American teen crowned Miss World 2010

SANYA: Blonde, blue-eyed American teenager Alexandria Mills won the Miss World crown for 2010 on Saturday, defeating more than 100 other hopefuls at a glittering ceremony in southern China.

Mills, an 18-year-old from the southern US state of Kentucky, wept as outgoing Miss World Kaiane Aldorino of Gibraltar placed the tiara on her head and led her to a diamond-shaped throne marking the pageant’s 60th anniversary.

The 1.75-metre (5’9”) beauty in white – a professional model listed with the Elite Models agency – waved to the cheering crowd at the 2,000-capacity Beauty Crown Theatre in the resort town of Sanya on Hainan island.

During the two-hour competition, which annually draws a global television audience of about one billion, Mills said her month spent touring China with the other 114 Miss World hopefuls had made a “big impact” on her life.

Botswana’s Emma Wareus was second, and Venezuela’s Adriana Vasini placed third in the pageant, which was first held in 1951.

The pageant got off to a colourful start with a performance by dancers and drummers from China’s Li ethnic minority group, who mainly live on Hainan island, which was hosting the event for the fifth time in eight years.

Before the contestants whirled in national costume for the “Dances of the World” segment, viewers were treated to a video montage of the women’s whirlwind tour of China – from the Great Wall to the shopping malls.

Early favourite Mariann Birkedal of Norway, listed by British bookmaker William Hill as the woman to beat ahead of Mills, finished in the top seven.

A win for Norway could have caused a stir in Beijing, where the government is furious that the Oslo-based Nobel committee awarded this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.

Aldorino, 24, said she had enjoyed her year as Miss World, saying that in all the countries she had visited, one thing had remained the same: “The smile on a child’s face, and that’s what has captured the moment”.

The competition emphasises the importance of charity work.

Miss “Beauty with a Purpose” – Kenya’s Natasha Metto, who has worked on combatting an epidemic of parasitic Jigger fleas in her country — earned a “fast-track” spot in the final group of 25, but was then eliminated.

Ireland’s violin-playing Emma Waldron, who won the talent contest and finished in the top five, wowed the audience by greeting them in Chinese, while Miss China, Xiao Tang, spoke mostly in English.

The event rivals the Miss Universe pageant owned by US tycoon Donald Trump, which was won by Mexico’s Jimena Navarrete in August.

In 1951, Sweden’s Kiki Hakansson became the first Miss World. Oscar-winning American actress Halle Berry was a finalist in 1986.

Venezuela and India have produced the most Miss Worlds, with five titleholders each. Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai took the crown in 1994. – AFP

Dubai attracts property investors again

KARACHI: Dubai has again started attracting wealthy Pakistanis, who are fed up with the deteriorating law and order situation at home and disappointed with the depressive economic growth.

Property dealers, bankers and exchange companies said millions of dollars had been transferred to Dubai during a year, while dozens of Pakistanis left the country fearing loss of life and property.

A number of businessmen, when contacted, said they were looking for another destination to leave this city to protect their life and property.

“Not only we pay taxes and face corrupt income tax officials but the frequent instances of robbery and killings are forcing me to quit this country as soon as possible,’ said Noor-ul-Aarfeen, a dealer of pharmaceutical products.

He said he was looking for investment in Dubai or Malaysia where his money would be protected by the government machineries. Businessmen from Peshawar have shifted to Dubai and Malaysia in large numbers as the city is in the grip of extortionists, while kidnapping for ransom is at peak.

One of the investors in Dubai said many people have shifted to the Gulf emirate mostly from Karachi and Peshawar.

“We know some Pakistanis have made investments in property as the return has improved compared to last year, while the property is safe,” said Nazir Ahmed, an investor dealing in property in Dubai.

He said return in Karachi property business is half of what Dubai offers these days, but the most distressing point is that property in Karachi is not safe.

When the State Bank was contacted to know how much transactions had taken place during a year from Karachi to Dubai, the response was that no significant transactions were made.

The open currency market dealers confirmed that transactions were made but it was difficult to identify whether it was for investment or for trading or other purposes. There is no restriction on transfer of money abroad from Pakistan.

“We have information that Pakistanis are investing in Dubai and many are willing to invest mostly because the law and order situation is the worst in Karachi forcing the wealthy people to think about other options for safety of life and property,” said Anwar Jamal, an investor and a currency dealer. He was running a business in Dubai before financial crisis gripped the country.

Dubai had been prime destination for investment by Pakistanis but the financial turmoil starting from US also gripped the world’s business center. Companies defaulted on vast level, which eroded the economic boom and hundreds and thousands lost their jobs. The collapse forced thousands of Pakistani investors to return home.

Investors believe that Dubai is still a trading hub for oil-rich Middle Eastern countries and it was never a case of total loss.The trading in terms of exports and imports to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has also improved. Exports rose to $1.475 billion in 2009-10 compared to $1.398 billion of the preceding year.

Imports rose to $4.781 billion in 2009-10 against $4.399 billion of preceding year. The imports were $5.129 billion in 2007-08 reflecting the boom in Dubai.

It was the year 2007 when financial crisis began to appear at global scene and crippled most of the banking and financial markets around the world.

Yemen hunts suspects behind air parcel bombs

SANAA: Yemeni security forces were on Sunday searching for suspects who posted parcel bombs on two US-bound flights after arresting a woman over an alleged Al-Qaeda plot that sparked a global air cargo alert.

The woman was detained on Saturday after being tracked down through a mobile number on a receipt for the explosives-filled packages, which were found on freighter jets in Britain and Dubai the day before, officials said.

But Abdul Rahman Barman of the Yemeni rights group Hood said he doubted the woman who he identified as 22-year-old Hanan al-Samawi was behind the plot as she had no known Islamist links and because Al-Qaeda was unlikely to have left an incriminating phone number on the packages.

Speaking to AFP on the telephone, he added his group had received information that “all employees” from the Sanaa offices of the FedEx and UPS used to post the parcels had been detained for questioning on Saturday.

Security forces had closed the offices of the US firms on Saturday, while setting up barricades in most areas of the Yemeni capital, checking the identification of passengers of cars.

Searches of passengers and their luggage were also stepped up at the airport, witnesses and security officials said.

Security measures were also boosted around the world as British Prime Minister David Cameron said the bomb found in his country was apparently designed to blow the aircraft out of the sky.

“Yemeni security forces arrested a woman suspected of sending two parcel bombs,” Yemen’s defence ministry said.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh said security services “received information that a girl has sent the parcels from the two cargo companies,” apparently referring to UPS and FedEx.

The arrested woman, a medicine student at Sanaa university and whose father is a petroleum engineer, was held with her mother, a Yemeni security official told AFP.
Yemeni officials also said they were examining 26 other seized packages.

US officials have said the two intercepted packages were addressed to synagogues in Chicago.

US President Barack Obama has made it clear he suspects the involvement of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) – the Yemen-based branch of Osama bin Laden’s extremist network – and vowed to wipe out the organisation.

In Britain, Cameron said of the bomb discovered at East Midlands airport in central England that authorities “believe that the device was designed to go off on the airplane”, possibly over British soil.

Dubai police said the parcel bomb found there bore the “hallmarks of Al-Qaeda”. It involved the high explosive PETN hidden inside a computer printer with a circuit board and mobile phone SIM card attached.

Britain’s Sunday Telegraph newspaper and The Washington Post said investigators were focusing on a Saudi Al-Qaeda explosives expert based in Yemen, 28-year-old Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri.

Asiri’s brother Abdullah attempted to kill the Saudi deputy interior minister in August 2009 in a suicide attack that reportedly involved explosives concealed inside his own body.

PETN, or Pentaerythritol tetranitrate, was used in that attempt by would-be “underpants bomber” Farouk Abdulmutallab and also in 2001 by attempted shoe-bomber Richard Reid.

The New York Times reported that investigators said the bombs were expertly constructed.

The one discovered at Dubai airport was concealed in a Hewlett-Packard desktop printer, with high explosives packed into a printer cartridge to avoid detection by scanners, it said.

“The wiring of the device indicates that this was done by professionals,” the paper quoted an official involved in the investigation as saying. “It was set up so that if you scan it, all the printer components would look right.”

The bomb discovered in Britain was also hidden in a printer cartridge, the report said.

A rabbi at one of the Chicago synagogues allegedly targeted in the plot said the community’s website was visited dozens of times recently by individuals from Egypt, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The cargo scare presented a new twist as Western authorities have usually focused on dangers to passenger jets following the September 11, 2001 attacks, when Al-Qaeda hijacked planes and struck targets in New York and Washington.

Germany and France announced they would no longer accept air freight from Yemen. Australia said it would screen all air cargo from Dubai and Doha.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was due to discuss counter-terrorism cooperation during talks in Britain with Cameron on Sunday, Downing Street said. — AFP

South Africa bats after winning toss

ABU DHABI: South Africa’s stand-in captain Johan Botha won the toss Sunday and elected to bat against Pakistan in the second one day international at the Zayed Cricket Stadium.

South Africa lead the five-match series 1-0 after an eight-wicket win on Friday.

South Africa beat Pakistan twice in a Twenty20 series on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Botha is standing in for Graeme Smith who is nursing a finger injury he picked up when a Shoaib Akhtar ball hit him during Friday’s game.

South Africa made two changes with Jacques Kallis, who retired after scoring 66 runs Friday because of dehydration following a viral infection, also missing the game.

Pakistan made one change with left arm fast bowler Wahab Riaz replacing Umar Gul.
Teams:

Pakistan: Shahid Afridi (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Abdul Razzaq, Zulqarnain Haider, Wahab Riaz, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Fawad Alam, Asad Shafiq

South Africa: Johan Botha (captain), Hashim Amla, Robin Peterson, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Colin Ingram, Charl Langeveldt, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Albie Morkel, Lonwabo Tsotsobe

Punjab Government responsible for unemployment: Elahi

LAHORE: PML-Q Punjab President Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Sunday said that the Punjab Government has turned ‘wealthy Punjab’ into a ‘very broke Punjab’.

Elahi said that due to unemployment, people were committing suicides and for that only the current government was responsible.

Speaking at a Workers’ Convention in Gujranwala, Elahi said that a lot of trouble is expected due to the irresponsibility of the Punjab Government. He said that 14,000 cheques of the Punjab Government have bounced and it had no money to pay salaries either.

He said that Shahbaz Sharif was inaugurating long term projects just to put on a facade and it seemed as if he is carrying a plaque that says ‘Punjab for sale’.

At the end of the convention, the former chief minister announced a Rs.1 lakh cheque for Mohammad Inam Butt, the gold medal winner at the Commonwealth Games.

Butt, Amir remain suspended: Beloff

DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Sunday rejected the appeals of Pakistan cricketers Salman Butt and Mohammad Aamer against suspensions for spot-fixing.

The two, along with fast bowler Mohammad Asif, were provisionally suspended by the ICC over allegations they were involved in spot-fixing during Pakistan’s summer tour of England.

All three appealed, but Asif later withdrew his application.

ICC code of conduct commissioner Michael Beloff announced the decision after a two-day hearing which started early Saturday, saying the players will have to appear before another tribunal to further their cases.

“Salman (Butt) and (Mohammad) Aamer had appealed against the suspension imposed on them by the ICC on September 2 for various breaches of the code of conduct.

“Having considered every aspect of the case I dismiss their appeals and they remain suspended,” Beloff told reporters outside the ICC headquarters here.

The two cricketers arrived with their lawyers — Salman with Khalid Ranjha, a former law minister, and Aftab Gul, a former Pakistan player, and Aamer with his lawyer Shahid Karim.

Beloff said all three cricketers, including Asif, will have to appear before a ICC code of conduct commission which he will announce in due course.

“The players have denied the charges, but they will remain suspended before a code of conduct commission is formed to hear the case.

“It was not up to me to decide whether they committed any crime, the commission will establish their guilt and if they are found guilty then they will be given punishment as per the ICC code of conduct.”

The scandal broke after a report by British tabloid The News of the World prompted Scotland Yard to launch an investigation into allegations of spot-fixing during the Lord’s Test against England in August.

Police raided the team’s hotel in London and questioned Salman, Aamer, Asif and bowler Wahab Riaz, but they have yet to formally level any charges.

Owing to their suspensions, the trio have been excluded from Pakistan’s current tour of the United Arab Emirates, where South Africa is the opposition.

Pakistan Cricket Board legal adviser Taffazul Rizvi said the decision was under the ICC jurisdictions.
“The decision is within the ICC’s jurisdiction but it will not affect the actual case which we hope will be heard soon,” said Rizvi.

ICC in its brief statement said: “The chairman code of conduct commission heard the case in which players had challeneged the suspension under the ICC Anti-Corruption code. After considering all the evidence Mr. Beloff has rejected the challenges.

“As such, the players remain provisionally suspended from all cricket pending the outcome of the independent Anti-Corruption Tribunal which will hear their disciplinary case in due course.”

The ICC said Asif also remained suspended.

“As Asif chose not to challenge his provisional suspension, he also remains suspended.

The ICC will make no further comments.”The ICC code of conduct carries a minimum of five year punishment if corruption charges are proved. The maximum punishment is a life ban.

Salman’s lawyer Ranjha said his team was a little disappointed by the decision. “The decision has left us unhappy,” Ranjha told reporters. “The hearing was fair and thorough, and now we have 40 days to fight the disciplinary case and we will decide our course of action.” -AFP

Sealed border in Kurram causes inconveniences locals

PESHAWAR: After the attack by Nato forces in Kurram Agency, the Pak-Afghan border has been completely sealed.

When militants had difficulty in taking control of Upper Kurram, they sealed all routes leading in and out of the area, due to which residents of the area had to travel through to Afghanistan in order to reach any other part of the country. Basic commodities and utilities were also being transported through this way.

Recently, the Pak-Afghan border was sealed when Nato helicopters attacked a checkpost in Pakistan.

Col. Tauseef Akhtar, an FC Commander stated on Sunday that it was essential to seal this border in order to maintain security and peace.

Action will take place against corrupt officials: Malik

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Sunday said that strict action against corruption will be taken after November 7.

Speaking to the media in Islamabad after visiting the FIA headquarters, Malik said that the heads of government institutions have been given a period of one week to take steps to eliminate corruption.

Malik said that the people should identify corrupt elements in the government institutions so that immediate action can be taken against them.

The minister also said that measures were being taken to combat human trafficking and that action will be taken against the staff deployed on checkpoints from where people were illegally leaving the country.

He said that action will be taken against extortionists and a special helpline will be established in this regard.

Prior to his press conference, Malik, while touring the FIA headquarters, announced that the women’s quota has been raised to 25 per cent in the FIA and also stated that employees’ salaries will now match those of the Motorway Police force.

Israeli Jews divided over removal of settlements: poll

JERUSALEM: Jewish Israelis are divided on the question of removing some settlements as part of a peace deal with the Palestinians, with 50 per cent in favour and 43 per cent opposed, a poll said on Thursday.

The survey, which was conducted by Tel Aviv University and the Israel Democracy Institute, found that just 28 per cent of Jewish Israelis thought the government would need to remove all settlements, including major blocs.

Israel’s Arab citizens, who make up 20 per cent of the population, are strongly in favour of the full removal of settlements, according to the poll which was published in the Yediot Aharonot newspaper.

Three quarters, 74 per cent, of Israeli Jews support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s demand that the Palestinians recognise Israel as the Jewish state in exchange for renewed restrictions on settlement construction, while 79 per cent of Arabs were opposed.

The Palestinians recognised Israel in 1993 but have refused to recognise its Jewish identity, fearing that doing so would compromise the right of return of Palestinian refugees from the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

Arab citizens of Israel also oppose such recognition along with the related demand that new citizens swear an oath of loyalty to Israel as a “Jewish and democratic state,” saying it amounts to discrimination.

The survey also found that 72 per cent of Israeli Jews support US-backed peace negotiations with the Palestinians but only 35 per cent believe they will lead anywhere, a degree of pessimism reflected in other recent polls.

The pollsters surveyed 600 people they said were representative of the adult population of Israel and gave a margin of error of 4.5 per cent.

The United States managed to relaunch direct peace talks in early September after months of intense diplomatic efforts, but they ground to a halt later that month when an Israeli settlement-building moratorium expired.

The Palestinians have refused to return to the talks without a complete freeze on settlement construction and the Arab League has given the United States until early November to find a way out of the impasse. – AFP

Internet accounts for 7.2 per cent of UK economy: study

LONDON: The Internet contributed 100 billion pounds (155 billion dollars, 115 billion euros) to the British economy last year, about 7.2 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), a report showed Thursday.

The sector is bigger than the construction, transport or utilities industries in Britain, according to the study by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), which was commissioned by the British arm of Internet giant Google.

The research also predicted that by 2015, the British ‘Internet economy’ is likely to grow to 10 per cent of GDP, eclipsing the financial sector.

“The Internet is pervasive in the UK economy today, more so than in most advanced countries,” said Paul Zwillenberg, a partner with BCG in London.

“Whether they are driving international expansion, improving their interactions with customers or the efficiency of their supply chains, UK companies are increasingly embracing the Internet’s potential.”Much of the growth is driven by consumption, the majority of it online spending but also what consumers spend on getting access to the Internet, while the rest comes from government spending, private investment and exports.

The study found that about 62 per cent of adults, or 31 million people, have bought goods or services online so far this year and collectively they spent about 50 billion pounds last year on goods or travel.

More than 19 million out of a total of 26 million British households have an Internet connection and broadband access has doubled since 2005.

Overall, Britain was ranked sixth among major economies on the BCG “e-intensity index” which judges the reach and depth of the Internet, after Denmark, South Korea, Japan, Sweden and the Netherlands. –AFP

Hopes for treaty rise at UN biodiversity summit

NAGOYA: Hopes rose that rich and poor nations would be able to forge a historic treaty to protect the world’s ecosystems after grinding progress was made at a UN summit on Thursday, delegates said.

Representatives of more than 190 countries have been meeting in the central Japanese city of Nagoya for nearly two weeks in an effort to set goals on saving habitats which would help to end the mass extinction of species.

With talks due to wind up Friday, delegates said last-minute negotiations among environment ministers had helped bridge key differences between developed and developing countries that had threatened to derail the event.

“Things are unlocking, but there is very little time left,” France’s state secretary for the environment, Chantal Jouanno, told AFP.

The European Commissioner for the Environment, Janez Potocnik, also emerged from talks in the afternoon to post an optimistic message on microblogging website Twitter: “Can we do it? Yes we can. But do the others agree?”The key dispute has been over fairly sharing the benefits of genetic resources such as wild plants.

Brazil and other developing countries argue rich nations and companies should not be allowed to freely take genetic resources to make medicines, cosmetics and other products for huge profits.

Brazil has maintained throughout that it would not agree to a 20-point plan on protecting nature unless there was first a deal on genetic resources with a legally binding “Access and Benefits Sharing Protocol”.

The planned protocol would ban so-called “biopiracy” and outline how countries with genetic resources would share in the benefits of the assets’

commercial development.

Brazil’s Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira told reporters that a deal on genetic resources had not yet been reached, but she believed a full pact on all the environment issues could still be reached by Friday night.

“I’m maintaining our optimism about all this. We believe that we have political momentum. We are working hard and we are optimistic about the results,” she said.

However other delegates said they were concerned that time was running out to strike a deal, particularly as some contentious issues would still have to be approved by their home governments.

One of the other key planks of the planned treaty delegates are hoping to sign on Friday is a strategic plan that commits countries to 20 targets for protecting ecosystems over the next decade.

These targets would aim to conserve large areas of coral reefs, waterways and forests, cut pollution and restore degraded ecosystems.

However, environment groups are concerned that some of the targets that are likely to be agreed upon will not be ambitious enough, particularly ones that aim to protect waterways.

While Greenpeace and other groups want 20 percent of coastal and marine areas protected, they say China and India are lobbying for six percent or lower.

The overarching goal of the Nagoya summit is to end the destruction of ecosystems that scientists say is causing the world’s plant and animal species to vanish at up to 1,000 times the natural rate.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature warned last year that the world was experiencing its sixth mass extinction in history, with the last one 65 million years ago wiping out dinosaurs.

The treaty to be signed in Nagoya would come under the UN’s Convention on Biological Diversity, which has 193 member nations. However the United States is not a party the convention. – AFP

US prepares new offer for Iran nuclear talks –NYT

WASHINGTON: The United States and its European allies are putting together a new offer for talks with Iran over its nuclear program, but would include tougher conditions for an atom fuel swap than those rejected by Tehran last year, The New York Times reported.

The newspaper cited a senior US official as saying the Obama administration and its partners were “very close to having an agreement” on a position to present to Tehran in negotiations the West hopes will get under way in Vienna next month.

Iran has welcomed the offer of talks, which the Western powers want to yield a deal curbing its uranium enrichment drive and opening it to U.N. nuclear inspectors in exchange for a package of benefits.

Tehran, which has ruled out halting sensitive nuclear work which can have both civilian and military uses, has yet to formally reply to the invitation for talks from Nov. 15 to 17.

Dismissing the impact of tougher sanctions introduced since June, it has said it is open to resume negotiations on a proposal for it to send low-enriched uranium (LEU) abroad and get higher-grade fuel for a medical research reactor in return.

Western diplomats said that even if a deal was struck on a fuel exchange, it would not resolve wider concerns about Iran’s nuclear plans. Iran rejects Western accusations it is seeking to develop nuclear bombs.

The Times said the new offer would require Iran to send more than 4,400 pounds (2,000 kg) of LEU out of the country. That would represent a more than two-thirds’ increase from the amount required under a tentative deal a year ago that later collapsed.

“MOVING GOALPOSTS”

It said the increase reflected Iran’s steady production of uranium the past year and Washington’s goal to ensure Iran has less than than a bomb’s worth of uranium on hand.

Iran would also be required to stop all production of nuclear fuel it is enriching to 20 per cent since February, a key step toward bomb-grade levels.

The Times said intelligence analysts concluded that last year’s deal was scuttled by Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Many officials therefore suspect this latest effort to fail, the Times said.

Western diplomats have earlier made clear that any new swap deal must be updated to take into account Iran’s increased uranium stockpile and its work to enrich to higher levels.

One diplomat in Vienna told Reuters: “Discussions (between the powers) are still under way. I wouldn’t describe it as a new offer. I think primarily it is speculation. Of course, time has moved on since last year.”

“Iran has taken up 20 per cent enrichment which is not justified if there were to be a fuel swap … so that would be a new element which would have to be contemplated.”

Research Associate Ivanka Barzashka of the Washington-based Federation of American Scientists said a successfuel fuel deal was a necessary condition for further Iran-West engagement and that its confidence-building benefits could still be salvaged.

But, “an increase in the swap amount will surely be seen by Iran as moving goalposts and will likely cause further delays in negotiations,” Barzashka said in an e-mailed comment to Reuters.

Schools, stipends trigger Israeli religious battle

JERUSALEM: During its six decades of existence, Israel has maintained a shaky alliance with its ultra-Orthodox Jewish minority that allowed most religious men to avoid military service, attend separate schools and get paid by the state to study the Bible instead of entering the work force.

But this system is coming under new scrutiny, pressured by a series of Supreme Court rulings, an ambitious education minister and the hugely unpopular cost of sustaining a fast-growing ultra-Orthodox population that has few skills for the 21st century.

The vitriolic debate has created the first serious threat to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition. His ultra-Orthodox partners are threatening to topple the government if subsidies to their constituents are cut.

The dispute goes far beyond money, touching on the character of the Jewish state in a modern world and the ultra-Orthodox community’s place in it.

Many secular Israelis see the ultra-Orthodox, with their large families, as a financial drain and are growing less willing to subsidize them when half of their men don’t work preferring to study the Torah and their children are taught little math and science. They warn that if the system continues it could ultimately undermine a country that has become a high-tech powerhouse with vibrant media and culture.

Schools have emerged as a main front in the conflict.

Education Minister Gideon Saar is moving to tighten oversight of the semiautonomous ultra-Orthodox grade school system. Saar, a rising star in Netanyahu’s Likud Party, is insisting that core subjects such as English, math, history and science be taught at all government-funded schools, including ultra-Orthodox ones.

Some 245,000 students about one in every six in Israel are enrolled in ultra-Orthodox schools from grades 1-12, according to the Education Ministry. The schools, which emphasize religious studies, are essentially run by nonprofit organizations that do not answer to the state, though they receive government funds.

Top ultra-Orthodox rabbis held an emergency meeting last week to oppose Saar’s moves. The rabbis say the schools are training spiritual leaders and that the measures undermine an emphasis on biblical studies they say has allowed the Jewish people to survive for thousands of years.

”Education is not just about knowledge, it is also about values,” said ultra-Orthodox lawmaker Uri Maklev. ”We teach the value of the Bible as the ultimate value. They teach children to be infidels and anti-religion.”

Under the current system, ultra-Orthodox schools must teach the core grade-school curriculum in proportion to how much state money they receive. Fully funded ones must teach it in full. A school receiving 50 percent funding needs to teach only half.

In the past, oversight has been lax. But an Education Ministry survey found that nearly 20 percent of ultra-Orthodox schools are not living up to their obligations, and Saar has informed them their funding will be slashed. He has also hired more inspectors.

The ultra-Orthodox, also known as haredim, make up 10 percent of Israel’s 7.6 million people. But they have long served as kingmakers in Israel’s fractious parliamentary system, giving them considerable political clout.

With generations of coalition governments dependent on their support, they have won outsized subsidies for schools, child support and welfare payments to allow adult men to spend their days studying in seminaries.

The government’s budget for supporting the seminaries, for example, runs at around $275 million, including operating costs and the stipends that go to married seminary students. The haredim’s exemption from military service which is compulsory for other Jewish Israelis has added to the resentment.

Ultra-Orthodox men are easily identified by their black suits, long beards and sidecurls. They and their families typically live in isolated neighborhoods and often have little interaction with the outside world.

”If they want to live in a ghetto, fine, but why should the state pay for it? As long as the state is paying, it has to have a say,” said Yossi Sarid, a former education minister.

High birth rates, voluntary unemployment and limited modern skill sets have left the ultra-Orthodox sector among the poorest in Israel.

According to a 2007 survey for the Central Bureau of Statistics, 53 percent of men and 51 percent of women in the ultra-Orthodox community said they work, compared with 93 percent and 86 percent of their secular counterparts.

Earlier this year, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the seminary stipends discriminate against university students.

Ultra-Orthodox parties say they will quit the government if alternative legislation is not approved to keep stipends. Netanyahu would lose his parliamentary majority if they bolt. – AP

Gunmen attack Japanese diplomatic vehicle in Karachi

KARACHI: Gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire on a Japanese consular vehicle in Karachi on Thursday, wounding two of the mission’s Pakistani employees.

The attack may have been an attempted robbery because the three Pakistanis in the car had stopped by a bank to get cash before they were ambushed, police official Javed Akbar Riaz said. The two wounded men were in stable condition.

Kazuhiro Kawase, a spokesman at Japan’s Foreign Ministry in Tokyo, confirmed the shooting and said no Japanese diplomatic officials were in the car. Police in Karachi said the vehicle’s license plates indicated it belonged to the Japanese consulate.

”We are still confirming what sort of damage there was to the vehicle or what sort of injuries people inside might have sustained.” Kawase said.

Japan and Pakistan have good relations, and Tokyo has been generous in providing aid to the Muslim-majority nation. — AP

Bomb attack in southern Afghanistan kills three police

KABUL: A roadside bomb attack targeting the car of a district police chief killed three police officers in southern Afghanistan, a local official said.

Provincial government spokesman Mohammad Jan Rasolyar said the police chief was not in the vehicle Thursday when it was hit by the blast in the Shinkai district of Zabul province.

Afghan and Nato troops are pushing into the traditional heartland of the insurgency in southern Afghanistan. They have managed to secure pockets of territory but the insurgents are also carrying out daily bomb attacks and assassination attempts.

There has also been a surge in insurgent activity in northern Afghanistan, traditionally considered more peaceful. — AP

Militants behead ‘fake’ Taliban in Mohmand

KHAR: Militants beheaded three “common criminals” allegedly masquerading as Taliban while stealing and kidnapping for ransom, a local official and residents said.

The trio were captured two days ago and their bodies dumped in fields in the Yaka Ghaound district of Mohmand, one of the seven districts in Pakistan’s tribal belt, said local administrator Mairaj Khan.

Residents said a note was found near the bodies, identifying them as criminals “defaming” the Taliban.

“They were involved in various crimes, including theft and kidnapping for ransom, posing as Taliban. We killed them so others may learn a lesson from this,” the note said.

A man who identified himself as a local Taliban spokesman said the trio had masqueraded as Taliban. “They were defaming our organisation,” said the man who called himself Sajjad Mohmand.

Pakistani Taliban have been blamed for many of the deadliest bomb attacks hitting Western targets, Pakistani security forces and civilians across the country over the past three years.

The militia is fighting an insurgency against the Pakistani military concentrated in the tribal belt and other parts of the northwest. — AFP

Death toll hits 65 in Afghan wedding building collapse

KUNDUZ: Sixty-five people, most of them women and children, died when a floor collapsed at a wedding in one of the most remote regions of northern Afghanistan, an official said Thursday.

The accident happened on Wednesday in a village in the Jalga district of Baghlan province, an impoverished and isolated area deep in the Pamir mountains.

“Sixty-five people have been killed. They will be buried today,” Mahmood Haqmal, spokesman for the provincial governor, told AFP.

Officials said the floor collapsed at 1:00 pm during the wedding party in Warchi village, and had earlier put the toll at “more than 40”.

Haqmal said the upper floor of the two-storey building was packed with people when it crashed to the ground.

He said houses in the area were very old, made of mud bricks and covered with wood, and probably unable to bear the weight of so many people.

Weddings are one of the principal forms of entertainment and social interaction in Afghanistan, where men and women typically celebrate in separate quarters.

According to Islamic tradition, funerals are held as soon as possible after death.

Obama Asia trip no slap to Pakistan, China: aides

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama’s upcoming trip to India and other Asian countries should not be taken as a slap against India’s archrival Pakistan or any other country, including China, aides said on Wednesday.

Obama leaves on Nov. 5 on a 10-day trip to India, Indonesia, South Korea and Japan.

Obama will start the trip with 3-1/2 days in India, the longest foreign stop of his presidency.

“India is a cornerstone of our broader Asia approach,” William Burns, undersecretary of state for political affairs, told a news conference on the India portion of the trip.

Some commentators have portrayed the tour as a White House effort to counterbalance China’s influence in Asia, which has worried Indian officials. But Obama’s aides said the administration’s strategy is to develop both relationships.

“We don’t feel like there needs to be a choice between a cooperative US-China relationship and these broader relationships that we have in Asia,” White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said.

“As an Asian power and as a Pacific power, it’s in the interest of the region for the US to have a cooperative relationship with China on some of these issues, but it’s similarly in the interest of the region for us to, again, be very engaged with ASEAN, to be deepening our partnership with India, and to firm up our alliances with Korea and Japan,” he said.
ASEAN is the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Pakistan-Afghan Concerns

There will be a strong economic element to the India trip — Obama is going with a long trade and finance agenda. But it will also have to address how New Delhi deals with Pakistan, its archrival and fellow nuclear power.

India is also the largest regional aid donor to Afghanistan, which Pakistan, especially its military, sees as its backyard and where Washington looks to Islamabad as a partner as it wages its 9-year war.

The White House says it wants to send the message that drawing closer to India does not mean it is moving further from Pakistan.

“Our central message — and it’s a message, really, to the region — is that both of these relationships can be advanced and deepened at the same time, on a parallel track, and that that does not, in any way, demonstrate a preference for one relationship over the other, that these things can be mutually reinforcing, in fact,” Rhodes said.

Pakistani officials were in Washington last week for a strategic dialogue and Obama spoke to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday, Rhodes noted.

Obama also will visit Pakistan in 2011, the White House announced when it said Obama would not stop there this trip, as some commentators had speculated.

Obama is staying at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, which was targeted in the attacks on Mumbai two years ago, and meeting with survivors of the attacks, to underscore his awareness of India’s security concerns.

Take That announce first tour since Robbie reunion

LONDON: Take That will perform with its original line-up for the first time in 16 years, the boyband confirmed Tuesday as they revealed plans for their inaugural tour since Robbie Williams rejoined.
The British five-piece will play four nights at the City of Manchester Stadium in the group’s home town in June before four mammoth shows at London’s Wembley Stadium.
Band member Gary Barlow promised fans a big show but was keen not to reveal too much.
“We’ve got a little bit of a theme but we’re not going to give that away now,” he said.
“It will be a big production show. We're looking forward to coming up with big ideas for it to be a spectacular again.”
In the British Isles, Sunderland, Birmingham, Cardiff, Dublin and Glasgow will all play host to the reformed band before they head off to Europe.
The stars will play Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Dusseldorf and Munich as well as appearing at Milan’s famous San Siro stadium.
The group disbanded in 1996 after six years together, but reunited in 2005 to huge success in terms of record sales and concert tours.
Their last tour, “Circus Live” in 2009, became the fastest-selling of all time in Britain.
Williams, who acrimoniously left the band in 1995 to embark on a hugely successful solo career, rejoined in July of this year after patching up his differences with chief songwriter Barlow.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” the singer said.
“When I left I didn’t think I would ever say I’m really looking forward to dancing and rehearsing.
“The first time around there was a lot of power struggles with everybody. This time there just isn’t.” — AFP

Amnesty calls for Pak probe over Balohistan violence

ISLAMABAD: Rights group Amnesty International called on Pakistan Tuesday to investigate the alleged torture and killing of more than 40 political leaders and activists in Balohistan.
Amnesty said the cases have occurred in the last four months against a backdrop of increasing political unrest and Pakistani military activities in the southwestern province which borders Iran and Afghanistan.
Violence has surged this year in Balohistan and human rights activists have raised concerns about an increase in targeted killings in the province.
“The Pakistani government must act immediately to provide justice for the growing list of atrocities in Balohistan,” said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International's Asia Pacific director.
“Baloh political leaders and activists are clearly being targeted and the government must do much more to end this alarming trend.”
Amnesty warned that bullet-ridden bodies of those who have been abducted, many showing signs of torture, are increasingly being found across Balohistan whereas previously bodies of the missing were rarely recovered.
Victims' relatives and activists often hold Pakistan's security forces and intelligence agencies responsible.
Amnesty said a previously unknown group, Sipah-e Shuhada-e Balohistan, has also claimed responsibility for some of the killings.
“The Pakistani government must show that it can and will investigate the Pakistani military and Frontier Corps, as well as intelligence agencies, who are widely accused of playing a role in these incidents,” said Zarifi.
Amnesty warned that the rise in disappearances and bodies being dumped has aggravated political tensions and led to reprisal killings by Baloh groups.
On August 14, gunmen shot dead at least 16 people in Balohistan. Amnesty said 17 people —all from Punjab province —were killed and that the Balohistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility.
In response to the report, Pakistan said it was working to implement a package of political and economic reforms, which was unveiled last November in a bid to grant the province more independence and boost wealth creation.
“The democratic government is trying its best to protect human rights as enshrined in the constitution,” said foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Basit.
There was no immediate comment from the military.

Pakistan to play Hong Kong in Asian Games opener

LAHORE: Pakistan will play its first match against Hong Kong on November 17 in the opener of 16th Asian Games at Guangzhou, China.

The hockey event of the Games will commence from November 15-25 with ten teams divided in two pools.

Pool A comprises South Korea, China, Malaysia, Singapore and Oman, while Pool B features Pakistan, India, Japan, Bangladesh and Hong Kong.

The Green Shirts will play their second match against Japan on November 18, third against India on November 20 and fourth and last pool match against Bangladesh on November 21.

India and Japan pose the real threat for Pakistan in an otherwise easy group but they will be up against it after facing severe criticism for their woeful performances at this year’s World Cup and Commonwealth Games.

Classification matches and semi finals will be played on November 23, while position matches and final match will be played on November 25.

Iran injects fuel into first nuclear reactor

TEHRAN: Iran began loading fuel into the core of its first atomic power plant on Tuesday, moving closer to the start up of a facility that leaders have touted as defying of international efforts to curtail the country's nuclear ambitions.
The Russian-built nuclear power plant in Bushehr has international approval and is supervised by the UN's nuclear agency. However, the UN security council has slapped four rounds of sanctions against Iran over a separate track of its nuclear program its efforts to refine uranium, which could eventually be used to create material for a weapon.
''Today, we witnessed an important development in the start up process. After fuel is injected into the heart of the reactor, the reactor door is closed. Then, it will take one or two months to reach a 40 or 50 per cent nominal power,'' Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi told a press conference broadcast on state TV. ''We hope the reactor will produce electricity by mid February.''
When the 1,000 megawatt plant was originally received the fuel in August, Salehi predicted it would produce electricity by November, but a leak in a storage pool delayed the process for months _ the latest setback for a reactor first commissioned in the 1970s.
The US recently withdrew its long-standing opposition to the plant after Russia satisfied concerns over how it would be fueled and the fate of the spent fuel rods.
Under a deal signed in 2005, Russia will provide nuclear fuel to Iran, then take back the spent fuel, a step meant as a safeguard to ensure it cannot be diverted into a weapons program. Iran has also agreed to allow the UN's nuclear agency to monitor Bushehr and the fuel deliveries.
Worries remain, however, over Iran's program to enrich uranium for nuclear fuel since the process can also be used to create weapons grade material, something Iran says it has no interest in doing.
The United States claims that the fuel deal with Russia shows Tehran does not need to enrich its own uranium, but Iran maintains it will build other nuclear power plants and has to have its own fuel source.
Iran is already producing its own nuclear fuel _ uranium enriched to about 3.5 per cent. It also has started a pilot program of enriching uranium to 20 per cent, which officials say is needed for a medical research reactor.
Weapons grade material has to be enriched to 90 per cent.
The Bushehr project dates backs to 1974, when Iran's US-backed Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi contracted with the German company Siemens to build the reactor. The company withdrew from the project after the 1979 Islamic revolution toppled the shah and brought hardline clerics to power.
In 1992, Iran signed a $1 billion deal with Russia to complete the project and work began in 1995.
Under the contract, the Bushehr nuclear power plant was originally scheduled to come on stream in July 1999 but the start up has been delayed repeatedly by construction and supply glitches.
Moscow has cited technical reasons for the delays, but Iranian officials have sporadically criticized Russia, some calling Moscow an ''unreliable partner.''
Russians began shipping fuel for the plant in 2007 and carried out a test-run in February 2009.
The Bushehr plant overlooks the Persian Gulf and is visible from several miles (kilometers) away with its cream-colored dome dominating the green landscape.
Soldiers maintain a 24-hour watch on roads leading up to the plant, manning anti-aircraft guns and supported by numerous radar stations. – AP

Iraq court sentences Tareq Aziz to death

BAGHDAD: Iraq's supreme criminal court sentenced former deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz to death on Tuesday, the first death sentence handed down against the long-time international face of the Saddam Hussein regime.
“The supreme criminal court issued an execution order against Tareq Aziz for his role in eliminating religious parties,” state television reported.
It said that the court also ordered death sentences against two other top Saddam lieutenants, former interior minister Saadoun Shaker and Abid Hamoud, the executed dictator's secretary.
All three were sentenced for their role in a crackdown on Shiites, which followed a 1982 assassination attempt against Saddam in Dujail, a mainly Shiite town north of Baghdad, the court's spokesman Mohammed Abdul Saheb said.
“The order was for the crackdown on religious parties which took place in the 1980s,” Abdul Saheb told AFP.
There was another bigger crackdown against Iraq's Shiite majority community following a 1991 uprising against Saddam.
By law, the death sentences have to be confirmed by the presidential council before being carried out.
Aziz's Jordan-based son Ziad told AFP that the death sentence against his father proved the revelations made about the Iraqi state by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks.
“The decision was an act of revenge against anybody and anything related to the past,” he said.
“It proves the credibility of the information published by WikiLeaks...This verdict is a disgrace,” said Ziad, who has lived in Amman with his family since 2003.
WikiLeaks published 391,832 classified US military documents on Iraq on Friday which its founder Julian Assange said showed the war was “a bloodbath on every corner” with numerous reports of abuse of detainees by Iraqi forces, often supported by medical evidence.
“My father had nothing to do with religious parties,” Ziad said, referring to the court verdict.
“He himself was a victim of a religious party, Al-Dawa,” currently led by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.
Ziad was referring to a grenade attack against his father in a university in Baghdad in April 1980 as he delivered a speech. He was wounded in the attack.
“When did the court have the time to study the verdict? They did not listen to the defence. What kind of justice is this?” he asked.
Of the three former top officials sentenced to death on Tuesday, the urbane Aziz was by far the most prominent figure.
In 2009, he was jailed for 15 years for the 1992 execution of 42 Baghdad wholesalers and separately given a seven-year term for his role in expelling Kurds from Iraq's north. He pleaded not guilty on all counts.
Among Saddam's few surviving top cohorts, Aziz turned himself in to US forces in April 2003, days after the fall of Baghdad.
Named foreign minister in 1983 and then deputy prime minister in 1991, Aziz exploited his mastery of English to put a gloss on Saddam Hussein's murderous regime for two decades.
As Saddam's principal spokesman, the bespectacled Aziz -- the only Christian in the dictator's inner circle -- was a recognisable figure internationally whose rise was attributed to unswerving loyalty to his master.
Aziz's family has repeatedly called for his release from custody, saying the 74-year-old was in poor health suffering from heart and respiratory problems, high blood pressure and diabetes.
In September, Ziad Aziz said the Iraqi government wanted his father to die in Baghdad's Kadhmiyah jail and had shown no compassion for his declining health. – AFP

Indonesia tsunami sweeps away 10 villages: official

JAKARTA: Ten villages on a remote island chain in Indonesia have been swept away by a tsunami triggered by a powerful undersea earthquake, a disaster official said Tuesday.
At least 23 people have been killed and scores more remain missing after the 7.7 magnitude quake struck late Monday, setting off waves as high as three metres (10 feet) in the Mentawai islands west of the island of Sumatra.
“Ten villages have been swept away by the tsunami,” National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Agolo Suparto told AFP.

Paul the ‘psychic’ World Cup octopus dead

BERLIN: Paul the octopus, who shot to fame during this year’s football World Cup in South Africa for his flawless record in predicting game outcomes, has died, his aquarium in Germany said Tuesday.

“Management and staff at the Oberhausen Sea Life Centre were devastated to discover that oracle octopus Paul, who achieved global renown during the recent World Cup, had passed away overnight,” the aquarium said in a sombre statement.

“Paul amazed the world by correctly predicting the winners of all Germany’s World Cup clashes, and then of the final,” said Sea Life manager Stefan Porwoll.

“His success made him almost a bigger story than the World Cup itself... We had all naturally l, with the box he plumped for being deemed the likely winner.

His astonishing ability made him a global media phenomenon. His later predictions were carried live on rolling news channels in Germany.

But the art of football predicting became a dangerous job for the English-born clairvoyant.

He was slammed in the British press for treason after tipping Germany to beat his “home country” which they duly did, 4-1.

He then fell offside with bitter German fans who threatened to turn him into sushi after he correctly predicted a semi-final defeat for the Mannschaft against Spain.

Stung by Paul’s “treachery” at picking Spain over Germany in a semi-final, some sections of the 350,000-strong crowd watching the game on giant screens in Berlin sang anti-octopus songs.

The honour of Paul’s mother was also called into question in the stands, and Paul’s home aquarium received death-threat emails saying “we want Paul for the pan.”No less an authority than Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luiz Rodriguez Zapatero called for octopus bodyguards.

And Spanish Industry Minister Miguel Sebastian called for the creature to be given an “immediate” free transfer to Spain to “ensure his protection.”Paul’s fans need not despair too much at his death. The aquarium has already been grooming a successor, to be named Paul like his mentor.

Paul’s body is now in cold storage while the aquarium decides “how best to mark his passing.”

“We may decide to give Paul his own small burial plot within our grounds and erect a modest permanent shrine,” said Porwoll.

“While this may seem a curious thing to do for a sea creature, Paul achieved such popularity during his short life that it may be deemed the most appropriate course of action.” – AFP

Richard Holbrooke phones President Zardari

ISLAMABAD: US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke on Tuesday telephoned President Asif Ali Zardari and discussed matters relating to the recently held Pak-US Strategic Dialogue.
They also discussed the struggle against militancy and extremism, the regional security situation, reimbursements of Coalition Support Fund arrears and reconstruction.
Rehabilitation efforts for the flood affected people also came under discussion. — APP

Asian pay TV to lose 2 billion US dollars to piracy: survey

HONG KONG: Piracy is expected to cost the Asian pay-TV industry more than two billion US dollars this year, a survey released Tuesday said, a problem that could ultimately “kill” the region's cable business.
The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) said the cost of piracy could rise to 2.1 billion US dollars this year, a 7.5 per cent increase from last year's 1.9 billion dollar shortfall.
“This is a very disturbing problem and frankly it has the potential to kill the industry,” John Medeiros, CASBAA's deputy chief executive, told a press briefing at an annual industry conference in Hong Kong.
He criticised Asian governments for their “lax approach” in combating the growing problem, which usually entails illegal tampering with pay-TV hook-ups in homes and businesses to steal legitimate connections.
“We would like to see governments in Asia take a more proactive approach in educating consumers and restraining them from engaging in piracy,” he added.
Medeiros said the figures do not include revenues lost to Internet piracy.
He also warned about the spread of new piracy techniques including so-called “Dreamboxes”, which can decrypt cable and satellite TV signals.
“It's fair to say we're concerned about the spread of the problem,” he added.
Governments across the region lose at least 262 million US dollars annually in total in taxes from lost industry revenue, the survey added.
The worst-hit countries include Thailand, Pakistan and the Philippines, which are expected to lose 87 million dollars, 63 million dollars and 38 million dollars this year respectively, the survey said.
Medeiros described China as a “piracy incubator” due to huge pay TV demand in a country where cable is heavily restricted.
About 363 million homes in Asia subscribe to pay TV services, ahead of North America where pay TV reaches 121 million homes, according to industry research released at the conference.
But penetration rates in Asia lag other regions with cable TV reaching about 50 per cent of homes compared with about 88 per cent in North America and 62 per cent in western Europe. – AFP

Pakistan ranks 34th in global corruption index: TI

BERLIN: Pakistan dropped to 34th from 42nd in the ranking of global corruption index, a Transparency International report showed.
Afghanistan remains the world's second most corrupt country, and Iraq is not far behind. The annual report of TI found Somalia to be most corrupt country, followed by Afghanistan tied with Myanmar, and then Iraq.
Denmark, New Zealand and Singapore tied for first place as the most principled nations.
Of the 178 countries surveyed about public sector corruption, nearly three quarters fell below an index score of five on a scale where zero is the most corrupt and 10 is the least.
The group said Tuesday the overall results show that greater efforts must go into strengthening governance across the globe.

Regrouped Pakistan target win over South Africa

ABU DHABI: Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi hoped his beleaguered side is focused enough to counter a spirited South African team in the back-to-back Twenty20 matches starting here on Tuesday.
Pakistan's recent tour to England was rocked by spot-fixing allegations which prompted a Scotland Yard investigation and the suspension of three of their players by the International Cricket Council.
Test captain Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer were charged for violating various code of conduct during the Lord's Test against England in August, a controversy which Afridi said is a thing of the past.
“My players are professional and have put all the controversy behind them,” Afridi said at the launching ceremony of the series in which Pakistan will also play five one-day internationals and two Tests.
The series is Pakistan's home series shifted to United Arab Emirates over security fears.
Afridi said the team has ample talent to counter the South Africans.
“We know we are without two of our best bowlers in Aamer and Asif,” said Afridi of the two suspended bowlers. “But we still have ample talent to counter South Africa who are a very good side in the shorter form of the game.”
South African captain Johan Botha agreed Pakistan will miss the talent of Asif and Aamer.
“You always miss quality players and surely Pakistan will miss the two (suspended) bowlers, but we too have injury problems in the team and when such things happen other players step in,” said Botha.
Allrounder Jacques Kallis and fast bowlers Morne Morkel and Dale Styen were still recovering from various injuries and may not be able to play the first Twenty 20.
Botha hoped at least two of the three players will be available for the second Twenty 20, also to be played here on Wednesday.
“Playing Pakistan is always a great challenege and they knocked us out in two major Twenty20 matches,” said Botha of Pakistan's wins over South Africa in the second and third World Twenty20 in 2009 and 2010 respectively.
The two sides play the first two one-day in Abu Dhabi before the last three limited over matches in Dubai.
Dubai will also stage the first Test, while the second will be played in Abu Dhabi.
Squads:Pakistan (from): Shahid Afridi (capt), Imran Farhat, Mohammad Hafeez, Shahzaib Hasan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Abdul Razzaq, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Wahab Riaz, Abdur Rehman, Shoaib Akhtar, Tanvir Ahmed, Zulqarnain Haider
South Africa (from): Johan Botha (capt), Loots Bosman, AB de Villiers, Jean-Paul Duminy, Colin Ingram, Jacques Kallis, David Miller, Graeme Smith, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Rusty Theron, Lonwabo Tsotsobe

FIFA widens probe into World Cup bids corruption

ZURICH: FIFA widened its probe into alleged World Cup bidding corruption on Monday after a former leading administrator reportedly claimed two candidates have colluded to trade votes.

FIFA said it has “immediately requested to receive all ... potential evidence,” from Britain's Sunday Times newspaper regarding its reporting of comments from Michel Zen-Ruffinen, who was general secretary of football's world governing body for four years until 2002.

Zen-Ruffinen was secretly filmed saying Spain-Portugal and Qatar have struck a deal giving each seven votes from the 24-man FIFA executive committee which is choosing World Cup hosts in December. Spain-Portugal want to host in 2018 and Qatar is a 2022 candidate. Both need 13 votes to guarantee victory under existing rules.

“So they start with seven (votes) which ... was not expected by the other candidates. And this is not just a rumor, that's fact,” Zen-Ruffinen was quoted as saying to undercover reporters who posed as lobbyists claiming to work on behalf of one bidder.

FIFA said it will refer the evidence to its ethics committee which last week officially launched an investigation into alleged illegal collusion between bidders, which it did not name. Officials from the Spain-Portugal and Qatar bids have not confirmed they are being investigated.

“FIFA has immediately requested to receive all the documents and potential evidence that the newspaper has in relation to this matter, and will in any case analyze the material available,” it said in a statement.

“FIFA and the ethics committee are committed to have zero tolerance for any breach of the Code of Ethics and the Bid Registration. FIFA and the ethics committee are determined to protect the integrity of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding process.”

The ethics panel also is investigating two current and four former members of FIFA's ruling executive following Sunday Times allegations that the bidding process was shrouded by corruption.

Amos Adamu of Nigeria and Reynald Temarii from Tahiti were filmed seeming to offer their votes in exchange for funding for football projects. They were provisionally suspended from all football duty after appearing last Wednesday before FIFA's ethics court which used videos and transcripts provided by the newspaper.

Adamu and Temarii will miss a two-day meeting of FIFA's executive chaired by Sepp Blatter starting Thursday which is scheduled to finalize voting rules for the secret World Cup ballot on Dec. 2 in Zurich.

Zen-Ruffinen, who left FIFA after alleging financial mismanagement under Blatter's leadership, also was recorded suggesting FIFA voters could be bribed with offers of money or women.

The Swiss lawyer later told the newspaper he exaggerated his claims to help gain a consultancy fee and had only offered to assist reporters contacting FIFA officials.
Zen-Ruffinen's claims will heap more work on to the FIFA ethics committee which is scheduled to deliver verdicts on its separate investigations _ into officials and bidders _ at a meeting in mid-November, less than three weeks before polling day. He could not be immediately reached for comment on Monday.

The four former executive committee members also provisionally suspended are Tunisian lawyer Slim Aloulou, Amadou Diakite of Mali, Botswana's Ismail Bhamjee and Ahongalu Fusimalohi from Tonga.

The 2018 contest is between England, Russia and the joint bids of Belgium-Holland and Spain-Portugal.

The 2022 race involves the United States, Australia, Japan, South Korea and Qatar. -A

Rajasthan Royals take BCCI to court over IPL ouster

NEW DELHI: The Rajasthan Royals have filed a petition in the Bombay High Court against the national cricket board’s decision to expel the franchise from the Indian Premier League.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India removed the Royals earlier this month following charges that it had broken shareholding and ownership rules. King’s XI Punjab was also ousted on similar charges.

The Royals issued a statement on Monday saying: “We have tried to meet with the BCCI to understand the basis for the termination, which was received without notice.

“We do not understand what we have done wrong, and it is therefore our duty to the fans of the IPL, our employees, our players and our partners to pursue the matter.”

The team expect their case to be heard by the court on Wednesday. —A

Two would-be suicide bombers arrested in Karachi

KARACHI: Two suspected suicide bombers were apprehended from Karachi’s Sohrab Goth area on Monday, television reports said.
Police confirmed they had recovered suicide jackets and bombs from the suspects.
Moreover, the Interior Ministry has requested leaders of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) to take caution during their movements due to threats against them.
The ministry’s report sent to the MQM said that there were threats against the top leaders of the party, including Farooq Sattar, Babar Ghauri, Haider Abbas Rizvi, Mustafa Kamal and Faisal Sabzwari, television reports quoted sources as saying.

Tony Blair's sister-in-law converts to Islam

LONDON: The sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has converted to Islam following a visit to Iran, claiming she is a “proud member” of the Muslim community.
Lauren Booth has given up alcohol and pork, prays five times a day and has not ruled out wearing a burqa in the future, she told The Mail on Sunday newspaper.
The 43-year-old journalist and reality television contestant underwent the religious conversion on her return to Britain following a visit to the holy Iranian city of Qom six weeks ago.
She said that when she was in Iran, “I sat down and felt this shot of spiritual morphine, just absolute bliss and joy.”Speaking to the newspaper after a multi-faith Global Peace and Unity Event in London on Saturday, Booth said: “What I wanted to share with you today is that I am Lauren Booth and I am a Muslim.
“I always felt that the Ummah (Muslim community) is a very loving, peaceful place and I am proud to be a member of it.”Booth, who works for the English language Iranian news channel Press TV, has frequently criticised her brother-in-law, accusing the former leader of being biased towards Israel and the United States in his role as Middle East peace envoy.
She wrote a scathing open letter in last month's far-left newspaper Morning Star.
“Personally I've never understood this fear of 'political Islam',” she wrote. “It seems to me that religious people should always be educated on world events rather than kept in ignorance. Like, say, Midwest Christian Zionists in the US.”After attending a rally in Iran to mourn Palestinian deaths in cities including Rafah and Nablus, Booth wrote: “Do you recognise these place names, Tony?
“As Middle East envoy, you really should. Israel has massacred children in all of these cities. Didn't you know?”She was refused entry to Israel and Egypt after travelling from Cyprus to Gaza on an activist ship which was protesting the blockade of Palestinian territory.
Religious enlightenment is not unknown in the family with brother-in-law Tony converting to Catholicism in December 2007.Booth is the half-sister of Blair's wife Cherie, who is a human rights lawyer. – AFP

Karzai admits receiving 'bags of money' from Iran

KABUL: Afghan president Hamid Karzai admitted Monday that his chief of staff had received “bags of money” from Iran but insisted the payment was transparent and a form of aid from a friendly country.
Cash payments “are done by various friendly countries to help the presidential office and to help the expenses...” said Karzai at a press conference in Kabul.
The New York Times reported Saturday that Karzai's chief of staff, Umar Daudzai, has been receiving regular cash payments from Iran, which is trying to expand its influence in the presidential palace in Kabul.
“The government of Iran has been assisting us with five or six or seven hundred thousand euros once or twice every year, that is an official aid,” said Karzai.
“He (Daudzai) is receiving the money on my instructions,” he added.
The newspaper, citing unnamed Afghan officials said the payments total millions of dollars and go into a secret fund that Daudzai and Karzai have used to pay Afghan lawmakers, tribal elders and even Taliban commanders to secure their loyalty.
“It's basically a presidential slush fund,” one Western official is quoted by the paper as saying. “Daudzai's mission is to advance Iranian interests.” – AFP

Gas load shedding schedule for Punjab announced

LAHORE: Sui Northern Gas (SNG) announced a three-month gas load shedding plan for Punjab on Saturday. According to the schedule, there will be three-day a week load shedding for industries and two-day a week load shedding for CNG stations. The schedule will be implemented from today.

The management of the SNG said that the decision was taken after the closure of the Zamzama gas field to ensure gas supply for houses.

During the load shedding period, fertilizer factories will face 45 days of gas load shedding whereas industrial and commercial customers will face gas load shedding till February next year.

According to the management, factories across Punjab have been divided into four zones.

Multan and Bahawalpur industries will experience gas load shedding from 29th to 30th October. The factories of Lahore, Shaikhupura and Faisalabad region will experience gas load shedding from 1st to 3rd of November. All CNG stations across Punjab will close for two days a week.

However, the Punjab CNG association said that the decision was taken without their advise and they would protest the decision by going on strike if it is not withdrawn.

SC admits petitions against NAB chairman’s appointment

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Saturday admitted the petitions filed against the appointment of Justice (Rtd) Deedar Hussain Shah as Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for hearing.

Petitions against the appointment were filed by Leader of the Opposition Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and Adovcate Shahid Orakzai.

The petitioners had challenged the appointment and requested the apex court to declare it illegal.

The Supreme Court will hear the petitions on Monday.

Twelve militants killed in Orakzai airstrikes

PARACHINAR: Airstrikes killed 12 suspected insurgents in the Orakzai tribal region on Saturday, a local government official said.

The helicopter gunships targeted two suspected militant hide-outs in the region.

The day before, a roadside bomb blast killed six paramilitary soldiers in Orakzai, where the army has waged an offensive against the Taliban.

Local government administrator Aurangzeb Khan said Saturday's airstrikes also wounded six militants.

Independent confirmation of the strikes and death toll is nearly impossible because access to the conflict zone is restricted. — AP

One killed in Narowal fireworks factory blast

LAHORE: At least one person was killed in an explosion at a fireworks factory in Punjab’s Narowal city on Saturday, police said.

The explosion occurred at around 9:30 am, DPO Narowal said.

A fire broke out in the shop after the explosion.

Rescue 1122 sources said the explosion was so powerful that it blew up the factory’s ceiling.

Chaudhry Nisar terms SC verdict historic

ISLAMABAD: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Friday welcomed the verdict of Supreme Court on the Constitutional 18th Amendment case and said it has virtually shut the mouth of elements who unwittingly foresaw beginning of confrontation between judiciary and the parliament.

Speaking at a news conference at his Parliament House chamber, Khan termed the verdict as an historic judgment adding that the apex court had also thwarted the conspiracies.

He pointed out that the court had, through its decision, preferred national and democratic interests over its own reservations.

Khan also said that the verdict had not only enhanced respect to the parliament but had also demonstrated statesmanship at this critical juncture of the national history.