Inter-Palestinian dialogue postponed

Egypt postpones the inter-Palestinian dialogue between Fatah and Hamas until the end of Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations, Palestinian sources say.

The decision to postpone the latest Egyptian-mediated reconciliation talks, which were previously shifted from Aug. 7 to Aug. 25, was taken after Fatah Chief Mahmoud Abbas decided to call together the Palestinian National Council (PNC) in Ramallah on Aug. 26 for two days.

The PNC is to convene to elect new members of the Palestine Liberation Organization's (PLO) executive committee. Those elected will fill the seven vacant posts in the 18-member executive committee.

The 30-day fasting month of Ramadan, which began on Saturday, ends on Sept. 21, while Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations will last for three days. Thus the dialogue will resume after the Eid-ul-Fitr holidays, the source said.

Nepali youth to be listed in Guinness Book of World Records

A Nepali youth has been able to register his name in the Guinness Book of World Records for holding highest number of tennis balls on a single palm for the longest time, reports say.

Rohit Timilsina, 25, a school teacher by profession has been able to set world record by holding 21 lawn tennis balls of International Tennis Federation standard 14.32 seconds.

Timilsina has surpassed the record of Arnand Desch, a Frenchman who had a record of holding 19 such balls for 10 seconds.

Timilsina performed the feat at a public function attended by tennis officials Surya Bhushan, Sarad Lama, Supreme Court Registrar Dr Ram Krishna Timilsina, and representatives of media, among others on June 14, 2008 at the Satdobato Lawn Tennis Court.

News clippings, video and audio footages were sent for recognition as a world record to the Guinness Book of World Records Headquarters, London, with the help of an organization named People Face.

Timilsina's name will be published in the 2010/11 edition of the Guinness Book.

Outside mountaineering, very few Nepalis have been listed in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Yemen seizes Iranian-made weapons in rebel caches

SANAA (AFP) – The Yemeni army has seized Iranian-made weapons used by Shiite rebels who are locked in fighting with government forces in the north of the country, a security official said on Saturday.

"The troops... have discovered six storehouses for weapons that belong to the Huthi rebels and contain some Iranian-made weapons, including machine guns, short-range rockets and ammunition," the official said.

The official said the weapons were found as the troops advanced on rebel positions in areas near the rugged mountainous city of Saada, where the army launched an offensive called Operation Scorched Earth 12 days ago against the rebels.

Last week, Information Minister Ahmed al-Lawzi indirectly accused Iran of supporting the Zaidi Shiite rebels, who are also known as Huthis, in the fighting.

Witnesses meanwhile reported that fierce battles were raging in the troubled north as the army stepped up its offensive, killing or wounding dozens of people.

The rebels, who accuse government forces of having killed dozens of civilians, said in a statement that they captured 80 soldiers, while locals said two Huthi leaders were killed in ferocious clashes on Friday night.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh pledged on Wednesday to crush the Shiite rebellion after the fighting that began in the Saada province on the border with Saudi Arabia spread to the Amran province to the south.

The rebels, led by Abdul-Malek al-Huthi, have been engaged in fighting with government forces on and off since 2004. The government accuses them of seeking to reinstate imamate rule, which ended in a republican coup in 1962.

But the Huthis say they are defending their villages against what they call state aggression.

An offshoot of Shiite Islam, the Zaidis are a minority in mainly Sunni Yemen but form the majority community in the north. President Saleh is himself a Zaidi.

Bomb kills militant spokesman in NW Pakistan: police

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AFP) – A remote-controlled bomb exploded in a car Saturday killing a militant spokesman and his driver while wounding five others in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, police said.

"Two people were killed and five others were injured in the car bombing," Peshawar police chief Sifwatullah Ghayyur told AFP.

"The bomb was planted in the car and was detonated by a remote control," he said, identifying the victims as Mubeen Afridi, spokesman for militant group Ansar-ul-Islam which operates in Khyber tribal district near the Afghan border, and his driver.

Police suspect that rival group Lashkar-e-Islam could be behind the bombing, Ghayyur said.

Bomb disposal chief Shafqat Malik said that up to 10 kilograms (22 pounds) of explosives were used in the device which was planted under the car.

Sahibzada Anis, the head of district administration, said that the bombing took place on a busy road near the main government hospital, but there were fewer people out due to the onset of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

Television footage showed the white Toyota car reduced to a pile of mangled steel as investigators collected evidence.

Markets and other businesses were immediately shut down in the area after the blast panicked residents and traders, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

Last year the government launched a major operation against militant groups in Khyber which sent their leaders running into the mountains bordering Afghanistan, after the militants threatened to take over Peshawar.

Militants were also attacking convoys supplying NATO and US troops in Afghanistan passing through Khyber.

Ruthless new Pakistan Taliban leader named

By CHRIS BRUMMITT, Associated Press Writer

ISLAMABAD – The commander named by members of the Pakistani Taliban as its new leader is as ruthless as his predecessor, taking credit for several attacks, and could order more in the coming weeks to prove the terror network is still in business.

While the appointment of 28-year-old Hakimullah Mehsud suggests the Taliban may be regrouping after the reported killing of its ex-chief Baitullah Mehsud in a CIA missile strike Aug. 5, questions remained Sunday as to whether the al-Qaida allied group will be able to unite around him.

Also unclear is the direction the movement will take under new leadership. Baitullah was known for ordering suicide strikes against Pakistani civilian, government and security targets, often in spectacular fashion in major cities far from border areas.

Hakimullah may decide to direct some or all of his forces across the border in Afghanistan like other jihadi commanders in the northwest, joining insurgents there in the fight against U.S. and NATO forces as they try to stabilize the country eight years after the invasion.

Two close aides to another commander, Maulvi Faqir Mohammad, told The Associated Press on Saturday a 42-member Taliban council, or shura, had appointed Hakimullah new leader in an unanimous decision. Like other members of the network, he insisted Baitullah was alive but sick, hence the need for a new chief. U.S. and Pakistani officials are almost certain he is dead.

"Now all these talks of differences should end," said one of the aides, Bakht Zada. "There have not been any differences ever."

Mohammd Amir Rana, an expert on Pakistani militant groups, said he believed the Taliban had not agreed on a replacement, regardless of Mohammad's aides' remarks.

"Maulvi Faqir Mohammad is trying to manipulate the race by announcing to the press that Hakimullah is the head," he said. "Until now there is no consensus," adding supporters of his major rival, Waliur Rehman, did not accept Hakimullah.

Hakimullah comes from the same tribe as Baitullah and had been seen as a likely replacement.

Earlier this month, Pakistani intelligence agencies claimed Hakimullah had been killed in a shootout between rival factions over who should to take over a movement that controls large swaths of territory close to the Afghan border, up to 25,000 men and much arms and cash.

Hakimullah called The AP and other news agencies to prove he was still alive after those reports.

His apparent selection as head could shore up the Taliban, said Kamran Bokhari, director of Middle East analysis with Stratfor, a global intelligence company.

"It's an attempt to stabilize the group after the initial reports of infighting," Bokhari said, noting the loss of Baitullah was "a massive blow to the organization."

As military chief of Baitullah's Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or Pakistani Taliban Movement, Hakimullah commanded three tribal regions and had a reputation as Baitullah's most ruthless deputy. He first appeared in public to journalists in November 2008, when he offered to take reporters on a ride in a U.S. Humvee taken from a supply truck heading to Afghanistan.

Authorities say he was behind threats to foreign embassies in Islamabad, and there was a 10 million rupee ($120,000) bounty on his head. Hakimullah claimed responsibility for the June 9 bombing of the Pearl Continental hotel in the northwestern city of Peshawar, and the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore earlier this year.

Since Aug. 5, Pakistani officials have been keen to portray the Taliban as in disarray, saying commanders and the rank-and-file were fighting among themselves. At one point, Mohammad — who comes from a different part of the tribal region — claimed to have taken over the leadership.

While it is unclear whether he will be able to maintain unity, Hakimullah was likely chosen for his operational capabilities, said Bokhari, adding fresh suicide bombings could be expected.

More attacks would demonstrate the Pakistani Taliban was still intact, he said.

"I think that the decision of the shura to appoint this particular individual is based on that consideration."

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the government had received intelligence reports about Hakimullah's appointment "as the chief terrorist" but there was no official confirmation.

Another close Mohammad aide, Sher Zamin, also confirmed that Hakimullah had been elected as the new Taliban chief.

Hurricane Bill's winds weaken as it nears US

By JASON BRONIS, Associated Press Writer

EDGARTOWN, Mass. – A weakening Hurricane Bill spun northward Saturday, churning up rough seas, creating dangerous rip tides and closing beaches to swimmers up and down the eastern seaboard, including President Barack Obama's planned vacation spot, Martha's Vineyard.

The Category 1 hurricane was expected to pass the mainland well off New England, but was still packing high winds and waves that had safety officials urging extreme caution.

At Robert Moses State Park in New York, the beach was shut down as the high tide submerged the sand, though the beach opened later Saturday for sunbathing. Along some beaches in Delaware and New Jersey, no swimming was allowed.

"It's just too dangerous right now," Rehoboth Beach Patrol Capt. Kent Buckson said.

Late Saturday evening, Bill had maximum sustained winds near 85 mph (140 kph) and was about 200 miles (315 km) south-southeast of Nantucket, Mass., and about 430 miles (700 km) south-southwest of Halifax, Nova Scotia, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami.

A tropical storm warning remained in effect late Saturday night for Massachusetts, including the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, meaning tropical storm-force winds of 40 mph (64 kph) or more could hit the coastline in the next 24 hours.

The worst of Bill was expected to pass about 150 to 200 miles east of Martha's Vineyard before Obama's arrival on Sunday. The Obamas delayed their planned Sunday morning departure from Andrews Air Force Base to Sunday mid-afternoon because of the weather, White House aides said.

On Saturday, nearly all south-facing beaches on the island were closed to swimmers and large signs blocked roadways to shorefronts. Meanwhile, lifeguards used caution tape to rope off access points, and police patrolled the beach to enforce the closings.

"The concern we have now is that the riptides are very strong," said lifeguard James Costantini. "There's a very strong undertow."

Longtime Vineyard vacationer Jack DeCoste, 69, of Plymouth, Mass., was unimpressed with the storm as he lounged in a beach chair in Edgartown.

"I don't think it's going to impact things that much," DeCoste said. "I think it'll be in and out of here fairly quickly."

The high waves that worried safety officials had surfers buzzing. Scott Fisher, 38, was at Nantasket Beach in Hull, where the morning's moderate waves were expected to build throughout the day.

"People wait all summer for this," he said.

The storm was expected to reach Canadian waters early Sunday, and the Canadian Hurricane Center issued a hurricane watch Saturday for areas of Nova Scotia, where winds speeds could hit 74 mph (120 kph) with gusts of 87 mph (140 kph).

In Nova Scotia, provincial parks have been shut down and people advised to stay clear of beaches.

"The waves, they're very pretty to look at but very dangerous," Barry Manuel of the Halifax Emergency Management Office said Saturday.

In Atlantic City, N.J., surfers gathered Saturday on beaches where 20-foot waves were expected. But only a few were willing to take their boards into the big swells.

Atlantic City Beach Patrol Chief Rod Aluise told The Press of Atlantic City that some surfers just stood on the beach "with their eyes popping out" at the size of the waves.

"This is only for experienced surfers," Aluise said.

The stormy conditions were expected to last through the weekend.

"It takes a while for the ocean to relax" after strong storms, said Gary Conte, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. "Until it does, riptides will make dangerous sport" for surfers and swimmers.

Hurricane Bill moved past Bermuda earlier Saturday, leaving behind sunny skies, debris and flooding, but no casualties.

The storm mostly spared the pink-sand shores, though it cut power to about 3,700 customers and flooded some roads along the northern coast. The airport was closed overnight and expected to reopen Saturday afternoon. All ferry service was canceled until Sunday.

Bermudians and tourists awoke to some water on the roads, rain and gusting winds.

"It was something to behold. I've never been in a hurricane before," said ESPN sportscaster Kenny Mayne, who hoped to return to the U.S. on Sunday.

A government spokeswoman said the British territory's hospitals had no storm-related patients.

Meanwhile, forecasters said Tropical Storm Hilda formed far out in the Pacific on Saturday but was not threatening land. It had maximum sustained winds near 40 mph (65 kph) and was not expected to strengthen.

On Saturday evening, it was about 1,980 miles (3,185 km) west-southwest of the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California peninsula and 1,175 miles (1,895 km) east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii.

Wildfires approach Athens, hospitals evacuated

By DEMETRIS NELLAS, Associated Press Writer

ATHENS, Greece – Dozens of wildfires broke out across Greece, torching olive groves, cutting off villages and sending residents fleeing Saturday as one of the largest blazes swept perilously close to the capital's northern suburbs.

The fires north of Athens were reported in an area more than 25 miles (40 kilometers) wide, and forced authorities to evacuate two large children's hospitals, camp sites, villages and outlying suburban areas threatened by blazes that sent huge clouds of smoke over the capital and scattered ash on city streets.

Anti-aircraft missiles were removed from a base north of Athens threatened by fire, the army said.

With planes and helicopters grounded after nightfall, Fire Service officials said their effort — aided by a lull in strong winds — was concentrated on protecting more than six towns where homes were under threat.

Volunteers and army conscripts helped hundreds of firefighters ring the endangered towns.

"Firefighters are working in extremely difficult circumstances," Prime minister Costas Karamanlis said. "Our priority is the protection of human life and property,"

Some villages threatened lay near the town of Marathon, from which the modern long-distance foot race takes its name.

Local officials said the fire damaged power lines, causing blackouts and water supply outages in many areas after nightfall.

Several hundred people were evacuated from two Athens suburbs. Traffic clogged roads leading south; in places, the flames licked as close to the road as 30 meters (yards).

As the fire closed in on towns and villages north of Athens, residents and volunteers tried desperately to prevent the blaze from engulfing houses.

Scores of residents fled on foot, by motorbike and in cars. Some ran down the road away from the flames. Elderly residents were carried from their homes by firefighters.

Municipal officials said dozens of houses had been destroyed but the government's Civil Protection Agency did not confirm those reports.

The government declared a state of emergency Saturday in greater Athens as officials warned that high winds were set to return Sunday.

"The coming night will be especially difficult," Fire Service spokesman Yiannis Kapakis said. "We urge people to remain calm and, in any case, not panic."

He said 75 fires had broken out across Greece since early Saturday morning — including blazes on the island of Evia, Skyros and Zakynthos as well as in parts of central and southern Greece.

Greece is plagued by forest fires every summer. In 2007, the worst blazes in decades killed more than 70 people.

"This is one of the worst fires we've ever seen in this area," said Nikos Koukis, a municipal official on the fire-stricken area of Grammatiko, north of Athens. "This is a beautiful, green area. I'm not sure we can any longer say this is true."