BUSINESS | Page 1 SPORT | Page 12 Kohli anchors INDEX India to DOW JONES QE NYMEX QATAR 6 – 12, 30, 32 COMMENT 30, 31 REGION 13 BUSINESS 1 – 5, 19 – 23 17,492.00 10,425.97 39.44 ARAB WORLD 13, 14 CLASSIFIED 6 – 16 Lower LNG costs ‘set to easy win +107.00 +134.64 -0.76 INTERNATIONAL 15 – 29 SPORTS 1 – 12 +0.62% +1.31% -1.89% help Qatar stay profi table’ Latest Figures published in QATAR since 1978 SUNDAY Vol. XXXVII No. 10033 March 20, 2016 Jumada II 11, 1437 AH GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals Earth Hour campaign Flydubai In brief passenger TURKEY | Security Qatar condemns bomb attack Qatar yesterday condemned the explosion that took place in Istanbul and led to a number of jet crash casualties. Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Aff airs, in a statement, expressed condemnation of the attack, the off icial Qatar News Agency (QNA) said. The statement said that such criminal acts violated the principles of Islam kills 62 and humanity. It also violated international laws, the statement The crash occurred more than Emir condoles with added. The ministry said that two hours after the plane, flight Russian president Qatar remained fully behind any number FZ981, was scheduled to measures Turkey would take land HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin to maintain peace and stability. Hamad al-Thani has sent a cable of The ministry conveyed Qatar’s Reuters condolences to Russian President condolences to the families of the Moscow/Dubai Vladimir Putin, expressing his heartfelt victims as well as the government condolences and sympathy over the and people of Turkey and wished victims of the Flydubai plane which the injured a swift recovery. Page 21 ll 62 people aboard a passenger crashed near Rostov-on-Don airport. jet fl ying from Dubai to southern HH the Deputy Emir Sheikh Abdullah ARussia were killed when their bin Hamad al-Thani has also sent a ca- QATAR | Gesture plane crashed on its second attempt to ble of condolences to President Putin. Cables of land at Rostov-on-Don airport yester- HE the Prime Minister and Minister of day. Interior Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser condolences A number of public and private organisations observed Earth Hour in Qatar yesterday, joining thousands of institutions Russia’s emergencies ministry said bin Khalifa al-Thani has sent a cable HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin across world in marking the initiative. Lights were switched off for an hour, from 8.30pm to 9.30pm, to highlight the need the aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 operated of condolences to Russian Prime Hamad al-Thani has sent a cable of to save energy and rationalise consumption of resources. Pictured is the Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation by Dubai-based budget carrier Fly- Minister Dmitry Medvedev, express- condolences to Turkish President (Kahramaa) headquarters before the lights were switched off and during Earth Hour. PICTURE: Shemeer Rasheed dubai, crashed at 0340 (0040 GMT). ing his condolences and sympathy Recep Tayyip Erdogan, expressing Pages 17, 18, 30 Most of those on board were Russian. on the victims of the Flydubai plane his heartfelt condolences and “The aircraft hit the ground and crash. sympathy on the victims of the broke into pieces,” the Investigative terrorist bombing which took Committee of Russia said in a state- place in the centre of Istanbul ment. “There were 55 passengers Sergei Melnichenko, head of Avia- yesterday, praying to Almighty aboard and seven crew members. They tion Safety consultancy in Moscow, Allah to grant the victims rest all died.” said so far little pointed to an act of ter- and bless on the injured quick Qatar’s mediation eff orts Both of the plane’s fl ight recorders rorism. recovery, according to the off icial have been recovered undamaged. “Nothing points to that,” Meln- Qatar News Agency. HH the According to the independent US- ichenko said. “But nothing can be fully Deputy Emir Sheikh Abdullah based Flight Safety Foundation, there ruled out until a complete decryption bin Hamad al-Thani has also was strong wind at the airport with a of the fl ight recorders is done.” sent a cable of condolences to win worldwide acclaim speed of 43km per hour, with gusts up According to the fl ight track- President Erdogan. HE the Prime to 69km, but visibility was reasonable. er Flightradar24, an Aerofl ot fl ight Minister and Minister of Interior “Diff erent versions of what hap- SU1166 from Moscow made three Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin QNA in mediation between Djibouti and Qatar’s mediation eff orts also won pened are being looked into, including landing attempts in Rostov before be- Khalifa al-Thani has sent a cable New York Eritrea, which resulted in the release of praise from Organisation of Islamic crew error, a technical failure and bad ing diverted. It landed at 2315 GMT in of condolences to Turkish Prime Djiboutian prisoners of war in Eritrea. Co-operation secretary-general Iyad weather conditions,” the committee Russia’s Krasnodar. Minister Dr Ahmet Davutoglu. In a statement issued by the General Ameen Madani. said. A source familiar with the inves- nited Nations secretary-gen- Secretariat of the Arab League, he wel- The secretary-general, in a state- It said the plane was in a mid-air tigation told Reuters that there was eral Ban Ki-moon has com- comed the release of Djiboutian prison- ment, expressed his thanks to the Eri- holding pattern for more than two no weather-related ban on landing at SPORT | Qatar MotoGP Umended Qatar’s mediation ers of war by Eritrea after Qatari media- trean government for responding to hours. The crash occurred more the airport. “We consider all possible Lorenzo starts new eff orts in brokering the release of four tion, describing it as “an important step Qatar’s eff orts. He also expressed his than two hours after the plane, fl ight causes, but no one is even talking now Djiboutian prisoners of war (PoWs) in to open the door to address all outstand- hope for ending diff erences between number FZ981, was scheduled to land. about the possibility of a terrorist at- season with pole Eritrea. ing issues between the two countries”. Djibouti and Eritrea to serve the stabil- Russia’s Interfax news agency cited tack,” the source, who spoke on condi- MotoGP world champion Jorge In a statement issued by his spokes- The statement expressed Arab ity of the Horn of Africa. a source in the emergency services tion of anonymity, said. Lorenzo started the new season person, the secretary-general pointed League’s hope that Eritrea and Dji- Meanwhile, the group of released as saying the pilot changed his mind Dubai’s civil aviation authority said where he left off with pole out to the arrival in Djibouti of HE the bouti would settle the border dispute Djiboutian PoWs have expressed their about landing on the approach to the it was sending an investigative team to position for Yamaha under the Foreign Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Mo- that broke out between them in Febru- “deep thanks and sincere gratitude” to airport. Russia, president Ismail al-Hosani told Qatar floodlights yesterday. The hamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, ary 2008. HH the Emir for Qatar’s eff orts to se- “For an unknown reason, several reporters. Spaniard, who was also on pole and the announcement of the release In Riyadh, GCC secretary-general cure their release after they had spent minutes before the landing, the pilot Under international aviation rules, for last year’s acrimonious title- of four Djiboutian prisoners of war by Dr Abdullatif al-Zayani praised the eight years in captivity. reconsidered and decided to make an- the investigation will be led by Rus- deciding season-ender in Valencia, the Eritrean authorities. eff orts of HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim They said that Qatar, under the lead- other circuit, but wasn’t able to,” Inter- sia’s air crash safety investigation lapped the Losail circuit with a He expressed the hope that this bin Hamad al-Thani to release Djibou- ership of HH the Emir, had always been fax quoted the source as saying. agency with representatives from the fastest time of one minute 54.543. would help address other outstanding tian PoWs who were held in Eritrea. a supporter of humanitarian issues and Flydubai’s CEO Ghaith al-Ghaith US, where the jet was made and the Honda’s twice world champion regional issues between Djibouti and In a statement, al-Zayani said that worked wholeheartedly in mediation told a news conference in the emirate United Arab Emirates where the airline Marc Marquez will line up next to Eritrea and enhance peace and security the success of Qatari mediation re- eff orts, which fi nally resulted in their that it was “too early” to determine the is based. him today with Suzuki’s Maverick in the Horn of Africa. fl ected the respect the country had release and their return to their coun- cause of the crash. Boeing will be appointed as technical Vinales, who put in a storming last In Cairo, Arab League secretary- earned. The success was also the latest try and families after losing hope over “We will have information about advisers to the US investigation team. lap, in third place on an all-Spanish general Dr Nabil al-Arabi has ex- in a long line of successful Qatari me- the past years in getting out of captiv- the circumstances of the incident and The Flydubai airline had a clean safe- front row. Sport Page 1 pressed appreciation for Qatar’s eff orts diation eff orts, he added.