A Pakistan News

US Drones Strike In North Waziristan For The 4th Time In A Week

2012-05-26T05:22:04Z

At least four people were killed and two others were injured in a US drone strike launched early Saturday morning in Pakistan’s northwest tribal area of North Waziristan. Sources said that earlier the death toll was put at six which later rose to 10 with several others were still in critical condition. According to the [...]

Egypt’s Historic Vote Heads Towards Conclusion

2012-05-24T14:05:08Z

Polling stations have reopened on the second day of Egypt’s first free presidential election, 15 months after the government of former president Hosni Mubarak was toppled. Government employees have been given the day off work to vote in the first Egyptian presidential election in history where no one knows what the result will be before [...]

NA Speaker Not To Send Reference To EC Against PM

2012-05-24T13:55:26Z

Speaker National Assembly Dr. Fehmida Mirza on Thursday declared that there was no question of disqualification of Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani as member of the National Assembly. The NA speaker says that no question of PM Gilani’s disqualification arises according to Article 63 of the Constitution and in light of the apex court’s [...]

Egypt Makes History With Vote For President

2012-05-23T11:57:45Z

Egyptians are heading to polling stations across the country in the country’s first democratic presidential election. The voting, which will take place over two days, is a monumental achievement for those who worked to topple longtime President Hosni Mubarak in one of the seminal developments of the Arab Spring more than a year ago. Fifty [...]

Many Killed In On-Going Violence In Karachi

2012-05-23T11:44:11Z

Interior Minister Rehman Malik has authorised the formation of an investigation team to probe the incident involving a gun-attack on a political rally brought out by Sindhi nationalist party, Awami Tehrik, in Karachi. After deadly attack on its rally, the Awami Tehreek (AT) called for a general strike today (Wednesday) throughout Sindh in protest. Intermittent [...]

SpaceX Makes History With Falcon 9 Launch To International Space Station

2012-05-22T10:32:23Z

The US company SpaceX has became the first commercial outfit to send its own spacecraft toward the International Station with the launch of the cargo-bearing Dragon capsule. That first attempt at launching the rocket was halted when a flight computer detected “high pressure in the engine 5 combustion chamber,” according to the company. The 178-foot [...]

Deputy AG Resigns During Missing Persons Case Hearing

2012-05-22T10:25:20Z

Deputy Attorney General Malik Sikander on Tuesday resigned from his position before a bench of the Supreme Court hearing the Balochistan law and order and missing persons’ case. Unable to satisfy the judges, Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Malik Sikander walked out of court and later submitted his resignation. A three-judge bench comprising the chief justice, [...]

Al-Qaeda Claims Deadly Yemen Suicide Blast

2012-05-21T18:23:38Z

Al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in the centre of the Yemeni capital that has left nearly 100 people dead. The bomber, who was reportedly wearing an army uniform, blew himself up among a group of soldiers at al-Sabin Square, near the presidential palace. The soldiers were preparing for Tuesday’s National Day of [...]

Zardari Announces 20M Dollar Aid For Afghanistan

2012-05-21T18:20:16Z

Nato leaders on Monday called on Pakistan to reopen a key supply route into Afghanistan “as soon as possible” after talks with Islamabad on the border crossing faltered. Islamabad shut its border to NATO supplies in November after a botched US air raid that left 24 Pakistani soldiers dead. Zardari announced a total of 20 [...]

Bomber In Army Attire Kills 47 Yemenis

2012-05-21T10:20:11Z

Dozens of casualties are reported in a suicide bombing in the centre of the Yemeni capital Sanaa. At least 40 people have been killed in a suicide bomb attack during a rehearsal for a military parade in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, officials say. The soldiers were preparing for Tuesday’s National Day of Unification ceremonies when [...]

NATO Accepts That Pakistan Is Significant For Afghanistan Peace

2012-05-21T10:10:25Z

President Asif Ali Zardari was snubbed by Barack Obama at the Nato summit over a refusal to back down on demands that troops pay £3,000 for every lorry crossing the border into Pakistan, it has been claimed. Zardari pressed the United States during a Nato meeting on Sunday to help find a “permanent solution” to [...]

Italy Earthquake Leaves Four Dead, 50 Hurt

2012-05-20T09:44:13Z

At least four people have been killed and up to 50 others injured in a 6.0-magnitude earthquake near the northern Italian city of Bologna, according to the Italian news agency ANSA. The officials say the three of the victims died when the buildings they were working in collapsed. In addition, a woman in Bologna died [...]

Zardari-Rasmussen Meeting Expected Today

2012-05-20T09:34:16Z

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari arrived in Chicago on Saturday for a Nato summit to what could be a chilly reception if a hoped-for deal allowing trucks to again supply alliance troops in Afghanistan fails to materialize. The Nato chief is expected to convey an important message to the president during the meeting. According to [...]

Facebook Fails To Set Stock Market Alight

2012-05-19T10:08:23Z

Facebook shares ended their first day of trading at $38.23, barely above the company’s initial pricing of $38. Facebook, or “FB” as it’s now known to investors, may have made amateur analysts on the Web go wild. The social networking site floated 421 million shares of common stock at $38 in Friday’s initial public offering [...]

Police Arrest PM’s Security Guard After Brawl In Lahore

2012-05-19T09:56:41Z

An official of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s security squad was held by Local police after he wrangled with an inspector. The security staffer of the prime minister and policemen used abusive language against each other and engaged in scuffles during a ceremony being attended by the prime minister. Yusaf Raza Gilani was attending an [...]

European Shares Fall On Worries Over Spanish Banks

2012-05-18T10:15:12Z

Rating agency Moody’s downgraded 16 Spanish banks on Thursday, the latest sign of distress in Europe. Benchmark indices in Europe all tumbled, including London, Paris and Frankfurt. Greece’s ASE fell to its lowest level since January 1990. Spain’s main share index fell more than 2% before recovering, while shares in London fell by as much [...]

US House Approves Amendment Linking CSF To Nato Supplies

2012-05-18T09:26:57Z

US lawmakers in the House of Representatives debating the National Defence Authorisation Act voted 412-1 for an amendment that could block up to $650 million in proposed payments to Pakistan unless Islamabad lets coalition forces resume shipment of war supplies across its territory. The lawmakers were debating an annual defence policy bill that seeks $642.5 [...]

War Crimes Trial Of Mladic Shifts To Srebrenica Massacre

2012-05-17T09:36:06Z

Prosecutors are outlining their evidence of the alleged involvement of former Bosnian Serb military chief General Ratko Mladic in Europe’s worst mass murder since World War II, the 1995 Srebrenica massacre. Gen Mladic is accused of orchestrating the killings of more than 7,000 Bosnian Muslim boys and men in the town. The former general showed [...]

Four Pilots Killed In PAF Aircrafts Collision

2012-05-17T09:29:10Z

Two Pakistan Air Force (PAF) light aircraft collided mid-air on Thursday, killing four pilots on a routine training mission near Nowshera, police said. It was the sixth Pakistan Air Force crash in seven months and the second in a week, raising concerns over the safety of its largely Chinese and locally made fleet. Last Friday, [...]

Ratko Mladic Goes On Trial For Genocide

2012-05-16T08:10:07Z

Ratko Mladic, who is accused of orchestrating a horrific campaign of ethnic cleansing during the bloody civil war that ripped apart Yugoslavia, went on trial Wednesday at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Netherlands. Mladic is accused of 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including orchestrating the [...]

Nawaz Sharif Threatens To Resist Govt Move On NATO Supply

2012-05-16T07:56:25Z

The Federal Cabinet meeting today to discuss the impacts of the restoration of Nato supplies, commodity prices situation etc. Meanwhile, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif said that his party is against the restoration of NATO supply without implementations of Parliamentary Committee’s recommendations. Pakistan’s attendance in Chicago, where NATO leaders meet Sunday and Monday, would ease its [...]

NATO Invites Zardari To Chicago Summit

2012-05-15T17:24:47Z

NATO on Tuesday invited the Pakistani president to next week’s summit in Chicago, as Islamabad looked poised to end a nearly six-month blockade on NATO supplies for Afghanistan, officials said. Owners of oil tankers have been signaled to stay ready for restoration of Nato supplies by the Interior Ministery, as a decision in this regard [...]

IPL Corruption: TV Sting Alleges IPL Cricket Corruption

2012-05-15T11:22:29Z

The Indian cricket board (BCCI) will probe allegations of corruption in the lucrative Indian Premier League following allegations made by a local television channel. According to BBC, an undercover reporters from a TV channel secretly recorded talks with some players and showed them agreeing to bowl no-balls and spot-fix matches. Footage from India TV appeared [...]

Pakistan Signals End To Blockade Of Nato Supplies

2012-05-15T11:06:25Z

Top Pakistani leaders will on Tuesday (today) discuss ending a blockade of foreign military supply routes into Afghanistan and repairing US relations, signalling a rapprochement ahead of a Nato summit. A petition was filed in the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Tuesday against the resumption of Nato supplies. Islamabad shut its Afghan border crossings to [...]

Syrian Clashes Kill 23 Soldiers In City of Rastan

2012-05-14T10:46:54Z

European Union foreign ministers agreed Monday to impose fresh sanctions on Syria as a U.N.-backed peace plan — along with all other diplomatic efforts — has yet to stop the carnage that mounts every day. Fierce clashes between Syrian government forces and opposition fighters have left at least 23 soldiers killed in the central Syrian [...]

IG FC Appears Before SC In Missing Persons Case

2012-05-14T10:27:58Z

The Supreme Court on Monday directed Inspector General Balochistan Police and Inspector General Frontier Corps Maj-Gen Obaidullah Khattak to submit a joint statement in the case pertaining to the law and order situation in Balochistan and the missing persons issue in the province. Addressing the FC chief, Chief Justice Chaudhry asked, “There are evidences that [...]

‘Dozens Dead’ As Explosions Rock Syrian Capital

2012-05-10T09:15:09Z

Two explosions have hit the Syrian capital, Damascus, killing at least 40 and wounding 170 in what Syrian state TV say were “terrorist bombings”. The Syrian health ministry said at least 29 people were killed and 103 wounded in Thursday’s explosions that hit the Qazaz neighbourhood, where a Syrian intelligence agency has its headquarters. State [...]

Pakistan Test Fires Hatf III Missile

2012-05-10T09:02:15Z

Pakistan has successfully conducted the training launch of Short Range Ballistic Missile Hatf III (Ghaznavi). The launch of the Hatf III, which has a range of up to 290 kilometres and can also carry conventional warheads, came at the end of a field training exercise, a military statement said. The launch was conducted at the [...]

Blast Hits UN Monitor Convoy In Syria

2012-05-09T10:11:36Z

An explosion has hit a Syrian military truck escorting a convoy of UN observers near the city of Deraa, just seconds after the observers passed by. An Associated Press reporter who was travelling in the UN convoy said the explosion blew out the military truck’s windows and caused a plume of black smoke. Vehicles in [...]

PA Passes S. Punjab, Bahawalpur Province Resolutions

2012-05-09T10:03:31Z

The treasury and opposition have planned to play ‘resolution, resolution’ in the Punjab Assembly session today (Wednesday) for their political gains rather than to benefit masses of the province. Punjab Assembly unanimously passed resolutions regarding creation of South Punjab province and restoration of Bahawalpur s status as province. Earlier, PML-N, PML-Q and PPP MPA’s had [...]

Hillary Clinton Says, ‘New Underwear Bomb Plot Perverse’

2012-05-08T11:47:14Z

The US has foiled a plot by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula to detonate an upgraded version of the failed 2009 “underwear bomb”, US officials say. A senior law enforcement source said other devices, similar to the ‘undetectable’ one discovered this month in Yemen, could be ready to be deployed by other would-be bombers. While [...]

SC Issues Detailed Verdict In PM Contempt Case

2012-05-08T11:37:22Z

The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued the detailed verdict in the contempt of court case against Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. The order has been compiled by Justice Nasirul Mulk and a 6-page additional note has been written by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa. The 77-page detailed order has been prepared by Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk and additional [...]

François Hollande Defeats Nicolas Sarkozy To Become President

2012-05-07T10:07:30Z

France has elected Francois Hollande as its first Socialist president in nearly two decades, marking a shift to the left at the heart of Europe. Hollande has vowed to rework a deal on government debt in eurozone member countries to focus on promoting growth. The inauguration comes a day after hundreds of people, including opposition [...]

Zawahiri Is In Pakistan, Says Hillary Clinton

2012-05-07T09:57:59Z

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday the United States believed the chief of al-Qaeda was in Pakistan and she vowed to keep up pressure on miltant groups in the country. “We want to disable al Qaeda and we have made a lot of progress in doing that,” Clinton told an audience in India, a [...]

France Votes In Presidential Runoff

2012-05-06T07:47:47Z

France voted in a presidential run-off election on Sunday that could see Socialist challenger Francois Hollande defeat incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy by capitalizing on public anger over the government’s austerity policies. In the first round socialist Francois Hollande won 28.6% of the vote, ahead of incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy on 26.2%. The first polls opened in overseas [...]

Get Ready For Long March, Nawaz Sharif Asks People

2012-05-06T07:38:22Z

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Saturday began its protest movement against the Pakistan People’s Party government, holding first rally in Taxila. Nawaz Sharif has said that country needs a patriotic leadership in this hard time faced by the it. “Rampant corruption, inflation and poverty have exposed the rulers and it’s high time the nation got a [...]

Alleged 9/11 Mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed To Appear In Court

2012-05-05T11:14:10Z

The former chief US prosecutor at Guantanamo Bay has denounced the military trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks due to appear in court at Guantanamo on Saturday. It has been a year of milestones for the families of those killed on Sept. 11, with the death of Osama Bin [...]

US Drone Strike Kills 10 In North Waziristan

2012-05-05T10:59:07Z

An unmanned aerial drone attacked a house in Darr-e-Nishtar, North Waziristan, early on Saturday morning killing at lease 10 people, while two others were injured. The Pakistani officials said two missiles hit and destroyed the compound in Shawal area, some 70 kilometres (45 miles) west of Miramshah, the main town in North Waziristan. The officials [...]

Seized Osama bin Laden Papers Posted Online

2012-05-04T11:02:00Z

A selection of documents seized by the United States which detail the communiques of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden have been posted online. The documents highlight what was, at times, an apparently difficult relationship between al-Qaida’s core group, headed by bin Laden, and its affiliates. Some of the information had already been trailed by an [...]

20 Killed In Suicide Attack In Bajaur Agency

2012-05-04T10:52:02Z

A teenage suicide bomber targeted police in Bajaur on Friday, killing at least 20 people and wounding dozens in the tribal area near the Afghan border, officials said. Mohammed Aafif at the Headquarters Hospital in Khar confirmed the death toll. At least three of the dead were policemen, including a senior officer, another official said. [...]

Chen Guangcheng Wants To Leave China On Hillary Clinton’s Plane

2012-05-03T11:35:30Z

Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese activist, has said he wants to leave for the US rather than stay in China, throwing into doubt a deal used to coax him out of the US embassy in Beijing and defuse an impasse that has strained China-US ties. US state department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland confirmed that Chen and [...]

NA Passes Resolution To Create Saraiki Province

2012-05-03T11:24:57Z

The National Assembly on Thursday adopted two resolutions amid opposition uproar, one resolution for supporting the formation of Seraiki province and other for reposing confidence in Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in the wake of his conviction in the contempt of court case. National Assembly session also adopted a resolution to express solidarity with Prime [...]

Obama Marks Bin Laden Death In Afghanistan

2012-05-02T11:34:30Z

US President Barack Obama has pledged to “finish the job” and end the Afghan war, addressing the US public live from a military base in Afghanistan. “We can see the light of a new day on the horizon,” he said at the end of a surprise trip to the country on the anniversary of Osama [...]

PML-N Finalises Anti-Govt Movement Schedule

2012-05-02T11:13:50Z

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Wednesday announced that it would launch nationwide protest rallies and later on a long march to remove Yousuf Raza Gilani from his position of Prime Minister. PML-N had announced that it would launch nationwide protest rallies and later on a long march. According to a PML-N statement issued on [...]

India Ferry Capsizes; 103 Dead, 100 Missing

2012-05-01T12:06:57Z

Divers and rescue workers are looking for survivors on the Brahmaputra river in India’s Assam state, where a ferry capsized during a storm on Monday, killing at least 103 people. The ferry sank Monday evening as it sailed along the Brahmaputra River in Assam, the state’s home commissioner Jishnu Barua told sources. Rescue workers fought [...]

Powerful Blast Rips Through Quetta, Five Killed

2012-05-01T11:55:05Z

A huge blast ripped though Quetta on Tuesday killing at least five people including a Frontier Constabulary personnel and injuring several others. Police said a vehicle of Frontier Constabulary (FC) was targeted by terrorists in the explosion occurred near a grid station near degree college at Sariab road area. The loud explosion, which was reported [...]

More Than 20 Killed In Blasts In Syria’s Idlib

2012-04-30T11:21:36Z

Syria’s state-run news agency says two blasts in the northwest city of Idlib have killed at least eight people and caused serious damage. TV reports said two suicide bombings had killed eight people, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 20 had died in attacks targeting the security forces. The Britain-based Syrian [...]

PM Gilani: ‘Judiciary Can Not Disqualify Any Public Representative

2012-04-30T10:56:10Z

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday said he would not resign from his position, adding that the Supreme Court’s conviction had no relation with the process of disqualification. PM Gilani reiterated that only parliament can send him back home and clarified that the verdict of Supreme Court does not deal with the issue of [...]

Gaddafi ‘Agreed To Fund Nicolas Sarkozy’s 2007 Poll Campaign’

2012-04-29T08:26:53Z

The government of the late Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi agreed to fund French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s 2007 election campaign with an estimated $66m, a French news website has reported. Mediapart, a French online magazine, claimed in its report to have a Gadhafi government document, detailing an agreement to fund the campaign. The 2006 document in [...]

Lyari Operation: Over 20 Dead In Last Three Days

2012-04-29T08:15:27Z

At least 11 people including station house officer (SHO) Civil Lines were killed and 21 others injured as violence continued in Lyari on Saturday while security forces were given shoot-on-sight orders to maintain peace in the area. Pitched battles between the criminals and law enforcement agencies including police have forced the people in the most [...]

Malaysian Police Fire Tear Gas At Protesters

2012-04-28T11:00:34Z

Malaysian police today fired tear gas and water cannons at a huge opposition rally in Kuala Lumpur, BBC News reported. Riot police reacted after some protesters among the crowd of at least 25,000 tried to break through barriers, in defiance of a court order banning them from entering the city’s historic Merdeka (Independence) Square. At [...]

Shahzain Bugti Arrested For Arms Case

2012-04-28T10:53:30Z

Jamhoori Watan Party Balochistan president Nawabzada Shahzain Bugti, while speaking to the media outside his residence on Saturday, consented to being arrested along with his associates following the non-bailable warrant issued against him. Bugti surrendered along with his 26 guards with whom he had been implicated in an illegal arms possession case in Dec 2010. [...]

Spanish Unemployment Hits Record 5.64 Million

2012-04-27T10:44:05Z

Almost one-quarter of all Spanish workers are unemployed right now, with no sign that nation’s economy will get better any time soon. The news comes hours after the country’s credit rating was cut two notches to “BBB+” by ratings agency Standard & Poor’s. The figures came hours after rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded Spanish [...]

Gilani Refuses To Step Down, Says Only Parliament Can Remove Him

2012-04-27T10:31:59Z

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday refused to step down after his contempt of court conviction, saying only the country’s parliament could remove him from office. “There is no law to remove an elected prime minister, parliament is the supreme authority and only this parliament has the authority to remove me,” he said in [...]

Charles Taylor ‘Blood Diamond’ Verdict Opens

2012-04-26T10:28:13Z

An international war crimes tribunal delivers its verdict Thursday in the trial of Charles Taylor, the former Liberian president accused of arming rebels who raped, killed and mutilated civilians in neighboring Sierra Leone. Taylor listened attentively and made notes as judge Richard Lussick started reading a summary of the verdict on Thursday – the first [...]

PM Gilani Should Immediately Resign: Nawaz Sharif

2012-04-26T09:50:43Z

Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif Thursday demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani after he was convicted of contempt of court. Expressing his views on Supreme Court’s verdict, Nawaz said that a prime minister after being charged by the apex court will be a disrespect to parliament, adding SC’s [...]

PM Gilani Convicted Of Contempt Of Court

2012-04-26T06:02:12Z

Supreme Court seven-member bench found Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani guilty of the contempt for not writing to the Swiss Court to reopen cases against President Asif Ali Zardari. However, the court gave Gilani only a symbolic sentence and he will not have to serve any time in jail. “For reasons to be recorded later, [...]

PM Gilani To Appear In Court

2012-04-25T17:44:01Z

Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani says he will appear before the Supreme Court on Wednesday when verdict of the contempt of court case will be announced. Federal Interior Minister Rahman Malik saying that prime minister will go to Supreme Court by foot tomorrow appealed to everyone including lawyers not to be there if no [...]

Rupert Murdoch Gets Grilled At Phone-Hacking Inquiry

2012-04-25T10:03:54Z

Global media tycoon Rupert Murdoch began testifying about corruption and phone hacking Wednesday, a day after his son revealed the depth of the contacts between the Murdoch empire and the highest levels of the British government. The questioning panel was set up in the wake of revelations that the News of the World illegally hacked [...]

Pakistan Successfully Test-Fires Ballistic Missile

2012-04-25T09:30:13Z

Pakistan on Wednesday successfully conducted the launch of intermediate range ballistic missile Hatf-4 Shaheen-1A weapon system. The exact range of the missile was not revealed, but retired General Talat Masood, a defence analyst, told AFP. The test was made to check the enhanced range of the missile in which solid fues was used. According to [...]

South Sudan’s Salva Kiir Says Sudan Has Declared War

2012-04-24T12:00:03Z

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, has condemned air raids by Sudan on South Sudan, and called on the countries’ leaders to return to dialogue. South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir says Sudan has “declared war” on his country, following weeks of fighting along their common border. Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir has ruled out talks with South [...]

PM Contempt Case Verdict On April 26

2012-04-24T11:55:31Z

The Supreme Court of Pakistan reserved on Tuesday its verdict in contempt of court case against Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, summoning the PM on April 26 (Thursday) for the decision. Pakistan s Supreme Court will announce its verdict in the contempt of court case against Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Thursday, his [...]

Sudan’s Omar Al-Bashir Vows To Punish South Sudan

2012-04-23T19:16:55Z

Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir has ruled out talks with South Sudan on the simmering border conflict that has prompted fears of all-out war. Keeping up the war rhetoric that has sparked expressions of concern from the United States, Bashir dismissed talk by the United Nations that sanctions might be imposed on South Sudan. “We will [...]

Zardari For Joint Strategy To Defeat Lawlessness In Karachi

2012-04-23T19:08:24Z

President Asif Ali Zaradari assured a MQM delegation that works on the new local bodies system and local bodies elections in Sindh would be speeded up. Zardari has said that if the three political parties, the PPP, MQM and the ANP, join hands in Karachi, there was no reason why they could not confront and [...]

Hollande Edges Sarkozy In French Elections

2012-04-23T10:25:06Z

French President Nicolas Sarkozy faces an uphill struggle in the second round of the presidential election, after coming second in Sunday’s first vote. Hollande beat the conservative Sarkozy in Sunday’s 10-candidate first round by 28.6 per cent to 27.1 per cent, the interior ministry said, with 99 per cent of votes counted. Socialist candidate Francois [...]

PM Gilani Says, ‘War Is Not The Solution’

2012-04-23T10:13:46Z

Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani has said that writers and poets stopped taking unconstitutional step in Pakistan by spreading awareness. He said the time when disputes were resolved by wars has gone and now issues have to be settled via diplomacy. Speaking at a seminar on Monday, the prime minister said that his government [...]

France Votes In Presidential Poll

2012-04-22T12:08:39Z

French President Nicolas Sarkozy cast his ballot Sunday in the country’s presidential elections as he fought to keep his job in the face of challenges from nine other candidates. While predictions of a high abstention rate and a strong protest vote have left the outcome uncertain, opinion polls point towards Francois Hollande, Sarkozy’s main Socialist [...]

Shaheen Airline Plane Escapes Disaster At Karachi Airport

2012-04-22T12:02:12Z

Less than two days after an airline jet crashed near Islamabad that killing all 127 people onboard, another plane narrowly escaped a major accident on Sunday at the Karachi Airport runway. The pilot managed a safe landing and the passengers remained safe. According to details, Shaheen airline flight NL-122 with 172 passengers and eight crew [...]

Thousands Of Bahrain F1 Protesters Dispersed

2012-04-21T11:37:04Z

A man has been found dead with gunshot wounds in Bahrain after overnight clashes with police, activists say, a day before Sunday’s F1 Grand Prix. Thousands of anti-government protesters have been dispersed after flooding a major highway in Bahrain demanding a halt to the Formula One race on the first day of its practice ahead [...]

Bhoja Crash: 123 Bodies Identified; 110 Handed Over To Heirs

2012-04-21T11:23:35Z

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Saturday issued a preliminary investigation report on the Bhoja Air plane crash. To avoid controversies seen after Air Blue crash probe report, Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani Saturday announced judicial commission to investigate Bhoja air tragedy. Rescue teams working through the night recovered many bodies as well as the [...]

Over 125 Feared Dead In Bhoja Air’s Aircraft Crashed

2012-04-20T17:25:59Z

Private airliner Bhoja Airlines aircraft has crashed around residential area of Hussain Abbas village five kilometer off Rawalpindi. Sobbing relatives of those on the flight flocked to the airport as a government minister expressed little hope of finding survivors. There are no reports of survivors. Rescue teams are trying to assess if there are any [...]

Clashes In Bahrain Ahead Of F1 Race

2012-04-20T12:17:06Z

Bahraini security forces have clashed with protesters against Bahrain’s controversial Grand Prix in mainly Shia villages, despite increasing security for the start of practice sessions. The claim comes as the opposition accuses the Gulf kingdom of cracking down on demonstrations in the run up to the race. Activists have promised “three days of rage” at [...]

Supreme Court Hears Ephedrine Quota Case

2012-04-20T11:55:57Z

A three-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Friday accepted Sheikh Rasheed’s petition to become party in ephedrine quota case. The Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) on Thursday had submitted a report before the court formally naming eight accused, including Prime Minister’s Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani’s son, for their alleged [...]

India Says Agni-V, Capable Of Reaching China, Test-Fired Successfully

2012-04-19T09:31:03Z

India has test launched its first long-range intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), capable of reaching deep into China and as far as Europe, with a scientist at the launch describing the mission as successful. The Agni V rocket took off around 8:03 a.m. local time (10.33 p.m. Wednesday ET) and “met all the mission objectives,” said [...]

PM contempt Case: Aitzaz Presents UN Report On Immunity

2012-04-19T09:02:40Z

Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, who is defending Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in the contempt case, concluded his arguments before a seven member bench of the Supreme Court on Thursday. Ahsan also produced the report before the Supreme Court’s seven-judge bench, headed by Justice Nasirul Mulk, to support his argument on presidential immunity. The counsel said [...]

India To Test Nuclear Missile That Can Hit Beijing

2012-04-18T13:20:32Z

India is due to test fire a long-range intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Agni V, an intercontinental ballistic missile, is set to be launched from Wheeler Island, off the coast of the eastern state of Orissa, in the late afternoon, according to a defense ministry official. “It will be a quantum leap [...]

New Ministers: Portfolios Announced

2012-04-18T13:00:39Z

The Federal Cabinet saw a reshuffle Wednesday as newly appointed ministers were handed over their portfolios, while some existing ministers were re-assigned new ministries. The government has announced the portfolios of newly appointed federal ministers. The following are the portfolios of Federal Ministers are as: Qamar Zaman Kaira (Information and Broadcasting), Raja Pervaiz Ashraf (Information [...]

Norway Killer Breivik Claims ‘Spectacular Political Attack’

2012-04-17T11:04:17Z

The man who has admitted the mass killings of 77 people in Norway last year has told a court he acted out of “goodness, not evil” in order to “defend his country”. “I have carried out the most spectacular and sophisticated attack on Europe since World War II,” Anders Behring Breivik told the court. Breivik [...]

Nawas Says, ‘Pakistan And India Should Withdraw Forces From Siachen’

2012-04-17T10:41:59Z

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz President Mian Nawaz Sharif said Monday that war against terrorism has caused devastating impact on the country’s economy apart from taking lives of 36,000 army men and civilians. As many as 400 troops and some 60 civilian are busy in rescue and search operation. Nawaz was accompanied by other PML-N leaders including [...]

Mass Killer Anders Behring Breivik Pleads Not Guilty

2012-04-16T11:45:48Z

The man accused over a bombing and shooting spree that left 77 people dead in Norway has acknowledged carrying out the killings but pleaded “not guilty” on terror charges, as his trial got under way in Oslo. As his trial opened earlier in the day, he raised a clenched fist and said he did not [...]

PM Contempt Case Hearing Adjourned Till Tomorrow

2012-04-16T11:33:37Z

Supreme Court of Pakistan Monday adjourned the contempt of Court case against Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani till Tuesday. Irfan Qadir, the newly appointed Attorney General of Pakistan, and the prime minister’s counsel Aitzaz Ahsan were present in the court for the hearing. PM Gilani’s counsel Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan requested the court to defer its [...]

Syria UN-Backed Ceasefire Holding Amid Tensions

2012-04-12T10:32:29Z

A ceasefire has come into force in Syria amid doubts expressed by Western countries about the government’s willingness to stick to it. Syrians in rebel flashpoints woke up to an eerie quiet without the usual reports of raids and shelling by government forces. The truce, negotiated by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan, appeared to be [...]

PM Contempt Case Hearing Underway

2012-04-12T10:23:51Z

Seven member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) Thursday resumed the contempt of court case against Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, who was criticized by the court over his assertion that he cannot act upon the ruling for the time being. The prime minister’s counsel, Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan presenting evidence before a seven-member bench [...]

Massive Quake Triggers Tsunami Warning For 28 Countries

2012-04-11T10:18:12Z

A tsunami warning has been issued in the Indian Ocean after Indonesia’s geophysical agency reported a powerful earthquake off Aceh province. An earthquake with an magnitude of 8.7 has struck under the sea off Indonesia’s northern Aceh province. The quake struck about 434 kilometers southwest of Banda Aceh, the capital of Indonesia’s Aceh province, and [...]

Avalanche Tragedy Rescue Operation Enters In Fifth Day

2012-04-11T10:03:56Z

Harsh weather conditions hampering the search for 138 people buried under a huge avalanche at a Pakistani army camp will last at least another 24 hours, a senior meteorological official said Wednesday. Harsh weather conditions hampering the search for 138 people buried under a huge avalanche at a Pakistani army camp will last at least [...]

Syria Clashes Blight Ceasefire Hopes

2012-04-10T10:27:12Z

A deadline for Syrian troops to withdraw from cities came and went Tuesday morning, but opposition activists say the regime’s onslaught rages on. Shelling was reported in Homs and there were clashes on the Turkish and Lebanese border overnight. Sergey Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said Syria’s government “could have been more active and decisive” [...]

Search Operation Continues Despite Weather Conditions

2012-04-10T10:17:54Z

A search operation has been under way for the fourth day since a huge wall of snow crashed into a Pakistan Army camp in the Giari area near Siachen Glacier. Experts say there is little chance of finding any survivors. Six German and three Swiss experts are embraced with equipments who are also waiting for [...]

Syria: Arab League Leaders Gather Gor Historic Baghdad Summit

2012-03-29T13:21:49Z

Iraq is hosting its first Arab League summit in 22 years, with talks expected to be dominated by the crisis in Syria. Unprecedented security blanketed Baghdad for the summit, the first in Iraq since 1990. It was originally scheduled to be held in Baghdad last year, but was postponed due to unrest. Syria has accepted [...]

Unrest Firings Lawlessness Continue In Karachi

2012-03-29T13:07:56Z

Civil unrest in the wake of the killing of an ANP worker last night continues in Karachi amidst incidents of aerial firings and lawlessness. Following the killing of Awami National Party (ANP) worker in Karachi, arson and violence erupted in the metropolis on Wednesday. Restlessness and agitation have gripped the city as angry protesters started [...]

No Signs Syria Carrying Out Peace Plan

2012-03-28T17:52:43Z

A day after news broke that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad accepted a plan to forge peace, fresh clashes broke out once again across Syria on Wednesday, opposition activists said. Syria has accepted a peace plan, amid scepticism about its intentions. The peace plan was put forward by UN and Arab League envoy Kofi Annan. “The [...]

Karachi Unrest 2012: ANP Activist’s Murder Brings Violence Back

2012-03-28T17:17:51Z

Following the killing of Awami National Party (ANP) worker in Karachi, arson and violence erupted in the metropolis on Wednesday. Restlessness and agitation have gripped the city as angry protesters started threwing stones on vehicles in Lasbela and Gurumander and torched four cars in different localities. ANP Sindh President, Senator Shahi Syed condemned the killing [...]

Syria’s Assad Accepts Peace Plan Of Kofi Annan

2012-03-28T10:38:47Z

Top US Generals Arrive In Pakistan For Talks

2012-03-28T10:28:10Z

Two top US generals will hold talks on Wednesday with the Pakistan army chief in the first such meeting since air strikes killed 24 Pakistani soldiers four months ago, the Pakistan army said. They will hold talks with the Pakistan army chief on Wednesday in the first such meeting since air strikes killed 24 Pakistani [...]

Obama WarnsTo North Korea As Nuclear Summit Gets Underway

2012-03-27T09:34:35Z

World leaders have called for closer co-operation to tackle the threat of nuclear terrorism at a summit on nuclear security in Seoul. n a statement issued at the end of the two-day 53-nation nuclear summit, the leaders reaffirmed “shared goals of nuclear disarmament, nuclear proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy”. President Barack Obama is [...]

Karachi Burns As MQM Mourns

2012-03-27T08:54:16Z

An activist of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) gunned down in Karachi triggering disturbances in various parts of the metropolis. Schools and petrol pumps also remained closed after spiraling violence in Karachi. One person was also killed in firing in Mehmoodabad, according to fresh reports. The early morning attack left the victim’s sister-in-law Uzma Maqsood, injured. [...]

Obama For ‘World Without Nuclear Weapons’

2012-03-26T11:18:42Z

China and the US have agreed to co-ordinate their response to any “potential provocation” if North Korea goes ahead with a planned rocket launch, the White House says. Obama also assured that the United States can further reduce its nuclear weapons stockpile while maintaining its strategic deterrent and international commitments. “North Korea will achieve nothing [...]

Nationwide Loadshedding Protest Turns Violent, One Killed In Lahore

2012-03-26T11:08:35Z

Long hours of load shedding in Lahore and other cities of Punjab for last many days have sparked power riots in various areas of the province. Protesters were holding a demonstration against prolonged hours of loadshedding in Daroghawala area of Lahore and set ablaze a petrol pump. According to the details, in Daroghawala and Shalimar [...]

Obama Visits Koreas’ Demilitarised Zone As Tensions Rise

2012-03-25T10:50:15Z

US President Barack Obama has visited US troops stationed on South Korea’s border with North Korea in a show of solidarity with Seoul, ahead of a global summit there on nuclear security. The stop at the border Sunday marked the start of a three-day trip to South Korea where the American president is to attend [...]

Gillani Says, ‘NATO Supply Stopped Not On Direction Of Opposition’

2012-03-25T10:19:26Z

Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani Sunday said that parliament would take final decision regarding reopening of NATO supply line to Afghanistan through Pakistan. He said that in this connection consensus will be developed among all the stakeholders and the decision to open it would be taken by the parliament. The prime minister was speaking [...]

Turkish Forces Kill 15 Kurdish Women Fighters

2012-03-24T17:51:53Z

Fifteen rebel Kurds, all of them women, were killed in fighting with Turkish security forces in the southeast of the country, the Turkish interior ministry has said. The women were members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and died in fighting in the south-eastern Bitlis province, the interior ministry said. The clashes occurred in a [...]