China urges U.S. to resolve issues on leaked U.S. cables

BEIJING: China called on the United States on Tuesday to “appropriately resolve related issues” concerning reports on a series of leaked U.S. State Department cables, a foreign ministry spokesman said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a regular news briefing that Beijing has noted the Wikileaks’ disclosure of a trove of State Department cables, but declined further comment.

Some Chinese officials do not regard North Korea as a useful ally and would not intervene if the reclusive state collapsed, according to the leaked documents that were published on Sunday.

The documents, the majority of which are from 2007 or later, disclosed an allegation that China’s Politburo directed an intrusion into Google’s GOOG.O computer systems, part of a broader coordinated campaign of computer sabotage carried out by Chinese government operatives, private

JAPC’s meeting being held in Islamabad today

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: The second meeting of Judges Appointing Parliamentary Committee (JAPC) is being held in Islamabad to finalize the appointment of the chairman and other rules and regulations.

The meeting of an eight-member committee is being held in Parliament House, Islamabad. The meeting is scheduled to review the proposals on appointing a chairman for the committee.

One proposal suggests that turn by turn, each member should be made chairman of the committee, while another proposal has been submitted that the chairman should be made with the majority’s choice. The meeting will evaluate both.

The meeting will also examine the appointment of the Judicial Commission’s nominee, Justice Ajaz Chaudhry’s as the Chief Justice of Lahore High Court (CJ-LHC).

According to sources, JAPC will finalize the name of Justice Ajaz Chaudhry as the

Hollywood, Bollywood sign landmark cooperation pact

MUMBAI: Hollywood and Bollywood, the world’s largest movie industries, have signed a pact that will boost cooperation for producing and distributing their films.

The “historic declaration” signed Wednesday between the city of Los Angeles and the Indian film industry strengthens commercial ties and will move to increase the number of Indian productions that are filmed here, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) said in a statement.

The pact “reinforces our city’s commitment to attracting international production… we enthusiastically welcome further Indian production,” Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at the event at Paramount Pictures Studios in Hollywood.

The two industries account for the majority of the world’s cinema, and cooperation between them has already grown strongly in recent years.

Representing the Indian delegation,

British press slams "brainless" student protestors

LONDON: British papers were Thursday mostly scornful of students who broke into Prime Minister David Cameron’s party headquarters during a turbulent protest against a threefold hike in tuition fees.

The activists who stormed 30 Millbank, home of the Conservative party, scored an own-goal by shifting debate from the coalition government’s plans to the limits of protest, according to the majority of the nation’s newspapers.

Around 50,000 demonstrators took to London’s streets on Wednesday with a small group breaching a surprised and undermanned police line to break into the six-storey tower block.

The Times ran with the headline “thuggish and disgraceful,” quoting Metropolitan Police chief Paul Stephenson, while the Sun splashed “brainless” across its front page, a jibe at the so-called “yobs” and unprepared police.

The right-leaning Daily Mail led with

Sugar crisis deepens in Pakistan, price climbed to Rs. 130 per kg

Staff Report

SAHIWAL: The sugar crisis has deepened further in Pakistan as the price, in different parts of the country, has climbed to Rs. 130 per kilo gram on Tuesday.

According to market sources, the sugar price in Sahiwal and Khanewal has been mounted to a record high level of Rs. 130 per kg. In Lahore, it is being sold on Rs. 105-110 per kg but sugar is not available on the majority of the shops and Utility Stores.

In other cities, including Mianwali, Vehari, Okara and Toba Tek Singh, sugar is costing Rs. 110-120 per kg.

The shopkeepers of Islamabad and Rawalpindi are selling sugar on Rs. 111 per kg. In Quetta, being sold on Rs. 115 and in Peshawar it is available on Rs. 120 per kilogram. Trend Pk

Musharraf eyes presidency in political comeback

LONDON: Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf vowed to return to politics in a bid to restore the country’s self-confidence and thinks he could become president again.

The retired army general told a British news channel that he would form a new political party and stand for parliament at the next general election in 2013.

The ex-president said he would return to Pakistan before then and acknowledged that doing so would be risking his life.

The 67-year-old said he was not scared of possible legal cases against him and insisted that he had to try to lift Pakistan out of its “pathetic situation”.

He admitted his popularity had waned but said it was still strong among the majority of Pakistanis who do not vote.

“Two hundred percent I will participate in the next election. Standing for myself. Standing for a party that I’ll create,” Musharraf

Asian stocks tumble as dollar hits new 15-year low

HONG KONG: Asian stocks tumbled on Wednesday after Wall Street was spooked by fresh concerns over European banks while Japan’s exporters fell as the dollar slipped to another 15-year low against the yen.

Tokyo plunged 2.18%, or 201.40, to 9,024.60 as the yen hit 83.33 to the dollar.

Sydney shed 0.79%, or 36 points, to close at 4,537.2 and Shanghai slipped 0.64%. Hong Kong fell 1.43% by the break.

Stocks took their cue from a 1.03% fall on the Dow in New York, where investors returned from the Labor Day holiday to reports that Europe’s banks may not be as strong as first thought.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that stress tests in July to measure the strength of Europe’s banks showed they held more potentially risky government debt than believed.

The results of the tests showed that all but seven of 91 lenders were strong enough

Flood victims stage protest in Karachi relief camp

Staff Report

KARACHI: Flood victims staged a protest at a relief camp in SITE, Karachi, against the non-availability of edibles and other necessities, said sources Wednesday.

Flood affectees from this relief camp came onto the streets and staged a protest against the inadequate supply of food and drinking water.

Children and women were also among the protesters.

“We have not been provided with food for three days,” said affectees.

Protesters chanted slogans against the government and demanded the supply of food and other basic necessities on an immediate basis.

Heavy contingents of police and rangers reached the spot to bring the situation under control. SAMAA

Strike continues in Khuzdar over lawyer’s killing

Staff Report

KHUZDAR: A complete shutter down strike is being observed in Khuzdar over the killing of a lawyer, and kidnapping of a leader of the Balochistan Students Organisation (BSO), said sources Wednesday.

BSO leader, Imran Baloch, was kidnapped when returning from Quetta. Separately, unknown gunmen killed Advocate Zaman Muree after his kidnapping.

A complete strike is being observed in Khuzdar on the appeal of BSO against both incidents.

All markets, banks and petrol pumps are closed in the city, while the Karachi-Quetta Highway is also blocked with barricades, causing difficulties to passengers. SAMAA

14 militants killed in US drone strikes

NORTH WAZIRISTAN: Twin missile strikes, targeting militants’ compound in North Waziristan and District Datta Khel killed 14 militants on Wednesday, local security officials said.

A US missile strike on a militant compound in North Waziristan killed 10 militants on Wednesday, local security officials said.

The strike took place in Dandey Darpakhel village, five kilometres (three miles) northwest of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan tribal district.

“Ten militants were killed in the US drone strike on a militants’ compound,” a senior security official in the area told AFP, adding that the death toll may rise.

Separately, four militants were killed after three missile strikes targeted militants’ vehicle in Datta Khel district.

The vehicle was completed destroyed after the attack.

It was the fifth missile strike in the region

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