Month: November 2009

Shiney Ahuja resumes shooting after release

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Mumbai, November 05: Shiney Ahuja, who is currently put up in a secret location in Delhi, will resume shooting later this month in Delhi. He will complete the last schedule for Pritish Nandy Communications’ Ek Accident, which was stalled due to his arrest.

Ek Accident, directed by Abhijit Chaudhiri, also stars Soha Ali Khan and Juhi Chawla. PNC is shooting in a hush-hush location as they don’t want Shiney to be hounded by the media. This will be first appearance on a shoot after his release.

Manyata charms Sanjay Dutt’s fans

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Mumbai, November 05: Recently, Sanjay Dutt’s wife Manyata kept a special screening of All The Best for her husband’s German fans who had flown down to meet him. While Dutt met them for coffee in the afternoon at his residence, Mana kept them company at the screening as Dutt had to fly down to Delhi for some political work.

Hrithik dines with Mallika Sherawat in LA

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Mumbai, November 05: Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan and the sizzling Mallika Sherawat bonded over dinner table in Beverly Hills.

There is no need to raise eyebrows as there is nothing brewing up between the two and they did not dine alone.

Rakesh Roshan and the co-producer of Kites Brett Ratner accompanied them. The group were spotted together in the renowned eating joint Mr Chow. Mallika had the paparazzi following her and she thanked them for showering adulation on her.

‘Conditions in ME changing in favor of Iran, Syria’

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Tehran, November 05: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the Middle East’s conditions are changing in favor of his country and Syria.

“Conditions in the [Middle East] region is changing in favor of Iran and Syria,” IRNA quoted Ahmadinejad as saying in a meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem in Tehran on Wednesday.

“Considering the fact that the world’s conditions are changing rapidly and aggressive powers are in the course of decline, Iran and Syria should be coordinated for taking big decisions,” he said.

Yeddyurappa to meet Reddy brothers in Delhi

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New Delhi, November 05: Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa said Thursday that he would meet Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders as well as the dissident Reddy brothers, both of whom are ministers, in a bid to resolve the intensifying political crisis in the state.

“I will be meeting the Reddys today (Thursday)… Will hold talks with the national leaders,” Yeddyurappa, the BJP’s first chief minister in south India, told reporters here.

He arrived here Wednesday night for talks with the party’s leadership.

Republicans rejoice over election victory

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Washington, November 05: US President Barack Obama’s Republican rivals have rejoiced after winning two key election races, painting them as a big step in the party’s uphill journey.

On Wednesday, the Republicans won the governorships of Virginia and New Jersey, but a party rift cost them a congressional seat from New York that they had held for a century.

“The Republican renaissance has begun,” said Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, cheering the political shot in the arm after routs in 2006 and 2008 cost the party control of the Congress and the White House.

Paedophile rapist to be beheaded and crucified in Saudi Arabia

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Riyadh, November 05: A man who kidnapped and raped five children, one of whom was left in the desert to die, has been sentenced to be beheaded and his body publicly crucified.

Muhammed Basheer al-Ramaly, 22, from the northern city of Hail, in Saudi Arabia, will be executed at noon yesterday.

He will be beheaded by sword then his body tied to a wooden cross and his head stuck on a pole as a deterrent.

Al-Ramaly was found guilty in February of abducting and raping five boys, the eldest of whom was 7 and the youngest just 3, who he left out in the desert to die.

Israel seizes cache of arms ‘bound for Lebanon’

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Jerusalem, November 05: The Israeli navy yesterday seized a ship carrying what defence officials said was five hundred tons of Iranian-supplied weapons bound for Hizbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, including Katyusha rockets that could be used in the event of renewed Israel-Hizbollah hostilities.

Iran’s reformists use key anniversary to defy regime

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Tehran, November 05: It was meant to be a highlight of the Iranian revolutionary calendar, a day of mass rallies sponsored by the government to showcase contempt for America and the West.

But the official commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the storming by students of the US embassy in Tehran and the start of the 1979 hostage crisis was hijacked by the opposition yesterday – for their biggest show of strength in months.

US ‘spending money to reach Taliban’

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Islamabad, November 05: Washington is ready to spend a huge sum of money to start talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan, a former Pakistani lawmaker says.

Javed Ibrahim Paracha, a former member of Pakistan’s National Assembly said that top US diplomats contacted him in 2005 and offered him a huge sum of money to broker the talks.

“US officials had offered me 500,000 dollars in that meeting for mediating. I refused that offer and had asked US officials to first take permission from the government and corps commanders,” The Daily Times quoted Paracha, as saying.

Palestinians will prosecute Israel in ICC

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Gaza, November 05: The Palestinians have warned that they will seek justice for the case of Israeli war crimes in the Gaza Strip through the International Criminal Court.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN observer, urged the General Assembly on Wednesday to support a resolution that called on Israel and the Palestinians to carry out independent investigations into human rights violations during the Gaza war, AP reported.

Mullen compares Afghan mission with Iraq surge

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Washington, November 05: The US-led mission in Afghanistan could resemble the troop surge in Iraq, possibly allowing a drawdown of troops in about two years, a top US commander says.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen said it was “reasonable” to look at the campaign in Iraq — when additional American forces were sent to bolster security in 2007 — as a guide for how Afghanistan could evolve.

Obama calls for new relationship with Iran

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Washington, November 05: US President Barack Obama has called for establishing new ties between Iran and the US, saying that his country wants to “move beyond the past” tensions with Iran.

Obama issued a statement on Wednesday that marked the 30th anniversary of the takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran.

A group of students held 52 Americans for 444 days, after it was revealed that the embassy had been engaged in espionage in the country.

“This event helped set the United States and Iran on a path of sustained suspicion, mistrust and confrontation,” Obama said in his statement.

Tehran condemns murder of its citizen in Belgium

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Tehran, November 05: Iran’s Foreign Ministry has summoned the Belgian Ambassador to Tehran over the mysterious death of an Iranian national in a Belgian prison.

“The Islamic Republic condemns the killing of Mr. Mamiani-Asl in the Leuven prison and demands an explanation,” said the Director of Iranian Affairs at the Foreign Ministry in a meeting with Belgian Ambassador Philippe Colyn.

According to a recent report by Radio Netherlands, an Iranian inmate was killed by a group of prison wardens at midnight on Friday.

US troops fight 4-hour battle at Afghan village

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Washington, November 05: The villagers said they just wanted to be left alone. They claimed they had asked the Taliban to stay away, and wished the Americans would do the same.

But now the Americans were back, determined to stop the Taliban from passing through the village to attack U.S. targets. And shortly afterward the gunfire from the hills above served notice that the Taliban had no intention of leaving.

What unfolded Tuesday would highlight the tug of war being waged for the loyalties of one village in eastern Afghanistan.

Clinton revises stance on Israeli settlements

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Washington, November 05: In an attempt to defuse Arab anger over her pro-Israeli remarks, the US secretary of state said Washington does not accept the legitimacy of Israeli settlement activities on Palestinian territories.

Speaking in Cairo after a Wednesday meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Hillary Clinton said that the US wants a complete freeze on Israeli settlement activities in the occupied West Bank.

Burj Dubai to Open on January 4

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Dubai, November 05: The Burj Dubai will be opened on January 4, 2010, coinciding with the accession to power of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The 160-plus storey structure is considered the world’s tallest building.

Mohammad Ali Al Abbar, Chairman of Emaar real estate company said the company decided to launch the tower on this date as a gesture of gratitude towards Shaikh Mohammad, who is considered the builder of modern Dubai.

Italian Jail sentences for CIA-led kidnappings

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Rome, November 05: In an unprecedented move, an Italian court issues jail terms for former CIA agents involved in the abduction and torture of a Muslim Imam.

The Wednesday ruling saw an Italian judge sentencing 23 former CIA agents to up to eight years in prison for facilitating the 2003 kidnapping of an Egyptian-born cleric, Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, in Italy.

The operation, managed by the CIA and the Italian military intelligence, took place as part of what Washington has called its way of dealing with ‘enemies of the United States.’

Sarfaraz Khan makes world record of 439 run

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Mumbai: Twelve-year-old Sarfaraz Khan’s wish for a mobile phone worth Rs5,000 is about to be granted by his father Naushad. On Wednesday, the boy made a record in inter-school cricket by smacking a mammoth 439 in the prestigious Harris Shield tournament at the MB Union Cricket Club grounds, Cross Maidan.

Naushad, who bought Sarfaraz a bicycle after the boy’s extraordinary performance in the Giles Shield semi-final last year, said he would be happy to gift his son whatever he wants. “He has made me proud and I want to fulfil his wish,” he said.

The first female Mufti in the Arab world

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Dubai, November 05: United Arab Emirates will appoint the first female muftis in the world next year, local media reported.

Grand Mufti from the United Arab Emirates, Ahmed al-Hadad, said that the candidacy of six women from the Gulf States is currently considered for the training program. The program lasts for several months and it is expected to begin in the first months of the next year, the “National” newspaper reports. Al-Hadad invited all women from the United Arab Emirates in May and encouraged them to apply for the program.

Man, 32, has son aged 73, daughter 65

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Panaji, November 05: Jose Pereira, 32, and his wife Albertina, 30, of Nerul, Bardez were shocked to find that the government had gifted them two children who are twice their age and citizens of the United Kingdom.

When Pereira collected his ration card after renewal last month, he found that Urban William Paul, 73, and Janet Margo Paul, 65, had been added as his son and daughter on the card.

Malaysia withholds ‘Allah Bibles’

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Kuala Lampur, November 05: About two-thirds of Malaysia’s population is Muslim. The Malaysian government has refused to release 10,000 Bibles which it seized because they contained the word Allah to refer to God.

The government, which is dominated by Muslim Malays, claims that the word Allah is Islamic and that its use in Bibles could upset Muslims.

The Roman Catholic Church is challenging the ban in court.

Religion has become highly sensitive in Malaysia, where about two-thirds of the population is Muslim.

Lakhs attend Barelvi Ijtema in Mumbai

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Mumbai, November 05: Lakhs of men and women attend the 19th Annula International Sunni Ijtema organized by Sunni Dawate Islami in Mumbai’s Azad Maidan on Oct 30th to Nov. 1st.

The first day of the three day event was reserved for women which saw about one lakh women from Mumbai and suburbs participate in the proceedings. The lectures on the first day was geared towards women- importance of acquiring Islamic knowledge; understand their responsibilities as a Muslim women, prepare themselves in accordance to the Islamic law for the creation of a moral society.

Etihad Airways has launched new flights to Hyderabad from Abu Dhabi

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Hyderabad, November 05: Flights to the capital of Andhra Pradesh will operate four times a week, although the airline plans to increase this to a daily service from the start of next year.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ chief executive, said the carrier is “thrilled” to launch flights to Hyderabad, with the city considered a growing dynamic destination, much like Abu Dhabi.

Two boarding schools, 5-star hotels on LeT target: MHA

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New Delhi, November 05: Two leading boarding schools located in prominent hill stations in a north Indian state and a few five star hotels in popular tourist spots are targets of Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a senior home ministry official said today.

According to intelligence input, the terrorist group was planning to attack the two schools and the hotels, regularly frequented by foreign tourists, he said.