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Saturday, April 25, 2009

Bopara leads Punjab to their first win

Kings XI Punjab beat Bangalore Royal Challengers by 7 wickets to win the eleventh match of the second edition of the Indian Premier League at Kingsmead in Durban on Friday.Punjab scored 173/3 in 19 overs to register their first win of the tournament. Ravi Bopara was the batting star for Punjab with a 84-run knock that came off 59 balls and was studded with 5 sixes and 4 fours. He was adjudged the Man of the Match for his outstanding knock. Bopara was dismissed when he hit a slower ball from Jacques Kallis high up in the air for Jesse Ryder to take the catch at mid-wicket. Kumar Sangakkara fell to Anil Kumble but captain Yuvraj Singh and Bopara added 66 runs for the third wicket to take their team to safety. Yuvraj sealed the victory for his team with a six, the 100th of the tournament, over long-off. Kings XI Punjab were 80/1 in 10 overs in pursuit of 169. Punjab openers Ravi Bopara and Karan Goel added 52 runs for the first wicket before Goel was run out after a run-a-ball 19.Goel flicked to fine leg and ran fast for two but was not fast enough to beat the throw from Vinay Kumar into the hands of keeper Robin Uthappa who removed the bails. At the time of the strategic timeout, Punjab had Bopara (32) and Kumar Sangakkara (19) at the crease. 

Drones: Made in Pakistan

Drones: Made in Pakistan

Looking at the facility from outside, no one would guess what goes on within the 90,000-square-foot research facility of Integrated Dynamics (ID), a privately owned company in Karachi’s Korangi area. There are no signboards indicating that ID is in the business of developing drone technology for military and civilian use. Surprisingly, there isn’t even an army of security guards manning the complex as one would expect upon entering the gate. A lonesome gate keeper lets us in without a fuss.Even more startling is the ease with which Raja Sabri Khan, ID's chief executive, states that ‘drone technology has existed in Pakistan for the last 20 years.’han, who graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a master's degree in aeronautics and astronautics, is quick to clarify that his company has ‘never been asked to develop a drone which has an armed implication.’ Instead, ID develops advanced Unmanned Autonomous Vehicle (UAV) systems capable of reconnaissance missions as well as target decoys for anti-aircraft missiles. His customers, he says, include the armed forces of the country as well as foreign buyers from the US, Australia, Spain, Italy and France.  Although he may not have been asked to develop an armed drone, Khan, who previously worked as a consultant for Pakistan’s aerospace agency Suparco, points out: ‘If we consider the fact that drone development has been taking place in Pakistan for the last 20 years, I think the technology for flying long-range autonomous missions has existed for at least 10-12 years.’Given Khan's estimations about local drone development, it is unclear why Pakistan is asking the US to handover its armed drone technology, especially that of the infamous Predator. President Asif Ali Zardari recently told the British daily Independent that the USshould give Pakistan the ‘weapons, drones and missiles that will allow us to take care of’ the militant threat in the tribal areas.' 

Yahoo pulls the plug on GeoCities

Yahoo is to close its personal web hosting site GeoCities later this year.In a statement, the firm says it will no longer be accepting new customers and will focus on helping "customers build new relationships online".Yahoo bought GeoCities for $3.57bn at the height of the dotcom boom in 1999.At its peak, GeoCities boasted millions of active accounts, but it has since fallen out of fashion, with users migrating to social networking sites.Yahoo says that existing GeoCities accounts will remain live for now, although it stresses that users should start looking for alternative sites."You don't need to change your service today, but we encourage anyone interested in a full-featured web-hosting plan to consider upgrading to our award-winning Yahoo! Web Hosting service," the firm said in an online post.The closure of GeoCities spells the end of Yahoo's free hosting, although other services - such as e-mail accounts - remain unaffected.Rupert Goodwins, editor of the ZDNet website, said the closure of GeoCities was the end of an era.

Microsoft suffers first ever year-to-year revenue drop

Microsoft suffered its first ever year-to-year drop in revenue, posting $13.65 billion for the quarter ending March, compared with $14.45 billion in the same quarter last year. The software giant's recent quarter profits plunged 32% to $2.98 billion.Microsoft on Thursday reported that its recent-quarter profits slid 32 percent to 2.98 billion dollars as bleak economic conditions caused an unprecedented erosion of its revenues.Microsoft said its revenue for the quarter ending the last day of March was 13.65 billion dollars compared with revenue of 14.45 billion dollars in the same quarter last year.Net income for the quarter was 33 cents per share, a 32 percent drop from the 47 cents per share, or 4.39 billion dollars, in the same three months in 2008."We expect the weakness to continue through at least the next quarter," said Microsoft chief financial officer Chris Liddell, warning the current three-month period is expected to be rocky for the software colossus.Microsoft's fiscal year ends with the current quarter.Thursday's report shows that while the US company's revenue for the past nine months is ahead of what it was during that period the prior year, profit is lagging by nearly two billion dollars.Microsoft said that revenue in its Client, Business, and Server & Tools units suffered due to weak global server and personal computer markets."It is pretty bad across the board," said analyst Matt Rosoff of private firm Directions On Microsoft, which tracks the Washington State-based technology firm."They were down in almost every business segment. I don't think they surprised Wall Street; there were some folks expecting the news to be even worse."The price of Microsoft stock climbed more than three percent to 19.56 dollars in after-hours trading that followed release of the earnings report.The company reported that the recent quarter's expenses included 290 million dollars in severance charges stemming from a previously announced plan to cut as many as 5,000 jobs.Microsoft said it remains on track to release its next-generation operating system, Windows 7, in 2010.

Apple Apologizes for iPhone 'Baby Shaker' Game

SEATTLE  Apple Inc. is apologizing for allowing a 99-cent iPhone game called "Baby Shaker" that let a player quiet a virtual crying infant by shaking the device.Apple removed the program from the iPhone's App Store on Wednesday, but critics pressed for an apology Thursday.Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris said Thursday that the game was "deeply offensive" and said it should not have been approved for sale."We sincerely apologize for this mistake," Kerris said in a statement.Apple approves the programs that outside software developers make available in the store. "Baby Shaker" came from a company called Sikalosoft, which has not commented.The game asked players to see how long they could endure a baby's cries and then shake the phone to stop the wailing.

UK Economy Suffers Worst Fall In 30 Years

The British economy shrank by 1.9% in the first quarter, a worse-than-feared performance which marks the sharpest quarter-on-quarter fall since 1979.Manufacturing was hit by an estimated 6.2% slump to dragGDP far below consensus forecasts of a 1.5% decline between January and March.The Office for National Statistics data showed savage falls in output for other key sectors, including an accelerated weakening of the service sector, which fell 1.2%.On the year, the economy shrank by 4.1%, the biggest annual drop since the end of 1980 and significantly lower than forecasts for a 3.8% contraction.The figures cast even more doubt on the Chancellor's Budget estimates of a 3.5% fall for the year - as well as the widely-disputed prediction the UK will bounce back into growth in 2010.

Call for poll boycott in Kashmir

Kashmir's main separatist alliance has called on the people of the region to boycott India's ongoing general elections.The decision by the All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference on Friday prompted the authorities to place two separatist leaders under house arrest, which in turn triggered street protests and violent clashes with the police.Indian security forces fired teargas at stone-throwing protesters who shouted: "No election, no election, we want freedom."At least a dozen people were hurt in the clashes with police in Srinagar, the summer capital of Kashmir."Elections are no substitute for the aspirations of the Kashmiri people and for the resolution of the dispute," Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of the alliance, said in a statement.

ANC celebrate ahead of S. Africa vote tally

Votes were still being counted Friday in South Africa's parliamentary elections, but the ruling African National Congress was already celebrating what party officials predicted will be a crushing victory.Presumed president-to-be Jacob Zuma -- an ethnic Zulu whose flamboyant style sits in contrast to more staid predecessors Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki -- led a raucous rally in Johannesburg Thursday, telling thousands of cheering supporters the ANC will outstrip its goal of two-thirds control in parliament."The ANC will never go above 60 percent -- that's what they were saying," Zuma said. "The counting is still continuing and I smell 70 percent."Members of parliament -- in which the ANC is virtually assured of having a majority -- will elect the president next month.

Thai PM lifts state of emergency

The Thai prime minister has lifted a state of emergency imposed in the capital Bangkok after clashes between anti-government protesters and troops last week.Abhisit Vejjajiva made the announcement at the end of a two-day parliamentary session aimed at finding a solution to the country's political crisis."Lifting the state of emergency is one of the measures to find a solution for the country. The government wants reconciliation and to move the country forward," Abhisit told parliament on Friday.The state of emergency, banning gatherings of more than five people and giving government forces additional powers, was imposed on April 12 at the height of anti-government protests.Known as the Red Shirts, protesters had besieged Abhisit's offices for several weeks and derailed a meeting of regional leaders in nearby Pattaya in an attempt to force the prime minister to resign and call elections.The Red Shirts, mostly supporters of Thaksin Shinawatra, a former prime minister, called off their own protests last week following street battles with the military and Bangkok residents that left two people dead and more than 130 injured.

Militants will not be allowed to dictate terms: Gen Kayani

General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani

ISLAMABAD Pakistan’s chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, on Friday rejected the notion that the peace deal through Sufi Mohammed amounted to giving any 'concession' to the militants, and declared that the army has the resolve to take on the militants. He said that 'victory against terror and militancy will be achieved at all cost'.Speaking at a meeting of top military commanders, at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi, the army chief acknowledged that doubts were being voiced about the intent and capability of the army to defeat the militants. However, his view was that the army 'never has and never will hesitate to sacrifice, whatever it may take, to ensure safety and wellbeing of the people and country’s territorial integrity'.It was the most direct statement by General Kayani, or any other security or civilian official, about the prevailing situation and the manner in which it needs to be tackled. The statement came following a series of reports from Swat’s adjoining district Buner, and later Shangla, of the Taliban march in the area, with clear signs of the armed militants trying to spread their influence under the cover of the peace deal.Kayani condemned what he called 'pronouncements' by outside powers that raised doubts on the future of Pakistan, and declared that the militants will not be allowed to 'dictate terms to the government or impose their way of life on the civil society of Pakistan'.'A country of 170 million resilient people under a democratic dispensation, strongly supported by the army, is capable of handling any crisis that it may confront', he was quoted as saying in a press release issued by the ISPR.He described recent peace deal with Mullah Fazlullah’s Swat militants as an 'operational pause' that was meant to give the reconciliatory forces a chance, but declared that it 'must not be taken for a concession to the militants'.

Taliban 'withdraw' from key district

A Taliban regional spokesman says its fighters will withdraw from Buner, a region just 100km from Islamabad, after seizing control of the district earlier this week. Taliban advances have caused mounting alarm in the US and Islamabad.Army soldiers faced off with Taliban militants on Friday after Pakistani paramilitary troops arrived in Buner in a bid to regain command after the Taliban seized control of the district earlier this week.Reporting from Islamabad, up to 300 Pakistani paramilitary troops arrived in Buner, some 100 kilometres northwest of the capital, on Thursday. The troops have regained control of local police stations although Taliban fighters continue to patrol the streets.In recent days, hundreds of armed Taliban fighters set up checkpoints, occupied mosques and began patrolling Buner, warning its residents not to engage in “un-Islamic” activities and banning women from public places.The latest confrontation comes as a Taliban regional spokesman says the Islamist group has plans to leave the district.“Our leader has ordered that Taliban should immediately be called back from Buner,” Muslim Khan told Reuters.The Taliban advance comes after the group’s leadership in the Swat valley struck a deal with the Pakistani government earlier this month to establish Sharia law in the valley in exchange for a ceasefire.But FRANCE 24’s Stephen Kloss says that, despite this agreement, the government and the Taliban may be on a collision course. The Taliban insists that the rulings of Swat’s Sharia courts cannot be challenged; the government insists that all courts in the country fall under the purview of Pakistan’s Supreme Court.While the Pakistani government is trying to downplay these problems, Kloss says it is well aware the pressure is mounting.“Trouble is ahead,” he says. 

UN report discloses Sri Lanka dead

Nearly 6,500 civilians have been killed and 13,000 wounded in fighting in Sri Lanka over the past three months, accord to a UN report.The release of the document on Friday comes a day after Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, said in Brussels he was sending a team of humanitarian experts to the country as part of efforts to "try to do whatever we can to protect the civilian population".According to the UN figures, 6,432 civilians have been killed in the fighting since 20 January and another 13,946 wounded.Speaking in New York, Catherine Bragg, the UN assistant secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said the organisation continued to receive reports that "heavy weaponry is being used ... and the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) is preventing people form leaving that area and using the civilians as human shields".

First 100 Days: Obama's Federal Spending Spree Raises Management Concerns

In the early months of his presidency, President Obama has shown he isn't afraid to spend billions of dollars on corporate bailouts or to run up trillions of dollars in U.S. debt to battle an economic crisis.But in doing so, he has initiated the largest expansion of federal government since World War II and set up a massive challenge for his administration -- one that officials are already warning will be fraught with peril.During the first 100 days of his presidency, Obama has signed a $787 billion stimulus bill into law, proposed an eye-popping $3.6 trillion budget for the next fiscal year, taken over a massive $700 billion Wall Street bailout program and created other billion-dollar programs to help grease the economic wheels.Analysts call the spending spree "unprecedented" when the nation is not in a declared war, and they say the challenges that accompany it are a logical result."You take any organization in the world and you double its size in 90 days, it's going to have a hard time managing that transition," said William Gale, vice president and director of the economic studies program at Brookings Institute."The sheer management issues that come up are very important," Gale said, "because I can imagine the people running those projects that are about to be doubled may not want to see their face on '60 Minutes' as the poster child for government waste and useless spending." Among the warning signs: The Government Accountability Office said Thursday that states need help covering the cost of overseeing their share of the massive federal stimulus program.

Blast carnage at shrine in Iraq


Two female suicide bombers have attacked Baghdad's main Shia shrine, killing at least 60 people and injuring 125 others, officials in Iraq say.The attack happened at the Imam Moussa al-Kadhim shrine in the Kadhimiya area as people gathered for Friday prayers.It comes a day after 84 people were killed in two separate suicide attacks in Baghdad and Baquba.Many victims in Baquba and in Baghdad on Friday were Iranian pilgrims and the violence was condemned in Tehran.Violence fell sharply in the last year and the latest bombing does not change this trend, but it is a worrying development.