Le Pen snaps at Sarkozy’s heels in economic storm

PARIS: French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is staging a comeback in opinion polls less than 100 days before the presidential election, riding a wave of economic discontent that has endangered President Nicolas Sarkozy’s re-election chances.

As rising unemployment and the loss of France’s triple-A credit rating tarnish Sarkozy’s presidential record, pollsters say that Le Pen’s brand of anti-European rhetoric is gaining ground with a broad swathe of unhappy voters.

On Thursday, a daily survey of voting intentions by pollster Ifop gave her 21 percent support in the first round of a two-stage election scheduled for April and May, just two percentage points behind the conservative head of state.

Analysts say the poll fits with a broader trend of growing support for Le Pen and her ideas that weakens both Sarkozy and his Socialist rival Francois Hollande, who leads the field.

A first-round exit for an incumbent president would be a first in the history of France’s Fifth Republic, founded in 1958.

“We cannot say today with certainty that either Francois Hollande or Nicolas Sarkozy will be qualified in the first round,” said Jean-Daniel Levy, an analyst with polling agency Harris Interactive.

“What is most surprising to us is that we have never seen such an elevated level of support for a far-right candidate three months before a presidential election,” he added.

Le Pen, who holds a strong third position behind Hollande and Sarkozy, has made a push for mainstream respectability in the year since she took over leadership of the National Front from her father, Jean-Marie.

Shifting away from its narrow focus on immigration, Le Pen has rebranded the National Front as a protector of French sovereignty, ready to abandon the euro and shut French borders to foreign competition.

A spate of industrial shutdowns has bolstered support for her idea of “intelligent protectionism” among disenchanted working class voters. Troubled Swiss refiner Petroplus became the latest to raise the spectre of a closure, announcing on Friday it was looking to sell its refinery in Petit-Couronne, northern France.

“It’s obviously the ultra-liberal policies defended by all presidential candidates, aside from myself, that is behind the closure of all these factories,” Le Pen told RMC radio, referring to both mainstream candidates.

Ifop pollster Jerome Fourquet said Le Pen’s comeback after a poll dip in late 2011 reflected disappointment with Sarkozy’s record on employment, with jobless claims at a 12-year high, and anxiety over the downgrade of French debt to AA+ by Standard & Poor’s last Friday.

“Bad news on the economic front clearly weakens the outgoing president, who had set a target of bringing unemployment down to five percent by the end of his term,” he said. “All of that gives Marine Le Pen new arguments to criticise the president’s mistakes.”

Sarkozy, who has yet to announce his candidacy officially, used a speech in Lyon on Thursday to launch an indirect attack on Le Pen’s ideas, saying a withdrawal from the euro would kill jobs and sink the French economy.

Boosting French competitiveness, notably by lowering labour costs, was “the only way”, he said. AGENCIES

WHO issues guidelines for contested breast implants

PARIS: The World Health Organisation (WHO) intervened for the first time in the roiling global scandal over faulty breast implants, urging women with the devices to seek medical advice if they have any concerns.

“Persons with PIP or M-Implant prostheses should consult their doctor or surgeon if they suspect rupture, have pain or inflammation or any other concerns,” UN’s health agency said, referring to the brands implicated in the controversy.

“Affected persons and physicians should take note of their national health authority recommendations and act accordingly,” it said in a “Global Alert and Response” statement issued on its website.

Around 300,000 women in 65 countries are believed to have received implants made by Poly Implant Prothese (PIP), a now-defunct manufacturer in southern France, although some figures are much higher.

France, Germany and the Czech Republic have recommended that the devices be removed as a precaution but Britain has said it will not follow suit.

The prostheses were withdrawn from the European market in 2010 after France’s health watchdog discovered they were made from sub-standard, industrial-grade gel.

The WHO said data about adverse events from the implants was sketchy and hoped for stronger reporting of episodes in order to get a clearer picture.

“While the rupture rate of PIP prostheses was observed to be higher than expected in France, rates reported by other national authorities vary,” it noted. AGENCIES

UK surgeons separate twin girls joined at head

The twins were separated in a rare and risky series of operations at a London children s hospital, officials said.

Facing the World, a charity which helps disfigured children, said it had helped fund the four-stage operation to split 11-month-old Rital Gaboura from her sister, Ritag. Twins born joined at the head are known as craniopagus twins and they occur in about one in 2.5 million births. Splitting them can be dangerous, especially if as in this case there s significant blood flow between their brains.

“Incidences of surviving twins with this condition is extremely rare,” lead surgeon David Dunaway said in a statement released by the charity. “The task presented innumerable challenges and we were all very aware of our responsibilities to the family and these two little girls.”

The charity released before and after photographs of the girls. The before photo showed the two sprawled out on a bed, with their heads joined just above the hairline to form what appeared to be a single, solid unit. Facing the World said that separation took place in stages at London s Great Ormond Street Hospital, with two operations in May, the insertion of tissue expanders in July and the final separation on Aug. 15.

“Within days the twins were back on the general ward interacting and playing as before,” the charity said. Its executive coordinator, Sarah Driver-Jowitt, predicted that the girls  parents who haven t been named may soon return home “with two healthy, separate girls.”

Although rare, operations to separate twins linked by their heads aren t unheard of. In 2004, a team of doctors at New York s Montefiore Children s Hospital separated Filipino twins in four major surgeries that took place over 10 months. In 2003, surgeons in Dallas successfully separated 2-year-old Egyptian twins joined at the head.

One of the first successful operations to separate craniopagus twins took place in 1956, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

9/11 remembrance ceremony starts in New York

A ceremony attended by President Barack Obama to honor nearly 3,000 people killed on September 11, 2001, began in New York Sunday with a procession of bagpipers and singing of the national anthem.

After Mayor Michael Bloomberg introduced proceedings at Ground Zero, saying it was “a chance to reflect and remember,” the ceremony observed a moment of silence to mark the exact time when the first hijacked plane hit the World Trade Center, starting the 9/11 attacks.

It was the first of six moments of silence to be observed at the ceremony at Ground 0: one for each of the towers hit, one each for the Pentagon and the crash of Flight 93 in Pennsylvania and one each for the collapse of two towers.

Out of order ATM machines irk account holders

On advent of Eid-ul-Fitr the ATM machines of all branches of National Bank have been reported to be out of order. The bank management is of the view that the link has been down from Karachi due to which masses are facing difficulties in the transactions, however this issue would be resolved in few hours.

Libya’s future is in hands of the people: Obama

In a statement issued Sunday from Martha s Vineyard, where he s vacationing, Obama said the surest way for the bloodshed to end is for Moammar Gadhafi to relinquish power.

The president said, “The future of Libya is now in the hands of the Libyan people.” The rebels seized control of much of Libya s capital, Tripoli, on Sunday.

Obama s statement came after a Sunday evening conference call with his national security team.

He promised to work in close coordination with the rebels and said the U.S. will “continue to insist that the basic rights of the Libyan people are respected.”

The White House said Obama was briefed Sunday on the latest developments by counterterrorism adviser John Brennan and heard reports from US teams on the ground in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.

US officials are poised to assist the opposition as the country moves toward democracy, although it wasn t clear Sunday how close such a transition might be.

Anna Hazare declares peoples parliament

Anna Hazare vowed during his sixth day of fasting to carry on indefinitely unless legislation is passed by Aug. 30 creating an anti-corruption watchdog with authority over the judiciary and prime minister s office.

Hazare s campaign has received nonstop media attention and widespread support among both wealthy and poor Indians fed up with rampant bribery and favoritism. But some have accused the 73-year-old activist of hijacking public policy and disrespecting the legislative process by trying to force elected officials to bow to his own agenda.

Hazare told thousands gathered Sunday around his protest stage in a New Delhi park that the “people s parliament is higher than the national Parliament.”

He accused lawmakers of looting the national treasury, but said “people who are the masters have awakened” and must send corrupt officials to jail.

Shoaib Malik included in Pakistan team

The former captain will also join Pakistan cricket team’s training camp today which is currently underway at the Gaddafi Stadium Lahore.

Earlier, Shoaib Malik was cleared by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) integrity committee on Friday and was eligible for selection for the national team.

Malik has not played for the national side since the controversy-filled tour of England last summer, and has been involved in a long-drawn out battle with the PCB to be cleared.

The main issue blocking Malik s clearance was certain deposits in his overseas bank account, but the PCB has said in their release announcing Malik s clearance that he was able to provide evidence that the deposits did not emanate from any questionable source or activity.

Anjum Aqeel freed on bail

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Anjum Aqeel and 31 others were granted bail by the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi.

The court ordered to land scam accused Anjum Aqeel and 31 others to submit Rs 100,000 each as a surety bond.

PML-N MNA also received bails in all three cases against him.

Earlier, Aqeel was sent on a 14-day judicial remand in land scam case here on Monday.

The Federal Investigation Agency requested the court to extend Aqeel’s judicial remand.

Aqeel was arrested in connection with the National Police Foundation fraud case.

ANP demands new province in Balochistan

Addressing the party units of tribal areas in Peshawar, ANP’s provincial president Afrasiab Khattak said that tribal areas should be declared a province to include tribal people in the national stream.

He said that South Pakhtunkhwa Province should be formed for the people of Balochistan and party should initiate consultation over the issue.

He said that imposition of Political Parties Act and representation of the tribal people in the provincial assembly was dire need of time.

Khattak added that Pakhtuns are one nation and they should not be separated due to geographic barriers.

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