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| February 10, 2007 | Saturday | Muharram 21, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Cricket: Afridi not to appeal ban CAPE TOWN, Feb 10, (AFP) - Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has decided not to appeal against a four-match one-day international ban handed down Saturday for pushing his bat at a spectator. Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer said the player had decided not to exercise his option of lodging a written appeal within 24 hours. An unsuccessful appeal would have delayed Afridi's ban and he might have missed Pakistan's first four World Cup matches in the West Indies next month. (First Posted @ 20:52 PST Updated @ 23:48 PST)
PSO to be privatized soon: PM Aziz LAHORE, Feb 10 (APP) Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Saturday said that the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) was the next state owned enterprise to be privatized. “ This is a national asset, Government is trying to get maximum return for it,” he said while talking to mediamen at Governor's House here. About government's efforts to keep the prices of commodities stable, Aziz said the government was taking all necessary measures to keep the prices of daily use items at a reasonable level. He referred to government's action to bring down the prices of cement and added that government had convened the meeting of the stakeholders to address the situation arising after the recent increase in the prices of the commodity. (Posted @ 21:26 PST)
Mild intensity earthquake in Manshera, Balakot PESHAWAR, Feb 10 (APP) An earthquake of mild intensity measuring 4 on international Richter scale was felt in Manshera, Balakot, Batgram, Kaghan in NWFP on Saturday. According to the Metrological Office, the earthquake originated at 19:41 PST and its epicenter was about 200-kilometer northeast of Peshawar in Hazara division. (Posted @ 21:22 PST)
Cleric boycotts govt talks over Pakistan mosque row ISLAMABAD, Feb 10 (AFP) A radical cleric Saturday pulled out of negotiations with Pakistani authorities to resolve a simmering row over illegally built mosques, as 200 female students continue to occupy a library. Maulana Abdul Rashid Ghazi announced the boycott of talks at a news conference here, accusing the government of planning to use force to evict the women protesters occupying a government library for children. Witnesses said hundreds of people gathered outside the mosque on Saturday and pelted stones at passing vehicles. (Posted @ 20:56 PST)
Sixth man held in custody after British anti-terror raids LONDON, Feb 10 (AFP) A man was remanded in custody Saturday, charged with withholding information about a potential act of terrorism following anti-terrorism raids in Britain last week. Basiru Gassama, 29, was refused bail and remanded in custody to appear before the same court next Thursday. (Posted @ 20:50 PST)
Leaders vow more protests over Jerusalem mosque JERUSALEM, Feb 10 AFP) Muslim leaders on Saturday vowed more protests over Israeli building work near Jerusalem's most contentious holy site. “We have a full programme of protests for the coming weeks in order to stop the Israeli crimes against the Al-Aqsa mosque,” said the head of the Islamic movement in Israel, Sheikh Raed Salah. Leaders of Israel's left-leaning Labour party called for the work on a stone ramp leading to the compound near the Old City's Dung Gate to halt. (Posted @ 20:46 PST)
Putin slams US for making world more dangerous MUNICH, Germany, Feb 10 (AFP) Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-frontal attack on the United States on Saturday, saying it had made the world a more dangerous place and left successive conflicts unresolved. Addressing an audience of senior officials and politicians including many from the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), Putin said the United States had “overstepped” its borders with disastrous results. The Russian leader accused Washington of operating by “separate norms.” (Posted @ 20:40 PST)
Cricket: Injury-hit Pakistan seeks World Cup squad extension KARACHI, Feb 10 (AFP) Pakistan will ask the International Cricket Council (ICC) to reconsider its decision not to allow the country more time to finalise its squad for the World Cup, an official said Saturday. The ICC has set a February 13 deadline for naming the squads for the World Cup which starts in the West Indies from March 13. “We don't have enough time to ascertain the extent of injuries to the players as the team returns from South Africa on February 15,” Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) director of operations Salim Altaf told AFP. The injured cricketers include key fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar (hamstring), Umar Gul (ankle), Shabbir Ahmed (hamstring) and Mohammad Sami (back). Mohammad Asif, currently on the tour, is also threatened by an elbow injury. (Posted @ 18:40 PST)
Pakistan confirms third bird flu case this week ISLAMABAD, Feb 10 (AFP) Pakistan on Saturday confirmed its third case of bird flu in a week after three turkeys in Islamabad died of the H5N1 strain potentially deadly to humans. There had been no reports of the virus infecting birds produced in commercial farms around the country, Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry spokesman Mohammad Afzal said, and no human infection. (Posted @ 18:36 PST)
Gates to meet Musharraf in Pakistan next week: officials ISLAMABAD, Feb 10 (AFP) US Defence Secretary Robert Gates will visit Pakistan early next week for talks with President Pervez Musharraf on the threat from Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan, official sources said Saturday. Gates' visit will be closely followed by separate visits to the region by NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and two top diplomats from the United States and Britain, the sources said. (Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Gas pipeline blown up in Balochistan QUETTA, Pakistan, Feb 10 (AFP) Suspected militants used explosives to blow a large hole in one of Pakistan's biggest gas pipelines on Saturday, cutting off supplies to the main southwestern city of Quetta, police said. (Posted @ 16:50 PST)
Three children killed in Mogadishu attacks MOGADISHU, Feb 10 (Reuters) Grenade and mortar attacks killed three children on Saturday in the Somali capital Mogadishu, residents said. Two children died when a mortar landed on their home in the south of the coastal city, and a girl was killed when unknown assailants fired rocket-propelled grenades into a hotel. (Posted @ 16:05 PST)
Suicide attacker misses NATO convoy in southern Afghanistan KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Feb 10 (AFP) A suicide attacker detonated an explosives-filled vehicle near a NATO convoy in southern Afghanistan Saturday, missing the foreign soldiers by metres but causing no casualties, police said. The attacker blew up his car bomb as he tried to get close to an ISAF convoy around 10 kilometres east of Kandahar city. (Posted @ 15:12 PST)
Gates to meet Musharraf in Pakistan next week ISLAMABAD, Feb 10 (AFP) US Defence Secretary Robert Gates will visit Pakistan early next week for talks with President Pervez Musharraf on the threat from Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan, official sources said Saturday. It will be Gates' first visit to Pakistan since he came to office late last year. (Posted @ 15:10 PST)
2 suspected militants and a civilian killed in gunbattle in occupied Kashmir SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, Feb 10 (AP) Two suspected militants and a civilian were killed in a fierce gunbattle that broke out Saturday in occupied Kashmir, police said. Security forces were cordoning the village of Chak Cholan, about 70 kilometers south of Srinagar, when the militants opened fire, a senior police officer said adding that a gunbattle followed in which the two rebels were killed. A civilian who was caught in the crossfire was also killed, he said. There was no way of independently verifying the police claims. On Friday, nearly 2,000 residents took to the streets accusing government forces of killing a civilian, Mohammad Afzal, without provocation. Street demonstrations have taken place across occupied Kashmir in the past two weeks to protest civilian disappearances and deaths in custody. Government forces are often accused of torturing and killing people. Authorities routinely investigate such allegations but rarely prosecute anyone in connection with the deaths. (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Davis Cup: Philippines win doubles against Pakistan MANILA, Philippines, Feb 10 (AP): In the Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Group II first round match on Saturday the Philippines went ahead 2-1 after winning the doubles against Pakistan. Result: Johnny Arcilla and Patrick John Tierro( Philippines) defeated . Aqeel Khan and Asim Shafik( Pakistan) 5-7, 6-4, 6-1, 6-3. On Friday in the Singles Cecil Mamiit( Philippines) had defeated Jalil Khan, Pakistan, 6-1, 6-0, 6-1 while Aqeel Khan( Pakistan)had defeated Eric Taino, Philippines, 4-6, 6-0, 7-6 (1), 7-5. (Posted @ 13:50 PST)
New U.S. general takes command in Iraq BAGHDAD, Feb 10 (Reuters) General David Petraeus took command of the American military in Iraq on Saturday. A counter-insurgency expert, he took over from General George Casey. (Posted @ 13:40 PST)
Blast at ICRC Pakistan office damages vehicles; no casualties ISLAMABAD, Feb 10 (Reuters) An explosive device thrown into a compound damaged four vehicles belonging to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, but there were no casualties. “Early in the morning something was thrown inside the ICRC compound in Peshawar and damaged four vehicles and some property, but caused no injuries or fatalities,” ICRC spokesman Raza Hamdani said. The ICRC has suspended field operations in Peshawar pending a security review while police investigate. (Posted @ 11:57 PST)
Sixth US helicopter crashes in Iraq WASHINGTON, Feb 10 (AFP) A sixth US helicopter, this one belonging to a private security firm, recently crashed in Iraq, the US military said Friday confirming media reports. In the past three weeks, four US military helicopters and two private security firm choppers crashed, said Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (Posted @ 10:35 PST)
Two dead, three marines injured in Thai south NARATHIWAT, Thailand, Feb 10 (AFP) Two people were shot dead by insurgents and three marines were injured in a roadside bomb blast in southern Thailand, police said Saturday. On Saturday, a 56-year-old truck driver was gunned down by insurgents in Pattani while in neighbouring Narathiwat province, a 20-year-old villager was shot dead by insurgents Friday. Also in Narathiwat, a roadside bomb exploded late Friday, injuring three marines, police said. (Posted @ 10:30 PST)
Taliban ambush kills four police in southern Afghanistan KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Feb 10 (AFP) Taliban ambushed a police patrol in Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar overnight Saturday, killing four police and wounding three more, a police chief said. The police were on patrol late Friday in the Panjwayi district when Taliban fighters opened fire, kicking off a gunbattle. (Posted @ 10:25 PST)
One British soldier killed, three wounded by bomb south of Basra BAGHDAD, Iraq, Feb 10 (AP) A roadside bomb killed one British soldier and wounded three others in southern Iraq Friday, the British military said. The attack occurred around 1 p.m. local time at an intersection about 5 kilometres southeast of Basra, a spokeswoman for British forces in Iraq said. (Posted @ 10:20 PST)
French planet-seeking satellite gets to work PARIS, Feb 10 (Reuters) A French satellite designed to hunt out new planets has started work after a series of successful tests, the European Space Agency said Friday. Dubbed COROT, the satellite carries a telescope capable of detecting small, rocky planets by measuring the light emitted by a star and detecting the drop in brightness caused when a planet passes in front of it. COROT will start scouring for planets after work to fine tune equipment is completed at the beginning of April. (Posted @ 09:45 PST)
Three climbers found dead on Switzerland's Matterhorn ZERMATT, Switzerland, Feb 10(AP) Three climbers were found dead at the foot of one of Switzerland's mountaineering destinations, police said Friday. Two other climbers had raised the alarm with emergency services from a cabin on the Matterhorn, which straddles the border between the southern Swiss canton (state) of Valais and Italy, late Thursday. A rescue team and helicopters were dispatched Friday morning and the bodies of the missing three men were discovered on a glacier at the bottom of the mountain. (Posted @ 09:42 PST)
Tour bus carrying South Koreans crashes in New Zealand; 17 injured WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Feb 10 (AP) A tour bus carrying South Korean tourists crashed into a car in New Zealand Saturday, injuring 17, police said. The crash occurred outside the central North Island town of Tokoroa, about 400 kilometers north of the capital, Wellington. Four of the 25 tourists on the bus were trapped inside after the collision and had to be cut free, police said. (Posted @ 09:40 PST)
Vietnam hydrofoil-cargo ship collision kills three HANOI, Vietnam, Feb 10 (AP) A hydrofoil with 25 passengers and five crew members collided with a cargo ship in northern Vietnam Friday leaving three people dead and injuring 15 others, police said Saturday. A South Korean man, 49, and two Chinese men aged 42 and 64, died in the accident off the coast of Mong Cai town in Quang Ninh province. Hazy weather was blamed for the accident. (Posted @ 09:35 PST)
Eight injured, including two UN peacekeepers, in Haiti clashes PORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 10 (AFP) Two UN soldiers in Haiti and six civilians were injured Friday in gunfire in the crowded Cite Soleil slum partly controlled by gangs, the UN said. The UN troops were hurt in an operation in which authorities were trying to remove a gang leader, the Brazilian military chief of mission said. (Posted @ 09:10 PST)
Diplomats push for quick resolution of Somali conflict DAR ES SALAAM, Feb 10 (AFP) An international panel for Somalia on Friday pushed here for a quick resolution of the conflict in the country, where guerrilla-style attacks have escalated in recent weeks. The meeting came as speeding gunmen fired rockets at a key hotel in the northern Mogadishu, sparking a fire fight and leaving an unknown number of casualties. The International Contact Group on Somalia appealed for increased support for President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, who is struggling to restore a functional authority in his country. (Posted @ 09:05 PST)
Guinea president names new PM to ward off strike CONAKRY, Feb 10 (Reuters) Guinean President Lansana Conte named Eugene Camara, a senior member of his ruling party, as the country's new prime minister Friday, a move meant to appease unions threatening to relaunch a crippling general strike. Strike leaders had given the president until Monday to name a new prime minister, as he agreed to do in a deal struck two weeks ago to end an 18-day nationwide stoppage. (Posted @ 09:00 PST)
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