Wednesday 6 May 2015

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Tennis: Murray clinches Madrid win - at 3 o'clock in morning

Posted:

MADRID (AFP) - Andy Murray made the Madrid Open third round with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-0 win over Philipp Kohlschreiber in a match which ended at 3 oclock Thursday morning.The second seeded Murray had already defeated his German opponent in three sets in the rain-delayed Munich Open final on Monday to register his first claycourt title.His latest meeting with Kohlschreiber only got underway at just after 1 oclock after a succession of marathon matches at the joint ATP-WTA tournament had thrown the schedule into chaos.The Murray-Kohlschreiber clash was not the latest finish to an ATP World Tour tie.That honour belongs to Benjamin Becker and Jiri Novak who completed a match at the 2006 Japan Open at 03:25.Murray will have to recover quickly as he is due to face Spains Marcel Granollers later Thursday for a place in the quarter-finals.However, Granollers may not be feeling particularly fresh as he needed three hours and 20 minutes to defeat French 13th seed Gael Monfils, 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (7/9), 6-4.

CNG stations in Punjab to reopen from May 11

Posted:

ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – This was decided in a meeting between Minister of Petroleum Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and chairman CNG Association, Ghias Piracha in Islamabad on Wednesday.The meeting decided to reopen CNG stations all over Punjab from May 11. It was also decided in the meeting that CNG stations would be provided to only those CNG stations who are not defaulters.Talking to media after the meeting, Ghias Piracha said that the weekly schedule of reopening of CNG stations has not been finalised yet. However, he hailed the decision of reopening of CNG stations.

Formula One: Flawless Hamilton seeks to add to Alonso misery

Posted:

BARCELONA (AFP) - Defending world champion Lewis Hamilton seeks to build on his 27 points lead in this years title race with another victory for Mercedes at the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend.After three wins in four races, the 30-year-old Briton has built a strong early defence of his crown in near-flawless fashion that has left his rivals trailing and many paddock observers lost in admiration.Earlier this week his Mercedes team director three-time champion Niki Lauda said he felt the Englishman was driving like a man from another planet.That may also be how his one-time team-mate and local hero Fernando Alonso feels as he returns to compete on home soil looking for his first race win in two years after leaving now-resurgent Ferrari for the struggling McLaren-Honda outfit.While Hamiltons Mercedes team-mate and championship rival Nico Rosberg bids to match the leader in equal machinery, Alonso will be in forlorn pursuit.He will merely hope for a points finish behind Ferrari, Williams and the rest while his successor in the scarlet scuderia, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel looks for his second win this year.Rosberg will he hoping he can translate his speed from pre-season testing at the Circuit de Catalunya into a winning performance for the first time since last years Brazilian Grand Prix and so prevent Hamiltons juggernaut-like run of triumphs.Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff has no doubt that Rosberg can mount a serious title challenge, despite appearing well beaten in four successive qualifying sessions and races this year.If you look at their performances in qualifying in China, for example, there were just four-hundredths between them, said Wolff. That is not someone who is clearly beaten. That is a tiny little edge, which was enough for Lewis to make it on pole and control the race.It could have been completely different if Nico had been on pole. Nico wouldnt be in Formula One as a multiple race winner and a challenger for the championship if he allowed himself to be destabilised after a few races.For Wolff, Mercedes and Hamilton, however, the most serious threat to their supremacy appears to be likely to come from Ferrari, reinvigorated this year after a management shake-up and the arrival of Vettel. I think it could go to the wire with Ferrari, he said.If it does, as many others forecast, it may signal a continued long period of winless frustration for Alonso and his McLaren team-mate Jenson Button. Recent rumours have suggested Alonso may even contemplate retirement to escape the spectre of two winless years, though his official comments issued by McLaren suggest that he remains sufficiently optimistic to rekindle his enthusiasm and form.Im incredibly happy to be heading back to Europe, to my home country and racing in front of the loyal Spanish fans, said Alonso. Weve taken some useful steps forward during the flyaway races and Im looking forward to getting back in the car after the three-week break and continuing our push.We are seeing improvements race by race and I want to ensure that we maintain this consistency throughout this weekend.So severe were the problems with Buttons car in Bahrain three weeks ago, the 2009 champion did not even start the race. That will be his minimum ambition this weekend at the 4.655km track where McLaren hope to re-boot their season and where all of the teams will arrive with upgrades for their machines.The focus will be on Hamilton, but not only for his driving. He has yet to sign a new contract with the team and stubborn speculation has linked him with a possible sensational move to Ferrari. A Hamilton win and his signature on a new deal will be the double target Wolff and Mercedes.

Golf: Buoyed by Match Play win, McIlroy eyes prestigious Players

Posted:

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Rory McIlroy, fresh from celebrating his World Golf Championships Match Play triumph -- and his 26th birthday -- is hoping to cure his TPC Sawgrass headache at last.The world number one has had mixed results in The Players Championship, the US PGA Tours $10 million flagship event that starts on Thursday in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.He missed the cut in his first three appearances. In 2013 he opened with a 66 en route to a share of eighth place and last year tied for sixth.He acknowledged that the precision required off the tee at TPC Sawgrass can be frustrating to a player of his aggressive instincts.Its always hard for me when I cant get the driver in my hand because I feel like when I do get the driver in my hand I can give myself an advantage over the rest of the field, McIlroy said.Its just about being very patient and approaching it a different way, winning a different way. I feel that would make me a more complete player.The high-profile tournament -- called one of the most important of the year by McIlroy -- will see the Northern Irishman paired on Thursday with Masters champion Jordan Spieth and Australian Jason Day.The pairing featuring McIlroy and world number two Spieth is sure to fuel the talk of a rivalry between the two -- but McIlroy said he doesnt need that kind of buzz to build his enthusiasm.I dont think I need any extra incentive to get the juices flowing this week, he said, refusing to be drawn into the rivalry hype.Last year, he said, Rickie Fowler was deemed the man most likely to challenge him.This year its Jordan, might be someone else, could have been Tiger, McIlroy said.Its sort of been four or five rivalries over the past year. It doesnt really do anything for me.The 21-year-old Spieth, for his part, says he has some way to go to be on McIlroys level.I think its still early, especially with what he just did, Spieth said of McIlroy and his impressive WGC Match Play victory in San Francisco last week, which featured a series of late-match rallies en route to a perfect 7-0 record that included a 4&2 triumph over Gary Woodland in the final.He moved even further away from it really being what I would consider a budding rivalry right now, Spieth said. I could certainly appreciate if I could get to where hes at, but right now I dont see myself there.McIlroys Match Play win was his first since Dubai in January and hes hoping it set him up for a solid May run.Hes scheduled to play at Quail Hollow next week, followed by the European Tours BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth and the Irish Open at Royal County Down.I hadnt felt I played my best golf since February, said McIlroy, whose bid to complete a career grand slam at the Masters ended in a fourth-place finish. I felt like I really hadnt got into contention to win and thats something I wanted to do.It was nice that the first week out again I am able to do that. I want to continue to do that.

Astronomers find most distant galaxy ever measured

Posted:

MIAMI (AFP) - Astronomers have located the most distant galaxy ever measured in the universe, and it looks like a bright blue mass of stars some 13.1 billion light-years from Earth.The galaxy, called EGS-zs8-1, is one of the brightest and most massive objects in the early universe, according to a statement from Yale University.Calculating its exact distance from Earth was possible using the MOSFIRE instrument on the W.M. Keck Observatorys 10-meter telescope in Hawaii, researchers said.The galaxy was first spotted in images from NASAs Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes.Astronomers at Yale and the University of California, Santa Cruz say that EGS-zs8-1 is still forming stars rapidly, about 80 times faster than our galaxy, the Milky Way.Details of the discovery were published Tuesday in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters.

UN urged not to allow EU 'bombing' of migrant boats

Posted:

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - Italys Red Cross president on Wednesday spoke out against European plans to destroy migrant boats used by smugglers in the Mediterranean, as the United Nations weighed whether to endorse the military campaign.Francesco Rocca, president of the Italian Red Cross, told UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that instead of resorting to force, more legal avenues must be opened to allow asylum-seekers to reach Europe safely.For us, bombing the boats is not the solution. The traffickers will find other routes, Rocca told reporters after his talks with Ban.More than 5,000 refugees have died over the past 18 months when boats operated by smugglers capsized off Libyas coast, triggering alarm among European leaders seeking to halt the flow.The most controversial option under discussion would involve military action to destroy the boats used by the smugglers before they are overloaded with migrants.Rocca said bombing the boats is an option designed to give us a clean conscience and stressed the need for a broader approach that is not limited to putting smugglers out of business.Finding a political settlement for Libya, where lawlessness since the fall of Moamer Kadhafi has allowed smuggling rings to flourish, should be a priority, he stressed.Ban has also criticized the plan, saying that destroying boats could affect the livelihoods of local fishermen who may be forced into dealings with the smugglers to make ends meet.The UN Security Council is due to hear EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini present Europes migrant crisis plan at a special meeting on Monday that will lay the groundwork for a resolution.Security Council members Britain, France, Spain and Lithuania are working with Italy on a draft resolution that would endorse the EU plan.The resolution would be drafted under Chapter 7 of the UN charter which allows the use of force and would give an EU maritime force the right to act in Libyan territorial waters, if authorities there give their consent.The United Nations has been seeking for months to broker an agreement in Libya on a national unity government that could restore order and stability in the north African country.A Security Council diplomat said the draft resolution would allow the seizure of boats that are suspected of being used by smugglers, but there will be no reference to their destruction.Russia has raised objections to language that would give the European Union the right to destroy boats, the diplomat said.

Britain votes in election which could define its future

Posted:

LONDON (AFP) - Britain goes to the polls Thursday in the closest general election for a generation -- but voters may have to wait days for a new government as politicians battle to take power.The election looks set to deliver a minority government for the first time since 1974 but could also push Britain closer to leaving the European Union and hasten Scottish independence.Prime Minister David Camerons centre-right Conservatives, leaders of a coalition government since 2010, are fighting to stay in office but are at level pegging with Ed Milibands centre-left Labour in opinion polls.While the leaders of both main parties insist in public they can win a clear majority in the 650-seat House of Commons, they will almost certainly have to work with smaller parties to form a government.Who will team up with whom is the biggest question of the election.At the moment, I have no idea who will be prime minister a month from now, Peter Kellner, president of polling company YouGov, wrote this week. No pollster or political soothsayer can guarantee what will happen on Thursday.Days or weeks of hagglingMillions of Britons will vote at polling stations located everywhere from shipping containers to churches and pubs between 0600 GMT and 2100 GMT.Exit polls will be released at 2100 GMT and most results will emerge overnight, although the final tally of seats will not become clear until Friday afternoon.If, as expected, neither the Conservatives nor Labour win a clear majority, they will start days and possibly weeks of negotiations with smaller parties to try and build a bloc of around 326 seats.The Scottish National Party (SNP), which wants Scotland to split from Britain, looks set to win most seats north of the border and a strong position in the talks.While that result would have been inconceivable a year ago, support for Nicola Sturgeons party has soared since Scotland rejected independence in a referendum last September.The SNP would support a minority Labour government but not a Conservative one. The party of Margaret Thatcher is deeply unpopular north of the border, where her economic reforms are still blamed for the decline of heavy industry.Some analysts say the SNP could use its influence over a new government to push for a fresh independence referendum. Sturgeon has refused to give a date for when she wants a fresh vote.The centrist Liberal Democrats, junior partners in Camerons coalition government, will also have a key role to play in post-election negotiations and are open to working with either of the two main parties.While their leader Nick Clegg is seen as closer to the Conservatives, he could struggle to hold his own seat amid expected Liberal Democrat losses across the country.Nigel Farages anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) is only expected to win a handful of seats and therefore play a limited role in post-election negotiations.The new government, whether led by the Conservatives or Labour, would face its first big test when lawmakers vote on its legislative programme after the Queens Speech on May 27.While a new government usually has to win that vote to survive, the situation could be more flexible this time if numbers are tight.Global consequencesThe election is being watched closely around the world due to the consequences it could have for the standing of Britain, a permanent member of the UN Security Council and nuclear-armed NATO state.Experts say the US, with whom Britain likes to boast of a special relationship, is already wary that defence cuts are affecting its ability to contribute to military operations as it did in Iraq and Afghanistan.A Little England does not augur well for a US foreign policy which aims specifically to empower like-minded states to share the burden of leadership, Jeremy Shapiro, a fellow at the Brookings Institution foreign affairs think-tank in the US, wrote this week.Another potential issue for Britains global status is that Cameron has promised a referendum on whether Britain, the worlds fifth biggest economy, should leave the EU by 2017 if the Conservatives win.While polling suggests Britons would currently reject a Brexit, a lengthy referendum campaign reopening the scars of the countrys uneasy relationship with Europe could change that.This general election will determine what Britains place will be in the world in a way that no other general election has done previously, but the importance of this is chronically under-discussed, Jeanne Park, deputy director of the Council on Foreign Relations, said last week.The consequences of the election will start to become clear on Friday but could take far longer than that to play out in full.

Oil prices hit new 2015 highs as US inventories drop

Posted:

NEW YORK (AFP) - Oil prices scored new 2015 peaks Wednesday after weekly data showed US commercial crude stockpiles unexpectedly slumped in the first decline in four months.US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in June added 53 cents at $60.93 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, its highest level since early December.Brent North Sea crude for June, the European benchmark, settled at $67.77 a barrel in London, up 25 cents from Tuesday and also its peak for the year to date.WTI, which had jumped more than $2 in early trading, sharply paired the gains after the US Department of Energy reported the first decline in commercial crude-oil stockpiles in 16 weeks.It is buy the rumor, sell the fact, said Matt Smith of Schneider Electric, noting the American Petroleum Institutes report Tuesday had already indicated a drawdown in stockpiles.Weve rallied 50 percent on WTI since the lows of March and 30 percent on Brent, so its not surprising were running a bit out of steam.Crude stockpiles tumbled by 3.9 million barrels in the week to May 1. Analysts had expected an increase of 1.5 million barrels, according to a Bloomberg News poll.Despite the decline, at 487.0 million barrels of crude, the stockpiles were at their highest level on record for this time of year.US crude-oil production only slipped marginally, to 9.4 million barrels per day. Refineries stepped up activity, pushing capacity utilization up to 93 percent.I think this trend of decline in inventories is going to continue as refineries in the US increase their utilization during the summer as they return from maintenance, said Andy Lipow of Lipow Oil Associates.Oil also enjoyed support from the weaker dollar, which fell sharply Wednesday amid poor US economic data. The euro was buying $1.1340 in the early afternoon in New York, up from $1.1185 late Tuesday.

C.Africa to take 'legal action' against French soldiers in rape case

Posted:

BANGUI (AFP) - The Central African Republic will take legal action against the French soldiers accused of raping children in exchange for food at a refugee camp, the countrys justice minister said Wednesday.Legal action will be pursued... These are still very serious acts, said Justice Minister Aristide Sokambi, insisting his nation was not targeting France but individual soldiers.Several children -- the youngest just nine -- allege that 14 soldiers dispatched to the impoverished nation as part of a peacekeeping force sexually abused some of them in exchange for food between December 2013 and June 2014.We regret the fact we were not brought into these investigations despite the cooperation agreements we have with France, Sokambi added.So I have instructed the public prosecutor to open a probe and seek the evidence already at the disposal of the French.French troops were deployed to the Central African Republic in December 2013 to help African Union peacekeepers restore order after a bout of sectarian bloodletting triggered by a coup.Hundreds of troops were stationed at Banguis MPoko airport, which was transformed into a giant refugee camp.Most of the displaced families living amid the abandoned planes had lost everything in the conflict, which pitted mainly Muslim rebels against vigilantes from the majority Christian population.Previous misconduct claimsProsecutors in Paris have opened an investigation into the reports, with Frances defence ministry pledging to take all the measures necessary for the truth to come out.The defence ministry has said it immediately launched a probe into the case, sending police investigators to the former French colony on August 1 after receiving the news, but the damning allegations nevertheless only emerged in April when The Guardian newspaper broke the story.The defence ministry has denied attempting to cover up a potentially devastating scandal. The allegations were contained in an internal UN report that was leaked to French authorities last summer by a UN official.If proven, the allegations will not only affect the French army but also the Central African Republic, which is trying to find a way out of a conflict that has killed thousands and displaced nearly 900,000 people.Many people living in the camp at MPoko airport had lost their livelihoods to the violence.Hunger in the camp became so widespread that riots often broke out when food was distributed.The rape allegations against the French soldiers are not the first to be levelled against workers on international missions.Soldiers and police from Britain, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Uruguay, Nigeria and Morocco have all been accused of, or arrested for sexual misconduct while on missions for organisations like the United Nations or NATO over the past decade.

Ice hockey: Canada stun Sweden to make it four from four

Posted:

PRAGUE (AFP) - Canada came from three goals down to stun Sweden 6-4 at the ice hockey world championships on Wednesday and stay top of Group A with a perfect record of four wins from four games.In a repeat of the 2014 Olympic final, Canada took on Sweden in Pragues O2 Arena and were stunned to find themselves trailing by three goals after the first period.Edmonton forward Anton Lander scored five minutes into the game while Carolina forward Victor Rask and Nashville prodigy Filip Forsberg scored within the 18th minute.Florida defenceman Aaron Ekblad, Edmonton forward Taylor Hall and Philadelphia forward Sean Couturier levelled the score for Canada in the second period.But Sweden went to the locker room with a lead owing to a goal by Oscar Moller, who plays the Russian league at AK Bars Kazan.Ottawa defenceman Patrick Wiercioch put Canada level again after ten minutes of the final period and Buffalo forward Tyler Ennis then beat Sweden goalie Anders Nilsson with a wrist shot above his shoulder six and a half minutes from the end.Dallas young gun Tyler Seguin made it 6-4 into the empty net as Sweden had pulled their goalie.We didnt start very well and Swedens a great team, they came out flying, Ennis told Czech Television.But we have a lot of guys that can score and play different roles and we competed and battled back and there was a big win.They tried to push us back and we made some bad plays, we had the puck under control but they got a lot of momentum, said Moller, who plays for AK Bars Kazan in the Russian league.Then we tried to come back in the third but it was too late.Especially against a team like this its going to cost you if you make a bad play or turn the puck over.In the groups other game, Latvia stunned 2013 runners-up Switzerland 2-1 in overtime to collect its first points at the tournament.Andris Dzerins scored in the 25th minute and Latvia goalie Edgars Masalskis kept a clean sheet until the 59th minute when Janis Sprukts scored an own goal with Switzerlands Matthias Bieber earning the honors as his teams last player to touch the puck.But Kaspars Daugavins scored his third goal at the tournament two minutes into overtime, beating Colorado goalie Reto Berra in the Swiss goal to hand Latvia two points.In Group B played in the eastern Czech city of Ostrava, defending champions Russia beat minnows Denmark 5-2.Russia took a 2-0 lead within 13 minutes with goals by Artemi Panarin and Sergei Mozyakin.Denmark converted one of their five shots in the second period through Morten Green, but Evgeni Dadonov put Russia two goals ahead once again, just before the second siren.Thomas Spelling narrowed Russias lead to a single goal ten minutes before the end.But the Russians never quite lost control and Mozyakin and St Louis Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko rounded off the score with two goals within 48 seconds.In Group Bs other game, underdogs Norway grabbed their first points after beating Slovakia 3-2.Tomas Surovy and Marek Daloga scored late in the first and early in the second period to put Slovakia 2-0 up.But two goals from Norway defenceman Mattias Norstebo -- including the game winner in the 42nd minute -- and one by forward Mats Rosseli Olsen turned the game into another great comeback of the day.

Netanyahu forms new government just ahead of deadline

Posted:

JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held on to his job Wednesday, announcing that he had hammered together a new coalition government just ahead of a midnight legal deadline.But with a knife-edge majority of just one seat in the 120-member parliament expectations were that he would have to expand the ruling alliance beyond his natural religious and rightist partners or battle for survival at every vote.I am leaving here to call the president and the speaker of the parliament to inform them that I have been able to build a government, he said in remarks at the Knesset after marathon talks with Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett.We need to launch it next week and we shall do so, he added.President Reuven Rivlins office said he had sent a written note followed up with a phone call.I am honoured to inform you that I have been successful in forming a government, which I will request is brought before the Knesset for its approval as soon as possible, Rivlins office quoted the note as saying.The negotiations are over, Bennett said on his official Twitter account, adding, Now we get to work.The news came just over an hour ahead of a legal deadline at midnight (2100 GMT) after which the task of forming a government would have been given to another party leader -- most likely Isaac Herzog, head of the centre-left Zionist Union, which won 24 seats in the March 17 election, behind 30 for Netanyahus rightwing Likud.The deal with Bennett leaves Netanyahu in command of 61 Knesset votes, bought at the cost of major concessions to his partners.Analysts say he will be at the mercy of rebels, caprice, or even a bad cold the first time the coalition faces a crucial vote.He would then be forced to expand the ruling alliance beyond his natural religious and rightist partners and turn reluctantly to the Zionist Union, which has so far said it will sit in opposition.Netanyahu is left with an unmanageable situation, said political scientist Emmanuel Navon, of Tel Aviv University.The first thing hell do tomorrow... is take his phone and start working on a coalition with (the Zionist Union), he told AFP.Netanyahu, is a general without soldiers, the Maariv daily wrote.Netanyahu himself said he hoped to expand the alliance, without elaborating.I have said that 61 is a good number and 61-plus is better still, but it starts at 61, he said in his Knesset remarks.For the time being his right-religious government is expected to continue his robust foreign policy -- marked by virulent attacks on Iran -- and to maintain a hard line on the issue of concessions to the Palestinians.Emperor to lame duckBennett had upped his demands on Monday after Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman dropped a bombshell by pulling out of the coalition talks, saying his anti-Arab Yisrael Beitenu faction would not join a Netanyahu government.Lieberman said in a statement Wednesday that it was his last day on the job.The move piled pressure on Netanyahu who quickly signed an agreement with the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, leaving only Bennetts party as the last piece in the puzzle.Avigdor Lieberman provoked a rare tizzy in the political establishment two days ago, wrote Ben Caspit in Maariv.Within minutes, Benjamin Netanyahu changed from an all-powerful emperor into a lame duck.Commentators were unanimous that a government with a majority of just 61 would likely be short-lived.When Netanyahu called for snap elections in December, it was to put an end to the chronic instability in his existing coalition.When he was tasked with forming a government, Netanyahu said he wanted to form a six-party coalition of rightwing and religious parties which would command a majority of 67.But Liebermans last-minute about-face deprived Netanyahu of six seats and put Bennett in the role of kingmaker.Likud had previously signed up three parties: the centre-right Kulanu (10 seats) and the two ultra-Orthodox parties Shas (seven) and United Torah Judaism (six).Ayelet Shaked, the Jewish Home MP who will reportedly take the justice ministry, has been at the forefront of efforts to curb the powers of the Supreme Court.Last year, she tabled a bill which would reduce the courts ability to overturn legislation it finds unconstitutional.The draft was put together after the court overturned legislation that allowed the state to jail African asylum seekers without trial.

Football: Sundowns clinch Champions League place

Posted:

PRETORIA (AFP) - Mamelodi Sundowns sealed a 2016 CAF Champions League place Wednesday by defeating fellow Pretoria club SuperSport United 2-1 in the South African Premiership.Winger Mzikayise Mashaba scored both goals for expensively-assembled Sundowns, putting his club ahead on three minutes and scoring the mid-second half winner.SuperSport, who share the Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium in west Pretoria with Sundowns, levelled midway through the opening half via New Zealand striker Jeremy Brockie.Victory gave 2001 Champions League runners-up Sundowns an unassailable five-point lead over Orlando Pirates and Wits in the race for second spot with one round left.Mzikayise is finally listening to me, said Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane. I told him not to cross the ball all the time but rather cut in and score goals.That is what (Cristiano) Ronaldo and (Alexis) Sanchez do, and look at how many goals they score. My wingers must do the same.Champions Kaizer Chiefs, who clinched the title a week ago, lost at home in the Premiership for the first time this season when going down 2-1 to Wits in Soweto.Wits experimented with several youngsters and the gamble paid off with teen Paseka Sekese nodding the 58th-minute winner after a clinical counter-attack.Namibian Henrico Botes gave Wits an early lead that was cancelled by Siphiwe Tshabalala before half-time at Soccer City stadium.Wits were hungrier than us, admitted Chiefs England-born coach Stuart Baxter. We must take this knock on the chin and move forward.Pirates fell behind after five minutes at mid-table Maritzburg United when Happy Jele deflected a shot into his net.But in-form Kermit Erasmus added to a CAF Confederation Cup hat-trick last weekend by levelling in the second half and forcing a 1-1 draw at Harry Gwala Stadium in PietermaritzburgThe relegation struggle took a dramatic turn with Moroka Swallows dropping to the bottom after conceding a stoppage-time goal and losing 2-1 at Ajax Cape Town.Having taken a second-half lead, the Soweto Birds allowed Ajax to score two headed goals from corners with Nigerian goalkeeper Greg Etafia partly to blame for both.We did not attack the ball when those corners came into the goalmouth and that is unforgivable, lamented Swallows coach Craig Rosslee.AmaZulu edged ahead of Swallows on goal difference by coming from behind to triumph 2-1 at Pretoria University through a Bongi Ntuli brace.The boys displayed great character and determination. Now we must refresh mentally and prepare for another must-win match, said AmaZulu coach Steve Barker.AmaZulu host Maritzburg and Swallows host Bloemfontein Celtic Saturday in the final round with the Durban club having a six-goal better difference.

Canada passes law expanding spy agency powers, reach

Posted:

OTTAWA (AFP) - Lawmakers passed a new anti-terror law Wednesday dramatically expanding the powers and reach of Canadas spy agency, allowing it to operate overseas for the first time.The act was written in response to attacks on Canadian soil last October, when a gunman killed a ceremonial guard and stormed parliament, and a soldier was run over in rural Quebec.A large number of critics have decried bill C-51 as an unprecedented attack on civil rights, saying it lacks oversight and is overly broad.It criminalizes the promotion of terrorism, makes it easier for police to arrest and detain individuals without charge and expands the Canadian Security Intelligence Services (CSIS) mandate from intelligence-collection to actively thwarting terror plots and spying outside Canada.Prime Minister Stephen Harpers Tory majority in the House of Commons assured its passage, in a 183 to 96 vote, after several failed opposition attempts to water it down.However, widespread anger over the changes may linger to harm the Conservativess re-election hopes in the fall.

UN reinforces east DRCongo troops after peacekeepers killed

Posted:

KINSHASA (AFP) - The United Nations has sent reinforcements to its Democratic Republic of Congo peacekeeping force near the eastern town of Beni, after two soldiers were killed and 13 others wounded in an ambush Tuesday.This morning we sent reinforcements to the Beni area -- a rapid response unit to back up those caught in ambush, Felix Prosper Basse, spokesman for the UNs MONUSCO DRCongo mission, told AFP a day after two Tanzanian peacekeepers and two civilians were killed near Beni.The attack was the second within 48 hours on UN personnel in the country. On Monday, a UN helicopter carrying MONUSCOs military leader, Brazilian General Carlos Alberto dos Santos Cruz, was fired upon by unknown gunmen and forced to make an emergency landing.Basse added that Santos Cruz would also travel to Beni -- a trading hub in an area regularly targeted in attacks by Ugandan rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).Santos Cruzs objective, Basse said, was to coordinate robust measures against members of the ADF suspected of staging Tuesdays deadly ambush.The shadowy ADF, which launched an insurgency in neighbouring Uganda against President Yoweri Museveni in the mid-1990s, is accused of killing more than 260 civilians in and around Beni between October and December last year.In addition to the two Tanzanian peacekeepers killed in the ambush, 13 other UN troops of unknown nationality were shot and wounded, MONUSCO said.On Wednesday, Ugandan police announced they had requested the extradition of ADF boss Jamil Mukulu, who was arrested last month in Tanzania. He is wanted on suspicion of a range of crimes, including terrorist acts and murder.Last month, the ADFs third most senior figure, Kasada Karume, was killed in fighting with Congolese troops, the national army said.A further 28 ADF fighters have been killed, 22 wounded, and eight captured in battles in the region since the weekend, according to civil society sources.Today, despite what one might think... the ADF has never been so weak, said General Jean Baillaud, deputy commander of the MONUSCO mission.He added the process of eradicating the rebels had reached a crucial phase.The slain Tanzanian soldiers were members of a 3,000-strong UN intervention brigade, itself part of a broader 20,000 MONUSCO force struggling to quell violence by scores of armed groups operating in the east of mineral-rich DR Congo.The UN Security Council condemned the attack and reiterated that targeting peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law.The members of the Council also expressed deep concern at the security crisis in eastern DR Congo, which they blamed on ongoing destabilizing activities of foreign and domestic armed groups

Tennis: Kyrgios sends Federer crashing in Madrid

Posted:

MADRID (AFP) - Australia young gun Nick Kyrgios knocked top seed Roger Federer out of the Madrid Open on Wednesday with a stunning 6-7 (2/7), 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (14/12) victory.The second round contest took more than two and a half hours and denied top seed Federer any chance at a fifth title at the claycourt Masters event.Kyrgios, who knocked Rafael Nadal out of Wimbledon last year, sent down 22 aces to Federers 15 and next faces John Isner of the United States.Ive been playing well recently on the clay, so I knew I had a good chance to go out there and do well. I stuck to my game and served well and I got the win, said Kyrgios who was runner-up on clay at Estoril last weekend.I guess thats why you play the game, to play on these big courts against these big players. Hes the greatest of all?time, no doubt.Federer saved five match points in the deciding tiebreaker while having two of his own annulled by the big-hitting Australian youngster, ranked 35th.I couldnt return his first serve, I had a horrible performance on return of serve, said Federer. That made life difficult for me.Im disappointed with how I played on returns, and that cost me the match.Nadal returned to his clay-court comfort zone, starting his campaign for a fifth Madrid Open title with a 6-4, 6-3 defeat of Steve Johnson.The victory in 74 minutes lifted Nadals clay record over Americans to a perfect 10-0 while the third seed improved to 12-3 on the surface this season.The nine-time French Open champion has four Madrid titles and has played in six finals at his showcase home event.He is aiming to extend his streak of winning at least one European ATP clay title leading into Roland Garros to 11 straight years.Nadal goes on to face Italys Simone Bolelli for a quarter-final spot.I think I played a solid match, I played the way I needed to to win that match. I know after a loss like Barcelona (third round) things are not easy when youre playing the next match, said Nadal.Serena saves match pointsWomens top seed Serena Williams and defending champion Maria Sharapova survived marathon three-setters to reach the quarter-finals.Williams saved three match points and needed two and three-quarter hours to take her undefeated record this season to 23-0, making the most of a late serving collapse from former number one Victoria Azarenka.I could have won, she could have won. I ended up winning and I dont know how, said Williams after her 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 7-6 (7/1) win. I feel like it was intense.Williams next faces Carla Suarez Navarro after the Spanish 10th seed beat Serbian seventh seed Ana Ivanovic 7-5, 1-6, 6-4.Third seed Sharapova went two and a half hours before seeing off Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia 6-2, 4-6, 7-5.Sharapova ended the dramatic third-round match with a second-serve ace confirmed from the chair after breaking for 6-5.Against Sharapova, the 28th-ranked Garcia, clearly peeved to have missed her chance against the five-time Grand Slam winner, gave an abbreviated drive-by handshake as the players met for a few quick seconds at the net, following protocol in name only.In the third it just came down to a few points, she was the much more aggressive player in the third set; she was going for a lot, said Sharapova.Sharapova started 2015 by winning 17 of her first 18 matches, but came to Madrid having lost three in a row.She has now won 57 of her last 62 matches on clay as she waits to play fifth seed Caroline Wozniacki in the quarters.Wozniacki advanced over Polands Agnieszka Radwanska 6-3, 6-2.Two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, the fourth seed, advanced with ease over Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 6-4.Romanian Irina Begu beat Barbora Strycova 6-4, 6-4 to next take on Kvitova.Nadal was joined in the third round by sixth seed Tomas Berdych, who accounted for weekend Estoril winner Richard Gasquet 7-6 (7/3), 7-5.Spanish seventh seed David Ferrer beat Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-4, 6-0 and Madrids Fernando Verdasco knocked out US Open champion Marin Cilic 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/5), 6-3.Bulgarian tenth seed Grigor Dimitrov came back to beat Italian Fabio Fognini 3-6, 6-2, 7-5 while Leonardo Mayer beat 11th seed Feliciano Lopez 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (8/6).Number 12 Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat American Jack Sock 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (7/4).Isner, the 16th seed, fired 23 aces to defeat Brazils Thomaz Bellucci 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (11/13), 6-1.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)