13Saudi king vows to punish those behind Shiitemosque attack2

GCC denies air campaign against IS has failed 20

Chelsea end season in style, departing Drogba saluted38

Sweden pips Russia in Eurovision pop fest nail-biter

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NBAD to arrange $400m loan for Kuwait Airways

Yousef Ali named new commerce ministerABU DHABI: The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD)along with the Arab Banking Corporation have beenmandated by the International Air Finance Corporation(IAFC) as underwriters, bookrunners and lead arrangersof a $400 million murabaha loan for Kuwait AirwaysCorporation. The deal, which is IAFC’s inaugural syndi-cated loan, will finance the provision of five A330-200aircraft on an operating lease to Kuwait Airways.

“This unique transaction also highlights our expert-ise and expanding footholdin the Islamic finance seg-ment,” Vasgen Edwards, theGlobal Head of Aerospaceand Transport at NBAD, saidin a press statement. “Weare extremely proud that inthe first quarter of this year,NBAD was ranked as theworld’s number one bankfor managing issuance ofinternational sukuk.” Henoted that the aviationindustry is one of the fastest growing industries in theWest-East corridor “and one of our five top priority sec-tors for our wholesale banking activity”.

The facility comprises an eight-year term loansecured on the five aircraft and is currently in syndica-tion with an expected closing at the end of May. Theborrower is a 100 percent owned subsidiary of a fundmanaged by IAFC. Earlier this year NBAD co-structureda $913 million UKEF-backed sukuk closed by EmiratesAirlines, making it the first time that sukuk had been

Continued on Page 13

Dr Yousef Ali

KUWAIT: Education Minister Badr Al-Essa meets students as they sit for their final high school examsyesterday. — KUNA (See Page 3)

By B Izzak

KUWAIT: The National Assembly’s financial andeconomic affairs committee said yesterday it hadreceived initial approvals from various governmentagencies for a proposal to establish a company torecruit domestic helpers. Head of the committeeMP Faisal Al-Shaye said the Public Institution forSocial Security and Kuwait Investment Authorityhave expressed a desire to contribute to the com-pany. The committee is still waiting to hear fromKuwait Airways, which has been offered a 10-per-cent stake.

Shaye said it was agreed that all cooperativesocieties will also participate in the proposed com-pany through the Union of Cooperative Societies,which means that a majority of Kuwaiti citizens willbe shareholders in the company since they ownshares in cooperative societies. He said that thecommittee was informed by the commerce min-istry that there was no need to establish the pro-posed company through a legislation as a decisionis sufficient for this purpose.

The idea was floated by MP Kamel Al-Awadhi,who was supported by over 30 lawmakers, with theaim to set up a company to start recruiting domes

Continued on Page 13

Maids company gets initial nod

Students sit for crunch finals

L O C A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

KUWAIT: His Highness the AmirSheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received at Bayan Palace yes-terday the visiting Iraqi Vice PresidentOsama Al-Nujaifi. HH the CrownPrince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah escorted Nujaifi in thereception. Deputy Minister of AmiriDiwan Affairs Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah and Advisor at His highness

the Crown Prince’s Diwan DrHumoud Al-Otaibi attended thereception. Earlier, HH the Amirreceived HH the Crown Prince andHH the Prime Minister Sheikh JaberAl-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah.

Meanwhile, HH the CrownPrince received HH Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak, Deputy Prime Ministerand Minister of Interior Sheikh

Mohammad Al-Khaled Al-HamadAl-Sabah, Deputy Prime Ministerand Minister of Defense SheikhKhaled Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, Ministerof Information and Minister of Statefor Youth Affairs Sheikh SalmanSabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah, Minister of State for CabinetAffairs Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah and

Minister of State for Housing AffairsYasser Abul.

Separately, HH the Prime Ministerheld talks with the visiting IraqiSpeaker of the Council ofRepresentatives Salim Al-Jabouriand his accompanying delegation.Head of the mission of honor MPTalal Al-Jalal attended the meeting.—KUNA

Amir receives visiting Iraqi Vice President

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets Iraqi Vice President Osama Al-Nujaifi, in pres-ence of His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. —Amiri Diwan photo

DOHA: The Gulf Cooperation Council yesterdayrejected claims a US-led coalition air campaignagainst the Islamic State group has failed follow-ing advances by jihadists in Syria and Iraq.

Speaking in Doha after a meeting betweenforeign ministers of the GCC and EuropeanUnion, Khalid Al-Attiyah, Qatar’s foreign minister,conceded that military action alone was notenough. “The coalition is not failing but the aircampaign is not enough,” Attiyah, who was rep-resenting GCC countries at the meeting, toldreporters.

“There are so many steps which we have tocooperate and coordinate together. To date thecampaign against terror is effective. One of themis to enhance and expedite the dialogue in Iraq,and in Syria it is to find a way out to save the

Syrian people, because they have been putbetween the tyranny of the regime and the bru-tality of the terrorist,” he said.

Full controlThe jihadist IS group took full control of a

border crossing between Syria and Iraq onSunday, a week after capturing the Iraqi city ofRamadi and days after seizing the ancient Syriancity of Palmyra. The surge by a group describedas the most violent in modern jihad raised fur-ther questions about the efficiency of the US-ledcoalition’s eight-month air campaign.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini,described the latest news from Syria and Iraq,“especially” the capture of Palmyra, as “dramatic”.“Only a political solution, both in Syria and Iraq,

can provide a settlement for the crisis,” she said.The day-long meeting touched on several

significant areas of interest between the twosides, including the conflict in Yemen ahead ofUN-brokered peace talks expected to take placenext week in Geneva. Yemeni PresidentAbedrabbo Mansour Hadi has laid out condi-tions for attending Thursday’s talks, namely thatIran-back Huthi rebels who overran much of thecountry withdraw from territory they haveseized. Saudi Arabia has been leading an aircampaign against the Huthis since March 26 in abid to restore the authority of Hadi who has fledto Riyadh with his government.

Humanitarian situationDuring the opening session, Attiyah called on

the international community to help address the“difficult” humanitarian situation in Yemen, prais-ing Saudi Arabia’s establishment of a humanitar-ian center to help the Yemeni people. “We realizethe important role of the EU which, in coordina-tion with the GCC countries, will bring aboutsuccess of the Restoration of Hope towards sta-bility and security in Yemen,” he said.

Meanwhile, Attiya called for the resumptionof the Middle East peace process, lifting Israelisiege of Gaza Strip, stop expansion of Jewish set-tlement, enable the Palestinian people to estab-lish their independent state on the 1967 bordersin line with relevant UN resolutions.

He said the Syrian regime continued itscrimes against its own people in complete viola-tion of moral and human principles, calling forsolving the Syrian crisis peacefully and in linewith the communique of the June 2012 GenevaConference. Attiyah also called on all Libyan par-ties to form a government of national unity toend the conflict in their country. He also warnedagainst the suffering of the Iraqi people whowere facing terrorist attacks.

Nuclear agreementOn Iran, Attiyah said the GCC believed that a

final and comprehensive nuclear agreementwith the P5+1 group should address regionaland international concerns that Iran possessesnuclear weapons. The GCC, he added, soughtgood relations and cooperation with Iran basedon good neighborliness and non-interference inthe internal affairs. He also called on Iran to endoccupation of three UAE’s islands. Attiyah mean-while extended full solidarity to Saudi Arabia fol-lowing the deadly attack on a mosque in theeastern governorate of Al-Qatif, which killed 21people and injured over 80 others.

Talks in Doha also touched upon economics,with both sides saying they would continue tohave discussions on establishing a free tradearea between the 28-member EU and the six-state GCC. Mogherini said trade between the EUand GCC had been growing at an “incrediblerate” and reached “150 billion ($165 billion)euros last year”. The GCC groups Bahrain,Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and theUnited Arab Emirates. Kuwait’s delegation isheaded by First Deputy Prime Minister andMinister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah KhaledAl-Hamad Al-Sabah. —Agencies

DOHA: (From left) Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah, QatariForeign Minister Khalid bin Mohamed al-Attiyah and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)secretary general Abdullatif Al-Zayani attend the 24th session of the GCC-EU ministe-rial council meeting yesterday. —AFP

European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini (left) and an EU delega-tion attend the 24th session of the joint Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)-EU ministeri-al council yesterday.

GCC denies air campaign

against IS has failed

KUWAIT: Zain, the leading telecommunica-tions company in Kuwait, announced itsStrategic Partnership with the “Thameen ofKuwait” encyclopedia project, which aims atshedding light on the achievements andtalents of Kuwait’s youth in various sectorsand fields. The project came under thepatronage of His Highness the Amir SheikhSabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

Zain took part in the encyclopedia’sinauguration ceremony that was held lastweekend with the attendance of a numberof prominent national figures including HHthe Amir’s representative Sheikh Salman Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah Minister of Informationand Minster of State for Youth Affairs, whohonored Zain by presenting the honoringtoken to Zain’s Corporate Communicationsand Relations Director Waleed Al-Khashti.

Zain’s Strategic Partnership with“Thameen of Kuwait” comes in line with thecompany’s Corporate Social Responsibilityand Sustainability strategies, which largelycaters to the further development of the

youth sector. Especially that this unique ini-tiative aims at highlighting the achieve-ments of ambitious Kuwaiti youth, ultimate-ly catering to the further progress of thenational economy.

“Thameen of Kuwait”, meaning “the valu-able of Kuwait”, is a national project thataims at shedding light on the achievementsof talented young Kuwaitis in various fieldsincluding the arts, literature, industrial work,inventions, and more. A photographic ency-clopedia, in both electronic and printed ver-sions, compiles the achievements of 100 tal-ented young Kuwaitis with the aim to show-case their work and introduce potentialinvestors to their work.

Zain will remain as a main supporter ofsuch innovative initiatives that cater toKuwaiti youth. The company will remaindedicated to the further progress of youthdevelopment in the country, and will spareno efforts in supporting any entities thatexert efforts in advancing the advancementof the youth sector in Kuwait.

Zain Strategic partner of

‘Thameen of Kuwait’ project

Zain’s Corporate Communications and Relations Director Waleed Al-Khashtireceives an honoring token from Sheikh Salman Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah.

By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: Thameen, a volunteer youthgroup, launched an encyclopedia withdetails of 100 talented Kuwaiti youth ofboth genders. The ceremony was held onSaturday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel underthe patronage of His Highness the AmirSheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah,who was represented by Minister ofInformation and Youth Affairs SheikhSalman Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah. A website wasalso launched during the ceremony, whichrepresents the official reference databaseof creators in Kuwait. Furthermore, a photoexhibit of the 100 personalities in the ency-clopedia was also held.

“Thameen is a volunteer group whichstarted as a club affiliated to ToastmastersInternational in 2011. After four years ofhard work, we branched into six clubs - twointernational and four local. The encyclope-dia is the group’s most prominent project,”said Nouf Al-Ammari, president of the proj-ect. “ This idea germinated when wenoticed that there is no single resource wecan refer to when we need to search for aspecialist in a certain field, so we decidedto make one ourselves. We begun by col-lecting information about these youths,and by creating the website, we made it

possible to find them. This is the first-of-itskind database in the Gulf,” she added.

The 100 personalities were divided in 10categories including artists, inventors, com-munity services, mathematics, business,special lifestyle, digital world, researchers,writers and authors. The encyclopedia fea-tures 100 personalities in both English andArabic. “This encyclopedia is the beginning.We started with the idea of a book, thenwith the support of sponsors and partners,we succeeded in realizing this project. Weare also planning to document other per-sonalities to reach 400 by the end of thisyear,” Ammari added.

Sheikh Salman assured that the ministrysupports youth programs, especially volun-tary ones. “We believe that the young peo-ple are our real wealth and are tomorrow’shope for Kuwait, and that’s what makes ussupport them and encourage them toaccomplish their ambitions,” he said.

During the ceremony, a short documen-tary about the project was presented. Thiswas followed by presentations by Dr BaderSadeq and Abdullah Al-Othman. The par-ticipants of Thameen were then awarded,in addition to awarding the sponsors of theproject. The ceremony concluded by amusical performance by folk singer SalmanAl-Ammari and his band.

Encyclopedia of talented

Kuwaiti youth launched

KUWAIT: Information Minister Sheikh Salman Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah is pic-tured with veteran Kuwaiti historian and meteorologist Dr Saleh Al-Ojairiand volunteers at the event. —Photos by Joseph Shagra

Sheikh Salman Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah tours an exhibition held as part of theevent.

DOHA: The Qatari Armed Forces successfully con-cluded the fourth military exercises, codenamed‘Wild Eagle IV,’ on Saturday. The exercises were car-ried out jointly with the armies of 27 countriesincluding Kuwait and Italy. Over the last 12 daysthe participants in the various stages of the exer-cises were able to find effective solutions to fieldproblems, Chief of Staff of the Qatari Army AirMarshal Ghanim Ali Al-Ghanim told reporters atthe closing ceremony. “The troops showed a highlevel of preparedness, discipline and accuracy dur-ing the field operations, firing and dexterous para-chuting,” he affirmed. “The exercises proved to be acomplete success and provided an opportunity toshare experience with sisterly and friendly coun-

tries, notably Kuwait and Italy,” Ghanim said, not-ing that the participating troops showed a greatdeal of harmony. “The final stage featured wonder-ful coordination in terms of command and controlwhich drew admiration of spectators, among whowere several diplomatic and military top brass,” headded. Brig Staff Jassem Al-Muhannadi, head ofthe national defense and crisis management cen-ter and director of the exercises, said the activitiesinclude drills on crisis management and combat-ing weapons of mass destruction attacks, terrorismand piracy. The drills involved the various sectorsof the participating armies with a view to makingsure of their preparedness to address any eventu-ality, he added. —KUNA

Wild Eagle IV exercises

complete successfully

Blood Bank marks

50th anniversaryKUWAIT: The Kuwait Central Blood Bank marks its 50thanniversary next Thursday in a ceremony to honor sup-portive bodies and donors.

The bank will launch intensive campaigns on socialmedia networks to raise public awareness about dona-tion and increase reserve of blood ahead of the holymonth of Ramadan, director of department of bloodtransfusion at the Ministry of Health Dr Reem A-Radhwansaid yesterday. The bank provides better services forpatients in terms of availability of safe blood, she said,noting that it also cares for donors and follows up ontheir conditions during and after donation. She noted thebank contributes highly in treating diseases like leukemiaand thalassemia and provides blood to some neighbor-ing countries if necessary. —KUNA

L O C A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Possession of an

unlicensed weapon is

punishable by 5-years in

prison and a KD 100,000 fine

days left for handing over

unlicensed weapons,

ammunition and explosives.

Hotline: 1888830

MAY

KUWAIT: American giant computer com-pany IBM will launch its Kuwait subsidiaryoffice next week, offering a variety of infor-mation technology-related services toKuwait-based organizations, USAmbassador to Kuwait Douglas Sillimansaid. Referring primarily to foreigninvestors’ 100 percent ownership of com-panies, Ambassador Silliman said that “thebasis for conducting investment and busi-ness in Kuwait has changed significantly.”

“Now with the 100 percent ownership, itwill be easy for [companies] to bring tech-nology, investment and financing to easethe burden on the Kuwaiti government,and take advantage of projects put forwardby Kuwait five-year plan 2015-2020,”Silliman said in an interview with KUNA.

Business environmentKuwait has developed a lucrative busi-

ness environment for foreign investors toultimately see economic and humandevelopment, thus honoring His Highnessthe Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-JaberAl-Sabah’s vision to turn Kuwait to a globalfinancial and commercial hub.

Kuwait 2035 vision aims to transformthe country into a world class financial andcommercial hub, with private sector lead-ing economic activities, fostering competi-tiveness, increasing productivity, support-ed by viable public institutions, whilemaintaining deep rooted values and

national identity, towards achieving bal-anced economic and human development,supported by adequate infrastructure,legal framework, and enabling businessenvironment. Kuwait Direct Investment

Promotion Authority (KDIPA) has beenmeeting foreign investors to explain newlaws and business environment to encour-age them to do business in the country.

Promising frameworkIn remarks to National US-Arab

Chamber of Commerce in Washington DC

on May 12, KDIPA Director General SheikhMishal Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah toutedKuwait’s new “promising legal framework”passed in 2013 - known as law number116.

Sheikh Mishal, accompanied byAmbassador Silliman in his US trip, saidKuwait was improving transparency forpotential investors, as well as providing alow corporate tax rate set at 15 percent,and competitive factor costs in a countrywith a high income per capita - a figure theWorld Bank puts at $52,197 for 2013.

“We did media and a number of smallermeetings with senior executives” to talkabout KDIPA laws and “opportunities forAmerican companies to do business inKuwait,” said Silliman. “Essentially these(legal) changes make doing business moreliberal and easier for foreign companies ...because they will bring new job opportuni-ties.”

Private sectorBusinesses set up in Kuwait free trade

zone for specified operations are exemptfrom taxes on operations conducted in thezone, and foreign entities can own 100percent of such businesses. Sheikh Mishalmade it very clear that Kuwait did notneed cash but advanced technologies andinnovation, and highlighted a new “one-stop shop” for business registration - aneffort that aims to cut through tremen-

dous bureaucratic red tape. He said thegovernment and parliament believed theprivate sector should lead the Kuwaitieconomy. Ambassador Silliman, in a state-ment during the Washington event earlierthis month, called Kuwait “a very quiet eco-nomic partner” that does not make head-lines, although it is the fifth largest marketfor the US in the Middle East and NorthAfrica (MENA) region, driven by enthusias-tic well-educated youth and high genderequality. As the private sector grows,Kuwaitis will look at the economy differ-ently, he said, marking a “paradigm shift” inthe culture at large.

More opportunitiesLaw number 116, explained Silliman,

“will provide more opportunities forKuwaiti companies and Kuwaitis in a broadrange (of sectors): education, healthcare,infrastructure projects, and will help theKuwaiti economy’s production of oil andgas through service contracts because itwill make it easier for companies with themost cutting edge technology and thegreatest experience in mapping wells andincreasing production from different wellsto actually be present in - and do business- in Kuwait.” Kuwait-US trade volume grewby 188 percent within five years (2009-14),surpassing $15 billion last year. Kuwait isthe 37th major foreign investor in the USwith $1.3 billion. —KUNA

IBM launches office in Kuwait

next week: US AmbassadorAttractive business environment lures foreign investors

US Ambassador Douglas Silliman

By Meshaal Al-Enezi

KUWAIT: Head of the Fatwa and LegislationDepartment Salah Al-Mas’ad issued a decisionthat requires employees to obtain a written per-mission from his office in order to organize, holdor take part in any political seminars, as well asmake statements to TV stations and newspa-pers, and writing for printed papers or newswebsites. The Fatwa and Legislation Departmentis the government’s main legislative body.

Parliament’s hallMP Nabil Al-Fadhl made a proposal yester-

day to name the parliament’s main hall or theNational Assembly’s new building after thelate former parliament speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi.

‘Interior’ employee deportedThe criminal court yesterday sentenced a

Ministry of Interior employee to 2-years inprison and a KD 300 bail to suspend the

sentence in addition to deportation, afterhe was found guilty of abuse of authority.The man, a Saudi national, was sued by anexpatriate who pressed that the suspectforced him to sign an affidavit to pay himKD 4,900.

The suspect posed as a policeman andthreatened to take the victim under arrest atKhaitan police station unless he vowed tohis demands; all while taking advantage ofthe expatriate man’s illegal status, the man’s

lawyer said before the court.

Consumers’ rightsMunicipal Council member Yousif Al-

Ghareeb submitted a proposal to create jointposters by the Ministry of Commerce andKuwait Municipality, which show consumers’rights. The posters would be placed at a visibleplace inside all markets and stores so that thepublic become acquainted with their rights incases of commercial fraud, Ghareeb said.

Minister visits high

school to check

tests preparations

By A Saleh

KUWAIT: The finals for 12th grade students kicked off yes-terday morning with around 33,000 students taking theirlast step before going ahead with their higher studies.

Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr BaderAl-Essa visited Jaber Al-Ali High School for boys and Al-Adan High School for girls in Mubarak Al-Kabeer educa-tional area, where he checked preparations for the examsand urged students to focus and work hard. Meanwhile,Essa warned that cheating would not be tolerated, addingthat students caught cheating will be banned from com-pleting their remaining exams.

KUWAIT: Minister Dr Bader Al-Essa checks on studentstaking their finals exams yesterday. —KUNA photos

Men arrested

for selling porn,

unpaid debts

By Hanan Al-Saadoun

KUWAIT: Capital security department officers arrestedthree Asian men who were selling pornographic movies,said sources. Meanwhile, a campaign in Kuwait City result-ed in arresting four men wanted for various debt cases: a25-year-old on a KD 535 debt case, a 29-year-old for KD5,552 debt, a 48-year-old for KD 5,671 and a 28-year-old forKD 62,124.

Forged billsA money exchange shop in Mubarakiya told police

about a Pakistani man who exchanged fake euros, saidsources. Police patrols looked for the man based on theexchanger’s description. They eventually arrested him withanother Pakistani nab whole exchanging fake 10,000 eurosin another shop, the sources added. Both men were sent tothe public prosecution.

‘Fatwa’ staff need permission to participate in political seminars

KUWAIT: Interior Ministry Undersecretary Lt Gen Suleiman Fahad Al-Fahadspeaks at the event.

By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: Islam calls for peace, tolerance and purity of thesoul, while it encourages everyone to work together todevelop and build their nations, a senior Interior Ministryofficial said yesterday.

Undersecretary Lt Gen Suleiman Fahad Al-Fahad madethose statements yesterday during the opening speech ofa festival held at the Kuwait House of National Worksunder his patronage. The event is titled ‘Forgiveness,Peace, Rejection of Violence and Unlicensed Weapons.’

Lt Gen Fahad added that the success of the nationalcampaign to collect unlicensed weapons and explosivescame in support of the law, which he stressed must beenforced for the safety and security of its citizens, point-

ing out that this law is aimed at unifying national feelingstowards unlicensed weapons. He concluded by express-ing his appreciation to Kuwait House for initiating thisfestival.

“Everyone should get rid of their weapons, for the sakeof the country and for the people’s safety, because it takesthe lives of innocent people as a result of recklessness,violence and a lack of responsibility for the lives of oth-ers,” he said.

Dr Yousef Al-Ameri, head of the Kuwait House ofNational Works, said “Kuwait’s strategy to curb the spreadof unlicensed weapons among segments of the societydepends on the effective participation and concertedefforts of both the interior ministry and the civil society.”He explained that the Kuwait House is fully prepared to

help and cooperate in support of security, to fight againstterrorism, renounce violence and reduce the spread ofdrugs among young people.

Ameri also offered his condolences for the death of thelate Jassem Al-Khorafi, who he said had supported theKuwait House of National Works and contributed to itsconstruction and development.

The ceremony included a show called “Kolna (All ofUs)” performed by a group of persons with disabilities, incooperation with the Watheq Al- Qadisiyah. After that, aplay titled ‘Together in Collecting Weapons’ was showedto the audience to show the importance of collectingweapons. To close the event, the Kuwait House ofNational Works honored Lt Gen Suleiman Al-Fahad andrecognized everyone who attended the event.

Islam religion of peace,

cooperation: Interior OfficialFestival highlights importance of weapons handover

Interior Ministry Undersecretary Lt Gen Suleiman Fahad Al-Fahad tours theIraqi Invasion’s museum at the Kuwait House of National Works.

KUWAIT: An inspection campaign that included the area across AmiriHospital and behind Hilal cemetery resulted in the removal of 18 boats, 13trolleys and three truckloads, said sources from Kuwait Municipality’s PublicRelations Department. The cleaning center in Sharq also posted 290 warn-ing stickers, they added. —By Hanan Al-Saadoun

Photoo f t h e d a y

KUWAIT: A monument built inside a roundabout in Faiha, 7 kilometers south of Kuwait City. —Photo by Abdullatif Al-Sharaa

Navy drill New visitors’ record Steppe eagle

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Naval Force carries out a liveammunition exercise from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm onTuesday and Wednesday at the naval shooting field, theKuwaiti Army announced yesterday. The field is located16.5 nautical miles east of Ras Al-Julai’ah, extending fromthe Qarouh Island. It has an area of 6 nautical miles eastof Ras Al-Zour, extending from Um Al-Maradem Island,the Ministry of Defense’s Moral Guidance and PublicRelations Department said in a statement. —KUNA

MILAN: Kuwait’s pavilion at Expo Milano 2015achieved a new record in the number of daily visi-tors, with 8,473 people from different nationalitiesdropping by last Friday. The number of visitors hasbeen growing steadily in the first three weekssince the pavilion’s opening, and it is on pace toreach the pavilion’s total capacity of 11,000 visitorsa day, said Mohammad Al-Baddah, head of themedia team at Kuwait’s pavilion. —KUNA

KUWAIT: A Kuwaiti man found a steppe eagle at theAbraq desert last April, and discovered after examininga ring that was fixed on its leg that it had migrated fromRussia, the Kuwait Environment Protection Society(KEPS) announced yesterday. The man took care of thebird until it recovered from an apparent illness thataffected its ability to fly, and then released it near theSaudi border. The bird made a stop in Kuwait en routeto Africa, said Rashid Al-Hajji, Birds Observation andProtection Team member at KEPS. —KUNA

In Brief

L O C A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

KUWAIT: Minister of Information and Minister ofState for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman SabahSalem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah yesterday under-lined the important role of the Federation ofArab News Agencies (FANA) amid the current cir-cumstances the Arab world is facing.

Sheikh Salman made the statement during ameeting with FANA’s Secretary General FaridAyar, KUNA Board Chairman and Director GeneralSheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij Al-Sabah, DirectorGeneral of Qatar News Agency (QNA) Ahmad Al-Buainain, Director of Lebanon’s National NewsAgency (NNA) Laure Sleiman Saab, DeputyChairman of the Saudi Press Agency (SPA)Ahmad Al-Awadh, and KUNA Vice Chairman forFinancial Affairs Abdulhamid Malek.

The visiting Arab delegations are participatingin FANA’s meeting that kicked off in Kuwait onSaturday and runs until today. The Minister calledon the Federation to promote its role and imple-ment the strategy endorsed by Arab informationministers during their last meeting in Cairo oncombating terrorist thinking that runs counter tothe concepts of Islam. The strategy aims to pro-tect youth and generations through an ambi-tious program based on raising their awareness

towards the issues and circumstances the regionis facing, he said.

Sheikh Salman underscored the need to facethe terrorist action through professional mediaprograms, in collaboration with all official institu-tions and civil society organizations of each state,stressing Kuwait’s support to the federation inachieving its goals.

The conferees said that the federation workson providing training courses to workers of thenews agencies, adding this needs hard work andcooperation to upgrade efficiency of the work-ers. They emphasized that they take into consid-erations all recommendations of Arab Ministersof Information in terms of finding a code ofethics, urging all media outlets not to interviewterrorists or cover news related to their activities.

CooperationMeanwhile, FANA’s Secretary General Dr Farid

Ayar said that the organization’s Secretariat haddiscussed means of enhancing cooperation withinternational organizations and keeping abreastwith regional and international developments.

This first meeting for the Secretariataddressed a host of topics on FANA activities, as

well as providing training courses for the staff inmember agencies in cooperation withThompson Reuters. It also sought setting a newprogram for enabling journalists to have accessto information. In addition, the meetingreviewed the topics on the agenda of the 3rdNews Agencies World Congress (NAWC), Ayarsaid.

The Secretariat endorsed awarding the SaudiPress Agency (SPA) FANA’s prize for the “bestphoto,” Ayar said, noting that the best pressreport prize was held, as applicants were askedto re-write their reports in line with the FANAGeneral Assembly and Secretariat.

Other topics addressed included arrange-ments for the 43rd FANA General Assembly duein Kuwait, The Federation website and the 11thArab conference for security information bodies,as well as cooperation between the Arab andinternational news agencies.

FANA participation in meetings of the ArabMinisters of Information Council and its execu-tive bureau was also reviewed, together with areport on FANA financial status till May 2015, inaddition to the new website of the Yemeni newsagency. —KUNA

Info Minister stresses

FANA’s important role

KUWAIT: Information Minister Sheikh Salman Al-Humoud Al-Sabah meets Federation of Arab News Agencies’ Secretary GeneralFarid Ayar and other officials. —KUNA

TAN TAN: Amiri Diwan Advisor Mohammad Sharar is seen while visiting acultural festival in the Moroccan desert. —KUNA

TAN TAN: His Highness the Amir of KuwaitSheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah iskeen on preserving cultural heritage as a pillarof unity of the nation, Amiri Diwan AdvisorMohammad Sharar said Saturday. Paying moreattention to cultural heritage will contribute tospreading culture of peace, love and solidarityamong people, Sharar said in a statement.

Sharar is visiting Tan Tan in the MoroccanDesert to participate in the cultural festival,sponsored by Moroccan King Mohammad VI,which is due until May 27. He said SheikhSabah Al-Ahmad Heritage Village was anembodiment of His Highness the Amir’s inter-est in supporting and preserving Arab culture.

HH the Amir’s humanitarian endeavors arejust part of his keenness on spreading the cul-ture of peace, which encouraged the UN lastyear to name HH Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad as aHumanitarian Leader, and Kuwait as aHumanitarian Center, noted Sharar. He saidorganizers of Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad HeritageVillage have invited the Tan Tan Festival offi-cials to visit the village next February.

Meanwhile, Sharar also visited the pavilionof the United Arab Emirates in the festival,which he said reflected a genuine image of the

heritage of the UAE. Sharar, who also visitedthe pavilion of Tunisia, said the Gulf regionshared cultural values.

Director of the UAE’s pavilion Abdullah Al-Qubaisi meanwhile commended HH the Amir’srole in preserving human civilization. Tan Tanfestival is an annual event bringing togethermore than 30 tribes from southern Moroccoand other nomadic peoples of northwestAfrica. Originally these were spontaneous andregular meetings of these peoples for a weekaround the month of May.

Part of the agricultural and herding calen-dar of the nomads, these gatherings were anopportunity to meet up, to buy, sell andexchange foodstuffs and other products, toorganize camel- and horse-breeding competi-tions, to celebrate weddings and to consultherbalists.

The festival also consisted of a range of cel-ebrations such as musical performances, pop-ular chanting, poetry contests and otherHassanie oral traditions, and games. The UNcultural agency, UNESCO, announced in 2005proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral andIntangible Heritage of Humanity of the Tan Tanfestival. —KUNA

Amir keen on preserving

heritage: Advisor Sharar

DOHA: The 11th meeting of the GCC Customs Unionkicked off in Doha yesterday, with the main aim of pro-moting cooperation and coordination in this regard. Inan inaugural speech, Ahmad bin Ali Al-Mehani, the headof the meeting, said that the customs is a key point inthe commercial field on all levels among GCC memberstates. “The key role of customs prompts us to considerseriously unifying our customs policies and promotingcooperation and coordination so as to facilitate themovement of goods among GCC states and boost tradebetween these countries on one hand and countries all

over the world on the other hand,” said Mehani, who isthe chairman of Qatari General Authority of Customs.

Among challenges facing customs is how to dealwith facilitation and effective control of the movementof goods, he added, noting the achievements of theunion’s meetings are attributed to efforts and hard workaiming to implement recommendations of reports ofcommittees and using mechanisms to develop customsaction. He said that the gathering discusses means ofdeveloping scientific initiatives that seek to improve per-formance of customs, indicating this move will con-

tribute to facilitating the movement of trade.The gathering considers the report of GCC Customs

Union Secretariat pertaining to the mechanism of directtransfer of customs tariffs automatically and the reportof the 52nd meeting of committee of customs measures.It also deal with the report of 27th meeting of the com-mittee tasked with the unified customs law as well asother topics and reports aiming at improving the per-formance of GCC customs. A Kuwaiti delegation headedby Director General of General Administration ofCustoms is taking part in the event. —KUNA

GCC Customs Union meets

DOHA: GCC Customs Union officials meet in Doha, Qatar yesterday. —KUNA

LO C A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: A solar energy project waslaunched in Zahra yesterday, as sun-drenched Kuwait is getting serious aboutharvesting solar power. The KuwaitFoundation for the Advancement ofSciences (KFAS) organized a ceremony tolaunch the Photovoltaic (PV) Pilot Projectat the Zahra Co-operative Society yester-day. The ceremony was held under theauspices of Minister of Social Affairs andLabor and Minister of State forDevelopment and Planning Hind Al-Subaih, and was attended by officialsfrom various institutions.

Subaih expressed her happiness onrealizing this project, which adopts thewill of His Highness the Amir SheikhSabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah to utilize solarenergy as an important source of energy.She also praised the cooperation of theinstitutions that worked on this project,which is a model for other similar projectsin the future.

KFAS Director General Dr AdnanShihab-Eldin highlighted the essentialrole of Zahra Co-op Society as the first co-op in Kuwait to apply renewable energyin its carport with the cooperation ofKuwait Institute for Scientific Research(KISR), National Technology EnterprisesCompany (NTEC) and the Ministry ofElectricity and Water.

Pilot projectsKFAS has recently embraced a number

of pilot projects designed to promote theuse of solar energy. Among them is theenergy efficiency and photovoltaic sys-tems pilot applications for co-operativesocieties, which aims to enhance theenergy efficiency of selected co-ops aswell as encourage the use of solar powerfor electricity generation. “The project

also seeks to raise awareness on the bene-fits of solar energy and energy conserva-tion, especially during peak demand peri-ods, and its positive economic, environ-mental and health impacts,” stressedShihab-Eldin.

Zahra Co-operative Society was select-ed for this pilot project, and the PV systeminstalled in the carport has a capacity of752 KW. In addition, work is ongoing toupgrade and retrofit the air-conditioning(HVAC) and lighting systems inside theco-op. This project is the first pioneeringpilot project relevant to the use of renew-able energy at the national level as it usesstate -of-the -art technologies anddemonstrates its applications and bene-fits.

“It is worth mentioning that KuwaitInstitute for Scientific Research has devel-oped the technical specifications of theproject, while the National TechnologyEnterprises Company is the project man-ager. The Ministry of Electricity and Waterplayed a pivotal role in ensuring the linkbetween the PV systems and the localelectricity grid in accordance with inter-

national standards,” Shihab-Eldin said.“Furthermore, KFAS initiated and fundedanother pilot project at the beginning ofthis year aiming to install rooftop PVunits in a limited number of private resi-dential homes with a total capacity of 2-3MW,” Shihab-Eldin noted.

Energy sources“We hope that this new pilot project

demonstrates some of the ways availableto diversify energy sources in the futurethat contribute to reducing dependenceon fossil fuels to generate electricitythrough the exploitation of renewableenergy sources,” he said, adding, “We are,through this pilot project, acting as a cat-alyst to all concerned parties to take simi-lar steps and contribute towards reduc-ing energy consumption and adopt solarenergy as an alternative source of ener-gy,” he explained.

Shihab-Eldin added that the pilot proj-ect will represent a quantum leap in thefield of energy conservation and will sig-nificantly help in reducing the load dur-

ing peak periods if it is applied on a largescale. It will also reduce fossil fuel con-sumption in addition to mitigating car-bon dioxide emissions.

According to him, the capacity of elec-tricity generated by the PV cells at ZahraCo-op would reach 1,273 MW per year,which is equivalent to KD 60,000 per yearin monetary savings. “The use of the PVsystem in Zahra Co-op carport along withthe energy conservation measuresapplied in the co-op will avert at least2,000 tons of carbon dioxide emittedannually,” concluded Shihab-Eldin.

Saad Al-Otaibi, Chairman of Zahra Co-operative Society, said he is proud thattheir co-op is the first in Kuwait to applythis project. “When KFAS approached uswith the proposal of applying this projecthere, our board of directors quicklyagreed as we believe in the importanceof such vital projects. We also believe thatco-ops play a bigger role than just sellingproducts. They play social role by sup-porting various cultural, educational andsocial activities in order to serve the resi-dents of their areas,” he pointed out.

Solar energy project launched in ZahraRenewable energy eyed to meet growing demand

KUWAIT: Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Hind Al-Subaih and Minister of Education Dr Bader Al-Essa officially launch the solarenergy project yesterday. — Photo by Joseph Shagra

KUWAIT: The Sabah Al-Ahmad Center for Giftednessand Creativity and the Ministry of Social Affairs andLabor signed an agreement on establishing work-shops for applied sciences and mathematics. Theagreement includes turning several facilities of theministry into workshops to develop talents of Kuwaitiyouth, said Minister of Social Affairs and Labor andMinister of State for Planning and Development HindAl-Subaih in a statement on Sunday. The ministry hadalready opened a workshop in Qadsia youth center,which was a successful experience, she said, addingthat a new workshop will be opened in Shuwaikh aswell. Meanwhile, the Minister noted that the first-evermath club will also be opened in Al-Nuzha, while anapplied sciences workshop is set to open in the socie-ty development center in Jahra. The ministry is plan-ning on opening a workshop in each of the six gover-norates, said Subaih, noting that the facilities arealready prepared for the mission. — KUNA

workshopsto open in allgovernorates

KUWAIT: Minister Hind Al-Subaih and DrSaaduddine Okhasha, board member of the SabahAl-Ahmad Center for Giftedness and Creativity,sign the agreement.

KUWAIT: Minister of Amiri DiwanAffairs Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-AhmadAl-Sabah received a delegation of theKuwait Institute for Scientif icResearch (KISR) including Dr Samir Al-Zenki and Faisal Al-Helil. During themeeting, the two sides discussedmeans of promoting the KISRís strate-gic projects. — KUNA

Minister meetsKISR delegation

F r o m t he A r a bic pr e s sMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Al-Jarida

The detainment of Musallam Al-Barrak,Hamad Al-Naqi or others in cases related toverbal or written expression is only the

result of what legislators themselves have made,including Barrak and others with no exceptionover the long Kuwaiti parliamentary experience.Laws setting penalties for breaking the lawthrough expression have been made by legisla-tors and no judge can overlook these penalties isa defendant is proven guilty as charged beforeany judge. This means that judges have nothingto do with sentencing someone to prison for hisown expressions. Those penalties have been setby successive parliaments that have passed them,turned blind eyes to them or even supportedthem in some cases.

The best example of this is the role played bylegislators in toughening the penalty for blas-pheming the Prophet (PBUH) up to capital punish-ment and execution even if the crime was com-mitted through a tweet. It is funny that so many ofthose lamenting freedom of expression are thevery same ones who set and passed those laws orstrongly supported them, including Barrak him-self.

We do agree to penalize those accused of slan-der or violating the constitution in terms of free-dom of expression. I am not for cancelling penal-ties for those slandering or assaulting others. Yet,it is unreasonable and unacceptable to punishthose expressing their opinions one way or anoth-er by physical confinement, because as I haverepeatedly said, ideas cannot be imprisoned. Theyremain in minds even if the bodies are detained.Therefore, the only natural alternative are financialpenalties, even if they are huge, in order to deterviolators from slandering or going too far.

Doing this, we will have achieved the goal oflegislations regulating the right to free expressionin a way that reassures those subject to slander,be they individuals or bodies, that slanderingthem will not go unaccounted for. We will alsoreassure those expressing their minds verbally orin writing that they would not go to prison forattending a seminar or posting a tweet.

Once more, even if ideas are bad, they still can-not be detained and imprisoned. Imprisonmentdoes not affect ideas and a new legislation shouldbe set considering such a fact. It should set penal-ties according to the crime without any exaggera-tion or abuse of powers. This is what everybodyshould ask for to avoid the ‘reaction’ methodologyand temporary resentment, because today we arewith Barrak, another day we’d be with Naqi, andthen others, etc.

—Translated by Kuwait Times

Ideas cannot be confined

Al-Jarida

By Ali Mahmoud Khajah

Ido not agree with those who describe the multipleresignations from Hashd as a division or dismantlingof the group. Hashd is a group that is supposed to

have hundreds if not thousands of members. It is a for-mation of Mutair tribesmen that were amassed byMusallam Al-Barrak during his Andalus gathering, thenthe Mutair and Ajman that gathered in Egaila afterKhalid Al-Tahous supported him. So the exit of 10 or 20members from the group, despite the divisional scene, isnothing significant, and it is not supposed to be consid-ered as a notable phenomenon that divides the group.

Despite this, the resignations have “quality” and moreaccurate political indications. They are an expression ofwhat can be called the reluctance of the civil faction andits disengagement with tribal groups and parties withinHashd. This faction, despite its small size, is the influen-tial one and gave Hashd a political image and MusallamAl-Barrak a patriotic sash he was in dire need for to coverthe true face of the organization. Giving a civil descrip-tion is not necessarily accurate and correct to those whoresigned, because many Mutair members are “civil” andmany of those who claim civility and patriotism carrywith them, sometimes against their will, remnants oftribal belonging and even intolerance.

Those who resigned did not break their obvious linkwith the tribal methods and practices in Hashd. They didnot issue a statement or an explanation of their movetowards the old classical and non-political practices thatgoverned Hashd’s behavior, and the view of its membertowards other social and political establishments.

Mr Ahmad Al-Saadoun, who seems to be behind theresignations, explained opinions and introduced newpolitical ideas lately, but those ideas were clearly direct-ed towards the general political situation and towardsthe “annulled majority” and were not directed as criti-cism of Hashd.

Unless Mr Saadoun improves what he presented andsevers his links with the strings that were moving thepolitical theater puppets, particularly the stand towardsthe traditional national political power “merchants” onwhich Hashd launched, in cooperation with the symbolsof true corruption and the original thieves of publicfunds, an organized campaign in the past five years, andunless Saadoun and those who support him condemnthe accusations that were made towards the judicialauthority and particularly the judges of the constitution-al court, resigning or remaining within Hashd means thesame. — Translated by Kuwait Times

Hashd’s situationAl-Qabas

By Abdellatif Al-Duaij

CrimeR e p o r t

Gulf national questionedin compatriot’s death

Partygoers face deportationFarwaniya police raided a building and arrested 12

drunk expats, male and female. According to sources,an undercover agent told Farwaniya police that a sus-picious building exists in Block 2 of the area. A teamwent to inspect the area and found a group of peopledrunk sitting in front of the building. An apartment’sdoor was open, so police went inside and found otherpeople drunk and in compromised conditions. All werearrested and sent for deportation.

Fugitive held Director General of Criminal Detectives Maj Gen

Mahmoud Al-Tabbakh ordered a citizen to held undertightened security, as he is wanted to serve a 15-year-jail sentence for committing several felonies includingfiring a weapon, resisting authorities and trading indrugs. Meanwhile, police are questioning the suspect’ssister who is charged with forging official documentsin order to admit her injured brother to the hospitalwhere she worked, and to prevent authorities fromarresting him. The young man was brought to Jahrahospital for treatment of injuries he received when hismotorcycle flipped over, but his family, with the aid ofhis sister, transferred him to Farwaniya hospital out offear that he will be arrested once his conditionimproves. — Al-Anbaa

KUWAIT: Daiya police station ordered the detention of aGulf national pending the final death report of anotherGulf national who was reported dead in the area yesterday.The man is suspected to have pushed the victim from thewindow of an apartment in Bneid Al-Gar after a night ofheavy drinking, according to investigations. A securitysource said that they received a call about a person fallingfrom a building, so police rushed to the area, but discov-ered that the man had already succumbed to his injuries.They identified the man as a Gulf national. Police proceed-ed to the man’s flat where they found another Gulf nation-al, and he was drunk. When they asked him about the inci-dent, he said that he and his compatriot argued whiledrinking, so the victim went inside a room, locked it, andthen jumped. However, according to the source, when theflat was inspected, police discovered that the room wasopen. Preliminary investigations indicate that a fight mayhave ensued, which led the suspect to throw the victimout. The source added that the suspect’s condition is unsta-ble, and that he was admitted to the intensive care unit.Police plan to question him when his condition improvesin order to find out whether the two were alone or not.

String of burglaries, stabbing in HawallyA Jordanian man told police that an unknown person

broke into his room in Salmiya and stole KD 1,500, beforeescaping. Meanwhile, in a nearby building, anotherJordanian man reported that a burglar came to his houseand stole KD 1,000 worth of gold jewelry, while a thirdtheft in the same area resulted to KD 1,500 and jewelrystolen. Police are looking for the suspect. Meanwhile,Hawally police are investigating the claims of a universityprofessor to Zahra police that he was stabbed by a 21-year-old man inside his residence.

Where is the expatriates’ health insurance money?

Al-Jarida

By Mohammed Al-Rowaihel

For years now, expats living in Kuwait havebeen paying KD 50 a year to health insur-ance companies per person, and in

return, none of these companies provides themwith any healthcare whatsoever, and neitherdoes the health ministry or the Cabinet forcesthese companies to do so. Nonetheless, expatscannot renew their residency visas unless theypay the health insurance fees, which makesone wonder where all the money expats arepaying to receive medical and healthcare alongwith their family members has gone?!

I do not know the point in imposing suchfees on expats if insurance companies do notfinance their medical treatment, nor does thehealth ministry. By simple calculation of thetotal sums expats pay for health insurance, thefigure simply reaches $1 billion a year and addsup to $15 billion taking into consideration thatexpats started paying these fees in 1999. Sucha sum is more than enough to build, man andequip five entire hospitals with the latest med-ical equipment and can also help build morethan ten fully-equipped clinics to provide themwith healthcare. However, expats still go topublic hospitals for medical treatment and areforced to pay extra fees for each test, radiology,diagnosis and medicine. So, what is the pointof the health insurance they have been pay-ing?!

Had the state used these sums in buildingnew hospitals and clinics, it would have hit twobirds with one stone. It would have saved thestate budget fortunes, provided citizens withproper healthcare and it would not have need-ed to build new hospitals because our currentones’ capacity is enough to serve citizens andprovide them with proper healthcare, becausethey number no more than 1.2 million. Thiswould also end crowds in public hospitals, putan end to bed scarcity and reduce the numberof patients visiting OPDs.

So, in pure black and white - I mention thisin view of growing calls to impose health insur-ance on retirees, which makes us wonder aboutthe money collected from expats ever since1999 as health insurance fees without seeing orhearing about building a single hospital or clin-ic or even signing contracts with private hospi-tals to treat expats. We have to warn of such atendency, which we believe was made for prof-iteering in the private sector at the expense ofretirees. We need to know the feasibility ofsuch a proposed project before we approve it.

— Translated by Kuwait Times

KUWAIT: The finance ministry has referredthe new taxation project to the Cabinet forreview and approval pending officialimplementation in Kuwait in the nearfuture, well-informed sources said. Thesources added that the Cabinet had initiallyapproved the project proposed by theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF) lastmonth and that an official IMF team wouldbe summoned once the approval was finalto set the project’s implementation mecha-nism and schedule that is expected torange between four and five years, duringwhich the project’s legislative, legal andadministrative requirements will be pre-pared to match the economic changesexpected to affect both the public and the

private sectors. “According to the pro-posed project, taxes would be divided intotwo main types - value-added tax and busi-ness profit tax,” explained the sources, not-ing that value-added tax would be general-ized throughout the GCC in the form of rev-enue fees while a 10 percent business prof-it tax would be imposed on all operatingcompanies (both local and foreign) as wellas individual businessmen making over KD50,000 a year, for instance.

The sources explained that imposingthe new taxes would annul the currentlevies of 2.5 percent to support nationallabor, one percent collected for zakatand one percent collected to supportKFAS. — Al-Qabas

Cabinet ‘approves’ new tax project

KUWAIT: The Ministry of Education is con-templating whether to create a seventheducational, area especially after theincrease in the number ofschools in Ahmadi as newcities and new schools arebeing built there.

Ministry leaders believethat there is a growing num-ber of schools in the Ahmadieducational area, especiallyafter the building of schoolsin the new Sabah Al-AhmadCity, an informed educationalsource said. This situationmay affect the educationalprocess and make it difficultfor area officials to follow andsupervise schools, which callsfor dividing the area and cre-ating a seventh one, thesource explained. MinistryUndersecretary Dr HaithamAl-Athari asked Ahmadi education officialsto submit a report on the possibility of aseventh area and their opinion on it, thesources added. There are six educationaldirectorates in the education ministry; onein each governorate, and their job is to

supervise public schools located in theirrespective coverage areas.

German universityMeanwhile, Minister of

Education Dr Bader Al-Essasaid approvals have beengiven to build a Germanuniversity in Kuwait. Essa,who is also Minister ofHigher Education, said thatthe Higher EducationMinistry signed a memo-randum of understandingwith the German Authorityfor Academic Exchange tosend secondary students tostudy in Germany a fewyears ago.Separately, Essacommented on the allegedspread of graduates withfake degrees from universi-ties abroad. “ Those

(degrees) are totally rejected, and there iscoordination with the Fatwa andLegislations Department to take the neces-sary measures to check the authenticity ofthose certificates,” Essa said.

— Al-Qabas, Al-Anba

Education ministerDr Bader Al-Essa

Education ministry to addseventh educational area?

KUWAIT: Efforts should be consolidated tohelp the Interior Ministry in collectingweapons, rights activists and representa-tives of security authorities said. The callwas made during a lecture held at KuwaitHuman Rights Society recently about theweapons collection campaign. The speak-ers warned that the spread of weapons inthe hands of youngsters will increase vio-lent crimes, while firing gunshots duringweddings has become a dangerous phe-nomenon. They said that establishing secu-rity and opposing aggressive behavior is acollective responsibility.

Director of operations department atthe weapons collection campaign MajorNawaf Al-Harbi spoke about the awarenessplan that was followed by the InteriorMinistry. “Security is the responsibility of all;we all must contribute to instilling the pil-lars of security and peace in Kuwait society,”he said Harbi urged NGOs to play a biggerrole in spreading awareness regarding theimportance and benefits of weapons’ col-lection. He lauded the efforts of the KuwaitHuman Rights Society in supporting gov-ernment efforts to provide security in thesociety. — Al-Qabas

Lecture warns againstunlicensed weapons’ spread

KUWAIT: While the health ministry hasassured that reports about the spread ofNorwegian rats is not true, statistics showthere are some infested areas in the country,where the spread of rats varies between 17and 62 percent. Director of the insect androdent fighting department at the healthministry Dr Samiya Al-Tubaikh confirmed thespread of Norwegian rats, adding that therate of their presence is up to 62 homes outof a hundred.

She said the Norwegian rat is one of themost dangerous and fierce rodents, and caneat children’s extremities as well as those ofspecial needs people, and this may transferdiseases and epidemics to them, especiallyplague. She emphasized the importance ofimplementing “comprehensive environmen-tal correction” to guarantee the reduction of

rodents, adding the obstacles facing the pro-ject’s team include the large amounts of left-overs discarded, not removing garbage for along time from homes and facilities, a decay-ing sewer system and stores inside homesand basements that are rented to companieswithin the private residence network.

Tubaikh warned against homes that areturned into bird and animal pens, as theybecome an attractive environment for insectsand rodents, besides the many abandonedparks, which make good living areas forrodents. She confirmed that Kuwait is freefrom malaria, but some Asians were discov-ered with filaria, which is a rare disease thataffects the lymphatic system, causes infectionof the lymphatic vessels and causes swellingin the affected area, particularly the extremi-ties. —Al-Qabas

Some areas of Kuwait plagued by fierce rats

Women’s walk across Koreas’ DMZ denied

Page 12

Streets calm after protest of Ohio officer’s acquittalPage 9

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia said yesterday it had foundmass graves feared to contain the bodies ofBangladeshi and Rohingya migrants at the centre of aregional human-trafficking crisis.

Home Minister Zahid Hamidi was quoted by The Starnewspaper’s website as saying the graves were foundnear suspected detention camps run by people-traffick-ers.

“But we don’t know how many there are. We areprobably going to find more bodies,” Zahid was quotedas saying. Thai police in early May found secret human-trafficking jungle camps on their side of the border anddozens of shallow graves.

The report quoting Zahid gave few details but theMalay-language newspaper Utusan Malaysia, citing anunnamed source, earlier reported that about 30 massgraves had been found containing “hundreds of skele-tons”.

The Star, also quoting sources, had said the graveswere “believed to contain nearly 100 Rohingyamigrants”. Thailand began a crackdown on human traf-ficking and smuggling following the discovery of itsmass graves, which appears to have thrown regionaltrafficking routes into chaos.

Many migrants previously tried to enter Malaysia,their favoured destination, via its land border withThailand. With traffickers apparently now abandoningtheir human cargo at sea, boats filled with hundreds ofstarving migrants from the two countries have soughtdesperately to land in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia,which turned them away.

Facing growing international pressure, Malaysia andIndonesia last week said they would admit boat people,who are to be repatriated or resettled with the help ofinternational agencies.

Indonesia launches search missions Indonesia’s military said yesterday that President

Joko Widodo had ordered the country to start searchand rescue operations for stranded migrant boats, anoperation that began Friday.

“We will save the migrants and take them to shore,”military spokesman Fuad Basya told AFP, adding that asof late Saturday, no new boats had been sighted.

Previously, Indonesian fisherman have helped hun-dreds of stranded Bangladeshis and Rohingya to shore.

The Malaysian government announced Thursdaythat its navy and coastguard would be mobilised forsearch operations but so far it has not reported any res-cues.

Widodo yesterday reportedly indicated that Jakartawould need help footing the bill for housing thousandsof destitute people.

“We’re counting and making calculations on thecosts involved,” he was quoted as saying on Detikcomnews website. “We still need international support onhow this would be managed.”

More than 3,500 migrants have swum to shore orbeen rescued off the coasts of Malaysia, Indonesia,Thailand and Bangladesh since the crisis erupted earlierthis month.

Malaysian media said the latest mass graves werefound near Padang Besar and Wang Kelian, two townsalong the Thai border in the Malaysian state of Perlis.

Police declined to release information but thenational police chief will hold a press conference on thematter today. Malaysia’s government had previouslydenied that any such mass graves or slave camps exist-ed on its soil.

“I am shocked!” Zahid was quoted by The Star as say-ing.

He added that some of the camps may have beenthere for as long as five years, and that Malaysian citi-zens were suspected to have been involved. MostBangladeshis are economic migrants seeking to escapepoverty at home. The Rohingya leave Myanmar in largepart to escape discriminatory treatment from theBuddhist majority.

Rights groups said a new population law further tar-gets persecuted Rohingya Muslims, by allowingMyanmar’s regional governments to introduce familyplanning regulations to reduce birth rates in their

states.Myanmar insists the Rohingya are illegal immigrants

from Bangladesh and denies citizenship to most ofthem. But it has faced increasing international pressureto stem the flood of people from its shores and deliverurgent humanitarian relief to thousands still trapped atsea.

On Friday its navy said it had carried out its first res-

cue of a migrant boat, when 208 men were foundcrammed in a wooden fishing vessel. Most wereBangladeshis, according to Myanmar officials.

However, possibly thousands more are thought tostill be at sea, with perilous summer monsoon weatherdue to arrive. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon saidSaturday that finding and saving the lives of those atsea should be a “top priority”. — AFP

Mass graves of migrants found in MalaysiaPolice decline to release information

PADANG BESAR: In this May 2, 2015 file photo, Thai police officials measure a shallow grave in Padang Besar,Songkhla province, southern Thailand. Malaysian authorities said yesterday that they have discovered graves inmore than a dozen abandoned camps used by human traffickers on the border with Thailand where RohingyaMuslims fleeing Myanmar have been held.— AP

I N T E R N AT ION A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

CAIRO: Saudi forces and Yemen’s Houthi militiatraded heavy artillery fire which destroyed part ofthe main border crossing between the two coun-tries overnight, residents said yesterday, an escala-tion of the two-month war.

The Haradh border crossing, the largest for peo-ple and goods between the world’s top oilexporter, Saudi Arabia, and its impoverished neigh-bour, was evacuated amid shelling which razed itsdeparture lounge and passport section, witnessessaid.

Residents of several Yemeni villages in the area

left their homes and fled from the frontier, whichhas turned into a front line between the kingdomand the Iran-allied rebels.

Arab air raids hit military bases and weaponsstores in the capital Sanaa and local officials said amid-level Houthi commander, Abu Bassam al-Kibsi,was killed in an air strike in the central province ofRaymah.

Saudi Arabia has led an Arab coalition bombingthe Houthis and backing southern Yemeni fightersopposing the group and loyal to the exiled govern-ment in Saudi Arabia headed by President Abd-

Rabbu Mansour Hadi.The Sunni Muslim states believe the Shi’ite

Houthis are a proxy for influence by their arch rivalIran, but their campaign has yet to reverse therebels’ battlefield gains.

Local fighters combatting the Houthis inYemen’s south reported Saudi-led air strikes on amajor air base controlled by the group in Lahjprovince and say they killed eight Houthi fightersin an ambush in Dalea province yesterday.

Residents in the central city of Taiz said Houthiforces and pro-Hadi fighters fired tank and artillery

shells at each other throughout the city overnight,killing five civilians.

The Houthis seized control of a military base ona strategic mountaintop in the centre of the city,eyewitnesses said. A United Nations-backed peaceconference set for May 28 in Geneva remains indoubt, as Hadi’s exiled government in Saudi Arabiahas expressed reluctance to attend before theHouthis recognise their authority and quit Yemen’smain cities.

The Houthis have demanded a ceasefire beforeany talks. — Reuters

Saudi forces and Yemen’s Houthis trade heavy fire

BAGHDAD: The Islamic State group took fullcontrol of a border crossing between Iraq andSyria yesterday, tightening its grip on the heartof its self-proclaimed caliphate.

The move gave IS control of the two mainroads between Syria and Iraq’s province ofAnbar, as the jihadists pressed their most devas-tating offensive in months.

The latest success came a week after IS cap-tured the Iraqi city of Ramadi and days after itseized the historic Syrian city of Palmyra, two ofthe group’s most significant military victories inalmost a year.

The jihadists seized Al-Walid border post ear-ly Sunday when Iraqi government forces pulledback to a nearby crossing with Jordan. IS hadtaken the Syrian side of the crossing onThursday.

“There was no military support for the securi-ty forces and there weren’t enough of them toprotect the crossing,” Suad Jassem, the head ofAnbar’s border commission, said.

“Daesh (IS) now controls both sides of bothcrossings,” she said, referring to another crossingbetween Anbar and Syria further north that thejihadists seized last year.

The surge by a group described as the mostviolent in modern jihad raised further questionsabout the efficiency of the US-led coalition’seight-month air campaign.

Coalition warplanes have conducted morethan 3,000 strikes in Iraq and Syria since August2014 and dozens more were carried out inrecent days in a bid to contain the rampantjihadists.

There were seven in Anbar alone in a period

of 24 hours straddling May 22-23 as Iraqi gov-ernment and allied forces began to claw backterritory from IS east of Ramadi.

Ramadi fightback On Saturday, Iraqi forces retook Husaybah, a

rural town in the Euphrates Valley seven kilome-tres (4.5 miles) east of Ramadi.

The area’s most prominent Sunni tribal leader,Sheikh Rafia Abdelkarim al-Fahdawi, deployedhis forces, whose knowledge of the terrain is key,alongside fighters from the Hashed al-Shaabi, anumbrella for Shiite militia and volunteers.

A police colonel said the Husaybah operationalso involved local and federal police, and theinterior ministry’s rapid intervention force aswell as the army.

Swift action was seen as essential to preventIS from laying booby traps across Ramadi, whichwould make any advance in the city more riskyand complicated.

Michael Knights, of the Washington Institutethink tank, said the government and its alliesshould waste no time in putting IS on the backfoot in Ramadi to deny it more control of easternAnbar.

“The Iraqi government needs to put ISIS onthe defensive in eastern Anbar before Ramadanbegins in mid-June, when the terrorist move-ment will no doubt try to surge attacks againstShiite religious and civilian targets in Baghdadand the shrine city of Karbala,” he said.

Iraqi forces were simultaneously battling ISon other fronts, including at the Baiji oil refinery,about 200 kilometres (120 miles) north ofBaghdad.

Elite troops have been defending the coun-try’s largest refinery for close to a year andHashed forces have also deployed there inrecent weeks to help repel the jihadists’ latestassault.

In Syria, analysts said the capture of Palmyrapotentially put IS in a position to mount offen-sives on the capital Damascus and third cityHoms.

Palmyra is considered one of the world’sarchaeological jewels and its capture has raisedfears that Syria’s most iconic heritage site couldbe wrecked.

IS militants have smashed statues and blownup ancient artefacts and ruins in several sites inIraq and Syria.

On Saturday, the head of Syrian antiquitiessaid the jihadists had entered the Palmyra muse-um but most of the antiquities there had alreadybeen transferred to Damascus.

The IS advance in both countries has forcedtens of thousands of civilians from their homes,sparking concern among aid agencies.

The fall of Ramadi displaced at least 55,000people, who join the more than 2.8 million peo-ple made homeless by fighting nationwide sincethe start of 2014.

Aid agencies and some politicians have urgedthe Shiite-dominated government to allow dis-placed families who have been held up at abridge for days to be allowed across to seekshelter in Baghdad and beyond.

The authorities are requesting the displacedto have a sponsor before they can enter the cap-ital, where some accuse them of being infiltratedby IS.— AFP

BAGHDAD: Iraqi government forces keep position in the Jurf A-Sakher area, some 50 kilometres south of Baghdad, to protect the area from fur-ther Islamic State (IS) group advancement, yesterday. — AFP

Rampant jihadists firm up control of Iraq-Syria border

IS controls both sides of both crossings

TEHRAN: A senior Iranian military officialtold parliament yesternday the armedforces need a bigger budget to confrontthe Islamic State group whose influenceis growing in neighbouring countries.

“We have to face a new threat in theregion. Terrorist groups are close to ourborders,” General Ahmad-RezaPourdastan who commands Iran’sground forces told parliament, mediareported.

“Today we see the presence of Daeshin Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said,using the Arabic acronym for IS.

Iran’s army and its elite RevolutionaryGuards must be strengthened to be able“to buy tanks, transport vehicles and tooverhaul our helicopters,” he was quotedas saying.

The IS jihadist group, which has seizedchunks of Syria and Iraq to the west ofIran has also gained a foothold in its east-ern neighbours Pakistan andAfghanistan.

The commander of NATO forces inAfghanistan, General John F Campbellhas said that IS was recruiting fighters inAfghanistan, but are not yet operationalthere. “There’s recruiting going on inAfghanistan, there is recruiting going on

in Pakistan. There is money being passedback and forth,” he told reporters onSaturday in Kabul.

In May, IS claimed its first attack inPakistan, where pistol-wielding gunmenstormed a bus carrying members of theminority Shiite Ismaili community, killingat least 43 people.

The Iranian general, who warned that“the battle is on the ground”, did not sayby how much the defence budgetshould be increased.

For the fiscal year ending in March2016, the defence budget was increasedby more than 30% to reach some $10 bil-lion dollars. In addition, the armed forcesreceive $1.2 billion from sovereign funds.

Pourdastan told parliament that whenIS launched its offensive in Iraq in Junelast year jihadists advanced to Jalula, just40 kilometres from the Iranian border.

“In less than three days, we sent fivebrigades to the borders and our recon-naissance helicopters penetrated 40 kilo-metres into Iraq,” Pourdastan added.

Shiite regional power Iran has militaryadvisers in Iraq and Syria and providesfinancial and military support to the gov-ernments of both countries in their fightagainst the Sunni extremists. — AFP

Iran general says army needs more funds to counter IS

ALEPPO: Syrian Civil Defence workers try to pull a man out from under the rubble ofa building following a reported airstrike by government forces on May 24, 2015, inthe rebel-held Al-Sukari neighborhood of the northern city of Aleppo. —AFP

BEIRUT: Islamic State group supportersand a monitoring group said jihadistsshot down a government helicopter innorthern Syria early yesterday, but statemedia said the aircraft had suffered tech-nical problems.

The Syrian Observatory for HumanRights said IS had brought down the heli-copter after midnight near the Kweyrisair base in the east of Aleppo province.Observatory director Rami AbdelRahman said at least one crew memberhad been killed but “the fate of the rest isunknown.” Jihadist accounts on Twittersaid IS had shot down the helicopterusing anti-aircraft missiles.

They posted the names of three crewmembers they said had been killed andpictures of a helicopter in flames.

But Syrian state television said the air-craft had crashed because of technicalproblems.

“A helicopter crashed after takeofffrom Kweyris airport in Aleppo provincebecause of technical faults and the crewwere killed,” it reported. IS fighters havesurrounded the air base since March2014 and have fought fierce clashes withits garrison.

The Syrian government has used heli-copters to drop so-called barrel bombson rebel-held areas of Aleppo province.

Crude weaponsThe crude weapons-made from oil

drums, gas cylinders or water tanks,packed with explosives and scrap metal-have killed hundreds of civilians, drawingcondemnation from human rightsgroups. President Bashar al-Assad hasdenied they are being used. Elsewhere,the Observatory said the toll in regimeair raids on Saturday in the eastern city of

Deir Ezzor rose to 16, including six chil-dren from one family.

IS jihadists control most of Deir Ezzorprovince, including more than half of theprovincial capital, which sits strategicallyon several key highways. TheObservatory also gave new details aboutthe battle for a building in Jisr al-Shughur where regime forces werebesieged by rebels until Friday. Thesiege began when the town fell to rebelsincluding Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-NusraFront on April 25, but a group of regimeforces ended up trapped inside thebuilding.

Dozens of those trapped were able toflee on Friday as the opposition forcesfinally stormed the building. But theObservatory said at least 75 regimeforces were killed in the fight for thebuilding and the subsequent evacuation.

It said another 73 soldiers had beentaken hostage and 91 regime forces andtheir families had escaped and reachedgovernment lines. Syrian media saidgovernment air strikes which providedthe cover for the escape had killed 300Al-Nusra fighters.

Also yesterday, state television report-ed what it called a “massacre” in the cityof Palmyra, which was captured by IS onThursday. State media said 400 peoplehad been killed, “mostly women, childrenand elderly people.”

But the Observatory said there was noevidence of such mass killings. “Severaldozen people accused of ties to theregime have been executed, but thenumber does not exceed 35 since thetown was captured,” director AbdelRahman said. He said one woman andtwo children were among those killedbut the rest were men. — AFP

Syria regime helicopter comes down in Aleppo

ADEN: Yemeni workers unload medical aid boxes from a boat carrying 460 tonnes ofEmirati relief aid that docked in Yemen’s restive port city of Aden, yesterday. Theshipment, including medical and food supplies, is the second from the United ArabEmirates, which delivered last week 1,200 tonnes of relief aid. — AFP

YANGON: Myanmar’s president has signed off on a lawrequiring some mothers to space their children threeyears apart despite objections by a visiting senior USdiplomat and rights activists, who worry it could beused not only to repress women, but also religious andethnic minorities.

The Population Control Health Care Bill - draftedunder pressure from hard-line Buddhist monks with astaunchly anti-Muslim agenda - was passed by parlia-mentarians last month.

US Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinken saidhe warned Myanmar leaders during face-to-face talkslast week about the dangers of the bill. On Saturday,hours after the diplomat left, state-run mediaannounced President Thein Sein had signed it into law.

As predominantly Buddhist Myanmar started mov-ing from dictatorship to democracy four years ago,newfound freedoms of expression lifted the lid ondeep-seeded hatred for minority Muslims - includingRohingya Muslims now arriving on Southeast Asianshores in crowded, rickety boats.

Many are fleeing persecution and violence that hasleft up to 280 people dead and forced another 140,000from their homes in western Rakhine state. They areliving under apartheid-like conditions in dusty, crowd-ed camps, with little access to education or adequatemedical care. They also have little freedom of move-ment, having to pay hefty bribes if they want to passpolice barricades, even for emergencies.

The population law - which carries no punitivemeasures - gives regional authorities the power toimplement birth-spacing guidelines in areas with highrates of population growth.

Though the government says the law is aimed atbringing down maternal and infant mortality rates,activists argue that it steps on women’s reproductiverights and can be used to suppress the growth of mar-ginalized groups. — AP

Myanmar presidentsigns off on contested

population lawTEHRAN: An Iranian negotiator yesterdaydenied accepting military site inspections aspart of a nuclear deal with world powers, a del-icate issue in talks that must be concluded bythe end of June. Abbas Araghchi, who is alsodeputy foreign minister, made the remarks ashe briefed a parliamentary committee on theprogress of the talks with the P5+1 - Britain,China, France, Russia and the United Statesplus Germany. “In his report, Mr Araghchi saidthat inspections of military sites have beenaccepted but the inspections are regulatedand will be seriously managed,” ultraconserva-tive lawmaker Javad Karimi-Ghodoussi wasquoted as saying by Fars news agency.

The remarks appeared to contradict thoseof supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,who said this week that inspections of militarysites and interviews of scientists by foreign

experts were excluded from a frameworknuclear agreement. Araghchi denied the law-maker’s comments on his Instagram page.“What can we do except put the fate of Karimi-Ghodoussi and Fars in the hands of God?” hewrote alongside a picture of a Fars headlinethat read: “We accepted the inspection of mili-tary sites”.

Araghchi said later that during the briefingboth he and Foreign Minister MohammadJavad Zarif reiterated their “objection toinspections or visits to any military centres orinterviews with our nuclear scientists”. “We pre-sented necessary explanations... regardingsecurity measures which countries implement-ing the protocol usually take in order to pro-tect their military, nuclear and industrial infor-mation and prevent spying,” he said in a state-ment from the ministry. — AFP

Iran denies agreement on military site inspections

I N T E R N AT ION A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

KANSAS CITY: A man accused of holding his former girl-friend captive in a crate at their home in western Missourithen fatally shooting her and her teenage son, was shot andkilled Saturday, authorities said.

Law enforcement officers killed James Barton Horn Jr.,47, at a state wildlife area in western Missouri, south of KnobNoster, Henry County Sheriff Kent Oberkrom said.

Authorities have been searching for Horn since late Aprilwhen he was charged in the kidnapping of 46-year-oldSandra Kay Sutton. Prosecutors said Sutton told police thatHorn kept her in a wooden crate off-and-on for four monthsat their home in Sedalia, some 90 miles southeast of KansasCity, Missouri. Sutton and her 17-year-old son, ZacharyWade Sutton, were found dead Thursday at a relative’s

home in Clinton, about 45 miles from Sedalia, where shehad moved after escaping the home she had shared withHorn.

Oberkrom said officers found Horn hiding in a closet inan abandoned building at the J. N. Turkey Kearn MemorialWildlife Area, about 70 miles southeast of Kansas City. Hesaid officers were led to the area by a tip they received

Saturday morning. When officers told him to surrender,Horn threatened the officers with a handgun, said Sgt. BillLowe, spokesman for the Missouri State Highway Patrol.Lowe said it was unclear if Horn fired his weapon.

Lowe said the investigation will focus on matching theweapons Horn had with him with evidence taken from thescene of the Suttons’ murders.— AP

Missouri suspect in killing of woman, teen son is dead

CLEVELAND: The streets largely remained calm yester-day morning after police in riot gear made numerousarrests overnight of protesters angered by a patrolman’sacquittal in the deaths of two unarmed black suspects ina barrage of police gunfire.

Michael Brelo, 31, faces administrative charges whileremaining suspended without pay after he was found notguilty Saturday on two counts of voluntary manslaughter,but he no longer faces the prospect of prison. The anxiouscity now awaits a decision on criminal charges against awhite officer in the fatal shooting of a black 12-year-oldboy with a pellet gun.

Brelo and 12 other officers fired 137 shots at a car withTimothy Russell and Malissa Williams inside it on Nov. 29,2012. The shooting occurred at the end of a 22-mile chaseinvolving more than 100 Cleveland police officers and 60cruisers after Russell’s Chevy Malibu backfired whilespeeding past police headquarters. During the chase, anofficer reported that he thought he’d seen Williams with agun. At the end, police mistook police gunfire for shotsfrom Russell’s car.

Brelo fired 49 of those shots that night, but it was thefinal 15 fired into the windshield while he stood on thehood of Russell’s car that led to his indictment and a four-week trial. He faced up to 22 years in prison if convictedon both counts.

The shooting helped prompt an investigation by theUS Department of Justice that concluded Clevelandpolice had engaged in a pattern and practice of excessiveuse of force and violations of people’s civil rights.

Angry but mostly orderly protests followed Saturday’sverdict. More than a dozen protesters were arrestedSaturday night for failing to disperse from an alley in thecity ’s Warehouse District on downtown’s west side,deputy police chief Wayne Drummond said. Several otherpeople were arrested elsewhere downtown.

The first protest formed outside the Justice CenterSaturday morning while Judge John P. O’Donnell readfrom his 35-page verdict. A larger protest of around 200people gathered at noon near where Cuyahoga CountyProsecutor Tim McGinty lives. Both protests later mergedat a recreation center where 12-year-old Tamir Rice waskilled by a rookie patrol officer last November. While thatdemonstration became boisterous, with Eugene Riceangrily calling for justice for his grandson, it remainedpeaceful. An investigation into the Tamir Rice shooting isnearly complete and will be given to the prosecutor’soffice to decide whether to pursue criminal charges.

Alicia Kirkman, 47, of Cleveland, said she joined themarch in honor of her son, killed in a police shooting

eight years ago. “I’m just so mad we never get justice fromany of the police killings,” said Kirkman, who said she set-tled with the city after her son’s death but no chargeswere filed.

Mental illnessThe judge said in his ruling that he wouldn’t “sacrifice”

Brelo to the wave of anti-police sentiment that has sweptacross the nation in the wake of other police in-custodydeaths. While protests in cities like Baltimore, New YorkCity and Ferguson, Missouri, have erupted into violence,the demonstrations in Cleveland didn’t escalate.

The judge’s decision to acquit Brelo focused on whichshots killed Russell, 43, and Williams, 30, two homelessdrug addicts with a long history of mental illness. Four ofthe 23 gunshot wounds to Russell and seven of Williams’24 wounds were believed to have been fatal. O’Donnellsaid that while testimony showed Brelo fired some of thefatal shots, other officers fired kill shots as well.

A grand jury charged five police supervisors with mis-demeanor dereliction of duty for failing to control thechase. All five have pleaded not guilty and no trial datehas been set.

Prosecutors had argued that when Brelo stood on thehood of the Malibu that he meant to kill Russell andWilliams instead of containing a threat to his and otherofficers’ lives. O’Donnell ruled that even the last 15 shotswere justified based on Brelo’s belief that someone insidethe car had fired at police at the beginning, middle andend of the chase.

“Officer Brelo risked his life on that night,” said Brelo’slead attorney, Patrick D’Angelo, after the verdict. McGintysaid he respected O’Donnell’s decision, and added thatthe case would prevent police violence.

In addition to the Tamir Rice case, the county prosecu-tor’s office is looking into the death of a black womanwho died in police custody while lying face first on theground in handcuffs. The family of Tanisha Anderson, 37,has sued the city of Cleveland and the two police officerswho subdued her. They say she panicked Nov. 12 whenofficers put her in the back of a patrol car after they’dresponded to a call about Anderson having a mentalhealth crisis.

Russell’s sister, Michelle, said Brelo would ultimatelyface justice, despite the judge’s decision. The city ofCleveland has paid the families of Russell and Williams atotal of $3 million to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit.

“He’s not going to dodge this just because he wasacquitted,” Michelle Russell said. “God will have the finalsay.” —AP

Streets calm after protest

of Ohio officer’s acquittal

I N T E R N AT I O N A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

KIEV: Ukraine’s pro-Russian rebels rushedSunday to dispel speculation that a bloodyinternal battle for control of Moscow’s moneywas behind the gangland-style slaying of atop warlord.

Prizrak (Ghost) brigade commander AlexeiMozgovoi and at least six others including hispress secretary and armed guards-were shotdead Saturday while travelling in the rene-gade eastern province of Lugansk, a regionunder effective rebel control.

Separatist officials said his convoy of atleast two vehicles was first struck by a bomb.The survivors were then mowed down in ahail of bullets near the spot where Mozgovoi

survived another assassination attempt inMarch.

Defence officials in Kiev have said littleabout the incident and taken no formal creditfor organising the attack.

But Mozgovoi was long believed to haverun afoul of Lugansk’s self-proclaimed leaderI g o r P l o t n i t s k y a n d k e y o f f i c i a l s i n t h eKremlin.

He was adamantly opposed to the terms ofa February truce deal that has stemmed someof the deadliest fighting with governmentforces and opened the way for limited self-rule in rebel-held areas.

Mozgovoi was also placed on a US blacklist

for reportedly organising a summary courtsystem that is believed to have seen dozensexecuted for either backing Kiev or practisingWestern lifestyles.

Plotnitsky cal led the assassination “anattack on all of us-people who defend theright for the (separatist region) to exist”.

“I mourn together with all those who knewAlexei Borisovich Mozgovoi and those whow a l k e d t h i s j o u r n e y to g e t h e r w i t h h i m ,”Plotnitsky told his administration’s officialwebsite.

Lu g a n s k ’s d e p u t y p ro s e c u to r S e rg e iGorenko said initial findings pointed to theinvolvement of a pro-Kiev “sabotage force”.

Th e re gi o n’s p ro - R u s s i a n p o l i ce c h i e fS e rg e i K oz l ov a d d e d t h a t h i s fo rce h a dre ce n t l y n o te d i n c re a s e d a c t i v i t y byUk rainian “reconnaissance and sabotageunits”.

Several insurgent commanders have beenshot dead under mysterious circumstances inrecent months.

Moscow resolutely denies back ing theguerri l las with arms and funding. I t saysRussians who have taken part in the insur-gency that has claimed nearly 6,300 lives in1 3 m o n t h s a r e “ v o l u n t e e r s ”, w h o n e v e rre ce i ve d fo r m a l o rd e r s to j o i n t h e c a m -paign. —AFP

Ukraine rebels deny internal strife after commander’s slaying

MADRID: Spaniards voted yesterday in elections thatcould see the anti-austerity protest movement con-quer city halls and transform Spanish politics.

New left-wing and centrist movements are fight-ing to end the two-party system of the past fourdecades and drive out the ruling conservativePopular Party (PP).

Surging in popularity after the wave of anti-auster-ity protests that erupted in 2011, they vow to fightcorruption and heal a country stricken by unemploy-ment and spending cuts.

“This is the first time we have felt hopeful whencoming out to vote,” said Eva Quintas, 32, after castingher ballot in central Madrid for left-wing protest partyPodemos and the local group it is backing, AhoraMadrid. Another voter, Fernando Martin, 50, said heeventually made up his mind to vote for the PP.

“These elections are important. I think there aregoing to be big changes,” he said. “People feel letdown by politicians of all parties.” Podemos wants todrive the PP out of power and challenge the main-stream left as the force of opposition in the euro-zone’s fourth-biggest economy, as the Syriza partyhas done in Greece.

The economically liberal Ciudadanos party mean-while is luring voters from right and left, promisingmore moderate, market-friendly reforms. In the cityhall elections, numerous grassroots groups opposedto the government’s austerity measures are running

with Podemos’s backing. They are polling strongly inthe two biggest cities, Madrid and Barcelona.Leading centre-left newspaper El Pais called it achoice between “the old and the new politics”.Conservative daily ABC pointed out the high level ofundecided voters-some 30 percent according to polls.

‘Historic’ vote Polls opened across mainland Spain at 9:00 am

(0700 GMT), and will close at 1800 GMT.Voters were being asked to choose leaders in

more than 8,000 city halls and 13 of the 17 regionalgovernments which control health and educationbudgets. More than 35 million people were regis-tered to vote. Podemos and Ciudadanos have surgedover the past year to occupy third and fourth place inthe polls behind the Popular Party and the main-stream opposition Socialists.

Those two parties have taken turns running Spainfor more than 30 years. “There is no doubt that amajority of Spaniards want change. What they wantnow are governments that make pacts and engage indialogue,” said Jose Pablo Ferrandiz from major poll-ster Metroscopia.

“That is truly something new in Spain. We are notused to coalition governments.” The polls also indicat-ed a marked rise in turnout was likely, driven byyoung voters. “This is a historic campaign for politicalchange in Spain, just like during the transition” from

dictatorship in the 1970s, Ciudadanos leader AlbertRivera said.

Polls have consistently shown the PP losing sup-port overall. “In 2011 we demonstrated on the townsquares. In 2015 we will throw them out of power,”Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias said.

General election warm-up Spain’s economic growth is gradually improv-

ing, but the unemployment rate was at more than23 percent at the last count and anti-austerity cam-paigners say the recovery is not reaching the poor-est.

Yesterday’s vote is an important warm-up forPrime Minister Mariano Rajoy as he fights to stay inoffice in the general election due aroundNovember. He warns that ejecting the PP fromoffice could disrupt Spain’s economic recovery.

“This is not a time to experiment,” he said. “Youcannot experiment with the interests of theSpanish people.”

Analysts say a Podemos surge could undermineforeign investors’ confidence in Spain’s financialstability, like Syriza’s rise to power in Greece.

But Ciudadanos has offered them a more mar-ket-friendly alternative and could act as an “impor-tant power broker” to keep Spain’s economicreforms on track, said analyst Christian Schulz ofGerman bank Berenberg. — AFP

Spain votes as new forces

seek ‘historic’ change‘People feel let down by politicians of all parties’

MADRID: A woman holding a dog waits to cast her ballots in Spain’s municipal and regional pelections at a polling station in Madrid yesterday.Polls opened at 9:00 am (0700 GMT), with voters turning out to choose leaders in more than 8,000 city halls, including Madrid and Barcelona,as well as leaders for 13 regional governments in a key test for new protest parties that could herald a historic change in Spain’s political land-scape ahead of a general election. — AFP

BUJUMBURA: Thousands of Burundianactivists mourned a murdered opposition leaderat his funeral yesterday, vowing to intensify theirprotests against a bid by the president of thecentral African nation to seek a third consecutiveterm.

Opposition leaders also said they were sus-pending talks with the government of PresidentPierre Nkurunziza after Zedi Feruzi, the leader ofthe Union for Peace and Development (UPD), asmall opposition party, was gunned down in thecapital on Saturday.

“Those who killed Feruzi Zedi will pay sooneror later,” one sign held by mourners read. Thekilling came a day after a grenade attack on abusy market killed three people and injuredaround 40 others.

The attacks have dramatically worsened ten-sions in the crisis-hit country, where a heavy-handed crackdown on the anti-governmentdemonstrations has already left around 30 deadsince late April.

The crisis also sparked a failed coup againstPresident Nkurunziza last week, and there arefears Burundi, which only emerged from a 13-year civil war in 2006, could be plunged backinto conflict.

Condemning the apparent assassination as“an awful act”, activists said in a statement theywere “suspending participation in dialogue withthe government” that had been supported by

the United Nations and African Union. They alsosaid the murder could have been part of analleged “plan to physically eliminate” leaders ofthe campaign against Nkurunziza. A journalistwho witnessed the attack said the gunmenwere clad in uniforms similar to those worn bythe presidential guard.

While the streets of the capital were calmSunday in line with a weekend truce, protesterswere readying to resume the demonstrations.Civil society leader Pacifique Nininahazwe calledthe truce “to allow the people to bury with dig-nity those who died for democracy,” but warnedthe “protests will resume on Monday with evenmore force.”

UN appeals again for calm The presidency, however, said it was

“shocked” by the attack, in which a police body-guard was also killed, and called for investiga-tions, “so the guilty are brought to justice”.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who hasalready criticised Nkurunziza’s attempt to stay inoffice, also condemned the latest violence andappealed for “calm and restraint”.

Burundi’s crisis, which began in late April afterthe ruling party nominated Nkurunziza to standagain in the June 26 presidential election, deep-ened last week when a top general staged a failedcoup attempt. Parliamentary polls, initially set forMay 26, have been postponed to June 5.— AFP

Burundi opposition

leader murdered

Poles vote in cliffhanger

presidential election runoffWARSAW: Poles voted yesterday in the final roundof a cliffhanger presidential election race betweenthe conservative incumbent Bronislaw Komorowskiand an even more conservative challenger.

In his five years in office, the 62-year-oldKomorowski has been popular and was easilyexpected to win re-election. But he narrowly lost in

the first round of voting to Andrzej Duda, a little-known 43-year-old lawyer and member of theEuropean Parliament with the Law and Justice par-ty who waged an energetic campaign.

Polls in recent days have shown yesterday’s raceas being too close to call. Duda’s strong showing ina first round on May 10, which helped force a

runoff, has exposed a rising disillusionment withthe long-ruling Civic Platform party, whichKomorowski is allied with. The party has governedPoland since 2007 and been marred by a string ofcorruption scandals. Its fortunes have also fallensomewhat with the departure from Poland of itsformer charismatic leader and prime minister,Donald Tusk, who is now the European Union pres-ident.

The first round had a large protest vote for arock star, and political analysts say a majority ofthose votes will probably go to Duda. On the otherhand, many people who didn’t vote then areexpected to vote this time, and many of thosevotes are expected to go to Komorowski.

The president has limited powers but the elec-tion is being closely watched as a sign for how CivicPlatform and Law and Justice will fare in the moresignificant parliamentary election this fall.

Although both parties are conservative, the rul-ing Civic Platform party has a more liberal stance onsome issues such as in vitro fertilization, and is morepro-European than Law and Justice, which has anationalistic streak and has demanded more sover-eignty from Brussels. Duda has called for higher tax-es on banks and large supermarket chains, whichare mainly foreign owned. He also said he wantsPoland to retake control of the banks.

The Polish currency, the zloty, weakened in thefinal days of the campaign. Exit polls will be pub-lished when polling stations close at 9 p.m. (1900GMT ), but final results are not expected untilMonday at the earliest. — AP

KRAKOW: Andrzej Duda, left, the Law and Justice party candidate accompanied by wife AgataKornhauser, center, and daugther Kinga, prepares to cast his vote in the second round of thePresidential Election in Krakow, Poland, yesterday. Voting started in Poland’s presidential run-offelection that pits challenger Andrzej Duda against incumbent Bronislaw Komorowski. — AP

BUJUMBURA: The body of Zedi Feruzi, the head of the Union for Peace and Development(UPD) opposition party lies in the road near his home in Bujumbura’s Ngagara district inBujumbura yesterday. Feruzi was shot dead along with a bodyguard as he was returninghome at night. The killings, a day after a grenade attack on a busy market in the capitalkilled three people, risk further fuelling tensions in Burundi after weeks of violentprotests triggered by the president’s controversial bid for a third term. — AFP

ADDIS ABABA: Ethiopia was yesterday holdingits first general elections since the death ofstrongman Meles Zenawi in 2012, with his suc-cessor Hailemariam Desalegn all but certain tostay in power.

Over 36.8 million Ethiopians registered foryesterday’s polls, but analysts say the election inAfrica’s second-most populous nation falls farshort of open competition. Western observerswere not invited and the opposition alleges thegovernment has used authoritarian tactics toensure victory.

One of the main opposition candidates,Yilekal Getinet, accused the government of“closing” political space.

Voters stood peacefully in lines in the capitalAddis Ababa, where an AFP journalist said sta-tions were calm, without long queues but a reg-ular flow of people passing through to cast theirballot.

Posters of the ruling Ethiopian People’sRevolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) domi-nate the capital.

“I except the EPRDF to win - but maybe theopposition will get more seats so there will bemore discussion about what the government isdoing,” said Wassen, who was waiting to vote. “Itis better for the country-now there is only one

opposition MP and no discussion.”Polls opened at 6:00 am (0300 GMT) on

Sunday, and will close at 6:00 pm (1500 GMT),with initial results expected within two to fivedays, and final official tallies on June 22.

Three observers from different parties wereseen in stations in the capital’s Kazanches andCherkos districts.

‘Not much of a democratic exercise’ The ruling EPRDF has been in power for over

two decades and is confident of a win, butinsists the result will be based on its economicrecord alone. Ethiopia is now one of Africa’s topperforming economies and a magnet for for-eign investment.

Rights groups-which routinely accuseEthiopia of clamping down on opposition sup-porters and journalists, and of using anti-terror-ism laws to silence dissent and jail critics-havesaid polls would not be free or fair due to a lackof freedom of speech.

Addis Ababa dismisses such criticism, withgovernment spokesman Redwan Husseintelling AFP that voters would choose their rep-resentatives based on performance.

“If they want to give us another chance theywill vote for us,” he said. —AFP

Ethiopia holds general election

with ruling party set to return

ADDIS ABABA: A woman looks at the election paper before voting in Ethiopia’s generalelection, yesterday, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Ethiopians voted yesterday in national andregional elections, the country’s first since the 2012 death of its longtime leader, but theruling party is expected to maintain its iron-clad grip on power. — AP

I N T E R N AT ION A LMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

BANGKOK: Shortly after seizing power in a coup thatfollowed months of debilitating street protests, GenPrayuth Chan-ocha vowed to end Thailand’s decade ofpolitical upheaval once and for all. In his words, “to bringeverything out in the open and fix it.”

A year later, the military can boast that it has restoredstability and kept this Southeast Asian nation calm. Butthe bitter societal fissures that helped trigger the putschare still simmering below the surface, unresolved.

“Our differences have just been pushed under therug by a junta that prohibits freedom of expression,” saidSunai Phasuk, a senior researcher for Human RightsWatch. “Nothing has been done to address the root caus-es of Thailand’s deep divide.”

What is happening now is the imposition of peace byforce, Sunai said. “There’s no guarantee that wheneverthe junta lets go of their iron grip, the country will not tofall back into conflict,” he added.

On Friday, the anniversary of the takeover, policequashed a small, peaceful demonstration in Bangkok,triggering scuffles as those who took part were draggedaway. At least 37 students were detained before beingreleased Saturday after 11 hours of questioning. Sevenothers who staged a similar protest in the northeasterncity of Khon Kaen were also freed.

Speaking to reporters the same day, Prayuthacknowledged that seizing power “was wrong.” But he

nevertheless defended the overthrow of YingluckShinawatra’s government, saying “we cannot fix the past,but we can build for the future.”

The problem, critics argue, is that the junta may besowing the seeds of more conflict by building that futureon its own terms - with reform committees, a rubber-stamp legislature and no input from the party it toppled,Pheu Thai, whose supporters likely still represent amajority of the electorate.

The latest point of contention, a constitutional draftreleased in April, has been criticized even by groups whosupported the putsch. If approved, the charter wouldsignificantly weaken the power of political parties, shift-ing it to unelected agencies like a proposed “NationalMoral Assembly” that would be empowered to investi-gate politicians for offenses as minor as “impolite”speech - ultimately initiating the path to their removal.

The charter’s drafters say such reforms are designedto check abuse by corrupt politicians, a problemacknowledged by all sides. But Pheu Thai officials say thereal aim is to prevent their party from governing effec-tively if it wins again.

Frankenstein constitution“Nobody knows how these agencies would be made

accountable themselves,” said Democrat Party leaderAbhisit Vejjajiva, a former premier who was among those

who called for Yingluck to resign as prime ministerbefore the coup. Speaking of the junta, he added: “Theyshould be more concerned with making elected govern-ments more accountable, rather than making themweaker.”

Last week, the military government announced itwould subject the draft charter to a referendum. But “ifyou vote yes, you end up with a Frankenstein constitu-tion that undercuts liberal democracy,” said Sunai ofHuman Rights Watch. “If you vote no, they’ll have to goback to the drawing board, and Prayuth will just stay inpower longer.”

The junta has spoken of holding nationwide elec-tions in late 2016, but no date has been set and somebelieve it could govern for years.

“The big picture for now is, we’re still in a lockdown ...there’s still a huge question mark over the future,” saidThitinan Pongsudhirak, a political science professor atBangkok’s Chulalongkorn university.

The junta has not been helped by Thailand’s sputter-ing economy, which has largely remained flat since thecoup, with exports and investment down. Thitinan saidgenerals “were not meant to govern Thailand, (and)some have lost their way. They’re not used to accounta-bility, or being in the public eye, being asked questions.”

And they do not tolerate dissent. According to iLaw, anonprofit group that monitors legal cases, at least 751

people have been summoned by the junta for what themilitary calls “attitude adjustments.” Before Friday, atleast 428 had been arrested, 166 for expressing opinionsperceived as critical; many were supporters of the oust-ed government, as well as students, writers and academ-ics. Some have fled into exile.

Stable democracyThe junta argues that it is working to create the foun-

dation for a stable democracy, and that while it does, lib-erties and freedom of speech that could sow divisionmust be curtailed. “We need an environment that is con-ducive to dialogue, where people can speak to oneanother,” said Maj. Gen. Weerachon Sukhondhapatipak,a junta spokesman.

“We’re not saying that they would not have any free-dom at all in future, we’re not saying that this countrywill be in this environment forever,” he said. “We’re tryingto create ... understanding.”

Yingluck’s former education minister, ChaturonChaisang, who is facing 14 years in prison for not report-ing to a junta summons after the coup and then criticiz-ing the takeover, disagreed.

There has been no “attempt to address the reconcilia-tion process at all,” he said. “There has never been anydiscussion (with us) from people in charge on what theroots of the problem are.”— AP

Year-old Thai coup imposes superficial calm

PAJU: An international group of women peaceactivists, led by American feminist Gloria Steinem,made a rare crossing yesterday of one of the world’smost militarised borders between North and SouthKorea.

The group of 30 activists rode by bus through thedemilitarised zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreasin what Steinem described as a “triumph” for peaceand reconciliation, dismissing criticism that thewomen had allowed themselves to be used as propa-ganda tools by the North.

“I’m so confident that once it is clear what we haveexperienced, these objections will go away,” Steinemtold reporters on the South Korean side of the border.

Detractors argued that the group had played intothe North’s hands by refusing to directly criticise itsdismal human rights record during their stay inPyongyang, where the activists held a peace gather-ing with North Korean women’s groups.

They also suggested the interactions at the gath-ering were less than genuine given that the NorthKorean women had likely been specially selected bythe authorities.

“I know we had real human exchanges with NorthKorean women,” Steinem insisted.

Can’t change North’s image “Nothing we do can change the image of North

Korea. We are trying to make person by person con-

nections, so that there is understanding,” she added.The group had originally wanted to cross the DMZ

through the Panmunjom “truce village”, where Northand South Korean soldiers stand just metres apart in apermanent, Cold War face-off over the border.

But South Korea opposed the plan and thewomen finally agreed “with regret” to Seoul’s prefer-ence for a road crossing on the western part of theborder. They were also prevented from walking onfoot over the actual border line, and had to move bybus instead.

Despite its name, the DMZ is one of the world’smost heavily militarised frontiers, bristling withwatchtowers and landmines, and crossings throughthe land border are extremely rare.

With this year marking the 70th anniversary of thedivision of the Korean peninsula, the women saidthey wanted to draw attention to the need for a per-manent peace treaty to replace the armistice thathalted-but technically never ended-the 1950-1953Korean War.

The group, which includes Nobel peace laureatesLeymah Gbowee and Mairead Maguire, has also high-lighted the anguish of divided families who have hadlittle or no contact since the separation into Northand South.

‘We don’t believe in war’ “We are here today because we don’t believe in

war,” Maguire said after passing through immigrationon the South side.

“You can get to human rights when you have anormal situation and not a country at war,” saidMaguire, who won the 1976 Nobel peace prize for herco-leadership of the women’s peace movement instrife-torn Northern Ireland.

“The sooner we get a peace treaty signed... andnormalise relationships... the quicker we will get tohuman rights,” she added.

On the South side of the border, the womenwalked around one-kilometer alongside the fencingmarking the DMZ to Imjingak-a park near the borderwhere they were met by several hundred SouthKorean supporters.

A small group of conservative protesters heckledthe group, angered by reports in North Korea’s statemedia-later denied-that some of the women hadpraised the North’s founder leader Kim Il-Sung whilein Pyongyang.

Praising North Korea or promoting its ideology is acriminal act in the South.

In an editorial in the Washington Post last week,Abraham Cooper of the Simon Wiesenthal Center andGreg Scarlatoiu of the Committee for Human Rightsin North Korea, had blasted Steinem and her fellowactivists for allowing North Korea to engage in“human rights theatre intended to cover up its deathcamps and crimes against humanity”. — AFP

Women’s walk across

Koreas’ DMZ deniedActivists cross on bus through demilitarised zone

KAESONG CITY: International women activists march through Kaesong City in North Korea yesterday. Female activists including Gloria Steinemand two Nobel Peace laureates were denied an attempt to walk across the Demilitarized Zone dividing North and South Korea yesterday, butwere allowed to cross by bus and complete what one of them called a landmark event. — AP

IS is recruiting, but not

operational in AfghanistanKABUL: The Islamic State group is recruitingfighters in Afghanistan, the commander of for-eign forces in country has said, but they are notyet operational.

There have been fears of IS group makinginroads in Afghanistan since US-led NATO forcesended their combat mission late last year, after13 years of fighting insurgents.

“There’s recruiting going on in Afghanistan,there is recruiting going on in Pakistan. There ismoney being passed back and forth,” GeneralJohn F Campbell the commander of NATO forcesin the country told reporters on Saturday.

The Middle Eastern group, also known asDaesh, has never formally acknowledged a pres-ence in Afghanistan and most self-styled ISinsurgents in the country are believed to beTaliban turncoats rebranding themselves to

appear a more lethal force.“What we are seeing is that Taleban are

rebranding... and they see this is an opportunityto gain resources and attention.” Campbell said,adding that they were not operational yet.

While some Taleban members may be switch-ing allegiance, the two groups, which espousedifferent ideological strains of Sunni Islam, arebelieved to be arrayed against each other inAfghanistan’s restive south, with clashes fre-quently reported.

In February, a NATO drone strike killed MullahAbdul Rauf Khadim, a former Taleban command-er and Guantanamo detainee with suspectedlinks to IS, in the volatile southern province ofHelmand.

Local sources in Helmand said Khadim, whoreturned to Afghanistan after being released

from Guantanamo prison in 2007, had switchedhis fighters’ allegiance to IS.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has repeated-ly raised fears that IS - notorious for their brutalreign of terror in Syria and Iraq - are makingsteady inroads into Afghanistan, which is alreadyin the grip of a fierce Taleban insurgency.

Campbell’s remarks come at a time when theTaleban have increased their attacks in thecountry after launching their spring offensivelate last month. It is the first fighting season inwhich Afghan forces are battling insurgentswithout the frontline support of US-led foreigntroops.

NATO’s combat mission formally ended inDecember but a small follow-up foreign forcehas stayed on to train and support local policeand troops. — AFP

ALAETHAKAW VILLAGE: At least eightRohingya Muslims from Myanmar wereamong some 200 migrants rescued from atrafficking boat by the Myanmar navy onThursday, according to interviews conductedby Reuters, contradicting official accountsthat all onboard were from Bangladesh.

Myanmar portrayed the rescue operationas a proof that thousands of ‘boat people’were not persecuted Rohingya fromMyanmar, denying it discriminates againstthe minority and resisting pressure to helpsolve the problem.

Southeast Asia is grappling with a human-itarian crisis involving thousands of peopletrafficked from Myanmar and Bangladeshinto Malaysia and Indonesia. After a crack-down disrupted smuggling routes, many arenow trapped at sea on what the UnitedNations has described as ‘floating coffins’.

“This clearly show ‘Boat People are notfrom Myanmar’, strong evidence,” Zaw Htay, asenior official of the office of the presidentsaid in a Facebook post announcing the res-cue of the boat on Friday.

But on a visit to a remote village in north-west Myanmar, where more than 200 rescuedmen were being fed and taken care of at anIslamic school, Reuters interviewed a group ofRohingya Muslims from the village of Kyauk

Taw in Rakhine state.“We had no jobs and nothing to lose. So

we boarded the boat,” said Marmot Rarbi, 23.He said the traffickers let the eight Rohingyamen on the boat for free, but later demanded6,500 Malaysian ringgit for smuggling themto Malaysia.

Rarbi said he was on the boat for morethan three months.

Thousands of Rohingya have boarded traf-ficking ships. Most of Myanmar’s 1.1 millionRohingya, an ethnic minority living in westernMyanmar, are stateless and live in apartheid-like conditions. Almost 140,000 were dis-placed in deadly clashes with Buddhists inthe state of Rakhine in 2012.

End Rohingya discriminationOn a visit to the Islamic school, Vijay

Nambiar, special adviser on Myanmar to theUN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, thankedthe government for the rescue and called onthe Rakhine Buddhist majority to include theMuslims in nation-building.

“The Muslim community must feel thati t can work for th is countr y and theRakhine community should let the Muslimcommunity work together for the future ofthis state,” said Nambiar in a meeting withcommunity leaders.— Reuters

ACEH: Rohingya migrant men learn a language at a temporary shelter in Kuala Langsa,Aceh province, Indonesia, yesterday. Thousands of migrants - about half of themBangladeshi and the others minority Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar - have landedashore in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand since May 10. Thousands more are believedto be trapped at sea, and the United Nations has warned that time is running out. — AP

Push for quake-proof shelter

in Nepal before monsoon

KATHMANDU: As he braces for the monsoonrains that threaten to inflict further misery afterNepal’s devastating earthquake, Nawaraj Bistahas more faith he will be safe inside his $100quick-build corrugated iron home than underbricks and mortar.

Bista, a car salesman, saw his old home inKathmandu reduced to rubble when a 7.8-magni-tude quake ripped through the Himalayan nationon April 25. But when a second major quake onMay 12 brought down more buildings that hadalready been weakened, his temporary metalshelter emerged unscathed.

“Nothing happened to it,” Bista said of the sim-ple dome-shaped metal structure. “This place hasbeen a blessing... we will live here until the mon-soons are over.” While orange and blue tents dotNepal’s quake-hit settlements, experts warn of anurgent need to build semi-permanent shelterslike Bista’s that can withstand the approachingmonsoon rains and aftershocks that continue to

shred locals’ nerves.“A tent is not a long-term solution,” said Bijay

Krishna Upadhyay, a director at the non-profitNational Society for Earthquake Technology(NSET). “We have to move to quake-safe transi-tional homes that will outlast monsoon, evenwinter.” The twin quakes killed more than 8,600people, destroyed nearly half a million housesand damaged another 270,000 homes, leavingthousands in desperate need of food, clean waterand shelter.

In a bid to accommodate thousands of fami-lies who need shelter before monsoons arrive,NGOs and design firms are moving away fromemergency options like tents to building afford-able and potentially permanent homes for quakevictims. Bista’s new home was built byKathmandu-based Portal Bikes and was inspiredby a design that emerged in Pakistan after anearthquake in 2005 left 3.5 million homelessthere.— AFP

KATHMANDU: In this photo taken on May 8, 2015, earthquake survivor Navaraj Bista (L)and his family sit in front of some of their belongings near their new shelter in the out-skirts of Kathmandu following the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit onApril 25. As he braces for monsoon rains which threaten to inflict further misery afterNepal’s devastating earthquake, Bista has more faith of staying safe inside his $100quick-build corrugated iron home than under bricks and mortar. — AFP

Rohingya Muslims found on

boat rescued by Myanmar navy

N E W SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Continued from Page 1

used to pre-fund the acquisition of air-craft. IAFC is the first sharia compliant air-craft leasing fund dedicated to Airbus air-craft and seed funded by Airbus andIslamic Development Bank. The fund islooking to target GCC, MENA, CIS andSoutheast Asian airline carriers.

Separately, a new decree was issued

yesterday appointing Dr Yousef Ali asMinister of Commerce and Industry. Thedecree 149/2015 includes two articles:Article I: Dr Yousef Mohammad AbdullahAl-Ali is appointed as the Minister ofIndustry and Commerce. Article II: ThePrime Minister is to inform the NationalAssembly about the new decree, to beeffective as of the date of issuance andposted in the official gazette. — KUNA

NBAD to arrange $400m loan...

Continued from Page 1

tic helpers at reasonable costs afterprices of recruitment skyrocketed due toa large number of private offices. Awadhisaid yesterday that he obtained officialcorrespondence from the KuwaitiEmbassy in India saying that the actualcost of recruiting an Indian maid isaround KD 348, whereas the current rateexceeds KD 1,000.

The idea of the company was rejectedby the Assembly’s health and labor com-mittee, which government agencies hadrefused to take part in it. Members ofthat committee also said that recruit-ment should remain with private offices.Shaye said that ministries concernedwith the issue like the ministries of interi-or, health and social affairs and labor willalso participate in the company’s pro-posed capital of KD 1 million. As a result,the committee deferred a decision onthe issue until all replies arrive from allsides, Shaye said.

In another development, the appealscourt yesterday upheld a ruling by thelower court which supported a decisionby the commerce ministry to close downAl-Watan newspaper and revoke its com-mercial license. Lawyer of Al-WatanRashed Al-Radaan said he will challengethe ruling at the cassation court, whoserulings are final. The daily has been shutfor several months but has been publish-ing through its website. The ministry hadsaid that the daily failed to convene thegeneral assembly of the companydespite accumulating losses exceeding75 percent of its capital.

Also, a number of MPs yesterday sub-mitted a request to allocate two hours ofthe next Assembly session to allow law-makers to pay tribute to former speakerJassem Al-Khorafi, who died on Thursdayon a flight from Turkey to Kuwait. Khorafiwas speaker between 1999 and 2011when the National Assembly was dis-solved, and he decided not to run in elec-tions. He was first elected as MP in 1975.

Maids company gets initial nod

RIYADH: They are angry and grief-stricken,but Saudi Arabia’s minority Shiites refused onSunday to be provoked by a deadly mosquebombing that authorities called an attempt topromote sectarian strife. King Salman vowedpunishment for anyone linked to the “heinouscrime,” which killed 21 people. The interiorministry confirmed the identity of the suicidebomber who blew himself up inside a Shiitemosque in Eastern Province on Friday andsaid he had links with the Islamic State jihadistgroup.

It was the deadliest assault in years on theSunni-dominated kingdom, and marked thefirst time IS claimed an attack in Saudi Arabia.“No, no, no... There is no action” in the form ofretaliation, a Shiite resident who said he lostthree friends in the Qadeeh village blast toldAFP. “They just want justice.” Naseema Assada,a resident of Shiite-majority Qatif city nearthe stricken village, said she visited sevenfamilies affected by the attack. “They areangry at Daesh and radical Sunnis,” but not atSunnis in general, she said, using an Arabicacronym for IS.

Residents said two children were amongthe dead, and plans were being made for amass burial. Demonstrators took to the streetsof the eastern region on Saturday todenounce the attack. In neighboring Bahrain,Shiites marched in solidarity with the Saudivictims and clashed with riot police. Themosque bombing occurred despite securitycheckpoints in Qatif, residents said. “This isstrange,” Assada said. “ The governmentshould protect people and if it’s not, this is thegovernment’s fault.”

Such emotions are natural after a deadlyincident but police have foiled many plotsand have themselves become the most fre-quent targets of “terrorist” attacks, InteriorMinistry spokesman General Mansour Al-Turkitold reporters yesterday. “We did not have anyinformation or evidence that they were aboutto carry out a terrorist attack in any mosqueanywhere in the kingdom,” Turki said.

In a statement carried by the official SaudiPress Agency (SPA) late Saturday, the interiorministry identified the bomber as Salih binAbdulrahman Salih Al-Ghishaami, a Saudinational. “He was wanted by security servicesfor belonging to a terrorist cell receivingdirections from Daesh abroad,” the ministrysaid. The militant group had already claimedFriday’s attack but identified the bomber asAbu Amer Al-Najdi.

Innocent Civilians “The cell was discovered last month, and so

far 26 of its members, all Saudi nationals, havebeen arrested,” the interior ministry said, rais-ing the number of wounded from 81 to 101.Ministry officials alleged the cell leader isAbdel Malik, who recruited relatives andfriends and taught them how to use weapons.

In a telegram to Crown Prince Mohammedbin Nayef, who is also the interior minister,King Salman pledged the perpetrators wouldbe brought to justice. “Anyone taking part,planning, supporting, cooperating or sympa-thizing with this heinous crime will be heldaccountable,” the king said in the messagecarried by SPA. “We were... pained by theintensity of this terrorist crime that contra-dicts the values of Islam and humanity” andwhich targeted innocent civilians, he added.

It is the second mass killing of Shiites in the

kingdom since late last year. In November,gunmen killed seven Shiites in the EasternProvince town of Al-Dalwa. There was no vio-lent Shiite backlash against that attack, whichauthorities said was linked to IS. IS, which con-siders Shiites heretics, has declared a“caliphate” in parts of Iraq and Syria it controls.The group has claimed numerous atrocitiesincluding the beheading of foreign hostages.

Saudi Arabia and its Sunni Gulf neighborslast year joined a US-led military coalitionbombing IS in Syria, raising concerns aboutpossible retaliation in the kingdom. Since lateMarch, Saudi Arabia has also led a coalitionbombing Iran-backed Shiite rebels who seizedlarge parts of Yemen and have sent deadlyshell fire into Saudi Arabia.

The interior ministry said the mosqueattack against “honorable citizens was car-ried out by tools controlled by foreign forcesthat aim to divide the unity of society andpull it into sectarian strife”. Saudi Arabia’stop cleric, Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Sheikh, called it a “criminal act” which tar-geted national unity. But columnist KhaledAlmaeena, writ ing in yesterday ’s SaudiGazette, complained that “some imamsspewed hatred and spread falsehood aboutMuslims of other sects.... we should not haveremained silent”. Most of the kingdom’sShiites live in the east, where the vast major-ity of the kingdom’s oil reserves lie butwhere Shiites have long complained of mar-ginalization. — AFP

Saudi Shiites refuse to be provoked by suicide attack

Gondolas are pictured at sunset near St Mark Square on Saturday in Venice. — AFP

King Salman pained, promises punishment

QADEEH, Saudi Arabia: Saudi men attend prayers at a mosque in this mainly Shiite Saudicoastal town yesterday. — AFP

BEIRUT: Weakened by years of war, Syria’sgovernment appears ready for the country’sde facto partition, defending strategicallyimportant areas and leaving much of thecountry to rebels and jihadists, experts anddiplomats say. The strategy was in evidencelast week with the army’s retreat from theancient central city of Palmyra after anadvance by the Islamic State group. “It isquite understandable that the Syrian armywithdraws to protect large cities wheremuch of the population is located,” saidWaddah Abded Rabbo, director of Syria’s Al-Watan newspaper, which is close to theregime.

“The world must think about whether theestablishment of two terrorist states is in itsinterests or not,” he said, in reference to IS’sself-proclaimed “caliphate” in Syria and Iraq,and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front’s plansfor its own “emirate” in northern Syria. Syria’sgovernment labels all those fighting to oustPresident Bashar Al-Assad “terrorists,” andhas pointed to the emergence of IS and Al-Nusra as evidence that opponents of theregime are extremists.

Since the uprising against Assad began inMarch 2011 with peaceful protests, the gov-ernment has lost more than three-quartersof the country’s territory, according to theSyrian Observatory for Human Rights, aBritain-based monitor. But the territory theregime controls accounts for about 50 to 60percent of the population, according toFrench geographer and Syria expert FabriceBalanche. He said 10-15 percent of Syria’spopulation is now in areas controlled by IS,20-25 percent in territory controlled by Al-Nusra or rebel groups and another five to 10percent in areas controlled by Kurdish forces.“The government in Damascus still has anarmy and the support of a part of the popu-lation,” Balanche said. “We’re heading

towards an informal partition with front linesthat could shift further.”

‘Division is Inevitable’ People close to the regime talk about a

government retreat to “useful Syria”. “The divi-sion of Syria is inevitable. The regime wantsto control the coast, the two central cities ofHama and Homs and the capital Damascus,”one Syrian political figure close to the regimesaid. “The red lines for the authorities are theDamascus-Beirut highway and theDamascus-Homs highway, as well as thecoast, with cities like Latakia and Tartus,” headded, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The coastal Latakia and Tartus provincesare strongholds of the regime, and home tomuch of the country’s Alawite community,the offshoot of Shiite Islam to which Assadadheres. In the north, east and south of thecountry, large swathes of territory are nowheld by jihadists or rebel groups, and theregime’s last major offensive - in Aleppoprovince in February - was a failure. For nowthe regime’s sole offensive movement is inQalamun along the Lebanese border, butthere its ally, Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollahmovement, is taking the lead in the fighting.

“The Syrian army today has become aPraetorian guard that is charged with pro-tecting the regime,” said a diplomat whogoes to Damascus regularly. He said the situ-ation had left Syrian officials “worried, ofcourse,” but that they remained convincedthat key regime allies Russia and Iran wouldnot let the government collapse. Someobservers believe the defensive posture wasthe suggestion of Iran, which believes it isbetter to have less territory but be able tokeep it secure. “Iran urged Syrian authoritiesto face facts and change strategy by protect-ing only strategic zones,” opposition figureHaytham Manna said. — AFP

Syria regime ‘to accept de facto partition’ of country

By Alastair Macdonald

EU leaders meeting in Latvia’s capital Riga last weekwould have paid little heed to the rundown buildingacross the street, seemingly unpainted since Brezhnev’s

day, or the fading slogan daubed across its roof. “You are notalone!” it yelled in Russian. It might have been the mantrarecited by the Europeans to six ex-Soviet neighbours at theso-called Eastern Partnership Summit, who went away withEU pledges of aid and trade. Yet read the gnomic graffitianother way and you hear a hint of the menace of an unin-vited spectator, a slogan for President Vladimir Putin’s refusalto leave Moscow’s former satellites alone to the embrace of aWestern bloc he sees as hostile.

For the first partnership summit since the flare-up of theUkraine conflict last year was dominated by Russia. And thetalks revealed how uneasy many European Union membersare about confronting Moscow, leaving Ukraine and otherpartners, like Georgia and Moldova, feeling the chill. Thesummit statement, long on jargon about economic coopera-tion and democracy, disappointed those seeking a hardpromise of EU membership. And though “Russia” appearedjust once in 5,000 words, it was the spectre at the feast.

It was at the last such summit, held in the Lithuanian cap-ital Vilnius 18 months ago, that Ukraine’s then-president trig-gered an East-West crisis by rejecting an agreement with theEU. That sparked the ‘Euromaidan’ protests in Kiev thatforced him to flee to Russia, which soon afterwards seizedcontrol of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and has backed pro-Moscow fighters waging separatist war in the east of thecountry. “There is a lot of good stuff in the statement,” saidone senior EU diplomat who helped draft the Riga commu-nique. “But all that is completely overshadowed by Russia’sinsistence - which we did not create - that this is a zero-sumgame directed against it.”

Sharp DivisionsThere is clear division among the six states invited to

form the Eastern Partnership in 2009: Ukraine, Georgia andMoldova are hammering on the EU’s door, seeking refugefrom the Russian bear; Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus aremore ambivalent, just as Brussels is cooler toward them, notleast over human rights. But there is a growing divide amongEU members themselves. Some from the east want atougher EU line toward Moscow and an open door for theneighbours. Estonia’s 35-year-old premier Taavi Roivas, saidthere should be “no more obstacles” to EU membership oncecountries met Brussels’ standards of governance. GeorgianForeign Minister Tamar Beruchashvili told Reuters the “verychallenging security environment” should make the partner-ship even more important.”

Yet with Western taxpayers wary of the cost of EU expan-sion, especially of letting in debt-laden Ukraine with its 45million people, other leaders are keener to ease economical-ly toxic tensions with Putin and deflate what Germany’sAngela Merkel called “false expectations” of EU membership.French President Francois Hollande, Merkel’s partner in hold-ing Putin to an ever more shaky ceasefire in eastern Ukraine,stressed EU membership was “no foregone conclusion”.

Noting the troubles on Europe’s southern flank, in theMiddle East and with migration across the Mediterranean, hestressed a need for global cooperation with Moscow. “Wemust not turn this Eastern Partnership into yet another con-flict with Russia,” he said. “I’m sure the European Union andRussia ... can have a discussion directed toward the future.”

Mutual AngerWith violence continuing in eastern Ukraine, Moscow

renewed its opposition to the bloc’s eastern moves. Its EUenvoy said “the whole project pursued the goal of splitting ...countries away from us”, forcing them to be “with the EU or

with Russia”. That argument infuriates EU officials who insistit is Moscow, not them, which offers a binary choice to itsneighbours. “The Eastern Partnership is not a beauty contestbetween Russia and the EU,” insisted summit chairmanDonald Tusk, a former Polish premier, before venting his frus-tration at Putin. “Beauty does count,” he went on. “If Russiawas a bit softer, more charming, more attractive, perhaps itwouldn’t have to compensate its shortcomings by itsdestructive and aggressive bullying tactics against its neigh-bours.”

Yet those tactics may work. At Riga, a divided EU dashedhopes in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia of a promise ofeventual membership. The communique went no furtherthan that at Vilnius to “acknowledge” their “European aspira-tions”. Tusk, whose own ex-communist country joined the EUa decade ago, pleaded for understanding of the “delicate dif-ference between our promises and the expectations of ourpartners”. “You have friends and enemies, enthusiasts andsceptics in Europe,” he added. “In these geopolitical circum-stances in our region ... this is maybe the maximum we canachieve today.”

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko avoided criticisingthe EU, accepting loans and praising its solidarity. He andGeorgian counterparts emphasised to domestic audiencestheir prospect of soon joining Moldovans in travelling with-out visas to the EU. Yet Brussels was shocked after Vilnius byhow what seemed in the EU to be a modest project blew upinto Cold War-era rhetoric and real bloodshed. And so for allthe warm words in Riga, the eastern partners may now feelmore alone. “No one is saying out loud we should end thisproject,” said the EU diplomat involved in preparing the sum-mit. “But the EU is very uncomfortable with this. Russia hasshown in words and deeds that it considers the EasternPartnership a geopolitical project aimed against it. And theEU doesn’t do geopolitics.” —Reuters

THE LEADING INDEPENDENTDAILY IN THE ARABIAN GULF

ESTABLISHED 1961

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A N A L Y S I SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

As the United States raced over the past five years towardbecoming a global petroleum powerhouse, the world’sbiggest oil exporter Saudi Arabia quietly seized a mar-

ket milestone from America: the largest source of peak sum-mer demand. From June through August, when temperaturesin Riyadh routinely rise above 38 degrees Celsius, Saudi Arabiadiverts as much as a tenth of its crude output to fuel powerplants that run full tilt to meet surging demand from air condi-tioners. The result is that Saudi Arabia’s winter-to-summer“swing” in oil consumption has eclipsed that of the UnitedStates, where gasoline consumption jumps by as much as 10percent every summer as millions of families take advantage ofschool holidays and warm weather to embark on the classicAmerican road trip. This May 23-25 Memorial Day weekend,however, that trend may begin to reverse as the mostAmericans in a decade will fill up their gas tanks and rev uptheir engines for highway holidays, taking advantage of lowergasoline prices and a growing economy.

The American Automobile Association predicts a 5.3 per-cent rise in Memorial Day car travel to the highest level in 10years. The boost at the pumps will add to already strongdemand for gasoline after years of diminishing use because ofa switch to more fuel-efficient cars. “The fall in prices is trump-ing the efficiency gains for the summer,” says Amrita Sen, chiefoil analyst at Energy Aspects. Saudi Arabia is likely to maintainor even extend its use of domestic crude and fuel in powerplants this summer, according to Sen and other analysts. Yetthe country appears to be making some progress toward slow-ing its dependence on one of the most costly forms of electric-ity. There is growing debate in Saudi Arabia over higher powertariffs that might curb wasteful use, and a younger generationof Saudis are coming of age in an era of conservation, saysProfessor Paul Stevens, a Senior Research Fellow for Energy atChatham House who co-authored a 2011 report on the issue.Saudi use of oil for power will be “continually growing, but notat the sort of growth rates of the past 10 years,” Stevens said.

The surge in summer demand this year will have an evengreater significance for global oil prices than usual, as bullishtraders are counting on it to help drain inventories that swelledat a rate of more than 1.5 million barrels per day in the first halfof this year. In the United States, gasoline demand is expectedto grow by about 524,000 bpd between the first quarter andthe June-August period, according to the US EnergyInformation Administration, although some analysts expectmore. Saudi Arabia’s peak crude oil burn rate is likely to top900,000 bpd this summer, analysts say, up from around350,000 bpd in winter, according to the Joint Oil Data Initiative.But consumption of refined fuels such as diesel, some of whichis also used in power plants, also surges in summer, taking thetotal seasonal swing to around 1.2 million bpd, a 50 percentjump in domestic demand.

Saudi Power FixSaudi Arabia’s power challenge began a decade ago as high

hopes for a booming domestic natural gas industry began tofizzle just as rising oil prices fueled an economic upturn, bothfrom wealthier citizens and a small but growing industrial base.In the 10 years to 2012, total power generation more than dou-bled, with two-thirds of the growth met by burning oil. To meetthe surge at the peak of summer, Saudi Arabia, home toapproximately 16 percent of all crude oil reserves, has simplypumped additional crude to use at home. That may be more ofa problem this year. The Kingdom had already ramped up pro-duction to a record 10.3 million bpd in March, nearing its maxi-mum 12.5 million bpd capacity, and is turning down requestsfrom Chinese buyers for extra supplies, senior Chinese oiltraders said. Beyond this year’s strain, however, there may behope. Last year, the Kingdom saved just 9 million barrels, about25,000 bpd, from its “Peak Seasonal Production” program start-ed in 2010 to reduce summer crude burn.

And Saudi Aramco hopes to start up its vast Wasit GasPlant, increasing the country’s processing capacity by 40 per-cent and feeding a new 750 megawatt cogeneration plant. Theplant, however, is not expected to run at full until 2016. In theUnited States, the swing in highway travel has been aroundabout as long as the automobile. Last year, Americans drovemore than 1 billion more miles a day in the peak summermonths than in winter, a swing of some 14 percent, accordingto Department of Transportation mileage data.

Highway activity is also likely to be substantial this yearbecause fuel prices are $1 lower than a year ago (althoughabout 70 cents higher than in January) and employment levelsare the highest since 2008. The response is already apparent infirst quarter data, with miles-driven jumping 3.9 percent to thehighest on record, government data show. More than one infour Americans will travel longer on holiday this summer, with86 percent of those going by car, according to a NationalAssociation of Convenience Stores (NACS) survey. —Reuters

By Jonathan Leff

Focus

US drivers yield

‘swing’ oil demand

crown to Saudis

As Russia growls, EU cools on promises

By Dan Perry

Against a backdrop of Iraq and Syria inflames, Middle Eastern political and busi-ness leaders sought to focus on a future of

growth and investment for a region that for longhas lagged behind. But present-day reality provedrather difficult to ignore, with the Islamic Stategroup wreaking havoc not far from these DeadSea shores. “We are all aware of the crises in thenews,” host King Abdullah of Jordan told inviteesat the regional World Economic Forum, held at aDead Sea resort whose calm belied the mayhemraging a few hours’ drive away.

“But there is another, deeper reality,” themonarch optimistically went on. “Throughout theMiddle East and North Africa, more than 350 mil-lion people are striving, economies are growing,youth are achieving, obstacles are being tackled.... New possibilities, new human potential, newassets are uncovered.” There is validity in the claimof a glass part-full. Egypt’s economy may be turn-ing after several disastrous years since the 2011overthrow of Hosni Mubarak ushered in a periodof instability and violence; its stock market flour-ishes and its credit rating inches ahead. The emi-rates of the Gulf are veritably booming. Tunisia’sdemocratic transformation flirts with bona fidesuccess. And Jordan itself, despite a flood ofrefugees from Syria, has maintained a modest lev-el of economic growth. Then there is the emptypart - possibly more than half the glass. Despitethe upheaval once known as the “Arab Spring,”democracy has not much struck root in theregion. Some places didn’t even try. Some madetentative attempts. In Libya, the whole thing col-lapsed in ruin: The place has competing haplessgovernments, is run by wild militias, and hasbecome a haven of seafaring migrant traffickers.

Wars rage not only in Syria and Iraq but nowalso in Yemen, where Shiite rebels have seized thecapital, Sanaa, and much of the country and nowfind themselves under blistering air attack from aSunni coalition led by Saudi Arabia. An anticipat-ed ground invasion, most likely in Yemen’s port ofAden, has not materialized. And over almost twomonths the air campaign alone has caused somedamage to its targets, but failed to dislodge them.

Perhaps surprisingly, something similar can besaid of the US air campaign that may haveinspired the one in Yemen - this one against theIslamic State group. In an offensive that began in

earnest a year and a half ago, the Al-Qaeda break-away group has taken over huge swaths of Iraqand Syria, mainly in those countries’ Sunni areas. Inareas they seize their Sunni cohorts welcomethem sometimes - but generally they rule by ter-rorizing the local population, and their murderousbrutality toward political rivals and non-Muslimshas been shocking.

The air campaign that began nine months ago- combined with a Kurdish effort on the ground -seemed to at least arrest the group’s progress.Indeed, they were expelled from SaddamHussein’s hometown of Tikrit in Iraq, and rebuffedfrom the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobani. But lastweek the group overran the Syrian town ofPalmyra, home to unrivalled Roman-era historicsites, and dangerously close to Homs, a keystronghold of Bashar Al-Assad’s government. Aweek earlier the group seized the Iraqi town ofRamadi, nearly completing its takeover of westernAnbar province, putting the jihadis close toBaghdad.

That brought a dramatic appeal from Iraqi offi-

cials at the conference. Deputy Prime MinisterSaleh Al-Mutlaq called the fall of the city a “big dis-aster” and appealed for a “new strategic plan” forIraqi and international coalition forces to “termi-nate” the Islamic State group in Iraq. Mutlaq toldAP that allowing the Islamic State group to controlAnbar “is unacceptable and the capacity of theIraqis is very limited.” Iraqi Vice President IyadAllawi also called for a new strategy, since “theairstrikes don’t solve the problem.” They stoppedshort of calling for coalition boots on the groundor pointing to a precise alternate strategy.

Glum AgreementIndeed, few at this gathering seemed confi-

dent about any particular path forward. Glumagreement was mostly to be found regarding thepast - particularly in blaming many of the currentwoes on the non-inclusion of Iraqi Sunnis by theShiite-led governments that emerged after the2003 US overthrow of Saddam Hussein. Thehatreds between the groups - mirrored in similarlydiverse Syria and to a degree in Lebanon - has

convinced increasing numbers of observers thatthe creation of these new countries by Westerncolonizers who took over Levantine bits of theOttoman Empire was catastrophically misguidedin ignoring the sectarian differences.

Iraqi Kurdish politician Rowsch Shaways, whois also a deputy prime minister, said the countrycould conceivably break up. The only way for Iraqto prosper as a unified state is if Shiite, Sunni andKurdish areas truly run their own affairs, he said.The plan at such gatherings is to right social andeconomic wrongs in a region which, with notableand mostly oil-rich exceptions, has tended to per-form poorly on the socioeconomic front - whetherin terms of per capita gross domestic product orlife expectancy or scientific publications per capi-ta. Yet the political and existential angst tended tooverwhelm a gathering where sessions aimed tofocus on issues such as youth unemployment,urbanization, tourism and gender equality - thelast item alone potentially affording a reasonablepath to far greater prosperity than the region hasknown in the post-colonial era.

Much anticipated at the event was EgyptianPresident Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi, the former militarychief whose recent history seems as dualistic asthat of the region some would have him lead.Many have criticized Sisi for the military’s July 2013overthrow of democratically elected PresidentMohamed Morsi and the subsequent banning ofthe once-ruling Muslim Brotherhood - its leadershanded death sentences in mass trials that haveraised a collective global eyebrow. Sisi then waselected but without a real opposition, with dissentin the streets stamped out, and with the mediasomewhat cowed.

Still, he has built public support in Egypt withhis agenda of stability above all else. He appears tofavor much-needed structural reform, and hasemerged as a leading ideological antagonist toIslamic extremism. On this explosive issue, whereothers in the region seemed inclined to hedgeand fudge, his voice has been strikingly clear.

Condemning “fanaticism” in his remarks Friday,Sisi said radicals “are seeking through terrorism todestroy state structures and to fragment peopleby exploiting religious, sectarian or ethnic affilia-tions. ... Our efforts to eliminate extremism andterrorism must be coupled with endeavors towardrealizing future where freedom, equality and plu-ralism prevail that is free of oppression, injusticeand exclusion.” —AP

At Mideast forum, hopes for future amid chaos

Jordan’s King Abdullah II (right) walks next to Egyptian President AbdelFattah Al-Sisi following the latter’s arrival in the capital Amman for theopening of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa2015 on May 21, 2015. —AFP

S P O RT S

NEW DELHI: The south Asian neighbors may not share thebest of relations but Pakistan would like to play their homematches in India, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chiefShahayar Khan said.

Top test playing nations have shunned Pakistan sincethe 2009 attack on the visiting Sri Lankan players in Lahorewith the PCB instead playing the majority of their homematches in the United Arab Emirates. The PCB have man-aged to coax Zimbabwe into touring Pakistan this monthfor a brief limited over series which is currently underwaybut accept others are unlikely to follow. “We would like tomake India our home,” Khan told the Hindustan Timesnewspaper. “India will be more cost-effective,” he said,adding Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have also offered to hosthome matches. India cancelled bilateral cricket series withits neighbour after Pakistani militants killed 166 people inMumbai in 2008 but hosted Pakistan in 2012-13 for a shortlimited over series. Khan visited India earlier this monthand said the neighbours are likely to play a full series in theUnited Arab Emirates in December.—Reuters

Pakistan chief proposes home matches in India THE CURRAGH: Veteran Irish trainer Jim Bolger won only his second ever Irish 1000

Guineas when Pleascach came through a stewards enquiry to hold on to the victory atThe Curragh yesterday.

Pleascach-Gaelic for explosive-under Bolger’s son-in-law Kevin Manning held off thelate charge of 5/4 favorite Found to prevail with 33/1 outsider Devonshire third.

Pleascach-following in the celebrated footsteps of Fisceal Beo from Bolger’s yard in2007 — denied Found’s trainer Aidan O’Brien an Irish Guineas double and jockey RyanMoore a cleansweep of the English and Irish mile classics. There followed somenervy moments as the stewards enquire whether the 11/2 winner hadinterfered with the favorite in the final furlong but found in Manning’sfavor. “I could see out of the corner of my eye that Ryan was a long wayaway from me and although she shifted left when she caught sight ofthe rail for some reason, I wasn’t that worried,” Manning told At TheRaces.

“She’s won that well but I’d have no question with her over a mile anda half.” Bolger described the 3/4 length victory by the filly, who he bredhimself and races in his wife Jackie’s colors, as being “very satisfying”.“You never really know until it’s all over with the stewards, butwe did have half a length in hand,” said the 73-year-oldIrishman, who also sent out two pacemakers to give his star alead.—AFP

MADRID: Valencia’s joy at securing a berth in Champions League qualify-ing for next season has been tempered by a serious knee injury to theirBrazilian goalkeeper Diego Alves that will require surgery. Alves had tocome off in the second half of Saturday’s 3-2 La Liga win at Almeria andValencia said on their website yesterday (www.valenciacf.com) tests hadrevealed damage to the external cruciate ligament and meniscus in hisright knee. With an operation required the club did not say how long the

keeper might be sidelined, but Spanish media reported hewould be out for around six months.

If that is the case Alves will not return to action untilNovember and therefore miss qualifying matches forEurope’s elite club competition.

“We are happy and pleased with the victory but sad forDiego Alves,” executive president Amadeo Salvo said after

Valencia secured fourth place behind champions Barcelona,second-placed Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid who fin-ished third.

Valencia are now close to making a lucrative returnto the group stage of the Champions League follow-ing their takeover late last year by Singapore billion-aire Peter Lim.—Reuters

Valencia keeper Alves injured Bolger wins Irish 1000 Guineas

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Astros tame Tigers, Indians winDETROIT: Lance McCullers got Ian Kinsler toground into a triple play in the fifth inning,and the Houston right-hander went on to earnhis first career victory Saturday, leading theAstros over the Detroit Tigers 3-2.

Detroit led 2-1 in the fifth and had runnerson first and second when Kinsler hit agrounder to third. Jonathan Villar stepped onthe bag and threw to second, where JoseAltuve relayed the ball to first.

It was Houston’s first triple play since 2004,and the Astros followed that up by scoringtwo runs in the sixth to go ahead. McCullers(1-0) allowed two runs and six hits with sixstrikeouts over six innings in his second careerstart. The Houston bullpen did not allow abaserunner. Luke Gregerson pitched the ninthfor his 11th save in 12 chances. Kyle Lobstein(3-5) gave up three runs in 5 2-3 innings.

INDIANS 2, REDS 1After Reds manager Bryan Price was eject-

ed before the first pitch, Corey Kluber threweight effective innings and led Cleveland overCincinnati for its fifth straight win. The Redslost their season-high seventh in a row. Pricewas tossed by umpire Jim Reynolds after theexchange of lineup cards. They got into alengthy argument that carried on as theIndians took the field - the dispute likelystemmed from Friday night, when severalReds were upset with plate umpire MannyGonzalez’s strike zone.

Kluber (2-5) worked around constant trou-ble, but recorded his third strong start in arow. He allowed nine hits, struck out sevenand didn’t walk a batter. Cody Allen pitchedthe ninth for his ninth save.

Tony Cingrani (0-1) walked Roberto Perezto start the eighth. Following a force play,Jason Kipnis lined a double to left-center thatscored Michael Bourn.

RANGERS 15, YANKEES 4Shin-Soo Choo hit a go-ahead single and a

three-run homer in a 10-run third inning thatchased CC Sabathia from his shortest start insix years, and Texas routed reeling New York,which has lost nine of its last 10 games.

Shoo and Prince Fielder each had two hitsin the third. Fielder finished with three RBIsand hit his third homer in a two games.

The Rangers, who rode a seven-run thirdFriday to a 10-9 win, won their fourth straightand sent the Yankees to their fifth loss in a row.

Garrett Jones, a right fielder and first base-man, relieved for the Yankees. In the first pitch-ing appearance of his eight-season big leaguecareer, he worked around a walk and a hit bat-ter to get the final two outs of the ninth.

Nick Martinez (4-0), who pitched just 3miles from Yankee Stadium for Fordham, gotthe win. Sabathia (2-6) allowed six runs andseven hits in 2 1-3 innings.

ROYALS 3, CARDINALS 2Alex Gordon hit a two-run homer, Edinson

Volquez pitched six solid innings and theKansas City Royals beat the St. Louis Cardinals3-2 Saturday night in a game called in thesixth inning because of rain.

The Royals improved to 28-14, the bestrecord in the majors. The game was stoppedas Kansas City came to bat in the sixth, andwas called after a wait of 70 minutes.

Volquez (4-3) gave up four hits and walkedthree. He gave up a run in the second, snap-ping a streak of 27 consecutive shutoutinnings by the Royals’ rotation.

Gordon homered in the second inning offJohn Lackey (2-3). Gordon is 7 for 14 with twohome runs in his career against the right-han-der.

MARLINS 1, ORIOLES 0Martin Prado hit a two-out, bases-loaded

single in the 13th inning, and Miami won forthe first time in Dan Jennings’ six games asmanager. The Marlins broke an eight-gamelosing streak and improved to 1-8 on theirhomestand. Five Miami relievers combined topitch the final seven innings while allowingonly two baserunners. Carter Capps (1-0)struck out six in three innings.

Orioles reliever Brian Matusz left the gamein the 12th after the umpire crew chiefinspected the left-hander’s right forearm. Theissue was raised by Jennings, and Orioles man-ager Buck Showalter didn’t argue. Prado lineda 1-1 pitch from T.J. McFarland (0-1) into right-center field and was mobbed by his team-mates, while a grinning Jennings traded hugswith his coaching staff.

DODGERS 2, PADRES 0Mike Bolsinger retired his final 23 batters

after giving up a leadoff single in the firstinning and Joc Pederson homered, leading LosAngeles to a victory over punchless San Diego.

Bolsinger (3-0), who got a double play inthe first to erase the Padres’ only baserunner,struck out eight and walked none througheight innings. Kenley Jansen pitched a perfectninth for his third save in three attempts sinceopening the season on the disabled list.

San Diego left fielder Justin Upton wasejected by plate umpire Clint Fagan in theeighth, one batter after he was called out onstrikes. Ian Kennedy (2-4) lost his third straightstart.

ROCKIES 5, GIANTS 3Daniel Descalso homered and drove in

three runs and Colorado ended San Francisco’seight-game winning streak, taking the secondgame of a rain-soaked doubleheader.

Descalso had a run-scoring groundout inthe fourth and added a two-run homer in thesixth off spot starter Yusmeiro Petit (1-1).

Descalso’s homer off a 79 mph changeupput Colorado ahead 4-2, marking the first timethe Giants trailed by more than a run sinceMay 9. San Francisco, which won the opener10-8 behind Brandon Crawford’s three RBIs,was seeking its first nine-game streak sincewinning 10 in a row in May 2004.

David Hale (1-0), acquired from Atlanta inthe offseason but plagued by a left obliquestrain in spring training, allowed three runs -two earned - over 6-plus innings in his Rockiesdebut. John Axford pitched the ninth for hissixth save. Chris Heston (4-3) picked up the

win in the first game for the Giants andSantiago Casilla got the final out for his 12thsave.

RED SOX 8, ANGELS 3Mike Napoli hit two homers and drove in

three runs, Steven Wright pitched six-plus sol-id innings and Boston snapped a three-gamelosing streak with a win over Los Angeles.

Xander Bogaerts had a two-run single andMookie Betts two RBI singles for Boston, whichhad a shuffled batting order with DustinPedroia leading off and David Ortiz battingcleanup, moving from his customary thirdspot.

Kole Calhoun had a two-run double andMike Trout, an RBI single for the Angels, wholost for only the fourth time in 11 games.Wright (2-1) allowed two runs and four hits,striking two and walking just one. CJ Wilson(2-3) threw a season-high 119 pitches over sixinnings, giving up four runs on seven hits, fan-ning six and walking three.

PHILLIES 8, NATIONALS 1Cole Hamels pitched eight sharp innings,

Ryan Howard homered and Philadelphiaroughed up Stephen Strasburg to endWashington’s six-game winning streak.

Hamels (5-3) won his fourth straight start,and has compiled a 1.53 ERA over that stretch.He gave up one run and five hits, striking outfive and walking one.

Strasburg (3-5) was chased after 3 2-3innings. He allowed six runs and seven hits -over his last three starts, he has been taggedfor 15 earned runs in 12 innings.

Howard finished with three hits and MaikelFranco had two hits, including a homer, forPhiladelphia, which had lost two straight.

Hamels, who had a shutout going until giv-ing up Ian Desmond’s RBI double in theeighth, hadn’t won four consecutive startssince a five-game run in May 2012. He alsosnapped his six-game winless streak againstthe Nationals.

PIRATES 8, METS 2AJ Burnett threw seven effective innings to

win his fourth straight start and Pittsburghhanded New York ace Matt Harvey the worstloss of his career. The anticipated showdownbetween two of the top pitchers in theNational League never materialized. Burnett(4-1) allowed one run while striking out a sea-son-high 10 without a walk.

Andrew McCutchen and Pedro Alvarezhomered and each drove in two runs for thePirates. Harvey (5-2) lasted only four innings,the shortest outing of his career. He gave up acareer-worst seven runs on six hits and alsothrew two wild pitches, matching the numberhe had all of the 2013 season. New York hasdropped four of its last five. Daniel Murphyhad two hits, and Ruben Tejada homered forthe Mets.

ATHLETICS 5, RAYS 0Kendall Graveman gave up three hits over

six innings in his return from the minors, SamFuld drove in two runs and Oakland beat

Tampa Bay. Graveman (2-2), recalled fromTriple-A Nashville to make the start, struck outsix and walked two to help the A’s win for justthe third time in 17 games.

Oakland broke through for four runs in thesixth. Xavier Cedeno replaced Rays starterNathan Karns (3-2) with two outs and gave upEric Sogard’s RBI single. After Mark Canhawalked to load the bases, three runs scored onFuld’s single that also included two Tampa Bayerrors.

Fuld was credited with two RBIs on his hitthat was misplayed by center fielder KevinKiermaier for the first error. Catcher ReneRivera got the second error after droppingKiermaier’s throw that allowed the third run toscore.

MARINERS 3, BLUE JAYS 2Kyle Seager homered, James Paxton earned

his first road win of the season and Seattlebeat Toronto. Paxton (3-2) won his thirdstraight start, allowing two runs and four hitsin six innings. It was his first road win since lastSept. 2 at Oakland. He’d gone 0-3 with a 5.30ERA in his previous six outings away fromhome. Tom Wilhelmsen pitched the seventh,Carson Smith worked the eighth andFernando Rodney finished for his 12th save.

The slumping Blue Jays lost for the 11thtime in 14 games and fell to 2-10 in one-rundecisions. They’ve lost sixth straight one-rungames. Mark Buehrle (5-4) gave up three runsand five hits in 7 1-3 innings.

TWINS 4, WHITE SOX 3Torii Hunter homered, Trevor May pitched

seven strong innings and Minnesota defeatedChicago. May (3-3) allowed three runs and sixhits. He struck out nine and didn’t allow awalk. Hunter and Eduardo Nunez taggedWhite Sox starter Chris Sale (3-2) for solo homeruns in the second inning. It was Hunter’s sev-enth of the season and Nunez’s first.

Twins closer Glen Perkins pitched a score-less ninth for his major league-leading 16thsave in 16 chances. Perkins struck out TylerFlowers looking to end the game, leaving run-ners at first and second.

Sale was roughed up early but pitchedeight innings. He gave up four runs, threeearned, and five hits. He struck out 10 andallowed one walk.

BRAVES 3, BREWERS 2Jace Peterson’s single to left field drove in

Alberto Callaspo from third base, liftingAtlanta to a win over Milwaukee in 11 innings.

Peterson hit the first pitch from BrandonKintzler (0-1) toward the gap in left-centerfield. Left fielder Ryan Braun and center fielderCarlo Gomez didn’t bother to field the ball asCallaspo scored and Braves players raced outof the dugout to swarm Peterson near secondbase.

With one out in the 11th, Kintzler walkedCallaspo. Andrelton Simmons’ sharply hitgrounder hit third-base umpire Chad Fairchildand bounced into left field. Runners advancedto second and third on pinch-hitter Eric YoungJr.’s grounder to Kintzler.

Luis Avilan (2-0) pitched the last 1 1/3innings for Atlanta, including getting a dou-ble-play with runners at first and third to endthe 10th.

CUBS 9, DIAMONDBACKS 6Anthony Rizzo matched his career high

with six RBIs and Chicago beat Arizona, endingthe Diamondbacks’ five-game winning streak.

Rizzo doubled in three runs in the Cubs’four-run fifth inning, then broke a 6-6 tiewith a three-run homer into the Chase Fieldswimming pool area off Enrique Burgos (0-2)in the ninth. Jason Motte (2-1) pitched two-thirds of an inning to get the win. PedroStrop pitched a perfect ninth for his firstsave of the season. —AP

American LeagueEastern Division

W L PCT GB Tampa Bay 24 20 .545 - NY Yankees 22 21 .512 1.5 Baltimore 19 21 .475 3 Boston 20 23 .465 3.5 Toronto 19 26 .422 5.5

Central DivisionKansas City 28 14 .667 - Detroit 26 18 .591 3 Minnesota 24 18 .571 4 Chicago White Sox 19 21 .475 8 Cleveland 19 23 .452 9

Western DivisionHouston 28 16 .636 - LA Angels 22 21 .512 5.5 Seattle 20 22 .476 7 Texas 20 23 .465 7.5 Oakland 15 30 .333 13.5

National LeagueEastern Division

Washington 25 18 .581 - NY Mets 24 20 .545 1.5 Atlanta 21 21 .500 3.5 Philadelphia 19 26 .422 7 Miami 17 27 .386 8.5

Central DivisionSt. Louis 27 16 .628 - Chicago Cubs 24 18 .571 2.5 Pittsburgh 20 22 .476 6.5 Cincinnati 18 24 .429 8.5 Milwaukee 16 28 .364 11.5

Western DivisionLA Dodgers 26 16 .619 - San Francisco 25 19 .568 2 Arizona 20 22 .476 6 San Diego 20 24 .455 7 Colorado 16 25 .390 9.5

MLB results/standingsTexas 15, NY Yankees 4; Seattle 3, Toronto 2; Philadelphia 8, Washington 1; Pittsburgh 8, NY Mets 2; Houston 3,Detroit 2; Atlanta 3, Milwaukee 2 (11 Innings); Minnesota 4, Chicago White Sox 3; Cleveland 2, Cincinnati 1; SanFrancisco 10, Colorado 8; Oakland 5, Tampa Bay 0; Miami 1, Baltimore 0 (13 innings); Kansas City 3, St. Louis 2 (6innings); Boston 8, LA Angels 3; Colorado 5, San Francisco 3; LA Dodgers 2, San Diego 0; Chicago Cubs 9,Arizona 6.

DETROIT: Houston Astros’ Lance McCullers pitches against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning of a baseball game. —AP

KUWAIT: Kuwait National Shooting teammembers participating in Heydar AliyevInternational Grand Prix, in Gabala,Azerbaijan were able to increase theirmedals haul when Abdallah Al-Rashi wonthe silver medal of the men’s skeet, whileZaid Al-Mutairi won the bronze of the sameevent. Meanwhile Iman Al-Shamma wonthe women’s skeet silver medal in the finalevent of the tournament. Kuwait with this

latest wins collected one gold, two silverand four bronze medals.

Kuwait and Arab Shooting FederationsSecretary General said he dedicates thewins to HH the Amir, HH the Crown Princeand HH the Prime Minister, as well asInformation Minister, State Minister forYouth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah as well as theKuwait people.

Iman Al-Shamma

Kuwait increase medals haul

S P O RT SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

MONACO: Given his luck, NicoRosberg should be excused if heheaded to the Principality’s casinoyesterday after one of FormulaOne’s greatest tactical errors hand-ed him a memorable and rare hat-trick of wins at the Monaco GrandPrix.

Trailing his Mercedes team-mateand world champion LewisHamilton with 15 laps remaining,the 29-year-old German took fulladvantage when an accidentprompted a Safety Car interventionthat, in turn, led the team to call theBriton in for an unexpected andunnecessary pit-stop.

Hamilton re-joined third, on newsofter tyres, but was unable to usethat performance advantage topass second-placed SebastianVettel of Ferrari, let alone Rosbergwho won by 4.4 seconds.

It was, for Rosberg, the first timehe had won two successive racesand that feat not only breathednew life into his title challenge, cut-ting Hamilton’s lead to ten points,but also added his name to thethree others - Briton Graham Hill,Frenchman Alain Prost andBrazilian Ayrton Senna-to have wonthis classic 78-laps race three timesin a row.

Rosberg roared wildly as hewon, knowing what victory wouldmean to him and what defeat coulddo to dent Hamilton’s confidence.

“I’m very, very happy, of course,but I know also it was a lot of lucktoday,” he admitted. “Lewis drovebrilliantly and he would have alsodeserved the win for sure, but that’sthe way it is in racing and definitelyI am extremely happy and going tomake the most of it.”

Asked about the championshipposition, he said: “I know, yeah, butat the same time, I know that I gotlucky today. I’ll enjoy the momentnow, but I need to work hardbecause Lewis was a little bitstronger this weekend. I need towork hard for the next race forsure.” He said he was in the dark asto why Hamilton was called in fornew tyres, but not him.

“I have no idea, sorry!” he said.“As always, we’re in the car and it’svery difficult to judge what deci-sions are being made and stuff likethat.

“Of course, it was extremely dif-ficult to do the restart with thosehard tyres being very cold, but itworked out and I’m ecstatic.”

Until the Safety Car, after Dutchteenager Max Verstappen had col-lided with Frenchman RomainGrosjean’s Lotus and then crashedhis Toro Rosso at Ste Devote, it hadbeen Hamilton’s race. He ended upsettling for a disappointed thirdahead of the two Red Bulls ofRussian Daniil Kvyat and AustralianDaniel Ricciardo.

Kimi Raikkonen finished sixth forFerrari ahead of Mexican SergioPerez of Force India and JensonButton who claimed the strugglingMcLaren Honda team’s first pointsof the year in eighth place.

“We didn’t expect that so it’s agood result and I am very proud ofthe team,” said Button. “We need awin, but this is a great steppingstone for the future. When youscore points, people take notice.”

Brazilian Felipe Nasr came homeninth for Sauber and remarkably,

after starting from the pit lane,Spaniard Carlos Sainz finished 10thto score a point in the second ToroRosso car.

It was some compensation tot h e t e a m a f t e r a we e k e n d o fdazzl ing driving from both oftheir young rookies. Hamiltonremains leader of the dr ivers’championship with 126 points, al e a d o f 1 0 p o i n t s a h e a d o fRosberg on 116. Had he won, hewould have increased his lead to27 points. —AFP

Rosberg wins Monaco GP

MONACO: Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg of Germany holds up his trophy as he celebrates on the podiumafter winning the Formula One Grand Prix, at the Monaco racetrack. —AP

CHICAGO: Blackhawks center Antoine Vermette (80) sets up the winning goal asAnaheim Ducksgoalie Frederik Andersen (31) and Anaheim’s Rickard Rakell (67) andSimon Despres (24) defend during the second overtime in Game 4 of the WesternConference finals. —AP

ANAHEIM: The Chicago Blackhawks tiedtheir Western Conference finals series withAnaheim when they beat the Ducks 5-4 indouble overtime in Game Four onSaturday.

The Blackhawks survived three goals in37 seconds by the Ducks in the third peri-od to bounce back and level the series at2-2 when center Antoine Vermette scored5:37 into the second overtime.

Vermette’s first shot was blocked but hepounced on the rebound to fire home pastgoalie Frederik Andersen from an acuteangle and send the home crowd into afrenzy. It was their second overtime victoryin the Western Conference finals and theirfourth in the postseason. Vermette was leftout of Chicago’s line-up for Game Three,but he responded to the omission in thebest possible way.

“It’s not the ideal situation obviously,”he said of being sidelined.”You want tomake sure you come prepared and keep agood attitude. My job in that situation wasjust try to put myself in a better mindset

and come to play and help my team-mates.”

The score was knotted at 1-1 after twoperiods, before the game exploded offen-sively with six goals in barely 10 minutes inthe third stanza. Chicago went 3-1 aheadcourtesy of goals by Jonathan Toews andBrent Seabrook, before Anaheim foughtback to take the lead with three goals in anastonishing 37-second burst, courtesy ofRyan Kesler, Matt Beleskey and Corey Perry.It was the second-fastest three-goal blitzby one team in playoff history.

But the drama was far from over. Rightwinger Patrick Kane tied it at 4-4 on a pow-er play with little more than seven minutesleft in regulation and overtime was need-ed. The Ducks, seeking to take a dominant3-1 lead in the series, had their chances inovertime but Chicago came closest toscoring when center Andrew Shaw hit thecrossbar. Anaheim had a temporaryreprieve, setting the stage for Vermette tobecome the hero of the night. Game Five istoday. —Reuters

Blackhawks level series

INDIANA: Defending champion ColinMontgomerie of Scotland took advantage ofa late collapse by American Brian Henningerto seize a three-shot lead after the thirdround of the Senior PGA Championship onSaturday at French Lick, Indiana.

Henninger tumbled out of a tie for thelead with a triple-bogey at the par-four 16th,after losing his ball in thick rough with hissecond shot, before Montgomerie finishedoff in style with a birdie at the last to card atwo-under-par 70.

That left Montgomerie at five-under 211,three strokes in front of German BernhardLanger, who birdied the final two holes for a69 on the challenging Pete Dye course at theFrench Lick Resort.

Henninger wound up with a 74 for a shareof third place at one under, level with fellowAmerican Scott Verplank (70) and Mexico’s

Esteban Toledo (73).“I’m very proud of what I achieved today,

because you had to play chess with thecourse,” Montgomerie, 51, told reporters. “It’sa very, very difficult golf course ... you got tothink about things.

“Long day ahead tomorrow. There’s sevenmiles to walk, and the emotions will go up-and-down like a roller coaster. But I camehere to be in contention on Saturdayevening and I am. So, job done so far.”Montgomerie, who won last year’s SeniorPGA Championship at Harbor Shores inMichigan before claiming his secondChampions Tour major two months later atthe U.S. Senior Open, made a faltering starton Saturday with a bogey at the par-fourfirst.

However, the Scot made no further errorsafter that on a demanding layout as he

birdied the ninth, 11th and the par-four 18thto tighten his grip on the second of the sea-son’s five major championships for seniorgolfers.

Regarded as one of the best players neverto have won a regular major championship,Montgomerie believes a more relaxedapproach to his game has left him poised toclaim a third major in the over-50 ranks.

“It was frustrating to come to these cham-pionships and to walk off with a runner’s upmedal,” he said. “I’ve done that five times.

“I’m more relaxed than I was. My tempera-ment is more consistent and I think thatthat’s helping. I’m enjoying it.” Former BritishOpen champion Tom Lehman, who had ledby one stroke overnight, plummeted downthe leaderboard into a tie for 13th at twoover par after struggling to a 78 that includ-ed eight bogeys and two birdies. —Reuters

TEXAS: Kevin Na sank a 14-foot birdie putton his penultimate hole to break clear of atie at the top with Ian Poulter and edge astroke in front after the third round of theCrowne Plaza Invitational on Saturday inFort Worth, Texas.

American Na, who had been two aheadovernight in pursuit of a second PGA Tourvictory, fired a one-under-par 69 in over-cast, blustery conditions at a rain-softenedColonial Country Club to post an 11-undertotal of 199.

“It wasn’t playing easy out there,” Na, 31,told PGA Tour Radio. “The wind was a bitbreezy and it was tough to judge the dis-tance on some of the shots.

“But I hung in there today and broke par.I’ve still got the lead and I’m looking for-ward to tomorrow.” Englishman Poulter,seeking his third win on the U.S. circuit,missed a birdie attempt from seven feet atthe par-four last and had to settle for sec-ond place after returning a 68.

Charley Hoffman carded a 66 to finish atnine under, a stroke better than fellowAmericans Chris Kirk (65) and BrandtSnedeker (66).

Na, whose only PGA Tour victory cameat the 2011 Justin Timberlake Shriners

Hospitals for Children Open, offset a birdieat the third with a bogey at the fifth toreach the turn in level-par 35.

He picked up another shot at the par-five 11th before succumbing to a two-stroke swing at the par-four 15th where hebogeyed after missing a five-footer for par.

Playing partner Poulter, who is knownfor his prowess on the greens, drained a 32-foot birdie putt at the 15th to draw levelwith Na before the American regained theoutright lead at the 17th with his thirdbirdie of the day.

“I trusted my read, a little outside rightand it turned nicely into the hole,” Na said.“It was nice because I was under par goinginto the last hole.”

Australian Adam Scott, who won lastyear’s tournament in a playoff, was fivestrokes off the pace after shooting a 66,ending the day level with Masters champi-on Jordan Spieth (67). Due to threateningweather, the players set off earlier thanscheduled in threesomes with a two-teestart. Similar conditions have been forecastfor Sunday with players again teeing offearly in threesomes, from 7 a.m. CT (1200GMT), in a bid to finish before expectedthunderstorms.—Reuters

KUWAIT: Boubyan Bank honored its CricketTeam for its distinction and earning manytrophies in the tournaments organized bythe Banks Club as well as being among theelite banks’ teams in cricket competitionsthis season.

Waleed Al Yaqout, GM AdministrationGroup commended the achievements of theCricket Team, considering that the human

resources are the basis for any success ordevelopment in the Bank in all domainsincluding sports. He further wished that suchsuccess would be maintained for years tocome.

During the past 5 years, Boubyan BankCricket Team has been a fierce competitor inall the Banks Club tournaments due to theexcellent players in the bank in addition to

the support the team receives in terms ofmaintaining a healthy environment allowingplayers to give their best.

Boubyan Bank Cricket Team receives allthe possible support from the TopManagement which is keen on supportingthe Bank’s human resources in various fieldswhether inside or outside the bank.

Such support comes as a part of the con-

tinuous encouragement for the Bank’s teamsparticipating in various tournaments organ-ized by the Kuwait Banks Club whether forfootball, cricket or bowling where the bank’steams achieved great results.

It is worth mentioning that Boubyanstarted the season with a bang by winningthe 7-A side cricket tournament sponsoredby Ahli Bank of Kuwait when they defeated

Ahli United Bank in the finals. The teamkept the winning momentum and went onto win the 2nd tournament sponsored bythe Kuwait Banks Club by lifting the win-ners’ trophy when they defeated KFH in thefinals. The 3rd trophy was the Watani tro-phy, where Boubyan Bank ended up withthe runners up trophy when they lost toAUB in the finals.

Monty leads Senior PGA

Na stays ahead of Poulter

Boubyan Bank honors cricket teamAl Yaqout amidst the Cricket Team

S P O RT SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

FRANCE: Switzerland’s Roger Federer serves in the first round match of the French Open tennis tournament against Alejandro Falla of Colombiaat the Roland Garros stadium. —AP

PARIS: Roger Federer blasted French Openorganisers yesterday after a fan breached tightsecurity and raced on to court to grab a ‘selfie’with the Swiss great.

The 17-time Grand Slam winner had justcompleted a routine 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 win overColombia’s Alejandro Falla when he was shockedto see a young fan sprinting towards him on theshowpiece Philippe Chatrier Court.

It was particularly embarrassing as security atthis year’s French Open has been tightened fol-lowing January’s deadly Islamist attack on Paris-based satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Although the male fan was quickly manhan-dled away, 33-year-old Federer was furious withthe lapse in security, claiming he had also beentargetted in practice on Saturday.

“I am not happy about it. It happened yester-day in the practice, too. It’s just a kid, but thenthree more kids came. And today on centrecourt where you would think this is a placewhere nobody can come on, just wanders onand nothing happens,” said Federer.

“Something needs to happen quickly.Normally I only speak on behalf of myself, but inthis situation I think I can speak on behalf of allthe players, that that’s where you do your job,that’s where you want to feel safe. “And so clearlyI’m not happy about it...it wasn’t a nice situationto be in.” Federer was also involved in a securityscare in the 2009 final at Roland Garros when afan ran on to the same court and placed a hat onthe star’s head.

Two years ago the final, which featured RafaelNadal, was also held up when a spectator, bran-dishing a flare, leapt from the stands and ontothe court before he was wrestled away by securi-ty officials.

Tournament director Gilbert Ysern admittedthat Federer was right to be “pissed off” and thatthe youth, who had been sitting in the courtsidesponsors boxes, had been banned from theevent.

“But it’s not the end of the world,” said Ysern.“It’s embarrassing. It shows that we made a mis-take and we have to correct it to make sure itdoesn’t happen again.”

Federer, the 2009 champion and seeded twothis year, goes on to face Spain’s MarcelGranollers for a place in the last 32. Federer, oneof a record 39 men over 30 in the first round, isdesperate to make the most of a kind drawwhich dumped top seed Novak Djokovic, nine-time champion Nadal and third seed AndyMurray all in the opposite half.

Federer ’s Davis Cup teammate StanWawrinka, the eighth seed, took just 96 minutesto make the second round, seeing off Turkey’sMarsel Ilhan 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.

Wawrinka, who made the last-eight in 2013,goes on to face either Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic.

But he too was unhappy with organisers afterthe tournament’s official website went into sur-gical detail regarding his private life.

Former Australian Open winner Wawrinkaannounced last month that he and his wife

Ilham were separating but he was furious to dis-cover that his personal problems were the focusof the website’s preview of his opening roundmatch.

“For a Grand Slam website, it should be anarticle about the tennis,” said Wawrinka. “It was ashit article.” Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikorienjoyed a 6-3, 7-5, 6-1 win over France’s Paul-Henri Mathieu and next faces either Australia’sMarinko Matosevic or Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil.

Latvian 24th seed Ernests Gulbis, whoknocked Federer out in the fourth round lastyear on his way to the semi-finals, defeatedDutchman Igor Sijsling 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3) for onlyhis third win all year.

Romania’s Simona Halep, the 2014 runner-upand third seed, saw off Russian world number 91Evgeniya Rodina 7-5, 6-4 and next faces MirjanaLucic-Baroni, the Croatian player who knockedher out of the US Open last year.

Serbian seventh seed Ana Ivanovic, the 2008champion, battled back to defeatc Kazakhstan’sYaroslava Shvedova, 4-6, 6-2, 6-0.

Russian ninth seed Ekaterina Makarovabreezed past US wildcard Louisa Chirico 6-4, 6-2while Spanish 21st seed Garbine Muguruza, whoshocked Serena Williams in the second roundlast year, beat Croatian qualifier Petra Martic 6-2,7-5.

Croatian 18-year-old Donna Vekic, coachedby 1997 champion Iva Majoli, put out French31st seed Caroline Garcia 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 for her firstwin at the tournament. —AFP

Federer blasts French Open after security scare

MILAN: Spaniard Alberto Contador failedto commemorate the memory of strickenMarco Pantani but held off the threat ofrival team Astana to stretch his lead overFabio Aru on the 15th stage of the Girod’Italia yesterday.

Contador came over the finish line ofthe 165km ride from Marostica to MadonnaDi Campiglio in third place at five secondsbehind stage winner Mikel Landa with Arufinishing a further second behind to remainsecond overall but see his gap on Contadorgrow to 2min 35sec.

“I would have liked to win this stagebecause of Marco Pantani, who was a biginspiration for me when I was younger,”said Contador.

“But it was a very difficult stage andLanda was strong in the finale, when therewere a lot of attacks. “It was hard to controleverything.”

A day after regaining the race lead fromAru following his third place finish on the14th stage time trial, Contador furtherunderlined his status as race favourite witha commanding performance on the firstday of climbing in the spectacularDolomites.

But the Spaniard added: “A lot can stillhappen in the race and we have a lot ofwork to do.” Contador’s Tinkoff team hadshouldered the burden of setting the paceon the penultimate climb, the 8km-longPasso Daone-a strategy which left two-timerace runner-up Rigoberto Uran strugglingto keep pace.

“It was a brutal day,” said Etixx riderUran, whose bid for a podium finish nowlooks decidedly over after he trailed homeamong the also-rans.

Tinkoff ’s tactic also produced theunwanted result of leaving Contador isolat-ed among several Astana riders for the finalclimb, after Australian teammate MichaelRogers had trailed behind before the racethrough the valley.

However Contador, a former two-timewinner of the Tour de France who also wonthe Giro in 2008, acquitted himself hand-somely on the final climb to Madonna di

Campiglio - the scene of Italian MarcoPantani’s infamous exclusion from the racein 1999, an incident which is widelybelieved to have led to the former champi-on’s downfall and death from acute cocainepoisoning in a Rimini hotel room inFebruary 2004.

Contador, who is bidding to become thefirst man since deceased Pantani in 1998 tocomplete the Giro d’Italia-Tour de Francedouble in the same year, did not have tofret until the final 3km when an accelera-tion by Landa sparked the hostilities.

Contador was soon on the Spaniard’swheel but despite pulling in front the raceleader struggled to stretch his lead. Aruand Trofimov soon pedalled their way backto the leading pair with just over two kilo-metres remaining. Landa tested his fellowSpaniard with another burst of speed but,again, Contador countered the move.

Trofimov then launched a futile attemptfor the stage win when he seared past hisfellow leaders at the one kilometre to goflag, but the Russian did not have the legsto open up a telling gap.

With Trofimov tiring and the finish linein sight, Landa seized his chance and accel-erated past Trofimov in the last few hun-dred metres to claim his maiden GrandTour victory.

“It’s an important win for me as much asfor the team,” said the Spaniard.”We tried toattack Contador because we outnumberedhim... it’s given us some hope for the finalstages this week.

“Nothing has changed in the team.We’re here to help Aru win the pink jerseyand he is still our leader.” Contador finishedthird at five seconds behind Landa to col-lect a time bonus which could prove usefulover the coming days of climbing in themountains. Today the peloton will enjoytheir second and final rest day of the racebefore tackling arguably the hardest stageof this year’s 98th edition on Tuesday, a 174km ride beginning in Pinzolo which fea-tures six climbs including the final punt tothe summit finish at Aprica. The race finish-es next Sunday in Milan. —AFP

Contador repels Astana on Giro’s ‘Pantani’ stage

ITALY: Spain’s Mikel Landa celebrates as he crosses the finish line of the 15th stage ofthe Giro díItalia, Tour of Italy cycling race. —AP

HOUSTON: The Golden State Warriorsare one victory away from the NBAFinals after routing the HoustonRockets 115-80 in Game Three of theWestern Conference finals on Saturday.

Guard Stephen Curry scored 40points, including seven-of-nine fromthree-point range, in the Warriors’ near-record road victory that gave them a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

It was the second largest victorymargin by a visiting team in the confer-ence finals.Golden State, who have notbeen to the NBA finals since 1975, canclose out the series in Game Four inHouston on Monday. No team has everlost a best-of-seven playoff series from3-0 up.

After giving the Warriors a close con-test in the first two games, the Rocketswere never in the hunt on Saturday asguard James Harden struggled againstGolden State’s stifling defense. He shotonly three-for-16 for 17 points.

As brilliantly as Curry played, theWarriors won the match with theirstrong defense and dominance on theboards, out-rebounding Houston 60-39. Coach Steve Kerr was delighted histeam committed only one turnover inthe first half.

“We were up 25 points with a boxscore that doesn’t look that impressivefrom a shooting standpoint,” Kerr toldreporters. “The first half was probablythe best lesson our team could learn. Ifwe defend like crazy and take care ofthe ball we’re going to be in goodshape.”

Curry, this season’s NBA MostValuable Player, sounded unfazed byhis latest performance. “The ball move-ment tonight was the best it’s been allseries so when you can get a few(shots) to go down early in the game itbuilds your confidence even more,” hesaid.

Houston coach Kevin McHale lookedresigned to his fate as he spoke to themedia.” We got hammered on theboards and we didn’t beat them in thepaint,” he said.

“They beat us up in those two areasand we had no answers to that. Weseemed to get down because ouroffense wasn’t flowing.”I thought we’dcome out with a little more juice. Theyjust drove us all night long.” —Reuters

BOSTON: James DeGale (left) of England, connects to the face of Andre Dirrell duringtheir boxing match for the vacant IBF super middleweight title. —AP

DeGale wins IBF supermiddleweight title

BOSTON: James DeGale became the firstBritish fighter to win an Olympic goldmedal and a professional world titleSaturday, unanimously outpointing AndreDirrell at Boston University’s Agganis Arenato take the vacant International BoxingFederation super middleweight title.

The London boxer improved to 21-1,receiving winning scores of 114-112 fromjudges Dan Fitzgerald and Howard Foster,and 117-105 from Alan Davis.Dirrell fromFlint, Michigan, dropped to 24-2.

“I am speechless,” said DeGale, the 2008Olympic champion. “My whole career hasbeen leading up to this, winning a worldtitle. It’s an unbelievable feeling. I made his-tory.”

Cut next to his right eye early in the sec-ond round, DeGale floored Dirrell twice inthe round. The first time, he landed a righthook, putting Dirrell on his seat. AfterDirrell got up, DeGale crowded him andforced him to a knee with a left hand to thebody.

In the third, DeGale landed anotherright hook that forced Dirrell to hold. Dirrellavoided any big shots in the fifth, landing a

straight left hand to DeGale’s chin with noeffect.

In the final seconds of the sixth, DeGalelanded a right hook to the head and a leftto the body, causing Dirrell to double over.Earlier in the round, Dirrell was cut on hisleft cheekbone.

Dirrell landed combinations in the sev-enth and forced DeGale to take a step backon three occasions after landed straight lefthands.

Toward the end of the ninth, both fight-ers taunted each other after each foughtthe round defensively They brieflyexchanged words after the bell. Near theend of the 10th Dirrell landed a right to thebody while pushing DeGale into the ropes.

Fighting for the first time in the UnitedStates, the 31-year-old DeGale landed 115of 400 punches. Dirrell connected on 111 of488. Dirrell’s only other loss was a split deci-sion against Carl Froch in 2009 in a bid forFroch’s World Boxing Council super mid-dleweight title in Nottingham, England.

“They say I ran from Froch and they tookit away from me,” Dirrell said. “(DeGale) ranfrom me and they gave it to him.” —AP

Warriors lead Rockets 3-0

HOUSTON: Rockets forward Josh Smith (5) shoots over Golden State Warriors guard Shaun Livingston(34) during the second half in Game 3 of the NBA basketball Western Conference finals. —AP

S P O RT SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Italian League result/standings

Juventus 37 26 8 3 70 22 86 —champions

Roma 36 18 13 5 51 28 67Lazio 36 20 6 10 66 34 66Napoli 37 18 9 10 68 50 63Fiorentina 37 17 10 10 58 46 61Genoa 37 16 11 10 61 44 59Sampdoria 37 13 16 8 46 40 55Inter Milan 37 13 13 11 55 45 52Torino 36 13 12 11 43 42 51AC Milan 36 11 13 12 50 49 46Palermo 37 11 13 13 51 54 46Sassuolo 37 11 13 13 46 56 46Verona 37 11 12 14 47 63 45Chievo 37 10 13 14 28 38 43Empoli 37 8 18 11 44 47 42

Udinese 37 10 11 16 40 52 41Atalanta 37 7 16 14 37 54 37Cagliari 37 7 10 20 44 65 31

— relegated Cesena 37 4 12 21 36 68 24

— relegatedParma 37 6 7 24 31 73 18

— relegatedNote: Parma deducted three points and fourpoints for financial irregularities and non-paymentof salaries.Top two qualify automatically for the ChampionsLeague, third goes into the play-offs. Fourth, fifthand sixth carry Europa League places. The bottomthree sides are relegated.

Empoli 1 (Pucciarelli 57) Sampdoria 1 (Eto’o 90+1); Cesena 0 Cagliari 1 (Sau 90+1); Chievo 1 (Pellissier 88)Atalanta 1 (Gomez 48); Palermo 2 (Jajalo 26, Rigoni 69) Fiorentina 3 (Iicic 23, Gilardino 33, Alonso 78);Parma 2 (Nocerino 21, Varela 36) Verona 2 (Toni 42, 80-pen); Udinese 0 Sassuolo 1 (Magnanelli 70).

Playing laterAC Milan v Torino

Italian Serie A table after yesterday’s early game (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against,points):

LEICESTER: Leicester City’s Jeffrey Schlupp (left) and Queens Park Rangers’ Nedum Onuoha battle for the ball during the English PremierLeague soccer match. —AP

LEICESTER: Leicester City celebrated their stun-ning escape from Premier League relegationwith a breezy 5-1 demolition of relegatedQueens Park Rangers on the season’s final day.

Jamie Vardy marked his first England call-upwith the opener and further strikes from MarcAlbrighton, Leonardo Ulloa, Esteban Cambiassoand Andrej Kramaric left the home fans insidethe King Power Stadium in heady mood.

Charlie Austin, another new face in Englandcoach Roy Hodgson’s latest squad, replied forthe visitors, but there was nothing else for Chris

Ramsey to cheer about in his first game sincebeing made permanent QPR manager.

Nigel Pearson’s Leicester finished the cam-paign with a run of seven wins, one draw andone defeat, giving them a 14th-place finish andtaking them above the 40-point barrier in thetop flight for the first time since 2001.

Leicester were unchanged from the team thathad secured survival last weekend with a 0-0draw at Sunderland and they were quickly intotheir stride, Ulloa curling wide and JeffreySchlupp hitting the side-netting.

The hosts made the breakthrough in the 16thminute following an error by QPR goalkeeperAlex McCarthy, who was deputising for the con-cussed Robert Green.

The 25-year-old spilled a tame effort fromRiyad Mahrez and 28-year-old Vardy followed upto tap in his fifth goal of the campaign.

McCarthy partially atoned by saving wellfrom Vardy and Matt Phillips then came withininches of equalising with a 20-yard shot that

beat Kasper Schmeichel, only to flash the wrongside of the post.

But Leicester made it 2-0 two minutes beforehalf-time as Albrighton was afforded space toadvance before crashing a shot high into thenet.

Leicester were forced into a change at theinterval, with Ritchie De Laet replacing MarcinWasilewski, but within seven minutes of the sec-ond period, they had doubled their advantage.

First, Ulloa used his chest to divert a shotfrom Wes Morgan into the bottom corner, beforeformer Argentina international Cambiasso firedhome from 12 yards.

Austin claimed a consolation by heading in across from Joey Barton in the 57th minute toregister his 18th goal of the campaign, but bythen QPR were already destined to finish theseason at the bottom of the pile. And there wasyet more misery to come as Kramaric bludg-eoned home following a punt from Schmeichelthat QPR failed to deal with. —AFP

Vardy stars as partying Leicester trounce QPR

Leicester 5

QPR 1

BIRMINGHAM: Leading scorer Danny Ingsbrought what is likely to be the final curtaindown on his career with Burnley yesterday inthe best way possible by scoring the only goalfor the relegated side in a farewell 1-0 win overFA Cup finalists Aston Villa.

Ings, widely believed to be due for a moveto a club remaining in the Premier League clubin the close season, struck early in the first-halfwith his 11th of the campaign to give Burnleyonly their seventh win of the season, all by onegoal margins.

For Villa it was a second disappointing resultahead of their daunting FA Cup final meetingwith holders Arsenal after being thrashed 6-1by Southampton last weekend.

Ings opened the scoring in the sixth minuteas Villa failed to clear the ball on several occa-sions.

They were put out of their misery as Ingsrose above Nathan Baker to head AshleyBarnes’s headed pass past Jed Steer-who hasenjoyed a rollercoaster season having beenloaned out to lower league Yeovil. Villa pressedfor an equaliser throughout the rest of the half,Christian Benteke having an effort saved andAshley Westwood going close twice in the final

five minutes before the break, a rising shotgoing just over the bar and then his secondeffort being saved by Tom Heaton.

An entertaining game carried on in highspirited fashion in the second-half with bothsides having chances. It was Villa, though, whowere the most persistent with former LeedsUnited star Fabian Delph, who has boosted theclub by agreeing a long-term deal, and the

infuriatingly inconsistent Charles N’Zogbiaunable to get the better of the admirableHeaton, whose form earned him a call-up tothe England set-up last week. Dutch interna-tional central defender Ron Vlaar, whom man-ager Tim Sherwood wants to sign a new con-tract, also sent a header flashing over the barbut there was to be no spoiling Burnley ’sfarewell party. —AFP

Burnley bow out heads held highAston Villa 0

Burnley 1

BIRMINGHAM: Aston Villa’s Christian Benteke in action during the English Premier Leaguesoccer match against Burnley at Villa Park. —AP

PARIS: After several years of decline, the futurelooks bright for Lyon with an exciting youngteam, a return to the Champions League andthe prospect of a move into a new stadium nextseason.

However, whether the seven-time Frenchchampions can maintain their revival willdepend on their ability to keep hold of theirbiggest assets, notably Ligue 1 player of theyear Alexandre Lacazette and young player ofthe year Nabil Fekir.

Hubert Fournier’s side pushed overwhelmingfavourites Paris Saint-Germain almost all theway in the race for the title, only seeing theirdream of a first Ligue 1 crown since 2008 endedwith a game to spare. Nevertheless, secondplace was their best performance since 2010and better than most fans would have hopedfor last summer, when the highly-respectedRemi Garde departed following the club’s worstfinish-fifth-in 16 years.

His replacement Fournier had done an excel-lent job in leading Reims back into the top flightand keeping them there, but few expected himto lead Lyon into the Champions League.

“I’ve got a few ideas and a different method-ology, and my arrival should allow a new impe-tus at the club - and change a few old habits,” hesaid after being unveiled, but Lyon lost three oftheir first four matches. With playmakerClement Grenier struggling with his fitness andthe injury-prone Yoann Gourcuff still unable toput a run of games together, Fournier’s squadlooked ill-equipped to compete.

However, they somehow emerged as titlechallengers, thanks largely to a run of 10 con-secutive home wins and the form of Lacazetteand Fekir.

Lacazette scored 27 league goals, a clubrecord in a league campaign, while Fekir hadscored 13 and set up nine more before the finalgame of the season at Rennes, breaking into theFrance squad as a result. With other home-reared stars like goalkeeper Anthony Lopes,Samuel Umtiti, captain Maxime Gonalons,Jordan Ferri and Corentin Tolisso, Lyon were ajoy to watch at times and can now prepare forChampions League football next season.

They will go straight into the group stage forthe first time since 2011-12, although they are

likely to be in the third pot of seeds. “We aregoing to draw some really big teams. But thatdoesn’t scare me,” captain Gonalons told sportsdaily L’Equipe last week.

“All season, watching the Champions Leagueon television and hearing the music, I havethought about getting back into it and relivingit all. We have been away from it for too long.”

The prize money that comes with playing inthe Champions League will help the finances ofa club who recorded another big loss last sea-son of more than 26 million euros ($29.8m,£18.9m).

That will give them a chance of keeping holdof their best players, despite interest from else-where. “We need to keep the majority of theplayers. But we will need to improve the con-tracts of two or three of them,” former Lyonstriker Bernard Lacombe, now an advisor topresident Jean-Michel Aulas, told L’Equipe. Hewas certainly referring to Lacazette and Fekir,who has yet to agree terms on a new deal sinceemerging as a genuine star turn this season,although his agent Jean-Pierre Bernes has pub-licly encouraged him to stay put.—AFP

MILAN: Europa League semi-finalistsFiorentina secured their place in next sea-son’s competition with a stunning 3-2 winat Palermo, as Verona striker Luca Tonimoved top of the Serie A scoring chartsyesterday. Fiorentina, outclassed by Sevillain Europe’s second tier competition lastweek, got off the mark in Sicily thanks toformer Palermo forward Josip Ilicic’s 23rdminute screamer from 25 metres.

Mato Jajalo levelled for the hosts with agreat volley only three minutes later butFiorentina were back in front just after thehalf hour when Alberto Gilardino was onhand to turn a Mati Fernandez shot pastStefano Sorrentino.

Vincenzo Montella’s visitors werestunned on 69 minutes when Luca Rigonilevelled for the hosts, but Marcos Alonsorestored their lead 12 minutes from time toruin what was Palermo striker PauloDybala’s last home game before his immi-nent move to Juventus.

The result moved Fiorentina up oneplace to fifth, two points ahead of sixth-placed Genoa. Genoa hold the third andfinal Europa League spot but have beenexcluded from European competitionbecause their Luigi Ferraris stadium doesnot meet UEFA standards. Fiorentina’s six-point lead over Sampdoria, in seventh,means their spot in next season’s EuropaLeague is secure.

Elsewhere, a brace of goals, includingone from the spot, from Toni in a 2-2 drawaway to Parma saw the evergreen Veronastriker leapfrog Carlos Tevez to lead theSerie A scoring charts.

With one game remaining this season,Toni now leads Juventus striker Tevez andInter Milan’s Mauro Icardi, who both have20 goals, by one.

With Juventus securing the doublethank to Wednesday’s Cup final win overLazio, the battle for European places con-tinues apace.

Lazio host Roma on Monday looking forthe win that would allow them to leapfrog

their city rivals into second place ahead ofnext week’s final round of games.

A second place finish secures automaticentry to the Champions League, while theteam that finishes third goes into a play-offround.

Roma were held 2-2 by Lazio earlier thisseason, but coach Rudi Garcia said a thirdplace finish is not in his plans. “We want tomake sure that tomorrow’s game is theonly one that matters for us in this cam-paign,” Garcia said in his pre-match confer-ence Sunday.

“It’s up to us tomorrow to show that weare the stronger of the sides.” AlthoughNapoli, in fourth at three points behindLazio, remain in Champions League con-tention, the Biancocelesti require only adraw on Monday to make sure of at least athird place finish.

It has left Rafael Benitez’s men, beaten3-1 by a second-string Juventus onSaturday, heading towards the EuropaLeague alongside Fiorentina and a thirdside that is increasingly looking likeSampdoria.

A last-gasp leveller from Samuel Eto’okept Sampdoria’s Europa hopes alive butSinisa Mihajlovic’s men will be relying onresults elsewhere.

Sampdoria share Genoa’s Luigi Ferrarisstadium but have already lodged Sassuolo’sMapei stadium as the venue for Europeanhome games in the event they qualify forEurope.

Mihajlovic, however, was less than hap-py with a scenario which means his sidemust beat Parma in their final game of theseason and hope results elsewhere go theirway.

“We’ve claimed a point, now we need towin our last game and see what happenselsewhere,” Mihajlovic told Sky Sport.

“Genoa are ahead of us and I take myhat off to them... but it would only be asmall consolation for us if we got into theEuropa League because of their misfor-tune.”—AFP

Fiorentina intoEuropa League

ITALY: Palermo’s Luca Rigoni (center) celebrates with his teammates after scoringduring a Serie A soccer match between Palermo and Fiorentina yesterday. —AP

Roma want Lazio winMILAN: Coach Rudi Garcia has called onRoma to beat derby rivals Lazio on Mondayand secure Serie A’s second automaticChampions League spot with a game tospare.

Roma’s title push fizzled out last monthfollowing a remarkable run of draws andnow Garcia’s men sit just one point aheadof Stefano Pioli’s impressive Lazio sideahead of Monday’s derby at the StadioOlimpico. Lazio have been the most suc-cessful team in Italy’s top flight this secondhalf of the season after championsJuventus, but Garcia-who could welcomeBrazilian defender Maicon back to the fold-remains defiant.

“Nearly everyone is saying Lazio arefavorites to win the game, that they’re thebetter team, that they play the best footballin Italy, but we’ll set out to win it all thesame,” the Frenchman told media yester-day. “People saying Lazio have already wonit just motivates us even more. We want tomake sure tomorrow is the last game thatreally matters for us this season.”

Lazio host the Giallorossi five days afterspurning their only chance of a trophy thisseason, losing the Italian Cup final 2-1 toJuventus at the Stadio Olimpico lastWednesday.

While a draw would give Lazio the pointrequired to keep fourth-placed Napoli at

bay ahead of next week’s final round ofgames, both Roma and Lazio will be keento avoid finishing third to avoid a potential-ly costly play-off.

Napoli finished third in Serie A last yearbut their bid to join the Champions Leaguegroup stages came undone after a 4-2aggregate defeat to Athletic Bilbao.

It set a pessimistic tone for the rest ofNapoli’s season and now coach RafaelBenitez and top striker Gonzalo Higuain arereported to be on their way out of the clubas they face another season out of Europe’spremier club competition.

Understandably, Lazio coach StefanoPioli hinted his side won’t be settling for ashare of the spoils today. “It’s a crucial gamefor us,” he told reporters. “We’ve doneeverything we can to get to this stage....and we’ll be 100 percent focused on givingeverything in this game.

“The lads are all in fine condition, moti-vated and feeling refreshed after lastweek’s Cup final. Thankfully, we play tomor-row (Monday) and we welcome the extraday’s rest.”

A Lazio win would see Pioli’s men take atwo-point lead over Roma to set up a dra-matic finale to the season. On the final day,next Sunday, Roma host Palermo whileLazio have the arguably tougher task awayto Napoli.—AFP

Keeping home-grown stars the key for Lyon

S P O RT SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Chelsea 38 26 9 3 73 32 87 — champions

Man City 38 24 7 7 83 38 79Arsenal 38 22 9 7 71 36 75Man Utd 38 20 10 8 62 37 70Tottenham 38 19 7 12 58 53 64Liverpool 38 18 8 12 52 48 62Southampton 38 18 6 14 54 33 60Swansea 38 16 8 14 46 49 56Stoke 38 15 9 14 48 45 54Crystal Palace 38 13 9 16 47 51 48Everton 38 12 11 15 48 50 47West Ham 38 12 11 15 44 47 47West Brom 38 11 11 16 38 51 44Leicester 38 11 8 19 46 55 41

Newcastle 38 10 9 19 40 63 39Sunderland 38 7 17 14 31 53 38Aston Villa 38 10 8 20 31 57 38Hull 38 8 11 19 33 51 35

— relegatedBurnley 38 7 12 19 28 53 33

— relegatedQPR 38 8 6 24 42 73 30

— relegatedNote: top four teams qualify for next season’sChampions League; teams finishing fifth and sixthqualify for Europa League; team finishing seventhqualifies for Europa League if Arsenal beat AstonVilla in FA Cup final; bottom three teams relegatedto Championship.

Arsenal 4 (Walcott 4, 14, 37, Wilshere 17) West Brom 1 (McAuley 57) Aston Villa 0 Burnley 1 (Ings 6);Chelsea 3 (Costa 37-pen, Remy 70, 88) Sunderland 1 (Fletcher 26); Crystal Palace 1 (Chamakh 57)Swansea 0; Everton 0 Tottenham 1 (Kane 24); Hull 0 Manchester United 0; Leicester 5 (Vardy 16,Albrighton 43, Ulloa 51, Cambiasso 52, Kramaric 86) QPR 1 (Austin 57); Manchester City 2 (Lampard 31,Aguero 88) Southampton 0; Newcastle 2 (Sissoko 54, Gutierrez 85) West Ham 0; Stoke 6 (Diouf 22, 26,Walters 30, Adam 41, N’Zonzi 45, Crouch 86) Liverpool 1 (Gerrard 70).

English Premier League table after yestrday’s matches on the final day of the season (played, won,drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points):

EPL results/standings

LONDON: Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez (right) and West Bromwich Albion’s Craig Dawson battle for the ball during the English Premier League soc-cer match at the Emirates Stadium. —AP

LONDON: A stunning first-half hat-trick from TheoWalcott gave Arsenal the perfect Premier Leaguesend-off from the Emirates with a 4-1 victory overWest Bromwich Albion yesterday.

It ensured the Gunners would approach arecord 19th FA Cup final appearance on Saturdayagainst Aston Villa, who lost 1-0 to relegatedBurnley, in confident mood.

Walcott may have reached an impasse with theclub over the signing of a new contract - his cur-rent £100,000-a-week deal expires at the end of the2015-16 season - but the 26-year-old demonstrat-ed his talent and quality ahead of any summernegotiations with three superbly-taken goalsinside the opening 37 minutes.

With Champions League football alreadysecured for a 18th successive year, this rout -Arsenal’s joint second biggest victory this calendaryear - was arguably the ideal preparation before

attempting to defend the FA Cup next Saturday.Arsenal had surprisingly failed to score in their pre-vious three home matches at the Emirates.Supporters, whose match tickets are some of themost expensive in the country, had sat through270 minutes of football - against Chelsea, SwanseaCity and Sunderland - without the pleasure of cele-brating a goal.

In the fourth minute, following patient build-upon the edge of the penalty area, Santi Cazorla fedin Walcott along the right channel and theunmarked winger hit a venomous right-footedstrike that Albion goalkeeper Boaz Myhill had littlechance of stopping. Ten minutes later and that leadwas extended when Walcott showed great persist-ence to skip past one challenge before poking astrike into the bottom corner.

They were soon 3-0 up with West Brom shell-shocked. After a corner was not properly cleared,the ball broke loose to Jack Wilshere, standing 20yards out, and the midfielder thumped it first timeleft-footed with extraordinary accuracy and power.

It was a real stunner, a wonderful way to markhis 100th Premier League appearance, and the 23-year-old celebrated with physiotherapist DeclanLynch, who had been critical during his rehab fromankle surgery. Three goals in the opening 17 min-utes was an unequivocal response to managerArsene Wenger’s pre-match demands that, follow-

ing the recent goal droughts, his team should dis-play more speed in their passing and more qualityin their finishing.

There were further celebrations on 37 minuteswhen Walcott sealed his hat-trick. It proved to bethe easiest of the three as he remained onsidebefore converting Cazorla’s driven cross at the backpost. It was hard on West Brom given that, sinceTony Pulis became manager in January, the clubhad enjoyed 10 clean sheets in their previous 17league matches.

This excellent defensive record is the reasonthey are not embroiled in a relegation battle andstarted the final afternoon 10 points clear of 18thplace. In the opening 15 minutes of the secondhalf, Pulis took off three underperforming playersand changed the formation from a defensive 4-5-1system to a more fluid 3-5-2.

Nigerian striker Victor Anichebe, who replacedSwedish defender Jonas Olsson, had an immediateimpact, forcing a save from Arsenal goalkeeperDavid Ospina on 55 minutes. I t was from theresulting corner, delivered expertly by ChrisBrunt, that centre-back Gareth McAuley scoredwith a header. A reminder for Wenger thatagainst Villa his side could be vulnerable at set-pieces. Yet West Brom were fortunate not to loseby more as Aaron Ramsey had three brilliantchances in the closing minutes.—AFP

Walcott hat-trick sinks West Brom

Arsenal 4

West Brom 1

NEWCASTLE: Cancer survivor Jonas Gutierrezscored one goal and made the other asNewcastle United secured their PremierLeague status with a 2-0 win over West HamUnited yesterday. Gutierrez crossed forMoussa Sissoko to open the scoring early inthe second half and then scored himself as atraumatic campaign ended with a huge sighof relief at St James’ Park.

But it was a nervy performance that illus-trated why unpopular owner Mike Ashley willneed to honor his pre-match pledge, in a raretelevision interview, to bolster his squad dur-ing the close season.

Hull’s failure to beat Manchester Unitedlessened the importance of the win, as itmeant Newcastle would have been safe in anycase.

But Gutierrez’s 85th-minute goal was thestuff of fairytales, since it came from a playerwho spent 17 months battling testicular can-cer and who was almost certainly playing hisfinal game for the club.

Newcastle could hardly have asked formore accommodating visitors than West Ham,who had been assured of a mid-table finish forseveral weeks and who arrived in the north-east without a win in 11 away games. Butmanager Sam Allardyce, told minutes after thegame that he will not be given a new contract,prepared his side properly nonetheless andthey proved to be stubborn opposition formore than half the game.

There were a few anxious moments forNewcastle coach John Carver, who may alsobe looking for a new job soon, and whosprang a surprise by leaving out Ayoze Perez,one of his few successes this season. Carverwent for the more powerful presence of

Emmanuel Riviere, a disappointment since hesigned from Monaco last year.

It represented a gamble by Carver, but italmost paid off within 53 seconds of the startwhen Riviere should have capitalised on anopportunity created by Sissoko.

Instead, he pulled his shot across the faceof the goal from a sharp angle. Riviere wasalso responsible for Newcastle’s next threatwith an overhead kick that flashed wide, whileDaryl Janmaat went even closer with an 18th-minute effort.

But West Ham had demonstrated that theywould not make life easy for Newcastle andeven the home fans’ applause for Kevin Nolan,the West Ham captain who once played forthe club, failed to soften their approach. WestHam might have been awarded a penaltyafter only two minutes when Enner Valenciawent down under a challenge from MikeWilliamson, who was recalled after serving atwo-match ban for a red card at Leicester Citythat Carver had accused him of earning delib-erately.

And Allardyce’s side created the bestopportunity of the opening half when StewartDowning found space behind the centre-backs and forced goalkeeper Tim Krul to blockhis close-range shot.

Downing’s effort reflected how West Hamwere growing in confidence as they retainedpossession with an ease that started to frus-trate the Newcastle crowd.

That frustration only increased whenJanmaat headed high over the bar at the con-clusion of a quick break engineered byGutierrez and Jack Colback.

The anxiety levels within the stadium rosestill further when Riviere somehow failed toturn in a 51st-minute cross from Janmaat withthe goal at his mercy.

But they went ahead just three minutes lat-er when Sissoko rose brilliantly to head homea left-wing cross from Gutierrez, who made thegame safe with a deflected strike five minutesfrom time. As St James’ Park rejoiced, WestHam’s challenge faded, their fans turning onAllardyce with a prescient chant of: “You’re get-ting sacked in the morning!” —AFP

Newcastle avoid dropNewcastle 2

West Ham 0

Tottenham take fifth place

LIVERPOOL: Tottenham secured a fifth placefinish in the Premier League as Harry Kaneended his breakthrough season with thedecisive strike in his side’s 1-0 win at Evertonyesterday.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side took the pointsat Goodison Park thanks to England forwardKane’s 31st club goal of the season in all com-petitions and his 21st in the league.

That victory, combined with Liverpool’s 6-1 defeat at Stoke, lifted the north Londonerstwo points above the Reds into fifth andensured they will go straight into the EuropaLeague group stage in September, instead ofhaving to start the season in July with a quali-fying round for Europe’s second tier competi-tion. Everton finished 11th after a lacklustredefeat that summed up their disappointingcampaign. Pochettino recently told his play-ers that few of them are guaranteed of aplace at the club next season and that warn-ing had the desired effect.

Tottenham made a bright start, appealingin vain for a penalty when Ryan Mason wentdown under pressure from Phil Jagielka aftera quick exchange of passes with ChristianEriksen.

Brendan Galloway was making his homedebut for Everton and the teenage left-backsuffered a little stage fright early on when hecarelessly gifted possession to ChristianEriksen, who set up Erk Lamela for a shot thatforced a save from Tim Howard.

That blunder sparked a response fromEverton and Kevin Mirallas was sent cleanthrough on goal, but with only Hugo Lloris tobeat the Belgian forward shot straight at thegoalkeeper.

Mirallas showed more composure to carveout another chance when he juggled the ballto work space for a shot that fizzed just over.

But, after a barren spell since marking hisEngland debut with a goal in March, Kanelooked a more lively presence up front and heopened the scoring in the 24th minute.

Eric Dier delivered a tempting cross intothe penalty area and Kane’s clever movementand predatory instincts were on full display ashe evaded two defenders to head in fromclose-range for only his second goal in his lasteight appearances.

Mirallas should have equalised before half-time when he dribbled around Lloris, only toclip his shot over from a tight angle with thegoal unguarded.

Muhamed Besic came on for Ross Barkleyat the interval and the Everton substitutealmost grabbed an immediate equaliser witha powerful strike that flashed past a post.

Eriksen’s shot was deflected wide for a cor-ner that produced a headed chance whichFederico Fazio was unable to convert, butTottenham had already done enough to takethe points. —AFP

Everton 0

Tottenham 1

LIVERPOOL: Everton’s Steven Naismith attempts an overhead kick during the EnglishPremier League soccer match against Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park. —AP

MANCHESTER: Frank Lampard marked his finalgame in English football in triumphant fashionas the Manchester City star’s goal ensured thedeposed champions ended the Premier Leaguecampaign with a 2-0 victory over Southamptonyesterday.

With Sergio Aguero adding a late second goalat Eastlands, Manuel Pellegrini’s second placedteam secured a sixth consecutive victory, astrong end to an erratic season for City and theirChilean manager, who is expected to hold immi-nent talks with chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarakover his and the club’s future.

Lampard, making his final English leagueappearance nearly 20 years and almost 900domestic games after his first, took just over halfan hour to open the scoring.

It was the 259th goal of his domestic careerand, like so many of those that came before it,saw the 36-year-old former Chelsea midfielder inprecisely the right place at the right time follow-ing a flowing City attack. David Silva fed the ballwide to James Milner whose accurate, first-timecross reached Lampard unmarked eight yardsfrom goal and the veteran produced an unstop-pable finish.

City wrapped up the points two minutes fromtime after a Jesus Navas shot was deflected highinto the air and headed back across goal byEliaquim Mangala for Aguero to nod over theline from point-blank range. The events of thefirst half marked a fitting way for Lampard to sayfarewell to the Premier League before his moveto the MLS and New York City, although thehome supporters at Eastlands were possiblymore interested in the fates of two other Citymidfielders. The futures of Yaya Toure and Milnerare the subject of speculation, but both playedtheir respective parts in an entertaining andopen final game of the season.

Toure set off on a breathtaking run deep fromhis own half after 37 minutes and eventuallysquared a pass, misjudged by Jose Fonte, forAguero to force a flying, reflex stop from goal-keeper Kelvin Davis.

Earlier, Toure had sped away from StevenDavis to set up an attack which allowed DavidSilva to send Aguero clear, although theArgentina forward’s shot was uncharacteristical-ly well off the mark.

Then a Toure shot, from just inside the area,was parried by Davis although the Southamptonkeeper made up for that slight error by produc-ing a magnificent block to deny Aguero, who fin-ishes as the league’s top scorer, as he looked cer-tain to net the rebound from six yards.

The period of City dominance followed abright opening from the visitors, whose best

chance to claim the opening goal had comeafter 20 minutes when Shane Long skipped pastPablo Zabaleta before his low shot was stoppedby Joe Hart.

Graziano Pelle, such an impressive performerfor the Saints this season, had a chance to levelbefore the interval but shot wide from 15 yardsafter Milner had halted Long’s advance.

Pelle also produced an audacious flying backheel which fizzed wide from a Sadio Mane crosssoon after the interval. Lampard, with a far-postheader from a Milner cross which lacked any realpower to trouble Davis, offered City a brief

respite from Southampton’s improved secondhalf play. But the visitors, for all their pressure,were struggling to convert possession intochances, with Long steering a weak shot directlyat Hart after a James Ward-Prowse attack brokedown on the edge of the area after 67 minutes.Mane and Long both failed to test Hart withweak efforts that were comfortably saved by theEngland goalkeeper. Fittingly, Pellegrini endedLampard’s afternoon after 76 minutes, allowingthe Premier League legend to enjoy a standingovation from a packed English stadium for onelast time. —AFP

Lampard says stylish farewell to Man CityMan City 2

Southampton 0

LONDON: Alan Pardew guided Crystal Palaceto a best ever 10th place finish in the PremierLeague thanks to a 1-0 victory over Swanseaon the final day of the season yesterday.

Moroccan international MarouaneChamakh drove the ball home from inside thepenalty box on 57 minutes following a scram-ble to provide the only goal of the match in atight affair at Selhurst Park.

It was the former Arsenal striker’s fourthgoal of the season and first since January.Palace, who picked up their ninth victory sinceformer Newcastle handler Pardew took over inJanuary, took their points tally to 48 and a10th place finish after closest rivals Everton

and West Ham both lost. There are significant financial rewards for

each place gained in the final standings. The53-year-old Londoner, who played as a mid-fielder for Palace between 1987 and 1991 andmemorably scored the winning goal in an FACup semi-final victory over Liverpool in 1990,was forced out of Newcastle just weeks afterwinning the manager of the month award inNovember 2014.

His former club needed a desperate 2-0 lastday victory over West Ham to avoid relegationwhile Palace have been guaranteed their topflight status for weeks.

Swansea, who have enjoyed their best sea-son since John Toshack led them to a tally of69 points in 1981-82, have flourished undermanager Garry Monk and close out their cam-paign in eighth spot on 56 points. Swansea,who became the first Welsh club to play in thePremier League since its formation in 1992and won the 2013 League Cup under MichaelLaudrup for their first major trophy, came intothe match having won five of their past eightmatches on the road. —AFP

Pardew guides Palace to best ever EPL finish

Crystal Palace 1

Swansea 0

MANCHESTER: Manchester City’s Frank Lampard (right) celebrates scoring againstSouthampton during the English Premier League soccer match at the Etihad Stadium. —AP

17Federer blastsFrench Open aftersecurity scare

MONDAY, MAY 25, 201519

Walcott hat-trick sinks West Brom

Rosberg wins Monaco GP Page 16

LONDON: Chelsea’s Ivorian striker Didier Drogba (bottom center) wears the crown as he poses with his team-mates during the presentation of the Premier League trophy after the English Premier League football matchagainst Sunderland at Stamford Bridge. — AFP

LONDON: Didier Drogba drew a line underhis second spell at Chelsea as JoseMourinho’s side wrapped up their PremierLeague title-winning campaign with a 3-1victory over Sunderland at Stamford Bridgeyesterday. Diego Costa confirmed his statusas the club’s number one striker with his20th league goal of the season, a 36thminute penalty to cancel out StevenFletcher’s opening goal before Loic Remycompleted the win with two second half

goals. Drogba, meanwhile, was carried fromthe field by his team-mates when he wasreplaced after a brief, 28-minute appearancethat had all the signs of a final farewell.

There was always going to be a celebrato-ry air to this game, particularly sinceSunderland secured their Premier Leaguefuture with the midweek draw at Arsenal,ensuring there was nothing at stake foreither team. And the mood was set beforekick-off when members of Chelsea’s 2005title-winning team were reunited on thepitch before kick-off to mark the tenthanniversary of that success.

Three of that team - Drogba, John Terryand Petr Cech - were in the starting asChelsea set the seal on their fourth title ina decade. But of those three, only Terry isexpected to still be at the club when itbegins its title defence in August and JoseMourinho’s decision to name Drogba as

captain and start with Cech in goal added tothe sense this game was as much aboutsigning off and saying goodbye as it wasgaining three more points in a campaignlong since over.

Mourinho’s competitive nature was nevergoing to allow his side to coast, especially inthe wake of Monday’s 3-0 loss at WestBromwich Albion, Chelsea’s third defeat ofthe league season.

But it was clear there was a degree of sen-timent in the manager’s team selectionwhen Drogba was withdrawn after just 28minutes. Mourinho and his staff lined up onthe touchline to applaud the 37-year-old ashe left the field saluting to the crowd.

The forward is out of contract this sum-mer and it was clear from his reaction thathis second spell at the club is now coming toa close. At that point, though, Chelsea werealready trailing to Fletcher’s 26th minute

header after the Scotland international wasleft unmarked as he met Adam Johnson’scorner. Moments earlier Cech had beenhanded the opportunity to show why he willbe in demand if, as expected, he leavesChelsea during the close season.

The keeper reacted well to beat away apowerful shot from Jermain Defoe and itwas clear there was risk Sunderland couldtake the edge off the home side’s celebra-tions. The Wearside club have been liftedsince the arrival of Advocaat and remainhopeful of convincing the 67-year-oldDutchman to remain at the club.

Advocaat had been left in tears followinghis side’s display at the Emirates Stadium thisweek that confirmed he had succeeded inhis task of keeping the Black Cats out of theChampionship.

And it looked as though he might registeranother notable achievement by inflicting a

first home league defeat of the season onMourinho’s men. Sunderland’s advantagedidn’t last, however, and within ten minutesof Fletcher putting them in front, Chelseawere on level terms.

Costa had appeared in place of Drogbaand converted from the penalty spot afterJuan Cuadrado’s burst into the area hadbeen halted by a clumsy challenge by JohnO’Shea, the Sunderland captain.

Once level, there was little chanceChelsea would let things slip again andNemanja Matic should have put them aheadwhen he headed over in the 52nd minute.

That proved to be a temporary reprievefor Advocaat’s team and Remy eventuallyfound a way past Vito Mannone, theSunderland keeper with a low drive from20 yards out before completing the winwith a close range finish two minutes fromtime. — AFP

Chelsea end season in styleCheslea 3

Sunderland 1

STOKE-ON-TRENT: Liverpool captain StevenGerrard scored on his final Premier Leagueappearance but it proved a bittersweetmoment as the Reds were thrashed 6-1 byStoke City yesterday at the BritanniaStadium.

Gerrard will join Major League Soccer out-fit LA Galaxy, when his contract expires,,andany hopes the midfielder had of finishingwith a victory in his 710th match were endedby a dominant first-half display by Stoke. ThePotters blew the visitors away as they carvedopen the Liverpool defence at will to scorefive goals in 23 minutes as the Reds sufferedtheir joint biggest defeat in the PremierLeague.

It was also Liverpool’s heaviest defeatsince 1954. However, with Liverpool 5-0down Gerrard got on scoresheet as helatched on to a flick on from Rickie Lambertwith 20 minutes of the game left and struck alow shot angled past Stoke goalkeeper AsmirBegovic.

Stoke have become a more refined outfitunder Mark Hughes but they lacked none ofthe aggression and intensity with which theywere synonymous in the opening stages.

And even though they had little to playfor, Hughes’ side were determined to not togo through the motions. Liverpool flickeredbriefly into life early on and a neat passingculminated in a chance for Adam Lallana,who curled the ball round Begovic from atight angle but also past the Stoke goalkeep-er’s post.

The Potters then seized control of thegame though a mixture of clinical finishingand lacklustre defending from Liverpool.Stoke opened the scoring when MarkoArnautovic cut the ball back for CharlieAdam on the edge of the area and his pow-erful shot was spilt by Liverpool goalkeeperSimon Mignolet into the path of MameBiram Diouf who emphatically dispatched itfrom close range.

The Belgian goalkeeper was slightly lessat fault for Stoke’s second moments laterwhen Senegal forward Diouf was allowedspace to unleash a fierce shot which flewinto the back of the net.

Liverpool were, though, architects of theirown downfall for Stoke’s third goal when aroutine cross into the box was headed backacross goal by Emre Can for JonathanWalters to bundle home at the secondattempt. Stoke were hungry for more goalsand added a fourth when Adam caughtLucas in possession after a weak pass fromMamadou Sakho and drilled a lot shot intothe bottom corner of the net. A fifth arrivedon the stroke of half-time when StevenNzonzi ran forward unchallenged and spec-tacularly struck the ball from 25 yards overMignolet and into the net. — AFP

Stoke crush LiverpoolStoke 6

Liverpool 1

LONDON: Hull City were relegatedfrom the Premier League after a 0-0draw against 10-man ManchesterUnited on the final day of the seasonyeterday.

The Tigers have not beaten Unitedsince 1974 but, in the end, even a rarevictory would not have been enoughto save them from dropping into theChampionship.

Steve Bruce’s side needed to takemaximum points at the KC Stadiumand hope that fourth bottomNewcastle were beaten by West Ham,but the Magpies’ 2-0 victory meantthey survived at Hull’s expense. Thehosts bettered Louis van Gaal’s team,who had substitute MarouaneFellaini sent off with 13 minutes left,but could not find a winner as Unitedlegend Bruce once again failed tosecure a first victory as a manageragainst his former club.

Hull had two goals disallowed andsaw chances for Ahmed Elmohamady

and Nikica Jelavic brilliantly kept out bySpanish goalkeeper Victor Valdes on hisfull debut for United.

But, just 12 months after reaching afirst FA Cup final and securing theirhighest ever league finish of 16th, afrustrating campaign ends with Hullhaving to face up to a return to the sec-ond tier.

As expected United finished fourthand face a play-off tie to qualify for thegroup stages of next season’sChampions League. They arrived withlittle to play for except perhaps forthose with question marks over theirfuture.

Angel di Maria was included for hisfirst start since being sent off againstArsenal in March but United’s clubrecord signing lasted just 23 minutesbefore having to go off, seemingly,with an injury.

Valdes made his first start forUnited in place of the injured DavidDe Gea and there was no place in thesquad for Radamel Falcao amidreports the Colombia striker has beentold his loan spell from Monaco willnot be extended.

Valdes could be United’s first-choicegoalkeeper next season if De Gealeaves for Real Madrid and the formerBarcelona keeper had plenty of work todo in the opening 30 minutes as Hulllooked to take the lead and heap pres-

sure on Newcastle.Valdes spilled Robbie Brady’s free-

kick but was spared embarrassment asPaul McShane’s close-range finish wasruled out for offside.

Within a minute, Valdes showed hisquality with a fine low save to keep outElmohamady’s header from a Bradydelivery and the hosts had anothergoal disallowed moments later.

Brady’s corner found its way toStephen Quinn and his goalboundshot was flicked in by Dame N’Doye,who was ruled offside in the six-yard box.

Wayne Rooney clipped the bar witha shot from 20 yards and Ander Herrera

narrowly failed to connect with AshleyYoung’s long ball in a rare breach ofHull’s three central defenders.

David Meyler should have givenHull the lead when Chris Smalling’sheader from Elmohamady fell kindlyfor him, but the Irishman side-footedover from 12 yards.

It was followed by news ofNewcastle’s opening goal at St James’Park and the home fans fell quiet forthe first time. Hull did their best to raisethe volume again and Daley Blindhacked the ball clear from close to hisown goal line after Michael Dawson’sheader caused panic in the Unitedarea. — AFP

Hull relegated after Man United stalemate

HULL: Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney (centre left) collideswith teammate Marouane Fellaini during the English PremierLeague soccer match against Hull City. — AP

Hull 0

Man United 0

BusinessMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Emaar Economic City expects tenant inflow to accelerate

Page 22

Markets watch Fed while Greece runs out of cash

Page 252015 Ford EcoSportserves up a dynamic design

Page 23Alargan reports 20.5% net profit growth in 2014

Page 26

DJIBOUTI: The French military base in Djibouti shows the Spanish warship La Galicia. Now Djibouti’s strategic port wants to capitalize on its key position on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, the gateway to the Suez canal. — AFP

DJIBOUTI: For years the Horn of Africa nationDjibouti was seen by foreign powers as a far-flungmilitary outpost overlooking the Gulf of Aden. Nowthe strategic port wants to capitalize on its key posi-tion on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, thegateway to the Suez canal.

Djibouti offers an African base across from theArabian Peninsula at the crossroads for cargo trafficbetween Asia and Europe. It may be a tiny country ofaround 850,000 people, but it has a bold ambition tobecome the commercial hub of eastern Africa, build-ing on its role as the main port for landlockedEthiopia, Africa’s second most populous country.

To achieve that the former French colony hasembarked on a series of infrastructure projectsexpected to cost some $14 billion (12.6 billion euros).Offshore from historic Djibouti city, the waters arecrowded with a mix of hulking warships, giant con-tainer cargo vessels and the traditional wooden fish-ing dhows that have plied the seas here for centuries.

But a short drive away, Chinese workers are busybuilding a giant new terminal dedicated to containerships from Asia. Work is concentrated on the first ofsix new specialised docking terminals each onefocusing on different commodities including miner-als, livestock, oil and gas-to add to the two terminalsalready in operation.

‘A Dubai, even Singapore!’“More and more shipping lines are interested in

Djibouti, we are now making the way to be a Dubai,even Singapore!” said Suleiman Ahmed, a seniorexecutive at Doraleh container terminal.

Cargo trade is booming. It has increased between

six and 10 percent each year, with Djibouti enjoyinggrowth partly because other regional ports arestruggling. Kenya’s port city of Mombasa is alreadyoverstretched, while the secretive Red Sea state ofEritrea sees little if any traffic.

And Yemen’s once key port of Aden-just acrossthe Gulf of Aden from Djibouti-is now a war zone.“Mombasa is congested, Eritrea is not a welcomingcountry, but Djibouti is a strategic and safe location -we rely on it,” Ahmed said. In a volatile region,Djibouti hopes to build a reputation of stability andsecurity. It hosts several foreign military bases,including Camp Lemonnier, the US military head-quarters on the continent used for covert, anti-terrorand other operations in Yemen, Somalia and else-where across Africa.

France and Japan also have bases in Djibouti,which has been used by European and other inter-national navies as a base in the fight against piracyfrom neighboring Somalia. Earlier this month,President Ismail Omar Guelleh told AFP that “discus-sions are ongoing,” with China concerning a poten-tial military base, saying Beijing’s presence would be“welcome”.

Djibouti now wants to position itself as the gate-way for Asia into Africa. “From Egypt to South Africa,the eastern coast of Africa has only nine

Big Chinese money coastal countries,” said Abubaker Omar Hadi,

chairman of Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority,waving his hand over a map of the continent on thewall of his office. “This has created 10 landlockedcountries, 400 million people who have no access to

the sea. They are the ones we want to serve.”For now, Djibouti mainly serves Ethiopia’s 94 mil-

l ion consumers, but the ambition of Djiboutiextends to the entire African continent. As well as itsmassive port expansion, Djibouti wants to add twonew airports, a modern railway and build industrialareas.

At present, the country ’s small airport seesFrench Mirage fighter jets share its one runway withcivilian aircraft. But the government plans to replacethat with an international airport with a capacity of1.5 million passengers annually, some 25 kilometers(15 miles) from Djibouti city. A total of 14 infrastruc-ture projects are planned in Djibouti totalling some$14.4 billion, mainly financed by Chinese banks. Butsome are wary of such huge investments for a coun-try with less than a million people.

“There was no market research and parliamentwas never consulted,” said opposition lawmakerDoualeh Egueh Ofleh, who said he was worriedabout the financial risk the projects could pose.

“When we take the loans from the World Bankand Western institutions, there was some control...now with the Chinese, we take all possible loans forall projects without any control,” he added, predict-ing Beijing would control the country’s infrastruc-ture if Djibouti failed to repay its debts.

But Djibouti’s government is betting on strongAfrican economic growth to recoup the investment.“Even before Dubai, Singapore and Hong Kong, theeconomic and maritime hubs in the region wereAden and Djibouti,” says port authority chiefAbubaker Omar Hadi. “We know what to do toregain our place.” — AFP

Djibouti dreams of becoming ‘new Dubai’African nation embarks on $14 billion infrastructure projects

ATHENS: A Greek government minister said yesterday that Athens will beunable to repay the IMF on schedule next month, reiterating previouswarnings by officials during tense talks with the country’s creditors. “Theinstalment to the IMF won’t be paid,” Interior Minister Nikos Voutsis toldMega TV.

“The instalments for the IMF in June are 1.6 billion euros ($1.8 billion).This money will not be given. There isn’t any to be given. This is a knownfact,” he said.

Voutsis added however that the negotiations between Athens and itscreditors were taking place “on the basis of cautious optimism that therewill be a strong agreement”. Greece faces four debt repayments to the IMFfrom June 5. Athens would struggle to meet all of them without usingbailout funds due to it that are being blocked by its international creditors.A failure to honor the repayments could result in default, raising thespecter of a possible exit from the euro.

Last week, the parliamentary spokesman for Greece’s ruling Syriza Partysaid that the government cannot repay a loan to the IMF on June 5 as itspriority is to pay salaries, pensions and running costs.

“No country can repay its debts with only the money from its budget,”Nikos Filis told Ant1 television. Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, speakingto the New York Times, also raised the prospect. “I am not going to pay theIMF (International Monetary Fund) and not pay pensions in the next fewweeks. So I said to them: ‘Decide. Do you want this to be a proper bargain-ing round, or do you want this to be a post-mortem?’”, he said with histrademark outspokenness.

Government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis was less confrontationalon Friday however. “The Greek government’s plan is to cover all its require-ments. With a priority on domestic requirements and then requirementstowards the creditors. The government plans to respond to all the needs.This it has proven with great toil and under extremely difficult and trap-filled conditions this past period. This is what we will do in June,” he said.

The Syriza-led government is locked in talks with the European Union,European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund to release ablocked final 7.2-billion-euro ($7.9 billon) tranche of its 240-billion-eurobailout. In exchange for the aid, creditors are demanding Greece accepttough reforms and spending cuts that anti-austerity Syriza pledged toreject when it was elected in January.According to reports, creditors aredemanding further budget cuts worth five billion euros including pensioncuts and mass lay-offs.

Red-linesCash-strapped Greeks remain supportive of the leftist government’s

tough negotiating style, according to a new poll published yesterday, buthope for a deal with creditors that will keep the euro in their wallets. Thepoll conducted in May by Public Issue for the pro-government newspaperAvgi, shows 54 percent backing the Syriza-led government’s handling ofthe negotiations despite the tension with Greece’s international lenders. Atotal 59 percent believe Athens must not give in to demands by its credi-tors, with 89 percent against pension cuts and 81 percent against mass

lay-offs. The Syriza-led government is locked in talks with the EuropeanUnion, European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund torelease a blocked final 7.2-billion-euro ($7.9 billon) tranche of its 240-bil-lion-euro bailout. In exchange for the aid, creditors are demanding Greeceaccept tough reforms and spending cuts that anti-austerity Syriza pledgedto reject when it was elected in January.

According to reports, creditors are demanding further budget cutsworth five billion euros including pension cuts and mass lay-offs. PrimeMinister Alexis Tsipras made clear on Saturday however that his govern-ment “won’t budge to irrational demands” that involve crossing Syriza’scampaign “red lines”. — AFP

Greece issues warning on IMF payment in June

DUBAI: Most Gulf stock markets slipped yesterdayafter oil prices fell, while Egyptian equities extend-ed gains following the delay of an unpopular capi-tal gains tax. Brent oil fell $1.17, or 1.8 percent, to$65.37 a barrel on Friday, declining 2.1 percent onthe week as a rallying dollar and profit-takingahead of a long US holiday weekend cut short atwo-day rally.

Petrochemicals giant Saudi Basic Industries,whose profits are sensitive to oil prices, dropped 2.5percent and was the main drag on Saudi Arabia’sindex which lost 0.4 percent.

Other blue chips were also mostly weak asinvestor sentiment appeared to suffer following anIslamic State suicide bomb attack. The blast killed21 worshippers on Friday in a packed Shiitemosque in eastern Saudi Arabia in one of the dead-liest assaults in recent years in the largest Gulf Arabcountry.

But Bahri, the exclusive oil-shipper for SaudiAramco, rose 1.9 percent to a new all-time closinghigh of 54.50 riyals after saying yesterday it had

signed a deal to buy five very large crude tankersfrom ship builders Hyundai Heavy Industries.Hyundai will build the tankers and deliver them toBahri in 2017. Bahri also has an option to buy fivemore. It did not say how much it would pay for thetankers, although each will have a capacity of300,000 deadweight tonnage.

UAE, EGYPTDubai’s index fell 1.7 percent as most stocks

declined. Builder Arabtec dropped 3.3 percent afterEgyptian newspaper Al Mal reported, citing ananonymous source, that a planned deal betweenthe firm and the Cairo government to build 1 mil-lion housing units in Egypt has fallen through.

Neither the Egyptian government nor Arabtecwere available for immediate comment on the proj-ect whose value was estimated at 280 billionEgyptian pounds ($36.70 billion).

Retail and entertainment startup Marka was oneof just a handful of gainers, rising 1.6 percent after itsaid in a statement it expected the earnings of

restaurant chain Reem Al Bawadi, which it boughtthis month, to grow at a rate of more than 25 per-cent annually in coming years. Marka also said itplanned three more acquisitions in 2015.

Abu Dhabi’s bourse dropped 0.7 percent aslarge lenders National Bank of Abu Dhabi and FirstGulf Bank fell 0.9 and 1.0 percent respectively.Qatar’s benchmark was flat, while Ezdan Holding ,which is likely to see passive inflows funds thisweek as it joins MSCI’s emerging markets index,jumped 2.4 percent, offsetting losses in otherstocks.

Egypt’s index rose 1.5 percent to a fresh seven-week closing high of 9,122 points, extending thebroad rally which started last week when the Cairogovernment put on hold its plan to introduce a 10percent capital gains tax. For a second session in arow, the Cairo benchmark closed above technicalresistance at 8,860 points, its early May peak, trig-gering a minor double bottom formed by the Apriland May lows and pointing up to around 9,400points. — Reuters

Gulf markets drop, Egypt extends gainsMIDEAST STOCK MARKETS

Egyptian pound steady at official auction

CAIRO: Egypt’s central bank kept the poundsteady at 7 .53 to the dol lar at a foreignexchange auction yesterday, while the currencyweakened on the black market. The central bankhas held the official exchange rate steady formore than three months since letting the poundweaken at the beginning of 2015. This weaken-ing and other measures have helped reduceblack market trading significantly. In Sunday’sauction, the bank said it had offered $40 millionand sold $37.8 mil l ion at a cut-off price of7.5301 pounds per dollar, unchanged fromThursday’s rate. On the black market, the poundwas trading at 7.67 pounds to the dollar yester-day, a trader said, weaker than the 7.65 poundsquoted on Thursday. Black market traders sayvolumes have fallen sharply since the centralbank’s drive to stamp out their transactions,including the introduction of a cap in Februaryon the amount of dollars that can be depositedin banks.

IAFC to raise $400m Islamic loan for aircraft financing

DUBAI: International AirFinance Corporation(IAFC) has picked two banks to arrange a $400million Islamic loan to finance the provision offive aircraft, one of the arrangers of the facilitysaid yesterday. National Bank of Abu Dhabi andArab Banking Corporation have been mandatedas lead arrangers for the loan, which they havealso underwritten, a statement from the formersaid. The loan with a lifespan of eight years willbe used to fund the purchase of A330-200 air-craft which will be leased by Kuwait Airways, thestatement said. A period to market the muraba-ha-structured loan to other banks is expected toclose at the end of May, it showed. A murabahais a cost-plus-profit arrangement which is one ofthe most popular formats for structuring Islamicloans. IAFC is the first Sharia compliant aircraftleasing fund dedicated to Airbus aircraft and isseed funded by Airbus and Islamic DevelopmentBank. This is their first syndicated loan.

Newsi n b r i e f

Sonatrach appoints new chief executive

ALGIERS: Algeria’s state energy firm Sonatrachhas named Amine Mazouzi as its new chief exec-utive to replace interim chief Said Sahnoun, whohad been appointed less than a year ago,according to two industry sources yesterday. Anofficial ceremony to appoint Mazouzi is expect-ed later yesterday, the two industry sources said.Mazouzi, a younger generation manager inSonatrach’s engineering and development pro-duction department, will take over the hugestate operation as the North African countryseeks to draw more foreign oil investment andoffset the fall in world crude prices.

Bank Sohar launches $250m 3-yr debut loan

DUBAI: Oman’s Bank Sohar has invited banks toparticipate in a $250 million debut loan to fundits general business activities, with the market-ing of the deal expected to close by end of June,the arranger of the facility said yesterday. Thebank, which is in talks about a possible mergerwith larger rival Bank Dhofar, will raise fundswith a three-year lifespan and will pay a marginof 120 basis points over the London interbankoffered rate (Libor). Bank Sohar has picked ArabBanking Corporation as the sole arranger andbook runner for the loan syndication, ArabBanking Corporation said in a press statementyesterday.

B U S I N E S SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

EXCHANGE RATES

Bahrain Exchange Company

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co.

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd

ASIAN COUNTRIESJapanese Yen 2.498Indian Rupees 4.781Pakistani Rupees 2.973Srilankan Rupees 2.246Nepali Rupees 2.989Singapore Dollar 228.440Hongkong Dollar 39.124Bangladesh Taka 3.897Philippine Peso 6.814Thai Baht 9.099

GCC COUNTRIESSaudi Riyal 80.910Qatari Riyal 83.345Omani Riyal 788.170Bahraini Dinar 80.770UAE Dirham 82.607

ARAB COUNTRIESEgyptian Pound - Cash 42.350Egyptian Pound - Transfer 39.670Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.416Tunisian Dinar 157.290Jordanian Dinar 427.960Lebanese Lira/for 1000 2.035Syrian Lira 2.162Morocco Dirham 31.589

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIESUS Dollar Transfer 303.250Euro 336.610Sterling Pound 472.310Canadian dollar 248.770Turkish lira 116.720Swiss Franc 324.160Australian Dollar 239.870US Dollar Buying 302.050

COUNTRY SELL CASH SELLDRAFTEurope

Belgian Franc 0.007902 0.008902British Pound 0.463921 0.472921Czech Korune 0.004387 0.016387Danish Krone 0.041422 0.046422Euro 0.328931 0.336931Norwegian Krone 0.036309 0.041509Romanian Leu 0.086889 0.086889Slovakia 0.009030 0.019030Swedish Krona 0.032661 0.037661Swiss Franc 0.315318 0.325518Turkish Lira 0.116010 0.123010

AustralasiaAustralian Dollar 0.229076 0.240576New Zealand Dollar 0.216268 0.225768

AmericaCanadian Dollar 0.241694 0.250194US Dollars 0.298800 0.303500

US Dollars Mint 0.299300 0.303500

AsiaBangladesh Taka 0.003549 0.004149Chinese Yuan 0.047439 0.050939Hong Kong Dollar 0.036981 0.039731Indian Rupee 0.004535 0.004936Indonesian Rupiah 0.000019 0.000025Japanese Yen 0.002426 0.002606Kenyan Shilling 0.003353 0.003353Korean Won 0.000268 0.000283Malaysian Ringgit 0.080531 0.086531Nepalese Rupee 0.003038 0.003208Pakistan Rupee 0.002777 0.003057Philippine Peso 0.006698 0.006978Sierra Leone 0.000067 0.000073Singapore Dollar 0.224663 0.230663South African Rand 0.019687 0.028187Sri Lankan Rupee 0.001843 0.002423Taiwan 0.009857 0.010037Thai Baht 0.008742 0.0009292

ArabBahraini Dinar 0.796985 0.804985Egyptian Pound 0.039913 0.043013Iranian Riyal 0.000084 0.000085Iraqi Dinar 0.000186 0.000246Jordanian Dinar 0.422915 0.430415Kuwaiti Dinar 1.000000 1.000000Lebanese Pound 0.000152 0.000252Moroccan Dirhams 0.021765 0.045765Nigerian Naira 0.001249 0.001884Omani Riyal 0.780741 0.786421Qatar Riyal 0.082488 0.083701Saudi Riyal 0.080137 0.080837Syrian Pound 0.001284 0.001504Tunisian Dinar 0.153220 0.161220Turkish Lira 0.116010 0.123010UAE Dirhams 0.081487 0.082636Yemeni Riyal 0.001369 0.001449

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

COUNTRY SELL DRAFT SELL CASH Australian Dollar 226.64Canadian Dollar 251.58Swiss Franc 327.42Euro 339.45US Dollar 303.10Sterling Pound 472.81Japanese Yen 2.54Bangladesh Taka 3.891Indian Rupee 4.750Sri Lankan Rupee 2.248Nepali Rupee 2.975Pakistani Rupee 2.973UAE Dirhams 82.40Bahraini Dinar 804.50Egyptian Pound 39.61Jordanian Dinar 430.59Omani Riyal 786.08Qatari Riyal 83.47Saudi Riyal 80.74

Rate for Transfer Selling RateUS Dollar 302.900Canadian Dollar 255.880Sterling Pound 475.240Euro 345.788Swiss Frank 276.932Bahrain Dinar 799.730UAE Dirhams 82.500Qatari Riyals 83.740Saudi Riyals 81.310

Jordanian Dinar 426.125Egyptian Pound 39.491Sri Lankan Rupees 2.242Indian Rupees 4.751Pakistani Rupees 2.961Bangladesh Taka 3.876Philippines Pesso 6.777Cyprus pound 741.050Japanese Yen 3.525Syrian Pound 2.595Nepalese Rupees 3.025Malaysian Ringgit 85.500Chinese Yuan Renminbi 49.040Thai Bhat 9.970Turkish Lira 116.910

GOLD20 gram 244.17010 gram 124.7805 gram 63.070

DEAD SEA, Jordan: King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), aspecial economic zone on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coastnear Jeddah, expects its inflow of new corporate tenants tospeed up this year as the economy proves resilient to lowoil prices, KAEC’s managing director said.

The fate of KAEC is a barometer of business confidenceas the Saudi economy copes with a drastic drop in oil rev-enues this year. The zone is also important for the king-dom’s long-term efforts to diversify its economy beyondoil into manufacturing and trade.

So far the government has kept the economy growingrobustly by drawing down its reserves to spend heavily,and Fahd Al-Rasheed said he had not seen any pull-backby companies seeking to set up logistics and light manu-facturing operations at KAEC.

“We’re not seeing any significant impact on demandfrom the oil price. Domestic consumption is growing andgovernment spending is strong,” he told Reuters on thesidelines of a business conference. KAEC expects toattract about 50 new companies to establish operationsthis year, versus 35 last year, and thinks it will sell around2,500 residential units in 2015, roughly the same level asin 2014, Rasheed said.

The port, which aims to become a hub for the region,is on track to reach annual capacity of 4 million twenty-foot equivalent units next year from 2.7 million now, headded.

The city’s population is now about 3,000 people; it isexpected to roughly double this year and hit 50,000 byend-2020, rising to the ultimate target of 2 million around2035.

Although the project is planned and supported by thegovernment, it is being developed by publicly listed firmEmaar the Economic City (EEC), where Rasheed is chiefexecutive. EEC is a consortium headed by Dubai’s EmaarProperties and Saudi investors - the kind of public-privatepartnership with which the kingdom hopes to developindustrial infrastructure in a cost-effective way.

EEC’s net income attributable to shareholders rose 72percent from a year earlier to 85.7 million riyals ($22.9million) in the first quarter of this year, as revenuesgained 39 percent to 229.6 million riyals. On June 3, KAECwill hold an conference in Riyadh to attract investment,aiming to draw about 500 companies from around thesix-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, Rasheed said.

In addition to outright sales, it is open to the idea of dis-

cussing third-party arrangements in which it might co-invest with KAEC tenants.

Educated in Saudi Arabia and the United States,Rasheed joined KAEC in January 2008 after working atnational oil giant Saudi Aramco and the Saudi ArabianGeneral Investment Authority.

He said business sentiment in Saudi Arabia wasimproving, partly because the country was undergoing aprocess of “de-bureaucratization and meritocrization”linked in part to the accession of King Salman in January.

Since he came to power, Salman has conducted twomajor cabinet reshuffles and streamlined the economicpolicy-making apparatus by abolishing some committeesand councils. The government has moved forward withsome sensitive economic reforms, such as a plan to taxundeveloped land.

Changes to the structure of government in recentmonths indicate the authorities are working towardsmore efficient government and a smaller bureaucracy,Rasheed said.

“The best of the best are being put in ministriesand administration, and then being held account-able.” — Reuters

Emaar Economic City expects

tenant inflow to accelerateEconomy proves resilient to low oil prices

HERAT: Afghan laborers work at a brick factory on outskirts of Herat yesterday. — AFP

KUWAIT: Gold has maintained gains bythe end of last week’s trading and settledat $1,204 an ounce, despite profit-taking,short sales and rising value of the USdollar against major European curren-cies, a report indicated yesterday.

A strong US dollar pressured otherprecious metal prices, especially gold,which settled close to 1,200 through thetrading week, according to the reportissued by Sabaek Al-Kuwait Company.

The decline of the precious yellowmetal started along the announcementof positive US economic data supportingthe dollar exchange price against majorEuropean currencies, the report said.

Sabaek Al-Kuwait forecasted stablegold prices around $1200 over the com-ing period, referring to signals that it ismore likely to fall, but no severe rise ordecline is expected.

Meanwhile, silver prices rose alonggold in Monday and Tuesday trading,but severely fell with the opening ofthe US markets, at the issuance of USBuilding Permits, to stand at $17 anounce. As for local markets, they werecalm with the start of the week, withthe gradual fal l of gold prices andcrude gold sales. Then gold priceswere down almost al l through theweek. — KUNA

Gold keeps gains, settles

at $1,204 per ounce

ABU DHABI: The United Arab Emirates’ bankindustry association has discussed a proposal tocreate a centralized sharia board that wouldmonitor Islamic banking, which could spur thegrowth of the industry.

The central bank had proposed setting up aHigher Sharia Authority that would complementand oversee the work of sharia boards at individ-ual Islamic banks. This proposal was addressedat a recent meeting of the UAE Banks Federation,the association said yesterday. “Representativesof the Federation’s Islamic banking committeeare working closely with the Central Bank onguidelines for the establishment of the newbody that will help to ensure consistencyamongst all UAE Islamic banks in their develop-ment of new structures and products,” it said.

Details of the timing and structure of thenew entity were not specified. Sharia boards aregroups of scholars who rule on whether finan-cial instruments and activities are religiously per-missible. Gulf countries have in the past tendedto follow a loose, decentralized model of Islamicfinance regulation, leaving much of it to shariaboards at individual banks and finance firms.

But the rulings of different boards can beinconsistent or leave scholars open to sugges-tions of conflicts of interest, increasing uncer-tainty among investors and slowing growth.

So in recent months some countries, includ-ing Oman, Pakistan, Morocco and Nigeria, havefollowed Malaysia’s example by moving towardsa centralized board that can impose its willnationally. — Reuters

UAE banks eye centralized

Islamic finance board

B U S I N E S S

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

The 2015 Ford EcoSport serves up a contemporary

and dynamic design muscular and classy

DUBAI: Books may not be judged by their covers but the2015 Ford EcoSport can certainly be judged by its strikinggood looks. Its bold lines, contemporary shape and sophis-ticated interior all reflect its credentials as a capable, flexi-ble and practical urban SUV.

The Ford EcoSport provides roomy space for five, a highdriving position with outstanding visibility, a refined cabinenvironment engineered for quiet operation, carefullyselected and matched materials, and a modern designethos. It all adds up to make the Ford EcoSport a com-pelling alternative to the run-of-the-mill compact car.

“The 2015 Ford EcoSport was designed for, and around,the customer,” said Ehab Kaoud, chief designer, CarExteriors, Ford North America, who led the design of thecompact urban SUV. “The choice of materials and the exe-cution of the design elements were all made with the enduser in mind.

“We designed the Ford EcoSport to go where you needit to be as you progress through the adventure of life. It isthe urban SUV you will be proud to drive and own.”

Evocative exteriorAt first glance, the distinctive and aerodynamic Ford

EcoSport looks like it’s ready to pounce. The fluid, dynamicand refined lines of the compact SUV are clearly defined byFord’s global design language.

A wide hood sweeps into sculpted bodylines, conveyinga dynamic spirit of energy in motion. Modern, slim head-lamps frame a high-mounted trapezoidal grille which givesthe Ford EcoSport an element of pride and a signature Fordface. The lines of the headlamps stretch towards the rear,allowing the air to flow around them and improving theSUV’s aerodynamics. At the same time, the dynamic linethat stretches from the hood to the A-pillar adds to theurban SUV’s contemporary appearance.

Moving to the side, blacked out B-pillars unify the win-dows into one elegant shape. The muscular beltline,formed by the windows and door creases, ascends as itruns to the rear of the car, adding to the sense of move-ment on the vehicle.

At the back, the large rear window wraps around to thesides along with oblique tail lamps. To keep the rear profilesleek, the tailgate handle was built into the tail lamp. Asmall black access button on the tailgate handle can beused to unlock the boot.

The spare tyre is mounted on the tailgate as a classicSUV cue, as well as for practical reasons. This results inmore available cargo space in the vehicle, and makes iteasier for customers to lift heavy loads into the vehicle overthe lower bumper.

Inviting interiorThe inside of the 2015 Ford EcoSport follows the con-

temporary and creative lines on the outside. Controls andknobs are ergonomically placed while soft-touch fabrics,tight gaps and the global Ice Blue dashboard illuminationall reinforce superior quality and craftsmanship.

The design team paid great attention to the smallestdetails inside the cabin, from seat fabrics to the grain onthe door trim, to create an interior that appeals to the sens-es. If you look at the grain up close on the instrument paneland door trim, you’ll see little squares of varying sizesbreaking up the uniformity and monotony of the dots.Inspired by cellular structures in plants, and namedSquareflec, this grain gives the interior a very modern look.

Supportive seatsSoft enough for comfort and firm enough for longer

journeys, the seats on the 2015 Ford EcoSport have beendesigned using Ford global standards which have beenrefined after intensive anatomical research. Customers willfeel as though the seat is wrapping around them.

The engineers shaped the seat contours to give enoughsupport for the thighs and from the lower back to theupper back. They focused on giving the hips more supportas that will help keep the driver stable in the seat instead ofsliding around in it when taking corners or changing lanesat high speeds.

The high position of the driver’s seat offers good visibili-

ty as well as easy and comfortable access to the panel’scontrols. The driver’s seat has four-way adjustment, alongwith lumbar support that can be customized to the exactmillimetre to provide the precise lower back support thatthe driver needs. The anatomical cut-outs and side bolstersadd to the ergonomics of the comfortable seat.

The rear seats are what set the 2015 Ford EcoSportapart from its competitors. Unlike typical cars that useshoulder strikers to support the rear seat, the urban SUVhas a free-standing rear seat. This means that passengers atthe back can recline their seat for greater comfort.

Alternatively, if customers need more cargo space,they can adjust the rear seat back forward, or just foldand tumble the entire seat up for a flat load floor andclass- leading cargo area. With the shingle headrestraints, the driver doesn’t even have to remove thembefore tumbling the seats. And for those who want tocarry both passengers and cargo, the rear seat can facili-tate that by splitting 60:40 on Trend and Titanium mod-els.

The engineers reinforced the rear seats and the floorwith high-strength steel to meet the strictest global safe-ty standards. All the seats have been tested to the max fordurability, strength, stress as well as comfort to ensurethat they have just the right level of support to cushionand hold the occupants even after extended use.

BORACAY, Philippines: The United States is opti-mistic a deal to set up a free trade zone across thePacific will be concluded soon, with sensitiveissues likely to be ironed out when its Congressresumes sessions, the top US trade official said yes-terday.

“We are very much in the end-game,” US TradeRepresentative Michael Froman told reportersafter a two-day trade ministers’ meeting on thePhilippine island of Boracay.

“Our negotiators are working as we speak, andworking through issues, we hope to conclude itsoon,” Froman said. “We want to make sure weconclude it consistent with the principles we’velaid out.” The 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership(TPP), which will cover about 40 percent of theworld’s economies, took a major step forward onFriday when the US Senate agreed to givePresident Barack Obama powers to speed up US

approval of trade deals.The TPP, which will include economies from

Japan to Chile, is part of Obama’s so-called pivotto Asia, a strategy to counter China’s rising eco-nomic and diplomatic influence.

After the US Senate vote, the battle shifts to theUS House of Representatives where opposition isdeeper to “fast-track” legislation granting the pres-ident powers to negotiate trade deals thatCongress can approve or reject but not amend.

A divisive issue in the US Congress centered ona proposed amendment involving sanctions oncurrency manipulation by trading partners. TheSenate rejected that amendment, which oppo-nents said would violate international trade rulesand sink the pact. “There are many issues that arelikely to be discussed. Currency manipulation is anissue that is very important and ... we take veryseriously,” Froman said on debates in the House of

Representatives, adding the United States wasworking on mechanisms to address the issue viathe G-7, G-20 and the International MonetaryFund.

Froman declined to give a timeline on whenthe TPP talks would be concluded. But Australiasaid on Wednesday the negotiations could bewrapped up as early as June. The US Congressresumes sessions on June 1 after a 10-dayMemorial Day holiday recess.

Japan is one of the TPP countries which preferto wait for the United States to pass the fast-tracklegislation before concluding negotiations. Chiefnegotiators from the 12 TPP countries are holdingmeetings in Guam that will run through to May 28to try and bridge gaps for a deal on what would bethe biggest trade pact since the North AmericanFree Trade Agreement freed up trade between theUnited States, Canada and Mexico. — Reuters

Pacific free-trade talks

‘in end-game:’ US official

LONDON: For Rivka Micklewaite and fellow stu-dents, securing a pledge this week from OxfordUniversity to avoid direct investments in companiesproducing coal or tar sands is just the beginning.

Getting that commitment involved a two-yearcampaign during which they staged a “marriage”between the 900-year-old university and “Big Oil”before breaking it up, to symbolize the need to endinvestment in fossil fuels, Micklewaite said.

“The campaign is definitely going to continue,”she told Reuters, adding that full divestment is heraim for the 3.8 billion pounds ($6 billion) in universi-ty endowment funds. The second-year engineeringstudent from Balliol College is not alone. She is partof a global campaign urging investors to ditchassets in ‘dirty’ energy firms in favor of ‘greener’rivals, and which so far has pledges to sell outtotalling $50 billion.

Norway’s $900 billion sovereign wealth fund andthe Church of England are among recent high-pro-file sellers. But some of the money managers run-ning the more than $27 trillion in assets held glob-ally in mutual funds say divestment as a tool toaddress climate change is too simplistic in most cas-es. Most argue it can leave fewer investors at a com-pany who are committed to steering managementin the desired direction.

“It’s a much more sophisticated debate,” saidSacha Sadan, director of corporate governance atLegal & General Investment Management. “Just put-ting (some firms) in the naughty corner and havinga go at them is not going to solve the problem.”

“This will be the biggest issue of the next fiveyears ... I wouldn’t say that we’re 20 percent of theway there yet.” A Reuters survey of nine Europeanfund firms managing a collective $2.7 trillion inassets revealed that most were focused on engage-ment with companies rather than divesting.

That approach bore fruit during recent annualgeneral meetings, where shareholders at RoyalDutch Shell and BP demanded access to informa-tion about how each company was addressing cli-mate change, and received company backing fortheir resolutions.

And in the United States, shareholders atChevron and ExxonMobil are due to vote on May 27on resolutions aimed at reducing greenhouse gasemissions.

PR -PressureEach of the fund firms surveyed acknowledged

the campaign’s role in raising awareness, but mostsaid coal and tar companies were relatively easy tar-gets, and it was more complex for other energysources. “What’s much harder, with the integratedoil and gas companies, from a mainstream fundperspective, is what models can you develop andput in place to determine who will be impacted bythe energy transition,” said Matthias Beer, from thesustainable investing team at F&C AssetManagement.

“That goes beyond oil and gas and mining andutilities. If you go further down the value-chain offossil fuels, then you’re talking about the automo-tive sector and others that are highly dependent onfossil fuels and hydrocarbons.”

Oxford University joins 220 organizations,including faith groups and university endowmentand public pension funds, in backing divestmentahead of a UN climate change meeting in Paris inDecember aimed at agreeing limits to man-madeglobal warming.

The UN talks could add weight to the campaignif a deal ultimately means billions of dollars worthof oil, coal and gas resources remain ‘stranded’ inthe ground. For Jens Peers, chief investment officer

for sustainable equities at Natixis AssetManagement, the PR effect is key.

“Already, we’re seeing pressure building. No onelikes negative press,” said Peers.

That in turn is pushing investors to seek advice,said Fiona Reynolds of UN-backed investor engage-ment group the Principles for ResponsibleInvesting. “This is where the divestment campaignhas been successful, even if the actual amount ofmoney that has been divested is pretty minor,”Reynolds told Reuters.

But an Oxford University study in late 2013argued the indirect impacts of divestment cam-paigns on companies could be wide-reaching, withthose seen as worst offenders “stigmatized”. Thiscould result in a hit to the bottom line as investorstrimmed cash flow expectations and share valua-tions, it said.

TechnologyOther potential impacts highlighted by the

report include customers and other stakeholdersdeserting firms; politicians enacting more restric-tive legislation; investors pushing for boardchanges and even firms being prevented by author-ities from bidding for new business or having M&Adeals scuttled. “Then they will start reacting, ques-tioning the business model - that’s potentially thebiggest impact the divestment and stranded assetissues can have,” said Natixis AM’s Peers.

The Oxford study cited the examples of a cam-paign to force South Africa to abandon apartheidand one to divest from tobacco firms. In the case ofSouth Africa, for example, the US governmentenacted the 1986 Anti-Apartheid Act, it said, whilethe Bank of Boston, Chase Manhattan and Barclayswere among companies to stop doing business inthe country.— Reuters

Funds feel heat of coal,

tar divestment driveColleges, pension plans among those divesting

JUBA: Soaring inflation and a likely currencycollapse are adding to South Sudan’s woesafter 17 months of civil war characterized bybrutal attacks on civilians. The latest battlesbetween government and rebel forces havecentred on the country’s last remaining func-tional oil fields.

Oil dollars once accounted for over 90 per-cent of government revenue in the four-yearold nation, which contains sub-SaharanAfrica’s third largest reserves-making it one ofthe world’s most oil-dependent economies.

Now, with the UN reporting over half ofthe country’s 12 million people needing assis-tance and some areas on the brink of famine,South Sudan is also one of the most aid-dependent states. Fighting broke out inDecember 2013 when President Salva Kiiraccused former deputy Riek Machar ofattempting a coup, setting off a cycle of retal-iatory killings across the country.

Amid reports of massacres, rape and thesystematic destruction of towns, internationalsanctions have been repeatedly threatened.Government forces last month attacked rebelpositions in the northern state of Unity,where oil production halted last year, as wellas in the eastern state of Jonglei.

Last week rebels launched a major count-er-attack, including an assault on Malakal,capital of northeastern Upper Nile state andthe gateway to the country’s last operating oilfields. Now rebels say they are trying to cap-ture Palouch, the processing point for allremaining oil production where crude ispumped northwards to Sudan. Its loss wouldbe a crippling blow to an already strugglingeconomy.

Fear of ‘regional war’ “Palouch is the chokepoint of South

Sudan’s entire economy,” said Luke Patey,author of “The New Kings of Crude,” a book onoil in Sudan and South Sudan. “If it was takenand production shut down, the rebels wouldbe emboldened to either seek an outrightmilitary victory or use oil as leverage to nego-tiate a larger role in a future government.”

State television this week broadcastfootage of fighting in Melut, some 35 kilome-tres (20 miles) west of Palouch, showingintense battles as tanks backed by helicoptergunships-believed to be from Uganda, whichis a staunch ally of Kiir-pounded rebels in thetown. Oil production has slumped by some40 percent from around 240,000 barrels perday (bpd) before fighting began. Officially,production is 165,000 bpd, although analystssuggest it could be as low as 130,000 bpd,although it continues to the main source offoreign income-either as direct revenue orfrom loans based on future production.

Without the fields, South Sudan wouldlose its only significant source of income tofund its war.

Patey, who also works for the DanishInstitute for International Studies, warnedthat the fall of Palouch could “escalate a widerregional war” drawing in Sudan-which relieson pipeline transfer fees charged on southernoil for foreign exchange-and Uganda, whichhas already sent troops to back Kiir.

Even ordinary South Sudanese living farfrom the frontlines are suffering from the war.Lauren Odeil, who heads a family of eight,says a 50-kilogram (110-lb) bag of flour hasmore than tripled in price this year, alongwith staples like beans, rice and cooking oil.“If the situation continues like this there aremany people who will not eat,” said Odeil,who works for an international aid organiza-tion.

As food prices soar, queues at stores aregrowing, with fuel shortages creating longlines of vehicles at filling stations. Publictransport is limited. “The rise in prices ispushing our people to the edge,” oppositionleader Lam Akol said. “People cannot any-more afford to buy the most basic fooditems and other daily needs.”

On the black market South Sudan’spound is worth less than a fifth of the offi-cial government rate of three pounds to thedollar. Black marketeers trade it at 16 to one.

“People have doubled their prices, thereis no control system as the dollar rateincreases,” said Wani Saki Michael, 27, whosaid he now eats just one meal a day.

‘Runaway inflation’ “We are now suffering from runaway

inflation... this wide gap between the twoexchange rates has turned the dollar frommeans of exchange into a commodity,” Akolsaid, claiming that some officials wereexploiting the contrasting rates to pocketthe difference.

Ateny Wek Ateny, a presidentialspokesman, said criticism of the govern-ment spending 40 percent of the budget ondefense was “uncalled for,” and rejectedAkol’s warning. “They should realize that thecountry is in war, and it has coincided withthe global drop in the price of the oil,” hesaid.

“The economy is not collapsing. Theseare the wishes of a hyena-if Lam Akol iswishing for the collapse of South Sudaneconomy he will have to wait for very longtime,” said Ateny. Certainly, not everyone issuffering. The war economy in Juba hasseen some actors reap healthy earnings.“There is always a need for certain goods,”said a Lebanese businessman specializing in“ logist ics” who decl ined to be named.Sitting at a rooftop bar in an upmarket Jubahotel sipping a cocktail made with importedvodka, the businessman looked out over thecity, a mix of tower blocks and thatch huts.“Profits are good,” he said. — AFP

War pushes South

Sudan’s economy

to the brink

B U S I N E S SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

G7 finance ministers to address faltering growth

LONDON: Finance ministers from the world’slargest developed economies meet in Germanythis week against a backdrop of faltering globalgrowth, scant inflationary pressures and a bondmarket in turmoil.

High on their agenda-even if unofficially-willbe Greece and how it can stay in the troubledeuro-zone. Figures due on Friday from theUnited States that will almost certainly showthe world’s biggest economy contracted lastquarter are also likely to feature.

“With the negotiations between Greece andthe rest of the euro area at an impasse, an impa-tient German Chancellor Merkel has warnedthat an agreement must be reached before theend of the month,” said Thomas Costerg, senioreconomist at Standard Chartered. Greece can-not make a payment to the InternationalMonetary Fund due on June 5 unless foreignlenders disburse more aid, a senior ruling partylawmaker said on Wednesday, the latest warn-ing from Athens it is on the verge of default.

Analysts largely agree the country’s cashsqueeze is increasingly acute and fresh aid willbe needed sooner or later to avoid bankruptcy.Merkel and French President Francois Hollandeheld talks on Thursday with Greek PrimeMinister Alexis Tsipras on the sidelines of aEuropean Union summit in Riga, hoping tospeed the resolution of Athens’ debt crisis.

With business growth slowing in the euro-zone and factory activity contracting again inChina, market watchers have been looking to

the United States to drive a pick-up ingrowth.

But a preliminary Reuters poll last weekpredicted that adjusted first quarter US.GDP numbers due on Friday would bemassively revised down and show a 0.7percent contraction in the first threemonths of this year.“The poor Q1 2015performance follows growth of just 2.2percent in Q4 2014, so there has been verylittle growth over the last couple of quar-ters,” said Joseph LaVorgna, chief US econ-omist at Deutsche Bank.

“As a result, market participants havestarted to wonder again whether the USeconomy might be in an extended periodof secular stagnation.”

Revised gross domestic product num-bers from Britain on Thursday should saythe country’s growth at the start of theyear was slightly better than first estimat-ed, at 0.4 percent.

The day before, Prime Minister DavidCameron will put forward his govern-ment’s legislative plans after hisConservatives won a surprise majority in

the May 7 election. India will also publishGDP numbers on Friday, with economistspredicting Asia’s third largest economyexpanded a relatively modest 7.4 percentbetween January and March.

Economic activity in Brazil tumbled inthe first quarter, its central bank’s IBC-Brindex suggested on Thursday, and GDPnumbers on Friday are likely to confirmthat contraction.

Japan’s central bank has been strug-gling to get any meaningful inflation fordecades and despite near-zero interestrates and many multi-trillion yen stimulusprograms, numbers due on Thursday willshow little inflationary pressure.

With inflation negative in Hungary, itscentral bank is expected to cut rates by afurther 15 basis points to a new historiclow of 1.65 percent on Tuesday, despite asell-off in government bonds that hasweighed on the forint. The Bank ofCanada will leave policy unchanged whenit meets on Wednesday, and the chancesof any further easing has fallen to just 25percent. — Reuters

GLOBAL ECONOMY WEEK AHEAD

B U S I N E S S

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

The week was relative quiet with the USDstronger against most of the G10 curren-cies. Greece-related headlines picked up

again but with no obvious progress in thenegotiations. Talks between Tsipras and theGerman and French leaders that started withoptimism ended up in a deadlock with theonly outcome, a reminder that Tsipras needsto do more to secure funds urgently neededto avoid bankruptcy.

On the more positive side, ECB Yves Merschstated that the Bank was satisfied with theeffect of its QE on the economy, and on infla-tion. He expects inflation to stay close to zerountil the autumn, and then rise towards 1.5percent by the end of the year.

Coming back to the US, the Fed seems tobe enthusiastic to start the tightening process,although cautiously, given several Fed mem-bers latest speeches. New York Fed PresidentDudley reiterated that after more than sixyears at the zero lower bound, lift-off wouldsignal a regime shift even though policywould only be slightly less accommodative.San Francisco Fed Williams also expressedsome interest to start the tightening processsooner: “As the US economy is likely to reachfull employment before year’s end and infla-tion was on track to rise to the Fed’s target”. Hementioned that the Fed could raise interestrates as early as its June meeting.

On the foreign exchange side, the US dollarregained some ground against the G4throughout the week. As the Euro area eco-nomic data stopped improving and the ECBreminded us that they are likely to acceleratebond buying ahead of the summer, the Euromoved back down from a high of 1.1453 in thebeginning of the week to close the week at1.1013.

The sterling’s pound volatility came back tothe front with a multitude of events affectingthe currency. Starting with strong retail salesto a negative inflation reading, investors donot seem to have a definite path in which tosend the currency into. After starting the weekat the high 1.57 level, the pound rapidlydropped to a low of 1.5447 after the first nega-tive inflation reading in decades. The currencyhowever ended the week at 1.5490.

In Asia, the Japanese yen continue to rangetrade against the USD between a low of119.25 and a high of 121.57. After the BoJupgraded their economic assessment of thecountry, it seems that investors are mostlywaiting to see what would be the next US Fedcourse of action, prior to embarking on thenext move.

In the commodity complex, oil headed forits 10th weekly gain, with West Texas breakingthe $60 level and Brent closing above the $66.According to the department of energy, crude

inventories fell for a third week coming with ashortage of 2.674M barrel versus expectationsof a shortage of 0.73M. In addition, rig countscontinue to drop reaching 660 rigs for theweek ending May 22.

FOMC concerned about strong dollar The FOMC meeting minutes released this

week showed many policy makers vieweddata available by the June meeting as unlikelyto provide “sufficient confirmation” to raiserates, though they “did not rule out this possi-bility.” Most participants expected economy toresume “moderate” expansion after the firstquarter slowdown.

On a different subject, the Dollar was men-tioned more than the usual as a factor slowinggrowth. Also apparent that even if risks wereseen as balanced, they were seen leaning todownside risks. “While participants continuedto see potential downside risks resulting fromforeign economic and financial developments,most still viewed the risks to the outlook foreconomic growth and the labor market asnearly balanced.”

Participants also discussed downside risksto economic growth, and a few indicated that,in their assessment, such risks had risen sincethe March meeting. However, most partici-pants continued to see the risks to the outlookfor economic growth and the labor market asnearly balanced.

In their discussion of the foreign economicoutlook, several participants noted that theforeign exchange value of the US dollar hadfallen back somewhat. Nonetheless, the valueof the dollar had increased significantly sincethe middle of last year, and it was seen aslikely to continue to be a factor restraining USnet exports and economic growth for a time.It was suggested that one element underpin-ning the strength of the US dollar was theincreasing prevalence of negative interestrates on sovereign debt in some keyEuropean economies. Participants also point-ed to a number of risks to the internationaleconomic outlook, including the slowdownin growth in China and fiscal and financialproblems in Greece.”

Jobless claims Jobless claims for the week ending May 16

were up just 10k to 274k. This had the effectof lowering the four-week moving average by6k to 266k.The four-week moving average onclaims matches April 2000 reading at a 42year low. As the unemployment rate was only3.8 percent in April 2000 and given the claimsfigures and the tendency over the past fewyears for the unemployment rate to declineroughly one full percentage point per year,the unemployment rate could end this year

at 4.7 percent. Housing starts jump

US new homes starts rose by 20.2 percentin April and building permits hit a seven-yearhigh this week. Housing starts stood at anannual rate of 1.14 million in April. The rate is9.2 percent higher than the 1.04 million inApril 2014. Single-family housing starts inApril rose 16.7 percent above the level inMarch, hitting a rate of 733,000. Starts onbuildings with five or more units were up by32 percent in April, to a rate of 389,000.

In addition, the number of building permitsissued in April rose 10.1 percent over March, toan annual rate of 1.14 million. That rate was 6.4percent higher than a year earlier. As pricescontinue to appreciate, Existing-home salesdeclined 3.3 percent in April from March to anannual rate of 5.04 million. Sales for Marchwere revised up to 5.21 million from an initiallyreported 5.19 million.

Europe & UKThe focus this week was on the ECB, with a

few members reassuring markets of the ECB’scommitment to QE. Benoit Coeure, memberof the ECB Board stated that the Bank wasready to front load purchases of bonds in Junein response to the expected lack of liquidity inJuly.

Bank de France Christian Noyer also reiter-ated that the ECB also stands ready to extendits purchase plan past September 2016 ifneeded. Their comments put tremendouspressure on the Euro and helped equity mar-kets rally during the week.

Greece negotiations The hopes for breakthrough at a meeting

between Tsipras, Hollande and Merkel did notmaterialize, with Germany’s spokesperson say-

ing that talks were “friendly and constructive”,but focused on finding a successful comple-tion to the current bailout. The nextEurogroup meeting is scheduled for 18 June,after a total of 1.2bn of payments due to theIMF in three installments. With two weeks untilthe June 5 IMF payment, it is not clear at pres-ent that Greece will find the cash to make thispayment.

A Greek government representative saidthis week that the country hopes to reach adeal with its creditors by end-May, and thatthe country is facing liquidity problems

German business confidence fell in May,signaling some concern over the growth out-look for the country. The Ifo institute’s businessclimate index dropped to 108.5 from 108.6 inApril. Estimates were for a decline to 108.3.

The euro-zone PMI came in at 53.4 in May,slightly below than expectations of 53.9 andbelow April. The manufacturing PMI improvedin May, rising to 52.3 compared to 51.8.Services PMI fell to 53.3 compared to expecta-tions of 53.9.

The level of the composite howeverremains strong and shows a relative improve-ment in the financial of the euro-zone, mainlythanks to a lower currency level compared to ayear ago.

UK Inflation Inflation in the UK has turned negative,

reaffirming expectations that interest rates willremain at a record low for the rest of this year.The consumer price index was down 0.1 per-cent in April from a year ago. That comparedwith an inflation rate at zero in February andMarch.

Factors responsible for falling prices seemto be temporary according to analysts. Themain downward effect on price changes in

April came from airfares and ferry tickets. Thelargest upward effect came from motor fuels,which rose this April but fell between Marchand April in 2014.

The Bank of England had already forecastinflation would turn negative at some pointthis year but predicted it would soon pick upagain. Retail sales on the other hand surged inApril as consumers took advantage of fallingprices and warm weather. Sales rose by astronger-than-expected 1.2 percent fromMarch, while Annual sales growth picked uppace to 4.7 percent.

RBA removes forward guidance Reserve Bank of Australia May meeting

minutes showed that there was scope for fur-ther easing despite the RBA removing the for-ward guidance from the May statement. TheRBA mentioned “subdued growth of domesticcosts, including wages” as likely to keep infla-tion contained, and remains concerned aboutthe outlook for China, citing weakness in thereal estate sector there as a “significant risk” todemand for commodities.

RBA Deputy Chairman Philip Lowe com-mented that the lack of forward guidance inthe May statement would not stop futuremoves from the Bank.

BoJ upgrades outlook In Japan, the economy expanded by more

than expected in Q1 2015, with real GDPgrowth of 0.6 percent q/q and 2.4 percentannualized, compared with forecasts of 0.4percent q/q and 1.6 percent annualized. Themain driver of Q1 growth was the accumula-tion of inventories, and a pick-up in businessspending. Growth in consumption was mar-ginally slower than in Q4 2014.

The Bank of Japan left monetary policyunchanged but revised up assessment on eco-nomic conditions. In the statement, the BoJrevised up their overall assessment on the cur-rent economic conditions and expectations.They revised up assessments on consumptionand housing while they revised down assess-ment on public investments. Regarding infla-tion, both their assessment on the currentcondition and outlook were left unchanged.

The reiteration this week of the JPY 80 tril-lion annual rise in the monetary base did notprovide a catalyst for immediate currencydirection. That being said, the Yen movementremains dependent now on the US yields pathfor renewed upside momentum and this inturn is contingent on better US data.

KuwaitKuwaiti dinar at 0.30240The USDKD opened at 0.30240 yesterday

morning.

Markets watch Fed while Greece runs out of cash

NBK MONEY MARKETS REPORT

PARIS: If there’s one key selling pointthat aerospace giants Airbus andBoeing have both been using in mar-keting their new aircraft, it is fuel effi-ciency.

But neither of the two major planemakers are directly responsible formuch of the promised improvement infuel usage. It is in fact largely down toFrench company Safran and GE, whosejoint venture CFM International ismaking the LEAP motors that wil lpower most of the next-generation ofthe planes which will be the futureworkhorses of airlines.

The promise of 15 to 20 percentfuel savings moved closer as LEAPengines made their first flight teststhat are a key step for theAirbus320neo to enter service nextyear and Boeing’s B737 MAX in 2017 asplanned. The LEAP-1B for the B737MAX made its f i rst test f l ight inCalifornia on May 7 on a modifiedBoeing 747.

“With this major engine milestoneand the test results to date, we contin-ue to be confident that the LEAP-1B-powered 737 MAX will provide ourcustomers with the most fuel efficient,reliable and maintainable airplane inthe single-aisle market,” the head ofthe 737 MAX program at Boeing, KeithLeverkuhn, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the f irst A320neoequipped with LEAP-1A engines madeits maiden flight in Toulouse, France,on Tuesday. “Today marks yet anotherimportant step forward in the devel-opment of the A320neo and I wouldlike to warmly thank all the teams whomade this first flight happen,” saidKlaus Roewe, head of the A320 pro-gram at Airbus.

Both Airbus and Boeing have a lotriding on the new aircraft which havedriven the record orders that the twocompanies have racked up in recentyears.

Razor-thin margins Instead of developing new aircraft

for the medium-haul segment, asBoeing did for long-range with itsDreamliner, both companies opted tomodernize their existing planes andmuch of the gains are down toimprovements in the engines. Thosepromised new models have proved tobe best sellers for Airbus and Boeing,especially with low-cost airlines which

operate on razor-thin margins.At 3,794 orders, the A320neo

accounts for more than hal f ofAirbus’s backlog of 6,399 aircraft. AtBoeing, the B737 MAX accounts for2 ,724 out of 5 ,667 outstandingorders.

That has put enormous pressureon CFM International, and its parentcompanies Safran and GE, to deliveron the 15 percent fuel savings thatthe LEAP engines promise comparedwith CFM’s current engine, theCFM56.

“ I am completely conf ident ofattaining the promised performancelevels when the Leap enters service”as planned nex t year, said Safranchief executive Jean-Paul Hertemanrecently.

“The LEAP is very much on trackto do what we planned it to do.” TheLEAP engine’s fuel efficiency comesfrom better per formance as wel lbeing lighter thanks to new 3D weav-ing techniques for composite materi-als used to make the fan blades andfan casings.

Not only will the new materials addup to weight savings of some 500kilos (1,100 pounds) per plane, theypromise to be stronger and moredurable and thus cost less for airlinesto maintain.

The next-generation planes are animportant source of business for CFMInternational. It is the only companydeveloping an engine for the B737MAX, and is also developing the Leap-1C that will power the C919, the planethat Commercial Aircraf t Corp. ofChina (COMAC ) hopes wi l l help i tbreak the Airbus and Boeing duopolyin the market for single-aisle, medi-um-range passenger jets.

CFM has competition however forthe A320neo from US-based Pratt &Whitney, which says its PurePowerPW1100G-JM engine is optimized toimprove fuel burn, reduce weight andincrease component durability. CFMsaid the LEAP-1A has so far scooped up56 percent of orders for the A320neo.The company forecasts it will produce30,000 LEAP engines by 2020 in its fac-tories in France and the United States,besting the 27,000 of the CFM56 inservice that had propelled Safran andGE into becoming the top manufacturerof engines for passenger jets with over100 seats. — AFP

Next-generation plane

engines take a LEAP

towards delivery

KANO, Nigeria: Nafiu Badaru, a junior civil servantin northern Nigeria’s biggest city Kano, doesn’tmake much money and it takes some cash to lookgood so he tends to buy made-in-China fabric.

“A piece of high-quality brocade (cloth) costsaround 10,000 naira ($50, 47 euros), which is waytoo expensive for me,” he said. “With the sameamount of money I can buy six pieces of cheapChinese brocade which cost only 1,500 naira apiece and still keep some change.”

The proliferation of Chinese-made textiles is aboon for consumers like Nafiu, with Kano and thewider north struggling with unemployment andeconomic constraints. But traders in the city-a cen-tre of weaving and textile manufacturing datingback centuries-say such cheaper imports havebeen disastrous.

Factories have shut and trade in home-spunfabrics has dwindled, prompting calls for foreigninvestment within Nigeria rather than cheap, massimportation, as well as better regulation. FatuhuGambo’s business is one of many in dire straits. Forthe past two weeks he has not sold a single fabricin his shop in the Kantin Kwari textile market-thelargest in West Africa.

“The Chinese have effectively edged us out ofbusiness, leaving us with nothing but huge debtsand heaps of goods in our shops,” he said. Talk inthe market-a colourful rabbit’s warren of shopsand stalls that draws traders from Nigeria, Niger,Chad, Cameroon to Mali and the Central AfricanRepublic-is of unfair competition.

“The Chinese have taken over the importationand distribution of textiles in Kano and now theyare into retail trading, which is putting our traders

out of business,” said traders’ union head LitiKulkul.

Protests, crackdowns The troubles began a decade ago when

Chinese textile merchants started the massiveimportation of textiles to Nigeria after Africa’smost populous nation opened its doors to foreigntrade. The World Trade Organization deal gave theChinese unfettered access to Nigeria’s textile mar-ket, although Nigerian laws prohibit foreignersfrom retail trading. Traders talk of locals beingrecruited to conduct business on behalf of theChinese in return for a cut of the profits.

There have been occasional crackdowns, like inMay 2012, when immigration officials arrested anddeported 45 Chinese nationals over retail tradingafter repeated complaints.

Earlier this month, customs officials arrestedfour Chinese traders for smuggling mass-pro-duced fabrics and sealed 26 warehouses contain-ing goods on which import duties had not beenpaid.

Hundreds of textile dyers then staged streetprotests against what they view as a Chinesetakeover of their trade that threatens to put 30,000artisans out of business.

The dyers, many of whom still use methodsdating back more than 500 years, accused theChinese of faking their products and selling inferi-or cloth at a fraction of the price.

Enforcement, regulation The situation is just one aspect of the struggle

facing Nigeria’s crude-dependent economy, which

has been hit hard by the slump in global oil pricessince mid-2014. There is little domestic manufac-turing to speak of, forcing goods from cars to food-stuffs to be imported.

The local Muslim religious leader the Emir ofKano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, met China’s ambas-sador to Nigeria at his palace recently and calledon Beijing to set up factories in the country.

“Our over-reliance on foreign products is hurt-ing our economy and the only way to stop thistrend is to tackle the problems in the manufactur-ing sector,” said Sanusi, a former central bank gov-ernor.

Sa’idu Adhama, a former textile factory owner,said Nigerian traders cannot compete with theirChinese counterparts, who can get bank loans atsingle digit rates over a longer term.

“The Chinese are here legally, so we can’t sendthem packing but we can regulate their trading,”said Adhama, who studied in China in the 1970s.That could include quotas, stricter enforcement ofimport regulations, duties and taxes as well as fuelsubsidies to boost local manufacturing and helphome-grown businesses, he added. Long-terminvestment in the power sector to stabilise the cur-rently woeful electricity supply could also revivemoribund factories, he said.

In the meantime, the debate is immaterial topeople like Badaru, with cheaper foreign importssatisfying demand for a growing consumer society,whether it is clothing or electronics.

“For me and most low-income earners, Chinesetextiles are a blessing. They give us the opportuni-ty to appear neat and elegant with little money,”he said. — AFP

Chinese dominance worries

Nigeria’s textile traders

ATHENS: A protester writes a slogan on a wall facing the German embassy in Athens yesterday during an protest march against imperialism, byleftist and anti-establishment protesters. — AFP

B U S I N E S SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

KUWAIT: Alargan International Real EstateCompany held its ordinary General Assemblymeeting on 24 May 2015, with an atten-dance level that reached XX percent. Duringthe meeting, the assembly approved thecompany’s Audit Report and FinancialStatements for the fiscal year ending in 31December 2014. The General Assemblyapproved the Board of Director’s recommen-dation to distribute cash dividends equal to20 percent of the share’s nominal value, or 20fils per share to shareholders registered inthe company’s records as of the GeneralAssembly meeting’s date.

ALARGAN International Real EstateCompany achieved KD 4.7 million net profits,equaling to 18.17 Fils earnings per share forthe fiscal year ending on 31 December 2014.This compares to KD 3.9 million net profit,and 15.08 fils earnings per share in 2013. Agrowth of 20.5 percent in net profit for 2014.

In a statement underlining the firm’smajor policies, Haitham S Al-Khaled,Chairman of the Board of Directors said:“ALARGAN has gone through a transforma-tional process during the past two years.During this process, the company utilized itsaccumulated experience and its pool of tal-ent to draft a strategy for accelerated growth.Once this strategy and its related perform-ance targets were confirmed, the Boardasked the CEO to share them with our share-holders and the industry analysts. The pres-entation that Al-Meshaan gave during theGeneral Assembly covered both our visionfor the future and the performance weintend to deliver to our shareholders, Godwilling. Our aim is to deliver a level of trans-

parency and commitment that exceeds theaccepted norms in our markets. We believethat only when we stand on a firm platformof trust will we succeed in meeting theexpectations of our shareholders and ourcommunity.”

Commenting on the results of 2014, EngKhaled Al-Meshaan, CEO and Vice Chairmanof the Board of Directors said: “These resultsjustify the company’s plans to diversify itsinvestments on categorical and geographicallevels, without losing sight of its main field ofbusiness that focuses on delivering afford-able middle income housing solutions. Thisapproach has achieved a remarkable growthin the company’s revenues.”

StrategyAl-Meshaan added: “As part of executing

the company’s strategy to exit some invest-ments and align its real estate portfolio to itsstrategy and market conditions, an invest-ment fund wholly owned by the companysigned two deals, during the year ending in31 December 2014, with an investor to sellthe entire share owned by the fund in aassociate company in Saudi Arabia for a totalvalue of 579.2 million Saudi Riyals (approxi-mately KD 46.1 million). The group conclud-ed the first deal which represents 7.5 per-cent of total shares, worth 57.9 million SaudiRiyals (approximately KD 4.5 million), result-ing in KD 3.3 million profits in 2014. Thegroup subsequently concluded the seconddeal, worth 521.3 million Saudi Riyals(approximately KD 41.6 million), in April ofthis year, 2015. The profits gained from thedeal worth 317.34 million Saudi Riyals

(approximately KD 26 million), will bebooked in the second quarter of ALARGANInternational Real Estate Company’s 2015results.”

ALARGAN managed to achieve anincrease in its net profit in 2014 despitereducing the value of its investment proper-ties and lands held for trading by KD 2.33million compared to a KD 1.22 millionincrease in 2013. The company achieved a43 percent increase in its share of result fromassociate companies amounting to KD 3.96million in 2014 compared to KD 2.76 millionin 2013. ALARGAN also managed to main-tain the stability of its operational activitiesof rental revenues and resorts in 2014 com-pared to 2013. The net profit from rental rev-enues and resorts reached KD 6.4 million in2014 compared to approximately the sameamount in 2013. Meanwhile, the construc-tion sector and its related activities prof-

itability dropped by 93 percent due to theconclusion of the majority of current proj-ects while the effect of new projects’ rev-enues are yet to appear on the company’sfinancial statements. The group’s revenuesincreased from KD 25.27 million in 2013 toKD 26.42 million in 2014, or by 4.5 percentdespite booking revenues from real estaterevaluation during 2013. It should be notedthat the group’s total expenses increasedfrom KD 21.34 million in 2013 to 21.66 mil-lion in 2014, or by 1.5 percent, despiterecording losses from real estate revaluationthis year.

OutlookEquity rights attributable to the main

company’s shareholders have increased byin 2013. Al-Meshaan also emphasized thestrength of the company’s financial positionrecently confirmed by maintaining Capital

Intelligence’s ‘BBB-’ investment grading witha stable outlook for its bonds. He pointed toit as an indication of the effectiveness of thecompany’s business model and its growingrevenues’ record.

As for the company’s current projects,ALARGAN continues to develop ALARGANSquare project, which will be an importantaddition to the group’s st~ income generat-ing assets. The company also developedALARGAN Village in Kingdom of Bahrain andis currently developing Barka resort in theSultanate of Oman. The company also fin-ished developing more than 1,200 housingunits in projects in the Kingdom of SaudiArabia. Al-Meshaan wrapped up the GeneralAssembly meeting by unveiling the new 5-year strategy inspired by its new motto ‘Life...as you love it’. He reaffirmed that the compa-ny’s commitment to becoming a leadingregional real estate developer.

“We shall continue to build inspired com-munities that deliver the ‘joy of life’ to clientsand develop ‘lifestyle’ centers with a unique‘play, shop, relax and savor’ experience, “said Al-Meshaan.

AI-Meshaan also introduced ALARGAN’snew strategic 40/20 objective tc achieved by2020. It targets achieving a minimum of 40fils per share in profits distributing 20 fils div-idends per share on yearly basis starting2020. Meshaan stated that most of this tar-get shall be secured through recurring proj-ects. At the end of the meeting AI-Meshaanthanked the shareholders for their contin-ued support. He also thanked ALARGANteam for their stellar performance and Boardof Directors for their guidance.

Alargan reports 20.5% net profit growth in 2014

General assembly approves 20 fils per share dividends

KUWAIT: Eng Khaled Al-Meshaan, Alargan CEO and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, addresses the ordinary general assembly yesterday. —Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

ISTANBU: Air Arabia has been named “BestLow-Cost Carrier” at the World Tourism ForumAwards in Istanbul, Turkey. The World TourismForum is an annual gathering of leading busi-ness figures and industry experts to discuss thefuture direction of the global tourism sector.Among the topics discussed were onlinetourism, destination marketing and the eco-nomic benefits of tourism.

Air Arabia took home the award for “BestLow-Cost Carrier” based on its performanceover the last year, which has included theopening of two new international hubs in RasAl-Khaimah, UAE, and Amman, Jordan, andincreasing its global network to 104 destina-tions.

The airline also reached another majormilestone during the period when it becamefirst low-cost carrier from the Middle East andAfrica to enter the Chinese market with thestart of regular non-stop services to Urumqi,the largest city in Western China.

Adel A. Ali, Group Chief Executive Officerof Air Arabia, said: “It is a source of greatpride for everyone at Air Arabia that our con-tribution to the aviation sector continues tobe recognised, not only within the MiddleEast and North Africa, but also by our peersaround the world. We thank the organisers ofthe World Tourism Forum for this accoladeand we would like to express our gratitudeto the millions of loyal customers who have

enabled our success for more than a decade.”This is the latest in a series of recent acco-

lades won by Air Arabia including “Low CostCarrier of the Year” from Aviation Business,“Middle East’s Leading Low-Cost Airline 2014”at the 21stWorld Travel Awards, and the“Airline Business Award” at the Airline StrategyAwards 2014.

Air Arabia (PJSC), listed on the DubaiFinancial Market, is the Middle East and NorthAfrica’s leading low-cost carrier (LCC). AirArabia commenced operations in October2003 and currently operates a total fleet of 40new Airbus A320 aircraft, serving some 104routes from four hubs in the UAE, Moroccoand Egypt.

Air Arabia named ‘Best Low-Cost Carrier’ at

World Tourism Forum Awards in Istanbul

KUWAIT: Burgan Bank announced yesterday thenames of the lucky winners of its Yawmi accountdraw, each taking home a prize of KD 5,000.

The lucky winners for the daily draws tookhome a cash-prize of KD 5,000 each, and they are: 1. Ali Jaffar Karam Ahmad2. Rashed Yousef Alowaisheer3. Mahmoud Khalel Aljahed4. Abdulmordhi Abdalnaeem Rashwan5. Jinoj John Mathew

To further add to the anticipation of Yawmiaccount customers, Burgan Bank now offers aQuarterly Draw with more chances to win higherrewards, entitling one lucky customer to win KD125,000 every three months. The Yawmi Accountnow offers Daily and quarterly Draws, theQuarterly Draw requires customers to maintain aminimum amount of KD 500 in their account for 2

months prior to draw date. Additionally, every KD10 in the account, will entitle customers to onechance of winning. If the account balance is KD500 and above, the account holder will be quali-fied for both the quarterly and daily draws.

Burgan Bank encourages everyone to open aYawmi account and/or increase their deposit tomaximize their chances to becoming a winner. Themore customers deposit, the higher the chancesthey receive of winning.

For more information on opening a Yawmiaccount or about the new quarterly draw, cus-tomers are urged to visit their nearest Burgan Bankbranch and receive all the details, or simply call thebank’s Call Center at 1804080 where customerservice representatives will be delighted to assistwith any questions on the Yawmi account or anyof the bank’s products and services.

Burgan Bank announces

Yawmi account winners

KUWAIT: Commercial Bank of Kuwait held the Al-Najma Account draw yesterday.

The draw was held under the supervision ofthe Ministry of Commerce & Industry representedby Saguer Al-Manaie.

The Souq winners are: Thiagarajan Natarajan,Jaison Jacob George, Hasan Qasem Al Ali

The winners of the Al-Najma daily draw

Wajeha Abdulla Al-Qattan — KD 7000,Sakeena Abdul Husain Al-Saffar, KD 7000, HamdiMahmoud Mohammed — KD 7000, BanderHatem Al-Jemili — KD 7000, Mariam Faisal Naqi —KD 7000.

The Commercial Bank of Kuwait announces thebiggest daily draw in Kuwait with the launch of thenew Najma account. Customers of the bank can

now enjoy a KD 7,000 daily prize which is the high-est in the country and another 4 mega prizes dur-ing the year worth KD 100,000 each on differentoccasions: The National Day, Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adhaand on the 19th of June which is the date of thebank’s establishment.

With a minimum balance of KD 500, customerswill be eligible for the daily draw provided that themoney is in the account one week prior to the dai-ly draw or 2 months prior to the mega draw. Inaddition, for each KD 25 a customer can get onechance for winning instead of KD 50.

Commercial Bank of Kuwait takes this opportu-nity to congratulate all lucky winners and alsoextends appreciation to the Ministry of Commerceand Industry for their effective supervision of thedraws which were conducted in an orderly andorganized manner.

Al-Tijari announces winners of

Souq.Com, Al-Najma Account

China’s slowdown will not derail reforms

Asiya Capital Investments Company ReportBy Camille Accad

KUWAIT: Chinese authorities face the complextask of finding the right balance between eco-nomic growth and reform. Since the globalfinancial crisis, the Chinese economy has beengradually slowing down. The government’smodel of high infrastructure investing andcheap credit to exporting firms can no longersupport the waning economy. Excess invest-ment pushed of returns down, while weakerglobal demand and rising competition slowedexports down. China is experiencing a structur-al economic slowdown. Additionally, today, theeconomy is going through a cyclical downturn,

adding more downside pressure to the struc-tural deceleration. Property prices are fallingrapidly, industrial output and investmentspending are slowing fast, and the purchasingmanagers index (PMI) suggests no expansionahead. The central bank loosened policy signifi-cantly in the last few months to soften the paceof the deceleration. The main policy rate wascut three times in the last six months, and thereserve requirement ratio (RRR), a policy toolthat determines banks’ holdings of reserves,was lowered twice already this year. In parallel,the government has increased its efforts toreform the economy and soften the long-termstructural slowdown. Policymakers are target-

ing a GDP growth rate of 7.0% for 2015. Theeconomy grew 7.0% in the first quarter, andunless monetary easing relaxes notably finan-cial conditions, GDP will undershoot its targetthis year.

In its efforts to transition into a more liberal-ized, consumer-oriented economy, China hasimplemented numerous reforms in recentmonths. This month, the ceiling of the depositrate was raised from 1.3 to 1.5 times the bench-mark deposit rate, allowing for greater marketinfluence on rates and smoothen the interestrate liberalization process. The latest measurefollows the introduction of a deposit insurancesystem protecting depositors for up to 500,000

yuan. The reform of local government finance isalso essential, through the development of abond market that would diversify revenuesources and reduce the role of local govern-ment financial vehicles (LGFV). In March, thegovernment announced it would issue 1 trillionyuan of lower-yielding municipal bonds to swapwith the less transparent and lower qualityLGFV debt, as well as allow local governmentsto issue RMb600bn in additional bonds.Tackling corruption among high-level officials,constricting speculation in the property sectorand reducing red tape are other actions thathave already been taken by authorities for overa year. At the international level, relaxed con-

trols on the exchange rate, following the dou-bling of the yuan trading band last year, and thelaunch of the Shanghai-Hong Kong stock con-nect reflect the leadership’s willingness to openits markets to international investors. Last week,China’s policymakers released guidelines of thereforms to be pushed forward in 2015.The focuswas mostly placed on financial sector liberaliza-tion, such as removing the cap on the depositrate, which according to the PBoC governor willbe done by the end of the year. Other men-tioned targeted areas included state-ownedenterprises (SOE), taxation, the Shenzhen-HongKong stock connect, the initial public offeringsystem and the yuan internationalization.

T E C H NOLO G YMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

DUBAI: Experts are warning of a newscam that uses Windows Live ID as baitto catch personal information stored inuser profiles on services like Xbox LIVE,Zune, Hotmail, Outlook, MSN,Messenger and OneDrive.

‘Honest’ phishingUsers receive warnings by email say-

ing that their Windows Live ID accountsare being used to distribute unsolicitedemails, so their accounts will beblocked. To stop their accounts beingsuspended, users are asked to follow alink and update their details to complywith the service’s new security require-ments. This sounds very much like a typ-ical phishing email. Victims are expect-ed to click on links that will take them tofake sites imitating the official Windows

Live page. The data they enter there willbe sent to the scammers. So our expertswere surprised that the link from thescam email did indeed go to theWindows Live website and there was noapparent attempt to get the victims’logins and passwords.

What’s the trick? Having followed the link in the email

and successfully authorized the accounton the official l ive.com site, usersreceived a curious prompt from theservice: an application requested per-mission to automatically log into theaccount, view the profile informationand contact list and access a list of theusers’ personal and work e-mail address-es. Scammers gained access to this tech-nique through security flaws in the

open protocol for authorization, OAuth.Users who click “Yes” don’t give away

their login and password credentials,but they do provide their personal infor-mation, the email addresses of theircontacts and the nicknames and realnames of their friends. It’s also possibleto gain permission to access otherparameters, such as lists of appointmentsand important events. This information ismost likely to be used for fraudulent pur-poses, such as sending spam to the con-tacts in the victim’s address book orlaunching spear phishing attacks.

“We’ve known about security flaws inthe OAuth protocol for quite a while: inearly 2014, a student from Singaporedescribed possible ways of stealing userdata after authentication. However, thisis the first time we have come across

fraudsters using a phishing email to putthese techniques into practice. A scam-mer can use the information interceptedto create a detailed image of users,including information on what they do,who they meet and who their friends are,etc. This profile can then be used forcriminal purposes,” said Andrey Kostin,Senior Web Content Analyst at KasperskyLab.

Developers of web applications forsocial networks which use the OAuthprotocol are advised to:

• Avoid using open redirects fromyour sites;

• Create a white list of trustedaddresses for redirects performed usingOAuth, because fraudsters can perform ahidden redirect to a malicious site byfinding an application that can be suc-

cessfully attacked and changing its “redi-rect_uri” parameter.

Recommendations to users• Do not follow unknown links in your

e-mail or in private messages on socialnetworking sites

• Do not give unknown applicationsthe right to access your personal data;

• Make sure you fully understand theaccount access rights that each applica-tion receives;

• If you discover that an application isalready distributing spam or maliciouslinks on your behalf, you can send a com-plaint to the administration of the socialnetworking site or web service and theapplication will be blocked;

• Keep your antivirus software data-bases and integrated anti-phishing pro-tection up to date.

Kaspersky Lab warns of a new scam that uses Windows Live ID

LOS ANGELES: This Wednesday, May 20, 2015 photo shows, Connor Franta’s “Coming Out” video playing on YouTube displayed on a computerscreen. YouTube, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary throughout May, has in recent years propped up YouTubers like Franta - “creators,”the site calls them - who attract millions of subscribers that regularly watch their online videos and the advertising attached to them. Their pop-ularity is still eclipsed by music videos, which continue to account for the site’s most watched clips. — A

EMC announces therelease of Project CoprHD

MOSCOW: Back-to-back rocketlaunch failures have dealt Russia oneof the heaviest blows to its spaceindustry since the Soviet collapse -with national pride and billions ofdollars at stake.

The setbacks threaten to erodeRussia’s leading position in the multi-billion global launch market, in whichit commands an estimated 40 percentshare, and dent President VladimirPutin’s efforts to boost the country’sglobal prestige.

The competition for lucrative com-mercial satellite contracts is intensify-ing, with American, European,Chinese and Indian companies alleager to expand their share. DeputyPrime Minister Dmitry Rogozinwarned this week that Russia couldsoon lose its chunk if the problemsaren’t fixed quickly.

Government officials and experts

agree that the latest booster rocketfailures are rooted in a steady declineof production standards and pooroversight at state-controlled rocketbuilders, but opinions vary on howthe problems might be solved.

Highlighting space industry woes,the workers building the newVostochny space launch pad in the fareastern Amur region went on hungerstrike last month and appealed direct-ly to Putin, complaining that theyhave gone unpaid for months. Thehead of a state-controlled construc-tion company and three subcontrac-tors have been arrested in the case.

The Kremlin has offered yet anoth-er plan for the reorganization of theindustry, which has seen numerousshake-ups in recent years. A presiden-tial bill that received preliminaryapproval by the lower house thisweek pulls all the nation’s space

assets together in one giant state-controlled commercial corporation.

In a speech before lawmakers,Rogozin cast the proposed reform asessential for establishing tight controlover money flows, cutting productioncosts and uprooting corruption. Headmitted that US space industries arenow nine times more efficient thanRussia’s space industry.

Critics say, however, that othergiant state corporations created dur-ing Putin’s 15-year rule, as part of hisefforts to concentrate lucrative eco-nomic assets in state hands, have notexactly been success stories. They saythese state conglomerates suffer frommismanagement and inefficiency andare dogged by corruption.

Rogozin said that a recent investi-gation into the activities of theKhrunichev company, the manufac-turer of the heavy-lift Proton boosterrocket, revealed numerous instancesof fraud, abuse of office and falsifica-tion of documents, resulting in eco-nomic damage of 9 billion rubles(more than $180 million). “With suchdegradation in the leadership, a highaccident rate isn’t a surprise,” Rogozinsaid.

Main cash cowThe latest Proton rocket launched

over the weekend developed a prob-lem in its third-stage engine eightminutes into the flight, resulting inthe loss of a Mexican communica-tions satellite. The Proton has beenthe main cash cow for the Russianspace industries since the Soviet col-lapse, capable of lifting 20 metrictons of payload to high geostationaryorbits. Experts warn that the acci-dent, which follows a series of otherProton failures in recent years, maydiscourage potential clients.

“Any such accident derails thelaunch schedule, and customersdon’t like it,” said Igor Marinin, theeditor of Novosti Kosmonavtiki spacemagazine. “The longer the delay, thebigger the number of unhappy cus-tomers.”

The Proton setback is particularlyworrisome as it comes in the foot-steps of the failure of the secondmain type of Russian booster rocket,the Soyuz, which also suffered abreakdown in its third stage after itslaunch on April 28. An unmannedProgress cargo ship it was carryingwas stranded in low orbit and soonfell to Earth over the Pacific, depriv-ing a six-person crew at theInternational Space Station of itsscheduled portion of supplies.

While the crew at the space out-post won’t experience any shortagesas current stockpiles will last for

months, the Soyuz launch failure hasprompted Russia to delay both thescheduled landing of some of the sta-tion’s crew and the launch of theirsuccessors.

Space officials now need to makesure that the Soyuz rocket, used tolaunch both the manned Soyuzspacecraft and the Progress cargoships, is safe to put the next crew inorbit. The next crew launch atop theSoyuz was pushed back from lateMay to late July, to be preceded by anunmanned Progress launch in earlyJuly.

If the Soyuz problem persists, itmay pose a serious challenge to theInternational Space Station program,which has relied entirely on theSoyuz spacecraft for ferrying crewsafter the grounding of the US shuttlefleet. The successive launch failuresmark a rare case in which both mainbooster rockets used by the Russianspace program are out of service atthe same time pending crash probes.

Soyuz failureThe two rockets have been the

workhorses of the Soviet and thenRussian space industries for fivedecades. Work on building theirreplacement has dragged on slowlyfor about 20 years, and the newbooster, the Angara, was successfullylaunched for the first time inDecember.

A government panel has tracedthe latest Soyuz failure to a leak frompropellant tanks in its third stage, butit has yet to determine the reason forthat. It’s not clear yet what happenedto the Proton. The Proton’s latest fail-ure was its seventh launch accidentin 4 1/2 years. While the cause ofSaturday’s setback hasn’t been deter-mined, the previous accidents havebeen triggered by manufacturingflaws and human error.

The series of failed launches hasprompted the Kremlin to continuous-ly reshuffle the industry’s top brass.The Roscosmos space agency hasseen four directors in as many years,but the failures continue.

Amid tensions with the West overUkraine, some even suggested thatthe failures could have been causedby sabotage. Most observers agree,however, that the likely root is spacebuilders’ plunging quality standards.

“It’s a personnel problem aboveall,” said Konstantin Kreidenko, a for-mer space official who is now editorof Glonass Vestnik, a space magazine.“It could be a wrong cable connec-tion, or use of bad fuel or some filtergetting clogged. They need to checkthe entire chain and introduce strin-gent quality controls.”— AP

Failed launches cast shadow over Russian space program

United Arab Emirates: EMCCorporation yesterday announcedthe release of Project CoprHD

(“copperhead”), an open source version ofEMC ViPR Controller embracing opendevelopment and a free “no restrictions”download for non-production use of itsScaleIO software. EMC also previewedfuture enhancements for ScaleIO.

Open source software is increasinglybecoming a focal strategy for enterpriseorganizations to retain control of theirbusiness and innovate quickly to respondto changing demands in the market. Opensource software and open developmentpractices enable organizations to avoidplatform lock-ins, participate in projectsand modify software to suit their needswhile enjoying the benefits and access toa community of like-minded developers.Commercial software developers can ben-efit through leveraging an ecosystem ofdeveloper partners to help stimulate com-munity-driven innovation around theirexisting platforms.

Project CoprHD offers security and transparency

ViPR Controller is storage automationsoftware that centralizes and transformsEMC and third-party storage into a simple,extensible and open platform and EMCwill continue to sell the commercial ver-sion of Project CoprHD, the EMC ViPRController, as a fully supported offering.

Project CoprHD makes the code forViPR Controller - all the storage automa-tion and control functionality - open forcommunity-driven development andenables customers, partners, developersand other storage vendors to access,expand and contribute to ProjectCoprHD’s breadth and depth of featuresand functionality. Positioned in the data

center as a single, open control plane formultivendor storage, Project CoprHDoffers the same level of flexibility, choice,security and transparency as ViPRController, while adding the ability to cre-ate new services and applications.

EMC is also investing engineering andcommunity resources to contribute andsupport Project CoprHD. In addition, EMCalso recently launched EMC {code}, theCommunity Onramp for DeveloperEnablement. EMC {code} is a technicalevangelism team focused on enabling theDevOps community with EMC technologyby contributing to open projects andDevOps events. Project CoprHD and EMC{code} are two essential components toEMC’s overall open source strategy.

Unlimited capacity and time for non-production use

EMC ScaleIO offers a software-onlysolution that turns existing server storageinto shared block storage to help empow-er IT organizations with flexible and scala-ble per formance and capacity ondemand.EMC also announced the ScaleIOProduct Community on the EMCCommunity Network (ECN). The ScaleIOProduct Community is designed to be aninteractive information exchange platformfor technical suppor t, questions forScaleIO experts, product documentation,downloads, user guides, FAQs and train-ing. Through this community, EMC willallow customers, partners and developersto download EMC ScaleIO software forfree for non-production use, withoutrestrictions on time or capacity. TheScaleIO enhancements, which will bemade generally available later this year,are planned to address the areas of highavailability, security, resiliency and sup-portability.

KAZAKHSTAN: File photo shows Russian-made Proton-U rocket boost-er with cargo Progress M-66 spacecraft lifts off from the launch pad atBaikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan as the cargo ship carries sup-plies bound for the International Space Station. — AP

Antitrust case looms, ‘Peak Google’ debated

WASHINGTON: As Google faces an antitrustprobe from European regulators, some ana-lysts are questioning whether the Californiatech giant’s dominance has already peaked.While Google remains one of the world’sbiggest companies with overwhelming domi-nance of Internet search, its prospects are lessrosy in a tech landscape rapidly shifting tomobile devices and social media, say someindustry watchers.

Debate heated up last year after a blogpost titled “Peak Google” from technology ana-lyst and consultant Ben Thompson, whoargued that Google is losing momentum.Thompson said Google may in the same boatas IBM in the 1980s and Microsoft around 2000— “hugely profitable companies bestride thetech industry that at the moment seems infalli-ble, but that history will show to have peakedin dominance and relevancy.” Google has foryears been the leader in Internet search andhas turned advertising linked to those search-es into a highly lucrative business. But itsshares have struggled since hitting an all-timehigh in early 2014 and it has little to show forventures in other areas: self-driving cars,Google Glass, Internet balloons, health care,Google TV mobile payments, home automa-tion and its Google+ social network, amongothers.

Even in online advertising, Thompsonargues, Google is losing ground to rivals likeFacebook which integrate ads in “the stream,”sometimes called “native ads,” in a differentapproach from that of Google. “All of thethings that make Google great at search andsearch advertising... are skills that don’t reallytranslate to the more touchy-feely qualitiesthat make a social service or content site com-pelling,” he said. In the mobile world, its freeAndroid operating system dominates thesmartphone market-another potential concernof EU regulators. But Google has failed to get amajor revenue lift from Android. That’sbecause on mobile devices, users spend mostof their time using apps, which leave Googleout of the picture. Roger Kay at EndpointTechnologies Associates said this shift cuts intoGoogle’s strength. Growing use of apps such asYelp or Open Table takes away from Google’sability to search and deliver advertising forthose queries, he noted. “Google’s businessmodel is very narrow. It’s just a single pillarwhich is holding the company up,” Kay toldAFP.

Fighting for mobile Google, which opens its developers confer-

ence Thursday, is working to adapt to mobile,but it’s not clear if it is too late. Data from

research firm eMarketer shows Google’s shareof global digital ad dollars has held at around31 percent over the past three years, whileFacebook, Twitter and others have gained.

For mobile ads, Google has seen its sharedrop to around 35 percent this year from 46percent in 2013, losing to others such asFacebook and China’s Alibaba and Baidu. “Iwouldn’t say Google is a sinking ship, but theyare trying to plug a thousand leaks,” sayseMarketer analyst Jeremy Kressmann. Mobileis crucial because Google lacks access to userdata on apps installed on Apple iOS devices,making it harder to deliver relevant, targetedmessages, the analyst said.

Facebook, says Kressmann, has better dataglean from social network profiles and “likes”to get the best ads at the right time. “Theyknow a lot more about who each Facebookuser is, where they are located, so they can getmore granular,” he said. “It’s very attractive toan advertiser to have that knowledge.”

While Google’s free Android operating sys-tem has a market share of around 80 percent,the company gets little revenue from it.Android was designed as a way to feed usersinto other Google services, but it hasn’t alwaysbeen effective, says Jan Dawson of JackdawResearch.

“In many ways Google is losing controlover Android and losing a way to monetize itby using it as an entry into the Google ecosys-tem,” Dawson said. Dawson noted that Googleservices are stripped out of Android for mostChinese smartphone users, and that othermanufacturers such as Amazon have “forked”the Android system to direct users elsewhere.

Alternate search engines The shift to mobile has also fueled interest

in new search companies which are trying toout-Google the leader for smartphone users.Investors have poured more than $100 millioninto venture-backed mobile search startupsover the past three years, according to theresearch firm CB Insights.

Some of these new firms such as Quixey,Swiftype, Wildcard and Vurb aim to help peo-ple search through the app world whereGoogle lacks a presence. These firms use“deep linking, creating new ways to mimicweb links by allowing users to go directlyinto different parts of a mobile app and gain-ing valuable data on where those users camefrom,” CB Insights said. Kay argues that anyeffort by the EU to impose new businessmethods on Google could accelerate thetrend which is eroding its dominance, similarto what happened with Microsoft during itsantitrust battles.—AFP

Has the tech giant’s dominance peaked?

H E A LT H & S C I E N C EMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

TOKYO: This picture shows a businessman sleeping on a bench at a train sta-tion. Japan’s push to take away overtime from high-paid workers has criticswarning it will aggravate a problem synonymous with the country’s notori-ously long working hours — karoshi, or death from overwork. —AFP

BEIJING: At first, the numbers andcompany names flashing on a bigboard in Beijing’s financial districtsuggest a booming market. A closerlook indicates otherwise: The scroll-ing list rotates the same dozen or sotrades, all from last year. The lightsfrom the Beijing EnvironmentExchange - one of seven pilot mar-kets in China for trading carbon -raises questions for the country as itprepares for next year’s roll-out of anationwide system that could helpthe world’s biggest emitter of heat-trapping carbon dioxide rein in itsemissions.

A successful carbon offset, or

“cap-and-trade,” market could play abig part in cutting China’s emissions- and help the world tackle globalwarming. Already launched inEurope, California and a few otherspots, such carbon offset marketslimit how much carbon can be emit-ted per year by factories and busi-nesses. They then let those business-es that release less carbon than thecap sell to other companies permis-sions to emit whatever’s left.

Reliability questionedSo far, the pilots have failed to

make a noticeable dent in carbonemissions, with about 978 millionYuan, or $158 million, traded sincetheir launch in 2013, compared tothe 7.2 billion Euros, or about $8 bil-lion, of carbon offsets that weretraded in the European market in itsfirst year of operation, 2006. Many

companies required to buy carboncredits have waited until the lastminute of compliance periods tomake their trades, which has raisedconcerns about low liquidity in themarket. Some observers questionthe reliability of data recording howmuch companies are emitting.

Chinese officials, however, say thepilot markets aren’t meant to signifi-cantly cut the country’s carbon profileyet. Instead, they say they are learn-ing important lessons from theirexperiments and will use them inwhat will soon become the world’sbiggest carbon offset market. “Chinais taking this step to accept its respon-

sibility in stopping climate change,”said Zhou Cheng, the Beijingexchange’s vice president. “Thisaffects industry in a legal, scientificway, and it lets them form their busi-ness plans while looking at carbonemissions too.”

If anything, the national plan her-alds a strategy change for a countrythat’s so far used its one-party systemto order everything from factory clo-sures to barbecue bans by givingcompanies a money-making incen-tive to cut their carbon emissions,said Jeff Swartz, international policydirector at the Geneva-based non-profit group the InternationalEmissions Trading Association.

Fundamental solution For some Chinese companies, sell-

ing excess carbon offset credits couldbring in millions of dollars a year.

“China is using a number of differentpolicies, both command-and-controlbut also market policies,” Swartz said.“(Emissions trading) will provide afundamental solution to allow Chinato peak its emissions.” The pastdecade, however, has been a spottyone for carbon credit experiments inChina.

Five years ago, European Unionofficials ended a carbon offset planthat paid Chinese companies todestroy the greenhouse gas HFC-23after learning that the companieswere producing the gas only to bepaid to destroy it. Kathy Kong, CEO ofBeijing-based trading firm Timing

Carbon, said the pilot markets stillhave a lot of room to grow. For exam-ple, the markets still offer only spottrading with no futures markets,which greatly limits the potentialmarket size. Regulators must also stepin to prop up falling carbon offsetprices and keep prices at other timesfrom reaching unsustainable highs.“This is still a market created by poli-cy,” Kong said. “The policy needs tofollow the market at some time.”

Starting in 2013, China set up theseven pilot markets in the country’slargest cities - Beijing, Tianjin,Shanghai, Chongqing and Shenzhen- as well as the industrial provinces ofGuangdong and Hubei. Since mid-April, the seven markets have tradeda total of 31.2 million tons of carbon.The European market in its first yeartraded more than 10 times thatamount of carbon. By design, each

market has set up its own rules, withan eye for testing approaches for anational market.

In Beijing, any company thatemits more than 10,000 tons of car-bon a year - equal to the householdand vehicle emissions of more than400 American households - must jointhe offset market, which means itreceives a yearly cap on its emissionsand must buy carbon credits if itwants to emit more carbon. Creditprices have generally run from $55 to$75 per ton, and the penalty forexceeding the limit can cost three-to-five times the usual credit price.Around 550 companies in Beijingnow take part in the exchange.

Emission targets Other markets use different meth-

ods to set emission targets anddetermine who has to participate.Five of the seven markets give awaycarbon credits every year and thenlet companies auction off theirexcess credits. Hubei is the country’sbiggest market by volume of carbontraded. For state-owned firms suchthe Chinese capital’s largest powerutility, Beijing’s pilot market hasforced business plans to factor in car-bon emissions, said Jeremy Guo,executive vice president of the utili-ty’s energy investment arm. Oneresult is a higher investment inrenewable energy such as solar andthe capture and reuse of heat emit-ted during some industrial processes,he said.

“We want to make our role of car-bon asset management a new stan-dard for the group company, not justto buy and sell to get some profit,”Guo said. What comes next year willdepend on how the seven pilot mar-kets shape up. They could link up sothat a company in Beijing in the northcould trade with another in thesouthern Chinese city of Shenzhen.Chen said another idea would be tocreate separate offset markets aroundspecific industries such as steel,cement energy or construction ratherthan connect the separate pilotsoperating according to different rules.

Antung Anthony Liu, an econom-ics professor at the Cheung KongGraduate School of Business inBeijing, said that if done right, themarkets could turn China’s epic cli-mate change fight into an interna-tional investment opportunity.“China goes through a processwhere it tries to experiment with apolicy before rolling it out,” Liu said.“To my mind, the markets haven’tthe intended hopeful effect yet butcapacity has been built. These mar-kets clearly exist. And hopefully oneof them will be chosen as the bestone and the nation will go forwardfrom that.” —AP

China readies carbon market

to fight for climate change

Nationwide system that could help reduce emissions

BEIJING: A worker pulls a chair past electronic boards displaying the carbon trading index onthe left, at the Beijing Environmental Exchange office. —AP TOKYO: Japan’s push to take away over-

time from high-paid workers has criticswarning it will aggravate a problem syn-onymous with the country’s notoriouslylong working hours-karoshi, or death fromoverwork. Teruyuki Yamashita knows therisks all too well. The now 53-year-oldworked day and night in a senior sales job,made countless overseas business trips,and slept an average of just three hours anight. Six years ago, his frantic work pacetook a near fatal turn after he collapsedfrom a subarachnoid hemorrhage, a typeof brain bleeding, leading to three weeksin intensive care-and the loss of his sight.

“I told a nurse that it was dark-I didn’trealize that I was blind,” Yamashita said,recalling when he woke up in hospital.Hundreds of deaths related to overwork-from strokes, heart attacks and suicide-arereported every year in Japan, along with ahost of serious health problems, sparkinglawsuits and calls to tackle the problem.But, last month, Prime Minister ShinzoAbe’s cabinet approved a bill to exemptwhite-collar employees earning over 10.75million yen ($88,000) a year, such as finan-cial dealers and consultants, from work-hour rules.

His ruling Liberal Democratic Partyhopes to get parliamentary approval dur-ing the current session. Advocates, includ-ing Japan’s biggest business lobbyKeidanren, say the changes would rewardproductive workers with pay based onmerit-rather than just working hours-andgive them more flexibility in terms of howlong they spend at the office. If they getthe job done quickly, they could leave ear-ly or come in later, they say. Backers alsosay the reforms would not force change onworkers, but rather let them choose toenter such an agreement with theiremployers.

‘Accelerate deaths’ Critics charge it would be tough for

employees to refuse an offer of switchingto the new model, and deride it as the “noovertime pay bill” that would force peopleto work longer with no extra pay beyondtheir agreed salary. That could increase thenumber of overwork-related deaths andhealth problems, said Koji Morioka, profes-sor emeritus at Kwansei Gakuin University.

“The government wants to create a sys-tem in which companies don’t have to payfor overtime-it could accelerate deathsfrom overwork,” he said. Morioka addedthat the bill seemed to run counter to the

spirit of a law passed last summer aimed atpreventing deaths from long workinghours, which garnered wide supportacross party lines. Details of the bill arebeing worked out now. The new law, ifpassed, would initially affect just four per-cent of private-sector employees, or about1.8 million people.

But Keidanren already wants to expandthe program by lowering the pay thresh-old. “We need to think about relaxing theincome requirement and applying it to awider scope of workers,” the business lob-by’s chief said last month. While the popu-lar image of Japanese salary-men toilinglong hours for the company before takingthe last train home is changing, many stillspend far more hours in the office thancounterparts in other modern economies.

About 22.3 percent of Japaneseemployees work 50 hours or more eachweek on average, well above 12.7 percentin Britain, 11.3 percent in the United States,and 8.2 percent in France, according to theOrganization for Economic Co-operationand Development. A Japanese govern-ment study found that 16 percent of full-time workers took no paid holidays in2013, while others took just half their allot-ted vacation on average. In that year, theofficial tally was 196 deaths and suicideslinked to excessive working hours-but thatis just the tip of the iceberg, said RyukokuUniversity professor Shigeru Waki. “Thereare a lot more people who died or becameill due to overwork, but it is very hard toprove,” he said.

‘State of shock’ With more employers not required to

keep track of extra hours worked underthe proposed bill, it will make it eventougher to know the extent of the prob-lem, Waki said. The mother of a 27-year-oldTokyo man who killed himself in 2009 saidhis official work hours were much less thanthe actual extra hours spent at his printingcompany. She opposes the new bill.

“I was in a state of shock when his com-pany called to tell me he was dead,” saidthe 68-year-old woman, who asked not tobe identified. “My son will not come back,but I want to speak up for other youngerpeople.” For Yamashita, who was blindedby his condition, burning the candle atboth ends to meet the demands of a high-pressure job was hardly worth the reward.“I didn’t even get to see my kids grow upbecause I was too busy-I wish I could havelived a life for my family instead.” —AFP

Working to death in Japan: Health

warnings over ‘no overtime’ law

SEATTLE: Government hunters have begun scout-ing an island at the mouth of the Columbia Riveras they prepare to shoot thousands of hungryseabirds to stop them from eating baby salmon.US Army Corps of Engineers spokeswoman DianaFredlund said hunters from the US Department ofAgriculture’s Wildlife Services agency went to asmall uninhabited island off Ilwaco, Washington,on Thursday to survey the land before carryingout plans to reduce the population of doublecrested cormorants from about 14,000 breedingpairs to 5,600 pairs by 2018.

Double crested cormorants are large blackbirds with long necks, hooked bills and webbedfeet that dive beneath the surface to eat small fish.Wildlife Services is slated to file a plan with thecorps next week before starting to kill the birds.An environmental impact statement calls for themto shoot adult birds, spray eggs with oil so they

won’t hatch, and destroy nests. Carcasses of deadbirds will be donated to educational and scientificinstitutions, or otherwise disposed of through bur-ial or incineration. Biologists blame the cor-morants for eating an average 12 million babysalmon a year as they migrate down the Columbiato the ocean. Some of the fish are federally pro-tected species. The cormorant population on EastSand Island near Ilwaco, Washington, has grownfrom about 100 pairs in 1989 to some 14,000 pairsnow, making it the largest cormorant nestingcolony in the West. Soil dredged from the bottomof the Columbia to deepen shipping channels wasdumped on the island over the years, expandingthe area available for nesting.

Conservation groups failed in a bid to get afederal judge to stop the killing, arguing dams onthe Columbia kill far more young salmon than thebirds do. Bob Sallinger, conservation director of

the Portland Audubon Society, said WildlifeServices and the corps should hold off for this yearafter getting started two months later than rec-ommended. The late start would increase the suf-fering of the birds by producing more chicks thatstarve to death after their parents are killed.

“I think this demonstrates a remarkable level ofindifference and ineptitude,” he said. Cormorantsare the latest birds targeted for eating babysalmon. Biologists pushed Caspian terns off RiceIsland in the Columbia, and created nesting habi-tat in lakes in eastern Oregon and San FranciscoBay to draw them away from the mouth of theColumbia. The Oregon Department of Fish andWildlife also has been shooting and harassing cor-morants on coastal rivers to protect salmon. Sealions are also killed to reduce the numbers of adultsalmon eaten as they wait to go over the fish lad-der at Bonneville Dam in the Columbia. —AP

Govt hunters prepare to

kill salmon-eating birds

WASHINGTON: This Aug 12, 2011 shows double breasted cormorants on East Sand Island in the Columbia River near Ilwaco. —AP

HONOLULU: Demonstrators plantedcoconut trees and waved signs in ralliesacross the Hawaiian Islands as part of aninternational day of protests against agri-culture business Monsanto. The protest-ers on Saturday complained about theeffects that companies like Monsantohave on the community when they sprayfields with chemical pesticides. They saythey want agribusiness companies tostop using Hawaii as a testing ground forpesticides and genetically modifiedfoods.

“Get off the is land,” said DianeMarshall, a Honolulu teacher. “I wouldl ike to see them close up shop.” InWaikiki, a man wore a gas mask in frontof a statue of surfer Duke Kahanamokuto demonstrate the dangers of pesti-cides. Others in bik inis talked withtourists about why they don’t wantgenetical ly modif ied goods to be

grown in Hawaii. “What’s cool about doing it in Waikiki

with the tourists is it’s kind of givingthem a light on what the issues are inHawaii - that it’s more than just paradise,”said Nathaniel Whittaker, 28, of Honolulu.

On Maui, a group spent the day sow-ing fields with crops to encourage localfarming. An estimated 200 demonstra-tors planted 2 acres of sweet potatoes,banana starts and more than 100coconut trees, said Courtney Bruch ofGMO Free Maui. “We know that we havethe power in our hands to become self-sustainable, growing our own healthyfood,” Bruch said.

The Maui group was joined by NeilYoung, who performed a song from hisupcoming album called “The MonsantoYears,” Bruch said. “It’s pretty amazing hecame out to this farm for this event,”Bruch said. —AP

Hawaii groups plant coconut

trees, protest against GMOs

H E A LT H & S C I E N C EH E A LT H & S C I E N C EMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

SACRAMENTO: California farmers who hold some ofthe state’s strongest water rights avoided the threat ofdeep mandatory cuts when the state accepted theirproposal to voluntarily reduce consumption by 25percent amid one of the worst droughts on record.Officials hope the deal agreed upon on Friday willserve as a model for more such agreements withgrowers in the nation’s top-producing farm state,where agriculture accounts for 80 percent of all waterdrawn from rivers, streams and the ground.

“We’re in a drought unprecedented in our time.That’s calling upon us to take unprecedented action,”Felicia Marcus, chairwoman of the state WaterResources Control Board, said in announcing theagreement. The rare concession from the farmers isthe latest indication of the severity of the water short-age in California, which is suffering through its driestfour years on record. California water law is builtaround preserving the rights of so-called senior rightsholders - farmers and others whose acreage abutsrivers and streams, or whose claims to water dateback a century or more, as far back as Gold Rush days.

Making sacrifices The offer potentially could cover hundreds of

farmers in the delta of the Sacramento and SanJoaquin rivers, the heart of California’s water system.About 25 percent of all California river water runsthrough the delta, according to the state’sDepartment of Water Resources. Some of the farmersmade the offer after state officials warned they weredays away from ordering the first cuts in more than30 years to the senior water rights holders’ allotments.The state already has ordered cities and towns to cuttheir water use by 25 percent, and it has curtailedwater deliveries to many other farmers. But in recentweeks, many city dwellers and others have com-plained that agriculture should be made to sharemore of the sacrifice. Rudy Mussi, whose family farmsabout 4,000 acres in the delta southwest of Stockton,reacted with mixed emotions about state approval ofthe deal. “The 25 percent savings, that gives us cer-tainty,” Mussi said. “But at the same time I’m beingasked to give up 25 percent of my paycheck.” By itself,

the delta farmers’ offer would not go far enough tosave shrinking waterways statewide. But if more farm-ers sign on across the state, California could save sig-nificant amounts of water, since the nearly 4,000 sen-ior water rights holders alone consume trillions of gal-lons a year.

The agreement “is an illustration of creative practi-cal approaches that water managers in the state ofCalifornia are taking to help get us all through thisdevastating drought,” said Michael George, statewater master for the delta. California produces nearlyhalf of the fruits, nuts and vegetables grown in theUS, but agriculture experts say they would expectonly modest immediate effects on food prices fromany reduction in water for the senior water rightsholders. Other regions would be able to make up thedifference, economists say.

Giving back dues Under the deal, delta farmers have until June 1 to

lay out how they will use 25 percent less water duringthe summer. That could include irrigating their cropsless or leaving some of their land fallow. In exchange,the state gave assurances to the farmers it will not cutthe remaining 75 percent of the water to which theyare entitled. “When your back is up against the wall, Iguess you’ll do anything,” said Paul Wenger, presidentof the California Farm Bureau Federation and analmond grower in the Modesto area, outside of thedelta. He said he is skeptical the deal will protect thefarmers if the drought worsens. Senior water rightsholders last saw their water cut in 1977, but thatmove applied only to dozens of people along astretch of the Sacramento River. Ellen Hanak, a waterpolicy expert at the Public Policy Institute of Californiathink tank, said senior water rights holders don’t nec-essarily face complete water cutoffs, as people withless venerable claims to water have endured. “It’simportant for people to realize that there are haircutsthat are partial - they don’t necessarily mean shavingeverything off,” Hanak said. Any accord with deltafarmers would probably rely largely on the honor sys-tem. California currently does not require monitoringor meters for superior rights holders. —AP

California farmers agree to

significantly cut water use‘We’re in a drought unprecedented in our time’

CALIFORNIA: Gino Celli checks the moisture of land just planted with corn seed on land he farms near Stockton. —AP photos

INKSTER: A Detroit-area woman turned116 Saturday, but she offers no secret for along life. “There’s nothing I can do about it,”Jeralean Talley of Inkster said ahead of herbirthday weekend. Talley will celebrate herbirthday twice, including a party at herchurch, New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist.The Gerontology Research Group considersher to be the oldest person in the world,based on available records, followed bySusannah Jones of Brooklyn, New York,who turns 116 in July.

“You’re more likely to win the lotterythan to reach this age,” said Robert Youngof Gerontology Research. Talley bowleduntil she was 104 and still likes to catch fish.A daughter, Thelma Holloway, tells theDetroit Free Press that her mother still has a

sharp mind. She was born in Montrose,Georgia, in 1899 and moved to Michigan inthe 1930s. Talley’s husband died in 1988 atage 95.

“Her No. 1 rule is to treat people howyou want to be treated,” said godson TylerKinloch, 21, who fishes with her. “I definitelycarry that with me every single day.” Talleyreceived $116 - a dollar for every year - atan event Thursday at a local office of theMichigan Department of Health andHuman Services. The attendees includedUS Rep John Conyers. The Democrat is thelongest-serving member in the House, buteven at 86 he’s three decades younger thanTalley, who lives in his district. “I thank youvery, very, very, very much,” Talley told thecrowd.

Just another birthday for

the world’s oldest person

INKSTER: Jeralean Talley, born on May 23, 1899, is honored at the districtoffice of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services after cele-brating her 116th birthday on Saturday. Talley bowled until she was 104 andstill likes to catch fish. —AP

CALIFORNIA: Gino Celli crosses an irriga-tion canal that is covered in dried salt ona field he farms.

LOS ANGELES: Staff members and volunteers work to clean oil off a brownpelican at the International Bird Rescue office. A broken onshore pipeline innear Santa Barbara spewed oil down a storm drain and into the ocean forseveral hours Tuesday before it was shut off. — AP

W H AT ’ S ONMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

The Sultan of Brunei Haji HassanalBolkiah, accompanied by an offi-cial delegation, arrived in Kuwait

earlier last week on an official visit andchose The Regency as his residenceduring his visit. He was welcomed bythe General Manager, Aurelio Giraudoand his team on a red carpet that wasstretched from the hotel entranceacross the white marble lobby. His

Majesty cordially greeted every individ-ual member of the welcoming party.

During the Sultan’s two nights atthe Regency, he stayed in the hotel’smost luxurious and signature accom-modation, the Abdul Razzaq Suite. Onhis departure, the Sultan made a spe-cial point of personally thanking TheRegency staff.

Cav Aurelio Giraudo stated: “I am

truly delighted by the visit of hismajesty the Sultan of Brunei to TheRegency. I think most people knowthat his majesty is known for hisimpeccable taste and discerning eye,so to be selected as his chosen accom-modation in Kuwait for the secondtime was for us, is a tremendous honor- not just for me, but for all my associ-ates.”

The Regency Hotel welcomes

the Sultan of Brunei

The Arab Open University (AOU)Training Centre in collaborationwith Oula, the leading market-

ing fuel company, organized a work-shop, entitled “Risk Management”, fora number of senior and leadershipmanagement staff of Oula Company.The workshop goal was to developskills and knowledge of participants inidentifying, assessing and managingstrategic, operational and financialrisks and to acquaint them with thebest international practices in riskmanagement, such as the widelyknown model (COSO) , which is used

in a big number of leading Kuwaiticompanies for managing risk . Theworkshop was delivered by Alaa AbuNabaa, Chief Executive Internal Auditat AOU and Expert in risk manage-ment.

Abu Nabaa said this workshopaimed to address risk categories, iden-tification of threats and opportunities,and strategies of prioritizing riskresponses according to the company’sstrategy in risk management, addingthe responses include avoiding, trans-ferring, mitigating and accepting.During the workshop, fraud and ways

of identifying attributes and behaviorsof frauds were addressed in additionto the best practices of internal auditcontrols. The trainees were exposed tomany regional and internationalauthentic examples of risk manage-ment and they engaged in practicalexercises on such situations and cases.

At the end of the workshop, certifi-cates were presented to the partici-pants in presence of Faisal Al-Shalaby,Director of training and developmentdepartment at the AOU, andMohammed Helaly from the trainingdepartment at Oula.

AOU and Oula organize

Risk Management Workshop

Two teams of students from the AmericanUniversity of Kuwait (AUK) won the BestPoster Presentation Awards at the 7th

Annual Undergraduate Research Conference onApplied Computing (URC) held at ZayedUniversity in Dubai, UAE from April 22nd to 23rd,2015. AUK participated in the conference withnine projects from the Electrical and ComputerEngineering (ECE) Capstone Design courses. DrMohammed El Abd of ECE supervised the AUKteams presenting their projects, entitled: ‘ProjectLeap’: All-in-one pass NFC wallet, vehicle detec-tion system, smart meter tracker and robo-wait-er; ‘MTripleS’: A multipurpose secure smartcardsystem and ‘iPlant’: The intelligent farming sys-tem.

The objective of the URC is to promoteundergraduate research activity at educationalinstitutions in the UAE and across the Arab worldby providing a forum for students to present

their work and interact with other youngresearchers, faculty, and industrial leaders. Theconference featured 156 participating projectsfrom nine countries including Kuwait, Malaysia,UAE, KSA, Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, Oman, andQatar. In addition to student presentations andposters, the conference program included talksby prominent speakers in academia and otherrelevant industries.

The senior design capstone courses (CPEG475and CPEG480) at AUK are courses, in which stu-dents deliver a product that has passed throughplanning, design, implementation, analysis, test-ing, evaluation and documentation stages; thework requires creative thinking and problemsolving and is important for students’ academic,personal and professional growth. The capstoneproject must satisfy a number of requirements bythe department and is an extensive piece ofwork. The ECE holds an exhibition of the cap-

stone projects every year, but this year’s partici-pation in the URC and resulting awards is a mark-er of especially high quality work.

The two winners of the Best PosterPresentation Award at URC were the projects“All-in-One Pass NFC Wallet” and “iPlant: TheIntelligent Farming System.” The NFC Wallet istechnology with the ability to combine multipleaccounts into one safe, convenient and wearablepass for a variety of consumers. The productaims to eliminate the need for many smartcardsand includes three main elements: wearabletechnology with an embedded smart chip, aweb-based phone app and a smart reader torecognize the chip and provide security for theowner. This approach to integration of smart IDin wearable technology is relatively new andconsequently few solutions exist, providing aprime market for the NFC Wallet, with a focus onpayment transaction and building management

systems. The team was composed of AlaaEddinAl-Chalabi, Samer Essa, Haseeb Shahzad andsupervised by Dr Issam Damaj

The project “iPlant: The Intelligent FarmingSystem” also won Best Poster PresentationAward at the conference. iPlant is a system forthe agricultural sector in Kuwait that is self-sus-taining through environmental interaction: itsrobotic system monitors and broadcasts plants’vital information and can dispense water, nutri-ents and care based on this data, thereby reduc-ing usage of natural and financial resources. TheiPlant team developed the system with Kuwait’sweather in mind and the subsequent need fornon-traditional agricultural systems. iPlant isdesigned to be used in greenhouses and itincludes two parts: one, an environment control-ling system to stabilize temperature and humidi-ty, send the user climate reports and detectsmoke; and two, a line following robot that

plants and waters the soil. The team was com-posed of Bashayer Al-Beeshi, Bashayer Al-Mesbah, Sara Al-Dousari, and supervised by DrMohammed El-Abd.

In addition to these achievements, manyengineering students have published the workdeveloped in their capstone projects in bothregional and international conferences over thelast three years. These accolades include 11 ref-erenced conference publications; 12 shortpapers, abstracts in conference proceedings andposters; and 13 exhibition participations. Themission of the AUK ECE department is to providehigh-quality engineering education centered onthe key principles of liberal arts; specifically, life-long-learning, critical thinking, and effectivecommunication. The department prepares stu-dents to become successful engineers and tocontribute effectively to their profession andcommunity.

India International School, Kuwait organized ‘DrinkMore Water Campaign’ from 18 May onwards, as acontinuation of the mission initiated by the school

Director, Malayil Moosa Koya in the last academic year.EVS and science teachers explained the benefits ofdrinking water and the adverse effects and healthissues due to dehydration. Tips were given about thewise usage of water and the students were motivatedto drink more water by the section Vice Principal, Mrs

Sapna during the Assembly. She also urged them to spread themessage to their

family and friends. Class coordinators visited classes andexplained both the pros and cons of drinking and notdrinking water. Class teachers were instructed to remindstudents every morning to drink more water. All the chil-dren were found to be health conscious and seriousabout this issue. The campaign was launched at an idealtime as the summer has already started encroaching.

Drink More Water Campaign at IISM

AUK engineering students win awards at Dubai Research Conference

Alaa Eddin Al-Chalabi picks up his award. Alaa Eddin Al-Chalabi’s poster presentation. Asayel Al-Mutawa Jumana’s Al-Jaber poster presentation.

Bashayer Al-Beeshi Mohammed El-Abd picks up her award. Bashayer Al-Beeshi’s poster presentation. Salma Chiko’s poster presentation.

Shahad Al-Mourad’s poster presentation. Hessa Al-Hasan and Reem Al-Sane’s poster presentation.

W H AT ’ S ONMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

In celebration of its 33 year anniver-sary, The Sultan Center hosted a rangeof activities and events throughout

the month of April, in which TSC rewardcard customers had an opportunity toparticipate and win a number of exitingprizes and gifts. Upon purchase of KD 10TSC Reward Card members were auto-matically entered into the draw, with achance to win valuable prizes.

Prizes for the anniversary celebrationincluded a Nissan Pathfinder, five NissanSunnys, gold coins, thousands of TSC giftvouchers and travel rewards includingtickets to Beirut, Sharm Al-Sheikh, Dubai,Istanbul, Muscat and Amman. The grandprize winner of the Nissan Pathfinder wasSaled Majed Al-Khamis and the five lucky

winners of Nissan Sunny were AbdelSalem Abba, Rajesh Gairdla, Hani OsamiKhalifa, Wassmiya Ghazy Al-Harby andKhaled Al-Ali.

Commenting on the success of TSCAnniversary campaign, Loyalty ProgramManager at TSC, Mohammed Jalloul,said, ìThe campaign was well-received byTSC customers and their participation inthis campaign is a testament to its suc-cess. This positive feedback is encourag-ing as we hope to prepare similar cam-paigns in the future for our TSC Rewardscard holdersî.

TSC Rewards card program is free tojoin and customers can enjoy unlimitedbenefits, rewards and chances to winvaluable prizes throughout the year.

Sultan Center celebrates

33rd anniversary

LOYAC recently held a special ceremony at KuwaitNational Library to conclude its AC Milan SoccerSchool activities under patronage and with the atten-

dance of the Italian ambassador to Kuwait, FabrizioNicoletti.

The LOYAC AC Milan Soccer School is one of the leadingsoccer schools in the region and one of the few AC Milansoccer schools worldwide. It is also the first Arab team toever participate in the International Youth PeaceTournament.†The schoolís Girls team (ages 11-16) recentlytook part in the ëPeace Championshipí held in Florence,Italy and managed to win second place. The youth teamcomprising of 20 players also took part in the same cham-pionship and won third place.

Speaking at the ceremony, LOYAC board member, MonaAl-Kalouti stressed that LOYACís AC Milan Soccer Schoolhas trained 450 players this year and that two teams hadtaken part in an international championship in Italy andwon leading places. On his part, the DOW ChemicalGeneral Manager, Ahmed Daíalah expressed his companyíspride in supporting and sponsoring the schoolís teams aspart of its communal activities and responsibility towardsthe society as a whole.

LOYAC concludes AC Milan Soccer School activities

Jumeirah Messilah Beach Hotel & Spa continues to pro-vide the finest venues for exceptional events andgrand celebrations in Kuwait and has been recognized

for two years running as Kuwait’s Leading Business Hotelby the prestigious World Travel Awards. Kuwait’s idyllicresort is committed to raising the bar of perfection in pro-viding and developing a market-leading product andservice.

Director of Business Development and Marketing,Ahmed Jarkass, said: “With extensive conference and ban-queting facilities and an exceptional location, our hotel isthe ideal destination for first-class meetings and events inKuwait and the region. We have recently welcomed a newDirector of Conferences and Events, Sarkis Demirjian, whotogether with the hotel’s experienced events team, looksforward to providing inspiration and support to meet our

guests’ high expectations in order to turn each event into amemorable success.”

With elegantly appointed guest rooms, the luxuriouslandmark offers modern event facilities. There are 16 meet-ing rooms, including the Badriah ballroom which at 1,950square meters is the largest in Kuwait. The Reef room is ahidden haven and offers an impressive underwater design,perfect for formal meetings, business gatherings, VIP

events, board meetings, private social events and cocktailreceptions.

In addition, the hotel provides a business centredesigned to offer guests with comprehensive secretarial,meeting and ancillary services and access to the ClubExecutive Lounge. From corporate functions and socialevents to ceremonies and weddings, Kuwait’s idyllic resortis the perfect venue to host all types of events.

Award winning venues at Jumeirah Messilah Beach Hotel & Spa

Al Sadu meeting room Dewan meeting room

By Sunil Cherian

Somu Mathew is writing a book - a collection of quips,anecdotes and small stories with messages aiming asa guide for public speakers. The project started years

ago by his late father, a former member of the Indian par-liament Pala KM Mathew. As a retirement plan, Somu, awell-known social activist among the Indian expats inKuwait, will also wear the member hat of the KM Mathewtrust that will run literary competitions at a school level.

While most expats start linking with expat associationsafter landing in Kuwait, Somu had foreseen a retired life inKuwait. He had shadowed his filmmaker brother JoshyMathew in his social activism just like his father did with hisbrother KM Chandy, KPCC president and governor. Somucame to Kuwait as a teacher at United Indian School. Helater joined the joint operations and soon found himself atthe forefront of the Indian Overseas Congress (IOC), one ofthe first expat associations to come out of the houses for apublic meeting.

A couple of other organizations also saw Somu as an

inevitable presence. He was the president and later secretaryof Youth Chorus, an organization boasting of conducting theMiddle East’s biggest Christmas choir competition for 18years. Somu’s name is highly associated with KottayamAssociation, Paurasamithi that does charity works, Pala StThomas Alumni and We Baselians. As he is leaving Kuwaitthis Wednesday, Somu has nothing to regret.

After retirement, a writer’s

hat for Somu Mathew

DISCOVERY CHANNEL HD00:45 Bear Grylls: Breaking Point01:35 Bear Grylls: Breaking Point02:25 Bear Grylls: Breaking Point03:15 Bear Grylls: Breaking Point04:05 Bear Grylls: Breaking Point05:00 Mind Control Freaks05:30 Mind Control Freaks06:00 Alaska: The Last Frontier06:50 Idris Elba: King Of Speed07:40 Fast N’ Loud08:30 Storage Hunters08:55 Backroad Bounty09:45 How It’s Made10:10 How Do They Do It?10:35 Fast N’ Loud11:25 Misfit Garage12:15 Wheeler Dealers13:05 Storage Hunters13:30 Backroad Bounty14:20 Alaska: The Last Frontier15:10 Overhaulin’16:00 Fast N’ Loud16:50 How It’s Made17:15 How Do They Do It?17:40 American Muscle18:30 Gold Rush19:20 Gold Divers20:10 Backroad Bounty21:00 Gold Rush21:50 Gold Divers22:40 Alaska: The Last Frontier(Season 4 Specials)23:30 Fast N’ Loud: DemolitionTheater

T V PR O G R A M SMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

00:00 The Soup00:30 The Grace Helbig Show00:55 Fashion Bloggers01:25 The Drama Queen02:20 E! News03:15 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills03:40 Richkids Of Beverly Hills04:10 THS05:05 Fergie Special06:00 Keeping Up With TheKardashians06:55 Keeping Up With TheKardashians07:50 Style Star08:20 E! News09:15 Giuliana & Bill10:15 Giuliana & Bill11:10 Eric And Jessie: Game On11:35 Eric And Jessie: Game On12:05 E! News13:05 Extreme Close-Up13:35 THS14:30 Style Star15:00 Kourtney And Khloe TakeThe Hamptons16:00 Kourtney And Khloe TakeThe Hamptons17:00 A-List Listings: AcademyAwards Edition17:30 Fashion Police18:00 E! News19:00 Keeping Up With TheKardashians20:00 House Of DVF21:00 Fashion Bloggers21:30 Fashion Bloggers22:00 Good Work23:00 Beyond Candid WithGiuliana

WE’RE THE MILLERS ON OSN MOVIES HD

MAN OF STEEL ON OSN MOVIES ACTIN HD

00:30 The Doctor Blake Mysteries01:30 Paul O’Grady: For The LoveOf Dogs02:00 Emmerdale02:25 Emmerdale02:55 Coronation Street03:25 Who’s Doing The Dishes04:20 Big Star’s Little Star05:15 The Chase: CelebritySpecials06:10 Please Marry My BoyAustralia07:05 Coronation Street07:30 Who’s Doing The Dishes08:25 Big Star’s Little Star09:20 Home Fires10:15 Paul O’Grady: For The LoveOf Dogs10:40 The Jonathan Ross Show11:35 Please Marry My BoyAustralia12:30 The Chase: CelebritySpecials13:25 Emmerdale13:50 Holiday: Heaven On Earth14:15 Coronation Street14:40 The Jonathan Ross Show15:35 The Chase16:30 The Doctor Blake Mysteries17:25 The Doctor Blake Mysteries18:20 The Chase: CelebritySpecials19:10 Coronation Street19:35 The Chase20:30 The Doctor Blake Mysteries21:25 The Doctor Blake Mysteries22:20 Coronation Street22:50 Emmerdale23:15 The Chase: CelebritySpecials

17:30 The Pioneer Woman18:00 Barefoot Contessa18:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives19:00 Chopped20:00 Guy’s Grocery Games21:00 Ching’s RestaurantRedemption21:30 Ching’s RestaurantRedemption22:00 Mystery Diners22:30 Mystery Diners23:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives23:30 Chopped

00:00 Nazi Underworld01:00 Bugging Hitler’s Army02:00 Situation Critical03:00 Air Crash Investigation04:00 Monster Frog05:00 Britain’s Greatest Machines06:00 Caught In The Act07:00 Lords Of War07:30 Lords Of War08:00 Nazi Underworld09:00 Bugging Hitler’s Army10:00 Situation Critical11:00 Monster Frog12:00 Wild Canada13:00 Banged Up Abroad14:00 Mystery Files14:30 Mystery Files15:00 Nazi Underworld16:00 Family Guns17:00 Nazi Death Camp: The GreatEscape18:00 Helicopter Wars19:00 Nazi Underworld20:00 Family Guns21:00 Nazi Death Camp: The GreatEscape22:00 Helicopter Wars23:00 Monster Frog

00:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives00:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives01:00 Rev Run’s Sunday Suppers01:30 Siba’s Table02:00 Farm Kings03:00 Siba’s Table03:30 Siba’s Table04:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives04:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives05:00 Chopped06:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives06:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives07:00 Roadtrip With G. Garvin07:30 Roadtrip With G. Garvin08:00 Chopped09:00 Barefoot Contessa09:30 Amazing Wedding Cakes10:30 The Pioneer Woman11:00 The Pioneer Woman11:30 Roadtrip With G. Garvin12:00 Chopped13:00 Guy’s Big Bite13:30 Guy’s Big Bite14:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives14:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives15:00 Roadtrip With G. Garvin15:30 Roadtrip With G. Garvin16:00 Chopped17:00 The Pioneer Woman

00:00 Parenthood01:00 Tyrant02:00 House Of Cards03:00 Mistresses04:00 Scandal05:00 Castle06:00 Parenthood08:00 Perception09:00 Castle10:00 Scandal12:00 Emmerdale12:30 Coronation Street13:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show14:00 Perception15:00 Parenthood16:00 Emmerdale16:30 Coronation Street17:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show18:00 Perception19:00 Red Band Society21:00 Helix22:00 Game Of Thrones23:00 Mistresses

02:00 Good Morning America03:00 Legends04:00 Defiance06:00 Good Morning America07:00 Emmerdale07:30 Coronation Street09:00 The Night Shift10:00 Emmerdale10:30 Coronation Street12:00 Marvel’s Agent Carter13:00 C.S.I.14:00 Live Good Morning America16:00 The Night Shift17:00 Marvel’s Agent Carter18:00 C.S.I.19:00 The Night Shift20:00 Marvel’s Agent Carter21:00 C.S.I.22:00 Better Call Saul23:00 Defiance

00:00 Peeples-PG1502:00 Call Me Crazy: A Five Film-PG1504:00 In A World...-PG1506:00 Magic Journey To Africa-PG1508:00 Snitch-PG1510:00 Frozen-PG12:00 In A World...-PG1514:00 Badges Of Fury-PG1515:45 Snitch-PG1517:45 Guardians Of The Galaxy-PG1520:00 The Art Of The Steal-PG1522:00 Insidious: Chapter 2-PG15

06:00 Kid vs Kat06:10 Zeke & Luther06:35 Kickin’ It07:00 Phineas And Ferb07:25 Lab Rats07:50 Supa Strikas08:15 The 7D08:40 Kirby Buckets09:05 Ultimate Spider-Man: WebWarriors09:30 Kickin’ It09:55 Phineas And Ferb10:20 Boyster10:45 Zeke & Luther11:10 Lab Rats11:35 Phineas And Ferb12:00 Pair Of Kings12:30 Supa Strikas12:55 Kickin’ It13:20 Phineas And Ferb13:40 Mighty Med14:05 Zeke & Luther14:30 Kickin’ It14:55 Ultimate Spider-Man: WebWarriors15:20 Supa Strikas15:45 Mini Ninjas16:10 Pair Of Kings16:35 Supa Strikas17:00 Kirby Buckets17:30 Mighty Med18:00 Mission Marvel18:50 Supa Strikas19:15 Phineas And Ferb19:40 Phineas And Ferb

00:20 Dangerous Encounters01:10 The Real Serengeti02:00 Night Stalkers02:50 War Elephants03:45 Dangerous Encounters04:40 Ultimate Predators GPU05:35 Night Stalkers06:30 War Elephants07:25 Dangerous Encounters08:20 Fish Tank Kings09:15 Kingdom Of The Oceans10:10 Fatal Attraction11:05 Animals Gone Wild12:00 Fish Warrior12:55 Night Stalkers13:50 Madagascar’s LegendaryLemurs14:45 I, Predator15:40 Rise Of Animals16:35 Kingdom Of The Oceans17:30 Blood Rivals: Lion vs. Buffalo18:25 Animals Gone Wild

00:30 The Daily Show With JonStewart01:00 The Nightly Show With LarryWilmore01:30 It’s Always Sunny InPhiladelphia02:00 It’s Always Sunny InPhiladelphia02:30 Curb Your Enthusiasm03:00 Cristela03:30 Parks And Recreation04:30 The Tonight Show StarringJimmy Fallon07:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers09:00 Cristela09:30 Brooklyn Nine-Nine11:00 The Tonight Show StarringJimmy Fallon14:00 Parks And Recreation14:30 Brooklyn Nine-Nine15:30 The Daily Show With JonStewart16:00 The Nightly Show With LarryWilmore17:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers18:00 Cristela18:30 Parks And Recreation19:00 About A Boy20:00 Mulaney21:00 The Daily Show With JonStewart21:30 Last Week Tonight With JohnOliver22:05 Veep22:30 Silicon Valley23:00 Togetherness23:30 Mulaney

01:00 The Butler-PG1503:15 Suspension Of Disbelief-PG1505:15 The Past-PG1507:30 The Glass Man-PG1509:30 The Bag Man-PG1511:30 The Past-PG1514:00 Almost Christmas-PG1516:00 Stolen Child-PG1517:30 The Bag Man-PG1519:30 I Will Follow You Into TheDark-PG1521:30 At Any Price-PG1523:30 Joe-18

00:00 MSNBC Caught On Camera01:00 Live ABC World News01:30 Live NBC Nightly News02:00 ABC World News02:30 NBC Nightly News03:00 NBC Sunday Today Show04:00 ABC This Week With GStephanopoulos05:00 NBC Meet The Press06:00 ABC World News06:30 NBC Nightly News07:00 ABC World News07:30 NBC Nightly News08:00 ABC This Week With GStephanopoulos09:00 ABC World News09:30 NBC Nightly News10:00 Live ABC World News Now10:30 Live ABC World News Now11:00 Live NBC Early Today11:30 Live ABC America ThisMorning12:00 Live ABC America ThisMorning12:30 Live ABC America ThisMorning13:00 Live ABC America ThisMorning13:30 MSNBC First Look14:00 Live NBC Today Show18:00 Live MSNBC NewsNation19:00 Live MSNBC Andrea MitchellReports20:00 Live MSNBC Live WithThomas Roberts22:00 Live MSNBC The Cycle23:00 Live MSNBC Now With AlexWagner

00:00 Live LPGA Tour11:30 Super Rugby Highlights 12:00 Golfing World15:00 Indy Car Series19:00 WWE Experience20:00 WWE Afterburn21:00 WWE This Week21:30 Indy Car Series

00:00 Act Of Valor02:00 Jersey Shore Shark Attack04:00 Kill Em All06:00 Marvel’s Doctor Strange08:00 The Numbers Station10:00 Justice League: War12:00 Terminal Velocity14:00 Kill Em All16:00 The Numbers Station18:00 Justice League: War19:30 Terminal Velocity21:30 Man Of Steel

01:00 Super Rugby Highlights03:00 Senior US PGAChampionship07:00 Golfing World08:00 LPGA Tour 11:00 Top 14 Highlights12:00 Live NRL Premiership

02:00 The French Connection04:00 Jobs06:30 For Greater Glory09:00 Little White Lies10:45 Dead Poets Society13:00 Battle Of The Year15:00 Quiz Show17:15 Little White Lies19:00 The Boxer21:00 Tar22:30 The Bling Ring

01:00 Runner Runner-PG1503:00 Good Deeds-PG1505:00 Free Birds-PG07:00 Dawn Rider-PG1509:00 The Last Days On Mars-PG1511:00 The Wolverine-PG1513:15 Streetdance: All Stars-PG1515:00 The Nut Job-FAM17:00 The Last Days On Mars-PG1518:45 Need For Speed-PG1521:00 Insight-PG1523:00 We’re The Millers-18

01:00 Postman Pat: The Movie02:45 Planet 5104:30 Little Gobie06:00 Miffy The Movie08:00 Patoruzito: The GreatAdventure10:00 Wheelers11:30 Space Dogs13:00 Planet 5114:30 The Olsen Gang In DeepTrouble16:00 Catch That Kid18:00 Wheelers20:00 Khumba22:00 The Olsen Gang In DeepTrouble23:30 Marvel’s Planet Hulk

19:20 I, Predator20:10 Rise Of Animals21:00 Kingdom Of The Oceans21:50 Blood Rivals: Lion vs. Buffalo22:40 Animals Gone Wild23:30 Fish Warrior

00:00 Jersey Shore Shark Attack02:00 Kill Em All-PG1504:00 Marvel’s Doctor Strange-PG06:00 The Numbers Station-PG1508:00 Justice League: War-PG1510:00 Terminal Velocity-PG1512:00 Kill Em All-PG1514:00 The Numbers Station-PG1516:00 Justice League: War-PG1517:30 Terminal Velocity-PG1519:30 Man Of Steel-PG1522:00 Rage-PG15

02:00 That Awkward Moment04:00 Article 9906:00 28 Days08:00 Breathless10:00 Oscar12:00 That Awkward Moment14:00 28 Days16:00 Breathless18:00 Every Day20:00 Sorority Boys22:00 The Royal Tenenbaums

14:30 Senior US PGAChampionship19:00 PGA Tour Highlights20:00 PGA European TourHighlights21:00 AFL Premiership Highlights 22:00 Golfing World23:00 LPGA Tour

00:30 Indian Premier League H/L :Final12:00 Indian Premier League H/L :Eliminator13:00 Live International Test Series: ENG v NZ21:00 ICC Cricket 36021:30 Indian Premier League H/L :Qualifier 122:30 Indian Premier League H/L :Eliminator

00:15 A Good Night To Die04:00 Wreckers05:30 Speak07:00 Thorne: Scaredycat09:00 Inferno10:45 The Four12:45 Wreckers14:15 Hanna16:15 33 Postcards18:00 People Like Us20:00 Jane Eyre22:00 Brave23:30 Father Of The Bride II

00:00 Lost01:00 Masterchef: TheProfessionals02:00 Revenge03:00 Revenge04:00 Low Winter Sun05:00 The Simpsons05:30 The Simpsons06:00 Around The World In 80Plates07:00 How I Met Your Mother07:30 How I Met Your Mother08:00 Lost09:00 Masterchef: TheProfessionals10:00 The Simpsons10:30 The Simpsons11:00 Revenge12:00 Revenge13:00 Low Winter Sun14:00 How I Met Your Mother14:30 How I Met Your Mother15:00 Around The World In 80Plates16:00 Lost17:00 Masterchef: TheProfessionals18:00 Army Wives19:00 Army Wives20:00 Grey’s Anatomy21:00 Scrubs21:30 Scrubs22:00 The Bridge23:00 The Simpsons23:30 The Simpsons

00:00 The Curse Of Oak Island01:00 Ax Men02:00 Swamp People03:00 American Pickers04:00 The Curse Of Oak Island05:00 American Pickers06:00 American Pickers07:00 Counting Cars07:30 Counting Cars08:00 Mountain Men09:00 Ax Men10:00 American Pickers11:00 Pawn Stars11:30 Pawn Stars12:00 Storage Wars12:30 Storage Wars13:00 Pawn Stars South Africa13:30 Pawn Stars South Africa14:00 Pawn Stars South Africa14:30 Pawn Stars South Africa15:00 Pawn Stars South Africa15:30 Pawn Stars South Africa16:00 Pawn Stars South Africa16:30 Pawn Stars South Africa17:00 Pawn Stars South Africa17:30 Pawn Stars South Africa18:00 Pawn Stars South Africa18:30 Pawn Stars South Africa19:00 Ax Men20:00 Storage Wars20:30 Storage Wars21:00 Storage Wars21:30 Storage Wars22:00 Pawn Stars22:30 Pawn Stars23:00 Pawn Stars South Africa23:30 Pawn Stars South Africa

00:45 Shopping Is My Life01:35 Long Island Medium02:00 Last Chance Salon02:50 Say Yes To The Dress03:15 Something Borrowed,Something New03:40 Soul Food Family04:30 Cake Boss05:00 Little People, Big World05:30 Extreme Couponing06:00 17 Kids And Counting06:25 The Next Great Baker07:15 Say Yes To The Dress07:40 Something Borrowed,Something New08:05 Say Yes To The Dress:Randy Knows Best08:30 Say Yes To The Dress:Randy Knows Best08:55 Say Yes To The Dress09:20 Say Yes To The Dress09:45 Cake Boss10:10 Little People, Big World10:35 Extreme Couponing11:00 Toddlers & Tiaras11:50 Say Yes To The Dress:Randy Knows Best12:15 Say Yes To The Dress:Randy Knows Best12:40 The Next Great Baker13:30 19 Kids And Counting13:55 19 Kids And Counting14:20 Little People, Big World:Down Under15:10 Cake Boss15:35 Little People, Big World16:00 Toddlers & Tiaras16:50 Say Yes To The Dress17:15 Something Borrowed,Something New17:40 17 Kids And Counting18:05 Extreme Couponing18:30 Soul Food Family

19:20 Shopping Is My Life20:10 The Next Great Baker21:00 Return To Amish21:50 My Big Fat Fabulous Life22:15 My Big Fat Fabulous Life22:40 Long Island Medium23:05 Last Chance Salon23:55 Return To Amish

03:00 True Crime WithAphrodite Jones03:45 Dr G: Medical Examiner04:30 Disappeared05:20 Forensic Detectives06:10 Forensic Detectives07:00 Nightmare Next Door07:50 Fatal Encounters08:40 I Almost Got Away With It09:30 I Was Murdered09:55 Stalked: Someone’sWatching10:20 Forensic Detectives11:10 On The Case With PaulaZahn12:00 Blood Relatives12:50 True Crime WithAphrodite Jones13:40 Who On Earth Did IMarry?14:05 Who On Earth Did IMarry?14:30 On The Case With PaulaZahn15:20 I Was Murdered15:45 Stalked: Someone’sWatching16:10 Fatal Encounters17:00 Blood Relatives17:50 I Almost Got Away With It18:40 Forensic Detectives19:30 True Crime WithAphrodite Jones20:20 The Will21:10 Who On Earth Did IMarry?21:35 Who On Earth Did IMarry?22:00 True Crime WithAphrodite Jones22:50 Dr G: Medical Examiner23:40 Couples Who Kill00:30 Swamp Murders01:20 Nightmare Next Door02:10 True Crime WithAphrodite Jones

03:00 Art Attack03:25 Julius Jr.03:35 Calimero03:50 Henry Hugglemonster04:00 Zou04:15 Mouk04:25 Jungle Junction04:35 Art Attack05:00 Julius Jr.05:10 Calimero05:25 Henry Hugglemonster05:35 Zou05:50 Mouk06:00 Jungle Junction06:10 Art Attack06:35 Julius Jr.06:45 Calimero07:00 Jungle Junction07:15 Zou07:30 Calimero07:45 Loopdidoo08:00 Limon And Oli08:10 Jake And The Never LandPirates08:35 Doc McStuffins09:05 Art Attack09:30 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse10:00 Sofia The First10:25 Henry Hugglemonster10:55 Miles From Tomorrow

11:20 Jake And The NeverlandPirates11:35 Limon And Oli11:45 Loopdidoo12:00 Handy Manny12:15 Sofia The First12:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse13:10 Sheriff Callie’s Wild West13:35 Zou13:50 Jake And The Never LandPirates14:15 Doc McStuffins14:45 Miles From Tomorrow15:10 Messages From Miles15:15 Sofia The First15:40 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse16:05 Lilo & Stitch16:30 Adventures Of TheGummi Bears17:00 Chip n Dale RescueRangers17:25 Ducktales18:00 Miles From Tomorrow18:30 Sofia The First18:55 Messages From Miles19:00 The Adventures Of DisneyFairies19:30 Jake And The NeverlandPirates19:45 Doc McStuffins20:00 Adventures Of TheGummi Bears20:30 Sofia The First20:55 Cars Toons21:00 Chip n Dale RescueRangers21:30 Ducktales22:00 Lilo & Stitch22:25 Art Attack22:55 Limon And Oli23:05 Zou23:20 Mouk23:35 Jungle Junction23:50 Art Attack00:15 Julius Jr.00:30 Calimero00:45 Henry Hugglemonster01:00 Zou01:15 Jungle Junction01:25 Art Attack01:50 Julius Jr.02:00 Calimero02:15 Henry Hugglemonster02:25 Zou02:40 Mouk02:50 Jungle Junction

ClassifiedsMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Kuwait

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

DIAL161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Arrival Flights on Monday 25/5/2015Airlines Flt Route TimeQTR 1084 Doha 00:05THY 772 Istanbul 00:15JZR 239 Amman 00:20JZR 267 Beirut 00:30DLH 637 Dammam 00:35FDB 069 Dubai 00:55JAI 574 Mumbai 01:30JZR 539 Cairo 01:30ETH 3403 Addis Ababa/Riyadh 01:35PGT 858 Istanbul 01:40RJA 642 Amman 01:45KKK 6507 Istanbul 02:15GFA 211 Bahrain 02:15UAE 853 Dubai 02:25MSC 403 Sohag 02:30OMA 643 Muscat 02:35QTR 1076 Doha 03:05ETD 305 Abu Dhabi 03:05CEB 7694 Manila 03:10FDB 067 Dubai 03:15MSR 612 Cairo 03:15SYR 341 Latakia 03:20KAC 1544 Cairo 03:35MSC 401 Alexandria 04:00JZR 555 Alexandria 04:15THY 770 Istanbul 04:40DHX 170 Bahrain 05:10KAC 412 Manila/Bangkok 06:15BAW 157 London 06:35KAC 206 Islamabad 07:30KAC 382 Delhi 07:30FDB 053 Dubai 07:50KAC 302 Mumbai 07:55QTR 1086 Doha 07:55KAC 344 Chennai 08:15KAC 352 Kochi 08:15UAE 855 Dubai 08:25KAC 362 Colombo 08:30ABY 125 Sharjah 09:05IRA 667 Esfahan 09:05ETD 301 Abu Dhabi 09:10KAC 284 Dhaka 09:25FDB 055 Dubai 09:40KAC 350 Kochi 09:40QTR 1070 Doha 10:00GFA 213 Bahrain 10:40UAE 873 Dubai 10:40MEA 404 Beirut 10:55AXB 889 Mangalore/Bahrain 11:15MSC 405 Sohag 11:20JZR 561 Sohag 11:25AGY 680 Alexandria 11:40JZR 165 Dubai 11:50FDB 075 Dubai 12:25UAE 871 Dubai 12:45MSR 610 Cairo 13:00THY 766 Istanbul 13:10KAC 620 Doha 13:10KAC 672 Dubai 13:55

QTR 1078 Doha 14:05KNE 460 Riyadh 14:10FDB 057 Dubai 14:20GFA 221 Bahrain 14:20SVA 500 Jeddah 14:30KNE 472 Jeddah 14:55KAC 538 Sohag 14:55KAC 788 Jeddah 15:00ABY 127 Sharjah 15:35UAE 857 Dubai 15:45NIA 251 Alexandria 15:50RJA 640 Amman 15:55FDB 051 Dubai 16:10QTR 1072 Doha 16:20KAC 118 New York 16:30KAC 792 Madinah 16:50ETD 303 Abu Dhabi 16:50KAC 562 Amman 17:00SVA 510 Riyadh 17:15GFA 215 Bahrain 17:30JZR 177 Dubai 17:45JZR 777 Jeddah 17:50FDB 065 Dubai 18:05OMA 645 Muscat 18:05KAC 786 Jeddah 18:35KAC 502 Beirut 18:35SYR 343 Damascus 18:45QTR 1080 Doha 18:55KAC 542 Cairo 18:55KAC 618 Doha 18:55KAC 104 London 19:00GFA 217 Bahrain 19:05UAE 875 Dubai 19:05FDB 063 Dubai 19:10KAC 614 Bahrain 19:10ABY 123 Sharjah 19:20JAI 572 Mumbai 19:35KAC 774 Riyadh 19:40AGY 684 Sohag 19:50FDB 061 Dubai 19:50OMA 647 Muscat 20:00KAC 674 Dubai 20:00KNE 480 Taif 20:10MEA 402 Beirut 20:15DLH 634 Frankfurt 20:20MSR 618 Alexandria 20:30JAD 301 Amman 20:55ALK 229 Colombo 21:10UAE 859 Dubai 21:15ETD 307 Abu Dhabi 21:15FDB 073 Dubai 21:30QTR 1074 Doha 21:30AIC 975 Chennai/Mumbai 21:35GFA 219 Bahrain 21:45THY 764 Istanbul 22:10ETD 309 Abu Dhabi 22:10JZR 125 Bahrain 22:15FDB 059 Dubai 22:50JZR 185 Dubai 22:55JAI 526 Chennai/Abu Dhabi 23:00FDB 071 Dubai 23:35KLM 411 Amsterdam/Dammam 23:40

Departure Flights on Monday 25/5/2015Airlines Flt Route TimeAIC 982 Ahmedabad/Chennai 00:05BBC 044 Dhaka 00:10UAL 981 IAD 00:25JAI 573 Mumbai 00:25FDB 072 Dubai 00:30PIA 206 Lahore 00:40DLH 637 Frankfurt 01:35THY 773 Istanbul 02:05JAI 525 Abu Dhabi/Chennai 02:55PGT 859 Istanbul 02:55ETH 3403 Addis Ababa 03:05KKK 6508 Istanbul 03:10MSC 404 Sohag 03:30OMA 644 Muscat 03:35UAE 854 Dubai 03:45FDB 068 Dubai 04:00ETD 306 Abu Dhabi 04:05QTR 1077 Doha 04:05MSR 613 Cairo 04:15SYR 342 Latakia 04:20CEB 7695 Manila 04:40THY 765 Istanbul 04:55JZR 560 Sohag 05:00MSC 406 Sohag 05:00QTR 1085 Doha 05:20RJA 643 Amman 06:35GFA 212 Bahrain 06:50THY 771 Istanbul 06:50FDB 070 Dubai 07:05JZR 164 Dubai 07:15KAC 537 Sohag 08:20BAW 156 London 08:30FDB 054 Dubai 08:30QTR 1087 Doha 08:55KAC 671 Dubai 09:25KAC 619 Doha 09:30KAC 787 Jeddah 09:30ABY 126 Sharjah 09:45UAE 856 Dubai 09:50ETD 302 Abu Dhabi 10:00IRA 666 Esfahan 10:05FDB 056 Dubai 10:40KAC 501 Beirut 11:00QTR 1071 Doha 11:00KAC 165 Rome/Paris 11:25KAC 561 Amman 11:25GFA 214 Bahrain 11:35MEA 405 Beirut 11:55KAC 791 Madinah 12:00KAC 541 Cairo 12:05KAC 103 London 12:10UAE 874 Dubai 12:10JZR 776 Jeddah 12:15AXB 890 Mangalore 12:15MSC 402 Alexandria 12:20AGY 685 Sohag 12:40KAC 785 Jeddah 13:00JZR 176 Dubai 13:10FDB 076 Dubai 13:10MSR 611 Cairo 14:00

THY 767 Istanbul 14:10UAE 872 Dubai 14:15QTR 1079 Doha 15:05GFA 222 Bahrain 15:05FDB 058 Dubai 15:05KNE 481 Taif 15:10KAC 617 Doha 15:15KAC 673 Dubai 15:20SVA 501 Jeddah 15:45KAC 773 Riyadh 15:55KAC 613 Bahrain 16:00KNE 473 Jeddah 16:00ABY 128 Sharjah 16:15NIA 252 Alexandria 16:50RJA 641 Amman 16:55JZR 266 Beirut 17:05FDB 052 Dubai 17:10QTR 1073 Doha 17:25UAE 858 Dubai 17:40ETD 304 Abu Dhabi 17:40SVA 511 Riyadh 18:15JZR 184 Dubai 18:20GFA 216 Bahrain 18:20JZR 538 Cairo 18:40JZR 238 Amman 18:45FDB 066 Dubai 18:55OMA 646 Muscat 19:05JZR 124 Bahrain 19:20SYR 344 Damascus 19:45GFA 218 Bahrain 19:50FDB 064 Dubai 19:50QTR 1081 Doha 19:55ABY 124 Sharjah 20:00KAC 361 Colombo 20:00UAE 876 Dubai 20:35JAI 571 Mumbai 20:35FDB 062 Dubai 20:35AGY 681 Alexandria 20:50KAC 1543 Cairo 20:55KAC 333 Trivandrum 20:55OMA 648 Muscat 21:00KAC 351 Kochi 21:05KAC 283 Dhaka 21:05KNE 461 Riyadh 21:10MEA 403 Beirut 21:15MSR 619 Alexandria 21:30JAD 302 Amman 21:35DHX 171 Bahrain 21:50ETD 308 Abu Dhabi 22:05FDB 074 Dubai 22:10ALK 230 Colombo 22:20KAC 381 Delhi 22:20UAE 860 Dubai 22:25KAC 349 Kochi 22:30KAC 301 Mumbai 22:30QTR 1075 Doha 22:40GFA 220 Bahrain 22:45ETD 310 Abu Dhabi 23:00KAC 205 Islamabad 23:05KAC 411 Bangkok/Manila 23:25FDB 060 Dubai 23:50

SHARQIA-1POLTERGEIST 11:30 AMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 1:30 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 3:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 6:00 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 8:15 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 10:30 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 12:45 AM

SHARQIA-2TOMORROWLAND 11:30 AMTOMORROWLAND 2:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 4:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 9:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 12:05 AM

SHARQIA-3OUT OF THE DARK 1:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 3:00 PMOUT OF THE DARK 5:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 7:00 PMOUT OF THE DARK 9:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 11:00 PMOUT OF THE DARK 1:00 AM

MUHALAB-1MAD MAX: FURY ROAD 1:00 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 3:15 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 5:30 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 7:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 10:00 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 12:15 AM

MUHALAB-2OUT OF THE DARK 12:45 PMPOLTERGEIST 2:45 PMOUT OF THE DARK 4:45 PMOUT OF THE DARK 6:45 PMPOLTERGEIST 8:45 PMOUT OF THE DARK 10:45 PMPOLTERGEIST 12:45 AM

MUHALAB-3TOMORROWLAND 12:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 2:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 5:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 10:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 12:30 AM

FANAR-1POLTERGEIST 12:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 2:00 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 4:00 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 6:30 PMPOLTERGEIST 8:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 10:45 PMPOLTERGEIST 1:00 AM

FANAR-2OUT OF THE DARK 12:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 2:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 4:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 6:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 8:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 10:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 12:15 AM

FANAR-3SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 1:00 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 3:15 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 5:30 PMAVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON 7:45 PM

SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 10:30 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 12:45 AM

FANAR-4TOMORROWLAND 11:30 AMTOMORROWLAND 2:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 4:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:15 PMTOMORROWLAND 9:45 PMTOMORROWLAND 12:30 AM

FANAR-5MAD MAX: FURY ROAD 12:30 PMPOLTERGEIST 3:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 5:00 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 7:00 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 9:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 12:05 AM

MARINA-1OUT OF THE DARK 12:30 PMOUT OF THE DARK 2:30 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 4:30 PMOUT OF THE DARK 6:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 8:45 PMOUT OF THE DARK 11:00 PMOUT OF THE DARK 1:00 AM

MARINA-2TOMORROWLAND 12:15 PMTOMORROWLAND 2:45 PMTOMORROWLAND 5:15 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:45 PMTOMORROWLAND 10:15 PMTOMORROWLAND 12:45 AM

MARINA-3POLTERGEIST -3D 11:30 AMPOLTERGEIST -3D 1:30 PMPOLTERGEIST -3D 3:30 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD - 3D 5:30 PMPOLTERGEIST -3D 8:00 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD - 3D 10:00 PMPOLTERGEIST -3D 12:30 AM

AVENUES-1TOMORROWLAND 1:00 PMA MOUSE TALE 3:45 PMA MOUSE TALE 6:00 PMPIKU - HINDI 8:15 PMTHE BLOOD LANDS 10:45 PMTHE BLOOD LANDS 12:45 AM

AVENUES-2SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 12:15 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 2:30 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 4:45 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 7:00 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 9:15 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 11:45 PM

AVENUES-3POLTERGEIST 11:45 AMPOLTERGEIST -3D 2:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 4:15 PMPOLTERGEIST -3D 6:30 PMPOLTERGEIST 8:45 PMPOLTERGEIST -3D 11:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 1:15 AM

AVENUES-4POLTERGEIST 1:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 3:15 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 5:30 PM

ZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 7:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 10:00 PMPOLTERGEIST 12:15 AM

AVENUES-5TOMORROWLAND 11:30 AMTOMORROWLAND 2:15 PMSpecial Show “TOMORROWLAND” 2:15 PMTOMORROWLAND 5:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:45 PMSpecial Show “MAD MAX: FURY ROAD”7:45 PMTOMORROWLAND 10:30 PMOUT OF THE DARK 1:15 AM

AVENUES-6OUT OF THE DARK 11:30 AMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD - 3D 1:30 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 4:00 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD - 3D 6:30 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 9:00 PMMAD MAX: FURY ROAD 11:30 PM

AVENUES-7SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 11:45 AMTOMORROWLAND 2:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 4:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 7:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 9:45 PMTOMORROWLAND 12:30 AM

AVENUES-8AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON 12:30 PMAVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON 3:30 PMAVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON 6:30 PMAVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON 9:30 PMAVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON 12:15 AM

AVENUES-9OUT OF THE DARK 12:45 PMOUT OF THE DARK 3:00 PMOUT OF THE DARK 5:15 PMOUT OF THE DARK 7:30 PMOUT OF THE DARK 9:45 PMOUT OF THE DARK 12:05 AM

360º- 1TOMORROWLAND 11:30 AMTOMORROWLAND 2:15 PMTOMORROWLAND 5:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:45 PMTOMORROWLAND 10:30 PMPOLTERGEIST 1:15 AM

360º- 2SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 1:15 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 3:30 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 5:45 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 8:00 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 10:15 PMSPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 12:30 AM

360º- 3ZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 1:00 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 3:15 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 5:30 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 7:45 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 10:00 PMZANKET AL SITAT-Arabic 12:15 AM

AL-KOUT.1TOMORROWLAND 11:30 AMTOMORROWLAND 2:00 PMTOMORROWLAND 4:30 PMTOMORROWLAND 7:00 PM

KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (21/05/2015 TO 27/05/2015)

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Today's a day to daydream, although this may not be an activity you usu-ally do. You may even feel as if you're on vacation. Let's just hope peopledon't ask you a lot of difficult questions, because your answers will be any-thing but clear. But you shouldn't have to carry the weight of the world onyour shoulders every day, Libra.

If you have someone special in your life, Scorpio, today is a perfect day tostop playing at being your partner's parent, as you sometimes seem to do.Reverse roles, and let other people take care of you. The world won't fallapart if you let go for a while. No matter what happens, a day like todayshould open your eyes.

You won't be able to fix your indecisiveness, Sagittarius. You just need togive yourself some time. The direction your life is taking isn't clear at themoment. There are great changes going on inside you. So, even though itmay sound like strange advice, don't do a thing about it! Let the situationget clearer before you act.

You have a nice day in store, Aquarius. People may seem more attentive toyour needs and generally very pleasant. You may not be used to this kind oftreatment! You feel more outgoing and sociable than ever. You could takeadvantage of the day's tolerant atmosphere to meet people you may havebeen too afraid to introduce yourself to. They will surely have some newthings to teach you.

Today is a day for healing and reconciliation. You may have been feelingabused and mistreated lately by someone (or a few people) in your familyover the past few weeks. You're now ready for a new start, because youwere able to work things out and you've learned something from what hap-pened. Take the time to savor the moment, and spend some time with thepeople you love.

Is it possible you're too demanding, Virgo? Today's planetary aspects maybe asking you this question. You're choosy about the people you spendtime with, and you have a tendency to ask them to go too far for you.Sometimes you have trouble knowing your limits where other people areconcerned. You might want to think about this.

You may feel living your life is like crossing a desert, but fortunately, Aries,today brings your oasis. Take advantage of it! Some people you've metover the past few weeks could turn out to be more interesting than youoriginally thought. It's up to you to change those parts of your personalitythat have been holding you back.

Certain questions about your family life aren't as cut and dried as youmight think, Taurus. This can be the case when emotions are involved. Yetmore than anyone else, you need to be careful not to hurt anyone's feel-ings. Today something could happen that will let you control the situationwhile controlling your emotions.

Gemini, you may have had some confused emotions about your relationship or fam-ily over the past few days. You may not have been able to fully express your worriesto others. But today these emotions will find a way to come out. Look around you.There might be someone right next to you who can help with your problems.

If every day were like today, life would be heaven, Cancer! This is potentiallya wonderful time for you. You may find the answers to problems that havebeen bothering you for a few weeks. Keep your eyes and ears open in allconversations. You could come across the piece you've been waiting for.

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Aries (March 21-April 19)

STAR TRACK

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

Leo (July 23-August 22)

Virgo (August 23-September 22)

Libra (September 23-October 22)

Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

CROSSWORD 913

ACROSS1. A town and port in northwestern Israel in theeastern Mediterranean.5. The quantity contained in a pail.12. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized bybehavioral and learning disorders.15. A notable achievement.16. Connect closely and often incriminatingly.17. Small cubes with 1 to 6 spots on the faces.18. Having nine hinged bands of bony plates.19. Something (often something deceptivelyattractive) that catches you unawares.20. Lower in esteem.22. A German machine gun.24. An international organization of Europeancountries formed after World War II to reducetrade barriers and increase cooperation among itsmembers.26. Mild yellow Dutch cheese made in balls.27. The cry made by sheep.28. 16th President of the United States.31. A college or university team that competes ata level below the varsity team.33. An edge tool used to cut and shape wood.34. Make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose.38. Yellow-fever mosquitos.41. A rare heavy polyvalent metallic element thatresembles manganese chemically and is used insome alloys.43. A member of an Algonquian people living incentral Canada.45. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solelythe razorbill.47. Queen of England as the 6th wife of Henry VIII(1512-1548).48. Used of a single unit or thing.52. Meat that has been barbecued or grilled in ahighly seasoned sauce.54. A unit of pressure.56. A former agency (from 1946 to 1974) that wasresponsible for research into atomic energy andits peacetime uses in the United States.57. Adroitness in using the hands.60. A Mid-Atlantic state.61. A colorless odorless gaseous element that givea red glow in a vacuum tube.62. A small measure (usually of food).64. Very hard unsalted biscuit or bread.69. A medium (art or business) that disseminatesmoving pictures.72. Wild sheep of northern Africa.73. The Creator.76. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabiaor North Africa.77. One of a pair of long straps (usually connectedto the bit or the headpiece) used to control ahorse.78. A warning against certain acts.79. Someone who works (or provides workers)during a strike.80. Sudden sharp painful emotion.81. Standing posture.82. A river in north central Switzerland that runsnortheast into the Rhine.

DOWN1. A system of one or more computers and associ-ated software with common storage.2. The financial means whereby one lives.3. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on askewer usually with vegetables.

4. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan River.5. A city in Tuscany.6. Shaped like a ring.7. Any of various coarse shrubby plants of thegenus Iva with small greenish flowers.8. Austrian zoologist who studied the behavior ofbirds and emphasized the importance of innate asopposed to learned behaviors (1903-1989).9. The wool of a sheep or similar animal.10. Radiation lying in the ultraviolet range.11. A unit of length of thread or yarn.12. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.13. Any orchid of the genus Disa.14. Keep in mind or convey as a conviction orview.21. The levorotatory form of dopa (trade namesBendopa and Brocadopa and Larodopa).23. The time during which someone's life contin-ues.25. A heavy odorless colorless gas formed duringrespiration and by the decomposition of organicsubstances.29. Form a mental image of something that is notpresent or that is not the case.30. Of or relating to a member of the Buddhistpeople inhabiting the Mekong river in Laos andThailand.32. Suggestive of youth.35. Jordan's port.36. That have been left.37. A region and ancient country in the east of theBalkan Peninsula north of the Aegean Sea.39. United States industrialist who manufacturedplows suitable for working the prairie soil (1804-1886).40. The branch of engineering science that studiesthe uses of electricity and the equipment for pow-er generation and distribution and the control ofmachines and communication.42. (astronomy) The angular distance of a celestialpoint measured westward along the celestialequator from the zenith crossing.44. A school teaching mechanical and industrialarts and the applied sciences.46. An oral antibiotic (trade name Cipro) usedagainst serious bacterial infections of the skin orrespiratory tract of urinary tract or bones or joints.49. Make children.50. A dictator or dictatorial person.51. Valuable fiber plant of East Indies now wide-spread in cultivation.53. Executed with proper legal authority.55. Having deep narrow furrows or grooves.58. Being one hundred more than three hundred.59. Ruffed grouse.63. Type genus of the Percidae.65. A particular geographical region of indefiniteboundary (usually serving some special purposeor distinguished by its people or culture or geog-raphy).66. The state of being decayed or destroyed.67. The elementary stages of any subject (usuallyplural).68. (Polynesian) An alcoholic drink made from thearomatic roots of the kava shrub.70. A flat-bottomed volcanic crater that wasformed by an explosion.71. A French abbot.74. Adult female chicken.75. (British) A waterproof raincoat made of rub-berized fabric.

Yesterday’s Solution

34s t a r s

Leo, you don't have to be at everyone's beck and call all the time. This isexhausting, and you lose contact with yourself. You should try to takesome time out today. Take a good look at your life to see where you'regoing. Go for a walk or take a long bubble bath. Things will be much clear-er after a relaxing day of reflection.

You have a strange and wonderful day ahead, Capricorn. Once you've fin-ished your work, you may want to either draw or write something that willhelp you remember today for a long time. You're beginning to see theresults of recent changes in you, and you're looking for a way to expressthem. It may be difficult to find just the right words. But aren't you a natu-ral-born writer?

Yesterday’s Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

WORD SEARCH PUZZLE

Daily SuDoku

inf or m at ionMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Ahmadi Sama Safwan Fahaeel Makka St 23915883Abu Halaifa Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd 23715414Danat Al-Sultan Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd 23726558

Jahra Modern Jahra Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 24575518Madina Munawara Jahra-Block 92 24566622

Capital Ahlam Fahad Al-Salem St 22436184Khaldiya Coop Khaldiya Coop 24833967

Farwaniya New Shifa Farwaniya Block 40 24734000Ferdous Coop Ferdous Coop 24881201Modern Safwan Old Kheitan Block 11 24726638

Hawally Tariq Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25726265Hana Salmiya-Amman St 25647075Ikhlas Hawally-Beirut St 22625999Hawally & Rawdha Hawally & Rawdha Coop 22564549Ghadeer Jabriya-Block 1A 25340559Kindy Jabriya-Block 3B 25326554Ibn Al-Nafis Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25721264Mishrif Coop Mishrif Coop 25380581Salwa Coop Salwa Coop 25628241

OphthalmologistsDr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223

Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426

General PractitionersDr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501

UrologistsDr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427

For labor-related inquiries and complaints:

Call MSAL hotline 128

Sabah Hospital 24812000

Amiri Hospital 22450005

Maternity Hospital 24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital 25312700

Chest Hospital 24849400

Farwaniya Hospital 24892010

Adan Hospital 23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital 24840300

Al-Razi Hospital 24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital 24874330/9

Kaizen center 25716707

Rawda 22517733

Adaliya 22517144

Khaldiya 24848075

Kaifan 24849807

Shamiya 24848913

Shuwaikh 24814507

Abdullah Salem 22549134

Nuzha 22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh 24814764

Qadsiya 22515088

Dasmah 22532265

Bneid Al-Gar 22531908

Shaab 22518752

Qibla 22459381

Ayoun Al-Qibla 22451082

Mirqab 22456536

Sharq 22465401

Salmiya 25746401

Jabriya 25316254

Maidan Hawally 25623444

Bayan 25388462

Mishref 25381200

W Hawally 22630786

Sabah 24810221

Jahra 24770319

New Jahra 24575755

West Jahra 24772608

South Jahra 24775066

North Jahra 24775992

North Jleeb 24311795

Ardhiya 24884079

Firdous 24892674

Omariya 24719048

N Khaitan 24710044

Fintas 23900322

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Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 25330060

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DR.Mohammes Akkad 24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital 25339667

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Dr. Farida Al-Habib 2611555-2622555 MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

Soor CenterTel: 2290-1677Fax: 2290 1688

info@soorcenter.comwww.soorcenter.com

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36L I F E S T Y L EMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

G o s s i p

Amanda Seyfriend hates being sepa-rated from her dog, Finn. The 29-year-old star - who is dating

‘Dodgeball’ actor Justin Long - has admittedshe is extremely dependent on theAustralian Shepherd and is worried abouthaving to live life without him in the future.The ‘Les Miserables’ actress said: “I just don’twant to leave him anymore. Maybe it’sbecause I’m subconsciously aware of hismortality. I try not to think about it, butsomewhere inside me, I’m like, ‘He’s goingto die way sooner than all the rest of thepeople I know!’” The blonde beauty is alsoextremely attached to Justin, who she start-ed dating almost two years ago. She said: “Ireally do have my own identity, both insideand outside the relationship, if that makes

any sense. It just feels right. It’s also reallygood to feel OK being alone.” Amandaadded the couple are both extremely closeto their families. She told the June edition ofVogue magazine: “Justin likes being athome with his parents. And I like that abouthim. I was in Allentown [Pennysylvania, herhometown] last weekend and didn’t wantto come back.” But the actress admits shehopes to raise her future children in StoneRidge, New York, where she bought a farm-house last October. Asked where she seesherself living in the future, she said: “Here.Because I want to have kids. And I wantthem to go to local schools, and there aresome really good schools around here. Iwould like my life to be the same as it isnow, but with a little less stress and a little

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Hayek to play German spy Mata Hari

Salma Hayek is set to play 1900s exotic dancer, MataHari. The Mexican actress is in discussions about tak-ing on the role of the controversial woman, who was

executed by firing squad in 1917 after being accused of spy-ing for Germany. Director Sophie Fiennes - who is responsi-ble for ‘Hoover Street Revival’ - has reportedly been workingon a film about the woman, born Margarethe Zelle, foryears. The brunette beauty and Sophie are said to havebeen in deep conversation about the script at CharlesFinch’s filmmakers’ dinner at the Hotel du Cap. TheHollywood star told the Daily Mail: “Sophie told me thatthere are a lot of misconceptions about Hari, a polyglot whoused her skill to seduce soldiers and diplomats.”Many of themen who enjoyed her turned against her, but there’s evi-dence now that she was unfairly labeled a traitor.” Salmawas in Cannes for ‘Matteo Garrone’s Tale Of Tales’, a pictureabout grotesque goings-on in a horror fantasy world. In onedisturbing scene, the actress eats a giant sea monster’sheart. The 48-year-old star said: “It was disgusting - however,producer Jeremy Thomas reassured me that the heart wasmade of confectionery and it looked worse than it tasted.”

Witherspoon to play Tinkerbell

Reese Witherspoon will play Tinkerbell inDisney’s live-action remake of the film. The39-year-old actress will star as the little fairy -

made famous in ‘Peter Pan’ - in ‘Tink’, and will bereplacing Elizabeth Banks, who has beenattached to the film since 2010, as the produceras well, alongside Victoria Strouse - co-writer ofPixar’s upcoming ‘Finding Dory’ - writing thescript. According to the Hollywood Reporter,this latest take on Tinkerbell will “play with theidea and timeline of the well-known Peter Pannarrative,” and will take the angle of telling “thestory you don’t know”, just like ‘Maleficent’ did

with Angelina Jolie. However, ‘Tink’ is beingdeveloped with a more modest mid-range budg-

et as opposed to ‘Maleficent”s $180 million and‘Cinderella”s $95 million. Since Elizabeth announced

she was playing Tinkerbell with a “mischievousnature” in 2010, Disney has released ‘Maleficent’, ‘Jack

and the Beanstalk’ and ‘Cinderella’ as live-action movies.Disney has also announced upcoming remakes of ‘Dumbo’,

‘Mulan’, ‘Pinocchio’ and ‘The Little Mermaid’, as well as thecast for a remake of ‘Beauty and the Beast’, including Emma

Watson, Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen and Emma Thompson, pro-duction of which will begin later this year with the film scheduled to

open in March 2017.

Cooper would tell youngerself to stop worrying

Bradley Cooper would tell his younger self to stop worrying. The‘Aloha’ star, who is dating Russian model Irina Shayk, claims hehas no regrets, but wishes he had been less anxious about being

successful in the past. The 40-year-old actor said “I would probably tellmyself not to worryso much. But Iwouldn’t changeanything, gosh, no.”The heartthrob’s co-star Emma Stone, 26,also wishes she hadbeen more relaxed.She said: “I’d tellmyself to relax a bitaround the edgeswhen I took thingsvery, very seriously.”Bradley told PEOPLE:“We’re two peoplewho have been soblessed, it’s crazy. Weget to do what wedo and love, andwork with the peo-ple that we get towork with. And I getto work with her.” The‘American Sniper’star is close friendswith Emma in reallife and confessedshe makes him laughmore than anyoneelse. He said: “We

laughed so hard during the whole movie. We like to see comedy ineverything, at the most dramatic possible moments. I laugh aroundher more than with anybody else.”

Dwayne Johnson ‘The Rock’ went onto the set of‘San Andreas’ on his day off just to see Kylie Minogue.The wrestling champion-turned-actor was so “impressed”

with the Aussie pop star - who he got to know well while working onthe disaster movie - and said she exceeded all expectations with her cameo.Speak at the world premiere of ‘San Andreas’ at the Odeon on London’s Leicester Square,he told BANG Showbiz: “I got to know Kylie and she is great. I’ve always heard through-out Hollywood and the world of entertainment and her reputation and personality pre-ceded itself. “Everybody’s like, ‘I’ve heard she is kind of like this’. I came to the set on myday off to just watch her work, I was so impressed with her, she is so nice and beautiful.”When asked what drew him to the film about an earthquake epidemic - also starringleading ladies, Carla Gugino and Alexandra Daddario - the ‘Scorpion King’ star joked hedid it for his attractive female co-stars. He quipped: “I just wanted to work with hotwomen, only kidding.” Meanwhile, the ‘Can’t Get You Out of My Head’ hitmaker - who

makes a short appearance in the film, directedby Brad Peyton - also spoke fondly

of Dwayne. She said: “He’sreally amazing and

seems like a reallygreat, genuine

guy.”

Johnson impressed by beautiful Minogue

Gyllenhaal told she’s too oldto play lover of 55-year-old man

Maggie Gyllenhaal was left stunned when she was told she was too oldto play the lover of a 55-year-old man. The 37-year-old actress wasastonished when a Hollywood producer rejected her for a role in a

movie because after deeming her too advanced in age to accurately portray theguy’s partner. Maggie - who tactfully did not name the production company orher proposed co-star - told magazine The Wrap: “There are things that are reallydisappointing about being an actress in Hollywood that surprise me all thetime. I’m 37 and I was told recently I was too old to play the lover of a man whowas 55. It was astonishing to me. It made me feel bad, and then it made me feelangry, and then it made me laugh.” The ‘Dark Knight’ star added that even afterthe negative experience, she is hopeful that Hollywood will become a betterplace for women: “A lot of actresses are doing incredible work right now, playingreal women, complicated women. I don’t feel despairing at all. And I’m morelooking with hope for something fascinating.” Hollywood is renowned for cast-ing young women against much older men although new James Bond Movie‘Spectre’ won praise for casting 50-year-old actress Monica Bellucci oppositelead star Daniel Craig, 47. Oscar nominated Maggie - who has two children withher actor husband Peter Sarsgaard - found fame when she was cast alongsideher brother Jake Gyllenhaal in the indie cult film ‘Donnie Darko’

Chris Evans has confessed he feels “incredibly comfort-able” playing Captain America despite being nervousabout taking on the role to begin with. Chris Evans

feels “incredibly comfortable” playing Captain America. The33-year-old actor has confessed he was nervous when he firstlanded the role because he was worried comic book fanswouldn’t accept him but now, having starred as the super-hero in a number of films, he’s comfortable enough to mixthings up. Asked if it’s easy to slip back into character, he said:“Absolutely. When you first take on the role, it’s intimidating,and you’re scared the fans may not accept you. Now, I feelincredibly comfortable with it, and that’s when you start try-ing to challenge the character and forge new territory.” The‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ actor is set to appear alongsideRobert Downey Jr’s Iron Man in the next instalment in theCaptain America franchise, ‘Civil War’, but insists his character -who is also named Steve Rogers - will still be the main focus.He told Total Film magazine: “I think [directors] the Russobrothers are dedicated to trying to make sure this does stay a‘Captain America’ film. It is ultimately Steve Rogers’ struggle inthe film, even though we do have so many characters.“Marvel know how to strike a balance and how to use the

movie as a jump off to the‘Avengers: The InfinityWars’.” Evans also spoke ofhis excitement at havingSpider-Man come onboard as well. He added:“That’s something youwant to see as a fan!Y’know, personally, inde-pendent of my involve-ment as ‘Captain America’,that’s something I’d wantto see as a comic-bookfan. That’s going to be areal treat for a lot of thefans out there.”

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37L I F E S T Y L EMONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

F e a t u r e s

With a burst of confetti, dancers clap andtwirl around a garland-bedecked groomas Afghanistan’s wedding season kicks

into high gear, but lawmakers pushing for austerityare bent on taming out-of-control guest lists. Kabulwedding halls with Las Vegas-style razzle dazzle arebusy as Afghans rush to get hitched before nextmonth’s Ramadan fasting begins, in a colorful con-trast to the Taliban era when musical revelry anddancing were banned.

Hundreds of people-not counting the ubiqui-tous wedding crashers-typically attend celebra-tions in these halls segregated by gender, with abulging guest list seen both as a social obligationand a totem of affluence. “In Afghanistan you invitethe whole village, the whole tribe, everyone whoever invited you to their wedding-and they bringtheir own guests,” Akbar Sabawoon said over thedin of drumbeats in Qasr-e-Paris (Paris Palace), aneon-spangled hall with a huge replica of the EiffelTower in the forecourt.

“If you invite 1,000 people, be ready to entertain1,500,” the cousin of the bride told AFP as a tradi-tional Attan folk dance erupted behind him. But ina hugely contentious move lawmakers recentlypassed a bill aimed at taming Afghanistan’s WildWest wedding culture, limiting the number ofguests to 500 and capping the catering bill perhead at 400 Afghanis ($7).

The bill seeks to relieve the huge financial strainweddings pose on grooms, who usually pay foreverything from the banquet feast to bride price, akind of reverse dowry presented to the girl’s familyin the form of cash, goods or livestock. Thousandsof dollars are typically splurged on weddings, asmall fortune in a country wracked by poverty andwar, driving families into massive debts and forcingyoung men to delay marriage, lawmakers say.

Glitzy escapism But the bill, awaiting presidential approval,

has sparked protest from wedding hall ownerswho worry the move could devastate theirflourishing business-a rare bright spot in a nose-diving economy as international aid fast evapo-rates after 13 years of war. “Narrow-minded MPsare picking on this issue to distract attentionfrom real problems such as worsening security,”said Hajji Ghulam Siddique, the owner ofUranus, one of the biggest of nearly three dozenwedding halls in Kabul. “Even the Taliban wantto kill extravagance. What’s the differencebetween us and the Taliban?” Lavish weddings,a post-Taliban phenomenon, are not only enter-tainment but also a source of momentaryescapism from a wrenching conflict, adding asplash of colour in the lives of war-wearyAfghans.

Outside Kabul’s glitzy wedding halls is a citythat appears on the verge of a nervous break-down, awash with snipers, checkpoints, andpost traumatic stress disorder. Inside, over-the-top revelry offers a comforting illusion that thewar is taking place in another realm. “As is thecase with most Afghan laws, no one will obeythis new legislation,” said government employeeShoaib Khaksari as guests at Qasr-e-Parishunched over platters of roast chicken, Kabulilamb pilaf, fried eggplant, yogurt and fresh fruit.

“Marriages need to be lavish as they are aone-time event. In conservative Afghanistanpeople don’t commonly have extra-maritalaffairs.” But many Afghans concede some meritin the legislation. When Khushal Nabizada, a 34-year-old doctor of internal medicine, gothitched three years ago he was forced to spend$25,000 on the wedding party, eroding his hard-

earned savings in a single night. “I wantedsmaller celebrations, fewer ceremonies but thebride’s family were unforgiving,” he said. “Mywife and I now look back and think what an epicwaste it was.”

‘Marriage only salvation’ Some budget-conscious Afghans have found

a canny way of trim the guest list: mixed wed-dings-a relatively rare celebration in which guestsare not segregated by gender. It’s a self-imposedred line for many Afghans who voluntarilydecline to attend, unwilling to expose theirwomen to a crowd full of strangers. Marriage isoften the only outlet for sexual frustration perva-sive in a conservative nation where dating or anysocial commingling of the sexes can be misinter-preted as a sign of perversion.

Nabizada said he routinely fields queries fromhis young unmarried male Afghan patients tornbetween their sexual cravings and their desire tobe religious puritans. “Young, wife-less men grap-ple with hormonal rage,” he said. “Marriage istheir only salvation-and many cannot afford it.”Back in Qasr-e-Paris, the seven-member orches-tra perched at the edge of the ceiling-high wood-en partition separating the men from the womenlaunched into a folk melody announcing thearrival of the bride.

“Walk slowly my shining moon,” the lyricsslurred in Dari as a hush of anticipation descend-ed on the groom’s side. “Walk slowly like a flowerin full bloom.” The lyrical feast grew louder as thegroom arrived, with beads of sweat rolling off hisforehead. “He must be nervous about the wed-ding expenses,” a guest snorted. “He should havewaited until the wedding law,” another said, pro-voking a loud ripple of titters.—AFP

Bigger, fatter and hard to tame

Afghan men walk past the entrance of a wedding hall in Kabul.—AFP photos

An Afghan groom awaiting the start of Holy Nikah (marriage prayers)ceremony.

Young Afghan men dancing around a groom during weddingcelebrations.

Leftover food after wedding celebrations. Afghan well wishers eat during wedding celebrations.

They met in the smoking roomwhile they were in hospice care.It was love at first sight for her,

though it took him, he says, a full twoor three days to figure out that that’swhere his heart was also headed. Shedoesn’t try to be anybody else, he says.She’s funny. He likes that. He’s got agood head on his shoulders, she says.He’s nice to her. She likes that. JohnWhaley and Debbie Rivera don’t havemany days left. They know that. Sowithin weeks of meeting, he pro-posed. She took a couple of days toaccept. And three weeks after the pro-posal, they were married, in the court-yard of the nursing home where theymet this spring.

She’s been married twice before,he once, and neither thought they’ddo it again. But every day is preciousnow, Whaley says, and life has comedown to this: “I want to be happy, andI’m tired of being alone.” Saturday wasa pretty day for a wedding in this river-front town. A northeast wind thatwhipped up whitecaps on the StJohns was strong enough to find itsway down Oak Street into the court-yard of the nursing home, where therewas a wooden gazebo for the ceremo-ny and plenty of shade for family andfriends.

Nervous energyWhaley, 58, and Rivera, 54, both of

whom have chronic obstructive pul-monary disease, have been in hospicecare at Governors Creek Health andRehabilitation center since earlier thisyear. He arrived in late March, not toolong after she was placed there. A halfhour before the 11 am wedding, thebride-to-be was ready in a white dress,with a pearl necklace and bracelet,white flowers in her hair. Her legsmoved vigorously up and down.Nervous energy.

Patricia Meeks, a chaplain for VitasHealthcare, which provides hospiceservices for certain patients atGovernors Creek, would perform theservice. She tried to assure Rivera that

all the details had been taken care of.“All you have to do is ...” Rivera lookedup. “Breathe?”

Whaley arrived in his electricwheelchair. He wore a black vest overa neat collarless shirt. He looked calm,but perhaps not. “Do you have thering?” someone asked him. Oops.

He sped away to his room, where

he’d left the ring on a nightstand.Rivera laughed. “I knew he’d forget it,”she said. “I’ve been through two mar-riages before. I knew it.” She was raisedon a farm in Kentucky’s Boyd County,and moved to Florida off and on some20 years ago. She has two children andfour grandchildren. “I’m just simple,”she said. “I’m just a simple lady. I’m ahousekeeper. Nothing special. Raisedmy kids.”

Whaley was a heavy equipmentoperator from Delaware who movedto Jacksonville about four years ago.

He has two children and eight grand-children. Until he came to hospice, hewas living in his camper in a trailerpark off Philips Highway. AnthonyHempel, a neighbor, took off work anddrove to Green Cove Springs to see hisfriend get married. He got a littlechoked up talking about him. “It’sgood to see something good happen-

ing to him,” Hempel said, “instead ofthe same-old same-old.”

We are going homeThat same-old same-old involves a

lot of doctors. Whaley’s right handwas amputated two weeks ago. Bloodclots, Whaley said. Blood clots alsocost him his legs two years ago. Hehas lung cancer as well. He figuresthat life hasn’t been easy for him, orfor his bride, which is something theyhad in common. “She’s been througha lot. I’ve been through a lot.” At that,

he laughed and pointed where hislegs would have been. “You can tell.”This day, though, was a good day.

They had checked out of the nurs-ing home already, and would spendtheir wedding night at his camper inJacksonville. They’ll live there, too, andthat’s where they’ll get their hospicecare for now. “We are going home,”she said. Meeks, the chaplain, hadtalked with the couple beforehandabout the step they were about totake. Their time left, she said, won’t bejust about dying, but about living.Which is as it should be.

“His actual proposal was, ‘If I’mgoing to go out, I want to do it withyou.’ They just decided they wanted totake this part of the journey together. Ithink that’s pretty special,” she said.

Meeks has performed many wed-dings as an ordained pastor, thoughnone, she said, under these circum-stances. But the words she chose werestill those familiar, traditional ones.

In sickness and in health . . .To love and to cherish . . .Until death do us part . . .When the ceremony was over -

after a big kiss, after Meeks intro-duced Mr. and Mrs. John Whaley tothose in attendance - the bridethanked everyone for coming. Thenshe and her husband took theirwheelchairs down a short path to anearby room where a big Publixcake, some snacks and some sodas,provided by Vitas, were waiting.

They posed for pictures there asher two hands helped his one handcut a big slice of wedding cake. Sheplopped a big handful of cake in hismouth, then playfully smearedsome on his cheeks. People chuck-led, and the groom smiled. “That’sall right,” he said. His turn now. Sohe took a small handful of cake and- to a rising, anticipatory chorus oflaughs - placed it neatly in hermouth, not a crumb out of place.Just like that, the laughs turned tosatisfied sighs, all the wayaround.—jacksonville.com

Never too late for love: Couplereceiving hospice care gets married

Debbie Rivera, 54, and John Whaley, 58, cut their cake sur-rounded by friends and family after their wedding ceremony inGreen Cove Springs, Fla.—AP

Deadpool might as well be nick-named The Merc With a Heart. RyanReynolds helped a young fan’s

dream come true through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Tony Acevedo, battlingHodgkin’s disease (also known as Hodgkin’slymphoma), got the chance to meetDeadpool on the upcoming film’sVancouver set. Acevedo was also able toembody his favorite comic book characterby wearing the Deadpool mask and gloves.

“Tony Acevedo asked Make A WishFoundation if he could meet Deadpool,”Reynolds captioned an Instagram photo. “I

wasn’t expecting him to sneak the mask,put on the gloves, smile ... and then beatDeadpool about the face, arms and jugularwith blazing speed. Tony’s next fight is withHodgkin’s Disease. Hodgkin’s Disease bestbe wearing its brown pants.” Reynolds metanother fan, 15-year-old Calista King, whohas a brain tumor, last week. She got a walkon role in the film and went home withDeadpool’s sword. Deadpool, which alsostars Ed Skrein as Ajax, Morena Baccarin asCopycat and T.J Miller as Weasel, hits the-aters on Feb 12, 2016. —Reuters

John Nash, the Princeton Universitymathematician, whose brilliance andmental health struggles inspired the

Oscar-winning film “A Beautiful Mind,” diedin a car crash on Saturday. He was 86.Nash’s 82-year old wife, Alicia Nash, also

died after a taxi that they were riding incrashed into a guard rail. A spokesman forthe New Jersey state police did not imme-diately respond to a request for comment,

but multiple reports state the Nashs werenot wearing seat belts and were ejectedfrom the car.

Nash’s work in game theory, differentialgeometry, and other mathematicalresearch were influential in economic, arti-ficial intelligence, computer technologyand a number of other fields. He shared the1994 Nobel Prize for his work in economicsalong with Reinhard Selten and JohnHarsanyi. Sylvia Nasar’s 1998 biography “ABeautiful Mind” and the 2001 film of thesame name it inspired documented Nash’sacademic accomplishments and the schizo-phrenia that almost cost him his family andhis career. The film earned a Best PictureAcademy Award and a statue for JenniferConnelly’s performance as Alicia Nash.Russell Crowe was nominated for an Oscarhis portrayal of John Nash. On Twitter,Crowe wrote, “Stunned...my heart goes outto John & Alicia & family. Anamazing partnership. Beautiful minds,beautiful hearts.” —Reuters

John Nash, ‘A Beautiful Mind’ mathematician, dies in car crash

Ryan Reynolds helps young cancer patient meet Deadpool

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

l if e s t y l e

Sweden’s Mans Zelmerlow holds the throphy after winning the Eurovision Song Contest final..—AP/AFP photos

Sweden narrowly beat Russia yesterday in anail-biting 60th edition of the EurovisionSong Contest, winning its sixth crown in

Europe’s annual anything-goes music extravagan-za. Forty-one years after Swedish superstars ABBAtook the title, chiseled Mans Zelmerlow won 365points from voters and juries in 40 countries withhis up-tempo crowd-pleaser “Heroes”. As thescores came through nation by nation via vide-olink to Vienna, it looked for a while as thoughRussian Polina Gagarina would take the title withher paean to world peace “A Million Voices”. In theend though her anthem scored just 303 points.Gagarina did however avoid the boos that Russia’s

singer got last year following Moscow’s annexa-tion of Crimea.

“It was absolutely amazing,” 28-year-oldZelmerlow told a packed news conference inVienna after winning. “I couldn’t believe it. I reallythought either Russia or Italy would win,”

he said. “My feelings right now are all over theplace, I am so proud, so full of joy, so excited. Yeah,happy.” Cheeky Italian trio Il Volo came third with

292 points with their rousing, operatic “GrandeAmore”. In fourth place among the 27 finalists wasBelgian Loic Nottet, followed by Australia’s GuySebastian, whose country entered for the firsttime as a wild card for the 60th anniversary.

The Makemakes of hosts Austria failed miser-ably to match the magic of last year’s victory bybearded drag queen Conchita Wurst, scoring zeropoints-a feat matched by Germany’s Ann Sophie.“I will continue (to make music),” the German saidafterwards, saying she had been “very satisfied”with her performance. Almost suffering the samehumiliation were France’s Lisa Angell with justfour points, one fewer than British electro-swing

duo Electro Velvet. France last won in 1977, andBritain in 1997. Angell told RTL radio she thoughther score was an “injustice”.

Ireland, which failed to make it into the final,still holds the record for the number of Eurovisionvictories with seven trophies to its name.Sweden’s victory means that the contest will beheld in Sweden in 2016. The prospect of the con-

test being held in Russia had not been relished bythe Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church,who said Thursday Eurovision promoted values“repulsive to our soul and our culture”. Geopoliticswas present again this year with Armenia’s ballad-described by one magazine as “feeling as long asa Wagner opera”-widely seen as being about 1915mass killings by Ottoman Turkey. The song came16th. Turkey, which refuses to recognize thekillings as genocide, has been absent fromEurovision since 2012. Another no-show wasUkraine, cash-strapped from the conflict withRussian-backed rebels in its east.

Turkeys, orcs and babushkas Mostly though the riotous affair, open to the

56 members of the European Broadcasting Unionand a world away from its civilized black-and-white beginnings, is about not taking life too seri-ously. It is watched every year by around 200 mil-lion people worldwide, including in Australiawhere it has long enjoyed a cult following. This

Sweden pips Russia in Eurovision nail-biter

Britain’s Electro

Velvetperformson stage.

Israel’sNadav

Guedj per-forms on

stage.

Sweden’sMans

Zelmerlowkisses a

mascuotat a press

confer-ence after

winningthe

EurovisionSong

Contestfinal.

A W A R D S

Sweden’s Mans Zelmerlow celebrates with the trophy winningthe 60th Eurovision Song Contest final in Vienna.

A general view ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest final.

Romania’s Voltaj performs on stage. (From left) TV hosts Alice Tumler, Mirjam Weichselbraun, Arabella Kiesbauer and Last year win-ner Conchita Wurst announce the results.

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

l if e s t y l e

year it was shown in China for the first time, organizerssaid.

Previous entries have included six Russian grannies,Ireland’s irreverent Dustin the Turkey and Finnish heavymetal outfit Lordi-looking like orcs from “Lord of the Rings”-who won in 2006 with “Hard Rock Hallelujah”. The lyricsoften make no sense, if they are in any recognised lan-guage at all, like “Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley” by golden-bootedSwedish Mormon brothers Herreys in 1984, “La La La” in1968 or Lulu’s “Boom-Bang-A-Bang” in 1969.

And who can forget the chorus to Austria’s 1977 entry:“Boom boom boomerang, snadderydang. Kangaroo,boogaloo, didgeridoo. Ding dong, sing the song, hear theguitar twang. Kojak, hijack, me and you.” The event has alsolong stressed tolerance for the unconventional, as wit-nessed by Israeli transgender Dana International in 1998,Ukraine’s Verka Serduchka in 2007 and Austria’s Conchitalast year. Her message of openness-she floated gracefullyonto the stage at the start of Saturday’s show-has beenenthusiastically adopted by Viennese authorities, includingwith special gay-themed traffic lights. “I like the feelingbecause it’s a little bit trashy but it’s also very exciting,” saidone German fan attending for the first time. “I have lovedthis show for 15 years and watch it every year on televi-sion.”—AFP

Confett is seen at the announcment of the winner.

A W A R D S

Russia’s Polina Gagarina waits for the results next tolast year winner Conchita Wurst of Austria.

Germany’s Ann Sophie performs on stage.

Russia’s Polina Gagarina performs on stage. Belgium’s Loic Nottet performs on stage.

Australia’s Guy Sebastian performs on stage. Cyprus’ John Karayiannis performs on stage.

Serbia’s Bojana Stamenov performs on stage.Lithuania’s Monika Linkyte and Vaidas Baumila per-forms on stage.

Albania’s Elhaida Dani performs on stage.Norway’s Morland & DebrahScarlett on stage.

Spain’s Edurneperforms onstage.

Guy Sebastian, centre, representing Australia waits forthe voting to start.

Spain’s Edurne performs on stage.

38Sweden pips Russiain Eurovision popfest nail-biter

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2015

Luc Valvona sings as he plays the ukulele while sitting on a couch made of sand along the south bank of the River Thames Saturday in London.—AP

French adventurer seeks Pacific record with ‘flying’ boatSkimming across the surface of the vast

Pacific, Alain Thebault scans the hori-zon with his blue Breton eyes. He is

feeling good. A record is there to be broken.“ I t ’s l ike a magic carpet,” Thebault saidaboard the cutting-edge “Hydroptere” sail-boat, which he hopes to pilot halfway acrossthe Pacific from Los Angeles to Honolulu inrecord time. Off the California coast underazur-blue skies, Thebault accelerated thehydrofoil supercraft to 30 knots as the 18-meter (60-foot) boat stands on three foilsthat claw the waves, lifting the hull fully outof the water.

The few passengers cling to the side asthey experience the sensation of flying for a

few moments. “Welcome, it’s back to work,”Thebault said, smiling as he helmed the vastcraft through the shallow waves off the coastof San Pedro, just south of Los Angeles. Thisis Thebault’s first journey in three months onthe ship that set a speed sailing record ofover 50 knots in 2009, and now he is ready toattempt to best a crossing mark: reachingHawaii from the City of Angels in under 4.19days. “We want that record,” the fiery andpassionate Frenchman said. A key to thatgoal is to keep the Hydroptere intact. It’sbroken down four times.

“The first challenge is to keep the struc-ture,” said the sailor. “It will work well in flightstabil ity between 20 and 29 knots with

three-meter swells,” Thebault said. “Anddon’t hit floating objects.” In June, starsshould be aligned for the Hydroptere’s jour-ney. The moon will be full to offer some visi-bility at night. More importantly, financialand legal obstacles have been temporarilyovercome.

False starts It took three years of efforts and false starts

to get to this point. To finance the venture,the 52-year-old had to sell his house-with theblessing of his three daughters. Since then, healso found the remaining cash from the PrinceAlbert II of Monaco Foundation and the PaulRicard Oceanographic Institute, among other

sponsors. Prince Albert is also sponsoring theSolar Impulse 2, the solar-powered superglid-er being flown around the world by Swiss avi-ator Bertrand Piccard. “We are very goodfriends. He is currently in China, and we’veagreed to meet in Hawaii, one powered bywind, the other by the sun,” he said.

The Hydroptere is also planning to film the“great garbage patch,” a vast stretch of oceanthe size of the US state of Texas awash withplastic and other trash. Six people will be onboard for the crossing. Thebault will beaccompanied by best buddy Jacques Vincentas well as James Spithill, who won the lastAmerica’s Cup on another flying catamaran,the AC72. Thebault’s mentor Eric Tabarly came

up with an experimental foil-cruising catama-ran in 1979, and Thebault “flew ” theHydroptere for the first time in 1994.

In the meantime flying multi-hull boatshave multiplied, including the FlyingPhantom, the GC32, the SL33 et the AC45, aswell as the AC72. The Frenchman is alreadyworking on another prototype expected torace at four times windspeed. “We should beable to go at 80 or even 100 knots,” he said.This self-taught adventurer rapidly persuadedexperts to follow him, and he is currentlyworking with four retirees from Dassault andAirbus. How much did the Hydroptere cost?“Twenty years of passion,” Thebault dead-paned.—AFP

Participants of the the goth festival ‘Wave Gothic Festival’ walk in fancy costumes along the festival area inLeipzig, central Germany. About 20,000 members of the scene are expected to attend one of the world’s largestgothic and ‘dark’ culture festivals until tomorrow. —AP

Atrove of 128 American coins from the late 18thand early 19th centuries has sold for a total of$25.3 million at auction in New York. A small

gold coin from 1808 called a quarter eagle sold for$2.25 million at Tuesday’s auction. AuctioneersSotheby’s and Stack’s Bowers Galleries say the pricewas a world record for any coin of the quarter eagledenomination. The coins were part of the collectionof D Brent Pogue.

Pogue spent decades amassing a collection ofAmerican coins from 1792 to the 1830s. Each steeldie used to strike coins in this era was produced byhand, creating variations that are prized by collec-tors. Stack’s Bowers and Sotheby’s are planning sixmore auctions of coins from Pogue’s collection overthe next three years.—AP

This undated combination of two photos providedby Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) viaStack’s Bowers Galleries and Sotheby’s, showsboth sides of a gold coin from 1808 called a quar-ter eagle.—AP

Collection of earlyAmerican coins sells

for $25 million