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Nargis Sethi to be cross-examined today
PPP announces strike in Tando Muhammad Khan
Verdict on Babar Awan contempt case today
FBI chief warns of threat of terror cyberattack
Clinton concerned over Russian post-vote arrests
Four of a family killed in Peshawar
Nayyar Bukhari likely to be new Senate chairman
US not considering sanctions on Pakistan
Apple unveils the new 4G iPAD
Badminton: Wang starts with a fall and a fine win
Cycling: Meersman claims Paris-Nice fourth stage
Juventus held to costly 1-1 draw at Bologna
Vazquez Rana re-elected to 4-year term
World first: Images of atoms moving in a molecule
Earth braces for biggest space storm in five years

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The seven-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice Nasirul Mulk will resume hearing of the contempt of court case against Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani todau. The cabinet secretary Nargis Sethi will be cross-examined during today’s proceeding in the court. Earlier on Wednesday, PM’s attorney Aitzaz presented two summaries of Law Ministry as evidence to SC in PM contempt case. The defendant’s witness Nargis Sethi also got her statement recorded in the court. Aitzaz Ahsan submitted two summaries sent to the PM in the court. Justice Nasirul Mulk said the copies of the summaries should have been submitted earlier to the registrar office. The defendant’s witness and PM’s ex-principal secretary informed the court that she had held this office from December 15, 2008 to January 17, 2011. This was the period during which the PM oversaw the issues concerning the federation and the Council of Common Interests, she maintained. She also verified the summary sent to the PM on May 21 2010, along with other documents. She also verified Justice Aaqil Mirza’s provisional report. The attorney general objected to it by saying that the summaries could only be verified by the one who prepared them. Aitzaz Ahsan maintained that summaries have been presented to prove that the prime minister had acted upon the rules of business. During the last hearing &sbquo; the bench on the plea of Aitzaz Ahsan&sbquo; Counsel of the Prime Minister&sbquo; had summoned Cabinet Secretary Nargis Sethi to appear before the court as a witness. Earlier, the counsel of the Prime Minister’s counsel Aitzaz Ahsan submitted a list of witnesses in the Supreme Court which also included the names of Babar Awan and Law Secretary Masood Chishti. He also prayed the court to call them as witness in the case. It was said in the application moved in the Supreme Court that that the prime minister, in his personal capacity, did not wish to exercise official power in directing any official to appear as a defence witness. The application, however, also stated that the officials should be summoned by court in the capacity of court witnesses. However, Babar Awan declined to oblige, saying he had been a lawyer in the NRO review case; therefore, he was not eligible to appear as a witness. He said if he appeared as a defence witness, it would be tantamount to professional misconduct. Similarly, Law Secretary Masood Chishti offered regrets to appearing as a court witness, saying he too had appeared as a counsel in the NRO review petition.

PPP announces strike in Tando Muhammad Khan

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The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has announced a shutter down strike today in Tando Muhammad Khan against the Election Commission’s decision of declaring election results for PS-53 were also declared null and void. Waheeda Shah had also been declared ineligible to contest elections for two years by the Election Commission for slapping an assistant presiding officer and other polling staff during by-elections on February 25. Meanwhile, the PPP workers also staged protest on Wednesday in front of Tando Muhammad Khan Press Club against the Election Commission’s decision.

Verdict on Babar Awan contempt case today

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The Supreme Court will today announce its reserved verdict on the show-cause notice issued to the PPP leader, Babar Awan for his contemptuous address to a press conference against the court’s December 1, 2011 order in memo case. The two-member bench comprising Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan and Justice Ather Saeed, which had reserved its’ judgement on March 1 on the contempt of court case against Awan, will announce its verdict today.

FBI chief warns of threat of terror cyberattack

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FBI Director Robert Mueller warned US lawmakers Wednesday that violent extremists could try to carry out cyberattacks on the United States and the nation needed to be prepared. "To date, terrorists have not used the Internet to launch a full-scale cyber attack, but we cannot underestimate their intent," Mueller told a House appropriations subcommittee. "They may seek to train their own recruits or hire outsiders, with an eye toward pursuing cyber attacks. "As our nation s national security and criminal adversaries constantly adapt and evolve, so must the FBI be able to respond with new or revised strategies and operations to counter these threats," Mueller said, presenting the FBI s 2013 budget. Al-Qaeda recruits and other extremists "are not hiding in the shadows of cyber space," Mueller added, pointing to the group s use of online chat rooms and websites to "recruit and radicalize followers to commit acts of terrorism." He noted militants have shown interest in hacking skills, making "the FBI s counterterrorism mission that much more difficult and challenging." He also highlighted that Al-Qaeda s lethal Yemen-based branch publishes an English-language online magazine, "Inspire," while Shebab militants linked to Al-Qaeda in Somalia use Twitter to "taunt its enemies -- in English -- and encourage terrorist activity." The FBI has seen an 84 percent increase in the number of computer intrusion investigations opened, according to Mueller. The bureau also has cyber squads in each of its 56 field offices, as well as over 1,000 specially trained staff running undercover operations and examining digital evidence. On Tuesday, US officials charged five alleged computer hackers in Britain, Ireland and the United States in high-profile cyberattacks after a leader of the group became an FBI informant.

Clinton concerned over Russian post-vote arrests

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US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton voiced concern Wednesday about the arrest of protesters after Russia s weekend elections but said Washington looks forward to working with Vladimir Putin. Clinton clearly acknowledged Putin s presidential election victory when she named him in her remarks, even as she repeated US calls for reported voting irregularities to be investigated. "There were a number of concerns about this latest electoral process that should be investigated and addressed," the chief US diplomat said during a brief press conference with Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski. The State Department had a more subdued response on Monday, when Clinton s spokeswoman Victoria Nuland urged Russia to conduct an "independent, credible" probe of the election results. She said Washington looked forward to working with the president-elect, without naming Putin. "We also remain concerned about the arrest of peaceful protesters, which occurred again on Monday," Clinton said after hundreds of protesters were detained and later released. "But the election had a clear winner and we are ready to work with president-elect Putin as he is sworn in and assumes the responsibilities of the presidency." The chief US diplomat said the United States was seeking to "enhance cooperation on a range of difficult issues," including Syria, adding that she would meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday in New York. "We continue to believe that Russia should join the international community and play a positive role in trying to end the bloodshed and help create the conditions for a peaceful, democratic transition," Clinton said. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said Russia believes that a new UN Security Council resolution on Syria reportedly being drafted in New York by the United States is unbalanced.

Four of a family killed in Peshawar

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According to details, some unidentified persons entered the house of Jamal and strangulated his mother to death in Tehkal area of Peshawar. The attackers then opened indiscriminate fire on the other family members, killing Jamal’s wife and his two other relatives Bilal and Sahab Syed. The armed attackers also injured Jamal and one of his relatives. Police reached the spot soon after the incident and removed the dead bodies to Khyber Medical Centre for autopsy. The injured were rushed to Khyber t Teaching Hospital. Police have also started investigation.

Nayyar Bukhari likely to be new Senate chairman

Posted:

The PPP high command has decided to appoint Senator Nayyar Hussain Bukhari as the new Senate chairman after consultation with present chairman Farooq Naik. It was also decided to convince Senator Raza Rabbani to take up leader of the house slot. According to sources, a meeting held at the Awan-e-Sadr under President Asif Ali Zardari to discuss the names for the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Senate. The meeting was attended by Khursheed Shah, Farooq Naik, Raza Rabbani and Islam-ud-Din Sheikh. The president informed Farooq Naik about the decision regarding the nomination of Nayyar Bukhari as Senate chairman.  Meanwhile, efforts are on to convince Raza Rabbani to take up leader ho the house slot which will fell vacant after the election of Nayyar Bukhari as Senate chairman.

US not considering sanctions on Pakistan

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The United States said Wednesday it is prepare to work with Pakistan on resolving their energy needs and will not consider imposing sanctions over the country s proposed pipeline project with Iran. "We are prepared to continue to work with Pakistan as we have in the past in other sources of energy. I m going to prejudice what might be sanctionable on a deal that is just prospective at this point and where tenders have only just gone out," State department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters in Washington. Nuland said that talks regarding the Pakistan-Iran pipeline were held with Pakistani authorities on several occasions adding that the US informed the authorities that Iran could not be trusted. "Our point is to say that we think this is a bad idea and there are other options," she added. Nuland said that talks regarding the restoration of Nato supply was going on with Pakistani officials adding that high US officials were not expected to visit Pakistan in recent days.

Apple unveils the new 4G iPAD

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Apple Inc unveiled a faster 4G-equipped iPAD starting at $629 on Wednesday (March 7), hoping the latest version of its tablet can safeguard its dominance over rivals ranging from Amazon.com Inc to Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. Chief Executive Tim Cook, presiding over his second major product launch after debuting with 2011 s voice-enabled iPhone 4S, introduced the highly anticipated third iteration of the tablet, which is available for pre-orders from Wednesday and will hit store shelves March 16. The high-end model of Apple s latest iPad will be capable of operating on a high-speed 4G "LTE," or Long-Term Evolution, network. At speeds roughly 10 times faster than current 3G technology, that may help banish the sometimes shaky video quality of older devices. Wall Street had anticipated many of the features Cook showed off on Wednesday, including a higher-definition "retina display" screen - containing several times as many pixels within the same area - and a better camera. Shares of Apple closed barely higher, up 43 cents at $530.69. They hovered around $530 throughout the unveiling event, which was attended by Marc Benioff, CEO of enterprise cloud computing company Salesforce.com Inc; Jeremy Stoppelman, CEO of online business review site Yelp Inc; and influential venture-capitalist John Doerr, among other industry luminaries. Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc, and AT&T will host and sell 4G wireless plans to 4G iPad users. Until now, buyers have been reluctant to shell out extra cash even for iPads with slower 3G connections. The cheaper WiFi-only model, with much more limited Web access, is by far Apple s top-selling one today. An updated version of the WiFi-only model remains at $499. The most expensive 4G model, with 64 gigabytes of storage, will go for $829. The previous iPad2 with 3G also sold for $629 to $829. The cheapest model of the previous-generation iPad 2 now retails at $399. In an apparent departure from naming conventions, Apple s third-generation tablet will not be called the iPad 3, but simply referred to as the latest iPad, a small point that several analysts and executives noticed and pointed out. Regardless of the name, the company is counting on a warm reception to its latest tablet to fend off an increasingly aggressive challenge from tablets powered by Google Inc s Android technology, with Microsoft Corp software-driven devices slated to come soon. Smartphones and tablets are starting to eat into PC sales as mobile technology gets more advanced and available content expands. Some experts believe mobile devices, as they get more powerful, will eventually displace PCs in many markets, hurting business for the likes of Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc. The global tablet user base reached 67 million in 2011, according to researcher Strategy Analytics. Analysts expect double-digit growth in tablet sales in coming years.

Badminton: Wang starts with a fall and a fine win

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Wang Yihan s bid to win back the All-England women s singles title she won three years ago began with a worrying fall, a few words of doubt, and an impressively taken straight games win. The world number one from China overcame Pai Hsiao Ma, the world number 25 from Taiwan, by 21-11, 21-8, with brilliant attacking skills which gradually broke down the resistance of an able opponent. During Wang s winning ten-point sequence from 10-5 to 20-5 in the second game she moved the shuttle about with increasing control to all four corners, finishing most of the rallies with varied winners. The only moments of doubt about the outcome happened at 13-7 in the first game, when Wang fell while attempting to return a punched clear near the baseline, rolled over dramatically, and held her knee. For a split second it looked as though she might have sustained a damaging injury, but she got up immediately, and played on without obvious distress. Next she plays her compatriot Liu Xin, the world number nine, who had to work hard to wear down Michelle Li of Canada by 24-22, 19-21, 21-11. Later Baun also began satisfactorily, though showed signs of tension. The twice former champion from Denmark overcame Fu Mingtian, the world number 27 from Singapore, 21-15, 21-15, after trailing 10-13 in the second game. Fu defended very well and prevented Baun from attacking with her greatest fluency, although her determination to avoid disaster at the scene of her greatest triumphs was evident. Baun was also able to claim no ill effects from her troublesome hip on the hard floor, and covered the court without apparent difficulty. "I didn t play perfectly today," she said. "But hopefully tomorrow I shall be better. It s special for me to be here and of course I was nervous." On Thursday, Baun will face Ai Goto, the world number 22 from Japan, who progressed in straight games against Yao Jie, the China-born former European champion from The Netherlands. Another win should bring the rematch with Wang. Two other title contenders, Wang Shixian, the defending all-England champion from China, and Saina Nehwal, the fourth-seeded Commonwealth champion from India, also won, but in contrasting fashion. Nehwal made heavy weather of a 21-11, 13-21, 21-13 win over Sapsiree Taerattanachi, a Thai qualifier, and is perhaps overdue a good run at the All-England. "I was quite nervous," Nehwal said. "I didn t judge the shuttles well in the second game, but in the third I got my confidence back. It was a very difficult match." Wang Shixian won with unexpected ease, by 21-9, 21-15 against former world number ten from Taiwan, Cheng Shao Chieh, who had beaten the athletic, fast-moving woman from Suzhou in the past. This time though Shixian got on top from the start, often adopting a style rather more assertive than the one which helped her to the title last year.

Cycling: Meersman claims Paris-Nice fourth stage

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Belgium s Gianni Meersman of the Lotto team claimed victory in the fourth stage of Paris-Nice on Wednesday, with Britain s Bradley Wiggins (Sky) holding on to the leader s yellow jersey. Meersman crossed the finish line in Rodez ahead of Slovenia s Grega Bole, who had launched the final sprint, and Dutchman Lieuwe Westra. Spain s Xavier Florencio pipped Frenchman Jonathan Hivert on the line to claim fourth place. Wiggins kept main rival Alejandro Valverde in his sights in the final climb. The Spaniard finished in eighth position, two places ahead of Wiggins, but the 20sec time difference between the two men remained unchanged. "Our objective today was to let a breakaway get away until the end," said Wiggins. "But Rabobank went for it, because the gap was three minutes. "It was perfect for us. We stayed on their wheels and we were able to rest the guys in the team for the next stages. "The final was crazy -- there were roundabouts, it was really dangerous, but I was OK and I stayed in the top five the whole time." Having finished third in the previous stage, 26-year-old Meersman registered his second success of the season after winning a stage in the Tour of the Algarve in Portugal earlier this year. "First place is what counts," said Meersman, who was plagued by injuries between 2007 and 2009. "Yesterday (Tuesday), everyone said it was good when I finished third, but what matters is being able to lift your arms. "You don t make sacrifices to finish second or third. This winter I ve trained a lot for the sprints. I have to thank the team, who worked really hard." Thursday s fifth stage takes the peloton on a spectacular 178.5km ride to Mende, which culminates in a 3km climb.

Juventus held to costly 1-1 draw at Bologna

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Juventus was held to a costly 1-1 draw at Bologna on Wednesday, potentially giving AC Milan a decisive advantage in the race for the Serie A title. Bologna s 35-year-old captain Marco Di Vaio put the hosts ahead in the 17th minute and Mirko Vucinic equalized for Juve in the 58th. The match was postponed from last month due to a snowstorm and now Milan leads Juve by two points with both clubs having played the same number of matches. Making matters worse for Juve was that defender Leonardo Bonucci was expelled in the 84th, leaving the Turin side without its three top center backs for a visit to Genoa on Sunday. Also, Parma drew 2-2 with Fiorentina and 10-men Cesena drew 0-0 with Catania.

Vazquez Rana re-elected to 4-year term

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Mario Vazquez Rana, one of the most powerful figures in the Olympic movement, was re-elected in disputed fashion to a new four-year term Wednesday as president of the Pan American Sports Organization. The election came at the regional body s general assembly in the Mexican capital. While 21 countries asked for a formal vote, Vazquez Rana insisted on being elected by acclamation. There were no other candidates. Delegates from several countries asked for a secret or written ballot, including Venezuela, Argentina, Chile and the Dominican Republic. They were visibly upset when the 79-year-old Mexican decided to ignore their requests and asked for a show of applause to confirm his re-election. "I thank and receive this (responsibility) from everyone, even those who did not applaud for me," Vazquez Rana said. "I take this with love, affection and respect and I m just as excited as I was in 1975, only now with more experience." The Mexican media magnate has headed the body since 1975. "I don t think there is anyone that can say I haven t served the Olympic Committee," he said. "The problem is everyone wants to be (the winner), and not everyone is happy. Of all the sportsmen, there can be only one winner." Vazquez Rana was widely reported to be under pressure to step away from his position at PASO. He has also headed the Association of National Olympic Committees for 33 years. Vazquez Rana has also been an International Olympic Committee member since 1991. He will be forced to retire from the IOC when he turns 80 in June. Vazquez Rana has sought unsuccessfully to get his position on the powerful IOC executive board extended until 2014. Ireland s Patrick Hickey, the head of the European Olympic Committees, has been nominated to replace Vazquez Rana on the IOC board. The nomination will come up before the ANOC general assembly in Moscow next month.

World first: Images of atoms moving in a molecule

Posted:

Scientists on Wednesday said they had recorded the first real-time images of atoms moving in a molecule, a feat that captured movement lasting less than one millionth of a billionth of a second. The exploit entailed directing an ultra-fast laser onto molecules of nitrogen and of oxygen. Its pulse of light knocked a single electron out of its orbit around one of the atoms. The electron tumbled back onto the molecule, causing a tiny collision that, like ripples in a pond, proved a "backlight" of energy. Sensors picked up a movement of joined atoms vibrating. The research, published in the journal Nature, was headed by Louis DiMauro, a professor of physics of Ohio State University. The molecules that were studied are very simple -- oxygen and nitrogen make up most of the atmosphere -- but the hope is to progress to imaging of more interesting fare. Drug designers could be among the beneficiaries. "You could use this to study individual atoms," DiMauro said in a press release. "But the greater impact to science will come when we can study reactions between more complex molecules. Looking at two atoms -- that s a long way from studying a more interesting molecule like a protein." In a separate technical breakthrough, also reported in Nature, physicists at CERN used microwaves to manipulate "anti-matter" atoms, once a staple of sci-fi but now one of the big frontiers of particle research. In theory, there should be equal amounts of matter and its opposite, known as anti-matter, as a result of the Big Bang that created the cosmos. But clearly there is not, otherwise the physical Universe would not exist. When a matter atom meets an anti-matter atom, they cancel each other out in a burst of energy. So, for some reason, there is a far greater abundance of matter than anti-matter. Scientists poring over this mystery have laboured to find out more about elusive anti-matter atoms. In recent years, they have isolated anti-atoms and then stored them -- but handling them is a fiendishly hard task, given the risk of destroying them through mere contact. The latest achievement, led by the so-called ALPHA team at CERN (European Center for Nuclear Research) in Geneva, entailed confining antihydrogen atoms in a magnetic trap and bombarding them with microwaves. The energy kick forced the atoms out of the trap, providing some vital clues about their properties -- an "anti-atomic fingerprint," in the scientists  words.

Earth braces for biggest space storm in five years

Posted:

A pair of scorching explosions on the Sun s surface is sparking the biggest radiation and geomagnetic storm the Earth has experienced in five years, space weather experts said Wednesday. The full brunt of the storm is expected to hit Earth early Thursday US time and last through Friday, potentially disrupting power grids, GPS systems, satellites, and forcing airplanes to change their routes around the polar regions. "Space weather has gotten very interesting over the past 24 hours," said Joseph Kunches, a space weather scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The fuss began late Sunday at an active region on the Sun known as 1429, with a big solar flare that was associated with a burst of solar wind and plasma known as a coronal mass ejection that hurtled in Earth s direction at some four million miles per hour (6.4 million kilometers per hour). Another solar flare and CME followed at 0024 GMT on March 7, setting off a strong geomagnetic and solar radiation storm, both at level three on a five-step scale. NASA said the second flare -- classified in the potent X class -- was one of the largest of this cycle known as the solar minimum which began in early 2007, and fell in just behind slightly stronger one which erupted in August. "The current increase in the number of X-class flares is part of the sun s normal 11-year solar cycle, during which activity on the sun ramps up to solar maximum, which is expected to peak in late 2013," the US space agency said. The solar flares alone caused brief high frequency radio blackouts that have now passed, according to NOAA. But the ensuing space storm will likely give nighttime viewers in Central Asia a prime look at the aurora borealis, or northern lights, on Thursday night, in addition to possibly garbling some of Earthlings  most prized gadgets, Kunches said. The storm is likely "the strongest one since December 2006," Kunches said,  noting, however, that the Earth experienced a stronger radio blackout last August. "But en masse, if you put it all together with the geomagnetic effects and the solar radiation effects, I would put it on par with one at the end of the last solar cycle which was over five years ago." Satellites, power girds and even astronauts aboard the International Space Station could be affected by the radiation storm, which may cause them to seek shelter in better protected parts of the orbiting lab as they have in the past. A NASA spokesman told AFP that no such measures are currently being taken "and we do not believe that they are in any danger." However, Kunches said some commercial airlines have already taken actions to reroute and fly further away from the poles. And more such storms could follow in the coming days because region 1429 is expected to stay active, he said. Geomagnetic and radiation storms will grow more frequent as the Sun leaves its solar minimum period and moves into a solar maximum over the coming years, but people on Earth are generally protected by our planet s magnetic field. However, some experts are concerned that because the world is more reliant on GPS and satellite technology now than it was during the last solar maximum, more disruptions to modern life are likely. Space storms are not new. The first major solar flare was recorded by British astronomer Richard Carrington in 1859. Other solar geomagnetic storms have been observed in recent decades. One huge solar flare in 1972 cut off long-distance telephone communication in the midwestern state of Illinois, NASA said. Another similar flare in 1989 "provoked geomagnetic storms that disrupted electric power transmission" and caused blackouts across the Canadian province of Quebec, the US space agency said.

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