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Barack Obama’s aunt living in US illegally

Barack Obama’s campaign to become the first black American President was rocked yesterday, only 72 hours before election day, by the revelation that his aunt is an illegal immigrant in the US.

News about Obama’s relative is a chance for the McCain campaign to generate some last-minute negative headlines about Obama. Four years ago Zeituni Onyango, 56, who is mentioned in Obama’s personal memoir, was instructed by a court to leave the country after being denied political asylum. However, she now lives in local authority housing in Boston.

Illegal immigration is a political minefield in US politics and the story could be a vote-losing headache for Obama. Her refusal to leave the country does not make her unusual in America - there are an estimated 10 million ‘illegals’ - but the issue is a hot button one, especially with the white working-class voters courted by both Obama and John McCain.

Illegal immigrants are often accused of taking jobs and government services from US citizens and legal residents. Onyango, Obama’s half-aunt on his father’s side, has donated to his campaign, with five small gifts totalling $260. Those donations may turn out to be illegal, since Onyango is not a US citizen. His campaign said in a statement: ‘Senator Obama has no knowledge of her status, but obviously believes that any and all appropriate laws be followed.’

The revelation came as McCain cut Obama’s lead in the polls and police forces in major cities made extra security preparations for election day.

In Chicago, Obama is holding a rally downtown after the polls close on Tuesday night and it is believed that up to a million people could flood the city’s streets. All police leave has been cancelled and off-duty firefighters have been told to keep their kit ready at home. The unspoken concern among some is that a surprise Obama loss - especially with most polls predicting a win for the Democrat - could lead to civil unrest.

Detroit and Los Angeles were also deploying extra police out of concern for the potentially heightened emotions raised by this election. Yesterday McCain was nudging into a slight lead in one element of a three-day tracking poll by respected pollster John Zogby. The overall survey still gave the victory to Obama by five points, but McCain was a point ahead on the third day.

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Pakistan Become a Major Election Issue in US

WASHINGTON, Oct 31: Pakistan, a key US ally in the war against terror, has also become a major election issue and is discussed even in congressional races otherwise dominated by local issues.

At a recent debate in Kentucky, Republican Senator Mitch McConnell accused the Democrats of wanting to bomb Islamabad while Al Qaeda leaders were hiding in the tribal region bordering Afghanistan.

Mr McConnell, the Senate minority leader, is fighting for survival against Democrat Bruce Lunsford in a constituency he has dominated since 1985.

Congressman Gary Ackerman, chairman of a House panel on South Asia, called Pakistan “the most dangerous country on earth” and accused it of using American dollars for buying weapons to fight India. His stance, obviously, won him the support of the powerful Indian-American community which donates generously to his re-election campaign.

At a recent hearing, Congressman Ed Royce indicated that he feared Pakistan might share F-16 technology with China for developing a new fighter jet.

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry thought that there’s a lack of trust between the US and the Pakistani military.

Congressman Jim Costa noted that Pakistan’s current rulers had “less than a pristine record” in fighting corruption.

But it was Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama who put Pakistan on the centre stage of the US political debate when he said that Washington had a right to bomb Pakistan if it had intelligence on the whereabouts of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

“If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won’t act, we will,” Mr Obama said.

His Republican rival John McCain criticised Mr Obama but only for saying that he would attack Pakistan. Mr McCain said he would not “announce” positively that he would attack Pakistan but he had no real objection to doing so. He would rather it be a surprise than to “telescope” his intentions. And that was the only discernible difference between their positions.

Both leaders left open the possibility that they might continue the policy of the Bush administration, which has been to wage air strikes and even put boots on the ground, when needed, ignoring strong protests from both the Pakistani government and its people.

But Mr Obama’s tough talks had a negative impact on some Pakistani-Americans who thought that their country was being unfairly targeted for election gains.

Interviewed outside Darul Huda mosque in Springfield, Virginia, half a dozen Pakistani-Americans said they wanted to vote for Mr Obama but now they would either abstain or vote for Mr McCain because of what the democratic leader said about Pakistan. “He has intentions to bomb our country,” said Khalid Ali, “how can I vote for such a person?”

Source: DAWN

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First Hajj flight take off on Sunday morning

SLAMABAD: PIA’s special Hajj flight PK-1201 carrying 445 intending pilgrims on board will leave Benazir Bhutto International Airport here on Sunday morning kicking off a month-long pre-Hajj flights operation to airlift 165,000 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for Hajj-2008.

The special Hajj flights will also operate from Karachi, Lahore, Quetta, Peshawar, Multan and Faisalabad, official sources told state news agency here on Friday.

This year, PIA will be transporting approximately 1,32,153 Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia through 310 hajj flights form Karachi (including Multan, Fasialabad an Sukkur), Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta.

Source: ARYONEWORLD

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Gates wants more troops for Afghanistan in shift of priorities

WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday he wants to send more troops to Afghanistan “sooner rather than later,” signaling a shift in priorities from Iraq amid warnings of an accelerating Taliban threat.

Gates and Admiral Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff also said Pakistan needed to do more to stop the unimpeded flow of Taliban and other fighters into Afghanistan from safe havens in Pakistan.

“There is a real need to do something on the Pakistani side of the border to bring pressure to bear on the Taliban and some of these other violent groups,” Gates said.

The US defense chief denied as “untrue” a report that US forces were massing on the border to go into Pakistan. But he did not rule out unilateral military action across the border.

The growing threat was cited by US commanders in Afghanistan in their requests for more troops, as well as a doubling of the number of mine resistant, armor protected vehicles (MRAPS) they now have to protect troops from roadside explosions.

Alarm over the deteriorating security was punctuated Sunday by the death of nine US soldiers in an insurgent attack on a combat outpost, the deadliest on US forces since 2005.

“I think we are clearly working very hard to see if there are opportunities to send additional forces sooner rather than later,” Gates said, adding that no decisions have been taken yet.

“It’s a tougher fight; it’s a more complex fight; and (commanders) need more troops to have the long-term impact that we all want to have there,” Mullen said.

Mullen, who just returned from visits to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, said he expected to be able to recommend further US troop cuts this year in Iraq if security conditions continue to improve.

(The Post)

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