QATAR | Page 20 SPORT | Page 1 Barshim wins fourth straight INDEX Asian DOW JONES QE NYMEX QATAR 3, 20 COMMENT 18, 19 Halal Qatar festival REGION 4 BUSINESS 1 – 12 puts on display Indoors title 16,365.77 9,967.25 29.56 ARAB WORLD 4 CLASSIFIED 7, 8 -47.66 +152.73 -1.21 INTERNATIONAL 5 – 17 SPORTS 1 – 12 heritage, traditions -0.29% +1.56% -3.93% Latest Figures published in QATAR since 1978 SATURDAY Vol. XXXVI No. 10004 February 20, 2016 Jumada I 11, 1437 AH GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals Annual fly-in starts in Al Khor British MP praises progress on workers’ welfare in Qatar In brief AFP Lee was a member of a cross-party Doha group which met government minis- ters, World Cup offi cials and made site visits to workers’ accommodation and he head of a British parliamentary one of the tournament’s prospective delegation on a fact-fi nding visit venues. AFRICA | Terror Tto Qatar said yesterday the World He said the British parliamentarians Cup 2022 hosts had made “progress” on had been granted “freedom of access” Qatar condemns the issue of workers’ welfare. to talk to whoever they wished. attack in Cameroon Conservative Phillip Lee, co-chair Lee said there had been particular of the all-party parliamentary group improvement over the awarding of Qatar yesterday condemned two for Qatar, said Doha has listened to its contracts and urged Qatar to empha- explosions that took place in a sise the “human” diff erence it is mak- market in the north of Cameroon critics over its treatment of migrant that killed at least 24 people and workers. ing to its vast army of foreign workers. injured 112 others. The Qatari “From what I have seen, there has “People (working) here for two years Ministry of Foreign Aff airs released been progress in workers’ welfare on can make a signifi cant diff erence to a statement, denouncing terrorism the construction sites,” he told AFP. their lives,” he said. and violence in all shapes or forms. “I think they have responded to criti- Qatar has introduced a series of The statement added that “such cism. measures to improve the workers’ criminal acts that target civilians “I think the criticism of Qatar is welfare. Long-awaited changes to Qa- contradict with all principles and The two-day annual Al Khor Fly-In, which kicked off yesterday at Al Khor airstrip in the presence of HE the Minister of more accurately a criticism of FIFA tar’s “kafala” labour law for foreign values”. The ministry off ered Transport and Communication Jassim Seif Ahmed al-Sulaiti, features a variety of aircraft. The event attracted a large number and Qatar has been wrapped up in workers will come into force in De- Qatar’s condolences to the people of visitors. Entry is free. PICTURE: Jayan Orma. Page 20 that.” cember this year. and government of Cameroon on the casualties of the terrorist attacks, wishing the injured a swift recovery. Page 5 REGION | Response Doha to host Saudi halts $3bn in aid to Lebanon army conference on Saudi Arabia has suspended a $3bn Hollande warns of aid package for the Lebanese army to buy French arms, its state news humanitarian agency said yesterday, in what an off icial described as a response to crisis in Yemen Beirut’s failure to condemn attacks on the kingdom’s missions in Turkey-Russia war risk Iran. The SPA agency also quoted QNA an off icial source as saying in a Moscow will not succeed by were fi red’,” Erdogan told reporters in the Ankara attack, in which a car laden Doha statement that Saudi Arabia has also unilaterally backing Bashar al- Istanbul. with explosives was detonated next to cancelled the remainder of $1bn in Assad, says the French president “Months ago in my meeting with him military buses as they waited at traffi c aid it had earmarked for Lebanon’s I told him the US was supplying weap- lights, was carried out by a YPG mem- oha will host a special confer- internal security service. Page 4 Reuters ons. Three plane loads arrived, half of ber from northern Syria working with ence on the humanitarian crisis Paris them ended up in the hands of Daesh Kurdish militants inside Turkey. Din Yemen, organised by the Qa- AMERICA | Personality (Islamic State), and half of them in the But the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks tar Charity (QC) in partnership with 13 hands of the PYD,” he said. (TAK), a group that once had links to groups and international and regional Novelist Lee rench President Francois Hol- “Against whom were these weapons the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), networks, from February 22 to 24. dies at 89 lande said yesterday that there used? They were used against civilians claimed responsibility for the bombing The conference, which is held under Harper Lee, who wrote one of Fwas a risk of war between Turkey there and caused their deaths.” in a statement on its website. It said the the theme of “The humanitarian crisis America’s most enduring literary and Russia over Syria, adding that Mos- He appeared to be referring to a US bomber was a 26-year old Turkish na- in Yemen and the challenges and pros- classics, To Kill a Mockingbird, about cow should stop backing Syrian Presi- air drop of 28 bundles of military sup- tional. pects of the humanitarian response,” a child’s view of right and wrong and dent Bashar al-Assad. President Hollande: wants pressure on plies in late 2014 meant for Iraqi Kurd- Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Ca- will see the participation of more than waited 55 years to publish a second Russia’s foreign ministry said earlier Moscow for negotiations. ish fi ghters near the Syrian city of vusoglu earlier accused the US of mak- 90 local, regional and international or- book with the same characters from yesterday that it intends to call a session Kobani. Pentagon offi cials said at the ing confl icting statements about the ganisations and a number of interna- a very diff erent point of view, died at of the UN Security Council to discuss ip Erdogan has said US-supplied weap- time one had fallen into the hands of Syrian Kurdish militia. tional networks, along with more than the age of 89 yesterday. Page 6 the Turkish government’s statements ons have been used against civilians by Islamic State. The Pentagon later said He said US Secretary of State John 150 experts. about a possible ground operation in a Syrian Kurdish militia group that An- it had targeted the missing bundle in an Kerry had told him the Kurdish insur- The conference, the fi rst of its kind BRITAIN | Politics Syria. kara blames for a deadly suicide bomb- air strike and destroyed it. gents could not be trusted, in what with this level of participation, aims to “There is a risk of war between Tur- ing on Wednesday. The US has said it does not consider Cavusoglu said was a departure from unite the visions of partners about the Cameron closes in key and Russia,” Hollande told France In Washington, the State Depart- the YPG a terrorist group. A spokes- Washington’s offi cial position. humanitarian crisis in Yemen, as well as on deal at EU talks Inter radio. “There is an escalation.” ment said the US had “not provided any man for the State Department said on “My friend Kerry said the YPG can- the exchange of information and pro- British Prime Minister David “Negotiations must resume, bom- weapons of any kind” to the YPG mili- Thursday that Washington was not in not be trusted,” Cavusoglu said at a news mote the follow-up mechanisms for Cameron yesterday appeared to bardments must stop, aid must come,” tia, and the White House said President a position to confi rm or deny Turkey’s conference during a visit to Tbilisi. determining the needs of those aff ected close in on a reform deal to keep his he said. Barack Obama phoned Erogan to off er charge that the YPG was behind the “When you look at some statements and the distribution of geographic areas country in the EU after two days and Russian warplanes entered Syria’s US condolences over the bombing in Ankara bombing. coming from America, confl icting and in order to develop action plans and ini- nights of haggling with European increasingly complex fi ve-year-old the Turkish capital. The YPG’s political arm has denied confused statements are still coming.... tiatives among the partners. leaders at a Brussels summit. confl ict at the end of September, back- Turkey sees the militia as a terrorist the group was behind the Ankara at- We were glad to hear from John Kerry The Yemeni crisis is one of the big- Cameron’s 27 counterparts have dug ing the forces of their ally Assad, and organisation linked to Kurdish mili- tack. yesterday that his views on the YPG gest humanitarian crises in the world, in their heels at the meeting, leading bombing rebel positions. tants waging an insurgency on its own The Turkish government has said have partly changed.” Page 11 given the number of those aff ected who to marathon negotiations over The Turkish military shot down a soil. exceeded 80% of the estimated popu- changes that he wants to put before Russian jet in November it said had Turkey has blamed the YPG for the su- lation of about 26mn people, accord- the British public in a referendum breached its airspace while on a bomb- icide car bomb attack three days ago that ‘A lot more work to do’ before ceasefi re: Kerry ing to the conference organsisers.