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“I’m expectingheretosee$15-$20bil- The UAEsaiditwoulddeposit$2billion SUBSCRIPTION 7 150 Fils AUDY AC 4 05 AAAAAWL2,13 HNo:16459 SATURDAY, 1436 AH JAMADA MARCH14,2015 ALAWWAL 23, billion toSisi’sEgypt GCC alliespledge$12 Gulf Araballies Kuwait announces$4billioninvestments Egypt’s regulations, andtheirimplementa- Cai toldReuters attheconference.Hesaid is positive,weneedtoseemore,” Jin-Yong more workthatneedstobedone. Thesign happy toseethatprogressbut thereisalot to improvetheinvestmentclimate. “Weare Egypt’s reformsbutcalledfor furtheraction institution, saidhewasencouraged by Corporation (IFC),aglobaldevelopment and reduceunemploymentto10percent. growth ratesofsixpercentoverfiveyears respecting contractsinordertoachieve investment throughlegislativereformsand finances andencouragingprivatesector economy centeredonimprovingstate the conferencethathisvisionforEgypt’s by implementingotherreforms.Hetold imposed aheavyburdenonthestateand eign investorsbycuttingfuelsubsidiesthat rights groups.Buthaswonpraisefromfor- opponents hasdrawnfirefromhuman Arab world’smostpopulouscountry. help turnaroundtheailingeconomyof wants toremoveinvestmentbarriers agenda underSisi,aformerarmychiefwho as animportanttestofEgypt’sreform gave nodetails.Theconferenceshapedup tag ofabout$40billion,Salmansaid.He of anewadministrativecapitalwithprice- ference, includingonefortheconstruction memoranda ofunderstandingatthecon- ect. Egypt aspartofa$1.9billionpowerproj- The headoftheInternationalFinance Sisi’s crackdownonIslamistsandsecular Egypt alsoexpectedtosignseveral toll mounts Saudi asdeath MERS kills10in 36 afloat sincethenwith$23billioninoilship- mass protests,havekeptEgypt’seconomy Mohamed MorsiinJuly2013following backed theoverthrowofIslamistPresident shop forinvestors. ment lawdesignedtocreateaone-stop Thursday, Sisiratifiedanamendedinvest- tion, neededtobeimprovedaswell.On ers, declinedto comment. hosts morethan 100,000Lebanesework- named. Anofficialinthe UAE,which Lebanese officialwhodidnot wanttobe are Shiite,accordingtoanother senior sions. Sixty-threeofthosetobe deported unable togiveareasonfor theexpul- Minister GebranBassilsaid. Hewas authorities inthenext24hours,”Foreign that 70Lebanesewillbedeportedbythe by theLebaneseembassyinEmirates ministry offoreignaffairswasinformed Lebanese officialssaidyesterday.“The Shiite Muslims,withinthenext24hours, expel 70Lebanesenationals,mostly BEIRUT: Saudi Arabia,KuwaitandtheUAE,which 70 Lebanesecitizenstobe deported L UA ebanese S The UnitedArabEmirateswill E toe for rareroadwin hold offLakers NBA-worst Knicks 42 pants oftheEgyptEconomicDevelopmentconference id andinvestmentyesterdaytohelpEgypt’sstrug- November. —AFP rorist” organizations itpublishedin Lebanese Hezbollahonalist of83“ter- by SunniIslamistsfornot including Bashar Al-Assad.TheUAEwas criticized war-torn Syriatosupport President Hezbollah foritsmilitaryintervention in ed toimposesanctions against after theGulfCooperationCouncildecid- Qatar deported18Lebanesenationals Sunni-ruled Gulfmonarchies.In2013, ment supportedbyIranandopposed Hezbollah, theLebaneseShiitemove- expelled onsuspicionoflinkswith who hadlivedintheUAEforyearswere cent lastyear,officialssay.—Reuters cal yearendinginJune,upfrom2.2per- expected togrowbyfourpercentinthefis- 13 percent,isalsoamajorchallenge.GDP last year.Unemployment,currentlyaround product by2018/19,downfrom15percent deficit of10percentgrossdomestic deposits. Thegovernmenttargetsabudget ments, cashgrantsandcentralbank In 2009,dozensofLebaneseShiites x pel h iites Max Min 63 25º 15º

England end World Cup with Afghanistan stroll SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 SATURDAY, SportsSports 46

INDIAN WELLS: Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia, returns to Klara Koukalova of the Czech Republic, at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament. —AP Niculescu books Serena showdown

INDIAN WELLS: Monica Niculescu rolled over arrived in Indian Wells Wednesday less than Wednesday, British number one Heather everything else. Aleksandra Krunic 6-2, 6-1 to book a second 24 hours after competing in an exhibition Watson, Mona Barthel and Irina Falconi The 27-year-old Serbian star is aiming for round clash with Serena Williams at Indian match against Grigor Dimitrov at Madison emerged victorious. Rising star Watson took back-to-back Indian Wells titles to go with his Wells, where the American returns this week Square Garden in New York. on former top 15 player Julia Goerges, of fifth Australian Open title won earlier this after a 14-year hiatus. Federer, who won his seventh title in Germany, in the first main draw contest of the year. Reigning Australian Open champ Williams Dubai earlier this month, will begin his Indian tournament. He has two Wimbledon crowns and one US is one of 32 seeded players who received a Wells campaign with a second round match Watson appeared to be headed for a Open but has yet to lift the trophy at Roland first-round bye at the joint ATP Masters and against either Jerzy Janowicz or Diego straight-set victory by compiling a 6-4, 5-3 Garros, having finished runner-up twice. WTA tournament in the California desert. Schwartzman. The world number two said he lead. But Goerges rallied to win five games in “The highest priority is the French Open,” Top seed Williams is competing in the is hitting the ball well and is feeling good a row to take the second set and go up a he said Thursday at the Indian Wells Tennis tournament for the first time since her self- about his chances this week. break at 1-0 in the third. Still, Watson Garden stadium. “The French Open of course imposed exile began in 2001. She claimed “I don’t feel like I have that many bad days regrouped to beat Goerges 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. is the Grand Slam I’ve never won. But I’ve had two singles titles in 1999 and 2001. anymore,” Federer said. “Maybe sometimes American wild-card Falconi beat Croatia’s a lot of good tournaments there. I played a “It’s exciting,” Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic said of you come out and it’s not working. That’s Ajla Tomljanovic 7-6 (8/6), 6-4. The 24-year- couple times the finals there, got a step clos- Williams’ return to the event. “Obviously you something that happened very few times in old Falconi was one of seven Americans who er.” Djokovic said he doesn’t agonize over his want to compete against the best.” the years where I was very dominant. took the court Wednesday. defeats in the final of the French but rather This will mark the first career meeting Otherwise, I feel like I am playing very well.” Among other matches, Germany’s Barthel sees them as a learning experience. “I use the between Williams and Romania’s Niculescu Federer said he is going to use the time outlasted Kristina Mladenovic of France 6-3, 5- losses as a way to grow mentally, physically when they square off Friday night on stadium between now and his first match to adjust to 7, 6-4, Elena Vesnina of Russia beat qualifier and emotionally as a player so I can under- court at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. “I the playing surface. “I was always going to Kateryna Kozlova of Ukraine 6-3, 6-3 and qual- stand what I need to do better,” he said. He don’t really know what to expect because we come here and make sure the first few days I ifier Daria Gavrilova of Russia surprised Silvia said Thursday he doesn’t want to dwell on haven’t played before,” Niculescu said. “But get used to the courts. I had a bit of a slow Soler Espinosa of Spain 6-3, 6-4. whether it will happen this year but he plans obviously I know she has a lot of power, and I week last week after Dubai, so I think the next Meanwhile, world number one Novak to show up in top condition and ready to go know I’m going to run a lot. I’m just going to few days are going to be important for me,” Djokovic says as much as he would like to win the distance. “It’s still too early to talk about it. play my game.” he said. a fourth Indian Wells title, claiming the elusive The difference to those goals and approach is I Four-time men’s champion Roger Federer In other first round women’s matches on French Open crown is taking priority over won’t put too much pressure on myself. —AFP SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

England end World Cup with Afghanistan stroll

SYDNEY: England’s miserable World Cup ended tional between England and Afghanistan unable after losing the toss. No Afghanistan batsman Scotland. However, Shenwari could only manage with a comfortable nine- win over to qualify for the quarter-finals and having just one made more than the recalled Shafiq’s seven before his thick edge off Jordan was caught Afghanistan in a rain-marred Pool A clash at the previous Pool A win apiece after they each beat 30. First change Chris Jordan led England’s attack by Morgan, diving forward at backward point. Sydney Ground yesterday. Chasing a Scotland. This was the first edition of the World with two for 13 in 6.2 overs while all-rounder Ravi The fifth-wicket duo of (17) and revised target of 101 to win in 25 overs under the Cup in the tournament’s 40-year history where Bopara, playing his first match of the tournament Shafiq-the first two batsmen in the innings to Duckworth/Lewis method following three rain England had failed both to beat a Test nation and after an injury to Chris Woakes, took two for 31 in make double-figure scores-took Afghanistan to 62 delays, England finished on 101 for one in 18.1 get through to the second round. eight overs. for four of 25 overs before rain stopped play again. overs. Ian Bell was 52 , off 56 balls, after In 1996, England defeated two non-Test sides “It’s important to realise we haven’t clicked this Afterwards, Nabi lofted off-spinner James putting on 83 for the first wicket with Alex Hales, in the UAE and the Netherlands before losing to Sri tournament. It has been challenging, I have learnt Tredwell-like Bopara making his tournament who made 37 after being dropped on nought and Lanka in the quarter-finals. Hopes they might fin- a lot about myself and about the players,” said debut, following an injury to Moeen Ali, for six. 12. Afghanistan, after losing the toss, earlier made ish with a win over World Cup debutants England skipper Eoin Morgan. But his near run-a-ball 16 ended when he 111 for seven in 36.2 overs before their innings Afghanistan, after their last-eight ambitions crum- Afghanistan skipper said his pulled Bopara straight to Tredwell at mid-on. With was ruled to be closed because of rain. bled in Monday’s 15-run defeat by Bangladesh in team will keep learning. “We have learned a lot-we England yet to score, Hales should have been out Both sides came into this first one-day interna- Adelaide, were high as the non-Test side collapsed have played against full members and seen how for a third-ball duck when he edged Shapoor they play, how can they build pressure,” he said. Zadran, only for at backward After Morgan won the toss, Afghanistan found point to drop the chance despite getting both runs hard to come by in overcast conditions. hands to the ball. Openers (four) and Hales, on 12, then gave a near-identical chance (seven) both fell cheaply to slip catches by Joe off left-arm quick Shapoor only for Najibullah to Root off the bowling of James Anderson and again drop the two-handed catch in the same Stuart Broad respectively. position. After that second reprieve, the only Shortly after an initial rain delay, question was whether England would enjoy a 10- was caught behind off Jordan for six. His exit wicket win. That didn’t happen, with Hales finally brought in Samiullah Shenwari, who had previous- caught behind off paceman , hav- ly made several fifties at this tournament with a ing faced 33 balls including three fours and two best of 96 in Afghanistan’s one-wicket win over sixes. — AFP

SCOREBOARD

SYDNEY: Scoreboard in the World Cup Pool A match between Afghanistan and England at the Sydney Cricket Ground yesterday: Afghanistan 18-1 (2w); Jordan 6.2-2-13-2 (1w); Bopara 8-1- Nawroz Mangal c Root b Anderson 4 31-2 (1w); Tredwell 7-0-25-1; Javed Ahmadi c Root b Broad 7 England (revised target 101 in 25 overs) Afsar Zazai c Buttler b Jordan 6 A. Hales c Zazai b Hassan 37 Nasir Jamal c Buttler b Bopara 17 I. Bell not out 52 Samiullah Shenwari c Morgan b Jordan 7 J. Taylor not out 8 Shafiqullah Shafiq c Bopara b Tredwell 30 Extras (lb3, w1) 4 Mohammad Nabi c Tredwell b Bopara 16 Total (1 wkt, 18.1 overs) 101 Najibullah Zadran not out 12 Did not bat: J Root, E Morgan, J Buttler, R Hamid Hassan not out 0 Bopara, C Jordan, J Tredwell, S Broad, J Extras (lb6, w6) 12 Anderson Total (7 wkts, 36.2 overs) 111 Fall of : 1-83 (Hales) Did not bat: , Bowling: Shapoor 4-0-25-0; Dawlat 3-0-23-0; Fall of wickets: 1-17 (Mangal), 2-20 (Ahmadi), Hassan 5-0-17-1 (1w); Nabi 4.1-0-14-0; 3-25 (Zazai), 4-34 (Shenwari), 5-65 (Jamal), 6- Shenwari 2-0-19-0. 93 (Nabi), 7-101 (Shafiqullah) Result: England won by nine wickets (D/L AUSTRALIA: Englandís batsman James Taylor plays a shot asAfghanistan’s wicketkeeper Afsar Bowling: Anderson 7-0-18-1 (2w); Broad 8-1- method). Zazai (left) looks on during the 2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A match. — AFP

World Cup result and standings Afghans need space at the top

Pool A SYDNEY: Afghanistan have learned a huge sion to reduce the field from 14 to 10 teams for At Hamilton amount from their maiden World Cup cam- 2019. “It would be a shame, I think,” he said. Bangladesh 288-7 ( 128 not out, 51) v New Zealand 290-7 paign but need to be allowed to continue to “There’s a certain mystique about the “associ- (Martin Guptill 105, Ross Taylor 56) play at the very top level if they are to improve ate” nations and something would be lost if New Zealand won by three wickets in the future, coach Andy Moles said yesterday. they weren’t given the opportunity to do it The Afghans signed off from the tournament again. At Sydney with a damp squib at the Sydney Cricket “It is called the World Cup and the secret is Afghanistan 111-7 v England 101-1 (Ian Bell 52 not out) Ground (SCG) on Friday, losing by nine wickets in the name. If it’s a World Cup let’s have as England won by nine wickets (D/L — revised target 101 from 25 overs) to England under the Duckworth-Lewis many nations playing as possible. method in a rain-disrupted final Pool A match. “It’s an opportunity to develop the game Played won lost tied no result points run rate Pool A Although they were never going to be in and move the game forward. It’s a shop win- New Zealand 6 6 0 0 0 12 +2.564 - qualified contention for a place in the quarter-finals, dow where people at our level get the oppor- Sri Lanka 6 4 2 0 0 8 +0.371 - qualified they did beat Scotland-a remarkable achieve- tunity to play against the best players in the Australia 5 3 1 0 1 7 +1.597 - qualified ment for a country where the game was all but world. Bangladesh 6 3 2 0 1 7 +0.136 - qualified unknown two decades ago. “Our guys will “Where can they test themselves if they England 6 2 4 0 0 4 -0.753 leave this tournament with a lot of good mem- can’t test themselves against the best?” Moles Afghanistan 6 1 5 0 0 2 -1.853 ories and learning,” Moles told reporters. “We’ll said the players should be proud of what they Scotland 5 0 5 0 0 0 -1.769 look at where we need to get better and we’ll achieved at the tournament, not just in how come back a lot stronger from this experience. they played but also in how they continue to Pool B Exposure at the next level has found us short change perceptions about their war-torn India 5 5 0 0 0 10 +2.157 - qualified on composure and a bit of technique and country. South Africa 6 4 2 0 0 8 +1.707 - qualified that’s what we’ve got to go away and learn on. “We would have liked to have done a bit Pakistan 5 3 2 0 0 6 -0.194 “The boys have given it 100 percent. They better in some of the games but that’s some- Ireland 5 3 2 0 0 6 -1.014 have worked really hard, I couldn’t ask for any thing we’ll work on,” he said. “The Afghan play- West Indies 5 2 3 0 0 4 -0.511 more by way of their preparation.” ers are a very proud bunch of young men that Zimbabwe 5 1 4 0 0 2 -0.595 Their chances of returning to the World Cup want to do well, not for themselves but for UAE 5 0 5 0 0 0 -1.961 in four years time look thin unless the reunification and the message it sends around Note: Top four in each group qualify for quarter-finals. International Cricket Council reverse their deci- the world about Afghanistan.” — Reuters SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

Guptill stars for NZ

HAMILTON: Opener Martin Guptill hit a fighting cen- 37 runs to get a sniff of an upset victory. tury to guide New Zealand to their sixth consecutive Corey Anderson, who hit three fours and as many victory in the World Cup with a three-wicket win over sixes, fell for 39 before Tim Southee hit a six and a four an inspired Bangladesh in Hamilton yesterday. Guptill to seal New Zealand’s first win after seven successive scored 105 for his sixth one-day hundred to help the defeats against Bangladesh between 2010-2013 — all co-hosts chase down a daunting 289-run target with away from home. Hasan finished with 4-55. Earlier, seven balls to spare on a -friendly pitch at Mahmudullah rescued Bangladesh from a struggling Seddon Park in a match in which the Black Caps were 27-2 after they were put into bat. tested for the first time in the tournament. Mahmudullah, dropped on one by Anderson off Guptill’s knock overshadowed Mohammad Southee, anchored the innings and added an invalu- Mahmudullah’s second consecutive hundred, his 128 able 90 for the third wicket with Soumya Sarkar (51) not out propelling Bangladesh to 288-7 in their 50 and another 78 for the sixth with Sabbir Rahman who overs. New Zealand had already made sure of top spot made a fiery 23-ball 40. in Pool A and they will face the fourth-placed finishers Mahmudullah steered paceman Mitchell from Pool B-where Pakistan, Ireland and West Indies McClenaghan towards third man for a couple to com- are still alive-in the fourth quarter-final in Wellington plete his hundred off 111 balls before blowing a kiss on March 21. to the applauding Bangladeshi fans. Bangladesh, who finished the group stage with He became only the second Bangladeshi batsman seven points from six matches, will face defending to score back-to-back hundreds in all one-day interna- SCOREBOARD champions India in the second quarter-final in tionals after Shahriar Nafees who achieved the feat Melbourne on March 19. against Zimbabwe at home in 2006. Bangladesh caught New Zealand napping at 33-2 In all Mahmudullah hit 12 fours and three sixes as HAMILTON: Scoreboard in the World Cup Pool A match between Bangladesh and by taking the key wickets of Brendon McCullum New Zealand’s bowlers were tested for the first time in New Zealand played at Seddon Park in Hamilton yesterday. (eight) and Kane Williamson (one) by opening with the tournament with Southee going wicketless. Bangladesh B. McCullum c Sarkar b Hasan 8 spin from both ends-only the second time in World Rahman raised the tempo by hitting two sixes and five c Anderson b Boult 13 K. Williamson c Iqbal b Hasan 1 Cup history when slow bowlers opened the attack. fours to help Bangladesh add 104 runs in the last ten Imrul Kayes b Boult 2 R. Taylor lbw b Nasir 56 New Zealand did the same against South Africa in overs. Left-arm paceman Trent Boult had jolted Soumya Sarkar c Anderson b Vettori 51 the 2011 quarter-final in . Left-arm spinner Bangladesh by dismissing Imrul Kayes (two) and G. Elliott c Ahmed b Hossain 39 Mahmudullah not out 128 took both the early wickets before Tamim Iqbal (13) in his first spell to finish with 2-56. C. Anderson b Nasir 39 Shakib Al Hasan c Ronchi b Anderson 23 Guptill and Ross Taylor (56) revived the innings Anderson removed senior Bangladeshi batsmen L. Ronchi c Nasir b Hasan 9 through their 131-run stand for the third wicket. Shakib A Hasan for 23 and for 15 to Mushfiqur Rahim c Ronch b Anderson 15 Sabbir Rahman c McCullum b Elliott 40 D. Vettori not out 16 Guptill took a single off paceman Taskin Ahmed to finish with 2-43. Bangladesh were without their regu- T. Southee not out 12 reach his hundred off 88 balls before holing out to lar skipper after he was ruled out Nasir Hossain c Taylor b Elliott 11 Hasan after suffering leg cramps. He hit 11 boundaries due to a soar throat and a calf injury while New Rubel Hossain not out 0 Extras: (lb1, w4) 5 and two sixes during his 100-ball knock. Taylor, who Zealand had to leave out unfit Adam Milne and Extras: (lb1, w4) 5 Total: (for seven wkts; 48.5 overs) 290 hit five fours, added another 46 with Grant Elliott (39) brought in McClenaghan for their first change in the Total: (for seven wkts; 50 overs) 288 Did not bat: Trent Boult, Mitchell before Bangladesh took three wickets in the space of tournament. — AFP Did not bat: Taijul Islam, Taskin Ahmed McClenaghan Fall of wickets: 1-4 (Kayes), 2-27 (Iqbal), 3- Fall of wickets: 1-27 (McCullum), 2-33 117 (Sarkar), 4-151 (Hasan), 5-182 (Rahim), (Williamson), 3-164 (Guptill), 4-210 (Elliott), 6-260 (Rahman), 7-287 (Nasir) 5-219 (Taylor), 6-247 (Ronchi), 7-269 Bowling: Southee 10-1-51-0, Boult 10-3-56- (Anderson) 2 (1w), McClenaghan 8-0-68-0, Vettori 10-0- 42-1, Anderson 10-0-43-2 (2w), Elliott 2-0- Bowling: Hasan 8.5-1-55-4, Islam 10-0-58- 27-2 (1w) 0, Hossain 8-1-40-1, Ahmed 8-0-49-0 (2w), Sarkar 4-0-19-0 (1w), Rahman 2-0-14-0, New Zealand Mahmudullah 3-0-22-0 (1w), Nasir 5-0-32-2. M. Guptill c Hossain b Hasan 105 Result: New Zealand win by three wickets. Guptill stars for NZ

HAMILTON: Opener Martin Guptill hit a opened the attack. fighting to guide New Zealand to New Zealand did the same against their sixth consecutive victory in the World South Africa in the 2011 quarter-final in Cup with a three-wicket win over an Dhaka. Left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan inspired Bangladesh in Hamilton yester- took both the early wickets before Guptill day. Guptill scored 105 for his sixth one- and Ross Taylor (56) revived the innings day hundred to help the co-hosts chase through their 131-run stand for the third HAMILTON: New Zealand Brendon McCullum misses a catch during the Pool A 2015 down a daunting 289-run target with sev- wicket. Guptill took a single off paceman Cricket World Cup match against Bangladesh at Seddon Park. — AFP en balls to spare on a batting-friendly pitch Taskin Ahmed to reach his hundred off 88 at Seddon Park in a match in which the balls before holing out to Hasan after suf- Black Caps were tested for the first time in fering leg cramps. He hit 11 boundaries the tournament. and two sixes during his 100-ball knock. Clarke pledges no mercy Guptill’s knock overshadowed Taylor, who hit five fours, added anoth- Mohammad Mahmudullah’s second con- er 46 with Grant Elliott (39) before as quarter-final looms secutive hundred, his 128 not out pro- Bangladesh took three wickets in the pelling Bangladesh to 288-7 in their 50 space of 37 runs to get a sniff of an upset HOBART: Australia skipper Michael Clarke against old adversaries Pakistan should overs. New Zealand had already made sure victory. Corey Anderson, who hit three pledged no mercy on crisis-hit Scotland as the Misbah-ul-Haq’s side beat Ireland on Sunday. of top spot in Pool A and they will face the fours and as many sixes, fell for 39 before four-time World Cup champions seek a head- “It doesn’t matter who we’re playing fourth-placed finishers from Pool B-where Tim Southee hit a six and a four to seal line-grabbing performance ahead of a poten- against. Everybody has turned up to training, Pakistan, Ireland and West Indies are still New Zealand’s first win after seven succes- tial quarter-final collision with Pakistan. wanting to get better,” said Clarke. alive-in the fourth quarter-final in sive defeats against Bangladesh between Australia have already made sure of their “We need momentum, and we need to Wellington on March 21. 2010-2013 — all away from home. spot in the next stage after last weekend’s 64- grab it and run with it for as long as we possi- Bangladesh, who finished the group Hasan finished with 4-55. Earlier, run win over fellow title contenders Sri Lanka bly can. In Hobart, it’ll be full steam ahead stage with seven points from six matches, Mahmudullah rescued Bangladesh from where they piled up 376-9. That followed their looking to become better individually and as a will face defending champions India in the a struggling 27-2 after they were put World Cup record score of 417-6 to rout team.” second quarter-final in Melbourne on into bat. Mahmudullah, dropped on Afghanistan by 275 runs. The only selection issue appears to still March 19. Bangladesh caught New one by Anderson off Southee, anchored Victory against Pool A’s rock-bottom revolve around Shane Watson who was Zealand napping at 33-2 by taking the key the innings and added an invaluable 90 Scotland on Saturday will ensure the runners- dropped for the Afghanistan match but wickets of Brendon McCullum (eight) and for the third wicket with Soumya Sarkar up spot behind New Zealand and a possible restored to the line-up for the win over Sri Kane Williamson (one) by opening with (51) and another 78 for the sixth with last-eight clash in Adelaide on March 20 Lanka in Sydney. —AFP spin from both ends-only the second time Sabbir Rahman who made a fiery 23- in World Cup history when slow bowlers ball 40. —AFP SPORTS SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Real desperately need pre-Clasico boost

MADRID: Real Madrid go into tomorrow’s clash at home to Levante already be four points behind Barca, who travel to face minnows Eibar with little room for error ahead of next weekend’s El Clasico away to at their 5,000 capacity Ipurua stadium today. Barcelona after a three-game winless streak. Luis Enrique’s men will be short on defensive cover as regular full- Los Blancos surrendered top spot in La Liga for the first time in five backs Jordi Alba and Dani Alves are both suspended, whilst Javier months with a 1-0 defeat to Athletic Bilbao last weekend. Yet, worse Mascherano may not be risked as he is one booking away from miss- was to come for the European champions as they were on the verge ing the Clasico. Sergio Busquets is also out with an ankle injury and of Champions League elimination at the hands of Schalke after a Enrique may also give a rest to some of his established stars ahead of humiliating 4-3 defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday. a busy week which also sees Manchester City visit the Camp Nou in The holders sneaked through to the last eight 5-4 on aggregate, the Champions League on Wednesday. but there have been suggestions coach Carlo Ancelotti could lose his Eibar have slipped towards the relegation zone on a run of seven job if things don’t turn around drastically in the coming weeks. straight defeats after a great start to their debut campaign in the top The one positive for Madrid from the shambles in midweek was flight. However, midfielder Saul Berjon believes his side can take the return of Luka Modric after four months out with a thigh injury, encouragement from Barca’s defeats to the likes of Malaga and Celta but he insisted Real need more than just his presence to get back to Vigo this season. “The biggest surprises for Barca are against teams the sort of form that saw them win 22 games in a row to end 2014. like Eibar. It wouldn’t be the first time they have lost against teams “Hopefully we will come out of this stronger. One player can’t fix infinitely more humble.” Champions Atletico Madrid will also have everything,” said the Croatian. “We need to play as a team and fight one eye on their upcoming Champions League clash with Bayer for our teammates. When we do that we are a very good team and Leverkusen when they travel to Espanyol on Saturday. very dangerous. “Hopefully we will get back to playing like at the start Diego Simeone’s men are seven points off the top and according of the season. We have quality and the same players. I think we will to the Argentine are more focused on seeing off the challenge by return to seeing the best Real Madrid in the coming games.” Ancelotti Valencia for third place than chasing down Barca and Madrid as they will also be able to call on Sergio Ramos to aid his creaking defence did so spectacularly last season. Atletico’s top scorer Mario Mandzukic for the first time in a month for the visit of Levante. and full-back Guillherme Siqueira are suspended, but Antoine The Italian has insisted he still had full confidence in his star-stud- Griezmann returns from a ban he served in the 1-1 draw with Valencia ded squad despite apologising to fans for damaging the image of the last weekend. Valencia can, temporarily at least, leapfrog Atletico into SPAIN: Real Madrid’s Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo club with their recent performances. third should they avoid defeat when they host Deportivo la Coruna celebrates in this file photo. — AFP By the time Madrid kick-off at the Bernabeu tomorrow they could on Friday night. — AFP City wary of Arsenal fortitude key Burnley threat to successful season BURNLEY: Joe Hart has warned Manchester City to learn the les- sons of their past encounters with struggling Premier League clubs as they prepare to face Burnley at Turf Moor today. LONDON: Asene Wenger believes his players’ mental strength will his team is greater now but says it is down to the players to respond City surrendered a 2-0 advantage to draw 2-2 with Sean determine whether Arsenal can finish the season on a high. Wenger’s positively. “We can only help so much, 99 per cent is down to the indi- Dyche’s team on December 28 and have also dropped points side will attempt to tighten their grip on third place in the Premier vidual,” Wenger said. “We can push them over the line with the one against QPR, Everton and Hull, all of whom are in the bottom sev- League when West Ham visit the Emirates Stadium today. That per cent we can give, but 99 per cent is them having the responsibility en in the table. Manuel Pellegrini’s side beat Leicester 2-0 in their London derby comes five days after the Gunners recorded a memo- to make their own life. “You have to stand up to be strong enough, to last outing on March 4, but were made to work hard by the lowly rable FA Cup victory at Manchester United to set up a Wembley semi- fight, to show that you have the courage and that you’re not inhibited Foxes before James Milner scored in the 89th minute to seal the final against Reading or Bradford. And next week the north because you’re under pressure, and that’s the difficulty of the modern points. “Last week, we played Leicester, who are bottom of the Londoners will attempt to overturn a 3-1 deficit when they travel to player. league and had to fight for a 2-0 - it will be the same at Burnley,” Monaco for a Champions League last 16 second leg tie. “That has increased and the resistance to stress from the young City goalkeeper Hart said. If Wenger’s players can retain the Cup and finish in the top four, players is immense today because everything is analysed. Every pass “That is just how it is in the Premier League, and as soon as they will have successfully built on their efforts of last season when you make, every first touch, how far you run, how much you fight, you let that get to you, it will crush you.” The champions’ missed the FA Cup final triumph over Hull marked an end to the club’s nine- everything. “There is a verdict on everything so that kind of stress has opportunities have been exploited by Chelsea, who lead the year trophy-drought. increased and it’s much more difficult to deal with than it was a few league by five points, having played one game fewer. But should they fall short and finish the season empty-handed and years ago. “Twenty years ago you could lose a game and people would Pellegrini is expected to have a full-strength squad to choose outside the top four, the criticism frequently directed at Wenger will say, ‘Next time Arsenal will play better’. Today you lose a game and it is from, but the Chilean will be mindful of keeping his stars fresh for be heard once again. The Arsenal manager accepts the pressure on always a crisis. It’s not easy for the players to deal with that.”—AFP City’s Champions League last 16 second leg in Barcelona on Wednesday. City trail 2-1 from the first leg and David Silva, who was named City’s player of the month for February, is likely to play a key role in shaping the club’s hopes of progressing to the quarter-finals. Team-mate Frank Lampard believes the Spaniard has the quality to grace any team. “I’ve been fortunate enough to play alongside players like Gianfranco Zola, Arjen Robben and Eden Hazard among others and he’s completely up there with the best,” said former Chelsea midfielder Lampard. “From the moment I arrived and started training with him in pre-season I could better appreciate his weight of pass, move- ment, and his touch and he could play in any team in the world. “It’s been a pleasure to play and train alongside him or even just to watch him. The way he holds himself, too, impresses me because he’s one of the most humble top players I’ve ever come across - that’s something I love because it’s refreshing to see. “To be at the top of your game, have all the medals he has and do what he does week in, week out and yet it’s still like he’s just coming in, doing his day job and going home.” The last time Burnley were in the Premier League, in 2009-10, they also drew at Eastlands. But they were swamped 6-1 in the reverse meeting, conced- ing three goals in the opening seven minutes, as they headed for relegation. The Lancashire club are in the bottom three again and, after failing to win in seven league games, manager Dyche is aware of the scale of the task facing his side. “We know the power of these clubs. There’s lots been made of the spending power but you’ve still got to spend it wisely and I think they have,” he said. “They have got some fantastic players. We experienced that once before and gave a good performance and I think overall on the day deserved a point.—AFP MANCHESTER: Arsenal’s English striker Danny Welbeck (right) celebrates with teammates in this file photo. — AFP SPORTS SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2015 Allegri set to rest stars as Borussia test looms

MILAN: Juventus visit Palermo today looking to reinforce their sizeable Serie A lead but with one eye firmly on book- ing their ticket for the Champions League quarter-finals. A late strike by Paul Pogba secured a hard-fought victory for the Italian cham- pions over Sassuolo last week and helped Juventus stretch their lead on Roma to 11 points as Rudi Garcia’s men remain stuck in a rut of consecutive draws. With one hand seemingly on their fourth consecutive scudetto, the focus now for Massimiano Allegri’s side FRANCE: Lyon’s players celebrate after scoring a goal in is on reaching the last eight in Europe’s this file photo. — AFP premier club competition. Juve meet Borussia Dortmund at the BVB Stadion next week looking to build PSG in bid to on their 2-1 first leg last 16 victory in Turin as they bid to reach the last eight recapture summit for the first time in two years. Although Palermo are a tough nut to PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain turn their attention back to crack at home-their only defeat was a resounding 4-0 reverse to Lazio last ITALY: Juventus’ midfielder from France Paul Pogba celebrates after scoring a domestic duties following their midweek European heroics as goal in this file photo. — AFP they look to recapture the Ligue 1 lead from Lyon at Bordeaux September-Allegri is expected to keep tomorrow. some legs fresh for Wednesday. dently fatigued Fiorentina apart in a 4-0 confidence when they travel to Verona Lyon moved ahead with a 5-1 win against Montpellier last Argentinian striker Carlos Tevez has win last week that highlighted the on Sunday days after a 3-1 Europa Sunday after reigning champions PSG had temporarily gone rarely been left on the bench but threat of wide men Antonio Candreva League win to Dynamo Moscow thanks top with a 4-1 win at home to Lens. Fernando Llorente and Alvaro Morata and Felipe Anderson-as well as Lazio’s to a Gonzalo Higuain hat-trick. Lyon are a point clear of the capital club with 57 points are both in fine fettle and Frenchman aims for a second-place finish. With the Inter Milan and city rivals AC Milan, from 28 games, and four ahead of Marseille in third. The lead- Kingsley Coman is back in the frame league’s second best attack (47 goals) meanwhile, continue their respective ing trio are all in action on Sunday with Lyon also travelling to after an injury knock last week. and third-best defence (27), Lazio travel bids to close the gap to the European third-placed Marseille, as PSG travel to Bordeaux. Although Pogba will miss out to Torino in confidence on Sunday hop- qualification places. Inter host strug- All eyes will be on Laurent Blanc’s PSG following wild cele- through suspension, Juve’s defence has ing to hand the Granata their second gling Cesena three days after a 3-1 brations after they survived the early sending off of star Zlatan been given a boost by the return of setback of the week following defeat to Europa League last 16 oppo- Ibrahimovic against Chelsea to advance to the Champions Andrea Barzagli following an eight- Thursday’s 2-0 Europa League defeat at nents Wolfsburg while Milan travel to League last eight. month injury lay-off. Zenit. Napoli, without a league win in Fiorentina looking for only their third However, Blanc warned “we don’t have time to enjoy these Barzagli made a cameo appearance two games, should be brimming with away win of the season. — AFP moments” as they prepared for Sunday’s game in western in last week’s win over Sassuolo and is France. Bordeaux striker Isaac Kiese Thelin feels his side, who hoping to work his way back in time for are sixth, will be the fresher. “They’ll have played a match the trip to Dortmund: “We have to be more than us. We’ll obviously be fresher,” said Kiese Thelin, positive, there’s everything to play for MATCHES ON TV who is relishing a clash with fellow Swede Ibrahimovic. and we’re going there (Dortmund) with “He’s an excellent player and we need to be wary of him a small advantage.” because he’s capable of anything.” Lyon president Jean- English Premier League Cagliari v Empoli 22:45 Michel Aulas meanwhile said he was hoping for at least a Last week’s stalemate at Chievo was Crystal Palace v QPR 15:45 beIN SPORTS 1 HD draw in a key clash at the Stade Velodrome. “What’s important Roma’s eighth draw in nine league beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD is to remain in the top three,” said Aulas. “It’s more important games and Sampdoria, 2-0 winners over beIN SPORTS 11 HD for Marseille than for Lyon because we stay ahead of them in Cagliari last week when Samuel Eto’o hit Sunderland v Aston Villa 18:00 German Bundesliga any case. his maiden goal for the club, will have beIN SPORTS 1 HD Augsburg v Mainz 17:30 beIN SPORTS 11 HD “If we could at least draw and keep our four points advan- no fear at the Stadio Olimpico. beIN SPORTS 1 HD Arsenal v West Ham 18:00 tage (on Marseille) it would allow us to approach the last nine The contrast at both clubs could not beIN SPORTS 11 HD be any more stark. Coachi Sinisa beIN SPORTS 1 HD Hoffenheim v Hamburger 17:30 matches of the championship more positively.” beIN SPORTS 11 HD A win would see Lyon pull seven points clear of Marseille, Mihajlovic is on a high having buried Hertha v Schalke 17:30 Bromwich v Stoke City 18:00 beIN SPORTS 1 HD who can close the gap with victory. Aulas admitted that confi- the hatchet with Eto’o after a difficult beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD dence was high after last weekend’s success. “The Montpellier start to their rapport, while Garcia is try- beIN SPORTS 11 HD ing to rebuild confidence amid his side’s Werder Bremen v Bayern 17:30 match was a breakthrough for us in terms of talent, team spirit Leicester v Hull City 18:00 beIN SPORTS 1 HD and if we can maintain this mindset we can envisage getting a remarkable dip in form. beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD good result in Marseille.” “I don’t like to single anyone out but Eintracht v Paderborn 17:30 Burnley v Man City 20:30 PSG’s European success should provide a source of inspira- I’m happy with Eto’o because he’s on his beIN SPORTS 1 HD tion for Monaco as they prepare to defend a 3-1 advantage way back,” said Mihajlovic. “He’s been a beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD against Arsenal at home next Tuesday. great player and he’s someone who can Borussia Dortmund v Koln 20:30 In the meantime it’s Bastia, tenth in Ligue 1, but carrying always make a difference.” Spanish League Primera French League some momentum in 2015, who arrive at the Louis II Stadium. Garcia is under scrutiny, with fans Espanyol v Atletico 18:00 “For me Arsenal is not the most important,” said Monaco now fearing being overtaken by city beIN SPORTS 1 HD Metz v Saint Etienne 19:00 coach Leonardo Jardim. rivals Lazio as well as Napoli-both of beIN SPORTS 11 HD beIN SPORTS 1 HD “The most important is always the next one. And it’s whom sit just four points adrift of Roma. Eibar v Barcelona 20:00 beIN SPORTS 11 HD Bastia.” Monaco have painful memories of last month’s “It wouldn’t be hard for us to play beIN SPORTS 1 HD Montpellier v Reims 22:00 League Cup semi-final defeat at home to the Corsicans in a better than we did last Sunday,” Garcia beIN SPORTS 11 HD beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD penalty shootout. said ironically on Wednesday, a day Rayo v Granada 22:00 So it will be with a spirit of revenge that Jardim’s side, who Sunday de Lens v Toulouse 22 :00 ahead of a 1-1 Europa League last 16 Celta v Bilbao 0:00 beIN SPORTS 1 HD are fourth in Ligue 1 but with a game in hand, approach the first leg draw at Fiorentina. game as they look to close the gap with the top three. beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD Lazio detractors claim their resur- beIN SPORTS 11 HD Nantes v Gaillard 22:00 Nice take on relegation rivals Guingamp at home on Friday, gence is down to their absence from beIN SPORTS 1 HD while on Saturday St Etienne, in fifth, travel to tailenders Metz. European competition, but while a cred- Italian Calcio League beIN SPORTS 11 HD Elsewhere, Montpellier look to bounce back from their ible theory Stefano Pioli’s men are still Citta v Juventus 20:00 Lorient v Caen 22:00 defeat to Lyon when they host Reims as Nantes host Evian playing arguably the best football in beIN SPORTS 1 HD beIN SPORTS 1 HD and Lens welcome southerners Toulouse with Normandy side Serie A. The Biancocelesti ripped an evi- beIN SPORTS 11 HD beIN SPORTS 11 HD Caen travelling to Brittany outfit Lorient. — AFP SPORTS SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

CHELTENHAM: Jockey Nico de Boinville on his horse competes to win the on the final day of the Cheltenham Festival horse racing. —AFP Coneygree wins Cheltenham Gold Cup

CHELTENHAM: Coneygree, ridden by for keeping the faith, because there are amazing. All of these people who said Nico de Boinville, won the Cheltenham so many big-name jockeys out there the horse is just a novice but he knows Gold Cup on his first appearance in who I respect and who could and would how to run and knows how to jump.” Ireland eye historic jump racing’s blue riband event yester- have ridden him but they kept the faith Irish trainer Willie Mullins just missed win against Wales day. in me. I’ll be eternally grateful to them.” out on a first Gold Cup win with The Mark Bradstock-trained 7-1 shot Trainer Bradstock, speaking to Djakadam after enjoying a sensational CARDIFF: History is on the line for Ireland in Cardiff where fought off a late challenge from Channel 4, said: “He’s a fantastic horse. meeting with six winners on the first victory could pave the way for far greater celebrations. Djakadam, ridden by Ruby Walsh, who We’ve done it before in smaller races three days. Ireland are on the brink of their best run of form in inter- finished second at 10-1, and Road To and we will still keep doing it, but it’s Former winner Tony McCoy finished national rugby after beating England two weeks ago to Riches, the 8-1 chance, who was third. fantastic to do it on the big stage. “The ninth on Carlingford Lough, two places claim a 10th successive win, matching their feat set Jonjo O’Neill-trained Holywell fin- forecast was so up and down, the rain behind pre-race favourite Silviniaco between 2002 and 2003. ished fourth at the showpiece event in was meant to be coming on Tuesday, Conti, with former winners Under New Zealander Joe Schmidt, Ireland have risen the four-day Cheltenham National Hunt but luckily we made the right decision. (2013) and (2014) to third in the world rankings having gone 12 months Festival. The eight-year-old Coneygree, It’s brilliant.” falling off at the back. Silviniaci Conti unbeaten. This current run began last March against running for just the fourth time over The winning trainer’s wife Sara fell in 2013 and finished fourth last year, England and has included wins over South Africa, Australia fences, pushed out for an early lead and Bradstock, daughter of racing great but was the 3-1 favourite after winning and two Tests in Argentina. dominated the 22-jump field as the Lord John Oaksey, who died in 2012, his second King George VI Chase at Now Wales present possibly the biggest remaining hur- dle towards only a second Grand Slam in 67 years before favourites fell by the wayside. said: “People kept quoting stats at us, Kempton on Boxing Day. facing Scotland, ranked seven places below them, in the “I always knew I could do it, but saying we shouldn’t run him in the race It was 19-time champion jockey final round. However the Millennium Stadium will hold good horses make good jockeys,” said as he was a novice but it was an open McCoy’s last Gold Cup before retire- happy memories for many of this team given their last de Boinville after Coneygree became Gold Cup and we knew he had a ment - he won it twice before with clean sweep in the Six Nations, in 2009, was here in the first novice to win the race since chance. in 2012 and Mulligan in Cardiff. More surprising still is that they have achieved 1974. “I’m just so grateful to the owners “Dad’s looking down on us - it is just 1997. —AFP this remarkable sequence immediately following the loss of arguably their greatest player. Any fears the departure of Brian O’Driscoll would blunt either their effectiveness or cutting edge have been swiftly dispelled. Cyclone detains Ocean Race again It will be another of their modern-day talismans that takes centre-stage this week when captain Paul O’Connell ALICANTE: A powerful cyclone in the seen nine cyclones of category five in lage in Auckland to avoid damage. Race wins his 100th cap for the Emerald Isle. The 35-year-old Pacific has forced organisers to delay the last 40 years in the South Pacific and meteorologist Gonzalo Infante has veteran of three British & Irish tours began his Test career the fifth leg of the worldwide Volvo this is the strongest.” warned of winds of up to 60 knots on with a try on his debut during a 54-10 rout of Wales in Ocean Race through the Southern Race CEO Knut Frostad told reporters Sunday night to Monday morning. He 2002 that was to see Graham Henry sacked as head coach Ocean for a further 24 hours until at a press conference earlier on Friday also predicts accompanying storms that of the Welsh dragons. This week he faces another Kiwi Tuesday. that he had “no option” but to delay the could flood the village. coach in charge of Wales for what is expected to be as The start had already been post- fleet’s departure for the 6,776-nautical Cyclones are graded into five cate- much a battle of tactics and wit as brawn. Warren Gatland poned from Sunday to Monday over mile leg to ItajaÌ in Brazil. gories, blowing winds of more than 118 has brought huge success to Wales, following three safety fears, but with Cyclone Pam con- The sailors have unanimously backed kph to beyond 250 kph with Cyclone Championship titles in seven years as well as success with tinuing to menace the New Zealand that decision. “We know that our boats Pam belonging to the latter group. the Lions, but has yet to rid his team of their sometimes coast with winds of more than 250 kilo- are strong but we cannot sail in 70 knots The nine-month race, which is staged maddening inconsistency. Gatland is only too aware that metres an hour in the last 24 hours, a of wind (130 kph). This is already some- over nine legs, covers 38,739nm in all, his side were swept aside by Ireland in Dublin last year second delay became inevitable. thing more than a cyclone. I have not and is due to finish on June 27 in and failed to show up for the second half of this year’s Cyclone Pam is, according to one seen anything like this in my life,” Gothenburg, Sweden. opening match against England. However they recovered New Zealand meteorologist, the fiercest MAPFRE (Spain) skipper, Iker MartÌnez, There are nine legs in all and the fifth, to register back-to-back wins away to Scotland and France in the South Pacific for 40 years. Richard an Olympic gold medallist in Athens which takes the fleet through the and are threatening to repeat their feat of 2013 when they Green told local radio station RadioLIVE 2004, told reporters yesterday. treacherous Southern Ocean and became the first team to lift the Six Nations trophy after on Friday: “Cyclone Pam is enormous, it Officials have also started disman- around Cape Horn, was already reck- losing their opening game, in Cardiff to Ireland.—AFP is the most powerful it can be. We have tling part of the specially-built race vil- oned to be the toughest of all. —AFP SPORTS SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

LOS ANGELES: Tarik Black (right) of the Los Angeles Lakers blocks a shot by Andrea Bargnani of the New York Knicks at Staples Center. — AFP Cavaliers win in OT, Knicks roll

SAN ANTONIO: Kyrie Irving had a career-high 57 points as the Teammate Gordon Hayward finished with 29 points, seven of a back-to-back. The Grizzlies also held out key reserve Tony Cleveland Cavaliers rallied for a 128-125 overtime victory over the assists and four rebounds. Rookie Rodney Hood put up a career Allen. San Antonio Spurs in the NBA on Thursday. high for the second consecutive game with 20 points. Corey Gortat finished with 22 points for Washington. Stokes and Irving had the most points in the NBA this season, topping his Brewer led the Rockets with 25 points, and James Harden had 15. JaMychal Green had 13 apiece for the Grizzlies, who wrapped up 55-point game against Cleveland on Jan. 28. He scored nine a 1-3 trip. points in the final minute of regulation to force overtime. WIZARDS 107, GRIZZLIES Irving hit a 3-pointer in the face of heavy defense from John Wall had 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists to lead PACERS 109, BUCKS 103 Danny Green to pull Cleveland to 110-107 with 31 seconds Washington past short-handed Memphis. The game got chippy Rodney Stuckey scored 25 points and Luis Scola had 17 points remaining in regulation. After the Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard missed late in the third quarter, when Washington’s Kevin Seraphin was and 15 rebounds to help Indiana beat Milwaukee. Stuckey also two free throws with 4.3 seconds left, Irving made another 3 this called for a flagrant foul and ejected for knocking Jon Leuer to the had six rebounds and six assists. time over Leonard - to tie it at 110. court as he dunked. Earlier, Seraphin got tangled on the floor with David West’s jumper with 2:45 remaining in regulation gave Irving made all seven of his 3-point attempts, was 20 of 32 Jarnell Stokes following another bit of grabbing between Stokes Indiana a five-point lead at 96-91, but Milwaukee’s Ersan Illyasova from the field overall, and made 10 free throws without a miss. and Washington’s Marcin Gortat. scored five points in the final 2 minutes to send it to overtime. LeBron James added 31 points in his first game in San Antonio Memphis sat three starters: the injured Mike Conley, and Marc Michael Carter-Williams led the Bucks with 28 points. Illyasova since being blown out in five games by the Spurs in the NBA Gasol and Zach Randolph, who were resting on the second night had 19 points and 10 rebounds. — AP Finals in his last games with the Miami Heat. Tony Parker had 31 points for San Antonio and Leonard added 24 points. Irving scored 11 points in overtime, including a NBA results/standings crossover, fade away 3 pointer against Boris Diaw with 1:20 remaining to give Cleveland a 122-118 lead. James was 10 for 20 Indiana 109, Milwaukee 103 (OT); Washington 107, Memphis 87; Utah 109, Houston 91; Cleveland 128, San Antonio 125 (OT); NY from the floor in a physical battle with Leonard, but his struggles Knicks 101, LA Lakers 94. were lessened by Irving’s wild night. Eastern Conference Western Conference KNICKS 101, LAKERS 94 Atlantic Division Northwest Division Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 22 points and Andrea Bargnani added W L PCT GB Portland 42 20 .677 - 16 as New York ended its five-game losing streak with just its fifth Toronto 38 26 .594 - Oklahoma City 35 29 .547 8 road victory of the season. Boston 27 36 .429 10.5 Utah 28 36 .438 15 Alexey Shved had 14 points and 11 rebounds as the Knicks Brooklyn 25 38 .397 12.5 Denver 24 41 .369 19.5 ended a seven-game road skid against the Lakers, winning for Philadelphia 14 50 .219 24 Minnesota 14 49 .222 28.5 coach Derek Fisher in the former Los Angeles point guard’s return NY Knicks 13 51 .203 25 Pacific Division to Staples Center. The NBA’s worst team (13-51) calmly main- Central Division Golden State 51 12 .810 - Cleveland 42 25 .627 - tained a lead down the stretch, sweeping the season series with LA Clippers 42 23 .646 10 Chicago 40 26 .606 1.5 Los Angeles and picking up its first road victory over a Western Phoenix 34 32 .515 18.5 Milwaukee 34 31 .523 7 Conference team all season. Jordan Hill had 19 points and 10 Sacramento 22 41 .349 29 rebounds for the Lakers. They have lost six of seven. Indiana 30 34 .469 10.5 Detroit 23 41 .359 17.5 LA Lakers 17 47 .266 34.5 Southwest Division JAZZ 109, ROCKETS 91 Southeast Division Rudy Gobert had 19 points, 22 rebounds and four blocks and Atlanta 50 14 .781 - Memphis 45 20 .692 - Utah beat Houston for its ninth victory in 11 games. The Jazz used Washington 37 28 .569 13.5 Houston 43 22 .662 2 their size to dominate the paint and ran away in the second half. Miami 29 35 .453 21 San Antonio 40 24 .625 4.5 Gobert put on a show as the Rockets didn’t have an answer for Charlotte 28 35 .444 21.5 Dallas 41 25 .621 4.5 the 7-foot-1 Frenchman on either end of the floor. He had a dou- Orlando 21 45 .318 30 New Orleans 36 29 .554 9 ble-double in the first quarter and 18 rebounds at halftime. SPORTS SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Bruins get past Lightning

BOSTON: Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand scored shootout goals to lift the Boston Bruins to a 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night. Boston beat Tampa Bay for the 10th straight time, the longest active slide for a Bruins opponent. Since joining the NHL in 1992, the Lightning have won only five times in 48 games at Boston. The Lightning have also never beaten the Bruins after regulation in 18 tries, going 0-9-9. Tampa Bay failed to capitalize on a power play in overtime. Tuukka Rask made 35 saves for Boston, which is 6-0- 1 in its last seven games, including four straight wins. Vladislav Namestnikov tied it 2-2 for Tampa Bay with 11:56 remaining in the third period when he slid the puck through Rask’s pads. Ben Bishop made 28 saves for Tampa Bay, which had its four-game winning streak ended. Tyler Johnson, who leads the Lightning with 66 points, extended his career-best point streak to eight games.

SENATORS 5, CANADIENS 2 Erik Karlsson scored twice, and goalie Andrew Hammond remained unbeaten in regulation time as Ottawa topped Montreal. Eric Condra, Mark Stone and Marc Methot also scored for Ottawa, which has won nine of 11 as it chases a playoff spot. Hammond made 27 saves to improve to 8-0-1 during that stretch. Max Pacioretty scored twice for Montreal, which has only one win in four games. The Canadiens, who have yielded the fewest goals in the NHL, allowed five for the first time since Nov. 23. Montreal outshot Ottawa 29-28, but the Senators BOSTON: Victor Hedman No. 77 of the Tampa Bay Lightning shields the puck from Matt Bartkowski No. 43 of the Boston Bruins during improved to 3-1 against the Canadiens this season. overtime at TD Garden. — AFP

BLUES 1, FLYERS 0 advantage after pulling Smith, but couldn’t force for the second time this season, and Tomas Hertl tries and won the season series 2-1. St. Louis’ Brian Elliott and Philadelphia’s Steve overtime. Tobias Rieder had given Arizona a 1-0 lead scored a power-play goal late in the second period Justin Abdelkader had the lone goal for the Red Mason both earned shutouts, but Elliott picked up early in the first period. The playoff-bound to lead San Jose over the Predators. Wings. Jimmy Howard made 23 saves. Abdelkader the win in a shootout as the host Blues edged the Blackhawks have earned at least one point in six of Niemi followed a 29-save performance in put the Red Wings on the board with a power-play Flyers. Elliott made 28 saves through overtime, and their last seven games. Arizona has lost 13 of 14. December with another strong game against goal midway through the first period, but Columbus Mason stopped 35 shots. T.J. Oshie and Vladimir Nashville to lead the Sharks to their fourth win in five took a 2-1 lead to intermission after Tyutin and Tarasenko both scored in the shootout for the Blues, KINGS 4, CANUCKS 0 games. Just as in that 2-0 win on Dec. 13, it was Hartnell scored in the final six minutes. and Elliott stopped Jakub Voracek and Wayne Jonathan Quick made 19 saves for his fifth Hertl who delivered the winning goal against Pekka Simmonds in the tiebreaker. The Blues have won shutout of the season, and Los Angeles beat Rinne. Tommy Wingels added an empty-netter. AVALANCHE 2, DEVILS 1 three straight and five of seven. St. Louis coach Ken Vancouver. Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar each Rinne made 19 saves for the Predators, who have Jarome Iginla scored in the second period and Hitchcock, formerly of the Flyers, became the fourth had a goal and an assist, and Tyler Toffoli and Marian lost seven of eight games to fall into a tie for first in netted the decisive goal in the shootout, Semyon NHL coach to earn 700 regular-season victories. Gaborik also scored for Los Angeles, which has won the Central Division with St. Louis. The Sharks Varlamov stopped 23 shots, and Colorado edged Elliott recorded his fourth shutout of the season four of five and 12 of 16. The Kings, 3-0 against the moved within three points of Los Angeles and New Jersey. The Avalanche are 1-1 on a pivotal and 29th in the NHL, including 20 with the Blues. Canucks this season with two meetings remaining, Calgary, who currently hold the final two playoff three-game homestand as they try to remain in the That tied the franchise record set by his former jumped over Winnipeg and into the second wild- spots in the Western Conference. Western Conference playoff picture. Andy Greene teammate Jaroslav Halak. Mason posted his third card playoff spot in the Western Conference. scored the lone goal in regulation for the Devils, and shutout this season and 26th in his career for the Eddie Lack made 16 saves for Vancouver, which BLUE JACKETS 3, RED WINGS 1 Cory Schneider made 28 saves. Flyers, who lost their fourth straight. entered play second in the Pacific Division, one Scott Hartnell scored the go-ahead goal, and Varlamov recently tweaked his groin and sat out point ahead of Calgary and three ahead of the Kings. Sergei Bobrovsky made 41 saves to help Columbus against Los Angeles on Tuesday, ending his streak of PENGUINS 6, OILERS 4 down Detroit. Fedor Tyutin and Cam Atkinson 22 straight starts. The injury didn’t appear to slow Steve Downie and Patric Hornqvist scored just SHARKS 2, PREDATORS 0 added goals, and five players had assists as the Blue him down, especially in the shootout when he over a minute apart late in the third period, and Antti Niemi made 35 saves to shut out Nashville Jackets won at Detroit for the second time in two stopped two of three shooters, including Patrik Elias Pittsburgh avoided an embarrassing collapse by to seal the win. Ryan O’Reilly also scored in the beating Edmonton. Downie’s 12th goal of the sea- shootout for Colorado. Jacob Josefson was the only son on a rebound 14:38 into the third gave NHL results/standings one to beat Varlamov. Pittsburgh the lead after the Penguins let a four-goal lead slip away. Hornqvist doubled it 1:06 later to PANTHERS 4, JETS 2 help the Penguins win for the seventh time in nine Boston 3, Tampa Bay 2 (So); Pittsburgh 6, Edmonton 4; Dallas 5, Carolina 3; Ottawa 5, Aleksander Barkov scored the go-ahead goal late games. Brandon Sutter scored twice for Pittsburgh. Montreal 2; Columbus 3, Detroit 1; Florida 4, Winnipeg 2; St. Louis 1, Philadelphia 0 (SO); in the third period, lifting Florida over Winnipeg. Sidney Crosby added his 23rd goal of the season Colorado 2, New Jersey 1 (SO); Los Angeles 4, Vancouver 0; Chicago 2, Arizona 1; San Jose 2, Brad Boyes and Derek Mackenzie also scored for and finished with three points. David Perron netted Nashville 0. Florida, and Nick Bjugstad added an empty-net goal with 46 seconds left. Dan Ellis made 18 saves for the his 11th since coming to Pittsburgh from Edmonton Western Conference Tampa Bay 42 20 7 225 180 91 Panthers in his third consecutive start in place of the in January. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 25 shots. Pacific Division Detroit 37 18 11 193 175 85 Anton Lander, Jordan Eberle, Benoit Pouliot and W L OTL GF GA PTS Boston 35 22 10 182 173 80 injured Roberto Luongo.Jonathan Huberdeau and Derek Roy scored for the Oilers. Marc-Andre Fleury Anaheim 42 20 7 202 192 91 Florida 30 23 14 167 190 74 Jaromir Jagr each had two assists. Ellis took a knee made 25 saves for the Penguins, who moved within Vancouver 38 25 4 189 183 80 Ottawa 31 24 11 190 178 73 from Andrew Ladd to his left side after Ladd was Calgary 37 25 5 197 175 79 two points of the second-place New York Islanders Toronto 27 35 6 183 212 60 pushed into him at 18:44 of the third. Ellis was down in the Metropolitan Division. Los Angeles 33 21 13 184 170 79 on the ice briefly but stayed in the game. Drew San Jose 34 26 8 191 187 76 Buffalo 19 42 6 129 228 44 Metropolitan Division Stafford and Mark Scheifele scored for the Jets, and Arizona 21 39 8 144 226 50 Michael Hutchinson stopped 17 shots. The Panthers BLACKHAWKS 2, COYOTES 1 Edmonton 18 39 11 156 233 47 NY Rangers 42 17 7 203 157 91 Brad Richards scored a tiebreaking power-play Central Division NY Islanders 43 22 4 219 194 90 won their second consecutive game and have goal with 7:11 left in the third period to give Chicago St. Louis 43 19 5 210 167 91 Pittsburgh 39 18 10 195 166 88 earned at least one point in the past three games a win against Arizona. Richards put in a rebound of Nashville 42 20 7 199 168 91 Washington 36 22 10 201 168 82 with Ellis in goal. Kris Versteeg’s blocked shot. It was the 900th NHL Chicago 40 21 6 192 155 86 Philadelphia 28 27 14 178 198 70 point for Richards, who entered in ninth place among Minnesota 37 23 7 192 170 81 New Jersey 28 29 11 154 178 67 STARS 5, HURRICANES 3 active players. The Blackhawks had seven power plays Winnipeg 33 23 12 189 185 78 Columbus 29 34 4 173 211 62 Alex Goligoski, Cody Eakin and Patrick Eaves Colorado 31 26 11 181 191 73 and converted two of them, including Andrew Shaw’s Carolina 25 33 8 158 183 58 each had a goal and an assist, sparking Dallas to a Dallas 31 27 10 214 224 72 victory over Carolina. Kari Lehtonen needed to make first-period goal. Corey Crawford made 17 saves in Eastern Conference Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one the win, and Arizona’s Mike Smith stopped 43 shots. point in the standings and are not included in only 16 saves to earn the win in his 500th NHL game. Atlantic Division Curtis McKenzie and Jason Demers also scored for The Coyotes had a power play for the last 38.5 sec- Montreal 42 19 7 179 152 91 the loss column (L). onds of the game, and made it a 6-on-4 skating Dallas, which led 3-1 after the first period. —AP SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

DOWN WORDSEARCH PUZZLE 1. A compact mass. CROSSWORD841 2. An expression of open-mouthed astonishment. 3. A detailed description of design criteria for a piece of work. 4. The 17th letter of the Hebrew alphabet. 5. A unit of pressure. 6. An epic poem adapted for recitation. 7. (comparative of `near') Being the one of two that is less distant in space. 8. Without qualification. 9. That is to say. 10. A small cake leavened with yeast. 11. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite. 12. A statistical method for making simultaneous comparisons between two or more means. 13. The brightest star in Cygnus. 14. A major victory by the Romans over the Macedonians in 168 BC. 19. A clique that seeks power usually through intrigue. 21. Anise- and licorice-flavored liqueur. 23. A member of an extinct North American Indian people who lived in the Pit river val- ley in northern California. 25. The period of greatest prosperity or productivity. 29. Fallow deer. 31. (Zoroastrianism) Title for benevolent deities. 32. A young woman indulged by rich and powerful older men. 34. A rare silvery (usually trivalent) metallic element. 36. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC). 38. The capital and largest city of Yemen. 39. (Babylonian) Any of a group of powerful earth spirits or genii. 40. Coming at a subsequent time or stage. 43. Type genus of the Phocidae. 44. Rub elbows with. 47. A port city in southwestern Iran. 48. A wealthy man (who made his fortune in the Orient). 50. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders. ACROSS 54. A promotional statement (as found on the dust jackets of books). 1. System of measurement based on centimeters and grams and seconds. 56. A soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and 4. A river in northeastern Brazil that flows generally northward to the Atlantic Ocean. thermal conductivity of any metal. 12. An ester of adenosine that is converted to ATP for energy storage. 57. A Hebrew prophet in the Old Testament who opposed the worship of idols. 15. The upper side of the thighs of a seated person. 60. The 7th letter of the Hebrew alphabet. 16. Characterized by lightness and insubstantiality. 61. Tropical American tree grown in southern United States having a whitish pink-tinged fruit. 17. French marshal in the Napoleonic Wars (1769-1815). 63. A small canoe consisting of a light frame made watertight with animal skins. 18. An organization of countries formed in 1961 to agree on a common policy for the 65. The sixth month of the civil year. sale of petroleum. 67. Offering fun and gaiety. 20. A flat-bottomed volcanic crater that was formed by an explosion. 68. An officer who acts as military assistant to a more senior officer. 22. The process of gradually becoming inferior. 69. A small quantity of liquid. 24. Capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. 70. Tropical starchy tuberous root. Yesterday’s Solution 26. Divisible by two. 73. Goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment. 27. A soft silvery metallic element of the alkali earth group. 74. The cry made by sheep. 77. Being ten more than one hundred ninety. 28. 100 sene equal 1 tala. 78. A soft silver-white ductile metallic element (liquid at normal temperatures). 30. A region of Malaysia in northeastern Borneo. 33. Any of several East Indian birds. 35. The cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100. 37. A young unmarried woman. Yesterday’s Solution 41. Beyond or deviating from the usual or expected. 42. Any of the threadlike filaments forming the mycelium of a fungus. 45. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan River. 46. A university town in east central Illinois adjoining Champaign. 49. Any plant of the genus Hoya having fleshy leaves and usually nectariferous flowers. 51. Usually large hard-shelled seed. 52. African tree having an exceedingly thick trunk and fruit that resembles a gourd and has an edible pulp called monkey bread. 53. A Russian river. 55. The blood group whose red cells carry both the A and B antigens. 58. The habitation of wild animals. 59. (chemistry) Relating to or containing the azido group N3. 62. A correctional institution used to detain persons who are in the lawful custody of the government (either accused persons awaiting trial or convicted persons serving a sen- tence). 64. West Indian tree having racemes of fragrant white flowers and yielding a durable timber and resinous juice. 66. Any of various common orange trees yielding sour or bitter fruit. 71. A bluish shade of green. 72. A light touch or stroke. 75. Common jay of eastern North America. 76. The shape of a raised edge of a more or less circular object. 79. The federal department responsible for safeguarding national security. 80. (Irish) Mother of the ancient Irish gods. 81. Evergreen mat-forming shrub of North America and northern Eurasia having small white flowers and red berries. 82. A federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment. CHALLENGING MAZE Daily SuDoku Yesterday’s Solution information SATURDAY, MARCH14, 2015 DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

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Arrival Flights on Saturday 14/3/2015 JZR 777 Jeddah 17:55 FDB 056 Dubai 10:35 Airlines Flt Route Time UAL 982 IAD 17:55 IRM 1181 Mashhad 10:50 JAI 574 Mumbai 00:10 UAE 875 Dubai 18:00 QTR 1071 Doha 11:00 JZR 239 Amman 00:25 SVA 500 Jeddah 18:00 KAC 541 Cairo 11:05 JZR 267 Beirut 00:30 JZR 177 Dubai 18:20 KAC 165 Rome/Paris 11:15 JZR 539 Cairo 00:40 KAC 542 Cairo 18:25 GFA 214 Bahrain 11:25 KLM 413 Amsterdam/Dammam 00:40 KAC 118 New York 18:30 KAC 741 Dammam 11:45 THY 772 Istanbul 00:45 FDB 063 Dubai 18:40 RBG 554 Alexandria 11:55 FDB 069 Dubai 00:55 ABY 121 Sharjah 18:40 KAC 501 Beirut 12:00 QTR 1084 Doha 01:00 CLX 856 Luxembourg 18:50 JZR 776 Jeddah 12:20 RJA 642 Amman 01:05 QTR 1080 Doha 18:50 MSC 402 Alexandria 12:25 DLH 637 Dammam 01:15 KAC 774 Riyadh 19:15 UAE 874 Dubai 12:30 SAI 441 Lahore 01:30 KAC 618 Doha 19:15 IRM 1189 Mashhad 13:10 PGT 858 Istanbul 01:35 KAC 674 Dubai 19:25 JZR 176 Dubai 13:45 ETH 620 Addis Ababa 01:45 GFA 217 Bahrain 19:30 MSR 611 Cairo 14:00 GFA 211 Bahrain 02:30 KAC 176 Geneva/Frankfurt 19:45 MRJ 4814 Mashhad 14:10 UAE 853 Dubai 02:35 IRA 669 Mashhad 19:50 UAE 872 Dubai 14:15 JZR 553 Alexandria 02:45 KAC 502 Beirut 19:50 IAW 158 Al Najaf 14:20 JAI 526 Chennai/Abu Dhabi 02:50 KAC 104 London 19:55 JZR 324 Al Najaf 14:25 FDB 067 Dubai 02:55 KAC 614 Bahrain 20:00 AGY 685 Sohag 14:40 JAI 572 Mumbai 20:00 MSR 612 Cairo 03:10 IRC 527 Mashhad 14:55 MSR 618 Alexandria 20:05 ETD 305 Abu Dhabi 03:10 KAC 785 Jeddah 15:00 KKK 6507 Istanbul 03:20 OMA 647 Muscat 20:05 JZR 189 Dubai 20:15 KAC 673 Dubai 15:00 OMA 643 Muscat 03:25 QTR 1079 Doha 15:05 QTR 1076 Doha 03:45 FDB 061 Dubai 20:20 FDB 058 Dubai 15:10 MSC 401 Alexandria 04:05 KNE 474 Jeddah 20:25 KAC 546 Alexandria 04:10 ABY 123 Sharjah 20:35 KAC 617 Doha 15:15 JZR 503 Luxor 05:25 DLH 634 Frankfurt 20:50 KNE 473 Jeddah 15:20 THY 770 Istanbul 05:35 KAC 786 Jeddah 21:05 IZG 4168 Mashhad 15:35 DHX 170 Bahrain 05:40 ALK 229 Colombo 21:10 JZR 188 Dubai 15:40 BAW 157 London 06:40 MEA 402 Beirut 21:20 GFA 222 Bahrain 15:45 JZR 563 Sohag 06:45 ETD 307 Abu Dhabi 21:30 KAC 773 Riyadh 15:50 KAC 416 Kuala Lumpur/Jakarta 06:45 FDB 073 Dubai 21:35 KNE 471 Jeddah 15:50 KAC 412 Manila/Bangkok 07:10 UAE 859 Dubai 21:40 RJD 136 Abu Dhabi 16:05 FDB 053 Dubai 07:45 GFA 219 Bahrain 21:45 OMA 646 Muscat 16:25 KAC 204 Lahore 07:45 QTR 1074 Doha 21:55 ABY 128 Sharjah 16:25 QTR 1086 Doha 07:50 KNE 480 Taif 22:00 KNE 463 Madinah 16:30 KAC 352 Kochi 08:10 JZR 135 Bahrain 22:05 KAC 613 Bahrain 16:35 KAC 382 Delhi 08:15 KLM 415 Amsterdam 22:15 KNE 481 Taif 16:50 KAC 302 Mumbai 08:20 ETD 309 Abu Dhabi 22:15 FDB 052 Dubai 17:00 KAC 206 Islamabad 08:25 FDB 059 Dubai 22:30 JZR 266 Beirut 17:05 UAE 855 Dubai 08:40 AIC 975 Chennai/Goa 22:30 NIA 252 Alexandria 17:15 KAC 362 Colombo 08:45 MSC 403 Sohag 22:45 QTR 1073 Doha 17:40 KAC 344 Chennai 08:45 UAL 981 Bahrain 23:10 UAE 858 Dubai 17:45 KAC 284 Dhaka 08:50 JZR 185 Dubai 23:15 JZR 538 Cairo 17:45 ABY 125 Sharjah 09:00 AGY 684 Sohag 23:15 ETD 304 Abu Dhabi 17:50 ETD 301 Abu Dhabi 09:20 THY 764 Istanbul 23:35 SYR 341 Damascus 17:50 IRM 1186 Tehran 09:40 FDB 071 Dubai 23:45 RJA 641 Amman 17:55 FDB 055 Dubai 09:40 IRM 1187 Tehran 18:15 QTR 1070 Doha 10:00 Departure Flights on Saturday 14/3/2015 SVA 511 Riyadh 18:15 GFA 213 Bahrain 10:40 Airlines Flt Route Time GFA 216 Bahrain 18:20 UAE 873 Dubai 11:00 AIC 976 Goa/Chennai 00:05 JZR 184 Dubai 18:40 RBG 553 Alexandria 11:15 JZR 562 Sohag 00:05 IZG 4162 Mashhad 18:45 MSC 405 Sohag 11:25 PIA 206 Lahore 00:40 JZR 238 Amman 18:50 JZR 165 Dubai 11:30 FDB 072 Dubai 00:45 JZR 134 Bahrain 19:10 IRM 1188 Mashhad 11:45 JAI 573 Mumbai 01:10 UAL 982 Bahrain 19:15 UAE 871 Dubai 12:50 KLM 413 Amsterdam 01:55 ABY 122 Sharjah 19:20 JZR 241 Amman 12:55 DLH 637 Frankfurt 02:15 SVA 505 Jeddah 19:30 MRJ 4815 Mashhad 12:55 SAI 442 Lahore 02:30 UAE 876 Dubai 19:40 MSR 610 Cairo 13:00 ETH 621 Addis Ababa 02:45 QTR 1081 Doha 19:50 IAW 157 Al Najaf 13:20 THY 773 Istanbul 02:55 FDB 064 Dubai 19:55 JZR 779 Jeddah 13:35 PGT 859 Istanbul 03:25 GFA 218 Bahrain 20:15 AGY 680 Alexandria 13:40 UAE 854 Dubai 03:50 CLX 856 Hong Kong 20:20 IRC 526 Mashhad 13:50 FDB 068 Dubai 03:55 KAC 283 Dhaka 20:30 KAC 672 Dubai 13:55 IRA 666 Esfahan 20:50 QTR 1078 Doha 14:05 ETD 306 Abu Dhabi 04:05 MSR 613 Cairo 04:10 KAC 361 Colombo 20:50 KNE 472 Jeddah 14:25 JAI 571 Mumbai 21:00 FDB 057 Dubai 14:30 KKK 6508 Istanbul 04:10 OMA 644 Muscat 04:25 OMA 648 Muscat 21:05 IZG 4167 Mashhad 14:35 MSR 607 Luxor 21:05 KAC 742 Dammam 14:45 QTR 1085 Doha 04:30 MSC 406 Sohag 05:05 JZR 554 Alexandria 21:05 KNE 470 Jeddah 14:55 KNE 475 Jeddah 21:10 RJD 135 Abu Dhabi 14:55 QTR 1077 Doha 05:15 THY 765 Istanbul 05:40 KAC 331 Trivandrum 21:10 GFA 221 Bahrain 15:00 ABY 124 Sharjah 21:15 OMA 645 Muscat 15:25 FDB 070 Dubai 06:30 JAI 525 Abu Dhabi/Chennai 06:35 KAC 351 Kochi 21:15 KAC 788 Jeddah 15:40 FDB 062 Dubai 21:20 KNE 462 Madinah 15:45 JZR 164 Dubai 06:55 RJA 643 Amman 07:05 DHX 171 Bahrain 21:50 UAE 857 Dubai 15:45 KAC 381 Delhi 22:00 ABY 127 Sharjah 15:45 GFA 212 Bahrain 07:15 JZR 240 Amman 07:15 ALK 230 Colombo 22:10 FDB 051 Dubai 16:00 ETD 308 Abu Dhabi 22:15 KNE 460 Riyadh 16:00 THY 771 Istanbul 07:30 JZR 778 Jeddah 07:55 KAC 301 Mumbai 22:15 JZR 535 Cairo 16:10 MEA 403 Beirut 22:20 FDB 054 Dubai 08:25 NIA 251 Alexandria 16:15 FDB 074 Dubai 22:30 BAW 156 London 08:45 KAC 562 Amman 16:20 GFA 220 Bahrain 22:30 QTR 1087 Doha 08:50 JZR 357 Mashhad 16:30 UAE 860 Dubai 22:50 QTR 1072 Doha 16:40 JZR 534 Cairo 09:15 KNE 461 Riyadh 22:50 SYR 342 Damascus 16:50 KAC 671 Dubai 09:25 KAC 205 Islamabad 22:55 RJA 640 Amman 16:55 ABY 126 Sharjah 09:40 ETD 310 Abu Dhabi 23:00 ETD 303 Abu Dhabi 16:55 KAC 787 Jeddah 09:50 IRM 1180 Mashhad 17:00 QTR 1075 Doha 23:05 KAC 101 London/New York 09:50 KLM 415 Dammam/Amsterdam 23:15 SVA 510 Riyadh 17:15 UAE 856 Dubai 09:55 GFA 215 Bahrain 17:30 KAC 543 Cairo 23:20 ETD 302 Abu Dhabi 10:20 KAC 411 Bangkok/Manila 23:30 IZG 4161 Mashhad 17:45 KAC 561 Amman 10:25 JZR 325 NJF 17:50 MSC 404 Sohag 23:45 JZR 356 Mashhad 10:30 FDB 060 Dubai 23:55 Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw) SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

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SHARQIA-1 ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 1:30 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 8:30 PM OUTCAST 3:45 PM CINDERELLA 1:00 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 3:15 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 11:15 PM CINDERELLA 5:45 PM CINDERELLA 3:30 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 5:15 PM CINDERELLA 8:00 PM CINDERELLA 5:45 PM OUTCAST 7:00 PM AVENUES-4 CINDERELLA 10:15 PM CINDERELLA 8:00 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 9:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:00 PM OUTCAST 12:30 AM CINDERELLA 10:15 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 12:15 AM RUN ALL NIGHT 2:30 PM OUTCAST 12:30 AM RUN ALL NIGHT 5:00 PM AL-KOUT.4 FANAR-4 RUN ALL NIGHT 7:30 PM DEMONIC 12:30 PM SHARQIA-2 RUN ALL NIGHT 11:45 AM RUN ALL NIGHT 10:00 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 2:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 11:30 AM RUN ALL NIGHT 2:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:45 AM DEMONIC 4:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 2:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 4:45 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 6:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 4:30 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 7:15 PM AVENUES-5 AMERICAN HEIST 7:45 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 7:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 9:30 PM CINDERELLA 12:30 PM DEMONIC 9:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 9:45 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:05 AM CINDERELLA 3:00 PM DEMONIC 11:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:15 AM CINDERELLA 5:30 PM DEMONIC 1:00 AM FANAR-5 NO THU SHARQIA-3 DEMONIC 12:30 PM Special Show “CINDERELLA” 5:30 PM BAIRAQ-1 DEMONIC 12:45 PM DEMONIC 2:30 PM THU CINDERELLA 11:45 AM FAST ... ER 2:45 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 4:15 PM CINDERELLA 8:00 PM CINDERELLA 2:00 PM DEMONIC 4:45 PM DEMONIC 6:45 PM NO SAT CINDERELLA 4:15 PM FAST ... ER 6:45 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 8:30 PM Special Show “CINDERELLA” 8:00 PM CINDERELLA 6:30 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 8:45 PM DEMONIC 11:00 PM SAT CINDERELLA 8:45 PM DEMONIC 11:00 PM DEMONIC 12:45 AM FAST ... ER 10:30 PM CINDERELLA 11:00 PM DEMONIC 12:45 AM FAST ... ER 12:30 AM OUTCAST 1:15 AM MARINA-1 MUHALAB-1 FAST ... ER 12:45 PM 360º- 1 BAIRAQ-2 CINDERELLA 12:00 PM FAST ... ER 2:45 PM CINDERELLA 12:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 1:15 PM CINDERELLA 2:30 PM FAST ... ER 4:45 PM CINDERELLA 3:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 3:30 PM CINDERELLA 5:00 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 6:45 PM CINDERELLA 5:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 5:45 PM CINDERELLA 7:30 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 9:30 PM CINDERELLA 8:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 8:00 PM CINDERELLA 10:00 PM FAST ... ER 12:15 AM CINDERELLA 10:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 10:15 PM CINDERELLA 12:15 AM FAST ... ER 1:00 AM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:30 AM MARINA-2 MUHALAB-2 RUN ALL NIGHT 12:00 PM 360º- 2 BAIRAQ-3 FAST ... ER 11:30 AM RUN ALL NIGHT 2:30 PM DEMONIC 1:15 PM FAST ... ER 12:45 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 1:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 5:00 PM DEMONIC 3:15 PM FAST ... ER 2:45 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 3:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 7:30 PM DEMONIC 5:15 PM FAST ... ER 4:45 PM FAST ... ER 5:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 10:00 PM DEMONIC 7:15 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 6:45 PM FAST ... ER 7:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:30 AM DEMONIC 9:15 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 9:30 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 9:45 PM DEMONIC 11:15 PM FAST ... ER 11:45 PM FAST ... ER 12:30 AM MARINA-3 DEMONIC 1:15 AM CINDERELLA 12:30 PM PLAZA MUHALAB-3 CINDERELLA 3:00 PM 360º- 3 CINDERELLA 3:45 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:15 PM CINDERELLA 5:15 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 12:00 PM FAST ... ER 6:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 2:45 PM CINDERELLA 7:30 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 2:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 8:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 5:15 PM CINDERELLA 9:45 PM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 4:00 PM DEMONIC 10:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 7:45 PM CINDERELLA 12:05 AM ASTERIX: THE MANSIONS OF THE GODS 6:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 10:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 8:45 PM LAILA RUN ALL NIGHT 12:45 AM AVENUES-1 AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 11:30 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 4:00 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 11:45 AM CINDERELLA 6:30 PM FANAR-1 YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 2:15 PM AL-KOUT.1 FAST ... ER 8:45 PM FAST ... ER 12:45 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 4:45 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 12:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 10:45 PM FOCUS 3:00 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 7:15 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 2:30 PM FAST ... ER 5:15 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 9:45 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 5:00 PM AJIAL.1 AMERICAN HEIST 7:15 PM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 12:15 AM YOUM MALOUSH LASMA (Arabic) 7:30 PM ENAKKUL ORUVAN -TAMIL 4:00 PM FOCUS 9:00 PM RUN ALL NIGHT 9:45 PM ENAKKUL ORUVAN -TAMIL 7:00 PM FAST ... ER 11:00 PM AVENUES-2 RUN ALL NIGHT 12:15 AM ENAKKUL ORUVAN -TAMIL 10:00 PM FAST ... ER 1:00 AM FOCUS 11:30 AM VAANAVIL VAAZHKAI -TAMIL 4:00 PM FOCUS 1:45 PM AL-KOUT.2 VAANAVIL VAAZHKAI -TAMIL 7:00 PM FANAR-2 FOCUS 4:00 PM FAST ... ER 12:15 PM VAANAVIL VAAZHKAI -TAMIL 10:00 PM CINDERELLA 1:00 PM FOCUS 6:15 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 2:30 PM CINDERELLA 3:30 PM FOCUS 8:30 PM FAST ... ER 5:15 PM AJIAL.2 CINDERELLA 5:45 PM FOCUS 10:45 PM FAST ... ER 7:15 PM DEMONIC 3:45 PM CINDERELLA 8:00 PM FOCUS 1:00 AM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 9:15 PM DEMONIC 5:45 PM CINDERELLA 10:15 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 12:05 AM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 7:45 PM CINDERELLA 12:30 AM AVENUES-3 DEMONIC 10:30 PM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 12:00 PM AL-KOUT.3 FANAR-3 AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 2:45 PM OUTCAST 11:30 AM AJIAL.3 OUTCAST 11:30 AM AL TIJARA SHATARA (Kuwaiti Film) 5:30 PM CINDERELLA 1:30 PM NH10 - HINDI 5:00 PM HEALTH SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

India, US clash over swine flu mutations

NEW DELHI: India has disputed US scientists’ findings that the deadly swine flu virus has acquired more viru- lent mutations in the South Asian country and rejected their concerns over how authorities are monitoring an outbreak of the disease. H1N1 influenza, also known as swine flu, has killed more than 1,500 people in India this year, compared with 218 in 2014. India says the strain is the same as the one that killed an estimated 284,000 people in the global pandemic of 2009-10. Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) said in an article on Wednesday that the genetic information of two Indian strains, deposit- ed in public databases in the past two years, revealed new mutations that could make the virus more deadly. But India’s National Institute of Virology said in a state- ment late on Thursday that the findings were “incor- rect”. “We found that the strain analyzed in the said publication and the sequence data of the original H1N1 virus ... did not show any of these mutations,” the insti- tute said. The government agency also said the strain ana- lyzed by the US scientists had no relevance to the cur- rent outbreak. The MIT researchers called for greater surveillance to determine whether the mutations were currently present in India. RIYADH: Two men speak in front an emergency center in the nation’s capital. “There is a real need for aggressive surveillance to ensure that the anxiety and hysteria are brought down,” said Ram Sasisekharan, one of the research MERS kills 10 in Saudi paper’s authors. “When you do real-time surveillance, get organized ... then you can come up with a better strategy to respond to the virus.” In recent weeks, India has placed orders to increase A surge in virus deaths the stock of diagnostic kits and procured additional RIYADH: Ten more people have died in Saudi coughing and shortness of breath. that virus cases typically surge early in the doses of anti-viral drug Oseltamivir. Officials are investi- Arabia from the MERS virus since last week, Last week the health ministry started the year when there are more juvenile camels cir- gating the cause of the steep rise in deaths. Indian health ministry data showed yesterday, latest phase of a public education campaign culating. More than 20 countries have been health ministry officials were not immediately available adding to a surge in cases over the past aimed at preventing the virus from spreading. affected by the virus, with the most cases in to comment on the MIT article. month. The latest deaths occurred between The World Health Organization has cited the Saudi Arabia. A total of 950 people have been Some other experts have also contested its findings. March 6 and 12, mostly in the capital Riyadh, preliminary results of studies indicating that infected with MERS since it was first identified “There should be increased surveillance for influenza in bringing to 17 the number of MERS deaths so people working with camels are at increased in the kingdom in 2012, and 412 of them have India but at the same time we should not draw conclu- far this month, according to the ministry. risk of infection, with young camels particular- died. MERS is considered a deadlier but less sions based on the sequence analysis of two strains,” Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coron- ly susceptible. infectious cousin of the Severe Acute said Manish Kakkar of the Public Health Foundation of avirus (MERS-CoV) killed 30 people last month Abdul Aziz bin Saeed, who heads the cen- Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus that in the kingdom, which has been worst-hit by tre coordinating the health ministry’s appeared in Asia in 2003 and killed hundreds India. — Reuters the virus. Its symptoms can include fever, response to MERS, warned in early February of people, mostly in China. — AFP Liberia’s 2,000 lost Ebola dead get final resting place

BOYS TOWN: Every evening for months the shunned by friends and neighbors when the sky would turn orange as Liberia’s Ebola cre- installation opened. “No one wanted to matorium roared into life, its towering flames come near us and our families. We were total- reducing victim after victim to ash and black- ly rejected,” says Otis Tarwen, 32, recalling ened bone. It was a ritual that the villagers of how the workers’ wives were refused service Boys Town came to dread, the thick black in the local markets. Sarah Doe lost her moth- smoke and smell of death permeating their er to Ebola, and says the incineration of the homes and spreading alarm in the communi- body made her loss all the more difficult to ty. More than 10,000 people have died since bear. “Though I understand why, I cannot find the epidemic broke out in Guinea and spread room in my heart to forgive those who burnt to Liberia and Sierra Leone, and the incinera- her body. I hate to hear the word ‘crematori- tor became a symbol of the panic that um’,” the 45-year-old tells AFP. The govern- enveloped the region. ment remained adamant, however, that there By the time it shut in January, as Liberia was not enough free land or resources to began to emerge from the worst outbreak of guarantee safe burials, and insisted that the Ebola in history, the facility had burned 2,000 despised facility remain open. men, women and children, their ashes tossed indiscriminately together into metal drums. Gratitude “When they used to burn the Ebola bodies the Then in December Liberia’s traditional odor was unbearable to us. Our children were MONROVIA: Women cry as they remember Ebola victims at a burial site. — AFP chieftains came up with a solution a 50-acre getting sick. Many people left the town to go Protests Ebola victims as a critical step in halting the plot of land by the highway to Roberts elsewhere. I hate to hear about this place Cremation is alien to Liberian culture, epidemic. The Boys Town crematorium International Airport, 70 kilometers east of called ‘crematorium’,” says Boys Town resi- which values traditional burials in which opened in September, when the local Indian Monrovia. The site was big enough for huge dent Anita Zoegai, 45. mourners bathe the body in oil and even community offered the government full numbers of burials, and it’s convenient loca- Now the families of those sent into the embrace the dead to honor them and send access to a facility they had built in 1986. tion made it a viable alternative. So ministers flames are finally being allowed to claim their them onward to the next life. But these funer- Villagers, suddenly choked by fumes and approved the idea, and shut down the incin- remains, after the ashes of all 2,000 were als were also identified early on as a key factor offended by the clinical disposal of bodies on erator. The metal drums were transferred handed back at a traditional ceremony over in the intense spread of the virus, with the their doorsteps, staged sit-in protests on the from Boys Town at the weekend, after the weekend. Tribal chiefs and religious lead- bodies of the recently deceased particularly road to the crematorium and pleaded for its Liberia’s traditional council chief Zahn-Zahn ers gathered at the crematorium, 35 kilome- infectious. closure. Kawo presented the community with a kola- ters east of the capital, for the traditional han- President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf issued a The crematorium workers, all Boys Town nut, a gesture of gratitude for the hardship dover of 16 drums holding the remains. decree in August mandating the cremation of villagers, remember bitterly how they were they had endured. —AFP HEALTH SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 NASA launches Experts want tobacco satellites to track magnetosphere free world by 2040 WASHINGTON: Four identical satellites which will study the interactions between solar winds LONDON: A world virtually free where less than 5 percent of and the Earth’s magnetic fields blasted off into of tobacco and its devastating adults use it, he added: “The Space on Thursday and settled into orbit begin health consequences could be time has come for the world to a two-year study, NASA said. a reality within 30 years if gov- acknowledge the unacceptabil- The Delta V rocket of the United Launch ernments showed political will ity of the damage being done Alliance lifted off from its launch pad from Cape and took stronger action by the tobacco industry and Canaveral in Florida at 22:44 local time (2:44 against cigarette companies, work towards a world essential- GMT yesterday) as planned at the beginning a health experts said yesterday. ly free from the... sale of tobac- 30-minute window of opportunity. The quartet The international group of pub- co products.” of spacecraft weighing 1.2 tons known as lic health and policy specialists, Tobacco kills some 6 million “Magnetospheric Multiscale” or MMS, will fly in writing in The Lancet medical people a year worldwide, a pyramid formation. journal, said sale of tobacco according to the WHO. And They later eased away from each other suc- should be phased out world- besides lung cancer, which is cessfully. “Spacecraft separation is complete!,” wide by 2040 and called for a caused by smoking and is often NASA said later in a statement two hours later. “turbo-charged” international fatal, smoking is also a major “All four of NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale effort against its use. A billion risk factor for a range of other observatories have been released in orbit, people are forecast to die this illnesses. It is the world’s lead- where they’ll soon embark on an ambitious century from smoking and oth- ing preventable cause of pre- mission to unlock the secrets of magnetic er forms of tobacco use if con- mature death from chronic reconnection,” it added. They will obtain three- trol efforts are not stepped up. conditions such as heart dis- dimensional images and collect data as they More than 80 percent of those ease, strokes and high blood monitor collisions from the Earth’s magnetos- deaths will be in poor and mid- pressure. phere and solar particles arriving at high speed dle-income countries. The experts said that even a and forming their own magnetic field about “A world where tobacco is decade after the introduction 60,000 miles from Earth. Scientists hope to gain out of sight, out of mind, and of the WHO’s Framework a greater understanding of the phenomenon, out of fashion-yet not prohibit- Convention on Tobacco known as magnetic reconnection. ed-is achievable in less than Control (FCTC), only 15 percent “Magnetic reconnection is one of the most three decades... but only with of people globally have ade- important drivers of space weather events,” full commitment from govern- quate access to programs to said Jeff Newmark, interim director of the ments, international agencies, help them stop smoking and Heliophysics Division at NASA Headquarters in such as United Nations and fewer than one in 10 people Washington. “Space weather events can affect World Health Organization, and are covered by tobacco taxes at modern technological systems such as commu- civil society,” said Robert FCTC recommended levels. In FLORIDA: Tampa Police Department Sgt Rich Mills carries an nications networks, GPS navigation, and electri- Beaglehole of the University of the same period, 50 million injured female dog that was left tied to a railroad track in Sulfur cal power grids.” The $1.1 billion mission is Auckland in New Zealand, one people have died due smoking Springs. The Police Department announced on Thursday that expected to last last two years. — Reuters of the experts. Describing a and tobacco-related diseases, two Tampa teens have been arrested for shooting the dog that “tobacco-free” world as one they said. — Reuters was found tied to the tracks. — AP WHAT’S ON SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

ABK sponsors ‘Taste of Q8’ Food Festival

l Ahli Bank of Kuwait (ABK) hailed its successful and entertainment, and VIP lounges. sponsorship of ‘Taste of Q8’, the first and ABK hosted the opening press conference in its VIP Abiggest consumer food festival ever to come to lounge to highlight its involvement in the event, Kuwait. The 3-day event took place at the Kuwait engaged with visitors through a ‘selfie’ photo booth International Fairground’s from 5 -7 March, 2015. The and organized a ‘signing session’ for celebrity chefs to event celebrated Kuwait’s great culinary diversity and provide autographs for fans. The Bankwas pleased to offered visitors the opportunity to experience many support this new and exciting event, which brought different cuisines from local restaurants, bakers and the Kuwaiti community together to enjoy a whole gourmet grocers, as well as seeing live cooking new experience. For more information about ABK visit demonstrations presented by renowned chefs from www.eahli.com or contact an ABK representative via the famous cooking TV channel, Fatafeat. The event ‘Ahli Chat’ or a customer service agent via ‘AhlanAhli’ also featured a ‘kid’s zone’, shopping booths, music at 1899899. Hungarian Government’s ‘Eastern Opening’

n the recent years with the launching of the Hungarian part to the Hungarian doctors, teachers, university professors, conduc- ferred from the old network to the newly opened Shuwaikh B Government’s “Eastern Opening” foreign policy we were able to tive education therapists, coaches - trainers, engineers, bankers, tech- (Kheifan) telephone exchange. Hungary stood by Kuwait during times Iwitness the deepening of economic and cultural relationship nical experts and specialists of all kind of professions either working in of difficulty.KOC engineers can still remember when the Hungarian between Hungary and Kuwait. These events included the visit of Peter Kuwait for decades. Everyone is devoted to their profession and effi- specialized fire fighter units used two fighter jet engines mounted on Szijjarto, the Hungarian State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External ciently contribute to the goodwill and reputation of Hungary generat- an armoured tank base(nicknamed the “BIGWIND”)extinguished the Economic Relations of the Prime Minister’s Office (serving today as ing trust and sincere friendship which we all know is an indispensable most devastating and fierce oil well fires in 1991 after the Iraqi inva- Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade), followed by the first Joint ingredient to strengthening cultural and economic ties. sion. Hungarian-Kuwaiti Economic Committee in 2013. Our community is optimistic that Kuwait Airways will soon start Returning to nowadays we are proud that the Hungarian telecom At the same time, the first Hungarian-Kuwaiti KFI Workshop was operating direct flights to Budapest after the airline receive a major & IT experts are still contributing to the development of Kuwaiti tele- held in Budapest, where the National Innovation Office of Hungary batch of its new aircrafts which move would put the cooperation in com’s infrastructure and are involved in the optical fibre access net- and the National Technology Enterprises Company of Kuwait exam- higher gear. This is possible as a result of the recently renewed avia- work upgrade of the country. Ganz Transelektro continues installing ined different opportunities for cooperation in the life sciences as well tion agreement between Kuwait and Hungary. Such a move will electrical substations, TecnoVISION is relentlessly engaged in the as energy, water management and info-communications sectors. In revive the once very popular Kuwaiti tourism to Hungary, since the deployment of its trendsetting display boards such as the indoor dis- May 2013 a businessmen delegation visited Kuwait and a two day B2B country is in the heart of Europe and is a member of the European play one can admire inside the Al Hamra Tower. business forum was organized with the help of the Kuwait Chamber Union. Hungary is not only one of the safest countries in Europe, but it The latest achievements in expanding the economic relations of Commerce and Industry. can provide its visitors with high level services at a very competitive between the two countries are earmarked by the following outstand- In December Kuwait welcomed the visit of Janos Ader, the and favorable price. For those who are looking for great investment ing business partners of Hungary and valued sponsors of the Friends President of Hungary, who met with the leaders of Kuwait. The opportunities, the existing bilateral agreements in place for reciprocal of Hungary reception: SADITA Holdingis the main sponsor of the Presidential visit was followed next year by a B2B business event at protection of investments and agreement on avoidance of double “Friends of Hungary” event. The company continues is a major Marina Hotel to promote the Hungarian high tech and environmental taxation provide the necessary legal framework for Kuwaiti investors importer and producer of specialized Hungarian food products and it friendly and energy efficient construction materials and techniques to establish a trading, manufacturing base in Hungary or to simply has recently entered into an agreement to increase the volume of its attended by the key players of the Kuwaiti construction industry. acquire a second home in Budapest, undoubtedly one of the most investments in Hungary in cooperation with Navigator Investments Hungary is not only famous for its Nobel prize winners, like the beautiful and relaxing metropolis in the world. SCC. inventors of the ball point pen, vitamin C or the safety matches, but 2015 brings a series of anniversaries of many important milestones Business Dynamic Companyhas recently registered their affiliate also for its food and culture. A uniquely-themed Hungarian Gala regarding the Kuwaiti - Hungarian business relationships. It was 50 company “Synergies Middle East Europe” in Hungary and is looking to Dinner for the oldest and most prestigious gastronomic society the years ago in 1965 when Ali & Fouad Alghanim Company imported the invest in industrial, general services and manufacturing in Hungary. “Chaine des Rotisseurs” was held at the Marina Hotel, which to date first fleet of the Hungarian “Ikarus” buses to the Kuwait Public Fatma Clinicis signing - in the course of the coming week - a serves some of the favorite Hungarian delicacies presented during the Transportation Company. It was 40 years ago in 1975 when Ganz Memorandum of Understanding with Navigator Investments SCCin Gala Dinner. Transelektro (today known as “CG Electric Systems Hungary”) installed the field of investment &cooperation with top quality Hungarian spe- Thanks to a recently started cultural exchange program, artists the first Hungarian transformers and substations for the Ministry of cialist clinics and medical institutes. from Kuwait and the region had the opportunity to take part innu- Electricity & Water. Ali Alghanim & Sons Group continues to employ a large number merous exhibitions in Hungary for 2 months, while a Hungarian visual It was 40 years ago in 1975 when the Hungarian Ship Building of Hungarian telecommunication specialists and are exploring new artist and a Chamber Orchestra visited Kuwait to hold an exhibition Company dispatched its first floating cranes to Shuwaikh Port. It was possibilities in the field of IT, media & marketing with Imsomnia and to perform at The Theatre of Kuwait National Museum. The mis- in 1975 when the first Hungarian-made stadium display boards Middle East Ltd and Ifroxy Ltd web-solution developers. Fouad sion of this dinner reception is to host an informal event for the arrived to Kuwait which are still represented by Fouad Alghanim & Alghanim & Sons Group continue supporting TecnoVISION and has “Friends of Hungary” to celebrate and acknowledge the important Sons under the “ TecnoVISION” brand. It was 30 years ago in 1985 entered into a joint-venture last year with a Hungarian company in role of business partners and supporting friends of Hungary who can when a leading Hungarian telecommunications company (Budavox) the field of soil remediation. Another sponsor of the “Friends of be of any nationality living, working and doing business in Kuwait. performed the most challenging and delicate telecommunication Hungary” is the exclusive agent for the Arab world of the worldwide The Honorary Commercial Counselor is aiming to make this a operations of the time conjointly with the Ministry of renowned ZSOLNAY porcelain factory and has recently opened its recurring event held yearly to express due appreciation on one part to Communications. flagship ZSOLNAY Exhibition on the second mezzanine floor of the business partners and supporters of Hungary and on the other Within one night, 24.000 telephone subscriber lines were trans- Olympia Mall, Salmiya. WHAT’S ON SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

Reborn Kids Education Academy’s carnival

t was a fun-packed and glamorous day at Reborn Kids Education Academy on Thursday as it marks its annual carnival. The colorful event which is aimed at encouraging kids to read Iattracted a lot of dignitaries and parents. Integrating fun with teaching is the most impor- tant value in the school.

9th Pan Arab Congress of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation forum

he 9th Pan Arab Congress of Physical Medicine & field of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation from France, Canada, Lectures, scientific paper presentations, and workshops are being Rehabilitation and the 3rd Kuwait Physical Medicine & Italy, Austria, USA, Belgium and Arab countries will share their arranged as part of the conference covering important topics in TRehabilitation conference will be held on the 14th, 15th and expertise and knowledge. PM&R. Some of the visiting consultants would be available for 16th of March 2015, at the Courtyard Marriott, Al Raya Ball room. The theme for the conference is “Challenging Disabilities”, consultation of patients after the conference. Dr Diaa Shehab, The conference is being conducted under the auspices of the which highlights the importance of tackling disability in Kuwait Consultant Physiatrist and Vice Dean of Faculty of Medicine is the Ministry of Health, Kuwait. This is the first time that the Pan Arab and around the world, and the pertinent role played by Physical President and Dr Salem Ali Al Kandari , Head of the PMR depart- congress in PM&R is being held in Kuwait. Many experts in the Medicine & Rehabilitation in integrating them in to the society. ment , PMR hospital is the head of the Organizing committee. TV listings SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

04:00 American Idol 05:00 Grey’s Anatomy 08:00 White Collar 09:00 American Idol 10:00 Grey’s Anatomy 11:00 Once Upon A Time 13:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 14:00 White Collar 18:00 White Collar 19:00 Graceland 20:00 The Blacklist 21:00 Resurrection 22:00 Salem 23:00 Hemlock Grove

00:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 01:00 Good Morning America 03:00 Supernatural 04:00 Defiance 05:00 Good Morning America 08:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 09:00 Switched At Birth 11:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 12:00 Rake 13:00 Killer Women 15:00 Live Good Morning America 16:00 Switched At Birth 17:00 Rake 18:00 Killer Women 19:00 Switched At Birth 20:00 Rake 21:00 Killer Women

00:00 Jarhead 02:00 Beneath 03:30 R.I.P.D. 05:15 Breakout 06:45 Iron Man 09:00 Stash House 10:45 Oblivion 13:00 R.I.P.D. KILLER JOE ON OSN MOVIES HD 15:00 Iron Man 17:15 Bad Company 19:15 Oblivion 05:00 The Perks Of Being A 04:00 Summoned-PG15 21:30 Man Of Steel Wallflower-PG15 06:00 The Croods-PG 03:15 Extreme Cheapskates 08:00 Deadly Affairs 07:35 Julius Jr. 06:45 Salinger-PG15 08:00 Last Passenger-PG15 03:40 Extreme Cheapskates 08:50 On The Case With Paula 07:45 Calimero 09:00 Son Of Rambow-PG 10:00 Turbo-PG 04:05 Craft Wars Zahn 08:00 Jungle Junction 11:00 Salinger-PG15 11:45 Summoned-PG15 05:00 Craft Wars 09:40 Real Emergency Calls 08:10 Zou 13:15 The French Connection II 13:30 The Sapphires-PG15 06:00 18 Kids And Counting 10:05 Real Emergency Calls 08:25 Henry Hugglemonster 15:30 Dead Poets Society-PG15 15:15 Last Passenger-PG15 06:25 Hoarding: Buried Alive 10:30 Who On Earth Did I Marry? 08:35 Julius Jr. 00:00 Beneath-PG15 18:00 Son Of Rambow-PG 17:00 The Hobbit: The Desolation Of 07:15 Hoarding: Buried Alive 12:10 The Will 08:50 Mouk 01:30 R.I.P.D.-PG15 20:00 Yellow Rock-PG15 Smaug-PG 08:05 World’s Worst Mum 13:50 Nightmare Next Door 09:00 Calimero 03:15 Breakout-PG15 21:30 Buried-PG15 20:00 3 Days To Kill-PG15 08:55 World’s Worst Mum 14:40 Fatal Encounters 09:15 Jake And The Never Land 04:45 Iron Man-PG15 23:30 The Place Beyond The Pines 22:00 Transit-PG15 09:45 Cake Boss 16:20 Disappeared Pirates 07:00 Stash House-PG15 23:45 Turbo-PG 10:10 Cake Boss 17:10 Real Emergency Calls 09:40 Doc McStuffins 08:45 Oblivion-PG15 10:35 Sister Wives 18:00 Stalked: Someone’s 10:05 Art Attack 11:00 R.I.P.D.-PG15 11:25 18 Kids And Counting Watching 10:35 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 13:00 Iron Man-PG15 11:50 18 Kids And Counting 18:25 Stalked: Someone’s 11:00 Sofia The First 15:15 Bad Company-PG15 01:30 The Art Of The Steal-PG15 12:15 18 Kids And Counting Watching 11:25 Sheriff Callie’s Wild West 17:15 Oblivion-PG15 03:00 Iron Man & Hulk: Heroes 18:50 I Was Murdered 11:55 Zou 01:00 Golfing World 12:40 18 Kids And Counting 19:30 Man Of Steel-PG15 United-PG 13:05 18 Kids And Counting 19:40 Murder Shift 12:10 Calimero 22:00 April Rain-18 04:30 Pacific Rim-PG15 02:00 Top 14 23:00 True CSI 12:30 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 04:00 Super League 13:30 Say Yes To The Dress: The Big 06:45 The Fifth Estate-PG15 Day (Specials) 23:50 Deadly Affairs 13:25 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 09:00 Getaway-PG15 06:30 Live ICC Cricket World Cup - 13:50 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse AUS v SCO 14:20 Oprah: Where Are They Now? 10:30 Saving Mr. Banks-PG15 15:10 Cake Boss 14:20 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 12:45 The Amazing Spider-Man 2 15:00 Super Rugby Highlights 14:45 Jake And The Never Land 16:00 Live Super Rugby 15:35 Cake Boss 00:00 Home Alone-PG 15:15 The Monuments Men-PG15 Pirates 18:00 Live Super Rugby 16:00 Cake Boss 02:00 Stand Off-PG15 17:15 Getaway-PG15 15:15 Doc McStuffins 20:00 Super Rugby Highlights 16:25 Cake Boss 04:00 Walk Of Shame-PG15 19:00 Malavita-PG15 16:50 Cake Boss 15:40 Sheriff Callie’s Wild West 06:00 Blazing Saddles-PG15 21:00 Life Of Crime-PG15 17:15 Bakery Boss 16:05 Sofia The First 08:00 Jesus Henry Christ-PG15 23:00 Killer Joe-18 18:05 Oprah’s Next Chapter 16:35 Zou 10:00 Stand Off-PG15 18:55 Say Yes To The Dress 00:10 Zou 16:50 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 12:00 Austenland-PG15 19:20 Say Yes To The Dress 00:25 Mouk 17:15 Lilo & Stitch 14:00 It’s A Disaster-PG15 01:00 NHL 19:45 Say Yes To The Dress 00:35 Jungle Junction 17:40 Adventures Of The Gummi 16:00 Jesus Henry Christ-PG15 03:00 Live NHL 20:10 Say Yes To The Dress ‚Äì 00:50 Art Attack Bears 18:00 She-Devil-PG15 06:00 Super Rugby Highlights Bridesmaids 01:15 Julius Jr. 18:05 Chip n Dale Rescue 20:00 Never Been Kissed-PG15 06:30 Live Super Rugby 20:35 Say Yes To The Dress ‚Äì 01:25 Calimero Rangers 01:00 Barbie In The Nutcracker 22:00 The Royal Tenenbaums-18 09:00 Super Rugby Highlights Bridesmaids 01:40 Henry Hugglemonster 18:30 Ducktales 02:45 Los Campeones De LA Lucha 09:30 Live Super Rugby 21:00 Oprah: Where Are They Now? 01:50 Zou 19:00 Art Attack Libre 11:30 Live Super Rugby 21:50 Oprah’s Next Chapter 02:05 Mouk 19:25 Sofia The First 04:30 The Happets 13:30 Live PGA European Tour 22:40 Extreme Couponing 02:15 Jungle Junction 19:55 Calimero 06:00 Ernest & Celestine 17:30 Golfing World 23:05 Mob Wives 02:25 Art Attack 20:10 Doc McStuffins 08:00 Skateboy And The Magical 20:00 Live PGA Tour 23:55 Mob Wives 02:50 Julius Jr. 20:25 Jake And The Never Land 01:00 Upside Down-PG15 Musical Mystery 03:00 Calimero Pirates 03:00 Robot & Frank-PG15 10:00 Oggy & The Cockroaches: The 03:15 Henry Hugglemonster 20:50 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 05:00 Atlas Shrugged-PG15 Movie 03:25 Zou 21:25 Sofia The First 07:00 Step Up Revolution-PG15 11:30 The Legend Of Sasquatch 03:40 Mouk 21:50 Adventures Of The Gummi 13:00 Los Campeones De LA Lucha 03:50 Jungle Junction 09:00 The Trouble With Bliss-PG15 03:00 ICC World Cup H/L: AFG v ENG Bears Libre 04:00 Art Attack 11:00 Atlas Shrugged-PG15 04:00 Live ICC World Cup: IND v ZIM 22:20 Chip n Dale Rescue 14:30 Space Dogs 04:25 Julius Jr. 13:00 Robot & Frank-PG15 15:30 ICC Cricket 360 Rangers 16:00 Tad, The Lost Explorer 04:35 Calimero 15:00 Temptation: Confessions Of A 16:00 ICC World Cup H/L: IND v ZIM 22:45 Ducktales 18:00 Oggy & The Cockroaches: The 04:50 Henry Hugglemonster Marriage Counselor-PG15 18:30 ICC World Cup H/L: AUS v SCO 00:40 Dates From Hell 23:15 Art Attack Movie 05:00 Zou 17:00 The Trouble With Bliss-PG15 21:30 ICC Cricket 360 01:05 Dates From Hell 23:40 Calimero 19:00 The Letter-PG15 20:00 Minuscule: Valley Of The Lost 01:30 Couples Who Kill 05:15 Mouk 23:55 Henry Hugglemonster 21:00 I, Anna-PG15 Ants 02:20 Great Crimes And Trials 05:25 Jungle Junction DISNEY XD 23:00 Citizen Gangster-PG15 22:00 Space Dogs 02:45 Great Crimes And Trials 05:35 Art Attack 00:00 Programmes Start At 23:30 Tad, The Lost Explorer 03:10 Serial Killers 06:00 Julius Jr. 7:00am KSA 04:00 Most Evil 06:10 Calimero 07:00 Ultimate Spider-Man 04:45 Dates From Hell 06:25 Henry Hugglemonster 07:20 Best Sports Ever 05:07 Dates From Hell 06:35 Zou 07:25 Zeke & Luther 00:45 Breaking Amish 05:30 Couples Who Kill 06:50 Mouk 07:50 Star Wars Rebels 01:35 The Undateables 07:00 Jungle Junction 01:00 Passion Fish-18 00:00 Vantage Point-PG15 06:20 True CSI 08:15 Supa Strikas 02:25 What Have I Got 07:10 American Greed 07:10 Art Attack 08:40 The 7D 03:15 Dangerous Minds-PG15 01:45 The Grandmaster-PG15 02:50 What Have I Got TV listings SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

11:50 Street Outlaws 21:20 Game Changers 21:10 Good Luck Charlie 07:00 Tastiest Places To Chowdown 10:15 Arthur And George 12:40 Street Outlaws 21:45 Game Changers 21:35 Jessie 07:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 11:10 The Chase: Celebrity Specials 13:30 Street Outlaws 22:10 How We Invented The World 22:00 Gravity Falls 07:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 12:00 Paul O’Grady: For The Love Of 14:20 Street Outlaws 23:00 Rise Of The Machines 22:25 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 08:15 Chopped Dogs 15:10 Street Outlaws 23:50 How Do They Do It? Witch 09:05 Siba’s Table 12:25 Who’s Doing The Dishes 00:50 Gator Boys 16:00 Gold Rush 22:50 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 09:30 Have Cake, Will Travel 13:15 The Jonathan Ross Show 01:45 River Monsters 16:50 Gold Divers: Under The Ice Witch 09:55 Have Cake, Will Travel 14:05 Sunday Night At The Palladium 02:40 Tanked 17:40 Alaska: The Last Frontier 23:10 Wolfblood 10:20 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 15:00 Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night 03:35 Man, Cheetah, Wild 18:30 The Island With Bear Grylls 23:35 Wolfblood Basics Takeaway 04:25 River Monsters 19:20 Tethered 10:45 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 16:05 Get Your Act Together 05:15 Treehouse Masters 20:10 Man vs Weird Basics 17:15 Mr Selfridge 06:02 Call Of The Wildman 21:00 Backroad Bounty 11:10 Siba’s Table 18:05 Remember Me 06:25 Call Of The Wildman 21:25 Backroad Bounty 11:35 Siba’s Table 19:00 Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night 06:49 Man, Cheetah, Wild 21:50 Backroad Bounty 00:00 Violetta 12:00 Guy’s Big Bite Takeaway 07:36 Steve Irwin’s Wildlife Warriors 22:15 Backroad Bounty 00:45 The Hive 00:00 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills 12:25 Unique Sweets 20:05 Get Your Act Together 08:00 Steve Irwin’s Wildlife Warriors 22:40 Backroad Bounty 00:50 Art Attack 00:30 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills 12:50 Unique Sweets 21:15 Remember Me 08:25 Tanked 23:05 Street Outlaws 01:15 Art Attack 00:55 Extreme Close-Up 13:15 Chopped SA 22:20 Mr Selfridge 09:15 Tanked 23:55 American Muscle 01:40 Jungle Junction 01:25 THS 14:05 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 23:15 Coronation Street 10:10 Tanked 01:50 Jungle Junction 02:20 E! News 14:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 23:40 Coronation Street 11:05 Tanked 02:05 Jungle Junction 03:15 Kourtney And Khloe Take The 14:55 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 12:00 Secret Life Of Pets 02:15 Jungle Junction Hamptons 15:20 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 12:30 Secret Life Of Pets 02:30 Violetta 04:10 E!ES 15:45 Chopped 12:55 Jurassica 03:10 The Hive 05:05 E!ES 16:35 Barefoot Contessa 13:50 Leopard Fight Club 03:20 Art Attack 06:00 Kourtney And Kim Take Miami 17:00 Siba’s Table 14:45 Man, Cheetah, Wild 00:40 How It’s Made 03:45 Art Attack 06:55 Kourtney And Kim Take Miami 17:25 Guy’s Big Bite 00:00 Alaska Wing Men 15:40 Secret Creatures Of Jao 01:05 How It’s Made 04:10 Jungle Junction 07:50 Style Star 17:50 Guy’s Big Bite 01:00 Inside Combat Rescue 16:10 Secret Creatures Of Jao 01:30 How The Universe Works 04:25 Jungle Junction 08:20 E! News 18:15 Guy’s Big Bite 02:00 World’s Toughest Fixes 16:35 Queens Of The Savannah 02:20 Through The Wormhole With 04:35 Jungle Junction 09:15 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills 18:40 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 03:00 Rebuilding Titanic 17:30 The Lion Queen Morgan Freeman 04:45 Jungle Junction 09:45 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills Basics 04:00 Armageddon Outfitters 18:25 Africa’s Outsiders 03:10 How Do They Do It? 05:00 Art Attack 10:15 E!ES 19:05 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 05:00 Brilliant Beasts 19:20 Leopard Fight Club 03:35 How Do They Do It? 05:25 Art Attack 11:10 E!ES Basics 06:00 Wild Russia 20:15 Man, Cheetah, Wild 04:00 Food Factory 05:50 Mouk 12:05 E! News 19:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 07:00 Breakout 21:10 Monster Hammerhead 04:24 Food Factory 06:00 Kim Possible 13:05 Giuliana & Bill 19:55 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 08:00 Alaska Wing Men 22:05 Alaskan Bush People 04:48 How Do They Do It? 06:25 Girl Meets World 14:05 Christina Milian Turned Up 20:20 Chopped 09:00 Inside Combat Rescue 23:00 Ivory Wars 05:12 How Do They Do It? 06:50 Binny And The Ghost 15:00 Fashion Bloggers 21:10 Siba’s Table 10:00 World’s Toughest Fixes 23:55 Jurassica 05:36 Joe Rogan Questions 07:15 H2O: Just Add Water 15:30 Fashion Bloggers 21:35 Siba’s Table: Fast Feasts 11:00 Science of Stupid Everything 07:40 Jessie 16:00 House Of DVF 22:00 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 11:30 Science of Stupid 06:24 Bang Goes The Theory 08:05 Liv And Maddie 17:00 House Of DVF Basics 12:00 Mad Scientists 06:48 How Tech Works 08:30 Binny And The Ghost 18:00 E! News 22:25 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 12:30 Mad Scientists 07:12 Food Factory 08:55 Hank Zipzer 19:00 Ryan Seacrest With The Basics 13:00 Big, Bigger, Biggest 07:36 How Do They Do It? 09:20 Dog With A Blog Kardashians: An E!... 22:50 Fast Food Gone Global 14:00 Doomsday Preppers 08:00 How Do They Do It? 09:45 Good Luck Charlie 20:00 Kourtney And Khloe Take The 23:40 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 15:00 Apocalypse World War I 08:25 How Do They Do It? 10:10 Gravity Falls Hamptons 16:00 Expedition Wild 00:00 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 08:50 How Do They Do It? 10:35 Cars Toons 21:00 Christina Milian Turned Up 17:00 Beyond Magic with DMC 00:45 Come Dine With Me: South 09:15 How Do They Do It? 10:40 Monsters Inc. 22:00 E! News 18:00 Car SOS Africa 09:40 How Do They Do It? 12:15 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 23:00 The Soup 19:00 Apocalypse World War I 01:35 Masterchef: The Professionals 10:05 How Do They Do It? Witch 23:30 THS 00:40 Ade In Britain 20:00 Expedition Wild 02:30 Bargain Hunt 10:30 How It’s Made 12:40 Gravity Falls 01:30 Paul O’Grady: For The Love Of 21:00 Beyond Magic with DMC 03:10 Come Dine With Me 10:55 How It’s Made 13:05 Binny And The Ghost Dogs 22:00 Car SOS 03:35 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 11:20 How It’s Made 13:30 Dog With A Blog 02:00 The Chase: Celebrity Specials 23:00 Science of Stupid 04:20 The Hairy Bikers USA 11:45 How It’s Made 13:55 Dog With A Blog 02:55 Emmerdale 23:30 Science of Stupid 04:45 Come Dine With Me: South 12:10 How It’s Made 14:20 H2O: Just Add Water Africa 03:20 Emmerdale 12:35 How It’s Made 14:55 Hank Zipzer 03:55 Emmerdale 05:40 Bargain Hunt 13:00 Food Factory 15:20 Binny And The Ghost 06:20 Masterchef: The Professionals 04:20 Emmerdale 13:25 Food Factory 15:45 Jessie 00:05 Chopped 07:15 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 04:45 Emmerdale 13:50 Food Factory 16:10 Austin & Ally 00:55 Grill It! With Bobby Flay 08:00 Masterchef: The Professionals 05:00 Coronation Street 14:15 Food Factory 16:35 Girl Meets World 01:20 Amazing Wedding Cakes 08:55 Masterchef: The Professionals 05:25 Coronation Street 14:40 Food Factory 17:00 Liv And Maddie 02:10 BBQ Crawl 00:30 The Daily Show With Jon 09:50 Masterchef: The Professionals 05:50 Coronation Street 15:05 Food Factory 17:25 Dog With A Blog 02:35 BBQ Crawl Stewart 10:40 Masterchef: The Professionals 06:15 Coronation Street 15:30 Invent It Rich 17:50 Hank Zipzer 03:00 Pizza Cuz 01:00 The Nightly Show With Larry 11:05 Masterchef: The Professionals 06:40 Coronation Street 16:20 Man vs The Universe 18:15 Jessie 03:25 Pizza Cuz Wilmore 12:00 Come Dine With Me 07:05 Paul O’Grady: For The Love Of 17:10 Alien Mysteries 18:40 Dog With A Blog 03:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 01:30 Young & Hungry 12:25 Come Dine With Me Dogs 18:00 Close Encounters 19:05 Dog With A Blog 04:15 Chopped 02:00 Young & Hungry 12:50 Come Dine With Me 07:30 Paul O’Grady: For The Love Of 18:25 Close Encounters 19:30 Austin & Ally 05:05 Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity 02:30 Jonah From Tonga 13:10 Come Dine With Me Dogs 18:50 Alien Encounters 19:55 Dog With A Blog Coo 03:00 Hot In Cleveland 13:35 Come Dine With Me 08:00 Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night 19:40 How The Universe Works 20:20 I Didn’t Do It 05:50 Siba’s Table 03:30 Baby Daddy 14:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Takeaway 20:30 Invent It Rich 20:45 H2O: Just Add Water 06:10 Sweet Genius 09:10 Get Your Act Together 04:00 Community Edition 04:30 The Tonight Show Starring 14:45 Extreme Makeover: Home Jimmy Fallon Edition 05:30 My Name Is Earl 15:30 Nigellissima 06:00 Til Death 15:55 Bargain Hunt 06:30 Dads 16:40 Bargain Hunt 07:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers 17:25 Bargain Hunt 08:00 Community 18:10 Come Dine With Me: South 08:30 My Name Is Earl Africa 09:00 Hot In Cleveland 19:00 Extreme Makeover: Home 09:30 Black-Ish Edition 10:00 Parks And Recreation 19:45 Extreme Makeover: Home 10:30 Dads Edition 11:00 The Tonight Show Starring 20:30 The Hairy Bikers: Mums Know Jimmy Fallon Best 12:00 Til Death 21:20 Masterchef: The Professionals 12:30 Community 22:15 Masterchef: The Professionals 13:00 My Name Is Earl 23:10 Masterchef: The Professionals 13:30 Dads 14:00 Baby Daddy 14:30 Black-Ish 15:00 Parks And Recreation 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 16:00 The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore 16:30 Til Death 17:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers 00:20 Fast N’ Loud 18:00 Enlisted 01:10 Overhaulin’ 18:30 Baby Daddy 02:00 Overhaulin’ 19:00 2 Broke Girls 02:50 Philly Throttle 19:30 Cougar Town 03:40 Auction Hunters: Pawn Shop 20:00 The Tonight Show Starring Edition Jimmy Fallon 04:05 The Liquidator 21:00 The Daily Show Global Edition 04:30 Backroad Bounty 21:30 The Nightly Show Global 05:00 How It’s Made Edition 05:30 How It’s Made 22:00 Saturday Night Live 06:00 Chaos Caught On Camera 23:00 Jonah From Tonga 06:25 Chaos Caught On Camera 06:50 What Happened Next? 07:15 What Happened Next? 07:40 You Have Been Warned 08:30 The Island With Bear Grylls 09:20 Tethered 01:00 Once Upon A Time 10:10 Survive That! 02:00 Survivor: Worlds Apart 11:00 Street Outlaws Man Of Steel ON OSN MOVIES ACTION HD 03:00 Hemlock Grove TECHNOLOGY SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Test-tube chicken is next on menu

TEL AVIV/FRANKFURT: Two years after scientists whole piece of chicken, starting from a single cell. duce 96 percent less greenhouse gas, consume 82 to cooked up the first test tube beef hamburger, Animal rights group People for the Ethical 96 percent less water and virtually eliminate land researchers in Israel are working on an even trickier Treatment of Animals offered a $1 million prize to the requirements needed to raise livestock. recipe: the world’s first lab-grown chicken. first lab able to use chicken cells to create commercial- “In the not so distant future we will look back at Professor Amit Gefen, a bioengineer at Tel Aviv ly viable test tube meat, but the 2014 deadline passed how we used to raise cows and chickens and put so University, has begun a year-long feasibility study into without anyone laying claim. much effort into getting a small piece of meat,” manufacturing chicken in a lab, funded by a non-profit Gefen, an expert in tissue engineering, said the Friedman said. Some big name investors are entering group called the Modern Agriculture Foundation plan is to culture chicken cells and let them divide and the field. Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang and Asia’s which hopes “cultured meat” will one day replace the multiply. In previous research he used growth factors wealthiest man Li Ka-shing have invested in Hampton raising of animals for slaughter. extracted from tumours to stimulate cells, but this is Creek, which is creating plant-based substitutes for The foundation’s co-founder Shir Friedman hopes not appropriate for food. eggs. Microsoft’s Bill Gates and Twitter founders Evan to have produced “a recipe for how to culture chicken Williams and Biz Stone have backed a company called cells” by the end of the year. BIG NAMES Beyond Meat. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel has The researchers say their task is more difficult than Demand for meat is expected to double between backed Modern Meadow, which creates food from tis- producing the first lab-grown hamburger, a $300,000 2000 and 2050, when the earth’s population is set to sue engineering. beef patty cooked up at Maastricht University in the surpass 9 billion, and proponents of growing meat in Growing chicken in a lab would be a big step. It Netherlands after five years of research financed by the lab say it is the only way to meet such demand accounts for nearly a third of the world’s total meat, Google co-founder Sergey Brin. without destroying the environment. second behind pork, which it is expected to overtake Rather than gathering small fibres of cow muscle According to a study by Oxford University and the sometime in the next decade, according to an OECD into one big chunk of meat, Gefen will try to make a University of Amsterdam, cultured meat would pro- report. — Reuters

S Korea develops smartphone app to curb student suicide

SEOUL: South Korea has developed smartphone apps to help bring down its high student suicide rate by warning parents when their children might be at risk, the education ministry said yesterday. The government-developed apps, which the ministry hopes to introduce immediately, are programmed to detect “sui- cide-related” words used by children on social networks or in messages or Internet searches on their phones. This would then trigger an alert which would be sent to the parents on their smartphones. Although their use is not manda- tory, the ministry hopes the apps will be installed by a large num- ber of parents as an extra precaution against school-related stress for children. “Student suicide has become a social problem requiring sys- tematic and comprehensive steps to prevent it,” the ministry said in a statement. South Korea’s suicide rate ranks among the high- est of the 34 member nations of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Student suicides are a particular problem, peaking every year around the time of the hyper-competitive national college entrance exam. Education ministry data shows that 878 students took their own lives between 2009 and 2014, including 118 last year. The most commonly cited cause in school-age suicides was problems at home, followed by depression, grades and career BEIJING: An e-commerce website with a vendor selling the “Apple Smart Watch Bluetooth Bracelet” starting from 288 concerns. Just over half of South Korean teenagers aged 14 to 19 yuan (US$45) is displayed on a computer screen in Beijing. A month before Apple Inc.’s smartwatch hits the market, confessed to having suicidal thoughts, according to a survey con- China’s thriving copycat manufacturers are selling lookalikes, some openly advertised as Apple copies. — AP ducted last year by the state-financed Korea Health Promotion Foundation. More than 40 percent of those respondents said school pres- Chinese makers roll out sure and future uncertainty concerned them the most. The sur- vey found South Korean teens often lack access to professional help or are reluctant to seek it out, with almost half turning to friends instead of teachers, counsellors or parents. Apple watch lookalikes

PRIVACY ISSUES? BEIJING: A month before Apple Inc.’s smartwatch hits the market, tures of popular foreign mobile phones or other products at a The education ministry said its apps would provide a way of China’s thriving copycat manufacturers are selling lookalikes, fraction of the price. monitoring those interactions with friends for any danger signs. some openly advertised as Apple copies. At least eight vendors on Taobao advertised watches as “The apps were only approved today at a meeting of related cabi- “Apple Smart Watch with Bluetooth Bracelet,” says one vendor “Apple Watch” or “Apple Watch lookalike.” Most said they were net members, but we hope their installation will spread quickly on Alibaba Group’s popular Taobao e-commerce website. Photos compatible with Apple’s iOS or Google Inc.’s rival Android operat- among schools, students and parents nationwide,” a ministry offi- on the vendor’s page appear to be the real Apple Watch. It says ing system. cial told AFP. Smartphone penetration in South Korea is one of features on the Chinese version include text messaging and a One vendor jokingly used Chinese slang for a vulgar rich per- the world’s highest with nearly 85 percent of households having music player. It starts at 288 yuan ($45), or one-eighth the $349 son, offering an “All-New Apple Tyrant Gold Mobile Phone- a device. Teachers gave a wary reception to the new initiative, price of the cheapest Apple Watch. Supporting Watch” for 288 yuan ($45). saying more effort should be focused on the causes of suicidal Alibaba, which listed on the New York Stock Exchange last Eight vendors failed to respond to questions from The tendencies among students, rather then detecting symptoms. year after a record initial public offering, has faced criticism in the Associated Press sent through their Taobao accounts. Asked “Instead of a stop-gap policy, we must work out a fundamen- past for hosting the sale of counterfeit goods. It says it has been whether it had taken action against any sellers, Alibaba said in a tal and eventual solution, because various factors lead to the sui- taking steps to reduce the problem. statement, “Alibaba Group is dedicated to the fight against coun- cide of students,” the conservative Korean Federation of The flood of “me too” smartwatches reflects China’s mix of terfeits. We work closely with our government partners, brands Teachers’ Associations said in a statement. skilled electronics manufacturers and a growing consumer mar- and industry associations to tackle this issue at its source. We also The more liberal Korean Teachers and Education Workers ket for bargain-price style. utilize technology like data mining and big data to scrub our plat- Union said the apps raised privacy issues and failed to address Most of the world’s personal computers and mobile phones forms of counterfeits.” systemic problems. are assembled in China. But this country’s own companies are In January, a Chinese government agency accused Alibaba of “Any direct monitoring of social networks and messaging only starting to develop design skills and the ability to create lax oversight and allowing vendors to sell counterfeit goods on services raises possible cause for concern,” the union said in a breakthrough products. That has led to the rise of an industry Taobao. The dispute was settled within a few days. The agency statement, adding that the high-stress exam system also needed known as “shanzhai,” or “mountain forts” - hundreds of small, said its report had no legal force and Alibaba promised to tighten reviewing. —AFP anonymous manufacturers that quickly copy the design or fea- its oversight of vendors. —AP TECHNOLOGY SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Microsoft’s digital assistant to head to Android, Apple devices

SEATTLE: Microsoft is working on an advanced version of its competitor to Apple’s Siri, using research from an artificial intelli- gence project called “Einstein.” Microsoft has been running its “personal assistant” Cortana on its Windows phones for a year, and will put the new version on the desktop with the arrival of Windows 10 this autumn. Later, Cortana will be available as a standalone app, usable on phones and tablets powered by Apple Inc’s iOS and Google Inc’s Android, people familiar with the project said. “This kind of technology, which can read and understand email, will play a central role in the next roll out of Cortana, which we are working on now for the fall time frame,” said Eric Horvitz, managing director of Microsoft Research and a part of the Einstein project, in an interview at the company’s Redmond, Washington, headquarters. The plan to put Cortana on machines running software from rivals such as Apple and Google, as well as the Einstein project, have not been reported. Cortana is the name of an artificial intelligence character in the video game series “Halo.” They represent a new front in CEO Satya Nadella’s battle to sell Microsoft software on any device or platform, rather than trying to force customers to use Windows. Success on rivals’ plat- forms could create new markets and greater relevance for the company best known for its decades-old operating system. The concept of ‘artificial intelligence’ is broad, and mobile phones and computers already show dexterity with spoken language and MOUNTAIN VIEW: In this June 5, 2014 file photo, a man walks past a Google sign at the company’s headquarters. The sifting through emails for data, for instance. Justice Department is at odds with Google and privacy groups over the government’s push to make it easier to locate Still, Microsoft believes its work on speech recognition, search and hack into computers in criminal investigations. — AP and machine learning will let it transform its digital assistant into the first intelligent ‘agent’ which anticipates users needs. By com- parison, Siri is advertised mostly as responding to requests. Google’s mobile app, which doesn’t have a name like Siri or US seeks new rule Cortana, already offers some limited predictive information ‘cards’ based on what it thinks the user wants to know. Microsoft has tried to create digital assistants before, without success. Microsoft Bob, released in 1995, was supposed to make on computer access using a computer easy, but ended up being the butt of jokes. The Office Assistant nicknamed ‘Clippy’ suffered a similar fate a few years later. “We’re defining the competitive landscape... of who WASHINGTON: The Justice Department is at odds with Google ed?” asked Alan Butler, senior counsel at the Electronic Privacy can provide the most supportive services that make life easier, and privacy groups over the government’s push to make it easier Information Center. Among the critics is Google, which says the keep track of things, that complement human memory in a way to locate and hack into computers in criminal investigations, a proposal “raises a number of monumental and highly complex that helps us get things done,” said Horvitz. simmering conflict with constitutional and policy implications. constitutional, legal and geopolitical concerns that should be left Outside his door stands “The Assistant”, a monitor showing a Federal prosecutors say better tools are needed to track down for Congress to decide.” Privacy groups are also concerned that woman’s face that can converse with visitors, has access to computer users who hide their locations while committing crimes the proposal would lead to more frequent use by the FBI of sur- Horvitz’s calendar and can book meetings. on the Internet. But civil libertarians fear that the proposal, now veillance technology that can be installed remotely on a comput- On his desktop, Horvitz runs ‘Lifebrowser’, a program that under consideration by a federal advisory committee, would er to help pinpoint its location. Such tactics caught public atten- stores everything from appointments to photos and uses grant the government expansive new powers to reach into com- tion last year when FBI Director James Comey acknowledged that machine learning to identify the important moments. A keyword puters across the country. in 2007 an agent posing as an Associated Press reporter had sent search for his university professor instantly brings up photos and The proposal would change existing rules of criminal proce- to a bomb-threat suspect a link to an article that, once opened, video from the last time they met. dure that, with limited exceptions, permit judges to approve war- revealed to investigators the computer’s location and Internet Cortana could tell a mobile phone user when to leave for the rants for property searches only in the districts where they serve. address. airport, days after it read an email and realized the user was The government says those rules are outdated in an era when “To the extent that the government has been prevented from planning a flight. It would automatically check flight status, child pornographers, drug traffickers and others can mask their doing lots of these kinds of searches because they didn’t neces- determine where the phone is located using GPS, and checking whereabouts on computer networks that offer anonymity. That sarily have a judge to go to, this rule change raises the risk that traffic conditions. —Reuters technology can impede or thwart efforts to pinpoint a suspect’s the government will start using these dubious techniques with geographic location. more frequency,” said Nathan Freed Wessler, an ACLU lawyer spe- The Justice Department wants the rules changed so that cializing in privacy and technology. China join forces to invest judges in a district where “activities related to a crime” have The Justice Department says such concerns are unfounded. It in Internet-connected cars occurred could approve warrants to search computers, even says the proposal simply makes sure that investigators have a those outside their districts. The government says that flexibility judge to go to for a warrant in cases where they can’t find a com- BEIJING: Chinese auto maker SAIC Motor Corp Ltd said on is needed for cases in which the government can’t figure out the puter, and that the proposal would not provide the government Thursday it would join forces with e-commerce giant location of a computer and needs a warrant to access it remotely, with new technological authorities that it doesn’t already have. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd to invest 1 billion yuan ($160 and for investigations involving botnets - networks of computers It’s hard to quantify the scope of the problem. Justice million) in a fund to develop Internet-connected cars. infected with a virus that spill across judicial districts. Department lawyers acknowledge that in past cases they have The pair will establish a joint venture and aim to launch There are 94 federal judicial districts in the country - at least successfully argued for search warrants that extend outside a their first car in 2016, SAIC said in a statement. The 50-50 one in every state, and as many as four in some. “There is a sub- judge’s district. JV will be opened to other investors in future, according to stantial public interest in catching and prosecuting criminals who But in one case from 2013, a magistrate judge in Texas reject- a spokeswoman for the automaker. SAIC shares rose 9.8 use anonymizing technologies, but locating them can be impossi- ed a request to search a computer that the government said was percent to a more than two-month high on news of the ble for law enforcement absent the ability to conduct a remote being used to commit bank fraud but whose location was partnership, before shedding some of the gains to close search of the criminal’s computer,” Justice Department lawyers unknown. Prosecutors sought authority to install software on the up 4.8 percent. wrote in one memo. The advisory committee considering the rule machine that would have extracted records and location informa- Chinese internet companies and auto makers have change is meeting this month. tion. The judge, Stephen Smith, said he lacked the authority to been quick to team up to start developing partly self-dri- The proposal has generated fierce pushback from privacy approve the search for a computer “whose location could be any- ving and Internet-connected cars, following a path already organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which where on the planet” but said “there may well be a good reason trodden by U.S. tech giants Google Inc and Apple Inc. say the rule change could violate a constitutional requirement to update the territorial limits of that rule in light of advancing Internet giant Baidu Inc, which leads China’s search that search warrant applications be specific about the property to computer search technology.” market and competes with Alibaba in some areas, is devel- be searched. They also say the proposal is unclear about exactly The proposal is before a criminal procedure advisory com- oping cars that are shifting parts of driving towards what type of information could be accessed by the government, mittee of the Judicial Conference of the United States - a panel automation, working with companies like Germany’s BMW and fails to guarantee the privacy of non-suspects who might made up of judges and lawyers - that meets twice a year, includ- AG. In an emailed statement, Alibaba said its partnership have had access to the same computer as the target, or of inno- ing this month. If approved, it will then be forwarded to the with SAIC would include developing new technologies cent people who may themselves be victims of a botnet. Supreme Court and ultimately to Congress, which does not and services using cloud computing. —Reuters “What procedural protections are going to be in place when have to approve it but can block it. It would take effect in you do these types of searches? How are they going to be limit- December 2016. — AP

LOCAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 KUFPEC gets new exploration license in Pakistan

KUWAIT: Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company KSC (KUFPEC) announced yesterday that it signed an explo- ration license and petroleum concession agreement with Pakistan awarding KUFPEC exploration rights in the Paharpur Block. The deal was inked by KUFPEC’s CEO Sheikh Nawaf Saud Al-Nasser Al-Sabah and Pakistan’s Secretary for Petroleum and Natural Resources Arshad Mirza, KUFPEC told KUNA in a press statement yesterday. The signing ceremony was held in Islamabad in the pres- ence of Pakistan Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Also at the signing ceremony were Kuwait’s Ambassador to Pakistan Nawaf Abdulaziz Al-Enezi and KUFPEC Team Leader Nawaf Al-Salem. Commenting on the occasion, Sheikh Nawaf stated that KUFPEC is proud to expand its excellent relationship with Pakistan, noting that the company has invested more than one billion US dollars in Pakistan since 1987 in the framework of “our efforts to make Pakistan a core business center for KUFPEC”. The new Paharpur Block will be KUFPEC’s second operated asset in the country and its first in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he said. KUFPEC also operates the Jati Exploration Block in Sindh, where drilling activities are expected to commence shortly, he noted. KUFPEC currently has producing interests in Qadirpur, Zamzama, Kadanwari, Bhit, Badhra, Sukhpur and Zarghun Blocks, and is the third largest gas producer amongst foreign exploration and pro- duction companies operating in Pakistan, he added. The exploration and production companies of Pakistan, he con- tries worldwide with 63 oil and gas projects across Asia, Paharpur Block is located in DI Khan District and covers an area cluded. KUFPEC, a subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Africa, Australia, Europe and North America. It manages these of approximately 2,261 Square Km, he pointed out. Corporation, is an international oil company engaged in the assets through its Head Office in Kuwait and seven Country As the Operator, KUFPEC will partner with State Oil and exploration, development and production of crude oil and Offices in Pakistan, Australia, Norway, Indonesia, Egypt, Gas Company of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other national natural gas outside Kuwait. It is currently active in 15 coun- Tunisia and Canada. — KUNA Crime GCC tackles terrorism Report

Gulf preaches tolerance ‘Niqab women’ kidnap RIYADH: The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Council has stressed Council resolution 2107/2013, which decided unanimously to refer man, steal KD1200 its firm stance against terrorist threats to the region and the world. the file of prisoners and missing persons and the return of Kuwaiti The GCC member states are committed to countering “thoughts property to UN Assistance Mission to Iraq (UNAMI) to follow up this upon which terrorist groups are based and feed, which have noth- matter. They expressed hope the Iraqi government would continue KUWAIT: An Asian reported that three ‘women wearing Niqab’ ing to do with Islam,” a statement by the bloc’s Foreign Ministers efforts and cooperation with the State of Kuwait and the interna- kidnapped him and took his KD1200. He said the culprits threat- 134th session held in Riyadh said. “Tolerance and coexistence tional community in this regard. ened to hurt him if he inform the police. According to the man, among nations and peoples are bases for the GCC domestic and On Syria, the GCC expressed hope that efforts on all levels he responded to a woman calling him along with two other foreign policies,” the statement noted, calling for joining forces to would lead to a political settlement for the Syrian crisis and the for- ladies as he passed near a building in Khaitan. The women face extremism and terrorism “with resolute and firmness.” mation of a transitional government with executive powers in line pulled him into an apartment on the same building where they The GCC welcomed in that respect the UNSC resolution 2199 with Geneva I. Referring to Palestine, the statement stressed that allegedly took an envelope containing KD1200 belonging to the issued last February for drying up the financing of terrorism and comprehensive, just and everlasting peace would not be realized company he worked for and threatened to hurt him if he tightening control over under the control of terrorists’ areas. It also but through a full withdrawal of the Israelis from all the Arab terri- screams. A case has been filed and further investigations are still condemned the brutal acts committed by terrorist organizations, tories sized in 1067. The GCC expressed deep concern over the ris- in progress. including the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) against ing acts of violence and terrorism that threaten Libya’s security and innocent people, and emphasized that escalation of violence and stability. It renewed support to the elected parliament and legiti- terrorist attacks poses a threat to the regional and international mate government, as well as UN efforts to resume a national dia- Fire in Andalus security and stability. logue for all components of the Libyan people. — KUNA A fire recently broke out in an Andalus apartment. The Council strongly condemned the publication of any abusive Security sources said that firemen rushed to the cartoons against Prophet Mohammad as a flagrant expression of scene and controlled the fire. Two people were res- hatred and a form of racial discrimination. It also denounced the cued and were rushed to hospital for treatment. “false accusations” by the Swedish Foreign Minister against Saudi Kuwait ‘cheapest’ Arabia, considering this “an unacceptable interference in the Kingdom’s affairs that runs against international norms and con- Tragic incident ventions.” in living cost? An Asian truck driver was instantly killed in a tragic incident Meanwhile, the GCC stressed the importance of bilateral coop- along the Sixth Ring road when he was run over by a speeding eration with Tehran on principles of good neighborly, no interfer- KUWAIT: According to a report made by the Economist vehicle while he was fixing a flat tire, security sources said. The ence in internal affairs or use of power as well as respect to the sov- Indigence Unit (EIU), of the British The Economist 28-year-old GCC national driving the vehicle later turned himself ereignty of countries of the region. It also confirmed rejection of Magazine about the cost of living in 133 cities worldwide in. Iran’s occupation of the three UAE’s islands Abu Musa and Greater in 2015, Kuwait was ranked 111th. This means that Kuwait and Lesser Tunbs. On Yemen, the ministerial council stressed com- is amongst the world’s cheapest cities to live in. According mitment by the member states to the country’s security, stability to the report, Kuwait came 9th among the Arab cities and Asian robbed and legitimacy represented by President Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. It - 6th in the Gulf region. Notably, EIU report classifies cities An Asian reported that two unidentified people urged completion of the political process in the country in line with comparing individual prices of over 400 products and stopped him in Jleeb and threatened him with a knife the GC Initiative and the outcome of the National Dialogue. services such as food stuff, beverage, attire, household after which they took his wallet with KD90 and his ID in It also urged all the Yemeni powers to respond to Hadi’s call and products, personal hygiene products, rents, transport, it. In another development, a female citizen recently attend a proposed Riyadh conference on Yemen. It welcomed service bills and private tuition fees. The report also filed a case against someone she knew - accusing him Hadi’s move to Aden to assume his constitutional powers, which showed that Amman came first as the most expensive of luring her into accompanying him to a Fintas apart- confirmed legitimacy. Referring to Iraq, the statement underlined Arab city and 48th worldwide- (jumping 4 places) com- ment where he raped her (against he will). support to the country’s sovereignty, independence and territorial pared to last year and thus becoming one of the 50 most integrity, backing efforts by the international coalition to fight ter- expensive cities in the world. It was followed by Abu rorism there. Dhabi as 2nd in the Arab world and 77 worldwide; then Wife insulted, assaulted It also condemned the “extremist and terrorist” groups that Dubai (3rd in the Arab world and 83 worldwide), while A citizen living in Reqqa area recently filed a complaint against destroyed antiquities at the National Museum in Mosul as against Damascus, which was ranked 126 worldwide, came as the her husband, accusing him of insulting and assaulting her. The human civilization, urging decisive measures in that respect. The cheapest in the Arab world. — Al-Qabas woman provided a medical report with her injuries from Adan GCC Foreign Ministers reiterated support to the UN Security hospital. A case was filed.

LOCAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

KUWAIT: As part of its public awareness efforts, MoI in collaboration with the Ministry of Education recently organized a lecture on traffic rules at Al-Sedra kindergarten. The lecture was delivered by first Lit Sara Yousif at MOI’s security media department. MoE investigates school cooking-video 3 MoI employees dismissed, 3 MSAL jailed

KUWAIT: Responding to a social media video the food was cooked away from the class- 3 MSAL jailed employees to prison for forging work per- showing a number of laborers cooking food rooms and none of the cooked food was eat- In another development, Kuwait Criminal mits, said legal sources. The sources added near a toilet at a Mubarak Al-Kabeer high en by the students. Al-Athari totally rejected Court recently dismissed three Ministry of that the indicted MoI employees worked for school, MOE Undersecretary Dr Haitham Al- any cooking inside schools because of its dan- Interior (MoI) employees who had been the Criminal Evidence Department and that Athari has referred the whole school for inves- gers and stressed that only school canteens manipulating attendance and departure they had been forging attendance sheets tigation and asked for a full report about the provide the meals approved by Ministry of lists. and were involved in embezzling over incident. Speaking to reporters, he said that Education.— Al-Rai The court also sentenced three MSAL KD7000. —Agencies

CBK takes part in Economy & Job Opportunities exhibition

KUWAIT: Out of its keenness in taking part in various commu- nity and students activities, CBK recently took part in the Economy & Job Opportunity Makers exhibition organized by the students training office at the Administrative Sciences col- lege, Kuwait University. The exhibition was held under the auspices of Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Al-Humoud . It was attended by Information’s Assistant Undersecretary for Youth Development Abdul Rahman Al-Mutairi. Al-Mutairi visited CBK’s booth during the exhibition where he was received by CBK’s HR manager Mohammed Ameen and a number of CBK employees. Speaking on the occasion, the College Dean Dr Jassim Al-Mudhaf hailed the role played by CBK. VIVA Bahrain, Huawei ink MoU

BARCELONA: VIVA Bahrain, Bahrain’s most in enterprise LTE services, mobile device operators are focusing more and more on innovative operator and Huawei, a leading management solutions, enterprise connec- customer experience, while also being able global ICT solutions provider, have tivity solutions, and unified communication to give businesses new tools through announced plans to cooperate in further devices. which to strengthen their information developing VIVA’s offerings to enterprise Eng Ulaiyan Al Wetaid, CEO of VIVA analysis capabilities and enhance organiza- customers as well as the operator’s overall Bahrain, said: “Earlier this year, we were rec- tional collaboration. customer experience management sys- ognized by the Telecommunications This latest memorandum with help VIVA tems. A memorandum was signed between Regulatory Authority (TRA) in Bahrain as the Bahrain to leverage these opportunities the two companies at the Mobile World country’s widest 4G network coverage and and launch new services into the market- Congress recently held in Barcelona, Spain. ranked top on Quality of Service. The agree- place even better and faster way,” says The memorandum comes as VIVA con- ment with Huawei adds to our commit- Feng Nan, CEO of Huawei Bahrain. tinues to expand its mobile network cover- ment to continue investing in infrastructure Additionally, the memorandum will also age in Bahrain and advanced high-speed to meet our customers’ needs for cutting- see VIVA and Huawei cooperate in enhanc- LTE services for the public. The agreement edge services and the best customer expe- ing VIVA’s customer experience and cus- will see VIVA and Huawei leverage those rience. tomer care platforms. This will include investments to serve a growing base of Huawei’s expertise in this domain will reviewing service quality-management enterprise customers within diverse indus- enable us to provide our growing enter- metrics, planning for service-oriented oper- tries along with Small & Medium prise customers with even more innovative ation centers, proactive VIP care models, Enterprises (SMEs). In particular, VIVA will and reliable services and solutions”. “The and the management of tailored tariff plans be able to benefit from Huawei innovations ICT industry is innovating rapidly. Telecom and services.

SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Opposition rides a solid Suspect in deadly Mali Modi woos neighbors offering lead into Israeli election 8 nightclub attack killed 9 first benefit of India’s progress10

NAJAF: Iraqi mourners carry the coffin of a soldier who died fighting against Islamic State (IS) group jihadists in the country’swestern Anbar province, during his funeral in the holy city of Najaf yesterday. — AFP Iraqi forces pound besieged jihadists IS accepts Boko Haram pledge of allegiance

BAGHDAD: Iraqi forces yesterday battled jihadists making what 60-nation US-led coalition, Baghdad has rolled back some of Soleimani ‘cult’ looked increasingly like a last stand in Tikrit but the Islamic State the losses. It started with operations to secure the Shiite holy Adnani lashed out at Iran, which he accused of building its group responded by vowing to expand its “caliphate”. cities of Karbala and Najaf and bolster Baghdad’s defenses, own regional empire by meddling in Iraqi affairs and other Thousands of fighters surrounded a few hundred holdout IS then worked its way north, retaking Diyala province earlier regional conflicts. He called Qassem Soleimani, the com- militants, pounding their positions from the air but treading this year. Commanders see the recapture of overwhelmingly mander in charge of Tehran’s external operations, “the dirty carefully to avoid the thousands of bombs littering the city cen- Sunni Arab Tikrit as a stepping stone for the reconquest of Safavid (a term IS uses in a derogatory way to designate tre. Two days after units spearheading Baghdad’s biggest anti-IS second city Mosul further north, which once had a population Iranians) leader of the battle.” operation yet pushed deep into Tikrit, a police colonel claimed of two million. The once invisible Soleimani, who has been in charge of around 50 percent of the city was now back in government IS has countered every military loss lately by ramping up covert operations for Iran for years, has been ubiquitous on hands. its propaganda war with ever more shocking acts, such as Iraq’s frontlines and his myth is growing among Shiite fight- “We are surrounding the gunmen in the city centre. We’re getting a child to execute a prisoner on camera or destroying ers. He appeared in a rare phone video released on Thursday, advancing slowly due to the great number of IEDs (improvised heritage sites. On Thursday, the group released a recording giving life advice in Arabic, apparently to the sons of a promi- explosive devices),” he said on condition of anonymity. “We presented as a speech by spokesman Abu Mohammed Al- nent Iraqi militia leader. The footage was interpreted by crit- estimate there are 10,000 IEDs in the city,” he said. Massively Adnani which marks the acceptance of a pledge of allegiance ics on social media as further evidence Soleimani was behav- outnumbered, the jihadists’ defense consists of a network of by Nigeria’s jihadist group Boko Haram. “We announce to you ing like an all-powerful proconsul. booby traps, roadside bombs and snipers through which sui- the good news of the expansion of the caliphate to West Pictures of a birthday cake to his effigy were circulating cide attackers occasionally ram car bombs into enemy targets. Africa,” he said. among his supporters on social media, as well as a music “Six soldiers were killed and 11 wounded in a suicide car bomb Expansion is a pillar of IS doctrine and the group has video produced by the Iran-backed Harakat Al-Nujaba Iraqi this morning in Al-Dyum neighborhood” in western Tikrit, the recently declared new “provinces” in the Middle East and militia. The clip features Iraqi Shiite fighters training under colonel said. An army major confirmed the death toll. Tikrit was North Africa, albeit sometimes in places where it has a limited Soleimani’s reassuring gaze and singing his praise. Soleimani the hometown of dictator Saddam Hussein, remnants of whose footprint. Adnani shrugged off recent losses in Iraq and Syria, has been seen with Iraq’s top commanders since the start of Baath party collaborated with the jihadists when they took over vowing to enter Rome, blow up the White House, Big Ben and the Tikrit operation and is thought to be playing a key coordi- almost a third of the country last June. the Eiffel Tower. Some analysts have argued that months of nating role. “That Soleimani has become acceptable can only battlefield setbacks and air strikes were taking a toll on the be explained by the collapse of the Iraqi army last summer,” IS welcomes Boko Haram jihadist group and that some of its latest moves concealed said Kirk Sowell, the publisher of the Inside Iraqi Politics With crucial military backing from neighboring Iran and a growing desperation. newsletter.— AFP INTERNATIONAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

Iran’s supreme leader warns against ‘deceitful’ West

TEHRAN: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki of political ethics and the collapse of the ers involved in the talks-Britain, China, France, Khamenei on Thursday warned against told reporters. American system from within,” ISNA news Germany and Russia. “deceitful” world powers and branded a letter The White House has reacted angrily to the agency reported. After years of stop-start The letter allows Iran to cast doubt on the from Republican lawmakers as a sign of letter signed by 47 Republican senators insist- negotiations, global powers have been hold- credibility of the West, German Foreign America’s internal collapse just days before ing that any deal reached by the administra- ing months of intense closed-door talks with Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier agreed at a new nuclear talks. tion of President Barack Obama could be Iran since Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Washington think-tank, adding “this is not a Khamenei’s broadside came as US modified by Congress. came to office in August 2013. trifle.” “The negotiations are difficult enough, Secretary of State John Kerry left Washington Kerry said that was “flat wrong” before he An interim accord struck in November so we didn’t actually need further irritations,” on a trip which will see him once again huddle left, heading first to Egypt and then to 2013 has caused the Islamic Republic to freeze Steinmeier said Thursday. with his Iranian counterpart in Switzerland Lausanne where he will meet from Sunday much of its nuclear enrichment programme, Zarif is also due to meet with European aiming to seal a deal to curtail Tehran’s with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad in return for a slight easing of international negotiators in Brussels on Monday, and is nuclear program. With the nuclear negotia- Javad Zarif. Khamenei however warned Iran’s sanctions which have damaged the country’s expected to then return to Lausanne for fur- tions between Iran and world powers in the highest clerical body that the letter was a sign economy. ther meetings with Kerry. so-called P5+1 group now seen to be in the “the other party is deceitful and stabs in the Psaki refused to predict whether a deal critical endgame, political tensions are soaring back.” Iranian officials “know what they are No further irritations could be reached on this Kerry trip, and in the US among Republicans opposed to a doing and they also know how to act in case As a March 31 deadline for a political recalled that the US secretary of state is due to rapprochement with America’s old foe. of an agreement so that Americans cannot framework looms, Kerry and other US admin- return to Washington for meetings on March “I think we’re all aware that the next cou- break it later”, said Khamenei, who will have istration officials denounced the Republicans’ 23 and 24. The Persian New Year, Nowruz, is ple of weeks are going to be important. the final say on any deal. Khamenei also said letter as undermining America’s credibility not also due to be celebrated in Iran around the They’re vital. We’re at the crunch time here,” the missive indicated “the extreme decadence just with Iran, but with the other global pow- same time. —AFP Yemen Shiite militia holds drill near Saudi border

DUBAI: The Shiite Huthi militia that has seized power in Yemen’s capital held military exercises near the border of Sunni heavy- weight Saudi Arabia, their spokesman said yesterday. Mohammed Abdulsalam also launched a verbal salvo against Riyadh, accusing it of interference. “Thousands of soldiers belonging to army units based in northern Yemen participated Thursday afternoon in these manoeuvres, the first of this magni- tude,” Abdulsalam told AFP in a telephone interview from Baghdad, which he is visiting. AFP could not independently verify the size of the exercises. Yemen is strategically located next to oil-rich Saudi Arabia and on a key shipping route from the Suez Canal to the Gulf. Abdulsalam said heavy weapons including tanks and artillery, captured by the Huthis as they spread their control across parts of Yemen, were used in the manoeuvres that took place in Kitaf, a town in the Huthis’ northern stronghold of Saada province. The drill aims to enhance capacity and to “raise readiness” of the militia forces to prepare them to face “any incidents that might develop,” he said, accusing Saudi Arabia of providing “Al- Qaeda and jihadists with money, arms and logistical support.” Yemen is home to Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) which, along with local Sunni tribes, has battled Huthi attempts to expand further south. ASDOD: A supporter poses for a picture with Israeli Labor Party leader and co-leader of the Zionist Union list for the “These manoeuvres are a message of peace for all except upcoming general election, Isaac Herzog (R) during his campaign visit to southern coastal Israeli city of Ashdod, yester- those threatening Yemenis by supporting takfiri (Sunni radical) day ahead of the upcoming general election on March 17. — AFP elements,” he said. Yemen’s mostly Sunni Gulf neighbours, led by Saudi Arabia, are deeply suspicious of the Huthis, fearing they will take Yemen into the orbit of Shiite Iran. Opposition rides a solid The six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states accused the Huthis of a coup when the militia dissolved the government and parliament on February 6. —AFP lead into Israeli election

Netanyahu calls on his supporters to turn out to vote

JERUSALEM: Israel’s centre-left opposition is poised for an clout, should sign up with the Zionist Union, while 16 percent upset victory in national elections next week, with the last said it should support the coalition from the outside. opinion polls before the March 17 vote giving it a solid lead With the Joint Arab List expected to win 13 to 15 seats, it over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s party. has become an important player in the election - it could end Polls in two of Israel’s leading newspapers predicted the up being the third largest group in parliament, giving a pow- Zionist Union would secure 25 or 26 seats in the 120-seat erful voice to Israel’s 20 percent Arab minority. Knesset, against 21 or 22 for Likud. All polls in the past three If the Zionist Union, jointly led by Labour party leader Isaac days have given the same margin of victory. Herzog and former justice minister Tzipi Livni, wins, it is No party has ever won an outright majority in Israel’s 67- expected to link up with the far-left Meretz party (5 or 6 seats) year history, making coalition-building critical to the forma- and the centrist, secular Yesh Atid (13 seats). tion of a government. With the Arab list on side too, it would need the support of Because there are more parties on the right and far-right of just one more party with around 5 or 6 seats to cross the the political spectrum, Netanyahu was expected to be able to threshold of 61 and form a coalition. cobble together a coalition more easily than the centre-left, That said, while the arithmetic is possible, it is still challeng- SANAA: Yemenis take part in a demonstration outside the even if he narrowly loses the vote. ing. Israel’s coalition-building is a messy and convoluted game house of Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh (portrait), the son of But there was positive news for the Zionist Union on that that can spring surprises at the last minute. Yemen’s former president Ali Abdullah Saleh who stepped score too, with a poll of Israeli-Arabs showing the overwhelm- When he called this election in December, Netanyahu down in early 2012, calling for presidential elections and ing majority would favour their united Arab party joining a looked to be in a commanding position and set for a fourth demanding the son of the ex-strongman to run as a candi- centre-left coalition government. term. But the past three months have exposed vulnerabili- date, yesterday in Sanaa. The poster reads in Arabic: “We The survey showed 71 percent thought the Joint Arab List, ties in his armour after nine years in power spread over are all with you under your command, my nation”. — AFP which groups four Arab parties and enhances their electoral three terms. —Reuters INTERNATIONAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Japan, France sign joint military research pact

TOKYO: France and Japan agreed Friday to help bring stability to Ukraine, and to seek begun forging closer ties with Britain and The ministers also agreed to cooperate in work together on researching military political solutions to crisis-hit Syria and Iraq. Australia, holding 2+2s with both countries the global fight against terrorism, a subject equipment, as Tokyo looks to broaden its The two sides signed a pact over the as he looks to increase his country’s diplo- that has renewed significance for the two defence ties and bolster its international transfer of defence equipment and technol- matic clout while also boosting its defence nations. Attacks by Islamist gunmen on the profile. ogy, setting up a plan that will eventually capability. French magazine Charlie Hebdo and other In the latest in a spate of so-called “2+2” lead to Japan and France jointly developing “This will set the framework for our col- facilities in January shocked the world. meetings, involving defence and foreign military kit. laboration on a number of prospects in the Japan, meanwhile, was left reeling by the ministers, the fellow G7 members signalled a The agreement is the latest effort under fields of space, helicopters, drones and so beheadings of a respected journalist and a closer working relationship. hawkish Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to on,” Fabius told AFP in an interview held self-styled contractor by self-proclaimed In a joint statement, French Foreign strengthen Japan’s military ties with friendly ahead of the two-plus-two talks. Islamic State extremists. Minister Laurent Fabius, Defence Minister nations, as he looks to offset the growing Japan and France are eyeing joint Japan and France will cooperate over Jean-Yves Le Drian, Japanese Defence might of China. research on technologies related to sonar, fighting terrorism “because unfortunately Minister Gen Nakatani and Foreign Minister As well as a long-standing relationship unmanned submersible vessels, robot and the two countries have recently been affect- Fumio Kishida pledged to fight terrorism, to with the United States, Tokyo has recently cyber-defence, Japanese media said. ed,” Fabius sai. — AFP

Suspect in deadly Mali nightclub attack killed

BAMAKO: Malian special forces killed a suspect yesterday in last week’s deadly jihadist attack on a nightclub in the capital, officials said, dramatically igniting an investigation which had so far shown little progress. Bamako has been on high alert since a heavily armed gunman burst into La Terrasse, a popular venue among expatriates, today and killed five people, including a French national, a Belgian and three locals. “During an operation launched yesterday, one of the per- petrators of the terrorist crime last Saturday was killed. He did not want to surrender,” a senior special forces com- mander told AFP. “We located the individual in a popular district of Bamako. He is from the north. He had shaved his head,” said another special forces source who told AFP he had taken part in the operation. He added that the suspect appeared to be a member of one of the region’s light-skinned minority groups, which includes the Tuareg and Arab populations. “He is one of Saturday’s attackers. He was the one who launched a grenade from his motorbike into the street out- side the La Terrasse restaurant-bar,” he said. Around a dozen people were arrested, security sources said, while three special forces personnel were slightly wounded. The operation marked a dramatic twist almost a week after the attack, in which eight people-two of them Swiss nationals-were wounded.

Russian-Malian suspect KARLSRUHE: Picture taken on September 24, 2003 in Karlsruhe, southern Germany, shows Muslim teacher Fereshta Sources have spoken of a number of leads, including Ludin and lawyers of the German Constitutional Court after a verdict was spoken on wearing a headscarf in class. clues on the getaway vehicle and its driver, but investiga- Germany’s top court said yesterday that Muslim teachers can wear the Islamic headscarf in class as long as it doesn’t dis- tors had made no announcements of substantial progress in rupt school activities, in a ruling likely to revive emotional debate. — AFP the hunt for the killers before yesterday’s operation. The streets around the building where the raid took place were blocked off to traffic and police surrounded the German high court overturns neighbourhood. Officers found an identity card on the dead suspect pur- porting to belong to a man in his early 20s born in the vil- headscarf ban for teachers lage of Moudakane, near Gao, northern Mali’s largest city, sources told AFP. Anti-Islam protesters PEGIDA may seize on ruling Al-Murabitoun, a jihadist group run by leading Algerian militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar, has claimed responsibility for BERLIN: Muslim women teachers can of disruption in schools”. ing it undermined the principle of politi- the nightclub assault. wear headscarves as long as it does not “This is a good day for religious free- cal and religious “neutrality” in schools The group said it had struck partly to avenge Ahmed el cause disruption in school, Germany’s dom,” said Volker Beck, a lawmaker from and public services. Tilemsi, one of its commanders killed by the French army in top court said in a ruling that overturns the opposition Greens. “We fear this ruling could lead to dis- Mali in December. an earlier ban and may fuel debate He argued that headgear worn by ruption in certain schools if, for example, But it added that the attack was mainly a response to about what some nationalist groups see devout Muslim, Jewish and Christian non-Muslim parents do not agree with recent cartoons of the Muslim prophet Mohammed (PBUH), as creeping “Islamisation”. women and men was less of a threat to their children being taught by teachers “whom the miscreant West insulted and mocked.” The Constitutional Court struck down German society than “opponents of in headscarves,” said Josef Kraus, presi- The group was referring to images published by Paris its own 2003 ban on headscarves for diversity” such as the right-wing dent of the teachers’ body. satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which saw 12 people teachers, which had led some German Alternative for Germany (AfD), neo-Nazis Berlin daily TAZ warned that the anti- killed at its offices by two Islamist brothers, part of three states to forbid Muslim headscarves in and extremist Muslim Salafists. Islam protest group PEGIDA, which days of jihadist attacks in Paris that left 17 people dead schools while permitting the use of Christine Lueders, head of the federal began last year with marches in Dresden overall. Christian symbols such as crucifixes and anti-discrimination agency, hailed the and soon spawned imitation rallies Counter-terrorism teams from Paris and Belgium have nuns’ habits. ruling for “reinforcing religious freedom across Germany and beyond, would been involved in the investigation, backed by police from The court in Karlsruhe, ruling on a in Germany”. With education adminis- seize on the ruling to argue that Europe MINUSMA, the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali. case brought by a Muslim woman tered by Germany’s 16 states, she called is being taken over by Islam. The focus has been on a dozen terrorist groups and indi- blocked from a teaching job because of on local authorities to review the rele- “PEGIDA will celebrate,” said TAZ on viduals, according to sources close to the case, including a her headscarf, said religious symbols vant rules. its front-page, beneath a photo of Russian and Malian dual national who has not been located, could only be banned when they posed But the German Teachers’ Assocation coloured headscarves in a shop-window and the alleged driver, whom sources say is disabled.—AFP “not just an abstract but a concrete risk (DL) called the ruling “problematic”, say- in Berlin.—Reuters INTERNATIONAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Philippines police finds fault in bungled mission

MANILA: Philippine President Benigno linked bomb-maker with a $5 million US statements from about 300 witnesses, police in the case. Senator Sergio Osmena III, Aquino approved a bungled secret mission bounty on his head. The commandos were and military officials. Aquino, Purisima and Aquino’s campaign manager for the 2010 against Islamist rebels that led to the deaths ambushed by rebels and 44 were killed. the armed forces chief of staff were not inter- election and now an independent legislator, of 44 police commandos, an official report The results of the police inquiry came out viewed for the report. said the three men cited in the report had released yesterday said, piling more pressure days after Aquino said he was given wrong Earlier this week Aquino said Napenas kept Roxas and acting national police chief on the beleaguered leader. information about the secret mission, blam- deviated from a plan presented to him two Leonardo Espina “in the dark ... and that’s not The Philippine National Police Board of ing the head of the Special Action Force weeks before the operation. He said he was the way to do things”. Inquiry (BOI) report also found Aquino had (SAF) Getulio NapeÒas for the botched mis- “fooled” by the people who knew most what Prospero de Vera, professor of public authorised suspended police general Alan sion. was happening. administration at the University of the Purisima, a personal friend, to take part in The police report said Aquino, Purisima Purisma’s lawyer, Kristoffer James Philippines, said Aquino could face impeach- the mission even as he was being investigat- and Napenas had “kept the information to Purisima, said his client would respond to all ment charges and there would likely be ed for corruption. themselves and deliberately failed to inform” allegations “at the proper time and before more calls for his resignation. Some lawmak- In January, police commandos sneaked the chief of the Philippine National Police the proper forum”. ers, Catholic bishops, civil society groups and into a rebel area in the south to capture about the mission. Interior minister Manuel Roxas said police activists have already called on him to step Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, an al Qaeda- The police report was based on sworn were still considering what charges to press down. — Reuters

Pakistan court orders release of Mumbai attacks suspect

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistan court yesterday cancelled a deten- tion order against the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, a senior government lawyer told AFP, poten- tially paving the way for his release. It is the latest round in a tussle over Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, accused over the terror siege that left 166 dead, which has worsened already strained ties with India. Lakhvi was granted bail by an anti-terror court in December, infuriating New Delhi, but quickly slapped with a detention order under public order laws. The Islamabad High Court suspended that order, only for the Supreme Court to reinstate it in January. Yesterday the high court once again set aside the detention order, senior government lawyer Jehangir Jadoon told AFP, adding that a detailed judgment explaining the decision was expected later. Yesterday’s ruling means Lakhvi could be released, though the government can still appeal to the Supreme Court and for now he remains in jail. Throughout the three-month back and forth over Lakhvi’s detention, he has never been let out of Adiyala Prison in Rawalpindi. The original bail order in December prompted an angry response from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said it came as “a shock to all those who believe in humanity”. India on Friday reacted with displeasure to the Pakistani court’s decision. “Pakistani agencies must produce COLOMBO: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) looks on next to the Sri Lankan Speaker of Parliament Chamal incriminating evidence available in the Rajapaksa dng after addressing the Sri Lankan parliament in Colombo yesterday. — AFP court of law in Pakistan. And there should be no discrimi- nation in showing the character of terrorists. Terrorists cannot be bad or good terrorists,” Junior Home Minister Kiren Rijiju Modi woos neighbors offering told reporters. “They must ensure that Lakhvi doesn’t get out on bail and doesn’t get out of jail. If proper legal measures are taken then I am sure Lakhvi will not get out of jail.” first benefit of India’s progress

Double game? The Mumbai attacks were blamed on banned Pakistani mil- Future of any country is influenced by its neighbors itant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). India has long seethed at Pakistan’s failure either to hand over or prosecute those COLOMBO: Prime Minister Narendra Modi influence. minority, a sensitive issue in India-Sri accused of planning and organising the violence.—AFP said yesterday that India’s neighbors He avoided visiting the Maldives, which Lanka relations. “We have seen the rela- should be the first beneficiaries of the has a pro-China administration and where tionship between our countries weakened nation’s economic progress as he sought a pro-India opposition leader is being tried during the time of some regimes. As a to woo smaller Indian Ocean states away for terrorism. Modi became the first Indian result, it took 28 years for this visit of an from increasing Chinese influence. leader to visit Sri Lanka in 28 years, recip- Indian prime minister to Sri Lanka,” “The future of any country is influenced rocating the trip to India last month by Sri Sirisena said after the morning meeting by the state of its neighbors,” Modi said in Lanka’s new president. with Modi. He said he considered Modi’s his address to Parliament, hours after his Although divided by a strait just 50 visit now was a blessing. arrival in Colombo. “The future I dream for kilometers (30 miles) wide, Sri Lanka and Modi in his speech to Parliament also India is also a future that I want for our India kept distance over the past three invited Sri Lanka to have more regular neighbors.” decades. Their relations have been marred state visits and work together to build “The world sees India as the new fron- by the failed Indian peacekeeping attempt trust and remain sensitive to each other’s tier of economic opportunity. But, our at the onset of Sri Lanka’s civil war and interest. “I am conscious of the signifi- neighbors should have the first claim on more recently, Beijing’s foray into India’s cance of this visit,” Modi said in a state- India,” he said. “I will be happy if India neighborhood. ment following talks with Sirisena. “This is serves as a catalyst in the progress of our how it should be between neighbors. We neighbors.” Building trust should meet regularly. It helps us under- Modi visited Seychelles and Mauritius However Modi since his election last stand each other better find solutions to before Sri Lanka on his tour of Indian May has emphasized rally his neighbors. mutual concerns and move our relation- MUZAFFARABAD: This photograph taken on March 12, Ocean states. China in recent years heavily Modi held bilateral talks with Sri ship forward.” 2015 shows the Pakistani Kashmir parents of convicted funded infrastructure development proj- Lanka’s new President Maithripala In 1987, India’s Prime Minister Rajiv killer Shafqat Hussain, displaying a photograph of their ects in these countries, making India Sirisena, who made a departure from poli- Gandhi arrived in Sri Lanka to sign a peace son, in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani-adminis- apprehensive because it perceives the cies favoring Beijing and toward ethnic accord in an effort to end the Tamil upris- tered Kashmir. — AFP region to be its traditional territory of reconciliation with his country’s Tamil ing, which was then in its early years. —AP

INTERNATIONAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Power proves toxic for Britain’s US secret service embarrassment getting worse LibDem leader WASHINGTON: Two Secret Service agents being probed for suspects home. Last month, Obama appointed Joseph Clancy as the allegedly crashing a car into White House security barriers after a new head of the Secret Service after a critical report into an incident LONDON: Shortly before Britain’s Liberal Democrat boozy night out drove right through a bomb investigation scene in which a mentally disturbed veteran scaled the fence and burst leader Nick Clegg formed a government with the there, The Washington Post reported yesterday. As part of the latest into the White House with a knife. The previous head of the agency, Conservatives in 2010, Angela Merkel is said to embarrassment to the service, the officers drove right past the sus- Julia Pierson, resigned after the incident. She had initially been have remarked that in coalitions “The little party picious package, which turned out to be a book, the Post said, quot- appointed to clean up the service after a dozen agents were found always gets smashed!” ing current and former government officials. to have hired prostitutes during a 2012 presidential trip to As his party yesterday began its last conference If the driving under the influence allegation is confirmed, it Colombia. before a general election in May, polls indicate the would be the latest in a series of blunders to taint the agency, which In the March 4 incident the Post says a woman approached an German chancellor’s words have come true for the provides US President Barack Obama’s security team, following agent at an entrance to the White House with an object wrapped in deputy prime minister. The 23 percent of votes high-profile security breaches and a prostitution scandal. According a shirt and said it was a bomb. Agents tried to stop her, but she was won by his party in 2010 has shrivelled to about to the paper, two agents-one of them a member of Obama’s elite able to drive away. Police cordoned off the area. The agents who eight percent, and the seats of over a third of the close protection detail-crashed into the barriers on the evening of had allegedly been drinking showed up about half an hour later and 57 Liberal Democrat lawmakers including Clegg’s March 4. drove through police tape and right next to the suspicious package, own constituency are under threat. The pair had allegedly been at a drinking party and agents at the said the Post, which has had a series of exclusives on troubles within But with no party expected to win a majority in scene had wanted to conduct a breath test to find out if they were the agency. The woman has been located and will face charges of the May 7 vote, the remaining Liberal Democrat inebriated, but were overruled by a commander who ordered the assault with a dangerous weapon, the Post said.— AFP lawmakers may still be needed to prop up a gov- ernment led by the biggest party, be it the right- leaning Conservatives or their rivals the left-leaning Labour. The two long-dominant forces of British politics are neck and neck in polls, and the 48-year- old Clegg has indicated he will speak to whichever side wins the most seats. Clegg argues that he has softened Prime Minister David Cameron’s austerity policies by “anchoring the government in the centre ground” and in recent months has sought to distance him- self from the Conservatives. He has vowed that in the next parliament, the Liberal Democrats will hold back Conservative cuts and Labour borrowing, while bringing in flagship policies such as ending imprisonment for drug possession. But European Parliament elections in 2014 were ominous for the party, which lost 10 out of its 11 MEP seats. Polls indicate Clegg may lose his seat in May and his Sheffield Hallam constituency may instead elect a Labour candidate for the first time since 1885 — a result that would likely spell the end of Clegg’s political career. The Liberal Democrats have also found their position as Britain’s third party challenged by the rise of the eurosceptics the UK Independence Party and a Scottish National Party set to sweep up most seats in Scotland.

Rise and fall of ‘Cleggmania’ Things didn’t always look so bleak for Clegg. Born in Buckinghamshire in south east England FERGUSON: Officers from the St. Louis Police Department walk through a crowd of protesters outside the Ferguson Police Department, to a Dutch mother and a half-Russian father, the Thursday, in Ferguson, Mo. Two police officers were shot early Thursday morning in front of the Ferguson Police Department during a protest 48-year-old speaks English, Dutch, French, Spanish following the resignation of the city’s police chief in the wake of a US Justice Department report. — AP and German and studied at the University of Cambridge, as well as in the United States and Belgium. Married to a Spanish lawyer with whom Manhunt for shooting suspects he has three sons, Clegg began his career in jour- nalism, and worked briefly for the Financial Times in Hungary in 1993. He moved into politics in 1994 by taking up a grinds on in Ferguson, Missouri post at the European Commission, and later became an advisor to the Conservative trade com- Investigators scoured streets for clues missioner Leon Brittan. Clegg was elected to the European Parliament as a Liberal Democrat in FERGUSON: Police hunted for a second day yes- were warranted in the light of events in the city, held a boisterous but peaceful protest outside 1999, and in 2005 was elected MP for Sheffield terday for suspects in the shooting of two police but said criminal acts could not be justified. the police station under light rain. Hallam in northern England.—AFP officers at a protest rally in Ferguson, Missouri, “What had been happening in Ferguson was The crowd blocked traffic at times, but there after US President Barack Obama said those oppressive and objectionable and was worthy of were no arrests and the demonstration passed responsible must be brought to justice. protest,” he said during an appearance on the without incident. The officers were shot and wounded as a ABC program “Jimmy Kimmel Live”. In Thursday’s shooting, a 41-year-old St. demonstration in the St Louis suburb was break- “But there was no excuse for criminal acts, Louis County police officer suffered a shoulder ing up around midnight on Thursday morning, and whoever fired those shots shouldn’t detract wound and a 32-year-old colleague from the driving up tensions in a community that has from the issue. They’re criminals. They need to nearby Webster Groves Police Department got a become the center of an intense nationwide be arrested,” Obama said. bullet lodged near his ear. debate over race and policing. The scene of the shooting has been the site Crime Stoppers, a nationwide organization Investigators scoured streets near the scene of regular demonstrations since the fatal shoot- that works to prevent and solve crimes, has of the shooting for clues and several people ing in August of an unarmed black 18-year-old offered a $10,000 reward for information lead- were brought in for questioning. They were all Michael Brown by a white policeman. ing to the culprit and two Missouri later released and there have been no arrests, That killing triggered protests around the Congressmen have added $3,000 more. police said. The shooting happened just hours country and prompted the Justice Department St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar said after Ferguson’s police chief resigned following investigation as well as a contentious national at a news conference on Thursday that muzzle a US Justice Department report that said deep- discussion over the use of deadly force by police flashes were detected from about 125 yards rooted racial bias in the city’s mostly white officers. (375 feet) away from the rally. police force had created a “toxic environment” The shooting came less than three months in the predominantly-black community. Peaceful protest after a troubled man ambushed two New York The protesters at the Ferguson rally had been Condemning the wounding of the officers, City patrolmen, apparently seeking to avenge demanding police reforms. Obama, the United activists held a candle-light prayer vigil for the killings of Brown and an unarmed black man British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg. States’ first black president, said such protests peace late on Thursday. About 100 people then in New York. — Reuters INTERNATIONAL SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 NYC mayor unveils plan to curb violence at Rikers jail Five inmates stabbed, slashed recently

NEW YORK: Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday group that works with those formerly incarcer- unveiled additional details of his plan to curb ated. “There are ways to do that that don’t violence at the problem-plagued Rikers Island mean restricting people in a specific way.” jail complex after touring a highly restrictive Leah Gitter, a member of an inmate advoca- housing unit for troublesome New York City cy group, said visiting her godson regularly inmates. Speaking in a recently renovated area while he was jailed at Rikers awaiting the adju- that houses the 7 percent of inmates officials dication of his criminal case was the only thing say drive most jail violence, de Blasio touted that kept him connected to the outside world. reforms that include installing video cameras, “If they’re isolated and alone and feel like restricting inmate visits and beefing up securi- no one’s looking after them then they’ll feel ty screenings. like their lives are totally worthless,” she said. “It’s about launching a new era here on this The Board of Correction, the agency island where violence will decrease steadily,” charged with overseeing the jails, will need to he said. “It’s about changing the culture of this approve any proposed visitor change. Both the place and it’s about addressing, bluntly, years mayor and Ponte said they believed family of neglect.” Violence has continued to surge at contact is important for inmates’ peace-of- Rikers in the past year even as the media, regu- mind but urged the board to allow some lators and federal attorneys have stepped up restrictions. their scrutiny of the 11,000-inmate jail system. Other efforts to curb the violence include Statistics show there have been nearly 30 stab- adding more drug-sniffing dogs to the investi- bings or slashings since Jan. 1 - about twice as gation division and at security checkpoints by many as there were during the same time span June 2016, building improved security last year. Guards’ use of force also has risen. entrances in the next three years and upgrad- The Associated Press reported Wednesday Surrounded by corrections officers, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio holds a news con- ing security screening by December to mirror that five inmates have been stabbed or ference on Rikers Island in New York, Thursday, March 12, 2015. The mayor has unveiled Transportation Security Administration stan- slashed since officials locked down four Rikers a comprehensive plan to curb jail violence after a visit to the problem-plagued Rikers dards. “We are acting decisively to reduce vio- facilities for 34 hours last week. Reducing Island jail complex. — AP lence,” the mayor said. “We are fundamentally inmate-on-inmate violence, the mayor said, dissatisfied with a culture of violence and will depends on stemming the flow of drugs and non-family members. smuggling. Last year, an undercover city inves- not allow it to continue.” But violence has weapons that find their way into the jails. The “You cut off the weapons and you cut off tigator posing as a jail guard highlighted lax proven especially stubborn to eliminate. Just mayor and his jails commissioner, Joe Ponte, the drugs,” the mayor said, noting recent dis- security screening by smuggling in drugs, alco- hours before the mayor’s visit, a female correc- say they are preparing new visitation policies coveries of drugs and weapons on visitors. But hol and even a razor blade undetected. tion officer was wheeled out of a Rikers jail in a to help accomplish that. The policies would inmate advocates and others disputed that vis- “What’s needed is strong security at the gurney and put into an ambulance. Minutes reduce the number of visits allowed, require itors are the driving source of jail contraband, front gate so that drugs and other contraband later, an inmate who had just been pepper criminal background checks of visitors and bar questioning whether the department is doing don’t come in by anybody,” said JoAnne Page, sprayed was escorted by another correction some gang members or felons from visiting enough to curb the involvement of jail staff in who heads The Fortune Society, a nonprofit officer, covering his eyes. — AP

French prosecutor seeks trial Europe pauses for breath World Bank chief welcomes Businessin HSBC tax-dodging case 17 after ‘game-changing’ 18week China-backed development 19 bank SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Housing crisis trumps security in Israeli vote 16

SHARM EL-SHEIKH:From left, Jordanian King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas meet on the sidelines of the economic conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, yesterday. — AP Egypt eyes $15-$20bn at investment summit

SHARM EL-SHEIKH: Egypt expects to He gave no details. sign agreements worth up to $20 billion at The conference will be a key test of Juncker pushes for deal with Greece a weekend investment summit in the Red Egypt’s reform agenda under President Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, its invest- Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who wants to remove BRUSSELS: EU chief executive Jean-Claude Juncker and failed: “As the responsibility, the possibility to decide ment minister said yesterday. investment barriers to help turn around Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras called yesterday for what happens only lies with Greece, and because we Egypt wants the conference to project the ailing economy of the Arab world’s European governments to show solidarity with Greece don’t exactly know what those in charge in Greece are an image of stability and deepen investor most populous country. and resolve a credit crunch that risks dumping it out of doing, we can’t rule it out,” he said. confidence after four years of political and Sisi has won praise from foreign the euro zone. Their comments, as the bloc’s German While many Greeks resent the terms under which economic turmoil triggered by a 2011 investors by cutting fuel subsidies that paymaster presses its demands that Athens’ new leftist Europeans and the International Monetary Fund bailed uprising that toppled veteran ruler Hosni placed a heavy burden on the state and government honour commitments to international cred- them out since 2010, a majority wants to keep the single Mubarak. implementing other reforms. itors, highlighted Juncker’s concern over a risk of grave currency. That would be in jeopardy if the government Cairo hopes the summit will allow it to The head of the International Finance damage to the EU, but may also fuel suspicion in Berlin ran out of credit, prompting Greek banks to lose access double foreign investment in this fiscal Corporation (IFC), a global development that the EU Commission could try to water down any to euros from the European Central Bank. year to $8 billion, despite an Islamist insur- institution, said he was encouraged by deal. On the day after German Finance Minister gency in northern Sinai and militant such reforms but called for more action to Wolfgang Schaeuble said publicly that Greece might TIME FOR ‘SOLIDARITY’ attacks across the country. improve the investment climate. “We are stumble out of the euro zone because its leaders had Tsipras, trying to satisfy lenders while also retaining “I’m expecting here to see $15-$20 bil- happy to see that progress but there is a failed to negotiate new borrowings, Juncker sounded a the support of voters who elected him in January to end lion in agreements signed,” Investment lot more work that needs to be done. The note of urgency to EU governments. years of spending cuts, said Greece was doing its bit and Minister Ashraf Salman told Reuters, sign is positive, we need to see more,” Jin- “I don’t think we have made sufficient progress,” he others must now help ease its “humanitarian crisis” and adding the deals would cover power Yong Cai told Reuters at the conference. told reporters as he welcomed Tsipras to the European mass youth unemployment. plants, real estate and agricultural proj- He said regulations needed to be Commission. “Greece has already started fulfilling its commitments ects. General Electric said it would invest improved. “I will make certain proposals to my friend Alexis. “I’m ... so we are doing our part and we expect our partners $200 million in a manufacturing and train- On Thursday, Sisi ratified an amended totally excluding a failure ... This is not a time for division. to do their own,” Tsipras said before his talks with ing facility which it sees as part of an eco- investment law designed to create a one- This is the time for coming together,” he said, praising Juncker. “I’m very optimistic ... we will find a solution nomic hub being built near the Suez stop shop for investors. The government Tsipras for following a “pro-European track”. because I strongly believe that this is our common inter- Canal. It also said it had delivered 34 gas targets a budget deficit of 10 percent of Commission officials say Juncker, a long-time pre- est. I believe that there is no Greek problem; there is a turbines to Egypt as part of a $1.9 billion gross domestic product by 2018/19, down mier of Luxembourg who took over the EU executive in European problem.” power project. from 15 percent last year. Unemployment, November, fears some leaders may be underestimating He added: “Now is the time to give a message of Egypt also expects to sign several currently around 13 percent, is also a the damage “Grexit”-or “Grexident”-would do to hope to the Greek people, not only implement, imple- memoranda of understanding at the con- major challenge. GDP is expected to grow European integration. ment, implement and obligations, obligations, obliga- ference, including one for the construction by four percent in the fiscal year ending in Schaeuble told an Austrian broadcaster on Thursday tions-the message that the European institutions will of a new administrative capital with a June, up from 2.2 percent last year, offi- there was a risk of Greece losing the euro if negotiations give help and solidarity. —Reuters price-tag of about $40 billion, Salman said. cials say. — Reuters BUSINESS SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

US wholesale prices down for fourth straight month

WASHINGTON: Wholesale prices fell for a fourth Food costs were down 1.6 percent in February. rose. Ashworth said nothing in the report changed his straight month in February as a decline in food prices Energy costs overall were flat as declines in natural gas view that the Federal Reserve next week will stop using offset an increase in gasoline prices. The Labor and electric power combined with a gain in gasoline, the word “patient” to describe how long it is prepared to Department said yesterday its producer price index, which rose 1.5 percent. Gasoline prices had been falling wait before starting to raise a key interest rate from its which measures inflation pressures before they reach since the middle of last year and hit a six-year low in record low level. Ashworth said he expects the first Fed consumers, dropped 0.5 percent in February. January of $2.03 a gallon, according to AAA. But since rate hike to occur in June. Robust hiring in the past 12 The figure follows a 0.8 percent fall in January, which gas prices have risen since then, with the nationwide months and lower gas prices lifted consumer confi- had been a record decline in a government series that average for a gallon of regular now at $2.45, up from dence in January and February to its highest levels since goes back to 2009. Core producer prices, which exclude $2.23 a month. the recession. But those trends have yet to boost con- volatile food and energy costs, also fell 0.5 percent dur- Paul Ashworth, chief US economist at Capital sumer spending this year, a key driver of economic activ- ing the month. Over the past 12 months, producer Economics, said that about one-third of the drop in ity. The government reported that retail sales fell for a prices have shed 0.6 percent while core prices have overall prices in February stemmed from a decline in third month in a row in February as harsh winter weath- climbed a modest 1 percent. profit margins at service stations. Those margins had er depressed shopping. But many analysts look for those Since last year inflation since has moved even farther risen for a time last year as gas stations took advantage declines to reverse in the coming months. The economy below the Federal Reserve’s goal of seeing prices rise of falling fuel costs to boost profits. But in February, the is expected to turn in its strongest growth this year in a about 2 percent annually. margins returned to more normal levels as gas prices decade while overall inflation stays modest. — AP

Cyprus won’t need full EU bailout package NICOSIA: Cyprus will not need all of the 10-billion-euro bailout it received in 2013 as its economy recovers faster than expected, the country’s finance minister told AFP. “(The economy) is much better, but I’m not saying that it is good,” Harris Georgiades said ahead of the second anniver- sary of the “unprecedented crisis” that shook the eurozone and left the Mediterranean island teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. “The economy is recovering. We are still on a neg- ative growth rate but each quarter is seeing an improvement,” he told AFP. Georgiades predicted a return to “very mild” growth this year. In March 2013, Cyprus clinched a 10-billion- euro ($13 billion at the time) loan from the European Union and International Monetary Fund to bail out its troubled econ- omy and oversized banking system. Fearing a run, the government closed all the country’s banks for nearly two weeks and imposed draconian capital controls when they reopened. Some restrictions remain. Georgiades said Cyprus had made “significant progress” since the crisis. “Unemployment is starting to come down, public finances are under control... and crucially our banking sector has been stabilised,” he said. “We do not have a deficit, which is an achievement as many other EU member states are still struggling to bring their deficit under control.” Due to the favourable economic climate, the minister said his country would not need the full bailout amount it was ini- NETANYA: A file picture taken on September 17, 2014 shows high-rise residential apartment buildings under construc- tially offered. “We do not expect our banks for instance to tion in Ramat Poleg, a neighbourhood of the Israeli Mediterranean coastal city of Netanya. Despite Benjamin need any new capital, through state money,” Georgiades said. Netanyahu’s best efforts to flag security as the biggest issue keeping Israelis awake at night, the reality is far more mun- “Some of the 10 billion which was, let’s say, reserved for this dane. For most voters, it is the price of housing that matters. — AFP purpose-buffered for this purpose-will not be needed.” Cyprus has to date received “just over six billion” euros, he added. Austerity measures since the crisis led to tax hikes, Housing crisis trumps salary cuts and a slashing of social welfare benefits. Georgiades said he hoped parliament would vote “over the next weeks” for a foreclosure bill to allow repayment of the latest tranche of bailout money. security in Israeli vote He also promised Cyprus would “continue the same policy” towards long-term recovery by focusing on structural reform, including in areas such as privatisation and reducing bureau- Israeli needs equivalent of 148 months’ salary to buy home cracy. “There is still work which needs to be done before we can safely say that we’re back on viable and sustainable JERUSALEM: Despite Benjamin Netanyahu’s say, $750 to $1,000 a month, even that sands took to the streets in the biggest social growth,” the minister said. — AFP best efforts to flag security as the biggest wouldn’t be enough for a down payment on protest in Israel’s history. issue keeping Israelis awake at night, the a house,” he said. If Netanyahu is vulnerable Nearly four years on, things have only got reality is far more mundane. For most voters, on any social issue, analysts say, it is housing. worse. Tal Ben Eliezer said that despite both it is the price of housing that matters. Since taking office in 2009, the Israeli leader she and her husband working-he holds Voters head to the polls on Tuesday for has failed to curb soaring house prices, down four jobs-there is no way they can Israel’s second election in just over two years, which jumped by 55 percent between 2008 afford to buy a property in their community. with Netanyahu-a security hawk and eco- and 2013, according to figures in a damning “It’s just not possible. I would like to live nomic rightwinger-seeking a third consecu- report released last month by the state here, where we rent, but the prices are sky tive term. Netanyahu has based his reelec- comptroller’s office. high,” said Tal, 31, who works as a research tion campaign solidly on security issues, assistant at the Hebrew University of namely his bid to derail an international ‘Prices are sky high’ Jerusalem. effort to reach a deal with Iran that he says Last year prices rose another five percent, “There’s no chance, even if I saved until I would pose a threat to Israel’s existence. But official figures show. The average Israeli now was 70,” she said. “If your parents don’t help, centrist and left-leaning parties, who recent needs the equivalent of 148 months’ salary it’s not even possible to think of buying a polls show have jumped ahead of to buy a home, compared with 76 in France, house,” her husband Eitan said. Netanyahu’s Likud party, have focused 66 in the United States and 64 in Britain. The Eran Feitelson, a housing expert at the instead on bread-and-butter issues like hous- cost of a four-room apartment in Tel Aviv Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said the cri- ing and the rising cost of living. currently stands at around $700,000 (660,000 sis is the result of low interest rates that For many voters, their message is hitting euros), $470,000 in Jerusalem and $350,000 pushed investors towards the housing mar- NICOSIA: Cyprus’ Minister of Finance Harris Georgiades home. “The housing problem is the most in the northern port city of Haifa. ket. Last month, the Bank of Israel lowered its answers AFP journalist’s questions during an interview at significant issue (in the election),” said Eitan The average salary in Israel is around benchmark interest rate to 0.1 percent, the the Ministry of Finance on March 12 in the capital Nicosia. Ben Eliezer, who lives with his wife Tal and $2,270 a month. The growing inability of lowest in Israel’s history. “In 2008, a lot of Cyprus will not need all of the 10-billion-euro bailout it their two small children in a rented flat on young Israelis to get a foot on the property money went into the housing market as a received in 2013 as its economy recovers faster than the outskirts of Jerusalem. ladder triggered a wave of demonstrations in result of the fall in interest rates because of expected, the country’s finance minister said. — AFP “Even if you work and manage to save, the summer of 2011 when hundreds of thou- the global crisis,” Feitelson said. —AFP Business SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

Rebound in oil prices built on flimsy foundations

PARIS: A recent rebound in oil prices is tions,” said the IEA in its monthly Oil estimated 180,000 barrels per day in despite numerous recent government built on flimsy foundations, the Market Report, which sharply revised February to 94.0 million barrels per day price cuts.” The IEA said the forecast of International Energy Agency warned yes- up its output estimates for the end of (mbd) due to expanding production in the International Monetary Fund for a terday, with few signs yet that cheap fuel last year and forecasts for the begin- countries outside the OPEC oil cartel. moderate uptick in growth from 3.5 per- is helping boost the global economy. ning of 2015. Non-OPEC supply is still expected to cent in 2014 to 3.7 percent this year Oil prices plummeted by 60 percent grow this year, by 750,000 bd, but this is underpinned its forecast for increased between June and January, but have ‘Abrupt’ response much lower than the 2.1 mbd gain in demand this year. since come off six-year lows and sta- With US crude stocks striking an all- 2014. Global growth has underperformed bilised somewhat, with London’s bench- time record of 468 million barrels, it said Meanwhile, oil demand has also been forecasts in recent years. Production in mark Brent trading around $60 per barrel storage capacity limits may soon be test- picking up. The IEA raised its demand OPEC nations edged down by 90,000 bd and the WTI contract in the United States ed. While this would encourage the sup- forecasts for every quarter this year, with to 30.22 mbd in February due to vio- fluctuating around $50 per barrel. ply cuts that have so far remained elusive, the annual 2015 figure bumped up by lence-related drops in Libya and Iraq off- “Behind the facade of stability, the the IEA warned the fall in supply “...might 100,000 bd to 93.5 mbd. setting gains in Saudi Arabia. rebalancing triggered by the price col- also prove more abrupt.” The increase is somewhat deceptive, OPEC members refusing to agree on lapse has yet to run its course, and it The IEA also warned “supply disrup- the IEA noted, as it rests partially on one- production cut at the end of last year might be overly optimistic to expect it to tion risks are on the rise”, which could off factors as cold weather and a low accelerated the plunge in oil prices. The proceed smoothly,” said the Paris-based serve to push prices up sharply. It point- point of comparison the previous year. IEA said that the higher global demand IEA, which advises energy consuming ed to possible disruptions in social stabili- The IEA said “there are still few firm forecast included an increase in the fore- nations. It noted that a key driver in the ty as countries dependent on high oil signs at this stage that lower prices are cast demand for OPEC supplies by recovery in oil prices, with Brent being up prices to fund social welfare programmes giving the economy a real boost. China, 100,000 bd to 29.5 mbd in 2015. by 30 percent from the lows it touched in are forced to cut back, as well as unrest in for one, remains in cooling mode.” World oil prices sank Friday after the January, has been drops in the number of Iraq and Libya provoking disruptions. Last week China lowered its 2015 IEA released its report. In midday London rigs drilling for shale oil in the United Oil companies with huge amounts of growth target to around seven percent, deals, European benchmark Brent North States. dollar-denominated debt are facing a after posting in 2014 its slowest expan- Sea crude for April fell 57 cents “Yet US supply so far shows precious double-whammy of low crude prices and sion in nearly a quarter century of 7.4 per- to $56.51 a barrel. US benchmark West little sign of slowing down. Quite to the a strong dollar. cent. It said China’s “relative macroeco- Texas Intermediate (WTI) for April shed 72 contrary, it continues to defy expecta- The IEA said global supply rose by an nomic weakness dampens demand cents to $46.33 a barrel. — AFP

Gold firms after worst losing streak since 1973

LONDON: Gold firmed yesterday after nine straight sessions of losses, the precious metal’s worst losing streak in more than 40 years, as the dollar nursed losses following its extended rally. Spot gold edged up 0.3 percent to $1,156.20 an ounce by 1033 GMT. Gold’s losing run up to Thursday was the worst since August 1973, when prices fell 10 days in a row. US gold for April delivery rose $3.40 an ounce to $1,155.30. The metal was, however, headed for its sixth weekly loss in the past seven, down 0.8 percent so far and having hit its lowest in more than three months at $1,147.10 on Wednesday. On Friday, gold was benefiting from an unchanged dollar against a basket of leading currencies after the greenback posted its biggest one-day fall in a month on Thursday. Gold has taken a beating since a stronger than expected US jobs report last week stoked speculation the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates soon. The next focus will be the Fed’s policy-setting committee meets on March 17 and 18. “The softer dollar is helping gold but that’s only temporary,” Societe Generale analyst Robin Bhar said. “The key event now is going to be the Fed meeting next Wednesday, so more clarity on MUNICH: German Chancellor Angela Merkel tastes ice cream she was given by German Gelato Champion 2014 Adriano the interest rates hike timing.” Colle (C) as she visited the Internationale Handwerksmesse trade fair in Munich, southern Germany, yesterday. More The dollar, which hit its highest in nearly 12 years this week, is than 1,000 exhibitors representing around 60 skilled trades present trends and innovations of the crafts sector’s servic- widely expected to reach parity with the euro, due to the gap es and products. — AFP between US and European market interest rates. French prosecutor seeks trial in HSBC tax-dodging case Refuse plea bargain and fine of 1.4bn euros

PARIS: The French financial prosecutor’s on suspicion of money laundering related respond to French judicial authorities, after office has requested that HSBC’s Swiss pri- to tax fraud and unlawful soliciting of which magistrates will have the final word vate bank be sent to trial in France to clients, the source said, adding that the on whether to hold a trial. answer charges over a suspected tax-dodg- “habitual” manner of the alleged fraud ing scheme for wealthy customers, a judi- made it an aggravated crime. Another, non- Criminal probe opened cial source said yesterday. judicial, source close to the case said there Le Monde reported yesterday that HSBC The request brings the Swiss unit one had been talks on a plea deal which had had refused a plea deal that would have step closer to facing trial after an investiga- failed. Under French law, the Swiss bank avoided a trial but required it to pay a 1.4 bil- tion led by local magistrates into an alleged risks a fine amounting to half the value of lion euro ($1.48 billion) fine. fraud involving thousands of French tax the funds subject to the suspected fraud. HSBC Holdings has admitted failings in payers ended last month. Le Monde estimated on Friday the amount compliance and controls in its Swiss bank. It FERNDALE: In this March 5, 2015 photo, Mike Drury The probe was sparked by whistleblow- of hidden assets at more than 5 billion also faces investigation by US authorities and retrieves a pallet at the Hardware Sales Inc. warehouse in er Herve Falciani, a former IT employee at euros. an inquiry by British lawmakers after reports Ferndale, Wash. Hardware Sales Inc. officials say the com- HSBC, who leaked the bank’s client data to HSBC’s Swiss private bank said the it helped customers to conceal millions of pany’s e-commerce division could benefit from stream- the media, including French daily Le request for trial was a normal step that did dollars of assets in a period up to 2007. lined customs regulations if 12 Pacific Rim countries agree Monde. Parent company HSBC Holdings not prejudge the result of the case. “The Cases against specific clients of the Swiss to a massive trade deal called the Trans-Pacific Plc, the world’s second largest bank, faces a outcome of the matter is not determined as bank are already in progress in France and Partnership. Critics say the deal doesn’t do enough to pro- separate ongoing French investigation. of today,” a spokesman said. prosecutors in Geneva have also opened a tect American jobs. — AP Prosecutors want the Swiss bank tried The bank now has one month to criminal probe into the bank. —Reuters BUSINESS SATURDAY, MARCH 14 , 2015

US court ruling closes avenue for Argentine debt payments

NEW YORK: A US judge prohibited Citibank court’s injunction against bond payments. refused to observe the judgments of the ruled in the hedge funds’ favor, and ordered, from handling payments on Argentine court to whose jurisdiction it acceded,” he in a ruling upheld in several appeals, that the bonds issued under Argentine law Thursday, Griesa rejected both arguments. said. Citi was allowed to make two payments country cannot make any other payments on adding a new challenge in the country’s bit- He said that the hedge fund case ruling on the Argentine law exchange bonds, in the exchange bonds before it pays the ter debt fight with US hedge funds. applied to payments made on any external September and December, pending a final hedge funds. US District Judge Thomas Griesa in New debt, and that the Argentine-law bonds, ruling on the issue. That forced Argentina into a new default York rejected the bank’s request to process denominated in US dollars and sold to for- Thursday’s ruling blocks the next pay- in July, even though it attempted to make the payments, saying they would violate his eign creditors, amount to external debt even ment on the bonds, scheduled for March 30. payments to the exchange bondholders. ruling last year that Argentina must first pay if issued inside the country. That effectively freezes another avenue In July, Griesa appointed a “special mas- off hedge funds on the bonds they hold “Since the exchange bonds at issue here for the country to satisfy the creditors it rec- ter” mediator to help fashion a settlement before it can pay other creditors. are denominated in dollars, they qualify as ognizes while refusing to pay NML and between the two sides, but talks so far have The decision marks a fresh setback for ‘external indebtedness’ of the republic,” Aurelius. The hedge funds refused to join in failed. Both Griesa and the mediators have Buenos Aires in its long-running US legal bat- Griesa said. And he ruled that any party aid- the 2005 and 2010 restructuring of some accused Buenos Aires of refusing to negoti- tle against NML Capital and Aurelius Capital ing Argentina to make payments, including $100 billion in debt on which it defaulted in ate. “The court has long urged the Republic Management, the bondholders it labels “vul- Citi, could be held in contempt for doing so. 2001. The majority of creditors took steep to participate in negotiating a resolution to tures” seeking to capitalize on its 2001 Griesa rejected a third Citibank argument, writedowns of the value of their bonds, the claims in this case,” Griesa said in default. based on the principal of comity, that the accepting “exchange bonds” in the process. Thursday’s ruling. “The court urges the Citibank and Argentina had argued that court should recognize that Argentine law But NML and Aurelius, after having republic, once again, to avail itself of the spe- the exchange bonds issued under demands that Citi process the payments. bought up Argentina’s debt cheaply on the cial master’s services.” A spokesman for NML Argentine law, and Citigroup’s Argentina market, have held out for full payment of Capital cheered Griesa’s decision. “The subsidiary, did not fall under the US court’s Argentina pressed to settle $1.3 billion plus accrued interest. court’s ruling makes clear that any third par- ruling in the hedge fund case, and so the Griesa, who has been clearly frustrated by Argentina argued that paying them off ty that attempts to help Argentina in the bank should be able to process the funds the failure of the two sides to reach a settle- would be unfair to exchange bond holders, payment process is in violation of the court’s to the bondholders. The US bank also said ment, suggested that Argentina must give and risked undermining the entire debt injunction,” he said. “Argentina should dis- its role as simply a processor of the pay- way. “If Citibank’s predicament is a matter of restructuring for the claims of a handful of continue its defiance of courts and negotiate ments should not make it subject to the comity, it is only because the republic has “holdouts”. Nevertheless, in 2012 Griesa a resolution to this dispute.” — AFP

Russia central bank cuts interest rate to 14% MOSCOW: Russia’s central bank yesterday cut its main inter- est rate to 14 percent from 15 percent as it juggled the need to resuscitate its crisis-hit economy against fears of rising infla- tion. The rate cut is the second since the start of the year after a mammoth increase in December that came as authorities scrambled to put a lid on economic turmoil sparked by Western sanctions over Ukraine and tumbling oil prices. The bank said in a statement that it had “decided to reduce the key rate from 15 to 14 percent per annum taking into account that the balance of risks is still shifted towards a more significant cooling of the economy.” It said the reduction was not enough to pose “an addition- al threat of increased inflationary pressure.” The bank said that it would be prepared to consider further cuts if the risk of inflation falls. “As inflation risks abate, the Bank of Russia will be ready to continue cutting the key rate.” The central bank predicted inflation of about 9 percent for the whole of 2015, while it is currently close to 17 percent. It said high inflation was mainly caused by Western trade sanctions and the ruble depreciation which it said were “short-term” factors whose impact would taper out this year. The hard-hit ruble rose slightly at the news, standing at 61.30 against the dollar and 64.89 against the euro at around TOKYO: President of the World Bank group Jim Jong Kim (background L) delivers his speech during the FCC press con- 1100 GMT, after reaching 61.81 against the dollar and 65.35 ference in Tokyo yesterday. Kim talked on theme of “Major Global Risks and Building Resilience” before attending the against the euro earlier in the day. 3rd World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai. — AFP Russia last cut its key rate to 15 percent from 17 percent on January 30 in a surprise move that sent the ruble tumbling. In December it had jacked up the rate from 10.5 percent to 17 Europe pauses for breath percent, widely seen as untenably high. Analysts said the rate cut had been expected and relatively conservative. “Overall, the CBR took a balanced step,” ING bank’s Russia after ‘game-changing’ week & CIS chief economist Dmitry Polevoy said in a research note, saying the move communicated the bank’s “relatively dovish Emerging markets under pressure from strong dollar stance” but “sent a clear signal that the policy bias remains unchanged, i.e. there is more easing ahead.” LONDON: European equities paused day, to 14 percent, putting concerns (US) jobs numbers and the launch of QE yesterday as they headed for a sixth about the slumping economy before in Europe this week has cemented the Tajikistan struggles straight week of gains, fuelled by a slide worries about high inflation and contin- picture of monetary policy divergence.” Meanwhile, ex-Soviet Tajikistan yesterday scrambled to in the euro as the European Central uing an easing cycle that began in The MSCI All-Country World equity stave off panic over its tumbling currency as shockwaves from Bank’s bond-buying plan kept euro January. index was down 0.2 percent at 419.98 Russia’s financial crisis continued to reverberate around the zone yields near record lows. Emerging market equities are head- points. Emerging-markets stocks fell 0.6 region. The impoverished Central Asian state’s national bank The past week, described by one ing for a second week of losses as the percent and the FTSEurofirst 300 pan- announced tough controls on dollar sales in a bid to shore up strategist as a “game-changer”, saw the stronger dollar and expectations of a European index was down 0.3 percent, its battered national currency the somoni. dollar climb to 12-year highs versus the US rate hike keep up pressure. with energy stocks weaker. Tajikistan’s economy is heavily dependent on Russia, with euro as central bank policies diverged “I don’t think its an exaggeration to almost half of its gross domestic product (GDP) coming from in the euro zone and the United States- say this week has been a game-chang- US equity futures down remittances sent mainly from people working in its former the former battling to compress yields er,” said Neil Mellor, a currency strate- US crude fell almost $1 to $46.10 per Soviet master. further, the latter paving the way for a gist with Bank of New York Mellon in barrel, while Brent crude fell to $56.51 per In recent weeks, long queues have spilled out of exchange rate hike. London, pointing to recent forecast- barrel. Oil prices might have stabilised only bureaus in the capital Dushanbe as people lose faith in the Emerging markets have felt the beating jobs data out of the US and the temporarily because the global oil glut is national currency which fell 11 percent against the dollar in squeeze from the rising dollar and weak start this week of the ECB’s quantitative worsening and US production shows no 2014 and 4.0 percent since the start of this year, according to oil prices, however. Russia was the lat- easing bond-buying programme. sign of slowing, the International Energy official exchange rates.—AFP est country to cut interest rates yester- “The combination of last Friday’s Agency said.—Reuters BUSINESS SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2014

Beijing welcomes Britain’s move to join China-backed bank

BEIJING: Beijing yesterday hailed Britain’s announce- development banks,” Hong said. He added it “will said US National Security Council spokesman Patrick ment that it will seek to join a Chinese-led develop- learn from the good practice of the existing multilater- Ventrell. “Based on many discussions, we have con- ment bank, after Washington voiced caution about the al development banks and meanwhile take a detour cerns about whether the AIIB will meet these high move. from their path so as to reduce costs and increase standards, particularly related to governance, and The $50 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment operational efficiency”. environmental and social safeguards.” Bank (AIIB) has been feted by Beijing as a way of British finance minister George Osborne said The bank has support from countries including financing regional development, and is seen as a Thursday: “Joining the AIIB at the founding stage will India, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Pakistan, the potential rival to US-based institutions such as the create an unrivalled opportunity for the UK and Asia to Philippines, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. China’s official World Bank. Washington, Tokyo, Seoul and others invest and grow together.” Xinhua news agency rapped the US for its scepticism, have declined to become founding members-but London’s move drew a cautious response from writing in a commentary yesterday that Washington London on Thursday said it plans to become the first Washington, a rare note of discord in their “special “exhibited nothing but a childish paranoia towards major Western country to join the bank, in a move to relationship”, which follows criticism from the United China”. bolster relations with China. “We welcome this deci- States about Britain’s cuts to defence spending. China “It seems that the US government needs to be sion made by the UK side,” Chinese foreign ministry and 20 other countries signed a memorandum of reminded that bias and a deep-rooted strategic dis- spokesman Hong Lei told reporters at a regular brief- understanding to establish the Beijing-headquartered trust towards China are by no means helpful in forging ing. He said that “if all goes well”, Britain would bank in October. “We believe any new multilateral a healthy relationship with the country,” Xinhua wrote. become a prospective member of the bank by the end institution should incorporate the high standards of “It’s imperative for Washington to change its mind- of the month. “The AIIB will complement the existing the World Bank and the regional development banks,” set,” it added. — AFP

MSCI faces opposition to China inclusion in key index

HONG KONG: China must make bolder market reforms before Chinese-listed shares can be included in key MSCI emerging mar- ket benchmark indexes, leading global fund managers and MSCI insiders told Reuters. Anticipation that MSCI would push ahead with plans to include locally-listed China ‘A’ shares in its Emerging Markets Index, which is tracked by $1.7 trillion of funds, increased follow- ing the November launch of the Hong Kong-Shanghai Stock Connect trading scheme, which has helped open up China’s tightly-controlled capital market. But, despite strong lobbying by Beijing, some of the world’s biggest fund managers want China to go further with its market reforms. That lack of support is likely to scupper Chinese hopes that global index compiler MSCI would add China-listed stocks at its annual review in June. MSCI, too, is disappointed by a lack of progress on several issues that make it difficult and expensive to move money in and out of China’s capital markets. “In my view, most of those issues remain,” said one MSCI insid- er who didn’t want to be named because the subject is highly sensitive. “I’d be very surprised if we manage to get ‘A’ shares included even this time around going by the preliminary chats I’ve had.” Chinese shares listed overseas already account for 18.9 percent of MSCI’s emerging markets index. Including all China’s domestic shares could trigger the largest-ever global equity BEIJING: A clothes vendor looks on as she waits for customers in Beijing yesterday. China’s consumer inflation rebound- rebalancing, and drive up that figure to 27.7 percent. Some pre- ed in February from a more-than-five-year low, official data showed March 10, but a plunge in factory gate prices added dictions suggest $300 billion will eventually flow into the China to persistent concerns about deflation in the world’s second-largest economy. — AFP market. A spokeswoman for MSCI declined to comment. The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) did not respond to World Bank chief welcomes requests for comment. China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange, which controls investment quotas, also did not respond to requests for comment. China-backed development bank

LOBBYING EFFORT MSCI is expected to discuss adding China ‘A’ shares - the yuan- AIIB to abide by principles of openness denominated shares listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges - in May, before announcing a decision in June. MSCI TOKYO: The president of the World Bank has sought to become a founding member responsibility and equality ... and fully refer- declined to confirm the date of its May meeting. said yesterday he welcomed the setting up of the AIIB. “As the UK just announced ence the good practices of multilateral Chinese regulators, keen to attract more long-term institution- of the China-backed Asian Infrastructure today in their statement, they were very banks to avoid some of the detours they al money, are scrambling to tackle other market constraints, and Investment Bank (AIIB), a day after Britain clear in saying that they were going to have taken,” he added. still hope to persuade global investors to give MSCI the green became the first Western nation to insist that the standards of any new bank While Hong did not respond directly to light, fund managers and lawyers told Reuters. embrace the institution. that they are part of would be equal to the US concerns about the bank, China’s official As part of its lobbying campaign, the CSRC last month sent a With US interest rates likely to rise later World Bank and the Asian Development Xinhua news agency took a stronger line. delegation to New York and Boston to reassure investors that this year, capital flows to emerging markets Bank,” Kim said. All of the multilateral “The response of the US government exhib- China is committed to capital market liberalization. and low-income countries will face greater development banks together contribute ited nothing but a childish paranoia A second individual familiar with MSCI’s thinking said MSCI challenges over time, Jim Yong Kim told a only about 5 to 10 percent of the overall towards China,” it said in an English-lan- was still trying to persuade major clients, which include invest- news conference. annual spending in infrastructure, he guage commentary, slamming what it ment giant BlackRock and other index funds, to back its plan. “From the perspective simply of the added. called “reflective scepticism”. But these firms first want to see China solve critical investment need for more infrastructure spending, The AIIB was launched in Beijing last Japan, Australia and South Korea are the obstacles relating to the Stock Connect system and its quota- there’s no doubt that from our perspective, year to spur investment in Asia in trans- notable countries in the region missing based institutional investment programmes. we welcome the entry of the Asian portation, energy, telecommunications and from among the AIIB’s founders. Japan, These investment restrictions include confusion over whether Infrastructure Investment Bank,” he said. other infrastructure. China’s main regional rival, has the highest foreign investors can enforce their rights to assets held in China; The AIIB was launched in Beijing last China said earlier this year a total of 26 shareholding in the Asian Development limits on how frequently investors can repatriate capital out of year and was seen as a rival to the Western- countries are founder members, mostly Bank along with the United States, while China; uncertainty over whether China will raise caps on invest- dominated World Bank and Asian from Asia and the Middle East. Australian media said Washington put pres- ment quotas; and a lack of clarity over taxation of capital gains. Development Bank. The United States has “Generally speaking, the international sure on Canberra to stay out. Vice Finance “We welcome greater access to China’s capital markets, which questioned whether it will have sufficiently reaction has been positive,” Chinese for- Minister Joo Hyung-hwan told reporters on the inclusion of ‘A’ shares in global indexes could provide,” Kevin high standards on governance and envi- eign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said in Thursday that South Korea was still in dis- Hardy, head of Beta Strategies in Asia Pacific and Country Head of ronmental and social safeguards. Beijing. “The AIIB will abide by the princi- cussions with China and other countries Singapore, BlackRock, said in a statement to Reuters. —Reuters Kim’s remarks came after Britain said it ples of openness, inclusivity, transparency, about its possible participation. — Reuters BUSINESS SATURDAY, MARCH 14 , 2015 Airbus helicopters to sign $3-bn deal in S Korea PARIS: Airbus Helicopters was poised to Monday in Seoul. It’s for the development confirming media reports of a tie-up with fleet of military helicopters. If confirmed, the seal a deal on Monday in South Korea to sell and manufacturing of about 300 helicopters, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI). contract would give Airbus Helicopters an some 300 civil and military helicopters worth about 100 of which are for civilian use,” said Airbus Helicopters declined to comment. important foothold in a strategically vital mar- around three billion dollars, sources close to the source, who did not wish to be named. The firm was in competition with Italian- ket. In 2005, Airbus Helicopters won a similar the agreement told AFP yesterday. “The helicopters will be built in conjunc- British group AgustaWestland for the con- contract for military choppers in South Korea, “The contract should be signed on tion with a local partner,” the source added, tract to help replace South Korea’s ageing also in partnership with KAI. —AFP

Australia’s TPG Telecom in billion dollar takeover bid

SYDNEY: Australia’s TPG Telecom announced yesterday a Aus$1.4 billion (US$1.08 billion) bid for rival iiNet in a merger that would form the nation’s second-largest Internet service provider. The two companies said in a joint statement that iiNet’s board unanimously recommended the offer. “iiNet and TPG are highly complementary businesses in terms of geographic presence, market segments and cor- porate customer base,” TPG’s chief executive David Teoh said. “The combined businesses will provide broadband serv- ices to over 1.7 million subscribers and will be well-posi- tioned to deliver scale benefits in an NBN environment.” The NBN, or national broadband network, aims to con- nect most Australian homes to superfast Internet over the next few years. iiNet chairman Michael Smith said the offer was a “significant reward” for shareholders and described the Aus$1.4 billion price tag as a “tangible measure” of the company’s value. Sydney-based TPG has 748,000 broad- band customers and Perth-based iiNet has 975,000, which combined would push it ahead of Singtel Optus’ almost one million estimated customers. Telstra, the country’s TOKYO: People walk by an electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo, yesterday. Asian stock markets mostly dominant telecoms firm, has three million broadband cus- rose after weak US retail sales alleviated jitters about the Federal Reserve’s timetable for raising interest rates. Japan’s tomers. Nikkei 225 rose 1.4 percent to 19,254.25. — AP Under the proposed takeover, TPG will offer iiNet share- holders Aus$8.60 per share. The shareholders would also be entitled to TPG’s latest 10.5 Aus cents interim dividend. Asian shares edge up, TPG currently owns 6.25 percent of its rival. TPG shares surged 14.34 percent to Aus$8.85 in early trade, while iiNet stocks jumped 24.67 percent to Aus$8.49. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission set for weekly losses (ACCC) said in a statement that it would undertake a pub- lic review of the merger proposal after submissions from the two firms. “The ACCC reviews mergers and acquisi- Euro under pressure tions which have the potential to raise concerns under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010,” the watchdog TOKYO: Asian shares put in a mixed per- percent, though it remained well off 7- report. The Fed’s policy-setting commit- said in a statement. —AFP formance across the region yesterday week lows plumbed earlier in the week. tee meets on March 17 and 18, and but were underpinned by gains on Wall It was on track for a weekly loss of more investors hope the meeting will yield Street, while the dollar resumed its than 2 percent. further clues about the timing of the recent rally after a downward blip on rate increase. disappointing US retail sales data. Robust gains The dollar index edged higher to Financial spreadbetters predicted the Japan’s Nikkei stock average rose 1.4 99.570 after skidding 0.4 percent on US gains would give European bourses percent to a fresh 15-year closing high, Thursday, in its biggest one-day fall in a an early lift, with Britain’s FTSE 100 seen marking its fifth straight winning week. month. The index had earlier risen as far opening 12 points to 14 points higher, The robust gains were partly due to a 13 as 100.060, a high not seen since mid- or as much as 0.2 percent, and France’s percent surge in shares of industrial April 2003, and was still on track to end CAC 40 seen opening 15 to 16 points robot maker Fanuc Corp, which has a the week up more than 1 percent. higher, or as much as 0.3 percent. disproportionately high weighting in Against its Japanese counterpart, the Germany’s DAX was expected to the Nikkei. A report said the company dollar rose about 0.2 percent on the day open 35 to 44 points higher, or as much was considering raising dividends. to 121.46 yen, moving back toward this as 0.4 percent, set for its ninth consecu- On Wall Street, US shares rallied on week’s nearly eight-year high of 122.04. tive weekly gain, which would give it the Thursday, but the S&P 500 was still on In sharp contrast with the Fed, the longest winning streak since 1998. track to post its third consecutive week- European Central Bank launched a The euro skidded about 0.5 percent ly decline, hit by the prospect of higher quantitative easing programme this against the greenback to $1.0576, but US interest rates and the effect of the week that sent yields on the debt of remained well above a 12-year trough of strong dollar on corporate earnings. nearly all euro zone countries to record $1.0494 plumbed in the previous ses- But the dollar pulled away from its lows, and prompted investors to park sion. recent multi-year highs on Thursday their funds elsewhere. “The short-term outlook stays nega- after US retail sales unexpectedly fell in “Euro zone debt may look a little tive in my view, thus I would expect the February, a month marked by harsh overvalued,” said Masashi Murata, senior bears to eventually take control again weather. That tempered the outlook for currency strategist at Brown Brothers SAN FRANCISCO: A Lyft car drives crosses Market Street in and perhaps aim for another test at the first-quarter growth and gave investors Harriman in Tokyo. “They will of course San Francisco. In rulings filed Wednesday, two San $1.0500 key area,” Marshall Gittler, head reason to doubt that the Federal remain well bid under ECB’s bond buy- Francisco federal judges said juries will have to decide of FX strategy at IronFX Global, said in a Reserve might hike interest rates as early ing scheme, but their gains have been whether former drivers for Uber and Lyft were independ- note to clients. as June. too rapid. The euro may thus hold in ent contractors, or employees of the ride-hailing compa- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific However, many investors’ rate-hike range in the short term, especially with nies with all of the protections and benefits the state shares outside Japan erased gains late in bets remained intact after last week’s dollar demand ebbing a little ahead of affords regular workers. — AP the session and was down about 0.2 stronger-than-expected US payrolls next week’s Federal Reserve meeting.” 14, 2015 SATURDAY, MARCH MARCH SATURDAY, www.kuwaittimes.net

In this March 5, 2015 file photo a model wears a creation for Indian fashion designer Manish Arora’s fall-winter 2015-2016 ready-to- wear fashion collection as part of the Paris Fashion Week. — AFP

SEE PAGE 24 SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

to host the 2015 Samberg Emmy Awards

he ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ star has warned viewers they are in for a a statement: “The moment the Emmy Awards host was brought up, “wild ride” when he takes the helm of the primetime ceremony - we said it had to be Andy. “He is fearless, hilarious, an award-winning Twhich honors excellence in the television industry - during the comedian, singer, writer and actor with incredible live TV experience. live show on Fox on September 20. He said in a statement: “Buckle We know he’ll deliver the laughs and give viewers an incredible night your seat belts, Emmy viewers! “Like, in general you should buckle they will enjoy.” Bruce Rosenblum, chairman and CEO of the your seat belts in your car. In fact, even if you’re not an Emmy viewer, Television Academy, added: “It’s wonderfully fitting that we have you should buckle your seat belt. It can be dangerous on the road. Andy Samberg, an Emmy Award winner himself, as our host for this “Also, if you’re not an Emmy viewer, you should strongly con- year’s Primetime Emmy Awards. “Andy has excelled in all aspects of sider becoming one this year, because I’m hosting, and the television universe, both from behind and in front of the camera. it’s gonna be a wild ride. So buckle your seat belts.” His humor, insights and charisma will be an exciting addition to our Show bosses think the “fearless” 36-year-old annual celebration of television’s best and brightest.” The Emmys take star - who won a Creative Arts Emmy in 2007 place at Los Angeles’ Nokia Theatre LA Live on September 20. for his ‘Saturday Night Live’ song ‘Dick in a Box’ - is the perfect choice as host. Fox Television Group chairmen and CEOs Gary Newman and Dana Walden said in

he 22-year-old singer claims to have fallen in love 10 times already in her life and doesn’t think there is just one special person out there for Ther or for anyone. Discussing her songwriting, she said: “I talk about feelings, rather than specific narratives. ‘Boom Clap’ is more about the feel- ing of falling in love rather than any actual relationships. “I’ve fallen in love maybe 10 times. I’m not a believer in one person, I believe in multiple peo- ple.” Charli has also admitted she has often been frustrated at the way she is treated by record company executives. Speaking to Miss Vogue magazine, she said: “I was always drawn to artists who had that raw, wild edge. But as I got older and began making music myself, I did start to get angry at the way I was being treated. “I was 16 and the men at record labels never took me seriously. It’s never been much if a problem from producers and songwriters, it’s always been the suits. “Of course, there have been instances in the studio when I felt like I wasn’t being taken seriously, because I’m young or because I’m a girl.” However, the ‘Fancy’ hitmaker also believes she has an “awesome ‘The One’ power” that comes just from being female. She said: “I think that when you’re female you have this awesome power that men will never understand. “Depending on your age and what sort of person you are, you can harness it in different ways. Sometimes I feel like such a kid, although I’m on this power woman thing right now.”

Lopez has strict iPad rules for kids he ‘American Idol’ judge admits she is a strict parent to seven-year-old Max and Emme - her twins with ex-husband Marc Anthony - and intro- Tduced “Sunday Funday” as an incentive for her kids to be good during the week so they can enjoy electronic games at the weekend. Asked what a typical Sunday involves, she said: “It starts with a late breakfast. We sleep in, even the kids sleep in. And Sunday Funday, they work towards that because they don’t get to use their iPads during the week. “Or play video games or anything because it’s school time. And they have to be good in school and then they get Sunday Funday. It’s something I made up so they could work towards it and behave!” The 45-year-old beauty knows the gadgets are an easy way to occupy her kids, but she doesn’t want them to use them all the time - even if they award her an opportunity to catch up on her sleep. She told E! News: “All they want to do is be on these devices all the time. They get to play with it as much as they want that day. “And I get to lay down because it’s an amazing baby [tool]— everybody knows-that’s why they give it to them all the time. But you know, I try to regulate it and then on Sunday, I let them go and I take a nap while they’re doing it.” Charli XCX doesn’t believe in SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

falls for people ‘based Woodley on who they are’ he ‘Insurgent star - who has remained tight-lipped on important thing in life is self-love. You’ve got to take care her love life - also wants prospective partners to fall in of yourself, and you gotta live from your deep heart.” Tlove with her in the same way. She said: “I’m all-lov- Shailene added to the new issue of ELLE magazine: “The ing. I fall in love with people based on who they are. I never words ‘deep heart’ just always stuck with me. I was like, want to fall in love like this.” Explaining her point through ‘Well, what is a deep heart? What does it actually mean?’ body language, she held her arms out before moving her What I’ve come to determine in my life is that my deep arms behind her back and adding, “I always want to love heart is my - it’s my compassion, empathy and intuition. like this.” She continued: “Heart-centered. Like, ‘This is who “Your intuition never wants to be mean to somebody. The I am! And I love you if you love me for who this person is. way that they express themselves could be rude or seen as And if not, I’ll still love you, but I ain’t fallin’ in love with douchey or whatnot. But maybe they’re scared, or had no you!” The 23-year-old actress also opened up about how one there to support them.” she learnt to love herself first and foremost from her grand- mother, who told her when she was younger: “The most

Jenner is dressing Winslet has a conservatively he 19-year-old model is reportedly “working hard” to rid ‘wonderful’ husband herself of all the stereotypes surrounding the he ‘Insurgent’ actress has a number of movies coming out this year and she is TKardashians and Jenners and is desperate to show the thankful for the support of Ned Rocknroll - the father of her 15-month-old son differences between her and her half-sister. A source shared: TBear - for allowing her to have such a “fun time”. She said: “My creative life in the “Kendall is out there working hard to get past all the stereo- last few years has been really, really, colourful for me. And I’ve really enjoyed being types people have of her family and Kim just keeps reaffirm- able to embrace that. “I have a wonderful man in my life who is so incredibly support- ing them. Kendall goes out of her way to dress very conserva- ive that makes it possible for me to have those experiences. It’s been a really fun tively whenever she is with Kim because she doesn’t want to time.” The 39-year-old actress - who also has daughter be judged like that. “She wants to be taken seriously in the Mia, 14, and son Joe, 11, from her two previous mar- fashion world and Kim is just making that harder for her. The riages - says she has never been happier. She clip of Kim saying she gave Kendall a career is everywhere and said: “Life is really wonderful. “We’ve all got our she hates hearing it. Now Kendall feels like she’s not helping health and we all laugh a lot. In my personal her career grow at all with her scantily clad outfits.” And whilst life, I really can’t say why, but I’ve never felt there is no love lost between the pair, Kendall wishes her half- more confident and happy.” And the British sister and brother-in-law Kanye West would let her have her actress involves her older kids in her career “moment”. The insider added to HollywoodLife.com: “Kendall decisions these days. She admitted to People is happy that Kanye and Kim have gotten into the fashion magazine: “They do very much have an opin- scene but sometimes she wishes they would just go home ion on what I do and don’t do these days.” and let her have her own moment in the sun. Kim always Asked what they said about playing the villain- steals the spotlight with her barely there outfits. “Kendall ous Jeanine in the ‘Divergent’ series, she loves her older sister to death, but she really wishes Kim added: “‘Yeah, Mom, you should definitely do would dress more conservatively. She doesn’t know why Kim it!’ The idea that their mom would wants to show off her body soo badly as it just gives haters play this baddie was incredibly ammunition.” exciting.” Bellucci

finds being single he ‘Spectre’ actress - who has daughters Deva, 10, and Leonie, five, with ex-husband Vincent Cassel - feels very ‘liberating’ Talive” and enjoys life on her own. Asked if being single at 50 is strange, she said: “No. It feels liberating. The single woman is a free woman and being single does not mean being alone. I feel very alive. “I’m lucky to be in good health and have two wonderful daughters who fill my life with such joy.” Monica was 39 when she had her first child and thinks she was right to wait until later in life because she was too “selfish” in her 20s and early 30s to be a parent, and hails hav- ing kids a “miracle”. She told Britain’s HELLO! Magazine: “[Being a parent] has made me so much happier, more com- plete, and fuller. “When I was in my 20s and early 30s, I wasn’t ready to take on such a responsibility. Maybe that’s because I was an only child and that makes you more selfish. “But as soon as I had Deva, I wanted to have another child. Then I decided I should wait until I had time to understand what it means to be a mother. “I had my second daughter when I was 45, which is quite lucky for a woman at that age. But it’s just been so beautiful to raise my children. It’s a miracle.” — bangshowbiz SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

A billboard for the Bollywood film “Aarakshan,” or “Reservation” is displayed outside a cinema in New Delhi. The film was banned by 3 Indian states. — AP photos British filmmaker Leslee Udwin addresses a press conference Politics lead India to on her documentary film “India’s Daughter in New Delhi. bans books and films

British documentary. A YouTube comedy clip. A book on copies of American historian Wendy Doniger’s “The Hindus: An Hinduism. Each offended some segment of Indian society, and Alternative History,” after protests and a lawsuit from a Hindu right- Aeach was banned or suppressed as a result. Over the last year, wing group. The group’s main objection was that the book described at least two books and two films have become off-limits in India. “The Hindu mythological texts as fictional. And in January, Tamil writer Satanic Verses” has been forbidden since the 1990s. And the film cen- Perumal Murugan was hounded from his home in southern India after sor board has issued a list of unacceptable words. right-wing Hindu groups and local caste groups called for his death India is the world’s largest democracy and has made huge eco- and burned copies of his book “One Part Woman,” saying it offended nomic leaps in the last few decades to become a key Asian power. members of the Gounder caste. In response, the writer posted on his And yet, as its official and unofficial bans show, this country of 1.2 bil- Facebook page that “Perumal Murugan, the writer is dead. As he is no lion continues to grapple with a complex tangle of deep sensitivities God, he is not going to resurrect himself.” He urged his publishers to and a political process that is deeply influenced by religious and caste stop selling his work, and his readers to burn copies of his books. loyalties. “Religious communities, ethnic groups, historical figures are all off- limits,” says Shiv Vishvanathan, a social scientist at OP Jindal Global No safe haven In this June 15, 2004 file photo, a movie theatre worker University. “The state is electorally subservient to any ethnic or reli- Vishvanathan said no one stood up to defend Murugan: “Our insti- removes a poster of Bollywood film ‘Girlfriend’ in Allahabad, gious group that throws a tantrum.” The most recent example of what tutions don’t have any teeth and our intellectuals don’t stick to their after Hindu hard-liners smashed glass panes and ripped Vishvanathan calls “India’s ban epidemic” took place last week when guns.” Movies are another common target. India’s film censor board posters in cinemas to pressure the government to censor or the government halted the screening of “India’s Daughter,” a British rejected the erotic drama “Fifty Shades of Grey,” and Hollywood ban the film about a lesbian couple. documentary on a 2012 gang rape, an attack so brutal that it sent movies that do appear on Indian screens are routinely scrubbed of sex shock waves through this nation long inured to violence against scenes. Religious content also can draw censorship: “The Da Vinci women. Code” was banned in the Indian state of Goa, which has a large Christian population, because religious groups objected. The censor Ostrich-like behavior board recently issued a list of words it considered too racy - mostly The reasons for banning the film were never spelled out, but offi- expletives but also “masturbation” and any “double meaning words” cials seemed to suggest a range of possibilities - from fears that the in any language. The list is currently on hold, but the board did mute film denigrated India to anger that it aired an interview with one of the word “lesbian” in a Bollywood film released last week. The the convicted and condemned attackers. Santosh Desai, a social com- Internet is no safe haven, as a comedy group’s roast of several well- mentator and newspaper columnist, said that instead of tackling seri- known movie stars recently showed. The roast was equal parts crass, ous issues such as sexual violence, the government often turns vulgar and hilarious. None of the stars seemed offended, but the lan- ostrich-like, banning attempts to provoke discussion. “Women’s safety guage offended several religious and political groups. is a complex problem and banning a film that draws attention to it Within weeks of the Jan 20 roast, the group had been forced to gives the illusion of action,” Desai said. Bans are also a result of the fact pull the video off YouTube and all participants, including the movie that politics in this massive, chaotic country is still largely focused on stars, had been served legal notices for offenses ranging from using identity - religious or ethnic. vulgarity in front of women to circulation of obscene content on the While the constitution protects the right to freedom of expression, Internet. It’s unlikely anyone will actually serve jail time, but it’s added the country’s penal code threatens up to three years’ imprisonment a layer of caution in a society where there’s already a great deal of self- against those who appear to act “with deliberate and malicious inten- censorship. tion of outraging religious feelings. Indian intellectuals reacted with Bans can even extend to food. A newly elected Hindu right-wing outrage and condemnation in the aftermath of the jihadist attacks on government in Maharashtra state recently made all slaughter, sale the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, but few show support and consumption of beef a criminal offense punishable with a five- when books and artists are banned in India, largely because they year prison sentence. While Maharashtra’s ban is one of the most know the state often won’t step in to protect them. India-born writer stringent, similar bans are in place in several Indian states because the Salman Rushdie’s book “The Satanic Verses” has been banned here cow is revered in Hinduism. “Banning beef is like banning books,” A copy of the book ‘One Part Woman’ stands on display at since 1998, since many Muslims consider it blasphemous. Rushdie says Vishvanathan. “We can, so we will.” — AP The Bookshop in New Delhi. Tamil writer Perumal Murugan was forced to cancel a 2012 appearance at the Jaipur Literary Festival was hounded from his home after rightwing Hindu groups amid protests and threats by prominent Muslim clerics. Last year, the began calling for his death, and burning copies of the book publishing house Penguin India pulled from shelves and destroyed all saying it offended members of the Gounder caste. SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015 Disney announces plans for ‘Frozen 2’ et it go (on)! The Walt Disney Co on Thursday eagerly for the announcement. Most big box- announced plans to make a sequel to the ani- office hits generate sequel announcements within Lmated mega-hit “Frozen.” Bob Iger, Walt weeks of opening. But any delay in a “Frozen” Disney Co chief executive, and John Lasseter, head sequel has been easily assuaged by the film’s of Walt Disney Animation Studios, joined in offi- unabated popularity. “Frozen” is by far the biggest cially announcing “Frozen 2” at the company’s grossing animated film ever, and its soundtrack, annual shareholders meeting in San Francisco. The led by Idina Menzel’s “Let it Go,” remains ubiqui- sequel had been widely expected for a film that tous. A “Frozen” short is to play in front of Disney’s has become a juggernaut for Disney. Since its latest release, the live-action “Cinderella,” which release in November 2013, “Frozen” has made opened in theaters yesterday. nearly $1.3 billion globally at the box office, gener- Josh Gad, the voice of the snowman Olaf, was ated a massive merchandising revenue stream and on hand for the announcement Thursday and will won the Academy Award for best animated fea- be returning for the sequel. But no other returning ture. Disney didn’t announce any details on the characters were announced. At the shareholders sequel’s plot or a release date, but said directors meeting, Disney also announced a release date for Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck will be returning. “Star Wars: Episode VIII”: May 26, 2017. Rian “We enjoyed making Frozen Fever so much Johnson (“Looper”) is confirmed to write and and being back in that world with those charac- direct. — AP This image released by Disney ters,” said Lasseter. “Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck shows Elsa the Snow Queen, have come up with a great idea for a sequel and voiced by Idina Menzel, in a you will be hearing a lot more about it and we’re scene from the animated fea- taking you back to Arendelle.” Though a sequel ture ‘Frozen’. — AP was always only a matter of time, fans have waited

Film Review ‘Run All Night’ has enough gas in the tank here are, if not 50, at least a dozen shades of world- ones that Hollywood once flashed in its sleep, but now seldom Engrossing thriller weary masculinity in the Liam Neeson thriller “Run All rouses.”Run All Night,” directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, who The fathers, Jimmy and Maguire, are Irish, whiskey-swilling TNight.” There’s Neeson as Jimmy Conlon, a washed-up has helmed two previous entries in the late Neeson canon holdouts of a bygone criminal era. The ghosts of a grittier New Brooklyn hit-man; his mob boss and pal Shawn Maguire (Ed (“Non-Stop” and “Unknown”), may well be the best of the York hang over them. All their friends have died away or been Harris); Joel Kinnaman as Jimmy’s straight-arrow, limo-driving bunch. It’s admittedly not an extraordinarily high bar. (Some, locked up. (Harris could be seen as playing his “State of Grace” son Mike; and Vincent D’Onofrio’s veteran police detective. By though not me, would cite Neeson’s “The Grey.”) And while Hell’s Kitchen mobster after another 25 years.) They’re left to the time Nick Nolte turns up, presumably contractually obli- there is precious little fresh ground to this familiar New York lament the changing of old hangouts like a butcher shop gated to appear anywhere father-son issues are bandied and crime drama, and the film’s stylistic flourishes do it no help, for turned into, Maguire sneers, an Applebee’s. characters are gravely musing about “the things I’ve seen,” simple, well-acted genre thrills, the pulpy “Run All Night” has After Danny makes promises to Albanian heroin dealers “Run All Night” can slam its cards down: a full house. enough gas in the tank. In “Run All Night,” penned by Brad that he can’t follow through on, he panics and kills them, only “Run All Night” is the latest in that curious cinematic cot- Ingelsby (“Out of the Furnace”), father-son disappointments their limo driver (guess who) witnesses it. When Danny pur- tage industry: Old-man Neeson Revenge Flicks. It’s a niche of flow in both directions. Neeson’s boy, Jimmy, has sworn off his sues Mike, Jimmy is there to shoot him. The seriousness of the thriller often more fun in theory than in practice, but on the alcoholic, mobbed-up father, and kept his family from ever situation is immediately apparent: Jimmy has just killed the whole, it’s hard not to root for keeping alive the pleasures of meeting him. For the Maguires, the son, Danny (Boyd son of his one true friend, who’ll surely murder him for it. He solid genre exercises. Such movies take a special set of skills, Holbrook) is the regrettable one: a brash, drug-using punk. picks up the phone to confess. An all-night chase across Brooklyn and Manhattan ensues, a last ditch effort for Jimmy’s salvation as he tries to save his son’s life. “Listen to your father for one night,” he tells his son. Though Mike chafes at their reunion, when Jimmy ably jacks a car with nothing but a shoe lace, he begins to brighten. Collet-Serra links each jump between characters spread across a rainy, nighttime New York by an as-the-crow-flies camera zoom that even avian enthusiasts will scoff at. Such sil- ly flashiness occasionally crops up in the film, like in a dinner scene with Jimmy and Maguire where Collet-Serra can’t stop circling them like an over-eager waiter. But when Collet-Serra isn’t getting in his own way, “Run All Night” is an engrossing thriller: the bloody last breathe of a dying New York, played out in barrooms, subway stations and train yards. It does err, though, with the introduction of an absurdly elite killer (Common), who kills three cops within minutes, stealthily rampaging through a burning apartment building. The outcome, of course, is never in doubt. Through the urban gloom marches our aged hero, heavy of heart and quick with a gun: our sacrificial elder. Liam Neeson to the dark tower came. “Run All Night,” a Warner Bros release, is rated R for “strong violence, language including sexual references and some drug use.” Running time: 108 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four. MPAA definition of R: Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian. — AP

In this image released by Warner Brothers Pictures, Joel Kinnaman and Liam Neeson, appear in a scene from ‘Run All Night’. — AP SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

This picture taken on March 11, 2015 shows food inspired by the works of This picture shows a mocktail inspired by the works of artist Damien Hirst. Andy Warhol in Hong Kong. — AFP photos Hong Kong draws up culinary canvas for hungry art lovers

ong Kong’s Art Week will consume the city Warhol to coincide with Art Basel, but she says the for the next few days but creative displays fusion of art and food in the city has been grow- Hwill not be confined to galleries and exhibi- ing for a while. “Eating and drinking are becoming tion halls-they will also be splashed across plates multi-sensory experiences. People expect more and in cocktail glasses. The city’s restaurants and from their plate. We frequently turn to art, archi- bars have drawn up their own culinary canvas to tecture and designers to influence our presenta- tap into the growing interest surrounding Art tion,” she told AFP. Hong Kong is now the world’s Week, which centers around Hong Kong’s Art third-largest art market by auction sales and the Basel fair and sees art shows pop up all over town. number of galleries has grown from fewer than 10 More than 65,000 people from across the world to 90 in the past 15 years, government figures say. are expected to attend Art Basel from Friday-the Greater China, grouping the mainland, Hong biggest art show in Asia-and thousands more will Kong and Taiwan, maintained its market-leader visit satellite events. status in 2014, accounting for $5.6 billion in glob- But visitors increasingly expect their creative al art sales according to data firm Artprice. experience to extend beyond the main event, The boom has fed through to other industries says chef Uwe Opocensky of the city’s Michelin- in the city, with the fusion of art and eating a starred Mandarin Grill + Bar, at the Mandarin prime example. New French restaurant Bibo is Oriental Hotel. Opocensky has created an Asian packed with works by some of the art world’s art-inspired menu with dishes including “Jade”- biggest names, including Jeff Koons, Banksy, and what look like vivid green gems on a grey rock Takashi Murakami-and with just 14 tables diners but are actually salmon and scallops covered in are guaranteed a blockbuster view. Duddell’s-a gelatin flavored with yuzu, an Asian citrus fruit; or two Michelin-starred Chinese restaurant, which is “Warrior”-a chocolate dedication to the Terracotta part members club, part gallery-displays rare col- Army in China’s Xian. “It is not just artists or gal- lectors’ pieces and has hosted exhibitions curated lerists or collectors that come here for the special by internationally acclaimed artists including menu. We have businessmen, young couples, Amelie von Wedel, Ai Weiwei, and Danh Vo. ladies who lunch. Even if you are not directly “It’s not just about hanging a few pretty pic- A picture taken on December 12, 2012 shows British musician Eric involved in Art Basel, I think people like feel they tures on the wall,” says Duddell’s co-owner Alan Clapton performing during ‘12-12-12’ The Concert For Sandy Relief” are still taking part,” he says. Lo. “From day one we strived to present an exhi- at Madison Square Garden in New York. — AFP At rival luxury hotel The Peninsula, Chef bition program that is both international and criti- Yoshiharu Kaji of its Felix restaurant has put cal, to instigate conversations and debates.” together five courses celebrating the arts, includ- Eric Clapton to turn ing a replica of the Taj Mahal. The Mira Hotel- Innovation or gimmick ? made famous when American whistleblower On the flip-side, galleries such as The Popsy Edward Snowden used it as his initial refuge after Room are using food to help get people talking 70 with NYC shows his explosive leak of National Security documents- more about art. Owner Jennifer Chung runs a is serving drinks inspired by Andy Warhol and a nightly eight-course dinner where each course is Guitar legend Eric Clapton is planning to celebrate turning 70 by playing dedicated Art Basel menu based on the different paired with a different piece of art. The pieces are two concerts at New York’s Madison Square Garden.Clapton on Thursday elements of the exhibition. Prices for most art- hung around the gallery and as each dish is announced the shows for May 1-2, which would come two weeks ahead inspired set menus start from around HK$1,000 served guests are given a talk on the art it goes of a previously announced residency of six sold-out concerts at London’s per person and wine pairings will add around 50 with. “I wanted to create an environment where Royal Albert Hall, also timed for his birthday. Clapton and his former percent to the bill. “Perhaps they won’t buy an people feel relaxed and less intimidated by the band Cream in 1968 inaugurated the modern version of Madison Square expensive piece from a gallery, but they can buy arts,” says Chung.”The dining environment cre- Garden, built after developers knocked down parts of historic some art on a plate,” Opocensky says. ates the right atmosphere and I think it’s more Pennsylvania Station in Midtown Manhattan. effective than art talks or panel discussions.” But The latest shows would take to 47 the number of times Clapton played Sensory experience while fusing food and art is a trend that shows at the 20,000-capacity arena, one of the most prestigious venues for big- With smartphones an almost requisite utensil now signs of diminishing, Duddell’s Lo says that ticket artists. The English guitarist’s birthday is March 30. With the shows, in Hong Kong as diners take pictures of their food, to reap the best creative rewards, it’s important to Clapton joins the growing club of still-active septuagenarian rockers who photogenic dishes explode across social media avoid flash-in-the pan “gimmicks”. include the Rolling Stones, surviving Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo and are a valuable marketing tool. “In a social “To make a real impact you need to engage Starr, and Paul Simon. media world where cameras take the first bite or with the creative community year round,” he says. Clapton, hailed for his guitar style that merges rock with elements of sip, it’s important to work on new ways to wow And for restaurants, the food should come first. the blues and psychedelia, last year went on a selective tour that includ- and intrigue,” says Victoria Chow, co-owner of The “Beautiful food is always the draw-you want to ed shows in Japan, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and the New Woods bar. Her venue has created cocktails like the look of what you’re eating as well,” he Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. — AFP inspired by Damien Hirst, Mark Rothko and Andy says. — AFP SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

Urn artists look for the beauty in death

Julie Moore puts a finishing touch to a funerary urn at her home studio in Apex, North Carolina. — AP photos

f all the pieces Julie Moore crafts in her containers for veterans whose remains were home studio, the most popular is a coming home in cardboard boxes. He looked at Obrightly colored fabric vessel she calls what was out there on the market and wasn’t “the party jar.” But in this case, the guest of hon- impressed. The Raleigh woodturner works or is inside the jar. “People that are vivacious and almost exclusively with trees that have died nat- celebrate life - this one is what they really like,” urally, going where the wood’s grain and imper- she says, lifting the ornately woven lid from the fections take him. His urns range in price from urn. “I want it to be a piece of art that they look $300 for a 70-cubic-inch piece made from a at and they don’t think, ‘Oh. That’s Dad’s ashes.’” black cherry stump to $5,200 for a 450-cubic- Cremations in the United States have tripled inch red maple burl “companion” urn. since 1985, accounting for about 44 percent of all “dispositions,” according to the Cremation Funerary art Association of North America. With families “It’s kind of on par with somebody who becoming increasingly transient, the organiza- would get a really nice casket,” says Van Duyn, tion expects that to grow to 55 percent over the who works out of his garage. “So it’s something next decade. And as cremations soar, more peo- that the owner would be happy to have on dis- ple are looking for urns that, well, don’t look like play and that they can feel proud of and they can urns. “At least one in five Americans have an urn feel good about their loved ones being in.” in their house,” says Robin Simonton, executive Moore got into funerary art through her own director of Raleigh’s historic Oakwood Cemetery. interest in “green burial.” She started with Two of Jason Van Duyn’s finished funerary urns sit on a work bench. “And if you’re going to put someone on your shrouds, pillows and quilts to be placed in sim- mantle, you want them to look nice.” ple pine boxes; the urns seemed a natural pro- gression. Often, the family will send her items of ‘The personalization of death’ the deceased’s clothing. She recently made an On April 19, Oakwood is hosting its first Urn urn out of T-shirts from a teenage boy who’d Art & Garden Faire - a juried competition that’s committed suicide. “It made a very pretty urn,” drawn entries from across the country. Although she says. “And it was the colors of HIS life.” Each the idea of a national urn contest has raised comes with a tightly woven sateen drawstring some eyebrows, Simonton thinks it’s an appro- bag that can be buried or used to scatter the priate way to recognize this trend in “the person- ashes, Moore says. Urns intended for burial are alization of death.” Some have taken it to an made entirely of organic, biodegradable materi- extreme. Foreverence, a funeral products com- als. Moore began showing her pieces about two pany in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, uses 3-D print- years ago. Sometimes, her conceit is a bit too ing to allow customers to design urns in the effective. “I had one woman who was holding it shape of a favorite musical instrument or car, and, ‘Oh, it’s so pretty. It’s beautiful. What do you and to even create a lifelike bust of the put in here?’ And I said, ‘Well, actually, you put deceased. For the family of Devo guitarist Bob remains in there. It’s for ashes,’” Moore says with Casale, the company created an urn shaped like a grin. “She dropped it and ran as if she’d, like, “The Energy Dome” - the synth pop/new wave touched death or something.” Raleigh resident band’s iconic tiered hat. Oakwood has received Norma Marti bought her own party jar about more than two dozen entries, made of every- two years ago. “I turned 60 that year, and so that thing from wood, ceramic and fabric to North last quarter century of life was looming,” she Carolina longleaf pine needles. The farthest sub- says. “I thought, ‘Well, that’s really cool.’ And I mission is from Wyoming. Crafted of tooled can actually display it as art - until it’s needed.” Moore shows off her ‘Party Jar,’ a colorful cloth cremation urn that’s not supposed to leather, it features an American Indian brave, When guests ask about the piece in her family look like a vessel for ashes. slumped in the saddle, and the words: “A horse room bookcase, she doesn’t tell them that it’s a we all must ride someday.” funerary urn. But her children know what it’s for. Jason Van Duyn began making urns a couple “When the time comes,” she says with a chuckle, of years ago after reading an article about a “then hopefully I’ll be able to fit into it.” —AP woodworker who volunteered his time to make SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

British model Naomi Campbell poses for pictures as she arrives British actor Colin Firth and his wife Livia pose for pictures as British fashion designer Victoria Beckham poses for pictures. on the red carpet for the ‘Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty they arrive on the red carpet. —AFP photos Gala’ at the Victorian & Albert Museum in London. UK fashion icon McQueen honored by London show

tars turned out to honor the late “enfant terrible” of British Rytter revealed that McQueen was an avid watcher of nature pro- against models in imperious red, white and gold robes of feath- fashion, Alexander McQueen, on Thursday, the opening par- grams, reflected in the use of animal parts including pheasant ers, furs and gems. The display echoes the 1995 “Highland Rape” Sty of a London show celebrating the designer five years after and goose feathers, razor clam shells, jewel-studded bird skulls, show, which explored the historic treatment of Highland Scots by his death. More than 70,000 tickets have already sold for the crocodile heads and antlers. English rulers, cementing his reputation as fashion’s “enfant terri- “Savage Beauty” show, which opens to the public on Saturday at Some costumes are inspired by gazelles; others conjure up ble”. London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. The director calls it an images of ostriches. “I think he was inspired by nature because it Audio clips of McQueen played throughout the exhibition cel- “emotional homecoming” for the designer who committed sui- was so unpredictable,” she said. “The savage, animals that are ebrate the influence of London on his career. “It brings the man cide in 2010 aged 40 and is remembered as one of Britain’s most wild and untamed, living in the free. “He always questioned into the exhibition and emphasizes the importance of London, influential cultural figures of recent times. beauty, it’s not conventional,” she added. “In the early days it was the capital city, his home where he grew up, where he was edu- The fashion world was out in force for the opening, attended rawer and he was very personal. He was an untamed designer.” cated and where he started showing his collections,” Wilcox told by Britain’s David and Victoria Beckham and models Naomi There is a hint of his untamed side-recently laid bare in a contro- AFP. Reflecting his love of the macabre, the Cabinet of Curiosity Campbell, Kate Moss, Eva Herzigova and Poppy Delevingne in full versial biography-in nightmarish leather-masked mannequins offers quirky garments and accessories, including work with other ball gowns. They were joined at the dinner by Mexican-born film sporting Victorian Gothic dresses. designers. Most stunning perhaps is supermodel Kate Moss, star Salma Hayek, English actor Colin Firth in a tuxedo and McQueen’s close friend, appearing as a giant floating hologram Britain’s Princess Beatrice. On view from Saturday are 240 outfits ‘Inspiration to designers’ draped in one of his ethereal white-feather creations. Also on typifying McQueen’s distinctive and occasionally bizarre style in It was McQueen’s vision, his exploration of historical and politi- show are the distinctive “armadillo” shoes worn by Lady Gaga in the museum’s largest ever fashion exhibition. Curator Claire cal themes and collaborations with members of the Young British the video for “Bad Romance”. Fashion forecaster and early visitor Wilcox described McQueen as “one of the most influential design- Art (YBA) movement of the early 1990s that led Rytter to call him Jaana Jatyri said the show would further burnish McQueen’s lega- ers of his generation who shocked with his spectacular and pow- a genuine artist. “You can consider him as one of the YBAs cy. “He was an inspiration to fashion consumers and also to erful catwalk shows”. The exhibition, she said, was a reflection of because he had craftsmanship but he also created a spectacle,” designers,” she said. “He will come back to life, I am sure, through his “elaborate storytelling, craftsmanship of the highest level” and she said. “He drew in so many inspirations from art,” she added. this exhibition.” — AFP his romantic obsession with nature. On display are technical skills “He was surrounded by all these young British pop artists who honed as an apprentice on London’s exclusive Savile Row and were pushing Britain forward.” characterized by precisely tailored curves and exaggerated sil- His interest in politics and history are underlined by a row of houettes that became his trademark. Research assistant Louise mannequins in tartan, inspired by his Scottish roots, facing off

Kathy Griffin quits ‘Fashion Police’

he “Fashion Police” force is dwindling, with Giuliana Rancic’s red-carpet criticism of African- Kathy Griffin following Kelly Osbourne out American singer-actress Zendaya’s dreadlocks. Tthe door. Griffin announced her departure Rancic said they suggested the smell of marijuana. Thursday, after just seven episodes, in a posting Zendaya went online to slam the remarks as on her Twitter account. The tweet was verified by “outrageously offensive.” Rancic later apologized, her office. saying the experience taught her not to perpetu- Griffin said her style didn’t mesh with the E! ate clichÈs and stereotypes. Griffin came to channel show’s “creative direction,” but her “Fashion Police” as a replacement for her friend lengthy tweet also veered off into apparent criti- and mentor, the late Joan Rivers. In a statement, cism of how “Fashion Police” critiques celebrity the channel said series executive producer and looks. “There is plenty to make fun of in pop cul- Rivers’ daughter, Melissa, will step in for the next ture without bringing people’s bodies into it. ... I episode. That will air as scheduled March 30, the do not want to use my comedy to contribute to a channel said, with Rivers joining remaining co- culture of unattainable perfectionism and intoler- hosts Rancic and Brad Goreski. There was no ance towards difference,” she posted. word on who will permanently replace Griffin, Griffin tweeted that her goal is to help whom the channel thanked for her work, or “women, gay kids, people of color” and anyone Osbourne. — AP who feels underrepresented to have a voice and a In this Jan 15, 2015, file photo, Kathy Griffin of the E! show “Fashion Police” poses at the laugh. Osbourne exited “Fashion Police” two NBCUniversal Cable 2015 Winter TCA Press Tour at The Langham Huntington Hotel, in weeks ago after complaining about co-host Pasadena. — AP SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

TLC to air series about a

transgender teen activist Jazz Jennings arrives at the 24th Annual he TLC channel will air a documentary series about Black” star Laverne Cox, the first openly transgender actor GLAAD Media transgender teen activist Jazz Jennings and her fam- to earn an Emmy nomination. The TLC series, tentatively Awards at the ily. The channel said Thursday that the 11-episode titled “All That Jazz,” is scheduled for a summer debut. T JW Marriott, in series will follow the lives of 14-year-old Jazz, who was Jennings, the name used in the series, is not the family’s Los Angeles. born male, her parents, siblings and grandparents. TLC real surname, a TLC spokesman said. Their south Florida — AP general manager Nancy Daniels described Jazz as having hometown also is kept private. — AP a “big, brave heart.” Transgender themes and characters have become prominent on TV, most notably with the Golden Globe- winning comedy “Transparent” and “Orange Is the New

New wave of Polish designers wow showrooms worldwide

aving grown up with the shortages of the communist era, a technology used to make furniture-like the Plopp stool-by welding and prints out a slip of paper with a different slogan every day: “Why bright new generation of Polish designers is capitalizing on the together two steel sheets and inflating the form with air at high pres- are you sitting here? Things to discover are waiting!” “Polish furniture Hspirit of ingenuity those hard times bred to win recognition sure. Giving the illusion of flimsy inflatable plastic furniture, Plopp has makers have long been inspired by, and copied, what was being worldwide. Typical of Polish design is the “vice clock”: a small, metal enjoyed global success, just like Roman Modzelewski’s cult curvy plas- made in the West,” said designer Zofia Strumillo-Sukiennik, a Beza three-sided cube with a clamping mechanism so it can be attached to tic armchair, made in 1958 but which became popular 40 years later. Projekt member who has created items for global furniture giant Ikea. any number of household items, from drainpipes to bookshelves to a Or the Dia rug from the Moho design studio, which is laser cut from Polish manufacturers are increasingly recognizing “that design brings stack of post-it notes. “I try to design simple and smart objects. I like to wool felt to resemble traditional Polish decoupage folk art. The econo- real added value to furniture,” which is helping develop the industry, use simple materials, like metal and especially wood,” said Bartosz my ministry considers industrial design to be a factor in economic she told AFP. “We went from ‘Made in Poland’ to ‘Designed in Mucha, the 37-year-old behind the idea. “I heard that resourcefulness growth. To that end, it invested 186 million Euros towards research Poland’,” said Jacobson-Cielecka, a professor at the School of Form in is characteristic of Polish designers,” he added about an industry that and development in the sector in 2007-2013. western Poland. Poland’s furniture industry is one of the world’s most is becoming a growth engine for Polish commerce. “Because we are competitive. Around 90 percent of its production is sent to France, still not a rich country. We were in the east communist bloc and this ‘Designed in Poland’ Germany and even the United States. Poland is also Ikea’s second history influenced us,” he told AFP, referring to the quintessential Beza Projekt, a Warsaw design collective, no longer keeps track of largest supplier, after China. — AFP Polish talent of creating something out of nothing, of seeing the pos- its successes at home and abroad. Its wooden cuckoo clock, made for sibilities in objects and transforming them. Considered one of the Discovery Channel, chimes just after the work day ends at 5:00 pm country’s best designers today by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, which promotes Polish culture abroad, Mucha represents the young generation of artists who are making up for lost time.

Paris, London, Hong Kong After having experienced a slowdown under the communist regime, Polish design has taken off in the new millennium. From Paris to London to Hong Kong, the number of Polish exhibitions abroad increased fivefold between 2012 and 2014, from six to 31. One indus- trial designer, Pawel Grobelny, favors minimalist designs and projects destined to mesh well with the urban environment. He designed the angular street furniture for the Zhongshan Park in Shanghai and the Monolit benches-wooden with a twist-for the Albertine gardens in Brussels. Between 2009 and 2013, Grobelny and his collaborator Agnieszka Jacobson-Cielecka organized the UNPOLISHED exhibition, which has been shown more than 20 times around the globe. “We realized that this generation of designers, who were in their 30s when we were preparing this exhibition, had a common way of thinking,” said Jacobson-Cielecka. “They use very simple material, which is inexpen- sive and easy to get. They use simple methods. They also often include an ironic context, so there is a sense of humor that is hidden in the object,” she told AFP. Take Oskar Zieta, for example. He invented FIDU, a production A student of Design Faculty of Warsaw’s Art Academy attends a lesson in Warsaw. — AFP photos

Students of Design Faculty of Warsaw’s Art Academy attends a lesson.