Barak says regional peace, not settlements, paramount

Israel, July 01: Israel’s Defence Minister Ehud Barak addresses the media during a news conference at the 48th… Enlarge Photo Israel’s Defence Minister Ehud Barak addresses the media during a news conference at the 48th…

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak played down on Wednesday a rift with the United States over Jewish settlements and said peace efforts should focus on persuading Arab countries to forge ties with Israel.

Comorans protest, plane crash rescuers comb sea

Moroni, July 01: A relative of passengers of the Airbus A310-300 flight from Yemen speaks with the media… Enlarge Photo A relative of passengers of the Airbus A310-300 flight from Yemen speaks with the media…

French and U.S. aircraft joined the hunt on Wednesday for possible survivors from a plane that crashed off the Comoros archipelago, while in Paris expatriate Comorans tried to block another flight by the same airline.

Taliban leader Fazlullah seriously injured, says Pakistani minister

Islamabad, July 01: Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik said senior Taliban leader Maulana Fazlullah has been seriously injured in fighting in the Swat Valley.

In an interview with BBC, Malik said the Taliban militants are currently on the run, but the Pakistani forces will soon capture them. He said the terrorists are hiding in South Waziristan and making plans for terror attacks.

‘We need help from the world community to find out who is helping the Taliban with money and arms,’ the Online news agency reported Wednesday citing the minister.

Quest for Judaization envelops Palestinian house

Gaza, July 01: Israel has demolished a Palestinian house in eastern Jerusalem (al-Quds) without a prior warning, injuring nine people living in the building.

The incident occurred on Monday when Jerusalem (al-Quds) municipality authorities tore down a house on the Mount of Olives on Monday morning.

The Israeli police forces who accompanied the bulldozers clashed with those residing in the house and wounded nine people, including four women. Two of the women were taken to the nearby al-Maqasid Hospital.

The home was 150 square meters in size and belonged to Samir Abu Juma’a.

Taliban commander killed in northern Afghanistan

Kabul, July 01: A key Taliban commander was killed in northern Afghanistan when militants attacked a NATO convoy as Afghan and foreign troops conducted an operation to clear an area of militants, officials said Wednesday.

Mullah Nader was killed late Tuesday in the Darzab district of Jawzjan province during the two-hour clearing operation by the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Afghan soldiers, provincial police chief Muhammad Khalil Aminzada said.

Molecule in mother’s milk protects baby’s delicate intestines

London, July 01: Scientists have discovered a wonder molecule in mother’s milk that protects and repairs the delicate intestines of newborn babies.

Called pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor (PSTI), the ingredient is found at its highest levels in colostrum – the milk produced in the first few days after birth.

PSTI is a molecule normally found in the pancreas, and protects it from being damaged by the digestive enzymes it produces. It seems to play a similar protective role in the gut.

Delicious Plum Cake

Ingredients:

250 gms maida
250 gms sugar (Powdered)
5 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp Vanilla essence
1½ tsp Garam Masala*
1 Lime
250 gms margarine (to chop and soak in caramel)
50 gms cashew
50 gms raisins
75 gms mixed peel
25 gms cherries
50 gms sugar
½ cup caramel syrup

Method:

Chop and soak the dry fruits and sugar in caramel.
Then, grease and paper a cake tin and keep aside.
Sieve maida and baking powder and keep aside.
In a large bowl cream the margarine with a wooden spoon till fluffy.
Gradually add the sugar powder and continue beating.

27 killed in sectarian violence in Pak tribal region

Islamabad, July 01: At least 27 people were killed Wednesday in fresh clashes between two religious groups in Pakistan’s restive Kurram tribal region, taking the toll to 148 in sectarian violence in the area over the past two weeks.

The clashes between rival Shia and Sunni tribesmen have intensified, reports from Kurram tribal agency said. Several people were also injured in today’s clashes.

More than 200 people have been wounded in fighting over the past 16 days.

Ponting demands no-ball fix

London, July 01: Ricky Ponting has demanded his bowlers fix the no-ball problem that hampered them in the tour opener so it doesn’t cost them in next week’s first Ashes Test.

The attack registered 38 of the extras in the warm-up against Sussex and while Ponting was sympathetic to their concerns, he does not want a repeat.

Vidya to do a cameo in 3 Idiots?

Mumbai, July 01: Vidya Balan and Raj Kumar Hirani became good friends while working in Lage Raho Munnabhai. And though the filmmaker is busy with his film 3 Idiots, starring Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor, he seems unable to take Vidya out of his mind.

As a result, the director has offered Vidya a cameo in the multi-starrer film.

A birdie says Raju offered Vidya the role when they recently met at a common friend’s place after a long time.

England romp to Taylor-made success

London, July 01: England’s all-powerful women’s cricket team eased to a 55 run win at Chelmsford on Tuesday to go 2-0 up over Australia in their five-match one day international series.

England’s heroine was Sarah Taylor – who scored 68 in the opening match – as she scored her third ODI century with a run-a-ball 120 out of England’s total of 259-6 off their allotted 50 overs.

Despite the Australians getting off to a good opening partnership of 85 between Shelley Nitschke and Lisa Sthalekarm, they were unable to maintain their momentum and were eventually all out for 204.

Nargis raps Neetu over bikini shoot

Mumbai, July 01: Nargis, who was last seen in the Akshay Kumar and John Abraham-starrer Garam Masala, says she would never wear something that makes her family uncomfortable.

Taking a dig at her Garam Masala co-star Neetu Chandra — who was recently in news for a hot bikini shoot — Nargis says sporting a bikini is out of question for her.

The actress goes on to say she has, in fact, missed out on ‘a whole lot of films’ because she refused to do things which were ethically unacceptable to her.

Sri Lanka beefs up security for Pak series

Colombo, July 01: Sri Lanka has stepped up security for the visiting Pakistan team and slapped new restrictions at match venues, officials said Wednesday.

Fireworks, musical bands, glass bottles, tin cans, sharp objects, laser pointers and mirrors have all been banned from the grounds where the matches are slated to be played.

“Other than national flags of Sri Lanka and Pakistan, no banners, posters and discriminating slogans will be allowed,” Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said.

Liberhan report, Lalgarh likely to generate heat in Parliament

New Delhi, July 01: The first Budget session of Parliament after the elections begins on Thursday for a business-like session but the submission of the Liberhan Commission report has raised the prospects of raising political temperatures.

The scenario for the session, which was expected to be a smooth affair till now, has suddenly undergone a change with main opposition BJP attacking the Congress-led coalition after the presentation of the report of the Liberhan Commission that went into the Babri Masjid demolition.

EC wants photo-IDs to be made compulsory for all

New Delhi, July 01: If the Election Commission has its way, BMC may soon stop accepting your property tax payment, power utilities may not accept your bill payments, mobile companies and internet service providers may refuse you a connection, cooking gas companies may not give you a refill, banks may not let you open an account, you may not get rations – all if you cannot prove you are on the photo-roll of voters.

Fatah: Egypt saved the Palestinian talks from failure

Cairo, July 01: Egypt’s intelligence service kept talks aimed at reconciling rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah from collapsing completely, a Fatah negotiator said Wednesday.

“Egypt saved the Palestinian reconciliation from failing, and (intelligence chief) Omar Suleiman played a vital role in pushing the two sides to reach an agreement,” said Azzam al-Ahmad, the head of the Fatah bloc in the Palestinian Legislative Council, before leaving Cairo for Ramallah.

‘Fine’ mess if your building does not get structural audit

Mumbai, July 01: If the building you stay in or own in Mumbai is 30 years or older, you will have to get a structural audit for your building done as soon as possible. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) has issued a public notice to the effect from the civic commissioner Jairaj Phatak’s office.

Obama tries to have it both ways with media

Washington, July 01: ( Press banned from photographing Sasha and Malia at the White House) A free press is all well and good, but not when it comes to the children of President Barack Obama, who has introduced unprecedented rules about which pictures we see of Sasha, eight, and Malia, 10, and which ones we don’t.

Commerce Ministry expects sops in Budget as exports dip

New Delhi, July 01: India’s exports continued to fall like there was no bottom, dipping by 29.2 per cent in May, and raised hopes for sops in the budget in the absence of any sign of recovery.

Government data released today showed that exports shrank for the eighth month in a row to USD 11.01 billion from USD 15.55 billion in May 2008 — an indication that there was no demand in the recession-hit global economies.

Imports too dropped by 39.2 per cent for the fifth consecutive month to USD 16.21 billion in May, helping halve the trade deficit in the month to USD 5.20 billion.

China’s internet backdown lauded by activists

Beijing, July 01: China’s ambitions to strengthen control of the internet with filtering software became a show of the limits of its power today, as activists and industry groups welcomed an abrupt delay of the contentious plan.

The surprise climbdown was reported late yesterday by Xinhua news agency, which said the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology would “delay the mandatory installation of the controversial ‘Green Dam-Youth Escort’ filtering software on new computers”.

Fiji military chief promises new Constitution by 2013

Suva, July 01: Fiji’s military leader Voreqe Bainimarama said on Wednesday that a new Constitution would be introduced by September 2013 to replace the one his regime tore-up in April.

Bainimarama, who led a coup against the elected government in December 2006, said the new Constitution would be in place a year ahead of elections he plans to hold by September 2014.

“Work on the new Constitution under which the 2014 elections shall be held will commence by September 2012,” he said in a national address.

Ancient DNA used to map extinct bird’s colours

Wellington, July 01: Australian and New Zealand scientists have used prehistoric feathers to help map the colour of giant extinct birds and they believe their method could help reconstruct the appearance of other extinct bird species.

The researchers retrieved ancient DNA from four species of New Zealand’s extinct Moa from feathers found in caves and rock shelters and believed to be at least 2,500 years old.

The native Moa – a flightless, powerfully built forager that stood over 8 feet tall and weighed 250 kilograms – ranged widely in southern New Zealand before the arrival of man.

Stress more likely to make men gamble or take risks

Washington, July 01: Stressed men are more likely to gamble, smoke, have unsafe sex or consume illegal drugs. Conversely, stressed women moderate their behaviour and are less likely to indulge in risky choices, says a new study.

“Evolutionarily speaking, it’s perhaps more beneficial for men to be aggressive in stressful, high-arousal situations when risk and reward are involved,” said gerontologist Nichole Lighthall.

Quick Chicken Curry

Ingredients:
750 gms. chicken (medium pieces)
1 “ cinnamon
1 tsp. Badi saunf (fennel seeds)
10 curry leaves
3 medium onions (sliced)
½ tbsp. ginger paste
½ tbsp. garlic paste
2 tsp. coriander powder
1 tsp. turmeric powder
2 tbsp. red chilly powder
1 cup thin coconut milk
½ cup thick coconut milk
3 medium tomatoes (chopped)
1 tbsp. tamarind pulp
1 ½ tbsp. oil / ghee
1 tbsp. chopped coriander leaves
Salt to taste.

Method:

AP bank unions step up protests over slapping incident

Hyderabad, July 01: Congress MP from Nagarkurnool in Andhra Pradesh M Jagannath on Wednesday denied having slapped the manager of a bank in Mahabubnagar district, even as bank unions vowed to intensify their protests over the incident.

“He challenged me to come to the bank. I wanted to put my hand on his shoulder but he pulled back. In the process, my hand happened to touch his cheek,” Jagannath told reporters.

Slapping of bank manager by MP most unfortunate: Moily