Thursday 9 October 2014

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

National Security Committee meets today

Posted:

ISLAMABAD (Online) - Keeping in view the increasingly brazen aggression on Line of Control and Working Boundary, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif summoned an emergency meeting of National Security Council today (Friday).The PM Sharif will chair the NSC meeting at 10:00am today, with all three services chiefs, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Defence Minister, Interior Minister and Minister for Information, in attendance.The meeting will be briefed about the latest situation at the Pak-India working boundary and LoC. Meantime, Sartaj Aziz, the advisor to PM on National Security, will put forward the government stance over the deteriorating situation spawned by uncalled-for Indian aggression.It should be mentioned here that the unprovoked Indian fire has hitherto claimed lives of at least 13 innocent Pakistanis.The meeting will also take stock of Pakistan army’s achievements in the Zarb-e-Azb operation against the terrorists in North Waziristan Agency.

PTI 'tsunami' to hit Multan today

Posted:

MULTAN (Dunya News) - (Dunya News) - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) will hold a public meeting at the Ibne Qasim Football Stadium, Multan today (Friday).Preparations to hold public meeting at the Ibne Qasim Football Stadium are in full swing. More than 35,000 chairs have been set up at the stadium. The ground has also been decorated with flexes and large posters emblazoned with Khan’s pictures.Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan and other party leaders are scheduled to address the public meeting.Police have made fool proof security arrangement for the rally. About 2,000 policemen have been deployed by the provincial government to ensure security at the venue.

Ban Ki-moon asks India, Pakistan to resolve issues through negotiations

Posted:

UNITED NATIONS (Agencies) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged India and Pakistan to resolve their outstanding issues through negotiations.The move came as tension along Line of Control and Working Boundary escalated between the two countries over the last three days.Asked to comment on the incidents, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the Secretary-General has always called upon India and Pakistan to resolve their issues diplomatically and through discussion.

UN member states owe world body about $3.5 billion

Posted:

UNITED NATIONS (AP) U.N. member states owe the world body about $3.5 billion for its regular operating budget and far-flung peacekeeping operations, the U.N. management chief said Thursday.Yukio Takasu told reporters after briefing the General Assemblys budget committee that as a whole the financial situation of the United Nations is very sound and generally good except the regular budget.The funding gap for the regular budget is just over $950 million including about $800 million owed by the United States, $77 million by Brazil and $28 million by Venezuela, he said.The General Assembly approved a two-year budget of $5.53 billion in late December to cover the United Nations regular operations in 2014-2015, cutting it for a second successive time.Takasu said the U.N. only has $35 million in cash for the regular budget, which is a bit alarming. It has two reserve funds totaling about $384 million that it can dip into, but the total of $419 million is low, he said.The regular budget is very tight and we have to watch very carefully, Takasu said. We have very small reserves so (the) financial health of the organization totally depends on how quickly and how much member states can pay to us.Member states also owe about $2.6 billion to the separate U.N. peacekeeping budget, Takasu said.France owes the most $356 million followed by the United States which must pay $337 million and Italy around $250 million, he said.An official at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations said those numbers were distorted because the U.N.s fiscal year begins on January 1 and the American fiscal year begins on October 1. The United States pays its regular budget assessment at the end of the calendar year in which it is due, the official said.The official said this discrepancy accounts for $621 million of the outstanding dues to the regular budget reported by the U.N.The remaining amounts in both the regular and peacekeeping budget are attributable to arrears that date back more than a decade and a half, the official said.French diplomats said the $337 million debt was not unusual as there is always a technical delay of a few months between the time the French government receives assessments for U.N. contributions and the time the funds are made available to pay such contributions.The U.S. official and French diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.The United Nations also owes $1.2 billion to member states that contribute troops and equipment to peacekeeping operations which Takasu said is rather high.But he said the U.N. is going to pay troop contributing countries $500 million in the coming days and more in November and December to hopefully bring the amount it owes down to $501 million.Takasu said 29 countries have paid all their assessments, which also include payments for U.N. tribunals and the recent renovation of U.N. headquarters.

UEFA discusses adding debt to financial limits

Posted:

LONDON (AP) UEFA could extend its Financial Fair Play regulations to punish heavily-indebted clubs, with possible changes set to be discussed at a meeting with clubs next week.European footballs governing body requires clubs to approach break-even on football-related business, punishing clubs including Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain whose wealthy owners cover heavy losses.While Manchester City is debt-free, clubs such as Manchester United and Barcelona, which have heavy liabilities, could fall under any debt-level restrictions added to FFP.Barcelonas debt was recently recorded at 287 million euros ($365 million), while Manchester Uniteds debt resulting from the 2005 leveraged takeover was given as 342 million pounds ($550 million) in the latest accounts. Strong commercial operations help United and Barcelona to finance their debt.We are now focused on losses, and to repay the debt is part of the loss that the club can make at the end of the season, UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino said Thursday in London. But certainly the question of debt is something that can be put on the table.That is due to happen on Monday at a meeting UEFA is hosting with clubs.Infantino confirmed an impending rule change in the Champions League, with top-seed status only to given to the winners of the highest-ranked leagues and the titleholder. The group-stage change just has to be ratified in December by UEFAs executive committee, Infantino said.People had difficulties in understanding how the champion of a country is in a lower pot than the third ranked in that country, Infantino said.Currently, UEFA ranks clubs over five years of results, leaving national champions Man City, Juventus and PSG among No. 2-seeded teams this season. Arsenal and FC Porto, who placed fourth and third in their respective leagues last season, were included in Pot 1, so avoided stronger teams such as Barcelona and Real Madrid in the group-stage draw.The countries given top-seed status were Spain, England, Germany, Italy, Portugal, France and Russia, with the eighth place in the pot assigned to the holders.Infantino was speaking at the Leaders Sport Business Summit in London. Here are other headlines from the gathering at Chelseas Stamford Bridge stadium.___WATCH WATCH: The saga of the luxury watches given in World Cup gifts bags remains a damaging issue for FIFA. Long-standing executive committee member Michel DHooghe described the $27,000 Parmigiani watch he and 64 others received from the Brazilian federation as a poisonous present.I have been in football 42 years and received many watches in my career, the Belgium official said. It is a classical present in football, so I did not need that watch.FIFAs ethics investigator ruled that the watches must be returned by Oct. 24 For DHooghe, that has meant asking for the time piece back from an acquaintance.I am to be humiliated towards that person to ask for that watch back, DHooghe said. I asked the person to whom I gave it to give it back.QATAR CRITICISM: Few high-profile players speak out against FIFA, but Chelsea goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer told delegates that the conduct of world footballs governing body is his biggest disappointment in football.The 42-year-old former Australia goalkeeper campaigned unsuccessfully for his country to land the 2022 World Cup, which was awarded to Qatar. Schwarzer said if FIFA wants to be trusted, it should not resist publishing the corruption investigation report into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding contests.I find it really, really disappointing to see a global body that has so little trust globally, from anyoneeven the members of the game, Schwarzer said. It is such a shame to see football being run how its being run.

Guilty plea in brutal sex trafficking ring

Posted:

MIAMI (AP) A man has pleaded guilty for his role in a brutal sex trafficking ring where he coerced young victims into prostitution to pay off smuggling debts.Miami U.S. Attorney officials said Thursday that Rafael Alberto Cadena-Sosa pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of holding a person in involuntary servitude.Authorities say the 45-year-old Mexican national kept a young, undocumented Mexican girl in involuntary servitude from 1996 to 1997. He allegedly beat, raped and threatened to harm her family to force her into prostitution to pay off a smuggling debt.According to court records, Cadena and other members of the organization recruited young women and girls in Veracruz, Mexico, and lured them to the United States on false promises of legitimate jobs. Once in the U.S., the defendants imposed heavy smuggling debts, and forced them into prostitution for twelve hours a day.

Obama wants election about economy, not him

Posted:

SANTA MONICA, California (AP) President Barack Obama is increasingly touting the economic recovery in a bid to help his party retain narrow control over the Senate in November elections, a campaign strategy fraught with risk at a time when his popularity is down and many Americans are frustrated that their lives have not improved despite the emergence from recession.The White House is betting that Obamas tight embrace of the economic recovery and populist proposals for gender pay equity and a higher minimum wage will galvanize his core supporters and persuade fence-sitting independents to vote for Democratic candidates.While noting that hes not on the ballot in this election, Obama has become fond of saying that his policies are at stake. The line has prompted a reflexive flinch from Democrats who are trying to fend off a concerted Republican campaign to link Democratic opponents to the president.Addressing young entrepreneurs Thursday at a startup center in California, Obama highlighted his economic record for the third time in eight days.A lot of you entered into the workforce during the worst financial crisis and then the worst recession since the Great Depression, he told the gathering of mostly millennials, those born after 1980. You are coming out of this recession with the best educated, most diverse, most digitally fluent generation in American history.For Democrats, the problem is not Obamas message; its the pitchman. The messenger is not the most popular guy on the planet right now, said Democratic pollster Mark Mellman.Public opinion polls show substantial support for Obamas proposals to raise the minimum wage, seek pay equity for women and close corporate tax loopholes. But on the economic issues hes most associated with the fitful recovery from the Great Recession and his health care law the American public is not with him.A September AP-GfK poll found 40 percent approve and 58 percent disapprove of his handling of the economy, and that 41 percent approve and 58 percent disapprove of his handling of health care. Overall, Obamas national approval ratings are 44 percent, compared to 51 percent who disapprove, according to the latest numbers from Gallup.That said, Obama does have an economic story to tell. Unemployment has dropped from a high of 10 percent in 2009 to 5.9 percent last month. The economy grew last quarter at a better clip than many expected. The stock market has rallied to record highs.He inherited a federal deficit of more than a trillion dollars; the deficit has been cut by more than half to $486 billion.But, to the frustration of the White House, that message hasnt gained much traction against a headwind of nearly stagnant wage growth.An awful lot of Americans, they read in the paper that the economy is growing, but they havent seen their own paychecks advance, they havent seen their old opportunities grow and they havent seen their own children get good job offers, Republican pollster White Ayres said.Ayres recently conducted a joint poll with Democratic pollster Stan Greenberg for NPR and discovered that in states with closely contested Senate races, both Republicans and Democratic voters were equally energized.Its all about the independents in those states, he said. The independents are going to be moved more than anything else by the reality of the economy they feel in their daily lives. At least at this point, far too few have felt a significant recovery.Its a point not lost on the White House. Last week, after describing the recoverys trajectory, Obama added: The facts that I just laid out dont mean that there arent a lot of folks out there who are underpaid, theyre underemployed, theyre working long hours, theyre having trouble making ends meet.As a result, Obama is also pushing his proposals to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, to ensure equal pay for women, to overhaul the immigration laws and provide universal pre-school for children as an effort to create contrasts with Republicans who have opposed those efforts.The president does believe there is a clear choice for voters across the country between candidates who are supportive of policies that will benefit the middle class, and candidates who are supportive of policies that will benefit those at the top in the hopes that the benefits will trickle down to the middle class, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

Women don't need to ask for raise:Microsoft CEO

Posted:

ARIZONA (AP) -- Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says women dont need to ask for a raise. They should just trust the system one that at technology companies is overwhelmingly male.Nadella spoke Thursday at an event for women in computing held in Arizona. He was asked to give his advice to women who are uncomfortable requesting a raise.He replied that women should have faith that the system will give them the right raises as they go along. He added that not asking for a raise is good karma.Nadella was interviewed by Maria Klawe, the president of Harvey Mudd College and a Microsoft director. She told him she disagrees, drawing cheers from the audience. She suggested women do their homework on salary information and first practice asking with people they trust.

Tesla expected to introduce all-wheel-drive system

Posted:

LOS ANGELES (AP) Electric carmaker Tesla Motors is expected to unveil its first all-wheel-drive system Thursday night.Tesla hasnt confirmed what it will show at the glitzy event outside Los Angeles. The only hint came last week, when CEO Elon Musk tweeted, About time to unveil the D and something else.But industry analysts believe the D refers to a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive system.Teslas only current vehicle, the Model S sedan, is rear-wheel drive. That has limited sales in snowier climates and in Europe.Analysts say Tesla needs an all-wheel-drive system to compete with other luxury cars from Mercedes-Benz and Audi. Sales have dipped in the United States this year.Tesla has said that its Model X crossover, which goes on sale next year, will have all-wheel drive.

Shiite rebels among 67 killed in Yemen bombings

Posted:

SANAA (AP) - Two suicide bombings in Yemen killed nearly 70 people on Thursday, with one targeting an anti-government rally by Shiite rebels who control Sanaa, leaving body parts strewn across a street in the heart of the capital and escalating sectarian tensions in a country gripped by turmoil.The suicide bomber in Sanaa detonated his explosives-laden belt as he approached a security checkpoint run by Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, outside the anti-government rally, killing 47 people and wounding 75. Hours later, a suicide car bomber rammed a security outpost on the outskirts of the Arabian Sea port city of Mukalla, killing 20 soldiers and wounding 15.No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, but they bore the hallmarks of al-Qaidas powerful local affiliate, which for years has waged a campaign of suicide bombings and other attacks against security forces and government facilities despite U.S. drone strikes targeting its leaders.The Sunni extremist group al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula had warned it would target the Houthis, and the attack in Sanaa threatened to set off the kind of sectarian bloodletting that is ravaging Iraq and Syria.Yemen, an impoverished country whose rugged landscape and tribal society has long limited the reach of the central government, has been navigating a bumpy transition since long-ruling President Ali Abdullah Saleh agreed to step down following a 2011 uprising inspired by the Arab Spring.Over the last several months, the Houthis had moved south from their northern stronghold, winning a series of battles against tribal and other forces allied with the Islamist Islah party and ultimately seizing the capital on Sept. 21.The Houthis insist they want a greater share of power in a new national government, but their critics view them as a proxy of Shiite Iran bent on seizing power.Shortly after the Houthis seized the capital, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula claimed a suicide car bombing that killed one person at a Houthi field hospital and warned: You will see your bodies scattered and your heads flying.It would prove an eerie foretelling of the carnage visited upon Sanaa on Thursday.The attacker mingled among protesters as they approached the venue of the planned rally in the citys landmark Tahrir Street before detonating his explosives, according to security and health officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to media.The regional Al-Arabiyah news channel broadcast footage apparently taken by a security camera showing the exact moment of the blast. Many of some two dozen people shown in the video, all wearing long robes with jackets on top, dropped instantly, while others somehow ran away, apparently unscathed.The dead and wounded were taken to three hospitals. At the Al-Moayed hospital, an Associated Press reporter saw body parts piled up on the floor, and two severed heads placed next to headless bodies. Another body lay next to a leg that had been sheared off.There were at least six children in critical condition and some of the wounded arrived in hospital badly burnt, missing eyes or limbs.Blood pooled on the ground at the scene of the blast as volunteers scooped up body parts from the pavement. Sandals and other personal belongings were scattered about.State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. strongly condemns todays despicable attack against civilians as well as the attack on security forces.The Yemeni people have lived with senseless violence for far too long and the recent increase in hostilities against innocent civilians only undermines the progress Yemen has made in achieving meaningful reform since 2011, she said.U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also condemned the attacks, with his spokeswoman Vannina Maestracci calling them heinous criminal acts.The secretary-general underscores the importance of quickly implementing the recently signed peace and national partnership agreement and its annex, she told reporters at U.N. headquarters in New York.The Houthis had called the Sanaa rally to protest President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadis choice for new prime minister, Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, following a U.N.-brokered agreement to resolve the crisis. As tensions mounted, bin Mubarak asked Hadi early on Thursday to relieve him of the post.The rally went ahead anyway, with some 4,000 Houthis calling on Hadi to step down and chanting slogans against the United States and Saudi Arabia.Rebel leader Abdel-Malik al-Houthi had delivered a televised statement on Wednesday night, calling on supporters to rally against the choice of bin Mubarak. He said the nomination came after Hadi met with the U.S. ambassador to Yemen, and called the president a puppet in the hands of foreign powers.Blatant foreign interference is a form of circumventing the popular revolution, he said.

US-led coalition ramps up strikes on Syrian town

Posted:

MURSITPINAR (AP) - The U.S.-led coalition intensified its aerial bombardment of Islamic State positions Thursday in the Syrian border town of Kobani as the extremist group fought street battles with Kurdish forces and reportedly rushed in reinforcements.The battle for the town near the frontier with Turkey has emerged as a major early test for the air campaign aimed at rolling back and eventually destroying the extremist group. It has also strained ties between Washington and NATO-ally Turkey over the long-term U.S. strategy in Syria.Ankara has called for the creation of a buffer zone inside Syria to secure the border, but the White House and Pentagon said Wednesday the U.S. is not considering that option. Such a zone would be costly and complex to enforce.Columns of smoke rose over Kobani as warplanes buzzed overhead Thursday. Two strong explosions apparently from an airstrike echoed from the edge of the town, a cluster of low-slung concrete buildings nestled in rolling hills.The crackle of gunfire and blasts could be heard on the Turkish side, where people watched the fighting unfold from a stretch of farmland.The coalition airstrikes have forced some Islamic State militants out of Kobani.The U.S. Central Command said five airstrikes south of Kobani since Wednesday had destroyed an Islamic State group support building and two vehicles, and damaged a training camp. The strikes also hit two groups of Islamic State fighters, it said in a statement.Indications are that Kurdish militia there continue to control most of the city and are holding out against ISIL, it said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group, which controls large parts of Syria and Iraq.But the Pentagon has said the town may yet fall to the extremists because air power alone cannot prevent it.Despite the airstrikes overnight and into the morning, the Islamic State fighters managed to capture a police station in the east of Kobani, said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. It said 11 Islamic State fighters were killed, adding that Kurdish fighters captured four jihadis. The station was later struck by coalition jets.The Observatory, which relies on activists across Syria, said Kurdish forces had surrounded the jihadists near the station and that heavy fighting was underway.The Observatory said the militants had seized more than a third of Kobani, but Kurdish officials disputed that, saying their forces had recaptured several parts of the town.I can confirm that they dont control a third of the city. There is only a small part of Kobani under the control of Daesh, said local Kurdish official Idriss Nassan, using an Arabic acronym to refer to the Islamic State group.Both Nassan and the Observatory said more than 20 airstrikes have been conducted in the area since Wednesday afternoon.The fight for Kobani has brought Syrias civil war yet again to Turkeys doorstep, and the U.S. and its allies have pressed Ankara to take a more robust role in the coalition. Kurds have held massive demonstrations across Turkey in which they accuse the government, which has deployed its tanks just across the frontier, of doing nothing to save the town.Responding to the criticism, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said it was unrealistic to expect Turkey to launch a ground war against the Islamic State group on its own.Cavusoglu spoke at a news conference in Ankara with visiting NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, who said there was no easy solution for Kobani.ISIL poses a grave threat to the Iraqi people, to the Syrian people, to the wider region, and to NATO nations, Stoltenberg said. So it is important that the whole international community stays united in this long-term effort.Cavusoglu said Turkey is prepared to play a bigger part once a deal is reached with the coalition. Turkey will not hold back from carrying out its role, he said.Turkish officials have said that while they do not want Kobani to fall, they will not take on a greater role until the coalition outlines a broader strategy that also weakens Syrian President Bashar Assad, who at the moment is best positioned to benefit from any rollback of the Islamic State group.Ankara also is suspicious of the Syrian Kurdish forces fighting in Kobani, seeing them as an extension of the Kurdish PKK, which waged a long and bloody insurgency against Turkey.The U.S. special envoy for the coalition, retired Marine Gen. John Allen, was expected to travel to Turkey after a stop-over Thursday in Egypt in which he met with Egyptian and Arab League officials. Secretary of State John Kerry and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu have spoken at least twice this week.Islamic State militants launched their offensive on Kobani in mid-September, capturing several nearby Kurdish villages and steadily strengthening their control around the town. The fighting has forced at least 200,000 residents to flee over the frontier into Turkey.The Observatorys chief, Rami Abdurrahman, said more than 500 people have been killed in and around Kobani since the fighting began. He said the Islamic State group was rushing in reinforcements, indicating the extremists also view Kobani as a test of will.

Suicide attack kills 9 in Iraq

Posted:

BAGHDAD (AP) - Authorities in Iraq say a suicide car-bomb attack on a security checkpoint has killed nine people in a city northeast of Baghdad.Police officials say the attack Thursday afternoon took place when a suicide bomber drove his explosive-laden car into a police checkpoint in the city of Baqouba, 60 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of the capital. Some policemen were among those killed, and 11 other people were wounded.Hospital officials confirmed the casualties. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters.Iraq is in its worst crisis since the 2011 withdrawal of U.S. troops, as Sunni militant groups led by the al-Qaida breakaway Islamic State group have seized a third of the country since early this year.

UN chief: 20 times more Ebola aid needed

Posted:

WASHINGTON (AP) - The presidents of three Ebola-stricken West African nations made urgent pleas for money, doctors and hospital beds Thursday and representatives of nations gathered for a World Bank meeting promised to send more aid quickly.Our people are dying, said President Ernest Bai Koroma. He spoke by video from Sierra Leone to an Ebola summit at the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington.Koroma described devastating effects of this evil virus children made orphans, doctors and nurses dying, an overwhelmed medical system that cant keep up with the need.The worlds response hasnt kept pace with the spread of Ebola, Koroma said, and a tragedy unforeseen in modern times is threatening everyone.United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for a 20-fold surge in international aid to fight the outbreak and representatives gathered for a World Bank pledged medical evacuations for health care responders who catch the virus.For those who have yet to pledge, I say please do so soon, he said. This is an unforgiving disease.At the meeting here, President Alpha Conde of Guinea asked for money, supplies, medicine, equipment and training of health care workers.Our countries are in a very fragile situation, Conde said through a translator. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia also appeared by videoconference to seek a rapid increase in aid.World Bank President Jim Yong Kim endorsed pledges Thursday from the United States and United Nations to guarantee medical evacuations for health care workers responding to the crisis, an effort to ensure that enough doctors and nurses are willing to risk their lives to help stop the disease. No details were given at the meeting.Kim also said that more hospitals and local health centers must be built quickly to ensure that West Africans have faith that they can get the care they need in their own communities, and no longer fear that Ebola centers are places where people go to die.That is also the best way to stop the spread of Ebola into other nations and to counter the fear that magnifies its economic damage, Kim said.Trying to block your borders or isolate those countries in some way is not going to work, he said.Kim, a doctor who formerly led the World Health Organizations global AIDS treatment program, said studies of past disease outbreaks, such as the SARS virus, show that 80 percent to 90 percent of the economic impact comes from the fear factor that surrounds the outbreak.A World Bank report this week estimated that the economic toll of the largest Ebola outbreak in history could reach $32.6 billion if the disease continues to spread in West Africa through next year.Every dollar spent now may well be worth more than $20 or $30 spent in two months time, said David Nabarro, the U.N. special envoy on Ebola.The World Bank has committed $400 million to the three nations, and the International Monetary Fund is providing $130 million in emergency financing. The IMF stands ready to do more, said Managing Director Christine Lagarde, adding that the Ebola crisis presents a rare occasion when its good for nations to take on more debt.The United Nations has estimated it will cost nearly $1 billion to stop the Ebola outbreak.The U.N. and individual countries are sending money and aid, including troops coming from Britain and the United States to build treatment centers. Koroma said more help is urgently needed, requesting more than 5,000 doctors, nurses and medical support staff and 1,500 patient beds for Sierra Leone.

Spain crash, England cruise in Euro qualifiers

Posted:

Paris (AFP) - Defending European champions Spain suffered their first qualifying defeat in eight years Thursday when they slumped to a 2-1 loss against Slovakia while England made it two wins in two.Spain, who had opened their Euro 2016 campaign with a 5-1 mauling of Macedonia, exhibited all the faults which had led to their World Cup humiliation as Slovakia went top of Group C with a perfect six points.Former Chelsea midfielder Miroslav Stoch, now plying his trade at Al Ain in the UAE, struck three minutes from time in Zilina to condemn Vicente Del Bosques team to a first qualifying defeat since 2006, a streak lasting 36 matches.Slovakias Jan Durica and Martin Skrtel celebrate their victory during a Euro 2016 qualifing football match between Slovakia and Spain in Zilina on October 9, 2014 They trailed to a 17th-minute Juraj Kucka free-kick before Paco Alcacers strike eight minutes from time appeared to salvage a point.But with just three minutes left Slovakia launched a counter-attack as captain Marek Hamsik played substitute Michal Duris down the inside right to cross for Stoch to head home at the back post.I definitely didnt expect this result, it was unexpected, said Del Bosque.We should have scored more goals but we got hit with a deadly counter. This is football, we cant reproach the players. We were patient but we didnt manage to finish it off and their goalkeeper was outstanding.At a subdued Wembley, England made it two wins from two with a routine 5-0 defeat of whipping boys San Marino.Wayne Rooney took his international goal tally to 42 and forced Alessandro Della Valle into a late own goal, while Phil Jagielka, Danny Welbeck and substitute Andros Townsend also found the target.Englands defender Gary Cahill (L) in action during a Euro 2016 Qualifier football match between England and San Marino at Wembley Stadium in London, on October 9, 2014 Having won 2-0 away to Switzerland in their Group E opener, England have now prevailed in what are likely to be their hardest and easiest fixtures of the campaign. They play away to Estonia on Sunday.Job well done, said England manager Roy Hodgson. The crowd were fantastic. Theyve had an enjoyable night. We could have had more, but I cant fault the players. Im really pleased.At 5-0 when we lost the ball, we had three or four players sprinting back to win the ball back. That type of desire is very commendable.- Swiss bad to worse -The UEFA qualifiers logo before a UEFA Euro 2016 Group E qualifying football match between San Marino and Lithuania at the Serravalle stadium in San Marino on September 8, 2014 Switzerlands campaign went from bad to worse as the team which made the last-16 at the World Cup slumped to a 1-0 defeat in Slovenia.Milivoje Novakovic grabbed the winner from the penalty spot in Maribor in the 79th minute after Johan Djourou had brought down Kevin Kampl.The Swiss pressed for a point but were denied by a string of fine saves from Slovenia goalkeeper Samir Handanovic.Lithuania also made it two wins in two in the group with a 1-0 win over Estonia in Vilnius.Group G favourites Sweden and Russia fought out a 1-1 draw in Solna but Fabio Capellos Russians stay top on goal difference from Montenegro and Austria.Swedens midfielder Sebastian Larsson (R) and Russias midfielder Oleg Shatov vie for the ball on October 9, 2014 in Solna during the Euro 2016 qualifying football match Ola Toivonen scored a second-half equaliser for the Swedes who were missing injured striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.The Rennes forward cancelled out Dynamo Moscow forward Alexander Kokorins first-half opener as Sweden drew for the second time in as many group matches.Sweden should have claimed all three points but they missed a first half penalty awarded after Igor Smolnikov fouled Jimmy Durmaz in the area.Russian goalkeeper Igor Akinfeyev parried Sunderland midfielder Sebastian Larssons spotkick.Montenegro were held to an embarrassing 0-0 draw by Liechtenstein, playing their 100th international, in Vaduz.Liechtenstein held on despite having to field two goalkeepers -- first-choice Peter Jehle picking up an injury and having to be replaced by Cengiz Bicer.Austria edged Moldova 2-1 in Chisinau despite playing the last 10 minutes with 10 men.Marc Janko scored Austrias winner but was then sent off after David Alaba and Alexandru Dedov had swapped first-half penalties.

Modiano, 'modern-day Proust', wins Nobel Literature Prize

Posted:

Stockholm (AFP) - Frances Patrick Modiano won the Nobel Literature Prize on Thursday for his enigmatic novels rooted in the trauma of the Nazi occupation and his own loveless childhood.One of Frances most celebrated writers, the 69-year-old father of two, known for his shy, gentle manner, greeted news of his award as a bit unreal and said it felt as if it was happening to someone else.The Swedish Academy said it wanted to celebrate Modianos art of memory in capturing the lives of ordinary French people living under the Nazis during World War II.Hes a kind of Marcel Proust for our time, said Peter Englund, permanent secretary of the academy, praising a body of works that speak to each other, that echo off each other, that are about memory, identity and seeking.Peter Englund, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, announces Patrick Modiano of France as the winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Literature on October 9, 2014 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm They are small books... always variations on the same theme: about memory, about loss, about identity, about seeking.Speaking in Paris, hours after the prize was announced, the writer told reporters he was having difficulty taking in the news.It seems a bit unreal to me to be compared to other people I admired, he said, referring to other French authors such as Albert Camus who won the Nobel in 1957.- Literary archaeologist -The writer, who dedicated his win to his Swedish grandson, added: Its like experiencing a sort of disconnection, as if theres another person called me.French President Francois Hollande paid tribute to his considerable body of work which explores the subtleties of memory and the complexity of identity.Prime Minister Manuel Valls described Modiano as a writer of succinct, incisive literature... who is without doubt one of the greatest writers of recent years.Patrick Modiano: 2014 literature laureate Antoine Gallimard, the head of Modianos French publisher Gallimard, told AFP the author reacted to the news with his customary modesty.The award makes him the 15th French author to win the Nobel, which carries a prize sum of eight million Swedish kronor ($1.1 million, 878,000 euros). US authors have won on 12 occasions.Modiano has called the occupation of France during World War II the soil I grew up in.His father Alberto Modiano was an Italian Jew with ties to the Gestapo -- and to organised crime gangs -- who was spared from wearing the yellow star. His mother was a Flemish actress named Louisa Colpeyn. The pair met in Paris in 1942.Their son Patrick was born three years later, at the end of the war, in the Paris suburb of Boulogne, into a family whose complex background set the scene for a lifelong obsession with that dark period in history.- A bit unreal -Books of French writer Patrick Modiano, winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Literature, are displayed during a press conference of the Swedish Academy to announce the laureate at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm on October 9, 2014 Published when he was just 22, in 1967, his first novel La place de letoile (The Stars Place), was a direct reference to that mark of shame inflicted on the Jews.It was the first of many recreations of wartime Paris stuffed with meticulous detail -- street names, cafes, metro stations and real-life crime cases of the day -- earning him the moniker of literary archaeologist.His novels are also full of enigma, and winks to the reader: a critic once counted five characters from five different novels who all shared the same telephone number.Modianos work is also haunted by his cold upbringing -- once leading him to joke that his mothers heart was so cold her lap-sized pet chow-chow leapt from a window to its death.Englund said that in line with the Proust tradition, Modiano was looking for times past, but hes doing it in his very, very, own way.An employee of Japans Kinokuniya bookstore puts books by French author Patrick Modiano onto a bookshelf in Tokyo on October 9, 2014 This is not someone taking a bite of the madeleine cake and everything comes back to him, he told AFP, referring to the famous anecdote in Prousts Remembrance of Things Past when the protagonist bit into a tea-soaked cake which triggered a rush of childhood memories. Quite the opposite, this is someone really struggling to reach contact with the past.The eldest of two boys, Patrick Modiano spent long, unhappy periods in boarding school. His beloved brother Rudy died in 1957, when the author was still a boy, and he dedicated his early works to his memory.At the age of 17, Modiano broke all ties with his father, who died 15 years later and who he took to task in several of his books.Still a teenager, Modiano left school and began to write, by hand as he would continue to do throughout his life.I was not yet 20, but my memories date to before I was born, he has said.- Cold heart -The book Pour que tu ne te perdes pas dans le quartier by Patrick Modiano is pictured at the booth of publisher Gallimard at the book-fair in Frankfurt after he was announced as the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature on October 9, 2014 While his childhood has been a rich source of material, the author says he is not given to wallowing or soul searching.I have nothing to confess, nothing to clear up and I have no need for self-examination, he once said.I write these pages as you would write a resume, or an accident report, like a documentary and probably to be done with a life that was not mine.In 1972, Modiano was awarded the French Academys Grand Prize for Ring Roads, and the prestigious Goncourt Prize followed in 1978 for Missing Person.In 1996, he won the National Literature Grand Prize for his entire work. His latest book, Pour que tu ne te perdes pas dans le quartier (So you dont get lost in the neighbourhood) appeared this month.Apart from a long series of books, in the early 1970s, Modiano co-wrote the screenplay for Lacombe Lucien, a movie directed by Louis Malle focusing on French collaboration with the Nazis.Although translated into more than 30 languages, he is said to have trouble expressing himself in public and once refused a nomination to the elite Academie Francaise.Modiano will be presented with his award at a formal ceremony in Stockholm on December 10, the anniversary of prize founder Alfred Nobels death in 1896.Last years Nobel Literature Prize went to the Canadian short-story writer Alice Munro.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)