Monday 16 December 2013

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Football: Barca draw Man City in Champions League

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PARIS (AFP) - Spanish giants Barcelona were handed the toughest possible draw Monday when they were paired with Manchester City in the plum tie of the last 16 of the Champions League.Champions Bayern Munich were also given a hard draw as they plucked Arsenal for the second year in a row at this stage.For the English pair, who both finished second in their groups, it was yet again a harsh lesson in the importance of winning the group.Manchester United and Chelsea, both group winners, were given far more favourable draws against Olympiakos and Galatasaray respectively.In fairness to Arsenal and City, they did have the toughest possible groups facing one each of last season's finalists.City came within a single goal of pipping Bayern to top spot in their group when a 3-2 win in Munich was one goal short of what they needed to overhaul the Bavarians.Manchester City coach Manuel Pellegrini told a press conference that Barca would be the more upset of the pair over the draw.I think Barcelona will be very concerned that they have drawn us. They are not the team of two years ago, he said.But Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino insisted neither side would be delighted with the draw.City will not have wanted to play against Barcelona either, he said. They are scoring goals with ease so we are not going to discover them now. We want to play well in the tie and obviously win it.Arsenal were within a couple of minutes of winning their group despite losing 2-0 at Napoli on the final match-day but Borussia Dortmund's late winner in Marseille allowed them to snatch top spot there.Last season Arsenal drew Bayern in the last 16 and seemed to be as good as out when they lost the first leg 3-1 at the Emirates.But they came within a whisker of making the quarter-finals when taking the second leg 2-0 at the Allianz Arena, going out only on away goals.Arsenal have rarely had much luck in the knockout stage draws in recent years having been paired with AC Milan in 2012 and Barcelona in 2011.In 2010, having beaten Porto in the last 16, they drew Barcelona in the quarter-finals.Yet Bayern captain Philipp Lahm was quite glum over the draw.It was the hardest draw amongst the second-placed teams, he said. Arsenal are certainly not a team you'd hope to face.Olympiakos coach Michel did not sound confident of causing an upset against United.We like the idea of going to play at Old Trafford; it is a nice destination for our fans, he said. Manchester United is a major club. We are talking about a huge football organisation. They will be two tough matches.French giants Paris Saint-Germain pulled Bayer Leverkusen while AC Milan will face Atletico Madrid.PSG coach Laurent Blanc seemed quite satisfied, saying: It could have been more difficult but all the matches are difficult.When you see the first match that was drawn (City-Barca), there are only huge teams.Leverkusen sports director Rudi Voeller admitted they will be up against it against PSG.It's not just about stopping (Zlatan) Ibrahimovic, he said. They have other great players like (Edinson) Cavani and (Ezequiel) Lavezzi, to name just two.Milan's sporting director Umberto Gandini was cautiously optimistic.We're returning to Spain to face a team we're not used to playing, as opposed to Real Madrid or Barcelona who we know very well.Atletico are a very dangerous team going forward but it could have been a worse draw for us, that's for sure.Last year's semi-finalists Real will play Schalke 04 and completing the draw Dortmund are up against Zenit St Petersburg.Real director Emilio Butragueno was wary given that the Madrid giants were knocked out in the semi-finals by Bayern and Dortmund in the last two seasons.It is true that in theory there were stronger rivals, but that is only in theory, he said. We know that we have always found it tough against German teams, it has been very difficult for us to win in Germany.The first legs will be played over four separate match-days in February with the second legs taking place three weeks later.

Boxing: Vitali Klitschko relinquishes WBC world title

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PARIS (AFP) - Ukrainian opposition leader Vitali Klitschko announced on Monday he was relinquishing his WBC world heavyweight title so he can focus on his political career in Ukraine. The 42-year-old -- whose younger brother Wladimir is the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight champion -- thanked the WBC for leaving open the opportunity for him to return to the ring by making him WBC Champion Emeritus.However, he all but ruled out that option as he intends to play a leading role in seeing present Ukraine president Viktor Yanukovych ousted in next year's presidential election.I want to thank the WBC and its president Don Jose Sulaiman for the support in our fight for democracy and freedom in the Ukraine, Klitschko said in a statement on Fight News.com.It was and is a great honor to hold the WBC title and I've always done it with pride.The offer of the WBC gives me the theoretical possibility to return to the boxing ring which I cannot imagine at all to the current state.Right now, my full concentration is on politics in Ukraine, and I feel that the people need me there. My brother Wladimir will ensure more sporting success and I will - as always - support him as much as he currently supports me in my political fight.The WBC also issued a statement saying that by appointing him Emeritus Champion they were leaving the way open for him to return should he wish to. The Board Meeting of the WBC and its president Jose Sulaiman have decided to appoint Vitali Klitschko (44-2, 40 KOs) as Champion Emeritus, read the statement.The WBC gave its full support to Vitali Klitschko in his political activities in his home country Ukraine and understands that he is unable to defend his title inside the ring in the foreseeable future.Therefore the WBC appointed Klitschko Champion Emeritus and thus gives him the opportunity to decide at a later point whether he wants to resign from professional boxing or fight for the WBC heavyweight title again.Having last lost more than a decade ago to Britain's Lennox Lewis, Dr Ironfist has earned knock-outs in 41 of his 45 victories during 47 professional fights with just two defeats.Vitali is a three-time heavyweight world champion and last fought in September 2012 when he beat Germany's Manuel Charr.However, his political career has become more of a priority in recent times and in October he announced a bid to be elected president next year.But his soaring political ambitions were dealt an immediate blow by the adoption of a legal amendment barring people who spend much of their time living or working abroad from running for president.Klitschko boxes and has residency status in Germany.But he still insists that the authorities have no reason to deny him participation in the polls, accusing Yanukovych of trying to remove his main rivals from politics.He has put one of his opponent in prison and the other he wants to remove (from the polls), Klitschko said in November in reference to himself and his jailed ally Yulia Tymoshenko, a former prime minister and fierce Yanukovych foe.President Yanukovych's decision to scrap key agreements with the EU in November and police violence against protesters sparked the largest demonstrations in the ex-Soviet country since the 2004 pro-democracy Orange Revolution.

Football: Messi agents deny money laundering report

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MADRID (AFP) - Barcelona superstar Lionel Messis agents denied Monday a Spanish newspaper allegation that his father was suspected of being involved in laundering Colombian drug money through charity football matches.Leo Messi Magagement (LMM), whose president is the 26-year-old Argentine internationals father, Jorge Messi, urged Spanish daily El Mundo to correct the story.Jorge Messi has never been connected to the case, LMM said in a statement.He has not been investigated or called to testify, much less charged, it added.We hope that the newspaper El Mundo will correct the published story in line with the information released by the Interior Ministry, it said.Spains police and the Interior Ministry said a Colombian promoter was suspected of laundering drug money through concerts and sporting events in Spain, South America and the United States.But they said there was no evidence of wrongdoing by Messi, his family or other players who featured in charity football matches organised by the Colombian promoter at the centre of the affair.Besides putting on concerts in Spain, the Colombian firm, which has not been identified, staged charity football matches in South America and the United States featuring Messi, who is a four-time World Footballer of the Year, and other stars, police said.Investigators had no evidence so far that the Messi and Friends charity football games were linked to money laundering, the authorities said.The Barcelona forwards father had no link with the Colombian company, a police source said.He had nothing to do with this firm, the source said, playing down the report in El Mundo, which had described Messi senior as being at the centre of the affair.Police said they took witness statements from football players to gather information about the company, but they were ruling out for the moment their involvement in the crime being investigated.El Mundo named the players as Barcelonas Messi, Dani Alves, Javier Mascherano and goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto.Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino said neither Lionel Messi nor his family were under any kind of investigation.Rumours cause damage when they are true but when they are not true they should not cause damage, Martino said.There is nothing that should affect us, he said.It is notable that when the football is going fairly well, just at that moment rumours like this appear. We should treat them as such and stick to the reality, which is that there is no investigation into anyone linked to the club.Spanish police said they worked with Colombian security and the US Drug Enforcement Administration, arresting four people in the investigation, which began in April 2012.Police said criminal charges had been laid against another eight people and four companies, and some 500,000 euros ($690,000) in assets had been blocked.A Madrid examining magistrates court, presided over by Judge Eduardo Lopez Palop, is supervising the case, which has been placed under seal, a judicial source said.El Mundo deputy director Inaki Gil told AFP that the court, not the police, was in charge of the investigation. He stressed that El Mundo at no time suggested that Messis father had been charged.In an unrelated matter, Messi and his father appeared in court in September on charges of evading 4.16 million euros ($5 million) in taxes.They denied wrongdoing, pointing the finger at a former agent.The famous duo had already repaid the tax authorities five million euros in August -- the 4.16 million euros claimed by the taxman plus interest.

Cabinet Committee on Security to meet today

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security will be held in Islamabad today (Tuesday). Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif would chair the meeting.All the chiefs of armed forces and Cabinet members of the committee will attend the meeting.Talks with Taliban and other national issues pertaining to security will come under discussion during the meeting.Interior Minister Ch Nisar Ali Khan would give a detailed briefing on the National Security policy.The draft of the national security policy would be presented in the meeting. The proposed draft would consist of three parts.The first part of the draft would be kept confidential and the second part would be about the strategic matters whereas the third part of the draft would be operational.The main national security policy would be considered as guiding document for security of the country, internal and external security and other matters pertaining to national security.The situation following the US drone strikes and process of talks with Taliban would also come under discussion during the meeting.

Allama Nasir Abbas to be buried in Multan today

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MULTAN (Dunya News) – Earlier, the dead body of Shia scholar Allama Nasir Abbas was shifted to Multan from Lahore.In Multan, thousands of people staged a sit-in at Chungi No 9 and called for arrest of Allama’s killers.Unknown assailants attacked vehicle of Allama Nasir Abbas in Shadman on Sunday night and opened discriminate firing. Allama Nasir Abbas was taken to the Sheikh Zayed Hospital where he succumbed to injuries.The funeral prayers of Allama Nasir Abbas will be offered at 10:00 am and he will be buried in the vicinity Shah Shams shrine.

Car bombs hit Shiite pilgrims as Iraq unrest kills 68

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BAGHDAD (AFP) - Car bombs ripped through Shiite pilgrims near Baghdad while militants attacked a city council headquarters and a police station, as Iraq-wide violence killed at least 68 people Monday, officials said.The killing of the pilgrims underscored the danger of sectarian violence in Iraq, while the attacks on the city council and police station in Salaheddin province showed the impunity with which militants can strike even targets that should be highly secure.Violence in Iraq has reached a level not seen since 2008, when the country was emerging from a period of brutal sectarian killings, and has raised fears it is slipping back into all-out conflict.In the Rashid area south of Baghdad, two car bombs targeted Shiite pilgrims, killing at least 24 people and wounding more than 50, security and medical officials said.Sunni militants including those linked to Al-Qaeda frequently target members of Iraq's Shiite majority, whom they consider to be apostates.In the city of Tikrit, militants detonated a car bomb near the city council headquarters and then occupied the building, with employees still inside.Iraqi security forces surrounded the building, and then carried out an assault that Counter-Terrorism Service spokesman Sabah Noori said freed 40 people who were held inside.We freed all the hostages and killed one suicide bomber, while two others blew themselves up, Noori told AFP.A police major and a doctor said that a city council member and two police were killed, though it was unclear whether they died during the initial attack or the later assault by security forces.The assault came after suicide bombers struck a police station in the town of Baiji, also in Salaheddin province.One bomber detonated a car bomb at the gate of the station, after which three entered, shot dead an officer and a policeman, and waited inside.SWAT security forces then attacked the station, killing one of the militants, while the other two blew themselves up, killing three police.Gunmen also killed three soldiers guarding an oil pipeline near Tikrit, while two oil protection police were killed and three wounded by a bomb south of the northern city of Kirkuk.

'Barrel bomb' raids in Syria's Aleppo kill 76

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DAMASCUS (AFP) - The Syrian air force was on Monday accused of killing 76 people by unleashing barrels packed with explosives on Aleppo, a focal point for fighting between regime and rebel forces.The bombardment, which activists described as unprecedented, came as the United Nations said the number of Syrian war refugees in the Middle East was likely to double to 4.1 million by the end of 2014.The number of people slain in Sunday's bombing of Aleppo with explosive-packed barrels... rose to 76, including 28 children and four women, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, updating its previous toll of 36 dead.Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said it was one of the heaviest tolls from air raids since the beginning of the war that flared after a brutal regime crackdown on Arab Spring-inspired democracy protests that erupted in March 2011.Explosive-laden barrels were dropped on six rebel-controlled districts in the east, including Sakhur, Ard al-Hamra and Haydariyeh, Abdel Rahman said.The Observatory and activists said government forces frequently drop the barrels filled with TNT on rebel-held areas of the war-torn country from helicopters and warplanes.The barrels of explosives are not like bombs. Their impact is not accurate as they are dropped without any guidance system, and that is why they cause a large number of victims, said Abdel Rahman.The devices are made up of metal barrels that have a layer of concrete inside them so that they cause as much destruction and death as possible, according to Abdel Rahman.There are two types of barrel bombs, one of which is home-made, and the other of which is made in factories.A Syrian security official said the army prefers the TNT-packed barrels because they are cheaper than regular bombs, which need to be imported from Russia.

US judge says NSA phone data snooping probably illegal

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - A US judge struck a first blow against the National Security Agencys bulk collection of phone records Monday, ruling it breaches citizens privacy to a degree that is probably unconstitutional.The ruling by the Washington District Court was stayed pending appeal, but if upheld it could lead to the spy agency being barred from indiscriminately gathering metadata on millions of private calls.While not a final judgement, the ruling put the administration on the back foot at the start of what will no doubt be a protracted series of legal challenges to the NSAs global surveillance network.And it was seized upon by fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden to support his case that he is a whistleblower exposing official overreach rather than a traitor endangering national security.I cannot imagine a more indiscriminate and arbitrary invasion than this systematic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data on virtually every single citizen, Judge Richard Leon said.Leon argued that American founding father James Madison, one of the authors of the US Constitution, would be aghast at the governments Orwellian breach of citizens rights to privacy.Contacted by AFP, the NSA refused to comment.Two plaintiffs, Larry Klayman and Charles Strange, brought a case against President Barack Obamas administration after Snowden revealed the vast scale of the NSAs digital dragnet.Documents provided by Snowden to the British daily The Guardian revealed that the NSA had compelled US telecoms giant Verizon to provide agents with its clients call metadata.Subsequent leaks from Snowdens vast trove of classified documents suggest that other telephone and internet providers have also provided private details on both US and foreign clients.Leons ruling would bar the US government from continuing to siphon off metadata without judicial approval, but he did not issue an immediate injunction against the practice.Instead the case will go to appeal.In the months ahead other ... courts, no doubt will wrestle to find the proper balance consistent with our constitutional system, he said, in a written judgement.Obamas administration has condemned Snowdens leaks and insists that collecting metadata -- the time, duration and destination of calls but not their content -- is not unconstitutional.US spy chiefs say that by joining the dots between archived calls and terrorist suspects they can keep America safe, but the Verizon case will not be the last legal challenge the program faces.On Friday, an official panel handed Obama a secret review of the NSAs electronic surveillance program along with more than 40 recommendations to install safeguards and limit its scope.But the administration is not expected to significantly curtail the NSAs mission, despite international outrage, and Snowden remains a fugitive from US justice granted temporary asylum in Russia.Leon said the appeal process would take at least six months and delayed his order in light of the significant national security interests at stake ... and the novelty of the constitutional issues.Snowden, who worked as a contractor for the NSA before quitting with a pack of documents, expressed satisfaction in a statement passed to the New York times by journalist Glenn Greenwald.I acted on my belief that the NSAs mass surveillance programs would not withstand a constitutional challenge and that the American public deserved a chance to see these issues determined by open courts, Snowden said.Today, a secret program authorized by a secret court was, when exposed to the light of day, found to violate Americans rights. It is the first of many.The Electronic Frontier Foundation, which campaigns for Internet freedoms, also welcomed the ruling.It shows that the judiciary is looking at this program and does not agree that it is legal, said EFF attorney Kurt Opsahl.

Russia moves nuclear-capable missiles closer to EU

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MOSCOW (AFP) - Russia revealed on Monday that its armed forces had moved nuclear-capable Iskander missiles closer to Europe's borders in response to the US-led deployment of a disputed air defence shield.The advanced version of the Russian missile has a range of 500 kilometres (310 miles) and could potentially be used to take out ground-based radar and interceptors of the new NATO shield.The announcement prompted fears in the US and neighbouring states such as Poland.We've urged Russia to take no steps to destabilize the region, State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said in response, adding the US had also passed on to Moscow its neighbours' concerns.Those concerns were voiced earlier on Monday.Poland's foreign ministry called the planned missile movement disturbing. This is a matter for NATO and we can expect possible consultations and action (...) at the NATO and EU level, added the ministry in a statement.Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia called the news alarming.Latvia's Defence Minister Artis Pabriks, quoted by the Baltic News Service (BNS), said: It is clear that it is alarming news as it is one of the arguments changing balance of powers in our region. He added several Baltic cities were threatened by the move. Germany's Bild newspaper first reported over the weekend that Russia had deployed about 10 Iskander systems in its Kaliningrad exclave -- wedged between Poland and Lithuania -- at some point in the past year.A top Russian defence official said in response to the report that several Iskander batteries had been stationed in Russia's Western Military District -- a region that includes the exclave and also borders the European Union's three Baltic nations that were once a part of the USSR.Iskander operational-tactical missile systems have indeed been commissioned by the Western Military District's missile and artillery forces, Russian news agencies quoted defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov as saying.He added that Russia's deployment does not violate any international treaties or agreements and should therefore not be subject to protests from the West.The Kremlin warned in 2011 that it could station the short- and medium-range ballistic missiles along the European Union's eastern frontier in response to NATO's missile defence programme.Both the United States and the Western military alliance have argued that the shield is not aimed at Russia but is designed to protect the West from potential threats from so-called rogue states.But Moscow fears the system -- whose components include missile-positioning satellites -- may one day be turned into an offensive weapon that targets Russian soil.The Kremlin also believes the shield could in the future be expanded to a point that makes Russia's own vast nuclear arsenal ineffective.

'No credible evidence' army involved in Diana death: report

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LONDON (AFP) - British police on Monday said they had finished examining new information about the 1997 death of Diana, princess of Wales, but media reported they had found no credible evidence she was murdered.Scotland Yard police headquarters announced in August it was checking the credibility of recently received information about the deaths of the princess and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed, including an allegation that she was murdered by a British military figure.The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) undertook a scoping exercise to assess the relevance and credibility of that information, the force said in a statement issued Monday.That scoping exercise is now complete, it stated, adding that a formal statement would be made on Tuesday.Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley has provided all involved parties with a summary report of the probe.Diana and Fayed were killed in a car crash in a Paris underpass in the early hours of August 31, 1997, along with their driver, Henri Paul.It is understood that the claim a member of elite British army regiment the Special Air Service (SAS) was involved was made by the former parents-in-law of an ex-soldier, based on information he had talked about in the past.Sky News, which has obtained a copy of the letter, reported that the investigation found no credible evidence that the SAS was involved.Whilst there is a possibility that the alleged comments in relation to the SASs involvement in the death may have been made, there is no credible or relevant evidence to support a theory that such claims had any basis in fact, the network reported the letter as saying.Having reviewed the exercise and its findings, I am satisfied that there is no evidential basis upon which therefore to reopen any criminal homicide investigation or refer the matter back to the coroner, it added.Operation Paget was the name of the two-year police inquiry into the numerous conspiracy theories surrounding the crash.Led by John Stevens, formerly Britains top policeman, it concluded in 2006 that all the allegations it assessed were without foundation.It rejected the murder claims voiced by some, including Fayeds father, the Egyptian tycoon Mohamed Al-Fayed.Dodi Fayed, 42, and driver Paul -- the deputy head of security at Al-Fayeds plush Hotel Ritz in Paris -- were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.The Mercedes-Benz car had smashed into a pillar and spun around.Diana, 36, the ex-wife of Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, and the mother of Princes William and Harry, died later in hospital.Bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, a member of the Al-Fayed familys protection team, survived.Seeking to outrun chasing paparazzi photographers, Paul was found to have been speeding. His blood alcohol level was found to have been more than three times over the French limit.Diana married Charles in 1981 but their shaky marriage fell apart soon after Harrys birth in 1984, with both sides admitting adultery. They separated in 1992 and divorced in 1996.

Oil prices rise on Libya disruptions

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NEW YORK (AFP) - Oil prices jumped Monday after armed protesters in Libya refused to lift a months-long blockade of key oil terminals in the eastern part of the country.US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for January delivery gained 88 cents to $97.48 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.European benchmark Brent oil for January delivery jumped $1.64 to $110.47 a barrel in London.The big story is about Libyan oil production remaining off the market, said Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates. That is definitely supporting both Brent and WTI prices.Ibrahim Jodhrane, head of the security guards blockading terminals in Eastern Libya, Sunday told broadcaster Al-Nabaa that the government had not met conditions to lift the blockade.In July, the Al-Magharba tribe launched a blockade of terminals in Zueitina, Ras Lanouf and Al-Sedra. The blockade is linked to an effort to win oil revenues and political autonomy for Cyrenaica, the oil-rich eastern part of the country.Last week the group said they expected to reopen the terminals on Sunday.But the latest failed negotiations only reinforces our view that Libyan production will struggle to exceed 800,000 barrels a day in 2014, said a Morgan Stanley report. Resolving deep disagreements will likely require material changes at the federal level, and threats by the government to use force only risk exacerbating the situation.Libya in October pumped 0.45 million barrels of oil a day, well below its 1.4 million barrel capacity, according to the International Energy Agency.Also Monday, the US Energy Information Administration projected the US would in 2016 reach 9.5 million barrels a day, near an all-time record. The forecast is the latest to underscore the growing US shale boom.Lipow said the latest EIA report did not affect prices. But the EIA forecast is contributing to the debate of increasing oil production in the US and whether we are going to export crude in the future, he said.

Dollar slips vs. euro ahead of Fed meeting

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NEW YORK (AFP) - The dollar ceded ground to the euro Monday, a day before the US central bank meets to weigh whether growth is strong enough to merit cutting back its stimulus program.At 2200 GMT, the euro rose to $1.3761 from $1.3742 late Friday.The yen meanwhile gains some ground on both: the dollar fell to 103.02 yen from 103.21, while the euro slipped to 141.77 yen from 141.88.The euro got a small boost from the Markit Economics eurozone composite purchasing managers index for December, which showed a slight gain, though also an uneven recovery country by country.The dollar meanwhile was not helped significantly by a strong November US industrial output report which showed a 1.1 percent gain for the month.The report was strong enough to turn bonds around, pushing US yields slightly higher. In the balance is the Federal Reserve's decision on tapering the stimulus at the end of its two-day policy meeting. Better economic data favors at least a small taper, though very weak inflation gives the policymakers reason to hold off, economists say.Over the past week or so, the implied probability of 'tapering' by the Fed has increased. The US budget deal and better retail sales for November were some of the catalysts for a change in sentiment towards tapering happening at the December (Fed) meeting, said analysts at Nomura in a research note.Around 37 percent of polled clients expected the move this month, slightly more than those forecasting the next meeting in January, Nomura said.The dollar's weakness, though, is perhaps because tapering is no longer a surprise.It has been priced with a very high probability for one of the next three meetings, and it may not matter greatly if the tapering starts in December, or in January or March.Importantly, the notion of tapering is no longer causing a significant volatility shock.The British pound was barely changed at $1.6299, and the dollar slipped to 0.8868 Swiss franc from 0.8895.

NASA sees 'some success' with space station fix

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - NASA engineers are still trying to fix an International Space Station cooling problem and have not yet decided whether spacewalks will be necessary, the US space agency said Monday.The NASA team on the ground is having some degree of success at working on a faulty valve that has disrupted the equipment cooling system aboard the orbiting research outpost, said ISS Missions Operations Integration Manager Kenny Todd.We are pretty excited about that, added Todd, who said it remained unclear whether the problem would require a series of spacewalks to repair or replace the pump.NASA issued no decision on whether the problem, discovered on Wednesday, would push back Orbital Sciences maiden launch of its Cygnus unmanned cargo craft.As of now, the Orbital mission is scheduled for Thursday, December 19, after being postponed by one day over the weekend.If the Orbital attempt is put off until next year, astronauts at the ISS would begin their first repair mission spacewalk Thursday.A similar equipment failure in 2010 required three spacewalks to fix.Sometimes you can figure out a way to limp along for two months, four months, six months, said Todd.We may or may not be able to do that for an extended period of time.If spacewalks are called for this time, they would mark the first time astronauts have ventured outside the orbiting lab since a helmet leak brought an early end to a European astronauts outing in July.Italian Luca Parmitano was wearing a US-made spacesuit when a water leak flooded his helmet and risked drowning him.

Pakistan strive to keep momentum against Sri Lanka

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SHARJAH (AFP) - In-form Pakistan are seeking to build on their recent thrilling one-day triumph in South Africa when they take on dangerous but rusty Sri Lanka in a five-match series starting in the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday.Pakistan last month sealed their first-ever ODI series win against the Proteas, beating them 2-1 just weeks after a 4-1 drubbing against the same opposition in the UAE.Skipper Misbah-ul Haq, whose side lie sixth in the one-day rankings, two places lower than Sri Lanka, hopes they can build on their confidence-building success, saying his players thrive under pressure.We have good confidence before another tough series and we hope to carry the momentum we gained in South Africa, said Misbah.It is the Pakistan team's quality that they produce better results when they are under pressure. We were under pressure before the South Africa tour and when the confidence is better we play well, he added.But Misbah warned his side against complacency. We must not relax, he said. Complacency comes when you beat a bigger opponent so we must guard against that because Sri Lanka know these conditions well.Pakistan will be without lanky paceman Mohammad Irfan -- who stands seven feet one inch (2.15 metres) tall -- after the bowler fractured his hip bone during the Twenty20 series against South Africa last month and was ruled out of the series. Sri Lanka will be missing former captain Mahela Jayawardene and left-arm spinner Rangana Herath, who both opted out of the one-dayers.Sri Lanka have been frustrated by a lack of match practice after their drawn three-match ODI series against New Zealand last month was disrupted by rain.We've done as much as we can to make sure we are sharp and ready but nothing's quite the same as being match-tight and match-sharp, said coach Graham Ford.They have got an advantage from that point of view and they have got some fantastically talented cricketers, Ford added.The Twenty20 series between the sides finished all square at 1-1.The remaining ODIs will be played in Dubai (December 20), Sharjah (December 22) and Abu Dhabi (December 25 and 27).The one-day series will be followed by three Tests.

Windies spinner Shillingford banned over action

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WELLINGTON (AFP) - West Indies spinner Shane Shillingford has been banned from bowling at international level after tests found his action was illegal, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said Monday.An independent biomechanical analysis showed Shillingford's elbow extended beyond the permitted 15 degrees on his standard off-break delivery and his doosra, the ICC said in a statement.He is suspended from bowling in international cricket until such time that he has submitted to a fresh analysis, which concludes that he has remedied his bowling action, it said.Shillingford's team-mate, Marlon Samuels, was subjected to similar tests, which showed his standard off-break was legal but his quicker delivery was not, meaning he can only bowl his slower ball in international matches.The actions of the West Indies pair were reported during their team's second Test against India in Mumbai last month.The ICC ordered them to undergo independent testing which was conducted in Australia while the players participated in the West Indies' first two Tests in New Zealand.Both players have previously been banned from bowling because of illegal actions.Samuels did not bowl for three years after first being reported in 2008, while Shillingford was banned in 2010 and returned a year later after undergoing remedial work on his action.The ICC said if Samuels was reported again for a suspect action in the next two years and analysis backed up the concerns, he would face an automatic one-year ban.There was no immediate reaction from the West Indies. The ICC said both players had the right to appeal.The West Indies' third and final Test against New Zealand begins in Hamilton on Thursday. They trail the series one-nil.
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