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An Afghan rights watchdog on Tuesday slammed President Hamid Karzai’s choice of two “notorious warlords” for his August re-election bid and accused him of promising ministries to supporters.

Jun 30

Posted by sophie in Uncategorized

The best day of the tournament turned seamlessly into the night of nights as Wimbledon took a step into the unknown — and loved what it found there.

When talk of a new roof to cover Centre Court was mooted several years ago the traditionalists cried foul, claiming old champions like Fred Perry and Suzanne Lenglen would turn in their graves at such a sacrilege being inflicted upon tennis’ foremost cathedral.

Even those of us who supported the luminescent and costly contraption could scarcely have imagined the extra dimension it would add, merely envisaging a practical barrier to the inevitable London murk and rain.

Yet on Monday night, Centre Court gleamed like never before, as Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka dragged a contest of power and passion into the twilight hours and took the tournament into uncharted waters.

How appropriate it was that Murray, a shining beacon of hope for the success-starved home nation, was at the core of it all, eventually edging out Wawrinka, the fearless Swiss 19th seed, in five thrilling sets in the first official Wimbledon match to be played entirely under cover.

Perry and Lenglen, if they had still been with us, and anyone else who cares about this grand old event, could not fail to have been moved by Monday night.

Unlike the Australian and U.S. Opens, they won’t ever add full-fledged night sessions at Wimbledon, as the Centre Court grass would be unable to take the additional wear and tear.

If Monday is to be a limited edition, one brought about in this case by a combination of some late afternoon drizzle and a match that refused to end, then what an edition it was.

A cacophony of sound bounced around the arena, where there were three stars — Murray, Wawrinka and the venue itself.

As darkness engulfed west London and the full power of the lights kicked in, Centre Court was transformed into something almost futuristic, yet somehow still in keeping with the roots of this finest of all events.

The All England Club, so often viewed as a backward bastion of stuffiness and sentiment, has pulled off a minor miracle with this roof and the atmosphere it brings.

Because now not only is Wimbledon the most traditional of tournaments, it is now, in a perfect paradox, the most contemporary.

DROP SHOT

Ana Ivanovic bowed out of the tournament in tears as she retired with a thigh injury while trailing Venus Williams by a set. Ivanovic has been in miserable form, failing to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal since she won the 2008 French Open, but her performance at Wimbledon gives some cause for optimism.

CLEAN WINNER

Germany’s Sabine Lisicki has been touted as a star of the future for the past couple of years and this year’s Wimbledon has thrust her into the spotlight. Lisicki beat a seeded player for the third time in the tournament Monday (fellow teenager Caroline Wozniacki) and has the game to win the tournament if she can conquer big-match nerves.

THE OLD GUARD

With world No. 1 Rafael Nadal out injured and unable to defend his crown, it has been fitting that a quartet of men who previously were ranked as the best on the planet have stepped up to the plate.

Roger Federer is cruising and is a strong favorite for the title, and Andy Roddick looks to make his third trip to a final at the All England Club.

But it has been the form of Lleyton Hewitt and Juan Carlos Ferrero, both of whom have slipped way down the rankings over the past year, that has really caught the eye.

GAME OF THE DAY

Hewitt’s fight back from two sets down against Radek Stepanek was an early contender for this award but in the end there could be only one winner: Murray’s historic triumph over Wawrinka was not only the best match of Monday but the best of the tournament so far.

TUESDAY’S PREDICTIONS

Women’s quarterfinals: Lisicki beats Dinara Safina; Victoria Azarenka beats S. Williams, V. Williams beats Agnieszka Radwanska; Elena Dementieva beats Francesca Schiavone.

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Afghan group slams Karzai’s ‘warlord’ vote ticket

Jun 30

Posted by sophie in Uncategorized

An Afghan rights watchdog on Tuesday slammed President Hamid Karzai’s choice of two “notorious warlords” for his August re-election bid and accused him of promising ministries to supporters.

In a report, the independent Afghanistan Rights Monitor (ARM) called on the United States and United Nations, which are bankrolling the landmark election, to intervene in defence of democracy.

Karzai has successfully squashed challenges to his two vice president running mates, Mohammed Qasim Fahim and Karim Khalili, ARM said.

Both are believed to have links with illegal militia and criminal groups, it said, adding Karzai “has chosen two notorious warlords as his election mates in a bid to win votes from former mujahideen militias.”

Human Rights Watch and Western diplomats have complained in particular over Fahim, a former anti-Soviet and anti-Taliban military commander alleged to be involved in past and present crimes.

In its report “The Winning Warlords,” ARM said challenges were registered to bar Fahim and Khalili from standing on August 20 over alleged war crimes and crime but a “corrupt procedure” allowed them into the vote.

The poll is the second presidential election in Afghan history but ARM said pre-election deals to sew up the result had dashed hopes it would allow Afghans to exercise new-found democracy.

“Undemocratic forces that have constantly gained power and wealth over the past several years seem to be hijacking the election process to ensure their future interests and legitimise their grip on political and public institutions.

“These forces which include former and current warlords, militia commanders and human rights abusers have money, power and influence across the country which make them incomparably stronger than the ordinary voters,” it said.

The report claimed that criminal charges pending against infamous Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum and his suspension from a senior army post were dropped in exchange for the votes he would bring from his party.

“Those close to President Karzai and Dostum say the warlord has been promised at least three ministries in Karzai?s future government,” it said.

Another “ruthless warlord” Mohammad Muhaqiq came out in public support for Karzai because he was promised two provinces and at least three ministries in government, ARM said.

It called for election authorities to investigate “suspicious deals and trade-offs” and for the United Nations to intervene in defence of democracy.

“It is not enough for the US and other major donors to only bankroll the electoral operations with funds — they must do every effort to ensure the meaningfulness and fairness of the process,” it said.

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New US battle rule: No fighting near Afghan homes

Jun 22

Posted by sophie in Uncategorized

The top U.S. general in Afghanistan will soon formally order U.S. and NATO forces to break away from fights with militants hiding in Afghan houses so the battles do not kill civilians, a U.S. official said Monday.

Civilian casualties are a huge source of friction between Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the United States. The U.N. has reported that U.S., NATO and Afghan forces killed 829 civilians in the Afghan war last year.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who took command of international forces in Afghanistan this month, has said his measure of effectiveness will be the “number of Afghans shielded from violence,” and not the number of militants killed.

McChrystal will issue orders within days saying troops may attack insurgents hiding in Afghan houses if the U.S. or NATO forces are in imminent danger and must return fire, said U.S. military spokesman Rear Adm. Greg Smith.

“But if there is a compound they’re taking fire from and they can remove themselves from the area safely, without any undue danger to the forces, then that’s the option they should take,” Smith said. “Because in these compounds we know there are often civilians kept captive by the Taliban.”

McChrystal’s predecessor, Gen. David McKiernan, issued rules last fall that told commanders to set conditions “to minimize the need to resort to deadly force.”

But McChrystal’s orders will be more precise and have stronger language ordering forces to break off from battles, Smith said.

In the most recent civilian deaths case, a May 4-5 battle between U.S. and Afghan forces and militants in western Farah province killed dozens of civilians. A U.S. report last week said U.S. forces killed an estimated 26 civilians. However, Karzai’s government says 140 were killed, while an Afghan human rights group says the number is about 100.

In the latest violence, a suicide bomber on a motorbike killed seven civilians Monday when he drove into the center of an eastern Afghan city and set off explosives.

It was unclear who the bomber was targeting when he detonated a bomb on his motorbike in front of Khost city’s electric power headquarters and then explosives on his body a few minutes later, said Kuchi Naseri, a spokesman for the governor of Khost province. The Interior Ministry said seven people were killed.

There were no military or police nearby, Naseri said, but added the later blast may have been planned to hit police or officials rushing to the scene. Another 30 people in the area were wounded, he said.

In southern Kandahar province, meanwhile, another suicide bomber killed three Afghan soldiers in an attack on a convoy of troops inspecting a highway bridge for explosives. The attacker drove a car into the convoy and it exploded, said Zadi district Police Chief Niaz Mohammad Serhadi.

Serhadi said two civilians were also wounded in the blast, along with five other soldiers.

In eastern Nangarhar province, an explosion at a weapons cache killed a 6-year-old boy and wounded 20 others, police said.

It was unclear what sparked the chain reaction of explosions in caves used to store weapons and other material collected from insurgents on the outskirts of Jalalabad city, said Nangarhar province police spokesman Ghafor Khan.

“We are still investigating the incident. It is possible that the explosives ignited on their own,” Khan said.

The caves where the weapons were stored were about 100 yards (meters) away from a village, and the blast shot some shells or other items into the residential area, Khan said. Two soldiers who guarded the cache were among the wounded.

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