Volume 24 | Number 7849 | 2 RiyalsTuesday 2 April 2019 | 26 Rajab 1440 www.thepeninsula.qa

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BUSINESS | 01 SPORT | 08

In-form opener Warner making up forlost time

Qatar witnesses significant

expansion in vital sectors

GU-Q 100: A Celebration of Knowledge

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, attended the “GU-Q 100: A Celebration of Knowledge” event last evening. It marked the publication of 100 books authored by Georgetown University in Qatar’s faculty, staff and research fellows, as well as celebrating the 100 year anniversary of the home campus’ Edmund A Walsh School of Foreign Service. H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice-Chairperson and CEO of QF, and H E Lulwa Al Khater, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, also were present. �P2

Shura Council rejects US’ move on GolanQNA DOHA

The Shura Council held its regular weekly session under the chair-manship of Speaker of the Council, H E Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid Al Mahmoud. At the outset of the meeting, the Council expressed its categorical rejection and condem-nation of the US administration’s declaration to recognise Israel’s sovereignty over the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

The Council stressed that the US declaration, which is clearly contrary to international law, the Charter of the United Nations and the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, will not alter the fact that the Syrian Golan is occupied territory.

The Council warned of the

serious repercussions that could result from this illegal American step, especially on the stalled peace process and on the security and stability of the region, stressing that a just, compre-hensive and lasting peace will be achieved only with the with-drawal of Israel from all the Arab territories occupied in 1967 and the establishment of an inde-pendent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

The Council continued its dis-cussion of the report of the Internal and External Affairs Com-mittee on the request by a number of members for a general dis-cussion on road accidents in Qatar.

In its report, the Committee recommended working with the concerned authorities to develop a national strategy adopted by

the General Directorate of Traffic to raise awareness and abide by the traffic rules and the etiquette of road use, intensify traffic patrols to deter violators, and enforce the maximum penalties for driving the vehicle in a manner that jeopardises people’s lives and destructs property, in addition to passing traffic signals.

The Committee also recom-mended tightening the ban on use of mobile phones as it is behind many accidents and the need to use the seat belt. It suggested that the value of fine for speed limit violation should be reset so that the fine increases as the speed increases.

The recommendations included the need to enhance surveillance through cameras dedicated to mon-itoring traffic violations and to

provide pedestrian corridors. The Committee appreciated

the efforts of the National Tourism Council to develop a five-year plan for the Sealine area, which, after the completion of the plan, will become a tourist attraction that meets the security and safety con-ditions of the vehicles or their users.

After extensive discussion of the Committee’s report, it agreed to submit its recommendations to the Cabinet.

At the end of the meeting, the Speaker briefed the Council on his participation along his accompanying delegation in the work of the 12th Periodic Meeting of the heads of the Shura, parliament and national councils of the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries in Jeddah last Thursday. �P3

A view of the floral arch walkways connecting the Doha Corniche to the Qatar Post Office and Metro station behind it. Landscaping is currently in progress to convert the empty ground into a garden. PIC: QASSIM RAHMATULLAH/THE PENINSULA

Floral walkways to connect Corniche to Qatar Post, Metro station

Qatar’s biggest vegetable producing firm plans expansion, eyes exportSACHIN KUMAR THE PENINSULA

Qatar’s biggest vegetable producing company Qatarat Agricultural Development Company (QADCO), is planning to expand its production by increasing the area under culti-vation. The company that meets country’s one-third of vegetables requirement, plans to increase its farming land by 10 percent annually. The company also plans to export vegetables to European countries.

“We are the biggest producer of vegetables in Qatar, producing over 94 varieties of vegetables in our farms,” Nezar M A Al Atawneh, Operations Manager, QADCO told The Peninsula. “We

plan to increase the area of farmed land by 10 percent annually. This will lead to increase in production and help in country’s efforts in reaching self sufficiency in vegetables,” he added.

The company, that supplies over 92 varieties of vegetables to Qatar Airways, owns 32 farms which are spread across the country. Of the total 32 farms, QADCO owns three farms while other farms are managed by the company.

“The demand for vegetables is diverse in Qatar because res-idents here are from different countries. They demand dif-ferent varieties of vegetables and food items. We are meeting around 30 percent of Qatar’s

requirement of vegetables from our farms,” he added.

Company’s plan to expand production comes at a time when the country is focusing on achieving self sufficiency in food items.

The Ministry of Munici-pality and Environment, last month, revealed ‘The Strategic Food Security Projects 2019-2023’ that aims to increase pro-duction of vegetables, fish, red meat, eggs and shrimps in the country.

The local production of veg-etables has reached 66,000 tonnes in a year accounting 24 percent of total demand in the local market , according to The Ministry of Municipality and Environment. �P3

Residential villa rooftops to get more built-up areaTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME) has announced a decision allowing extension of built-up areas on rooftop floors (penthouses) of residential villas from 35 percent to 70 percent.

The new decision aims at adding more rooms and built-up areas of villas. However, the owners of villas are asked to take into account the privacy of neighbours while constructing rooms or other facilities on the rooftops.

The Ministry has set up a number of rules and regulations which require leaving three metres space on rooftop floor of residential villas in front and zero space on both sides and back.

The announcement of the decision was made during a workshop organised by MME, represented by the Buildings Permits Complex. The event held for the representatives of authorised consultancy offices aimed at upgrading them on the latest developments in building permit and new requirement rules for the development of res-idential villas according to the outcomes of the Qatar National Master Plan.

The workshop was held at Al Rayyan Municipality. Eng. Hassan Al Adhami from Building Permits Complex explained the new requirements.

Standard windows are allowed on over 12 metres wide front balcony overlooking streeta. In case of a neighbour-facing front balcony, the neighbour’s privacy must be ensured by installing tinted glass windows. Regular window are allowed on the front balcony of the first floor with over three metres spaces.

The ratio of total built-up area in a plot is increased from 1.2 to 1.65 so the maximum area could be utilised to increase the area of each floor of villas, espe-cially the basement.

The spaces which are not included in the accounting floor built up ratio include the spaces of basement floors used for stores or the services of the building like electricity cabins or water tanks. Car parking areas, swimming pool and gym-nasium on basements floor are also excluded. �P5

The Ministry of Municipality and Environment has formed a number of rules and regulations which require leaving three metres space on rooftop floor of residential villas in front and zero space on both sides and back.

Amir congratulates President of TurkeyQNA DOHA

Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani sent yesterday a cable of congratulations to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the sisterly Republic of Turkey on the occasion of the victory of

Justice and Development Party (AKP) in the local elections. Deputy Amir H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al Thani and Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani sent similar cables to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

02 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019HOME

Al Hammadi meets Head of APUDOHA: The Secretary-

General of the Ministry

of Foreign Affairs, H E

Dr Ahmed bin Hassan Al

Hammadi, met yesterday

with the Head of the Afri-

can Parliamentary Union

(APU) and the President

of the National Assembly

of Burkina Faso, Alassane

Bala Sakande, who is cur-

rently visiting the country.

The meeting discussed

the bilateral relations and

ways of promoting them,

enhancing the cooperation

between the State of Qatar

and the APU, and issues of

mutual concern. QNA

OFFICIAL NEWS

Shura Council studies draft law on fireworksDOHA: The Internal and

External Affairs Committee

of the Shura Council held a

meeting yesterday, chaired

by its Rapporteur Abdulla

bin Fahad bin Ghorab Al

Marri. At the meeting,

the Committee studied

a draft law on fireworks

and decided to complete

its study in its next meet-

ing. QNA

Public services and utilities body meetsDOHA: The Public Services

and Utilities Committee of

the Shura Council held yes-

terday a meeting of the 47th

regular session of the Coun-

cil under the chairmanship

of its Rapporteur Moham-

med bin Mahdi Al Ahbabi.

The committee continued

its review on the request for

a general discussion on the

terrestrial and marine envi-

ronment and decided to

complete its review at its

next meeting. QNA

GU-Q 100: A Celebration of Knowledge

THE PENINSULA DOHA

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation (QF), attended Georgetown University in Qatar’s ‘GU-Q 100: A Celebration of Knowledge’, a gala to commemorate more than one hundred books published by faculty and staff since the univer-sity’s doors opened in 2005.

H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice-Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation, was the honoured guest speaker at the ceremony, marking a major mile-stone in the collaboration between QF and Georgetown University that began with the

launch of its Doha campus in support of the development goals of Qatar National Vision 2030.

Speaking at the event, H E Sheikha Hind said: “Through its wealth of research in the field of humanities and social sciences, Georgetown University in Qatar has made a significant contri-bution to the international profile of QF and Qatar as a hub of new knowledge, original thought, and intellectual courage in con-fronting issues which influence what our world is, and what it can be.”

“Being based in Qatar has opened up fresh avenues of dis-covery for Georgetown faculty, not only by enabling them to explore and research the Mena region from close up rather than far afield, but also by the varied perspectives that our diverse student body contributes in cre-ating a deeper bank of knowledge and academic thought.”

The evening gala, held on GU-Q’s Education City campus, was also attended by deans of QF partner universities, members of the diplomatic community, stu-dents, faculty, staff, and other special guests.

In his opening remarks, the Dean of GU-Q, Dr Ahmad Dallal, highlighted the significance of the 100 books, saying: “At Geor-getown University in Qatar, we are setting an example of how to produce relevant research at a global standard, and training the next generation of knowledge producers to do the same. These published volumes of rigorous research across a wide range of topics in international affairs help shape our understanding of the world and reflect our com-mitment to developing a research landscape that is conducive to the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge.”

Representing Georgetown’s Washington, D.C. campus at the gala were Provost Robert Groves and Dr Joel Hellman, dean of the Edmund A Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS).

Remarking on the concurrent celebrations for the centennial anniversary of SFS, the oldest school of international affairs in the United States, Dean Hellman said: “One hundred years ago, SFS took on the mission to foster peace and stability through edu-cation rooted in a global

perspective. I’m proud to see the continuation of that Georgetown tradition in today’s celebration of GU-Q’s contributions to multidis-ciplinary scholarship in Qatar and around the world.”

Dean Hellman moderated a panel discussion on “The Regional and Global Impact of Research in the Humanities and Social Sci-ences,” exploring the devel-opment of the research infra-structure of Qatar, and how locally produced knowledge about economics, politics, culture, and history have helped to shape regional and global thought in those subjects.

Panellists included H E Lulwah Al Khater, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a member of the GU-Q Joint Advisory Board, Dr James Reardon-Anderson, Founding Dean of GU-Q and Professor of History, Dr Amira Sonbol, Pro-fessor of History and one of the original faculty members, and, Dr Gerd Nonneman, former dean and currently Professor of Inter-national Relations and Gulf Studies and Dr Mehran Kamrava, former Interim Dean, and cur-rently Professor and Director of GU-Q’s Center for International and Regional Studies.

A distinguished panel including H E Lulwah Al Khater, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, current and former deans from GU-Q and Georgetown in Washington D.C., and a founding faculty member discuss the regional and global impact of GU-Q research.

H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice-Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation, addressing the ceremony.

‘GU-Q 100: A Celebration of Knowledge’, is a gala to commemorate more than one hundred books published by faculty and staff since the university’s doors opened in 2005.

03TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 HOME

Oman to host meetings of GCC National Olympic Committee chiefsQNA DOHA

The Sultanate of Oman repre-sented by Oman Olympic Committee will host from April 7 to 9 the Meeting No. 31 of Their Excellencies Presidents of GCC National Olympic Committees (NOCs).

It will also host during the

same period the meeting of the Executive Office of GCC NOC Presidents in its 88th edition.

Among other topics, the meeting of the GCC NOC Chiefs will discuss the implementation of the resolution of the GCC Supreme Council Summit in its 36th convocation held in Riyadh in 2015 relating to the vision of the King of Saudi Arabia

regarding volunteering work. Other items to be reviewed

include school sport, physical illiteracy eradication, joint strategy of sports work, the pos-sibility of staging a GCC league for elite clubs in sports games, international cooperation, sport and environment awards and distinguished organising com-mittee award.

Shura Council signs MoC with Group of Latin American & Caribbean StatesQNA DOHA

The Shura Council and the Parliamentary Group of Latin American and Caribbean States (GRULAC) signed yesterday a memorandum of cooperation (MoC) at the headquarters of the Shura Council.

The MoC was signed by the Shura Council Speaker, H E Ahmed bin Abdulla bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, for the State of Qatar and by President of GRULAC in IPU, Rodolfo Urtubey for the GRULAC side.

Under the memorandum of cooperation, the two sides agreed

to strengthen ties of friendship to sustain and continue their relations, to find mechanisms for joint cooperation, to share infor-mation and to exchange visits between the Shura Council and Parliamentary Group of Latin American and Caribbean States to support bilateral cooperation, as well as to strengthen commu-nication in the field of political dialogue, international peace and security, the promotion of democracy, education, energy and water resources, in addition to other issues of common concern to both sides.

The signing of the MoU took place during a meeting between

the two sides, at which they dis-cussed parliamentary relations between the Shura Council and the Parliamentary Group of Latin American and Caribbean States and explored ways to enhance and bolster them.

The meeting also reviewed the issues on the agenda of the (140) Meeting of the General Assembly of the IPU which will begins its meetings in Doha next Saturday.

The meeting was attended by Ambassador of the Argentine Republic to Qatar Carlos Hern-andez, and a number of members of the Qatari- Latin American and Caribbean friendship group. The Shura Council Speaker, H E Ahmed bin Abdulla bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, with the dignitaries.

Traffic accidents decrease in FebruaryTHE PENISNULA DOHA

The traffic accidents have decreased by 2.2% in February 2019 when compared to January this year.

The Planning and Statistics Authority has released the 62th issue of ‘Qatar Monthly Statistics’ which shows a monthly decrease of 2.2% of traffic accidents cases, as a total of 578 traffic cases were recorded during February 2019 compered to January.

Light injuries are accounted for the vast majority of traffic accidents during the same month, with 88%, followed by severe injuries by 10%. However, 11 deaths were recorded, equiv-alent to only 2% of total traffic accidents.

The total number of regis-tered new vehicles during Feb-ruary 2019 has reached 5,048 new vehicles. The figure showed a monthly decrease of 9.8% and an annual decrease of 5.1%.

The demographic statistics

showed that the total population of Qatar has increased from 2.70 million during February 2018 to 2.77 million at end of February 2019, an annual increase of 2.7%.

Regarding vital statistics, 1819 live births has been regis-tered during February 2019, a 17.1% decrease compared to January 2019. A decrease in the total Qatari live births by 16.6% compared to last month. On the other hand, 161 deaths were recorded during the same period, a decrease of 2.4% compared to

January 2019. Total electricity consumption during February 2019 was 1830.4 GWh attaining a monthly decrease of 10.0% and an annual drop of 14.8%. While the total water consumption has reached 30578.8 thousand m3 during the same month attaining a monthly decrease of 9.9% and an annual drop of 12.7%.

The data of buildings permits issued, the total number of permits has reached 675 permits during February 2019, recording a monthly decrease of 14.6%.

Qatar Museums to bring more technology to exhibitionsRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

Following the successful opening of the innovative National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), Qatar Museums (QM) is planning to incorporate more technology in its upcoming exhibitions to make them more interactive, said an official.

Recently responding to a question from local media on whether QM is mulling for more technology-driven exhibitions with immersive features such as Virtual Reality (VR) Sheikha Reem Al Thani, QM’s Director of Exhi-bitions said, “That’s for sure. Now with the opening of the National Museum of Qatar, it is one of our endeavours to actually bring a lot more VR and technology into our exhibitions to really interact with the public in a different level.”

Since it swung its doors open to the public, the brand new NMoQ has already been hailed by many visitors for being immersive and experiential with the plethora of elements that appeal to the new generation of museum visitors, such as monumental video pro-jections and digital content.

The National Museum’s yet-to-open final permanent gallery

called “Qatar Today” is said to be “a cutting-edge digital space which will immerse visitors in Qatar’s recent history and imme-diate future.”

Sheikha Reem was speaking to the reporters on the sidelines of the launch of ‘X-Ray Fashion’, a VR film installation which has been brought to Qatar and the region for the first time as part of QM’s extensive programme for this year.

The film shines the spotlight on the inner workings of the world’s second largest polluter: the fashion industry. It is built around a 49-square metre physical installation that guides the viewer through the different stages of the fast fashion garment production; from cotton farm to sweatshop, and from catwalk to consumer purchase to the afterlife of the garment.

“It is a VR experience about the other side of fashion in which people can really experience where fashion comes from, how it looks like on the other side, and what they need to be aware of in the future when they are buying fashion every day,” she said.

On the significance of bringing X-Ray Fashion exhibition to Doha, she underlined how important for people “to always be aware of sus-tainability in fashion which is one of the fastest creators of pollution at the moment.”

After it premiered at the 2018 Venice Film Festival in the VR section, the film has travelled to several states in the US and to Kenya at the UN Environmental Conference two years back. The public can experience the film for free until April 21 at Gallery Al Riwaq.

Sheikha Reem Al Thani, Director of Exhibitions at Qatar Museums, during the X-Ray Fashion Exhibition launch held at Al Riwaq Gallery. PIC: BAHER AMIN

/ THE PENINSULA

Qatar’s biggest vegetable producing firm plans expansion, eyes export

FROM PAGE 1“We own three farms

whereas the rest of the farms are managed by us. We help these farms in all possible ways to increase the productivity by giving them new technologies and making them aware about new agricultural practices. We also help them in marketing and conduct training session about agricultural practices,” Nezar M A Al Atawneh (pictured) added.

The company is also eyeing export market. It has already applied for global certifications which are required to export vegetables to European coun-tries. “We are also looking to export now very soon. We are looking to become one of the main exporters of vegetables in Qatar,” he said.

The company supplies veg-etables to several big names in retail sector including Carrefour, Al Meera, Lulu and other hypermarkets.

“We have all kind of farms including conventional,

greenhouses, net houses, hydro-ponic farms, open fields, net planting farms,” he added.

The company is also eyeing export market. It has already applied for global certifications which are required to export vegetables to European countries.

Al Jazeera signs sponsorship deal with Al-Ta’adhod GroupTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Al Jazeera Media Network signed a sponsorship agreement with Al-Ta’adhod Group yesterday. Under this agreement, Al-Ta’adhod Group will sponsor Al Jazeera Arabic Channel’s program ‘This Morning’, and Al Jazeera Mubasher program ‘Al-Bursa’.

As part of the agreement, Al Jazeera Media Network will produce and promote Al-

Ta’adhod Group on the net-work’s channels and websites.

The agreement was signed by Abdulla AlNajjar, Executive Director for Global Brand & Communications, Al Jazeera Media Network and Mohammed AlAradi, Al-Ta’adhod Group’s CEO.

Speaking at the signing cer-emony, Abdulla AlNajjar said: “We are pleased to be signing this agreement with Al-Ta’adhod Group, and to provide platform to promote its products and services to the Network’s regional and international

audience. We hope this agreement is first step to increase and expand our coop-eration for mutual benefit.”

Mohammed AlAradi stressed the significance of the agreement for Al-Ta’adhod Group in ena-bling them to reach Al Jazeera’s audience locally and interna-tionally. Al-Ta’adhod Group aims to place the product “GREE” to be a leading brand of Air-Con-dition in Qatar and to enhance Al-Ta’adhod Group position in MENA region.

Under the agreement, Al-Ta’adhod Group will sponsor Al Jazeera Arabic Channel’s program ‘This Morning’, and Al Jazeera Mubasher program ‘Al-Bursa’.

04 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019HOME

Qatar, Panama discuss culture and sports ties

Minister of Culture and Sports H E Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali met yesterday with the Ambassador of the Republic of Panama to the State of Qatar, Oreste Del Rio Sandoval. During the meeting, they discussed aspects of cooperation between both countries in cultural and sports fields and ways to boost and develop them.

Widam explores ways of enhancing joint cooperation with Romanian firmsTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Abdul Rahman bin Mohammed Al Khayarain, CEO of Widam, received Romanian Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Cristian Tudor, during a visit to the company yesterday to discuss ways of enhancing joint coop-eration between the company and Romanian companies.

Al Khayarain thanked the Ambassador for his continuous support and efforts to develop the volume of cooperation between Qatar and Romania, praising the good and strong relations between the two countries. He also explained the most important services provided by the company to the public, in order to provide high quality food products at com-petitive prices, as well as reviewed the investment opportunities in the field of agriculture and live-stock available between the two countries and ways to promote them towards further progress and prosperity.

Cristian Tudor stressed the importance of the visit, which comes as a result of the joint

cooperation between the Romanian and Qatari sides, espe-cially in the field of livestock.

Romanian Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Cristian Tudor, with Abdul Rahman bin Mohammed Al Khayarain, CEO of Widam.

CMC elections: Supervisory Committee visits constituencyTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Supervisory Committee for the elections of the Central Municipal Council (CMC) visited yesterday the headquarters of the electoral constituency number 12 at Muaither Preparatory School for Girls to see readiness for the election.

Major General Majid Ibrahim Al Khulaifi called on all voters to interact positively with the elec-toral process and participate by choosing the best one to represent them, which will contribute of achieving the comprehensive developmental renaissance.

Al Khulaifi stressed the impor-tance of equipping electoral con-stituency headquarters and

overcome all obstacles and facil-itate all procedures for voters. He also pointed out that every voter has the right to vote in his elec-toral constituency and must carry his identity card and present it to the electoral committee while casting vote.

Brigadier Ali Khajim Al Adhbi, Director of Establishments and Authorities Security Department,

and head of the security com-mittee said that the role of the security men is to maintain the system outside the electoral con-stituencies and they may not enter the electoral constituencies except at request from the judge.

He added that the electoral security committee is working to take all necessary security measures to guard and secure the headquarters of electoral constit-uencies. He explained that the Supervisory Committee is working to provide all that would contribute to the smooth flow of voters during polling day, where there is an entrance for men and another for women and security personnel of men and women will secure electoral constituencies and help voters.

The officials of the Supervisory Committee for the elections during the visit yesterday.

Nama launches second edition of its awareness campaignSIDI MOHAMED THE PENINSULA

The Social Development Center (Nama) launched yesterday the second edition of its awareness campaign entitled “Aspiration and Achievement 2030”.

The campaign targets students at different scholastic levels, from primary to university, and comes within the framework of the Center’s pivotal role in educating the youth about the Qatar National Vision 2030 and preparing them to contribute to this vision and achieve its objectives in order to attain the aspirations of the State of Qatar.

The event was held in collaboration with Qatar National Library, and began on April 1 and will continue until the end of the month. It will include a number of productive events through which the Center seeks to achieve more goals, including: contribute to raising the awareness and developing the per-ception of students in the different scholastic and academic stages.

“The young people have an important role in the society and can achieve all aspirations. Our goal today is to educate them on the importance of their role in the community, espe-cially in achieving Qatar’s National Vision 2030 and the campaign is focusing on students from Secondary and university students,” said Hamad Al Marri, Community Awareness Manager, Nama.

Dr Sohair Wastawi, Executive Director of Qatar National Library said that: “We are delighted to be working

closely with the Social Development Center – Nama, to launch this cam-paign. Our mission is not only to spread reading, knowledge or help in learning and education, but also to contribute in shaping youth awareness. It also includes contributing in the formation of youth awareness and the building of their personality,”

The awareness campaign is based on a set of tools, including digital media, social networking, visits and work-shops, as well as the launch of motiva-tional competitions to encourage the youth to interact positively with the campaign and achieve its objectives.

It also includes a series of inter-active workshops, including

community youth dialogue sessions to discuss the concept of youth which is at the cornerstone of each of the four pillars of the Qatar National Vision, these are: human development, social development, economic development and environmental development.

On the motivational side, the cam-paign organises incentive competitions, but not only for school students. The competitions are expanded to include other categories.

The launch of the is in line with Nama’s vision of preparing the youth to participate actively and positively in the future of the country, to be leaders and to proactively express their love, belonging, and loyalty to Qatar.

Hamad Al Marri, Community Awareness Manager, Nama, addressing the event at Qatar National Library, yesterday. PIC: SALIM MATRAMKOT/THE PENINSULA

The Supervisory Committee is working to provide all that would contribute to the smooth flow of voters during the polling day.

Legal and Judicial Studies Center starts specialised training courseQNA DOHA

The Ministry of Justice’s Legal and Judicial Studies Center started a five-day specialised legal training course for a number of researchers and lawmakers in different minis-tries and state agencies. The course includes the training of Qatari lawyers in the fields of

judicial and administrative control and control minutes.

The course aims to develop the legal and practical skills of the participants in the adminis-trative and judicial control and discrimination between them. Also, it seeks to inform them of the functions of judicial control officers with general and special competence, through explaining the role of the administrative

and judicial control and the dis-tinction between them. In addition, the distinction between judicial officers with special competence, the tasks of admin-istrative control, and how to edit the records of the seizure and the data contained therein.

The course focuses on Law No. 23 of 2004 on the issuance of the code of criminal pro-cedure and its amendments.

05TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 HOME

Qatar Foundation opens registration for community outreach classesQatar Foundation’s (QF) Pre-University Education (PUE) has opened registration for its QFS Community Outreach Classes, which will run from April 14 to May 8 at Awsaj Academy. Awsaj Academy is part of PUE and is in Education City. The classes, open to children aged 7-12 and those aged 18 years and older, include creative writing, Spanish, math, English as a second language, and S.T.R.E.A.M. The program will be delivered by teachers from various QF schools. Interested participants can register on www.cvent.com/d/x6qzn8

Al Baker tours new Muscat International AirportTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Airways Group Chief Exec-utive Akbar Al Baker took official tour of Muscat International Airport as part of Qatar Airways’ new office opening celebrations, led by the Chief Executive Officer of Oman Airports Management Company, Sheikh Aimen Ahmed Sultan Al Hosni.

State-owned Oman Airports Management Company is respon-sible for the management and operations of civil airports in the Sultanate of Oman. The infra-structure of the airports, including terminal buildings, cargo building, runway, apron, car parking and other facilities, are directly under the management of Oman Air-ports Management Company.

Akbar Al Baker, said: “It was an honour to officially tour the new Muscat International Airport and to have the opportunity to discuss and compare learnings

with our regional peers in Oman. The new Muscat International Airport is a beautiful represen-tation of Omani culture and her-itage, and its state-of-the-art technologies, infrastructure and modernity are very impressive. As the main gateway into Muscat, this new airport will surely help attract even more visitors to this beautiful country.”

Sheikh Aimen Ahmed Sultan

Al Hosni, said: “Oman Airports is delighted to welcome leaders of distinguished airlines from around

the world to enrich and promote mutual relations between these airlines and our leading airports

that have earned an excellent rep-utation among their global coun-terparts. It was our pleasure to

welcome Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker, in a visit aimed at promoting the partnership between our com-panies, as we are committed to creating a high level of cooper-ation with all airlines that operate from our airports.”

The airport tour followed the official opening of Qatar Airways’ new office in Muscat, held in the attendance of Sheikh Aimen Ahmed Sultan Al Hosni; Ambas-sador of the State of Qatar to the Sultanate of Oman, Ali bin Fahad Al Hajri Shahwani; and other gov-ernmental officials and trade partners. Qatar Airways operates 70 flights per week, serving three gateways in Oman: Muscat, Salalah and Sohar. The National Carrier of the State of Qatar has been flying to Oman since 2000, when it first began direct services to the Omani capital, Muscat. In 2013, Salalah was added to the airline’s expanding network as the second destination, followed by Sohar in 2017.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar Al Baker and other officials during the tour of Muscat International Airport.

Katara to host Palestine Cultural FestivalTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Cultural Village Foundation – Katara has announced it will host the Palestine Cultural Festival under the theme “Palestine in Qatar” from April 4 to 13 at Katara premises. The announcement was made during a press conference attended by Abdelrahman Al Sayyed, Deputy General Manager of Katara; Munir Ghannam, Ambassador of Palestine to Qatar, Manar Al Muraikhi, Director of Public Relations at Ooredoo; Marco Saxer, General Manager of Warwick Doha hotel and Ammar Anabtawi, CEO of FinalVision Company.

In his speech, Al Sayyed said

that hosting this important cultural event reflects Katara’s com-mitment towards the brotherly Palestinian people and raising awareness on their culture and

heritage. “This festival comes in pursuit of the many efforts by Katara to host different Palestinian cultural events successfully in the past years,” he explained.

Ambassador Ghannam praised Qatar’s support to the Pal-estinian people in many ways and in different fields and Katara’s big contribution in showcasing Pal-estinian heritage to people and preserving it through raising awareness and dedicating an annual festival for this cause.

Al Muraikhi said that they are sponsoring the festival which they see as an important event that revives the Palestinian culture in the minds of people, and Katara is a good venue that provides an environment to showcase the cause and culture of beloved Pal-estine, stressing that this is an essential strategy of Ooredoo and part of its corporate social responsibility.

Abdelrahman Al Sayyed (right), Deputy General Manager of Katara, and Munir Ghannam, Ambassador of Palestine to Qatar, at a press conference to announce the Palestine Cultural Festival in Katara.

QLC partners QSW to implement administration training programTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Expanding executive leadership development through local part-nerships, Qatar Leadership Centre (QLC) signed a contract with Qatar Social Work (QSW) for the executive education program, Basmati a nine-month, senior administration training program delivered in English and Arabic.

The comprehensive, multi-modular structure of the program is aimed at raising lead-ership efficiency through advanced methodologies in mentorship, communication, management of change, and conceptual leadership.

In an official signing cer-emony attended by representa-tives of both organizations, Director of Programs at QLC, Mohammed S. M. Alrumaihi, and CEO of QSW, Amal A. Al Mannai, signed the agreement in the presence of distinguished guests

and media personnel.By applying best global prac-

tices in leadership development strategies, Basmati incorporates reflection on personal and pro-fessional goals in order to approach the work environment positively and efficiently.

A total of 136 participants from four tiers of QWS mid- and senior-level administrative teams (including department directors, department managers, executives and core staff, as well as special ‘ambassadors of change’ for each training center) will benefit from the program’s innovative face-to-face classroom and reality-based training approach.

CEO of QSW, Amal A. Al Mannai, said: “We have entered into this professional skills devel-opment program with our partners at QLC because we believe that leadership is a pivotal requirement in the work-force today. The program’s objectives align with our

long-term organizational goals, which places emphasis on the growth of our institution and the continued development of lead-ership competencies amongst our team members.

“Basmati reflects the desire of making unparalleled dif-ference, and through the Basmati program, we look forward to further fostering an organiza-tional culture that is motivated by a forward-looking, creative vision; one that ultimately allows us to dynamically adapt to changes, develop innovative problem-solving skills, and identify solutions as a team.”

In accordance with the agreement, participants will get the opportunity to engage in the program’s dynamic activities and events calendar. The Basmati program seeks to develop par-ticipant competencies across four multi-day modules entitled The Leader Within You and the Concept of Leadership, Managing Change Effectively, Effective

Communications Skills, and Effective Guidance and Mentorship.

Commenting on this momentous occasion, Alrumaihi said: “We are honored to enter into this collaboration with QSW – one of the leading national institutions for social work in Qatar. Serving the advancement of social dynamics is a noble pro-fession. As such, we proudly join forces to contribute to human

capital development.“Today’s contract agreement

reinforces QLC’s unrelenting support of the advancement of social work in Qatar as we look towards a common aspiration of Qatari self-reliance across all industry sectors.

Practical training and edu-cation opportunities such as QLC’s growing portfolio of cor-porate governance programs underline the progressive

development of human capital,” he concluded.

The impact of the program will be assessed though Check-point 360, an innovative lead-ership assessment tool used to identify and prioritise devel-opment opportunities and lead-ership skills. In addition, internal assessment measures will include module-specific as well as pre-and post-training surveys.

QLC and QSW officials during the signing of contract.

Ministry of Education urges youth to volunteer in education conferenceQNA DOHA

The Scientific Committee and the Organising Committee of the 2019 Education Conference at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education called on young people (boys and boys) to participate in the volunteer team of the conference which will be held on April 24 and 25 at the Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC).

The event will be held under the theme ‘Education that Makes a Difference’, in the belief of the Ministry of the role of active youth in the

service of society, and the importance of volunteerism in promoting their participation and the development of the spirit of belonging to the homeland.

The ministry explained in a press statement that the form should be filled in at: https://surveys.education.qa/s/8Y5EL/. Those interested in volunteering can contact EduConferen-ce2019edu.gov.qa for further inquiry.

The conference is an educa-tional scientific platform to share local, regional and inter-national experiences, ideas and best practices in the field of education.

“The new Muscat International Airport is a beautiful representation of Omani culture and heritage, and its state-of-the-art technologies, infrastructure and modernity are very impressive”, said Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar Al Baker.

‘April Festival’ at Souq Waqif and Souq Al Wakrah THE PENINSULA DOHA

Souq Waqif and Souq Al Wakrah will host the ‘April Festival’ starting from April 5 and will continue for eight days.

The Director of Souq Waqif Mohammed Al Salem said in a statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA), that ‘April Festival’ this year will witness a number of events, including the African circus shows in the West Square, in addition to amazing perform-ances for pedestrians.

He added that Al Hamam area will be a city of games that will offer a variety of skill and intelligence games for all ages, as well as the theater, where children will enjoy the perform-ances of Snow White and Jungle Book.

The director of Souq Waqif said that the Visual arts will have a share in the spring festival through the various sections of Souq Waqif Arts Center.

He pointed out that the events of the April Festival in

Souq Waqif will start from 4 pm to 10 pm throughout the festival days, where more than one event will be presented during this period.

He pointed out that the fes-tival attracts all the different age groups through the diversity of its activities which are offered to adults and young people, attracting different nationalities from Arab and foreign commu-nities, tourists, citizens, and res-idents. He pointed out that the festival aims to stimulate tourism in the country.

Speaking to QNA, Souq Al Wakrah Manager Khalid Saif Al Suwaidi said that the Souq will host for the first time the world-famous Russian circus.

Al Suwaidi said that the public will enjoy the giant foun-tains at the waterfront of the

Souq, which will be programmed several times in the evening on an area of 100 meters, expecting these offers great echoes, espe-cially with the view of the Souq on the waterfront of this mar-itime city.

He pointed out that the famous figures in the children world will tour the Souq on the waterfront and spread the joy and pleasure in the hearts of young people. He further added that a small pony riding will be available and a show of authentic Arabian horses.

The April Festival will start at Al Wakrah Souq from 4 pm to 10 pm throughout the festival days. The April Festival in Souq Waqif and Souq Al Wakrah is organised by the Organizing Committee of the Private Engi-neering Office.

The Director of Souq Waqif Mohammed Al Salem told Qatar News Agency (QNA), that ‘April Festival’ this year will witness a number of events, including the African circus shows in the West Square, in addition to amazing performances for pedestrians.

Residential villa rooftops to get more built-up areaFROM PAGE 1

The front space distance required between villas is also reduced from 15 metres to 12.5 metres in a bid to help villas to ensure the privacy of families and to increase the value of rented villas.

The Ministry has also allowed to build basement floor under the Majlis (guest room) outside the building and additional floors are also allowed for building utilising the areas of Majlis, but the original design should not be affected. In densely populated residential areas, the area required for a villa in residential complexes is reduced from 285sqm to 250sqm.

06 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019HOME

Qatar Aeronautical College starts postgraduate programTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Aeronautical College recently started their first postgraduate program and delivered the Advanced Master in Aviation Safety Management (AMASM) course.

Developed and accredited by Ecole Nationale de l’Aviation Civile (ENAC) under the aegis of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the AMASM program is designed to train Safety Managers. Aviation safety is at the core of ICAO’s funda-mental objectives and they strive to promote a systemic approach of safety by the implementation of a Safety Management System

(SMS).SMS is a structured process

that requires organizations to address possible safety issues with the same level of priority that other core business topics are managed and to analyse them continuously, in conjunction with

state institutions within their State Safety Program (SSP) and industry counterparts.

It is the formal systemic and proactive approach to anticipate and manage safety risk, as well as to initiate and achieve the nec-essary transformation of organi-zational structures, accounting, policies procedures, standard practices and regulations. Inter-national civil aviation authorities require organizations and insti-tutions alike to implement a Safety Management System (SMS) for the management of safety risks to reach the next level of aviation safety worldwide.

In 2018, Qatar Aeronautical College (QAC), emphasising the

need for safety management at organizational levels within Qatar and the region, signed a part-nership agreement with Ecole Nationale de l’Aviation Civile (ENAC), to offer the Advanced Masters in Aviation Safety Man-agement to aviation professionals to create a new generation of SMS

specialists in the aviation industry. This program will enable the

applicants to acquire a practical expertise in the development, implementation, assessment and improvement of Safety Man-agement System and State Safety Program.

It is specifically designed to

address both executive as well as working levels, to consider the entire range of aviation organiza-tions (aircraft operator, manufac-turer, maintenance organization, airport operator, air navigation service provider, training organ-isation) and to cover the interac-tions between these structures.

The officials pose for a group photo.

Heat-related illness affects some ethnic groupsTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) research has shown that some ethnic groups are dispro-portionately affected by heat-related illness. The research, conducted by Dr Grigory Ostro-vskiy, Assistant Professor of Emer-gency Medicine, Dr Ziyad Mahfoud, Associate Professor of Healthcare Policy and Research, and student Rana Abualsaud, showed that emergency room visits in California for heat-related illness like heat exhaustion and heatstroke rose by 35 percent over a decade. The increase was higher among African Americans, Asian Americans and Hispanics than in the overall population.

Dr Ostrovskiy said, “We are glad this research has been high-lighted by Reuters. Global warming will lead to more heat-related illness in the future and

further research is needed to make sure we understand the factors that lead to the more vulnerable populations being disproportion-ately affected. This study is also relevant to Qatar as it shows how an environmental tracking program could be very useful in this country, which can get very hot.”

The study, which was pub-lished in the journal Wilderness and Environmental Medicine, found that between 2005 and 2015 heat-related emergency department visits rose by an average of 67 percent for African Americans, 53 percent for Asian Americans and 63 percent for His-panics. These visits increased by

only 27 percent among whites. The rates for African Americans and Asians were always higher than for the overall population across the decade, while Hispanic pop-ulations and white populations had similar increases in rates until 2013, after which the rates diverged.

According to the study, the overall trend shows an increase in presentation during the last few years for all ethnicities, which may be explained by a common risk factor such as increase in peak temperature and heat intensity. The disproportionate increase [among minorities] prompts the search for ethnicity-based factors that affect heat vulnerability.

The research was based on data drawn from the California Environmental Health Tracking Program, which logs emergency room visits and hospitalizations due to heat-related medical conditions.

FROM LEFT: Dr Grigory Ostrovskiy, Rana Abualsaud and Dr Ziyad Mahfoud

HEC Paris in Qatar delivering twoleadership programs for Qatari Diar

THE PENINSULA DOHA

HEC Paris in Qatar has designed and deliver two leadership programs intended towards the holistic development of Qatari Diar’s senior managers and leaders.

HEC Paris in Qatar and Qatari Diar’s recently entered a partnership in this regard.

The first program is from January to April 2019 is ‘Man-agement Development Program’ (MDP) with a total of 35 man-agers and directors taking part in it.

The second program, tar-geting the Senior Leadership Team, is the ‘LEAD Program’, which began in February and will run until November 2019.

“HEC Paris in Qatar is extremely delighted and proud to have successfully designed and been delivering these two programs for Qatari Diar. This association boosts our confi-dence to expand our corporate program portfolio in tune with the changing global dynamics. We are confident that senior managers of Qatari Diar will immensely benefit from the program and from the solid aca-demic input of our world-class faculty and would be able to drive tangible benefits for the holistic growth of their organi-zation,” Dr Nils Plambeck, Dean and CEO of HEC Paris in Qatar, said.

Dana Al Mulla, Chief Administration Officer at

Qatari Diar, said, “The program is a great learning experience for our senior management to get trained and learn the new age leadership nuances from the globally leading faculties. HEC Paris in Qatar has extremely qualified and renowned faculty with great skills and expertise. We are confident that this program will immensely benefit our senior management and subsequently our employees. We would like to reiterate our strong part-nership with HEC Paris in Qatar which will hopefully grow from hereon for future programs we plan to do to drive our growth story.”

The Management Devel-opment Program consists of four modules of four days each with a focus on leadership and business strategy; negotiation skills and change management; finance and decision making; and reflection of leadership and performance management. At the end of these modules, the participants will be required to submit a final indi-vidual improvement project based on the learnings achieved.

The Lead Program is a six-module course of two days each. The modules include leadership perspective; business strategy and decision-making; collabo-ration and team building; stra-tegic implementation and change management; people and performance management; and leadership.

The first program (January to April) in progress.

Mall of Qatar showcases new collections from top brands THE PENINSULA DOHA

Mall of Qatar is inviting everyone to shed the winter season and ‘Summer Up’. In collabo-ration with the mall’s retailers, the best trends from around the mall will hit the catwalk during 38 fashion shows. The fashion shows, taking place across two weekends (March 28 to 30 and April 4 to 6), will feature Women’s, Men’s and Children’s Spring/Summer collections from 47 of shoppers’ favourite brands including Pronovias, Per Lei Couture and Sacoor Brothers, among many more.

As if the catwalk shows weren’t inspiration enough to update your wardrobe, popular stylist Marta Bevin will also give shoppers the opportunity to learn more about their body shape, understand which colours are best for them and get trend advice at the Styling Booth at the Oasis.

Plus! Don’t miss out on a host of free make-up sessions including hints and tips using the latest products, colours and techniques

from The Body Shop, Wojooh, L’Occitane and more. “Mall of Qatar is home of the most popular local and international brands here in Qatar and we can’t wait to provide our cus-tomers with a fantastic, interactive experience and help them ‘Summer Up’ their looks as we head in to the new season” said Stuart Elder, Mall of Qatar CEO.

As part of the Fashion Festival, Mall of Qatar will also run a Shop & Win promotion to

reward its shoppers with 10 Gift Cards of QR5,000. From March 24 to April 27, coupons can be claimed at Mall of Qatar customer service desks for every QR250 spent at any of the mall’s shops or eateries.

Purchases at multiple retailers may be combined to reach QR250 in total. The draw will take place on April 28 at 12noon and the 10 winners will be announced on the mall’s social media pages.

As part of the Fashion Festival, Mall of Qatar will also run a Shop & Win promotion.

The Next Generation School students demonstrate leadership qualityTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The students of The Next Generation School (TNG) have showcased spectacular performances during the 6th Youth Lead-ership Programme (YLP) held at TNG, Ain Khalid Campus. Each and every student of kindergarten from the four campuses of TNG was part of the programme.

YLP gives a platform to students that promote team work, critical thinking and empowers young leaders. There was a huge turnover of the parents at the event. Parents were excited to witness their child performing on the stage. Students were dressed up in eye catching and colorful attires according to their role play in the performance.

Students performed on various topics such as technology usage, learning goals, united for Qatar, rainbow colours, healthy & unhealthy food, proud of our school and many more which was a learning

experience for every child. Students become aware of important concepts and learn how to behave in a specific situation. The performances held at YLP enhance the speaking ability and develops the child to express themselves in any situation. These leadership skills are inculcated in a child at an early stage which in-turn makes them a responsible and global citizen.

Maryam Habib, Head of Kindergarten said: “We are proud to continue the legacy of the 6th Youth Leadership Programme. The kindergarten students are here, show-casing their talents and abilities. We believe that without the outlet of students’ talents and skills the whole teaching process would be incomplete.”

Addressing the event, Ailia Rizvi, Prin-cipal of TNG, said that it is not enough to only focus on academics, it is equally important to focus on social and emotional development of a child.

Hafiz Junaid, Community Welfare

Attache From Embassy of Pakistan, and Dr Saif Ali Al Hajri Chairman of Friends of Nature and a renowned educationist were the chief guests at the event.

Al Hajri conveyed his special thanks to the leader of the school, Riyaz Bakali, The Director of TNG for arranging and

conducting such programme that brings out the leadership qualities in a child.

Hafiz Junaid in his address to the audience said that every child has a hidden talent or skill which is actually a gift. The job of a school is to explore and polish this gift and TNG is happily doing

this. A leader must be proactive, assertive, broad minded and self-assured.

Hafiz Junaid concluded his speech and honoured Dr Saif Ali Al Hajri with Ajrak (Ajrak - a symbol of showing gratitude in Pakistan). Riyaz Bakali, the Director pre-sented a memento to Hafiz Junaid.

Riyaz Bakali (third right), Director of TNG, presenting a memento to Hafiz Junaid, Community Welfare Attache of the Embassy of Pakistan. Dr Saif Ali Al Hajri (third left), Chairman of Friends of Nature, is also seen.

This program will enable the applicants to acquire a practical expertise in the development, implementation, asses-sment and improvement of Safety Management System and State Safety Program.

07TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 HOME

Al Noor Institute Centre’s venture supports students with disabilitiesSAFA RAMADAN AL SAWWAF THE PENINSULA

A local social organisation, ‘Al Noor Institute Centre’ is running a work center which offers training and jobs to students with disabilities.

“The centre operating with a number of sections provides oppor-tunities to young students with disa-bilities to produce different products which are being marketed to share the income with them,” Hussain Jassim Al Hadad, Acting Head of Com-munity Service at Al Noor Institute Centre told The Peninsula.

He said that the idea behind estab-lishing the work centre is to support the students with different types of disabilities who are unable to compete in job market.

“The centre prepares such stu-dents for the works which they can do as per their capabilities against a monthly income,” said Al Hadad. He said that the move aims at creating job opportunities for this weaker section of the community so they could merge in the society. “The work centre offers a number of light job opportunities including printing, glass drilling, producing school supplies, carpentry, decoration, handicrafts, art works, tailoring and cooking among many more,” said Al Hadad.

He said that Al Noor Institute Centre participated in a number of local exhibitions and events including Darb Al Saai, Made in Qatar, Traffic Week and those exhibition related to people with disabilities.

He said that the centre also took part in the international events and exhibitions like Made in Qatar which held in Oman. “We also plan to par-ticipate in the forthcoming events in Turkey by showcasing various products as per the demand,” he added. He said that the centre approached to a number of institu-tions to offer different types of works

which suit to people with disabilities like printing on bags and t-shirts.

Al Hadad, said: “The centre has many specialists who provide many services including psychological, physiotherapy, job orientation, speech, language, visual clinic and nursing.” Al Hadad added that the centre aims at enabling people with disabilities to produce high quality products and to get an outlet at a shopping complex. Regarding the challenges, he said that the biggest challenge is expanding the marketing of products in local and international markets.

The products which are on display, by Al Noor Institute Centre, at an exhibition.

QIFF raises Education City’s popularity THE PENINSULA DOHA

The 10th edition of the Qatar Inter-national Food Festival (QIFF), which concluded on Sunday, provided visitors with the oppor-tunity to not only savour a variety of cuisines from around the globe, but also to explore the unique, diverse, and inclusive envi-ronment of Qatar Foundation (QF).

Held at Oxygen Park in Edu-cation City for the first time, the 2019 edition of QIFF gave food enthusiasts the chance to visit, and learn more about, the many buildings and facilities at the home of QF, including Minaretein (Edu-cation City Mosque) and Qatar National Library, as well as hubs of community activity and social interaction such as Torba Farmers Market.

Mohammed Fakhroo, Exec-utive Director of Outreach and Institutional Advancement, Qatar Foundation, said: “We are

delighted that the Qatar Interna-tional Food Festival was, for the first time, hosted by Qatar Foun-dation, at Oxygen Park in Edu-cation City. It is wonderful that so many members of our nation’s diverse community took the opportunity to experience, explore, and enjoy our facilities, spaces, and environment.”

“Education City is diverse,

inclusive, designed for social inter-action, and open to people throughout Qatar and beyond to visit – not only during festivals and events such as QIFF, but all year round. Hosting the event at Qatar Foundation has given us the

opportunity to really show that Education City is for the benefit of all and welcomes everyone.”

Sheikha Al Marri, one of the visitors to Education City for the annual celebration of cuisine, described QIFF as one of the most

popular festivals in Qatar. She said that she makes a point of visiting QIFF not just once, but several times each edition, because she feels it is a great way to enjoy her time with her family and friends.

“This is the first time I have

visited Education City,” she said during her visit.

“I had thought it was just for the students of QF – I was sur-prised to learn that it was open to all. I was pleased to find that it was not only the site itself that was open to the public, but that QF hosts activities and initiatives throughout the year for children and adults.

“I am happy to have dis-covered this place, which I now intend to visit often with my children.”

Khalid Mohammed, another visitor to QIFF, said: “When we learned that Qatar Foundation was the strategic partner for the fes-tival this year, and that it would be taking place at Oxygen Park, we realised that we would have a great opportunity to explore the area better. We had previously visited Qatar National Library and Minaretein, but the festival gave us the opportunity to explore the rest of Education City.”

A bustling corner where visitors engage in various activities at the recently concluded QIFF.

Ooredoo-Mowasalat pact for Karwa smart card top-up through mWallets THE PENINSULA DOHA

Ooredoo announced yesterday a new part-nership with Mowasalat, the public trans-portation company, to offer Karwa smart-card top-ups instantly via Ooredoo Mobile Money.

The tie-up means Ooredoo Money customers will be able to digitally top up their Karwa cards — used to pay for public transportation buses — directly from their mWallets, removing the need to visit any outlet around town to top up a Karwa card.

Once the service is live, top-ups will be credited to Karwa cards instantly.

Manar Khalifa Al Muraikhi – Director PR and Corporate Communications at Ooredoo – said: “We’re completely com-mitted to doing everything we can to ensure

complete customer satisfaction, and this includes looking for any opportunity to help make everyday transactions quicker and easier. We’re delighted to be able to offer customers the opportunity to top up Karwa cards at the touch of a screen and we’re sure this service will be a valuable addition to the already useful Ooredoo Money.”

Khaled Kafoud, PR, Media & Gov-ernment Relations Manager at Mowasalat, said:”We are happy to support and partner with Ooredoo, for our public bus-riding cus-tomers and bus card users to top up easily. We are sure this will enhance the reach and availability of our services to customers, encouraging them to access public transport more often”. The Ooredoo Money app can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play, and is available in seven languages.

Khaled Kafoud, Manager, PR Media & Government Relations at Mowasalat, and Manar Khalifa Al Muraikhi, Director PR and Corporate Communications at Ooredoo Qatar.

Held at Oxygen Park in Education City for the first time, the 2019 edition of QIFF gave food enthusiasts the chance to learn more about, the many buildings and facilities at the home of QF, including Minaretein and Qatar National Library, as well as hubs of community activity and social interaction such as Torba Farmers Market.

The slaying of a prominent journalist writing for a US newspaper is a prime example of the sort of “censorship abroad” that, in today’s increasingly and inherently globalized discourse, undermines freedom of speech and the press here in the United States.

CASS R. SUNSTEIN BLOOMBERG

08 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019VIEWS

US can prosecute Khashoggi’s killers

The First Amendment permits any individual in the United States to criticize political leaders, in public, without fear

of retribution from the state. Jour-nalists, whose job may entail investi-gating public officials, are afforded additional protections. But what happens when a US-based journalist’s work offends a foreign leader, who then turns vindictive? Should the jour-nalist not expect the same protections?

The question is not an academic one: This is the case of Jamal Khashoggi, the US-based Saudi Arabian dissident, author and contrib-uting columnist for The Washington Post, who was unsparing in his crit-icism of the Saudi regime. Six months ago, on Oct. 2, he was tortured and killed at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul and, according to US intelli-gence authorities, at the apparent direction of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi government, after weeks of denials amid intense international criticism, eventually conceded that Khashoggi had been killed at the consulate, sup-posedly by rogue Saudi operators. The regime promised their prosecution - and then, nothing.

In an ideal world, international conventions could be used to try the suspects in an international criminal court. But Saudi Arabia does not rec-ognize the international criminal

courts and has not signed on to relevant conventions.

There is another solution.

The deadly assault on Khashoggi - a legal resident of the United States, with children who are US cit-izens - was also a brazen and an egre-gious assault against American values and against the First Amendment

rights he exercised in this country. Federal prosecutors thus have an obli-gation to investigate and potentially bring a criminal case against Khashoggi’s killers. It would be somewhat novel to prosecute the slaying of a noncitizen abroad, com-mitted by noncitizens - and there

would be legal hurdles to overcome - but there are reasonable legal bases for a US federal investigation and prosecution.

Principles of international law caution against one country asserting jurisdiction to prosecute crimes com-mitted in other countries, but US courts and international law recognize that extraterritorial jurisdiction - regarding crimes occurring outside the United States - can be warranted in certain circumstances.

Extraterritorial jurisdiction may be appropriate, for instance, where a crime offends the vital interests of the prosecuting state. The slaying of a prominent journalist writing for a US newspaper is a prime example of the sort of “censorship abroad” that, in today’s increasingly and inherently globalized discourse, undermines freedom of speech and the press here in the United States. Courts have also found extraterritorial jurisdiction for an offense that occurs in one country where the effect is felt in another (one example being shooting someone on the other side of an international border). And extraterritorial juris-diction is considered appropriate for crimes such as piracy, terrorism and torture that are universally con-demned by the international com-munity - which the Saudis’ offense unquestionably was.

Consider the case for a torture prosecution. The relevant federal statute criminalizes any act committed by a person acting “under color of law” - the legal term for when someone has the appearance of legal authority, even if they don’t have it - intended to inflict severe physical or mental pain or suf-fering. And the statute applies only to “acts of torture committed outside the United States.” Torture inside a foreign consulate is certainly sufficient basis for the FBI to investigate.

International law recognizes that torture is so heinous a crime that countries have the responsibility to prosecute torturers within their borders, even if the crime is com-mitted elsewhere. Whether a perpe-trator of torture arrives in the United States voluntarily or involuntarily is immaterial; it only matters that he is “found” here. If US authorities can arrange to capture the Saudi suspects

and transfer them to the United States, they can be prosecuted for torture. This is not far-fetched; the United States has done it before.

A second potential prosecutorial path would be a federal civil rights case, based on a statute protecting individuals’ exercise of their constitu-tional rights. If two or more people conspire to “injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate” any inhabitant of the United States in the free exercise of constitutionally protected rights - and if death results - the perpetrators could face life in prison or be sen-tenced to death.

Certain questions about the stat-ute’s applicability in the Khashoggi case would need to be resolved, including whether the victim must be in the United States at the time of the offense if the victim is a noncitizen, but the statute’s legislative history strongly suggests that it would apply. Jurisdiction would be appropriate because of the vital US interests impli-cated, and because the oppression of Khashoggi’s constitutional rights is felt in the United States, where he prac-ticed his journalism.

The case for US jurisdiction would be bolstered if prosecutors could show that aspects of the crime took place in the United States - for instance, if the Saudis communicated with Khashoggi in the United States when luring him to their consulate in Istanbul. Aggressive prosecutors can even utilize incidental contacts such as wire transfers through US banks to build a jurisdictional case for conspiracy. Federal prosecutors have undertaken investigations based on far less evidence than the Khashoggi case presents.

So far, the United States has been largely negligent in responding to Khashoggi’s killing. That the perpe-trators of this grotesque crime must be punished is obvious, but so is the United States’ obligation to defend the exercise of constitutional rights - espe-cially freedom of speech and press. Both goals could be achieved by the practical and direct application of existing US law. Anyone on US soil, whether a high-profile journalist or an ordinary citizen who criticizes the powerful, needs to know that the gov-ernment has the First Amendment’s back.

LEE C. BOLLINGER THE WASHINGTON POST

QUOTE OF THE DAYWith our British friends

we have had a lot of patience, but even patience is running out. I would like, in

the coming hours and days, for Great Britain

to reach an agreement on the way forward.

Jean-Claude Juncker EU Commission President

How much of the Mueller report to release? Here’s a guide

The controversy over the delayed release of Robert Mueller’s report, including the nature and extent of the redac-

tions, raises large questions about gov-ernment transparency in general. We can make progress in answering these questions by examining an important presidential memorandum, still in effect and binding all executive agencies in the federal government (including the Justice Department, which oversees disclosure practices).

The memorandum is nominally about the Freedom of Information Act, but it speaks far more broadly. It begins plainly: “A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires transpar-ency.” It insists that “in the face of doubt, openness prevails.”

Then it gets more specific. It directs that “nondisclosure should

never be based on an effort to protect the personal interests of Government officials at the expense of those they are supposed to serve.” It announces that the government “should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by

disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed, or because of spec-ulative or abstract fears.”

The memorandum was issued on Jan. 21, 2009, and it was signed by Presi-dent Barack Obama.(2) Put to one side the question whether the Obama administra-tion abided by the principles that Obama embraced on that day. For present pur-poses, the principles are what matter, and they are sound.

They should govern both congres-sional and public evaluation of Attorney General William Barr’s choices about how much of the Mueller report to release.

Barr’s letter to members of Con-gress, promising to release a redacted version of the report by mid-April, lists legitimate reasons for confidentiality. The most important of these is national security, including material identified by the intelligence community “as poten-tially compromising sensitive sources and methods.” It would not be at all surpris-ing if the Mueller report contains some such material.

Barr also refers to material that relates to ongoing investigations, which may be kept confidential under the Freedom of Information Act. It is certainly appro-priate to protect the privacy interests of “peripheral third parties” and to respect

legal restrictions on disclosing materi-als relating to grand-jury investigations.

Perhaps surprisingly, Barr does not say even a word about executive privi-lege, which provides a degree of protection against disclosure of discussions between the president and high-level advisers. Mueller’s investigation probably explores some such discussions.

So there is an open question: Will the Trump administration claim executive privilege?

Whether or not it does, there is a seri-ous risk whenever executive-branch officials are deciding what to disclose: The legitimate grounds for confidenti-ality will be invoked when they do not really apply. In the worst cases, those grounds are the publicly articulated jus-tification, when the real reason is that “public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure” or that “errors and fail-ures might be revealed.”

The Russia probe puts those concerns in the brightest imaginable light.

All attorneys general occasionally find themselves in an exceedingly dif-ficult position. On the one hand, their highest duties are to the law and to the American people. On the other hand, the president is their boss. It is sorely tempt-ing to defer to his wishes.

Qatar’s award-winning airport remains focused on redefining the airport experience, from its implementation of cutting-edge technology, strategic expansion plan, 5-star customer service and operational excellence, that makes HIA the airport of choice for millions of passengers around the world.

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK AL-SHAFIeditorinchief@pen.com.qa

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM MOHAMEDm.salim@pen.com.qa

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI osman@pen.com.qa

ESTABLISHED IN 1996

EDITORIALAnother honour for HIA

Hamad International Airport (HIA) has achieved yet another milestone. Qatar’s aviation hub has been ranked as the Fourth Best Airport in the World at the Skytrax World

Airport Awards 2019. HIA has also once again been ranked as a five-star Airport and was honoured with the title of ‘Best Airport in the Middle East’ for the fifth year in a row and ‘Best Staff Service in the Middle East’ for the fourth year in a row.

HIA has been setting the standard for the modern day airport experience ever since its launch in May 2014. The awards rec-ognize HIA’s innovative facilities, five-star customer service and state-of-the-art terminal which accommodates more than 30 million passengers annually.

The 2019 World Airport Awards by Skytrax are based on nominations from millions of passengers across more than 500 participating airports worldwide, making them one of largest passenger interaction survey awards in the world. The Skytrax survey evaluates customer satisfaction across 39 key per-formance indicators for airport service and product — from check-in, arrivals, transfers, shopping, security and immigration, through to departure at the gate.

Engr. Badr Mohammed Al Meer, Chief Operating Officer at Hamad International Airport, said: “We are delighted with our

progress and ranking at this year’s Skytrax Awards as we successfully moved up in our ranking to ‘Fourth Best Airport in the World’ while maintaining our five-star status. We are committed to raising the bar when it comes to the airport experience and will continue to invest in our facilities, services and technologies that distinguish us as the airport of choice for millions of passengers around the world.”

Earlier this year, HIA was adjudged the second best airport in the world for On-Time Per-formance (OTP) according to OAG’s Punctuality League report. As per OAG, the leading global provider of digital flight information, HIA ranked second in the major airports category (from 20 to 30 million departing seats per annum) with 85.41 percent of its flights operating on time. The Punctuality League is based on 58 million flight records using full-year data from 2017 to create a ranking of the best on-time performance (OTP) for the world’s largest airlines and airports.

Qatar’s award-winning airport remains focused on redefining the airport experience, from its imple-

mentation of cutting-edge technology, strategic expansion plan, 5-star customer service and operational excellence, that makes HIA the airport of choice for millions of passengers around the world. The second phase of HIA’s expansion plan, launched early this year, will accommodate a capacity of 53 million pas-sengers annually by 2022 as well as an increase in cargo capacity to 3 million tonnes per year. The expansion is a key part of Qatar’s preparations to host the 2022 World Cup where the country will witness a large number of visitors to the global sporting event. The young and ambitious airport is set to celebrate its 5-year anniversary next month. HIA’s overall achievements are unmatched by any other airport in the region. HIA continues to be one of the fastest-growing hubs in the world.

The momentum for economic growth has been maintained, not based on the monetary expansion but associated with changes in business environment. The gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 7.08% in the first six months of the year, the highest level since 2011. Additionally, the confidence of businesses has been reinforced.

09TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 OPINION

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Vietnam: A momentum of growth, a prospect for strengthening relations with Qatar

TAREK CHERKAOUI ANATOLIA

NGUYEN DINH THAO VIETNAM’S AMBASSADOR TO QATAR

Recently, the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) held its annual con-ference amidst political

upheavals both in the United States and the Middle East. It is no secret that AIPAC has an enormously influential role in American politics and the organization’s events, and especially

the annual AIPAC Policy Conference, are generally well attended by top political personalities in Washington D.C. and beyond.

During this year’s gathering, heavy criticism was directed to Dem-ocratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. For example, American Vice President Mike Pence said “recently, a freshman Democrat in Congress trafficked in repeated anti-Semitic tropes,” adding that “anyone who slanders those who support this historic alliance between the United States and Israel should never have a seat on the Foreign Affairs Committee of the United States House of Representatives.”

It is interesting to note that Rep. Omar had not expressed anti-Semitic statements per se. She made com-ments on Twitter about the nature of AIPAC’s influence in Washington. However, her remarks were distorted and taken out of context.

The smear campaign directed against Omar is merely an attempt to stifle this new wave of youthful political activism, which paved the way for greater representation of minority groups and women. This

increasing influence of minorities in the political sphere is surely not to the liking of the Republican Party’s support base. The latter sees with sus-picion the loss of urban and suburban centers to minority candidates. The new dynamics are set to alter the balance of power in the long-term since the current demographics that brought electoral victory to the Republican Party relies primarily on an aging populace of conservative whites.

This transformation is already affecting electoral behavior. For instance, in the aftermath of Nov. 7, 2018, the Democrats succeeded in wresting a 223-seat majority in the House of Representatives. In this context, Ilhan Omar (who is a Somali refugee) and Rashida Tlaib became the first Muslim women to be elected to Congress.

Interestingly, both Omar and Tlaib were singled out in the current AIPAC controversy. For example, Adam Milstein, one of AIPAC’s biggest donors, accused them of being repre-sentatives of the Muslim Brotherhood, saying that their values “clash with American values.”

Such outburst of accusations is indicative of the growing impatience among power centers in the US The latter are used to having a firm grip on the political process and shaping the contours of political debate incon-testably. In contrast, the emergence of strong counter-narratives by grass-roots organizations disrupt the existing status quo and expose its fallacies.

The newcomers to the political realm in the country have a different view of the US and its role in the world. They support democratic ideals and human rights values domestically and abroad while opposing the US militaristic policies. In the long run, such a stance will shake the foundations upon which the US-Israel alliance was established.

The US-Israel strategic part-nership is primarily rooted in the common interests between both parties, especially concerning their geopolitical interests in the Middle East. Moreover, there is also a deep-seated ideological cornerstone upon which this alliance is built. It consists of a mixture of the neo-conservative doctrine and the prejudices of Orien-talist scholarship. This nexus rests, in the words of academic Rabab Abdulhadi, upon “hatred of Arabs and Muslims, identification with Israel, and racism towards decolonised “Third World” people of the global South, who are seen as inferior, prim-itive [and] backward.” (Abdulhadi, R. (2004). Imagining Justice and Peace in the Age of Empire. Peace Review, 16(1), 85-89)

Therefore, the media flak (to borrow the term of Herman and Chomsky) directed against Omar and others, does not come as a surprise. It is merely part of the institutional power’s response. Negative “public” responses are directed towards opposing narratives and positions to close down any serious discussion about the role and consequences of US foreign policy in the world. Against this backdrop, harassing opinion leaders, academics, journalists, and activists can take many forms, such as social media hate campaigns, ads, trolling, letters, phone calls, speeches, and lawsuits.

Among the rhetorical devices used to intimidate Omar and like-minded politicians is to make the connection between Israel’s criticism and anti-Semitism. Such a mis-leading and pre-packaged con-clusion helps frame the debate in a way that conceals both the political agendas at play and the lack of sound supporting reasons. The current con-troversy has nothing to do with anti-Semitism but is all about protecting Israel from criticism and conflating Zionism with Judaism.

According to reports from Vietnamese government, the country’s economy saw a high growth rate in 2018.

Vietnam also enjoyed a high trade surplus and successfully controlled its inflation rate.

The business environment grew tremendously in 2018 with over 26,000 new enterprises established. In addition, foreign direct investment disbursement reached over USD 35 billion in this year. Overall, the economy experienced the 7.08% growth, the fastest expansion in 10 years.

The Asian Post report describes Vietnam’s rapid growth over the past decade is mostly due to the shift from a command economy to a more open and liberal one. From 2008, the country has been implementing reforms, boosting the number of new private enterprises and foreign investment.

Doi MoiAnalysts believe Vietnam is

enjoying the rewards from the reforms including the ‘Doi Moi’ (Renewal) program launched in 1986. As result of development over the past three decades, Vietnam has emerged from a backward country with 90% of its population working in the

agricultural sector into a industrial and modern state.

The country has built material and technical facilities and socio-eco-nomic infrastructure, thus attracting financial and human resources for national development. After gener-ating an annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of just 4.4% in the early years of reform from 1986-1990, Vietnam’s economy expe-rienced an impressive pace in the next nearly two decades with 8.2% from 1991-1995, 7.6% from 1996-2000, 7.34% from 2001-2005 and 6.32% from 2006-2010.

Between 2011 and 2015, due to impacts from the global financial downturn in 2008, and the European sovereign debt crisis in 2010, the Viet-nam’s economic growth rate fell to 5.9% which was a lot higher than most countries in the region. Vietnam’s per capita income rose sharply to USD 2,300 in 2015. The following year, the country’s economic output was around USD 204 billion.

The macro economy has remained stable and inflation has been under control. Vietnam’s economic structure has been shifted towards moderni-zation. The percentage of the agri-culture sector in GDP is decreasing and those of services and industrial

production are increasing.Over the past three decades, all

economic sectors have made big strides. Industry and construction have maintained their stable growth thanks to the application of scientific and technological advances, and the development of new industries and high technologies.

Agriculture has experienced sig-nificant changes, transforming Vietnam from a famine struck country to one of the world’s top exporters of rice, coffee, rubber, cashew and seafood. All service businesses flour-ished, especially in tourism, telecom-munications, finance, banking and legal consultation. The exploitation of natural resources and environmental protection has been aligned with sus-tainable development, producing initial good results.

Bright economic prospectsA lot of financial institutions and

research organizations in Vietnam and abroad have shown their optimism about the country’s eco-nomic growth in the second half of 2018 and the whole year.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected Vietnam’s economy to grow by 6.6% in 2018 and the inflation rate to be kept under 4% thanks to the country’s economic reform and its government’s com-mitment to stabilize the macro economy.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) also projects that the economy will expand by 7.1% this year, while the Word Bank (WB) raised its expec-tation for Vietnam’s economic growth at 6.8%.

The Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) was optimistic that Vietnam’s growth can reach 6.71% instead of 6.67% as previously predicted.

Macroeconomic indicators are also bright: annual export growth is projected at 12.11%, trade surplus at USD 1.2 billion USD and the average inflation rate at 3.93%.

The momentum for economic growth has been maintained, not based on the monetary expansion but associated with changes in business environment.

The gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 7.08% in the first six months of the year, the highest level

This increasing influence of minorities in the political sphere is surely not to the liking of the Republican Party’s support base. The latter sees with suspicion the loss of urban and suburban centers to minority candidates.

since 2011. Additionally, the confi-dence of businesses has been reinforced.

25 years of traditional friendship between Vietnam and Qatar

Diplomatic ties between Vietnam and Qatar were offi-cially established on February 8, 1993. In recent years, the political relationship between the two countries has been strengthened based on mutual trust and understanding, pro-viding a solid basis for promoting economic, trade, investment, cul-tural, education and national security relation.

Over the last ten years, high-level official visits have been exchanged between the two coun-tries: Qatar was visited by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in 2009 and by Vice Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in 2014; in 2012, Emir of Qatar; Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani paid a state visit to Vietnam.

2018 bilateral trade turnover reached more than 400 million USD including seafood, power cables, wood products, con-struction glass, electronics... from Vietnam to Qatar and liquefied gas, plastic materials, chemical products, plastic material… imported by Vietnam. The new direct flight routes from Doha to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang boosts the opportunities for bilateral trading and tourism coop-eration. In November 2016, Qatar officially recognized Vietnam as a full market economy.

The smart city project in Hai Boi and Vinh Ngoc communes, in Hanoi’s Dong Anh district is invested with US$4.13 billion by Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation.

10 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) candidates for Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu (left), and Ankara, Mansur Yavas, greeting supporters in front of the party headquarters in Istanbul and Ankara respectively, yesterday.

Turkey: AKP suffers upset in two main citiesAFP ANKARA

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party suffered a major upset yesterday after local election results showed it lost the capital Ankara and Istanbul after a decade and half in power.

Losing the country’s two major cities would be a stunning defeat for Erdogan, a former Istanbul mayor himself, whose ability to win at the ballot box has been unparalleled in Turkish history.

Erdogan campaigned hard, portraying Sunday’s vote for mayors and district councils as a fight for the nation’s survival, but the election became a test for his Justice and Development Party (AKP) after Turkey slipped into a recession for the first time in a decade.

The opposition CHP party candidate for Istanbul mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, was leading by nearly 28,000 votes with

most ballot boxes counted, Supreme Election Board (YSK) chairman Sadi Guven said.

Imamoglu won almost 4.16 million votes while the AKP can-didate, former premier Binali Yildirim, won 4.13 million.

Both claimed victory in the early hours following a tight race for the country’s largest city after results showing them in a dead heat. “We want to start working as soon as possible to serve people,” Imamoglu told reporters. “We want to cooperate with all institutions of Turkey to quickly meet the needs of Istanbul.”

In Ankara, opposition

mayoral candidate Mansur Yavas had 50.89 percent of votes ahead of the AKP’s Mehmet Ozhaseki on 47.06 percent, Anadolu state agency reported, with 99 percent of ballot boxes counted.

But, AKP officials said they would challenge the alleged invalidation of tens of thousands of votes in both cities.

AKP Secretary-General Fatoih Sahin said the party will appeal in Ankara, saying the gap between the candidates “will narrow down and I believe it will eventually turn into a positive result for us.”

Speaking to supporters in Ankara after Sunday’s polls closed, Erdogan had said the election was a victory for the AKP, which along with its coa-lition partner, the Nationalist Movement Party, won more than 50 percent of votes overall.

The loss in Istanbul, analysts said, would be especially sen-sitive for Erdogan, who grew up in the city’s working-class

Kasimpasa neighbourhood, and liked to tell AKP rank-and-file that victory in the city was like winning all of Turkey.

For his supporters, Erdogan remains the strong leader they believe Turkey needs and they tout the country’s economic development over the years he and the AKP have been in power.

Rallying his base among more religiously Turks, Erdogan had presented his opponents as enemies of the state, tarnishing them as tied to Kurdish militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) who have fought a decades-long insurgency.

The AKP built its ballot box success on Erdogan’s perceived

economic prowess, but before the vote, the Turkish lira was sliding again, provoking mem-ories of a 2018 crisis that saw the currency fall 30 percent and badly hurt Turkish households.

How he manages the economy will be key for the party’s success before the next presidential and general election in 2023.

Erdogan’s party down but not out after local voteAFP ANKARA

After a frenetic campaign with multiple daily rallies across Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AKP lost the major cities including Istanbul in Sunday’s local elections, leaving the ruling party damaged but not beyond repair, analysts said.

Some said the losses suffered by the long-ruling party were mostly a result of last year’s currency crisis and an eco-

nomic recession, the first in a decade.But others pointed to the lacklustre

candidates fielded by the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) as well as declining support from Kurdish voters.

The AKP or its predecessors held Istanbul and Ankara since 1994. Erdogan first rose to prominence as a successful mayor of Istanbul between 1994 and 1998. The AKP came to power after the financial crisis in 2001 brought Turkey to its knees. In the years after, Erdogan was praised for the path he took to make

the Turkish economy competitive.Pundits took to saying that while the

economy helped the AKP to win in 2002 it could as easily damage the party at the ballot box. That is what happened on Sunday, losing not only Istanbul and Ankara but also Antalya, for a combined population of around 22 million out of 82 million nationwide.

“The economic crisis has really hurt voters, particularly the urban poor and lower middle classes that are AKP’s core support,” Berk Esen of Bilkent University

said. “Erdogan has drawn support from his base during the last few elections by promising that political stability would bring economic prosperity. Neither hap-pened under his watch.”

Esen also said the candidates fielded by the AKP were “outshone” by oppo-sition candidates including popular cen-trist mayors. Emre Erdogan, a professor at Istanbul Bilgi University, said a key factor was the drop in support from Kurdish voters for the AKP.

“The aggregate numbers show that

CHP (Republican People’s Party) can-didates became successful in attracting the majority of voters” from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), not because of CHP policies but in reaction to the government’s “harsh policies” in Kurdish-majority cities.

After a two-year ceasefire collapsed, clashes between the PKK and Turkish security forces resumed, while Erdogan’s rhetoric against the HDP became harsher during the campaign, which experts say alienated many Kurdish voters.

Bouteflika to resign before April 28AFP ALGIERS

Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika (pictured), will resign before his mandate expires on April 28, his office said on Monday, after a succession of loyalists deserted the ailing leader in recent days.

Bouteflika would take “steps to ensure state institutions con-tinue to function during the transition period”, the presi-dency said in a brief statement carried by the official APS news agency. The 82-year-old would resign “before April 28, 2019”, after “important decisions” were taken, it added, without speci-fying when these moves would occur.

Bouteflika has come under mounting pressure to step down since his decision to seek a fifth term despite rarely being seen in public after suffering a stroke in 2013.

The Algerian leader said last month he would pull out of the race and postponed April elec-tions, in moves that angered protesters who saw it as a ploy to extend his two decades in power.

Faced with massive street

protests across the North African country, a succession of veteran Bouteflika loyalists have deserted the president in recent days. Last Tuesday, armed forces chief of staff General Ahmed Gaid Salah, who was appointed by Bouteflika in 2004, said the president should either resign or be declared medically unfit to govern by parliament using its constitutional powers.

And on Wednesday, key coalition ally the National Rally for Democracy (RND) headed by recently sacked prime minister Ahmed Ouyahia called for Bouteflika’s resignation “with the aim of smoothing the period of transition”.

Israel to send 250,000 settlers to Golan HeightsANATOLIA/ JERUSALEM

The Israeli government hopes to settle some 250,000 Israelis in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights over the next 30 years, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority (IBA) reported yesterday.

The report comes one week after U.S. President Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation recognizing the Golan Heights as “Israeli territory”.

According to the IBA, the Israeli plan also includes con-struction of two new Jewish-only settlements in the Golan, along with thousands of new settlement units and a raft of planned transport and tourism projects in the region.

The population of the Golan Heights currently stands at some 50,000, including 22,000 Israeli settlers, according to Israeli figures.

Israel had long pushed Washington to recognize its claim over the strategic plateau, which it seized from Syria during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, but previous U.S. admin-istrations had refrained from doing so.

AFP JERUSALEM

An Israeli cyber watchdog said yesterday it has uncovered a network of fake online accounts backing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and slandering oppo-nents ahead of next week’s general election.

In a new report the Big Bots Protect, which describes itself as a campaigner against social media abuse, said posts used “lies, libel and rumormongering” to attack Netanyahu’s challengers.

It found over 130,000 tweets from “hundreds of fake or

anonymous accounts” without names or profile pictures, which did not identify themselves as linked to Netanyahu’s Likud party. It acknowledged that there were also “hundreds of genuine accounts” backing the premier’s bid for re-election. Among the targets were journalists and public figures considered hostile to Netanyahu including his main challenger, Benny Gantz, leader of the centrist Blue and White party.

The report said they included accusations that Gantz was a “rapist” and others questioning his mental health.

A spokeswoman for Blue and White said that party leaders had filed a complaint against the posts with police.

“There is an attempt to steal the elections, there is a system of lies here,” Gantz wrote on Twitter. “Netanyahu’s house of cards is collapsing.”

The prime minister went live on Facebook and YouTube to dismiss the report, flanked by what he said was a genuine Likud online supporter. “A million Likud voters are not ‘bots’,” he said, adding that Likud was also filing a police complaint against Blue and White for accusing him.

“Not one of them is fake,” he said of the messages cited by the Big Bots Protect. “They have names, they have families,” he added. “They have their own opinions, independent people!”

Netanyahu, 69, is seeking a fifth term in office in the April 9 election, despite also facing potential corruption charges.

Blue and White has consist-ently been scoring better than Likud in opinion polls, although Netanyahu is seen as standing a better chance of putting together a coalition government under Israel’s proportional represen-tation electoral system.

Watchdog finds online manipulation to boost Netanyahu

Palestinians consider recalling envoy over Brazil’s Jerusalem trade missionREUTERS BRASILIA

The Palestinian ambassador to Brazil said yesterday he may be recalled home after right-wing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s new government said it will open a trade mission to Israel in Jerusalem.

Brazil’s announcement on Sunday came during a visit by Bolsonaro to Israel. It stopped

short of following the United States with a full embassy move to the contested city of Jeru-salem, as Bolsonaro had sug-gested in January. Like most countries, Brazil has an embassy in Tel Aviv.

Bolsonaro’s original proposal angered the Muslim world, and senior Brazilian officials backed away from it for fear of damaging ties with Arab countries and jeop-ardizing billions of dollars in Bra-

zilian halal meat exports. Presidential spokesman

Otavio Rego Barros said on Sunday the trade mission would not be a diplomatic represen-tation, but the move drew anger from the Palestinians.

Brazil has not officially rec-ognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Most world powers say the city’s status should only be decided as part of a peace process with the Palestinians.

An Iranian family walks through a flooded street in a village around the city of Ahvaz, in the Khuzestan province, yesterday.

For his supporters, Erdogan remains the strong leader they believe Turkey needs and they tout the country’s economic development over the years he and the AKP have been in power.

Iran orders evacuation of flood-hit western citiesAFP TEHRAN

Iranian authorities yesterday ordered the immediate evacuation of flood-stricken cities in a western province as rivers burst their banks, dams overflowed and vast areas were cut off from commu-nication.

The highest level of alert was declared in Lorestan province with four or five cities “completely critical”, state television news network IRINN reported from Khorramabad, the region’s capital.

“In Khorramabad the water has

risen by as much as three metres (nearly 10 feet) in parts... and reports are coming in of regions... com-pletely submerged with residents stranded on their rooftops,” it added.

The Red Crescent’s provincial director, Sarem Rezaee, said his organisation had lost contact with much of the region.

“Telephones are not working, our radio communications are down... at this moment we have no news of other cities and villages,” he told IRINN, adding roads were flooded and helicopters were unable to take off due to the bad weather.

11TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 ASIA

An ISRO Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle launches India’s Electromagnetic Spectrum Measurement satellite ‘EMISAT’ at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India, yesterday.

ISRO puts 29 satellites in three orbitsREUTERS NEW DELHI

An Indian rocket yesterday placed domestic and foreign satellites in three different orbits on a single flight, a first for the nation and a low-cost option that could burnish its reputation for pioneering affordable options in space.

The launch of a domestic intelligence satellite and 28 foreign ones came less than a week after India used an anti-satellite missile to take down one of its own satellites, demon-strating a capability only China, Russia and the United States had possessed previously.

The state-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said 24 satellites from the United

States, two from Lithuania and one each from Spain and Swit-zerland were positioned in yes-terday’s launch, in addition to India’s EMISAT satellite.

“This particular mission is very special for ISRO,” its chairman, K Sivan, said after the launch from a space centre in Andhra Pradesh. “This is for the first time the PSLV is carrying out three orbital missions in a single flight,” he said in a speech, referring to the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle family of rockets.

Sivan, who previously told media the “three-in-one” launch would help cut costs, said the agency aimed to complete 30 more missions this year, including India’s second lunar exploration programme known

as the Chandrayaan-2.Among the satellites in yes-

terday’s launch are 20 earth-imaging satellites of Planet Labs Inc, a private satellite operator based in San Francisco. Two of the satellites, one from Lithuania and another from Switzerland, will be used for the “Internet of Things”, or connecting physical devices to the Web.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the agency on the launch and said his gov-ernment was working on raising citizens’ interest in science and their respect for scientists.

ISRO wants companies such as state-owned Hindustan Aer-onautics Ltd and Mumbai-based conglomerate Larsen & Toubro to build its rockets in future.

Modi terms NC demand for ‘Kashmir PM’ serious issueIANS HYDERABAD

Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday termed as a serious issue a reported statement by National Conference leader Omar Abdullah that Jammu and Kashmir should have a separate Prime Minister.

Addressing an election rally here, he demanded that the Con-gress and other constituents of ‘Mahagathbandhan’ to respond to this statement by their ally.

Modi said the National Con-ference wanted to turn the clock back by creating a pre-1953 sit-uation. “Do you accept this demand by an ally of the Con-gress? Will any Indian accept this?” he asked. Modi alleged that a parliamentary candidate of the National Conference had raised

pro-Pakistan slogans a couple of days ago but the Congress and the National Conference kept quiet.

Modi alleged that this men-tality of dividing the country caused huge damage to India.

“This mentality of the Con-gress strengthened the anti-national forces. Because of this mentality they raise questions on air strikes and surgical strikes and it was because of this men-tality they met the Chinese envoy during Doklam standoff.”

Modi said India was not ready to suffer another terrorist attack. “Now we know how to respond. We can barge into their house and kill them,” he said, to loud cheers by the crowd at the LB Stadium.

“For 40 years they had been killing us every day and we were

sitting idle fearing that if we do something we will lose the vote bank. Enough is enough. Modi is no longer ready to tolerate,” he said. The BJP leader targeted the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and its ally Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM). He said the focus of the TRS government was not on development but on the vote bank and the Chief Minis-ter’s family.

Referring to the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, Modi said there was no development on the other side of the Musi river. He said the government of India wanted to develop infra-structure and extend the Metro to the old city.

“But there is a big speed-breaker called Majlis. They don’t understand the language of development,” he said.

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia (centre) is being escorted to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University for treatment, in Dhaka yesterday.

Former Bangladesh PM shifted to hospitalAP DHAKA

Bangladesh opposition leader and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia was yesterday shifted to a hospital from the prison.

An officials said she was being treated in a state hospital after being taken there from the

centuries-old jail where she has been imprisoned since a cor-ruption conviction.

The Director of Banga-bandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Brigadier General AK Mahbubul Hoque said Zia’s con-dition was not life-threatening but there were complications.

The 73-year-old leader has been in jail since February 2018,

when she was sentenced to five years in prison for alleged cor-ruption in the establishment of an orphanage fund when she was Prime Minister from 1991 to 1996. The High Court later extended her sentence to 10 years.

Zia’s party says the sen-tencing was politically motivated.

27 dead in Nepal whirlwind stormAFP BARA, NEPAL

A freak storm tore down houses and overturned cars and trucks as it swept across southern Nepal killing at least 27 people and leaving more than 600 injured, officials said yesterday as a major rescue operation gathered pace.

High winds battered the rural district of Bara and adjoining areas late Sunday. Five children were among the dead, the Home Ministry said, as rescuers battled to get relief supplies to the region and evacuate the injured.

The winds were so fierce that they overturned a bus car-rying passengers, witnesses said. Houses, trees and elec-tricity pylons were all toppled in the storm.

Whole villages have been flattened and families were left mourning the death of relatives killed by trees and the debris.

Rahul promises 2.2 million govt jobs in a yearIANS NEW DELHI

Making a big poll promise, Congress President Rahul Gandhi has said there were 22 lakh vacancies in the government and if voted to power, his party will fill them in less than a year.

He said devolution of funds from the Centre to the state gov-ernments for healthcare, edu-cation and other schemes will be linked to these posts.

“Today, there are 22 lakh job vacancies in government. We will have these vacancies filled by March 31, 2020. Devolution of funds from the Centre to each state government for healthcare, education etc will be linked to these vacant positions being filled,” Gandhi said in a tweet on Sunday.

The new government will assume office in May after Lok Sabha polls.

Gandhi has been making a series of poll promises ahead of release of party’s poll manifesto.

He had said on Saturday that India needs restoration of its water bodies and afforestation, and his party will employ lakhs of rural youth for the purpose, if voted to power.

In another tweet yesterday, Rahul took a dig at the Narendra Modi government over its smart city project, saying that real

smart cities are built by good leaders and promised that a Congress government will move to have directly-elected mayors.

“Real smart cities are built by good leaders. To improve quality of life in our cities we will move to directly elected Mayors with 5 year terms & elected councils. Administration will be run by multidisciplinary teams of specialists and experts accountable to the Mayor and council,” Gandhi said.

Meanwhile addressing an election rally in in Telangana yesterday, the Congress Pres-ident said that a vote for the TRS would be a vote for Prime Min-ister Narendra Modi, BJP and RSS.

He alleged that there was a secret understanding between the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and Modi. “There is part-nership between them. The remote control is in Modi’s hands,” he said.

He said only the Congress was fighting Modi and BJP.

Congress President says 22 lakh government vacancies are vacant and if elected to power his government would link release of funds to states with filling these positions.

Two dead inshelling overKashmir borderIANS JAMMU

A BSF officer and a 6-year old girl were killed and 14 persons, including five other security personnel, were injured yesterday in Pakistani shelling on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district.

Police said the girl was killed and nine civilians were injured in the shelling in Shahpur, Kerni, Mankote, Mendhar and Krishna Ghati sectors.

“The girl died after being hit by a splinter fired by the Pakistan Army,” a police officer said.

BSF Inspector T Alex Lalminlun also died in the shelling, official sources said.

Nine civilians and six security personnel, including two soldiers and four Border Security Force (BSF) troopers, were injured in indiscriminate shelling and firing by Pakistan, police said, adding that all the injured have been shifted to hospital. Lalminlun, who was one of the injured BSF men, succumbed to his injuries.

Reports said heavy firing exchanges had now stopped after continuing heavily and then intermittently on the LoC at many places in Poonch.

According to Defence Min-istry spokesman Lt Col Dev-ender Anand, the Pakistani troops resorted to mortar shelling and firing of small arms. The Indian troops retal-iated effectively, he said.

BJP pits Vellappally against Rahul

IANS NEW DELHI

The BJP yesterday announced Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) President Thushar Vellappally would be the NDA candidate against Congress President Rahul Gandhi in Kerala’s Wayanad constit-uency.

“I proudly announce Thushar Vellappally, President of Bharat Dharma Jana Sena as NDA candidate from Wayanad. A vibrant and dynamic youth leader, he represents our commitment towards development and social justice. With him, NDA will emerge as Kerala’s political alternative,” Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah tweeted.

The BDJS is a constituent of the National Democratic Alliance in Kerala and Vellappally is also the NDA’s state convenor.

Thanking Shah for giving him the opportunity, Vellappally said in a tweet: “This behind the curtain drama of the left and con-gress we will expose to our country men. I am with you in this fight to eradicate foreign rule from our motherland.”

Facebook removes over 600 pages linked to CongressAGENCIES NEW DELHI

Facebook Inc yesterday said it was removing 687 pages and accounts linked to India’s main opposition Congress party, because of “coordinated inau-thentic behaviour” on the social media platform.

The announcement marks a rare action from Facebook against a prominent political party in a country where it has more than 300 million users, the highest in the world.

Facebook said its investi-gation found that individuals used fake accounts and joined various groups to disseminate their content and increase engagement. Their posts included local news and crit-icism of political opponents such as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Facebook said.

“While the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review found that it was con-nected to individuals associated with an INC (Indian National Congress) IT Cell,” Nathaniel Gleicher, Head of Cybersecurity Policy at Facebook, said in a

statement.Gleicher added that

Facebook was removing accounts based on their behaviour, not the content they posted.

India’s staggered election, scheduled to begin on April 11, will end on May 19. Two of the samples shared by Facebook were of posts that criticised Modi’s initiatives and called for supporting the Congress party and its President, Rahul Gandhi.

Meanwhile, the Congress said that none of its official pages had been affected and it was awaiting a list of pages/accounts removed from the social media company.

“This is to clarify no official pages run by INC have been taken down. Additionally, all pages run by our verified volun-teers are also unaffected. In the mean time, we are awaiting a response from Facebook to provide us a list of all pages/accounts that they have taken down,” Congress said in a tweet.

Earlier Congress spokesman Manish Tiwari had said that the party needed to check the veracity of these pages/accounts, “whether the Facebook pages are linked to us”.

Mallya pleads against property confiscationIANS MUMBAI

Absconding tycoon Vijay Mallya yesterday pleaded before the Bombay High Court against confiscating his properties under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA), 2018, terming it as “draconian” and a move that will not bring any relief to the creditors.

His counsel Amit Desai made the submissions before Justice IA Mahanty and Justice AM Badar, arguing that the Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s plans to seize Mallya’s prop-erties would not help the lenders.

“Confiscation is draconian. The need of hour is to deal with the banks and creditors. He (Mallya) does not want the properties returned. We only say that seizure by the gov-ernment won’t solve the problems of the banks and creditors,” Desai pointed out.

12 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019ASIA

Court to decide treason case even in Musharraf’s absenceINTERNEWS ISLAMABAD

The Supreme Court of Pakistan yesterday, while hearing a high treason case against former military dictator Pervez Mush-arraf, remarked that the Special Court should announce a decision after hearing the pros-ecution as the suspect will lose his right to defend if he fails to appear before court on May 2.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Asif Saeed Khosa heard the high treason case against Musharraf on the Lahore High Court Bar’s petition.

As the hearing went underway, Khosa inquired whether Musharraf had assured that he would appear before the court on May 2. “What will happen if Musharraf does not live up to his commitment? This matter cannot be left openhanded.”

Musharraf’s counsel told the court, “We contacted Mushar-raf’s wife. The former President had set the date for his return as May 13 and he does not want to record his statement via Skype as there are too many docu-ments. As Musharraf’s counsel I cannot assure that he will appear before the court on May 2. It is a matter of his health and he is c u r r e n t l y u n d e r g o i n g chemotherapy.”

At this, the Chief Justice

remarked, “The court will review Article 9 in detail. As per Article 9, the court can start the trial even in the suspect’s absence and one lawyer has to be appointed for the suspect’s defence.

“On July 19, 2016, the trial court stated that the case cannot continue in the suspect’s absence. The state should have challenged that decision as they were the complainants. The Federal Government itself let the suspect leave the country and did nothing to bring him. The Federation put itself in a closed street,” Chief Justice Khosa remarked.

The Chief Justice further said, “We do not doubt any-one’s intent. The Federation itself did nothing after 2016. We need time to focus on whether a legal route can be taken given the circumstances.”

The court then announced a decision on the case and said, “If Musharraf does not appear on May 2, the Special Court should announce a decision

after hearing the prosecution. The suspect will lose his right to defend if he fails to appear before court and will not even have the facility to record his statement under Section 342.

“However, if Musharraf appears in court on May 2 then he can avail these facilities,” the court added.

“Although an absconder has no rights,” Justice Khosa remarked.

The Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) government of Nawaz Sharif had filed the treason case against Musharraf over the President’s imposition of extra-constitutional emer-gency in November 2007.

The former Army Chief was indicted in the case in March 2014 after he appeared before the court and rejected all charges.

On March 18, 2016, the former President left Pakistan for Dubai for medical treatment after his name was removed from the Exit Control List on the orders of the Supreme Court.

A few months later, the Special Court had declared him a proclaimed offender and ordered the confiscation of his property owing to his no-show.

Last month, Musharraf was admitted to a hospital in Dubai after suffering a reaction from a rare disease for which he is already under treatment.

The former President and Chief of Army Staff left Pakistan in March 2016 for medical treatment and has been declared a proclaimed offender by the court.

Art students painting the portrait of Arif Lohar, a renowned Punjabi folk singer, on a wall during a street art competition in Lahore, yesterday.

Country still needs military courts: PTI govtINTERNEWS ISLAMABAD

Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry has said the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf government believes the country still needs military courts, but any extension in their term remains conditional on consensus among political parties.

In an interview with the BBC yesterday, Chaudhry said the government believes the need for military courts continues to exist and their term would be

extended if there is consensus among the political parties.

“The term of these military courts will be extended if the government succeeds in getting the political parties to agree [over the matter]. The gov-ernment is trying to create political consensus over it. If the [other] political parties feel there is no need for [another] extension then there won’t be [another] extension,” the Min-ister said.

The military courts that had been set up under the National Action Plan (NAP) in 2015 to try

civilians on terrorism charges, ceased to function on Sunday, after their second two-year con-stitutional term expired.

The government is still seeking the cooperation of the opposition parties for another extension, as it would require two-thirds majority in any of the two houses of the Parliament to carry out the constitutional amendment.

“Military courts were an extraordinary step taken in extraordinary circumstances. [We] believe the military courts delivered successfully. There is

still need of them. We are very close to defeating terrorism com-pletely and we believe extension in their term is important. It would be good if they are extended again, but obviously it won’t be possible if there is no national consensus like there was at the time of NAP,” Chaudhry added.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government had sum-moned a session with opposition parties on March 28 to discuss the matter, but it was boycotted by the political parties.

The Pakistan People’s Party

(PPP) claims the government is yet to contact them over the issue.

PPP’s Member National Assembly from Dr Nafisa Shah told BBC that her party’s stance remains clear that they don’t support military courts.

Defence Minister Pervez Khattak had informed the National Assembly in November last year that the military-run courts had decided a total of 478 cases, out of 700 cases referred to them by the Ministry of Interior since the launch of the military operation Zarb-e-Azb.

Pakistan calls for safety of UN peacekeepersISLAMABAD INTERNEWS

Voicing concern over the increasing number of fatalities suffered by United Nations peacekeepers operating around the world, Pakistan has under-scored the need for ensuring not only their security but also safety of the personnel in equal measure.

“While security will remain a challenge and will vary from mission to mission, the safety side of the coin can be addressed

by adequately equipping peace-keepers with training and nec-essary equipment, and better health facilities on the ground,” Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi said at a peacekeeping event co-hosted by Pakistan at UN Head-quarters in New York.

The panellists at the event included under-sectaries-general of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the Department of Field Support.

Between 2014 and 2019, the Pakistani envoy said, 193 peace-keepers lost their lives due to

deliberate attacks, 117 due to accidents, 231 as a result of illness and 69 were listed under other causes. Ambassador Lodhi said it was important for the troop and police contributing countries, the Security Council and the Secretariat to work together enabling better decision making related to planning of peacekeeping missions.

Pakistan is one of the largest contributors to UN peace-keeping, with over five thousand troops serving in missions around the world.

Murder charge dropped against secondsuspect in Kim assassination caseAFP SHAH ALAM, MALAYSIA

A Vietnamese woman accused of assassinating the North Korean leader’s half-brother is to walk free after Malaysia dropped murder charges against her yesterday, weeks after her Indonesian co-accused was also released.

The 2017 killing of Kim Jong Nam with a toxic nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur’s international airport shocked the world, but Doan Thi Huong’s guilty plea to the lesser charge of “causing injury” makes her the only

person convicted in the case.The two women’s suspected

North Korean handlers were allowed to leave Malaysia in the days after the murder.

The pair, who claimed they were tricked into carrying out the killing, were put on trial facing a murder charge.

But last month the charge against Indonesian suspect Siti Aisyah was dropped and yes-terday, prosecutors withdrew the charge against the second accused, Doan Thi Huong from Vietnam, and replaced it with a lesser one.

She pleaded guilty to

“causing injury” and was handed a three year and four month jail term, with her lawyers saying she would be freed next month due to sentence reductions. The women would have been sen-tenced to death by hanging if convicted of murder.

Huong, a 30-year-old former hair salon worker, said she was “happy” after the verdict was handed down. “This is a fair sentence,” she told reporters at the High Court in Shah Alam, outside Kuala Lumpur. “This is a fair judgement, I thank the Malaysian government and the Vietnamese government.”

Vietnamese national Doan Thi Huong (centre) is escorted out of the High Court in Shah Alam, yesterday.

Imran Khan greetsErdogan after polls

ANATOLIA KARACHI

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has extended congratu-lations to Turkey’s President on his party’s win in Sunday’s local elections.

“I am delighted to congrat-ulate friend of Pakistan Recep Tayyip Erdogan on another important victory in the Turkish local elections,” Imran Khan said in a tweet yesterday.

“The people of Pakistan wish him many more suc-cesses,” he added.

Street art in Lahore

US peace envoy returns to Kabul ahead of Taliban talksAGENCIES KABUL

US Special Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad yesterday said he was in Kabul to meet with Afghan officials ahead of his next round of talks with the Taliban aimed at ending more than 17 years of war.

The Afghan-born US Adviser tweeted that he had already met with some government repre-sentatives with responsibility for the Afghan peace process.

“We discussed the urgency of making progress on intra-Afghan dialogue,” Khalilzad wrote.

Khalilzad’s last round of talks with the Taliban was orig-inally slated to last two days in February, but dragged on for 16 days, eventually ending on March 12 with Khalilzad saying “real strides” had been made.

On the table were proposals to get foreign armed forces to leave Afghanistan, and the Taliban to guarantee the country cannot be used as a springboard for terror groups to launch any future attacks.

The State Department on Friday said Khalilzad’s trip was “part of an overall effort to facil-itate a peace process that brings all Afghan parties together in inclusive intra-Afghan negotiations”.

But so far the talks have not i n c l u d e d t h e K a b u l government.

The Taliban have long refused to speak with Kabul,

deeming the administration of President Ashraf Ghani - who is seeking re-election this year - puppets of the West.

Khalilzad’s trip has already seen him stop in London and Brussels as he seeks global support for a peace deal.

Last week, he met with rep-resentatives from China, Russia and the European Union in Washington.

Meanwhile, Taliban fighters stormed checkpoints in northern and western Afghanistan, killing at least eight members of the country’s security forces and in one attack, setting off an hours-long gunbattle, provincial offi-cials said.

According to Zabihullah Amani, spokesman for the pro-vincial Governor in Sari Pul province, five security personnel were killed in an attack there in Sozma Qala district that started late on Sunday night. The fighting lasted until yesterday morning.

The insurgents captured six soldiers before fleeing the scene and their fate remains unknown, Amani said. The checkpoints were later retaken and the area was brought under control once reinforcements arrived. No one immediately claimed responsi-bility for the attack, but Amani blamed the Taliban.

The Taliban also yesterday overran an army checkpoint in western Badghis province, killing three soldiers, said Jamshid Shahabi, spokesman for provincial Governor.

30 firefighters dead in China forest fireAFP BEIJING

Thirty firefighters died after they were sent to tackle a forest blaze in remote mountains in southwest China’s Sichuan province at the weekend, authorities said yesterday.

Nearly 700 firefighters were deployed to battle the fire, which broke out on Saturday on steep terrain at an altitude of around 4,000 metres (13,000 feet) in Muli County, the Min-istry of Emergency man-agement said.

Rescuers have found the bodies of 30 firefighters earlier listed as missing, the Ministry said on its official twitter-like Weibo account.

Local authorities had lost contact with 30 firefighters Sunday afternoon after a sudden change in wind direction ignited a “huge fireball”, the Ministry had said in an earlier statement.

Footage aired by state broadcaster CCTV showed plumes of smoke coming from the forested, mountainous region.

A separate forest fire that lasted two days in the northern province of Shanxi was brought under control on Sunday, the official Xinhua news agency said.

More than 9,000 people were evacuated from their homes due to that blaze, which did not cause any casualties.

13TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 EUROPE

Ukraine comedian leads presidential race

AP KIEV

Volodymyr Zelensky has no political experience, but that’s no problem for the people of Ukraine who have already seen that working for him.

In a striking example of fiction morphing into reality, the 41-year-old comedian and actor seems set to take the top office for real, following in the foot-steps of the man he plays in a wildly popular television series - an ordinary teacher who becomes an unlikely president and succeeds in bringing the country together.

Zelensky took a commanding lead against the incumbent in Sunday’s presidential election, putting him in a strong position for the runoff in three weeks’ time.

“This is only the first step toward a great victory,” Zelensky said after the vote.

His easygoing manner and snappy talk on the campaign trail strongly resembled his character in “Servant of the People” — a schoolteacher catapulted into the presidential seat after a student’s video of him blasting official cor-ruption goes viral.

The TV series that premiered

in the fall of 2015 painted a gro-tesque satirical picture of Ukraine’s officialdom, complete with easily recognisable parodies of serving politicians. It has been immensely popular, attracting up to 20 million viewers in the nation of 42 million - a sign that it hit a nerve in a country fed up with endemic corruption and grinding poverty.

Zelenskiy’s character, Vasyl Holoborodko, at first looks too naive and soft-hearted to survive in the cruel world of Ukraine’s corruption-ridden elite. But he learns quickly and soon turns into a strong leader capable of

defeating his wily and experi-enced foes without losing his integrity. The series is full of pro-fanities and crude humour, but Holoborodko turns serious when he talks about the country’s challenges.

The latest season of “Servant of the People,” shown just days before the election, opens with Holoborodko thrown into prison on trumped-up charges fabri-cated by his pitiless foes.

Inmates hired by his enemies try to kill him, but he survives and gets out, to find Ukraine broken into multiple fiefdoms and sunken deeper in poverty.

He regains the presidential post and leads the country to peace, prosperity, integration into Europe and reunification.

These are the challenges incumbent President Petro Poro-shenko has sorely failed to meet, and Zelenskiy’s electoral success clearly reflects public aspirations that he could be just as successful in real life as his character was on screen.

Ukraine has suffered from economic meltdown, endemic corruption and a spiraling con-flict with Russia-backed separa-tists in eastern Ukraine that has killed 13,000 people since 2014. Its hopes for integration into the European Union and Nato remain as elusive as ever, and there is no realistic way for

Ukraine to reclaim control over the Crimean Peninsula that Russia annexed in 2014 in a move that most of the world sees as illegal.

For those who cast ballots for Zelenskiy, his lack of political skills is a major advantage, a welcome break from the cast of familiar political figures asso-ciated with the country’s woes.

Born to a professorial family in the industrial city of Kryvyi Rih when Ukraine still was part of the Soviet Union, Zelensky is a native Russian speaker, some-thing that helped him sweep the vote in central, eastern and southern regions where many speak Russian. Pressed on political and economic issues on campaign trail, Zelensky usually

avoids excessive details, prom-ising to rely on a team of professionals.

Zelensky rejects Porosh-enko’s claim that his lack of experience will make him unable to stand up to Russia, pledging to firmly defend Ukraine’s interests. He charged late on Sunday that he will make sure that Russia not only returns the occupied territory back to Ukraine but pays compensation for the “disgusting and horrible” land grab. In Moscow, law-makers and commentators have described Zelenskiy’s strong showing as a sign of public dis-illusionment with the current government, but most predict that the tug-of-war between the two neighbours will continue.

Ukrainian comic actor, showman and presidential frontrunner Volodymyr Zelensky plays table tennis with a journalist ahead of the provisional results at the party’s headquarters in Kiev yesterday.

Zelensky took a commanding lead against the incumbent in Sunday’s presidential election, putting him in a strong position for the runoff in three weeks’ time.

UK Parliament seeks new options on BrexitAP LONDON

Britain’s Parliament sought a way out of the country’s Brexit morass yesterday, holding a series of votes that could soften or reverse the UK’s departure from the European Union — if a majority of lawmakers can agree.

With just 12 days until the UK must come up with a new plan or crash out of the bloc in chaos, the House of Commons was con-sidering four alternatives to Prime Minister Theresa May’s unpopular Brexit deal.

After May’s plan suffered three defeats in Parliament, and with Britain due to leave the EU on April 12, lawmakers seized temporary control of the parlia-mentary agenda to try to find a way forward.

Conservative lawmaker Ken Clarke, one of those behind Mon-day’s votes, said the Brexit process “has been a shambles.” “Today we have got to start to bring that to an end,” he said.

Two of the four options —chosen by House of Commons Speaker John Bercow from eight submissions — aim to keep Britain in a close economic

relationship with the bloc after Brexit. One seeks continued membership in the EU’s customs union, guaranteeing smooth and tariff-free trade in goods. The second goes further, calling for Britain to stay in the EU’s bor-derless single market for both goods and services.

Both ideas have strong support among opposition

lawmakers and some pro-EU members of the governing Con-servatives, who think they would ease the economic shock of Brexit. But many pro-Brexit pol-iticians see them as halfway measures that fall short of true departure from the bloc.

A third proposal calls for any Brexit deal Britain strikes with the EU to be put to a public

referendum. The fourth would let Britain cancel Brexit if it came within two days of crashing out of the bloc without a deal.

Yesterday’s votes in Par-liament follow an earlier round last week in which none of the eight options on offer secured a majority. The customs union and second referendum proposals gained the most support. May has

ruled out all the ideas under con-sideration. But the divorce deal she negotiated with the EU has been rejected by Parliament three times, leaving Britain with a no-deal Brexit that could cause turmoil for people and businesses on both sides of the Channel.

The April 12 deadline, imposed by the EU, gives May less than two weeks to bridge the hostile divide that separates those in her government who want to sever links with the EU and those who want to keep the ties that have bound Britain to the bloc for almost 50 years.

May, who is renowned for her dogged determination, could try to bring her Brexit agreement back for a fourth time later this week. Her spokesman, James Slack, said the prime minister “believes there is a majority in the House for leaving in an orderly way with a deal,” and her agreement was the best on offer.

The government is consid-ering holding a runoff vote between May’s deal and whatever gains the most support on Monday. May’s hope is that pro-Brexit opponents would back the deal if the only alternative was an even softer Brexit.

Anti-Brexit supporters protest outside the Houses of Parliament, in London yesterday.

3 bodies found in plane crash that left Russian tycoon dead AP BERLIN

German authorities yesterday recovered the bodies of three people, including one of Russia’s richest women, who were killed in a small plane crash near Frankfurt a day earlier.

Russian airline S7 Group said co-owner Natalia Fileva was aboard the single-engine, six-seat Epic LT aircraft that crashed and burned Sunday afternoon in a field as it approached the small airport at the German town of Egelsbach near Frankfurt. The business publi-cation Forbes.ru has estimated Fileva’s fortune at $600m.

Russian news reports said Fileva, who co-owned S7 with her husband, was travelling with

her father. German police have said there were two Russian cit-izens on board but haven’t pro-vided any positive identification of the victims yet. The plane took off from the Mediterranean city of Cannes, a popular holiday destination for rich Russians on the glitzy French Riviera.

The cause of the crash remained unclear on Monday. Knut Happel, a spokesman for prosecutors in Darmstadt, said investigators hope for evidence from witnesses and the burnt-out wreckage itself but, given the state of the plane, it will probably take “some time” to establish. The Moscow-based Interstate Aviation Committee said in a statement that it sent a group of experts to help the German investigation.

Govt to take over Birmingham prison from G4SREUTERS EDINBURGH

Britain’s government will from July 1 permanently take over the running of Birmingham Prison from private operator G4S after inmate violence made the prison unmanageable.

The government took control from G4S, the world’s largest security company, last summer.

The central England prison for 1,200 inmates, built in the 19th century, was deemed then by the chief inspector of prisons Peter Clarke to be operating in “squalid” conditions.

The transfer on a per-manent basis is in the best interests of the company and its staff, G4S prison services manager Jerry Petherick said.

G4S operates another four major British prisons.

German nurse charged with murdering six AP BERLIN

Munich prosecutors say they have charged a nurse with murder on allegations he killed six patients in his care with injections of insulin that they didn’t medically need.

Prosecutors said the 37-year-old man also faces counts of attempted murder for injecting three other patients who survived, the dpa news agency reported yesterday.

Prosecutors say the suspect, whose name wasn’t given for privacy reasons, admits giving the insulin shots but denies intending to kill anyone.

Investigators have been looking into the case since Feb-ruary 2018 when they were looking into the death of an 87-year-old man from near Munich, and an autopsy revealed fresh needle marks.

He also faces charges of robbery and fraud.

May holds knife-crime summit with teachers ordered to identify violent youthREUTERS LONDON

Prime Minister Theresa May held a special meeting on tackling Britain’s soaring knife-crime rate yesterday after the government announced new plans that could make teachers and health workers responsible for tackling violent behaviour.

The meeting with experts in youth violence in May’s Downing Street office comes after a spate of high-profile deaths sparked a debate in Britain over whether a nationwide decline in the number of police officers is behind a rise in stabbings.

Over the weekend, four people were stabbed in what police said were unprovoked attacks in London. At least 48

people in Britain have been stabbed to death since the start of the year. The new proposals could see teachers, nurses and police officers held to account if they fail to spot warning signs of violent crime among young people. “In recent months we’ve seen appalling number of young lives cut short or devastated by serious violence crime including a number of horrifying incidents this weekend,” May said.

“In many cases the perpe-trators of these crimes are as young as their victims and this is something that has to be of deep concern to us all.” There were 285 fatal stabbings in England and Wales in 2018, the highest level since records began more than 70 years ago, officials statistics showed last month.

Police say the surge in knife crime in a country where guns are hard to obtain has been driven by several factors, including rivalries between drug gangs, cuts to youth services and provocations on social media.

However, the government’s new approach faced opposition from some union officials and lawmakers. “Neither the blame for or the solution to violent crime can be laid at the door of schools or front-line hospital staff,” said Mary Bousted, who works at the National Education Union.

“Schools already have strong safeguarding practices in place and staff will be alerted to any issues of concern. The problem is what happens after issues of concern have been identified.”

14 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019AMERICAS

Grammy-nominated rapper Nipsey Hussle shot dead AP LOS ANGELES

Rapper Nipsey Hussle (pictured) was fatally shot outside the clothing store he founded to help rebuild his troubled South Los Angeles neighbourhood, police said, cutting short a career that earned him a Grammy nomi-nation this year for his major-label debut. He was 33.

Police said Hussle was one of three men shot on Sunday outside Marathon Clothing, his store in South Los Angeles; the other two were in stable con-dition. A large crowd gathered outside the store as night fell. Detectives were canvassing the area for witnesses and looking to see if any surveillance video captured the shooting, police Lt. Chris Ramirez said.

Mayor Eric Garcetti was among the many people expressing condolences. “Our

hearts are with the loved ones of Nipsey Hussle and everyone touched by this awful tragedy. L A is hurt deeply each time a young life is lost to senseless gun violence,” Garcetti tweeted. “My Crisis Response Team is assisting the families coping with shock and grief.” Hussle, who had two children and was engaged to actress Lauren London, was an Eritrean-American whose real name was Ermias Asghedom.

“This doesn’t make any sense! My spirit is shaken by this!,” Rihanna wrote while posting photos of Hussle with his daughter and another with his fiance. “Dear God may His spirit Rest In Peace and May You grant divine comfort to all his loved ones! I’m so sorry this happened to you @nipseyhussle.”

Hussle was born on August 15, 1985, in the same Crenshaw neighbourhood where he died, and where he had been working to provide youths with alterna-tives to the hustling he did when he was younger.

Los Angeles Police Commis-sioner Steve Soboroff tweeted that he and Police Chief Michel Moore had agreed with Hussle to meet with him and represent-atives of Roc Nation, Jay-Z’s entertainment agency and pro-duction company, to “talk about ways he could help stop gang violence and help us help kids.”

Trump: US census void sans citizenship queryREUTERS WASHINGTON

The US President Donald Trump yesterday injected himself into one of the most consequential cases of the current Supreme Court term, saying the nation’s 2020 census would be “mean-ingless” without adding a citi-zenship question to the ques-tionnaire.

The comment on Twitter came ahead of an expected ruling from the Supreme Court on whether Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’ decision to add the citizenship question violated federal law.

“Can you believe that the Radical Left Democrats want to do our new and very important Census Report without the all important Citizenship Question,” Trump tweeted. “Report would be meaningless and a waste of the $Billions (ridiculous) that it costs to put together!” The citi-zenship question is among a series of White House policies signalling tighter control over immigration.

These include Trump’s dec-laration in February of a national emergency to obtain funds for a wall on the US-Mexico border, and his threat to close the border as soon as this week, disrupting legal crossings as well as trade.

The US Constitution requires a census every 10 years, with results used to draw political boundaries, allocate seats in Congress and at the state and local level, and distribute roughly $800bn of federal funds.

Critics have accused Trump of encouraging an undercount by dissuading immigrants from participating in the census, more likely hurting Democrats than Republicans.

When Ross announced the addition of a citizenship question in March 2018, he said it was in response to a Department of Justice request for data to help enforce the Voting Rights Act, which protects eligible voters from discrimination.

Only US citizens can vote in federal elections. Non-citizens comprise about 7 percent of the 328.7 million people living in the United States. Census question-naires have not included a citi-zenship question since 1950.

“The census is the adminis-tration’s new front on its war on immigration and, sadly, the pres-ident’s tweet today bears out that concern,” said Terri Ann Lowenthal, a former staff director on the House census oversight committee who now advises groups seeking an accurate 2020 count.

The Supreme Court is reviewing a January 15 by US District Judge Jesse Furman in Manhattan, finding that the addition of the citizenship question was illegal, and that Ross’ decision to add it was “arbitrary and capricious.” Oral arguments are scheduled for April 23, with a decision expected by the end of June.

Furman said Commerce Sec-retary Wilbur Ross broke a “ver-itable smorgasbord” of federal rules by including the question, and that enforcement of the Voting Rights Act was a “pre-texual” rationale for adding it.

The judge said adding the question would cause many states to lose federal funding, while Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas would lose Congressional seats. Furman, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, stopped short of a finding that Ross intended to discriminate against immigrants.

Police outside The Marathon clothing store, owned by Grammy-nominated rapper Nipsey Hussle where he was fatally shot along with two others, who were wounded, on Sunday, in Los Angeles yesterday.

Justices rule against Missouri inmate with rare health issue REUTERS WASHINGTON

The Supreme Court said yesterday that Missouri can execute an inmate who argued his rare medical condition will result in severe pain if he is given death-causing drugs.

The justices split along ide-ological lines in ruling 5-4 against inmate Russell Bucklew (BUCK-loo), who is on death row for a 1996 murder.

Justice Neil Gorsuch’s opinion for the court’s five con-servative justices rejected Buck-lew’s argument that subjecting

him to lethal injection could cause a tumour in his throat to burst and make him choke on his own blood. Bucklew said that would violate the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

“Today we bring this case to a close at last because we agree with the courts below that Mr. Bucklew’s claim isn’t supported by either the law or the evi-dence,” Gorsuch said in summa-rizing his decision from the bench. Bucklew was up against Supreme Court precedent in trying to get the justices to agree with him.

Mexico wants to ‘bring order’ to migration to US REUTERS MEXICO CITY

Mexico will help to regulate the flow of Central American migrants passing through its territory to the United States, but the root causes behind the phenomenon must be tackled, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said yesterday.

Speaking after US President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to close the US southern border if Mexico did not halt illegal immigration immediately, Lopez Obrador said he would not have a confrontation with the United States.

“I prefer love and peace,” Lopez Obrador told reporters at his regular morning news conference.

Most of the people caught at the US border trying to enter illegally come from three violent and impoverished Central American countries: Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Apprehensions at the US border have surged in recent months, angering Trump and putting pressure on Lopez Obrador to find a solution that will prevent a shutdown of the frontier to the market for 80 percent of Mexico’s exports.

Asked if it was time to put pressure on the Central American countries to address the problem, Lopez Obrador said the causes

of migration were “not being attended to” and that people needed to be offered more opportunities there.

“Obviously, we have to help because Central American migrants pass through our territory and we have to bring order to this migration, make sure it’s legal,” Lopez Obrador said.

“That’s what we’re doing. But serenely,

calmly, without a commotion and with great prudence and responsibility.” Lopez Obrador declined to reveal whether the government was taking preparations for a possible shutdown of the border, saying he did not want to get ahead of himself.

The leftist Mexican president has con-sistently refused to get drawn into a war of words with Trump over the border.

Critics have accused Trump of encouraging an undercount by dissuading immigrants from participating in the census, more likely hurting Democrats than Republicans.

ICC President urges US to join global criminal courtAFP THE HAGUE

The International Criminal Court’s top official has called on the United States to join and support its work after Wash-ington recently stepped up its dispute with the global legal body.

ICC President Chile Eboe-Osuji called on the US to “join her closest allies and friends at the table of the Rome Statute”, referring to the court’s founding document.

“The past, present and future victims of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes need her to do so,” Eboe-Osuji said in remarks made in the US capital on Friday, released by the court yesterday.

The United States has never joined the ICC, whose chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda asked judges in November 2017 to authorise her to open a probe into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.

Some legal experts say the case is the Hague-based court’s

most complex and politically controversial investigation to date. It could be the first time alleged crimes committed by US forces could be under the spotlight.

In response, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced two weeks ago that they would deny visas to ICC members involved in any investigations into actions of US troops in Afghanistan or other countries.

It was the US’s first concrete action against the ICC since the White House threatened reprisals against the tribunal in September last year.

But Eboe-Osuji said: “It is, with all due sense of responsi-bility that I directly request the leadership of the United States to give its support to the ICC.” The ICC is the world’s only inde-pendent legal body set up in 2002 in The Hague to try the gravest of crimes such genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. It can however only get involved when states are unwilling or unable to inves-tigate themselves.

Cars queue up in multiple lines as they wait to be inspected by US border patrol officers to enter from Mexico into the US at the San Ysidro point of entry in Tijuana, Mexico, yesterday.

Call for probe into Brazil’s sniper killingsAP RIO DE JANEIRO

A Brazilian state lawmaker asked yesterday that an inves-tigation be opened into the police’s use of sharpshooters to kill alleged criminals.

Renata Souza, leader of the human rights commission in Rio de Janeiro’s lower house, said the death penalty isn’t allowed in Brazil and the use of sharpshooters is illegal. She requested the investigation a day after state Gov. Wilson Witzel told Brazilian daily O Globo that the police had been using snipers in the streets of Rio. “The police officer is who decides whether to shoot in the head or another part of the body,” Witzel said in a Sunday interview with the paper.

He has vowed to target drug traffickers carrying rifles and treat such people as “narco-ter-rorists.” Witzel was sworn in on January 1 after campaigning on a promise to be tough on crime, a stance which often aligns with that of President Jair Bolsonaro.

Souza argued that the use of sharpshooters was “a crime against humanity” and “uncon-stitutional.” “The governor is irresponsible, leaving it up to police officers to decide whether residents should live or die,” Souza said.

Rio On Watch, a community reporting project, says it has registered at least seven inci-dents since the beginning of the year in which helicopters were seen shooting at favelas.

In February, the Brazilian branch of Human Rights Watch warned that police might have used sharpshooters to kill at least two men and injure another in a Rio de Janeiro neighbourhood.

Former US resident at Guantanamo seeks to cut prison term

FORT MEADE AP

A former US resident who joined Al Qaeda and is now jailed at the Guantanamo Bay detention centre returned to court yesterday at the US base in Cuba as he seeks to cut his expected prison term.

Majid Khan, a native of Pakistan who attended high school outside of Baltimore, pleaded guilty in February 2012 before a military commission. In a deal with prosecutors, he agreed to testify against other prisoners at Guantanamo in exchange for a sentence not to exceed 19 years.

Khan’s lawyers are pre-paring to argue that his sen-tence should be further reduced because of the harsh treatment he endured while in CIA custody. He was subjected to what the government called “enhanced” interrogation that critics say amounted to torture. His defense team asked a judge at the base to order prosecutors to turn over documents and witnesses that would support their case.

Trial of formerUS cop who shot Australian woman begins AFP CHICAGO

Jury selection began yesterday in the murder trial of a former Minnesota police officer who fatally shot an unarmed Australian woman in 2017, provoking outrage in the United States and in the victim’s home country.

Police say Mohamed Noor shot Justine Damond in Minne-apolis in July 2017 while in the passenger seat of his police car.

She had approached the cruiser after calling police to report a possible abuse in the dark alley behind her home.

Damond was shot once in the abdomen and died at the scene. Noor was fired from the police force and charged with second-degree and third-degree murder, as well as second-degree manslaughter. He has pleaded not guilty.

15TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019 HOME

PHCC launches interprofessional CPD activityTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Workforce Development and Training Directorate at the Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) has announced the launch of an interprofessional Continuing Development Program (CPD) for physicians and nursing staff.

‘Basic Wound Care and Man-agement in Primary Care,’ a two-day event was developed and delivered in partnership with wound care experts from PHCC’s Department of Nursing (OPD/HGH) and Wound Care Service (ACS), Department of Dermatology and Venereology, Translational Research Institute.

This collaborative initiative will further develop the clinical skills of the medical and nursing workforce and enhance patient centred outcomes in support of the National Health Strategy (2018-2022) and the Nursing Vision (2017-2022) within PHCC.

Dr Zelaikha AlWahedi, Assistant Managing Director for Quality and Workforce

Development said that the new programme is in line with the Qatar National Health Strategy and the PHCC Nursing Vision. It was conducted by wound care experts from PHCC, and in col-loboration with the Hamad Medical Corporation.

“With the emerging advances in wound management, it is essential to continuously educate and uphold the clinical compe-tency of our health care

professionals. This approach subsequently empowers patients and families with knowledge and skills necessary to, in partnership with health care professionals, influence their health,” said Dr AlWahedi .

“The main objective of the programme is to maintain the high standard of practice in wound care management in primary care settings. This involves equipping the health

care providers with evidenced – b a s e d c o n t e m p o r a r y knowledge and competency based skills that fosters robust health care connection between the primary and secondary care settings.

The intention being that it reflects a multidisciplinary patient centred care model for the provision of safe, effective and efficient health care services,” she added.

The participants at the interprofessional Continuing Development Program for physicians and nursing staff.

Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Co hosts first Ghalai workshop THE PENINSULA DOHA

Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Co (SHM), authorised Nissan distributor, hosted the first workshop offered through Ghalai, Qatar’s National Child Passenger Safety Program.

Held at the Nissan showroom on Salwa Road, the training session, led by professional experts from Hamad Medical Corporation, introduced employees to the correct way of installing and adjusting infant car seats. This first workshop complements SHM’s sponsorship of Ghalai, supports the organisation’s corporate social respon-sibility programme, and reflects its pledge to road safety.

Named after the Qatari word used to say someone like a child is precious to him, Ghalai is part of the country’s ongoing commitment to improving road safety education and awareness. The programme came to life through col-laboration between several govern-mental and private organisations including the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Hamad Medical Corporation, Primary Healthcare Corporation, Sidra Medicine,

Qatar University, Conoco Philips, and Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Co.

Hisham Saleh Al Mana, Chairman & Managing Director, Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Co, said: “Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana is pleased to be the first to offer training to its employees. We are proud to support Qatar National Child Passenger Safety Program, Ghalai, to reflect our commitment to Qatar community, espe-cially our precious children.”

“Our partnership with Ghalai is part of our CSR programme and in line with our initiatives that focus on traffic and passengers’ safety. On this occasion, I would like to extend my sincere grat-itude to the Ministry of Public Health and all parties and stakeholders for joining their effort to set up this program and looking forward to more partner-ships soon,” said Al Mana.

Dr Khalid Abdulnoor Saifeldeen,

Director of Hamad International Training Center [HITC) and the chairman of Qatar National Child Passenger Safety Program, Ghalai, said: “Hamad International Training Center the official sponsor of Ghalai, in collaboration with Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Co, has launched a new training session for staff to be accredited professionals of the programme.

The training will be regularly con-ducted throughout the year to enable

all staff to learn about the vehicle’s safety features and how to install and fix baby seats. Their training is in line with international standards of the seat manufacturers as well as car safety features”.

Ghalai will offer a number of services including child passenger technician training and certification, purpose-built car seat check/testing stations, and a school visits drive. The program

inaugurated by Minister of Public Health, H E Dr. Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari, at the Women’s Wellness and Research Center (WWRC), shined a spotlight on Qatar’s first Ghalai Drive-Through Test Station.

Located in the basement of WWRC, it offers parents the services of Child Pas-senger Safety (CPS) technicians, who can teach them about the correct use of safety belts and fit child seats.

Ghalai will offer a number of services including child passenger technician training and certific-ation, purpose-built car seat check/testing stations, and a school visits drive.

Registration now open for AZF Ramadan Sports FestivalTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF) will host 12 astonishing sportive events, scheduled to take place during Ramadan Sports Festival from May 8 to 19 2019.

For those wishing to take part, registration is now open. Following the tremendous success of the past few years, the festival has become an antici-pated event for sport enthusiasts across Qatar. Last year, over a thousand people participated in events and competitions as Aspire made the connection between the holy month of Ramadan and sport.

Commenting on this year’s edition of the Ramadan Sports Festival, Abdullah Aman Al Khater, Director of Events and Venues at AZF and the chairman of the festival’s organising com-mittee, said: “It is the only festival in Qatar that comprises an array of various sports and welcomes people to enjoy the outdoor playing fields at Aspire and the

world-class facilities of Aspire Dome. The event has also created separate sport segments for women, teenagers and people with disabilities, to provide them with an opportunity to participate in one of Qatar’s most exciting festivals of the year.”

Abdullah added: “Every year, we strive to create more sports and activities that are widely accepted by families and indi-viduals by diversifying the activ-ities. We want to be able to accommodate wider segments of the society in Qatar, not only during Ramadan but throughout the year. The cumulative expe-rience of past events is being used to commensurate the wishes of the masses.” 2019 contests will comprise of: football, basketball, handball and hockey competi-tions for female and male. Youth events include fitness competi-tions, hockey, wall climbing activities for ages of four years and above, as well as walking in the Aspire Dome.

Those wishing to register can visit www.lifeinaspire.qa

Awareness campaign on thalassemia at NCCCRTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Importance of premarital screening and blood donation in preventing and caring for patients with thalassemia will be highlighted as part of awareness campaign at the National Center for Cancer Care and Research (NCCCR) next week.

Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder characterised by abnormal hemoglobin pro-duction. Dr Ussama Al Homsi, Chairman of Medical Oncology and Hematology, said the aim of the campaign is to highlight the significance of premarital screening for genetic blood dis-orders like thalassemia and the importance of blood donation in ensuring a safe blood supply to care for patients with thalassemia.

“Thalassemia is an inherited disorder affecting the blood cells resulting in the production of either no or too little hemo-globin, which is used by red blood cells to carry oxygen around the body.

The lack of hemoglobin results in reduced oxygen supply to every cell in the body. Tha-lassemia is also known as Med-iterranean anemia as it mainly affects people living in the Med-iterranean region,” said Dr Al Homsi.

“At HMC, we offer a full

range of services to care for all patients, including those with thalassemia. Experts at our Oncology and Hematology

Department focus on diagnosing and treating hematological (blood) malignancies as well as other blood disorders. We work collaboratively with our col-leagues and partners to ensure our patients receive the right care, at the right time. We strive to achieve clinical excellence in all aspects of care,” added Dr Al Homsi.

As part of planned activities, the hematology care team at NCCCR, in collaboration with Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) Patient and Family Edu-cation Department, will raise awareness of the causes and symptoms of the disorder as well as the treatment options available at HMC.

“Our awareness activities focus on simple steps that can be implemented to reduce the condition’s potentially devas-tating effects and improve the quality of life for thalassemia patients.

One of our top priorities is to ensure people are aware of thalassemia and are able to rec-ognise its symptoms as early as possible. Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that can’t be prevented. However, premarital testing remains an effective tool to determine how severe it may be and to decide on the best treatment options available,” said Dr Mohammed Yassin, Consultant, Hematology Department, NCCCR.

Dr Ussama Al Homsi

CMU-Q team wins Quick Startup 2019THE PENINSULA DOHA

A team from Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q) took first place at Quick Startup 2019, with their idea called VisKit. The idea, which the team developed during the three-day competition, is an all-in-one, dashboard mounted, heads-up display and mobile phone carriage to make sure drivers keep their eyes on the road. The system provides access to driving directions and advanced safety features like night vision and collision detection, without having drivers look at their mobile phones.

Quick Startup is a compe-tition for university students and new graduates to create a business plan and investor pitch over the course of a weekend. The winning team was comprised of four gradu-ating seniors from CMU-Q’s Business Administration

Program, Ommar Aburaddad, Mohamed Hamdi, Faisal Mir and Haris Syed.

Michael Trick, dean of CMU-Q, said, “Quick Startup is about more than developing one idea. We want participants to learn new skills, collaborate with teammates, and be inspired to think like entrepreneurs. Con-gratulations to the winners, and to all of the participants, for an enthusiastic and invigorating Quick Startup 2019.”

This is the fifth year that CMU-Q has hosted Quick Startup. This year, about 80 uni-versity students and new grad-uates from across Qatar partic-ipated in the competition that was sponsored by QNB.

QNB presented the awards for Quick Startup 2019 as part of its continued support for the training program and within its partnership with CMU-Q aimed at encouraging and nurturing an entrepreneurial ecosystem in Qatar.

The second place went to a CMU-Q team of students and alumni.

Abdulrahman Alfayad, Najlaa Al Thani, Nourhan Elkhatib and Mohammad Zakzok developed an idea called Malabna, a platform that would provide an easy, user-friendly and fast way to book sport courts and fields in Qatar.

The third place team included Qatar University stu-dents Huda Ahmed and Sherouk Hasan, as well as Arjun Ajith and Althaf Saifudeen, who proposed Qassure, an insurance aggre-gator, facilitator and adviser.

This year’s judges repre-sented many of the institutions within Qatar who promote entrepreneurial learning. Rep-resentatives from CMU-Q, College of the North Atlantic in Qatar, Qatar Business Incubation Center, Qatar Science and Tech-nology Park and Qatar Uni-versity chose the winners from among 22 team pitches.

The officials with the winners of the competition.

Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder characterised by abnormal hemoglobin production. Dr Ussama Al Homsi, Chairman of Medical Oncology and Hematology, said the aim of the campaign is to highlight the significance of premarital screening for genetic blood disorders like thalassemia.

The participants of the Ghalai Training workshop pose for a group photo.

Cherry blossoms in full bloom

16 TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2019MORNING BREAK

Scientists find likely source of methane on MarsAFP PARIS

The mystery of methane on Mars may finally be solved as scientists yesterday confirmed the presence of the life-indi-cating gas on the Red Planet as well as where it might have come from.

In the 15 years since a European probe reported traces of the gas in the Martian atmosphere, debate has raged over the accuracy of the readings showing methane, which on Earth is produced by simple lifeforms.

Because methane gas dissipates rel-atively quickly — within around 12 years on Earth— and due to the difficulty of observing Mars’ atmosphere, many sci-entists questioned previous studies that relied on a single data set.

Now an international team of experts have compared observations from two separate spacecraft, taken just one day apart in 2013, to find inde-pendent proof of methane on our neigh-bouring planet.

Furthermore, they conducted two parallel experiments to determine the most likely source of methane on Mars to be an ice sheet east of Gale Crater —itself long assumed to be a dried up lake.

“This is very exciting and largely unexpected,” Marco Giuranna, from Rome’s National Astrophysics Institute, said.

“Two completely independent lines of investigation pointed to the same general area of the most likely source for the methane.” Europe’s Mars Express probe measured 15.5 parts per billion in the atmosphere above the Gale Crater on June 16, 2013. The presence of methane in the vicinity was confirmed by readings taken 24 hours earlier by NASA’s Curiosity rover.

Using the data, Giuranna and the team divided the region around the crater into grids of 250 by 250 square kilometres.

One study then ran a million com-puter-modelled emissions scenarios for each section while another team studied images of the planet surface for features associated on Earth with the release of methane.

- ‘Indicator of life’ - The most likely source was a sheet of frozen methane beneath a rock formation, which the team believes periodically ejects the gas into the atmosphere.

Giuranna said that while methane is a sign of life on Earth, its presence on

Mars doesn’t necessarily constitute evi-dence of something similar on the Red Planet.

“Methane is important because it could be an indicator of microbial life,” he said. “But life is not required to explain these detections because methane can be produced by abiotic processes.”

“Though not a direct biosignature of life, methane can add to the habita-bility of martian settings, as certain types of microbes can use methane as a source of carbon and energy,” he added.

Though there is no liquid water on Mars, the European Space Agency said in February its imaging equipment had shown further evidence of dried up river beds, suggesting the Red Planet may once have been home to simple organisms.

Giuranna said that further research was needed to determine the extent of the methane ice sheet near Gale Crater.

If founded to be extensive, the methane it contains “could support a sustained human presence” on Mars as a possible source of fuel for industrial processes and a propellant for returning manned missions to Earth, he said.

WWF sounds alarm after 22kg of plastic found in dead whaleAP MILAN, ITALY

An 8-meter (26-foot) sperm whale was found dead off Sardinia with 22kg (48.5 pounds) of plastic in its belly, prompting the World Wildlife Foundation to sound an alarm yesterday over the dangers of plastic waste in the Mediterranean Sea.

The environmental group said the garbage recovered from the sperm whale’s stomach included a corrugated tube for electrical works, plastic plates, shopping bags, tangled fishing lines and a washing detergent package with its bar code still legible.

The female whale beached off the northern coast of Sardinia last week, within the vast Pelagos marine sanctuary that was created as a haven for dolphins, whales and other sea life.

“It is the first time we have been con-fronted with an animal with such a huge quantity of garbage,” Cinzia Centelegghe, a biologist with the University of Padova, told the Turin daily La Stampa.

The exam also determined that the whale was carrying a fetus that had died and was in an advance state of decompo-sition. Experts said the mother whale had been unable to digest calamari due to the huge amount of plastic it had ingested, filling two-thirds of its stomach.

WWF said plastic is one of the greatest threats to marine life and has killed at least five other whales that had ingested large amounts of it over the last two years from Europe to Asia.

Americans still don’t trust self-driving carsREUTERS NEW YORK

Half of US adults think automated vehicles are more dangerous than traditional vehicles operated by people, while nearly two-thirds said they would not buy a fully autonomous vehicle, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll.

In the same poll, about 63 percent of those who responded said they would not pay more to have a self-driving feature on their vehicle, and 41 percent of the rest said they would not pay more than $2,000.

The poll results outline the challenges that face car and truck makers, delivery companies, technology companies and ride services operators such as Uber Technologies Inc and Lyft Inc. All are plowing capital into developing self-driving vehicles and related hardware. Developers of the technology are making progress, but polls indicate the industry’s efforts to build public trust and commercial demand lag behind. The findings are similar to those in a 2018 Reuters/Ipsos poll. They are con-sistent with results in surveys by Pew Research Center, the American Automobile Association and others. In March 2018, after the 2018 Reuters/Ipsos poll, an Uber vehicle operating in self-driving mode struck and killed a pedestrian in Arizona.

Relatively few US residents have seen or ridden in a self-driving vehicle, and experts said suspicion of unknown tech-nology can give way to acceptance once it becomes more familiar. “People are comfortable with things they know,” said investor Chris Thomas, co-founder of Fontinalis Partners and Detroit Mobility Lab. “When everybody understands the game-changing attributes of automated vehicles, how they can give you back all that time to read or work or sleep, they will start to ask about the value of that recaptured time.”

For companies investing in autonomous vehicles, public mistrust and the unwillingness to pay for self-driving systems are an increasingly urgent problem. But widespread deployment of fully self-driving vehicles is some years away, industry officials and experts said. Alphabet Inc’s Waymo unit has deployed a small fleet of self-driving vans to provide rides for customers in Arizona, and other companies have self-driving vehicles on public streets in test fleets.

“At the moment, those responses are largely based on zero knowledge and zero experience, so it’s mostly a visceral reaction to something they read about, like the (2018) Uber crash in Arizona,” said Dan Sperling, director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis, and the author of several books on future transportation. Autonomous vehicle companies have been trying for more than two years to get the U.S. Congress to enact legislation that would give a regulatory green light to self-driving cars.

So far, opposition has bottled up the industry friendly bills. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration mean-while has yet to act on proposals to exempt autonomous vehicles from conventional vehicle safety standards. Two-thirds of survey respondents said self-driving cars should be held to higher government safety standards than traditional vehicles driven by humans.

“Somebody needs to be held accountable,” said survey respondent Carla Ross, 62, a teacher from Norfolk, Virginia. “Those cars shouldn’t even go on the road until they can guar-antee a certain percentage of safety.” The poll’s findings that most consumers would not pay for self-driving vehicle capa-bility underscores concerns within the vehicle industry about the high costs of the technology, such as lidar sensors and high-powered onboard computers. Lidar is similar to radar but uses laser light instead of radio waves.

“I’m concerned that even when we get the technology absolutely right, we will not have the business,” said investor and corporate adviser Evangelos Simoudis, managing director of Synapse Partners, which invests in autonomous vehicle technology startups.

Self-driving expert Bryant Walker Smith, a law professor at the University of South Carolina, said a number of com-panies “don’t actually want to sell people these cars - they want to rent us these services. They want us to pay every month, every trip.”

For many Americans, “$2,000 is a lot of money,” he said. “If you’d asked people if they’d pay $15,000 for an advanced safety package or even $10,000 for a luxury trim package, the answer in a lot of cases is going to be no.” The challenges of turning over critical safety systems to robots are now a central issue in debate over how regulators should respond to a pair of deadly crashes involving Boeing 737 MAX air-liners. Investigators trying to determine the causes of crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia are focusing on evidence that an automated flight control system on the jets put the planes into nose dives, and pilots were unable to override the systems.

AP/LONDON

Britain’s only female giant panda has been artificially inseminated in a bid to produce a cub.

Officials at Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland said yes-terday it’s “far too early” to know if the procedure was a success. The zoo said Tian Tian had her annual health check on Sunday and was artificially inseminated “under expert veterinary care.” Tian Tian, 15, has had cubs in China but not in Britain, where she and male companion Yang Guang have lived since 2011. Her name means “sunshine.”

There have been attempts to breed a cub every year since then, thus far without success. The zoo says the gestation period for a giant panda is typically about five months.

Cherry trees are in full bloom at the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC. The National Park Service said this year’s cherry blossoms have reached peak bloom yesterday.

UK’s only female giant panda artificially inseminated

Fish mucus offers potential new antibiotics

IANS/NEW YORK

With current antibiotics dwindling in effectiveness against multidrug-resistant pathogens, researchers have identified an untapped anti-biotic candidate in the protective mucus that coats young fish. The mucus contains bacteria with promising antibiotic activity against known pathogens-even dangerous organisms, such as the microbe that causes MRSA infections.

This viscous substance protects fish from bacteria, fungi, and viruses in their environment, trapping the microbes before they can cause infections. The slime is also rich in polysaccha-rides and peptides known to have antibacterial activity.

“Fish mucus is really interesting because the envi-ronment the fish live in is complex,” said Molly Austin, an undergraduate chemistry student at the Oregon State University. “They are in contact with their envi-ronment all the time with many pathogenic viruses.”

The researchers will be presented at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2019 National Meeting and Exposition.

For the study, the mucus was swabbed from juvenile deep-sea and surface-dwelling fish caught off the Southern California coast. The team examined young fish because they have a less-developed immune system and more mucus on the outside of their scales that could contain a greater concentration of active bac-teria than adult fish.

FAJRSHOROOK

04. 08 AM05. 25 AM

11. 38 AM03. 06 PM

05. 53 PM07. 23 PM

ZUHRASR

MAGHRIBISHA

PRAYER TIMINGS

WEATHER TODAY

Courtesy: Qatar Meteorology Department

Minimum Maximum24oC 27oC

HIGH TIDE 03:11 –15:21 LOW TIDE 11:00 – 21:22

Moderate temperature daytime with slight dust

at times and partly cloudy to cloudy at times

with chance of light rain at some places maybe.