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England, West Indies 2nd Test starts today
Treatment of Pakistan doctor 'unjust, unwarranted:' Clinton
Zardari returns after attending Chicago conference
Dr Afridi not acted against Pakistan: White house
Earthquake jolts Quetta, Mastung
US panel cuts Pakistan funding over doctor row
US concerned on killing in Pakistan
Govt approves Rs 873 billion for PSDP 2012-13
Manzoor Wasan applies for more leave
Bilawal asks Obama to apologise for Salala attack
Corruption in laptops: plea for hearing accepted
Speakers decision a victory of democracy: Gilani
Next round of Iran nuke talks set for Moscow
PML-N recommends 3 names for CE Commissioner
Peshawar: 14-year-old girl in chains recovered

England, West Indies 2nd Test starts today

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England will take an unbeatable lead in their three-match series against the West Indies if they win the second Test at Trent Bridge starting here on Friday. And, after a five-wicket victory in the first Test at Lord s, few would bet against Andrew Strauss s number one ranked side going 2-0 up in Nottingham. The West Indies did take the first Test into the fifth day and twice had England wobbling as they pursued a modest target of 191. The likes of opener Adrian Barath, Kieran Powell and Kirk Edwards can expect their techniques to be tested again by James Anderson and Stuart Broad, man-of-the-match at Lord s with an 11-wicket haul, at a Trent Bridge ground renowned for aiding swing bowling. West Indies have won just twice in their last 31 Tests and are without a win in 15 Tests in England, a run including 13 defeats. They badly need someone in the top order to lend more support to Chanderpaul and Marlon Samuels, who made 86 in the second innings at Lord s. "Shiv and Marlon are leading from the front and the younger players are taking a pattern from their book," said West Indies wicket-keeper Denesh Ramdin. The West Indies suffered another setback when fast bowler Shannon Gabriel, who took four wickets on debut at Lord s, was subsequently ruled out of the tour with a back injury. Gabriel s absence will mean at least one change for the West Indies with fit-again Ravi Rampaul set to come in ahead of Tino Best, summoned from the Caribbean on Tuesday. And they could add some much needed variety to their attack by recalling spinner Shane Shillingford. Despite taking 10 wickets in his previous Test appearance against Australia, Shillingford was omitted at Lord s where Samuels  part-time slow bowling posed few problems. England all-rounder Tim Bresnan may have celebrated his 12th win in as many career Test appearances at Lord s but a match return of one for 144 has left his place vulnerable to a challenge from pacemen Steven Finn and Graham Onions.

Treatment of Pakistan doctor 'unjust, unwarranted:' Clinton

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US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday denounced as "unjust and unwarranted" the treatment of a Pakistani doctor who was jailed for 33 years for helping in the hunt for Osama bin Laden. A tribal court in Khyber on Wednesday convicted Shakeel Afridi of treason after he agreed to collect DNA for US intelligence to verify the presence of the most-wanted Al Qaeda leader. "We regret both the fact that he was convicted and the severity of his sentence," Clinton told a joint press conference with New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully. The chief US diplomat said Afridi s role "was instrumental in taking down one of the world s most wanted murderers. That was clearly in Pakistan s interest, as well as ours and the rest of the world s." Afridi ran a fake vaccination program designed to collect bin Laden family DNA from the compound in the garrison town of Abbottabad, near Islamabad, where the Al-Qaeda leader was shot dead in a US commando raid in May 2011. The doctor s actions "to help bring about the end of the reign of terror designed and executed by bin Laden was not in any way a betrayal of Pakistan," Clinton said. "We are raising it (his case) and we will continue to do so because we think that his treatment is unjust and unwarranted," she said. Her remarks were stronger than those given Wednesday by State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland who said Pakistan had "no basis for Dr. Afridi to be held." Nuland s muted remarks came as Washington and Islamabad, allies in the war on terror, struggle to repair ties that hit a low when US forces staged the secret raid into Pakistan that killed bin Laden.

Zardari returns after attending Chicago conference

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President Asif Ali Zardari reached returned home on Thursday night after participating Chicago conference. President reached Karachi via London. Tight security arrangements were made at the Karachi Airport on the occasion of President’s return. The sources informed that President Zardari will leave for Nawabshah after a night stay in Karachi.

Dr Afridi not acted against Pakistan: White house

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The White House declared Thursday that Pakistan had "no basis" for the harsh prison sentence decreed against Pakistani doctor Shakil Afridi for his pivotal role in helping to track Osama bin Laden. "We continue to see no basis for Dr. Afridi to be held," spokesman Jay Carney told reporters. "I think it s an important point that any assistance rendered by anyone in the effort to bring Osama bin Laden to justice was assistance not against Pakistan, but against al-Qaida and against Osama bin Laden." "We ve raised the issue with the Pakistani government, and we continue to have conversations with them about it," Carney said amid congressional outrage at Afridi s treatment. The White House also said that the United States continues to work with Islamabad towards restoration of the Pakistani land routes that transport Nato supplies into landlocked Afghanistan but were shut six months ago in the wake of cross-border strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Earthquake jolts Quetta, Mastung

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An earthquake measuring 4.8 on Richter Scale jolted Quetta, Mastung, Sibbi and surrounding areas in the early hours of Friday. The epicenter of the quake was 90km north of Khuzdar. Panic spread in the area after the quake and people came out of their houses. People were informed about the earthquake through aerial firing. Meanwhile, seven people including four children were injured during a stampede after the earthquake. The injured were shifted to Civil Hospital for treatment. Earlier, a moderate earthquake hit Kalat and its suburbs at 10:00pm on Thursday.

US panel cuts Pakistan funding over doctor row

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US senators scandalized by Pakistan s jailing of a doctor for helping the CIA find Osama bin Laden voted on Thursday to cut aid to Islamabad by $33 million -- one million for each year in the doctor s sentence. "It s arbitrary, but the hope is that Pakistan will realize we are serious," said Senator Richard Durbin after the unanimous 30-0 vote by the Senate Appropriations Committee. "It s outrageous that they (the Pakistanis) would say a man who helped us find Osama bin Laden is a traitor," said Durbin, the Senate s number two Democrat. The amendment was offered by Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican, and Senator Patrick Leahy, a Democrat. Earlier in the week an appropriations subcommittee slashed aid to Islamabad and warned it would withhold more if Pakistan does not reopen supply routes for NATO soldiers in neighboring Afghanistan. The Pakistani doctor, Shakil Afridi, was sentenced to 33 years in jail Wednesday on charges of treason. He was accused of running a fake vaccination campaign, in which he collected DNA samples, that is believed to have helped the American intelligence agency track down bin Laden in a Pakistani town. The al Qaeda leader was killed in the town of Abbottabad a year ago in a unilateral U.S. special forces raid that heavily damaged ties between Islamabad and Washington. Since then, there have been growing calls in the U.S. Congress to cut off some or all of U.S. aid. Pakistan has been one of the leading recipients of U.S. foreign aid in recent years. Even after the cuts voted this week it still would receive about $1 billion in fiscal 2013, if the full Senate and House of Representatives approve.

US concerned on killing in Pakistan

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The United States on Thursday voiced concern over extrajudicial killings and religious intolerance in Pakistan, including in its troubled southwestern province of Baluchistan. In an annual report on human rights, the State Department said that the "most serious human rights problems" in Pakistan included extrajudicial killings, torture and disappearances by both security forces and militants. "Lack of government accountability remained a pervasive problem. Abuses often went unpunished, fostering a culture of impunity," it said. In presenting the report, senior US official Mike Posner also highlighted an uptick in violations of religious freedom, including through controversial anti-blasphemy laws, as well as violence in Baluchistan. "We re very concerned about the violence in Baluchistan. We re concerned about the effects of those who ve challenged some of the laws, like the blasphemy law," said Posner, the assistant secretary of state for human rights. Posner raised the case of Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death in November 2010 for alleged blasphemy. Assassins last year killed Salman Taseer, the governor of the central province of Punjab, and Shahbaz Bhatti, the minister for minority affairs, who both defended Bibi and sought reforms. In her own remarks on the report, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did not name Pakistan but voiced concern over the treatment of religious minorities including the Ahmadi community. The State Department report also accounted allegations of rights violations in Baluchistan -- a highly sensitive issue for Pakistan. The report, based largely on accounts by rights groups and officials, said that disappearances in Baluchistan "remained a problem" with the mutilated bodies of 355 missing people found between June 2010 and December 2011. Baluch rebels rose up in 2004, demanding political autonomy and a greater share of profits from oil, gas and mineral resources in the region. The unrest comes as the United States an Pakistan focus on Islamic extremism in lawless areas on the Afghan border. The State Department report also said that prison conditions were "extremely poor" in Pakistan, with accounts of torture, sexual abuse, overcrowding, inadequate food and medical care, and discrimination against minority inmates.

Govt approves Rs 873 billion for PSDP 2012-13

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The National Economic Council (NEC) which met here under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has approved Rs 873 billion for Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP 2012-13), with focus on water and power, social sector, health education, job creation and food security, for the socio-economic prosperity of the country. Talking to media after the NEC meeting here on Thursday, Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said that government has planned a balanced development approach to equally develop Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit Baltistan and Federally Administered Tribal Areas with other parts of the country. The Minister said that the NEC also reviewed the progress of Federal Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) of Rs 300 billion during the outgoing financial year 2011-12 and it was observed that 170 big development projects have been completed with 100 percent releases for the projects. During the last four years, National Development Expenditure has been Rs. 2.2 trillion, including Rs 1 trillion by the Federal Government. Our Government increased the size of development expenditure from Rs 416 billion in 2008-09 to Rs 710 billion during the current fiscal year. This shows an average annual increase of 19.5% during this period. The government was able to achieve growth rate in the range of 3.4% during the last two years. We know that this growth rate is not sufficient to achieve the overarching targets of poverty reduction and enhancing employment opportunities. For that we need at least a consistent GDP annual growth of over 7% over a long period of time. He said that the government is proposing a GDP growth rate of 4.3% for the next fiscal year, which is quite achievable due to the base provided by the Government. Another positive development is the falling inflation rate. The CPI which witnessed increase of 20.8 percent during 2008-9, is now reduced to around 11 percent. Similarly the food inflation has been brought down from 23.7 percent in 2008-09 to around 11 percent during the current fiscal year and estimated to be in single digit by the end of next fiscal year.

Manzoor Wasan applies for more leave

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Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wasan went abroad on one month leave and the sources have said that he has applied 15 days extension in his leave. Meanwhile, SSP Thatha, Muhammad Ali Wasan, a close relative of Manzoor Wasan has been transferred. The sources said that all the names sent by Home Minister for appointment in police department have been removed from the list.

Bilawal asks Obama to apologise for Salala attack

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Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has urged President Barack Obama to show “some courage” and apologize to Pakistan for the NATO airstrikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers at Salala and bring US-Pakistan relations back on track. “Pakistan deserves an apology,” he said, noting that his current week-long visit to the United states was taking place at a crucial point in the relations between the two countries. The PPP chairman also called for an end to the drone attacks inside the Pakistani territory, saying they were illegal and violate international law and even the US’s war powers act.

Corruption in laptops: plea for hearing accepted

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The petition had been moved by Dunya News senior anchor person Mubashar Luqman. The counsel for the petitioner, Ali Zafer Advocate, adopted the stance that the Punjab government had committed corruption while distributing laptops among students, adding that failed students were awarded with laptops. The petitioner also advocated that the laptops were distributed by such people who were neither high official nor were entitled to do so. The petitioner also claimed that this move just aimed at securing political benefits, with the prayer that legal action should be taken against the people committed negligence and corruption. After hearing preliminary arguments, the court has accepted the petition for hearing.

Speakers decision a victory of democracy: Gilani

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Talking to a delegation of Supreme Court Bar Association led by its president Yasin Azad PM said that it is the PPP leadership which restored the constitution and strengthened institutions and democracy. Prime Minister Gilani said progress of the country was possible only with the strengthening of democracy and sovereignty of any country cannot remain intact in the absence of a constitution. He noted PPP was a federal political party working for the strengthening of democracy. He observed PPP’s former Chairperson, Benazir Bhutto Shaheed preferred to remain in prison during the movement for the reinstatement of judiciary instead of compromising on her principles. Prime Minister Gilani noted Benazir Bhutto handed the leadership of PPP to him, when she went into jail, following which a lawsuit was filed against him under Terrorism Act. Despite all this, he did not give up, the premier said. He also said, President PML-N, Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif should learn from the past instead of criticizing the government. President Supreme Court Bar Association, Yasin Azad said on the occasion that completion of the tenure of present government was indispensable for democratic stability, adding that general elections should be held when the time comes. Yasin Azad said Pakistan Bar Council and Supreme Court Bar had got the prerogative of giving a protest-call to the lawyers. Appreciating the services of lawyers, Prime Minister said he would soon inaugurate a housing colony for the lawyers whereas he also announced a grant of a hundred million rupees for the construction of a building for Supreme Court Bar, also allotting two buses to the bar. It is pertinent to mention the Prime Minister had also announced, last year, a grant of 350 million rupees for the building of Supreme Court Bar.

Next round of Iran nuke talks set for Moscow

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European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton says both sides have agreed to continue the discussions on June 18-19 in hopes of a breakthrough on international concerns about the Islamic Republic s ability to build atomic weapons. Thursday s announcement caps two days of negotiations in Baghdad where at times it appeared Tehran would withdraw from the talks in frustration over the West s refusal so far to scale back tough economic sanctions on Iran.

PML-N recommends 3 names for CE Commissioner

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They include Justice(r) Nasir Aslam Zahid, Fakhruddin G Ibrahim and Shakirullah Jan. According to sources, these names have been suggested in consultation with all the opposition parties including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and would be referred to the related Parliamentary Committee through a letter. Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that opposition parties would also be consulted for caretaker government.

Peshawar: 14-year-old girl in chains recovered

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According to police, the ill-fated Ramsha Daudzai had been detained in the house of her maternal uncle who not only used to torture her but also cut her hair of head. The victim told the police that her uncle got her married with a 55-year-old Zarmeen Shah at the cost of Rs 60,000. Zarmeen, who was in habit of torturing her without any justification. While recording his statement, the father of the girl said that Ramsha had eloped with her friends so many times and ultimately he arranged to send her to the house of her maternal uncle who got her wedded without permission. Police have arrested the accused Zarmeen Shah while further investigation is underway.