PPP to invite PML-N back into cabinet after judges’ restoration: PM

LAHORE: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) will not attempt to destabilize the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) government in Punjab and former coalition partners will continue to co-operate with each other.

The PM also backed PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari as a neutral candidate for the Presidency.Speaking to the media here, Gilani said that after the reinstatement of deposed judges, the PPP would invite PML-N back into the federal cabinet.He also said the PML-N exited the coalition on the issue of judiciary and the PPP was committed to restoring all deposed judges. Gilani said that repealing the 17th amendment and abolishing article 58-2-B of the constitution are part of the PPP's manifesto, and their removal will create a balance of power between the Executive and Legislature.The PM said after many years of struggle by political parties, democracy came to fruition in the country and people wanted it to deliver.Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif and Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer greeted Prime Minister Gilani at the airport.

U.S. court finds Aafia guilty of attacking US army :

NEW YORK: United States court Thursday found American-educated Pakistani doctor Aafia Siddiqi guilty on charges to attack U.S army in Afghanistan as a member of Al-Qaeda, said a statement released from US court.

Also, Aafia has been charged with attempt to murder, triggering terrorism, armed attacks on US forces in Afghanistan and keeping illegal armaments, it added.Statement also said that she might have to undergo life imprisonment, 20 years imprisonment and eight years imprisonment for each charges respectively in case the charges leveled against her proved right in the court.

Several killed in coalition forces operation in S Waziristan :

WANA: Several people have been killed during coalition forces operation in Angorada area of South Waiziristan on Wednesday morning.

According to Geo News correspondent Mushtaq Yousufzai, four helicopters of coalition forces landed in Angaorada in the wee hours of Wednesday and started search operation.Coalition troops killed nine people of a family of local tribesman Taj Muhammad. They further searched two more houses and killed four persons in one house and one person in another house. Five women and four children also included among the dead.At least fifteen people have been killed and several injured during operation. Local tribesmen launched protest and chanted anti-American slogans after the incident.The bodies and injured have been shifted to hospital.

Fruits, vegetable prices jump up by 100 percent :

KARACHI: Fruits and vegetable prices at the advent of the Holy month of Ramazan went spiraling high by 80/100 percent.

Like past, this year also the government appears to have flopped in controlling the prices in Ramazan. Pre-Ramazan prices of grapes at Rs60/80 per kilo jumped up to Rs120/160 per kilo, apple price spiraled by Rs50 per kilo, Garma from Rs20 to Rs40 per kilo and banana price shot up from Rs30 to Rs40/50 per dozen. The country is already in the grip of hyperinflation, while the advent of Ramazan has further aggravated the situation taking the prices of fruits and vegetable sky-high and much beyond the purchasing power of the common man.

39 Pakistani probable announced for 4-nation hockey tournament :

KARACHI: Thirty-nine probable for the four-nation hockey tournament, to be held in Germany from October 3, have been announced.

The training camp will continue from five to thirty September at Hockey Club of Pakistan in Karachi.Beijing Olympics participants Muhammad Saqlain, Rehan Butt, Zeshan Ashraf and Salman Akbar have been left out for providing rest while Waqas Akbar and Haider Abbass have excused playing on account of engagement abroad.Former Olympian Jahangir Butt is Chief Coach and Kamran Ashraf and Danish Kaleem would partake as Coaches.

Coldplay lead Q award nominations :

Coldplay lead the nominations for this year's Q magazine awards with four nods, it has been announced.
The band, led by singer Chris Martin, are up for awards including best album and best act in the world today.
Vampire Weekend and The Ting Tings have three nods each, while Kings of Leon, Nick Cave and The Last Shadow Puppets are all up for two.
The annual ceremony will be held on 6 October at the Grosvenor House Hotel on London's Park Lane.
Both nominees and winners are voted for by the magazine's readers.

Hacker appeals to home secretary :

Lawyers for a Briton accused of hacking into secret military and Nasa computers are asking the home secretary to ensure he is not jailed in the US.
Glasgow-born Gary McKinnon, 42, who last month lost his appeal against extradition, could face life in jail if convicted of accessing 97 computers.
His lawyer Karen Todner said his human rights would be breached if he did not return to the UK after a trial.
The Home Office said his case was "receiving consideration".
A spokesman said: "Further representations have been received today from solicitors against Mr McKinnon's surrender to the USA which are receiving consideration."

Google launches internet browser :

Google is launching an open source web browser to compete with Internet Explorer and Firefox.
The browser is designed to be fast, and to cope with the next generation of web applications that rely on graphics and multimedia.
Called Chrome, it will launch as a beta for Windows machines in 100 countries, with Mac and Linux versions to come.
"We realised... we needed to completely rethink the browser," said Google's Sundar Pichai in a blog post.
The new browser will help Google take advantage of developments it is pushing online in rich web applications that are challenging traditional desktop programs

Nigerian man to divorce 82 wives :

A Nigerian religious leader with 86 wives has accepted an Islamic decree ordering him to divorce all but four of them, local authorities say.
A spokesman for the emir of Bida told the BBC that Mohammadu Bello Abubakar, 84, agreed on Saturday to comply with the decree.
Last week one of Nigeria's top Islamic bodies, the Jamatu Nasril Islam, sentenced him to death.
The sentence was lifted but he was threatened with eviction from his home.
Earlier, Mr Abubakar had challenged Islamic scholars, saying there was no punishment stated in the Koran for having more than four wives.

'Rare' mammoth skull discovered :

The "extremely rare" fossilised skull of a steppe mammoth has been unearthed in southern France.
The discovery in the Auvergne region could shed much needed light on the evolution of these mighty beasts.
Many isolated teeth of steppe mammoth have been found, but only a handful of skeletons exist; and in these surviving specimens, the skull is rarely intact.
Palaeontologists Frederic Lacombat and Dick Mol describe this skull specimen as being well preserved.
It belongs to a male steppe mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii) that stood about 3.7m (12ft) tall and lived about 400,000 years ago, during Middle Pleistocene times.

Six dead in US shooting attacks :

A US man has surrendered to police in Washington state, after a series of shootings left six people dead.
The shootings took place at various places in the north-west of the state.
A sheriff's deputy who went to investigate an incident was one of those killed; two construction workers were found shot nearby.
Following a chase along an Interstate highway, during which a motorist was killed, a man gave himself up at a sheriff's office in Mount Vernon.
Local police say the deputy sherrif went to investigate reports of a disturbance at a local residence in Skagit County, north of Seattle.
When he didn't return and failed to answer radio calls the alarm was raised.

Bush backs McCain for president :

President George W Bush has praised John McCain's service and leadership in a speech to the Republican convention.
Speaking via video-link from the White House, he told delegates in St Paul, Minnesota, that Mr McCain was "a great American and the next president".
Mr McCain is due to be nominated on Thursday as the party's presidential candidate for November's election.
The main talking point so far has been the news that the teenage daughter of Mr McCain's running mate is pregnant.
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, chosen as the vice-presidential nominee last week, announced on Monday that her 17-year-old daughter, Bristol, would have the baby and marry her boyfriend.
In his eight-minute address, Mr Bush described Mr McCain as a president ready to make the tough decisions needed "in a dangerous world".

Rice to make historic Libya visit :

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is to make a "historic" first visit to Libya on Friday, the state department has announced.
Her visit will be the first by a US secretary of state to Libya since 1953.
Libya was on the state department list of sponsors of terrorism until 2006, after it abandoned weapons of mass destruction and renounced terrorism.
On Monday, Libya agreed on compensation for families of the victims of the Pan Am bombing over Lockerbie in 1988.
The deal paved the way for Ms Rice's visit to what was once considered a pariah state.
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was described by late President Ronald Reagan as a "mad dog", will host Ms Rice.
The state department said this was proof that the US does not have permanent enemies and showed the success of the Bush administration's non-proliferation policies.