All Entries in the "Entertainment" Category
Advancing floodwaters threaten Dadu, Johi towns
KARACHI: River defences in Pakistan’s flood-hit south were bolstered Tuesday in a bid to save two towns from catastrophic flooding as the UN warned the world community must help the militant-hit nation recover. Eight million people remain reliant on aid handouts to survive, six weeks after monsoons caused devastating floods in the country’s worst disaster in living memory. Advancing floodwaters continue to threaten the towns of Johi and Dadu in Sindh province, with 19 of its 23 districts deluged and 2.8 million people displaced, according to provincial authorities. “Armed forces and irrigation officials are racing against time to save Johi and Dadu,” said provincial irrigation minister Jam Saifullah Dharejo. “Floodwaters are increasing pressure on Johi embankment, while the raging waters are just five kilometres away from Dadu city,” Dharejo said. He said residents had formed a human chain to help reinforce embankments securing the towns. “It is very heartening to us that local people are being very courageous and helping authorities, picking up stones to reinforce the embankments,” he said. Dadu and Johi are about 320 kilometres north of Karachi. Meanwhile, the UN’s development chief for Asia said the world must respond to Pakistan’s crisis and help it rebuild to secure hearts and minds in the insurgency-wracked nation. Global cash pledges have been slow coming to bolster rescue and relief efforts in Pakistan, where more than 21 million people have been affected by the floods. Helping Pakistanis rebuild homes and businesses, reduced to rubble by the unprecedented deluge, will be even more important to long-term regional and global stability, said UN Assistant Secretary General Ajay Chhibber. “Now that the water has receded in large parts… what’s clear from these visits is that the early recovery needs to start now,” said Chhibber during a visit Monday to the militant-hit northwest. “If there’s greater unrest in Pakistan it will have much greater regional and global implications. “This is a country that is a very large, very important country in the region, a very large, very important country in the globe, so that battle for the hearts and minds of people here is very important.” Last week the UN said that despite an improvement in aid donations after a visit by Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in mid-August, extra pledges had “almost stalled” since a week earlier. The UN has warned that the slow pace of pledges could impede relief operations and says Pakistan faces a triple threat to food supplies — with seeds, crops and incomes hit. An initial relief appeal has been about two-thirds funded, and Chhibbers said a second appeal would be launched on September 17, seeking help for the next steps in Pakistan’s recovery. Hollywood star Angelina Jolie arrived in northwest Pakistan Tuesday with the UN’s refugee agency to draw world attention to the crisis. “UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie arrived in Pakistan today to meet people affected by the floods and to highlight the continued urgent need for help,” the agency said in a statement. Jolie, the 34-year-old actress and roving envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, visited affected communities in the northwest, it said, where millions of long-term Afghan refugees reside. The floods have ruined 3.6 million hectares of rich farmland, and the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation said farmers urgently needed seeds to plant for next year’s crops. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has warned that the country faces inflation of up to 20 per cent and slower growth because of the disaster. The floods have killed 1,760 people but disaster officials have said the number of deaths is likely to rise “significantly” when the missing are accounted for.
Morgan the key, sorry fielding nothing new: Afridi
CARDIFF : Pakistan one-day captain Shahid Afridi said his side had to see the back of Eoin Morgan here on Tuesday if they were to level their two-match series against World Twenty20 champions England .
Saving flood-hit Pakistan has global implications: UNDP
NOWSHERA: The world must help Pakistan rebuild homes and livelihoods destroyed by devastating floods to secure hearts and minds in the militant-hit nation, the UNDP’s regional head told AFP. Global cash pledges have been slow coming to bolster rescue and relief efforts ongoing in the flood-damaged nuclear nation, where more than 21 million people have been affected by a month of monsoon-triggered floods. Now helping Pakistanis rebuild homes and businesses, reduced to rubble by the unprecedented deluge, will be even more important to long-term regional and global stability, said UN Assistant Secretary General Ajay Chhibber. “Now that the water has receded in large parts… what’s clear from these visits is that the early recovery needs to start now,” said Chhibber, the Asia-Pacific head of the UN Development Programme, during a visit Monday to the militant-hit northwest. “If there’s greater unrest in Pakistan it will have much greater regional and global implications. “This is a country that is a very large, very important country in the region, a very large, very important country in the globe, so that battle for the hearts and minds of people here is very important.” Last week the UN said that despite an improvement in aid donations after a visit by Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in mid-August, extra pledges had “almost stalled” since a week earlier. The UN has warned that the slow pace of pledges could impede relief operations and says Pakistan faces a triple threat to food supplies — with seeds, crops and incomes hit. An initial relief appeal has been about two thirds funded, and Chhibbers said a second appeal would be launched on September 17, seeking help for the next steps in Pakistan’s recovery. The millions made homeless, many living in makeshift shelters, will need to be encouraged back to their land, even if their homes have been destroyed, in order to restore the social fabric of communities, said Chhibber. An initial 100 million dollars would also be required to establish cash-to-work schemes, paying the landless poor to clear debris and begin rebuilding schools, community and health centres. “You can see people milling around, they need things to do,” said Chhibber after visiting the northwest town of Nowshera, in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where 19 people were killed Monday in the latest suicide bombing to hit the militant-riddled province.
LHC postpones spot-fixing hearing
KARACHI : The Lahore High Court on Tuesday heard a petition seeking treason charges be filed against players and officials involved in the spot-fixing scandal in England .
iPod Touch has 38% Market Share in total 120 Million iOS Devices
On September 1st, at their media event, Apple announced that they have sold 120 million iOS devices to date and among those 120 million the percentage of the iPod touch is 37.7 % according to asymco. The share of iPod touch has decreased since the launch of iPad but still Apple claims that the sales
Use iPod Nano as an iWatch
Most of you would have definitely seen the concept images of iWatch which looked nice but I never thought Apple would design anything like a touch watch. It would be useless as far as I am concerned. But looks like the new iPod Nano is small enough that somebody actually used his new iPod Nano
Samsung Galaxy Tab Priced $1,030 on German Amazon
A Samsung product exec told the WSJ that the Galaxy Tab would retail for between $200 – $300 in the US, but over on Amazon Germany, a 799 Euro price-tag has been affixed to the tablet. That’s a hefty figure, I’m sure you’ll agree, but I’m sure one popular method of purchasing the Galaxy Tab
iOS 4.1 Complete Walkthrough (Video)
At special media event Apple has announced iOS 4.1 for iPhone and iPod Touch which will be rolled out on Wednesday, 8 September 2010. Some of the new features of iOS 4.1 are Game Center, iTunes, TV rentals, Ping social music network, HDR photography, HD YouTube video uploads, and AVCRP stereo Bluetooth support etc. Watch out
World’s Fastest Microprocessor 5.2GHz z196 by IBM
IBM has officially announced 5.2GHz z196 processor for mainframe which would be the world’s fastest processor that begins shipping to customers on September 10, 2010. According to IBM: “The z196 processor is a four-core chip that contains 1.4 billion transistors on a 512-square millimeter (mm) surface. The chip was designed by IBM engineers in Poughkeepsie,
Afridi says players aware of ‘fix’ dangers
CARDIFF: Pakistan one-day captain Shahid Afridi insisted Monday his players had been educated by officials over the dangers of corruption as the ’spot-fixing’ row engulfing his side rumbled on. Some pundits have questioned whether Pakistan’s players have been made properly aware of the risks of possible corruption. But Afridi, speaking to reporters at Sophia Gardens here on Monday ahead of the second Twenty20 international at the ground on Tuesday, said: “The people are coming from the ICC (International Cricket Council) and they are always talking about these things. “If you have any problems, you definitely go straight to the (team) manager and talk to him. “I think we all know about these things so I think the people from ICC are doing their work.”
China offers $300 million more for flood victims
ISLAMABAD : China released $300 million more for the flood disasters in Pakistan . By adding this amount the total relief amount for flood victims from China has reached $500 million.
Age no defence for Aamer: Shafqat Rana
CARDIFF: Pakistan associate manager Shafqat Rana said on Monday that teenage quick Mohammad Aamer’s age should have no effect on any possible punishment if spot-fixing claims against the 18-year-old were proved. “I think it should be the same with everybody, if he breaks the law,” Rana told reporters at Sophia Gardens here on Monday where Pakistan play the second of two Twenty20 internationals against England on Tuesday. Rana, asked “even if he (Aamer) is so young?”, replied: “It doesn’t matter. “They (cricket fans in Pakistan) want everything in the best spirit of the game.” His remarks came just a day after International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Haroon Lorgat said: “In my own honest personal view, yes I would think age would come into account in these matters. “But that is something the independent tribunal will have to decide upon.” Meanwhile Rana also welcomed a reported probe into players’ finances by the Pakistani tax authorities. “I think it is a good thing from the Pakistan government. It was there in their (the government’s) mind before we came over. I think it’s a good thing, it will open things out so they (the players) will be very careful.”—AFP
‘ICC’s anti-corruption role ineffective’
KARACHI: Former Pakistan Test captain Rashid Latif Monday questioned the ability and willingness of cricket’s world governing body to stop match-fixing, saying tougher laws were needed to counter the menace. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has provisionally suspended Pakistan’s Salman Butt, Mohammad Aamir and Mohammad Asif after the three players were accused by British newspaper News of the World in a spot-fixing scandal. “The ICC is not making tougher laws and that’s why their role is questionable,” Latif told AFP. “I also doubt the sincerity of cricket boards and the ICC to put a lid on this wrongdoing.” Latif, who played 37 Tests and 166 one-day internationals, announced his retirement in protest over suspicions of match-fixing on the 1994 tour of Zimbabwe. He later appeared before Justice Malik Qayyum’s commission and testified against fellow players, including then captain Salim Malik. In 2000, India’s police accused South African captain Hansie Cronje of corruption in cricket’s biggest match-fixing scandal, forcing the ICC to form its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU). Latif said the ACSU had failed to serve the purpose. “These ex-policemen (ACSU officials) may have been very good in their field, but cricket is a different ball game altogether and only a cricketer can see an irregularity during a match. “(The ACSU) does not have the right to conduct raids or arrest people, what they only do is to ask players to avoid suspicious people. All in all, the unit is toothless, as their recourses are limited,” said Latif. Latif said one-day and Twenty20 rules would have to be changed to minimise fixing. “In my opinion, power plays in limited-over matches encourage spot-fixing, so there is a need to change the laws. I proposed changes in the rules some years back but the ICC did not pay attention to them.”
Pietersen fined for Twitter rant
LONDON: The England and Wales Cricket Board says it has fined batsman Kevin Pietersen an ”undisclosed sum” following comments he made on Twitter after discovering he had been dropped from the limited-overs squads. Pietersen admitted to two charges at a disciplinary hearing at Lord’s on Monday, and apologised to the ECB and the England team management for his actions. In a statement, the ECB said it ”considered his comments to be prejudicial to the interests of Team England.” Pietersen had already apologised for using a profanity in last week’s Twitter post, which was quickly deleted ahead of the official squad announcement.
Independent ICC commissioner for Pakistan trio
NEW DELHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) will appoint an independent commissioner to determine the fate of the three Pakistani players fighting spot-fixing charges. ICC President Sharad Pawar said Pakistan captain Salman Butt and pace bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, who have been provisionally suspended and charged by the ICC under their anti-corruption code, will get an opportunity to present their version of the spot-fixing scandal that has rocked the sport. “We have not punished anybody,” Pawar told Times Now channel in New York on Saturday where he is attending an international meeting of the Nationalist Congress Party of which he is the president. “If there are some serious allegations and if the anti-corruption unit of the ICC comes to some prima facie conclusion, then we will have to send a notice to that particular player, it is not a final decision. “The notice means giving them an opportunity to explain their position.” Pawar did not say who the commissioner was or when they would be appointed but explained the protocol they would go through. “(The) ICC appoints an independent person as the commissioner and gives (an) opportunity to the player to put his views and explanations before the commissioner and not the ICC and the commissioner’s recommendations will be final for (the) ICC,” spelled out the Indian agriculture minister. He also assured the Pakistani cricketers they would get a fair hearing. “This is not an action (against them). This is sort of notice given to them, an opportunity given to them to explain their position.” The News of the World newspaper, which broke the scandal, said that a fourth Pakistani player was being investigated by the ICC over match-rigging claims. —AFP