South Africa hold nerve to clinch tense win

DUBAI: Opener Hashim Amla hit a fighting century and paceman Morne Morkel took four wickets as South Africa pulled off a narrow two-run win over Pakistan in the third day-night international here on Tuesday.

South Africa, put into bat by Pakistan, owed it to the 27-year-old Amla who carried his bat through the innings with a resolute 119 and helped his team to a defendable 228-9 before surviving another scare by Pakistan who managed 226-9.

It was the bearded right-hander’s sixth one-day hundred — his fifth this year — which brought South Africa back in the match after they struggled initially on a tricky Dubai Stadium pitch.

South Africa, who lost the second match in Abu Dhabi by one wicket after Abdul Razzaq’s incredible 72-ball 109 not out, this time negated Fawad Alam’s brilliant 59 not out which almost turned the tables again.

Rusty Theron kept his nerves to defend 12 runs in the last over as Pakistan lost two wickets and managed just nine runs.

Paceman Morne Morkel (4-47) had derailed Pakistan after opener Imran Farhat (47) and Asad Shafiq (43) added 85 for the third wicket to put Pakistan on course for a win, chasing just over four an over.

Farhat, who hit only one boundary off 86 balls, and Shafiq helped Pakistan recover the early loss of opener Mohammad Hafeez (four) and Younis Khan (nought) with the total on 13.

But both Farhat —brought in place of Misbah-ul-Haq as the only change — and Shafiq were run out in sloppy manner to spoil the run-chase.

And when Shahid Afridi (seven) and Abdul Razzaq (12) fell, Pakistan had all but lost the match.

Alam then added 33 for the eight wicket with Wahab Riaz (21) to revive Pakistan’s hopes of an unlikely win but South Africa overcame last match jitters in the end.

Alam hit three boundaries off 67 balls.

South Africa were once again without their captain Graeme Smith who failed to fully recover from a hand injury sustained during his team’s eight wicket win in the first match at Abu Dhabi on Friday, but all-rounder Jacques Kallis was included after recovering from injury.

Both captains praised Amla’s knock. “To keep it simple his was the best knock I have seen,” said Johan Botha.

“Amla was in total control on a pitch where others struggled and he gave us the sort of score which we thought was defendable.” Pakistan captain Afridi said Amla and his team’s poor fielding were the difference.

“Amla was stubborn and we once again showed flaws in our fielding and gave away 30 extra runs which proved decisive in the end,” said Afridi.

Amla put on a valuable 59-run fourth wicket stand with Jean-Paul Duminy (26) after Pakistani paceman Shoaib Akhtar put them on the back foot by dismissing Kallis (nought) and in-form Colin Ingram (four) early.

Amla, who has so far scored 986 runs in 13 one-day matches this year, held one end during his 126-ball knock, hitting nine boundaries to carry his bat through the innings.

Pakistani spinners – Shahid Afridi and Mohammad Hafeez – also benefitted from the slow turn as they captured four wickets between them and never allowed South African batsman any room for free strokeplay.

Afridi had the dangerous-looking AB de Villiers and Albie Morkel – who both scored 19 each – during his 2-53 off ten overs, while Hafeez (2-34) accounted for Duminy and David Miller (6).

Amla added another valuable 38 with Johan Botha (15) before Akhtar dismissed Botha to finish with 3-39.

Both teams play two Tests —one each in Dubai and Abu Dhabi —after the one-day series.—Agencies

Film giant MGM strikes bankruptcy rescue deal

NEW YORK: James Bond seems set to live another day after debt-ridden film giant MGM secured a deal to end months of financial deadlock, which put the latest 007 movie on ice along with the studio’s fate.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, whose catalogue includes the Bond franchise as well as the “Pink Panther” and “Rocky” series, announced a debt-restructuring rescue deal late Friday while rejecting an offer from billionaire Carl Icahn.

In a statement the legendary studio, famous for its trademark roaring lion logo, said its lenders had “overwhelmingly approved its proposed plan of reorganization” with US firm Spyglass Entertainment.

Spyglass was favored over a rival offer by Icahn, who reportedly owns about 800 million dollars of MGM’s debt, to merge the studio with film producer Lionsgate in which he is the largest shareholder.

“MGM will now move expeditiously to implement that plan, which will dramatically reduce its debt load and put the company in a strong position to execute its business strategy.

“MGM is appreciative of the lenders’ support,” said the MGM statement.

The studio, with a 4,000-strong back catalogue that also includes “The Wizard of Oz” and “Singin’ in the Rain,” has been struggling for the last few years, and its owners put it up for sale a year ago.

Several candidates emerged, including US-Canadian studio Lionsgate, as well as America’s Liberty Media, Australian-born US media tycoon Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, and India’s Reliance Entertainment.

If the plan announced late Friday is approved, MGM is expected to emerge from bankruptcy with 95 percent of its capital in the hands of creditors led by US bank JPMorgan Chase.

The remaining five percent would be held by Spyglass, which notably produced Clint Eastwood’s last film “Invictus”.

In April, uncertainty over the debt-ridden studio’s future forced the suspension of work on the latest James Bond movie, the 23rd in the long-running franchise.

The British production company behind the project said they had put work on hold “indefinitely” after MGM failed to attract a buyer. There was no immediate word on when filming could resume. -AFP

LPG price hits record Rs 95,000 per ton

KARACHI: The price of imported liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has surged by Rs 12,000 to hit record high at Rs 95,000 per tons as Saudi Aramco contract price (CP) climbed by $ 93 to touch $788 in the international market.

This was stated by the chairman of FPCCI Standing Committee on LPG and All Pakistan LPG Distributors Association Hadi Khan in a statement here Monday.

He said that though the imported price of LPG has registered the unprecedented rise in the local market, the importers did not raise its retail prices.

Hadi urged the government to ensure that local producers should not raise the price of locally produced LPG in proportion with Saudi Aramco.

He also urged the government to remove 17 percent sales tax on the import of LPG to ensure that its prices are not enhanced and in the country.

The local retail prices of LPG will be increased to unprecedented level, discouraging its general consumers to quite its use for good, he noted.

Hadi pointed out the consumption of LPG in the winter has been enhanced from 1900 tons to 2000 tons per day whereas local producers were still producing 1400 to 1500 tons per day, creating a huge gap of 500 ton between the demand and supply.

There is an urgent need to discourage the opportunity created for profiteering in LPG business. The withdrawal of sales tax on imported LPG is must to reduce the difference between LPG’s demand and supply and to facilitate its import, he observed.

Hadi said that a total of 48,152 tons of LPG has been imported between the first ten months of current year starting from January to October 31, 2010.

This is the reason why the LPG prices are still stable in the country, he added.

Iranian woman to be hanged Wednesday: rights group

BERLIN: An Iranian woman whose sentence of execution by stoning for adultery provoked a worldwide outcry will instead be hanged for murder on Wednesday, a human rights group said.

“The authorities in Tehran have given the go-ahead to Tabriz prison for the execution of Iran stoning case Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani,” the International Committee against Stoning, a German-based campaign group, said on its website.

“It has been reported that she is to be executed this Wednesday, 3 November.” Officials in Iran were not available to confirm or deny the report.

Ashtiani’s stoning sentence was suspended after prominent political and religious figures called it “medieval”, “barbaric” and “brutal”. Brazil, a close ally of Iran’s, offered to give the 43-year-old mother of two asylum.

A government spokesman said in September Ashtiani’s adultery conviction was under review but the charge of being complicit in the murder of her husband was still pending.

Under the Islamic law in force in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, murder is punishable by hanging, adultery by stoning.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad fended off questions about the case from reporters when he attended the UN General Assembly in September, saying it had been fabricated by hostile Western media and called the United States hypocritical for its record on executions.

The case has worsened relations between Iran and the West, which are locked in a dispute over Tehran’s nuclear programme, and was further complicated last month when two Germans were arrested in Iran while conducting an interview with Ashtiani’s son.

The men entered Iran with tourist visas and were not authorised to act as journalists, judicial officials said. The German government is trying to secure their release.

In August, Iranian television aired an interview with a woman it said was Ashtiani admitting a relationship with a man who then murdered her husband. The International Committee Against Stoning, called the TV show “toxic propaganda”.

The United States has imposed sanctions on eight senior Iranian officials, including the commander of the Revolutionary Guards and several cabinet ministers, for human rights abuses.

That is in addition to the sanctions over Iran’s nuclear activities which it fears is aimed at making an atomic bomb, something Tehran denies.

According to Amnesty International, Iran is second only to China in the number of executions it carries out. It put to death at least 346 people in 2008. – Reuters

Up to 30 killed in blasts in Iraqi capital: police

BAGHDAD: Up to 30 people were killed in a series of explosions around Baghdad on Tuesday, a police source said, two days after al Qaeda militants staged a bloodbath when they took hostages in a Christian church in the Iraqi capital.

More than 10 car bombs and roadside bombs exploded, some outside cafes, in the early evening in several mainly Shi’ite areas of the city, officials said.

The police source, who asked not to be identified, said more than 60 people were wounded. – Reueters

Ahmadinejad criticised by Iran Revolutionary Guards

TEHRAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has come under unprecedented criticism from the Revolutionary Guards, the elite military force usually considered his staunch supporter.

A harshly worded article in the Guards’ monthly magazine echoes criticism of Ahmadinejad from other parts of the Iranian establishment and shows attempts to mend rifts within the Islamic Republic’s ruling elite have yet to work.

Ahmadinejad and his close aides have faced criticism from lawmakers, the judiciary and some powerful clerics for saying parliament is no longer at the centre of affairs and promoting an “Iranian” rather than an “Islamic” school of thought.

In an article entitled: “Is parliament at the centre of affairs or not?” the magazine, Payam-e Enghelab (Message of the Revolution), asked: “Does being on top justify whatever action the government thinks is right, disregarding the law?”

Re-elected in June 2009, Ahmadinejad faced down huge demonstrations from an opposition movement which says the vote was rigged, something he denies. Divisions among the hardliners have become more apparent in the months since the protests were put down, through sometimes violent repression.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps has its own navy, air force and command structure separate from the regular armed forces. Along with its voluntary militia, the Basij, it played a key role in quelling the post-election unrest which was the worst seen since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

The rifts prompted Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to call for all branches of government to support the president whose government he has hailed as extremely successful.

“National unity is very important and must be strengthened with every passing day… and by that I am addressing both officials and ordinary people,” Khamenei said during his recent visit to the holy city of Qom.

FUNDAMENTAL

But Payam-e Enghelab’s criticisms were similar to those voiced by parliament, the judiciary and clerics.

“Dealing with marginal and unnecessary issues by some politicians has become the country’s main issue,” the magazine said, referring to the controversy about the “Iranian” school of thought which many of Ahmadinejad’s fellow conservatives say smacks of secular nationalism.

“Adopting these kinds of stance has no benefit but creating separation and division in the Islamic Revolution front and casting doubt about fundamental stances,” it said.

The harshest words were about Ahmadinejad’s remark about parliament’s reduced power, which some critics have said was a contradiction of the stance of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini — the deeply revered late leader of the Islamic Revolution.

“The superficial interpretation of Imam Khomeini’s remarks and changing them in a way that meets a few people’s interests for a short time is an irreparable mistake,” it said.

Indignation about Ahmadinejad’s apparent disregard for parliament has pushed some former rivals within the legislature — in the hardliner “principlist” camp and more moderate “reformists” — closer together.

“The prominent figures of principlists and reformists have formed an unwritten alliance,” Ali Motahari, a prominent hardline MP who is an outspoken critic of Ahmadinejad, was quoted as saying by the reformist Sharq newspaper on Tuesday.

The pressures on Ahmadinejad from within the hardline camp at home comes as Iran faces tighter economic sanctions aimed at curbing its nuclear programme which some countries fear is aimed at making a bomb, something Tehran denies.

Iranians are also bracing themselves for the impact of Ahmadinejad’s cornerstone economic plan: slashing billions of dollars of subsidies for essentials like food and fuel.

Economists outside Iran have said sudden hikes in prices of items like gasoline — likely to happen in the coming weeks — could reignite popular unrest. Politicians within the Islamic Republic have warned of “economic sedition” as opponents of the regime seek to stir trouble.

Mirhossein Mousavi, the opposition leader who lost the 2009 election, said an increased police presence in recent days was a government attempt to intimidate anyone thinking of protesting.

The police have said it is conducting a crackdown on crime. – Reuters

Nato helicopters violate Pakistan’s border limits

PESHAWAR: Nato helicopters violated Pakistani territory limits near the Pak-Afghan border area on Tuesday.

According to official sources, Nato gunship helicopters violated Pakistan’s border limits in the areas of Burkha and Kharlacha.

The gunship helicopters came 600 meters inside Pakistani borders and after flying in the area for 10 minutes, they retreated to Afghanistan.

LHC issues contempt notices to CEC, MNA Khadija Waran

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday issued contempt of court notices to the Chief Election Commissioner, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MNA Khadija Waran and the Returning Officer.

MNA Khadija Waran, representative of the NA-184 Bahawalpur constituency, had earlier submitted an application with the Election Commission of Pakistan which referred to the LHC’s disqualification of her husband Amir Yar Waran as part of a conspiracy.

Khadija Waran’s opposing candidate Najeeb Awaisi argued in the court that Amir Yar Waran was disqualified due to fake academic records. He further said that accusing the court of conspiracy was tantamount to contempt of court.

PML-N’s Awaisi requested that the court recommend action against Khadija Waran and said the EC and the Returning Officer should also be held accountable for accepting the application.

LHC’s Justice Mohammad Tariq subsequently issued contempt of court notices to the three who were also directed to submit their replies in court within 15 days.

Petition challenges Qazilbash, Ranjha nominations in JC

LAHORE: A petition was filed in the Supreme Court’s Lahore Registry on Tuesday challenging the nominations of former law minister Dr Khalid Ranjha and Justice (Rtd) Ali Hussain Qazilbash as members of the Judicial Commission.

The Supreme Court had nominated Justice (Rtd) Qazilbash, a former judge of the Supreme Court, whereas PML-Q Senator Khalid Ranjha was nominated by the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) as its representative in the commission.

The petition challenging the nominations was filed by Barrister Zafarullah. It stated that Justice (Rtd) Qazilbash was 85-year-old and therefore not fit for the job. The petitioner further stated that Qazilbash’s nomination was also in violation of the verdict in the Al Jihad Trust case.

Moreover, the petition stated that the PBC was supposed to nominate a representative, not a member of the bar.

PM Gilani sees no chance of military coup

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s prime minister says he sees no chance of midterm elections or a military coup in the country.

Pakistan’s unstable political scene and media frequently throw up rumors that the army may intervene to get rid of the elected government as it has done in the past. There is also speculation that opposition parties may demand fresh elections before President Asif Ali Zardari’s term ends in 2013.

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani told lawmakers on Tuesday that the army was ”pro-democracy” and would not impose martial law. – AP