Israel condemns Swedish report on IDF

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Jerusalem, Aug.19 (ANI): Israel's Foreign Ministry has rejected a story in Sweden's largest circulation daily, Aftonbladet, that accused the Israel Defence Force (IDF) of abducting Palestinians to steal their organs, saying this was a grotesque throwback to the blood libels of the Middle Ages.

The Jerusalem Post quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor as characterizing the story as "racist hysteria at its worst."


"No one should tolerate such a demonizing piece of medieval blood libel that surely encourages hate crimes against Jews. This is a shame to freedom of expression, and all Swedes should reject it unconditionally," Palmor added.

Israel's embassy in Stockholm was expected to issue a sharp denunciation.

In the story, headlined "They plunder the organs of our sons," and accompanied by a gruesome photograph, Palestinians are quoted as saying IDF soldiers kidnapped their sons and stole organs. aaretz quoted Donald Bostrom as writing the following:

"'Our sons are used as involuntary organ donors,' relatives of Khaled from Nablus said to me, as did the mother of Raed from Jenin, as well as the uncles of Machmod and Nafes from Gaza, who all had disappeared for a few days and returned by night, dead and autopsied."

The article makes reference to the recent arrests in New Jersey of several US Jews, including rabbis, for a number of alleged crimes, including brokering the sale of organs for transplant.

The story also cites allegations of similar instances of organ-snatching in 1992, during the first INTIFADA. (ANI)

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Canada woos Indian tourists, opens tourism office

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ew Delhi, Aug 18 (PTI) The Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) today announced the opening of its representative office in India to promote North American country as an important tourism destination.

The CTC plans to focus its marketing activities primarily in Delhi and Mumbai and then later open offices in other Indian cities that have the potential to generate more visitors to Canada, a release issued by the CTC said.

India is the 10th destination where Canada has launched its office.

"The basic idea is to intrigue an Indian traveller to choose Canada as a destination for travel," the release said adding that last year over 1.10 lakh Indians, comprising both leisure and business travellers, visited Canada.

In November, CTC plans to bring Canadian suppliers to India to meet their counterparts here to Showcase Canada's tourism products.

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Madhya Pradesh to witness worst drought: Chouhan

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hopal, Aug 19 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that the state is going to witness the worst drought of the century due to the scanty rainfall in as many as 37 districts following which it has declared them drought-affected.

"Due to scanty rainfall, as many as 37 districts of the state were declared drought-affected," Chouhan told reporters yesterday.

The districts which were declared drought-affected are Alirajpur, Ashok Nagar, Anuppur, Barwani, Bhind, Balaghat, Burhanpur, Chhatarpur, Dewas, Dindori, Datia, Damoh, Guna, Gwalior, Jhabua, Jabalpur, Katni, Khandwa, Morena, Mandla, Narsinghpur, Panna, Ratlam, Raisen, Rewa, Satna, Sidhi, Singrauli, Shahdol, Sagar, Sehore, Shivpuri, Sheopur Kalan, Shajapur, Tikamgarh, Umaria and Vidisha.

Chouhan said that he has requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to send a study team to assess the drought situation here. .

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Suspected Taliban storm central Kabul bank, surrounded by police

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abul, Aug.19 (ANI): At least three gunmen, all reported to be members of the Taliban, stormed a central Kabul bank on Wednesday morning, and are currently surrounded by police.

A web site -- W A Today -- confirmed a short while ago that police have entered the building and were engaged in a gun battle with the attackers. It also said that dozens of security forces and intelligence agents have gathered in the area.

This morning''s attack came as the Afghan capital was converted into a virtual fortress, being placed under tight security ahead of Thursday''s presidential and provincial council elections. The increased security was necessitated because of a Taliban suicide bombing on Tuesday that killed 10 people, and a rocket attack on the presidential palace.

Interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary said the three bank attackers were "robbers or thieves" and played down a Taliban claim that it was an insurgent attack.

"We don''t know whether these are Taliban or insurgents because when they entered the bank, they must have intended to steal," Bashary was quoted, as saying.

"As they got into the bank, since we have very tight security in Kabul, police were able to get to the area in seconds and they (the gunmen) are surrounded by police," Bashary added.

"The situation is under control," he said. He did not comment on any casualties for the police.

The area is close to a bazaar and about 1.5 km south of the city centre, which was quiet with many businesses closed for a public holiday.

A spokesman for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahed, claimed that four of the militants were in the building in a standoff with police that had left several dead.

They were among around 20 Taliban who had entered the city and were waiting orders to attack, he told AFP by telephone.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan''s 17 million voters go to the polls on Thursday to choose a president for only the second time in its history.

The Taliban have threatened to directly attack the polling stations and warned voters not to cast their ballots.

The threats to sabotage the election have raised concerns that voter turnout could be low, compromising the legitimacy of the 223 million dollars exercise in democracy.

The government on Tuesday appealed for an Afghan and international media blackout on reporting any attacks Thursday "in view of the need to ensure the wide participation of the Afghan people".

Earlier, the Afghan government appealed for a local and international media blackout on reporting extremist attacks during this week''s elections in a bid to maximise voter turnout.

Taliban insurgents have escalated threats to derail the elections, warning people not to vote and thereby make themselves a victim of attacks.

Dozens of extra foreign journalists have poured into the country in order to help cover the elections, which mark the second time in history that Afghans will elect a president. (ANI)

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Pawar rules out merger of NCP with Congress

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ew Delhi, Aug 19 (ANI): Ahead of the assembly elections in Maharashtra, Union Agricultural Minister and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of merger with the Congress Party.

Pawar also termed the statements by some Congress leaders on the issue as cheap publicity.

"I can''t understand why these days they are raising questions about it, why they are not appealing to other parties to merge? Should I say that the Congress should merge with my party and these are all cheap public statements," Pawar said.

Pawar added that he would be happy if both the parties go together or don''t go together in the upcoming elections. (ANI)

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Jaswant Singh expelled from the BJP

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himla, Aug 19 (ANI): Taking stern action against former External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday divested him form the party''s primary membership.

Party president Rajnath Singh said: " Jaswant Singh is expelled from the BJP."

Singh, who arrived here last evening for the Chintan Baithak of the party, kept away from the meeting by changing his hotel.

According to sources Singh kept away citing bad health.

He also skipped a dinner hosted by Leader of Opposition L. K Advani.

Singh is in the limelight over his newly released book on Pakistan''s founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah, "Jinnah, India - Partition, Independence." The BJP has distanced itself from the book and Singh''s views on Jinnah.

BJP is meeting here to discuss the causes for the party''s defeat in 2009 general elections and its strategy for the future.

The meeting is also likely to take up the issue of former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who has refused to quit as Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly.

Over 25 senior party leaders, including members of the party''s parliamentary board and chief ministers Narendra Modi of Gujarat, Raman Singh of Chhattisgarh, Ramesh Pokhriyal of Uttarakhand and B.S. Yeddyurappa of Karnataka, will participate in the three-day meeting. (ANI)

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