| Israel agrees to build 1,500 homes in east Jerusalem Posted: JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Interior Minister Gideon Saar have agreed to build 1,500 new homes in the east Jerusalem settlement of Ramat Shlomo, Israeli army radio said Wednesday.The early-morning report came shortly after Israel freed 26 veteran Palestinian prisoners alongside US-brokered peace talks.Last week, an Israeli official said new tenders were to be announced in the large settlement blocs and in east Jerusalem in the coming months as part of understandings reached with both the Palestinians and Washington.The Palestinians -- who view continued settlement construction as a major obstacle to peace -- flatly denied any such agreement.In August, Israel announced plans for more than 2,000 new settler homes in tandem with the first prisoner release, angering the Palestinians.In March 2010, Israel sparked the ire of the US administration by announcing, during a visit by Vice President Joe Biden, that 1,600 new homes would be built in Ramat Shlomo.Israel captured east Jerusalem during the 1967 Six Day War and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.The radio said that Netanyahu and Saar also agree to push ahead with two other east Jerusalem projects; an archaeological and tourist centre just outside the Old City walls and a national park on the slopes of Mount Scopus.  |
| Inadequate proof Saudi sought inmate death: Prison Posted: DENVER (AP) - Colorado prison officials said Tuesday they did not find enough evidence to take action against a Saudi inmate who was accused of trying to have another inmate killed.No criminal charges were filed and no internal discipline was pursued against Homaidan al-Turki, said Roger Hudson, a spokesman for the state Department of Corrections.Al-Turki is serving an indefinite prison term after he was convicted in 2006 of sexually assaulting his housekeeper and treating her as a virtual slave when he lived in the Denver suburb of Aurora.Prosecutors, who are fighting al-Turkis request to finish his sentence in Saudi Arabia, said at a court hearing last week that an inmate accused al-Turki in 2007 of trying to have a fellow inmate killed.Prison officials released a redacted copy of a report on the alleged threat on Tuesday in response to an open-records request by The Associated Press.Hudson said prison officials reviewed the allegation but not enough evidence was found to file administrative charges, and no criminal case was filed.He said some inmates were moved for their own safety, but he did not identify them.The district attorneys spokeswoman did not immediately return a phone call Tuesday. Al-Turkis lawyer, Hal Haddon, has said the prison allegations were baseless. He said the report substantiated that.Its totally consistent with what we said in court about this and its totally inconsistent with what the prosecutors have been implying, he said.Prosecutor Ann Tomsic raised the allegation at last weeks hearing.Al-Turki has denied assaulting or mistreating the housekeeper.He is serving a sentence of eight years to life but has refused to participate in a mandatory prison program for sex offenders, putting his release in doubt. His lawyers say parts of the program violate his religious beliefs.Saudi officials told a judge at last weeks hearing that al-Turki could get treatment at home that would include family participation and Islamic and cultural education not available in Colorado.Tomsic questioned whether Saudi Arabia would give al-Turki effective supervision and whether he was even a candidate for treatment because of his refusal to participate in the prison program.The hearing resumes Thursday.  |
| UN confirms outbreak of polio in Syria Posted: GENEVA (AFP) - The UN health agency on Tuesday confirmed an outbreak of polio in war-torn Syria, which had been free of the crippling disease since 1999, and said it feared it would spread.Oliver Rosenbauer, spokesman for the World Health Organizations anti-polio division, told reporters that laboratory tests had confirmed the presence of the disease in 10 out of 22 suspected cases reported in children almost two weeks ago.All 22 children were stricken with acute flaccid paralysis, which is the symptom of a number of different diseases, including polio.In 10 of those cases, theyve isolated wild polio virus type one, Rosenbauer said.The other 12 are still being investigated, he added, saying test results were expected in coming days.Thanks to a global drive against polio, the virus is now endemic in just three countries: Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria.That has raised speculation that foreign jihadists battling President Bashar al-Assad could have brought the virus to Syria.WHO officials declined to comment on that speculation.But US officials said Washington was extremely concerned by the outbreak of polio, especially in view of the decline of medical services in the humanitarian crisis in Syria.State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki urged all sides to allow access for polio and other needed vaccinations and other humanitarian assistance to those in need in Syria.Rosenbauer stressed that even if polio is endemic only in three countries currently, the virus could have arrived from elsewhere.For example, there is currently an outbreak in the Horn of Africa.Anybody can carry the virus, and thats the big danger as well, that it can go very, very widely, Rosenbauer told AFP.This is the problem with this disease: unless you eradicate it from the remaining endemic areas you are going to run the risk of seeing polio re-emerge in polio-free ones, he said, noting that outbreaks occur time and again around the globe.Countries with complex emergencies like Syria or Somalia are particularly at risk because the health systems deteriorate and immunisation levels deteriorate, he added.The Syrian cases were clustered in the northeastern Deir Al Zour province, and all affected children are under the age of two.There are no additional hot cases that we know of. Of course disease surveillance is now ongoing across Syria and neighbouring countries as well, to look for other acute flaccid paralysis cases, said Rosenbauer.We consider a single case an outbreak because you have to assume that others are infected by the disease who are not showing symptoms... By the time you find one case, the horse is out of the barn, he added.An analysis of the genetic code of the virus is underway to try to track its source, and the result should be known by next week, Rosenbauer said.Last week aid agencies and Syrian health authorities stepped up efforts to vaccinate 2.4 million children against polio, as well as measles, mumps and rubella.Before the conflict began in 2011, around 95 percent of all Syrian children were vaccinated against polio.The United Nations says that 500,000 children there have not been vaccinated against polio in the past two years.Rosenbauer said that all the children who have caught the virus in Deir Al Zour appeared to have never been vaccinated against polio, or had not received a full course of the vaccine.Outside Syria, vaccination campaigns which had been planned in refugee camps will have to be broadened to head off the risk of a wider outbreak, he said.Ideally you want to target all children under the age of five across the region, said Rosenbauer.An estimated 115,000 people have been killed in Syria and millions driven from their homes since a brutal crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy protests in March 2011 escalated into civil war.Of the more than two million Syrians who have fled abroad, most are in neighbouring Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq.  |
| Iran says four rebels killed in fresh clash Posted: TEHRAN (AFP) - Iranian security forces have killed four members of a rebel group behind an ambush that left 14 border guards dead, the guards' commander said Tuesday.We clashed with Jaish-ul Adl and killed four of them, the Fars news agency quoted Brigadier General Hossein Zolfaqari as saying.According to the report, the clash took place near the town of Mirjaveh, close to the border with Pakistan in restive southeast Iran, some 1,200 kilometres (745 miles) from Tehran.Zolfaqari did not say when it took place.Jaish-ul Adl, a Sunni rebel group formed last year whose name means Army of Justice in Arabic, has claimed responsibility for the deadly ambush on Friday in the mountains of Sistan-Baluchestan. The attack killed 14 border guards and wounded another seven.Iran in retaliation said it had executed 16 rebels -- eight Sunni insurgents and eight drug traffickers, all of whom had been on death row, according to Iranian media.Whatever measure they take against us, our response will be more crushing, Zolfaqari said.In a press briefing in the afternoon, he said that 20 bandits had been killed in 67 clashes near the border since March 2013, the Mehr news agency reported.The general also warned that Iran reserves the right to pursue the bandits on Pakistani soil, adding that his unit had informed its Pakistani counterparts of this, Mehr added.Tehran has demanded Islamabad take measures to control the borders more seriously, saying the militants had crossed from Pakistan and fled back across the border after the attack.Iran says it plans to exert more pressure on Pakistan to prevent such attacks.A deputy interior minister will visit Pakistan to discuss the attack, foreign ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham said Tuesday during her weekly briefing.Another Sunni militant group, Jundallah, Arabic for Soldiers of God, has also launched deadly attacks on civilians and officials in the southeast.Iran captured and hanged its leader, Abdolmalek Rigi, in June 2010.The restive region near the Pakistani border is home to a large community of minority Sunni Muslims, unlike the rest of Shiite-dominated Iran.Drug traffickers and Sunni militants have clashed with Iranian forces in the region on several occasions.  |
| Nawaz, Karzai, Cameron discuss Afghan situation Posted: LONDON (Web Desk) - Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to continue efforts for security and prosperity of the region.According to a statement issued by the office of the British Prime Minister‚ the understanding was developed during tripartite conference among Pakistan‚ Afghanistan‚ and Britain in London.The tripartite conference reiterated its pledge for economic cooperation and support to the Afghan reconciliation process.The conference also discussed post foreign troops withdrawal situation from Afghanistan besides ways for durable peace and stability in the country.Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif‚ Afghan President Hamid Karzai‚ and British Prime Minister David Cameron attended the conference.  |
| Two more killed in Bangladesh political violence Posted: DHAKA (AFP) - Police opened fire at Bangladesh protesters on a remote island Tuesday, killing two and bringing to 20 the death toll in demonstrations aimed at forcing the premier to make way for a caretaker government ahead of elections.An official said police fired rifles after hundreds of protesters from the countrys largest Islamic party, a key ally of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), attacked them on Kutubdia island in the Bay of Bengal with rocks and sticks.Two protesters have died in the firing, district administrator Ruhul Amin told AFP, adding about a dozen policemen were injured in the clashes.Two more demonstrators were in critical condition after being shot, Kutubdia health centre doctor Abul Bashar told AFP, and were referred to a hospital on the mainland.Another two people were killed in an earlier series of clashes between the opposition and ruling party supporters Tuesday.The four fatalities brought to 20 the death toll since Friday, when the opposition began a push to force Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to quit.After a series of mass rallies at the weekend, the BNP and its Islamist allies launched a three-day general strike, which ended Tuesday.BNP leader Khaleda Zia, who has twice served as premier, has branded the current government illegal and says that a neutral caretaker government must be set up three months before national elections, due in January.Hasina has scrapped the caretaker system and instead proposed an all-party interim government led by herself to oversee the polls.On Saturday, Hasina invited Zia to hold talks and urged her to postpone the strike, during a 40-minute phone conversation believed to be the first time the battling begums have spoken in at least a decade. Begum is an honorific for a Muslim woman of rank.Zia spurned the request, but said she was ready for talks after Tuesday.Leaked audiotape of the conversation has since showed the two leaders spent most of the conversation quarrelling over their past records.You killed people by carrying out the August 21 grenade attack, Hasina said during the call, referring to blasts at her rally in 2004 which killed at least 20 people and injured Hasina, then the opposition leader.We did not do the killing. The longer you live is better for us. The more indecent language you use, the better for us, said Zia.Hasina also accused Zia of celebrating a fake birthday on August 15 -- which is also the anniversary of the assassination of Hasinas father, who was the countrys founding leader, along with almost her entire family.Zia shouted back: Cant anybody be born on that day?Bangladesh has been ruled alternately by Hasina and Zia since 1991, apart from when a military-backed government ran the country between 2007 and 2008.On Tuesday, scores of people were injured as the opposition staged demonstrations in almost every city and town across the country on the third day of the strike.Police officials told AFP a protester was hacked to death by ruling party activists in western Magura town, and another drowned at a coastal town in Chittagong as he tried to escape clashes between rival supporters.A senior police officer and an eight-year old child were seriously injured by small bomb attacks in the capital Dhaka, Hit by seven splinters, the officer was rushed to hospital. He is seriously injured but now out of danger, Maruf Hossain, deputy commissioner of Dhaka police, told AFP.Amid mounting tensions over the spiralling political violence, a court in Dhaka has postponed its Wednesdays verdict on 823 soldiers accused of massacring scores of top army officers in a mass mutiny in 2009 soon after Hasina came to power.While no senior officers were implicated in the 2009 mutiny, the uprising fuelled the sense that many people serving in the military were opposed to Hasina.Since independence in 1971, Bangladesh has seen at least 19 coups -- although the power of the military has diminished in recent years.While the nation has a long history of political violence, this year has been the deadliest since the former East Pakistan broke away from Islamabad and gained independence.At least 150 people have been killed since January after a controversial court began handing down death sentences on Islamist leaders allied to ex-premier Zia.  |
| Drone-hit Pak family recounts terror before US Congress Posted: WASHINGTON (Web Desk) - A Pakistani family affected by US drone strikes, appeared before members of the US Congress on Tuesday to record their account from when they were targeted last year.Rafiq ur Rehman – a primary (elementary) teacher in North Waziristan – and his children Zubair (13) and Nabila (9) are the first victims of the covert drone programme to give evidence in person to members of Congress. The children’s grandmother – Mr Rehman’s mother – Mammana Bibi (67) was killed in a CIA strike in October 2012.The family was accompanied by Jennifer Gibson, an attorney with the human rights charity Reprieve.Rehman’s son Zubair, 13, said that the “US drone took my grandmother’s life.”Replying to a question Rehman said when his mother died in the drone strike, the neighbours “told me that see what US has done to your mother, you should hate US.”“Our children now do not want to go to school, they even fear to play outside, we live in a constant fear. Before drone campaign started, we were busy in our own lives.”In reply to a question raised by an Al Jazeera correspondent, Congressman Alan Grayson said that presence of five members of Congress at the briefing indicated that there is a fair amount of interest from representatives. He conceded that he does not see any formal briefing on drones soon as most of the house committees are chaired by the people who are friends of military industrial complex not those who oppose of it or are sceptical of it. “I believe that over the span of time it people will realise the gravity of this issue.”The Congressmen present though defended the strikes on allegations that they ammounted to war crimes citing legal ussyes.To a question on what would he say if he got the chance to meet President Obama, who approves the strikes Rehman said, “I would like to tell President Obama that what happened to me and my family is wrong”.“I would urge him to find a peaceful answer to end this war. During my stay here in US I noticed that everyone here lives in peace here and I dream that my children also be able to live in peace.”Rehman urged the US and Pakistan government to achieve peace.Earlier, Nabila's father, Rafiq Rehman, said he accepted an invitation from a documentary production company to come to the United States because as a teacher, I wanted to educate Americans and let them know my children have been injured.My daughter does not have the face of a terrorist and neither did my mother. It just doesn't make sense to me, why this happened, he told AFP in an interview.The Rehmans said they have no connection to any anti-US extremists or Al-Qaeda militants, and as they mourned their grandmother, they were confounded by inaccurate accounts of the October 2012 bombing raid.Media reports afterward confirmed a drone strike took place, but said missiles hit a house, with one version alleging a car was struck and several militants killed.But the Rehmans said no building or car was directly hit in the attack, and that paved roads are some distance away. They say missiles landed in the field where their grandmother was teaching Nabila how to recognize when okra are ripe enough to pick.After a loud boom, where my grandmother was standing, I saw these two bright lights come down and hit her, said Nabila. And everything became dark at that point.She noticed blood on her hand and tried to wipe it away with her shawl. But the blood just kept coming, she said.Shrapnel lodged in her right hand and she was treated at a local hospital. Her brother, Zubair, suffered shrapnel wounds to his left leg, which required two operations. His family had to take out a loan to pay for the surgery.Since the attack, Zubair said he has trouble sleeping and no longer goes outside to play cricket.I don't feel like going outside and playing with my friends. I don't feel like going to school. It's really destroyed my life, he said.His sister said the US government's explanation for drone strikes did not apply to her family.When I hear that they are going after people who have done wrong to America, then what have I done wrong to them? What did my grandmother do wrong to them? I didn't do anything wrong, she said.The Rehman family's experience features in a new documentary, Unmanned: America's Drone Wars, which takes a critical view of the air strikes.  |
| Dialogue with Taliban to start soon: Nisar Posted: ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) - Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that National Counter-Terrorism Authority (NACTA) would be revived as a major counter terrorism authority in the country.He was talking to the participants of 99th National Management Course for senior officers in Islamabad‚ on Tuesday.The minister said coordination between all the intelligence agencies will be improved to create a joint intelligence directorate. Similarly‚ a Rapid Response Force shall be created‚ which will also host an air-wing to urgently tackle any terrorism related emergency situations in the country.The minister also briefed them about the governments stance on the security related issues‚ and the dialogue process with the Taliban that is likely to take place in the near future for which all homework has been done in consultation with all the stakeholders.He also informed them about the policy to control drug trafficking and stressed that regional cooperation was required and the routes of the drug traffickers needed to be constantly monitored.Chaudhry Nisar told the participants that the laws regarding evidence were being strengthened.The matter is already being addressed through promulgation of new ordinance to improve the role of law enforcing agencies in interrogation and during prosecution.  |
| Bangladesh crush New Zealand by 43 runs Posted: DHAKA (AFP) - Bangladesh beat New Zealand by 43 runs in the first one-day international at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Tuesday.Scores: Bangladesh 265 all out in 49.5 overs (Mushfiqur Rahim 90, Naeem Islam 84; J. Neesham 4-42, T. Southee 3-34) and New Zealand 162 all out in 29.5 overs (G. Elliot 71, Rubel Hossain 6-26)Rubel Hossain claimed six wickets including a hat-trick as Bangladesh crushed New Zealand by 43 runs Tuesday in the first one-day international, leading 1-0 in the three-match series.Rubel finished with 6-26, helping the hosts to dismiss New Zealand for 162 runs after the visitors were set a revised target of 206 runs in 33 overs in the rain-hit match at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka.New Zealand were 82-3 in 20 overs, replying to Bangladeshs 265 all out, when rain halted the game for nearly two hours.Needing 124 off 78 balls on resumption, Corey Anderson hit some lusty blows before Rubel turned the table with his hat-trick.Rubel bowled Anderson, who scored 46 off 31 balls including three fours and fours sixes, before taking the wicket of Brendan McCullum and James Neesham to complete the hat-trick in his third over.New Zealand skipper McCullum was caught by substitute fielder Shamsur Rahman while Neesham flicked a catch to wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim on the leg side as Rubel became the third Bangladeshi to claim a hat-trick in a one-day international (ODI).Rubel took the wicket of Ross Taylor before rain later added Nathan McCullum and Grant Elliot (71) to his tally, equalling the record of Mashrafe Mortaza for the best ever ODI bowling for Bangladesh.Mashrafe, who claimed 6-26 against Kenya at Nairobi in 2006, took the catch of Elliot, the last man out for New Zealand.The visitors conceded a defeat as Kane Williamson was unable to bat for a thumb injury.Earlier, Mushfiqur and Naeem Islam hit half-centuries to set up Bangladeshs total after New Zealand captain McCullum won the toss and elected to field.The pair added 154 for the fourth wicket to rescue the home side from a perilous 25-3.Skipper Mushfiqur hit a solid 90 off 98 balls with eight fours and two sixes before he fell to Neesham.Naeem struggled initially, taking 17 balls to get off the mark, but soon grew in confidence to hit a career-best 84 off 113 balls.Naeem, who was picked in the starting line-up after Bangladesh were forced to leave out ailing all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, smashed 12 fours in his fourth one-day half-century.Tim Southee ended Naeems innings when he forced an edge to the wicket-keeper.Neesham and Southee were the pick of New Zealand bowlers, sharing seven wickets between them as Bangladesh lost their last five wickets for 33 runs.Neesham claimed a career-best 4-42, while Southee returned with 3-34.  |
| Amr Shabana plays down chances of 5th world title Posted: MANCHESTER (AFP) - Amr Shabana produced such sparkling moments of his old brilliance while reaching the third round of the World Championships that afterwards he had to play down his chances of a fifth world title.Just when the Egyptian squash legend seemed to be running into trouble against Mathieu Castagnet, the world number 30 from France, he produced a fourth game of sublime brilliance to fashion an 11-8, 11-7, 12-14, 11-6 win.Castagnet showed he is an improving and ambitious player by saving three match points, denying Shabana the space and time to carve out winners, and pushing through with three great drops to steal the third game.He also led 4-3 in the fourth. You have to forget who you are playing -- when I was young he was one of my favourite players, Castagnet said.Shabana is still a favourite with the crowds for his sombre charisma and genius shot-making, so much so that it was easy for them to overlook the phases of the contest which were a mental and physical struggle.I just want to play matches, Shabana said when asked what could be expected of him. I love to play and whatever I achieve is a bonus.It is seven months since he last competed and at the age of 34, Shabana is no longer sure what he is capable of. I tried to play too fast but I am happy that I was not panicking (after losing the third game).I had to start all over in the fourth. The way he (Castagnet) played reminded me of Thierry (Lincou, the former world champion from France) -- the way he moved and countered and recovered.He was a tough player and I was happy to win.Shabana also looked a little relieved but he claimed that he was feeling fresh at the end of the 55-minute match, and that is a quality he may particularly need against his next opponent, Miguel Angel Rodriquez.The Columbian, who beat Leo Au of Hong Kong 11-5, 11-8, 11-5, is one of the fastest movers on the tour and can impose a sequence of high-paced rallies, which led to a five-game encounter with Shabana in New York last year.Shabana may still be good enough to earn a quarter-final place, probably against another former world champion, Nick Matthew.The home hope gave hints that he might still be good enough to win the title back at the age of 33, overcoming Max Lee of Hong Kong, 11-7, 11-6, 11-6.Lee gave Matthew plenty to think about, not least an aggrieved complaint that the Englishman was shouting come on too loudly and that the noise was ringing in his ear.Matthew responded by walking across and pretending to look into Lees ear, and with a retort that its not the sort of thing youre inclined to whisper, is it?Matthew now plays the 11th-seeded Omar Mosaad, a powerfully-built Egyptian with a dangerous ability to dominate the middle of the court.  |
| App that lets you get kittens delivered to your door Posted: WASINGTON (Web Desk) - Cat fans rejoice - you can now have kittens delivered to your door with a new app service.To celebrate National Cat Day, popular website Cheezburger and car hire service Uber have joined forces to deliver kittens across America.Operating in New York, Seattle and San Francisco, anyone can request a kitten delivery by using the Uber app on their smartphones.Customers will be able to play with the kittens for 15 minutes - as well as receive cupcakes and some Uber products - for just $20.The kittens are all available for adoption, and the money customers spend will be donated to a local animal shelter.The service is only available between 11am and 4pm local time today, and Uber says it expects heavy demand, with large queues.  |
| Fishermen net roles as extras in Hollywood films Posted: LOS ANGELES (Web Desk) - A group of fishermen have found success in unlikely sideline careers as actors after their seafaring looks helped them get roles in Hollywood films alongside the likes of Johnny Depp.A group of fishermen have found success in unlikely sideline careers as actors after their seafaring looks helped them get roles in Hollywood films alongside the likes of Johnny Depp.The men now regularly appear as fishermen and captains, being cast by producers to make scenes more realistic with their long beards and wild hair, and dispense their nautical expertise on set.After bringing in their early morning catch, the fishermen have appeared on set for a string of Hollywood blockbusters, recently returning from the remake of Cinderella , at Pinewood Studios, which features Helena Bonham Carter.The fame came after a chance encounter between 75-year-old Ivor Charles and the makers of Richard Curtis’ The Boat That Rocked, who spotted him near Weymouth in Dorset and asked him to be part of the show.Mr Charles, who said he would like to be the next Captain Birdseye, roped in his friends to sign up to a casting agency.Ivor Charles and his friends in the background of the Hollywood blockbuster Snow White and the Hunstman (BNPS).This has led to hoardes of offers from film producers who want them to star as authentic fishermen in sea faring scenes, and has seen the men appear alongside Johnny Depp, Charlize Theron and Kristen Stewart, as well as rub shoulders with film producer Richard Zanuck.“I was wandering down to my boat one day to go fishing and it happened to be when the filming for The Boat That Rocked was taking place on Portland,” said Mr Charles.I was having a cigarette with a friend when a man with a clipboard came over and asked if I was part of the production.I told him that I wasnt, and that I was just off to my boat like normal.He said that he wanted me to be part of the film as a fisherman so I thought why not?The next thing I knew, I was taking part in the final scene of the film where the main characters get rescued from their sinking ship.Mr Charles, who usually plays a fisherman, has also starred as Captain Smith in National Geographics 2012 documentary film RMS Titanic: Case Closed.He added: “I would never have thought that I would end up on film sets in my 70s but I really enjoy it.All the lads down the pub tease me and call me film star but I dont think theres any chance of seeing me in a leading role any time soon.That said, I would love to be the next Captain Birdseye - just a leaner, meaner, more healthy looking version.The group, which includes Kelvin Moore, Kevin Nurrish, Kevin Hart and Dave Parrott appeared in Tim Burtons gothic comedy Dark Shadows starring Johnny Depp. They also were cast in Snow White and the Huntsman, which features Charlize Theron alongside Kristen Stewart and Chris Hemsworth.Mr Moore, 48, said: “When we filmed Dark Shadows we unloaded a tonne of crab at three in the morning, nipped home for a shower and we were on set at Pinewood Studios by midday.Theres a very set idea of what fishermen should look like so we get told to grow our beards and let our hair get wild.We also advise them on how to make the scenes more realistic.Mr Hart said his highlight of their new sideline career was acting alongside Hammer Horror legend Christopher Lee.I grew up watching Christopher Lee and just to be on the same set as him was awe inspiring,” said the 55-year-old.Our sideline in films is a little out of the ordinary and its great fun.The crew have signed up to agency Mad Dog Casting who describe them as having “a great look as well as the knowledge that comes with being fishermen all their lives.  |
| Cracker attacks in Sindh cities kill one Posted: HYDERABAD (Dunya News) - At least one person died and four others, including a policeman, were injured during cracker attacks on Tuesday.The cracker attacks spread fear in several cities of Interior Sindh ahead of strike call by Jiye Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM) that is scheduled for Wednesday.JSQM had given strike call in Interior Sindh against granting police powers to Rangers and Defence of Pakistan Ordinance.Tufail, an employee of a private company, was killed when unknown motorcyclists blasted three crackers in Hyderabad while three persons were injured in firing at a police post in Qasimabad.Unknown persons carried out eight cracker attacks in different areas of Larkana where fear gripped the city.A man received injuries and two motorcycles were partly damaged after seven crackers attacks in Dadu.Crackers attack near utility store in Hangurja area of Khairpur Mirus created panic in the area while cracker attacks were also reported in Mirpur Khas and Jamshoro.  |
| PML-Q objects LB laws in Punjab Posted: LAHORE (web Desk) - Senior Vice-President of Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid Punjab wing, Muhammad Basharat Raja has said that under the present Local Bodies laws, there will be selection and not election in the Punjab.He was addressing a press conference at the Muslim League House here on Tuesday.Muhammad Basharat Raja reminded that Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, during his tenure as the Punjab Chief Minister, had issued huge amount of Rs 130 billion annually to the local bodies whereas the present rulers had not even released one line Rs 30 billion annual grant for the local bodies, he added.He demanded of the judiciary and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to take notice as to where these Rs 150 billions have gone.Muhammad Basharat Raja disclosed that there is no representation of the local govt in the Education and Health Authorities which are important problems at regional level, local govt system.Muhammad Basharat Raja further said that provision of direct election for women of villages and indirection election for women of the cities is a decision which is not understandable.In response to a question, the PML leader said that we will actively and fully participate in the local bodies elections.  |
| Syria: Assad sacks deputy PM over unauthorized US meeting Posted: DAMASCUS (AFP) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sacked his vice premier on Tuesday, saying the official had been absent without leave and carried out unauthorised meetings abroad, the official SANA news agency said.The move follows media reports that Vice Premier Qadri Jamil had met with the US pointman for Syria Robert Ford on Saturday to discuss proposed Geneva peace talks.Sana said the official was sacked after an absence without authorisation from his post as well as activities and meetings outside the country without authorisation from the government.The United States and Russia have been struggling to convince Syrias warring parties to attend peace talks in Geneva next month aimed at ending the civil war, which has killed an estimated 115,000 people.UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi was in Damascus Tuesday as part of a regional tour to rally support for the talks following a rare US-Russian accord to dismantle Syrias chemical weapons.The talks remain in doubt, however, with Syrias increasingly fractured rebels having yet to say whether they will attend.The main opposition National Coalition has said it will not take part in the Geneva talks unless Assads resignation is on the table -- a demand rejected by Damascus -- while several rebel groups have warned that anyone who attends will be considered a traitor.Assad has also cast doubt on the talks, and has said he will not negotiate with any group tied to the rebels fighting his forces or to foreign states.  |
