NEWSTUESDAY, APRIL 19, 2016

An Indian elephant takes a dust bath amid rising temperatures at Zirakpur Chattbira Zoo, some 13 km from Chandigarh yesterday. — AFP

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analyst Miswin Mahesh in a research note. “Though Iraninitially planned to send their OPEC minister, his participationwas cancelled when the Qataris insisted that all attendeeswould also be signatories to any deal. “The political tensionbetween Saudi Arabia and Iran trumped the economics foragreeing to a deal.”

In both June and December last year, the Organization ofthe Petroleum Exporting Countries -which pumps about 40percent of the world’s oil - refused to cut output. The Saudi-backed policy is aimed at pushing the market lower to hurtless-competitive players, including US shale producers, andmaintain precious market share. Major exporters from Nigeriato Venezuela, and even Saudi Arabia, have suffered billions ofdollars in lost revenue as prices have collapsed.

Iran - which only recently returned to world oil marketsafter the lifting of nuclear-linked Western sanctions inJanuary - has ruled out capping its own production. “Iran aremore likely to increase their output, after years of sanctions,

and this is the issue,” added Hughes. “Iran are in no place tostart to cut their output and abide by an OPEC rule afteralready stating they want to increase output to pre-sanctionlevels, levels they are nowhere near currently.”

Opinion had been split over whether a deal on Sundaywould be enough to tackle the global oversupply, which isalso due to slowing demand in major consumer China andburgeoning US shale production. Rebecca O’Keeffe, head ofinvestment at online broker Interactive Investor, cautionedyesterday that global oil supply was being constrained byindustrial action in Kuwait and Saturday’s deadly earthquakein Ecuador.

“While there are a number of factors that might curb oilsupply in the short-term - including a strike in Kuwait and theearthquake in Ecuador - OPEC’s main problem is the relation-ship between Saudi Arabia and Iran and this problem is notgoing to go away,” O’Keeffe told AFP. “Indeed, Saudi Arabia maymove to increase supply in response to higher Iranian outputin an effort to maintain their market share. “This impasse couldsee a sustained medium-term depression in oil prices.” — AFP

Oil falls over Doha failure

Houthis back out of peace talks Continued from Page 1

Saudi Arabia is leading a military coalition of ArabSunni states which has been supporting pro-govern-ment forces with air strikes, weapons and troops sinceMarch last year. Speaking from Yemen’s rebel-held capi-tal, a source from the Houthi political bureau confirmedto AFP that the rebels, expected in Kuwait alongsiderepresentatives from Saleh’s General People’s Congressparty, had not left Sanaa.

A statement from the government delegation inKuwait accused the rebels of “irresponsible behavior”,and called for the international community to show“firmness in the face of their contempt for the peaceefforts”. “Due to developments over the last few hours,the start of the Yemeni-Yemeni peace negotiationsscheduled to begin today... will be delayed,” UN envoyIsmail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said in a statement, withoutspecifying when they might take place. “The next fewhours are crucial,” he said, calling on all parties to “taketheir responsibilities seriously and agree on compre-hensive solutions”.

Saudi Arabia launched the intervention after therebels, a minority group that has long complained ofmarginalization, descended from their northern strong-hold in Yemen to seize control of Sanaa in 2014. As theyadvanced into other areas, President AbedrabboMansour Hadi and other officials fled first to the mainsouthern city of Aden and eventually to Riyadh. The loy-alists have since managed to reclaim large parts of thesouth, establishing a temporary capital in Aden, buthave failed to dislodge the Houthis from Sanaa and oth-er key areas. Before the UN announcement of a delay,

the Saudi government voiced hope for “the success ofconsultations” in Kuwait, in a statement published onthe official Saudi Press Agency. The UN’s Ould CheikhAhmed urged the Huthis and their allies not to “missthis opportunity that could save Yemen the loss of morelives”. He had earlier expressed hopes for the talks,telling the UN Security Council on Friday that Yemenhas “never been so close to peace”.

The ceasefire, in place since April 11, has beenrepeatedly violated but the rebels, the government andthe Saudi-led coalition have avoided talk of it collaps-ing, as happened with three earlier truces. The situationacross Yemen was relatively calm yesterday despite skir-mishes in several areas, local sources said. Militarysources said a rebel attack killed three soldiers in theeastern Marib province, including a colonel.

There was continued fighting in Nahm, northeast ofSanaa, sources said, and sporadic clashes in the south-western Taez province. In Aden, thousands of support-ers of the Southern Movement demonstrated for thesouth’s secession, in the second such rally in as manydays. Previous attempts at peace talks - including afailed round in January - have been unable to stopYemen’s conflict, which the United Nations says haskilled more than 6,400 people and forced almost 2.8million from their homes.

Among the issues meant to be tackled in Kuwait aresecurity arrangements, the withdrawal of militias andarmed groups, the handover of heavy weapons and therelease of detainees. Jihadists including from Al-Qaedain the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the powerful Yemenibranch of the extremist network, have exploited theconflict to seize territory and gain influence. — AFP

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Rousseff allies say the president would fight to the endagainst what they see as a bid by the opposition defeatedin 2014 elections to take power by other means. “The coupplotters have won here in the house,” said Jose Guimaraes,leader of the Workers’ Party in the lower house of Congress.The government “recognizes this temporary defeat butthat does not mean that the war is over,” Guimaraes said.“The fight will continue in the streets and in the Senate.”

Cardozo described Rousseff, who was imprisoned and

tortured under military rule in the 1970s, as “very strong”and able “to fight a good fight”. Huge opposition ralliesover recent months have played a big role in turning pres-sure against Rousseff into an unstoppable avalanche. Nowanger on the streets could again play a role as the stakes inthe crisis rise even higher.

Sylvio Costa, who heads the specialist politics websiteCongresso en Foco, told AFP that Brazil’s troubles are onlystarting. “Whoever loses will keep protesting in thestreets,” he said. “What’s certain is that the crisis will notend today.” — AFP

Rousseff loses key impeachment voteBomb rips through Jerusalem busContinued from Page 1

contingent of firefighters battling to extinguish the blaze.Police said 21 people were injured, with medics reporting atleast two hurt seriously. Police were investigating whetherany of the wounded were behind the bombing. Authoritiesinitially said most of the wounded were passengers on thesecond bus, though conflicting information later emerged.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “we’ll findwhoever prepared this explosive device”. “We’ll reach the dis-patchers and those behind them. We’ll settle the score withthese terrorists. We’re in an ongoing struggle against terror,knife terror, shooting terror, bombs, rockets and tunnel ter-ror.” The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which rules theIsraeli-blockaded Gaza Strip, welcomed the attack as “a natu-ral response to Zionist crimes”, but there was no claim ofresponsibility for the bombing.

The blast struck in an area of the city without any majorbuildings or homes and which is not heavily used by pedes-trians. The location was on Moshe Baram Street close to theso-called Green Line dividing mainly Jewish west Jerusalemfrom predominately Palestinian east Jerusalem. JerusalemMayor Nir Barkat called on residents to be vigilant, “but con-tinue with your plans”. “Here in Jerusalem and in Israel, we goback to normal life as fast as possible,” he said. “It’s part of the

deep understanding that if it’s a terror attack, they want todeter us from our normal life, and what we must do... is goback to normal life as fast as possible.”

The explosion comes with tensions high following a waveof violence that began in October that has killed 201Palestinians and 28 Israelis. Most of the Palestinians killedwere carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, accord-ing to Israeli authorities. The last bomb targeting a bus inJerusalem dates back to 2011, when a British tourist waskilled. In Tel Aviv, a bomb exploded on an empty bus in 2013in what Israeli authorities called a “terrorist” attack. Suicidebombings were frequent during the second Palestinianintifada between 2000-2005. Speaking before the bomb wasconfirmed, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said “if it wasa terrorist attack, the implications are very great in terms ofsecurity on the ground”.

Attacks have steadily declined in recent weeks, thoughthere have been concerns the Passover holiday beginning onFriday could lead to a new surge in violence. Many analystssay Palestinian frustration with Israeli occupation and settle-ment building in the West Bank, the complete lack ofprogress in peace efforts and their own fractured leadershiphave fed the recent unrest. Israel blames incitement byPalestinian leaders and media as a main cause of the vio-lence. — AFP