TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2010
Kabul Bank’s situation seen as ‘normalized’
Official says institution has met cry for deposits with its own funds
BY DAVID NAKAMURA Afghanistan’s top financial of-
ficials insisted Monday that the ailing Kabul Bank remains sol- vent and does not require a government bailout, despite per- sistent crowds demanding their deposits back. Abdul Qadir Fitrat, governor
of Afghanistan’s Central Bank, told reporters at an afternoon news conference that the coun- try’s largest private bank has been stabilized over the past several days and has been able to meet customers’ withdrawals with its own cash. “No customers are leaving
without theirmoney,” Fitrat said. “The situation has normalized.” Asked if the Central Bank had
set aside state money to cover Kabul Bank’s commitments,
Fitrat said: “No such decision has been taken today. . . . They’re still using Kabul Bank money, their ownmoney.” Fitrat’s comments come as Ka-
bul Bank is reeling from the loss of well over half of the $500 mil- lion in liquid cash it had when news broke last week that its top two executives had resigned un- der orders from the Central Bank, after a series of risky off-the-books loans and real es- tate investments were discov- ered. Despite the heavy demand for
withdrawals, Fitrat chose to look at the positive side, saying that customers have deposited $11 million to $17 million a day over the past several days. How- ever, those deposits were made largely by companies that route payments through the bank and have little choice. Kabul Bank has more than
1 million customers and handles salary payments for soldiers, po- lice and teachers. Fitrat blamed the run on the bank on news reports in the
international media, saying re- porters for foreign-based publi- cations had overplayed Kabul
Bank’s woes. “The Central Bank and the Finance Ministry have talked
and agreed to support Kabul Bank,” Fitrat said. “And, God willing, this problem that was
KLMNO
EZ SU
The World
A9
MUSTAFA QURAISHI/ASSOCIATED PRESS Aguard at the office of Abdul Qadir Fitrat, governor of Afghanistan’s Central Bank. Fitrat blamed the run on Kabul Bank on news reports.
created by the international me- dia can be resolved.”
nakamurad@washpost.com
U.N. report says Iran is stockpiling enriched uranium
by Islamic republic BY GREGMILLER
Iran is steadily stockpiling en-
richeduranium,eveninthefaceof toughened international sanc- tions, according to a U.N. inspec- tion report that raises new con- cerns about the ability tomonitor parts of the nation’s nuclear pro- gramthat could be used tomake a bomb. Citing a broad pattern of ob-
struction, theInternationalAtom- ic Energy Agency said Monday that it cannot confirm quantities of certain nuclearmaterials, has a growing list of unanswered ques-
IAEA cites pattern of obstruction
tions about enrichment sites and disagrees sharply with Iran’s re- cent decision to eject two inspec- tors. Overall, the agency “remains
concernedabout thepossible exis- tence in Iran of past or undis- closed nuclear related activities involving military organizations,” according to the report, including the possible “development of a nuclearpayloadfor amissile.” The report estimates that Iran
has accumulated about 2.8 tons of low-enricheduranium—material that, if further refined, could be usedtomake threenuclearbombs — and suggests that the Islamic republic is making headway to- ward uranium that is weapons- grade. This year, Iran has produced
about 50 pounds of uranium en- riched at 20 percent purification
levels, according to the report. Iran had not previously exceeded purificationratesof roughly 5per- cent.Alevelof90percent isgener- ally considered to be weapons- grade. Iran says its nuclear programis
forpeacefulpurposes,
butU.S.and otherWestern officials say Tehran ispursuing aweapon. Experts said the report, a quar-
terlyupdatesent tothe35member nations of the atomic agency as well as the U.N. Security Council, suggests that Iran is becoming more aggressive in denying in- spectorsanswersaboutandaccess tonuclear sites. “Thethingthat standsoutmore
andmore is how Iran is not coop- erating, [even on] inspections un- der traditional rules,” said David Albright, a former weapons in- spector and president of the Insti-
a new wave of Iranian activism These students don’t want revolution — they just want to be heard
BY THOMAS ERDBRINK
delft, netherlands — A dreamy university town in the Netherlands known as the birth- place of 17th-century painter Jo- hannes Vermeer has become a major center for Iranian activists abroad. More than 1,000 Iranian stu-
dents, themajority fresh arrivals from Iran’s best universities, are studying applied physics and aerospace engineering at the Delft University of Technology, and meeting during evenings in cafes that line the city’s canals. The university hosts one of the
largest communities of visiting Iranian scholars in Europe, and many are involvedwith the Irani- an oppositionmovement. For many, Delft’s Iranian stu-
dent community represents the emergence of a new breed of Iranian opposition activists abroad that is more individual, shuns ideology and promotes debate over conflict. Many here say they want an Iran that is connected to the world, but they also support nationalist causes such as Iran’s right to nuclear energy. “This place has become a
think tank on the future of Iran,” said Sohrab, who is pursuing a master’s degree in engineering and arrived here less than a year ago. Like many others here, he said he was rejected by U.S. universities in part because of sanctions related to Iran’s nucle- ar program. Sohran spoke on the condition that his last name not be used. The ongoing exodus fromIran
of talented students has mush- roomed after a harsh govern- ment clampdown on universi- ties, following protests that erupted after President Mah- moud Ahmadinejad’s disputed election victory in June 2009. Delft was flooded with Iranian graduate students, many of whomparticipated in protests in Iran. Born after the 1979 Islamic
revolution, these students came with what they say are more pragmatic and realistic perspec- tives on the future of their coun- try. They are calling for reforms, rather than an overthrow of the system. “We need to change many
things in our country — but we don’t need another terrible revo- lution,” Sohrab said. “We are a new generation that is looking for answers, instead of forcing solutions upon others.” Using Facebook and phone
calls for daily communication with friends and family in Teh- ran, the Iranian students of Delft are in close contact with their former classmates in Iran and beyond. There is an active Irani-
“We can’t change Iran overnight— there is no magic solution.”
—Nima Emami, philosophy student
and just finished a year at the New School in New York. Emami preferred his Dutch friends over often bitter and cynical Iranians who fled the country after the 1979 revolution. “But this new generation of
students thinks, dresses and acts like me,” Emami said. “We can’t change Iran overnight—there is nomagic solution.” For European politicians who
often deal with Iran, the newly arrived students offer a different perspective on the Islamic Re- public, a nation that they are rarely able to visit. “I prefer to speak with activ-
ists, journalists and bloggers who left Iran three months ago. They are more realistic and act more as individuals than in groups compared to those who have been living here for a longer time,” said Marietje Schaake, a Dutch representative to the Eu- ropean Parliament. Still, others who are active in
an students club, which organiz- es meetings with exiled dissi- dents and politicians. Children of Iranian opposition figures study in the city; many have siblings, fiancees or friends who have been arrested in Iran. The influx of these young
activists has spurred conflict with more traditional, ideologi- cal opposition groups that have been demanding a regime change in Iran for the past 30 years. The Delft activists’ more gradual approach to change has attracted many European-born Iranian youths, who have grown tired of hearing their parents speak of a revolution that never seems to come. “I used to avoid other Irani-
ans,” said Nima Emami, a philos- ophy student who lives in Delft
Iranian opposition movements in Europe distrust the newcom- ers. “Many of these kids are from wealthy North Tehran. They are close to politicians in Iran who are merely calling for reforms instead of real changes,” said Shahin Nasiri, spokesman for an opposition group called Iranian Progressive Youth. Nasiri, along with a group of
likeminded friends who came to the Netherlands in the past de- cade, said he feels obliged to say what others in Iran can’t say. “There is a lot of potential in Delft, but we think many of the students there are passive,” he said. “They should not allow this regime to get any legitimacy.” Radicalism is not the solution
for Iran, Sohrab and other stu- dents in Delft say. “Such people have lost touch with Iran,” he said while sipping iced tea on a terrace in the center ofDelft. “We don’t want to overthrow the system — but we want to be heard by it. That would be a realistic start.”
erdbrinkt@washpost.com
In an idyllic Dutch town,
tute for Science and International Security.While Iran has long kept aspects of its programhidden, Al- bright said, “whatyou’veseenover the last year is that Iran ismaking itdifficult for theIAEAtodoits job atdeclaredsites.” The report describes a series of
recent developments at the main declaredsite,Natanz. Lastmonth, Iran informed the
agencythat ithadunderestimated theaccumulationofnuclearmate- rial there and that it had mistak- enly broken seals on materials or equipment. The IAEA said that it has not
beengrantedaccesstoaheavy-wa- ter production plant, forcing it to
rely solely on satellite imagery to assess the plant’s operations. The agencysaiditalsohasbeendenied information about plans for new enrichment facilities that Iranhas saidit intends to build. In a recent reply, Iran said that
“itwould provide the agencywith the required information ‘in due time,’” according to the report. Tehranhaspreviously arguedthat it is not obligated to disclose even the existence of such facilities un- til they are completed. U.S.officials suspect that Iranis
pushingitsnuclearprogramas far as it can under U.N. inspections, with an aimof giving the nation’s leaders the option to quickly re-
configure facilities to rush for- wardtheproductionof a bomb. Iran says, for example, that it is
enriching uranium at 20 percent levels to produce fuel rods for a medical research reactor. ButU.S. officials say Iran’s explanation is implausible, in part because it doesn’t have the sophistication to work with medically useful fuel rods. Despite Iran’s ongoing work,
U.S. intelligence agencies have re- cently concluded that it would take about a year, even under a rushed scenario, for Iran to devel- opa bomb.
millergreg@washpost.com
TOMORROWIS...
Double AdWednesday. Onceaweek. Twicethe savings.
WED
Double Ad Wednesday! Now Save Big, 8 Days A Week! WED
Sale prices effective in this ad September 8th through September 15th, 2010. 8 9 10 11 THU FRI SAT 12 13 14 15 SUN MON TUE
Fresh, Shoppers, Grade A Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts SAVE at least$6.90
Save rLaborDaywithLowerPrices onFreshMeatandProduce!
forLabor ywith
Red, Green or Black Seedless Grapes SAVE $1.10/LB.
Fresh, Sanderson Farms, Grade A 100% Natural Whole Frying Chicken
99¢ SAVE 70¢/LB. lb.
less than 17¢/ea.
That’s Fresh, Loose
Sweet Yellow or White Corn
50¢/ea. That’s for
Thawed For Your Convenience, Lean, Whole, Bone In, Premium
Smithfield Lean Pork Spareribs
199 lb. 12199 SAVE $1.98 on 12 $2.33/lb. That’s Mangoes
Sweet Juicy
10$ for All Varieties
Coca-Cola 12 Pack Cans
SAVE $7.50 on 10 5 MUST BUY FIVE (5)
Additional or Lesser Quantities $3.00/EA.
Shady Brook Farms, Fresh, All Natural
3 lb. pkg. 85% Lean Ground Turkey
699 SAVE $1.50/EA. $2.40/ea. That’s Prices in this ad effectivethrough Wednesday, September 1, 2010. e in this ad ONLY at Shoppers located in
Double Ad Wednesday! Big, 8 Days A Week! WED
5$12 2$ SAVE $13.00on5 for Pre-Printed Price $3.99 for
Thawed For Your Convenience $5.99/LB.
Frozen
Wild, Large Snow Crab Clusters
499 SAVE $4.00/LB. lb.
9-10.5 oz. Bag, All Varieties
Potato Chips Lay’s SAVE $3.98on2 16.9 oz. btls.
Aquafina Water 24 Pack
4 399 SAVE $1.00/EA. •Raspberries
•Blackberries 6 oz. cont.
•Blueberries 5.6 oz. cont.
•Strawberries 6 oz. cont.
1 lb. cont. SAVE $1.00/LB. Fresh, Shoppers, Beef
FAMILY PACK
3 lbs. or more
USDA Choice Porterhouse or T-Bone Steak
488 SAVE $7.61/LB. lb.
FAMILY PACK
3 lbs. or more Green Giant 2$4 199 SAVE $1.98 on 2 for
Russet Potatoes SAVE $1.00/EA.
5 lb. Bag
169 89
lb. Sweet & Crisp 89¢ lb. 9/8/10 BASE PAGE 1
FAMILY PACK
3 lbs. or more
5lb. Bag
3lb. pkg.
Pack 24
LastWeek’sAd Final Dayof Prices in this ad effective through Wednesday, September 8, 2010.
ThisWeek’s Ad First Dayof Prices in this ad effective September 8 – 15, 2010.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58