faheem Drass (J&K), July 25: Accusing former Pakistan military ruler Pervez Musharraf of “telling lies”, the retired Indian Army chief VP Malik today said that the Pakistani General seemed to change his perceptions and actions on the Kargil war before different audiences.
Kabul, July 25: Residents of the southeastern Afghan city of Khost are reporting heavy gunfire and explosions near the main police station and other government buildings.
The firing erupted today, and residents were unable to move about safely.
Provincial council member Tajaly Khan Saber told The Associated Press that it was not possible to determine the number of casualties.
An Afghan official says the main targets appear to be the police headquarters, attorney general’s office, courts and a local bank branch.
New Delhi, July 25: Police have said no FIR has been registered so far by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security against Continental Airlines over ex-President A P J Abdul Kalam’s security check. The reason is that the government can’t decide which law has been violated.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation had said an FIR would be registered for gross violation of BCAS Circular No 6/2008, which exempts specified VVIPs/VIPs from pre-embarkation security checks.
But this circular doesn’t fall under the purview of The Aircraft Act and officials are exploring how to take legal action.
New York, July 25: North Korea’s UN ambassador said his government was not opposed to negotiations with the United States on issues of common concern.
“We are not against a dialogue. We are not against any negotiations on issues of common concern,” Ambassador Sin Son Ho told reporters at the North Korean mission in New York.
He said Pyongyang was not to blame for the absence of dialogue with Washington. “It is not because of us. We are ready anytime.”
And he reaffirmed that his government would not return to the six-party talks on a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.
Lucknow, July 25: Commotion prevailed at the Amausi Airport here this morning, when a passenger deboarding an Oman Airlines flight was beaten up by some people claiming to be customs department officials.
Police sources here said that Brij Kishore Tewari, a resident of Gopalganj Bihar, who had deboarded Oman airlines flight WY865 was stopped by some people claiming to be customs department officials for checking.
London, July 25: Former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham unwinded with a swing ride after a hard day’s work in London where she directed a photoshoot for her latest dress
collection. The 34-year-old wife of footballer David Beckham was in London for the photoshoot and after spending the day watching a group of young models having fun on a set of swings, the designer decided to swing into action herself, reported Daily Mail online.
Washington, July 25: Terrorist organisations like al Qaida and Taliban are trying to gain access to nuclear weapons, a top US military official has warned.
“Terrorist organisations, al Qaida in particular, have been very open and direct about their desire to get a nuclear device and continue to terrorise people in accordance with their strategic approach, killing as many Americans and westerners as they possibly can with a device like that,” said Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen.
Islamabad, July 25: A Pakistani anti-terror court on Saturday adjourned till August 29 the trial of five LeT operatives, including its operations commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, accused of involvement in the Mumbai attacks.
Judge Baqir Ali Rana of anti-terror court no 2, who is conducting the trial in the high-security Adiala Jail in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, put off the matter after hearing arguments by the prosecution and defence, sources said to PTI.
Brussels, July 25: Ukraine is close to negotiating a loan from international and European financiers which would allow it to pay its massive gas bills and forestall another gas supply crisis, the European Union executive said Friday after talks in Kiev. Ukraine and the lenders are “close to agreement regarding the necessary short and medium term commitments by the Ukrainian authorities on reform of the Ukrainian gas sector which would make it possible for (international lenders) to prepare a package of support for Ukraine,” the European Commission said in a statement.
Washington, July 25: President Barack Obama’s hopes for sweeping reforms to the US health care system appeared in serious danger as he called top Democratic leaders to the White House on Friday.
Obama summoned Senator Harry Reid, the Senate’s top Democrat, to the White House a day after Reid declared that an August deadline for his chamber to pass an initial health reform bill would not be met.
Reid’s announcement marked a serious setback for Obama’s call for his signature piece of domestic legislation to be approved by the end of the year.
Washington, July 25: US astronauts Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn on Friday undertook an intense spacewalk to change batteries on a solar panel of the International Space Station.
During seven hours and 12 minutes of work, the astronauts replaced four batteries that collect and store energy from the station’s solar panels. The old batteries are to return to Earth aboard the space shuttle Endeavour.
New Delhi, July 25: RJD chief Lalu Prasad yesterday attacked Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the alleged stripping of a girl in Patna saying “this exposes the claim of changing Bihar”.
“What happened is very bad. Draupadi has been stripped and the Chief Minister says he will probe the matter. What probe is required? The incident happened in a crowded area,” Prasad told reporters outside Parliament.
“What probe is being carried out? There should have been action. He should have acted,” Prasad said.
He added such incidents had taken place in the past as well.
Washington, July 25: A top US military strategist has affirmed ahead of a meeting with the visiting Indian Army Chief that Pakistan has been fomenting
terrorism in India and Afghanistan, endorsing New Delhi’s and the Indian Army’s long-held view at a time when the two neighbours are sparring over the issue.
New Delhi, July 25: If learning Urdu and understanding the rich literary heritage written in the language was on your mind, then here is your chance — the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) Friday announced a certificate programme to popularise the language.
Launched by Minister of State for Corporate and Minority Affairs Salman Khurshid, the course is meant for those who want to know how to read, write and speak correct Urdu.
Beijing, July 25: Fears that an ageing population could be left unable to support itself mean that China’s biggest city and financial centre, Shanghai, is overhauling the decades-old One Child Policy and encouraging couples to have a second baby.
Many couples will be excluded from the new diktat, but if both parents were an only child, like most newly-weds in the city, they will be encouraged to conceive again, in an effort to ensure that the city’s workforce is not outnumbered by its pensioners.
America, July 25: A powerful earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale rattled Bougainville island of Papua New Guinea Saturday morning but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualty, seismologists said.
The quake, which struck at 11:42 a.m. (01:42 GMT), was about 80 km west of Arawa city at a depth of 65 km, according the US Geological Survey.
‘At this stage we have not received any reports of any damage,’ a spokesman for Papua New Guinea’s national earthquakes centre said.
Sweden, July 25: Parents are being unnecessarily worried by the way the Government is presenting the figures on the unfolding swine flu pandemic, a leading academic claimed yesterday.
Hyderabad, July 25: Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister K. Rosaiah Friday presented a tax-free, revenue surplus budget for 2009-10 with an overall expenditure of over Rs.1 lakh crore (Rs.1,000 billion/$21 billion).
In his budget speech, the minister told the state assembly that the overall expenditure in fiscal 2009-10 would be Rs.1,034.85 billion, of it Rs.633.01 billion under non-plan and Rs.401.84 billion under plan heads.
London, July 25: A passenger on board a plane which was forced to make an emergency landing has described the “hair-raising” moment the cabin began to fill with smoke.
Shayne Krige was one of 46 passengers on board the Flybe flight from Paris to Cardiff which had to put down at Gatwick. The 36-year-old lawyer held hands with his wife as smoke gathered in the roof of the cabin 20 minutes before the forced landing. He said there were no individual oxygen masks but a steward went up and down the aisle offering air from a bottle.
Washington, July 25: A top US military official today said that al-Qaeda and the Taliban leadership are trying to gain access to nuclear weapons.
“Terrorist organisations, al-Qaeda in particular, have been very open and direct about their desire to get a nuclear device and continue to terrorise people in accordance with their strategic approach, killing as many Americans and westerners as they possibly can with a device like that,” said Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen.
Islamabad, July 24: Chairman Senate Farooq H. Naek Friday informed the House that Senator Dr Javed Leghari has tendered resignation from his Senate seat.
He said it is to inform the members that Senator Leghari has resigned from the House with effect from July 21.
Dr Leghari was elected on Pakistan Peoples Party’s ticket from Sindh in March 200 6 for a six-year term that was to expire on March 2012.
–Agencies
New Delhi, July 24: A US Securities and Exchange Commission team is in India to probe the multi-crore rupee accounting fraud at NYSE-listed Satyam Computer and is taking the help of local agencies to this end.
“A Securities and Exchange Commission team is in India, meeting with a variety of officials including those from (Indian market regulator) Sebi, in connection with a high profile investigation,” a US embassy spokesperson said.
London, July 24: Global equity markets soared Friday, extending a blistering rally which has notched up peaks for the year around the world, as economic recovery hopes were sparked by positive US data and corporate results.
“The stellar run continues. A return of confidence has given the markets real impetus to push higher,” said senior sales manager Chris Hossain at ODL Securities in London.
Asian stocks advanced Friday, with Japan’s Nikkei index rising for an eighth straight day after Wall Street posted its best finish of the year, riding a wave of upbeat corporate earnings news.
New Delhi, July 24: CBI has registered a case against the Income Tax Commissioner posted at Patiala for allegedly accumulating wealth disproportionate to his known sources of income and have seized several incriminating documents from various premises owned by him.
The disproportionate assets (DA) case was registered against Sushil Kumar Aggarwal, Commissioner of Income Tax, Patiala in Punjab for amassing crores of rupees in his name as well as in the name of his family members.
Yangan, July 24: The trial on security-related charges of Myanmar opposition leader A woman tries to control her umbrella at a sea front in Mumbai July 23, 2009.
iArko Dattai was due to resume on Friday, with no indications from the country’s military regime that it would heed international calls to free her.
At an Asia-Pacific security forum on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered Myanmar the prospect of better relations with the United States, but said that depended in part on the fate of Suu Kyi.