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| July 04, 2008 | Friday | Jamadi-us-Sani 29, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Cricket: Pakistan beat Bangladesh by 10 wickets in Asia Cup Karachi, July 4 (Reuters) - Pakistan beat Bangladesh by 10 wickets in the last league match of the ninth Asia Cup one-day tournament at the National Stadium in Karachi on Friday. Scores: Bangladesh 115 all out off 38.2 overs; Pakistan 116 for no wicket off 19.4 overs (Nasir Jamshed 52 not out, Salman Butt 56 not out). (First Posted @ 19:45 PST Updated @ 21:32 PST)
North Korea received centrifuges from Pakistan with Musharraf's consent: Dr A.Q. Khan ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 4 (AP) - North Korea received centrifuges from Pakistan in a 2000 shipment supervised by the army during the rule of President Pervez Musharraf, nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan claimed Friday. He told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that the uranium enrichment equipment was sent from Pakistan in a North Korean plane that was loaded under the supervision of Pakistani security officials. Dr Khan said the army had “complete knowledge” of the shipment of used P-1 centrifuges to North Korea and that it must have been sent with the consent of Musharraf, the then-army chief who took power in a 1999 coup. “It was a North Korean plane, and the army had complete knowledge about it and the equipment,” he said. “It must have gone with his (Musharraf's) consent.” Pakistan Army and Foreign Ministry spokesmen declined to give immediate comment Friday. Musharraf's spokesman said he would respond to Dr Khan's allegations after speaking to the president. After his 2004 confession and televised statement of contrition, Dr Khan was pardoned by Musharraf but has been kept under virtual house arrest at his spacious villa in Islamabad.Asked why he had taken sole responsibility for the nuclear proliferation, Dr Khan said he had been persuaded that it was in the national interest by friends including Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, the president of the then ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Q). In return, he said, he had been promised complete freedom, but “those promises were not honored.” Khan also said that he had traveled to North Korea in 1999 with a Pakistan army general to buy shoulder-launched missiles from Pyonyang. Khan's wife this week petitioned the Islamabad High Court for an end to the restrictions on her husband's movements and for his freedom to speak to the media. Also Friday, a lawyer for Khan alleged that listening devices had been planted in the scientist's tightly guarded home. (Posted @ 21:06 PST)
Detained Pakistani nuclear scientist meets lawyer ISLAMABAD, July 4 (Reuters) - Pakistani nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan was allowed to meet his lawyer on Friday for the first time since he was detained four years ago, and the lawyer said he hoped to win Khan's freedom soon. Lawyer Iqbal Jaffry went to met Dr Khan at his guarded home in a leafy Islamabad neighbourhood, where authorities say Dr Khan is being detained for his own safety. After the meeting, the nuclear scientist came out of his home with his wife and waved to television cameras and reporters on the street outside, the first time he has been seen since he was detained. “We'll win this case because government lawyers have no proof to prove my client's house arrest legal. It's a simple case of habeas corpus,” Jaffry told newsmen. (Posted @ 20:56 PST)
US-led air raid kills 22 civilians-Afghan official ASADABAD, Afghanistan, July 4 (Reuters) - Twenty-two civilians, including women and children, were killed in an air strike by U.S.-led forces on Friday in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nuristan, an official said. The attack happened on a road in Want district while the non-combatants were traveling in two vehicles, the district chief, Zia-Ul Rahman, told reporters. “The civilians were evacuating the district as they were told by the U.S.-led troops to do so because they wanted to launch an operation against the Taliban,” he said. “The civilians were in two vehicles when killed by the air raid,” he added. The U.S. military had no immediate comment about the incident. (Posted @ 20:52 PST)
Poland rejects U.S. missile shield offer WARSAW, July 4 (Reuters) - Poland has rejected a U.S. offer to boost its air defences in return for basing a “missile shield” on Polish soil but remains open for further talks with Washington, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Friday. (Posted @ 20:44 PST)
Wimbledon: Federer in final London, July 4 (Reuters) Roger Federer (Switzerland) beat Marat Safin (Russia) 6-3 7-6(3) 6-4 in the first semi-final of the men’s singles at the Wimbledon Friday. (Posted @ 20:40 PST)
Belarus blast, not far from leader, wounds 50 MINSK, July 4 (Reuters) - About 50 people were wounded early on Friday by a home-made bomb that sprayed nuts and bolts into a crowd at an open-air concert marking Independence Day in Belarus's capital attended by long-time ruler President Alexander Lukashenko who was not far from the blast but was unhurt and did not appear to have been the target, his spokesman said. A second, unexploded bomb had been found near the blast site, the Interior Ministry said. (First Posted @ 08:35 PST Updated @ 20:32 PST)
Cricket: Bangladesh all out for 115 v Pakistan in Asia Cup KARACHI, July 4 (Reuters) - Bangladesh were all out for 115 runs against Pakistan in the super league match of the ninth Asia Cup tournament at the national stadium on Friday. Score: Bangladesh 115 all out in 38.2 overs v Pakistan. (Posted @ 19:45 PST)
Operation continues as two sub-jails unearthed in Khyber Agency PESHAWAR, Pakistan, July 4 (APP):- Law Enforcing Agencies (LEAs) unearthed two sub-jails at Alam Gudar and Kohi in Khyber Agency during the ongoing operation which entered its seventh day on Friday. The paramilitary forces are patrolling the area and routine checkpoints and blockades (Nakabandis) are intact at various points of the Agency. Curfew imposed at Bara Sub-Division since June 28 has been relaxed, but the ban on the display of arms and the provisions of section 38 of the Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR) would remain in force till further orders. Meanwhile, a 18-member peace Jirga of tribal elders and maliks is busy at Tirah to negotiate with concerned elements the conditions put forward by the government. Till now, 92 suspects have been arrested. No untoward incident was reported on Friday. (Posted @ 19:24 PST)
Govt to ensure abundance of wheat: PM Gilani ISLAMABAD, July 4 (APP): Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Friday said the government will ensure that there is no shortage of wheat in the country and all necessary measures will be taken to meet the requisite requirements of all the provinces. Talking to Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif who called on him at the Prime Minister House he said import of wheat is underway on fast track basis to ensure that entire supplies are received before the end of November. He ordered distribution of provincial share as soon as supplies are received at the seaports. The Prime Minister said the Punjab government should relax the movement of wheat to deficient areas to enable the flourmills to make Atta available to the consumers. He also stressed the need for employing modern technology for assessment of all crops to avoid their shortage in the country besides measures to control the smuggling of wheat. Shahbaz Sharif thanked the Prime Minister for the timely review of the wheat situation and his assurance to meet the wheat requirements of the Punjab. (Posted @ 19:16 PST)
Shabbir Shah, other Kashmiri leaders injured ISLAMABAD, July 4 (APP):- APHC leader Shabbir Ahmed Shah was critically injured when Indian troops attacked while he was leading a big procession outside Dargah Hazratbal in occupied Kashmir capital of Srinagar on Friday, KMS reported. Shabbir Shah was rushed to Soura Hospital for treatment. The troops also subjected to brute force thousands of demonstrators outside the Dargah and injured dozens of people after resorting to firing, tear gas shelling and heavy lathi charge. Hurriyet leaders Yasmeen Raja and Ashraf Sehrai were among those injured. The troops arrested hundreds of people during the clashes, which continued for several hours. Earlier, thousands of people converged on Dargah Hazratbal in response to the appeal of the APHC chairman Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and veteran Hurriyet leader Syed Ali Gilani to express Kashmiris' unity to secure their right to self-determination. The two leaders could not address the gathering as the occupation authorities had put them under house arrest. However, APHC leaders Shabbir Ahmed Shah, Shaikh Abdul Aziz and Nayeem Ahmed Khan addressed the gathering and reaffirmed Kashmiris' resolve to continue the liberation struggle with complete harmony till it reaches its logical end. A separate procession from Jamia Masjid to Hazratbal was led by Mushtaq-ul-Islam and other Hurriyet leaders, which was also subjected to brute force by the troops at Alamgiri Bazaar. Meanwhile, Indian troops martyred two more Kashmiri youth, one each at Waghama in Pulwama and Pathri Behak in Kupwara. Earlier, five troops including two officers were killed in a clash in the same area of Kupwara. (Posted @ 19:14 PST)
CJP takes suo motu notice of reported move to commute death sentence of 7,000 convicts ISLAMABAD, July 4 (APP): Chief Justice of Pakistan justice Abdul Hameed Dogar has taken suo motu notice of a news item published in a section of the press about a government move to commute death sentence of around 7,000 convicts into life imprisonment. The CJP on Friday issued notices to the Federation, Ministry of Interior and Attorney General to submit written reply in the Supreme Court within one week regarding the matter. A hearing about the matter will be held on July 14. (Posted @ 19:08 PST)
Six die in stampede at Indian chariot festival PURI, India, July 4 (Reuters) - At least six people were trampled to death and dozens injured in a stampede at an annual chariot festival in the temple town of Puri on the coast of Orissa in eastern India on Friday, police said. Some 500,000 people had gathered to witness the chariot festival, when idols of Jagannatha and other Hindu deities at Sri Mandira, the town's main temple, are taken in huge decorated chariots to another nearby temple. (First Posted @ 17:58 PST Updated @ 18:36 PST)
Cricket: Pakistan court suspends Shoaib Akhtar ban LAHORE, Pakistan, July 4 (AFP) - The Lahore High Court Friday said Shoaib Akhtar was free to play cricket again after suspending an 18-month ban imposed on the paceman by the country's cricket authorities for indiscipline. Judge Zahid Hussain ruled that Akhtar should be allowed to play until his appeal against the ban is heard, most likely in September. “While accepting his application for interim relief (until the appeal is heard), the court has allowed Shoaib Akhtar to play cricket,” the Judge ordered. “The petition will be heard after the summer vacation,” which ends in September, he said. Akhtar welcomed the decision and said he wanted to play in the Champions Trophy, which Pakistan hosts in September this year. “I am keeping fit and I'm going to England and try to play some county or league matches there and get in shape for the Champions Trophy.” (First Posted @ 16:05 PST Updated @ 18:20 PST)
Bodies of 10 Indian police found after Maoist attack BHUBANESWAR, India, July 4 (AFP): Indian authorities have recovered the bodies of 10 elite policemen who went missing when their boat sank in a reservoir after a Maoist attack near laknairi in Orissa state, officials said Friday. The fate of 25 others also missing since Sunday while on patrol remains unknown, police told AFP. There were 64 people on board the boat when it capsized in the 40-metre deep reservoir after the insurgents started firing indiscriminately at the Greyhound force, a special unit based in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh state which is trained to track down Maoist rebels. (Posted @ 18:12 PST)
Gas pipeline blown up in Dera Bugti QUETTA, Pakistan, July 4 (APP) : Gas supply to a purification plant suspended after suspected miscreants blew up a 16-iunch diameter gas pipeline in Dera Bugti, police said Friday. According to reports, miscreants strapped explosive device with a pipeline which exploded destroying several feet long section of the pipeline. Repair work has been undertaken. (Posted @ 18:06 PST)
Pakistan committed to fighting terrorism, extremism: Musharraf ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 4 (APP): President Pervez Musharraf, underlining Pakistan's commitment to a closer and broad-based relationship with the United States on Friday, reiterated the country's firm resolve in fighting terrorism and extremism. The President was talking to a three-member U.S. Congressional delegation led by Congressman Gene Green that called on him in Rawalpindi today. He underscored the importance of a comprehensive, multi-pronged counter-terrorism strategy and appreciated Congressional support for Pakistan's counter-terrorism initiatives, such as the establishment of Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZs), FATA Development Plan and FC capacity building. The president also stressed the need for greater market access for Pakistani products in the U.S. (Posted @ 18:02 PST)
Six killed in Puri Rath Yatra stampede ISLAMABAD, July 4 (APP):- At least six people were killed and 20 injured in a stampede during the annual Rath Yatra (chariot festival) in Puri on Friday,Director General of Police Gopal Chandra Nanda said. A million devotees had gathered in Puri for the festival. (Posted @ 17:58 PST)
Over 3600 unmarked graves found in Poonch, Rajour districts of occupied Kashmir Srinagar, occupied Kashmir, July 4 (PPI): More than 3600 unmarked graves in 188 graveyards have been found in the Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu region, All Parties Hurriyet Conference (APHC) leader Ghulam Ahmed Mir said. “The survey of the graveyards was carried out from April 5 to May 15, and only after the survey these results have been made public,” he said, adding that the team is presently surveying unmarked graves in Gool Gulabgarh, Mahore, Reasi, Ram Nagar, Kathua, Ramban, Doda, Kishtwar and Baderwah areas. He said that the number of graves could be more, as it was difficult to conduct surveys in the areas in the vicinity of army camps. “We couldn't cover at least 20 to 25 percent areas in the two districts. Hence the number may increase if the unidentified graves in the areas left out in the survey are added to the total number,” he said. The team, however, has been able to locate 300 unmarked graves inside an Indian army camp in Topi Marhote area of Surankote Tehsil in Poonch. The issue of unmarked graves sparked worldwide condemnation in March this year when the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) discovered nearly 1000 unmarked graves in Uri area of Baramulla district, which has a high concentration of Indian troops. (Posted @ 17:56 PST)
Govt. is 'serious' in fighting militants: NWFP governor ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 4 (AP): North West Frontier Province Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani said Friday the government is serious about fighting militants, after authorities said they had rounded up 220 suspects as the military operation proceeded in the tribal region. He defended the deployment of hundreds of security forces in Khyber agency, where authorities say they have also banned three local militant groups. “The state is very serious” in fighting militants and the government plans to launch crackdowns against militants in other parts of the province, Ghani told reporters, without elaborating. The Interior Ministry said it has so far arrested 92 “criminals” and seized large caches of arms and ammunition in Khyber. Another 128 suspects have been arrested and drugs and weapons seized separately in the nearby city of Peshawar. Ghani maintained that the operation in Khyber was “going on successfully” and that the government had a programme for tackling the province's law and order problems. “I can say confidently that the targets we had laid down are gradually being achieved,” he said. (Posted @ 16:40 PST)
Hurriyet leaders attacked in Jammu ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 4 (APP): Hindu activists associated with Shiv Sena attacked All Parties Hurriyet Conference leaders, Jammu branch, Des Raj Sharma and Moulvi Bilal and critically injured them. Shiv Sena extremists led by Rajesh Gupta forcibly entered the office of Des Raj Sharma when he was addressing a press conference at Nanak Nagar residence in Jammu and manhandled him, KMS reported. The attackers later torched the APHC office. The Hindu extremists also entered the house of another Hurriyet leader, Maulvi Bilal at Bilawar in Kuthwa and assaulted him too. (Posted @ 16:25 PST)
Ban on fast bowler Shoaib lifted by courts KARACHI, Pakistan, July 4 (Reuters): The Lahore High Court on Friday lifted an 18-month ban on Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar for indiscipline. Although the court lifted the suspension, it did not remove the seven million rupees fine imposed by the Pakistan Cricket Board appellate tribunal last month. (Posted @ 16:05 PST)
Sharif family cases deferred till July 31 by accountability court RAWALPINDI, July 4 (APP): The Judge of Special Accountability Court No. 4 Khalid Mahmood Friday deferred hearings in three corruption references against former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif and seven other members of the Sharif family till July 31. The references are for corruption, money laundering and misuse of powers in Hudebia Paper Mills, Ittefaq Foundry and Raiwind Land. The Deputy Prosecutor General (DPG) National Accountability Bureau stated that his agency is busy with NRO cases and is awaiting instructions on how to proceed with the Sharif family cases. (Posted @ 15:45 PST)
Five soldiers, militant die in occupied Kashmir clash SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, July 4 (AFP): Five Indian soldiers and a militant were killed Friday in continuing fighting in Pathri Behak area in Kupwara district, about 140 kilometres north of Srinagar, the army said. “In fresh fighting today (Friday) five soldiers, including two officers, and a militant were killed,” an army spokesman said. “The fighting has been raging there since late Monday,” the spokesman said, adding in all a dozen militants and six soldiers have died. Soldiers came under heavy fire when they resumed searches to root out more militants near the Line of Control early Friday. “The operation in the area is still on,” the spokesman said. (Posted @ 14:25 PST)
Militants abduct two Pakistani journalists PESHAWAR, Pakistan, July 4 (Reuters): Al Qaeda-linked militants abducted two Pakistani journalists whom they accused of snooping on their members and positions near the Afghan border. The militants detained freelance reporter Pir Zubair Shah and photographer Akhtar Soomro in Ziarat village, in the Mohmand region late, on Thursday. “We detained them because they were secretly taking pictures of our people and places. Now, our council will meet and decide what to do,” Asad, a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, said Friday. Intermediaries were trying to get the reporters released, said a senior government officer. “We're doing our best. We've sent a delegation of tribal elders to the kidnappers to get them released,” said the official, requesting anonymity. (Posted @ 14:20 PST)
Rebel Georgian region orders 'general mobilisation' after attack MOSCOW, Russia, July 4 (AFP): Georgia's rebel region of South Ossetia on Friday ordered a “general mobilisation” of its forces and threatened to retaliate in kind after a large-scale overnight attack by Georgian forces killed three people and wounded ten. “A general mobilisation has been declared,” a spokeswoman for the separatist government said. “If the shelling resumes, South Ossetia will respond with heavy weaponry. (Posted @ 14:10 PST)
Attacks, bombs kill 14 in Afghanistan KABUL, July 4 (AFP): Bomb blasts and attacks killed 11 policemen and three civilians in separate incidents in Afghanistan, officials said Friday. In the deadliest incident, attackers tossed a grenade into a police post in Panjwayi district of southern Kandahar province and then opened fire into the building, killing eight policemen, the provincial police chief told AFP. Another two policemen were missing after the midnight attack and two were wounded, General Mutihullah Khan said. “A hand grenade was thrown into a police post in Panjwayi district near the district centre followed by a small-arms fire attack on the post. Eight police have been killed, two police are wounded and two are still missing,” Khan said. Separately three policemen were killed and two were wounded Friday in the central province of Ghazni when their vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb, provincial government spokesman Ismail Jahangir told AFP. A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahed, said his group was responsible for the attack in the district of Rashidan. Another roadside bomb hit a civilian vehicle in neighbouring Wardak province, killing three civilians and wounding two, said the provincial police chief, General Muzafarudin. (First Posted @ 11:00 PST, Updated @ 14:00 PST)
Cricket: Zimbabwe retained as ICC full member DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, July 4 (AFP): Zimbabwe will remain a full member of the International Cricket Council, an official said on Friday, after the body worked out a last-minute compromise. The ICC Executive Board agreed to keep Zimbabwe in its fold after the African nation acceded to India's request to pull out of next year's World Twenty20 championships in England. “Zimbabwe has agreed not to participate in the Twenty20 world championships in the wider interest of cricket,” Zimbabwe Cricket Union president Peter Chingoka said. (Posted @ 13:55 PST)
Over 50 injured in bomb blast at independence day concert in Belarus' capital MINSK, Belarus, July 4 (AP): A homemade bomb exploded at an outdoor concert in Belarus' capital early Friday, injuring at least 50 people. Officials blamed hooligans for the blast took place in downtown Minsk at a concert marking the ex-Soviet nation's independence day. Minsk police spokesman Alexander Lastovsky said more than 20 people were hospitalized, but the Health Ministry put that number at more than 50. Belarusian Emergency Situations Ministry spokesman Alexei Usatov said the bomb went off about 12:30 a.m. (First Posted @ 08:35 PST, Updated @ 13:50 PST)
Another 34 killed in fresh Sri Lanka violence COLOMBO, July 4 (AFP): Sri Lankan security forces shot dead at least another 32 Tamil Tiger rebels and lost two of their own soldiers in fresh fighting in the island's north, the defence ministry said Friday. Troops killed the 32 members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and wounded another 37 in the districts of Vavuniya, Mannar, Mullaitivu and Jaffna on Thursday, the ministry said. It said two government soldiers were killed and 15 wounded. There was no immediate word from the LTTE on the latest violence. (Posted @ 13:20 PST)
Iran quake damages buildings, no casualty reports TEHRAN, July 4 (Reuters): A 5.3 magnitude earthquake shook northeastern Iran Friday, damaging dozens of homes but there were no immediate reports of any casualties, state radio said. The quake hit an area near the city of Torbat Heidariyeh in Khorassan province, prompting thousands of people to rush out of their homes into the streets, the radio said. (Posted @ 12:45 PST)
Death toll in Slovenian boat accident rises to six LJUBLJANA, July 4 (Reuters): The death toll after two boats capsized on the River Sava in Slovenia rose to six on Friday, police said. “At least six are dead while one person survived the accident,” police spokesman Robert Perc told Reuters. Another seven people are still missing after Thursday's accident. The two boats, with 14 people aboard, overturned in strong currents near the Blanca hydropower plant, which is under construction 100 km southeast of the capital Ljubljana. (First Posted@ 09:00 PST, Updated @ 12:25 PST)
Motorcycle bomb kills girl in southwest Pakistan QUETTA, Pakistan, July 4 (AFP): A bomb attached to a motorcycle exploded at a crowded market in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta Friday, killing a girl and injuring 11 others, police said. The blast at Quetta’s Mannan Chowk also injured four policemen and seven others, police official Raja Ishtiaq told AFP. “The blast killed an eight-year-old girl and injured her beggar mother who were sitting near the motorcycle parked by some unknown man,” another police official Abdul Ghafoor said, adding that no group had claimed responsibility for the attack. (Posted @ 11:45 PST)
38 die as ferry sinks in Myanmar's Irrawaddy delta YANGON, Myanmar July 4 (APP/AP): Thirty-eight people perished while 44 others were rescued when a ferry sank in Myanmar's cyclone-battered Irrawaddy delta, state media said. The New Light of Myanmar said Friday the motorized ship sank in the Yway river early Tuesday. The ferry was travelling from Pakeikkyi village to Myaungmya, about 94 miles west of Yangon, when the accident occurred. (Posted @ 11:25 PST)
Gunmen kill eight police in southern Afghanistan KANDAHAR, July 4 (AP): Gunmen killed eight officers at a checkpoint in southern Afghanistan’s Kandahar province, provincial police chief Sumanwal Matiullah said. The gunmen threw a grenade at the checkpoint before spraying the policemen with gunfire. Matiullah said the attack happened in Kandahar's Panjwayi district late Thursday. One officer was also wounded and two others were missing. (Posted @ 11:00 PST)
Two killed in South Ossetia bombardment MOSCOW, July 4 (Reuters): Two people were killed and six wounded in Georgia's breakaway republic of South Ossetia in heavy exchanges of fire that Tbilisi and the separatists blamed on one another, media reports and officials said. Quoting the rebel region's officials, Russia's Vesti-24 channel said Georgia had started bombarding the separatist capital Tskhinvali with mortar shells at about midnight Thursday. “Then intensive gunfire followed,” it reported. Mamuka Kurashvili, commander of a Georgia's peacekeeping battalion in the conflict zone, told Reuters the Georgian side had been forced to return fire after the separatists launched heavy bombardment on several local Georgian villages. (Posted @ 11:00 PST)
Aitzaz Ahsan sees more countrywide demonstrations for judges’ reinstatement BOSTON, July 4 (Reuters): The leader of Pakistan's “lawyers' movement,” Aitzaz Ahsan, Thursday predicted more rallies across the country by lawyers and activists demanding the reinstatement of the deposed judges. Decisions on further marches would be taken at a meeting on July 12, said Ahsan. “If the judges are not reinstated we will of course bring about a schedule for marches and other affirmative sort of action which will be entirely non-violent,” Ahsan, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, said in an interview. “One man had no right under the constitution to suspend the constitution, no right to amend the constitution, no right to dismiss 60 judges, no right to arrest 60 judges and no right to detain 60 judges along with their family members,” said Ahsan. Ahsan said he was not worried that a second round of protests could potentially weaken his cause if they failed to match the scale of the last rallies, in which thousands of people participated. “Had it ended in violence or mob action then it might have been smaller. I think it is likely to be even bigger,” he said after speaking at Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Asked if he was concerned that the lawyers' movement was attracting Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) supporters at the expense of his own Pakistan People’s Party(PPP), Ahsan said all were welcome regardless of political persuasion and that the judges have not publicly allied themselves politically. “The lawyers remain the engine of the movement. The lawyers will consider the agenda and schedule of the movement. But everybody is welcome,” he said. (Posted @ 10:15 PST)
Explosion in Belarus injures 40 MINSK, July 4 (Reuters): About 40 people were injured by an explosion in Belarus' capital during a concert celebrating Independence Day early Friday morning, police and witnesses said. A police official said the explosion occurred a little after midnight, adding: “Around 40 people have been injured”. The cause of the explosion had not been determined, he said. (First Posted @ 08:35 PST, Updated @ 09:55 PST)
Tennis: Wimbledon results - collated LONDON, July 4 (AFP): Collated Wimbledon results on Thursday, the 10th day of the 2008 championships at the All England Club (x denotes seeded player): Women's Singles: Semi-finals: Venus Williams (USA x7) bt Elena Dementieva (RUS x5) 6-1, 7-6 (7/3); Serena Williams (USA x6) bt Zheng Jie (CHN) 6-2, 7-6 (7/5). Men's Singles: Quarter-final: Rainer Schuettler (GER) bt Arnaud Clement (FRA) 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (7/9), 8-6. (Posted @ 09:25 PST)
10 killed and 27 hurt in Egyptian land dispute CAIRO, July 4 (Reuters): A land dispute between two Egyptian families erupted into gunbattles that left 10 people dead and up to 27 wounded Thursday, police and medics said. A police official said members of al-Kilani clan in the Mit Abou el-Attar village in Qalyoubiya province had killed a man from another family to evade granting him a share of their land, after he rid it of thugs who had seized it by force. The family of the dead man retaliated by killing 10 members of the Kilani clan, the official added, requesting anonymity. He said 17 people were wounded in the fighting with automatic rifles, while medics put the figure at 27. (Posted @ 09:25 PST)
Car bomb kills four near Baghdad hospital BAGHDAD, July 4 (AFP): A car bomb exploded near Baghdad's Al-Yarmukh hospital Thursday, killing four people and wounding 10, security officials said. “Four people have been killed and 10 others wounded,” an interior ministry official said. The explosion took place in front of the hospital’s morgue at around 9:00 p.m., an official at the defence ministry said. Several shops near the hospital were also destroyed by the explosion. (Posted @ 09:20 PST)
Five dead, eight missing in Slovenian boat accident LJUBLJANA, July 4 (Reuters): At least five people died and eight were missing after two boats capsized on the River Sava in Slovenia Thursday, police and media reports said. The two boats, with 14 people aboard, turned over because of strong currents close to the site of the hydropower plant Blanca, still under construction at a point on the Sava some 100 km southeast of the capital Ljubljana. (Posted @ 09:00 PST)
Blast at Belarus holiday gala injures 37 MOSCOW, July 4 (AFP): A blast interrupted a gala concert held in downtown Minsk late Thursday to celebrate Belarus's independence, injuring 37 people, Russian news agencies reported early Friday. All of the injured were immediately hospitalized, RIA Novosti reported quoting hospital and city officials, who added that there were no dead or critically wounded. Belarus's authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko also attended the concert, officials said. (Posted @ 08:35 PST)
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Editor: Abbas Nasir
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