Afghan plan political gamble for Obama

Obama's drawdown plan may be too slow to satisfy war-weary lawmakers and too fast to sit well with military leaders.

Canada releases secret Afghan war documents

OTTAWA: The Canadian government on Wednesday released 4,000 pages of top secret documents detailing Afghan prisoner transfers, holding them up as proof of no wrongdoing by Canadian soldiers. The files were believed to contain evidence that Canada transferred prisoners to Afghan custody knowing they could be tortured, in violation of Canadian and international law. "These [...]

Al Qaeda under ‘enormous strain’: Obama

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama said Wednesday information seized during the raid that killed Osama bin Laden showed his al Qaeda terror network was under "enormous strain." Bin Laden expressed concern that al Qaeda has been unable to effectively replace senior terrorists that have been killed, and that al Qaeda has failed in its effort [...]

Cameron ‘fully agrees’ with Obama’s Afghan strategy

LONDON: British leader David Cameron "fully agreed" with US President Barack Obama that "sustained pressure" could be applied to Afghan insurgents despite a troop cutback, his office said Thursday. In a call made hours before Obama announced the withdrawal of thousands of US troops from the war-torn nation, Cameron reaffirmed to the US leader that [...]

Afghan endgame unclear after Obama decision

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama’s decision for a partial troop withdrawal from Afghanistan may ease political pressure at home, but fails to resolve the overriding dilemma of how to extricate the United States from the long war, experts said. In announcing Wednesday the departure of 33,000 surge troops by the summer of 2012, Obama split the [...]

Embassy issues 67 visas for CIA staff

WASHINGTON, June 22: The Pakistan Embassy here has issued 67 visas to CIA officials for deployment in Pakistan, embassy sources told Dawn on Wednesday. The decision, according to these sources, followed an understanding between the two governments on CIA deployments and postings in Pakistan. "Under the new arrangement, the CIA has accepted Islamabad's demand that [...]

US insists Pakistan keep anti-terror pledges: Obama

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama announced on Wednesday a plan to start bringing US troops home from Afghanistan in a significant first step toward ending the long, costly Afghan war. In a televised address, Obama said he would pull 10,000 troops from Afghanistan by year’s end, followed by about 23,000 more by the end of next [...]

Dravid’s class and pacemen hand India initiative

KINGSTON, Jamaica: A typically resolute century by Rahul Dravid and the new-ball pair of Ishant Sharma and Praveen Kumar put India in a strong position for victory in the first Test against West Indies on Wednesday. Dravid made 112 – his 32nd test century – before he was the last man dismissed, as the Indians [...]

Govt rejects US opinion poll, questions its focus on Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The government rejected on Wednesday the findings of an opinion poll released on Tuesday by the US-based Pew Research Centre and described it as an exercise that undermined democracy and portrayed incorrectly the Pakistani people's struggle against terrorism. A government spokesman said random surveys conducted on a sample size of less than 2,000 people [...]

Plan to fence, mine Afghan border

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is seriously considering to 'fence and mine' some important parts of the Pak-Afghan border, in the wake of increasing incursions by militants from the Afghan side into Bajaur, Upper Dir and Mohmand tribal regions, knowledgeable sources told Dawn. The plan has been there for some time and specific details were also worked out [...]

Zardari has become army’s spokesman, says PML-N

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-N came out with tit-for-tat attacks on President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday, in response to his recent onslaught against Nawaz Sharif and termed it "unethical" and a result of frustration over failure of his government's policies. Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, said President Asif [...]

PPP hawks given nod to take Sharifs on

LAHORE: Setting aside Pakistan People's Party's reconciliation policy President Asif Ali Zardari has reportedly given a go-ahead to his party hawks to give a 'befitting response' to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leadership. Before PPP co-chairman's rare onslaught on PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday, there had been a clear direction from him to his party [...]

Outages, protests continue as KESC, union trade barbs

KARACHI: While large numbers of people in the city continued to suffer over 14 hours of power outages on Wednesday, KESC workers protesting against the management accused it of attacking their rally in Hyderi with the help of `goons` armed with automatic weapons. The management, however, blamed the union for obstructing Karachi Electric Supply [...]

Nadal, Murray through as Venus given scare

LONDON: World number one Rafael Nadal and British hope Andy Murray stayed on course for a Wimbledon showdown on Wednesday as Venus Williams came from a set down to reach the third round of the women’s draw. Spanish reigning champion Nadal swept into the last 32 with a brisk demolition of American journeyman Ryan Sweeting, [...]

Islamic make-over for Islamabad bus stops

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is decorating bus stops with Quranic verses and Islamic calligraphy to give a more spiritual flavour to the capital Islamabad, long considered one of the country’s most liberal cities. The Capital Development Authority (CDA) plans to roll out 100 new bus shelters — known locally as sunshades — painted with flowers and religious [...]

Forex & Gold 23, June 2011

Forex Update: KARACHI, June 21: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at 86.25 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 15:30 PST) Note: We do not receive Foreign Exchange Rates regularly. The last received rates are given below. Spot Rates for public per unit of currency Exchange Rates for Currency Notes [...]

PCB approves annual budget, forms three committees

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has approved the annual budget for the next fiscal year 2011-12 but has avoided disclosing any amount in this regard. "The PCB has presented a proposed budget for the fiscal year of 2011-12 before the Governing Board members, but since they have made some recommendations which have been approved, [...]

President Obama telephones Pakistan’s Zardari

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States agreed to take steps to repair ties as President Barack Obama telephoned his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday, Islamabad said. Relations between the two countries, wary at the best of times, deteriorated sharply after US Navy SEALs found and killed Osama bin Laden in the Pakistani garrison [...]

Saudi women in new driving protest

RIYADH: Two Saudi women said they drove their cars on Wednesday in a new protest against a ban on women driving in the conservative Muslim kingdom. Their actions came in response to a call on the Internet for women in Riyadh to get behind the wheel, after a show of defiance on Friday in which [...]

Obama to host Nato summit on Afghanistan in 2012

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama will host a Nato summit on Afghanistan in his hometown of Chicago in May 2012, along with the G8 meeting of leaders of industrialized nations, a US official said Wednesday. Obama will make the announcement about the Nato meeting devoted to progress in the Afghan war during his primetime address [...]

MPAs felicitated on approval of Punjab budget 2011-12

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has congratulated Members Punjab Assembly on the approval of the provincial budget for the fiscal year 2011-12. He said that with the cooperation and consultation of Quaid Pakistan Muslim League-N, Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, honourable members of the House and provincial cabinet, excellent and balanced budget had been presented [...]

Pakistan pledges more than three dozen CIA visas

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has pledged to grant more than three dozen visas to CIA officers as part of confidence-building measures following the US raid that killed al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden and humiliated Pakistan, officials from both countries said Wednesday, but the visas have not yet been issued. The visas are part of an agreement to [...]

Gunman kills Shia pilgrims in bus attack: police

QUETTA: A gunman opened fire on a bus carrying Shia Muslim pilgrims in southwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing three people and wounding nine others, police said. The shooting happened in Akhtarabad, on the outskirts of Quetta, the capital of oil and gas-rich Baluchistan province, which borders Afghanistan and Iran. "At least three people were killed [...]

Four army majors questioned over links to Hizbut Tehrir

"They are being questioned in relation to the brigadier case," Major General Athar Abbas told Reuters.

Row rages over ‘agreement’ on GB Olympic team

LONDON: The British Olympic Association’s claim on Tuesday that they had reached agreement to field a Great Britain football team at the London Olympics next year were ridiculed by among others Northern Irishman Jim Boyce, vice-president of world governing body FIFA. The BOA had announced a deal had been done but later on Tuesday that [...]

Indian PM recommends release of Dr Khalil Chishtie

AJMER: Following Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s intervention just days before the Foreign Secretary level talks between India and Pakistan in Islamabad, 79-year-old Pakistani virologist Dr Khalil Chishtie, who is languishing in Ajmer jail, may finally be released, CNN-IBN reported on Tuesday. Serving a life term for a 1992 murder, his mercy petition has been [...]

Jack Warner quits FIFA, ethics case dropped

LONDON: Jack Warner, who had threatened a "tsunami" of revelations about the way football is run, quit as FIFA vice president on Monday, prompting the sport’s governing body to drop an investigation into bribery allegations against the Trinidadian. Warner, who had been suspended pending an ethics committee probe into bribery claims, has resigned from all [...]

Kumar learns tough lesson about Test cricket

KINGSTON: Praveen Kumar has learnt quickly how unforgiving Test cricket can be. The India fast-medium bowler was bowling beautifully, getting the ball to swing prodigiously through the air and off the pitch, and putting West Indies under pressure with his three wickets for 38 runs from 18 overs on the second day of the first [...]

Jol relishing Fulham challenge

LONDON: New Fulham manager Martin Jol said on Tuesday he was relishing his return to the top flight of English football. The 55-year-old Jol, who has been without a club since leaving Ajax last year, spent three years in charge of Tottenham between 2004 and 2007. "Everybody knew I would like to come back. I [...]

Three dead, 28 wounded in Iraq attacks

The casualties occurred in bomb and gun attacks in Baghdad and northern Iraq, officials said.

Five million Pakistanis at risk from floods: UN

Up to five million people in Pakistan are at risk from floods this year, partly due to poor reconstruction and the inadequate rehabilitation of survivors who are still reeling from last year’s epic deluge, the UN said on Wednesday. Monsoon floods began roaring through Pakistan in late July last year, leaving one-fifth of the country [...]

Defunct ICL sees hope after Modi’s tweets

NEW DELHI: Organizers of the defunct Indian Cricket League have seized on admissions by the former head of the rival Indian Premier League that there was an official plot to undermine the ICL, saying it helps their ongoing legal fight and raised hopes of reviving the Twenty20 competition. The ICL in 2007 filed a case [...]

Kinect bringing interactive ads to Xbox 360

SAN FRANCISCO: Microsoft announced Tuesday it will bring interactive ads to Xbox360 consoles using the voice- and gesture-recognizing capabilities of Kinect controllers. The US technology titan unveiled "NUads" technology that it heralded as the future of television advertising. "I believe that the Kinect platform, and NUads, will unlock the incredible potential of interactive TV, and [...]

Vibrant Pakistan!

Hafeez, Akmal issued show-cause notices

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket has tightened gag orders on players by serving notices to opener Mohammad Hafeez and batsman Umar Akmal for allegedly violating their contracts, an official said Wednesday. "Hafeez and Umar have been served with show-cause notices for violating the code of conduct clause on media interviews," Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesman Nadeem Sarwar [...]

Wimbledon: Day 2

Six-time men’s champion Roger Federer and Serena Williams, the women’s winner on four occasions, are amongst Wimbledon’s headliners on Tuesday as organisers tackle a backlog of matches. Heavy rain, which washed out all of Monday evening’s action except on the covered Centre Court, means that 95 singles matches were slated for Tuesday, the second day [...]

The naked truth

Middle-aged Shahnaz Bibi's ordeal at the hands of her village's tough guys makes hers the most read story on the BBC World website. Earlier this month in the remote village of Neelor Bala in Haripur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, she was punished for her son's alleged affair with a neighbour's wife, possibly under a jirga [...]

I’ll be back: Afridi

KARACHI: Pakistan’s disgruntled former captain Shahid Afridi said he wants to make an international comeback on Wednesday, but insisted that certain members of the national team management would first have to leave. Last week the talismanic all-rounder appeared to have ended an ugly public spat with the Pakistan Cricket Board which followed his sudden retirement [...]

Villas-Boas appointed Chelsea manager

LONDON: Chelsea have appointed Porto boss Andre Villas-Boas as their new manager, a club statement announced on Wednesday. The 33-year-old, who emerged as the front runner for the job after resigning as Porto coach on Tuesday, has signed a three year deal, making him the youngest ever Premier League manager. Chelsea, confirming the news, described [...]

Game app aims to show Pakistan flood shadow lingers

NEW DELHI: A game application is trying to raise awareness of the now largely forgotten epic floods which inundated Pakistan almost a year ago, hoping to use social media and smart phones to reach an untapped group of people. "Relief Copter" is an effort by a small, Islamabad-based media firm to highlight the plight of [...]

Marvi Memon resigns from NA, PML-Q

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League – Quaid (PML-Q) MNA Marvi Memon on Wednesday resigned from the parliament as well as from her membership of the PML-Q, DawnNews reported. Ms Memon said the government was working against the interests of the Pakistani people and for that reason it was not possible for her to remain in the [...]

Suspect in Shahbaz Bhatti’s killing arrested from Karachi

KARACHI: A man suspected of being involved in the killing of Shahbaz Bhatti, who was serving as federal minister for minorities affairs, was arrested from Karachi, DawnNews reported. The suspect, Hafiz Nazar, was being investigated for his suspected involvement in Bhatti’s murder, police told DawnNews. Bhatti, who had urged reforming Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, was assassinated [...]

The space for secularism in the national narrative

Pakistan is a strange country; the people who garner maximum news coverage are often shady. If January was the month of Mumtaz Qadri, then February and March definitely belonged to Raymond Davis and the man who hogged all the headlines across the globe in May was Osama Bin Laden. Last but not the least was [...]

The Indian Venice

Monsoon storms in eastern India damaged homes and flooded parts of Kolkata. – Photos by AP

Foursquare tops 10 million members

SAN FRANCISCO: Ranks of Foursquare users have continued to swell this year, with more than 10 million people sharing their locations with gadgets tapped into the service. The latest milestone came about five months after the New York City-based startup proudly announced it had topped six million registered users after growing at an impressive 3,400 [...]

Postcards from Pakistan: Karakoram and beyond

Far from the busy bazaars of Rawalpindi, the grand mosques of Lahore and the hustle and bustle of southern port city Karachi which altogether, under the sweltering summer heat results in a maelstrom of life and buzz that characterize Pakistan, lies a different world. Here, a 45-min flight away or some 18 hours by road [...]

Vincent’s “self-portrait” actually brother

The HAGUE: Art researchers at Amsterdam’s Van Gogh Museum said Tuesday they have "discovered" that a work by Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh – long thought to have been a self-portrait – was in fact a picture of his younger brother Theo. "According to current opinion, Vincent van Gogh never painted his brother Theo, on [...]

India, Pakistan aim to nudge peace process forward

ISLAMABAD: India and Pakistan begin peace talks on Thursday, an important safety valve between two nuclear-armed countries which the United States hopes will help stabilise the region as it prepares to withdraw troops from Afghanistan. But after many false starts, hopes were being kept deliberately low for the two days of talks between Indian Foreign [...]

Darwin book returned to library – 122 years late

SYDNEY: A first edition Charles Darwin book returned to its origins last week some 122 years late, when it was handed back to the Australian library to which it belongs. Darwin’s "Insectivorous Plants" was borrowed from the Camden School of Arts lending library on Sydney’s outskirts sometime in 1889. But it was only returned to [...]

We have to find new ways of winning Tests: Sanga

"To win a Test match, you need to take 20 wickets. That’s going to be the key to us going forward." -Photo by AFP SOUTHAMPTON: Sri Lanka star Kumar Sangakkara called on his side to find "new ways of winning Tests" after his century in the drawn finale against England failed to prevent a 1-0 [...]

Four IPPs withdraw final notices on payment of Rs5bn

ISLAMABAD: Four independent power producers (IPPs) decided on Tuesday to withdraw their final notices seeking encashment of sovereign guarantees after they were paid Rs5 billion and assured that the remaining dues will be cleared before June 30. An agreement to that effect was reached after negotiations between Water and Power Minister Syed Naveed Qamar and [...]

Shahbaz to bring back foreign assets

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif decided to bring his foreign assets back to Pakistan. "The chief minister has decided to transfer his foreign assets, in which his personal investment is not more than 18 per cent and the rest of the amount is in the shape of loans, back to Pakistan after selling them [...]

Rs164.45bn budget for Balochistan

QUETTA: The Balochistan government unveiled on Tuesday a Rs164.45 billion budget for the next financial year, with a development programme of Rs31.24 billion and deficit of Rs6.73 billion. Finance Minister Mir Asim Kurd presented the budget in the provincial assembly with the consolidated revenue and capital receipts estimated at Rs157.84 billion. The revenue receipts of [...]

Iran captures four bomb suspects in southeast: state TV

TEHRAN: Iran has arrested four people wearing explosives vests who are suspected of plotting attacks on behalf of Sunni militant group Jundallah, the state television website reported on Tuesday. "The four members of this group who were arrested attempted to enter Sistan Balochistan carrying explosive vests," the southeastern province’s justice chief Ebrahim Hamidi told the [...]

Malik’s warning angers PML-N

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rehman Malik blew hot and cold to defend his ministry's budget of over Rs55 billion in the National Assembly on Tuesday, but it was his threat to expose unspecified bank "loots" and terrorism sponsors that angered the opposition PML-N most, provoking protests from the party benches. Mr Malik rejected most allegations of [...]

Mohsin restricted from media talk

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)'s media department, showing some muscle, restricted chief selector Mohsin Khan from talking to journalists at the Board's offices here on Tuesday. After a long time, Mohsin was seen in Lahore on Tuesday where he was to attend a meeting of the NCA coaching programme. The local media people approached [...]

Federer off to flying start after Serena shows rare emotion

LONDON: Defending champion Serena Williams, who described her recent struggles against life-threatening blood clots as like being on her death bed, broke down in tears on Tuesday on her Wimbledon return. The four-time winner, watched by US pop superstar Diana Ross and England's Ashes-winning cricketers in the Royal Box, battled past Frenchwoman Aravane Rezai 6-3, [...]

Power riots spread after consumers receive ‘inflated’ bills

KARACHI: While many city areas continued to remain without electricity for most part of the day, residents and traders staged demonstrations to protest against the Karachi Electric Supply Company after they received "inflated" bills on Tuesday. Power riots spread to Jodia Bazaar, Old Golimar, Gadap, North Karachi, Korangi, Landhi, Lyari and other localities, where people [...]

Syria’s Assad orders new amnesty as five more dead

DAMASCUS: President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday ordered a new general amnesty, a day after an offer of "national dialogue" to end Syria’s unrest, even as activists said five people were killed in anti-government protests. Three people were killed in the central city of Homs, one of them a teenager, and another two in the northeastern [...]

Lady Gaga arrives in Japan for tsunami charity gig

TOKYO: Lady Gaga, dressed in green from head to toe, flew into Tokyo Tuesday for a charity music event for the victims of the March 11 quake-tsunami disaster which devastated Japan’s northeast. Some 200 fans – joined by a 50-strong media pack – cheered her arrival at Narita airport, and the 25-year-old singer responded by [...]

Rupees 164.447 billion Balochistan budget announced

QUETTA: Provincial Minister Asim Kurd Galloo announced an all time high tax free Balochistan budget 2011-12 at the provincial assembly here Tuesday afternoon. Announcing the budget the Finance Minister said that total size of the budget is Rupees 164.447 billion including Rupees 31.241 billion development budget. Total estimates during the new financial year have been [...]

Police halt Google ‘Street View’ project in India

BANGALORE: Indian police said Tuesday they had ordered Google to stop taking photos of the city of Bangalore for its Street View product because of fears the images could be used by militants. Technology giant Google launched its plan to collect panoramic images of India last month, picking IT and software hub Bangalore as the [...]

PM approves summaries of inquiry commissions

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday approved the summaries sent by the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs proposing the constitution of inquiry commissions for the Abbottabad Operation and the murder of Journalist Saleem Shahzad. The Abbottabad Commission shall consist of (a) Mr. Justice Javed Iqbal, Senior most Judge of the [...]

Richard Gere visits Buddhist temple in S. Korea

SEOUL: Hollywood star Richard Gere – a Buddhist and a longtime campaigner for the rights of Tibetans – on Tuesday visited a Buddhist temple during a visit to South Korea. Gere will later this week also attend an opening ceremony for an exhibition of photographs entitled "Pilgrim" which he took in Tibet and at other [...]

Huntsman enters 2012 race against ex-boss Obama

JERSEY CITY: Former US ambassador to China Jon Huntsman entered the race to unseat his ex-boss, President Barack Obama, on Tuesday behind his Republican competitors in the polls but with praise for a strong fledgling campaign. Pledging to make "hard decisions" to prevent America sinking into a debt disaster, the former governor of Utah formally [...]

Web address boom could be search engine boon

SAN FRANCISCO: The decision to open the Internet to a flood of Web addresses ending in anything from company names to social movements could prove a boon to search engines. The Internet’s global coordinator on Monday approved the creation of website addresses ending in just about any word, triggering one of the biggest ever shake-ups [...]

Asma Jahangir urges civilians to challenge army

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s civilian leaders should capitalise on public anger with the military and try to ease its grip on power, a leading human rights activist and lawyer said on Tuesday. The army’s image has been dented by a number of setbacks starting with the killing of Osama bin Laden last month by US special forces [...]

Beloved “Talking Tom” smartphone cat eyes Hollywood

SAN FRANCISCO: Smartphone character "Talking Tom" has signed with a top Hollywood talent agency in a sign that "apps" are out to break the bonds of mobile gadgets and hit films and television. "Talking Tom" has become a global sensation since it was launched by startup Outfit7 in Slovenia in July of 2010. "Outfit7 has [...]

Chelsea target Villas-Boas quits as FC Porto coach

LISBON: Chelsea target Andre Villas-Boas has opened the way for a move to the English Premier League by resigning as FC Porto coach, the Portuguese champions confirmed on Tuesday. Villas-Boas informed FC Porto that he was breaking his contract by paying a 15-million-euro ($21.35m) departure clause. FC Porto said in a statement that they had [...]

Brigadier detained for suspected links to banned group

ISLAMABAD: Authorities detained a serving brigadier suspected for ties with a banned organisation, BBCUrdu said in a report on Tuesday. The report of the brigadier’s detention was confirmed by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), DawnNews quoted BBCUrdu as saying. The senior army officer Brigadier Ali Khan was posted at the GHQ, the BBCUrdu report said. [...]

Police on alert for “Irish republican terror” at Wimbledon

LONDON: London’s police said they were prepared for the possibility of bomb threats and attacks targeting the Wimbledon tennis championships as the tournament got under way Monday. Superintendent Pete Dobson, the day-to-day police commander at the All England Club, said their plans for policing the championships had to be set against the national threat levels [...]

Herald exclusive: False security

After the shocking terrorist attack on the highly protected PNS Mehran naval base in Karachi on May 22 that destroyed two surveillance planes worth six billion rupees and killed 10 security officials, the military's assurances on the country's defence being impregnable sound more hollow than ever. There is no dearth of analysts in Islamabad who [...]

Foreign coach not the answer to our problems: Tahir Zaman

NEW DELHI: Former captain and coach of Pakistan hockey team Tahir Zaman feels that there is no overnight solution to the problems being faced by the Pakistan team currently. A foreign coach, according to him, is definitely not an answer. "Almost all the experiments with foreign coaches have flopped in India and Pakistan. India once [...]

Wimbledon: Day 1

The Wimbledon Tennis Championships at the All England Tennis Club, in southwest London on June 20, 2011. Heavy rain brought Wimbledon’s £80 million Center Court roof into action on the first day of the 125th Championships.

Nawaz blames govt, agencies for deteriorating security situation

MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said that the government and the intelligence agencies were responsible for Pakistan's deteriorating security situation, DawnNews reported. Speaking to a gathering in Azad Kashmir, he said the Kashmir dispute should be resolved in light of the United Nations’ resolutions. He criticised the PPP-led [...]

England set for extra Pakistan matches to fulfill broadcast obligations

SOUTHAMPTON: England are set to play additional one-day matches away to Pakistan, either in the United Arab Emirates or Sri Lanka, where they face the islanders in two Tests from March until early April next year. They are in line to tag on two additional Twenty20 matches against the West Indies to the end of [...]

Tweeting to end sexual harassment

With Egyptian women taking to an anti-sexual harassment campaign on Monday, in what is the first such massive movement on the streets and online to promote a change in Egyptian society toward the treatment of women, the role of women's empowerment in the Middle East and the Islamic world has too often been left on [...]

Fabregas “really wants” to move: Barcelona

MADRID: Barcelona will refuse to pay 40 million euros (35 million pounds) for Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas although he "really wants" to transfer, according to Barcelona president Sandro Rosell. "I don’t know if we will sign Cesc or not. What I have no doubt of is that he really wants to come to Barca," Rosell [...]

Security official dead in South Waziristan attack

WANA: An attack in the tehsil Laddah of South Waziristan tribal region resulted in the death of a member of the security forces on Tuesday, DawnNews reported. According to reports, a remote-controlled device was used in the attack that also wounded another security forces official. Meanwhile, four militants were killed in a retaliatory attack by [...]

Afghan Skateboarders?

The Afghan Skate School organized their third annual Go Skateboarding Day Kabul, the only event of its kind in Afghanistan. The kids of Skateistan took to the streets, wearing traditional clothing as they represented the Afghan skate scene to the world – shalwar kameez for boys and brightly coloured celebration clothes for the girls. – [...]

Kieswetter, Patel return to England squad

LONDON: England recalled wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter and allrounder Samit Patel to its limited-overs squad on Tuesday for the forthcoming Twenty20 match and one-day international series against Sri Lanka. Test wicketkeeper Matt Prior, who was part of England’s World Cup squad on the subcontinent, makes way for the return of Kieswetter, a big-hitting batsman who opens [...]

Sindh govt removes eight engineers, five SDOs

ISLAMABAD: Following directives of the Supreme Court over the findings of the flood inquiry commission, the government of Sindh on Tuesday dismissed five SDOs and eight engineers from the irrigation department, DawnNews reported. The officials were dismissed over the findings of the report issued by the commission and submitted to the apex court nearly two [...]

Edwards feels for Roach but grabs his opportunity

KINGSTON: Fidel Edwards said he was thrilled about making his international comeback at Sabina Park, after helping West Indies to bowl India out in the first Test on Monday. The West Indies fast bowler had been sidelined for the last two years with a career-threatening back injury, and was the preferred choice to form the [...]

Sri Lanka officials head to India for T20 league talks

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) officials are hopeful that hastily arranged talks with their Indian counterparts will succeed in releasing players from that country to participate in the inaugural Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) Twenty20 tournament. On Sunday, the Indian cricket board (BCCI) advised its cricketers to steer clear of the tournament on the grounds [...]

Americans turn to gardening to save money

MONTPELIER, Vermont: Many of the millions of Americans who turned to gardening to save money during the recession appear to be sticking with it during the recovery as food prices remain high and interest in safe, fresh and local food grows nationwide. Forty-three million US households planned to grow at least some of their own [...]

Rs.15.43 billion budget presented for GB

GILGIT: A total annual budget of Rs15.43 billion for the year 2011-12 was presented in the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly on Monday, DawnNews reported. Meanwhile, as Finance Minister Mohammad Ali Akhtar presented the budget in the assembly, opposition members and journalists boycotted the budget session. Out of the total budget, an amount of Rs 8.17 billion was [...]

Truely Pakistan…

Not all opinions are created equal

To my surprise, my column last week elicited more reader comments than anything I've written in a while. I have mixed feelings about this. I'm glad to have stirred up debate, of course. But the measure of success should be not the quantity of debate, but the quality. To write on controversial subjects in a [...]

Nepal risks political chaos over constitution task

KATHMANDU: Having won an extension to do in three months what it failed to manage in three years, Nepal’s parliament has only deferred a crisis that threatens the Himalayan nation’s fragile peace process. Elected in 2008 after a decade of civil war between the government and Maoist insurgents, the 601-member parliament, or Constituent Assembly, was [...]

IMF interviews Carstens for top job; Lagarde next

WASHINGTON: Mexico’s candidate to lead the International Monetary Fund began two days of lobbying IMF officials Monday, while his French rival is due to make the rounds on his heels, the IMF said. "The next step in the process for the new managing director is now underway. Both candidates, Mr. Agustin Carstens and Ms. Christine [...]

US Supreme Court rejects Wal-Mart gender bias suit

WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Monday rejected a class action suit against retail giant Wal-Mart by 1.5 million female workers who claimed they had been systematically discriminated against on the basis of gender. The landmark verdict — the most closely watched legal decision of the year — severely restricted how and when lawyers can [...]

Cartoon 21, june 2011

Cartoon 21, June 2011

Tunisia’s Ben Ali, wife sentenced to 35 years in absentia

TUNIS: A Tunisian court Monday sentenced ousted strongman Zine el Abidine Ben Ali and his wife to 35 years in prison each for misappropriating public funds and fined the exiled couple tens of millions of dollars.   "The court has ruled the facts against Zine el Abidine Ben Ali and Leila Trabelsi have been established," [...]

Abyei accord ‘important first step’: Clinton

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Monday welcomed an accord by north and south Sudan to demilitarize Abyei, but said the real test would be how both sides implemented the deal. The rival governments of north and south Sudan signed the accord Monday to demilitarize the disputed region and let in an Ethiopian peacekeeping [...]

Rs515 million missing from interior ministry accounts

ISLAMABAD, June 20: Government auditors have found more than half a billion rupees missing from the accounts of the interior ministry. The money received by the ministry against the issuance of arms licences should have been deposited in the national exchequer, Dawn has learnt on authority. The interior ministry could not reconcile receipts of [...]

Samjhauta attack: Charges filed against five extremists in India

NEW DELHI, June 20: India's anti-terror National Investigating Agency (NIA) on Monday filed charges against five alleged Hindu extremists for the 2007 fire-bombing of the Samjhauta Express that killed 68 passengers, including 42 Pakistanis on their way home, reports said. The move comes days ahead of a critical meeting between the foreign secretaries of India [...]

West Indies hold their own against India

KINGSTON, Jamaica: Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh struck flamboyant half-centuries, yet India endured a rocky start to the first Test against West Indies on Monday. Raina hit the top score of 82, and Harbhajan supported with 70, as the Indians, electing to bat, were dismissed for 246 in their first innings about 45 minutes after [...]

US cautioned to take Pakistan along on talks with Taliban

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan cautioned the United States on Monday that its peace talks with the Taliban might not make headway without clarity on 'reconcilables' and without taking Islamabad and Kabul on board about dialogue with the Afghan insurgency leadership. US Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Frank Ruggiero in his meetings at the Foreign Office [...]

Huge reserves of tight gas in Sui, NA informed

ISLAMABAD: In what could cheer up Pakistan about the future in present times of energy shortages, Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Asim Hussain told the National Assembly on Monday that Sui area in Balochistan had huge reserves of tight gas equivalent to its presently known natural gas reserves. Quoting estimates that he said had been [...]

Nadal, Venus in dominant mood as Wimbledon begins

LONDON: Defending champion Rafael Nadal made an emphatic start to his bid for a third Wimbledon title on Monday while five-time winner Venus Williams was back in the old routine with a dominant display. Nadal, fresh from a record-equalling sixth French Open, was only troubled briefly by 33-year-old American Michael Russell as he cantered to [...]

80pc people suffer from mental illness in Waziristan

PESHAWAR: The drone attacks by US spy planes and acts of terrorism have not only affected the mental health of tribesmen but also the people of settled areas. "About 80 per cent residents of South and North Waziristan agencies have been affected mentally while 60 per cent people of Peshawar are nearing to become psychological [...]

Forex & Gold 21, June 2011

Forex Update: KARACHI, June 20: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at 86.4 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 15:30 PST) Note: We do not receive Foreign Exchange Rates regularly. The last received rates are given below. Spot Rates for public per unit of currency Exchange Rates for Currency Notes [...]

Pakistan to play England, SL series in UAE

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to play its home series against Sri Lanka and England in the UAE. Sources told Dawn that all the Tests, One-day Internationals and T20 matches of both the series will be held in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Earlier, Sri Lanka had shown the consent to travel to [...]

CJ gives approval for two judges to head inquiry commissions

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Monday gave approval over government’s requests for nominating two Judges of the Supreme Court, Justice Javed Iqbal, the senior most Judge and Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, to head two separate inquiry commissions to investigate US operation in Abbotabad and murder case of journalist Saleem Shahzad. The [...]

England and Sri Lanka draw third Test

SOUTHAMPTON: England and Sri Lanka drew the third and final Test at the Rose Bowl here on Monday. A draw in this match gave England the three-match series 1-0 after an innings and 14-run victory in the first Test in Cardiff was followed by stalemate at Lord’s. Chris Tremlett’s Test-best return of six for 48 [...]

Syria’s Assad offers dialogue, rejects ‘chaos’

DAMASCUS: President Bashar al-Assad said on Monday that dialogue could lead to a new constitution and even the end of his Baath party’s monopoly on power, but that he refused to reform Syria under "chaos." His remarks were condemned by pro-democracy activists who vowed that the "revolution" now in its fourth month, must go on. [...]

Nato now admits Libya air strike, says target was military

BRUSSELS: Nato admitted conducting an air strike in Sorman Monday but insisted the target was of a military nature, reversing course after denying Libyan regime claims of a bombing in the Tripoli suburb. The military alliance said in a statement that Nato warplanes carried out a precision air strike against a "high-level" command and control [...]

Egypt’s ex-president Mubarak has cancer: lawyer

CAIRO: Egypt’s ousted president Hosni Mubarak, whose trial on charges of ordering the killing of anti-regime protesters is due to start in August, has stomach cancer, his lawyer Farid al-Dib said on Monday. "He has a stomach cancer and the tumours are growing," the lawyer told AFP. The former president is currently in custody at [...]

For Pakistan, time to try India as a friend

Is Pakistan set to implode in its exasperating persistence to define itself in only security terms vis-à-vis India as did the Soviet Union with the United States in a nuclear-shadowed Cold War that lasted 40 years, a numbing fear that consumed three generations, but ended in a barren inevitability 20 years ago of the former [...]

German federation chief seeks truce in Ballack row

BERLIN: German football federation boss Theo Zwanziger has sought to end a bitter war of words between former Germany captain Michael Ballack and coach Joachim Loew by renewing the offer of a farewell match against Brazil. "Michael Ballack has earned an honorable farewell, despite what has happened (in the past days). What Loew offered him [...]

Razzaq turns it on, again

Abdul Razzaq’s 62 from 30 balls takes Leicestershire against Lancashire in the Friend Life T20. #container{background:#666666;}

Militants force young girl to wear suicide vest

ISLAMABAD: An eight-year-old Pakistani girl was kidnapped by militants who forced her to wear a suicide vest to attack security forces, police said on Monday. Police produced the girl, identified as Sohana Javaid, before a news conference broadcast on Pakistani television channels. The girl recalled how she was kidnapped in her hometown of Peshawar by [...]

India vs Sri Lanka over new T20 league

NEW DELHI: The cricket boards of India and Sri Lanka clashed Monday over a new Twenty20 competition set to be held in Colombo next month after Indian players were barred from taking part. Up to a dozen Indian players including fast bowlers Praveen Kumar and Munaf Patel had sought permission to play in the Sri [...]

Saudi Arabia pull plug on Ricardo deal

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s football federation announced on Monday that they have decided not to appoint Ricardo Gomes as coach of the national side after failing to reach agreement over his contract start date. The experienced Brazilian had requested to push back his arrival in the Middle East in order to respect the terms of his [...]

Current govt has broken all records of corruption: Nawaz

MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif on Monday said that the current government had broken all records of corruption and that the country's national treasury was being looted ruthlessly, DawnNews reported. Addressing an election rally in the Bhimber district of Azad Kashmir, Sharif said former military ruler Pervez Musharraf was responsible [...]

Japan gadget charges cellphone over campfire

TOKYO: A Japanese company has come up with a new way to charge your mobile phone after a natural disaster or in the great outdoors — by heating a pot of water over a campfire. The Hatsuden-Nabe thermo-electric cookpot turns heat from boiling water into electricity that feeds via a USB port into digital devices [...]

Burki sets sights on improved world ranking

ISLAMABAD: Former Asian Junior gold medalist Arshad Iqbal Burki will participate in the forthcoming Milad Open 2011 to be held in Iran from July 18-20 and Kuwait Squash Federation Tournament-2011 to be played in South Surrah, Kuwait from July 22-25. Burki, who has gone down to 211 in the world ranking from 52, told APP [...]

Changing narratives of animated films

A couple of weeks ago, a friend sent me the most awesome trailers of an animated movie I have seen to date. Kung Fu Panda 2 was set to release in a few days. After watching the trailers over and over again, I wistfully remarked, "don't you wish Po was real?" The reply was a [...]

A pinch of salt

Sea salt is produced through solar evaporation of seawater and is the smallest source of salt in Pakistan. Labourers earn about 600 Pakistan Rupees ($7) a day. The salts are sold commercially by contractors to different industries in Pakistan and overseas. The following photos describe the salt harvesting process at Sandspit which is about 18 [...]

Bring on Tiger, says McIlroy

BETHESDA: Only one thing was missing from Rory McIlroy’s breakthrough win in a major at the US Open on Sunday – there was no Tiger Woods. Not that that his absence through injury took anything away from the quality of the Irishman’s performance — one that inevitably evoked memories of Woods’ own masterpiece at the [...]

Derawar Fort – Living to tell the tale

Standing proudly in the midst of the Cholistan desert, the Derawar Fort is a famed hallmark of Bahawalpur. From Bahawalpur city, it takes several hours to get to the fort, with the journey being long, tiring and dust laden. But it's worth the trouble. With the vast Cholistan desert serving as a backdrop, the majestic [...]

Lalit Modi behind Sri Lanka Premier League?

NEW DELHI: India’s cricketers have been denied permission to take part in an inaugural Twenty20 league in Sri Lanka starting next month, a board official said on Monday. As many as 12 players including fast bowlers Praveen Kumar and Munaf Patel had sought permission to play in the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) to be [...]

The bigots within

Circumvention, hypocrisy and narrow-mindedness describe best the behaviour of clergy and politicians when it comes to condemning terrorists and extremism. Fearing electoral losses, the politicians and ulema have chosen to either remain mum or side with the rising tide of bigotry and fanaticism. The Sharifs of Punjab are playing the most dangerous game with the fate of [...]

Trial of deposed Tunisian president begins

TUNIS: Tunisia’s deposed president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the first leader toppled in a wave of Arab uprisings, went on trial in his absence on Monday, accused of plundering the country among other charges. The former strongman who denies any wrongdoing faces charges related to theft, drugs and weapons offenses and is to be [...]

‘Green Lantern’ lights up the box office

LOS ANGELES: Superhero comic book adaptation "Green Lantern" was the box-office champion this weekend, with an estimated $52.6 million in North American ticket sales as it debuted at number one. Canadian heart-throb Ryan Reynolds stars as superhero Hal Jordan and Blake Lively as love interest Carol Ferris in the $200 million live-action movie in which [...]

Sri Lanka has debts of more than $15 million after World Cup

COLOMBO: A Sri Lanka Cricket official says the national sports body has debts of more than $15 million after it co-hosted the World Cup earlier this year and is now seeking a government grant to help ease the burden. Treasurer Sujeewa Rajapaksa says Monday the debts are mostly due to an outanding bank loan of [...]

European space freighter poised for suicide plunge

PARIS: A European freighter will be destroyed by atmospheric burn-up next week after completing its supply mission to mankind's orbital outpost, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Friday. The Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) will gently separate from the International Space Station (ISS) at 1451 GMT today and on Tuesday fire its engines to descend [...]

One killed in Quetta car bomb blast

QUETTA: A car bomb exploded near a women’s college Quetta, killing one person and wounding 12 others. Four of the wounded were in a critical condition. Moreover, four shops were destroyed as a result of the blast. Police officer Hamid Shakil said the bomb appeared to have been detonated Monday by a timing device. The [...]

Porto’s Villas-Boas in Chelsea talks – report

LISBON: Porto coach Andre Villas-Boas is set to succeed Carlo Ancelotti as coach of English Premier League side Chelsea, according to a report from Portuguese news agency Lusa on Monday. Citing sources close to the talks, Lusa claims the London club have agreed to pay the 15-million-euro ($21.35m) departure clause in Villas-Boas’s contract. A former [...]

Chennai to host final of T20 Champions League

NEW DELHI: Chennai will host the final of the Champions League Twenty20 tournament later this year. Kolkata and Bangalore will be the other venues for the Sept. 23 to Oct. 9 tournament, which features leading provincial Twenty20 teams. Seven teams have direct entries into the tournament while three others will be decided in a six-team [...]

Vienna Philharmonic honours Indian conductor Mehta

VIENNA: The prestigious Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra on Saturday paid homage in an emotional ceremony to 75-year-old Indian conductor Zubin Mehta, celebrating 50 years of musical collaboration. In the orchestra’s historic Musikverein hall, a visibly moved Mehta recalled how he had carried out his musical studies – initially as a double-bassist – in the Austrian capital. [...]

The break has helped me: Dhoni

KINGSTON: India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his world number one team must shrug off the absences of strike bowlers Zaheer Khan and Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and face the West Indies with conviction. Dhoni was speaking ahead of the first Test, starting on Monday at Sabina Park, where the pitch is likely to favour the home [...]

Opportunity knocking

Recent times have seen something momentous happen in the realm of social media in Pakistan. A game changer I suppose it can be called, as never before has such an opportunity been made available to the young and hopeful entrepreneurs of Pakistan. I am not speaking of the social media summit held in Karachi last [...]

Chief selector eying a ‘separate T-20 team’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Cricket Team Chief Selector Mohsin Khan said he is working to form a separate specialised team’ for the Twenty-20 cricket. “I want 70-80% of the Twenty20 squad for next year’s World Cup to be made up of twenty over specialists," Khan said. "I’ve always been keen on having a "separate team" for the [...]

Amy Winehouse cancels shows after Serbian farce

LONDON: Troubled British singer Amy Winehouse on Sunday cancelled her appearances at festivals in Turkey and Greece after she was jeered at a show in Serbia when it appeared that she was too drunk to perform. The soul-diva pulled out of the shows, which take place later this week, as she "cannot perform to the [...]

Fallen star Galliano to Paris court over ‘racist tirades’

PARIS: John Galliano faces charges in a French court on Wednesday that he launched racist tirades at a Paris bar, which the fallen superstar designer will blame on drug and alcohol addiction. If found guilty, the 50-year-old couturier – considered one of the finest fashion designers of his generation – could face a sentence of [...]

Iconic Marilyn Monroe dress sells for $4.6 million

LOS ANGELES: The legendary white dress seen billowing under Marilyn Monroe in an iconic image of 1950s Hollywood has sold at auction for $4.6 million, shattering estimates. The dress, worn by the star in the 1955 film "The Seven Year Itch," had been expected to fetch between one and two million dollars. But the sale [...]

Syria’s Assad to speak after opposition move

DAMASCUS: Syria’s embattled President Bashar al-Assad is set to make a major speech after opposition activists announced on Sunday they are setting up a "National Council" to spearhead the struggle against his regime. "President Bashar al-Assad will deliver a speech at noon tomorrow concerning developments in Syria," the official SANA news agency said in a [...]

Nato ‘regrets’ first civilian casualties in Libya

BRUSSELS: Nato on Sunday said it regretted its first civilian casualties in Libya and its second misfire in 24 hours, as strains emerged within the alliance and rebel forces failed to make progress on the ground. In a statement, the alliance acknowledged responsibility for civilian deaths in a Tripoli bombing raid that left nine dead, [...]

Gilani urged to immediately release Rs11bn for power crisis

ISLAMABAD: With people having to brave an average of 10 hours of loadshedding daily, the ministry of water and power has requested Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to release Rs11 billion urgently to bring the power crisis under manageable levels and avoid international embarrassment. A senior official told Dawn on Sunday the power ministry had [...]

FBR chief’s son booked after his car killed bike rider

LAHORE, June 19: Police claimed on Sunday to have arrested a son of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman Salman Siddique after his car hit and killed a young motorcyclist on Cavalry Bridge early in the morning. Quoting witnesses, an investigator told Dawn that Zohaib and his friend Ali Raza of Wapda Town were under [...]

‘Al Qaeda raised funds through abductions’

WASHINGTON: Pressured by scrutiny of terrorist money sources and strikes aimed at its financiers, Al Qaeda in Pakistan has turned to kidnapping for ransom to offset dwindling cash reserves, according to US officials and information  retrieved from Osama bin Laden's Abbottabad compound . "There are clearly times for them when money is tight," said Rep. [...]

Govt asks CJ to name head of May 2 inquiry

ISLAMABAD: After keeping quiet for several weeks, the government has finally requested the Chief Justice of Pakistan to nominate a judge of the Supreme Court to head a commission to investigate the May 2 covert US operation in Abbottabad in which Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden was killed. Federal Law and Justice Secretary Masood [...]

Mohmand area cleared after fierce clash

GHALANAI, June 19: At least 25 militants and four soldiers were killed in a clash in Wali Dad area of Mohmand tribal region on Sunday when troops, backed by military planes, helicopters and artillery, pushed in to take control of the militant stronghold of Soran Darra along the Afghan border. According to ISPR, many militants [...]

Wide and varied agenda for talks

NEW DELHI: Foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan will meet in Islamabad on June 23-24 to discuss a raft of security-related issues, including nuclear CBMs, terrorism and, not the least, the Kashmir dispute, according to a background briefing here on Sunday. Neither side is expecting major results, particularly in view of disagreements on the core [...]

Contacts with Taliban ‘very preliminary’, says Gates

WASHINGTON, June 19: US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Sunday that the Obama administration had only made "very preliminary" contacts with the Taliban and it could take months to broker a peace deal with them. On Saturday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai told reporters in Kabul that Afghan and US officials had engaged the Taliban [...]

PNS Babur rescues crew

KARACHI, June 19: The crew of the ill-fated MV Suez has been shifted to PNS Babur on the orders of Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Noman Bashir. A press release issued by the Public Relations Directorate of Pakistan Navy here on Sunday said the evacuation of MV Suez crew had been completed and all 22 [...]

Bodies of five men found in gunny bags

KARACHI: The bodies of five men, stuffed in gunny bags, were found in different parts of the city on Sunday, police said. Two of them were identified as workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement while the remaining three bodies were yet to be identified, the police and party sources said. The body of a young [...]

Building by-laws not a concern in Pindi

RAWALPINDI, June 19: Two months after the Punjab government directed administrations of big cities to implement building by-laws, Rawalpindi city has witnessed construction of illegal buildings in 75 localities.Among the people constructing houses and commercial buildings in the city without any regard for by-laws or getting a no objection certificate (NOC) from the Rawal Town [...]

PNS Babur successfully completes rescue operation

KARACHI: The evacuation of the crew of ill-fated MV Suez has been completed, stated by an official of the Pakistan Navy here on Sunday evening. He said that all the 22 crew are safely onboard the Pakistan Navy Ship PNS Babur. The evacuated crew of MV Suez will be taken on board another PN Ship [...]

The positive side

PAKISTANIS trying to retain their pride despite daily developments in the country should read writer Christopher Hitchens' latest article about Pakistan with caution. He describes our country as paranoid, self-hating, duplicitous and "permanently mendicant" — and that's when he's being gentle. Elsewhere, he suggests that Pakistan is mired in self-pity because it has nothing to [...]

Red-tape impeding progress

MURREE: President Mohammad Ayub Khan today urged men in services to gear themselves up to the pace required for industrial and commercial development of the country and avoid delays and red-tape that were proving very frustrating to the people and were impeding the progress of Pakistan. Addressing the closing session of the National Economic Council [...]

Tax and assets

ON Friday, finance minister Dr Hafeez Sheikh spoke with candour as he wound up the debate on the 2011-12 budget in the National Assembly. He asked the rich such as the industrialists and media moguls to pay their taxes, and he also offended those who still have their feudal badge firmly affixed. As the minister [...]

A tricky balance

TERRORISM is increasingly at the heart of the world`s diplomatic, economic and strategic engagement with Pakistan. Islamabad finds that its pursuit of economic, strategic and political interests is blocked more and more by terrorism and violent extremism. Recently, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee discussed the potentially disastrous scenarios for Pakistan: militants gaining control over [...]

Breaking the siege

PAKISTAN`S military is under siege. Domestically, the media`s protest over the murder of Saleem Shahzad has rallied diverse forces to form a formidable front to bear down on the military high command. Mian Nawaz Sharif`s renewal of criticism of the army`s role in politics and the puzzling delay in the formation of the judicial commission [...]

Abuse of children

THE way our society treats its children is unforgivable. According to a report in this paper, criminal gangs across Pakistan are using thousands of children as sex workers. This emerged at a workshop organised by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child, an NGO, in Quetta. Speakers said criminals often lured [...]

The Arab Spring six months on

TUNISIA`S Jasmine revolution will always be remembered as the event that triggered the Arab Spring, which has shattered the status quo from Libya to Syria and is widely seen as the biggest transformative event of the 21st century so far. But, six months on, progress has been patchy. Mohammed Bouazizi, the young Tunisian who started [...]

Failing on child care

IN an era when both parents generally work, the lives of families with young children tend to revolve around child-care arrangements. So hearing that a daycare is so broke it will close — immediately … doesn`t just create turmoil for youngsters. It can be the end of a parent`s ability to work. Families can`t afford [...]

Pakistan, 50 years ago

HAVING been occupied with compiling the '50 years ago' section on these pages, I have recently spent hours trawling through Dawn's 1961 editions. It is a fascinating yet ultimately, a deeply saddening experience. The Dawn of those days was a slimmer volume, with a format different to what it is today. The first thing to [...]

Swat sports festival

THE battering inflicted on Swat and its neighbouring parts makes us forget how it used to be a popular destination for both Pakistani and international tourists. Such activity, which was a vital part of the area`s economy, ceased — more or less entirely — as TTP militants and others increased their bloody activities. Swat, which [...]

A question of good manners

According to a newspaper report about Shahid Afridi`s latest spat with the Pakistan Cricket Board, the player has said that he was wrong, and regrets his latest misbehaviour, but will not apologise. Say what? He admits his fault, but won`t say sorry? In this, he is not alone. We as a nation have a very [...]

Pakistan suffered $67.93bn losses due to operation against militants

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s economy has suffered direct and indirect losses of upto $ 67.93 billion due its role as a frontline state in operations against terrorists, miscreants and militants since 2001 besides causing damage to its social fabric. According to Pakistan Economic Survey 2010-11, the events that transpired after 9/11 in Afghanistan worsened the security environment [...]

Weak Al-Qaeda could splinter: Gates

WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Sunday that Al-Qaeda had been seriously degraded and could split into a set of regional terror groups now that Osama bin Laden was gone. "First of all, they have been significantly weakened. There’s just no two ways about it," Gates told CNN’s "State of the Union" program, explaining [...]

‘Green Lantern’ falls short at box office

LOS ANGELES: The costly superhero movie "Green Lantern" flickered at the weekend box office in North America, while a Jim Carrey family comedy got a lukewarm reception. According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, "Green Lantern" earned about $52.7 million, at the lower end of expectations, during its first three days of release across the [...]

Kayani seeks to repair dented army pride

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military chief is working to repair his army’s wounded pride in the bitter aftermath of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, a humiliation that has strained US-Pakistani relations and raised questions about the top general’s own standing. Retired and serving officers interviewed by The Associated Press spoke of seething anger within army [...]

Thar-Coal project to produce cheap electricity: Dr Samar

ISLAMABAD: Renowned scientist Dr Samar Mumbarkmand on Saturday said the country had third biggest coal reserves which could be utilized for producing cheap electricity. Talking to Pakistan Television, he said that scientists were working on the Thar-Coal project to meet the growing demand of the electricity in the country. The estimated cost of the project [...]

As climate talks sputter, UN scientists vet ‘Plan B’

BONN: On the heels of another halting round of talks on climate change, UN scientists this week will review quick-fix options for beating back the threat of global warming that rely on technology rather than political wrangling. Experts from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), meeting for three days from Monday in the Peruvian [...]

Voice of an angel

Images on Sunday first carried a profile on Zoe back in June 2009 – when she was recording several of her own original songs with Shahzad 'Shahi' Hasan – and she had agreed to release her song, Thinking About You through an audiovisual presentation on Dawn.com. A lot has happened since then. A relatively new [...]

Modern methods, research will feed hungry world-US

WASHINGTON: The surest way to reduce world hunger is to help poor nations grow more food, US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Friday before a global meeting that will discuss food reserves and how to calm volatile markets. In a commentary released by the Agriculture Department, Vilsack said an emergency stockpile would not be [...]

Days before talks, India, Pakistan spar over ships

NEW DELHI: Days before peace talks, India and Pakistan were caught in an angry exchange of accusations Sunday over the movements of their warships engaged in operations against Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean. An Indian naval ship and a Pakistani naval vessel brushed against each other Thursday. Pakistan protested Friday, saying the Indian warship [...]

England have high hopes of World Cup success

LONDON: England coach Hope Powell believes the squad she has selected for the forthcoming Women’s World Cup in Germany is the strongest she has ever chosen in her 13 years in charge of the national side. England have never won a major women’s tournament but recent victories over the United States and Sweden, first and [...]

Stars of women’s game set for World Cup kick-off

BERLIN: World Cup fever has gripped Germany as the stars of the women’s game prepare to chase the ultimate prize in football in the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup which kicks off here next Saturday. Brazil’s five-time Player of the Year Marta and all-time World Cup top scorer Birgit Prinz of Germany are among the [...]

One dead as Nato oil tanker torched in Pakistan

QUETTA: Gunmen torched an oil tanker carrying fuel for Nato troops in Afghanistan after killing its driver in the southwestern province of Balochistan on Sunday, police said. Four people riding on two motorbikes shot dead the driver and then set fire to the vehicle in Mian Ghundai suburb of the provincial capital Quetta, local police [...]

Miss Football World Cup pageant

Images from the Miss World Cup (Miss WM – WeltMeisterschaft) 2011 beauty pageant gala in the southern German town of Rust. The pageant was held as part of the run up to the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup football tournament in Germany. Dominique Ela Wisniewski of New Zealand was crowned the winner.

It’s getting a little difficult nowadays: Federer

A Wimbledon final without Roger Federer almost seemed unthinkable 12 months ago but the ‘unthinkable’ happened last July when the most gifted player to have picked up a tennis racket discovered he was no longer on the guest list for the showpiece match at the grasscourt grand slam. But the man who enjoyed the privilege [...]

Twelve ‘Qaeda’ militants, two Yemen soldiers killed in clashes

ADEN: Twelve suspected members of an al-Qaeda-linked group and two Yemeni soldiers were killed in clashes near the gunmen-held southern city Zinjibar, an army officer said on Sunday. "Twelve of the Ansar al-Sharia terrorists were killed and three wounded after Artillery Brigade 119 targeted a group planting explosive devices on the main road," the field [...]

US to realize the loss and suffering of Pakistan – Haqqani

WASHINGTON: Pakistan's ambassador to the United States Hussain Haqqani has stated that relations between the two 'allies' had reached the “lowest level in history” and that the feelings of mistrust towards the US was growing among his countrymen. Huqqani in his article in the US media, likened the current situation to that of the 1989 [...]

No ton no problem for Pietersen

SOUTHAMPTON: Kevin Pietersen insisted he felt "a lot of happiness" despite missing out on a Test century against Sri Lanka at the Rose Bowl here on Saturday. Pietersen made a fluent 85 to help England to 195 for four at stumps on the third day of the third and final Test, a first innings lead [...]

Modric crucial for Spurs future, says Redknapp

LONDON: Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp said on Saturday that allowing Luka Modric to leave White Hart Lane would condemn the Londoners to mid-table mediocrity. Croatian star Modric wants to quit Spurs in favour of Chelsea, even though a bid of 22 million pounds ($30 million) has already been rejected. Earlier Saturday chairman Daniel Levy insisted [...]

World’s biggest emerald shines in Colombia

BOGOTA: A massive uncut emerald on exhibit in Colombia's capital is being touted by its owners as the biggest in the world, officials said Saturday. The 11,000-karat raw green gem weighs in at 2.27 kilos (almost five pounds) and is on show in Bogota 12 years after it was mined in Muzo, in the South [...]

India military delegation arrives in China

BEIJING: An Indian military delegation arrived in Beijing on Sunday for a six-day visit, an Indian official said, marking the resumption of defence ties that were frozen for a year over a visa dispute.   The eight-member delegation, headed by Major General Gurmeet Singh, will visit the Chinese capital and the restive northwestern region of [...]

Explosion strikes German convoy in Afghanistan

KUNDUZ, Afghanistan: A suicide car bomber struck a German military convoy in northern Afghanistan on Sunday, detonating explosives that killed three Afghan civilians and overturned at least one armored vehicle, according to officials and witnesses. Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack. The bomber blew his vehicle up shortly before 10 a.m. local [...]

Umpires jeered for making “small error”

SOUTHAMPTON: Australian umpire Rod Tucker admitted the officials had made a mistake in not getting play started sooner in the rain-marred third Test between England and Sri Lanka here on Saturday. Spectators at a near-capacity Rose Bowl booed when, after a stop-start third day, it was announced tea was being taken when, with the sun [...]

Three soldiers die in Taliban clash: officials

PESHAWAR: Three Pakistani soldiers were killed and at least 13 wounded when dozens of Taliban stormed a check post in a tribal town near the Afghan border, officials said Sunday. The pre-dawn attack was mounted in Baizai village of Mohmand district facing the eastern Afghan province of Kunar, local administration chief Maqsood Hussain told AFP. [...]

India players barred from Sri Lanka Premier League

NEW DELHI: The Indian cricket board (BCCI) has denied permission to a dozen cricketers to play in the inaugural Sri Lanka Premier League, local media reported on Sunday. Praveen Kumar, Munaf Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin and Irfan Pathan were among the 12 seeking to play in the July 19-Aug. 4 tournament but the BCCI were against [...]

Afghan leader confirms peace talks; Kabul attacked

KABUL, Afghanistan: President Hamid Karzai acknowledged that the US and Afghan governments have held talks with Taliban emissaries in a bid to end the nation's nearly 10-year war, even as suicide attackers launched a bold assault in the heart of the country's capital, killing nine people. The attack which occurred just blocks from Karzai's office, [...]

Toddlers among five dead in ‘NATO raid’ on Tripoli

TRIPOLI: Libyan officials showed reporters five bodies, two of them of toddlers, that they said died in a "barbaric" Nato air raid Sunday, hours after international organisations urged a political process to end the conflict. Government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim accused the Western alliance of "deliberately targeting civilians," insisting there were no military targets anywhere near [...]

‘Education must for progress’

CHARSADDA, June 18: Women have been facing a host of problems due to illiteracy and ignorance about their rights in the society and concerted efforts are needed to enhance female education, said speakers at a forum organised by Muhammadzai Union of Journalists here. They said that due to various reasons the women were being deprived [...]

Court puts SP on notice

PESHAWAR, June 18: An anti-terrorism court here on Saturday took exception to the non-appearance of prosecution witnesses in a case of kidnapping for ransom and issued show cause notice to superintendent of police (Investigation) of Charsadda district. The court presided over by Mr Anwer Ali Khan has earlier issued directives to SP Ikhtiar Gul on [...]

Patwaris booked for tampering with record

KARAK, June 18: The anti-corruption establishment registered FIR against two patwaris here on Saturday for tampering with the revenue record of a citizen. The anti-corruption establishment conducted an inquiry against the two patwaris, Zar Mohammad and Shabirul Wahab, after a resident of Mithakhel area, Asim Aziz, submitted an application with it, alleging that the revenue [...]

Govt grants Rs51m for cancer hospital

PESHAWAR, June 18: The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has handed over Rs51 million for the construction of the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre in Peshawar. A press release issued by the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust on Saturday said that the grant promised by the provincial government on the occasion of the ground-breaking [...]

Girl from Taliban stronghold tops SSC exam

TIMERGARA, June 18: A courageous and knowledge-loving girl, Mamta Naz, from conservative and Taliban-inflicted Maidan area, got first position among girls in the entire Malakand region by securing 907 marks out of 1,050 in the SSC annual examination. Mamta Naz’s father, Mustafa Kamal, a schoolteacher, died when she was only ten years old. However, her [...]

Pesco asks consumers to conserve power

PESHAWAR, June 18: The Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) has asked the consumers to conserve electricity, whose demand is on rise, forcing public utility to increase duration of power cuts. The chief executive, of Peshawar Electric Supply Company, Mohammad Wali, in a statement issued here on Saturday, explained that due to current spell of heat [...]

Officials booked

MARDAN, June 18: The anti-corruption establishment on Saturday registered a case against three people, including two revenue officials, for transferring 42-kanal land confiscated by the Zarai Taraqiati Bank, Mardan, from its loan defaulter. Shah Hasan, inspector at the anti-corruption police station, said that the manger of bank branch, Fazal Rabi, had filed a complaint with [...]

NEWS IN BRIEF

Man shot dead MANSEHRA, June 18: A man was shot dead in broad daylight over an old enmity here on Saturday, police said. Iqbal Khan, lodging FIR with the city police, said he and his younger brother, Mohammad Shahzad, were fired upon by Mohammad Jamshed, his brother, Yasir, and their accomplices, in Zafar bazaar, as [...]

Peace through tolerance urged

PESHAWAR, June 18: Speakers at a conference here on Saturday said that people from all walks of life should accommodate each others and avoid intolerance to restore peace in the country. The conference titled 'Peace and tolerance' was held under the aegis of Liberal Forum Pakistan at Peshawar Press Club. Amn Tehreek convener Idress Kamal, [...]

Hazara to be divided into two divisions

MANSEHRA, June 18: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti on Saturday announced creation of a new division by splitting the Hazara division for what he called effective administration. He made the announcement for creation of Abaseen division at a public gathering in Battagram district. On this occasion, local MPA Taj Mohammad Tarand, former [...]

Student faces action for calling armed guards to law college

PESHAWAR, June 18: A student of Khyber Law College, University of Peshawar, is facing disciplinary action for bringing his officer brother with armed guards to settle a dispute with a fellow student there, official sources say. They said that on June 15, two students of the college, including Sikandar of LLB (part-II) and Maqsood of [...]

Overburdened SC leaves ordinary litigants frustrated

ISLAMABAD: "I spent not a single penny on my election, but have become bankrupt nevertheless," said Ghalib Khan, a politician who contested the 2008 elections from a reserved seat of the National Assembly from South Waziristan and now fighting an election appeal before the Supreme Court against his opponent Abdul Malik Wazir. He has been [...]

Generals face harsh criticism as NA passes defence budget

ISLAMABAD: The opposition PML-N raised on Saturday sharp questions about the performance of Pakistan's military in recent years, with one senior lawmaker calling it confidence-shaking, before the National Assembly approved the defence budget of over Rs505 billion. It was during debates on more than 200 opposition cut motions on demands for grants for two federal [...]

Misbah not thinking about next World Cup

LAHORE: Playing down the age factor that might end his international career well before the next World Cup, Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq on Saturday said continuing to maintain form and fitness, and not captaincy, remained his primary concern.   "Frankly speaking, I have never thought whether my career will continue till the next World Cup [2015] [...]

Mehran base attackers were `foreigners`

KARACHI: The four militants killed in the PNS Mehran base during the May 22 terrorist attack were foreigners and were related to each other by blood. A senior official said on Saturday that the Kahuta Research Laboratories (KRL) in Islamabad had been approached to trace ethnic origin of the four militants who had raided [...]

FO and US now in row over parking

ISLAMABAD: Struggling to resolve strategic differences in their relationship, the Foreign Office and the US embassy are now pitched in a fight over parking lots. Islamabad's main civic agency — Capital Development Authority — has been forced to get the construction work on a temporary parking lot for the embassy halted on the pretext that [...]

Freed vessel runs out of fuel

KARACHI: The return journey of the freed crew of MV Suez has hit snags as the vessel has run out of fuel and become a dead weight in rough seas south of Oman's Salalah port. According to sources, the PNS Babur is escorting it to safety and providing it protection from pirates. The source said [...]

Afridi hopes to make fresh start

KARACHI: Former captain Shahid Afridi said on Saturday he hoped to make a fresh start playing for Hampshire following his clashes with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) which fined him Rs4.5 million for disciplinary breaches. The 31-year-old locked horns with the PCB by announcing his retirement from international cricket after being dumped as one-day captain, [...]

Pietersen hits 85 as England leads Sri Lanka

SOUTHAMPTON: Kevin Pietersen struck a superb 85 and Alastair Cook hit a record-equaling fifty as England closed day three of the third and final test on 195-4, with an 11-run lead over beleaguered Sri Lanka at the Rose Bowl on Saturday. Replying to Sri Lanka’s 184 all out, England lost Andrew Strauss (3) and Jonathan [...]

A wining stroke every time

KARACHI: Eighteen-year-old Farah Vohra is the only girl in Pakistan's five-member special swimming team leaving for Athens on Monday to compete in the Special Olympics World Summer Games (June 25 to July 4) there. Vohra, who was born with Down’s Syndrome, will compete in the 25 metre backstroke and 25metre freestyle categories. Her coaches are [...]

Refugee crisis mushrooms in Syrian army attacks

BOYNUYOGUN: Syrian troops backed by tanks and firing heavy machine guns swept into a village near the Turkish border Saturday, cutting food supplies for nearly 2,000 refugees who have so far refused to leave their country. Many of those men, women and children will have no choice but to flee across the frontier if troops [...]

Moroccan king fails to win over youth protest movement

RABAT: Morocco’s youth-based February 20 Movement called for nationwide protests on Sunday after rejecting constitutional reforms proposed by King Mohammed VI. The king outlined curbs to his wide political powers in an address to the nation on Friday, pledging to build a constitutional monarchy with a democratic parliament. The proposals come in the wake of [...]

CIA not conducing operation in Pakistan: Malik

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rehman Malik said Saturday that Pakistan is a sovereign state and the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is neither conducting any operation inside the country nor  will it be allowed to do so. Talking to media outside the parliament, he said the law enforcement agencies are conducting operation against illegal immigrants, adding, [...]

“Solehah” seeks best women preachers

KUALA LUMPUR: A forthcoming Islamic reality television show in Malaysia aims to find the best women preachers and change conservative mindsets on the role of women in Muslim societies. The 13-episode prime time programme titled "Solehah", an Arabic word meaning "pious female", is a talent contest that will feature charismatic young Muslim women judged by [...]

Bollywood actor to fight new drinking age laws

MUMBAI: Top Bollywood actor Imran Khan said Friday he would challenge in court a decision to raise the age for buying alcohol in India’s entertainment capital, slamming the new law as double standards. Khan, who is teetotal, said he planned to file a case in the Bombay High Court against the state government of Maharashtra, [...]

Vienna exhibits rare polaroid photos by Warhol, artists

VIENNA: A collection of polaroid pictures taken by iconic artists such as Andy Warhol and Ansel Adams was put on exhibit Friday at a Vienna museum after being rescued at the last minute from an auction. The WestLicht Museum, which is showing the photographs, managed to take the European part of the Polaroid Collections of [...]

The Orion planes from America

Animations with audio from the world of Feicistan in Pakistan. #container{background:#666666;}

Putin’s ‘model’ photographer sparks Internet frenzy

MOSCOW: Russia’s government Friday sought to douse a frenzy of Internet comment after it hired an attractive former model and "Miss Moscow" finalist as personal photographer to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The government confirmed the hiring of Yana Lapikova to join the pool of Putin’s official photographers as an intern but insisted she had been [...]

Reflections of Karachi through our eyes

In the land of ignorance, the streets, markets and homes seem to glitter with all that is plainly not gold – just behind the curtain. Adjacent to the Zamzama area in Karachi known for its razzle and dazzle, is the Neelam Colony which both portray the two shades of life. The increasing income gap has [...]

UEFA to hit yellow card cheats with two-match ban

NYON: Footballers who deliberately set out to get a second yellow card in order to give them a clean slate for later in a competition will now receive a two-match ban, UEFA secretary general Gianni Infantino said on Friday. "Usually this type of behaviour is penalised by a fine but now there will be a [...]

UEFA want progress in FIFA shakeup in three months

NYON: UEFA secretary general Gianni Infantino said on Friday that European football’s governing body wanted to see progress in the promised shakeup in the governance of world governing body FIFA in the next three months. FIFA president Sepp Blatter pledged to initiate wide-ranging reforms including an overhaul of the way in which future World Cup [...]

Fishy Business

Karachi is a fishy place; ironically, yes it has a coast too. While the fishermen of Karachi are predominantly seen at the port and its vicinities whereby fishing activities are centred around fishing boats and trawlers in deep waters. There is, however, a small branch of fishermen that practice their profession on the beaches of [...]

Ba stays in Premier League with move to Newcastle

LONDON: Senegal international striker Demba Ba completed his move to Newcastle United on Friday, securing a three-year deal at St James’ Park after scoring seven goals in 13 appearances for relegated West Ham United last season. The French-born 26-year-old, who has played 10 times for Senegal, is manager Alan Pardew’s second signing of the summer, [...]

Furious Ballack calls farewell match a ‘farce’

BERLIN: Former captain Michael Ballack has described as a "farce" an offer to end his Germany career with a friendly against Brazil in August, saying on Friday he was not being treated with respect by coach Joachim Loew. On Thursday Loew ruled out using the 34-year-old Bayer Leverkusen midfielder again, saying a number of talented [...]

Man in the news – Lewis Hamilton

LONDON: Love him or loathe him, there is nothing that stops Lewis Hamilton seizing Formula One’s headlines. The McLaren ace remained in the news in Montreal with his aggressive driving style going under the microscope – and being cleared for purpose by the most important man of all, Bernie Ecclestone. The sport’s commercial rights holder [...]

Big four get fit for Wimbledon shootout

LONDON: Champion Rafa Nadal and the three other leading men’s contenders charge into Wimbledon with major expectations despite all battling minor fitness issues in the run-up to the grasscourt grand slam. World number one Nadal has not lost a match at the All England Club since the 2007 final, ripping away six-times champion Roger Federer’s [...]

Hafeez aims to be among the top 10 batsman of the world by 2012

KARACHI: Pakistan’s most successful cricketer in 2010-2011 season and fast emerging all-rounder Muhammad Hafeez revealed that he went through a very hard three years before staging a successful comeback into the national team. "After my ouster from 2007 World Cup team and until the 2010 England tour, I kept my motivation alive and worked really [...]

Serena goes from brush with death to Wimbledon favourite

LONDON: Serena Williams has won titles after overcoming adversity before but if she retains her Wimbledon singles crown just months after a scrape with death it would represent the American’s greatest comeback. Many thought the 13-times grand slam winner’s career was over when she suffered potentially fatal blood clots in a lung during her recovery [...]

Celebration of sound around the world

Nine killed as insurgents attack Afghan convoys

KABUL: Insurgents attacked three convoys ferrying fuel and supplies to Nato troops stationed in western and eastern Afghanistan, killing nine Afghan security guards and torching at least 15 fuel tankers, officials said Saturday. The Taliban recently launched its long-awaited spring offensive as the insurgents try to regain territory lost in the fall and winter to [...]

Police to take on Punjab and Army to play Sindh in semis

PESHAWAR: Pakistan Army, Police, Sindh and Punjab booked a berth in the semi-finals on Friday of the 10th National Netball Men Championship which is being played at the indoor hall of the PSB Coaching Center. Now Police will face Punjab in the first semi-final while defending champions Pakistan Army will clash against Sindh in the [...]