Friday 17 January 2014

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Mumbai: Stampede ahead of funeral of Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin kills 18, injures 60

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MUMBAI (Web Desk) - At least 18 people were killed and 60 others were injured in a stampede that broke out early Saturday near the Malabar Hill residence of Dawoodi Bohra spiritual leader Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, who passed away on Friday morning.The incident occurred around 1:30 am as thousands of community mourners converged near Saifee Mahal, where the Syedna's body was kept for people to pay their last respects.He is to be buried beside his father at Raudat Tahera Mausoleum in Bhendi Bazar, south Mumbai.The spiritual head of the Dawoodi Bohra community died following cardiac arrest here on Friday, an official said. He was 102.He is succeeded by his second son, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin.Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin had proclaimed Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin as his successor at a Nass (investiture) in London in 2011.The new Syedna, who was on a visit to Sri Lanka, is expected to reach Mumbai and finalise the funeral and other arrangements.Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin had succeeded his father, the late Syedna Taher Saifuddin in 1965 and led the community for nearly five decades.

Cyberattack traced to hacked refrigerators: researchers

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - Call it the attack of the zombie refrigerators.Computer security researchers said this week they discovered a large botnet which infected Internet-connected home appliances and then delivered more than 750,000 malicious emails.The California security firm Proofpoint, Inc., which announced its findings, said this may be the first proven Internet of Things based cyberattack involving smart appliances.Proofpoint said hackers managed to penetrate home-networking routers, connected multi-media centers, televisions and at least one refrigerator to create a botnet -- or platform to deliver malicious spam or phishing emails from a device, usually without the owners knowledge.Security experts previously spoke of such attacks as theoretical.But Proofpoint said the case has significant security implications for device owners and enterprise targets because of massive growth expected in the use of smart and connected devices, from clothing to appliances.Proofpoints findings reveal that cyber criminals have begun to commandeer home routers, smart appliances and other components of the Internet of Things and transform them into thingbots, to carry out the same kinds of attacks normally associated with personal computers.The security firm said these appliances may become attractive targets for hackers because they often have less security than PCs or tablets.Proofpoint said it documented the incidents between December 23 and January 6, which featured waves of malicious email, typically sent in bursts of 100,000, three times per day, targeting enterprises and individuals worldwide.More than 25 percent of the volume was sent by things that were not conventional laptops, desktop computers or mobile devices. No more than 10 emails were initiated from any single device, making the attack difficult to block based on location.Botnets are already a major security concern and the emergence of thingbots may make the situation much worse, said David Knight at Proofpoint.Many of these devices are poorly protected at best and consumers have virtually no way to detect or fix infections when they do occur. Enterprises may find distributed attacks increasing as more and more of these devices come online and attackers find additional ways to exploit them.

Intel to cut staff as it shifts from PCs to powering mobile gadgets

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SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - US chip giant Intel said Friday it will trim its workforce by five percent this year as it shifts from personal computers to powering mobile gadgets.Word of the job cuts came a day after Intel reported that its net profit last year sank 13 percent but that the troubled personal computer market appeared to be stabilizing.We do expect employment to come down by about five percent by the end of the year, Intel spokesman Chris Kraeuter told AFP.It is something we regularly do to make sure that the people we have match up with our priorities.Kraeuter said that California-based Intel ended last year with 107,600 workers. He declined to disclose which positions or locations would be targeted for cuts.Intel reported on Thursday that it made a net profit of $9.6 billion on revenue of $52.7 billion last year as compared with $11 billion in net profit on $53.3 billion in revenue in 2012.We had a solid fourth quarter with signs of stabilization in the PC segment and financial growth from a year ago, said Intel chief executive Brian Krzanich.In the final quarter of the year, Intel posted profit of $2.6 billion on revenue of $13.8 billion as compared with $2.5 billion net income on $13.5 billion in revenue during the same period in 2012.Weve built a strong foundation for our business by bringing innovation to the market more quickly across a wide range of computing platforms, said Krzanich.For example, at CES, we demonstrated multiple devices that werent on our roadmap six months ago.At the Consumer Electronics Show gadget extravaganza in Las Vegas last week, Intel unveiled a major new push into wearables and connecting everyday devices as it seeks to leapfrog the competition in mobile computing.Krzanich said at CES that Intel would produce on its own or with partners a range of products from a health monitor integrated into baby clothes to heart monitor in earbuds.He showed the companys new personal assistant dubbed Jarvis, which is Intels answer to the voice-activated Google Now and Apples Siri.Intel will be producing a smartwatch with geofencing which allows families to get alerts if children or elderly parents leave a specific geographic area.The new devices shown to the large CES crowd will all be available this year, Krzanich said, without offering details on pricing or specific partners for the products.But some analysts said Intels profitability may be hurt by the move.The problem with mobile and wearables is the more you win, the more you lose, said Rob Enderle of Enderle Group in Silicon Valley.Intel is a large margin company, and wearables are a small margin product.The analyst was referring to the window for profit being typically higher on chips for personal computers than on processors powering smartphones, tablets or products in the booming wearables category.Intel remains the worlds biggest producer of chips for personal computers but has been lagging in the surging mobile marketplace of tablets and smartphones. The new initiative could allow the firm to get a bigger slice of the mobile markets newest iterations.Intel forecast revenue in the current quarter of about $12.8 billion and that it would be flat for the overall year.Market sales figures indicate that the trend of switching from personal computers to tablets is slowing, according to Enderle.It is starting to drift toward equilibrium, the analyst said. It will stabilize eventually and Intel will grow around it. It is just that until it gets there it will be painful.Any heralding the death of the personal computer is premature, according to Enderle, who envisioned modern lifestyles supporting a mix of PCs, tablets, and smartphones.The great thing about Google Glass is that it could replace all three, the analyst said of the Internet giants yet-to-be released smart eyewear. But, we are well away from that; not until next decade.

Football: Lille title blow with second successive defeat

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PARIS (AFP) - Lille suffered a second successive defeat and squandered vital ground in the French title race when St Etienne grabbed a 2-0 Ligue 1 victory on Friday.The result left Lille, who ended the game with 10 men after a red card for midfielder Florent Balmont, in third place in the table, seven points behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain and having played a game more.St Etienne remain fourth, three points behind Lille, thanks to a timely win which followed a midweek French Cup exit at the hands of fourth division Cannes.Lille had lost 2-1 to Reims last weekend and fell behind after 55 minutes on Friday when Brazilian striker Brandao headed in at the far post from a cross by Algerian defender Faouzi Ghoulam.Six minutes later it was 2-0 with Franck Tabanou slotting the ball home after Lille keeper Vincent Enyeama had saved from Romain Hamouma.Lille then had to play the final 30 minutes of the match with 10 men after Balmont was red-carded for aiming a volley of abuse at the referee, who he believed should have ruled out the goal.Its a match lost. We played well for an hour but then we went off the boil after conceding the first goal, said Lille coach Rene Girard.St Etienne coach Christophe Galtier admitted victory was a relief after the Cup exit. It was a welcome result because things in midweek were not looking good, said Galtier.We could have dropped our heads. I waited impatiently to see how we would react and the players reacted really well.On Sunday, leaders PSG welcome Nantes to the capital where a win could give them an eight-point lead over Monaco should the second-placed side lose at Toulouse.

Obama clips NSA's wing but bulk collection to continue

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - President Barack Obama curtailed the reach of massive US National Security Agency phone surveillance sweeps Friday, but said bulk data collection must go on to protect America from terrorists.In a long-awaited speech designed to quell a furor over the programs exposed by Edward Snowden, Obama also said he had halted spy taps on friendly world leaders and proposed new shields for foreigners caught in US data sweeps.Given the unique power of the state, it is not enough for leaders to say: trust us, we wont abuse the data we collect, Obama said at the US Justice Department.Obamas proposals represented a search for common ground between the intelligence communitys resistance to reform and civil liberties advocates who view phone and Internet data trawling as a mass invasion of privacy.They emerged from a prolonged period of reflection by the president and a comprehensive review of the national security apparatus that sprung up hurriedly after the September 11 attacks in 2001.But after charting new guidelines, the president left many of the details of proposed reforms either with Congress, top officials or the NSA itself.The power of new technologies means that there are fewer and fewer technical constraints on what we can do, Obama said.That places a special obligation on us to ask tough questions about what we should do.It is doubtful however that the reassessment would have happened were it not for explosive disclosures by Snowden in one of the greatest security breaches in US history.In the most significant reform, the president committed to ending the NSAs hoarding of telephone metadata detailing the duration and destination of hundreds of millions of calls but not their content.He did not believe that abuses had occurred or that US spies had been cavalier about civil liberties.But he called for a new approach.I am therefore ordering a transition that will end the Section 215 bulk metadata program as it currently exists, and establish a mechanism that preserves the capabilities we need without the government holding this bulk meta-data.Obama called on Attorney General Eric Holder and the NSA to come up suggestions for an alternative way to hold the material within 60 days.Possible alternatives include keeping records with reluctant telecommunications firms, which are currently compelled to turn it over to the NSA, or to deposit it with a third party.Obama also said that from now on, NSA agents would need the endorsement of a special intelligence court before accessing data on a specific target.He offered one caveat however: that order would not apply in the case of a genuine national security emergency.The NSA will also now only be permitted to access call data from people at two removes from a suspect in an investigation. Previously it could probe three hops.Obama also said that he had already ordered a halt to dozens of phone tap operations targeting friendly foreign leaders.I have made clear to the intelligence community that -- unless there is a compelling national security purpose -- we will not monitor the communications of heads of state and government of our close friends and allies, he said.The move followed an outcry over claims by fugitive contractor Snowden, now exiled in Russia, that US spies snooped on the phone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other leaders.But he also took a swipe at the chorus of complaints about US espionage from some allies. We will not apologize simply because our services may be more effective, he said, and noted that rivals like Russia and China would not undertake such an open debate.Obama is also taking the unprecedented step of extending personal protections enjoyed by Americans to foreigners caught in US phone and Internet data sweeps.EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding welcomed the moves.Obama, who wants Snowden to return home to face trial, only mentioned the US nemesis in passing, saying the damage he had wrought may not be known for years.The reforms got a guarded welcome from privacy advocates, questions about how they would work -- and some disappointment they did not go further.President Obamas announced solution to the NSA spying controversy is the same unconstitutional program with a new configuration, said Republican Senator Rand Paul, a prominent libertarian critic of government surveillance overreach.Steven Hawkins, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA said that privacy still remained under threat.President Obamas recognition of the need to safeguard the privacy of people around the world is significant, but insufficient to end serious global concern over mass surveillance, which by its very nature constitutes abuse, he argued.Battle lines were already being drawn in Congress.The presidents blueprint was bold and courageous, but it was only a first step, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal said. I think he is really in essence passing the torch of reform, providing a broad blueprint which is very robust, but leaving a lot of the details to Congress.

Three UN staff killed in Kabul attack: Ban Ki-moon

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UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - UN leader Ban Ki-moon on Friday strongly condemned a suicide gun and bomb attack on a Kabul restaurant in which three UN staff were among at least 14 fatalities.A UN statement said other dead from the attack claimed by the Taliban were from international organizations.Such targeted attacks against civilians are completely unacceptable and are in flagrant breach of international humanitarian law, Ban was quoted as saying by a spokesman.Ban condemned the attack in the strongest terms, said deputy UN spokesman Farhan Haq.Three United Nations personnel, along with a number of those from other international organizations, are now confirmed dead, added Haq.The International Monetary Fund has already said its representative in Afghanistan was killed in the attack on a restaurant used by foreigners.The United Nations is to take on a leading role in Afghanistan as international troops complete their withdrawal in 2014 and the country builds up to national elections.It has already tightened security at its bases, and the attack will lead to a new review of staff safety, UN officials said.

California declares drought emergency

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LOS ANGELES (AFP) - California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency Friday due to what could be the western US states worst drought in a century, which has sparked wildfires and hurt farmers.The declaration allows authorities to access federal help to battle the dry spell that has left huge swaths of tinder-dry forest vulnerable to going up in flames.On Thursday, a massive blaze raged just outside Los Angeles, damaging several homes and forcing residents to evacuate the area, where the fire risk had been elevated for weeks.Brown urged state residents to reduce their water use by at least 20 percent. Ive declared this emergency and Im calling on all Californians to conserve water in every way possible, he said in a statement.We cant make it rain, he added.But we can be much better prepared for the terrible consequences that Californias drought now threatens, including dramatically less water for our farms and communities, and increased fires in both urban and rural areas.Brown told reporters in San Francisco that the current conditions were possibly the worst drought that California has ever seen since records (began) about 100 years ago, media reports said.The region is suffering its third dry winter in a row, highlighted by the Los Angeles inferno.California and other western US states are routinely hit with wildfires during the summer, but winter blazes, like the ones burning currently, are relatively rare.Californias rivers and reservoirs have reached record lows, with only 20 percent of the normal average supplies of water from melting snowpack, which flows down from mountains like the Sierra Nevada.Water years 2012 and 2013 were dry statewide, especially in parts of the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California, said the states Department of Water Resources (DWR) in its latest drought update.Water year 2014, which began on October 1st, continues this trend. Precipitation in some areas of the state is tracking at about the driest year of record.Farmer Mark Fontanilla was among dozens of people who staged a protest outside the state capitol in Sacramento on Thursday, urging Brown to do more.You can turn off your taps and minimize your pool and all that, but until we build more dams and increase the water storage, and get these clowns out of office, were gonna be importing our food from China, he told KCRA television.On average, half of Californias rain falls in December, January and February, the DWR noted, lamenting the lack of precipitation but saying it had not yet given up hope of some this winter.It is still too early, however, to call this water year, and Mother Nature may surprise us, it said.

IMF representative among 14 killed in Kabul restaurant attack

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KABUL (AFP) - Taliban suicide attackers killed at least 14 people, including the IMF representative in Afghanistan, in a gun and bomb attack Friday on a Kabul restaurant popular with foreigners.One attacker blew himself up outside the Taverna du Liban in the upmarket Wazir Akbar Khan neighbourhood and two gunmen stormed inside, mowing down staff and diners.International Monetary Fund representative Wabel Abdallah, 60, was among the dead. The Lebanese national was one of the most senior foreign officials to have been killed in Afghanistan.This is tragic news, and we at the fund are all devastated, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said in a statement. The assault was quickly claimed by Taliban militants fighting against the Afghan government and US-led foreign forces in the country.Deputy interior minister Mohammad Ayoub Salangi told AFP that two of the attackers forced their way into the heavily guarded restaurant after an initial explosion at about 7:30 pm.At least 14 people have been killed. One suicide attacker detonated himself outside the restaurant and two others got inside indiscriminately killing people, Salangi said.Police and government officials said most of the victims were foreigners, but their nationalities were not confirmed. All three attackers died in the assault.The Foreign Office in London confirmed that a Briton was among the fatalities and the UN said four United Nations employees were feared dead in the attack.Staff and relatives told AFP that the restaurant owner was also killed trying the fend off the attackers. The long-established Taverna has been a regular dining spot for foreign diplomats, consultants, aid workers and Afghans, and is likely to have been busy with customers on Friday, the weekly holiday in Afghanistan.Like many restaurants in Kabul, it ran strict security checks with diners patted down by armed guards and passing through at least two steel doors before gaining entry.Smoke filled the kitchenI was sitting with my friends in the kitchen when an explosion happened and smoke filled the kitchen, kebab cook Abdul Majid told AFP while being treated for leg fractures at a nearby hospital.A man came inside shouting and he started shooting. One of my colleagues was shot and fell down. I ran to the roof and threw myself to the neighbouring property.Elite security commandos rushed to seal off the small streets around the restaurant as sporadic gunfire erupted for a short time after the blast.The venue has an enclosed outside seating area which is heated in the harsh Afghan winter, and customers often share a tobacco shisha pipe after their meal.The Talibans main spokesman claimed the restaurant had been deliberately targetted.As a result of a martyrdom attack on a foreign restaurant in the Wazir Akbar Khan area of Kabul, a large number of foreign occupiers, most of them Germans, have suffered casualties, spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in emailed statement.The Taliban often make incorrect claims about death tolls and the nationalities of those affected. The German embassy was not immediately available to comment.The United States and British embassies are among those situated in Wazir Akbar Khan, though neither was directly affected by the attack.We condemn, of course, the despicable act of terrorism in the strongest possible terms, US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in Washington.The Afghan capital has often been hit by suicide and other bomb attacks, with the most recent incident last Sunday when a Taliban suicide bomber riding a bicycle detonated explosives next to a police bus, killing a policeman and a civilian.Afghanistans intelligence agency has said it foiled several plots in the capital involving truck bombs and suicide gunmen over the past year.A series of attacks in 2013 targeted foreign compounds, the Supreme Court, the airport and the presidential palace in Kabul. Foreign guesthouses, luxury hotels and vehicle convoys have also been hit in the past.NATO forces are withdrawing from Afghanistan after more than a decade of fighting the Taliban, but negotiations have stalled on a security accord that would allow some US and NATO troops to stay after 2014.The bilateral security agreement would see several thousand US troops remain in Afghanistan to provide training and assistance in the battle against the Taliban.Afghanistans fledgling security forces face a difficult year in 2014 as insurgents attempt to disrupt elections on April 5 that will choose a successor to President Hamid Karzai, and as NATOs combat mission winds down by December.

Syria opposition talks pushed back to Saturday

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ISTANBUL (AFP) - Syrias fractured opposition pushed back the opening of talks in Istanbul to Saturday amid continuing differences over whether to attend peace talks with the government next week, sources said.The talks of the opposition National Coalition had originally been due to get underway on Friday but were postponed due to problems posed by some 40 delegates, Coalition spokesman Khaled Saleh said.These delegates had threatened to resign at the last meeting of the Coalition 10 days earlier, concerned at the lack of transparency in the re-election this month of Ahmad Jarba, seen as close to key rebel backer Saudi Arabia, as National Coalition leader.After intense negotiations Friday half of the unhappy delegates decided to participate in the opposition talks, which are now set to begin formally on Saturday morning in a hotel in an Istanbul suburb, a western diplomatic source said.The much-delayed Geneva II conference is aimed at finding a way out of almost three years of brutal conflict in Syria that has claimed the lives of 130,000 people and forced millions from their homes.The Coalition is under intense pressure from Western and Arab allies to turn up to the talks in Switzerland next week, with media reports suggesting the United States and Britain have threatened to withdraw support if it fails to send a delegation.More than 35 countries will gather in the Swiss cities of Montreux and Geneva from Wednesday for the talks on setting up a transitional government to lead the country, in line with a 2012 deal.But recent government advances have put the rebels at a disadvantage in any negotiations.Opposition forces are increasingly riven by rivalries between Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists and more mainstream Islamists, with fierce battles that monitors say have killed more than 1,000 people in two weeks alone.At key preparatory talks with Russia in Moscow on Friday, the Syrian regime said it was ready to swap prisoners with the rebels in the first such mass exchange since the conflict began.Meanwhile Turkey and Qatar held parallel talks in Ankara with four Syrian rebel groups involved in the fighting, including the Islamic Front, the countrys biggest rebel alliance, seeking to convince them not to oppose, or even to participate in, the Geneva II talks, the western diplomatic source told AFP.Those talks were expected to continue in the Turkish capital on Saturday.At the Istanbul talks the Coalition reiterated the stance of the moderate opposition to the Geneva II talks. The Coalition want to participate in a political solution to the Syrian conflict, said Saleh.The objective is to put in place a transition government in which Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will play no part, he added.

In love with Pakistani national, Indian woman reaches Pakistan

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LAHORE (Dunya News) – An Indian national identified as Nagita, who arrived at Allama Iqbal International Airport Lahore using forged passport from Sharjah to be with the man she fell in love with, was deported back on Friday.Reportedly, the woman fell in love with a Multan resident Zafar Iqbal after meeting and interacting on the internet. Following a period of dating online, the couple decided to take things to next level and get married. Everything, however, did not go in their favor as Nagita was reportedly a subject of forced arranged marriage in India by her parents. Taking things in her own hands, she bought a forged travel document from a Sharjah based agent whose reported name is Qasim and came to Pakistan. The authorities at Lahore airport successfully tracked down the forged passport and deported her back to Sharjah.Reportedly, Nagita had converted to Islam and adopted an Islamic name Nimra as she decided to travel to Pakistan to get married to Zafar.It is pertinent to mention here that citizens of India and Pakistan have to go through a tough scrutiny and pile of paperwork even for the visit visa. The inconvenience often causes people of both countries to take extreme measures just to meet each other.

Formula One: Michael Schumacher in 'stable' condition: spokesman

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GRENOBLE (AFP) - Formula One legend Michael Schumacher remains in a stable condition after his December 29 skiing accident, his spokeswoman said Friday, after a wave of speculative reports that he may never recover.Michaels condition is still considered as stable, Sabine Kehm said of Schumacher, who has been in a medically-induced coma since the life-threatening off-piste fall in the French Alps.Unfortunately I have to repeat that any information regarding Michaels health not coming from the doctors treating him or from his management must be treated as pure speculation, she said.I also repeat that Michaels family is very happy and confident with the work of the team of doctors treating Michael, and they trust them completely.Investigators probing the crash have ruled out faulty skis, inadequate signage and excessive speed as reasons for the accident, where he slammed his head against a rock.

Pak-Indian military officials discuss LoC situation

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RAWALPINDI (Web Desk) - Brigadier level Military officials of Pakistan and Indian Army met Friday at Rawlakot-Poonch crossing point at the Line of Control (LOC) to discuss ways to further strengthen ceasefire along the LOC.According to an ISPR spokesman here, the meeting was held as part of decision taken by both sides during last Director General Military Operations (DGMOs) meeting held at Wagha on December 24, last year.Various aspects of the ceasefire were reviewed in detail by the army officers of India and Pakistan during the meeting.Indo-Pak military delegates agreed upon following all those rules and regulation, for ceasefire on the LoC, which had been finalized during half yearly flag meeting of the DGMOs of both sides, added the ISPR.

SBP announces monetary policy, keeps discount rate unchanged

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KARACHI (Dunya News) –SBP announced the monetary policy on Friday and decided not to change key discount rate.SBP Governor Yaseen Anwar announced the monetary policy in a press conference here on Friday afternoon.According to the policy statement, the SBP increased the policy rate by 50 basis points (bps) each in September and November 2013 mainly on account of two concerns. One was the continued deterioration in the balance of payments position while the other was worsening of inflation outlook.The fundamental weakness in the balance of payments position is persistent contraction in net financial flows since fiscal year 2008. Substantial repayments of IMF loans during the last two and a half years have only increased the pressure.There is no room for complacency and considerable effort is required to bring a sustainable improvement in the outlook of external accounts.The CPI inflation has increased during first half of FY 14. The important point is that the risk of demand-driven inflation is still rather moderate. The international commodity prices have also either remained stable or declined since the beginning of FY14. This has neutralized to some extent the direct impact of exchange rate volatility on CPI inflation.Taking into account these factors, SBP has accordingly revised its inflation projection downward. The statement said the SBP linked the minimum rate of return on average balances held in saving deposits with the floor of the interest rate corridor.This policy intervention ensures that deposit rates respond more strongly to policy rate changes. The statement said the quarterly flow of fiscal borrowings from the SBP has remained positive in both quarters of H1-FY14. This does not bode well for the effectiveness of monetary policy.The SBP expects that the government will keep these borrowings in check in H2-FY14 and lower outstanding stock gradually as stipulated in the new International Monetary Fund (IMF) program.According to the statement, a risk to the fiscal position is a possible shortfall in tax revenues, recurrence of energy sector circular debt, and delays in budgeted foreign inflows. Such deviations could lead to increase in borrowings from the banking system, further accumulation of domestic debt and higher-inflation.Although there are some risks to the balance of payments position due to uncertainty surrounding expected foreign inflows, expected increase in inflation is slightly lower than anticipated earlier. In view of the above, the Board of Directors of SBP has decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 10 percent, State Bank’s policy statement said.To a question, the Governor said the Central Bank enjoyed independence and free-hand so far its Monetary Policy is concerned.To another query, he said the Currency Swap Agreement/Line with China has proved very helpful to Pakistan. Originally, it is for three years.Such an agreement with Turkey is pipeline and this would be good for both the countries, he added.

Sri Lanka mass grave count hits 36

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COLOMBO (AFP) - Forensic experts have discovered more bodies in an unmarked mass grave in Sri Lankas former war zone, raising the total to 36, an official said Friday.A team led by judicial medical officer Dhananjaya Waidyaratne found four more skeletons Thursday in the first mass grave uncovered since troops defeated Tamil rebels nearly five years ago.The bodies have been buried in several layers, Waidyaratne told the BBCs Sinhala Service at the northern district of Mannar, where the grave was found.A local magistrate ordered further digging after road construction workers stumbled on a skeleton while laying a water pipeline on December 21. Ten skeletons were found initially.It is difficult to place a time of death or a cause of death without further scientific tests, he said, adding 36 skeletons had been found in the mass grave.Women and children were among those buried, he added.Police have not yet been able to identify the remains.But the Roman Catholic Bishop of Mannar, Rayappu Joseph, said the victims could be members of the minority ethnic Tamil community in the area, 312 kilometres (195 miles) north of the capital Colombo.Mannar has a large concentration of Tamils, and was the scene of many battles between troops and Tamil rebels during the islands 37-year-old separatist war, which ended in May 2009.The general feeling among the people in the area is that these (victims) are Tamils, the bishop told AFP by telephone. I am asking for an independent investigation to establish how these people died and when.Police spokesman Ajith Rohana said a judicial inquiry was underway into the mass grave.It is the first time that evidence of a mass grave has emerged in the former war zone since troops declared victory over separatist Tamil Tiger guerrillas in 2009.Both government forces and Tamil Tiger rebels have been accused of killing civilians during the 37-year separatist war.Sri Lanka has denied allegations that its troops killed up to 40,000 civilians in the final months of fighting.Earlier last year, construction workers stumbled on another mass grave in central Sri Lanka, hundreds of kilometres (miles) from the conflict zone.At least 154 people had been buried in that grave at the central district of Matale, a hotbed of an anti-government uprising between 1987 and 1990.Local forensic experts said it dated back to a period when the then-government led a crackdown on leftist Sinhalese rebels. Sri Lanka has sent the skeletal remains for further tests in China.That insurgency was unrelated to the separatist campaign in the north and east by Tamil rebels.

Greece's central bank chief receives bullets in mail: police

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ATHENS (AFP) - Greeces central bank governor George Provopoulos on Friday received a threatening note accompanied by a pair of bullets, police said.According to Mega television, one of whose senior journalists also received a similar threat, the note was sent by an unknown group calling itself Popular Avengers.The letter to Provopoulos, containing two 7.65-millimetre bullets, arrived with the rest of his morning mail, a police source said.Greeces anti-terrorist squad has opened an investigation into both cases.Provopoulos is currently facing criticism for allegedly lax oversight of Hellenic Postbank, the former state lender whose leadership is under investigation for issuing unsecured loans prior to its privatisation last year.Some two dozen people have been charged and several arrested in a probe into losses by the bank of over 400 million euros ($544 million).According to investigation files published in the press, many of the beneficiaries -- including prominent businessmen -- used the loans for personal enrichment.Among those being investigated is the head of the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund -- tasked with maintaining the stability of the Greek banking system -- Anastasia Sakellariou, who was formerly part of a Hellenic Postbank commercial loans committee.The Bank of Greece governor insists he took all steps within his power to curb Hellenic Postbanks loan spree, blocking issuances on two occasions and eventually alerting a state watchdog in 2012.
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