Wolfsburg 2-0 away through goals by Belgium internationals Romelu Lukaku and Kevin Mirallas.

Ukrainian side Dynamo Kiev beat Rio Ave 2-0 to ensure progress from Group ‘J’, Feyenoord won by the same score at home to defending champions Sevilla and will advance from Group ‘G’, while Trabzonspor won to qualify from Group ‘L’. Celtic joined Salzburg in qualifying from Group ‘D’ despite losing 3-1 at home to the Austrian team.

Results: Group ‘A’:

At Vila-real, Spain:

Villarreal 2 Borussia Moenchengladbach 2

At Zurich, Switzerland:

FC Zurich 3 Apollon Limassol 1

Group ‘B’: At Turin, Italy:

Torino 0 Club Brugge 0

At Helsinki:

HJK Helsinki 2 FC Copenhagen 1

Group ‘C’: At London:

Tottenham Hotspur 1 Partizan Belgrade 0

At Tripoli, Greece:

Asteras Tripolis 2 Besiktas 2

Group ‘D’: At Glasgow, Scotland:

Celtic 1 Salzburg 3

At Giurgiu, Romania:

Astra Giurgiu 1 Dinamo Zagreb 0

Group ‘E’: At Estoril, Portugal:

Estoril 3 PSV Eindhoven 2 (game abandoned at half-time due to torrential rain; to be completed 1600GMT Friday)

At Moscow: Dinamo Moscow 2 Panathinaikos 1

Group ‘F’: At Milan, Italy:

Inter 2 Dnipro 1

At Saint-Etienne, France:

Saint-Etienne 1 Qarabag 1

Group ‘G’: At Rijeka, Croatia:

Rijeka 2 Standard Liege 0

At Rotterdam, Netherlands:

Feyenoord 2 Sevilla 0

Group ‘H’: At Krasnodar, Russia:

FC Krasnodar 1 Lille 1

At Wolfsburg, Germany:

VfL Wolfsburg 0 Everton 2

Group ‘I’: At Bratislava

Slovan Bratislava 1 Young Boys 3

At Prague:

Sparta Prague 0 Napoli 0

Group ‘J’:

At Aalborg, Denmark:

Aalborg 1 Steaua Bucharest 0

At Kiev:

Dynamo Kiev 2 Rio Ave 0

Group ‘K’: At Borisov, Belarus:

Dinamo Minsk 0 PAOK 2

At Guingamp, France:

Guingamp 1 Fiorentina 2

Group ‘L’: At Trabzon, Turkey:

Trabzonspor 3 Metalist Kharkiv 1

At Lokeren, Belgium:

Lokeren 1 Legia Warsaw 0.