Monday 17 November 2014

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Mass murderer Charles Manson to marry in prison

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Los Angeles (AFP) - He may not be everyones idea of a good catch, but mass murderer Charles Manson has been granted a marriage license to wed a 26-year-old woman who has been visiting him in prison.Manson, 80, who is serving a life sentence for slaying seven people, plans to marry Afton Elaine Burton, 54 years his junior and described in US media as a slender brunette.He has received a marriage license, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation told AFP on Monday.The license was applied for on November 7, according to the website for Kings County, California, where Manson is in jail, but no date for the nuptials has been set.Manson has been in prison for more than four decades after the 1969 killings, which included the brutal murder of director Roman Polanskis wife, Sharon Tate, who was eight-and-a-half months pregnant.But Burton, who also calls herself Star, has said she and Manson are madly in love and already consider themselves married.Im completely with him, and hes completely with me. Its what I was born for, you know. I dont know what else to say, she told CNN in August of the now gray-haired killer, who has a swastika tattooed on his forehead.She said she had been following Mansons philosophy since she was a teenager and moved to Corcoran, where the convicted murderer is detained, to be closer to him.They talk every day and she visits him at California State Prison most weekends, Burton said.Manson was married twice before he was jailed, first to Rosalie Jean Willis from 1955 to 1958 and later to Candy Stevens between 1959 and 1963.He was sentenced to death in 1969 along with four of his disciples for having led the killing of seven people, but their sentences were later changed to life in prison.In 2012, Manson applied for parole but was denied release and is not eligible to apply again until 2027.Manson headed an apocalyptic cult that committed murders in upscale, mostly white neighborhoods of Los Angeles in order to blame the crimes on African Americans, in hopes of sparking a Helter Skelter race war.

Modi talks about 'shirtfronting'

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SYDNEY (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi injected some humour into his address to Australias parliament on Tuesday, using the term shirtfront to make fun of his host while also talking cricket.Modis official visit, the first by an Indian leader in 28 years, follows on from Prime Minister Tony Abbotts hosting of G20 world leaders in Brisbane on the weekend.(As) the third head of the government you are listening to this week, I do not know how you are doing this, Modi told members of parliament, who were addressed by Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Monday and Britains David Cameron last Friday.Maybe this is Prime Minister Abbotts way of shirtfronting youAbbott made shirtfront -- which describes a confrontation in Australian Rules Football -- a global concept when in October he threatened to do it to Russian leader Vladimir Putin at the G20 over the crisis in Ukraine.In the end, the two men were all smiles for the cameras.Modi is the second leader to use the obscure term in his address, after Cameron recalled his concern when Australias Foreign Minister Julie Bishop was purposefully heading his way at a summit in Italy.I wondered for a moment whether I was heading for what Im told we now need to call a shirtfronting, he said, before going on to say she had merely wanted to offer help to fight Ebola.Modis speech also included a reference to cricket, saying that both Australia and India celebrated the legend of Australian batsman Don Bradman and the class of Indias Sachin Tendulkar.But he noted this relationship broke down somewhat when Australian Shane Warne came along, mastering Indias traditional strength of spin bowling.I wish you the best for hosting a great and successful World Cup next year, he added, referring to the one-day tournament being hosted jointly by Australia and New Zealand in 2015.

Harvard sued over 'racial profiling'

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NEW YORK(AFP) - A nonprofit group filed a lawsuit Monday against Harvard University, accusing the world-famous Ivy League institution of racial profiling in its admissions policies.Students for Fair Admissions says Harvard limits the number of Asian Americans it admits while giving preference to other races, according to the Project on Fair Representation (PFR), a legal defense fund supporting the lawsuit.The university is engaging in a campaign of invidious discrimination, PFR said in a statement.White, African American and Hispanic applicants are given racial preferences over better qualified Asian Americans, it added, accusing Harvard of breaching civil rights laws and undermining the Fourteenth Amendment to the US constitution.Plaintiff the SFFA alleges that Harvard and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill violated the Supreme Courts 2013 ruling on strict scrutiny standards which says admissions should be conducted on race-neutral grounds to end race-based affirmative action policies, according to the PFR statement.The director of PFR vowed further action on race-based admissions policies at other universities in the United States.These two lawsuits are the first of what are expected to be several similar challenges to other competitive colleges that continue to unconstitutionally use racial preferences in admission decisions, said Edward Blum.SFFA said its members include highly qualified students that have been rejected from Harvard and Chapel Hill, and their parents.

Obama orders review of 'overseas terrorist-related' US policy

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President Barack Obama has ordered a comprehensive review of US policy on overseas terrorist-related hostage cases, a letter from the Pentagon has revealed.The missive surfaced just one day after the Islamic State group posted the beheading of yet another Western hostage, US aid worker Peter Kassig, in a grisly online video.In the letter, dated last Tuesday, the US undersecretary of defense for policy says the review will focus on examining family engagement, intelligence collection and diplomatic engagement policies.The president recently directed a comprehensive review of the US government policy on overseas terrorist-related hostage cases, Christine Wormuth said in the text posted on US news site The Daily Beast Monday.The letter was written to Republican Representative Duncan Hunter, who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, following an apparent request for action by the White House.The move, Wormuth said, comes as a result of the increased frequency of hostage-taking of Americans overseas, and the recognition of the dynamic threat posed by specific terrorist groups.Kassig, who took the name Abdul-Rahman after converting to Islam, was captured last year and became the fifth Western hostage beheaded by IS after American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning.Foleys mother, Diane, and father, John, defied government advice and began raising funds for a ransom but were told by US officials that they would be forbidden by law from paying.Sotloffs family as well said they were told by a White House counterterrorism official that they could face prosecution.US officials insist Washingtons opposition to the practice has made groups like Al-Qaeda or IS less keen to take Americans hostage.But the policy has left the United States at odds with European allies, several of which are believed to have secretly paid millions of dollars to save their nationals, including some held by the Islamic State group.The Department of Defense, as directed by the president and the secretary of defense, will continue to leverage all feasible means to secure the release of US persons held abroad, Wormuth wrote.The Pentagon revealed in August that US special forces were sent into Syria earlier this year to try to rescue American hostages but they came up empty-handed as the captives were not at the targeted location.This review will seek to integrate innovative and non-traditional solutions to result in recommended actions to improve interagency coordination and strengthen the whole-of-government approach led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the State Department, Wormuth wrote.The move comes as Washington prepares to double its military personnel in Iraq to up to 3,100 as part of the international campaign it heads against IS.

Palestinian bus driver found hanged in Jerusalem

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Jerusalem (AFP) - A Palestinian bus driver was found hanged in his vehicle in Jerusalem, sparking clashes Monday, after what Israel said was an apparent suicide but a colleague said looked like murder.The incident happened late on Sunday, with a supervisor finding his body at a bus depot in Har Hotzvim, an industrial zone in Jewish west Jerusalem, police said in a statement.Family members identified the victim as Yusuf Hasan al-Ramuni from Al-Tur on the Mount of Olives in annexed east Jerusalem. They ruled out suicide by the 32-year-old father of two.But results from an autopsy carried out on the body Monday with the familys consent found no evidence of foul play in his death, police said.No suspicion of criminal activity was found, said police spokeswoman Luba Samri in a statement after a port mortem was carried out at Abu Kabir forensic institute near Tel Aviv.Earlier, clashes erupted in the east Jerusalem neighbourhood of Abu Dis, where his family lives, as scores of protesters burned tyres and threw stones at police, who responded with tear gas and sponge rounds, AFP correspondent said.Demonstrators could also be seen trying to break down part of Israels towering concrete separation barrier which cuts through the neighbourhood, police and the correspondent said.The funeral in Abu Dis later Monday was attended by thousands of people, some of whom chanted revenge.Ramunis death comes after months of tension in Arab east Jerusalem following the kidnapping and murder of a Palestinian teenager, with police in the city on high alert for violence on either side.According to an initial investigation, it appears there is no suspicion of criminal activity, in other words a suicide, Samri said in her statement, reporting no signs of violence on the body.- Bruises on body -But fellow bus driver Muatasem Fakeh said he had seen evidence to the contrary.We saw signs of violence on his body, he told AFP.He was hanged over the steps at the back of the bus in a place where it would be impossible to hang yourself alone, he added.The victims brother, Osama al-Ramuni, said the family did not accept the verdict of suicide, saying his body had bruises on it, suggesting he had been tortured before his death.My brother had children and was a happy man. It is impossible that he killed himself, he told AFP.He had no problems that would make him do it, he said, adding -- before it was carried out -- that a post-mortem would reveal everything.We reject the suicide theory. We all know it was settlers who killed him, he said, using a common Palestinian euphemism for Jewish extremists.Militant group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, called on Palestinians to express their anger against this horrible, racist crime.In a separate statement, senior Palestine Liberation Organisation figure Hanan Ashrawi condemned Jewish extremist terrorism and the Israeli governments official incitement to violence.

EU sanctions separatists as Ukraine crisis deepens

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Brussels (AFP) - The EU agreed to blacklist more Ukrainian separatists Monday but stopped short of fresh sanctions against Russia, saying there was hope of restarting dialogue with Moscow to end the worst standoff since the Cold War.New European Union diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini said foreign ministers meeting in Brussels had raised the possibility of her visiting Moscow for talks to seek a solution to a crisis that has claimed 4,100 lives.But fresh fighting between Russian-backed rebels and Kievs forces underscored the challenges facing any peace efforts, as did Moscows tit-for-tat expulsion of several European diplomats.World leaders chastised Russian President Vladimir Putin at a glacial G20 summit in Brisbane at the weekend over Moscows role in the Ukraine bloodshed, causing him to fly home early.The main discussion today was how to re-engage in a dialogue, given that Russia is for sure part of the problem, but also part of the possible solution, Mogherini said after the Brussels meeting.She said the EU would add more separatists to the list of 119 individuals currently facing travel bans and asset freezes. Those previously targeted range from close Putin allies and Russian oligarchs to rebel leaders.A final decision on the new names is due at the end of November.The EU has long been divided over sanctions, initially limiting them to individuals after Russias annexation of Crimea in March, then broadening them to target the Russian economy after the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 in July over eastern Ukraine.Russia has denied backing the rebels but relations with the West are at their worstsince the fall of the Berlin Wall 25 years ago.Putin struck a defiant tone Monday, rejecting Western claims that Russia has sent troops and equipment into Ukraine to buttress the uprising, but saying righteous fighters would always get weapons.Moscow meanwhile said Monday it had expelled a German diplomat in retaliation for a diplomat being forced to leave Russias consulate-general in Bonn, while several Polish diplomats were expelled for spying.But in Brussels, Mogherini said several foreign ministers had urged her to go to Moscow for talks.She said she would visit Kiev as soon as a new government is formed following recent elections.Before deciding if its useful to go to Russia for me, first of all I would need physically and psychologically to prepare, she said with a laugh.But apart from that, we need... to check if the conditions are there for the meeting to be fruitful.As the former foreign minister of Italy, which has historically had close relations with Russia, Mogherinis appointment was initially opposed by some eastern EU states who thought she would be too cosy with Moscow.She would not say if EU leaders meeting in December were likely to add to the broader economic sanctions against Moscow, given reservations among some member states that rely on Russia for trade and gas.Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin urged Brussels to go further, calling for Brussels to send a clear message to Moscow, with robust sanctions if Russia continues to destabilise Ukraine.We need a very clear message identifying the further steps the EU is ready and committed to take if the situation on the ground deteriorates, Klimkin told AFP in an interview after talks with Mogherini.In the latest casualties in eastern Ukraine, seven Ukrainian soldiers and three police officers were killed in the past 24 hours, while one civilian was killed and eight wounded over the weekend, security officials said.An AFP reporter in the city heard fresh shelling early Monday.Meanwhile, workers spent a second day recovering wreckage from the doomed Malaysian Airlines plane, which was shot down en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur over rebel-controlled territory.The Dutch Safety Board said it went well, with the tail section of the plane being recovered, saying that the task could be completed within five days if the weather stays stable.At the G20 summit, Western leaders including US President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron had denounced Putins unacceptable actions in Ukraine.Cameron told parliament on Monday that Britain was ready to intensify sanctions despite the economic cost.

Suspected Western jihadists in 'evil' IS beheading video

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Beirut (AFP) - Authorities were on Monday investigating the suspected involvement of Western jihadists in the brutal video by the Islamic State group claiming the beheading of US aid worker Peter Kassig.The killing of Kassig and the simultaneous beheadings of at least 18 Syrian military personnel in the video sparked global horror, with US President Barack Obama calling it an act of pure evil.It was the latest in a series of atrocities by IS, a Sunni Muslim extremist group that has seized control of large parts of Iraq and Syria.The video showed the Syrian men kneeling on the ground each before a separate executioner, whose faces were uncovered.Among the militants shown beheading the Syrian servicemen were some known foreign fighters, including at least one Frenchman and possibly a Briton, an Australian and a Dane.French authorities identified one of the executioners as Maxime Hauchard, a 22-year-old from a small village in northern France who left for Syria in August last year.The Paris prosecutors office said circumstantial evidence confirms the involvement of a Frenchman in the decapitation of Syrian prisoners shown in an IS video released on Sunday.It added it was possible a second Frenchmen appeared in the video but said it was yet to confirm the individuals identity.- Lured by online videos -In July, Hauchard said in an interview with French television he had decided to join IS after watching videos online.The personal objective of everyone here is (to become a) shahid (martyr). That is the greatest reward, he said.Thousands of foreign fighters have flocked to join IS in Iraq and Syria, and experts say they are often among the most violent and brutal of the jihadists.A British-accented jihadist has been at the centre of previous IS beheading videos and appeared again in Sundays recording claiming Kassigs killing.The father of another British jihadist fighting with IS initially told the media he had also seen his son in the video, but later said he was mistaken.Britains Foreign Office refused to comment on speculation about the identity of the fighters in the video, but a spokesman said: We are analysing its contents.Kassig, who took the name Abdul-Rahman after converting to Islam, was captured last year and became the fifth Western hostage beheaded by IS after two US reporters and two British aid workers.Abdul-Rahman was taken from us in an act of pure evil by a terrorist group that the world rightly associates with inhumanity, Obama said.In the undated video released on Sunday, the jihadist stands above a severed head he claims is Kassigs and challenges Obama to send more troops to the region to confront IS.Here we are burying the first American crusader in Dabiq, eagerly waiting for the remainder of your armies to arrive, the militant says, referring to a northern Syrian town.Washington is preparing to double its military personnel in Iraq to up to 3,100 as part of the international campaign it is leading against the jihadists.Kassig, an Iraq war veteran, had risked his life to provide medical treatment and relief supplies to those suffering from Syrias civil war.- Unspeakable act of barbarism -Kassigs parents said they were incredibly proud of his humanitarian work to help Syrians trapped in a civil war.(He) lost his life as a result of his love for the Syrian people and his desire to ease their suffering, Ed and Paula Kassig said on Twitter.In Kassigs home state of Indiana, Governor Mike Pence called the killing an unspeakable act of barbarism.US Secretary of State John Kerry also used the word barbarism to describe IS on Monday, insisting the world would not be intimidated in the battle against it.Sundays video was substantially different from previous IS recordings of beheadings.Kassig was not shown alive in the footage, and no direct threats were made against other Western hostages.The video came as IS suffered battleground setbacks in Iraq supported by US-led air strikes, with government forces Saturday breaking the jihadists months-long siege of the countrys largest oil refinery.Monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday it had documented the execution of 1,429 people in Syria by IS in the five months since it declared the establishment of a caliphate in areas under its control.

COAS's first trip to US

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - Pakistans army chief is holding talks with top US generals and officials this week in the first visit to the United States by the countrys powerful military commander in four years, officials said Monday.General Raheel Sharifs trip comes against the backdrop of improved relations between the two governments with Washington encouraged by Pakistans offensive against Islamist militants in the countrys northwest.After arriving in Washington on Sunday, Sharif held talks at US Central Command in Tampa, Florida on Monday and was scheduled to meet the US Army chief, General Ray Odierno, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey and the deputy defense secretary, Robert Work, over the next two days, US officials told AFP.It was Sharifs first trip to the United States since he took over the post in November 2013, and the first of any Pakistani army chief since 2010.Sharifs predecessor had an often tense relationship with Washington amid accusations Islamabad was failing to take action against Haqqani extremists and other insurgents based in Pakistan that orchestrate attacks on American and NATO troops in Afghanistan.A senior US officer in the NATO-led force in Afghanistan, Lieutenant General Joseph Anderson, told reporters this month that Pakistani military operations in North Waziristan had fractured the Haqqani network.The Pakistani military campaign has very much disrupted their efforts here and has caused them to be less effective in terms of their ability to pull off an attack here in Kabul, Anderson said by video link from Kabul.US officials are also hopeful that a new president in Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani, can bolster cooperation and dialogue between Kabul and Islamabad, just as NATOs US-led force withdraws from the fight against the Taliban.Ghani traveled to Pakistan last week for talks with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai routinely accused Pakistan of backing the Taliban insurgency to destabilize his country as a hedge against Indian influence there.Pakistan was one of only three countries to recognize the hardline Taliban regime that ruled Kabul from 1996 until 2001. The regime was toppled by a US-led international military coalition following the September 11 attacks by the Al-Qaeda network, which the Taliban allowed to operate out of Afghanistan.COAS inUS:Visited Tampa,called on Comd CentCom Gen Llyod J.Austin.personally recd by him with mil honor guard-1/4 pic.twitter.com/eiZPOsb7Aa— AsimBajwaISPR (@AsimBajwaISPR) November 17, 2014 COAS in US:Tampa,Frank discussions on all issues.DGMO,DGISPR accompanied Gen Raheel.Focus on regional security,stability-3/4— AsimBajwaISPR (@AsimBajwaISPR) November 17, 2014

Tennis: Federer in Davis Cup fitness battle

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PARIS (AFP) - Switzerlands hopes of a first ever Davis Cup win lay in the balance on Monday as the team awaited word on just how badly Roger Federer had injured his back ahead of this weeks final against France in Lille.The 17-time Grand Slam winner shocked thousands of fans and his opponent Novak Djokovic in London Sunday evening when he withdrew from the final of the season-ending World Tour Championship saying he was not match fit.Ironically the player who helped inflict the back injury on the Swiss great was none other than Davis Cup teammate and close friend Stan Wawrinka.The two played a thrilling, but punishing semi-final on Saturday evening which Federer, 33, won in three gruelling sets, saving four match points along the way.Later in an on-court interview he told a hushed crowd that he had tried everything to be able to play in the prestigious tournament.I tried everything I could last night and today -- painkillers, rest -- until the very end, but I cant compete at this level with Novak.In a final like this and at my age, it would be too risky. I hope you understand.What was not clear, however, was just how badly injured he is.Federer has a history of back pain, but until last weekend he had been injury-free throughout a season in which he has played some superb tennis despite failing to add to his Grand Slam title haul.He is hoping that the back spasms he felt will clear over the next couple of days, allowing him to be able to begin adapting to the indoor claycourt that France as hosts have chosen for the final.There was some astonishment in the French press over how hard Federer and Wawrinka had gone at it in London, knowing that the Davis Cup final was only a few days away.Australian Open winner Wawrinka admitted that he could suffer psychologically and physically from the heart-breaking loss and there were unconfirmed reports of some friction between the two after the match.Swiss press reports said that Wawrinka had been irked by someone sitting in Federers box with suggestions it could have been his wife Mirka.Former great and now television commentator John McEnroe, meanwhile, spoke of the two Swiss players having a long and tense discussion in the locker-room afterwards.Whatever the truth was there, a Federer withdrawal from the Lille contest would be a huge and potentially lethal body blow to Swiss hopes.Wawrinka at fourth is comfortably ranked above all the French players, but after him the fall off in the Swiss team is steep with Marco Chiudinelli 212th and Michael Lammer 508th.In stark contrast it was all plain sailing for the French who are seeking a 10th Davis Cup title in all and a first since 2001.Captain Arnaud Clement cloistered his team of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gael Monfils, Richard Gasquet and reserve Gilles Simon in Bordeaux where they honed their claycourt skills away from prying eyes.Doubles specialist Julien Benneteau, who was playing in the doubles in London, was to link up with them in Lille.Coach Lionel Roux said the team would not be distracted by the doubts surrounding Federers participation.I dont think Rogers injury is too serious, he said. If he really cant play in the Davis Cup it would be very sad. But in my view it was just preventative.Looking at the TV footage of his semi-final I saw no signs of him being badly injured. He was struggling a bit only because it had been such a tough match.All the players are carrying injuries by the end of the season and we know that Roger has had problems with his back before.But he is a real pro and he simply weighed up the pros and the cons and decided against playing the final.

Football: Rooney steels England for Celtic Park cauldron

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GLASGOW (AFP) - England captain Wayne Rooney revealed on Monday that he has warned his younger team-mates to brace themselves for a hostile reception in Tuesdays friendly against Scotland at Celtic Park.Scotland are on a high after a run of only one defeat in 10 games and Celtic Park delivered an example of its frenetic atmosphere last Friday when Gordon Strachans side beat the Republic of Ireland 1-0.With Roy Hodgsons England squad containing 11 players aged 24 or under, Rooney said that he had taken some of his more inexperienced colleagues to one side and warned them about the need to keep their emotions in check.Ive spoken to a few of the younger players to make sure theyre ready for the start of the game, because if youre not ready, it can take you by surprise, the Manchester United striker, 29, told a press conference.Well be ready for it and itll be a big test for us. Ive played here before on a big night in the Champions League. You can see the atmosphere is really loud and itll be intense.He added: I was excited when the fixture was made, and now its here. I think itll be a big game. Scotland are doing well at the moment, playing good football and getting good results.We are on a good run at the moment and it is important to keep getting these results. Our next game is in March (in Euro 2016 qualifying), so we dont want to come off a bad result. We want to end the year on a high.

Snapchat lets friends send cash in a snap

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SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - Smartphone app Snapchat on Monday began letting users in the United States send money to friends by simply typing dollar amounts into new Snapcash messages.The new feature came from a first collaboration between Snapchat and Square, a mobile payments company headed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey.The product youre seeing today is fast, fun, and incredibly simple, Snapchat, which has been eagerly looking to boost revenue, said in a blog post.Those opting to use the new feature must store their debit card numbers at Square to carry out the transfers and users must be 18 years of age or older.However, about half of Snapchat users are reported to be 17 or younger.Financial terms of the alliance between Snapchat and Square were not disclosed.The new service was added as Snapchat works to boost the money-making capabilities of its popular app, which sees messages disappear shortly after being viewed.Last month, Los Angeles-based Snapchat began weaving ads into the service.The new ads were the first paid content at Snapchat. Users have the option of ignoring ads, which automatically disappear after being viewed or within 24 hours, according to Snapchat.The startup said the reason for dabbling with advertising is simply that it needs to make money.Advertising allows us to support our service while delivering neat content to Snapchatters, the blog post said.The introduction of ads came just weeks after a huge trove of evidently intercepted Snapchat images and videos were exposed online, raising fears about what may be revealed in messages intended to vanish seconds after beng viewed.In what was referred to as The Snappening, people who used third-party programs instead of the official Snapchat application had copies of supposedly transient missives squirreled away by hackers who began posting them online.Snapchat assured users that the startups servers were not breached, nor were they the source of the leaked images.Snapchat rocketed to popularity, especially among teens, after the initial app was released in September 2011.

Squash: Shabana magic transforms his world title bid

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DOHA (AFP) - Amr Shabana, the elder statesman of world squash, produced a magical transformation of his second round match on Monday which suggested his chances of winning his fifth World Open title may yet be alive.The 35-year-old Egyptian was slipping into trouble against Nicolas Mueller, the gifted world number 19 from Switzerland, but in four amazing minutes turned a potentially exhausting defeat into a marvellous victory.One moment Shabana was 0-3 down in the fourth game, having disappointingly lost the third; the next he had conjured a 11-7, 20-18, 8-18, 11-4 victory which took him into the last 16.I just decided that I am going to try to finish the point before he does, Shabana said. We were both a bit spent in the fourth game.Spent energy was however more crucial for the 10 years older man. Hence Shabanas legendary racket skills, which produced eight winners in the next 11 points, have not often delivered a more important match-changing reward.It began with an outrageous volley into the sidewall nick, which made the ball roll dead, it continued with a drop-drive winning combination and an angled boast winner, and it finished with a lob-kill combo setting up a match point that was converted immediately with a perfect length drive.Shabana acknowledged that he was a little bit relieved. You get matches like this. It makes you stronger for the next win if it doesnt kill you, he said, perhaps unsure how the often hectic 62-minute tussle will leave him feeling on Tuesday.Hopefully I can carry on this performance. I dont think many people play at the pace he does, so maybe it will be easier now, going forward.That is by no means certain. Shabana next plays Max Lee of Hong Kong, the first Chinese player to make the worlds top 20, who upset the seedings with a 13-11, 3-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-8 win against Karim Gawad, the 15th seeded Egyptian.Lee has David Palmer, the twice former world champion as his mentor, and appears to have some of the Australians fiercely competitive qualities. He is also likely to emerge from his 76-minute struggle at least as fresh as his famous next opponent.However if Shabana does prevail again he could have a quarter-final with Nick Matthew, the 34-year-old defending world champion from England, who was due to face Gregoire Marche, the improving Frenchman. Both Matthew and Shabana have been harbouring hopes of becoming the oldest male world champion in the events 38-year history.If Shabana were to win a fifth world title, he will also exceed the achievement of Geoff Hunt of Australia, leaving only the two legendary Pakistanis, Jansher Khan (8) and Jahangir Khan(6), who have won more.

Savvy media use turned comet mission into space saga

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Paris (AFP) - When Rosetta was launched more than a decade ago, it was a dry-as-dust science story -- an unmanned spacecraft and its research payload were being launched to investigate a comet.But when the Rosetta mission last week reached a climax, the story had changed from the apparently humdrum to an event that captivated the world.It had become a tale of heroics in deep space, with the secrets of the Solar System at stake.After a trek of 6.5 billion kilometres (four billion miles), alone in the bitter chill of deep space, the little robot Philae battled to survive and complete its task while its mother ship orbited anxiously above.Drama and romance had been stitched into the fabric of the Rosetta mission way back in 1993. That was when European space ministers gave the risky, 1.3-billion-euro ($1.6-billion) scheme their approval.But it took the two great information tools of the early 21st century -- the Internet and social media -- to bring these elements to the fore, and make the expedition relevant for billions.Rosetta marks a watershed in the European Space Agencys strategy to connect with the public, ESA communications chief Fernando Doblas told AFP.We are living in a world where people no longer want to receive information passively. You have to be active in your information.Slick webcasts from mission control in Darmstadt, Germany combined with easy-on-the-astrophysics talks about the importance of the mission.The scientists spoke mainly in Europe-accented English, using words that were simple but passionate. Not a white coat was in sight.What was the point of the landing, they were asked.Get this, they said: by analysing a comet, Philae would probe the primeval material of the Solar System... the ancient water and carbon which may even have seeded Earth with the means to make life.Comets are treasure chests, said Mark McCaughrean, senior ESA scientific advisor, before he fed us the jaw-dropping idea: We could be comet stuff ourselves.There were graphics and cartoons -- including a hugely-followed series for children (http://www.esa.int/spaceinvideos/Videos/2014/11/Once_upon_a_time_preparing_for_comet_landing) -- and a competition to name the probe and its landing site.But it was the tweets that especially humanised the mission, creating a narrative of a plucky little scout and its caring mother.Sok Philae, Ive got it from here for now. Rest well..., Rosetta said soothingly.The handle @Philae2014 notched up 383,000 followers and that of @ESA_Rosetta 277,000 -- a far greater total, combined, than @Madonna.- From Buck Rogers to robots -Providing a human dimension to space exploration is not, of course, new.In the right stuff days in the early 1960s, a disparate group of US pilots were recast as the Mercury Seven, representing America in the gladiatorial combat of outer space against the Soviets.But until now, the media experts had failed to weave an emotional tale for unmanned exploration, which really is where the future lies in space.The narrative had invariably been about technical challenge and gee-whizzery -- as seen in the video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRCIzZHpFtY) for NASAs Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars in 2012.If the human angle and social media were a savvy choice for the Philae landing, it wasnt an easy one to make for an agency steeped in austere scientific tradition, admitted Doblas.And, like Philaes landing, the choice was not without risks.London-born astrophysicist Matt Taylor -- a colourful figure who has a tattoo of Philae on his leg -- found himself in a tweetstorm for wearing a shirt with scantily-clad women on it, which critics lashed as sexist.Exhausted and stressed at the peak of the landing saga, Taylor shed tears on camera and apologised if he had caused anyone any offence. Yet that, too, told us that behind the science lies the humanity.

Ronaldo 'almost perfect' - Carvalho

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Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Ricardo Carvalho has hailed Cristiano Ronaldo as almost perfect as his Portugal team-mate goes up against his Ballon DOr rival Lionel Messi of Argentina in a friendly at Old Trafford on Tuesday.Real Madrid forward Ronaldo, who knows Old Trafford well from his time with Manchester United, is the current holder of the the worlds best player award.Tuesdays match is set to see him face Barcelonas Messi, last years runner-up, in international rather than La Liga action.Inevitably, the pair have been the focus of attention in the build-up to the game and Monaco defender Carvalho told a news conference on Monday: It is normal about the game to speak about Cristiano and Messi but I think it is Portugal against Argentina.For us Portuguese, everyone is expecting that Cristiano can win his third Golden Ball (Ballon DOr).I am a little bit suspect (biased) but I think he is the best.We are so proud of him. He is doing a great job during this past six or seven years. He is improving all the small details, making so many goals.- Missing nothing -He wants always more, even in training, Carvalho added.He is looking always to try his best.It is difficult because when you see him, he is almost perfect, strong, good in the air, fit always. It is difficult to say what he is missing, Carvalho added.He is strong, good in the air, good with his feet and he wants to win more and more. There is no reason for him not to win the third time.Turning to the match, Carvalho said Portugal knew just how tough it would be to play an Argentina side that made it all the way to this years World Cup final in Brazil before losing to Germany.We all know how good Argentina were. They were finalists in the World Cup. They have players who can decide the match in the spur of the moment. We just have to keep our eyes open and do our best.We dont know exactly who is going to play but the most important thing is for us to defend as a team and as a block and whoever is the nearest player, you need to mark them.Portugal coach Fernando Santos tried to ignore the Ronaldo-Messi debate and instead concentrated on the match as a whole.To you, it is a classic because to us, it is just another excellent game between Portugal and Argentina, two excellent nations, he said.They will perform as best as they can on the pitch.What concerns me, since I arrived we played two games, we won both, Denmark and last week against Armenia (with Ronaldo scoring on each occasion in a pair of Euro 2016 1-0 qualifying wins) so the coefficient is quite good. We have to take the game tomorrow to create consistency and the base for future games.Meanwhile Santos said he would be sympathetic to those Portugal players such as Ronaldo with particularly heavy schedules because of their clubs Champions League commitments.The players will play whoever I choose but of course we take into consideration those who play in the Champions League because they play more matches and have a heavier calendar, said Santos.

English FA chief wants Garcia report published

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London (AFP) - The chairman of Englands Football Association said Monday he had written to every member of FIFAs executive committee calling for urgent action to ensure ethics investigator Michael Garcias report into World Cup bidding was published in full.FIFA cleared Qatar and Russia, the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosts respectively, of corruption on Thursday and ruled out a re-vote for the tournaments despite widespread allegations of wrongdoing.But within hours of FIFAs ethics committee publishing a summary of Garcias report, the corruption probe was thrown into turmoil when US-based lawyer Garcia said he would appeal against the findings as they contained numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions detailed in his investigation.FIFA has defended its refusal to publish Garcias report on the grounds it would undermine a promise to all those those who gave evidence on condition of anonymity.But two whistleblowers insisted Monday that FIFA ethics committee judge Hans-Joachim Eckerts summary of Garcias findings meant it was easy for each of them to be identified in any case.Eckerts report criticised the team behind Englands failed bid to stage the 2018 World Cup for its relationship with disgraced former FIFA executive member Jack Warner.But FA chairman Greg Dyke was adamant his move, which followed a call by his predecessor David Bernstein for a boycott of the 2018 World Cup unless there was radical reform of FIFA, was not sour grapes or part of the British medias so-called obsession with Sepp Blatter, the president of footballs global governing body.- Cannot go on like this this -Dykes letter said: As you probably know the reputation of FIFA was already low in England and much of Europe before the events of last week.The failure to publish Mr Garcias report, and his statement that the summary report which was published contained numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations, has resulted in a further decline in public confidence of FIFA. We cannot go on like this.Complete transparency is required if the actions of all those who bid, including England 2018, are to be judged fairly.Dyke added critical media reports about FIFA and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar could not be brushed aside in the way Blatter did in June.The reports...do provide compelling evidence of wrongdoing. They cannot be simply dismissed as racist or an attack on FIFA as Mr Blatter described them at the FIFA Congress in Brazil, he wrote.Urgent action is needed if confidence in FIFA is to be rebuilt in England. The FA is of the view that this action should start with the full publication of Mr Garcias report.Earlier on Monday, Phaedra Almajid, who worked for the Qatar 2022 bid team before losing her job in 2010, said she had been let down over promises her identity would be protected -- assurances that had been central to her decision to co-operate with Garcias investigation.Both Almajid and Bonita Mersiades, who worked for Australias unsuccessful 2022 World Cup bid, have separately registered formal complaints against Eckert.Almajid, in a letter to Garcia, said her safety and that of her sons had been compromised.Identifying me and falsely discrediting me sends a message to anyone who may think to come forward that their credibility and protection will be in jeopardy for the rest of their lives, Almajid said.
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