WORLD IN FOCUS 11th February ’10th March 2012

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

11-02-2012    Dawn
Pakistan, S. Lanka sign three MoUs: Pakistan and Sri Lanka signed three memoranda of understanding to promote cooperation in the fields of trade, technical education and media.

13-02-2012    The News
SC orders PM’s trial: The Supreme Court indicted Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani on contempt of court charges for disregarding its order in the controversial National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) case.

The government has, for over two years, refused to write to authorities in Switzerland asking them to re-open corruption cases against the president.

13-02-2012    The News
Siraj Haqqani exposes military, militants peace deal: Sirajuddin Haqqani, the chief operational commander of Haqqani network, has conceded for the first time the existence of a peace deal with the Pakistani security establishment as per which the Tehrik-e-Taliban, Afghan Taliban, Haqqani network and several other militant groups won’t attack the Pakistani troops and instead would focus attention on the US-led allied forces stationed in Afghanistan.

14-02-2012    Dawn
Overseas Pakistanis get right to vote: The Election Commission has granted 3.7 million Overseas Pakistanis the right to vote. Their names will be included in the preliminary electoral rolls.
However, modalities for the intricate plan are yet to be worked out.

14-02-2012    Dawn
Karachi cheaspest city: Zurich has topped Tokyo to become the world’s most expensive city, as surging currencies push up the cost of living in countries like Switzerland and Australia, a survey showed.

Asia was also home to some of the cheapest cities. Three of the four cheapest were in the subcontinent: New Delhi and Mumbai in India, and Karachi in Pakistan, which was the cheapest of the cities surveyed.

15-02-2012    The News
WTO body authorises EU to give concessions to Pakistan: After developing consensus by the Council on Trade in Goods of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the request of the European Union (EU) to provide unilateral market access to Pakistan at zero duty was forwarded by the Committee to the General Council for approval of the draft decision, an official statement.

16-02-2012    Dawn
S. Asian nations agree to reduce sensitive lists: Ministers of the South Asian countries have agreed to reduce their sensitive lists under the South Asia Free Trade Agreement (Safta) to promote more regional integration.
This understanding was reached at the conclusion of the sixth meeting of the Safta Ministerial Council in Islamabad.

17-02-2012    Dawn
Security guarantees to be formalized: Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran agreed “not to allow any threat emanating from their respective territories against each other and commence trilateral consultations on an agreement in this regard.’
The presidents of the three countries, at their summit, agreed to bolster their counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics cooperation despite bitterness during bilateral parleys between Pakistan and Afghanistan over allegations related to Taliban.

17-02-2012    Dawn
US bill seeks Balochistan sovereignty: Three US lawmakers introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives, stating that the Baloch nation has a historic right to self-determination.

Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, a California Republican, was the motivator behind this resolution, which notes that Balochistan is currently divided between Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan with no sovereign rights of its own.

The resolution also notes that in Pakistan, the Baloch people are subjected to violence and extrajudicial killing.

17-02-2012    Daily Times
BISP introduces Benazir Card in AJK: The Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) has now introduced the Benazir Card in Azad Kashmir. The card is expected to be introduced in other parts of the country as well.

24-02-2012    Dawn
PM urges Afghan Taliban, other groups to join peace process: Pakistan publicly appealed to Taliban and other Afghan groups to join an ‘intra-Afghan peace process’ for advancing the cause of reconciliation and peace in the country.

The appeal, the first of its kind, was made by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in a policy statement issued after a meeting with ISI chief Lt-Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha on the Afghan issue.

24-02-2012    The News
Pakistan only nation not to have adopted biotech cotton among top producers: Pakistan is the only country among top four global producers that has not officially embraced biotech cotton, and its per hectare cotton production’ baring India’ is nearly half of most of the top ten cotton producing countries using BT cotton seed.

25-02-2012    Dawn
Air corridor for Nato was never closed: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said that the air corridor for Nato supplies had never been closed, taking a plea that the cabinet had decided to suspend supplies for the US-led troops in Afghanistan through the land route only.

‘The Defence Committee of the Cabinet had taken a decision to suspend supplies for Nato through land route and get the Shamsi airbase vacated. We are bound by that.’

27-02-2012    Dawn
Sharmeen brings Oscar glory to Pakistan: Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy won the first ever Oscar award for Pakistan for her documentary ‘Saving Face’ at the 84th Academy Awards gala.

Accepting the world’s prestigious award, Ms Chinoy observed: ‘I want to dedicate this award to all the heroes working on the ground in Pakistan and to all the women in the country who are working for a change. Do not give up as this is your dream.’

The Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy documentary follows British plastic surgeon Dr Mohammad Jawad, who returns to Pakistan to help victims of acid burns. The documentary follows one woman as she fights to see that the perpetrators of the crime are imprisoned for life.

27-02-2012    The News
Qatar agrees to supply 3.5m tones LNG to Pakistan: In a welcoming development, the Qatar government has agreed to export 3.5 million tones LNG to Pakistan to cater to the country’s energy requirements.

28-02-2012    Dawn
President signs 20th Amendment into law: President Asif Ali Zardari signed the 20th Constitution Amendment Bill, 2012 into law for creating an independent election commission and an impartial caretaker set-up for holding general election.

The bill was passed by the National Assembly on February 14 and by the Senate on February 20.

29-02-2012    Dawn
Restriction-free trade with India after Dec: The federal cabinet flung open the doors for trade with India by raising the number of items that can be imported from the country from 1,946 to almost 5,600.

The decision overruled reservations of the ministries of textile and industries which had been pushing for restricted trade with India to protect domestic manufacturers.

02-03-2012    Dawn
Ruling coalition gains a foothold in Senate: The ruling coalition, led by the Pakistan People’s Party, consolidated its position in the Senate, taking its strength to 70 in a house of 104. And the prospect of many independents supporting it beckoned.

02-03-2012    The News
Dr Asim made minister: Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani approved the de-notification of the appointment of Dr Asim Hussain as Special Assitant to the Prime Minister with the status of Federal Minister, in terms of rule 4(6) read with Serail No. 1A of Schedule V-A of the Rules of Business, 1973.

04-03-2012    The News
Mushahid elected to OIC’s Eminent Persons Council: PML-Q Secretary General Mushahid Hussain was elected member of the Eminent Persons Council, representing Pakistan, at the 3rd forum of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Think Tanks Forum, which was held in Baku, capital of Azerbaijan.

05-03-2012    Dawn
Abdali missile tested: Pakistan military said it had successfully test-fired a nuclear capable Abdali missile as part of validation of its missile systems.

07-03-2012    The News
WB approves $150 million financing under BISP: The World Bank has approved a credit worth $150 million as an additional financing for the Pakistan social safety net project aimed at supporting the expansion and strengthening the performance of the country’s safety net system under the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), a statement said.

08-03-2012    The News
President signs women status commission bill into law: On the occasion of International women’s Day 2012, President Asif Ali Zardari signed the National Commission on the Status of Women Bill, 2012 into law at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, expressing hope that the Commission would play a significant role as a watchdog of women’s rights and help bring positive change in women-related policies and legislation.

09-03-2012    Dawn
Gen Zahir to replace Pasha in ISI: The government has appointed Lt Gen Zahir-ul-Islam as the next head of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the country’s premier intelligence agency, ending speculations about giving another extension to Lt Gen Shuja Pasha.

09-03-2012    Dawn
Poles claim first winter ascent of Gasherbrum I peak: Two Polish climbers have completed the first ever winter ascent of Gasherbrum I, an 8,068-metre (26,469-foot) peak in the northern Pakistani Karakoram range, expedition head Adam Hajzer said.

10-03-2012    Dawn
President signs bill to strengthen State Bank: President Asif Ali Zardari gave assent to the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2012 to strengthen power of the central board of the State Bank to formulate and implement monitory policy and control government borrowing.

10-03-2012    Dawn
Three more religious groups banned: The government banned another three religious/charity organisations working in the country.
According to a senior official of the interior ministry, with the latest ban imposed on Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), Al Harmain Foundation (AHF) and Rabita Trust (RT), the number of outlawed organisations and groups has risen to 38.

10-03-2012    The News
Pakistani elected Cambridge University student leader: In over 800 years, a Pakistani student has been elected as president of the prestigious Cambridge University Graduate Union, somewhat similar to what Benazir Bhutto had achieved as leader of the Oxford union.

Arsalan Ghani from Faisalabad defeated his rival Amie Ladley in the elections and will lead the student union representing 12,000 MA, MPhil and PhD students studying at Cambridge University.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

12-02-2012    The News
Arabs end Syria mission: Arab League foreign ministers announced end of a controversial observer mission to Syria, in a statement issued after meetings in Cairo, more than a month after its monitors withdrew.

13-02-2012    The News
Turkmenistan strongman gets 97% vote: Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov scored a massive re-election victory with over 97 percent of votes in a poll where his uncritical rivals served only to make up the numbers. Berdymukhamedov scored 97.14 percent of the votes in election, the head of the energy-rich nation’s central election commission Orazmurat Niyazliev told reporters.

13-02-2012    Dawn
Adele grabs six awards at Grammys: British soul diva Adele made a triumphant return to the stage at the Grammys, winning a clean sweep of six awards and a standing ovation, in a show clouded by the death of Whitney Houston.

The 23-year-old Londoner, who has been out of action since October to undergo throat surgery, wowed a star-studded audience with a storming rendition of her worldwide hit ‘Rolling in the Deep’.

14-02-2012    The News
US filmmaker Sean Stone converts to Islam in Iran: US filmmaker Sean Stone, son of Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone, converted to Islam in Iran, where he is making a documentary.

15-02-2012    Dawn
Tehran claims advances in N-programme: Iran announced new strides in its nuclear programme, in a defiant blow to US and EU pressure to rein in its atomic activities and amid signs of an increasingly vicious covert war with Israel over the issue.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad unveiled on state television what was said to be Iran’s first domestically produced, 20-per cent enriched nuclear fuel for Tehran’s research reactor.

15-02-2012    Dawn
Afghan TV presenters told ‘more veil, less make-up: Afghanistan has instructed female TV presenters to stop appearing on screen without a headscarf and to wear less make-up, officials said, raising fears about creeping restrictions on the media.

15-02-2012    Daily Times
N. Korea’s late leader becomes ‘Generalissimo: North Korea said it has awarded its highest title to late leader Kim Jong-Il on the eve of his 70th birthday, the latest move to burnish Kim’s legacy as his son consolidates power. The announcement that Kim had been posthumously appointed ‘Generalissimo’ came a day after a statue of the former strongman was unveiled in Pyongyang, showing him on horseback alongside his own father and national founder Kim Il-Sung.

16-02-2012    The News
Malaysian clerics forbid forex trading: Malaysia’s highest Islamic body has issued an edict forbidding foreign exchange trading by Muslim individuals, saying such speculation violates Islamic law. The National Fatwa Council ruled forex trading by money changers or between banks was allowable but trading by individuals ‘creates confusion’ among the faithful, according to a report issued by state news agency Bernama.

17-02-2012    The News
Turkmenistan strongman sworn-in for second term: Turkmenistan’s strongman president serenaded guests with a folk tune played on a synthesizer as he was sworn-in for a second term after winning over 97 per cent of the vote in elections. Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov promised a ‘beautiful future’ for his isolated but energy-rich ex-Soviet state at a lavish ceremony which culminated in the president being shown playing a popular folk song on a big screen.

17-02-2012    Dawn
Germany’s president quits over loan scam: Germany’s president resigned in a scandal over favours he allegedly received before becoming head of state, and Chancellor Angela Merkel moved quickly to try and head off a domestic political crisis as she grapples with Europe`s debt troubles.

Christian Wulff quit after two months of allegations he received favours such as a favourable loan and hotel stays from friends when he was governor of Lower Saxony state.

17-02-2012    Dawn
Britain and France sign nuclear power deals at summit: French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron put recent disputes behind them to unveil a nuclear power deal and renew their own sometimes shaky political alliance.

Celebrating a multi-million pound (euro) nuclear power deal and ever closer defence ties, the Paris summit was a far cry from recent encounters between the pair at European summits in Brussels, where they have clashed bitterly.

17-02-2012    Daily Times
EU starts lifting Myanmar sanctions, rewards reforms: The European Union lifted travel restrictions against Myanmar President Thein Sein and other top officials in a first step towards rewarding the government for democratic reforms after half a century of military rule.

The bloc’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, also held out the prospect of a further easing of sanctions, which target nearly a thousand firms and institutions with asset freezes, impose restrictions on hundreds of officials and include an arms embargo and investment bans.

18-02-2012    The News
Iran deploys warships to Mediterranean Sea: Iranian warships entered the Mediterranean Sea after crossing the Suez Canal to show Tehran’s ‘might’ to regional states, the navy commander said, at a time of simmering tensions with Israel.

19-02-2012    Dawn
Single-atom transistor busts records: Researchers in Australia said they had made with pinpoint accuracy a working transistor consisting of a single atom, marking a major stride towards next generation computing.

The device comprises a single phosphorus atom, etched into a silicon bed, with ‘gates’ to control electrical flow and metallic contacts that are also on the atomic scale.

19-02-2012    Dawn
Wildfires kill 339,000 people each year: Wildfires, peat fires and controlled burns on farming lands kill 339,000 people worldwide each year, said a study released that is the first to estimate a death toll for landscape fires.
Most of those deaths are concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, where an estimated 157,000 people die.

20-02-2012    Dawn
Swedish man’s survival in snow puzzles experts: A Swedish man who spent two months snowed inside his car as temperatures outside dropped to 30C is ‘awake and able to communicate’, according to the hospital treating him, where stunned doctors believe he was kept alive by the ‘igloo effect’ of his vehicle.

The man, believed to be Peter Skyllberg, 44, who was found near the north-eastern town of Umea on Friday by passers-by, told police he had been in the car since 19 December without food, surviving only by eating snow and staying inside his warm clothes and sleeping bag.

21-02-2012    Dawn
Currency swap deal: China’s central bank said that it has signed a 10-billion-yuan ($1.59 billion) currency swap agreement with the Central Bank of Turkey.

21-02-2012    Dawn
Poll ensures Saleh’s exist from power after 33 years: Yemen pushed Ali Abdullah Saleh from power after 33 years, voting to install his deputy as president with a mission to rescue the nation from poverty, chaos and the brink of civil war.

Vice President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, the sole, consensus candidate, billed the election as a way to move on after months of mass protests against Saleh’s rule.

21-02-2012    The News
S. Arabia names first Iraq envoy since Gulf War: Saudi Arabia, which has had uneasy relations with Iraq’s Shiite-led government, has named an ambassador to Baghdad for the first time since Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said.

21-02-2012    Dawn
Greece secures $170bn bailout: The countries that use the euro pulled Greece back from an imminent and potentially catastrophic default, when they finally stitched together a (euro) 130 billion ($170 billion) rescue they hope will also provide a lifeline to their common currency.

21-02-2012    Tribune
4 new species of chameleon are found in Madagascar: Four new species of chameleons, each just tens of millimeters in length, have been discovered on the island of Madagascar. They are among the smallest reptiles in the world.

24-02-2012    Dawn
Italy ‘violated rights’ by returning migrants to Libya: Italy violated international human rights laws when it intercepted migrants adrift in the Mediterranean in 2009 and returned them to Libya, the European court of human rights has ruled.

24-02-2012    Dawn
Annan named special envoy of UN Arab League for Syria: The United Nations and Arab League have announced the appointment of former UN chief Kofi Annan as their Joint Special Envoy to deal with the crisis in Syria.

Mr Annan would serve as their high-level representative on the crisis, and will be supported by a deputy from the Arab world to be chosen later.

24-02-2012    Dawn
Assad to bear ‘heavy cost’ for ignoring global will: Syria’s rulers have squandered every chance for peace and, if they do not let aid reach civilians, will have even more blood on their hands, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned. Clinton told a conference on Syria that President Bashar al-Assad would bear ‘a heavy cost’ for ignoring the international will with his crackdown on the opposition.

25-02-2012    Dawn
Haiti PM’s resignation imperils reconstruction: Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille abruptly resigned his post, giving the country a new political crisis that is likely to distract the government and further delay efforts to rebuild from the devastating January 2010 earthquake.

25-02-2012    Dawn
Treasure back in Spain after 200 years: Tons of gold and silver from the wreck of a 19th-century Spanish warship finally arrived in Spain, more than 200 years after a British fleet sank it.

The arrival of the cargo from the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes sealed the end of a five-year legal battle between Spain and the US treasure hunters who hauled up the trove’ worth at least 350 million euros ($470 million).

27-02-2012    Dawn
UK singer gets $951,000 in hacking case: Charlotte Church, who told a media inquiry of being hounded by Rupert Murdoch’s journalists when she was a teen singing sensation, received 600,000 pounds ($951,000) in a settlement from News International and said she had been sickened by what she learned about intrusion into her private life.

27-02-2012    The News
Cambodia bans spit-roast cows in public: Cambodia said it was banning the spit-roasting of cows outside restaurants and other public places in response to an appeal from Buddhist monks. ‘Don’t display whole roast cows like that because it shows a cruel image,’ Prime Minister Hun Sen said in a speech broadcast on national radio. ‘Such a thing is a kind of violence that goes against Buddhist dharma.

27-02-2012    The News
89.4pc ‘yes’ for new constitution: Almost 90 per cent of votes approved Syria’s new constitution brought in after 11 months of anti-regime protests, the interior minister announced. Mohammed al-Shaar also told a press conference that turnout reached 57.4 per cent of eligible voters, with 89.4 per cent of the 8.376 million who cast their ballots in referendum saying ‘yes’ to the new constitution.

27-02-2012    The News
Italian engineer invents floating solar panels: Rays of the winter sun bounce off gleaming mirrors on the tiny lake of Colignola in Italy, where engineers have built a cost-effective prototype for floating, rotating solar panels.

Rosa-Clot and his team say they are revolutionising solar power and that their floating flower-petal-like panels soaking up the Tuscan sun have already attracted a lot of interest from international buyers.

27-02-2012    Dawn
The winners of Academy Awards:
Best picture    The Artist
Best director    Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist
Best leading actor    Jean Dujardin in The Artist
Best leading actress    Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady
Best supporting actor    Christopher Plummer in Beginners
Best supporting actress    Octavia Spence in The Help
Best foreign language film    A Separation (Iran)
Best animated feature     Rango
Best original screenplay    Midnight in Paris
Best adapted screenplay    The Descendants
Best original score    The Artist
Best original song    Man or Muppet from The Muppets
Best art direction    Hugo
Best cinematography    Hugo
Best costume design    The Artist
Best documentary feature    Undefeated
Best documentary short    Saving Face
Best film editing    The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Best makeup     The Iron Lady
Best short animated film    The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore
Best short live action film    The Shore
Best sound editing     Hugo
Best sound mixing    Hugo
Best visual effects    Hugo

Most Oscars won
The Artist    5
Hugo    5
The Iron Lady    2
Beginners    1
The Help    1
Midnight in Paris    1
The Descendants    1
A Separation    1
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo    1
Undefeated    1

28-02-2012        Dawn
Seeds from Syria sent to Arctic doomsday vault: Chick peas, fava beans and other seeds from a facility in Syria are among the 25,000 new samples being deposited this week in an Arctic seed vault built to protect food crops from wars and natural disasters, officials said.

The latest additions mean that the Svalbard Global Seed Vault a master backup to the world’s other seed banks has now secured more than 740,000 samples since it opened in a remote Norwegian archipelago in 2008.

28-02-2012    Dawn
China to build mega mosque in Algeria: Algeria signed a deal with a Chinese construction giant for the building of a vast new one billion euro mosque that is expected to be the third largest in the world.

28-02-2012    Tribune
Chinese architect’s breakthrough: The Chinese architect Wang Shu, whose buildings in a rapidly developing China honor the past with salvaged materials even as they experiment with modern forms, has been awarded the 2012 Pritzker Architecture Prize.

Mr. Wang is the first Chinese citizen to win the prize (I.M. Pei, an American, was the first Chinese-born architect to win, in 1983) and the fourth youngest.

28-02-2012    The News
Egypt upper house picks Islamist as speaker: Egypt’s Islamist-led upper house of parliament picked a Muslim Brotherhood deputy as its speaker, cementing the group’s dominance in the legislature after elections handed it a majority of seats.

Ahmed Fahmy, a little-known FJP figure, became upper house speaker.

FJP Secretary General Saad el-Katatni was already picked as the lower house speaker.

28-02-2012    Dawn
French body rules against anti-Turkey law: France’s top judicial body ruled that a law backed by President Nicolas Sarkozy to punish denial of the Armenian genocide was unconstitutional as it infringed on freedom of expression.

The Council deems the law contrary to the constitution’ the Constitutional Council said of the legislation that plunged France`s relations with Turkey into crisis.

28-02-2012    Tribune
Scientists discover a huge planet full of water: Astronomers have discovered a new planet in our galaxy that is unlike any other found so far: Both the planet and its atmosphere are mostly water, though none of it is liquid.

The planet, GJ1214B, has a diameter 2.7 times that of Earth and weighs seven times as much. It probably has much more water than Earth ‘in the form of steam and a peculiar high-pressure ice that exists at extremely hot temperatures’ and far less rock.

28-02-2012    Daily Times   
South Sudan rebels sign truce deal with government: South Sudan has signed a ceasefire with the largest of several rebel groups which threaten the stability of the world’s newest nation, the government said.

The deal to integrate an estimated 1,800 guerrilla fighters into the South’s army comes after rebel chief and renegade general George Athor was killed by government forces in December.

29-02-2012    Dawn
ECB pumps cheap cash into eurozone banks: The European Central Bank again played firefighter in the eurozone debt crisis, flooding banks with nearly 530 billion euros in cheap loans to avert a dangerous credit squeeze.

The ECB said that 800 banks lined up to borrow a record 529.5 billion euros ($712 billion) at exceptionally low interest rates in its second three-year long-term refinancing operation, or LTRO.

29-02-2012    Dawn
N. Korea to observe N-moratorium: North Korea’s new leadership said it has agreed to suspend nuclear tests and its uranium enrichment programme as part of a deal that includes US food aid for the impoverished nation.

01-03-2012     Tribune
Delhi court throws out plea against Microsoft: A Delhi court has accepted Microsoft’s plea that it should not be made a party in a case filed against the hosting of objectionable content on websites. Microsoft is the first of 22 companies, in whose favour the civil court has ruled.

02-03-2012    Dawn
Women get husbands’ pay to stop affairs: Thousands of male Indonesian civil servants had their monthly pay transferred to their wives’ bank accounts this week in a bid by a local government to stop men having affairs.

The Gorontalo administration on northern Sulawesi island issued the recommendation early this year to its 3,200 civil servants, saying it would help control funds usually spent on mistresses.

03-03-2012    The News
India builds new huge Gyspa Dam on Chenab: In a shocking but revealing development, India has initiated the construction of another large dam by the name of Gyspa Hydroelectric Project Dam on the River Chenab, with a storage capacity of 1.2 million acre feet of water.

04-03-2012    Daily Times
Khamenei allies trounce Ahmadinejad in Iran election: Loyalists of Iran’s paramount clerical leader have won over 75 per cent of seats in parliamentary elections, a near-complete count showed, largely reducing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to a lame duck in a contest between conservative hardline factions.

04-03-2012    Dawn
Turkey may annex north if Cyprus stays split: Turkey would consider annexing northern Cyprus if talks between Greek and Turkish Cypriots failed to reach a deal on reunification of the island, Turkey’s European Affairs Minister Egemen Bagis told a Turkish Cypriot newspaper.

04-03-2012    Dawn
Blasts in Congo arms depot claim 200 lives: Around 200 people were killed when an arms dump exploded in Brazzaville, ripping apart a nearby neighbourhood in the Congo Republic’s capital, medical and local authorities said.

05-03-2012    Dawn
Afghan child hunger among worst in world: Children in Afghanistan suffer one of the highest levels of chronic malnutrition in the world, a report said, despite billions of dollars in aid that have poured into the war-torn country.

More than half of Afghan children under the age of five are chronically malnourished, according to the joint report by the World Bank and the government.

05-03-2012    Dawn
Disasters cost $380bn in 2011: Disasters led by the Japan earthquake cost the world a record figure of more than $380 billion last year, a UN official said.
While countries are managing to control the disaster death toll, economic costs are increasing more than ever before, said Margareta Wahlstrom, the UN special envoy on disaster risk reduction.

06-03-2012    Dawn
Congress routed in four Indian states: India’s ruling Congress party has been routed in four of five states that went to polls in a month-long exercise which was seen as a key test of strength for the parties ahead of the general elections due in 2014.

06-03-2012    Dawn
Obama rejects unilateral military action against Syria: US President Barack Obama rejected calls for unilateral military action against Syria although he said he too believed that President Bashar al-Assad would have to step down.

07-03-2012    The News
Putin declared winner: Russia’s elections commission declared Vladimir Putin the official winner of weekend presidential elections with 63.60 per cent of the vote.

07-03-2012    Dawn
Mexico’s Slim world’s richest for 3rd year: Mexico telecoms czar Carlos Slim topped the Forbes annual world’s richest list, sporting a $69 billion fortune that while down from last year still outpaced the runner-up, Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

Forbes said 1,226 tycoons made it onto its global list of billionaires this year, but Slim held onto the top spot for the third straight year, with $7 billion more than Gates.

07-03-2012    Dawn
Twitter launches Arabic, Urdu versions: Twitter launched Arabic, Urdu, Farsi and Hebrew versions of its website, further localising the popular one-to-many text messaging service.

08-03-2012    The News
First women-only internet cafe in Kabul: Afghanistan opened its first female-only internet cafe, hoping to give women a chance to connect to the world without verbal and sexual harassment and free from the unwanted gazes of their countrymen. Swarms of hijab-wearing young visitors poured into the small cafe on a quiet street in central Kabul on International Women’s Day in a country where women still face enormous struggles even though the Taliban were toppled more than a decade ago.

09-03-2012    The News
Greece clinches landmark debt swap: Greece clinched a high-stakes debt swap, paving the way for an urgent bailout needed for the stricken eurozone member to avoid default.

Some 83.5 per cent of its private creditors tendered bonds for exchange, amounting to approximately 172 billion euros of debt, the Greek finance ministry announced early.

10-03-2012    Dawn
Assad rebuffs Annan call for political solution: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan that no political solution was possible in Syria while ‘terrorist’ groups were destabilising the country.
‘Syria is ready to make a success of any honest effort to find a solution for the events it is witnessing,’ state news agency SANA quoted Assad as telling his guest.

SPORTS

12-02-2012    Dawn
Cabrera-Bello wins Dubai Desert Classic: Rafael Cabrera-Bello held his nerve against a star-studded field to win the Dubai Desert Classic, shooting a 4-under 68 to beat Lee Westwood and Stephen Gallacher by one shot for only his second European Tour victory.

13-02-2012    Dawn
Zambia hold nerve to win drama-filled final: Zambia won the African Nations Cup for the first time after beating Ivory Coast 8-7 in a drama-filled penalty shootout following a 0-0 draw.

19-02-2012    Dawn
Belligerent Levi sets world records: Opening batsman Richard Levi took advantage of the small boundaries at Seddon Park to blast a world record 13 sixes and guide South Africa to an eight-wicket win over New Zealand to level their Twenty20 International series in Hamilton.

19-02-2012    Dawn
Federer ends drought with world Indoor crown: Roger Federer outclassed Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro 6-1, 6-4 in the final of the World Indoor Tournament to win his first title of the year.

21-02-2012    Dawn
England avenge Test whitewash: Kevin Pietersen hit his second successive century to help a resurgent England beat Pakistan by four wickets in the fourth and final international for a 4-0 whitewash.

24-02-2012    Dawn
Isinbayeva breaks her own world record: Russian pole-vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva broke her indoor world record, clearing 5.01 metres at the XL Galan meet to beat the old mark by 1 centimetre.

24-02-2012    Dawn
PAF lifts ski cup in Gilgit: Pakistan Air Force won the 6th Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Ski Cup 2012 played at Nultar Ski Resort.
Some twelve teams took part in the contest for the trophy held in the Naltar valley, which is some 40km west of the Gilgit city.

27-02-2012    Dawn
England win T20 series: Captain Stuart Broad and Jade Dernbech held their nerve in the closing overs to bowl England to a five-run victory and a 2-1 series win over Pakistan in the final Twenty20 international.

27-02-2012    Dawn
Liverpool seize League Cup title: Liverpool won the English League Cup for the eighth time but were given a huge fright by Championship Cardiff City who snatched a goal deep into extra time to salvage a 2-2 draw before going down 3-2 in a penalty shootout.

27-02-2012    Dawn
Clarke clinches Australia’s top cricketer award: Captain Michael Clarke claimed his third Allan Border Medal as Australia’s cricketer of the year after also winning Test player honours and just missing out on the One-day International award.

03-03-2012    Dawn
De Lange leads Proteas’ ODI whitewash of Black Caps: Marchant de Lange took four wickets as South Africa completed a 3-0 whitewash of New Zealand in a withering display of pace bowling with a five wicket win in the third and final One-day International.

03-03-2012    Daily Times
Federer claims fifth Dubai title: Roger Federer underlined his status as an enduring front line contender with the 72nd title of his career which extended his record of Dubai Open trophies to five with victory over Andy Murray. The 16-time former Grand Slam champion from Switzerland overcame the triple Grand Slam finalist from Britain 7-5, 6-4 in a tightly-contested final in which Federer escaped an early mini-crisis and then resisted a Murray mini-comeback.

04-03-2012    Dawn
Ndungu wins Lake Biwa marathon: Japanese-based Kenyan runner Samuel Ndungu made a perfect marathon debut by winning the Lake Biwa race.

04-03-2012    Dawn
Assassin gallops to magnificent victory at Pakistan Derby: Four-year-old chestnut colt Assassin, ridden by top jockey Shahid Rehman, galloped to a brilliant victory in the Pakistan Derby 2012 in a record time at the Racecourse in Lahore.

04-03-2012    Dawn
Klitschko knocks out Mormeck to keep titles: Vladimir Klitschko knocked out Jean-Marc Mormeck of France with a stinging left-right combination in the fourth round to retain his world heavyweight titles at the Esprit Arena in Germany.

09-03-2012    Dawn
Thepchaiya stages spectacular comeback to lift snooker trophy: Former world champion Thepchaiya Un-Nooh of Thailand staged a spectacular comeback from 2-5 down to notch up 7-6 victory over reigning world champion, Hossein Vafaei Ayouri of Iran, in the marathon final to win the Jubilee Insurance seven-nation international snooker championship.