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Islamabad: Pak-Iran-Afghan trilateral summit today
US supports trilateral summit, but concerned over DPC rallies
PM will not seek Presidential pardon even if held guilty
PMD predicts more rain, snowfall
Munda Dam: WAPDA inks Rs 611.5 million design accord
Putin visits Olympic training centre
UN General Assembly condemns Syria crackdown
19 people 'massacred' in Syria
Rising anger in Honduras over deadly prison fire
Berdych, Del Potro into Rotterdam Open quarter-finals
Azarenka sweeps into Qatar quarters
Darcis dumps Stepanek at San Jones
Barca, Lyon make winning starts in knockout phase
Whiteford, Canizares share lead in Avantha Masters
US says no plane to give IMF more money

Islamabad: Pak-Iran-Afghan trilateral summit today

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The Presidents of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran will attend the trilateral summit, aimed at bringing peace and stability and ensuring security in the region, in Islamabad today. President Asif Ali Zardari, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who are here for a two-day meeting, held an informal round of talks on Thursday at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, as part of the trilateral mechanism. This is the third round of the trilateral talks, that began in 2009. Pakistan believes that the summit would prove to be an important milestone towards finding peace, stability and Afghan-led reconciliation process. The Pakistan Foreign Office earlier said the trilateral mechanism was important for Pakistan as it would discuss matters pertaining to cooperation in counter-terrorism, curbing transnational organized crime, including drug and human trafficking, and border management.

US supports trilateral summit, but concerned over DPC rallies

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The spokesperson of the US State Department, Victoria Nuland has said that the United States supports the ongoing trilateral summit, involving Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran, in Islamabad despite having reservations on Iran s nuclear programme and its support for terrorism in the region. "We are not trying to get in the way of good neighbourly relations if, in fact, they support a democratic, peaceful, stable Afghanistan. We’ve said from the beginning we are not trying to stop legitimate trade in food, medicine, these kinds of things, between Iran and its neighbours," she emphasised. "What we obviously object to is the attitude of Iran to its nuclear obligations, its support for terror, particularly support for terror in its neighbourhood. So the degree to which Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan are talking about positive support for an increasingly democratic Afghanistan, that would be in keeping with the goals of the New Silk Road Project that we support. But if there are difficult issues between them, this is an opportunity to deal with those too. And as you know, there have been concerns about some of Iran’s behaviour inside Afghanistan," she observed. On another question about indications that Iran was seeking to be a player in the reconciliation talks with Taliban, she said "we’ve said all along that we think all of the neighbours need to support this process and the regional states need to support this process if it’s going to be successful. That’s what President Karzai has also called for." "With regard to whether there’s a role to be played by Iran, frankly, I think the main thing would be to encourage Afghans to talk to Afghans as another step in the reconciliation process. You know that Iran has participated constructively in some of the recent international meetings that we’ve had to support the Afghans in general. They were part of the Istanbul group in November and they were present at the New Silk Road Initiative in September at the UN. They are neighbours. That said, we don’t necessarily support all the things that they have been known to be up to inside Afghanistan," Ms. Nuland went on to explain. When asked about conflicting statements from Afghan president Hamid Karzai and Taliban about three-way meetings between Taliban, US, and Afghanistan officials, she declined to offer any details. "We don’t think it’s for us to get into the blow-by-blow of how we are trying to facilitate a process that gets to Afghans talking to Afghans about peace, reconciliation, and stability there. So I’m frankly not going to get into who met whom where and in what configuration," she stated. "What we did think was interesting about the press statements we saw from President Karzai is that he is again making very positive statements about the process, making clear that he and his government are prepared to be actively engaged and working with others on that. So he also – President Karzai – makes the point that he’s not going to give all the details either, because the folks trying to work this through need some space to see if the process can work," she argued. She also brushed aside Taliban spokesman s claim that they had not met anybody. "There are lots of Taliban saying lots of different things. So again, we’ve said and the Secretary has made clear this whole process is at a very preliminary stage. We’re still at the stage of trying to build the trust among the Afghans so that they can sit in the room and have conversations. So that’s the stage that we’re at, and it’s very, very preliminary," she asserted. She also refused to comment on a query whether Taliban leader, Mullah Omer was supporting these talks. When asked if the US was playing an "honest broker" role in these talks, she said "there are some Taliban who are willing to talk to us. We obviously talk to the Afghans. We’re trying to get to a place where, through our good offices, other good offices, they start talking to each other." "From our perspective, this preliminary effort to get the sides to meet directly and meet with each other continues. You’re going to have lots of stray press comments from different factions, different groups, throughout this process. We all just need to be steady and take it one step at a time," she opined. On another question by an Indian journalist regarding the participation of banned outfits in Difa-i-Pakistan rally in Karachi, the State Department expressed concern saying that "the US government is concerned about the recent public appearances of Jamaat-ud-Dawa leader Hafiz Saeed, including at a recent rally in Karachi. Lashkar-e-Taiba, and its front group Jamaat-ud-Dawa, is internationally sanctioned because of its associations with Al Qaeda. We have and continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to uphold its obligations in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1267/1989. That resolution calls for all countries to freeze assets of sanctioned groups, prevent the transfer of arms to them, and prevent sanctioned individuals from entering or transiting their territories." There was also an interesting back-and-forth between the reporters and the State Department spokesperson on Egypt during the briefing, when she was asked whether the administration was disappointed that Egypt’s political parties don’t seem to be helping the US, and there was apparently a concerted effort to whip up anti-American sentiment. "That is concerning. That is very concerning," Ms. Nuland conceded. Upon this a journalist remarked, "it just seems that this – that Egypt has turned into Pakistan here overnight in – as it relates to U.S. aid and assistance and involvement. And this is a country, Egypt, which has gotten nothing but benefit from us. There’s – there can’t – there are no complaints about drone strikes, there’s no complaints about contractors or embassy workers killing people on the streets of Karachi. There’s nothing like that. There’s no bombings that are killing 24 Egyptian soldiers going on, and yet you have a situation that’s almost parallel to that in the anti-American sentiment that’s being whipped up after having spent billions and billions of dollars, probably even more than has been spent in Pakistan. Is that a concern?" Ms. Nuland, without dilating on the analogy used by the said journalist, said "it is a concern that this kind of false information that’s being put out about what our NGOs do, the role that they have wanted to play and have been active in playing, in supporting the superb elections that the Egyptians have already had, and still need to have going forward, is being mischaracterized in a way that is casting a pall over the value of the relationship as a whole between Egypt and the United States, which we think is of strategic value to us and we would very much like to continue to play a role in supporting not only the security and stability of Egypt but very much it’s democratic transition." - Contributed by Awais Saleem, Dunya News correspondent in Washington, DC

PM will not seek Presidential pardon even if held guilty

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Talking to media in Lahore, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani’s chief counsel Aitzaz Ahsan said that the PM will not seek Presidential pardon even if convicted in the contempt case. Aitzaz said that not all convictions result in an MNA’s disqualification. “Once the verdict comes, the case will be put before the speaker of the National Assembly, where the speaker will have 30 days to decide whether Gilani can be disqualified due to the verdict or not,” he said. However, he was of the view that PM should not be disqualified. He said that writing the letter to Swiss government would not solve the issue. “Writing a letter will not bring money back to Pakistan.

PMD predicts more rain, snowfall

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Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted more rain with snowfall over the hills in different parts of the country form Sunday to Wednesday. According to Met analysis, fresh westerly wave is likely to approach Pakistan on Sunday that will generate scattered rain in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwan, North Balochistan, Islamabad, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir. Under the influence of this westerly waves more snow is expected over the hills of Murree, Galliyat, Northern areas, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir from Monday to Wednesday. The lowest minimum temperature was recorded minus 11C in Parachinar, Kalam while Thursday’s minimum temperatures were Islamabad 1C, Lahore 3C, Quetta minus 8C, Karachi 10C, Peshawar 3C, Muzaffarabad 2C, Gilgit minus 2C, Murree minus 4C, Multan 3C, Faisalabad 1C.

Munda Dam: WAPDA inks Rs 611.5 million design accord

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The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) has signed an agreement worth Rs 611.50 million for preparation of detailed engineering design and tender documents of Munda Dam Multipurpose Project at the Governor House Peshawar. The joint venture, comprising four Pakistani and two foreign firms has been assigned to complete the task in two years. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Barrister Masood Kausar, KPK Assembly Speaker Kiramtullah Khan Chagarmati, Fata parliamentarians, tribal elders, political elites and officials attended the signing ceremony. Munda Dam to be constructed on Swat River approximately 37 km north of Peshawar and 5 km upstream of Munda Headworks in the Mohmand Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Upon completion, the dam will generate 740 MW of hydroelectricity, irrigate 15,100 acres of land and control floods downstream. It is expected to provide numerous estimated annual benefits including Rs. 4.98 billion in annual water storage benefits, Rs. 19.6 billion in power generation benefits by generating 2.4 billion units of electricity annually and Rs. 79 million in annual flood mitigation benefits. Munda Dam is also expected to protect Nowshera and Charsadda districts from seasonal floods by storing peak flood water in its reservoir and releasing it in dry seasons.

Putin visits Olympic training centre

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Russia s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin bobsledded down an ice track at a sports training centre outside Moscow on Wednesday (February 16) as part of his campaign tour ahead of March presidential elections. Putin, during a visit to the Paramonovo track -- a venue which, according to media reports, is slated to host the upcoming European Luge Championship and World Cup Final race, observed Russian bobsled and luge athletes training and stopped to talk with Russian national luge team trainer Martin Hillebrand in German. Russia s Prime Minister and top presidential candidate also took the opportunity to try out one of the bobsleds, and coasted down an ice track several times with the help of several athletes. Vladimir Putin was president from 2000 until 2008, when he ushered Dmitry Medvedev into the Kremlin because of a constitutional bar on three successive terms as head of state. He became prime minister but remained the dominant leader of the country. Putin presents himself as a man of action working for the good of the people and dismisses rivals as divided and lacking in any realistic policies to overcome the country s problems of industrial decay and poor transport and communications.

UN General Assembly condemns Syria crackdown

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The 193-nation UN General Assembly on Thursday overwhelmingly approved a non-binding resolution endorsing an Arab League plan that urges Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step aside. The initial count showed that the resolution, which is similar to one Russia and China vetoed in the Security Council on Feb. 4, received 137 votes in favor, 12 against and 17 abstentions, though three delegations said their votes failed to register on the electronic board. Russia and China were among those that voted against the resolution.

19 people 'massacred' in Syria

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Syria security forces "massacred" 19 people in the province of Idlib on Thursday, including 11 people from the same family, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "The security forces carried out a massacre during an assault on the Sahl Erruj valley, which contains a number of villages, costing 19 lives, including 11 from the same family," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. The killing took place as troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad attacked the villages of Hila, Sankara and Bansakul, east of the city of Jisr al-Shughur, he said.

Rising anger in Honduras over deadly prison fire

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Anger rose in Honduras Thursday as word spread about how inmates were left trapped in a horrific prison fire, or were shot trying to flee the blaze which killed 355 prisoners. Resentment over the conduct of prison guards deepened as experts sought to identify the charred remains of those killed at the overcrowded Comayagua prison, thought to be the world s worst-ever jail fire. "If the guards had opened the gates, they would not have died, said Rosa Caseres, whose husband, serving five years for kidnapping, died in the inferno. "This is criminal. The authorities are incompetent," said the mother of three young children. Other relatives echoed her fury. "How can you believe 350 people died just like that? It s because they let them die. They (guards) did not come with the keys," said Angelina Raudales, 62, as she waited outside the morgue in Tegucigalpa for the body of her husband, Jose Adrian. Gladys Oviedo, 40, searching for the body of her brother Augusto, called for "an investigation which is not a cover-up." To make matters worse, reports were spreading that prison guards began shooting at inmates who managed to flee the flames. "One of the prisoners who survived said my husband was out, but the guards shot him and then threw him into the flames," said Yadira Hernandez, whose husband was serving a murder sentence. Police officials have denied negligence in the deaths, but some firefighters pointed out that prison guards were slow to open cell doors and gates when the fire broke out at the prison housing 852 inmates, twice its capacity. The devastating fire has led President Porfirio Lobo to suspend Honduras s top prison officials, including the corrections chief, as well as those at the Comayagua penitentiary. The inferno broke out at around 10:50 pm Tuesday (0450 GMT Wednesday), and burned for around three hours before it was brought under control. Authorities put the final toll at 355 -- more than a third of the facility s inmates. Security minister Pompeyo Bonilla told AFP the process of identifying the victims would be prolonged.

Berdych, Del Potro into Rotterdam Open quarter-finals

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Tomas Berdych and Juan Martin del Potro joined resting top seed Roger Federer in the Rotterdam Open quarter-finals on Thursday. Second seed Berdych advanced with only minimal effort as opponent Marcos Baghdatis quit with a left foot injury after 19 minutes on court while trailing 3-0 in their second round match. But Del Potro, the number three seed making his debut here, had a battle on his hands before he finally got past Slovak Karol Beck 6-4, 7-5. On Wednesday, Federer moved easily into the last eight at the Ahoy stadium when scheduled second round opponent Mikhail Youzhny withdrew a day before their contest with a left foot injury. Federer still had to go out and win his opening match against Frenchman Nicolas Mahut, which he did, 6-4, 6-4. Del Potro had to overcome a slight bloody nose which required a medical timeout early in the contest with Beck. Once that was sorted, it was back to work for the 2009 US Open champion, who advanced with nine aces - his last one earned two match points. Del Potro needed almost two hours to move into a match with the winner from Serb seventh seed Victor Troicki and the last local standing in Jesse Huta Galung. Frenchman Richard Gasquet, seeded fifth, continued his steady progress at his second tournament appearance, defeating Russian Alex Bogomolov 6-3, 6-2 while Italy s Andreas Seppi dispatched German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-2. His quarter-final with Davydenko is a repeat of the match he won this month in Montpellier, taking his record over the veteran Russian to four wins in five encounters.

Azarenka sweeps into Qatar quarters

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World number one Victoria Azarenka swept into the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open with a swift demolition of Romanian Simona Halep on Thursday as Lucie Safarova claimed another top scalp. Belarusian Azarenka, the Australian Open champion, won 10 games in a row on the way to beating the 63rd-ranked Halep 6-3, 6-1, while Safarova, who had knocked out the second seed Caroline Wozniacki on Wednesday, sent former US and French Open champion and 14th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova packing with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 victory. Kuznetsova was the 12th of the 16 seeds in the 64-player draw to crash out of the event over the first four days. "I kept my composure," said Azarenka, who will now meet Belgian Yanina Wickmayer in the quarter-finals. Wickmayer defeated Kazakhstan s Ksenia Pervak 6-4, 6-0. Poland s Agnieszka Radwanska fought back from a break down to advance to the last eight with a 7-5, 6-1 win over the USA s Varvara Lepchenko. Radwanska, the world number six and fourth seed in Qatar, was too strong for the Uzbek-born Lepchenko who is yet to win a WTA title after turning pro as a 15-year-old way back in 2001. Meanwhile, Australian third seed Samantha Stosur ousted the Czech Republic s Petra Cetkovska 6-3, 6-2, but Israeli Shahar Peer s quest for a first title in the Middle East ended prematurely. Peer, whose participation in events in the Gulf has often generated a furore, was beaten 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 by the USA s Christina McHale.

Darcis dumps Stepanek at San Jones

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Belgian Steve Darcis upset Czech fourth seed Radek Stepanek 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/2) on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the $531,000 ATP San Jose Open. Darcis, ranked 72nd, will next face the winner of a later match between French fifth seed Julien Benneteau and Luxembourg s Gilles Muller. In his 10th pro season, Darcis, 27, seeks his third ATP title after a 2007 triumph in Amersfoort and a 2008 victory in Memphis. French top seed Gael Monfils withdrew with a right knee injury and was replaced by US lucky loser Blake Strode, who faces Bulgarian Dimitar Kutrovsky in a later second-round match. Also on the schedule is South African sixth seed Kevin Anderson facing Australian Matthew Ebden with the winner booking a quarter-final date against defending champion Milos Raonic of Canada.

Barca, Lyon make winning starts in knockout phase

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Lionel Messi helped Barcelona shake off its domestic troubles in Spain by inspiring the defending champions to a 3-1 victory at Bayer Leverkusen in the round of 16 of the Champions League. In the other first leg on Tuesday, Lyon beat APOEL Nicosia 1-0. Messi set up the first-half opener for Alexis Sanchez, who added another after the break before the Argentina forward rounded off the victory with his 38th goal of the season. It might be the only league Barcelona wins this season, having fallen 10 points behind Real Madrid in Spain. Alexandre Lacazette s 58th-minute goal gave Lyon a slight edge against APOEL, which is the first Cypriot team to reach the Champions League knockout phase.

Whiteford, Canizares share lead in Avantha Masters

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Peter Whiteford of Scotland and Spain s Alejandro Canizares left fancied opponents behind to take the lead after the opening round of the $2.4 million Avantha Masters on Thursday. The duo both shot six-under par 66 to head the leaderboard in India s richest golf event, tri-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI). Federico Colombo of Italy was one shot behind as players battled a wind-swept course at the DLF Golf and Country Club on the outskirts of New Delhi. Thailand s Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Thongchai Jaidee were bunched in fourth place on 68 alongside four other players, including the French duo of Jean-Baptiste Gonnet and Gregory Havret. Two-time Major winner John Daly, who finished seven-over par 79 with six bogeys and one birdie, later tweeted he had suffered an elbow injury and is likely to miss the rest of the tournament.

US says no plane to give IMF more money

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The US Treasury reiterated Thursday that Washington has no plans to provide more money to the International Monetary Fund as the eurozone crisis drives the Fund to raise more emergency resources. Treasury undersecretary for international affairs Lael Brainard told a congressional hearing that the US economy could be damaged by a further deterioration of conditions in Europe. But with the IMF seeking to boost the funds it has for intervention and support against eurozone crisis contagion by some $500 billion, Brainard said the US was not planning on chipping in. "We believe that the IMF has adequate resources, and we don t see any need for the US to provide additional resources to the IMF at this time," she told the Senate Banking Committee. "The euro area is currently confronting difficult challenges of fiscal sustainability, or liquidity, and of structural imbalances," she said. "We believe Europe has the will and the capacity to manage these challenges effectively." The IMF said in January it was seeking to increase its lending capacity by up to $500 billion to confront the debt crisis in Europe. Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde and her top staff have been polling G20 leaders around the world to see if they will contribute to the new funding. Only the euro area so far has committed to contributing, while Washington has stood out in refusing to take part. "We have welcomed the IMF s role in helping to contain the crisis and its impact on the US recovery and global economy," Brainard said. "However, while the IMF should continue to play a constructive role in Europe, IMF resources cannot substitute for a strong and credible European firewall and response. "The challenge Europe faces is within the capacity of the Europeans to manage and the (US) administration has been clear with our international partners that we are not seeking addition funding for the IMF," she added.

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Cricket - Sports

Friday, February 17, 2012

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