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--- South Asian News, November 2&3, 2002 ---(Weekend)

Pakistan parliament is to be convened on November 8th after 3 years of military rule but the government formation is still posing problems with no party having a clear majority. Elsewhere in Pakistan, the police arrest 6 suspected terrorists while an Islamic group calls for holy war denouncing US. The new government of Indian-ruled Kashmir swears in hours after a grenade attack on the chief minister's house and a killing of a political candidate by suspected Islamic militants. In Sri Lanka, the on-going peace talks in Thailand moved ahead despite possible stumbling blocks at home.

Top Stories

* Pakistan pro-military party names candidate for PM (NY Times) (MSNBC)
* Pakistani Islamic group calls for holy war (NY Times) (MSNBC)
* Pakistani police arrest six suspected Islamic militants (MSNBC) (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
* Pakistan to release 216 Indian fishermen (NY Times) (MSNBC)
* Government convenes Parliament on Nov. 8 (Wall Street Journal) (Washington Post) (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) (ABC News) (MSNBC)
* Foreign peacekeepers close operations at Karachi airport (Washington Post) (ABC News) (MSNBC)
* Pakistan calls assembly, but no coalition (Washington Post) (ABC News) (MSNBC)
* Commonwealth doesn't understand, says Pakistan (MSNBC)
* New Kashmir chief says committed to peace (Washington Post) (Chicago Tribune) (ABC News)
* Kashmir political candidate killed (Wall Street Journal) (Washington Post) (Star Tribune) (Knoxville News-Sentinel) (Action News) (Reuters Alert)
* Kashmir chief sworn in hours after grenade attack (Wall Street Journal) (Washington Post) (ABC News)
* Guerillas killed near Kashmir border (Washington Post) (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
* Snaring Tiger leader may be tough for Sri Lanka (NY Times) (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) (MSNBC)
* Swift progress in Sri Lanka peace talks despite rebel leader sentencing (MSNBC)
* Sri Lanka arrests six rebels off east coast (MSNBC)

Editorial/Op-Ed

N/A

Business/Technology

* Pakistan - Govt plans to auction two more cellular licences (Wireless Week)

Other Stories

* Differences between rich and poor delay global warming draft declaration (MSNBC)

Top Stories

* Pakistan pro-military party names candidate for PM

Islamabad -- The pro-military party that won most seats in Pakistan's October general election announced its candidate for the prime minister's post on Friday as rival parties haggled over their shares of a possible coalition. The Pakistan Muslim League Quaid-e-Azam (PML-QA) nominated Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, 58, a veteran politician from the southwestern province of Baluchistan bordering Afghanistan.

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http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-pakistan-politics-nominee.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Pakistani Islamic group calls for holy war

Pattoki, Pakistan -- A hardline Pakistani Islamic group denounced the U.S.-declared war on terror and called on Muslims on Friday to wage jihad, or holy war. ''Muslims must devote themselves to jihad in accordance with Koranic teachings,'' Hafiz Abdul Salam, acting head of the hardline group Jamaat ud Daawah, told a huge congregation of followers in Pattoki, 80 km (50 miles) south of Lahore, the capital of central Punjab province.

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http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-pakistan-militants.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Pakistani police arrest six suspected Islamic militants

Multan, Pakistan -- Pakistani police raided Islamic militant hide-outs Friday, seizing bomb-making materials and arresting six suspects. The men admitted being members of Sipah-e-Sahaba and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, outlawed groups suspected in attacks against Christians and Shiite Muslims, police officer Tariq Masood Yasin said.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/ap.asp?reg=ASIA
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apasia_story.asp?category=1104&slug=Pakistan%20Militants

* Pakistan to release 216 Indian fishermen

Karachi, Pakistan -- Pakistan said on Friday it has decided to release 216 Indian fishermen detained for entering its territorial waters, along with their vessels. The archfoes frequently arrest each other's fishermen on charges of infringing territorial waters in the Arabian Sea. Haji Wali Muhammad, spokesman of the Pakistan Fishermen's Cooperative Society, said the government issued a release order and arrangements were being made to repatriate the captives.

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http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Pakistan-Militants.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Government convenes Parliament on Nov. 8

Islamabad -- Pakistan's Parliament will convene on Nov. 8 ending more than three years of rule by the military, state-run Pakistan Television announced Saturday. The swearing in ceremony of the legislators, elected in last month's general elections, will be the first order of business. But Pakistan's new civilian Parliament is deeply divided with no one party having a clear majority.

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http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,BT_CO_20021102_000072,00.html
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov2.html
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apasia_story.asp?category=1104&slug=Pakistan%20Parliament
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20021102_521.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/ap.asp?reg=ASIA

* Foreign peacekeepers close operations at Karachi airport

Karachi, Pakistan -- An international peacekeeping force Saturday moved out of the airport in the southern city of Karachi - a hotbed of Islamic fundamentalism, nearly nine months after it began using the facility to support operations in Afghanistan, a senior airport official said. The International Security Assistance Force gave Pakistani officials a one-month notice before vacating the airport, Brig. Tariq Mehmood, airport security chief, told The Associated Press.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov2.html
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20021102_770.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/ap.asp?reg=ASIA

* Pakistan calls assembly, but no coalition

Islamabad -- Pakistan's military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, on Saturday summoned a newly elected National Assembly to meet next week, even though rival parties still appear unable to finalise a coalition government. Radio Pakistan said the assembly members elected in October 10 polls would be sworn in at anng session on Friday.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov2.html
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/reuters20021102_86.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Commonwealth doesn't understand, says Pakistan

Islamabad -- Pakistan said on Saturday the decision by Commonwealth foreign ministers to uphold its suspension from their organisation showed a lack of understanding of the country's transition to democracy. Meeting in London on Friday, the Commonwealth ministers agreed to maintain Pakistan's suspension from the decision-making bodies of the 54-nation organisation until they had a clearer picture of ''the role and functioning of democratic institutions.''

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* New Kashmir chief says committed to peace

Srinagar, India -- The new chief minister of Indian-ruled Kashmir said on Sunday his government is determined to bring peace to the bloodied Himalayan state where separatists have battled Indian rule for 13 years. Mufti Mohammad Syed, sworn in on Saturday following elections condemned by separatists but which India hopes will legitimize its rule, has said he favors talks with the separatists.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov3.html
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-nov03.story
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/reuters20021103_41.html

* Kashmir political candidate killed

Srinagar, India -- Hours after a new government was installed Saturday, suspected Islamic militants shot dead a local leader of the ruling Congress party and his two guards in the heart of Indian-controlled Kashmir's capital, police said. The attack on Mohammad Sikander Khan and his guards occurred at the busy Batmaloo bus station in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu-Kashmir state, a police official said on condition of anonymity.

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http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,BT_CO_20021102_000043,00.html
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov2.html
http://www.startribune.com/stories/484/3405697.html
http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/world/article/0,1406,KNS_351_1520342,00.html
http://www.accessatlanta.com/partners/wsbtv/news/ap_story.html/Intl/AP.V3109.AP-Kashmir-Attack.html
http://www.newsalert.com/bin/story?StoryId=CpCnB0bebAw5KAweTA2fZAg1PCI1ZAg9VDgK

* Kashmir chief sworn in hours after grenade attack

Srinagar, India -- The new chief minister of India's rebellion-torn Jammu and Kashmir state was sworn in on Saturday just hours after suspected Muslim rebels tried to blow up his house. Mufti Mohammad Syed, 66, favors talks with separatists battling Indian rule in the disputed Himalayan territory to end a 13-year-old rebellion that has claimed at least 35,000 lives.

(Subscription Required)
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,BT_CO_20021102_000016,00.html
(Registration Required)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov2.html
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/reuters20021102_48.html

* Guerillas killed near Kashmir border

Jammu, India -- Indian soldiers on Saturday killed 12 suspected Islamic guerrillas as they tried to sneak across the disputed Kashmir frontier from Pakistan-controlled territory, police said. Firing continued across hilly terrain in the Saujian area, about 130 miles northwest of Jammu, the winter capital of Jammu-Kashmir state. Saujian is in the Punch district near the Line of Control, the 1972 cease-fire line dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/ANov2.html
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apasia_story.asp?category=1104&slug=Kashmir%20Border%20Killings

* Snaring Tiger leader may be tough for Sri Lanka

Colombo -- Passing a jail sentence on a Tamil Tiger rebel leader who turned a rag-tag bunch of barefoot fighters into one of the world's toughest guerrilla forces could prove a lot easier than getting him to serve it. Peace talks in Thailand between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have been overshadowed by a surprise court decision that handed Velupillai Prabhakaran a 200-year jail term for a 1996 bombing.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/01/international/asia/01LANK.html
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apasia_story.asp?category=1104&slug=Sri%20Lanka%20Peace%20Talks
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Swift progress in Sri Lanka peace talks despite rebel leader sentencing

Nakhon Pathom, Thailand -- Tamil Tiger rebels and the Sri Lankan government reported progress in the second round of peace talks Friday, and finalized the makeup of key committees for rehabilitation and security in the war-ravaged country. ''We went very far. We came up with a structure that will be acceptable to the international community. Given the sprit of goodwill we are able to resolve our differences,'' chief government negotiator G.L. Peiris said at the end of the second day's talks.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/ap.asp?reg=ASIA

* Sri Lanka arrests six rebels off east coast

Colombo -- Sri Lanka arrested six Tamil Tiger rebels for carrying explosives and violating a Norwegian-brokered truce, an official said on Saturday, as the government and rebels sat down for peace talks in Thailand. The navy arrested the rebels with mines and communication equipment onboard a boat off the island's east coast, an official of the Nordic truce monitors said.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

Editorial/Op-Ed

N/A

Business/Technology

* Pakistan - Govt plans to auction two more cellular licences

The govt plans to auction two new cellphone operator licences by May 2003, according to the Pakistan Telecom Authority. A new telecoms policy is expected to be in place within a few months of November 2002 to enable smoother deregulation after PTCL's fixed-line monopoly ends. The latter now is due to be privatised in 1st-qtr 2003, following its failure to meet a number of earlier deadlines. The country currently has two GSM and two analogue cellular operators.

http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=story&articleId=NEa1101222.8iw&verticalID=42&vertical=Global+Regions

Other Stories

* Differences between rich and poor delay global warming draft declaration

New Delhi -- Environment ministers from around the world sought consensus Friday on a draft declaration on climate change as developing countries continued to oppose the European Union's proposal of setting a deadline for emission reduction. As the U.N.-sponsored convention neared its end, delegates from 169 countries debated a revised draft of the New Delhi declaration late into the night Thursday, but failed to reach agreement.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/ap.asp?reg=ASIA

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--- South Asian News, November 2&3, 2002 ---(Weekend)

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