Monday 2 October 2017

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Tennis: Heartbroken Nadal 'wants to cry' over Catalan vote

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BEIJING (AFP) - Spains world number one Rafael Nadal said on Monday he was stunned and felt like crying following a banned independence referendum in Catalonia and a police crackdown.Sundays plebiscite was organised under the threat of reprisals and criminal charges but thousands of Catalans stood in defiance of the central government in Madrid.Nadal, a national hero in Spain who spoke out before the referendum to condemn it, was visibly moved as he addressed a press conference in Beijing, where he starts his assault on the China Open on Tuesday.The 31-year-old, who grew up and lives on the Balearic island of Mallorca but is also a Catalan speaker, said he had watched events of the weekend unfold with concern and sadness.Dozens of people were injured and Nadal said: I want to cry when I see a country where we have known how to co-exist and be a good example to the rest of the world get to a situation like this.I think the image we have presented to the world is negative.The 16-time Grand Slam winner added: It was a sad moment, my heart sank all day.Moreover, from here, at a distance, you experience it differently.I have spent many parts of my life in Catalonia, important moments, and to see society so radicalised surprises and disheartens me.Catalonias leader Carles Puigdemont says the region has won the right to break away from Spain after 90 percent of voters chose independence.

Football: Barca board members resign over closed doors decision

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BARCELONA (AFP) - Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu confirmed on Monday two of the clubs board members resigned in the wake of his decision to play a match behind closed doors after a violent crackdown by police of an independence referendum for Catalonia on Sunday.Police fired rubber bullets and forced their way into polling stations, often violently removing activists, to confiscate ballots leaving at least 92 people confirmed injured out of a total of 844 who needed medical attention, according to Catalan authorities.In light of the incidents, Barca played their match against Las Palmas behind closed doors with Bartomeu insisting that decision was made as a protest against the violence rather than security concerns.Today the board of directors has accepted the resignations of vice-president Carles Vilarrubi and the commissioner of the Barca Innovation Hub, Jordi Mones, Bartomeu told a press conference after an extraordinary board meeting.Vilarrubi and Mones are believed to have been in favour of Barca refusing to play, even if it meant incurring a sporting sanction of forfeiting the match against Las Palmas and being docked a further three points by La Liga.Barca attempted to have the match postponed, but their request was rejected by La Liga as Catalan police insisted it was safe for the match to go ahead.We perfectly understand that many of our members and fans would have preferred the option of calling off the match, added Bartomeu.A section of Barca fan groups had threatened a peaceful pitch invasion to interrupt the match.I decided to play behind closed doors because we believed that the image of a football match being played in a completely empty Camp Nou...would have been a way of showing how we utterly reject the exceptional and inadmissible situation going on in Catalonia.Bartomeu also confirmed that Barcelona will join a general strike called across Catalonia on Tuesday in protest at the police crackdown.The board of directors has decided to support the call for strike action tomorrow led by Taula per la Democracia. The club shall cease all activities for the whole day and none of the professionals or amateur teams will train.The vast majority of Barcelonas stars, including five-time world player of the year Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique, who has been an outspoken defender of Catalonias right to self-determination, wouldnt have trained with Barca on Tuesday in any case as they are on international duty with their respective nations.

Tennis: Virus-hit Muguruza retires in China Open first round

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BEIJING (AFP) - World number one Garbine Muguruza retired ill with a virus in the first round of the China Open on Monday and US Open winner Sloane Stephens went out in a shock defeat.Spains Muguruza suggested in the build-up that she was not fully fit and she lost the first set 6-1 to unseeded Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic.Muguruza, 23, the reigning Wimbledon champion, called a medical timeout at 2-0 down in the second set and then called it quits after having her pulse taken on the side of the court.Muguruza said afterwards she had been too unwell even to practise for her opener but had been determined to play, having lost in the quarter-finals last week in Wuhan, where she struggled with a leg injury.Since Im in Beijing, I didnt play at all. I dont know, I got a virus in Wuhan, she said.I want to feel like giving the last chance, going on the court, just hit a few balls, see how Im going to feel, try to turn things around.I dont want to retire before the tournament starts for me.Muguruza, yet to win a tournament since reaching the top ranking in mid-September, added: Its good that I could play on Monday, I had more days to rest.But in fact, I couldnt perform today.Strycova faces Julia Goerges of Germany in the second round.Muguruza headed for the exit soon after Stephens tumbled out in the first round for the second week running, this time at the hands of qualifier Christina McHale.The 15th seed Stephens, wearing all pink, saw her match delayed by rain falling on Beijings outdoor hardcourts.When it finally got started she failed to fire, going out to her fellow American with a whimper, 6-3, 6-0 in just 62 minutes.The loss extends Stephens poor run after sealing her first Grand Slam last month.Last week the 24-year-old similarly fell at the first, losing to Chinas Wang Qiang at the Wuhan Open.Stephens, ranked 17 in the world to McHales 79, refused to make any excuses during a post-match press conference lasting less than 90 seconds.Tough day, not really much to say, she said.Obviously not a great match so just forget about it and move on, try to have a better level for the next tournament (Hong Kong).The comeback of the tournament so far belonged to the Belgian Elise Mertens.The 21-year-old recovered from 5-0 in the first set to trump the eighth seed Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 (7/4), 6-1.The second seed Simona Halep saw her second-round match against Magdalena Rybarikova shelved after the morning drizzle.In the mens draw, top seed and world number one Rafael Nadal begins his China Open quest on Tuesday against Lucas Pouille.The 23-year-old Frenchman has lost his last three matches on the trot, but he beat Nadal at the US Open last year -- the last time they met -- and the Spanish legend anticipates a stern test.He has a great level of tennis. Hopefully he will not finish the season that well because I play tomorrow against him, Nadal said, smiling.But I am sure he will be fighting for important things next year, he has the talent to do it.He has the game, the right level of tennis to make that happen if he wants to do it.

Athletics: Gatlin left off shortlist for best athlete

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PARIS (AFP) - Controversial world 100-metre champion Justin Gatlin was left off the list of nominees for the IAAFs World Athlete of the Year awards.Gatlin, who has served two doping bans, was a surprise winner of the 100m in London in August as Jamaican great Usain Bolt bowed out of his top-class career with a disappointing bronze medal.When the IAAF named on Monday their 10 male and female nominees for the 2017 awards, Gatlins name was conspicuous by its absence.It is the first time since 2004 -- when Gatlin was also omitted -- that the world or Olympic 100m champion has been left off the list.Gatlins omission is no surprise, though, as the IAAF changed its rules in 2015 to exclude from its list anyone who has ever been sanctioned for a serious doping offence.That came after Germanys Olympic discus champion Robert Harting asked for his own name to be removed from the list in protest at Gatlins inclusion in 2014.The 2017 list is led by British 10,000m world champion Mo Farah and South Africas 400m star Wayde van Niekerk.The womens list includes comeback queen Sally Pearson of Australia, the 100m hurdles champion, and South Africas Caster Semenya, the winner of the 800m.Nominees:Men: Mutaz Essa Barshim (QAT) high jump; Pawel Fajdek (POL) hammer; Mo Farah (GBR) 10,000m; Sam Kendricks (USA) pole vault; Elijah Manangoi (KEN) 1,500m; Luvo Manyonga (RSA) long jump; Omar McLeod (JAM) 110m hurdles; Christian Taylor (USA) triple jump; Wayde van Niekerk (RSA) 400m; Johannes Vetter (GER) javelin.Women: Almaz Ayana (ETH) 10,000m; Maria Lasitskene (RUS - competing as a neutral) high jump; Hellen Obiri (KEN) 5,000m; Sally Pearson (AUS) 100m hurdles; Sandra Perkovic (CRO) discus; Brittney Reese (USA) long jump; Caster Semenya (RSA) 800m; Ekaterini Stefanidi (GRE) pole vault; Nafissatou Thiam (BEL) heptathlon; Anita Wlodarczyk (POL) hammer.

US and North Korea: To talk or not to talk?

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - Now is not the time to talk to North Korea, the White House declared Monday, as President Donald Trump appeared to undermine efforts to force Pyongyang to the table.Until this weekend, Washingtons plan to counter Kim Jong-Uns increasingly sophisticated nuclear arsenal seemed to be to employ sanctions and diplomatic pressure to convince him to talk.Secretary of State Rex Tillerson confirmed this on Saturday in Beijing when he told reporters Washington is using diplomatic channels to probe Kims willingness to discuss disarmament.But then Trump tweeted, telling his wonderful chief diplomat that he was wasting his time trying to negotiate with Kims regime.Many commentators and former diplomats in Washington saw this as a snub -- even a humiliation -- for Tillerson, and rumors that the secretary might resign surfaced once again.Tillersons aides dismissed such talk, insisting that Trumps tweets were a message to Kim that time was running out for him to respond to Tillersons overture or face tougher action.Then on Monday, Trumps spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders stated bluntly: Weve been clear that now is not the time to talk.Sanders told reporters the only reason to talk with Kims regime would be to seek the release of three Americans held in North Korean jails.There is a difference between talking and putting diplomatic pressure -- and we strongly support putting diplomatic pressure on North Korea which were continuing to do -- but now is not the time simply to have conversations with North Korea, she said.This would seem to contradict what Tillerson had said on Saturday, when he was asked how he would know if and when North Korea is prepared to discuss denuclearizing the Korean peninsula.We are probing, so stay tuned, he said.We ask. We have lines of communications to Pyongyang. Were not in a dark situation, a black out, he added. We can talk to them, we do talk to them.The State Department was quick to point out that these overtures had not revealed any sign that Kim is in fact ready for dialogue, but Tillerson had at least confirmed that channels are open.This had been widely suspected in Washington policy circles, but by making it front-page news Tillerson seems to have irked Trump.The main channel is the so-called New York channel, the connection to North Koreas diplomatic mission to the UN, explained Jim Schoff, a former head of North Korea strategy at the Pentagon.Washingtons chief envoy for dealing with the North Korea crisis, Ambassador Joseph Yun, used this channel to Pyongyangs diplomats in New York to negotiate the release of US student Otto Warmbier -- who died after his return.There have been, as I understand, multiple attempts for several months by that channel to try to initiate general dialogue both on the remaining Americans held there and expressing openness to talk about denuclearization, Schoff told AFP.Schoff, now a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said those connections had indeed proved unfruitful but warned that Trumps dismissive tweets had weakened Tillersons hand.It does hurt the secretarys credibility, he said. They agreed upon a North Korean policy and strategy, and it contains an openness to dialogue. Thats a policy that President Trump has endorsed.And its mostly Trumps tweets that undermine it.Tillersons senior adviser on public affairs, R.C. Hammond, was quick to dismiss any suggestion the weekends remarks had revealed any split between the White House and State Department.I think the president is demonstrating skepticism on whether the North Koreans will change behavior, since there has been zero indication during the summer they will do so, he said.He isnt demonstrating skepticism on Secretary Tillersons statements and strategy.According to Hammond, the small number of channels of communication that are open with the North that Tillerson spoke of are being used to seek the release of the US prisoners.Everybody in the administration agrees with this strategy, he said. Theres no crisis between the president and Secretary Tillerson.If that is the case -- that the channels deal only with the situation of the captives, and not with the broader issue of the nuclear standoff -- some observers will be disappointed.Whatever tough talk sometimes comes from the administration, many senior US officials admit privately that there is no credible military option to disarm North Korea without provoking a devastating regional war.In which case, Tillersons back channels might be the best hope of a resolution.I certainly hope that theres some secret channel going on because I do think that there need to be discussion and understanding, said former secretary of state Madeleine Albright.Albright is the most senior US official ever to visit North Korea. But, as Trump recalled in another tweet, US efforts to halt the Norths nuclear plans have always failed.Its really important to lower the temperature because Im kind of concerned about an accident of some kind that might happen and so we need to be very clear about whats going on, she said.

Iraq forces claim recapture of IS-held areas near Hawija

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BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi forces on Monday seized a strategic jihadist-held area southeast of the Islamic State groups bastion of Hawija, a senior commander said.Government forces and the Hashed al-Shaabi, an alliance mostly of Shiite militias, are fighting to retake the northern town of Hawija after expelling IS from large parts of the territory they seized in Iraq in 2014.The Counter-Terrorism Service and Hashed al-Shaabi captured Rashad and 45 villages and hamlets around as part of the second phase to liberate Hawija, Lieutenant General Abdel Amir Yarallah said in a statement.The Hashed al-Shaabi said it had retaken five villages west of Rashad, which is 35 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of Hawija.Iraqi forces backed by a US-led coalition launched an offensive on September 21 to retake a jihadist enclave around Hawija, swiftly taking the town of Sharqat on its second day before pushing on towards Hawija itself.On Friday, they started the battle to retake the town itself, one of the last IS bastions in the country along with a stretch of the Euphrates Valley near the border with Syria.As Iraqi forces pushed the offensive against IS, retreating jihadists set light to three wells in the Allas oilfield some 85 kilometres to the south of Kirkuk, the Kurdish-controlled North Oil Company and local officials said.A Hawija region police colonel said that security forces were using bulldozers in an attempt to extinguish the fires started Saturday in a bid to block the advance by government forces.

Palestinian PM visit marks PA return to Gaza

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BEIT HANUN (AFP) - Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah visited Gaza for the first time in two years Monday, in a potential first step to ending a decade-long conflict between the two major Palestinian factions.Arriving in the impoverished enclave Hamdallah said the internationally recognised Palestinian Authority would resume control of Gazas government in the coming days.Hamdallah met with the leaders of rival political movement Hamas, 10 years after they violently forced his allies out of Gaza in a near civil war.Washington gave a cautious welcome to the PAs return to Gaza, while stressing that any new Palestinian government would have to renounce violence and recognise Israel.The United States welcomes efforts to create the conditions for the Palestinian Authority to fully assume its responsibilities in Gaza, White House special envoy Jason Greenblatt wrote on his Facebook page.Any Palestinian government must unambiguously and explicitly commit to nonviolence, recognition of the State of Israel, acceptance of previous agreements and obligations between the parties and peaceful negotiations, he said.The UN said it was carefully optimistic of ending the split which is seen as a key complicating factor in potential peace talks with Israel.Al-Azhar, one of the worlds leading Islamic seats of learning, also welcomed the steps taken towards national reconciliation.Hamdallah was welcomed by thousands of Gazans, with hopes that this reconciliation plan can avoid the problems that wrecked several previous attempts.The Islamists recently agreed to hand over civilian power to a unity government after Egyptian mediation and Hamdallah said they would get to work immediately.The government began to exercise its roles in Gaza from today, Hamdallah said.We return to Gaza again to end the division and achieve unity.Later he met with Hamass overall leader Ismail Haniya and its Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar, and is expected to chair a cabinet meeting.Hamas ousted the PA in 2007, but recently agreed to dissolve what has been seen as its rival administration and make way for a unity government.Palestinian president Mahmud Abbass PA is the internationally recognised Palestinian government and supposed to steer its people to an independent state.UN Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov said he was carefully optimistic about the reconciliation talks.If the region stays engaged, if Egypts role continues and if the political parties themselves continue to show the willingness they are currently showing to work with us on this process, then it can succeed, he told AFP.The United States and the European Union see Hamas as a terrorist organisation, complicating any potential involvement in a Palestinian government.The logistics of the three-day visit were themselves an indication of divisions and challenges.Arriving by road from Ramallah, about 70 kilometres (44 miles) away in the West Bank, Hamdallahs convoy crossed Israel and then transited the fortress-like Erez crossing into Gaza before passing a Hamas checkpoint.Hamas last month finally agreed to the PAs return to Gaza, under pressure from the enclaves powerful neighbour Egypt.The group was squeezed by Abbas, who stopped paying Israel for electricity it supplies to Gaza, resulting in devastating power cuts.And long-time Hamas ally Qatars diplomatic isolation led to a fall in backing for the group.For Gazas two million residents, the hope is to see an improvement in their miserable living conditions in the overcrowded territory.Battered by three wars with Israel since 2008, Gaza is under Israeli and Egyptian blockade and suffers from severe water and electricity shortages, an economic slump and unemployment of more than 40 percent.Experts say the prospect of social unrest among disgruntled Gazans was a factor in Hamass willingness to reconcile with Fatah, along with its growing isolation and perhaps a new pragmatism in its leadership.Hamas and Fatah, which dominates the PA, have both expressed confidence the latest unity initiative will fare better than in the past.But scepticism remains rife, with many observers suspecting Hamas of a tactical manoeuvre to improve its position.They doubt Hamas will cede its security control over the strip to the PA, and see major challenges for Abbas in finding a future for the thousands of public workers recruited by Hamas over the past decade.Particularly thorny issues include the potential future of Hamass military wing.The Hamdallah delegations visit is seen as largely symbolic and preparing the ground for further talks, probably in Cairo.The outcome will determine the Palestinians acceptance on the international stage.The PA recognises Israel, but that appears to remain out of the question for Hamas.Israeli construction minister and former general Yoav Galant says everything depends on Hamas accepting Israels existence and ending armed struggle.If the answer is positive, we can talk about a lot of things, he says. If it is negative, nothing has changed and all this is a deception.

At least 16 dead as suicide bombings hit Damascus police station

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DAMASCUS (AFP) - A double suicide bomb attack hit a police station in Syrias capital Damascus on Monday, state media said, with a monitor saying at least 16 people were killed.Damascus has been largely insulated from the worst of the violence during the countrys brutal six-year war, but several bomb attacks have shaken the city.Syrias interior ministry said two suicide bombers had blown themselves up at the police station in the southern district of Midan, leading to the deaths of a number of civilians and a number of policemen.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group, said at least 16 people were killed in the attack, among them eight police officers, revising an earlier death toll of 11.The monitor also reported that a car bomb had been detonated during the attack, but state media made no mention of a third blast.Interior Minister Mohammed Shaar told reporters that one of the attackers had managed to enter the police station and reach the first floor of the building.State television showed images of damage from inside the building, with a black police uniform shirt covered in dust lying in the rubble of partially collapsed walls.The entire front of one room on the first floor had been blown out by the explosion, and inside what remained, twisted bits of metal were scattered across the rubble.Policemen carried one body away from the scene wrapped inside a white tarpaulin.Manal, a 28-year-old teacher living in Midan, said she heard at least two blasts on Monday afternoon.I was coming back from work when I heard the sound of an explosion, it was around 2:30 pm, I didnt know what it was, and then there was another explosion a few minutes later and buildings shook, she told AFP.Afterwards I heard gunfire, which usually happens to get people to move out of the way and clear the road so ambulances can get through to retrieve the injured, she added.Damascus has also been rocked by occasional bomb blasts throughout the Syrian conflict, including previous attacks on Midan, a middle-class residential and shopping district.In December 2016, three police officers were wounded when a seven-year-old girl walked into the neighbourhoods police station wearing an explosive belt that was remotely detonated.Rebel groups have been gradually expelled from territory in the capital they once held, though they maintain a presence in a handful of positions, including the Jobar neighbourhood.They also hold territory in the Eastern Ghouta region outside the capital, and have regularly launched rockets into the city.More than 330,000 people have been killed in Syria since its conflict began with protests that were met with a harsh government crackdown.A wide array of international players have been drawn in on both sides, with the government relying on allies including Iran, Russia and the powerful Hezbollah militia from neighbouring Lebanon.Ten Hezbollah members were killed on Monday in a suspected drone strike in the Badiya desert region in the central province of Homs, the Observatory reported, revising an earlier toll of at least eight.The unidentified strike came near the town of Sukhna in a region where Syrias government and allied fighters are battling the Islamic State jihadist group.

Spain in crisis after police violence in Catalan vote

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MADRID (AFP) - Spain came under international pressure Monday to resolve a spiralling crisis with its Catalan region after a banned independence referendum was marred by shocking scenes of police violence.The countrys central government vowed to stop its northeastern region breaking away from Spain after Catalonias leader claimed that 90 percent of voters backed independence in Sundays referendum, which Madrid says is unconstitutional and a farce.Abroad, the focus was on the violence which saw riot police move in on polling stations in towns and cities across the region to stop people from voting, in some cases charging with batons and firing rubber bullets to disperse crowds.We call on all relevant players to now move very swiftly from confrontation to dialogue. Violence can never be an instrument in politics, European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said, breaking weeks of virtual EU silence on the Catalan issue.UN rights chief Zeid Raad Al Hussein said he was very disturbed by the violence and urged the Spanish authorities to ensure a thorough and impartial investigation, while EU President Donald Tusk urged Madrid to avoid further use of violence.The European Parliament will hold a special debate on Wednesday on the Catalonia referendum, the head of the assembly said.Residents in many cities briefly stopped work at midday Monday and descended onto the streets in silent, solemn protest.In Barcelona, municipal police said about 15,000 people stopped traffic as they rallied, many draped in the blue, yellow and red Estelada flag used by Catalan separatists, shouting the streets will always be ours.This was the norm under Franco the crowd chanted, referring to former dictator Francisco Franco whose 1939-75 regime repressed Catalan language and culture.In another sign of the tensions, nearly 200 police were evicted from the hotel where they were staying after an angry crowd had demonstrated outside, shouting insults and some throwing bottles.The main labour unions of Catalonia have called for a general strike Tuesday, which could disrupt flights and trains as well as the citys port operations, saying they vigorously condemn the violence.The citys public universities are expected to join the strike, as is the contemporary art museum and the FC Barcelona football club.The government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was holding emergency talks after Catalan president Carles Puigdemont declared Sunday that the region -- which accounts for a fifth of the nations GDP -- had won the right to an independent state.Puigdemont appealed for international mediation to help solve the crisis, and hinted he might be willing to drop the independence drive if that happened.He also called for all police deployed to Catalonia from other parts of Spain for the vote to be removed.The regional government said 2.26 million people took part in the vote, or just over 42 percent of the electorate in Catalonia.But any attempt to unilaterally declare independence is likely to be opposed not just by Madrid but also a large section of the Catalan population, a region of 7.5 million people which is deeply split on the issue.Rajoy reiterated his governments position that the vote was an illegal act, to which the state had reacted with firmness and serenity.Puigdemont has said he will now present the results to the regions parliament, where separatist lawmakers hold a majority, and which has the power to adopt a motion of independence.Several top figures in the far-left party Podemos called for Rajoy to resign over his handling of the crisis.Shocking videos posted on social media showed police dragging voters from polling stations by their hair, throwing people down stairs and attacking Catalan firefighters protecting polling stations.Puigdemont said close to 900 people had received medical attention, though Catalan authorities confirmed a total of 92 injured.Four were hospitalised, two in serious condition -- a 70-year-old man had a heart attack and another man was hurt in the eye.Magdalena Clarena Dabant, a 70-year-old grandmother, described a brutal incident when she decided to do passive resistance in her village to prevent the Guardia Civil police from seizing a ballot box.To stop them, many voters sat on the floor, I sat on a chair. They told me to go away, I responded I wouldnt move.They grabbed me by the arm, strongly, and I fell on the floor. In hospital they told me I had the wrist broken, she said.The Catalan situation is considered Spains biggest political crisis since an attempted military coup detat in 1981.While Spanish newspapers were unanimous in criticising Puigdemont for pushing ahead with the referendum despite a court ruling it unconstitutional, they also took aim at Rajoys handling of the crisis.Rajoy was to hold talks later Monday with the leader of the main opposition Socialist party, Pedro Sanchez, as well as Albert Rivera, the leader of the centrist party Ciudadanos, his minority governments ally in parliament.Justice Minister Rafael Catala said the government could invoke Article 155 of the constitution, which would allow it to suspend the powers of Catalonias regional government in order to block any declaration of independence.

Eiffel Tower goes dark for Las Vegas victims

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PARIS (AFP) - The Eiffel Tower went dark on Monday night in tribute to the victims of the attacks in Las Vegas and Marseille.At least 59 people were killed and hundreds wounded Sunday when a gunman opened fire on a concert in Las Vegas in the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.Earlier Sunday, a man knifed two young women to death outside the main train station in Marseille, Frances second-biggest city.The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for both attacks via the jihadists propaganda outlet Amaq, which said they were carried out by its soldiers. It did not provide any evidence for either claim.Tonight we will turn off the Eiffel Tower from midnight in homage to the victims of the attacks in Marseille and Las Vegas, Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo wrote, adding the hashtag we are united.The French capital has repeatedly switched off the night-time lights on its most famous landmark to show solidarity with victims of terror attacks from London to Kabul.

Electricity prices reduce by Re 1.81 per unit

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has on Wednesday announced to reduce electricity price by Re 1.81 per unit for one month.The reduction has been made in respect of monthly fuel adjustment for the month of August. The decision will be implemented on users of all electricity distribution companies except K-electric. Those who consumed over 300 units will not be benefited from this decision.The cost of energy production for the month of August was Rs. 4.63 per unit while the consumers paid Rs. 6.46 per unit in the electricity bills for August. The consumers will get relief of more than Rs 20 billion in the electricity bills for the month of October.

PML-N intra-party elections today

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - The intra-party election of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will be held today (Tuesday), Dunya News reported.Earlier on Monday, the PML-N’s party election commission meeting was held which was presided over by chairman election commission Senator Chaudhry Jafar Iqbal.Begum Najma Hameed, Babu Sarfaraz Jatoi, Ali Afzal Jadoon and Amir Afzal Mandokhel also attended the meeting. The meeting appointed Amir Afzal Mandokhel as returning officer and Raja Niazi as secretary election commission.It was decided during the meeting that nomination papers for the post of PML-N president will be received from 7:00am to 9:00am today (Tuesday). The scrutiny of the nomination papers will be carried out from 9:00am to 10:00am and the election for the new president will be held at 10:30am.

SC to resume hearing of Imran Khans disqualification case today

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – A three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) will resume Imran Khan’s disqualification case today (Tueaday), Dunya News reported.A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, will resume hearing of the petitions filed by PML-N leader Hanif Abbasi. The petitioner seeks disqualification of Imran Khan and PTI Secretary General Jahangir Tareen for not disclosing their assets, ownership of offshore companies and the party’s foreign funding.During the previous hearing the court had sought the money trail of 100,000 pounds. The court had also sought details of transactions made between Imran Khan and his ex-wife Jemima Khan for the acquisition of Bani Gala property in Islamabad.

PM, Khursheed Shah discuss new NAB chairman's appointment

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi met Leader of Opposition in National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah on Monday and discussed with him appointment of new chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).Talking to media after the meeting, Khursheed Shah said that he initially consulted the PM on the name of new chairman NAB. He is expected the meet the prime minister again today.Khursheed Shah said that he consulted all the political parties except MQM and PTI and hoped that the name of new chairman NAB will be finalized very soon.Khursheed Shah also called upon Pakistan People’s Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and briefed him about his meeting with the prime minister in connection of appointment of new chairman NAB.

PML-N's CEC amends party constitution

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ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Interim president of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chaired the central executive council (CEC) meeting og the party in Islamabad on Monday during which the CEC gave approval to amend the party constitution.The meeting was attended by CM Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, Prime Minister Azad Kashmir, Chief Minister Gilgit-Baltistan, federal ministers including Ahsan Iqbal, Saad Rafiq and others.The amendment in the PML-N’s constitution was moved by interim general secretary Ahsan Iqbal which will pave the way for sacked premier Nawaz Sharif to become party’s president again.Before the amendment, any person who was not eligible to become a member of the National Assembly could not have become the party head or hold a party post. But after the amendment in clause 3 of article 120 of the PML-N constitution, an ineligible person can hold a party position.
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