Dunya TV

Kidnapped French woman dies in Somalia
French first lady has baby girl: source
Ban urges Iraq, Turkey to meet Kurdish challenge
Turkey launches incursion into Iraq
Fierce battle under way to crush last Gaddafi hideout
Saleh demands US, EU guarantees to quit
Oil prices tumble as stock market pulls back
Gold falls for third straight day, under $1,650
Australia power to 93-run win in 1st ODI
Troicki, Zvonareva advance at Kremlin Cup
Blake, Anderson reach quarterfinals in Stockholm
Last-gasp Ramsey puts Arsenal in pole position
Milan beat Borisov to keep pace with Barca
Torres at the doubles as Chelsea rout Genk
Hillary to reach Pakistan today for crucial dialogue

Posted:

A disabled Frenchwoman who was snatched from her beachfront home at a Kenyan resort island and taken to neighbouring Somalia has died in the hands of her captors, France said on Wednesday. The foreign ministry said the circumstances of 66-year-old Marie Dedieu s death were not known, but her failing health had probably been a factor. "This was an act of unqualified barbarism, violence and brutality," Foreign Minister Alain Juppe told reporters. "We condemn this in the strongest possible terms. We did everything possible to try to obtain her release, we tried to send medication by numerous different channels and apparently these savages could not care less." The announcement of her death came as Kenyan jets pounded the positions in Somalia of Al-Qaeda linked Shebab militants, who Nairobi blames for a spate of abductions of foreigners. Kenyan forces launched an unprecedented incursion, which it says has already killed dozens of Shebab fighters, into Somalia this week with the blessing of the Western-backed government in Mogadishu. "The contacts through which the French government was seeking to obtain the release of Marie Dedieu, held in Somalia since October 1, have announced her death," the French foreign ministry said in a statement. "Mrs Dedieu s state of health, uncertainty over the conditions of her detention and the fact that the kidnappers probably refused to give her the medication that we sent her lead us to believe that this tragic outcome is unfortunately the most likely," the ministry said. A gang of 10 armed men seized Dedieu from Manda Island in Kenya s Lamu archipelago earlier this month and fled by sea to Somalia, fighting off an attempt by Kenya s navy to stop them. There had been serious concern over the health of Dedieu, who was wheelchair-bound after an accident several years ago, recovering from cancer and required medication every few hours.

French first lady has baby girl: source

Posted:

French President Nicolas Sarkozy s supermodel wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy gave birth to a daughter Wednesday, a source in the first lady s inner circle confirmed. "For the moment we don t know the little girl s name," the source said, as the world s media gathered near the La Muette clinic in Paris and Sarkozy returned from talks on the future of the eurozone in Frankfurt. The girl is the French first couple s first baby since their marriage in 2008, although Bruni has one 10-year-old son from a previous relationship and thrice-married Sarkozy has three aged 14 to 26. Sarkozy had earlier in the day visited his wife in the Paris clinic for half-an-hour, but was forced to jet off to Germany for crisis talks on the eurozone sovereign debt crisis before the birth itself. He left Frankfurt just before the birth was announced, after talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel, IMF director Christine Lagarde and the current and next heads of the European Central Bank Jean-Claude Trichet and Mario Draghi. Sarkozy s Elysee Palace office has said it will not make any official announcement on what it considers a private family matter, but the birth of a daughter was widely reported in French media outlets.

Ban urges Iraq, Turkey to meet Kurdish challenge

Posted:

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged Iraq and Turkey on Wednesday to collaborate on a solution to end what he called "unacceptable" cross-border attacks by Kurdish rebels. In a written statement issued after Kurdish rebels killed at least 24 soldiers in simultaneous attacks in southeast Turkey, Ban s spokesman Martin Nesirky said the sovereignty of both Turkey and Iraq must be respected. "The secretary general expresses his concern over the attacks in the Hakkari province of Turkey, reportedly by Kurdish elements operating from Iraqi territory, which have left many Turkish soldiers dead," he said. Turkey hit back with cross-border air strikes on rebel bases and sent troops into neighboring Iraq as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan canceled a foreign trip and called an emergency meeting of top security officials. "It is clearly unacceptable that Iraq s territory is being used to mount cross-border attacks against neighboring countries," Nesirky said. "The secretary general urges Iraq and Turkey to engage in constructive dialogue in order to find a peaceful solution to this challenge."

Turkey launches incursion into Iraq

Posted:

Turkish soldiers, air force bombers and helicopter gunships launched an incursion into northern Iraq on Wednesday, hours after Kurdish rebels killed 24 soldiers and wounded 18 in attacks along the border. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan canceled a visit to Kazakhstan and held a nationally televised news conference to announce that Turkey had launched the "hot pursuit" operation, wording that officials often use to describe cross-border offensives in northern Iraq. "We will never bow to any attack from inside or outside Turkey," he said. Turkey s chief of the military and the interior and defense ministers rushed to the border area to oversee the anti-rebel attacks, and the United States and NATO both issued statements supporting the offensive, the largest in more than three years. NTV television said Turkish troops have gone some 2.5 miles (4 kilometres) into Iraq and that helicopters were ferrying commandos across the border. Dogan news agency said more than 20 Kurdish rebels were killed in ensuing clashes, but did not provide a breakdown. Neither report identified its sources. The incursion appeared to be limited in scope. Turkey last staged a major ground offensive against Iraq in early 2008. Wednesday s offensive began hours after the rebels, who are fighting for autonomy in Turkey s southeast, staged simultaneous attacks on military outposts and police stations near the border towns of Cukurca and Yuksekova. The Interior Ministry first said 26 soldiers were killed and 22 wounded, but Erdogan corrected those figures to 24 dead and 18 wounded, without explaining the discrepancy. It was the deadliest Kurdish rebel attack against Turkey s military since the 1990s. Dogan news agency said about 200 Kurdish rebels were believed to have launched Wednesday s attacks.

Fierce battle under way to crush last Gaddafi hideout

Posted:

Anti-Gaddafi fighters launched an all-out assault on Wednesday against the ousted strongman s remaining holdouts, now pinned into a small corner of his hometown Sirte. The fighting was concentrated in the outer streets of Sirte s Number Two neighbourhood, with both sides trading heavy gunfire and bombarding each other with mortar shells. Ali al-Rikabi, field commander of the National Transitional Council (NTC), Libya s new rulers, said fighting was raging in "four or five streets of the neighbourhood." "It is intense and we have exchanges of gunfire," he said. Medics at a field hospital in east Sirte said seven fighters were killed and 74 wounded. Two other fighters were reported wounded on the western side of the city. At least 11 NTC fighters were killed and 95 wounded on Tuesday alone in the battle to subdue the last pockets of support for Moamer Gaddafi in Sirte, according to medics. NTC chief Mustafa Abdel Jalil said, meanwhile, that Libya s new rulers will compensate the fighters who helped overthrow Gaddafi, the wounded and the families of the martyrs. "Families of the martyrs, the wounded and the fighters themselves will be compensated," he said in Benghazi, urging Libyans to be patient, however, because of lack of funds. The popular uprising that erupted in mid-February to topple Gaddafi has claimed more than 25,000 lives, according to the NTC. According to Essam Baghhar, a field commander from the Zintan Brigade, only Sirte s Number Two neighbourhood in was still being held by Gaddafi s forces after NTC fighters overran the adjoining Dollar district late on Tuesday. "The Dollar neighbourhood was liberated last night and now the fight is in Number Two neighbourhood," Baghhar said. Loyalist forces had been pushed into an area of Number Two less than one square kilometre (0.4 square mile) in size. "We have captured many snipers in the past two days, including two women snipers," he said.

Saleh demands US, EU guarantees to quit

Posted:

Yemen s embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh said Wednesday he was ready to sign a Gulf-brokered deal for him to quit office but demanded American and European guarantees on a timetable. "I would sign. But provide guarantees to implement the Gulf initiative," Saleh, reiterating his claimed willingness to leave power after 33 years in office, told a party meeting, Saba state news agency reported. "We want, first, Gulf guarantees, second, European, and third, American. These three guarantees should accompany the Gulf initiative," he added, standing defiant after nine months of deadly protests demanding his ouster. "Part of the pressure being exerted now stems from demands that it (the deal) is signed without any conditions and that the time framework (for implementation) be discussed at a later stage," he complained. Under the terms of the Gulf initiative tabled earlier this year, Saleh would hand power to the vice president 30 days after the signing, and he and his aides would be granted immunity from prosecution by parliament. A national unity government led by a prime minister from the opposition would be formed, and a presidential election would follow 60 days after Saleh s departure. "We have said that we are ready to endorse the (Gulf) initiative, but do you not want us to discuss the time framework for its mechanism," added the veteran leader whose presidential term ends in 2013. He did not elaborate on the timetable he wants.

Oil prices tumble as stock market pulls back

Posted:

Benchmark crude fell $2.24, or 2.5 percent, to end the day at $86.29 per barrel in New York. Brent crude fell $2.76, or 2.5 percent, to finish at $108.39 in London. Prices dropped just before trading ended for the day, as stocks headed lower. Investors found little to cheer about in economic news Wednesday. The Federal Reserve s "Beige Book" report showed only a slight increase in consumer spending last month with the economy expanding modestly in the Fed s 12 bank regions. And the Commerce Department said home builders started new projects at the fastest rate in almost a year and a half. The rate was still far below what economists consider to be a strong housing market. "There s not much conviction in the market right now," PFG Best analyst Phil Flynn said. "I wouldn t be surprised to see those prices bounce back tomorrow." The government also had a mixed reading about U.S. oil supply and demand on Wednesday. The Energy Information Administration said supplies unexpectedly dropped by 4.7 million barrels last week. But the drop didn t mean the U.S. is using more crude. Rather, refineries imported less oil, gasoline and other fuels as demand fell last week. The nation s gasoline supplies fell by 3.3 million barrels last week. The drop comes as Sunoco and ConocoPhillips wind down refineries in Pennsylvania and other refineries slow down for seasonal maintenance. At the pump, gasoline prices rose 1.5 cents on Wednesday to a national average of $3.474 per gallon, according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. Gasoline prices have increased almost every day for nearly two weeks, rising to record levels for this time of year. In other energy trading, heating oil was down 4.65 cents to end at $2.9812 per gallon. Gasoline futures fell 7.54 cents to finish $2.6715 per gallon. Natural gas rose 3.3 cents to end at $3.586 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Gold falls for third straight day, under $1,650

Posted:

Gold prices are falling for the third straight day. Gold has now lost all of the ground gained in this month s rally. Gold for December delivery fell $5.80 Wednesday, less than 1 percent, to settle at $1,647 an ounce. That s the first time gold closed below $1,650 an ounce since Oct. 7. Gold hit a record high of $1,891.90 in late August. Prices began to fall after that on worries that gold had risen too high. Gold prices rebounded this month on worries about inflation. Traders thought a big stimulus plan in Europe would make currencies less valuable. Investors often buy gold as protection against inflation. Doubts about a big European bailout have grown this week. That boosted the dollar against the euro over the last two days.

Australia power to 93-run win in 1st ODI

Posted:

Australia was impressive in every department to power to a 93-run win over South Africa in the rain-affected first one-day international at SuperSport Park on Wednesday. South Africa was 129 all out chasing a revised Duckworth/Lewis target of 223 in 29 overs after Australia made 183-4.  However, even with a tough calculation for the host, Australia dominated throughout a curtailed match to take an early lead in the three-match series. Former skipper Ricky Ponting made 63 opening the batting and shared a 102-run partnership with current captain Michael Clarke as the tourists shrugged off a four-and-a-half hour rain delay in their innings. Highly rated teenager Pat Cummins then shone on his ODI debut with crucial wickets as South Africa collapsed in 22 overs.

Troicki, Zvonareva advance at Kremlin Cup

Posted:

Defending men s champion Viktor Troicki and top-seeded woman Vera Zvonareva advanced to the quarterfinals of the Kremlin Cup with straight-set victories on Wednesday, while Lucie Safarova upset second-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. The second-seeded Troicki beat Pere Riba of Spain 6-4, 6-4, while Zvonareva routed Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia, 6-1, 6-1. With a victory, Radwanska could have secured the last spot left for next week s season-ending WTA Tour championships in Istanbul. Now she will have to wait for Marion Bartoli s results in Moscow this week. Fresh from winning her seventh career title in Osaka, Japan, Bartoli is seeded third and needs to win the title here. Any other result for her will see Radwanska qualify directly for the first time after being a substitute in 2008 and  09. Also Wednesday, Kaia Kanepi of Estonia came from 5-1 down in a third-set tiebreaker to upset fourth-seeded Francesca Schiavone of Italy 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7), and three-time winner Nikolay Davydenko, seeded fourth, defeated fellow Russian Teimuraz Gabashvili 7-5, 6-2. Troicki broke once in each set and sealed the victory on his first match point. The Serbian player will face Alex Bogomolov Jr. of the United States, who beat his doubles partner Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 to advance. In the last two women s first-round matches, eighth-seeded Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia defeated Polona Hercog of Slovenia 6-3, 7-6 (3), while Elena Vesnina routed wild card Alla Kudryavtseva 6-0, 6-1.

Blake, Anderson reach quarterfinals in Stockholm

Posted:

James Blake of the United States upset second-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina 6-4, 6-4 on Wednesday to reach the quarterfinals of the Swedish Open. South Africa s Kevin Anderson and Milos Raonic of Canada also advanced in the Royal Tennis Hall. Anderson needed three sets to beat 33-year-old Tommy Haas of Germany 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-4 while Raonic easily defeated Philipp Petzschner of Germany 6-3, 6-3. In other action Wednesday, Bernard Tomic of Australia beat Estonia s Jurgen Zopp 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-0 to reach the second round, along with Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria, who defeated Ryan Sweeting of the United States 6-3, 6-1. German Sebastian Rieschick is also through to the second round after beating home crowd favorite Michael Ryderstedt of Sweden, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

Last-gasp Ramsey puts Arsenal in pole position

Posted:

An injury-time goal by substitute Aaron Ramsey gave Arsenal a 1-0 win at Marseille on Wednesday that enabled Arsene Wenger s side to leapfrog their opponents to top spot in Champions League Group F. The Welsh midfielder applied a cool finish in the dying seconds of a forgettable game that had betrayed the fragility and lack of confidence that have plagued both sides  starts to the season. Marseille had not conceded a goal in the competition prior to Ramsey s intervention, but they now find themselves a point behind Arsenal prior to the return fixture at the Emirates on November 1. The chances of seeing both sides in the last 16 were further enhanced by Borussia Dortmund s unexpected 3-1 defeat at Olympiakos, however, which leaves the German champions bottom at the group s halfway point. Marseille had started strongly but their goal was the first to be threatened, with Souleymane Diawara obliged to clear a looping header from Robin van Persie off the line. For all their endeavour, OM were toiling in attack, but Loic Remy provided a flash of brilliance on the half hour, jinking inside Per Mertesacker and Jenkinson from the byline before his shot was blocked by the latter. Moments later it was Lucho Gonzalez s turn to draw gasps from the Arsenal fans, as he stole in front of Mertesacker to toe Mathieu Valbuena s cross across goal and wide. Lucho and Ayew sparked an unseemly scramble in the Arsenal box minutes shy of the hour, before a defensive error by Nicolas N Koulou almost gifted the visitors the opening goal at the other end. The Cameroon centre-back allowed the ball to run beneath his foot, giving Walcott a clear sight of goal, albeit from a narrow angle, but OM captain Mandanda saved with his feet. Mandanda then denied van Persie, but Marseille looked to be safe until Ramsey was gifted acres of space on the left-hand side of the OM area and calmly placed the winner inside Mandanda s right-hand post.

Milan beat Borisov to keep pace with Barca

Posted:

AC Milan breezed to a comfortable 2-0 victory over BATE Borisov at the San Siro on Wednesday to keep pace with Barcelona at the top of Champions League Group H. Goals from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Kevin Prince Boateng ensured an easy night s work for the rossoneri. It also means both they and the Spanish defending champions can qualify for the knock-out stages with victory in their next matches in two weeks time. It means the crucial clash between the pair at the San Siro on November 23 should decide who tops the group. Such was Milan s comfort zone that they even managed to give French centre-back Philippe Mexes a short run-out on his injury comeback. Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri had said the day before the game that a win was vital to keep on Barca s heels and his side seemed to have taken note. They poured forward from the get-go, determined not to let things become nervy, as they had in the 2-0 success against Viktoria Plzen three weeks ago. From a half-cleared Antonio Cassano corner Alberto Aquilani volleyed wide from 15 yards. Ibrahimovic then had a crack from fully 45 yards on the half-volley with goalkeeper Aleksandr Gutor off his line, but saw his effort fly over. Ibrahimovic gave the hosts the lead as he latched onto a rebound from Aquilani s scuffed shot to finish low inside the near post on 33 minutes. He almost had a second but clipped wide of the far post from Cassano s pass. BATE started the second period with a flurry of activity, the most alarming of which for Milan was a Maxsim Bordachev chance that Abbiati had to turn behind. Ibrahimovic was still proving dangerous but after he showed good control with his chest, Marko Simic blocked his shot. But from the resulting corner Boateng hit a rasping, rising shot from 25 yards that crashed in off the underside of the bar. Borisov probably should have had a consolation goal late on but Maxsim Skavysh shot straight at Abbiati when well placed.

Torres at the doubles as Chelsea rout Genk

Posted:

Fernando Torres ended his Champions League goal drought in emphatic fashion as the Chelsea striker s double inspired a 5-0 demolition of Genk at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday. Torres had gone 875 minutes without scoring in Europe s elite club competition, a miserable run that dated back to April 2009 when he scored for Liverpool against Chelsea. But the Spaniard finally got back on track with two clinical finishes against the woeful Belgian champions. Portuguese midfielder Raul Meireles opened the scoring with his first goal for the club, but it was Torres who took centre-stage with his brace. Branislav Ivanovic added the fourth goal just before half-time and Salomon Kalou completed the rout in the second half. Torres, who now has four goals in his last four appearances, will be back on the sidelines on Sunday as he serves the final game of his domestic suspension when Chelsea face QPR. But the much-maligned forward has done all he can to ensure he returns to the team after that ban. His efforts ensured Chelsea remain top of Group E, one point ahead of second placed Bayer Leverkusen, after the biggest win of boss Andre Villas-Boas s reign which equalled the club s largest ever Champions League victory.

Hillary to reach Pakistan today for crucial dialogue

Posted:

Hillary Clinton will meet political and military leadership of Pakistan during her two-day visit. It would be the first visit of any key US official to Pakistan since the Pak-US relations have plunged to a new low following accusations by senior American officials that the Inter-Services Intelligence agency is using the Haqqani network to wage a proxy war in Afghanistan and to attack US and foreign forces. Political pundits are predicting de-escalation of tension between Pakistan and United States after the visit of Hillary Clinton. Clinton, who is expected to be accompanied by CIA chief Gen David Petraeus and Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Gen Martin Dempsey, will hold meetings with Pakistan s civil and military leadership, including President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar.

PoliticusUSA

Cricket - Sports

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

0 comments:

Reuters News Agency

World EYE