Saudi Arabia arrests 44 Qaeda suspects

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's interior ministry announced on Wednesday the arrest of 44 Al-Qaeda suspects, including one foreigner, state television Al-Ekhbariya reported.
"The network includes a number of the theorists and believers of the deviant ideology and supporters of criminal acts," ministry spokesman General Mansur al-Turki said on Al-Ekhbariya.

Italian city to fine Muslim women in burkinis

ROME- The anti-immigration mayor of a northern Italian city has barred Muslim women from wearing the body-concealing swimsuit known as a burkini and has threatened to fine them if spotted on the beach or at swimming pools, a report said Wednesday.
Women wearing the garment made up of a veil, a tunic and loose leggings face a fine of €500 ($700) if spotted at swimming pools or riversides in the northern Piedmont town of Varallo Sesia, the ANSA news agency reported.
"The sight of a 'masked woman' could disturb small children, not to mention problems of hygiene," Mayor Gianluca Buonanno was quoted as saying.
"We don't have to be tolerant all the time," he said.
Justifying the move, Buonanno added: "Imagine a Western woman bathing in a bikini in a Muslim country. The consequences could be decapitation, prison or deportation. We are merely prohibiting the use of the burkini."
Last week a swimming pool in Paris refused entry to a burkini-clad woman on similar grounds, adding to tensions over Muslim dress in France.
The incident came as French lawmakers conducted hearings on whether to ban the burqa, which is not obligatory in Islam, after President Nicolas Sarkozy said the head-to-toe body covering and veil was "not welcome" in France, home to Europe's biggest Muslim minority.
Buonanno belongs to Italy's Northern League, a party allied with the centre-right People of Freedom led by Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Saudi Mufti allows use of mask during Umrah

RIYADH: The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia Wednesday allowed the use of mask with Ahram while performing the Umrah.
According to an Arabic Newspaper, Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah Al Sheikh said the people performing the Umrah can wear mask within Haram Sharif while offering Tawaf, Sa’ee and prayers to save themselves from contagious diseases.
According to him, wearing a mask is unlike covering the face. There is no harm in wearing a mask if one needs; however it is better not to wear if not necessary.
The Mufti Azam explained, ‘We have been enjoined on to adopt all the possible measures against communicable infections.’

Questions ongoing for Maulvi Omar

Pakistani intelligence officials have been questioning the chief spokesman for the Taliban in the country, who was arrested on Monday.
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Maulvi Omar was arrested in the Mohmand tribal area while travelling to South Waziristan, near the Afghan border.
Pakistani officials say he has confirmed that the group's leader, Baitullah Mehsud, was killed in a US drone attack earlier this month.
The Taliban had previously denied US and Pakistani reports that he was dead.
Correspondents say Maulvi Omar was never a military commander, but as a senior and trusted associate of Baitullah Mehsud, he will be able to tell his interrogators much about Taliban plans and strategy.
Mr Omar was the second prominent Taliban figure to be arrested in 24 hours.
Qari Saifullah, a commander affiliated to Harkat Jihad-e-Islami, was detained while being treated at a private hospital in Islamabad, officials said, reportedly after being wounded in a missile strike.
Both men are still being questioned about their possible roles in militant attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan, police said.
Maulvi Omar was captured along with two associates in the village of Khawazeo in Mohmand on Monday night. Local tribal elders reportedly assisted the security forces.
Footage reportedly showing Maulvi Omar being arrested
Mr Omar comes from Bajaur, a tribal area in the North West where the Taliban established themselves early on.
He was the official spokesman for Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organisation of regional and tribal-based Pakistani militant groups, and is said to have been a senior aide of Baitullah Mehsud.
Correspondents say his arrest is significant because Mr Omar had been acting as a liaison between the various Taliban groups and was a key figure in the Taliban's propaganda campaigns.

Global economic recovery has started: IMF chief

WASHINGTON- The global economic recovery has begun but sustaining it will require refocusing the United States toward exports and Asia toward imports, the International Monetary Fund's chief economist said on Tuesday.

In an article released by the IMF, Olivier Blanchard also said potential economic output may be lower than it was before the financial crisis struck.

"The turnaround will not be simple," Blanchard said. "The crisis has left deep scars, which will affect both supply and demand for many years to come."

U.S. consumption, which accounts for about 70 percent of the U.S. economy and a large chunk of global demand, would not quickly return to pre-crisis strength as households cope with trillions of dollars in losses from the falling housing and stock markets.

He said the financial crisis had made Americans more conscious of "tail risks" -- events that are unlikely to occur but when they do have devastating consequences.

That means U.S. consumers are unlikely to return to their free-spending ways, and both the United States and its trading partners will have to adjust. Emerging Asian countries, especially China, must play a big role.

"From the point of view of the United States, a decrease in China's current account surplus would help increase demand and sustain the U.S. recovery," he said. "That would result in more U.S. imports which would help sustain world recovery."....more

Gunmen storm Kabul bank

KABUL: At least three gunmen stormed the offices of a central Kabul bank Wednesday and were surrounded by police, the interior ministry said, as the Taliban claimed the attack the day before key elections.

Muslim scholar sacked for appearance on Iran TV

AMSTERDAM- The Dutch city of Rotterdam and its university have fired Tuesday Swiss Muslim scholar Tariq Ramadan after he hosted a program on an Iranian television channel, a joint media statement said, as the scholar said he would take the council to court for its politically motivated dismissal.
The city of Rotterdam, where Ramadan has been an advisor to the mayor on issues of multi-culturalism since 2007, and Erasmus University, where Ramadan is a visiting professor of theology, said: "The reason is Tariq Ramadan's involvement with the Iranian television channel Press TV, which is incompatible with his functions."
"Press TV is a channel that is financed by the Iranian government," said the statement, adding "although there is no doubt about the personal effort of Tariq Ramadan, both boards find this indirect relation with this repressive regime or even to be associated with it, not acceptable."
Rotterdam's mayor is Ahmed Aboutaleb, a Muslim who was formerly junior minister for social affairs and who has vowed to ease tensions between the city's native Dutch and a growing immigrant population.
Ramadan said he would take the council to court.
"I am going to sue the municipality. It is a question of honor and dignity," he told public broadcaster NOS.