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N O I T P I R C S B U S SUNDAY, MARCH 26, 2017 JAMADA ALTHANI 28,1438 AH www.kuwaittimes.net Travellers to Troubled EU Purchase of Arrogate Germany urged renews vows 777-300ERs a wins Dubai 5 7 21 20 to apply for on 60th ‘game-changer’ World Cup visas early anniversary for KAC thriller S Govt to name, shame slack L FI 0 5 1 9 officials as streets deluged Min 16º 7 1 7 Max 27º 1 O: N High Tide 11:27 & 22:46 S E G Fire Dept uses boats, divers to rescue trapped motorists Low Tide A 0 P 05:08 & 17:01 4 KUWAIT: The minister of public works announced yes- Weary flyers terday that a panel would be formed to examine why some roads and public places were swamped with rain- shrug as laptop water late Friday. Civil servants who were slack and failed to deal with the situation “would be exposed” ban takes off along with those who were responsible for the wide- scale flooding witnessed in Kuwait due to heavy rain, Abdulrahman Al-Mutawa indicated. DUBAI: A controversial ban on carry-on laptops and In a statement to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), tablets on flights from the Middle East to the United Mutawa said he held an emergency meeting with offi- States and Britain went into effect yesterday - with cials of his department to discuss the causes of the less fanfare and frustration than expected. From problem. A special and neutral committee will be Dubai to Doha, passengers on dozens of flights formed to examine the causes that led to accumulation checked in their electronic devices, many shrugging of huge volumes of water on roads and public squares off the measure as yet another inconvenience of in the country, he added, indicating that names of the global travel. “It’s a rule. I follow the rules,” said Rakan civil servants responsible for the problem would be Mohammed, a Qatari national who flies from Doha publicized. to the US two to three times a year. “The bigger The slack personnel including contractors will be problem for my family is the no smoking. On a long referred to the public prosecution, the minister flight, they become restless after three hours.” declared. The relevant panel will prepare a report about At Dubai International, one of the world’s busiest the issue and refer it to competent authorities in two hubs, flag carrier Emirates dispatched staff to guide weeks. Some low-lying locations in the country were passengers through one of the most intense travel swamped with torrential rainwater late Friday, amid weekends of the year. Around 1.1 million people are unstable weather gripping the entire Arabian Peninsula. expected to pass through as the city marks UAE Meanwhile, the fire department’s PR and media spring break, Dubai Airports said. An estimated department said firemen dealt with 49 reports during 260,000 travellers were expected each day from the stormy weather. The department added that all Friday through tomorrow. Dubai International land, marine and airport fire brigades were on full alert Airport expects 89 million passengers this year. during the stormy weather, when rainfall reached 50 Staff in red suits could be seen at the airport yes- mm in Ahmadi and boats had to be used to rescue 20 terday carrying signs explaining the electronics ban, KUWAIT: Firefighters and rescue workers salvage vehicles submerged in rainwater on Fahaheel Expressway people trapped inside their vehicles by the rainwater. ready to appease travellers with games near Mangaf yesterday. Kuwait is experiencing unstable weather including thunderstorms, sandstorms and KFSD added that divers made sure no one was trapped Continued on Page 13 strong winds. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat(More pics on Page 3) inside completely submerged vehicles. — Agencies Trump suffers humiliating defeat Troubled Obamacare repeal bid collapses WASHINGTON: US President Donald damaging reversals and controversies, Buck stops Trump faced the biggest blow yet to his Trump must now consider how to move young presidency as his bid to repeal forward in the face of a fractured, rebel- Obamacare went down in flames at the lious Congress. “Trump will have a very with Trump hands of rebel Republican lawmakers. hard time dealing with these divides Barely two months into his term, Trump because he does not understand them,” was forced to withdraw an embattled said John Pitney, a professor of American WASHINGTON:Donald Trump sat in the Oval Office Republican healthcare bill Friday, moments politics at Claremont-McKenna College. on Friday evening in an unfamiliar position - having before a vote, leaving his campaign pledge On Trump’s agenda are a major over- to own failure. His healthcare reform, his very first to dismantle his predecessor’s healthcare haul of the tax system and a bill to upgrade significant legislative proposal, had fallen at the reforms unfulfilled. infrastructure like roads and bridges. “We first hurdle in a friendly Congress. For sure, the 70- The stinging defeat showed the limits were very, very close” to securing enough year-old businessman had faltered before - from of Trump’s power to deliver on an ambi- support for the bill, Trump said in the Oval bankrupt casinos to shuttered hotels. But until now tious legislative agenda despite Office. But with no Democratic backing, bravado was enough to keep his brand intact, and Republican control of both houses of “we couldn’t quite get there”. carry him all the way to the White House. Congress. Already rocked by a string of Continued on Page 13 MUSCAT: The lights on the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque are switched off for an Now - in the fiercest spotlight in the world, as hour yesterday as iconic landmarks and skylines plunged into darkness as the president of the United States - there was nowhere ‘Earth Hour’ switch-off of lights around the world got under way to raise aware- to hide. Fittingly perhaps, Trump addressed his fail- ness of climate change. — AFP ure from behind a desk in the Oval Office. It was in that same spot that Harry Truman kept a sign that World’s cities, monuments encapsulated all the pressures and accountability of an imperial presidency: “The buck stops here.” switch off for Earth Hour Trump was not ready to take quite that much ownership, although he did profess to be “a little SYDNEY: Sydney’s Opera House and planet. “We started Earth Hour in 2007 to surprised” by the plan’s failure. We got close, he Harbour Bridge plunged into darkness yes- show leaders that climate change was an said, as if it mattered. But Trump offered surprising- terday to mark Earth Hour, as global land- issue people cared about,” coordinator ly little criticism for his brothers-in-arms. That may marks began dimming their lights to draw Siddarth Das said. “For that symbolic come when the dust falls. His criticism of the attention to climate change. Millions of moment to turn into the global movement Democrats - none of whom were ever going to people from some 170 countries and terri- it is today, is really humbling and speaks vote for a bill that dismantled Barack Obama’s sig- tories were expected to take part in the volumes about the powerful role of people nature health reform - felt almost formulaic. annual bid to highlight global warming in issues that affect their lives.” At the end of the day Republicans control the caused by the burning of coal, oil and gas In Sydney, many harborside buildings House of Representatives, the Senate and the to drive cars and power plants. The event, switched off their lights for an hour from White House, they should not have needed which originated in Sydney, has grown to 8.30 pm local time as the call for action Democratic votes. There was no avoiding it: The become a worldwide environmental cam- began rolling out across the world. “I agree self-professed “closer” had struck out. “Trump, it paign, celebrated across all continents. with the concept, 100 percent,” said stu- turns out, is not actually able to put together any WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump, with Vice President Mike Pence (right) Conservation group WWF, which organ- dent Ed Gellert, 24, in Sydney. “I think peo- deal that he wants,” wrote Julian Zelizer, professor and Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, speaks from the Oval Office izes Earth Hour, said great strides had been ple probably avoid the fact that climate Continued on Page 13 of the White House on Friday. — AFP made in highlighting the dire state of the Continued on Page 13 Filipino rescued after 56 days adrift MANILA: A Filipino fisherman cast adrift in the high seas by a storm After the storm Rolando and his 31-year-old uncle relied on rainwa- survived for nearly two months by drinking rainwater as he helpless- ter they gathered using a one-gallon jug, the woman said. “They ly watched his uncle die beside him, the survivor’s mother said yes- endured hunger and thirst and their skin was burnt by the sun terday. The PNG Post Courier newspaper, quoting local police, said a because the boat did not have any roof,” she said. She said her son and fishing vessel found Rolando Omongos, 21, adrift and without food her brother sailed off from General Santos on Dec 21 along with other on a boat on March 9. Weak and distressed, he was examined by doc- fishermen aboard the bigger vessel. tors and held on the boat on the island of New Britain while arrange- But when the fishing boat and crew returned to port after the storm ments are being made for his return home, it said, adding his ordeal without the two men, the family feared the worst. “We did not hear lasted 56 days. anything from them for three months. We thought they were both A January storm separated him and his uncle Reniel Omongos from dead,” the woman said. The men’s employer later reported the rescue their main fishing vessel, leaving the two stranded on a tiny boat with- and the death to the Philippine coast guard on March 10, General out fuel, food or fishing tools, said Rosalie Omongos, the mother of the Santos coast guard officer Emma Ruth Consuelo told AFP. survivor and brother of the deceased. “Rolando told me they lost their His mother said she spoke to her son by telephone on March 12, voices after one week and my brother later died. My son said he cried three days after his rescue. “It is difficult for us to accept my brother’s but his eyes were dry,” she told AFP, speaking by phone from the death, but we are overjoyed to learn that my son is alive,” said the 40- Philippine port of General Santos. “He told me he kept his uncle’s body year-old woman. The family and the Filipino coast guard both said DUBAI: The lights on the Burj Khalifa tower are switched off for an hour in down- on the boat in case a ship came to rescue them, but there was nothing they did not know when the survivor would return home. His employ- town Dubai yesterday. — AFP and so he threw it into the water when it started to smell,” she added. ers could not be contacted by AFP yesterday. — AFP SUNDAY, MARCH26, 2017 L O C A L More citizens target Local spotlight Nationality law private sector jobs By Muna Al-Fuzai By A Saleh remarks of the State Audit Bureau (SAB). Committee 70,274,949 was spent on various road projects during the Chairman Adnan Abdulsamad said the meeting was held first three months of the fiscal year - April, May and June. KUWAIT: Recent statistics released by the Manpower and in the presence of Minister of Commerce and Industry He added that KD 45,829,659 out of the total of KD Government Restructuring Program (MGRP) show that 81.1 and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Khaled Al-Roudhan. 106,936,968 was spent during the final quarter of the percent of citizens registered for recruitment had filed to Abdulsamad added that SAB was about to withdraw its 2016-2017 fiscal year. [email protected] get private sector jobs. Statistics also showed that the total inspection teams for the second time because the SME number of citizens registered for employment since the fund did not show any cooperation. He also urged the Expat teachers M beginning of January is 1,010, including 820 applying for minister to take serious measures to avoid the violations The Ministry of Education’s (MoE) administrative sec- ore than 50 years after the promulgation private sector jobs and 190 for public sector ones. MGRP is detected by SAB, especially since the SME fund’s capital tor starts receiving applications to update the informa- of the Kuwaiti constitution and despite us a state department primarily concerned with helping was KD two billion, which could be jeopardized unless tion of married expatriate female teachers this week to being a modern state, I fully believe there national manpower find jobs in the private sector. regular bookkeeping is followed. make sure none of them receive rent allowance while are three fundamental issues that are still contro- their husbands already receive it from another govern- versial in Kuwait until now - the Kuwaiti nationality SME fund Road projects ment body. MoE stressed that all concerned teachers law, the election law and women’s rights. The parliamentary budgets and final statements com- The Ministry of Public Works’ (MPW) Assistant would have to check with the ministry by the beginning Some people may think that this is only an mittee met to discuss the budget of the national fund for Undersecretary for Roads Engineering Affairs Ahmad Al- of April so that the rent allowances could be resumed for objectionable opinion that lacks support by materi- small and medium enterprises development (SME fund) Hassan said a total of KD 311,674,482 of the 2016-2017 them. Notably, the KD 60 rent allowance was suspended al evidence, because the nationality law is clear. As for the new fiscal year 2017-2018 and its final statement budget allocated for the road sector projects (KD 373, for expat female teachers in February and March pend- is the election law for those who reach the age of for the fiscal year 2015-2016, in addition to the related 720,000) has been spent so far. Hassan explained that KD ing updating their information. 21. We also have a female MP in the National Assembly and a minister in the government, so the Municipality law three elements have been achieved. I don’t think this is totally accurate. If this is true, needs amendments: the controversy would not have continued over 50 years, until last week. The election law and Councilor women’s right are not the aim of this article today, but the possible changes in the nationality law has sparked a heated debate in the society. The Kuwaiti By Meshaal Al-Enezi political scene these days seems a little complicat- ed due to the desire of some MPs in the current KUWAIT: Chairman of the struc- tural plan committee at the parliament to propose a law to amend some provi- Municipal Council Ali Al-Moussa sions of Amiri decree no. 15 of 1959 of the Kuwaiti called for re-studying the new nationality law. municipality law 33/2016 Naturally, there is great sensitivity over these because it includes many loop- issues in the Kuwaiti society, which suffers from a holes. Moussa added that prac- large imbalance in the composition of the popula- tice showed that many of the tion, and therefore each category has a personal law’s articles need amendment. perspective of their own interests more than the For example, he noted that the interests of the state, and this is very unfortunate, Municipal Council is currently because we are an urban and civil state. The indi- incapable of holding ordinary vidual is expected to integrate in the state and not meetings because of clause num- Ali Al-Moussa vice versa, and disputes over such issues often raise ber 2 of article 13 of the law suspicion, especially at this time and over the cir- which states that “a municipal cumstances experienced by the Gulf region. council member is deemed resigned from office if he files The new parliamentary proposal includes the to run for parliamentary elections.” Several Municipal following: Dual nationality is prohibited and the Power cable thieves arrested in Jahra Council sessions were called off due to lack of quorum interior ministry must notify such a person that one since a number of members resigned to contest in National of these should be relinquished within a period not Assembly elections that took place late last year. exceeding two years from the date of notification. By Hanan Al-Saadoun cable thefts and arrest suspects involved in such cases. The If the time limit ends without the announcement of cables are stolen for the copper they contain which thieves Speaker wraps up the choice of one of the two nationalities, an Amiri KUWAIT: Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW) person- sell as junk metal. The division was established in response decree must be issued on the proposal of the inte- nel apprehended a number of people on charges of steal- to the growing number of such thefts which has resulted in 3-day visit to Sweden rior minister to withdraw the Kuwaiti nationality. ing power cables in Jahra. The detainees were taken to the power cuts at various locations around the country. In oth- The proposal also includes a request to amend proper authorities for further legal procedures. MEW has er news, traffic police statistics about accidents over the some articles related to the revocation of nationali- last year established a division where personnel are given weekend showed that over 10 people were injured in 23 KUWAIT: National Assembly ty of those who gained nationality by fraud. The legal authority to investigate cases pertaining with power different traffic accidents. Speaker Marzouq Ali Al-Ghanem, along with his entourage, con- proposal includes the clause that Kuwaiti nationality should be revoked for anyone in the following GCC concocts plan to fight extremism: Official cluded yesterday a three-day official visit to Sweden. cases (after it has been confirmed by a final judicial Speaker Ghanem and his ruling and based on a declaration submitted by the RIYADH: Kuwait’s Ministry of Awqaf Amadi said that the meeting “tackled sullied by extremism and terrorism. associates were seen off at the interior minister): and Islamic Affairs has devised a a number of pivotal issues to set the Moreover, Amadi noted that plans airport in Sweden by the State of Firstly, if the person enters military service of a strategy to stifle the rise of violent stage for the meeting of GCC are in the works to open an obser- Kuwait Ambassador to the foreign country and remains there despite an order extremism and promote temperate- Ministers of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs vatory in the Gulf region that nation, Nabil Al-Dekheel. issued by the government of Kuwait to leave it. ness in the Gulf region, a Kuwaiti offi- slated for April 19-20 in Bahrain.” would keep track of all anti-Islamic The delegation, comprising a Secondly, if the person works for the benefit of a cial said yesterday. Speaking after the He also spoke of plans to open propaganda. number of MPs, was in Rabat, foreign state which is at a state of war with Kuwait. third meeting of Assistant Ministers training centers that cater to the The meeting brought together del- Morocco, on Saturday, where the Marzouq Al-Ghanem And finally, if the person joins a body or a group of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs in the growing demand for increased dia- egations from across the Gulf region, legislators took part in the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), logue among Islamic scholars, part as the Kuwaiti contingent comprised Inter-Parliamentary Union conference, before they proceeded I don’t think this is totally Undersecretary of Kuwait’s Ministry of efforts to showcase the genuine officials from Kuwait’s Ministry of to Sweden on Tuesday for meetings with the nation’s officials of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Fareed image of Islam, one that has been Awqaf and Islamic Affairs. —KUNA and counterparts. —KUNA accurate. If this is true, the controversy would not have continued over 50 years, until last week. that undermines the regime in Kuwait. According to these incidences, the Kuwaiti nationality should be revoked from the suspect alone. According to the proposal, the courts have the right to examine decisions issued to withdraw and revoke Kuwaiti nationality. Perhaps the most important point here is that it clearly targets restricting the authority of the cabinet minister in withdrawing and revoking nationalities, and sub- jects it fully to the judicial authority. But as a Kuwait citizen, I have my concerns. According to some press reports, the government has reservations regarding the proposal of the role of the judicial power on this. Such action will lead to the inability of the executive authority to remove the person from the place where he works, and they can continue to harm the country’s interests. Also, this may involve depletion of government funds unlawfully and liti- Director General of KFAED Abdulwahab Al-Bader meets with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri. gation may take years in courts, as well as the possibility of the expiration of the case or the death of KFAED, Lebanon sign $36.9 million loan deal the perpetrator. These are eligible concerns. The government is concerned over notifying every Kuwaiti citizen who has acquired another nationality by declaring the lawsuit in the newspa- BEIRUT: The Kuwait Fund for Arab installments to cover the expenses of the pers, specifying the time and waiting for the expiry Economic Development (KFAED) has projects. Copious amounts of Kuwaiti of the period stipulated in the declaration, then the offered Lebanon a loan at a cost of KD 11.2 financial aid have trickled into Lebanon publication in the official gazette, and then issuing million ($36.9 million) to provide the coun- over the years to finance development an Amiri order for losing the Kuwaiti nationality, try with a steady supply of water used for projects in the country. consumption and irrigation. The agree- On Friday, Bader vowed to pursue sup- because the proposal puts many burdens on the ment was co-signed yesterday by KFAED’s port to development projects in Lebanon. ministry of interior and encourages people to Director General Abdulwahab Al-Bader Speaking following a meeting with acquire a new nationality in the hope that it will and the President of the Lebanese Council Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri, Al- not be discovered. This is true, so the issue of lying for Development and Reconstruction Bader said he had discussed with Al-Hariri and cheating will not be resolved. Nabil Al-Jassar. KFAED-funded development projects, pri- I agree that everyone has to respect the verdicts Speaking after the deal was sealed, marily a sewage project in south Lebanon. of the judiciary, but I am in favor of the state opin- Bader said that the loan will fund efforts to KFAED is also set to sign an agreement ion that the issue of nationality is a sovereign right deliver an adequate supply of water to the with the Lebanese government over a of the country. It should not be left to any party in Lebanese town of Bsharri, where residents water and irrigation project in north granting or withdrawing it. After all, let’s not ignore have long suffered from a dearth of fresh Lebanon, he added. He reiterated KFAED’s that the procedures of litigation in courts are slow water. Moreover, he noted that the water interest in aiding projects that could bring and this may threaten or harm the society and peo- will be instrumental in boosting local agri- development and welfare to Lebanon. ple’s interests. The case may last years in court. cultural production, which in turn, will help The KFAED chief also met with Lebanese I believe the decision to grant or revoke nation- buoy the Lebanese economy. The KFAED Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister ality is a state authority, so we need to be careful. Director General added that the loan will Ghassan Hasbani and discussed with him There seems to be a lot of anxiety and fear of allow- also fund a project to build 11 tube wells health projects bankrolled by KFAED in ing such amendments in a vital case affecting the with a production capacity of 10,000 cubic Lebanon. During the meeting, they also future of Kuwait. I support the government’s reser- meters per day, to ensure a sufficient sup- addressed KFAED’s $86 million’s worth of vations, and the law of nationality should be han- ply of water. aid to Syrian refugees, $18.3 million of BEIRUT: KFAED’s Director General Abdulwahab Al-Bader (left) and President dled with extra care. On the loan, he said that it will be paid which goes to the country’s health sector, of the Lebanese Council for Development and Reconstruction Nabil Al- over a 25-year timeframe with yearly he said. —KUNA Jassar shakes hands after signing the agreement. —KUNA SUNDAY, MARCH26, 2017 L O C A L Rainwater floods Rainwater floods streets in Kuwait streets in Kuwait KUWAIT: Photos taken yesterday morning show a tunnel on the Fahaheel Expressway leading to Mangaf completely submerged with rainwater after Friday evening’s thunderstorm. Some low-level locations in the country were flooded with torrential rain water amid an unstable weather affecting the entire Arabian Peninsula. —Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat SUNDAY, MARCH26, 2017 LO C A L KUWAIT: KFH and Ali Alghanim and Sons Automotive officials pose for group photos at the company’s showroom. KFH Offers Unprecedented Discounts on He added that KFH has the largest market years leasing period. Ghandour stressed the share and works tirelessly to strengthen its importance of customer service, while meet- BMW, Range Rover, Land Rover, Mini Cooper position in the market for the best interest of ing their requirements, boosting the market its customers. KFH spares no efforts in offering and strengthening ties with partners. best discounts to customers in collaboration Meanwhile, Ali Alghanim and Sons In Collaboration with Ali Alghanim and Sons Automotive with its partners in this field. This campaign Automotive General Manager Yousef Al- encompasses different global trademarks. It is Qatami praised the strong partnership with considered as the biggest campaign in terms KFH, indicating that the long partnership with KUWAIT: Kuwait Finance House (KFH) has forward sale customers and to the financing Mohamed Ghandour, Group Deputy of cars diversity and number of models; SUVs, KFH contributed in offering best discounts launched a hefty marketing campaign in col- leasing programs. The benefits are installment General Manager Products at KFH said that the family, sports, luxurious, sedan etc. This comes and privileges to customers. laboration with Ali Alghanim and Sons without profit 0% for a period of 5 years, free campaign is a tip of the iceberg, indicating in line with KFH strategy to aspire for cus- He added “our partnership with KFH will be Automotive. The first of its kind in Kuwait, the periodical maintenance, 5 year warranty and KFH strives to uniquely offer competitive dis- tomers ambitions and meet their needs. a major pillar for Ali Alghanim and Sons campaign offers unprecedented discounts to other benefits that reiterate KFH leading posi- counts to its customers in continuation of its He illustrated that the campaign includes Automotive endeavors for the year 2017. KFH KFH Elite, Ruwad and Tammayuz segments of tion in the car financing market, yet reflect its pioneering role in the field of auto financing. different financing products such as forward offers customers 0% profit on car financing, customers on 21 models of the luxurious keenness to offer the best discounts and Ghandour statement was made on the sale, financing leasing and financing against and we offer 5 year maintenance and warran- German cars; BMW Range Rover, Land Rover advantages to its customers and reinforce its sidelines of the campaign launch in presence securities. KFH, for the first time, offers free ty. This is a real opportunity to customers to Discovery and Mini Cooper. ties and cooperation with the instrumental of Ali Alghanim and Sons Automotive officials comprehensive insurance on the financing own the cars. It’s undoubtedly the best offer in KFH offers several financing advantages to partners in the market. and the General Manager Yousef Al-Qatami. leasing (lease to own) throughout the 3-5 the market.” 71% Kuwaitis sustained or improved financial conditions in past 6 months According to latest Bayt.com, YouGov survey KUWAIT: The latest results from the Middle dents expect it to become worse. Looking at Spending and investment East Consumer Confidence Index survey car- residents’ opinions on the cost of living in When it comes to future spending and ried out by Bayt.com, the Middle East’s num- Kuwait, a considerable proportion of respon- investment plans, one third (33 percent) of ber one job site, and YouGov, research and dents (62 percent) expect the cost of living to Kuwaiti respondents claim that they are plan- consulting organization, indicates that the “increase” in the next six months, compared ning to buy a vehicle for personal use in the majority of Kuwaiti residents (71 percent), to 21 percent who believe that it will “remain next 12 months. Of those who are planning to have either experienced an improvement or the same” and 5 percent who believe that it purchase a vehicle, 53 percent are planning to no changes towards their financial condition will “decrease.” buy a new one, while 41 percent are planning during the past six months. to buy a used one. Current job perspective Respondents were asked about their plans National economic conditions In Kuwait, over four in ten (42 percent) to invest in property, 35 percent of Kuwait Nearly six in 10 respondents in Kuwait employed respondents reported that the respondents say that they are planning to pur- believe that their country’s economy has number of employees in their companies chase property in the next 12 months. Of either “improved” or “remained at the same has increased over the past six months. The those who are planning on making a property level” during the past six months, while less majority of those who were surveyed (42 investment, 50 percent will be looking to buy than a third of respondents suggest that the percent) expect the number of employees a new property, while 39 percent plan to economy has “receded.” When asked about in their organization to increase over the invest in a pre-owned property. In terms of future expectations, 47 percent of Kuwait next six months. the type of property, more than four in ten respondents said that they are optimistic With regards to satisfaction levels, nearly respondents are planning to purchase an about the economy improving, compared to six in 10 Kuwaiti respondents are satisfied apartment (42 percent), while 33 percent will only 14 percent who believe the opposite. 22 with their career growth opportunities. When buy a villa/townhouse/bungalow and 17 per- percent of respondents expect the economy it comes to compensation, 42 percent of cent plan to invest in commercial property. to “remain the same.” Kuwaiti respondents are satisfied and 45 per- Regarding purchasing plans for consumer When it comes to current business con- cent are satisfied with the non-monetary goods, 16 percent of Kuwaiti residents plan to ditions, almost four in 10 Kuwaiti respon- benefits they receive. Nearly half (48 percent) purchase furniture within the next six months, dents believe that the business conditions of respondents in Kuwait are satisfied with 14 percent of respondents are planning to buy are either “good” or “very good,” 38 percent the level of job security that they have in a tablet or a smartphone, and 13 percent plan believe that the conditions are “average,” their current organization. to buy a desktop or a laptop. while 19 percent believe they are “bad” or “As the leading job site in the Middle East, Arleen Gonsalves, Associate Research “very bad.” Kuwaiti respondents are opti- we find it vital to provide all professionals Manager, YouGov, said: “It is important for us mistic about the business conditions with- with insights on the economic and financial to regularly conduct thorough research in the next year, where 55 percent believe conditions and how they connect to the job regarding consumer sentiments and opinions that they will “improve.” 21 percent expect market and availability of career opportuni- and share that information with the region. business conditions to “remain the same” ties,” said Suhail Masri, Vice President of The Middle East Consumer Confidence Index and only 14 percent said that they could Employer Solutions, Bayt.com. “We want to survey gives us many insights into the person- get worse. always empower professionals, job seekers al, business and economic conditions of the and employers alike, to address and over- region. For instance, the majority of respon- Personal economic conditions come any economic changes and make room dents are anticipating an increase in the cost Seventy one percent of Kuwaiti respon- for improvements in their careers. Employers of living and perhaps that signals a need to re- dents believe that their current financial who are invested in attracting, hiring, and evaluate the stability of personal finances and position is now “better” or the “same as six retaining quality talent, who help them maxi- plan income sources accordingly.” Data for the months ago.” Less than a quarter (22 percent) mize productivity, will find our tools, such as Bayt.com Middle East Consumer Confidence of respondents believe that it has become CV Search and Job Postings, to be exactly Index survey was collected online from “worse.” When it comes to future expecta- what they need. Similarly, job seekers who January 10 to January 31, 2017, with 2,750 tions, more than half (56 percent) of Kuwaiti stand in face of tough competition will make respondents from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, respondents expect that their financial situa- use of over 10,000 jobs that are available on Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Syria, Jordan, tion will “improve” in the next six months, Bayt.com on any given day as well as the Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria. and 21 percent believe that it will “remain the numerous job search tools and resources Males and females aged over 18 years old, of same as it is now.” Only 13 percent of respon- that help make them stronger candidates.” all nationalities, were included in the survey. Expert predicts oil at $58 pb by 2017’s end KUWAIT: Oil prices are expected to touch position in these markets, and produces 35 5,500 tons of catalysts but the company was the level of $58 per barrel (pb) by end of percent of global oil output,” he said. only producing around 5,000 tons a year. 2017, if OPEC and non-OPEC countries com- Asked about results of reducing output, He anticipated that production of the mit to cutting output, Chief Executive Officer he said the outcomes have been ‘good’ so company would rise from 4,000 tons to of Kuwait Catalyst Company Hasan far, as prices rose to levels of $53-56 for 9,000 tons per year, with the operation of Qabazard said. Oil prices may drop to $40 pb Brent crude. He anticipated that prices will the two environmental fuel projects and the if non-OPEC countries fail to commit to their be around the same levels or slightly lower new refinery. He explained that catalyst is a pledges aiming to reduce production, during the forthcoming period, saying it substance which leads to a chemical reac- Qabazard, who was a senior official at OPEC, depends on the development of commercial tion that can’t be consumed in any chemical said in an interview yesterday. stocks. Qabazard said choosing Kuwait to operations. He stated that catalyst is able to He added that average oil price depends head the monitoring committee on cutting remove sulfur and other impurities from on the commitment of OPEC and non-OPEC oil output means that it is a ‘neutral country.’ heavy oil and transfer its particles into light countries to cut output. Levels of commer- He pointed out that many member states oil free of impurities to be easily refined to cial stocks in industrial countries will play a have the same impression, as Kuwait was produce clean fuel. key role in determining oil prices in the chosen in 1994 to chair the committee of Kuwait is chairing the joint ministerial forthcoming period, he noted. monitoring output when OPEC decided to committee which includes OPEC Algeria Qabazard expected that price of Brent calculate OPEC states’ production. He and Venezuela, and non-OPEC Oman and crude oil will be around $55 a barrel in case affirmed the necessity of abiding by the Russia. Last November, OPEC member only OPEC countries abide by the agree- agreement to cut production to be in favor states agreed, during a meeting in Vienna, ment to reduce output. He, however, of prices and stability by the end of 2017. on cutting oil production by about 1.2 mil- stressed that if non-OPEC countries, mainly The official reiterated the importance of lion barrels per day as of the beginning of Russia, are committed to the agreement, monitoring markets closely, and “I think this year. OPEC also received pledges by which entered force beginning of this year OPEC is currently doing this job.” non-OPEC countries to reduce their output and aimed at slashing over 1.5 million bpd, Asked about the Kuwait Catalyst by 458,000 barrels per day. The level of the price will rise to reach $58 a barrel. “It Company, he said that it was formed in 1996 OPEC output is 32.5 million barrels per day, cannot be said that OPEC has regained its and started its production in 2000, adding with the aim of supporting prices, which influential status on global oil markets after that it is a leading industry in the country. have declined due to the surplus of crude the agreement, as it always have effective He noted that international buyers required at global markets. — KUNA SUNDAY, MARCH 26, 2017 LO C A L Mohammed Jaafar Monther Al-Ansari Phoebe Al-Salem Calls to make forum platform to launch tourism cooperation KUWAIT: On the eve of launching the Kuwait. Participants in the forum’s activi- first Kuwaiti Youth and Tourism Forum, ties include UNWTO, the National Fund more officials have called for efforts to for Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) make the event a real chance to launch a Development, the Ministry of Interior, the new era of cooperation amongst all par- Ministry of Youth Affairs, The Scientific ties concerned with tourism, develop- Center, Sabah Al-Ahmad Heritage Village, ment, small and medium enterprises, Bayt Al-Othman Museum, the Manpower creating job opportunities, diversifying and Government Restructuring Program, national sources of income, the environ- The Kuwait Hotels Union and the Vintage ment and national heritage. Vehicles Museum. The forum takes place on March 27th The forum also includes various work- A man applies for a visa at the Al-Qabas Assurex company. and 28th at Kuwait Regency Hotel, under shops and lectures presented by suc- the patronage of Minister of Cabinet cessful young Kuwaiti entrepreneurs Travellers to Germany urged Affairs, Acting Minister of Information such as the founder of the first online Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al- restaurant delivery website ‘Talabat’ Sabah. It will be held in collaboration Mohammed Jaafar, Saudi Arabia’s to apply for visa early this year between the information ministry’s Tourism Authority Consultant Monther tourism sector and Leaders Group, which Al-Ansari, Planning Team Member at serves as the United Nations World Trade Kuwait Municipality Phoebe Al-Salem Organization’s (UNWTO) representative in and many others. More Kuwaitis visited Germany in the past few years By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: As the peak summer travel season approaches, Al-Qabas Assurex (QAVISA) and the German Embassy in Kuwait held a press conference on Thursday at the QAVISA office to encourage travelers to Germany this summer to apply for their visa early to avoid delays. Al-Qabas Assurex has been the exclusive visa application center for the German embassy in Kuwait since 2011. “Those who plan to travel to Germany this year should not wait till the last minute to apply for a visa as the procedure will take much longer. If they apply today, it will be much quicker,” said Manager Ameera Mohammed during the press conference. There are advantages of getting the visa issued at Al-Qabas Assurex. “The applicant will save time and effort by using the services of QAVISA, as we provide all services related to the visa requirements including fingerprint- Secretary General of National Center for Culture, Arts and Letters Ali Al-Yoha ing, photos, insurance and other services here at the center. A Schengen visa entitles the First Kuwait Film Festival kicks off KUWAIT: Al-Qabas Assurex Manager Ameera Mohammed (left) and German Consul Marisa holder to a stay not exceeding 90 days per six- Kollenberg attend the press conference. — Photos by Joseph Shagra month period, even if the Schengen visa has amid distinguished atmospheres been issued with a validity of one year or moment, appointments at the application cen- German companies,” she added. more,” she pointed out. ter can be obtained within 1-2 days. During the KUWAIT: Kuwait First Film Festival kicked val, said the event would not be based only QAVISA does not provide long-term visas. summer travel season, waiting times of one Popular destinations off Friday amid distinguished atmospheres in showcasing cinema works of directors “An expected duration of stay over 90 days is week or more for an appointment may occur “Cities like Munich, Berlin, Aachen and including shows of art and cinema. The but it will help participants share expertise considered long-term stay. Long-term visa due to high demand,” noted Consul Marisa Frankfurt number amongst the most popular shows outline the leading cinema march of and ideas. The festival will hold several lec- applications (eg for studying, work permits, Kollenberg, head of the visa section at the destinations. Many travelers, however, also like the State of Kuwait that was launched in tures, seminars and workshops which fea- family reunification) cannot be processed embassy. The number of Kuwaitis travelling to discovering the different regions of the country the beginning of the last century. ture some experts in this industry, he not- through Al-Qabas but have to be handed in Germany has increased in the past few years. by car or train, where they can enjoy scenic land- Addressing the festival, Secretary ed. It invited some guests from Egypt, directly at the embassy,” explained “With almost 65,000 applications processed by scapes, unique shopping experiences and pre- General of National Center for Culture, Arts Jordan, Qatar, Lebanon, the United States, Mohammed. the end of 2016, the German Embassy in mium healthcare facilities at the same time. Also, and Letters (NCCAL) Ali Al-Yoha said in a the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Canada, Kuwait has recorded an impressive increase of more Kuwaitis have bought houses and proper- speech on behalf of Minister of State for Germany, Malta and Czech Republic, he 12,000 visas over 100 percent for Schengen visas within the ties in Germany,” stressed Kollenberg. Applicants Cabinet Affairs Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al- revealed. The event is held under the aus- Last summer, the visa section of the German last four years,” she added. from any nationality can apply for a German visa Sabah that culture and arts are pillars of the pices of Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah, Embassy processed almost 12,000 visas per According to her, more students from as long as they have valid passports. “After an modern state. who is also Acting Information Minister and Yoha added that art industry has Chairman of NCCAL. month and waiting times lengthened due to Kuwait plan to study in Germany. “The majori- application for a Schengen visa has been submit- evolved in the State of Kuwait, and become The pioneers of filmmaking, who have the high number of short-notice applications. ty of applicants consist of Kuwaiti citizens and ted, processing normally takes between 3-5 a mirror of progress and development, played outstanding roles on artistic arenas “Therefore, the German Embassy would like to their families wishing to travel for holiday, working days if the applicant is Kuwaiti national, referring to keenness of many countries on in Kuwait and all over the world, were hon- call upon all travelers to start filing their leisure and medical visits. Expatriates in or up to 12 days if the applicant has a different organizing festivals to brief their nations on ored during inaugurating the event on Schengen visa applications for their annual Kuwait also show growing interest in nationality. In individual cases, it can take up to latest development in cinema industry. Dasma Theater. Directors Khaled Al- vacation in Germany from now and not wait Germany for holidays, trade fairs and business two weeks after all the required papers have Kuwait has made great strides in cultural Nasrallah, Hashem Mohammad, Abdullah just a few days before their planned trip in visits thanks to the continuously expanding been submitted to receive the necessary clear- fields, and been existing on area of cinema Al-Mekhyal and others were honored dur- order to avoid any inconveniences. At the business relationships between Kuwaiti and ances,” concluded Kollenberg. for 40 years, he said. ing the event which runs until March 28 at Meanwhile, Shaker Abul, head of festi- the National Library of Kuwait. — KUNA Kuwaiti playwright kicks off world premiere of ‘Petrol Station’ WASHINGTON:Kuwaiti playwright Sulayman where else’ but on their own doorstep,” he of spatial and temporal space where events in Al-Bassam will return to the Kennedy Center said. Bassam was inspired to write Petrol the play intersect with current and modern stage in Washington for the world premiere of Station after finding interest in the “periodic day events.” Bassam’s previous work includes the first work to his newest trilogy, “Petrol violence of the human experience. “I first his five part Arab Shakespeare Trilogy in Station.” The story takes place at a remote started writing it in 2003 at the start of the which the second work, Richard III: An Arab petrol station on the border of an unnamed US-led invasion of Iraq where scenes remind- Tragedy, was also presented at the Kennedy country in the Gulf. ed me of the burning oil fields in Kuwait from Center. He said he hopes to offer performanc- “It’s a modern dystopian story which the withdrawing Iraqi army twelve years earli- es of Petrol Station to Kuwaiti and Arab audi- addresses the problems of human identity, er,” he said. “Petrol Station is a shift in the form ences soon. —KUNA borders, loyalty, betrayal, love, ambition and the struggle for power in a civil war-torn country where the currency of exchange is smuggled petrol and fleeing refugees,” Bassam said. “Petrol Station is the tragic backdrop to a familial standoff where the crimes and secrets of one generation make violent claims on the lives of the next,” he added. The cast consists of only American actors who portray widely diverse characters ranging from migrant workers to greedy warlords. “With various travel bans being imposed by the US I was faced with the fact that my usual troupe of pan-Arab actors probably couldn’t perform in the United States at this time,” Bassam explained. “So we are using an all-American cast to present a cross-cultural drama.” Bassam’s time as an artist in residence at New York University is what he says allowed him to develop an “American voice to tell an Arab story” in which he deliberately choose to write the story in English. “Choices around casting; African American and Spanish speak- ers, and the way the story might carry echoes of other stories and moments from American or Western politics will resonate with US audi- Kuwaiti playwright Sulayman Al-Bassam ences where it is no longer ‘happening some- SUNDAY, MARCH26, 2017 From the Arabic press Crime Al-Anbaa R e p o r t Expat-o-phobia Mosque’s imam stabbed KUWAIT:An Egyptian imam of an Um Al-Haiman mosque By Saqr Al-Ghaylani was rushed to Adan Hospital after a young citizen stabbed him in the shoulder in the area’s co-op parking, said Ahmadi KUWAIT:Accusations towards expats for draining out mosque manager Ahmed Al-Otaibi. He explained that the state resources and blaming them for demographic imam was driving his car inside the co-op’s parking lot Law imbalances has been increasing recently. It was even when the young man approached from the wrong side of suggested to ban providing medicines to expats at the road and asked the imam to back off, which he was in public hospitals and clinics in order to achieve ‘social the process of doing when the young man stepped out of justice for citizens.’ I have been wondering over the his vehicle, angered by what he believed was a long time past few days how this will achieve social justice for taken by the imam to reverse, and stabbed him. A case was the citizens. What do expats have to do with social justice? Do citizens actually lose social justice because of expats? Fatal crash Social justice means equality amongst various A 49-year-old American man was instantly killed and a social classes. Which means everyone should be treat- 35-year-old Pakistani national injured in a collision in Mina ed equally without differentiating between wealthy Abdullah. Security sources said that the injured man was and poor, regardless of affiliations or nationalities. medevacked to Adan Hospital for treatment. Separately, a When comparing citizens to expats in Kuwait, we find female citizen was severely injured when she was trapped a great deal of inequality in so many aspects. For inside her wrecked vehicle in a collision along Fahaheel example, they both do not get the same wages, like in Expressway. Security sources said that the woman was many countries where productivity is more important rushed to Adan Hospital’s intensive care unit. than nationality. Expats do not have access to so many services like citizens such as accommodation, Brutal assault education, health care and many others. A 17-year-old citizen narrowly escaped death when five Therefore, there is no way to compare them both, others attacked him at a sport center in Sabahiya, breaking and thus, raising the slogan of ‘social justice for citi- his skull and stabbing him in the chest and back. Security zens’ is illogical and misused, which only make citi- sources said that the assailants also injured a Somali man zens fake the feeling of injustice and instigates who tried to help the victim, before they fled the scene. unnecessary provocative feelings. Though health The citizen was admitted to the intensive care unit while insurance is a good idea, most expats work for min- the Somali man is being treated at Adan Hospital. istries and governmental institutions. How can we Eyewitnesses reported that the assaulted man told them then save anything from the budget if the govern- the assailants were his schoolmates. ment keeps paying health insurance for its employees? In addition, some doctors said that the cost of medical treatment in Kuwait is far more than that of Pedestrian hurt the medicine. Nevertheless, some people still insist A search is on for an unidentified person who used that banning medicine is the solution. an air rifle to shoot at pedestrians in Salmiya and Al-Jarida Some expats might come up with foul practices injured an Egyptian in his forties. — Al-Rai and Al-Anbaa such as selling medicines or getting more than they need. Yet, it is unacceptable to punish them all because of the acts of a certain group. Why deprive a truly sick person who has a limited wage and in need of medicine from his/her simplest human rights? Al-Jaridaa Moreover, subsidized food items given to citizens are smuggled to some expats for personal use or to sell. Uncensored plays Who would guarantee the same will not happen with medicines? Reducing expat population this way will not be By Mudaffar Abdullah useful and will not solve the true problem Kuwait is M facing. Simply speaking, if all expats leave, we will not iserable theatrical approaches study so that justice can be achieved and be able to cover all professions they currently occupy have been dominating most local state economy be protected in other because we lack practical experience in some fields issues and concerns, and the lat- manners than the comic one followed in such as construction and others. In addition, some est was that of Al-Mubarakiya Market. This Al-Mubarakiya Market. professions are socially unacceptable and need time issue came after a series of issues includ- Solving demographic problems to be accepted by the society. Moreover, claims that ing the citizenships, solving demographic require more due attention to Public expats are taking citizens’ jobs are also untrue imbalances, amending article 79 of the Authority for Applied Education and because if you review employment methods followed constitution and compelling each human Training (PAAET) programs and fighting in Kuwait, you will see that twice as much as needed being in Kuwait to give a saliva specimen human traffickers instead of expelling are employed in a department that only needs 10 to undergo DNA tests via a silly law. expatriates, etc. We have had enough of employees. Yes, indeed, all such issues were such cheap scenarios. We have had All countries hiring expatriates suffer from accom- staged, and were nothing more than the- enough of creating fake heroism by prof- panying economic, social or other problems because atrical acts made by decision-makers iteers licking officials’ boots and extend- such employment has its pros and cons. However, proposing hollow projects that are fol- ing ‘sincere gratitude and appreciation.’ because of the government’s mismanagement, many lowed by public opinion reactions and Ironically, all this is happening at a problems have come up and expats are being frightening people of such possible life- time when we do not have a true theatre blamed for them. threatening decisions; before other deci- tackling socio-economic concerns; one German Chancellors Angela Merkel hosted many sion-makers interfere and defuse the that will surely be subjected to censor- Syrian refugees in the name of humanity despite of all problem by annulling previous officials’ ship, clipping and script mutilation. The the problems that emerged in Germany including ter- decisions and so on. Eventually, the plays entire show might even be banned for rorism. The difference between them and us is that are concluded by expressing gratitude some reason. Liberties in Kuwait are they accept both merits and demerits of their own and appreciation to whomever defused decreasing and we now have prisoners decisions, unlike us. We do not accept expat-caused the problem. This is absolutely the peak of opinion. problems though expats had been brought to Kuwait of taking people and the public opinion However, only politicians have the according to regulations and laws. We do not view so lightly through creating fake heroism right to impose their plays on us without expats as partners in the construction process, we and suggesting one-sided incomplete any sort of censorship or tickets. This is rather view them as opportunists who have come to topic for discussion, which does not probably happening because they have take our wealth and then will run back to their home require any courage. a kind of immunity that the law does not countries. The citizenship issue should be sub- grant to true writers. However, the so Accordingly, expats view citizens as racists who ject to the judiciary instead of exempting many acts of this silly play will never falsi- consider expats as servants, not as human beings who the prime minister from accountability fy people’s memory or derail them from have rights and obligations. This eventually creates a because of a deal involving only three focusing on the major problem in my big disagreement, causing disturbed relationships withdrawn citizenships. The issue of beloved Kuwait; not applying the consti- that might snowball into a crisis. increasing fees requires a professional tution. —Translated by Kuwait Times One of the negative reflections of our views for expats happened recently when an academic addressing members of the National Union of Kuwaiti Students in the United States made fun of Egyptians and spoke about the state’s mismanagement. He made his remarks before students who should be qualified to build their own country instead of filling their minds with political opposition’s ideas. So, this negative attitude of ordinary people also affected academic figures who ought to be wiser and more aware. We are not against economic reform but only if it is done without provocation and through complete studies of pros and cons instead of using slogans that will only make citizens feel some kind of imagi- nary fake injustice because Kuwaitis are much honored and respected in their state. We need to reform the labor market, fight visa traffickers and set mini- mum wages so that expats will not feel oppressed and overburdened with high cost of living. We also need to deport marginal laborers. Only then will we find the true solution of the problem instead of resorting to temporary ones for the sake of getting more electoral gains. —Translated by Kuwait Times Fake cop caught A citizen was arrested for impersonating a police detec- ABK Celebrates Mother’s Day tive and robbing an Asian woman in Salmiya. According to the woman, the suspect and his Iranian accomplice with its Staff and Customers stopped her in a Salmiya street claiming to be police detectives, then snatched her purse with KD 170 in it. The citizen was identified and arrested, while the Iranian is still at large. KUWAIT: Al-Ahli Bank of Kuwait (ABK) cele- engage with its people and spread positivi- brated Mother’s Day with its employees and ty in the surrounding communities in Sheep thieves detained customers on March 21, 2017, spreading the which it operates. A five-member gang was arrested in Jahra for steal- joy of this occasion across its branches with ing sheep and reselling them, said security sources, delightful gestures. The bank welcomed staff noting that investigations are underway to determine member with a box of chocolates as a token the number of thefts the suspect had committed. of appreciation for their ongoing efforts, and in recognition of the key role they play in supporting their families. ABK female cus- Con artist arrested tomers were also recognized and were pre- A Syrian man wanted for multiple fraud cases filed by sented with fresh flowers upon entering any citizens was arrested by Hawally detectives. The suspect of the Bank’s branches throughout the day. managed to lure the victims into starting a business with The bank also celebrated this occasion him before he took their money and vanished. with the elderly, as it sponsored the Ministry of Social Affair’s Mother’s Day Fire event, which was held at the elderly home. The event aimed to spread joy among sen- A fire broke out at Sulaibikhat police station deten- ior citizens in the midst of a fun ambiance tion, said security sources, noting that the blaze resulted with live music and gifts, specially arranged from a short circuit and a blanket caught fire. The flames for this special day. ABK continuously seeks were extinguished and no casualties were reported. opportunities that allows the Bank to Shiite Lebanese SUNDAY, MARCH 26,2017 women waging custody battles South Sudan’s rape reaches ‘epic proportions’ Page 8 Page 12 ROME: European leaders pose for a family photo during a special summit of EU leaders to mark the 60th anniversary of the bloc’s founding Treaty of Rome yesterday at Rome’s Piazza del Campidoglio (Capitoline Hill). Against a backdrop of crises and in the absence of the departing Britain, the leaders signed a new Rome declaration, six decades after the six founding members signed the Treaty of Rome and gave birth to the European Economic Community.— AFP EU leaders renew fraying Union’s vows Summit marks 60th birthday of founding Rome Treaty ROME:Europeans must contain their squab- public opinion,” said their host, Italian Prime Netherlands; some offered personal memories ‘United, or not at all’ being. All 27 national leaders, along with the bling and carping about the EU if the Union is Minister Paolo Gentiloni, noting Britons’ repu- of their own generation’s debts to the expand- Fearing that the departure of its second- heads of Brussels institutions, signed a decla- to survive, leaders warned yesterday as they diation of the EU. ing European Union. Jean-Claude Juncker, the biggest economy and major global power ration which concluded: “We have united for marked the 60th anniversary of its founding in He said the failure to push the project for- EU chief executive, recalled how his father in could prompt the unraveling of the bloc, many the better. Europe is our common future.” They Rome by signing a formal declaration of unity. ward during a decade of economic slump had Luxembourg was forced into the German army leaders argue that only forward motion can promised to listen to citizens. But locked away Four days before Prime Minister Theresa May, fueled a re-emergence of “blinkered national- in World War Two; Donald Tusk, the summit revive popular support for the EU by generat- behind rings of armed police, the leaders may absent from the ceremony in the Italian capi- ism”. Rome offered a fresh start: “The Union is chair born in Gdansk a month after the Treaty ing economic and security benefits. “Today we hear little of what thousands of protesters tal, delivers an unprecedented blow to the starting up again ... and has a vision for the was signed, remembered growing up in the renew our vows and reaffirm our commitment have to say on Saturday. bloc’s growth by filing Britain’s formal exit next 10 years,” he said. Others, however, are ruins of war and yearning for freedom behind to an undivided and indivisible Union,” Addressing right-wing supporters of the papers, her fellow leaders hailed 60 years of wary of such enthusiasm for giving up more the Iron Curtain. “That really was a two-speed Juncker told them, urging the bloc not to get Fratelli d’Italia movement, its leader Giorgia peace and prosperity and pledged to deepen national sovereignty-and also of others in the Europe,” he said in a pointed dig at his domes- bogged down in details that alienated voters. Meloni denounced a “great EU deception”. a unity frayed by regional and global crises. Union moving faster with integration. Poland’s tic foes now ruling in Warsaw, who have tried Tusk, too, warned against the impression the “The real enemies of Europe,” she said, “Are the But days of wrangling about the wording of nationalist government has led protests to block a push by the western powers to EU was about petty regulations: “Why should bankers, usurers and technocrats.” The Union, a 1,000-word Rome Declaration, May’s against a “multispeed Europe”, which it fears deepen their integration. German Chancellor we lose our trust in the purpose of unity she added, must be replaced by a new alliance impending Brexit confirmation and tens of would consign the poor ex-communist east to Angela Merkel, the bloc’s dominant leader today? Is it only because it has become our of “free and sovereign countries”. But for thousands of protesters gathering beyond the second-class status. who faces a re-election test in September, reality? Or because we have become bored or Maximilien De-Wyse, 26, from the northern tight police cordon around the Campidoglio Leaders hailed the visionary “war genera- stressed the Union must also address the com- tired of it?” he asked. French city of Lille, that was the wrong answer. palace offered a more sober reminder of the tion” of leaders from old foes France and plaints of generations for whom war is fading Merkel said leaders wanted to respond to Taking part in a pro-EU march in Rome, he challenges of holding the 27 nations to a com- Germany who signed the Treaty of Rome in into history. “We will in the future have to con- people’s concerns, about the economy, wel- recalled his Polish immigrant grandparents mon course. “We have stopped in our tracks the same room on March 25, 1957, along with cern ourselves above all with the issue of jobs,” fare, migration and defense with “a protective and said: “It is only united that we can save and this has caused a crisis of rejection by Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the she told reporters. Europe” that offered assurances on their well- peace.”—Reuters Pope in Milan hinterland UAE surprised by laptop ban MILAN: Pope Francis arrived in Milan yesterday the Church always needs to be restored,” added prison is the sole answer,” he told inmates in to meet families on a working class housing the Holy Father. Francis’s visit is “a unique occa- November at a special audience for prisoners at estate, nap in a prison and hold a mass for hun- sion. Many people, non-Christians included, Saint Peter’s Basilica. “We don’t think about the dreds of thousands of believers in nearby came to ask for passes (to attend the blessing),” possibility that people can change their lives. Monza. Bells in church towers across over 1,000 said Cesare Nera, who lives in a nearby neigh- We put little trust in rehabilitation ... into society. ABU DHABI:The United Arab Emirates, prompted speculations that the move, diocese rang out as Francis landed at Milan- borhood and has taken part in the preparations. But in this way we forget that we are all sinners one of the world’s top aviation hubs, has enacted by President Donald Trump’s Linate airport outside the northern city. The After a meeting with religious leaders, Francis and often, without being aware of it, we too are said it was surprised by the ban on lap- administration, is to protect US airlines by Argentine made his first stop at the Case pronounced the Angelus prayer in front of the prisoners,” he added. The 80-year-old will take a tops in plane cabins bound for the stifling the growth of the Gulf carriers and Bianche (White Houses), a run-down collection Gothic Cathedral in Milan’s historic centre, short break in the packed program after lunch, United States because UAE security was Turkish Airlines, a theory dismissed by US of concrete tower blocks from the 1970s on the before heading to the 19th century San Vittore with a likely siesta in the prison chaplain’s quar- already tight, but it pledged to cooperate officials and many experts. The Gulf air- edge of a wealthy city better known for its foot- prison. There he will sit down with 100 inmates ters. Refreshed, he will then head to Monza, with US authorities. Washington lines have been battling a lobbying cam- ball clubs and fashion weeks. “It is a symbolic and staff for a lunch of risotto, escalope Milanese north of Milan, where he will celebrate mass in a announced the new measure on Tuesday, paign in Washington by US carriers that choice. The pope wanted to arrive at the heart of and panna cotta prepared by the prisoners. giant park before an expected crowd of 700,000 prohibiting electronic devices larger than accuse them of receiving unfair subsidies, Milan by passing first through the outskirts,” “Sometimes, a certain hypocrisy leads to people people to the strains of over 9,000 hymn-singing smart phones in cabins on flights from 10 charges that the Gulf carriers deny. parish priest Augusto Bonora said, saying the considering you only as wrongdoers, for whom choristers.—AFP airports in countries including the UAE, But Ian Bremmer, the president of parishioners were “wildly excited” when they Qatar and Turkey. That will hit Gulf carri- political risk consultancy Eurasia Group, heard Francis was dropping by. ers Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways doubts these claims. He believes the Around 10,000 residents and people from but not US airlines, none of which fly to decision behind the laptop ban lies with neighboring districts turned out to see the head those airports. the Trump administration’s policy on bat- of the Roman Catholic Church, whose schedule In the UAE’s first official response to tling jihadist groups. “This is not being included visiting a Muslim family. “The Case the ban, Sultan bin Saeed Al-Mansouri, driven by an effort to gain competitive Bianche is a suburb like many others, with all the Minister of Economy and chairman of the economic advantage. I would be very associated problems, from security to small-time General Civil Aviation Authority, said it surprised if that was what drove the poli- trafficking,” Bonora said. With its dirty stairwells, was surprising because the UAE aviation cy,” he said. “I think that overwhelmingly, broken mailboxes and defective lifts, the neigh- sector and airports had proven them- this is an administration and a president borhood has become “a little ghettoised”, said selves safe. “The UAE is the number one that is focused on radical Islamic terror. Mirella, 68, whose son lives on the estate in one ranked country worldwide by the And they want to show that they are tak- of the forgotten corners of the country’s eco- International Civil Aviation Organization ing action,” he told state-linked Abu nomic capital. Bonora said that “like all suburbs, regarding the UAE’s compliance with Dhabi English-language newspaper The it’s been somewhat forgotten by those in international security and safety stan- National. charge,” but insisted there were social programs dards,” he said in a statement late on UAE carriers Emirates and Etihad are to help the young and care for the elderly. Thursday. Mansouri also noted differ- bracing themselves with the new meas- ences between the US ban and a similar ures set to come into effect yesterday Jailbird nap step by Britain. The British restrictions do during the traditionally busy spring After visiting the families, the pontiff per- not include the UAE or Qatar, but will break travel period. Etihad is encourag- formed a blessing near a small Virgin of Lourdes affect other carriers including Turkish ing passengers to pack their electronics sanctuary. “The Church does not stay in the cen- Airlines. in with their check in luggage, however, tre waiting, it goes out to meet all, on the out- However, the UAE’s statement said its will allow devices to be handed over at skirts. It also reaches out to non-Christians and aviation authority and airlines would con- boarding in a similar move announced also non-believers,” said the pope. He thanked tinue cooperating with authorities in the by Emirates earlier this week, an airline the crowds for gifts including a photo of the United States and around the world to spokesman told Reuters in an emailed MILAN: Pope Francis attends a meeting with members of the Catholic Church, inside Milan’s local Virgin of Lourdes statue, which was recent- ensure safety. The restrictions has statement on Thursday. —Reuters Duomo Cathedral as part of his one-day pastoral visit to Monza and Milan yesterday. — AP ly restored. “As your Madonna was restored, so SUNDAY, MARCH 26, 2017 I N T E R N AT ION A L South Sudan’s rape reaches ‘epic proportions’ MUNDRI:After months of being raped made it back. Instead, she was abducted because she became ill. “They told me to get by her rebel captors in the middle of by rebels loyal to an opposition group medicine and then changed their minds South Sudan’s civil war, the young calling itself MTN, after a popular African and told me to leave and never come back,” woman became pregnant. Held in a telephone company. Their catch phrase she said. Mundri has many such stories. muddy pit, sometimes chained to other riffs on the company’s slogan, taunting: According to a recent Inter-Agency assess- prisoners, she later watched her hair fall “We’re everywhere you go.” The rebels ment by international and local organiza- out and her weight plummet. But the burst through the door of her mother’s tions focused on gender-based violence, 29 child was a spark of life. And so she hut, firing their weapons and shouting, rape cases were reported in Mundri named him Barack Obama, she explains, she said. They were searching for her between August and October. Local organi- now free. “I still have hope,” she says, uncle, who’d been accused of conspiring zations say the number is likely double that, caressing the baby’s cheek with a finger. with government forces. “They beat my but most incidents go unreported because “I just don’t even know where to start.” grandfather and aunt and then said if of stigma surrounding rape. “Realistically, it’s The slender 23-year-old is one of they couldn’t find my uncle they’ll take more like over 50 cases,” said James Labadia, thousands of rape victims in South me instead,” she said. “I told them I’d founder of MAYA, a local aid organization Sudan’s three-year-old conflict, which has rather die than go with them.” that focuses on women’s empowerment. He created one of the world’s largest But the rebels dragged her into the has been working with rape survivors for humanitarian crises. Sexual violence has bush and brought her to their headquar- several years but said things have never reached “epic proportions,” says the UN ters, where she was charged, tried and been so dire. Commission on Human Rights in South convicted for her uncle’s “crimes.” For the “The end of 2016 was the worst quarter Refugees prepare food including maize porridge donated by USAID and known Sudan. Reported incidents of sexual or next 16 months, she was forced to live in I’ve ever seen,” he said. The group received locally as posho, during the visit of UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo gender-based violence rose 60 percent large, muddy pits infested with snakes, funds from the US Agency for International Grandi to a transit center for South Sudanese refugees in the remote northwest- last year. Seventy percent of women shel- she said. Subsisting on only vegetables, Development last year and Labadia plans ern district of Adjumani, near the border with South Sudan. — AP tering in UN camps in the capital, Juba, she wasted away. “I’m not attractive any- to seek more, a possibility which may be had been raped since the conflict began, blame it on the recent increase in fight- just came back to visit my home and I more,” she says now, tugging at the waist- clouded by President Donald Trump’s pro- according to a UN humanitarian survey ing here between rebels and govern- lost my dreams,” she said in an interview band of her baggy pants. Shifting posed budget cuts. Reports of rape and conducted in December. ment troops, the latest shift of the war in earlier this month. “If I talk about it, I just around in a plastic chair outside a coffee abduction are rampant on both sides in Mundri, a city of 47,000 people in an already devastated nation. The young cry.” She had been visiting her family in shop, she shyly adjusted her headscarf, Mundri, which is under government con- Amadi state, has been called the epicen- woman didn’t expect to become the summer of 2015, with plans to return covering what little hair she has left. trol while neighboring villages are held by ter of the problem. Aid organizations embroiled in South Sudan’s conflict. “I to school in the capital, Juba. She never She said she was released in December the opposition. — AP Troops pause Mosul push over casualties UN stunned by civilian deaths in explosion MOSUL:Iraqi government forces paused in their chief Brigadier Mohammed Al-Jawari told Islamic State leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi push to recapture western Mosul from Islamic reporters on Thursday that rescue teams had declared a caliphate spanning large areas of Iraq State militants on Saturday because of the high recovered 40 bodies from collapsed buildings. The and Syria in 2014. “We need to make sure that tak- rate of civilian casualties, a security forces coalition is investigating the reports. Residents ing out Daesh (Islamic State) from the Old City spokesman said. The halt was called as the United escaping besieged western Mosul have told of will not cost unwanted high casualties among Nations expressed its profound concern over Iraqi and US-led coalition air strikes demolishing civilians. We need surgical accurate operations to reports of an incident during the battle on March buildings and killing civilians in several cases. target terrorists without causing collateral dam- 17 that killed or wounded dozens of people in the The insurgents have also used civilians as age among residents,” the Federal Police Islamic State-held Al-Jadidah district of Mosul, human shields and opened fire on them as they spokesman said. An army statement published in apparently involving air strikes by Iraqi or US-led try to escape Islamic State-held neighborhoods, the al-Sabah state newspaper said that future coalition forces. “We are stunned by this terrible fleeing residents said. “The recent high death toll operations would be carried out by ground HODEIDAH: A Yemeni boy rides a donkey to school in the Yemeni port city of loss of life,” Lise Grande, the humanitarian coordi- among civilians inside the Old City forced us to troops highly trained for urban combat. Hodeidah. — AFP nator for Iraq, said in a statement. Civil defense halt operations to review our plans,” a Federal “Our heroic forces are committed to the rules Decline of ancient trade route officials and residents have said many people lay Police spokesman said on Saturday. “It’s a time for of engagement which ensure protection of civilians” the statement said. A US deputy command- deepens Yemen’s food crisis ing general for the coalition said on Friday that the solution could lie in a change of tactics. The Import-dependent nation on brink of famine Iraqi military is assessing opening up another front and isolating the Old City, where the mili- SHARJAH: Captains of small wooden as adverse sailing conditions. “The Yemeni tants have put up fierce resistance, US Army dhows are carrying food and wares from currency is destroyed, sometimes we can’t Brigadier General John Richardson said. Fleeing the United Arab Emirates to war-torn get paid enough. We can only go once a residents have described grim living conditions Yemen. But supplies are falling even from month because the seas are too rough,” inside the city, saying there was no running water this centuries-old Arabian sea route that is said trader Mohammed Hassan, at a dock- or electricity and no food coming in. Aid agencies one of the last lifelines to a country on the ing station at nearby Port Khaled in say as many as 600,000 civilians remain in the brink of famine. A two-year-old civil war Sharjah “Sometimes we have to wait 40 western half of Mosul. has severely restricted the flow of food days.” The volumes of food carried on this But families are streaming out of the northern into the main Yemeni cargo ports of route represent a small fraction of the sup- city, Iraq’s second largest, in their thousands each Hodeidah and Salif on the Red Sea, where ply to Yemen, which relies on imports for day, headed for cold, crowded camps or to stay all the large grain silos are located. 90 percent of its food. But it has become with relatives. Hunger and fighting are making life The small wooden boats sailing from increasingly important as fighting has unbearable inside. The Iraqi Observatory for souks in the UAE are moving small but vital raged, the economy has collapsed and Human Rights said that since the campaign on supplies by making for the smaller ports to Yemen has needed all the help it can get. western Mosul began on Feb. 19, unconfirmed the south coast that are of little use to larg- reports said nearly 700 civilians had been killed er vessels - and often sidestepping military Port damage by government and coalition air strikes or Islamic inspections that choke traffic by dropping Thousands of people have been killed State actions. anchor at secluded coves nearby. The deals in the civil war pits the Iran-allied Houthi The militants have used car bombs, snipers originate in the sprawling Al Ras Market, a group against a Saudi-backed coalition - and mortar fire to counter the offensive. They collection of dusty alleyways near the which includes the UAE - fighting to have also stationed themselves in homes belong- Dubai Creek where an array of food and restore the government of President Abd- ing to Mosul residents to fire at Iraqi troops, often spices are on display including colorful Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The conflict has drawing air or artillery strikes that have killed sacks of Pakistani and Indian rice. choked imports. Sixty percent of Yemenis, MOSUL: Relatives and friends dig the graves of two civilians killed during fighting between civilians. The United Nations’ Grande said civilians The dhows - plying the ancient trade or 17 million people, are in “crisis” or “emer- Iraqi security forces and Islamic State militants on the western side of Mosul yesterday. — AP were at extreme risk as the fighting in Mosul route that once carried the likes of pearls, gency” food situations, according to the buried in collapsed buildings after air strikes weighing new offensive plans and tactics. No intensified and all sides must to do their utmost frankincense and myrrh - supply 14,000 to United Nations. While vessels seeking against Islamic State insurgents triggered a big combat operations are to go on.” The US-backed to avoid such casualties. “International humani- 18,000 tons of foodstuffs a month to Yemen, access to Houthi-held areas must face explosion. The exact cause of the collapses was offensive to drive Islamic State out of Mosul, now tarian law is clear. Parties to the conflict - all par- according to traders. That represents a drop inspections for smuggled weapons, the not clear but a local lawmaker and two residents in its sixth month, has recaptured the entire east- ties - are obliged to do everything possible to of about 30-40 percent over the past year government-controlled south has less said the air strikes may have detonated an IS truck ern side of Mosul and about half of the west. protect civilians. This means that combatants because of problems with payment, as well restrictions. —Reuters filled with explosives, destroying buildings in the But advances have stuttered in the last two cannot use people as human shields and cannot heavily-populated area. Reports on the numbers weeks as fighting enters the narrow alleys of the imperil lives through indiscriminate use of fire- Facts on IS-held Syria city of civilian casualties have varied but Civil Defense Old City, home to the Al-Nuri mosque where power,” she said. — Reuters BEIRUT: As an international coalition on June 29, IS chief Abu Bakr Al- prepares a final push to drive the Islamic Baghdadi proclaimed a “caliphate” that State (IS) group from Raqa, here are five covered territory in both countries. facts about the northern Syrian city: IS bastion, gruesome theatre Ancient capital Raqa became a key city in IS’s self- In an area inhabited since antiquity, declared caliphate, a hub for the organi- Raqa reached its heights under the zation’s activities and attacks in Syria, Iraq Abbasid caliphate. From 796 to 809, the and further afield.IS took over all levels of powerful caliph Harun Al-Rashid trans- civil administration, rewriting school cur- ferred the capital of his empire from riculums, establishing Islamic courts and Baghdad to Raqa, which sat at the cross- creating police units to implement roads of key trade routes. Major works Islamic law. Raqa also became the scene were ordered and the city was dotted of some of IS’s worst atrocities, including with grand palaces and mosques. The gruesome executions, public displays of caliph’s court returned to Baghdad in 809 bodies and the selling of sex slaves. and Raqa remained a major administrative centre for the western part of the Coalition target empire. In 1258 the city was destroyed by The city has long been a target of the the Mongol invasion. US-led coalition that launched operations against IS in Syria and Iraq in mid- Strategic location 2014, and it has also been hit by Russian Raqa and its eponymous province airstrikes. IS has since suffered a string of occupy a strategic location where several territorial defeats at the hands of US- major roads intersect on the banks of the backed forces in Syria and Iraq. On Euphrates River. It is east of Syria’s second November 5, the Syrian Democratic GAZA: The body of Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas’ official Mazen Faqha is carried by members of the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, the city Aleppo, 90 kilometers (55 miles) south Forces (SDF), a US-backed Arab-Kurdish military wing of Hamas, during his funeral in Gaza city yesterday. — AFP of the Turkish border, and less than 200 alliance, launched a major offensive Hamas supporters call for kilometers (125 miles) from the border with dubbed “Wrath of the Euphrates” to take Iraq. Raqa previously prospered from agri- Raqa, where some 300,000 civilians are culture in the fertile river valley and bene- believed to live. IS is also under pressure fitted from nearby hydroelectric dams that on other fronts from a Russian-backed ‘revenge,’ mourn official generated power for much of Syria. Syrian government offensive, and an assault by rebels supported by Turkey. First major city to fall Ankara considers the Kurdish component Two years after the start of Syria’s civil of the SDF a “terrorist” force linked to the GAZA:Thousands of Hamas supporters yester- spy agency. According to Israeli media, Faqha detained for five years, and transferred to Gaza. war in 2011, Raqa was the first provincial banned Kurdistan Workers Party. The US day called for “revenge” during the Gaza funeral was responsible for cells of Hamas’s military Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, capital to fall to rebels, among them the says the 30,000-strong SDF now compris- of an official from the Palestinian Islamist move- wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, in the the new leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, head- Al-Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda’s then-affiliate es mainly Arab fighters and has provided ment gunned down the previous day. “Revenge, Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israel arrested Faqha ed the procession from the Shifa morgue to the in the country. But tensions soon erupted airlift and artillery support. French revenge!” called participants at the procession and sentenced him to prison over suicide attacks Omari mosque, an AFP photographer said. Khalil into clashes between Al-Nusra and fellow Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said for Mazen Faqha, 38, who was shot dead by that killed hundreds of Israelis during the sec- Al-Haya, a deputy to Sinwar, promised retalia- jihadists of a precursor of IS. On January Friday that Raqa was now surrounded unknown gunmen in the Gaza Strip on Friday. ond intifada, or uprising, between 2000 and tion. “If the enemy thinks that this assassination 6, 2014, fierce fighting between the rival and that the final push would begin “in Hamas-nominated attorney general Ismail Jaber 2005. will change the power balance, then it should groups ended when IS’ predecessor coming days.” But an SDF spokesman was yesterday blamed Israel for the killing. He was released in 2011 along with more know the minds of Qassam will be able to retali- seized control of the city. Five months lat- more circumspect saying several weeks of “This assassination has the clear marks of than 1,000 other Palestinians in exchange for ate in kind,” he said. Hamas has ruled the Gaza er, Mosul in Iraq fell to the jihadists and preparatory work was still needed. — AFP Mossad,” he said, referring to the Jewish state’s Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier Hamas had Strip for 10 years.— AFP SUNDAY, MARCH26, 2017 I N T E R N AT ION A L School rape fuels Trump-era debate on immigration WASHINGTON: A rape at a Washington News reports say Sanchez Milian was like Sanchez Milian, can be placed in a often links immigration to higher crime area high school has drawn intense scruti- born in Guatemala and in August 2016 public school in contact with much rates, although no serious studies back up ny as part of the immigration debate crossed the Rio Grande separating Mexico younger people. Fox News, which is pop- this claim. In announcing his candidacy in launched under President Donald Trump, from the United States, as do many ular with conservatives, has provided June 2015, Trump famously said that since the two alleged attackers are Latinos seeking to escape poverty and blanket coverage of the rape in all its ugly, some of the Mexicans who cross the bor- Latinos who entered the United States find a better life in the United States. He violent detail. The television network also der illegally are rapists and drug dealers. illegally. Under normal circumstances, a was picked up by border control agents. A claimed there were links between the He has also called Latino migrants “bad case like this would not make national few days later, he was let go to join his rape and so-called sanctuary cities, where hombres.” The controversy deepened headlines. But these are not normal times father, who was living in Maryland while local authorities do not cooperate with when the Republican governor of in America. The attack feeds perfectly into the youth waited to appear before an their federal counterparts on immigration Maryland, Larry Hogan, urged the Trump narrative that the United States immigration judge. That hearing has not and deportation matters. Montgomery County officials to cooper- has porous borders and does not give pri- even been scheduled yet, because of a The case took on national dimensions ate fully with the probe into the rape. This ority to native-born Americans, and that huge backlog in the courts: half a million Tuesday. when White House spokesman was seen by some as a veiled criticism unauthorized immigrants mean more and cases involving unauthorized immigrants Sean Spicer called the sexual assault that they had been dragging their feet. more violent crime. waiting to see if they can stay or will be “shocking, disturbing, horrific.” “I think Jose Montano, 17, and Henry Sanchez deported. An estimated 11 million people part of the reason that the president has Totally indecent Milian, 18, are accused of brutally raping a live in the country illegally, most of them made illegal immigration and crackdown Jack Smith, the Montgomery County 14-year-old classmate in a bathroom dur- Mexicans and other Latinos. such a big deal is because of tragedies Public Schools superintendent, said it is Photo provided by the Montgomery ing school hours. They have been arrested like this,” Spicer said. Rockville “should “totally inappropriate to suggest that County, Md Police Department shows and are in custody as they wait to go Xenophobia look at its policies,” he added. Under we’re going to deny a 14-year-old, a 16- Henry Sanchez. Henry Sanchez, 18, before a judge. The rape took place last The rape unexpectedly threw gasoline Maryland law, anyone aged 5 to 21 has year-old, an 18-year-old an education one of two students charged with week at a public high school in Rockville, on the red hot national immigration the right to go to school, even if they are because of a horrible thing that hap- raping a 14-year-old girl in a Maryland, a Washington suburb in debate, including plenty of xenophobic in the country illegally. pened in our schools last Thursday.”He Maryland high school bathroom Montgomery County, which is strongly commentary on social media. Many The Trump administration is accused defended putting 17- or 18-year-olds entered the US illegally. The crime pro-Democratic. Seventy-six percent of Republican lawmakers wondered aloud of trying to score political points at the in class with younger kids if the for- became part of a national debate on the county’s voters went with Hillary how an authorized immigrant who does expense of Montano, who was born in El mer’s educational level requires some immigration. — AP Clinton in the November election. not speak English and is legally an adult, Salvador, and Sanchez Milian. Trump catching up. — AFP US Speaker Ryan dented by healthcare debacle WASHINGTON: US House Speaker Paul former President Barack Obama’s signa- Ryan on Friday acknowledged the ture domestic policy achievement, the unthinkable for a Republican leader: he 2010 Affordable Care Act, popularly could not deliver the votes to repeal and known as Obamacare. replace Obamacare, even though he and Amash is a member of the hard-line his fellow Republicans had vowed to do so conservative Freedom Caucus, which in for seven years. Nevertheless, Ryan’s job 2015 ousted Ryan’s predecessor as speaker, did not seem to be under immediate John Boehner, from the post. The caucus threat, at least not in the House of played a key role in the demise of the Representatives he leads. healthcare bill. Ryan chose to make health- Ryan’s long-time news media nemesis, care reform the first target on a list of leg- the website Breitbart, said Republicans islative goals for the new Republican- were “openly discussing” finding a majority Congress. He admitted on Friday replacement for him after he pulled a bill that he was disappointed by the outcome. to roll back Obamacare from the House Republicans faced resistance to the health- floor just minutes before an intensely care bill from both conservatives and mod- awaited final vote. The Breitbart article erates, making the process of winning pas- did not quote anyone by name. In the sage difficult for the leadership. House, just after the bill was pulled, sever- Republican Representative Joe Barton, al lawmakers brushed aside suggestions asked about the impact of Friday’s loss on PHILADELPHIA: Stacy Biscardi searches the grounds of Mount Carmel Cemetery for a relatives’ grave in Philadelphia. Volunteers helped that the failure spelled trouble for Ryan, Ryan, told reporters: “The speaker is a clean up and restore the Jewish cemetery where vandals damaged hundreds of headstones. — AP the 2012 Republican vice presidential can- human being. He’s not Superman.” Jews, Israelis fear fallout didate, who many have speculated has Republican Representative Barry presidential ambitions. Loudermilk, who backed the healthcare Ryan, 47, has been speaker since bill, said he didn’t think the loss weakened October 2015. Under the law, he is next in the speaker’s hand. One Republican law- from bomb hoax arrest line to the presidency after Vice President maker who has been considered potential Mike Pence. Republican Representative speaker material, Representative Jeb Justin Amash, a harsh critic of the ill-fated Hensarling of Texas, effusively praised healthcare bill, told reporters, “We can do Ryan, saying he had shown “phenomenal Jewish teen accused of masterminding anti-Semitic threats better with the legislative process.” But, he leadership.” “It is my hope that we can added, “Nobody is talking about” trying to regroup and rally behind him (Ryan) and oust Ryan as speaker. Amash had dis- the president as a conference to deliver on JERUSALEM: Israel’s arrest of a Jewish teenager Their heads are going to be blown off,” one of States, where the FBI in early March arrested a paragingly dubbed the Republican health- our promise” to dismantle Obamacare, accused of masterminding dozens of anti- the threats read, according to a recording former journalist suspected of making bomb care bill “Obamacare 2.0,” after Democratic Hensarling said in a statement. — Reuters Semitic threats could encourage racism and obtained by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. threats to Jewish community centers and institu- ease pressure on US President Donald Trump to Israel’s Haaretz newspaper said Friday the tions. He was allegedly cyberstalking an ex-girl- tackle anti-Semitism, Jewish groups have net started to tighten after a threat in New friend, using her name to make the threats. warned. Far-right groups claimed vindication Zealand in 2016, with police identifying the IP The Daily Stormer, a prominent anti-Semitic that attacks previously blamed on rightwingers address as originating from Israel. Using an website that had long alleged such threats were and alleged hatred resulting from Trump’s elec- antenna, the suspect allegedly accessed other a Jewish plot, has claimed vindication. Alt-right tion may actually have been carried out by a people’s computers to commit the crimes, the website Breitbart News, formerly run by Trump’s young Jewish American Israeli. newspaper said, leading police to question a chief strategist Steve Bannon, also saw vindica- Jewish organizations and Israeli media said number of innocent suspects before eventually tion, but for Trump. “When the president sug- the arrest was likely to boost conspiracy theo- netting him. His alleged motive remains gested that some of the anti-Semitic hate ries, while others worried it would weaken unknown. His father has also been arrested, crimes could be hoaxes, the (leftwing) responses to a rise in anti-Semitic attacks in the with their next court hearing set for March 30. Huffington Post claimed he was echoing ‘white US. More details emerged Friday about the sus- nationalists and far-right conspiracy theorists,’” pect, who holds dual Israeli American citizen- Jewish threats it wrote. “However, the arrests thus far suggest ship, though identifying details are subject to a The discussion Friday turned to the impact of that most of the threats were indeed hoaxes.” gag order. He was arrested Thursday in Israel the arrests, with Trump’s response to anti- “The US Jewish leadership owes @POTUS an and accused of making dozens of anti-Semitic Semitism at the forefront. More than 150 threats apology,” Marc Zell, vice-president of bomb threats in the United States and else- have been carried out against Jewish institu- Republicans Overseas, tweeted. where, including one against a major airline. tions in America since the start of the year. At US Jewish organizations have tried to down- His lawyer said he is 18 and suffers a brain some locations swastikas were scrawled on walls play the political fallout, saying the arrest did not tumor that may cloud his judgment. His health and cemeteries desecrated. It is not known what end legitimate fears. “No arrests have been made prevented him attending public school or doing percentage of the threats the teenager is alleged in three cemetery desecrations or a series of oth- mandatory military service, she said. Over the to have been involved with. Trump received sig- er anti-Semitic incidents involving swastika graf- House Speaker Paul Ryan past two to three years, Israeli police said he car- nificant criticism from Jewish Americans for his fiti and hate fliers,” the Anti-Defamation League’s ried out a series of hoax threats from his family perceived slow response to the uptick. CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. But home in southern Israel. In February 2015, he is He even suggested some of the threats might Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice president of Immigrants find sanctuary alleged to have made a bomb threat against be false to discredit his movement. He later the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Delta Airlines, forcing a plane to carry out an explicitly condemned anti-Semitic threats. Organizations, told The Jerusalem Post the arrest in Austin Church network emergency landing. “In a short time, a large Trump-supporting far-right websites hailed the in Israel posed a risk “that people won’t take the number of Jews are going to be slaughtered. arrest in Israel as well as a hoax case in the United ongoing concerns seriously”. — AFP AUSTIN: Senior Minister Meg Barnhouse Church in Austin has provided sanctuary to knows she’ll need beds, a dresser, chairs Guatemalan immigrant Hilda Ramirez and Sacramento man arrested in and a mirror to make the classroom at the her 10-year-old son, Ivan, for more than a First Unitarian Universalist Church of year . “Opening our arms to our neighbors Austin feel more like a home for a mother goes without question.” and her young daughter who are still killing of 2 adults, 2 juveniles deciding whether they will become the Sensitive areas latest immigrants seeking sanctuary from Pastor Laura Walter’s small deportation by moving into a church. It Presbyterian congregation in Bee Cave, would be the second time Barnhouse’s 12 miles west of Austin, hopes her church SACRAMENTO: Police arrested a 56-year-old man ated with an apartment near the University of San Oliva as an office technician since 2014. The sin- congregation had offered sanctuary. She can expand the network to reach immi- who works for the state Friday on suspicion that Francisco, six blocks from where police found gle-story beige home with sculpted shrubbery was hesitant in 2015 because of the grant communities outside city limits. he killed two adults and two children in a quiet him. The building is in a nice neighborhood, but is where the bodies were found has a basketball unknown legal and insurance risks, but They are still discussing whether the Northern California neighborhood. Authorities worn and run down. There was no answer at the hoop in a driveway that police blocked with yel- this time she agreed immediately. small church has room to offer shelter or did not release the names of the victims, but door, though a light remained on inside. low crime scene tape. It’s located in a tree-lined There is growing fear in the city’s immi- whether they could get a permit to build friends and relatives of a young family that lived The California Employment Development residential neighborhood of neatly maintained grant community as President Donald a temporary shower. “Our faith calls us to in the Sacramento house feared the worst. Department, which administers the state’s unem- homes near a church. Police have not said when Trump’s immigration and executive orders live this out,” Walters said. “In the near Rita Munoz, who lives in the neighborhood, ployment checks, said it has employed Vasquez- or how the victims were killed. —AP go into effect. And as more than 50 Austin future we’ll be at the very least helping said her grandchildren played with an 11-year-old area residents were detained in US support refugees and asylum seekers.” boy and 14-year-old girl who lived with their Immigration and Customs Enforcement The churches are relying on a 2011 ICE mother in the house. Munoz said her neighbor’s deportation raids last month, a growing policy directive telling agents to avoid mother arrived at the house shortly after the bod- number of churches in the Austin “sensitive areas” such as churches, hospi- ies were found Thursday and was heard crying Sanctuary Network are volunteering to tals and schools when conducting depor- “Oh my gosh, my only baby. My grandbabies are offer physical shelter or support to tation actions under most circumstances. all gone,” after she learned what happened. churches that do. The Austin Sanctuary Federal immigration officials said that poli- Later Munoz said she overheard the woman Network has broadened in the last year cy is still in effect, but recent immigration say: “I told her not to go back to him.” Sacramento from a handful of churches and advocates arrests around the US, including inside police declined to discuss the suspect’s relation- to more than two dozen congregations courthouses, are increasing fears. ship with the victims and said they haven’t deter- and religious groups, three labor unions, Austin, a liberal enclave in a conserva- mined a motive. “It’s a horrible thing,” Munoz said. several nonprofit groups and dozens of tive state, has had a strong base of immi- Police originally detained Salvador Vasquez-Oliva individual volunteers. gration activists for years in opposition to in San Francisco about 90 miles (145 kilometers) This mirrors the loosely organized a previous sheriff, who cooperated with away on Thursday afternoon and formally arrest- national sanctuary movement that has ICE requests to hold inmates for possible ed him Friday morning. He was being held in the grown to more than 800 churches and deportation. During the city’s involve- Sacramento County Jail, police spokesman Sgt. congregations, with a good portion of ment in the Secure Communities Bryce Heinlein said. those joining since Trump was elected. “It’s Program 7/87/8- a federal-local partner- The four victims were discovered Thursday bewildering for people at this point. It’s like ship on deportation ended in 2014 by the morning when police broke into the home after a trying to repair furniture when the house is Obama administration - an average of 19 relative reported that something might be on fire,” said Pastor Jim Rigby, whose con- people were deported from Travis County wrong. Vasquez-Oliva was quickly singled out by gregation at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian each week. — AP investigators on Thursday. Police said he is from SACRAMENTO: Investigators gather outside a home where four people were found dead, in Sacramento, but records show he is also is associ- Sacramento, Calif. A suspect is being held in San Francisco. — AP SUNDAY, MARCH26, 2017 I N T E R N AT ION A L London attacker: ‘Jack the lad’ turned killer LONDON: Khalid Masood, the Briton tions for assault and possession of Saudi link behind this week’s terror attack on parlia- offensive weapons would follow over Prime Minister Theresa May said ment, was a Muslim convert with a histo- the next 20 years. Masood was once investigated by ry of violence who was known to security Mark Ashdown, an old schoolfriend, British domestic spy agency MI5 in services but only as a “peripheral” figure. described “Ade” as he knew him as a relation to “concerns about violent Police said the 52-year-old father, who “Jack-the-lad” character with whom he extremism”, but was not part of the cur- also used the names Adrian Elms and used to go out partying, drinking, taking rent “intelligence picture”. Masood Adrian Russell Ajao, was not under inves- drugs and chasing girls. But he said he spent time as an English teacher in tigation when he went on the rampage in was changed by a fight in his local vil- Saudi Arabia, including year-long stints Westminster on Wednesday, killing four lage pub in Sussex, southern England, starting in November 2005 and again people. They believe he was acting alone, after which Masood was jailed in 2000 in April 2008, and returned for the Hajj but described the attack as “Islamist- for slashing a man’s face. “When he first in 2015. But the Saudi embassy in inspired”, while the Islamic State group came out he told me he’d become a London said in a statement: “During his claimed he was one of their “soldiers”. Muslim in prison, and I thought he was time in Saudi Arabia, Khalid Masood Masood was born on Christmas Day joking,” Ashdown told The Sun. did not appear on the security services’ 1964 to a single mother, who remarried “Then I saw he was quieter and much radar and does not have a criminal when he was young and brought him more serious. I gave him some cash-in- record in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” and his step-brothers up in a middle- hand work for a few months as a labor- The Islamic State group claimed that class area of Kent, in southeast England, er.”Another man who witnessed the pub one of its “soldiers” had carried out the according to media reports. Former attack, Lee Lawrence, told the tabloid London attack following a call to target schoolmates said he had been a popular that Masood told him: “I just want blood, countries fighting the jihadists in Iraq student who excelled academically and I dream about killing someone.” He soon and Syria. Police said they were seeking at sport, and that he was a “happy-go- got into trouble again. Police said his last to establish if Masood was inspired by lucky” character. His first brush with the conviction was in 2003, for the posses- terrorist propaganda, or if “others have law came in 1983, with a conviction for sion of a knife, in what reports said was encouraged, supported or directed The attacker, Khalid Masood is treated by emergency services outside the Houses criminal damage, while further convic- another violent attack on a man. him”. — AFP of Parliament London. — AP Tillerson to meet allies as NATO races to save talks WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Rex to AFP on condition of anonymity. After Tillerson will meet with NATO members almost two months in the job, Tillerson has next week in Brussels, officials said yester- yet to appoint a deputy or any assistant sec- day, as alliance diplomats worked to nail retaries, has largely avoided the media and down the date. “We are currently planning works with a small inner circle of advisers. to hold the meeting of NATO foreign minis- The administration, meanwhile, has been ters on 31 March. Consultations on schedul- scrambling to reaffirm its commitment to US ing among Allies are ongoing,” a NATO offi- military alliances after Trump called into cial in Brussels said. The NATO foreign minis- question their usefulness during the presi- ters meeting had been planned for April 5- dential campaign. Last week, after meeting 6, but that was thrown into chaos on Chancellor Angela Merkel, Trump claimed Tuesday when Tillerson revealed he would Germany owes “vast sums of money to not be attending. NATO and the United States,” reviving his Skipping the meeting was especially charge that allies do not pay their way. awkward because the former Exxon-Mobil CEO is to travel later in April to Russia, which Obsolete alliance? has had fraught relations with NATO since Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, a former the start of the Ukraine conflict in 2014. So Marine general, has declared US support for Tillerson will head to Brussels on Friday next NATO, and last week Tillerson reaffirmed ties week, a day after meeting in Ankara with with Asian allies Japan and South Korea. The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to United States has worked with NATO to “discuss the way forward with our campaign shore up support for the pro-western gov- to defeat ISIS in Syria and Iraq,” acting State ernment in Kiev after Russia’s annexation of Department spokesman Mark Toner said. Crimea and its support for a bloody uprising TUNIS: A Libyan traveler packs his laptop in his suitcase before boarding his flight for London at Tunis-Carthage International in eastern Ukraine. Combined with econom- Airport yesterday. —AFP Long-planned talks ic sanctions, the deployment of more NATO London attack - a reminder of fears Officials suggested that a complicating factor for the NATO meeting might be the agenda of Britain’s Foreign Secretary Boris for post-Brexit security cooperation Johnson, who might not be able to make it to Brussels on March 31. “The date is almost certain. It’s now mainly a question of timing,” a diplomat in Brussels said Saturday. The EU boosts intelligence gathering and sharing alliance’s 28 member states have until Monday to work out the details of their plans. The last minute preparations are not BRUSSELS: Hours before Wednesday’s attack in governments to arrest a suspect wanted in May, expected to start two-year EU exit pro- typical for NATO which normally has plans in London, the head of the European Union police another EU country. ceedings next Wednesday, has said she wants to place weeks ahead of time for these highly agency Europol warned that a large group of radi- retain a close relationship with the EU on securi- orchestrated meetings. calized individuals posed a constant threat to 5,000 extraditions ty and defense, and the EU has expressed simi- “The allies are trying to find a solution. It Britain and Europe. “Some of these are likely to A year ago, when she was interior minister, lar sentiments, but tensions are apparent. She is understood that there are substantive rea- succeed in the future,” Rob Wainwright, who is Theresa May said that Britain’s close intelligence said in January that Britain’s intelligence capa- sons why Tillerson cannot come April 5 and British, wrote in a blog to commemorate the relationship with the United States “does not bilities were “unique in Europe” and that its mili- 6,” a diplomat said. Chinese leader Xi Jinping attacks in Brussels that killed 32 people on March mean we would be as safe (outside the EU) as if tary and counter-terrorism resources should is expected to visit President Donald Trump 22, 2016. In the year between those incidents and we remain”. May, now prime minister, said the help it to secure a better exit deal. But EU Brexit in the United States in early April, and the attack that killed three people and injured Warrant had enabled Britain to extradite more negotiator Michel Barnier is dismissive. Tillerson would be expected to attend their US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson dozens near Britain’s parliament , European secu- than 5,000 people in the previous five years. “Security cannot be weighed off against eco- meetings. But his office has not confirmed rity officials say intelligence sharing on potential Being outside Europol, which was founded in nomic and commercial interests,” he said in a that engagement, and word that Tillerson troops from Western members to frontline threats has increased 10-fold. 1998 to help combat organized crime, cybercrime speech in Brussels on Wednesday. would stay away from the NATO talks stirred Eastern allies in the Baltics and Poland was More work is being done to tighten security and militant groups across borders, would leave doubt about US commitment to its allies. intended to send a signal to Moscow. But by streamlining databases, clamping down on Britain reliant on individual links with each of the Limits of cooperation “Everyone is aware that this would send a during his presidential campaign, Trump identity fraud and making reporting of suspi- other 27 EU governments, former officials say. Britain does already have additional bilateral bad message and people were not eager to raised eyebrows by expressing admiration cious individuals obligatory. Britain is one of Before Europol existed, coordination was done security agreements with fellow EU members have a meeting with a downgraded (US) for Russian President Vladimir Putin and dis- the top three users of Europol data. But as it “on the basis of who you knew and who you France and Germany, as well as the long-standing representation,” said the diplomat, speaking missing NATO as “obsolete”. — AFP leaves the EU, there is a risk that it will be shut could ring up”, according to Bill Hughes, ex-direc- “Five Eyes” intelligence sharing pact with the out of this cooperation, becoming more vulner- tor-general of Britain’s now defunct Serious United States, Canada, Australia and New able to Islamist radicals who have killed 300 Organized Crime Agency. He told parliament it Zealand. But cooperation agreements between London attack: people across Europe over the past two years. was a “labyrinthine exercise”. Besides Europol, Europol and non-EU countries Russia, Turkey and The suspect in the London attack was British- Britain is also party to intelligence-sharing proto- Ukraine took several years to negotiate, and there born, and Britain is not part of the EU’s open- cols of the Schengen agreement, and to a deal to are limits on what data can be shared. Under EU What we know border Schengen zone. exchange airline passenger data between EU agreements, transferring fingerprints and DNA But London still shares with its EU peers fears - security forces. EU diplomats have refused to dis- data can take minutes. With Britain outside the and information - about Islamists, often radical- cuss Britain’s future defense and security coopera- EU, the Global Risk Insights think-tank says it LONDON: Four people died in an Islamist- none of them terror related. According to ized online, returning home after going to train tion until London triggers the formal exit pro- could take months. Some critics do note that claimed attack outside parliament in The Sun tabloid, he married a Muslim or fight with jihadists in the Middle East, North ceedings, but one senior British diplomat said the information-sharing within the EU is still far for London this week when a British-born killer woman in 2004 and a year later moved to Africa or Afghanistan. British security officials government was likely to seek a “special relation- perfect. While France and Germany have large, rammed his car into pedestrians then Saudi Arabia to teach, returning in 2009. warned parliament last year of the dangers of ship”. “The European Union is not good at involv- well-staffed intelligence agencies, years of neg- stabbed a police officer before being shot Police said he went by “numerous alias- leaving Europol and the agreement covering the ing third parties and we need to be able to talk lect in Belgium’s secret services were exposed by dead. Here is what we know so far about es”, including, reportedly, Adrian Elms, while European Arrest Warrant, which requires all EU intimately,” the diplomat said. last year’s airport and metro blasts. — Reuters the attack, which was the deadliest in reports suggest he lived all over England, Britain since 2005 and was claimed by the including in Luton and east London. Prime 2 charged over supplying gun to airport attacker Islamic State jihadist group. Minister Theresa May has said Masood was known to intelligence services as a “periph- What happened? eral” figure some years ago but there was PARIS: French anti-terrorism judges have charged second busiest airport, according to judicial attack at Orly came with France still on high alert At around 2:40 pm (1440 GMT) on no warning of his intention to mount an two men suspected of involvement in supplying a sources. The 39-year-old, born in France to following a wave of jihadist attacks that have Wednesday, the attacker ploughed his car attack. When he hired the car, he told the weapon to the gunman killed at Paris’s Orly airport Tunisian parents, grabbed a soldier on patrol at claimed more than 230 lives in two years. The into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, Birmingham-based rental company he was after attacking soldiers, a judicial source said yes- Orly’s southern terminal and put a gun to her violence has made security a key issue in one of the city’s busiest tourist spots for a teacher, the BBC said. But an education terday. The suspects, aged 30 and 43, were head and seized her rifle, saying he wanted to “die France’s two-round presidential election on April its views of parliament and its famous ministry spokesman said he was not a qual- charged Friday for “association with terrorist crimi- for Allah”. His father insisted his son-who had 23 and May 7.Soldiers guarding key sites have clock tower. After crashing into the rail- ified teacher and had not taught in any nals” over the March 18 incident, the latest in spent time in prison for armed robbery and drug- been targeted in four attacks in the past two ings outside parliament, he leapt out with state schools. A former neighbor from France which remains on a state of emergency dealing-was not an extremist. years but escaped with only minor injuries. In a large knife and ran into the courtyard Winson Green in Birmingham described after a series of deadly jihadist attacks. Both men He had, however, been investigated in 2015 mid-February, a machete-wielding Egyptian where he stabbed a policeman before him as “a nice guy”, telling the Birmingham are being held in custody, the source said. The over suspicions he had been radicalized while man attacked a soldier outside Paris’s Louvre being shot dead by officers. Policeman Mail newspaper he lived next door with his younger one was also charged with arms posses- serving jail time, but his name did not feature on museum, injuring him slightly, before being shot Keith Palmer, 48, died of his injuries along wife and a small child until Christmas and sion related to a terror plot. the list of those thought to pose a high risk. The and wounded. — AFP with three civilians who were hit by the liked to work in his garden. They are both from the Paris area and lived speeding car: 43-year-old mother-of-two close to the assailant, Ziyed Ben Belgacem, but Aysha Frade; Kurt Cochran, an American in Did he act alone? neither of them had links with any radical Islamic his 50s; and 75-year-old Leslie Rhodes The attack was claimed by Islamic State movements, according to a preliminary investiga- from south London who died late which said Masood was one of its “soldiers” tion. The 30-year-old detained Friday is suspected Thursday. At least 50 people were wound- acting on a call to target countries fighting of having given Ben Belgacem a revolver a few ed, including tourists from 12 different the jihadists in Iraq and Syria. Counter-ter- days before the attack, while the older suspect countries. One person is fighting for their ror chief Mark Rowley said police were try- was present when it was handed over. The life and two are in critical condition. ing to establish whether Masood acted younger man admitted once in custody having totally alone “or if others have encouraged, been in possession of the gun and kept it at his Who was the attacker? supported or directed him”. So far, police home, before Ben Belgacem came to get it, a Police have identified the perpetrator as have arrested 10 people in connection source close to the investigation said. Questioning Khalid Masood, a 52-year-old Briton who with the attack. They initially arrested five of both of them revealed no further details about was born in the southeastern county of men and three women “on suspicion of Ben Belgacem’s plans, said the source. The Orly Kent under the name Adrian Russell Ajao. preparation of terrorist acts”. One of the attack, which came a month and a half after a sim- So far, police have not yet released an women was later released on bail. Two ilar assault at the world-famous Louvre museum in image of Masood although media footage more “significant arrests” were made Paris, bears the hallmarks of the Islamic State (IS), of the attacker lying on a stretcher showed overnight Thursday. Police have so far but has not been claimed by the jihadist group. a bearded, burly man wearing black searched 16 addresses, mainly in London clothes. He ran into trouble with the law in and Birmingham, seizing 2,700 items ‘Die for Allah’ ESSONNE: A grab of a surveillance video footage from Paris Orly airport shows a man (cen- his late teens, chalking up a string of con- including “massive” amounts of computer Ben Belgacem was under the influence of ter) attacking a soldier on patrol at Paris’s Orly airport and grabbing her rifle before being victions for assault and possession of offen- data. Five more raids are currently under drugs and alcohol when he attacked the capital’s shot dead. — AFP sive weapons between 1983 to 2003, but way, Rowley said. —AFP

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