Geo Pakistan

Nation celebrating Eid-ul-Fitr with religious zeal today

ISLAMABAD: Eid-ul-Fitr is being celebrated today all-over Pakistan, including Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan with great religious zeal, fervor and festivity, marking the culmination of the holy month of Ramazan. Big Eid congregations will be held all-over Pakistan. Special arrangements had been made to offer Eid prayer across the country. On the occasion, special prayers will be offered for the progress and prosperity of the country, unity of the ‘Ummah’, solution of their problems and liberation of Muslim territories, including occupied Kashmir. In the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, the Eid congregations too place at more than 300 places. In Islamabad, the largest congregation will be held at the grand Faisal Mosque, where the high-ups of the government also offered Eid prayers. In Rawalpindi, the biggest Eid congregation will be held at the historic Liaquat Bagh. Following the Eid prayers, Muslims spent their time feasting with family and friends and feeding those who are less fortunate. In Karachi Eid congregations will be held at Memon mosque, Bagh-e-Jinnah, Nishtar Park, National stadium and other small and large places and mosques. Sweets and other special dishes are being prepared for serving the guests. People also exchanged gifts on the occasion. Immediately after the announcement that the Shawwal moon has been sighted on Tuesday night, a wave of happiness surged through the masses. People swarmed the markets and Eid bazaars for shopping and women crowded the beauty parlours and shops, selling bangles and mehndi. Till late night people were busy in shopping in the markets. Meanwhile foolproof security measures have been adopted on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr. Policemen have been deputed outside the bazaars, shopping centres and sensitive public and private buildings. Strict security measures had also been adopted outside the ‘Eidgahs’, while police kept patrolling. President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have greeted the people of the country on the occasion of Eid, and urged them to promote affection, tolerance, patience and brotherhood. The two leaders said these principles were needed to create a society according to the tenets of Islam. (Geo Urdu/PPI)

Geo Entertainment

SRK to throw a grand eid party

MUMBAI: The king of Bollywood, Shahrukh Khan will throw a spectacular party to celebrate Eid. Shahrukh who has been busy with his new project Ra One is known not to miss an opportunity to party with his friends and family. According to Shahrukh Khan he is only inviting his special friends to the party.

Geo World

WikiLeaks a security risk: US

WASHINGTON: The US state department has declared WikiLeaks a security risk. A US state department spokesperson on Wednesday, while briefing the press, said WikiLeaks was trying to jeopardize the global diplomacy by positng stolen wires on their website, which is not right in any respect. Victoria Nuland, the voice for the State Department, made it clear that America condemns the unlawful acquisition and leakage of classified information of any sort. WikiLeaks is a threat to US national security too, she said, adding it could estrange many countries from Washington. She further added that we are eagle-eying WikiLeaks.

Geo Business

Banks told to keep ATMs full of cash on Eid days

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has directed commercial banks to ensure that ATMs deliver cash during Eid holidays, Geo News reported Wednesday. According to sources, SBP has directed all commercial banks to ensure that ATMs are operational to provide service to customers. Sources add that ATMs can stock up to Rs2 million at a time with certain ATMs capable of stocking Rs3 million. Further SBP has issued Rs 108 billion in new currency notes for Eid which is Rs 13 billion more than last year.

Geo Amazing and Interesting

Blade Runner competes against able-bodied rivals

JOHANNESBURG: Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius became the first amputee to qualify for the 400 meters semi-finals at the World Athletic Championships in Daegu, South Korea. The South African athlete known as ‘Blade Runner,’ due to his carbon fibre prosthetic legs, finished third in his race at 45.39 seconds while running alongside able-bodied athletes. The 24-year-old, who had both legs amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old, came on strongly in the second half of the race and finished 0.1 sec behind winner Chris Brown, with Britain's Martyn Rooney coming in second. Debate has raged whether Pistorius should have even been allowed to compete, as some argued that his carbon fibre blades gave him an advantage. However, support for him was palpable inside the stadium, with South African flags being waved and chants of 'We love Oscar' breaking out before he took to his blocks.

Geo Sports

Nadal has shaky start to US Open title defense

NEW YORK : Rafael Nadal's first match as defending US Open champion was hardly a tour de force.He would fall behind in a set, then come back. Fall behind, then come back. His serve was broken six times; that happened a total of five times in seven matches during his 2010 run to the title at Flushing Meadows. His shots didn't have their normal depth. He needed to save seven set points during the second set. Locked in a struggle for nearly three hours, the second-seeded Nadal eventually got past 98th-ranked Andrey Golubev of Kazakhstan 6-3, 7-6 (1), 7-5 on Tuesday night to reach the second round of the US Open. "Well," Nadal conceded, "I was a little bit lucky to win today in straight sets." That's for sure. Three-time US Open champion Serena Williams followed Nadal into Arthur Ashe Stadium for her first singles match in the tournament since her 2009 tirade at a line judge. She never was challenged by 54th-ranked Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia, needing less than an hour to win 6-1, 6-1. Williams missed last year's US Open because of surgery on her right foot after cutting it on glass at a restaurant in Germany in July. That was part of a series of health scares — including clots in her lungs, and a gathering of blood under the skin of her stomach — that sidelined the 13-time major champion for nearly a year. "I'm so happy to be here. I didn't think I would make it," said the 28th-seeded Williams, whose ranking fell to 175th last month because of all that time off. "Just feel so blessed. I'm so happy." Nadal expended a lot more energy Tuesday than Williams or Novak Djokovic, who overtook the Spaniard at No. 1 in the rankings last month. Djokovic's opponent quit after 44 minutes Tuesday because of food poisoning. But it didn't take too long to see that Djokovic's right shoulder is feeling fine. He began with a 121 mph service winner. Four points later, he closed that game with a 120 mph ace. He whipped forehands exactly where he wanted them. He returned well, too. Playing his first match since Aug. 21, when he quit because of a sore and tired shoulder, the top-seeded Djokovic began setting aside any questions about his fitness for Flushing Meadows, building a 6-0, 5-1 lead before 197th-ranked qualifier Conor Niland of Ireland stopped. "Great opening performance," Djokovic declared. "Today I didn't feel any pain. I served well, and I played well, so I have no concern." The 24-year-old Serb improved to 58-2 with nine titles in 2011, including at Wimbledon and the Australian Open. Djokovic is on his way to compiling one of the greatest seasons in tennis history, particularly if he can earn his first championship at the US Open, where in the past four years he's lost twice in the final and twice in the semifinals. "This year has been tremendous — best so far in my career — and there has been a lot of talk about history-making and this incredible run," said Djokovic, who lost to Nadal in last year's US Open final but is 5-0 against him this season. Nadal didn't enter the year's last Grand Slam tournament under the best of circumstances. "His confidence is not too good," said Toni Nadal, Rafael's uncle and coach. "I hope in one week, it will be different." After losing to Djokovic in the Wimbledon final, Nadal lost his first summer hard-court match at Montreal, then bowed out in the quarterfinals at Cincinnati, where he also burned two right fingers on a hot ceramic plate in a restaurant. "I didn't have the best summer possible for me," said Nadal, whose second-round opponent is Nicolas Mahut, the man who lost the longest match in tennis history, 70-68 in the fifth set, at Wimbledon last year. Against Golubev, who has a 3-13 career record in Grand Slam matches, Nadal trailed 3-2 in the first set, and 5-2 in each of the others. "I hit good shots, but not enough," said Nadal, who finished with 18 winners, 23 fewer than Golubev. There was one especially important point: At 5-all in the second set, Golubev hit a terrific drop shot with Nadal stuck behind the baseline. On a full sprint, Nadal lifted the ball over the net; Golubev flubbed an overhead to lose the point. Golubev thought the ball bounced twice — which would have meant he won the point — and argued at length with the chair umpire, but TV replays showed Nadal got there in time. That gave Nadal a break point, which he converted to lead 6-5. He got broken yet again, but then reeled off the last six points of the tiebreaker. Golubev served for the second set at 5-3, and for the third set at 5-2 and 5-4. Nadal broke each time. "If you don't think about the points, it was not bad performance," Golubev said. "I mean, you have to win the points when you have to win — for example, like second set or third set, when you serve for the set." While Djokovic had no problems Tuesday, and Nadal overcame his, Day 2 of the tournament included a second consecutive first-round departure from the US Open by the sixth-seeded French Open champion Li Na. Since becoming China's first major singles champion at Paris in June, Li has gone 5-6, exiting in the second round at Wimbledon, then losing 6-2, 7-5 to 53rd-ranked Simona Halep of Romania on Tuesday. "Terrible feeling," Li said. "I really want to do well after Roland Garros. But, I mean, it's not easy to do. Always easy to say, 'I want to do, I would like to do,' but always lose early. Now I even lose all the confidence on the court. I was feeling, 'Oh, tennis just too tough for me.'" It's the first time in 40 years that none of the women's champions at a season's first three Grand Slam tournaments reached the second round at the US Open. Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova lost her first-round match Monday, while Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters withdrew because of a stomach muscle injury. Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki — who's been ranked No. 1 for most of the past year but is still in search of Grand Slam trophy No. 1 — defeated 125th-ranked Nuria Llagostera Vives of Spain 6-3, 6-1. Afterward, Wozniacki was asked about criticisms that she lacks a big-time shot. "They can say what they want," said Wozniacki, who is dating US Open golf champion Rory McIlroy. "I'm the type of player I am." Among the past major winners who advanced Tuesday were 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone, who overcame 16 double-faults, including four in her last service game; 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic, whose blood pressure was checked by a trainer at the final changeover and said afterward she felt overwhelmed while thinking about the recent death of her grandfather; and two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. Other winners included No. 4 Victoria Azarenka, No. 10 Andrea Petkovic, No. 11 Jelena Jankovic and three young Americans: Sloane Stephens, CoCo Vandeweghe and Vania King. Two seeded men lost during the day: No. 16 Mikhail Youzhny was beaten by Ernests Gulbis of Latvia 6-2, 6-4, 6-4, and No. 32 Ivan Dodig was eliminated 6-7 (6), 6-3, 6-0, 2-6, 6-2 by Nikolay Davydenko of Russia, who was a US Open semifinalist in 2006 and 2007 and once was ranked No. 3 but now is 39th. Winners included No. 5 David Ferrer, No. 11 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, No. 17 Jurgen Melzer and Americans James Blake and Donald Young. (AP)

Geo Pakistan

PPP disowns Dr. Mirza's statement

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has disowned the statement of former Home Minister Sindh Dr. Zulfikar Mirza and termed it an unacceptable violation of the party discipline and contrary to the well thought out policy of reconciliation, Geo News reported. This was said in a statement issued here from the President House following a meeting chaired by PPP Co-Chairman President Asif Ali Zardari. The was attended by Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Speaker Sindh Assembly Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, Pir Mazhar-ul-Haq, Mir Nadir Magsi, Sharjeel Memon, Manzoor Hussain Wasan, Muhammad Ayaz Soomro, Agha Siraj Durrani and Abdul Qadir Patel. Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Syed Khursheed Shah, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Ms. Rukhsana Bangash and Spokesperson to the President Farhatullah Babar were also present.

Geo World

Eid-ul-Fitr in Saudi Arabia, UAE & Egypt on Tuesday

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia announced Monday that the Eid-ul-Fitr feast marking the end of the fasting month of Ramazan will be on Tuesday, in a statement aired on state television Al-Ekhbariyah. Religious authorities in Saudi Arabia, said the Shawwal moon had been sighted and that Ramazan ends on Monday with the Eid to follow the next day. Egyptian state television, quoting authorities, too declared that Eid al-Fitr will be on Tuesday. The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced the end of Ramazan. (AFP)

Geo Pakistan

Parts of KPK to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr on Tuesday

PESHAWAR: Mufti Shahabuddin Populzai of Qasim Ali Khan mosque Peshawar has announced that Shawwal moon has been sighted in Peshawar and Eid-ul-Fitr would be on Tuesday, Geo News reported. Talking to media after a meeting of moon sighting committee, Mufti Shahabuddin said that the Shawwal moon has been sighted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and that they have received 10 witnesses. It is pertinent to mention here that the not a single representative of the provincial government was present in the meeting. Ruyat-e-Hilal Committee – the official moon sighting committee of Pakistan will meet on Tuesday.

Geo Amazing and Interesting

Blade Runner competes against able-bodied rivals

JOHANNESBURG: Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius became the first amputee to qualify for the 400 meters semi-finals at the World Athletic Championships in Daegu, South Korea. The South African athlete known as ‘Blade Runner,’ due to his carbon fibre prosthetic legs, finished third in his race at 45.39 seconds while running alongside able-bodied athletes. The 24-year-old, who had both legs amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old, came on strongly in the second half of the race and finished 0.1 sec behind winner Chris Brown, with Britain's Martyn Rooney coming in second. Debate has raged whether Pistorius should have even been allowed to compete, as some argued that his carbon fibre blades gave him an advantage. However, support for him was palpable inside the stadium, with South African flags being waved and chants of 'We love Oscar' breaking out before he took to his blocks.

Geo Entertainment

MTV video awards honor Britney Spears, Katy Perry

LOS ANGELES: Pop star Lady Gaga opened the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday dressed in drag and singing her "You and I" while Britney Spears and Katy Perry took awards, but it may be Beyonce who stole the show. The R&B singer whose hits include "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" appeared visibly pregnant as she showed up on the red carpet outside the show, posing for photographers and outlining a baby bump with her hands under her long gown. Beyonce, who is married to rapper Jay-Z, avoided reporters waiting to ask whether she is pregnant. For years, her fans and the media have speculated whether and when the pair might have a baby. Lady Gaga, who showed up last year at the MTV video awards in a dress made of raw meat, did an about face this year, opening the program in a man's dark suit and T-shirt as her male alter ego, Joe Calderon who gave the audience a lecture in just who Gaga is -- high heels, wild hair and crazy costumes. "When she gets on stage, she holds nothing back," Calderon said. Lady Gaga then launched into a version of "You and I," backed by a group of dancers and legendary rock guitarist Brian May of Queen. She danced on her piano and spewed beer from a bottle into the air in celebration. The MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) annually give out honors for the top music videos and performances to singers and bands, and each year, audiences can count on at least one surprise. Beyonce's picture-perfect baby news will likely be this year's unexpected event. But awards are the focus of the night and the first winner was Spears for best pop music video "Till the World Ends." The pop star took the stage and seemed surprised, saying she hadn't expected to win and thanking her family and fans. Along with Spears, Foo Fighters picked up an early honor for best rock video with "Walk," and Nicki Minaj picked up the "Moonman" winner's statuette for her "Super Bass." Katy Perry and Kanye West were named best collaboration with "E.T." Another major award still to come is best new artist, and Tyler, The Creator figures prominently in that race, too, alongside Wiz Khalifa with "Black and Yellow," Kreayshawn for "Gucci Gucci," Foster the People with "Pumped Up Kicks," and Big Sean (featuring Chris Brown) for "My Last." British singer Adele with her chart-topping song "Rolling in the Deep" is vying for the top award, video of the year, against Katy Perry ("Firework"), Bruno Mars ("Grenade"), the Beastie Boys ("Make Some Noise") and Tyler, The Creator ("Yonkers"). Early performances included a duet by Jay-Z and Kanye West, singing a song from their new album, "Watch the Throne." Other singers still to come include Lil Wayne, and there will be special tributes to Britney Spears and late soul singer Amy Winehouse. (Reuters)

Geo Sports

PCB forms committee to pick new coach

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket authorities on Monday formed a committee to pick a new national team coach to replace Waqar Younis, who will step down next month. Waqar is leaving his post for medical reasons after Pakistan's current tour of Zimbabwe. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said the four-member committee will be headed by former captain and coach Intikhab Alam, and will consider candidates from within and outside Pakistan. "Following Waqar's resignation, PCB has constituted a committee to look for a new coach," it said in a statement, adding that the other members were Zaheer Abbas, Naushad Ahmed and Ramiz Raja. PCB chief operating officer Subhan Ahmad said Sunday that former Australian batsman Dav Whatmore, who coached Sri Lanka to World Cup glory in 1996 before guiding Bangladesh to the World Cup Super Sixes in 2007, could be approached. "Although Whatmore is currently employed in India's National Academy, we can still contact him for the post," Ahmad told media in Lahore. Former paceman Aaqib Javed, who was Waqar's assistant until this year's World Cup, has also emerged as a strong candidate to take over as head coach. Pakistan has a bitter history of sacking coaches after abysmal performances by the team. They hired South African Richard Pybus and Australia's Geoff Lawson in the past but both were dismissed before their tenures finished. Former England batsman Bob Woolmer also coached Pakistan between 2004-2007 until he died in mysterious circumstances after the team's shock defeat against Ireland in the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies. Pakistan approached former Australian great Greg Chappell last year, who turned down the offer of the position.

Geo Health

Hospital deluged with births as Irene batters North Carolina

WILMINGTON: As Hurricane Irene lashed the U.S. East Coast, it brought a deluge of another sort to a North Carolina hospital - an unusually high number of newborn babies. Seventeen babies were born at the New Hanover Regional Medical Center during an 18-hour stretch on Friday and Saturday when the hospital was on lockdown during the storm, spokeswoman Carolyn Fisher said. (Reuters)

Geo Pakistan

 SC hears Karachi violence case today

  KARACHI: Strict security measures have been taken for the security of the Supreme Court's Karachi Registry that will begin hearing a suo moto case regarding the law and order situation in the city on Monday (today).

A five-member bench of the apex court, which will hear the case, comprises the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Justice Sarmad Jalal Usmani, Justice Ameer Hani Muslim and Justice Ghulam Rabbani, according to an official of the Supreme Court's registry.

As for the security procedures, special passes will be issued by the Supreme Court, Karachi Registry, to the petitioners, respondents and their counsel appearing before the court.

Meanwhile, the chief justice has also formed two benches for hearing cases at the Karachi Registry on August 29 and 30.

The first bench will be headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry while the second bench will be headed by Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali.

IG Sindh Wajid Durrani would submit the record before the court regarding the violence in Karachi

The families of the victims of target killings have also been asked to volunteer their appearance before the apex court and may also submit any evidence, if available.

Geo World

Irene toll rises to 18 in US: officials

WASHINGTON: The death toll in the United States from Hurricane Irene has risen to 18, with four new fatalities reported in the state of Pennsylvania, US officials said Sunday. Six deaths have been recorded in North Carolina, where Irene made landfall early Saturday morning with 85-mile (140-kilometer) per hour winds, before heading up the eastern seaboard and scoring a rare hit on New York. Four more deaths were recorded in Pennsylvania, including two men -- one in a tent and another in a camper -- who were crushed by falling trees. The toll rose from eight overnight with new fatalities including men hit by falling trees in North Carolina and Virginia, a woman in Maryland struck by a falling chimney, as well as one victim in New Jersey. The breakdown of fatalities was: six in North Carolina, four in Virginia, four in Pennsylvania, one in New Jersey, and one each in Connecticut, Florida in Maryland. The youngest fatalities were a boy killed by a falling tree in his apartment in Newport News, a city on a coastal peninsula in Virginia, and a girl who died in North Carolina. "A 15-year-old girl was killed in a car accident on her way back from the beach after vacationing in North Carolina," explained emergency official Patty McQuillan. "The traffic light at the intersection was not working, the power was out." North Carolina emergency management spokesman Brad Deen said one of the six victims in his state was a man who had a heart attack on Friday while nailing plywood over his windows in preparation for the hurricane. Two people were also killed in the state in separate driving accidents. Another North Carolina fatality was a man struck by a falling tree limb while outside feeding his animals. Ruth Miller, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, told AFP that four fatalities had so far been confirmed in her state. In New Jersey, Governor Chris Christie initially said two people had been killed -- a woman trapped in her car by rising floodwaters and a firefighter who succumbed to his injuries during a rescue attempt. But only the woman's death was confirmed -- the firefighter was still alive in a critical condition in hospital and Christie had spoken out of turn after being given inaccurate information by his staff. One man was killed by a storm-related electrical fire in Connecticut, while another storm-related death was a 55-year-old surfer who took to his board in treacherously high waves off the Florida coast on Friday. "We had sent out an advisory recommending everyone check beach reports and use an abundance of caution before entering the water," state emergency official William Booher told AFP. Irene barreled up the east coast Sunday into the densely populated northeastern states of Connecticut, Vermont, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. In Vermont, Governor Peter Shumlin told CNN that a woman was feared dead after being swept into a rushing river, but a spokesman for the state's Emergency Management Agency, Mark Bosma, said her death was not confirmed. Millions of people are without power and officials warned that flood damage from Irene's heavy rains may be felt for days. Irene earlier left at least five people dead in the Caribbean, including one in the US territory of Puerto Rico. (AFP)

Geo Amazing and Interesting

Big underground river flows below Amazon

RIO DE JANEIRO: Scientists in Brazil claim to have discovered a massive 6000km river running deep below the Amazon basin, but other researchers think it might just be water trickling through underground rocks. Known for its rich biodiversity and misty beauty, researchers are now wondering if they have only seen part of the Amazon, since the "discovery" of the underground Hamza River was presented by scientists from Brazil’s National Observatory at a conference last week. Elizabeth Tavares Pimentel and Valiya Hamza located the river by collecting data samples from temperature variations in 241 abandoned deep wells, drilled in the Amazon by Petrobras, Brazil's state oil company, in the 1970s and 1980s. If the river, located between two and four kilometres below the earth's surface, is as big as the scientists believe, it could be the longest underground river in the world. "It is kind of fascinating from a scientific point of view," said Michael Coe, leader of the Amazon programme at the Woods Hole research centre in the US who has studied the area for 12 years. "What we see on the surface is not all that is going on." Untraditional river While massive in size, the underground formation probably holds less than three per cent of the water, which flows through the traditional Amazon, Coe said. "It is not a river in the sense of water flowing through a tube; it would be water flowing through porous stones," he told Al Jazeera. "The lion's share of the water is still on the surface." Jorge Figueiredo, a geologist with Petrobras who has published widely on the Amazon, scoffs when asked if the underground water should be considered a river. “The authors made their conclusion based on the temperature of the rocks, but we have data against this possibility.” He doesn’t think the discovery was based on sound science. The report came from a presentation at a conference. It did not pass peer review from other scientists in a scholarly journal. “It seems to be a bit of nonsense work,” Figueiredo said. The variation of temperature, an important part of the researcher’s theory, “can be based on many different things,” he said. While the Hamza River may be massive, the water running through it moves slowly. About 133,000 cubic metres of water flows through the traditional Amazon each second, while the underground river's flow rate has been estimated at about 3900 cubic metres per second. While the Amazon ranges from one kilometer to 100 kilometers in width, the Hamza is much wider, allegedly ranging from 200 to 400km. But the river’s size means it is unlikely to be a continuous flow, Figueiredo said. Broader implications unclear “Six thousands kilometres [the apparent length of the river] is almost the width of South America,” Figueiredo told Al Jazeera. Underground rock formations across the contient are not all connected, he said, meaning the chances of one continuous river are unlikely at best. He does not believe the underground water should be considered a river. Scientists are not sure what the discovery means for broader ecological issues. “This could contribute to slow salinity in near-coastal environments, but I am not sure,” Coe said. If the water is fresh, as some scientists claim, it could affect coastal ecosystems from mangroves to marshlands. Figueiredo does not think there is any way fresh water could be buried that deep. Bacteria and other small organisms are likely the only life, which could survive in water this far underground, Coe said. If nothing else the discovery underscores how many important natural resources exist, undiscovered, in the Amazon, said Rafael Cruz, a Greenpeace campaigner in Brazil. “For us, it is a confirmation of how precious the Amazon forest is and how we have to preserve it,” he told Al Jazeera. “The scientific community is going to speak out with this new discovery and it will be important in the whole conservation debate.”

Geo Entertainment

Salman Khan to be treated for nerve disorder

MUMBAI: Actor Salman Khan is heading out to the US next week to treat a nerve disorder he was diagnosed with earlier this month. Khan, 45, whose ‘Bodyguard’ opens in cinemas next week, will be in the US for treatment after the film's release. "It's a non-surgical procedure and doctors have told I'll be back to work within four days," Khan told. The actor had been suffering from pain in his jaw and the condition was recently diagnosed as trigeminal neuralgia. "It's been happening for the past 4-5 years and just got diagnosed this month," Khan told. Khan is known for his box-office dominance over the Eid weekend. His biggest hits in the last few years have come during this period, with ‘Dabanng’ being 2010’s blockbuster. Khan is also scheduled to do a number of big-ticket films, including ‘Ek Tha Tiger’ with Katrina Kaif. With the success of ‘Ready’ in June, he cemented his place as a star who can pretty much guarantee box-office success with his charisma. (Reuters)

Geo Sports

Wozniacki wins fourth New Haven title in a row

NEW HAVEN, Connecticut: World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki won her fourth consecutive title at the WTA New Haven Open on Saturday, downing Czech Petra Cetkovska 6-4, 6-1 and running her event win streak to 17 matches. Wozniacki needed only 80 minutes to claim the title over the 40th-ranked Czech, who upset China's Li Na in the semi-finals to reach her first WTA final. The championship match was moved to the early afternoon because of the approach of Hurricane Irene, which was set to bring dangerous winds and heavy rain into the area. The $618,000 hardcourt event serves a tuneup for the US Open that starts Monday in nearby New York, where Danish star Wozniacki hopes to claim her first Grand Slam title. Rain halted the title match at 1-1 in the first set and players exchanged breaks in the first four games after the match resumed. Wozniacki claimed the extra break to capture the opening set and dominated the second for the victory, claiming precious momentum entering the year's final Grand Slam tournament.

Geo World

Indian anti-graft activist ends fast after 13 days

NEW DELHI: Indian anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare ended his 13-day hunger strike on Sunday, a day after parliament agreed to consider his demands over proposed legislation. Hazare took sips of coconut water mixed with honey on a stage in New Delhi in front of tens of thousands of cheering supporters, before delivering a speech broadcast live on national television. "This protest has been a lesson for the world," Hazare told the crowds after his peaceful campaign tapped into massive support among India's urban middle classes and rural poor. "Today corruption is increasing because power is centralised in the government ministries." Arvind Kejriwal, a senior organiser of Hazare's protest, told the rally that the fast had been an expression of the nation's public feelings against corruption. "We are thankful to the Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh), he showed remarkable leadership yesterday in the parliament. We are also thankful to all the parliamentarians for listening to the voice of the common man," he said. "The entire country had poured out on the streets, their anger over a corrupt system was boiling over." Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal said that Anna would be taken to hospital for 2-3 days after he breaks his fast. "He has not been eating since the past 12 days, he has to be closely checked and monitored," said Balram Gupta, a member of Naresh Trehan's team. He might remain in the hospital for a couple of days due to his deteriorating health condition, he added.

Geo Pakistan

Mirza resigns, levels serious allegations against MQM

KARACHI: Senior Pakistan People's Party leader Dr Zulfiqar Mirza has announced to resign from all party/government posts, Geo News reported Sunday. Addressing the news folk at Karachi Press Club, he accused Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik of siding with the killers, misleading the party leadership, and contorting facts. He declared him an enemy of the state and a compulsive liar. Malik is a compulsive liar and responsible for Karachi bloodshed, Mirza said, adding Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) doesn't have a real mandate in Karachi or Hyderabad, they extort votes at gunpoint. Levelling another very serious allegation against MQM Chief Altaf Hussain, he said: "During a meeting with Altaf Hussain in London he (Altaf Hussain) said the US wanted to disintegrate Pakistan and he and his party (MQM) would side with the US in their goal. Therefore, Altaf Hussain said he would kill the Pathans" Dr. Zulfiqar Mirza went on to say: "Altaf Hussain wrote a letter to the then British Prime Minister Tony Blair asking him to bust ISI before it produces any more Osama Bin Ladens." He asked as to what sin was committed by Wali Khan Babar, a Geo News reporter who was murdered in Karachi. Mirza said five accused who were involved in the killing of Wali Khan Babar belonged to MQM and named one of them as Liaquat who, he said, was still at large. "Liaquat is the one whose car was used in the killing and he was the one who opened fire on Wali Khan Babqar." "MQM is the killer of Wali Khan Babar," he reiterated. Dr. Mirza also alleged that the present CPLC Chief Ahmed Chinoy holds an important position in Khidmat-e-Khalq Foundation (KKF) which is a welfare wing of MQM. He said MQM had held hostage all industrialists, businessmen and shopkeepers of Karachi. Before starting the press conference he swore on the Holy Quran to tell the truth and nothing but the truth. Praising ISI and Pakistan Army Mirza said Pakistan's existence is due to the sacrifices of our security forces. Senior provincial minister, Works & Services Dr Zulfiqar Mirza is the Vice President of PPP Sindh and also a Central Executive Committee member besides a close aide of President Asif Zardari. He was elected from Sindh Assembly seat PS-57 Badin I. Pledging at the beginning he requested reporters to take him seriously for the first and the last time. He arrived at the Karachi Press Club at 4:20pm. The best decision of my life is to marry Dr Fehmeda Mirza, he said. Mirza noted that he has never bend the laws and he follows the principles of Shaheed Zulfiar Ali Bhutto. Allah Almighty through Mohrarma Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari blessed me with all that I own. He added that I see eye to eye with my party. I'm a party worker and will always be that way. I am a Sindhi and proud of it, he added. He vowed never to bow down to cruelty. Mirza said if anything happens to me then killers of Imran Farooq and Wali Baber would be responsible. Mirza's press conference ended at 6:15 pm which started around 4:25 pm.

Geo Business

 ADB ready to finance replacement of obsolete power distribution system

 ISLAMABAD: Asian Development Bank (ADB) is considering various options in a positive direction to finance multi-billion dollars Diamer Bhasha Dam project.

ADB Director General Jaun Miranda, while talking to the Federal Minister for Water and Power, Syed Naveed Qamar, told that ADB wants to help Pakistan in the energy sector and in this context besides financing of the construction of Diamer Bhasha Dam, it was ready to provide guarantee for energy generation projects also.

ADB is already providing financial assistance for revamping of the electricity distribution system, while it is ready to provide help for replacement of the obsolete electricity distribution system also besides financing the distribution of the 30 million energy savers all across the country, which would help save 1,000 MW of electricity.

Geo Entertainment

'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark'

LOS ANGELES: It's the thing you don't see that's always the scariest part of a horror movie. And it's those places you can't see as a kid -- underneath the bed, inside the closet, up in the attic -- where the horrible child-eating monsters are always waiting to get you. Put those things together, and you've got "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," a goosebump-y haunted-house flick where the floorboards and the mattresses and the big old furnace in the basement really are hiding something deadly. A remake of a fairly-effective TV movie from 1973 -- the monsters were cheap, but the suspense was smartly ratcheted -- the new "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" was directed by first-timer Troy Nixey, although you'd be forgiven for thinking it's a new movie from Guillermo del Toro, whose name gets the most prominent placement on the posters and in the advertising. Even if del Toro didn't yell "Action!" and "Cut!" the movie bears his imprint, from his fascination with scary stories told from a child's point-of-view ("The Devil's Backbone") to the elegantly grotesque creatures (which bear more than a resemblance to the creepy-crawlies from "Pan's Labyrinth"). The child in question this time around is Sally (Bailee Madison), an unhappy young girl being shuttled from her unstable mother to go and live with her father Alex (Guy Pearce), who's in the process of restoring a gorgeous old mansion with the help of his girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes). Kim does her best to get close to Sally, particularly since the work-obsessed Alex doesn't pay much attention to her, but Sally resists. And while exploring one day, Sally finds a sealed-off room that Alex opens up over the warnings of Harris (Jack Thompson), the house's longtime caretaker. And you can pretty much imagine what happens from there -- beasties get loose, Sally hears and eventually sees them, no one believes her. But Nixey (working from a script by Del Toro and Matthew Robbins) cranks up the suspense with each appearance of the creatures; as "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" progresses, we learn more and more about just what these terrifying imps have in mind, and why we should grip our armrest when we see them make off with a pair of scissors. Strong performances anchor the film. In movies like "Bridge to Terabithia" and "Brothers," and even in the ludicrous "Just Go With It," Madison has proven herself to be an expert at tween gravitas, and she nails Sally's fear and hopelessness throughout. Even Holmes gets the pitch of the film just right, juggling her initial skepticism about monsters in the house with having stepmom duties suddenly thrown at her. If Pearce registers less than his two co-stars, it's because the character he's playing is so inert that he can't avoid slipping into the background. If there's one big flaw with "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," it's that in 2011, there's only so long that we can watch movie characters face the perils of a haunted house without thinking, "GET OUT ALREADY!" Long after it should be thoroughly obvious to even the most hardened skeptic that something very unnatural is going on in that old mansion, Alex insists that they stick around, and there aren't enough plot demands to make his stubbornness ring true. (As clunky as "The Haunting in Connecticut" was, at least the script made it clear that the family couldn't afford to move.) But if you're a fan of Guillermo del Toro's baroque brand of horror -- there's a disturbing mural here that would fit perfectly into almost any of the Mexican filmmaker's movies -- you'll find plenty of fun scares and popcorn-box-twisting tension. (Reuters)

Geo Amazing and Interesting

Astronomers discover planet made of diamond

LONDON: Astronomers have spotted an exotic planet that seems to be made of diamond racing around a tiny star in our galactic backyard. The new planet is far denser than any other known so far and consists largely of carbon. Because it is so dense, scientists calculate the carbon must be crystalline, so a large part of this strange world will effectively be diamond. The evolutionary history and amazing density of the planet all suggest it is comprised of carbon -- i.e. a massive diamond orbiting a neutron star every two hours in an orbit so tight it would fit inside our own Sun," said Matthew Bailes of Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne. Lying 4,000 light years away, or around an eighth of the way toward the center of the Milky Way from the Earth, the planet is probably the remnant of a once-massive star that has lost its outer layers to the so-called pulsar star it orbits. Pulsars are tiny, dead neutron stars that are only around 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) in diameter and spin hundreds of times a second, emitting beams of radiation. In the case of pulsar J1719-1438, the beams regularly sweep the Earth and have been monitored by telescopes in Australia, Britain and Hawaii, allowing astronomers to detect modulations due to the gravitational pull of its unseen companion planet. The measurements suggest the planet, which orbits its star every two hours and 10 minutes, has slightly more mass than Jupiter but is 20 times as dense, Bailes and colleagues reported in the journal Science on Thursday. In addition to carbon, the new planet is also likely to contain oxygen, which may be more prevalent at the surface and is probably increasingly rare toward the carbon-rich center. Its high density suggests the lighter elements of hydrogen and helium, which are the main constituents of gas giants like Jupiter, are not present. Just what this weird diamond world is actually like close up, however, is a mystery. "In terms of what it would look like, I don't know I could even speculate," said Ben Stappers of the University of Manchester. "I don't imagine that a picture of a very shiny object is what we're looking at here." (Reuters)

Geo Pakistan

Shahbaz's abduction case: FIA's special team begins probe

LAHORE: FIA's special investigation team and the Punjab police jointly launched the probe in abduction case of Shahbaz Taseer, son of slain former Punjab Governor Salman Taseer. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif assured that the government would take every possible measure for the recovery of Shahbaz Taseer and he would be recovered soon. Earlier in the day, Shahbaz was kidnapped from Lahore's Gulburg area. According to police, Shahbaz Taseer was traveling on his regular route from his residence to his office, when he was stopped by four men traveling in a car and on a motorcycle. He was removed from his vehicle and his mobile phones and laptop were thrown back in his car by the kidnappers. After receiving news of the kidnapping, police rushed to the crime scene and surrounded the area. Sources said that he was traveling with his friend who was later released by the kidnappers. His friend later informed the police about the abduction. Rangers and police were deployed outside his residence after the incident.

Geo Sports

ICC announces Test team of the year

LONDON: Sri Lankan, Kumar Sangakkara was named captain and wicketkeeper for the International Cricket Council’s Test team of the year. England dominated the squad with 11 players in the lineup. Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann and James Anderson have all been picked by an ICC panel chaired by former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd. Dale Steyn makes it into the lineup for the fourth straight year alongside South Africa teammates Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and Jacques Kallis. India batting great Sachin Tendulkar completes the side. India pace bowler Zaheer Khan was picked as 12th man. Trott and Cook both made it onto four-man shortlists for the Cricketer of the Year and Test Player of the Year awards. The team only includes players from five countries and no Pakistani player has been selected.

Geo World

10 die in car bomb attack on Nigeria UN HQ

10 killed in car bomb attack on Nigeria UN HQ ABUJA: A car bomb ripped through the United Nations' headquarters in the Nigerian capital of Abuja on Friday, killing at least 10 people, security sources and witnesses said. They said the car rammed into the office building before exploding in an attack similar a June assault on the Abuja police headquarters claimed by Boko Haram, a Nigerian radical sect. "We have had 10 dead and there could be more," said a medical official who declined to give his name. The U.N. building was blackened from top to bottom and there mains of a car had fallen into the basement. Soldiers, firefighters and rescue workers swarmed over the area. (Reuters)

Geo Health

'Vaccines generally safe, cause some side effects'

WASHINGTON: Vaccines can cause certain side effects but serious ones appear very rare - and there's no link with autism and Type 1 diabetes, the Institute of Medicine says in the first comprehensive safety review in 17 years. The report released Thursday isn't aimed at nervous parents. And the side effects it lists as proven are some that doctors long have known about, such as fever-caused seizures and occasional brain inflammation. Instead, the review comes at the request of the government's Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, which as the name implies, pays damages to people who are injured by vaccines. Federal law requires this type of independent review as officials update side effects on that list to be sure they agree with the latest science. "Vaccines are important tools in preventing serious infectious disease across the lifespan, from infancy through adulthood. All health care interventions, however, carry the possibility of risk and vaccines are no exception," said pediatrician and bioethicist Dr. Ellen Wright Clayton of Vanderbilt University, who chaired the institute panel. Still, the report stresses that vaccines generally are safe, and it may help doctors address worries from a small but vocal anti-vaccine movement. Some vaccine-preventable diseases, including measles, are on the rise. "I am hopeful that it will allay some people's concerns," Clayton said. The review echoed numerous other scientific reports that dismiss an autism link. But it found convincing evidence of 14 side effects: -Fever-triggered seizures, which seldom cause long-term consequences, from the measles-mumps-rubella, or MMR, vaccine. -MMR also can cause a rare form of brain inflammation in some people with immune problems. -The varicella vaccine against chickenpox sometimes triggers that viral infection, resulting in widespread chickenpox or a painful relative called shingles. It also occasionally can lead to pneumonia, hepatitis or meningitis. -Six vaccines - MMR and the chickenpox, hepatitis B, meningococcal and tetanus-containing vaccines - can cause severe allergic reactions known as anaphylaxis. -Vaccines in general sometimes trigger fainting or a type of shoulder inflammation. There's suggestive evidence but not proof of a few other side effects, including anaphylaxis from the human papillomavirus, or HPV, vaccine and short-term joint pain in some women and children from the MMR vaccine. On the other hand, the report cleared flu shots of blame for two long-suspected side effects: Bell's palsy and worsening of asthma. That doesn't mean there aren't other side effects - the review couldn't find enough evidence to decide about more than 100 other possibilities. Some vaccines are just too new to link to something really rare. Another example: Flu shots have long come with a caution about rare, paralyzing Guillain-Barre syndrome, but Clayton said research hasn't settled if that's a coincidence since the disorder is more common during the winter. The Health Resources and Services Administration, which runs the vaccine compensation program, is reviewing the report but said it's too early to predict if it will prompt changes to the injury list. (AP)

Geo Pakistan

Zardari undersigns doctors pay raise

ISLAMABAD: President Zardari has signed the summary regarding post graduate trainee doctors salaries doing housejob, raising their pays form Rs18,000 to Rs50,000, Geo News reported Wednesday. According to the summary, the salary of a medical officer will be raised to Rs60,000 per month and he will get Rs6000 as annual increment. The pay raise has been allowed under Career Structure for Health Personnel Ordinance-2011. Under the new structure non-practicing allowance for doctors working in Federal Government hospitals will be increased from Rs20000 to Rs80000 per month. Monthly pay of a nurse has been raised to Rs40000 a month.

Geo Amazing and Interesting

Wild world: Millions of unseen species fill Earth

WASHINGTON: Our world is a much wilder place than it looks. A new study estimates that Earth has almost 8.8 million species, but we've only discovered about a quarter of them. And some of the yet-to-be-seen ones could be in our own backyards, scientists say. So far, only 1.9 million species have been found. Recent discoveries have been small and weird: a psychedelic frogfish, a lizard the size of a dime and even a blind hairy mini-lobster at the bottom of the ocean. "We are really fairly ignorant of the complexity and colorfulness of this amazing planet," said the study's co-author, Boris Worm, a biology professor at Canada's Dalhousie University. "We need to expose more people to those wonders. It really makes you feel differently about this place we inhabit." While some scientists and others may question why we need to know the number of species, others say it's important. There are potential benefits from these undiscovered species, which need to be found before they disappear from the planet, said famed Harvard biologist Edward O. Wilson, who was not part of this study. Some of modern medicine comes from unusual plants and animals. "We won't know the benefits to humanity (from these species), which potentially are enormous," the Pulitzer Prize-winning Wilson said. "If we're going to advance medical science, we need to know what's in the environment." Biologists have long known that there's more to Earth than it seems, estimating the number of species to be somewhere between 3 million and 100 million. Figuring out how much is difficult. Worm and Camilo Mora of the University of Hawaii used complex mathematical models and the pace of discoveries of not only species, but of higher classifications such as family to come up with their estimate. Their study, published Tuesday in the online journal PLoS Biology, a publication of the Public Library of Science, estimated the number of species at nearly 8.8 million. Of those species, 6.5 million would be on land and 2.2 million in the ocean, which is a priority for the scientists doing the work since they are part of the Census of Marine Life, an international group of scientists trying to record all the life in the ocean. The research estimates that animals rule with 7.8 million species, followed by fungi with 611,000 and plants with just shy of 300,000 species. While some new species like the strange mini-lobster are in exotic places such as undersea vents, "many of these species that remain to be discovered can be found literally in our own backyards," Mora said. Outside scientists, such as Wilson and preeminent conservation biologist Stuart Pimm of Duke University, praised the study, although some said even the 8.8 million number may be too low. The study said it could be off by about 1.3 million species, with the number somewhere between 7.5 million and 10.1 million. But evolutionary biologist Blair Hedges of Penn State University said he thinks the study is not good enough to be even that exact and could be wrong by millions. Hedges knows firsthand about small species. He found the world's smallest lizard, a half-inch long Caribbean gecko, while crawling on his hands and knees among dead leaves in the Dominican Republic in 2001. And three years ago in Barbados, he found the world's shortest snake, the 4-inch Caribbean threadsnake that lays "a single, very long egg." The study's authors point to other species as evidence of the growing rate of discovery: the 6-inch, blind, hairy lobster-type species found in 2005 by a submarine looking at hydrothermal vents near where the Pacific meets Antarctica and a brilliant-colored frogfish found by divers in Indonesia in 2008. Of the 1.9 million species found thus far, only about 1.2 million have been listed in the fledgling online Encyclopedia of Life, a massive international effort to chronicle every species that involves biologists, including Wilson. If the 8.8 million estimate is correct, "those are brutal numbers," said Encyclopedia of Life executive director Erick Mata. "We could spend the next 400 or 500 years trying to document the species that actually inhabit our planet." (AP)

Geo Entertainment

 'One Day' feels like it lasts years and years

  LOS ANGELES: Vague approximation of a guy meets sketchy notion of an intelligent woman, and then they spend two decades circling each other for no apparent reason. It's not exactly "boy meets girl," but that's the best that the new romance "One Day," based on a best-selling novel that I have not read, has to offer.

Author David Nicholls may have made these characters more substantial on the page, but in the big-screen adaptation (which he wrote), the leads are so lightweight and barely-there that a stiff breeze in the projection booth could make them disappear entirely.

And since the whole movie is about the two of them and whether or not they ever get together, that's kind of a problem.

On July 15, 1988, Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter (Jim Sturgess) hook up at the end of a drunken night celebrating their graduation from college. (Sorry, university: They're supposed to be from the UK, although if you didn't get that from Hathaway's vague accent, you're not alone.)

What's supposed to be a booty call gets terribly awkward -- she puts Tracy Chapman's "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution" on as mood music, he gets dressed to leave while she's prepping in the bathroom -- and then leads to what will become a lifelong friendship.

And so, we check in with these two every July 15 and observe the passage of time and the ups and downs of their lives.

Emma spins her wheels waiting tables at a Mexican restaurant and dating an untalented would-be stand-up comic (Rafe Spall), while Dex becomes a D-bag television personality and all-around shallow jerk. (One of the laziest tropes in contemporary fiction is to make one of your characters become famous, and "One Day" does it twice, as Emma eventually blossoms into a successful author of young-adult fiction, complete with Audrey Hepburn-esque makeover.)

Along the way, characters die, relationships begin and fall apart, but Emma and Dex somehow stay close and keep their unrequited love burning between them. But why, exactly?

"One Day" never bothers to spell out for us just who these people are, what they want, or why they do what they do. So it's next to impossible to get revved up about their feelings for each other, except for the fact that Emma and Dex are the principal characters, and they're being played by attractive, charismatic performers.

Nicholls' wafer-thin screenplay eventually beats down both Hathaway and Sturgess, who try desperately to give this couple something approximating depth.

And the whole same-time-next-year business -- which must have worked on the page, since the novel was huge with the book-club set -- winds up feeling gimmicky and pointless.

Jumping through the turn of the 21st century was no doubt lots of fun for the hair and wardrobe department -- Hathaway spends the first chunk of the film being frumped up with unflattering glasses and outfits, but Sturgess goes from posh preppy to '90s fashion victim, sporting an array of looks you'd prayed would never return.

(If only any of Sturgess' lines had been as interesting as his hairdos.)

The music supervisor had a bit of a lark as well, throwing in Clinton-era jams from the likes of Fatboy Slim and Del Amitri, with some Robbie Williams karaoke thrown in once the film makes it to the 2000s.

But there's only so much fun to be had with "Jurassic Park" references, denim vests, and "Sowing the Seeds of Love."

Rather than tell a story that would organically elicit certain emotions, it feels like Nicholls and director Lone Scherfig ("An Education") want us to yearn wistfully here and tear up there, and then they set out to create moments that would hit those marks. So we're left with a plot that feels forced (and subsequently predictable) being acted out by ciphers.

Patricia Clarkson, as Dex's mother, shines brightest among the cast, even though she's saddled with a thankless role that's all wise advice and the stoic avoidance of tears in a time of crisis. She's taken the pudding cup the movie gives her and somehow transforms it into chocolate mousse.

The people behind "One Day" no doubt thought that the passing of the years within the story would be a potent reminder of how life slips right by us, but the more likely response is along the lines of, "Ugh, it's only 2008? Is this movie ever going to be over?" (Reuters)

Geo Sports

Sana Mir hopes for better performance

LAHORE: Captain of the Pakistan Women’s cricket team, Sana Mir expressed hope that the team would perform well during West Indies tour, Geo News reported. A 14 member squad would depart for the Caribbean from Karachi tonight. Sana Mir while speaking to reporters in Lahore said the series will not be easy and that two changes had been made in the team. The women’s cricket team will play four one day international and four T20s against the West Indies.

Geo Business

Ginning factories resume work after withdrawal of withholding tax

ISLAMABAD: Ginning Factories have resumed their business after withdrawal of withholding tax on cotton trade by Federal Bureau of Revenue, Geo News reported on Wednesday. According to member Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA), Ahsan-ul-Haq they had closed down their business some 18 days ago against the imposition of 3.5 percent withholding tax on trade of cotton by the FBR. He further said after the withdrawal of the said tax, ginning factories have resumed sale of cotton to ginning and textile mills. Earlier, a large number of cotton ginning factories were shut across the country, threatening to damage crop, as government and ginners remained at loggerheads over the issue of sales tax on the purchase of cotton. The government had imposed a 3.5 percent sales tax on the purchase of phutti (cotton seed). But ginners have been asked to collect the tax only from brokers and the middlemen, leaving out the farmers who directly sell the crop. While PCGA had been on strike since the first week of August.

Geo World

It's over for Gaddafi: foreign minister

LONDON: Muammar Gaddafi's foreign minister was quoted on Wednesday as saying Libya's civil war was virtually over and urged Gaddafi loyalists to stop fighting. Asked in an interview with Britain's Channel 4 News if the conflict was finished, Abdelati Obeidi said: "Yes, this is my feeling." "If I am in charge, I would tell them to lay down their arms," he said, referring to fighters loyal to Muammar Gaddafi. Asked if he knew where Gaddafi was, he said: "No. No. No." Obeidi was talking via telephone from a house in Tripoli, Channel 4 said. He said he was not in touch with many other government ministers but did not fear for his safety and hinted he might be able to play some role in the future of Libya. He did not indicate whether he had quit his role in government. "They (the rebels) have a good idea about me, they know me," he said. "I am sure they will not harm me or my family. On the contrary, I feel when things are quiet we can speak to each other." Last month, Obeidi visited Moscow seeking a peaceful resolution to the conflict which would involve all Libyans . On Wednesday, he said a negotiated settlement was highly unlikely. "It looks that, you know, things have passed this kind of solution," he said. "What I am worried about is law and order and the stability of the people. I hope those people (rebels) are all Libyans and they are not foreign - they are not occupiers - and people in our country try to mend these injuries and go over this crisis and start their responsibilities. They are responsible for the country." (Reuters)

Geo Amazing and Interesting

 Relics of Ming emperor on display

 BEIJING: An exhibition featuring the relics of an emperor of the Ming dynasty has begun. This is the first time that such relics are being featured.

The relics of emperor Win Li are 400 years old and the exhibition includes 200 pieces. 40 to 50 pieces which are part of the exhibition have never been displayed.

The exhibition which is being held at the Beijing Museum will continue till February.

Geo Sports

Dhoni vows 'no surrender' as India whitewashed

LONDON: Defiant India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni insisted he "didn't believe in surrendering" after his side suffered a 4-0 Test thrashing at the hands of England. England completed a comprehensive series victory with an innings and eight run win in the fourth and final Test at The Oval here on Monday. It was India's heaviest Test campaign defeat in England since a 3-0 reverse in a three-match series back in 1974. But what made this result all the more galling was that India came into the series as the world's number one ranked Test side, a status they ceded to England following an innings and 242-run defeat in the third Test at Edgbaston. This whitewash was the first major setback for Dhoni in an otherwise glorious captaincy that has seen him lead India to a string of Tests wins, the World Twenty20 and, this year, the 50-over World Cup on home soil. India were handicapped in England by the loss through injury of several players, notably left-arm quick Zaheer Khan and spinner Harbhajan Singh. They also ran into an England team at the top of their form, with only batsman Rahul Dravid and medium-pacer Praveen Kumar offering much in the way of sustained India resistance. "We shouldn't take anything away from the English side, who played very good cricket over the last four Tests," Dhoni told reporters at The Oval. "I don't believe in surrendering. This job was given to me when I wasn't expecting it -- I am giving it my best shot." There were times in the series, especially in the field, where India looked like a side getting old together, which could prove a problem during their upcoming tour of Australia. And wicketkeeper-batsman Dhoni said: "We need to start grooming young players and don't shuffle them if they stutter. "Look at Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Abhinav Mukund. "They have talent but they need proper exposure and confidence." There were many observers inside and outside of India, who bemoaned the influence of the lucrative IPL on the team's Test fortunes. They pointed to how star opening batsman Virender Sehwag missed the start of the England series after delaying shoulder surgery having played in the IPL. But Dhoni insisted: "This was not about the IPL. Let's not put everything on the IPL." India's defeat also turned the spotlight on coach Duncan Fletcher, the man who oversaw the start of England's rise to the top. India, and a capacity last day crowd at The Oval, were denied the privilege of seeing Sachin Tendulkar become the first batsman to score 100 international hundreds when the 'Little Master' was out for 91 on Monday. It meant a wait that started when Tendulkar scored his 99th international century, against South Africa during the World Cup, in March went on. However, Dhoni, set to lead India in the upcoming one-day series in England, said that golden moment would come. (AFP)

Geo Entertainment

Brangelina ranked third richest couple by Forbes

LOS ANGELES: They may not be as famous in Europe as Posh 'n' Becks, Brangelina or even Jay Z and Beyonce, but the richest couple in the world are supermodel Gisele Bundchen and her American football playing husband Tom Brady, according to Forbes magazine. The pair earned a grand total of $76m between May 2010 and May 2011 says the magazine, and it seems that Gisele was the household's main breadwinner (if they do actually eat bread). The Brazilian raked in $45m during the year and is apparently on course to become the world's first billionaire supermodel. Her husband only contributed a meagre $31m to the family finances. But even if they were to lose all their endorsement deals the couple would probably still be able to scrape by on Brady's $18m-a-year salary from the New England Patriots. Mr and Mrs Bundchen may have taken the prize this year but they faced stiff competition from pop's premiere couple, Beyonce and her rap star husband Jay Z. The pair have extensive business interests, but it seems Jay was slightly more successful with his last year. He contributed $37m of the $72m that the couple earned, although Beyonce was not far behind with earnings of $35m. In third place came Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. As with Gisele and Tom Brady it was the lady of the house who earned the most. Jolie was paid $30m last year, while Pitt pulled in rather less - just $20m, although it was a quiet year for the actor. Next on the list come David and Victoria Beckham, who between them earned $45m last year. Almost all of it was down to David, whose career on the pitch may be drawing to a conclusion but who still has plenty off clout off it. He made $40m last year thanks to endorsement deals with the likes of Adidas, while Victoria's fashion interests helped her rake in an extra $5m. That $5m may not sound like much, but it helped elevate the Beckhams above the fifth-placed couple, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, who both earned $20m last year thanks to the success of the Twilight films in which they star.

Geo World

Kadhafi says he's 'in Tripoli, will not leave': chess chief

MOSCOW: The Russian head of world chess on Tuesday said Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi told him in a telephone call that he was in Tripoli and did not intend to leave the country despite an onslaught by rebels. "I am alive and healthy, I am in Tripoli and do not intend to leave Libya. Do not believe the lying reports by Western television companies," Kirsan Ilyumzhinov quoted Kadhafi as saying in the conversation, the Interfax news agency reported. Ilyumzhinov had met Kadhafi in Tripoli in June. (AFP)