Hundreds lose life in freezing Europe

 

Bitterly cold weather sweeping across Europe claimed more victims on Sunday, brought widespread disruption to transport services, and left thousands without power with warnings that low temperatures would continue into next week.

 

Hundreds have lost their lives in eastern Europe as freezing weather sweeps across the continent westwards, while major airports warned that services would be delayed or cancelled.

 

Steven Keates, a weather forecaster at Britain s Met Office, said the severe wintry conditions were expected to last, and spread to other areas.

 

“It will still be very cold, maybe not quite the exceptional temperatures we ve seen this last week, but still very cold,” he told Reuters.

 

“(It will be) perhaps turning increasingly unsettled across southern and eastern Europe, so that will probably bring a risk of snow for Italy across to Greece and up round the Balkan countries.”

 

A state of emergency was declared in Bosnia after the cold snap claimed its seventh victim, and avalanches and strong winds cut off hundreds of villages in eastern parts.

 

Helicopters were needed to deliver aid packages to mountainous areas and take the sick to hospital.

 

Greece also declared an emergency situation in the western Peloponnese peninsula after heavy rain caused flooding and an 82-year old woman drowned while trying to escape her house.

 

Nine more deaths from freezing temperatures were registered in Ukraine overnight, emergency services said, taking the death toll to 131 from a nine-day cold spell, the most severe in the country for six years with night temperatures down as low as minus 33 Celsius (minus 27 Fahrenheit) in parts.

 

Many of the dead were homeless people with bodies being found in the streets under snow, in rivers and in doorways. More than 3,000 heated tents have been set up around the country to provide makeshift accommodation for the homeless.

 

In Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk asked local authorities to waive the ban on admitting inebriated individuals to homeless shelters as eight more people died taking the death toll to 53, PAP news agency reported.

 

The extreme cold also caused the death of at least three people in Hungary, national news agency MTI said, and at least five people froze to death in Lithuania over the weekend in Lithuania as the temperature fell below -30 Celsius overnight.

 

Transport networks were also badly hit as the chilling weather moved west, prompting severe weather warnings to be issued across much of France and Britain.

 

London s Heathrow, Europe s busiest airport, said it had cancelled about half of its normal services as more than 15cm (6 inches) of snow fell in parts of England overnight and temperatures dropped to almost -10 Celsius.

 

Many of Britain s other airports were forced to shut runways overnight and warned of further disruption, while rail services were affected and motorways near London were brought to a standstill, forcing some divers to abandon their vehicles.

 

In Paris, the Eiffel Tower received a coating of snow and more downfalls were expected to bring problems to the French capital s main airports.

 

The French death toll rose to five, after a 12-year old boy died of hypothermia after falling into a frozen pond in eastern France and two homeless people were found dead.

 

Meanwhile about 86,000 Italians were left without power because of trees falling on power lines, Livio Gallo, head of state power company Enel told SkyTG24 television. The deaths of 13 people were blamed on the bad weather,
Italian police said, including three men who died of heart attacks while shoveling snow.

 

Two highways in central Italy that cross the Apenines remained closed, the Interior Ministry said, while in Rome, schools and public offices are to remain closed until at least Tuesday, Mayor Gianni Alemanno said.

 

He urged people to get out and clean sidewalks, and said the city had handed out 2,350 free shovels.  While the cold snap has brought death and misery across Europe, some made the most of the conditions.

 

Snowboarders took to the streets of the Bosnian capital Sarajevo after it was blanketed by a record snowfall of 107 cm.

 

The traditional Sartai horse race on ice also went ahead in Lithuania and local media reported more than a dozen men and women from a health club went swimming in a lake near Vilnius.

 

Meanwhile in Belgium, police found that overnight temperatures of about -10 Celsius were so low that machines to test motorists  alcohol levels did not work.

 

Czechs, Russia lead 2-0 in Fed Cup

 

Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova took more than two hours to put defending champion the Czech Republic in control of its Fed Cup tie with Germany, while Italy s Francesca Schiavone surprisingly lost to give Ukraine a boost on Saturday.

 

The Czechs led 2-0 in Stuttgart, Russia led Spain by the same score in Moscow, Italy and Ukraine were 1-1 in Biella, and Belgium and Serbia were 1-1 in Charleroi.

 

Germany was without its best player, an injured Andrea Petkovic, but pushed the Czechs hard in both singles.

 

Iveta Benesova overcame Sabine Lisicki 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, then Kvitova was, twice, two points from losing to Julia Goerges in the second set, but pulled through 3-6, 6-3, 10-8 in 2 hours, 21 minutes.

 

Goerges, who beat Kvitova in their only previous match, hit some superb service returns and twice broke back in the final set to put the pressure back on the Czech star.

 

She can clinch the Czechs a spot in the semifinals in April by winning the first reverse singles on Sunday against Lisicki.

 

In Biella, 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone lost a home Fed Cup match on clay for the first time in seven years when she was picked apart by unheralded Lesia Tsurenko from Kiev 6-1, 6-2.

 

Tsurenko, ranked 110 spots below Schiavone at 121st, dominated with a strong serve and accurate volleys in just her third tie.

 

She evened the tie after Australian Open quarterfinalist Sara Errani beat Kateryna Bondarenko 6-2, 6-3.

 

In Moscow, Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova won their opening singles as expected and without trouble.

 

Sharapova accounted for Silvia Soler-Espinosa 6-2, 6-1 and Kuznetsova put away Carla Suarez Navarro 6-3, 6-1.

 

Sharapova was nervous because she lost her opening singles of her last tie in Moscow, last year against France. But Soler-Espinosa wasn t up to taking advantage of it. Sharapova can send Russia into a sixth successive semifinals in Sunday s first match against Suarez Navarro.

 

Belgium or Serbia will face the Russia-Spain winner in the semis, and the tie in Charleroi was evenly poised after the first day.

 

Former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic first put Serbia in front by saving two set points in a 7-5, 7-5 win over Kirsten Flipkens, then Yanina Wickmayer hit back with 6-4, 6-4 defeat of Bojana Jovanovski, winning the last four games.

 

The minus-7 C temperature outside the Spiroudome almost overwhelmed the indoor heating, leaving the players and fans shivering. Jankovic joked she might turn out on Sunday in a coat and hat.
 

‘Pakistan faced irreparable losses on being US ally’

TrendPK.com

DAVOS: Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani Saturday said Pakistan had to pocket irreparable losses for becoming a close ally to the US on war on terrorism, reports TrendPK.

In an interview with a British television here, the premier said, keeping in view the importance of the US in global landscape, Pakistan is desirous of fast improving ties with the latter. “It is time for the US now to come to the term that Pakistan is the only country which has laid down many more sacrifices in war on terror than any other country,” Gilani notified.

To a question, the premier said all the institutions of the country mind their constitutional parameters, elaborating further, he said, he did not want any institution to be working under his control.

Earlier, in another interview with a US television, PM had said the former President who was a military dictator who overruled the constitution of Pakistan by declaring coup against the democratic setup would have to face arrest if he returned to Pakistan.

“Musharraf will be arrested surely because he is wanted in many cases of the grave nature including murder and the court has already declared him ‘proclaimed offender’,” the premier vowed. TrendPK

China’s first aircraft carrier starts sea trials

China s first aircraft carrier started sea trials on Wednesday, a step that will likely boost concerns about the country s naval ambitions amid ongoing disputes with its neighbors over territorial waters.

The carrier left Dalian port in northeast Liaoning province early on Wednesday, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The test run had been expected.

Xinhua said the first sea trial was in line with the schedule to rebuild the carrier, with China spending the best part of a decade refurbishing the former Soviet aircraft carrier Varyag after it was towed from Ukraine in 1998. The report cited unnamed military sources.

China officially acknowledged a month ago that it is rebuilding the carrier and said the refurbished ship would be used for research and training a strong indication it plans to build carriers of its own.

China s carrier ambitions have sparked concern among neighbors amid heightened tensions over territorial disputes around Taiwan and in the South China Sea.

Over the past year, China has seen a flare-up in territorial spats with Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam and seen its relations strained with South Korea all of which have turned to Washington, long the pre-eminent naval power in Asia, for support.

Xinhua said refitting and test work would continue on the carrier when it returns from its short sea trial.

The Varyag, yet to be officially renamed, was towed from Ukraine as an empty shell without engines, weapons systems or other crucial equipment. It has been under construction for the better part of a decade.

Defense experts say China plans up to four carriers in all, with preparations under way at a Shanghai shipyard.

No time period for the trial was given by Xinhua, but a statement posted on the website of the Liaoning Maritime Safety Authority said “all vessels will be barred from entering” a small section of the sea off Dalian on August 14.

There had been earlier online reports in China that the test was set to start last weekend, but it may have been delayed by a tropical storm that swept through the area.

 

Ukraine close to winning $14.9 bln IMF bailout

KIEV: Ukraine came closer on Saturday to winning a bailout from the International Monetary Fund as an IMF mission said it would recommend lending $14.

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Ukraine close to winning $14.9 bln IMF bailout

Clinton tells Ukraine door to NATO open

KIEV: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Ukraine on Friday that the door to entering NATO remained open and she backed the ex-Soviet republic’s efforts to secure a new deal with the International Monetary Fund.

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Clinton tells Ukraine door to NATO open

Aisam wants to play at border under ”Aman ki Asha”

KARACHI: Pakistan tennis star Aisam-ul-Haq said that he wants to play an exhibition match with his Indian partner under ‘Aman ki Asha’ at Wahga Borders later this year.

Talking with Geo News, he said that a gradual improvement has come in his doubles ranking after partnering with Rohan Bopanna and now he desires to get the first position in this ranking.

This may be recalled that the pair of Aisam-ul-Haq and Rohan Bopanna has reached the quarter-finals of the men’s doubles event in the Wimbledon – the third Grand Slam of the year.

The Pak-India pair played the Wimbledon’s third round match against the pair of Lukas Lacko of Slovakia and Sergiy Stakhovsky of Ukraine in London and won the contest 7-5, 7-6(7-4), 6-2.
Thus, Aisam became the first Pakistani to play quarter-final of any Grand Slam event.

He termed this victory a great occasion for Pakistan tennis.

Britain”s airspace ban back

LONDON: British air authorities reintroduced a flight ban on the country”s entire airspace on Saturday because of the Iceland volcano ash cloud and warned the situation was ”worsening”.

Restrictions which had earlier been lifted on flights over Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England were reapplied, said the National Air Traffic Services (NATS).

”Current forecasts show that the situation is worsening throughout Saturday,” said NATS, which manages British airspace.

The ban was also extended by six hours to 7pm (1800 GMT, 3am Singapore time).

The air authority had introduced a virtually unprecedented flight ban across all British airspace at midday on Thursday, before relaxing the restrictions in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Manchester in north-west England.

Britain is one of more than 15 European countries to have introduced flight bans because of the ash cloud.

Belarus, Ukraine close airspace because of ash

MINSK/KIEV: Belarus closed its airspace on Saturday and Ukraine”s Kiev and other airports were closed to flights because of the huge volcanic ash cloud drifting over Europe, aviation authorities and airline officials said.

The aviation department at the Belarussian transport ministry said the country had closed its airspace overnight. Officials from Ukraine International Airlines and Aerosvit said Kiev airport would be closed until 3 p.m. (1200 GMT).

Ukraine”s Lvov, Odessa, Donetsk, Simferopol and Dnepropetrovsk airports were also closed to flights for an unspecified period, they said.

madrid barcelona

The classic derby between the two biggest clubs in Spain comes just in time to settle things straight at the top of La Liga, where Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have been going head to head for a while. If you haven’t been around football recently you would think Los Merengues hold a pretty good chance of deciding this season’s rivalry in their favour: they’ve been topping the league for six rounds straight now – albeit by goal difference only – and they’ll have the whole Santiago Bernabeu to cheer for them on Saturday.

But one quick reality check could send shivers down the spine of any Madrid fan before the epic clash – FC Barcelona has been tremendously powerful lately, with Lionel Messi showcasing the Blaugrana magic any time he touches the ball. With three hat-tricks already in 2010 the Argentine star punched four more against Arsenal on Tuesday night to take Barca one step closer to yet another season of supremacy in Europe. Will they still be riding high after El Clasico? Real Madrid may have the final answer.

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