Monday 3 February 2014

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Govt, Taliban committees to meet today

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The committees formed by the government and the Taliban to hold peace talks will meet today (Tuesday) at 2:00 PM in Islamabad.According to sources, the decision came following a telephone conversation between Maulana Samiul Haq and Irfan Siddiqui.Earlier, talking to media, Maulana Samiul Haq, who is a member of the committee nominated by the Taliban, said Taliban have not set any conditions for the talks, adding that Maulana Yousuf Shah will be coordinator of the committee.He said we will meet the government committee to forward the dialogue process. He said every effort will be made to complete this process soon‚ but it is not possible to give a time-frame at the moment.Maulana Sami ul Haq said the procedure and place of dialogue will be finalized after meeting with the committee formed by the government.He also urged media to play a constructive role in the success of the dialogue.The government’s committee comprises Irfan Siddiqui, Major (retd) Aamir, Rahimullah Yousafzai and Rustam Shah Mohmand.The Taliban have nominated Maulana Samiul Haq, Professor Ibraheem, Mufti Kifayatullah, Maulana Abdul Aziz and Imran Khan. However, the PTI chairman Imran khan has announced not to be a part of the Taliban’s committee.

Sindh Assembly adopts resolution banning wall chalking

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KARACHI (Online): The Sindh Assembly unanimously passed a bill at its session in Karachi on Monday under which wall chalking‚ poster and banner affixing at others’ properties without any permission has been banned.Talking in the Sindh Assembly meeting, Senior Sindh Minister for Education Nisar Ahmed Khuhro said that there is a complete ban on transfers, postings and deputation of the teachers in the Sindh Education Department.Khoro said that teachers’ performance would be seen and no ghost teacher would be there in the province.He promised strict measures to curb the trend of cheating in examinations and urged the students to take interest in education.The house will now meet today (Tuesday).

26 killed in Syria regime barrel bomb raids on Aleppo: NGO

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BEIRUT (AFP) - At least 26 people were killed in aerial attacks with explosive-packed barrel bombs in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Monday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.The group said 12 men, 11 children and three women were killed when Syrian army helicopters dropped the controversial weapons on neighbourhoods in the east of the city, once Syrias economic hub.Rebel-held areas have been subjected to a punishing string of aerial raids by Syrias army in the past three days, with at least 36 people killed on Sunday and 85 killed on Saturday, according to the NGO.The Observatory said Monday that January 2014 was the bloodiest month in the conflict so far, with 5,794 deaths recorded.The air raids, which come as government troops press an advance into the eastern and northern parts of the city, have prompted a mass exodus of civilians, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.Residents of the eastern neighbourhoods began fleeing about three days ago as the pace of the barrel bomb attacks increased, he told AFP.Some of them have gone to Turkey, but many of them have nowhere to go but regime-controlled areas in the west of the city because of the fighting between rebel forces and the (jihadist) Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in other parts of Aleppo.A security source in Damascus confirmed that civilians were fleeing to government-held parts of the city, and AFP photographers saw long lines of people at checkpoints separating rebel and government-controlled areas.Fighting began in Aleppo in mid-2012, with the city quickly being divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east.The situation has remained a stalemate for months, but the army has made several advances in surrounding Aleppo province, including capturing an area around Aleppo international airport.The advances there allowed the government to reopen the airport, which had been closed for nearly a year because of fighting nearby.Over the weekend, regime forces seized most of the eastern district of Karam al-Turab, state media and the Observatory said, and the army is pushing to take additional eastern and northern areas.In Hama province of central Syria, meanwhile, the Observatory said at least five students were killed in rebel rocket fire on a majority Alawite town.President Bashar al-Assad is from the Alawite community, while the uprising against him is dominated by Sunnis.More than 136,000 people have died since the conflict in Syria began with peaceful anti-government protests in March 2011.The spike in deaths came despite 10 days of talks between the government and regime in Geneva that ended last Saturday without tangible results.

Baghdad attacks kill 24 as Iraq presses Anbar assault

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BAGHDAD (AFP) - A series of attacks in and around Baghdad, including a spate of car bombings, killed 24 people Monday as Iraqi forces pressed an assault against militant-held areas of Anbar province.The latest bloodshed comes amid a surge in violence that left more than 1,000 people dead in January, the worst such figure in nearly six years, as security forces grapple with near-daily attacks and protracted battles with anti-government fighters.Foreign leaders have urged the Shiite-led government to do more to reach out to the disaffected Sunni Arab minority in a bid to undercut support for militants.But with parliamentary polls looming in less than three months, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has taken a hard line.Despite officials insisting operations against militants, including those affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) jihadist group, are having an impact, the bloodshed has continued unabated.In and around the capital on Monday, seven car bombs killed 20 people while authorities said they found the dumped bodies of three men and a woman. All were shot in the head and they appear to have been tortured.Seven people were killed in two separate car bombs -- one of which was detonated by a suicide attacker -- in the town of Mahmudiyah, just south of the capital.Thirteen others were killed by vehicles rigged with explosives in the Baghdad neighbourhoods of Baladiyat, Hurriyah, Sadr City and Dura.The killings in particular are a reminder of Iraq's brutal 2006-2007 Sunni-Shiite sectarian war, when corpses were often found abandoned on the streets, with the victims bearing signs of torture.North of Baghdad in restive Diyala province, separate attacks on security forces left two soldiers dead, while bombings also struck in ethnically mixed Kirkuk province, wounding three people.January's death toll of more than 1,000 killed nationwide was the highest monthly figure since April 2008, according to government data.Shootings have largely targeted security forces and civil servants, while bombings have ripped through both Sunni and Shiite areas, striking markets, commercial streets, cafes and other areas where civilians gather.

Obama to visit Saudi Arabia in March: White House

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President Barack Obama will travel to ally Saudi Arabia in March, following clear signs of disquiet in Riyadh about his Middle Eastern policies and nuclear talks with Iran.Obama will fly to meet King Abdullah on a trip added onto existing visits to the Netherlands, Brussels and Vatican City, the White House said in a statement on Monday.The White House said that Obama planned to talk to the king about the strategic relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia and Gulf and regional security, peace in the Middle East, countering violent extremism and other issues of prosperity and security.Prominent members of the Saudi national security establishment have made no secret about their skepticism towards Obama's policies in the Middle East, especially since the emergence of Arab Spring revolutions in early 2011.Saudi Arabia expressed anger to its long-time US partner after Obama stepped back from the brink of launching military strikes on Syria last year to punish the use of chemical weapons.It has also expressed dissatisfaction that Washington has not done more to match its own efforts to support and arm rebel groups battling Iranian-backed President Bashar al-Assad in Syria.And Saudi Arabia also reacted with caution to news of an interim nuclear deal between world powers, including the United States, and Iran reached in December.Saudi ambassador to Britain, Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz, wrote in a commentary in The New York Times in December that the West's policies on Iran and Syria are a dangerous gamble. The ambassador warned that Saudi Arabia would act in the region to secure its interests with or without its Western partners.Obama last visited Saudi Arabia in the first year of his presidency, in 2009, and welcomed the king to the White House a year later.

Final nuclear deal possible within six months: Iran

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BERLIN (AFP) - Irans foreign minister said Monday that he believed a final deal with world powers over Tehrans contested nuclear programme was possible within six months.Mohammad Javad Zarif made the comment in an address to a political think tank in Berlin, a day after pledging good faith in the next round of talks later this month aimed at dispelling Western fears.He noted that under an interim accord between Iran and the so-called P51 -- the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany -- which took effect last month, a 12-month deadline had been set for implementing the final agreement.But I believe we can do it by July 20th, thats the first six months, and I believe we should do it, and I believe its possible to do it, Zarif told the German Council on Foreign Relations.World powers hold another round of talks with Iran on February 18 after reaching the initial accord in November to curb uranium enrichment and open up nuclear facilities to allay concerns that Tehran is seeking to acquire atomic weapons.Zarif told the Munich Security Conference on Sunday after a rare meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry that Iran would enter those talks with political will and good faith to reach an agreement.Not only do we see nuclear weapons as not augmenting our security, but even the perception that we pursue nuclear weapons is a danger to our security, he said in Berlin on Monday.And he added that Iran would never initiate a conflict and sought regional stability. We will never start a war against anyone, he said.Tehran has always insisted its nuclear programme is for peaceful ends only.But the West, unconvinced and worried by signs of possible atomic weapons development, imposed ever tighter sanctions hoping to prevent Iran from getting to a break-out point.

Football: Chelsea raid robs Man City of home comforts

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MANCHESTER (AFP) - Chelsea defied Manchester City's scintillating home form with a superb 1-0 victory at the Etihad Stadium on Monday that injected fresh intrigue into the Premier League title race.Imperious in recent weeks, City were looking to reclaim top spot from Arsenal and move six points above Chelsea, but it was the visitors who prevailed thanks to a 32nd-minute bullet by Branislav Ivanovic.City had won all 11 of their previous home league games this season, losing only to European champions Bayern Munich on home turf, while it was the first time they had failed to score at the Etihad in the league since November 2010.The hosts had been seeking a ninth successive league win, but instead Jose Mourinho's Chelsea were left to celebrate a home-and-away double, having beaten City 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in October's reverse fixture.Despite the result, Mourinho played down his side's chances of winning the league, insisting City were still the favourites.This season is about evolution. We can (win the title) if they (City) lose it, said the Chelsea manager.Arsenal are working for many, many years for the evolution of their team. What we are doing this season is what Arsenal have been building to for years.Mourinho also saw his team hit the woodwork on three occasions, but Ivanovic's vicious strike proved enough as they moved level on points with City, two points shy of leaders Arsenal.It's just three points. Now we have 42 more points to play for, said City manager Manuel Pellegrini.Chelsea played very well, but we had important players out missing. A lot of things like this affect the result, but even so, I don't think we deserved to lose the game.City were without top scorer Sergio Aguero due to injury, while Martin Demichelis had to fill in for the injured Fernandinho in central midfield, but the hosts attacked with their usual abandon nonetheless.Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech was obliged to race to the edge of his area to clear inside the first minute, before Alvaro Negredo rolled Gary Cahill and shot over.Aleksandar Kolarov whipped in a cross that narrowly eluded Yaya Toure, who then clipped a shot just over from the edge of the box before striding to the byline and teeing up David Silva to sweep an effort narrowly wide.Edin Dzeko curled off-target after giving David Luiz the slip, but City's gung-ho advances left them exposed at the back and Joe Hart had to save from Ramires in the 27th minute after a cut-throat Chelsea counter.It was a reminder of the visitors' pace on the break and five minutes later another raid saw them go ahead.Vincent Kompany did well to block from Ramires, who had been picked out by Eden Hazard, but as the ball rolled to the edge of the box Ivanovic met it with a devastating left-foot drive that flew into the bottom-left corner.With City rattled, the irrepressible Hazard worked Hart with a low strike before skipping past Pablo Zabaleta and crossing for Samuel Eto'o, who could only slam against the crossbar from a narrow angle.An exchange of chances saw both sides go close early in the second half, with Toure drilling a shot a whisker wide at one end before Nemanja Matic clipped the post with a 30-yard thunderbolt at the other.Pellegrini sent on Stevan Jovetic for Negredo in the 56th minute, but Chelsea continued to threaten, with Cahill heading against the post from an in-swinging Willian corner.The hosts responded, Dzeko miscuing from a Zabaleta centre, while Silva drew a fine one-handed save from Cech with a dipping free-kick before clattering the ball wide from another Kolarov cross.Forced deeper and deeper as the game wore on, Chelsea were incensed when City defender Matija Nastasic was only shown a yellow card for a last-man foul on substitute Oscar on the halfway line.Jovetic then forced Cech into another eye-catching save with a shot from range in injury time, but Chelsea were to have the last laugh.

Tennis: Federer to play in Davis Cup quarter-final tie

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PARIS (AFP) - Former tennis men's world number one Roger Federer tweeted on Monday he would play for Switzerland in their Davis Cup quarter-final with Kazakhstan in early April.The 32-year-old, for whom the Davis Cup remains one of the few major titles to elude him, played in last weekend's 3-2 victory over last year's finalists Serbia.I will line up with my friends, captain Seve and STAN against KazakhSTAN in April, tweeted Federer, referring to non-playing skipper Severin Luthi and his team-mate and recent Australian Open champion Stanislas Wawrinka.Federer, ranked eighth in the world, and Wawrinka, ranked third, should have more than enough firepower to beat Kazakhstan, who edged Belgium in their first round tie, in the quarter-final which takes place in Switzerland from April 4-6.

Boxing: Klitschko set for April title defence against Leapai

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BERLIN (AFP) - Wladimir Klitschko will defend his world heavyweight title against Australias Alex Leapai in Oberhausen, Germany on April 26, organisers have announced.Klitschko, whose elder brother Vitali is now a leading figure in the opposition to the Ukrainian government, holds the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO belts and has his sights set on the WBC title left vacant by Vitali.I am wary, but I will prepare myself as well as I can and Im looking forward to a great challenge, said Klitschko, who will turn 38 in March and has recently spent much of his time alongside his brother in the protests against Ukrainian leader Viktor Yanukovych in the capital Kiev.Leapai, 34, has a 30-4-3 career record since turning professional in 2004, while Klitschko is 61-3.Everyone talks to me about Wladimirs 61 victories and how great he is, but all Im thinking about are his three defeats against opponents who cant strike as hard as I can, said Leapai in a statement.

Cancer cases set to rise by half by 2030: UN

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PARIS (AFP) - New cases of cancer will rise by half by 2030, reaching 21.6 million per year compared to 14 million in 2012, the UN said on Monday in a global analysis of the scourge.Cancer deaths, meanwhile, will likely rise from 8.2 million to 13 million per year as the worlds population grows and ages and more people adopt risky lifestyle habits, said the report compiled by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).It took aim at Big Tobacco, saying its sales drive was inextricably linked to a likely surge in lung cancer.Released on the eve of World Cancer Day, the report was compiled by more than 250 scientists from over 40 countries. It is the first such overview in six years.World Health Organisation (WHO) Director General Margaret Chan, whose agency oversees the IARC, said the overall impact from cancer would unquestionably hit developing countries the hardest.These nations are already grappling with poverty-associated cancers caused by infection or disease, she said.Added to that will be cancers blamed on more affluent lifestyles -- high tobacco and alcohol use, eating processed foods and not exercising enough.IARC director Christopher Wild said the focus should be on prevention.The particularly heavy burden projected to fall on low- and middle-income countries makes it implausible to treat our way out of cancer, even the highest-income countries will struggle to cope with the spiralling costs of treatment and care, he said.Cancer overtook heart disease as the number one cause of death in the world in 2011.New cases will likely rise to 19.3 million in 2025, with 11.4 million deaths, said Wild. By 2035, new cases would number about 24 million per year.The report found a slight gender bias: 53 percent of cancer cases and 57 percent of deaths were among men.In men, cancer most often attacked the lungs (16.7 percent) followed by the prostate (15 percent), colorectum (10 percent), stomach (8.5 percent), and liver (7.5 percent).For women, cancer was most common in the breast (25.2 percent), colorectum (9.2 percent), lung (8.7 percent), cervix (7.9 percent) and stomach (4.8 percent).There were also regional imbalances: more than 60 percent of the worlds cancer cases and 70 percent of deaths occurred in Africa, Asia and Central and South America, said the World Cancer Report.Measured as a proportion of the population, however, high-income countries in North America and western Europe as well as Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, had higher figures.Cancers of the breast, colorectum and prostate were more typical of the industrialised world, said the report, and those of the liver, stomach and oesophagus more common in low-income countries.

Oil sands pollution two to three times higher than thought

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - The amount of harmful pollutants released in the process of recovering oil from tar sands in western Canada is likely far higher than corporate interests say, university researchers said Monday.Actual levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) emissions into the air may be two to three times higher than estimated, said the findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a peer-reviewed US journal.The study raises new questions about the accuracy of environmental impact assessments on the tar sands, just days after a US State Department report said the controversial Keystone pipeline project to bring oil from Canada to Texas would have little impact on climate change or the environment.Current, government-accepted estimates do not account for the evaporation of PAHs from wastewater pools known as tailings ponds, which are believed to be a major source of pollution, said researchers at the University of Toronto.According to corporate interests which are responsible for projecting their environmental impact, the Athabasca oil sands beneath Alberta, Canada -- which hold the third largest reserve of crude oil known in the world -- are only spewing as much pollution into the air as sparsely populated Greenland, where no big industry exists.Lead study author Frank Wania, a professor in the department of physical and environmental sciences, described the corporate estimates as inadequate and incomplete.If you use these officially reported emissions for the oil sands area you get an emissions density that is lower than just about anywhere else in the world, he told AFP.Only with a complete and accurate account of the emissions is it actually possible to make a meaningful assessment of the environmental impact and of the risk to human health, he added.

Oil drops after tepid US, Chinese manufacturing data

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NEW YORK (AFP) - Oil prices slid Monday after weak manufacturing data in the United States and China fueled worries about demand in the world's two biggest oil consumers.New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in March, ended the trading session at $96.43 a barrel, down $1.06 from Friday's close.The European benchmark, Brent North Sea crude for March, shed 36 cents to settle at $106.04 a barrel in London trade.The WTI contract fell sharply in morning trade, in tandem with US equities, after the Institute for Supply Management reported a surprisingly abrupt slowdown in US manufacturing activity in January.The ISM's purchasing managers index (PMI) sank to 51.3 from 56.5 in December, with the new orders component almost stalling.The first notion is to blame the very cold weather and there is probably something to that. Unseasonable cold weather sneaked all the way down to the south. But weather rarely has a pronounced impact on manufacturing, said Robert Brusca, chief economist at FAO Economics.The ISM report added to market pressures after China reported on Saturday that manufacturing activity slipped to a five-month low in January, confirming a slowdown in factory activity in the world's top energy consumer.China's manufacturing PMI fell to 50.5, barely above the 50 level between expansion and contraction, from 51.0 in December.Monday's oil market fall is easily a function of the manufacturing reports, below anybody's wildest expectations in the US, and with the Chinese both private and government numbers in the last days, said Bob Yawger of Mizuho Securities.The new data imply that global demand will not be as strong as previously thought, he said, noting that a large share of energy demand orginates in manufacturing.Desmond Chua, analyst at traders CMC Markets, said investors will be keeping a close watch on US January job creation and unemployment data due out on Friday.Investors will be focused on the jobs data to see if the disappointing December numbers are a one-off as the US Federal Reserve has said, or if it is the start of something larger, he said.

Euro recovers slightly after last week's losses

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NEW YORK (AFP) - The euro rebounded slightly against the dollar Monday after sharp losses last week, helped by fresh data showing some unexpected weakness in the US economy.But the yen gained on both as continued global turbulence pushed traders to that safe haven.At 2200 GMT, the euro climbed to $1.3529, compared to $1.3487 late Friday. The dollar fell to 100.94 yen from 102.03 yen, and the euro dropped to 136.58 yen from 137.61.The market took its first cues from purchasing managers indexes for the manufacturing sectors in China and Europe.The fall of the Chinese PMI to just short of contraction territory generated worry for the global economy, while an upside surprise in the eurozone helping the euro.The dollar index began a decline near the start of the London session on better-than-expected releases of the manufacturing PMIs in France, Germany and the eurozone, said Benjamin Spier at DailyFX.The sharp drop in the ISM manufacturing PMI for the United States, from 56.5 in December to 51.3 in January, sent shivers through the markets, sparking a two-percent selloff of stocks on Wall Street.While some downplayed the downturn in the US indicator to a spate of bad weather, others said it underscored unexpected weakness in the economy, coming after poor reports on car sales, jobs and housing.There may be a silver lining: many of the ISM survey's respondents reported that consistently inclement weather during January was a veritable obstacle to growth, said Christopher Vecchio, currency analyst at DailyFX.The British pound dropped to $1.6309 from $1.6435, while the dollar slipped to 0.9005 Swiss franc from 0.9060 franc.

Cricket: Pakistan blasts ICC revamp plan

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LAHORE (AFP) - The Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday lashed out over controversial plans to reform cricket's governing body, describing the proposed revamp as unjust.Moves to restructure the International Cricket Council (ICC) to hand power to India, Australia and England, the game's financial powerhouses, were passed in principle during a board meeting in January.In an in-house meeting, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) termed the proposed plan as not in line with the principle of equity nor in the interest of game of cricket.Members of the PCB's governing board said in a statement that they had serious concerns over the planned revamp proposed by the cricket boards of India, Australia and England to give their countries a greater say in the running of the game. It comes after Pakistani cricket legend Imran Khan on Friday blasted the proposals, saying they would take the game back to the days of colonialism.The PCB said it had asked asked chairman Zaka Ashraf to seek guidance from Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and to apprise him on this matter of immense significance and of national interest, which will have wide reaching impact on future of cricket in Pakistan.The PCB said it had received a detailed presentation on the proposal, which it would discuss at the next ICC board meeting.No international cricket has been played in Pakistan since 2009, when militants attacked the visiting Sri Lankan team, and Khan has warned the new proposals would hit his home country hardest.South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are now the only three of the ten ICC full members who are still against the report, which will next be put on table at the ICC meeting in Singapore on February 8.The plan needs approval from eight of the ten ICC members.

New Zealand favourites for India Tests: Hadlee

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WELLINGTON (AFP) - New Zealand legend Richard Hadlee has declared the Black Caps slight favourites for the two-Test series against India beginning this week, despite the gulf in the teams world rankings.Hadlee, New Zealands best-ever cricketer with 431 Test wickets and 3,124 runs, said the home side would take enormous confidence from their shock 4-0 one-day series win over India.He said while India, second in the Test rankings, could not be underestimated, the eighth-ranked New Zealanders had all the momentum heading into the series.Lets face it, theyre a very, very good side, but at the moment we might go in a little bit as favourites because weve got a roll on at the moment, he told Radio Sport.New Zealand have already defied the rankings with their one-day series win, in the process sending India from first to second in the ODI standings and lifting their own ranking from eighth to seventh.Hadlee said replicating that success in the Test arena would be a difficult feat for the Black Caps.We know that were very competitive in T20 and one-day matches, I think we can take anyone on in those formats, he said.Test cricket is going up another level, it will be a real test for them.The first Test starts in Auckland on Thursday.
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