US declares JuD, 3 other organizations ‘terrorist’

WASHINGTON: The U.S. State Department has named a self-proclaimed Pakistani charity as a "foreign terrorist organization", a status that freezes any assets it has under U.S. jurisdiction.

Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) calls itself a humanitarian charity but is widely seen as a front organization for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LET), a Pakistan-based group accused of orchestrating attacks in India, including the 2008 Mumbai attack that killed 166 people.

British media quoted U.S. State Department and reported that all the four organizations, JuD, Infaal Trust, Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool and Tehreek-e-Tahafuzz-e-Qibla-e-Awwal were different names of outlawed Lashkar-e-Taiba and changing names to avoid sanctions.

The designation comes as NATO troops in Afghanistan are drawing down, and regional rivals Pakistan and India compete with each other for influence with Kabul.

Some fear the competition may spill into open conflict between the two nuclear-armed nations, who have fought three wars since independence.

Historically, Pakistan has used militant groups like LET to mount covert attacks on Indian soil, something the current government has vowed will not happen again.

Jamaat-ud-Dawa's listing will prohibit U.S. entities or citizens from dealing with the organisation, but will probably have little practical effect on its operations or fund raising.

The United Nations said in 2008 that Jamaat-ud-Dawa was a front for LeT and Pakistani authorities vowed to crack down.

Four including 3 women gunned down in Swat

SWAT: Four persons were killed when unknown culprits opened fire in a house in Buner District of Swat on Monday morning, Geo News reported.

According to police, the incident occurred in Palwari area of Buner where unknown armed assailants opened fire in a house that killed three women and a man.

The ferocious incident didn’t end here. The brutal murderers set the bodies along with the house on fire after killing their targets.

Police reached the incident site and initiated investigation.

Shortfall reaches 3,000 MW with increased

LAHORE/SIALKOT: Although it was Sunday, people across the country faced the worst power outages as electricity shortfall reached 3,000 MW.

The announced and unannounced loadshedding forced citizens to register their protest in various towns and cities, including Lahore, as they set ablaze bills and chanted anti-government slogans.

According to the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC), the power generation on Sunday stood at 12,500MW while the demand was recorded at 15,500MW. This shortfall made life miserable for the people in the scorching sun.

Citizens during the protests against the power crisis demanded the government to end loadshedding at the earliest as it had paralysed the routine life with temperatures expected to rise further.

In the urban centres of central Punjab, the loadshedding hours are 10, with 14 in the rural areas. Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and southern Punjab have been experiencing 14 to 18 hours of outages. With indoor temperatures becoming unbearable in the Punjab, many people opted to visit recreational spots and canals to get some relief.

In Sialkot, the city area and other parts of the district, including Daska, Pasrur and Sambrial, the power supply was suspended for eight to 10 hours. The densely-populated and commercial areas of the city – including Chowk Allama Iqbal, Karimpura, Factory Area, Mianapura, Khadimpur Road, Rangpura, Nihal Chand Street, Prem Nagar, Defence Road, Kashmir Road and Muzaffarpura – witnessed two hours of loadshedding after every two hours during the day. The loadshedding in the night was carried out after every alternate hour.

The same reports were received from the nearby towns of Hadiana, Chavinda, Kharota Syedan, Kotli Loharan and other areas. Besides other problems, the power outages also caused severe water shortages in many areas.

3 policemen killed in western Afghanistan bomb blast

KABUL: An Afghan official says a roadside bombing has killed three policemen and wounded two in the country´s western Herat province.

District police chief Shir Agha Alokozay says the attack took place in the province´s Obe district on Tuesday morning, when the police vehicle the officers were riding in hit the roadside bomb.

Alokozay says the bomb was set off by a remote control device and that the police have caught a suspect with the remote control.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but Afghan security forces are frequently targeted by insurgents and violence has intensified in the country as most international troops prepare to withdraw at the end of the year.

Gunman, 3 others killed in Arkansas shootings

 

AP Police officers and crime scene analysts investigate a crime scene in Jonesboro, Arkansas on Saturday.

A gunman shot six people at a U.S. home, killing a man and a teenager and critically wounding two boys, before fatally shooting a worker at a nearby business, police said.

The suspected gunman was later found dead of a gunshot wound in the driver’s seat of a stopped car, Jonesboro police Sgt. Doug Formon said at a news conference. It was not immediately clear if the gunshot was self-inflicted.

Mr. Formon said a man and a 13-year-old girl were killed on Sunday afternoon inside the home in Arkansas, where it appeared a family was having a party or gathering.

Four other people were injured and were taken to hospitals. Mr. Formon said the children, aged 8 and 10, were transported in critical condition.

Police received a call about the shooting at the home and later responded to a report of a second shooting at a business, where Mr. Forman said the worker was found shot to death.

Mr. Formon said a farmer or passing motorist later called to report a car parked in the middle of a county road. A deputy responded and found the stopped car with the suspected gunman inside.

Mr. Forman said that police did not know of a motive and that the investigation is ongoing.

He declined to identify the victims or the suspect, saying officials wanted to be sure all family members had been notified. He said it was not known if the suspect and victims were related

US shootings kill gunman, 3 others

JONESBORO: A gunman shot six people at a U.S. home Saturday, killing a man and a teenager and critically wounding two boys, before fatally shooting a worker at a nearby business, police said.

The suspected gunman was later found dead of a gunshot wound in the driver´s seat of a stopped car, Jonesboro police Sgt. Doug Formon said at a news conference. It was not immediately clear if the gunshot was self-inflicted.

Formon said a man and a 13-year-old girl were killed Saturday afternoon inside the home in Arkansas, where it appeared a family was having a party or gathering. Four other people were injured and were taken to hospitals. Formon said the children, ages 8 and 10, were transported in critical condition.

Police received a call about the shooting at the home and later responded to a report of a second shooting at a business, where Forman said the worker was found shot to death. Formon said a farmer or passing motorist later called to report a car parked in the middle of a county road. A deputy responded and found the stopped car with the suspected gunman inside.

Forman said that police did not know of a motive and that the investigation is ongoing. He declined to identify the victims or the suspect, saying officials wanted to be sure all family members had been notified. He said it was not known if the suspect and victims were related.

Policeman guns down 3 US citizens at Kabul hospital

KABUL:An Afghan policeman opened fire Thursday on staff at a Kabul hospital run by a US charity, killing three Americans in the latest deadly attack targeting foreign civilians in the city.

The gunman was injured in the incident outside the CURE International hospital and detained by police, officials said, adding that the motive behind the shooting was not immediately known.

"The attacker was a member of the police in the district," Seddiq Sediqqi, spokesman for the interior ministry told.

"He opened fire as the foreign nationals were entering the hospital, tragically killing three and injuring one more. Another policeman in the area shot the attacker, injuring him."

A medic who was treating the wounded told that a foreign doctor was among the dead.

"With great sadness we confirm that three Americans were killed in the attack on CURE Hospital," the US embassy said on its Twitter account. "No other information will be released at this time."

Kabul has been hit by a spate of attacks targeting foreign civilians this year, including a Lebanese restaurant where 21 people died, an attack on a luxury hotel and the daylight shooting of a Swedish radio journalist.

Last month Taliban militants attacked a Kabul guesthouse used by Roots of Peace, a US anti-landmine charity, killing two people including a girl.

And this month Associated Press (AP) photographer Anja Niedringhaus was shot dead by a police commander in the eastern province of Khost in an attack which also left her Canadian colleague Kathy Gannon badly wounded.

Ukraine troops kill 3 assailants storming eastern base

KIEV: Ukrainian troops repelled an overnight attack on their base in the southeast city of Mariupol, killing three of the assailants and wounding 13, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Thursday.

Around 300 people mounted the attack using guns and petrol bombs on the interior ministry troops, none of whom was hurt, Avakov said on his Facebook page.

"After attackers threw incendiary devices and Molotov cocktails at the military unit and opened fire at guard posts, the national guards fired warning shots," Avakov said.

After the attack continued, they turned their weapons directly on the assailants.

Sixty-three people were detained and security officials confiscated weapons, communication devices and "Russian cell phones", the statement said.

The operation was still ongoing with additional police patrolling the port city and special forces being helicoptered in as reinforcements, Avakov said.

The latest attack follows the seizure of administrative buildings by pro-Russian separatists in Mariupol and other towns across the restive east of the country.

High-level talks aimed at ending the escalating crisis involving the top diplomats of Russia, Ukraine, the United States and the European Union are due to start in Geneva on Thursday. Kiev has struggled to reimpose its authority over its industrial heartland. A military operation to oust the separatists turned to fiasco Wednesday when pro-Moscow militants seized at least six armoured vehicles.

Necessary to support Big 3 to play international cricket: Sethi

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman, Najam Sethi said it was necessary to support the ‘Big 3’ to play international cricket.
 
Najam Sethi added that next year Pakistan would nominate the ICC president.

Sethi held a news conference here on Friday after spending the previous day taking part in the International Cricket Council (ICC) meeting in Dubai.

Najam Sethi told reporters that Pakistan would support the ‘Big 3’ after its conditions would be met.

The PCB chairman said he was first informed of the ‘Big 3’ issue on January 8. Sethi told reporters that he discovered on February 8 that Bangladesh was onboard with the proposal while Pakistan and Sri Lanka remained opposed to the ‘Big 3.’


Informing the media about the need to support the ‘Big 3,’ the PCB Chairman said he had held detailed meetings with all countries including India. “We have signed MoUs with all boards for tours over the course of the next eight years.”

According to Sethi some boards had cancelled tours to play against Pakistan. The PCB chairman said after signing the deal Rs30 billion revenue would be generated for Pakistan. The PCB Chairman further said that a series against India had been decided.

Najam Sethi added that the next meeting of the Asian Cricket Council will be held under his chair in Lahore.


When asked about Mohammed Amir, Sethi replied that talks were ongoing with the ICC and the former bowler would play cricket soon. “A decision regarding Amir’s punishment will be taken during the next ICC meeting in June.” Sethi said it was his understanding that Amir’s punishment would be reduced by one year.

 

Tokyo stocks fall nearly 3 percent in opening trade

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks lost nearly three percent in opening trade Friday, after New York shares suffered big losses on concerns about the valuations of high-flying technology companies.

The Nikkei 225 index lost 2.88 percent, or 411.32 points, to 13,888.80 in the first few minutes of trade.

"Japan stocks will fall in sympathy (Friday) with their overseas counterparts and there is increasing anxiety about a broader pullback in US shares after such a long run-up," said Tokai Tokyo Research Center senior global strategist Mutsumi Kagawa.

Anxiety about pricey technology stocks returned with a vengeance to Wall Street Thursday, sending the Nasdaq down more than 3.0 percent and sparking deep declines in the broader stock market.

The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 3.10 percent to 4,054.11, the biggest single-day drop in percentage terms since November 2011.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 1.62 percent to 16,170.22, while the broad-based S&P 500 fell 2.09 percent to 1,833.08.

The dollar weakened on Thursday as traders digested Federal Reserve signals suggesting that interest rates would be unlikely to rise any time soon.

The dollar was at 101.38 yen early Friday, hardly changed from 101.44 yen in New York Thursday afternoon but down from 101.81 yen in Tokyo earlier Thursday.

The euro slipped to 140.80 yen from 140.88 yen in US trade while buying $1.3885 compared with $1.3888.

3 passengers killed as coach overturns in Kashmore

KASHMORE: Three passengers were killed and several injured as a recklessly driven coach overturned near Ghauspur on Indus Highway on Sunday morning here, Geo News reported.

Police said that the accident occurred near Ghauspur on Indus Highway. The injured being shifted to the hospital, while several of them reported to be in critical condition.

3 killed in Peshawar roof collapse

PESHAWAR: Three people including a woman and a child were killed when a roof of a house collapsed in Peshawar on late Sunday night, Geo News reported.

Rescue sources said that a couple and their child were trapped under the debris as the roof collapsed. They were recovered from the debris after hectic efforts and shifted to the Lady Reading Hospital where they succumbed to their injuries.

The incident took place in Sadar area of the provincial capital.