Thesun 2009-01-22 Page01 Gaza Pullout Completed

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No. 4684 PP 2644/12/2009 (023092)

Thursday January 22, 2009

TELLING IT AS IT IS

Hitz by morning pg24 madness ERUSALEM: Israel said it completed a troop pullout from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip yesterday, starting its relationship with US President Barack Obama by quitting Palestinian land devastated by its 22-day offensive. “As of this morning, the last of the Israel Defence Forces soldiers have left the Gaza Strip and the forces have deployed outside of Gaza and are prepared for any occurrences,” an army spokesman said, about 13 hours after Obama’s inauguration. Israel had withdrawn most of its forces before Obama was sworn in on Tuesday, in a move analysts saw as an attempt to avoid any early tensions with his administration that could cloud the start of a new era in a key alliance. Obama’s predecessor, George W. Bush, endorsed Israel’s right to defend itself against rocket fire by the Gaza Strip’s ruling Hamas Islamists. Obama, before taking office, declined to comment in detail on the crisis. Israel’s attacks in an offensive it launched on Dec 27 killed some 1,300 Palestinians and made thousands homeless. Gaza medical officials said the Palestinian dead included at least 700 civilians. Israel says hundreds of militants died. Ten Israeli soldiers and three civilians, hit by cross-border rocket fire, were killed in the conflict. The United Nations, whose secretary-general Ban Ki-moon toured Gaza’s rubble-strewn streets on Tuesday and described the destruction he witnessed as heartbreaking, has estimated some US$330 million (RM1.2 trillion) is needed for urgent aid in the coastal enclave. Reconstruction, if it can be launched in light of the frost between Hamas and the West, may cost close to US$2 billion (RM7.3 billion), according to Palestinian and international estimates. Although aid agencies said they planned a massive inflow of supplies, help will be complicated by the Western boycott of Hamas as a “terrorist” organisation and an Israeli blockade on many items, including building materials, that can be used to make weapons. Hamas, announcing a ceasefire on Sunday – hours after an Israelideclared truce went into effect – had demanded Israeli troops quit within

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Gaza pullout completed

BERNAMAPIX

Roaring start ... Apprentice lion dancers of the Penang Wushu, Lion and Dragon Dance Association wait for their master and association president Lim Siew San to give the finishing touch to their lion head before continuing their practice for an upcoming performance for the Chinese New Year. The association’s southern dance troupes will also be performing for the prime minister who is expected to attend the Penang Chinese Town Hall’s open house on the second day of the Lunar New Year on Tuesday.

a week. The group held what it termed victory rallies on Tuesday, but many Palestinians have returned to find their homes reduced to rubble. “We’ve won the war. But we’ve lost everything,” said Nabil Sultan of Hamas’s V for Victory signs as he surveyed the wreckage of his home on the outskirts of Gaza. In his inaugural speech, Obama promised to reach out to Muslims worldwide and “seek a new way

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forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect”. Sources familiar with the matter said in Washington that Obama would move quickly to name a Middle East envoy, possibly former Sen. George Mitchell, who had tried on behalf of the Clinton and Bush administrations to bring about an end to Israeli-Palestinian violence. In a 2001 report, Mitchell called for a freeze in the construction of

Jewish settlements on occupied Palestinian land and for the Palestinians, who were waging an uprising, to stop attacks on Israelis. Hailing Obama’s election as “a change of historic significance”, Israeli President Shimon Peres said: “What can be expected of the new president is a winning team to really rout violence from the Middle East and move the peace process forward”. – Reuters

eXtra!

Ex-MD, director charged with cheating banks of RM36mil KUALA LUMPUR: A former managing director and an ex-director of Polymate Holdings Berhad, which used to be listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia, pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court yesterday to a total of 135 additional charges of cheating seven banks RM36 million between 2003 and 2005. Datuk Ng Kim Weng, 56, and Lim Geok Lan, 50, (pix) pleaded not guilty to 52 main charges of having falsified documents to cheat the banks into approving banker’s acceptances involving RM14.34 million. According to the charge sheet, Ng and Lim are alleged to have cheated the bank officers and staff that all the invoices and delivery orders provided to support their applications were genuine when in fact they were false. Their deceit caused the banks to approve

loans to ABI Malaysia Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Polymate Holdings Berhad. They are accused of cheating Bumiputra-Commerce Bank (BCB), United Oversea Bank (UOB), HSBC, Hong Leong Bank, Ambank, Citibank and Maybank. Ng is also accused of having cheated BCB of RM312,000 while Lim is charged with 83 counts of cheating the banks to the tune of RM21.3 million. The offences were allegedly committed during the same period. On Friday, the duo claimed trial to two similar charges in the same court. Judge S. M. Komathy Suppiah set bail at RM400,000 for Ng and RM350,000 for Lim, and both were ordered to report to the police stations nearest their homes once a month. Komathy set aside five days for the hearing from May 3, 2010. Ng’s counsel was Harpal Singh while KK Wong represented Lim. – Bernama