Oil Of War

JOHANNESBURG: Fire has killed 18 people and injured scores more at a home for the elderly in South Africa, Chris Botha, spokesman for the Netcare 911 emergency service, said Monday.

LONDON: Winston Churchill’’s school reports, a drinking bet he once made, and even information on his budgie will be available to all when the wartime Prime Minister’’s archive goes online.

The digitised archive will offer an insight into Churchill’’s personal and professional life, from his school days up to his final years as a statesman during the Cold War.

Bloomsbury will publish 2,500 archival boxes of Churchill’’s letters, telegrams, manuscripts and photographs in 2012, after striking a deal with the Churchill Archive Trust (CAC).

“As an archival collection, there’’s nothing like this,” said publisher of Bloomsbury Academic Frances Pinter.

For a modest, up-front fee, users will be able to search through over 1 million items including a personal copy of the “finest hour” speech, and the less well-known “Savrola,” a novel Churchill wrote when he was 23 years old.

The price is yet to be decided, but Bloomsbury say they will keep it low to maximise the archive’’s reach.

Since 1995, when the archive was bought from Churchill’’s heirs using 12 million pounds of lottery money, it has been housed in Cambridge, where it can only be viewed by appointment.

DUBAI: Gulf business hub the United Arab Emirates said Sunday it will halt key BlackBerry services that breach laws and raise security concerns, a move Saudi Arabia may follow according to unconfirmed reports.

The UAE suspension would kick in on October 11 and last until a legal solution was reached, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) said in a statement on its website.

It said the decision was taken “after failing to make progress in repeated attempts to make BlackBerry services compatible” with the Gulf state’’s legislation.

“Due to its technical nature, some BlackBerry services, like the messenger, email, and web browsing, remain beyond the implementation of local laws,” the TRA said.

These services could “allow individuals to commit violations without being subject to legal accountability, which would lead to dangerous implications on the social, judicial and national security.”

“In the public interest, we have today informed the providers of telecommunications services in the country of our decision to suspend the BlackBerry services of messenger, email and electronic browsing,” TRA chief Mohammed al-Ghanem said in the statement.

Ghanem said the suspension would remain in force “until a solution compatible with the telecommunications laws in the country is reached.”

Saudi Arabia was expected to block BlackBerry messaging, an official at a telecommunications company in the kingdom said on Sunday, while another firm denied the claims.

“Orders are expected from the (telecommunications) regulator” to suspend BlackBerry’’s popular messenger service in the kingdom, one official said on condition of anonymity.

But an official from another Saudi company dismissed the claim. “We continue to provide a full service,” he said, declining to be named.

BlackBerry has more than 700,000 subscribers in Saudi Arabia and 500,000 in the UAE, a country that has established itself as a major business hub mainly in the bustling emirate of Dubai.

In anticipation of communication problems that would arise from cutting the service, Ghanem said providers Etisalat and Du have been told they should offer alternatives.

“Providing alternative offers that would guarantee the continuity of messenger, email and web browsing to personal and business clients is at the top of our priorities,” he said.

The UAE’’s largest telecoms provider, Etisalat, acknowledged the decision and pledged to provide solutions for users.

“Etisalat’’s focus at the current time is to make sure its valued customers experience continuity of mobility services,” the state-majority-owned operator said in a statement.

“In line with its commitment towards its customers, Etisalat will soon be announcing a range of alternative mobility products and services for its existing BlackBerry customers,” it added.

Du also said it would respect the decision.

“As a communication provider in the country, we have to always operate within the regulations of TRA,” it said in a statement carried by state news agency WAM.

The debate over control of BlackBerry services in the oil-rich UAE became heated last week amid complaints that data belonging to local users was stored abroad by the BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIM).

The TRA said last week that the BlackBerry service could allow people to use some of its applications “inappropriately.”

The decision comes as Paris-based media watchdog Reporters without Borders accused the UAE of “harassing and arresting users of BlackBerry Messenger who allegedly tried to organise a protest” against an increase in petrol prices.

“We call for an end to this government witch-hunt against BlackBerry Messenger users who tried to get their fellow citizens to join them in a protest,” it said on Thursday, claiming that one of the organisers, Badr Ali al-Dhohori, 18, has been in custody in Abu Dhabi since July 15.

In July last year, RIM charged that an update issued by Etisalat was actually spyware, and that it enabled unauthorised access to information stored on the user’’s smartphone.

The UAE telecommunications authorities control access to the Internet, filtering out material including nudity, pornography, and some political websites.

SRINAGAR: Curfew remained in force in the held Kashmir on Monday, which has been hit by a fresh wave of violence since Friday.

One person, who was hit by a teargas shell three days back in Bijbehara in south Kashmir, succumbed to his injuries last night. With his death, the total number of people who died in the Valley since Friday has gone up to 15.

In New Delhi, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) had met last night for the second time in a month to take stock of the situation. The Chief Minister of Held Kashmir Umer Abdullah will meet Prime Minister and Interior Minister today.

Earlier, held Kashmir Chief Minister has appealed for calm and asked political parties and leaders to cooperate with the Government for return of peace in the state. He has vowed to deal sternly with lawbreakers and the perpetrators of violence, asserting that he will not allow them “to win”.

SYDNEY: Australia’’s Labor government and the opposition are neck-and-neck ahead of an August 21 election, an opinion poll showed on Monday, prompting a call by Prime Minister Julia Gillard for an aggressive election campaign.

“I wake up some days and go, let’’s fire up, let’’s get more determined and that’’s what I”ve done today,” Gillard told Sydney radio after a Newspoll survey put her Labor party and opposition Liberal-National coalition 50:50 to win the election.

Gillard pledged to do away with a “stage-managed” and “risk averse” re-election campaign in order to talk directly to voters about real issues like jobs, schools, hospitals and the economy.

“I”m desperate to make sure that Australians in this election campaign get to hear from me,” she said.

Gillard’’s key policies are a 30 percent tax on iron ore and coal mines, the introduction of carbon trading and the building of a $33 billion-plus broadband network.

The opposition led by Tony Abbott has pledged to dump the mining tax and is running on a platform of cutting waste in government spending and tougher immigration.

Gillard, Australia’’s first female prime minister after replacing Kevin Rudd in a party coup in June, has been criticized by political commentators for a staid, orchestrated election campaign, devoid of major policy announcements.

Government infighting and cabinet leaks appear to be weighing on Labor’’s popularity, after it had been comfortably ahead in polls when the election was called on July 17.

“Julia Gillard is starting to run a scare campaign because she’’s starting to run scared,” Dennis Shanahan, political editor of The Australian newspaper, wrote on Monday.

“At this point the ALP (Australian Labor Party) is losing the election campaign, Gillard is losing her gloss and the advantage of removing Kevin Rudd is gone.”

The Sydney Morning Herald frontpage headline on Gillard’’s change of election strategy read: “Target Tony.”

“I think the campaign is about who you want to be prime minister,” said Gillard, focusing on Abbott’’s changing stance on climate change, immigration and labor laws in the past year.

Abbott dismissed Gillard’’s declaration of a more honest campaign, saying the “faceless men” of the Labor party who appointed her prime minister would continue to run her campaign and if Labor was re-elected would run the country.

“Would the real Julia please stand up. What have we been seeing for the last five weeks if it is not the real Julia,” Abbott told reporters.

Support for Gillard’’s Labor was 50 percent, down from 52 percent the week before, according to the Newspoll survey published in the Australian newspaper on Monday. Support for the conservative opposition rose to 50 percent from 48 percent,

On Saturday, a Nielsen poll showed support for Labor had dived six percentage points to 48 percent, behind the opposition, led by Abbott with an election-winning 52 percent.

The latest Newspoll showed Gillard has kept her clear lead over Abbott as preferred prime minister, standing at 50 percent to 35 percent. But dissatisfaction with Gillard’’s performance rose 3 points to 40 percent, and is now up 11 percentage points since the election was called.

ANCHORAGE: Federal aviation officials say a plane has crashed at Denali National Park in Alaska.

Allen Kenitzer with the Federal Aviation Administration says little is known at this time about the Sunday crash near the entrance of the park, about 180 miles north of Anchorage. He doesn”t know if there are survivors.

He says the plane is believed to be a single-engine aircraft and the crash caused a large fire at the site.

Park spokeswoman Kris Fister did not immediately have information, only that there was a plane crash.

George Clare, of Las Vegas, says he saw the plane flying very low and slow. He says he proceeded to the park’’s visitor’’s center, thinking it was going to land.

He says the crash caused a column of smoke a few miles west of the visitor’’s center.

WASHINGTON: The top US military officer says he has a plan to attack Iran if needed to prevent it from getting nuclear weapons, but is “extremely concerned” about the possible repercussions of such a strike.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said military action against Iran could have “unintended consequences that are difficult to predict in what is an incredibly unstable part of the world.”

But, speaking on Sunday’s “Meet the Press” programme on NBC, Mullen said allowing Iran to develop a nuclear weapon was also unacceptable. “Quite frankly, I am extremely concerned about both of those outcomes,” he said.

Mullen held out hope that a combination of international diplomatic efforts and sanctions against Iran would lead Tehran to suspend a nuclear enrichment program that many believe is a clandestine bid to develop nuclear arms.

“I am hopeful (it) works,” he said. At the same time, though, he said “the military options have been on the table, and remain on the table”.

“I hope we don’t get to that, but it’s an important option and it’s one that’s well understood,” he added. Asked if the military has a plan to strike Iran, Mullen replied, “We do”.

He did not elaborate. Iran insists its uranium enrichment programme is for peaceful purposes only. Meanwhile, Iran will make the strategic Gulf region unsafe for all if it comes under attack by the United States over it nuclear programme, the deputy head of the elite Revolutionary Guards said on Sunday.

“If the Americans make the slightest mistake, the security of the region will be endangered. Security in the Persian Gulf should be for all or none,” Yadollah Javani said.

“The Persian Gulf is a strategic region and if it is endangered they (Americans) will suffer losses and our response will be firm.

“We will defend ourselves if America or Israel resort to any hostile measures against our vital values,” he added.

The international community led by the United States has stepped up pressure on Iran over its controversial nuclear programme amid concerns that the Islamic republic is engaged in a covert nuclear weapons programme, a charge Tehran vehemently denies.

The United States and Israel have not ruled out a military strike to stop Iran’s alleged atomic ambitions. Javani’s declaration preceded comments by the top US military officer on Sunday that a plan to attack Iran was ready, if needed to stop the Islamic republic from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he was “extremely concerned” about the possible repercussions of such a strike. Iranian officials have frequently vowed a crushing response to any US and Israeli attacks.

KUALA LUMPUR: Afghan defence minister Abdul Rahim Wardak on Monday played down the fallout from the Wikileaks scandal, saying the information released was “not a big surprise”.

“Actually for us Afghans, and especially some of us dealing with intelligence, we knew it all along,” he said during a visit to Malaysia.

“For us it was not a big surprise because we were sharing intelligence. We were aware of the size of the activities and support of the Taliban,” he said. “It is good now that everyone knows about it.”

The WikiLeaks website released more than 90,000 classified US military files dating from the Afghan war between 2004 and 2009, a period when tens of thousands of US and NATO troops ran into increasing Taliban resistance.