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Zardari to chair high level meeting to review SC verdict
No campaign against Pakistan: US
Virus infects US military drones
Experts examine Palestinian UN membership bid
Chile: 250 arrests, unions call nationwide strike
Syria troops fire on protesters, killing 8
35 dead in China road crash
Romney names foreign policy team of Bush officials
Dollar rises vs euro on Spain, Italy downgrades
Germany calls for eurozone stability
Stocks rise after hiring picks up in September
Oil prices at $83 per barrel on jobs increase
Gold ends week lower as inflation worries ease
Squash: World Squash Federation bans PSF secretary
Pennetta knocks Wozniacki out of China Open

Zardari to chair high level meeting to review SC verdict

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The high level meeting will be held today at the Presidency. According to sources, Governor Sindh Dr Ishratul Ibad, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wasan, Provincial Minister Ayaz Soomro and Chief Secretary will also attend the meeting. According to sources further informed that meeting will review Supreme Court verdict in Karachi suo moto case. The meeting will also discuss law and order situation in Sindh.

No campaign against Pakistan: US

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Rejecting Pakistani notion that it has launched an anti-Pak campaign, the US today said that the relationship with Pakistan is extremely important and Washington will continue to work towards it. "We obviously reject that completely," the State department spokesperson Victoria Nuland told reporters at her daily news conference when asked about it. "We believe, and we are trying to make the case to the Pakistani people as well as to Pakistani leaders, that only working together are we going to defeat this threat to both of us," she said. "....and also to make it better known in Pakistan about all of the civilian assistance that we have been giving to the Pakistani government in an effort to strengthen their democracy, strengthen the education system, strengthen the economy, because that is also one of the best deterrents to extremism, when quality of life is being raised for everyone," Nuland argued. Meanwhile, the White House said that America  s relationship with Pakistan   complicated but important  . White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the Obama Administration has also made clear that the US has issues with Pakistan at times and that it is a complicated relationship. "The President addressed that very clearly and fully yesterday in his press conference," he said. At a news conference yesterday Obama had expressed his concern over the links between the Pak intelligence services and the terrorist groups. But, Carney said, "We have an important relationship with Pakistan. We have had enormous successes through our cooperation with Pakistan."  "The cooperation we have with Pakistan is extremely important in terms of our national security objectives, in terms of protecting Americans, in terms of taking the fight to al-Qaida. And that  s why we continue to work with the Pakistanis and try to build on that cooperation," Carney told reporters at his daily news conference.

Virus infects US military drones

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According to Danger Room s Noah Shachtman, the virus - which was first detected two weeks ago - logs every keystroke as U.S.-based pilots remotely fly combat and surveillance missions overseas. Unsurprisingly, military sources claim the virus hasn t managed to compromise classified information. As such, the drones have yet to be grounded.  However, one source did acknowledge that the virus has successfully resisted multiple efforts to remove it from computer networks at the Creech Air Force Base in Nevada. "We keep wiping it off, and it keeps coming back," the source told Shachtman. "We think it s benign. But we just don t know... It s getting a lot of attention. But no one s panicking. Yet." Indeed, military network security specialists say the are unsure whether the virus and its "keylogger" payload were injected intentionally or by accident, with some speculating it may be a common piece of malware that "just happened" to make its way into sensitive networks. Perhaps most worryingly, the specialists are unable to determine how far the virus has spread - but they are confident the malware has affected both classified and unclassified systems at Creech.  "That raises the possibility, at least, that secret data may have been captured by the keylogger, and then transmitted over the public Internet to someone outside the military chain of command," Shachtman explained. "Drone systems are known to have security flaws. Many Reapers and Predators don t encrypt the video they transmit to American troops on the ground, and drone footage [was found in 2009] on the laptops of Iraqi insurgents. A $26 piece of software allowed the militants to capture the video." For its part, the Air Force refused to directly address reports of a rampaging drone virus. "We generally do not discuss specific vulnerabilities, threats, or responses to our computer networks, since that helps people looking to exploit or attack our systems to refine their approach," said Lt. Col. Tadd Sholtis, a spokesman for Air Combat Command, which oversees the drones and all other Air Force tactical aircraft. "We invest a lot in protecting and monitoring our systems to counter threats and ensure security, which includes a comprehensive response to viruses, worms, and other malware we discover."

Experts examine Palestinian UN membership bid

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Diplomats said the admissions committee experts from all 15 council nations met behind closed doors Friday to discuss how to proceed with the application and plan to meet again next week, probably Thursday. The United States says it will veto a Security Council resolution recommending Palestinian membership to the General Assembly, which must give final approval. While the council is considering the Palestinian bid to become the 194th UN member state, Mideast negotiators are seeking ways to restart long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Envoys from the so-called Quartet the US, UN, European Union and Russia are scheduled to meet Sunday in Brussels.

Chile: 250 arrests, unions call nationwide strike

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Chile s union and student leaders called Friday for shutting down the nation s economy for a day in response to a police crackdown on education reform demonstrations that resulted in more than 250 arrests and left 30 people injured. Arturo Martinez, who runs the CUT labor coalition, set the nationwide strike for Oct. 19. By his side was student leader Camila Vallejo, who accused the government of letting police attack peaceful marchers Thursday in violation of Chile s constitution. But the government warned that it will respond firmly to any violence stemming from mass protests. "Our hand won t tremble and we won t show any weakness in seeking to control situations of public order," said government spokesman Andres Chadwick. "They re not going to weaken us by attacking police and making them victims," he added. The government refused to authorize Thursday s march, which was called by students after talks on demands for free, better-funded and higher-quality state-run education through the university level broke down Wednesday night. Police turned out in large numbers even before their march began, using water cannons, tear gas and officers on horseback to keep about 10,000 students from gathering. Officers chased rock-throwing protesters onto university campuses and fired tear gas into the student government headquarters, Vallejo said. By day s end, 168 had been arrested in the capital, and more than 100 more around Chile. Police said 25 officers and five civilians were injured.

Syria troops fire on protesters, killing 8

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Syrian security forces opened fire on protesters in several parts of the country on Friday, killing at least eight people and wounding scores, while masked gunmen burst into an apartment in the predominantly Kurdish northeast and shot dead one of Syria s most prominent opposition figures. Another leading opposition figure was beaten up by pro-government gunmen and rushed to a hospital in Damascus, activists said. The slaying of Mashaal Tammo, a 53-year-old former political prisoner and a spokesman for the Kurdish Future Party, was the latest in a string of targeted killings in Syria as the country slides further into disorder, seven months into the uprising against President Bashar Assad. Tammo, killed by unknown gunmen in the city of Qamishli, was also a member of the executive committee of the newly formed Syrian National Council, a broad-based front bringing together opposition figures inside and outside the country in an attempt to unify the deeply fragmented dissident movement. Tammo s son and another member of the Kurdish Future Party were wounded in the attack, said Omar Idilbi, a spokesman for an activist group called the Local Coordination Committees. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least four people were killed and 25 were wounded in the central city of Homs, Syria s third largest city. It also reported intense shooting in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour near the border with Iraq, and the Damascus suburb of Douma. In Douma, the Observatory said at least three people were killed and several were wounded, while five were wounded in the northern town of Maaret al-Numan. Osso said one person was also killed in the town of Zabadani near the border with Lebanon. Meanwhile, Riad Seif, a former lawmaker who became a leading opposition figure and outspoken critic of Assad s regime, was beaten up outside a mosque in the central Damascus suburb of Midan, according to two Syria-based activists. Seif, who suffers from cancer and had been detained earlier this year, was rushed to hospital after the beating, said Osso and Idilbi. Amateur video posted on the Internet showed Seif at the hospital, with bruises to his back and hands. In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland lamented the "absolutely gruesome" online footage of Seif being attacked, and the separate shooting that claimed the life of Tammo.

35 dead in China road crash

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The accident occurred near the port city of Tianjin, the official Xinhua news agency said, citing local authorities.  A city traffic management official quoted by Xinhua said the coach was speeding and many passengers were thrown out of the vehicle. The fatal crash was the latest on China s notoriously dangerous roads, where drivers often flout seldom-enforced traffic safety laws. In September, nine people were killed and more than 20 injured when a passenger bus rear-ended a cement truck on a highway in eastern China s Anhui province. Almost 70,000 people died in road accidents in China in 2009 -- around 190 fatalities a day -- according to police statistics. China overtook the United States in 2009 to become the world s largest auto market.

Romney names foreign policy team of Bush officials

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Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney has assembled a team of moderate to conservative advisers who in many ways resemble the breadth of US foreign policy under President George W. Bush to foster his vision of a century of American dominance. Almost all of Romney s 22 special advisers held senior Bush administration positions in diplomacy, defense or intelligence. Two former Republican senators are included as well as Bush-era CIA chief Michael Hayden and former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. In a speech Friday to cadets and others at The Citadel, South Carolina s military college, Romney criticized President Barack Obama for surrendering "America s role in the world." The message built on his previous claims that the Obama administration has failed internationally on everything from defending Israel s security to pressuring Iran over its nuclear enrichment activity. Announcing his foreign policy lineup a day earlier, Romney s campaign said the group will assist the former Massachusetts governor "as he presents his vision for restoring American leadership in the world and securing our enduring interests and ideals abroad." The advisers include a number of highly respected experts in their fields, and some big names among the Washington establishment of foreign policy thinkers. Yet the list doesn t include either of the two most recent Republican secretaries of state, Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice, or other key Bush administration policymakers such as two-time Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld or former Vice President Dick Cheney. Beyond Hayden and Chertoff, Romney has brought in the State Department s former counterterrorism coordinator, Cofer Black, and arms control chief Robert Joseph, and former Undersecretaries of Defense Eric Edelman and Dov Zakheim. Other leading figures include ex-Northern Ireland peace envoy Mitchell Reiss and Navy Secretary John Lehman. From Congress  alumni, former U.S. senators Norm Coleman of Minnesota and Jim Talent of Missouri, as well as onetime Rep. Vin Weber of Minnesota have joined the team. One possibly controversial adviser is the Middle East scholar Walid Phares, a Christian of Lebanese descent accused by Muslim groups of having had ties to Christian militias during that country s civil war. Among the academic heavyweights now advising Romney is the foreign policy thinker Robert Kagan. Kagan is the husband of former U.S. Ambassador to NATO Victoria Nuland, who in her current position as the State Department spokeswoman promotes and explains the Obama administration s policies in the world. She declined to comment on her husband s role in the Romney campaign.

Dollar rises vs euro on Spain, Italy downgrades

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The euro s early rally against the dollar ended quickly Friday after a credit ratings agency downgraded the debt of both Italy and Spain. The euro fell to $1.3388 in late trading Friday from $1.3429 late Thursday. The euro rose as high as $1.3524 earlier in the day after the U.S. released a better-than-expected jobs report. The euro gave up its gains against the dollar after Fitch downgraded Italy and Spain s sovereign credit rating. Fitch said the long-term outlook for both countries was negative. "It was a harsh reminder to everyone that the sovereign debt crisis is alive and kicking," said Kathy Lien, director of currency research at GFT. The downgrades revived fears that Greece s debt crisis could spread to Italy and Spain, the third- and fourth-largest economies in the eurozone, Lien said. News from the U.S. was more positive. The nation added 103,000 jobs in September, nearly double what analysts had expected. The Labor Department also said that the U.S. added more jobs in July and August than first estimated. The data helped calm fears of another recession. In other trading Friday, the dollar rose to 0.9266 Swiss franc from 0.9209 franc late Thursday. It also edged up to 76.82 Japanese yen from 76.61 yen and to 1.0394 Canadian dollars from 1.0390 Canadian dollars. The British pound rose to $1.5553 from $1.5431.

Germany calls for eurozone stability

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German Economy Minister Philipp Roesler on Friday called for more stability in the eurozone to deal with debt turbulence as Greece pledged to fully repay its bailout loans. Speaking during an investment visit to Athens, Roesler said Berlin "wants to do everything to keep Greece in the eurozone." "We need to come to more stability in the eurozone, so that we can send a clear signal that we are ready to fight for our common currency,"  Roesler told reporters on the sideline of talks between Greek and German businessmen. "We agreed there are two main causes for the crisis: a lack of competitiveness and the high debt," said the minister, who is also Germany s vice-chancellor. Roesler s visit is part of an agreement between Athens and Berlin in March to cooperate on renewable energy development. At a later press conference, he said Berlin would support Athens by founding an investment bank for business projects. In August, Greek and German officials discussed a plan to develop some 20,000 hectares of solar power parks in a bid to export renewable energy to Germany. Germany is also the main contributor to a 110-billion-euro ($147-billion) EU-IMF rescue that staved off a Greek bankruptcy in May last year. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has repeatedly urged the Greek government to overhaul its ailing economy by removing obstacles to competitiveness. Athens has undertaken an unprecedented reform drive accompanied by sweeping pay and pension cuts that have sparked successive general strikes. Many Greeks argue that the austerity measures, closely monitored by EU and International Monetary Fund experts, have plunged the country into recession. "We are very impressed by the Greek government s commitment to reform," said Roesler, who recently panicked markets by saying that Europe could no longer rule out an "orderly default" by Greece on its huge debt. Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos told the same news conference that Athens intended to repay its loans in full.

Stocks rise after hiring picks up in September

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A pickup in hiring last month sent stocks higher Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average was up nearly 90 points in early trading, putting it on track for a fourth straight day of gains. The Labor Department said US employers added 103,000 jobs last month, about double what economists were expecting. It also said more jobs were added in July and August than previously reported. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 88 points, or 0.8 percent, to 11,212 an hour after the opening bell. Home Depot Inc., Dupont and Boeing Co. led the Dow higher. Only three of the Dow s 30 components fell. Broader indicators didn t rise as much. The S&P 500 rose 4 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,169. The Nasdaq composite edged up 2, or 0.1 percent, to 2,508. The gains in hiring weren t enough to lower the unemployment rate, which remained steady at 9.1 percent last month. Traders watch the employment report closely because it provides the first significant snapshot of the previous month s economic performance and clues to the broader outlook for the U.S. economy. The increase in hiring was modest, not nearly enough to keep up with population growth. But expectations had been low. Economists had forecast that employers added only 56,000 jobs. The report led traders to sell ultra-safe investments that earn small returns such as U.S. Treasurys. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.08 percent, up from 2.03 percent just before the report came out. The monthly jobs report is one of the few pieces of data powerful enough to overshadow traders  fears about Europe s festering debt crisis. Markets gyrated this summer as leaped and dove as concerns intensified about a default by Greece. Many analysts now believe a default is unavoidable, and question whether Europe can prevent it from causing financial markets to seize up. Short-term traders have reacted strongly to minor European developments, rumors and speculation. The Dow has closed up or down more than 100 points for nine straight trading days the longest such streak since November 2008, in the middle of the financial crisis. The Dow soared 468 points, or 4.4 percent, Tuesday through Thursday. Thursday s 183-point rally followed an announcement by the European Central Bank that it would offer long-term emergency loans to banks.

Oil prices at $83 per barrel on jobs increase

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Oil prices climbed to near $83 per barrel Friday as a volatile week for crude ended with news of a burst of hiring in the US Prices have recovered from 12-month lows, yet traders say they re not sure where the market is headed following a series of mixed bag of economic news this week. The government said that employers added more jobs than expected last month, yet it wasn t enough to lower the unemployment rate. Consumers bought more merchandise, but only because retailers offered discounts. And even though Europe took steps to bolster its struggling banks, credit ratings agency Fitch downgraded Italy and Spain because of their big debt loads. "The market is clearly confused," analyst and trader Stephen Schork said. "You just can t make any conclusive opinions about where prices are going." Oil prices have been up and down all week. On Tuesday benchmark oil finished at $75.67 a barrel. That s the lowest it s been since September, 2010. On Friday it was up 39 cents to end at $82.98 a barrel. Oil got a boost Friday after the Labor Department announced that the U.S. added 103,000 jobs in September. The government also said that the country added more jobs than previously estimated in July and August. More jobs means gasoline demand could rise in coming months as more drivers return to the daily commute. Last month s jobs gains were propped up by 45,000 Verizon workers rehired after going on strike. The nation s unemployment rate remains at 9.1 percent, and the economy needs to add 125,000 jobs a month to keep up with population growth and to start to bring down the jobless rate. In other energy commodities trading, heating oil was essentially flat, finishing at $2.8588 per gallon and gasoline futures fell 3.84 cents to end at $2.6476 per gallon. Natural gas lost 11.7 cents to finish the day at $3.481 per 1,000 cubic feet. Brent crude rose 15 cents to finish the day at $105.88 in London.

Gold ends week lower as inflation worries ease

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Gold is ending down for the week after a strong jobs report and continued turmoil in Europe eased inflation concerns. Gold has rallied this year as investors snapped up precious metals as a bet against inflation. However an increase in the dollar s value Friday after on a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report sent gold lower. The dollar also gained after Fitch downgraded Italy and Spain s credit ratings. Gold for December delivery fell $17.40 Friday, or 1 percent, to $1,635.80 an ounce. December silver lost $1.012, or 3.16 percent, to close at $30.993. Gold started the week by closing at $1,657.70 an ounce Monday. The price fell as low as $1,616 an ounce Tuesday as many traders worried that prices had been overinflated during a rally this summer, when gold hit $1,891.90.

Squash: World Squash Federation bans PSF secretary

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A Pakistani official was banned from squash for one year on Friday after the sport s federation found he had brought the game into disrepute. The World Squash Federation (WSF) took the action against Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) secretary Irfan Asgher for levelling allegations against the world body and its Indian president N. Ramachandran. "The decision of the DAC is to ban Asgher from any involvement in all WSF events for a period of 12 months from 7 October 2011 and to impose a fine of 500 pounds payable within 30 days," a WSF statement said. Ashger had alleged in a newspaper interview that Pakistani players could not take part in a world junior championship because the WSF had delayed sending a visa letter to Belgium, where the event was held in July this year. Asgher also alleged that Ramachandran played a role in preventing Pakistani players from obtaining visas. But a WSF probe found that Asgher mistakenly sent the visa letter to the German hosts of a seperate men s championship rather than to Belgium where the youth event was being held. "Given the confusion caused by forwarding the request to the organisers of another event, the DAC did not accept that there was any fault with the WSF office," the statement said. Pakistan, once a dominant force in squash through Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan, has experienced a serious slump in fortunes. Its men s team finished 22nd out of 32 in the World Team championship in Germany in August this year -- their worst ever showing. Jahangir won a record ten British and six world titles, while Jansher won eight world and six British open titles in 1980s and 90s.

Pennetta knocks Wozniacki out of China Open

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Italian Flavia Pennetta stunned world number one Caroline Wozniacki with a fierce 3-6, 6-0, 7-6 (7/2) comeback in the quarter-finals of the China Open on Friday. The Dane looked to be in control before Pennetta began a fightback, winning the second set to nil, and dominating a third set tie-break. Pennetta, the world number 26, had lost all five of their previous meetings. Wozniacki has claimed six WTA trophies this season but -- despite her world ranking -- is still searching for her first Grand Slam crown. Poland s Agnieszka Radwanska, the 11th seed and a winner last week in Tokyo, reached the final four after Serbian Ana Ivanovic retired with a back injury while trailing 6-3, 3-2. Giant-killing Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu fought back from a set down against former champion Maria Kirilenko to reach the semi-finals and keep her dream run alive. Niculescu, the world number 57, who knocked out French Open champion Li Na in the first round, recovered from a slow start to win 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Niculescu will play the winner of the match between German ninth seed Andrea Petkovic and Russian 13th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. German ninth seed Andrea Petkovic completed the semi-final lineup with her defeat of Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-3, 7-6 (7/2). In the men s draw, third seed Tomas Berdych crushed Fernando Verdasco 6-1, 6-0 in 65 minutes, one of the heaviest defeats of the Spaniard s career. Berdych opened with a loss of serve but then turned on the afterburners to win 12 straight games. Berdych has yet to win a title in 2011. Only he and Frenchman Gael Monfils from the top 10 are without a trophy this year. He will play his seventh semi-final of the year against French top seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who dispatched Spain s Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-4. Croatian Ivan Ljubicic beat Russian Mikhail Youzhny 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (4/7), 6-2 and will Croatian Marin Cilic, a winner over South African Kevin Anderson 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 6-1.

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Cricket - Sports

Saturday, October 8, 2011

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