Clashes kill 29 in northwestern Pakistan

PARACHINAR, Pakistan – A government official says a clash involving militants, tribesmen and security forces in Pakistan's northwest has killed 29 people, most of them suspected insurgents.

Moammar Gadhafi forces shell frontline city in west Libya

MISRATA, Libya – Moammar Gadhafi's forces shelled the besieged rebel frontline city of Misrata Thursday, hitting residential areas on its outskirts and wounding four people, a doctor said.

Australia calls for sanctions on Syria

LONDON – Australia called Thursday for international sanctions on Syria over its violent crackdown on protesters and said the United Nations should send a special envoy to investigate events there.

Huge sperm whale washes up on Sydney beach

SYDNEY – A dead 10-metre (32-feet) sperm whale has washed up on a Sydney beach, with rescuers struggling Thursday to remove it as the animal's blood runs into the water, attracting sharks.

U.S. nuclear plants hit by storm are stable: NRC

WASHINGTON  – The U.S. nuclear safety regulator took a closer look at the ability for U.S. plants to withstand power blackouts on Thursday, a day after severe storms and tornadoes knocked out power to three nuclear reactors in Alabama.

IAEA chief: Syria tried to build nuclear reactor

PARIS – The U.N. nuclear agency on Thursday said for the first time that a target destroyed by Israeli warplanes in the Syrian desert five years ago was a covertly built nuclear reactor, countering assertions by Syria that it had no atomic secrets to hide.

Dozens of tornadoes kill 209 in 6 Southern states

PLEASANT GROVE, Ala. – Dozens of tornadoes spawned by a powerful storm system wiped out neighborhoods across a wide swath of the South, killing at least 209 people in the deadliest outbreak in nearly 40 years, and officials said Thursday they expected the death toll to rise.

Alabama says tornado destruction "massive", 131 dead

MIAMI  – Alabama has suffered "massive destruction of property" inflicted by storms and tornadoes and at least 131 people are confirmed dead, state governor Robert Bentley said on Thursday.

Blast kills 14 in Marrakesh cafe

RABAT  – A powerful blast ripped through a cafe in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh on Thursday, killing 11 foreigners and three Moroccans, authorities said in what they described as a "criminal act".

Pakistan Air Force ready to meet all challenges: Air Chief Rao Qamar Suleman

RISALPUR : Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman on Thursday said that Pakistani forces are aware of prevailing situation and fully prepared to meet all challenges. He was  addressing to passing out parade of graduating and commissioning cadets and graduates from Flying, Aeronautical Engineering , air defence and general services at Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Academy Risalpur.

Supreme Court seeks relevant documents of NAB Deputy Chairman’s appointment

ISLAMABAD : The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Attorney General of Pakistan to submit relevant documents about appointment of Deputy Chairman of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Javed Qazi after admitting a plea for regular hearing.The three-member bench comprising Justice Javed Iqbal,

PPP, PML(Q) alliance to strengthen democracy: Rehman Malik

ISLAMABAD : Minister for Interior Rehman Malik said on Thursday the PPP leadership has always preferred to strengthen democracy in the country and efforts for evolving alliance of PPP with PML(Q) was part of such efforts.Talking to reporters outside the Parliament, he said PPP leadership believes in dialogue and reconciliation and its good examples is that different political parties are part of the government.Replying to a question he said the two parties’ leadership would make final decision on making alliance.

President Zardari enacts law to secure foreign investments

ISLAMABAD : President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday accorded assent to a law aimed at reassuring foreign investors about security of their investments in Pakistan.The Arbitration (International Investment Disputes) Bill, 2011 was passed by National Assembly on November 5 last year while the Senate passed it on April 1. The President made the bill into a law, with his signatures at a special ceremony, here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.President Zardari termed the signing as “a giant leap forward” to create confidence amongst foreign investors and bring transparency in the settlement of investment disputes.

District functionaries be made accountable for anti-polio drive: President Zardari

ISLAMABAD : President Asif Ali Zardari advised the government on Thursday to make District Coordination Officers (DCOs) and district functionaries accountable for assuming the ownership of National Emergency Action Plan 2011 for Polio Eradication.The government should also monitor their performance in implementing the plan at the level of union councils, villages, streets and homes, he added.The President gave this directive when he was informed during a meeting on polio eradication campaign that this year a total of 33 polio cases have been detected in 33 high risk districts which include 10 cases in Sindh, 14 in FATA and seven in Balochistan.

PM Gilani lauds performance of Competitive Commission of Pakistan

ISLAMABAD : Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Thursday appreciated performance of Competitive Commission of Pakistan with regard to check anti-trust and anti-cartelization via enhanced competitiveness. Talking to Rahat Kaunain Hussain,

China calls Tibet exile govt 'illegal' after vote

BEIJING – China on Thursday attacked the Tibetan government-in-exile as "illegal" following the election of a new prime minister to take over the organisation's political duties from the ageing Dalai Lama.

Hope, mistrust among Sri Lankans after UN report

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – A United Nations report that gives credence to allegations of human rights abuses during the bloody end of Sri Lanka's civil war has given some victims' families hope for justice, while others say the U.N. action comes too late.

Afghan bus crash kills 20

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – Twenty Afghans were killed and 33 injured Thursday when a speeding bus lost control and overturned on a dangerous southern highway, traffic police said.

Bahrain sentences 4 Shiite protesters to death

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – A military court in Bahrain on Thursday convicted four Shiite protesters and sentenced them to death for the killing of two policemen during anti-government demonstrations last month in the Gulf kingdom, state media said.

Libyan doctor says NATO airstrike killed 12 rebels

MISRATA, Libya – A NATO airstrike has killed 12 rebels in the besieged city of Misrata in the latest friendly fire incident in Libya's chaotic battlefield, a doctor in the city said Thursday.

Blast in Morocco tourist cafe kills 14

MARRAKESH – An explosion killed 14 people, including foreigners, on Thursday in a busy cafe in the Moroccan tourist destination of Marrakesh, and authorities said the initial signs were that it was a criminal act.

The blast ripped through the second storey of a cafe overlooking Marrakesh's Jamaa el-Fnaa square, a spot that is usually bustling with foreign tourists and local vendors.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will take up political responsibility in Sep

Islamabad : Bilawal Bhutto, chairman of the ruling Pakistan People's Party, will take up "some political responsibility" in September, his father and Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said.

Mohsin Khan lauds Pak team for impressive show in ongoing Windies tour

Lahore : Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief Selector Mohsin Khan has lauded the national team for their impressive performance in the ongoing Caribbean tour.

PM Gilani lauds performance of Competitive Commission of Pakistan

ISLAMABAD : Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Thursday appreciated performance of Competitive Commission of Pakistan with regard to check anti-trust and anti-cartelization via enhanced competitiveness. Talking to Rahat Kaunain Hussain, Chairperson of CCP who led a delegation, the Prime Minister said the government would support the CCP to play its due role in good governance.

Contrary to public perception, ISI, CIA "best of partners": Husain Haqqani

Washington : Dismissing reports of tattered ties between the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, has said that the two spy agencies have been "the best of partners".

2 cops gunned down in Peshawar

Two police cops were gunned down by unknown armed men in Khalidabad area here in Peshawar on late Wednesday night.

Eight militants killed, several injured in Upper Orakzai Agency

At least eight militants were killed and several others injured when the security forces backed by gunship helicopters pounded hideouts of the militants in Upper Orakzai on Thursday.

Pakistan-India Talk Trade, But Historical Tensions Persist

After a lengthy break following the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, India and Pakistan are sitting down for bilateral talks focusing on trade, Our correspondent reports from the Pakistani side of the Wagah border crossing between the two archrival nations.

Sania Mirza bats for resumption of India-Pakistan cricket ties

New Delhi: Sania Mirza on Thursday advocated resumption of bilateral cricketing ties between India and Pakistan, saying such a move can help in improving relations between the two countries.

Pakistan hires Indian tennis coach

Karachi: A senior Pakistani tennis official expressed hope on Wednesday that an unprecedented move to hire a coach from the country's arch rival India would improve play and ease political tensions.

Shahid Afridi not happy with ICC ranking system

Karachi: Pakistan's limited overs captain Shahid Afridi on Thursday said that he is not satisfied with the One-day rankings system, presently applied by the ICC.

Pakistan-India to revive bilateral trade panels

Islamabad : India and Pakistan have agreed to revive all committees that were set up before the Mumbai attack so as to resume measures to facilitate trade, a media report said.

Karachi : Bomb hits Pakistan navy bus, 5 dead

KARACHI, Pakistan – A roadside bomb hit a bus taking Pakistani navy employees to work in Karachi on Thursday, killing five people in the third such attack this week and just days after the army chief claimed to have "broken the backbone" of militants.

Cambodia, Thailand agree to ceasefire after clashes

PHNOM PENH  – Thailand and Cambodia agreed to a ceasefire on Thursday after a week of clashes that killed at least 15 people, wounded scores and sent more than 60,000 into evacuation shelters in Southeast Asia's deadliest border dispute in years.

Few people vote in northern Nigeria states

KADUNA, Nigeria – Herds of cattle roamed the streets of this central Nigerian town where the gubernatorial vote delayed by religious rioting was to take place.

Mass graves toll in northwestern Mexico at 104

MEXICO CITY – Mexican security forces exhumed eight more bodies Wednesday from mass graves in a northwestern state capital where drug gangs are believed to have buried their victims, bringing the total from a monthlong search to 104.

200 quit Syria's ruling party to protest crackdown

BEIRUT – More than 200 members have quit Syria's ruling Baath party in the southern province at the epicenter of the country's uprising to protest President Bashar Assad's brutal crackdown on opponents, a human rights activist said Thursday.

North Korean leader ready to restart talks on any issue, Jimmy Carter says

SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is willing to hold talks without preconditions on "any" issue, former President Jimmy Carter said at the end of a trip to Pyongyang to try to defuse tensions on the divided peninsula.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad facing dissent over Deraa crackdown

AMMAN  – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad faced dissent within government ranks with more than 200 members of his Baath Party resigning and signs of discontent within the army over the violent repression of pro-democracy protests.

Pakistan rejects Wall Street Journal assertions

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday rejects baseless assertions made in an article published by Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

BISP protecting the poor from further impoverishment, says President Zardari

Islamabad: President Asif Ali Zardari Wednesday directed the State Life Insurance Corporation to develop on priority basis a comprehensive strategy for health and life insurance of the citizens in association with private sector so as to provide cover to the poor strata of the society.

Pakistan hub of investment: President Zardari

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said the existing level of trade between Korea and Pakistan is far below its real potential and urged for further enhancing bilateral trade and investment ties between the two countries.

’Al Qaeda told Khalid Shaikh not to kill Daniel Pearl’

Boston: The mastermind of 9/11 attacks, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, was warned by a senior al Qaeda military commander not to kill Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002 and that he should be "freed", but the American was killed anyway, according to leaked WikiLeaks documents.

India quietly activates airstrip near Chinese border

New Delhi: Wary of the build up of Chinese military infrastructure along its borders, India has silently activated an advanced landing ground (ALG) for its air force transport planes at Dharasu in Uttarakhand to aid in the swift movement of troops during conflicts.

Drone attacks could not stop through sit-ins, long-marches: Shahbaz Sharif

HASILPUR : Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif has said on Wednesday that the Nation must unite and people come out on roads if they intended to stop US drone attacks, adding that these missile attacks would not be stopped through mare condemnations statements and protest sit-ins.

ISI enjoying full backing of govt: PM Yousuf Gilani

ISLAMABAD : Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, on Wednesday, said that enemies are propagating against security agencies of the country, national institutions and nuclear program but nuclear assets of Pakistan are fully secure and ISI enjoying full support of the civilian government.

PM Gilani says, people, Parliament & Govt look towards SA to work for unity, solidarity of Ummah

ISLAMABAD  : Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani said that the people, the Parliament and the Government of Pakistan look towards Saudi Arabia to work for the unity and solidarity of the Muslim Ummah. The close brotherly ties with Saudi Arabia, he said, is a source of strength for Pakistan.

Democracy answer to counter terrorism, extremism: PM Yousuf Raza Gilani

ISLAMABAD : Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani reiterated that democracy is the answer of counter terrorism and extremism for which his government is determined to strengthen the democratic institutions in the country.

India constructed 43 hydel projects on Western rivers flowing from India to Pakistan: Naveed Qamar

ISLAMABAD : Minister for Water and Power Syed Naveed Qamar told the National Assembly on Wednesday that India has constructed forty-three hydel projects on Western rivers flowing from India to Pakistan.

Baloch liberation Front claims responsibility of Karachi blasts

QUETTA : Baloch liberation Front (BLF) on Wednesday claimed the responsibility of attacks, carried out on two Pakistan Navy buses in Defence and Baldia town areas of Karachi.

People involved in maltreatment of journalists at ZTBL to be brought to justice: Firdous Ashiq Awan

ISLAMABAD : Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan has condemned and regretted the incident of maltreatment of the media persons at Zarai Traqiati Bank in Islamabad on Wednesday.

Parliamentary body to discuss drone issue tomorrow

ISLAMABAD : Parliamentary Committee on National Security would hold its meeting tomorrow (Friday) at Parliament House to discuss about submissions on putting an end to drone strikes in Pakistani tribal areas.

Karachi target killing claim 5 lives

KARACHI : At least five persons were killed whereas 10 others sustained injuries in the result of incidents of firing and torture in different parts of the city.

Terrorist to be dealt with iron hands: Rehman Malik

ISLAMABAD : Interior Minister Rehman Malik has said that the terrorists would be dealt with iron hands, adding that indiscriminate action would be taken against the terrorists in the country.