India Blames Pakistan State Actors in Mumbai Suicide Attack

NEW DELHI: Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram has reiterated that Pakistani state actors were involved in Mumbai terror attacks.

In an interview to Indian television Indian minister called Pakistan stand with regard to Mumbai attacks misplaced and demanded handing over of Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Hafiz Saeed Zarrar Shah to India to be tried under terror charges.

Chidambaram claimed that 10 persons were involved in planning of attacks on Mumbai and at least one of them was a state actor. He alleged Pakistan hiding the state actors in the case.

Replying a question Indian Home Minister said two Indian citizens were also involved in terror strikes including Abu Jindal. Another Indian not yet identified, he said adding that the Indian government have no sufficient evidence to arrest Abu Jindal.

PPP Against Confrontation Between State Institutions: Presidency

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan News: The spokesman to Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Farhatullah Babar has said PPP will not allow confrontation among the institutions of state. He said N-league has assured they will not pressurize for President Zardari resignation.

In an interview with media, he said some anti-democratic elements cannot see PPP ruling over the nation but we will not deter of any conspiracy as such seditious plots are not new for us.

He vowed to confront all political challenges and will overpower all ongoing turmoil including NRO.

Supreme Court ruling will be respected while president Zardari is ready to leave no stone unturned for the supremacy and hegemony of law and constitution, he noted.

SBP to Announce New Policy Monitor Today

KARACHI,Pakistan News update: State Bank of Pakistan Governor Saleem Raza has said that new monitory policy will be announced on Tuesday.

According to details, he said foreign exchange reservoirs had reached to the stage of five months from three weeks.

State Bank Governor maintained that national economy was improving, adding that exports and credit demand were increasing.

He told that foreign exchange reservoirs are enough to fulfill the needs for five months.

Presses, Manmohan Pakistan Amid U.S Visit

WASHINGTON: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday started a high-profile state visit to the United States with a call on President Barack Obama to stay committed on Afghanistan and pressure Pakistan.

The Indian premier arrived at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington to kick off the first full-fledged state visit of Obama’s presidency, which will culminate in a swank black-tie dinner at the White House on Tuesday.

While a host of issues are on the table, experts say Obama’s main intention was to demonstrate his commitment to the world’s largest democracy after an early focus on working with its neighbors China and Pakistan.

But Singh made clear he would not shy away from offering advice on the top foreign issue for Obama — Afghanistan. Obama is wrapping up weeks of deliberation on whether to reinforce the 68,000 US troops who will be in Afghanistan by year-end.

“It is very important that both the US and the global community stay engaged in Afghanistan,” Singh said in an interview with USA’s The Washington Post and Newsweek, warning of civil war if US forces withdrew.

Singh also called for the Obama administration to pressure Pakistan to rein in Islamic extremists, saying that India’s historic rival has not done enough against militants blamed for last year’s chilling assault on Mumbai.

“We have been the victims of Pakistan-aided, -abetted and-inspired terrorism for nearly 25 years. We would like the United States to use all its influence with Pakistan to desist from that path,” Singh said in the interview.

“Pakistan has nothing to fear from India. It’s a tragedy that Pakistan has come to the point of using terror as an instrument of state policy,” he said.

He doubted that Pakistan and the United States had the same objectives in Afghanistan, saying that Islamabad’s main interest was to maintain a grip on its northern neighbor.

Counting of Death in China Mine Explosion Affects 87

BEIJING: The death toll from a coal mine blast in northeast China rose to 87 on Sunday, with 21 miners still trapped, in the nation’s deadliest mining disaster in two years, state media reported.

Rescuers have located the site where eight workers remain trapped in the mineshaft, but it is unclear if they are alive, the China News Service reported.

The explosion occurred at 2:30 am Saturday (1830 GMT Friday) at a mine near Hegang City in Heilongjiang province, according to a statement issued by the State Administration of Work Safety.

According to local news reports, the blast was felt as far away as 10 kilometres (six miles).

A total of 528 miners were working in the pit at the time, the state administration said.

“I was with a group of 10 miners (when we were told to evacuate), right now I don’t know if they made it out,” mining veteran Fu Maofeng, 48, told the media from his hospital bed.

Miners near the shaft entrance were told to evacuate after gas levels in the mine rose sharply, he told the paper.

When he and two others reached the entrance to report the rising gas levels, a huge blast ripped through the main shaft, he said.

The toll has more than doubled from 42 dead and 66 trapped on Saturday.

It is the deadliest coal mining accident in the energy-hungry nation since an explosion killed 105 miners in Shanxi province in December 2007.

On Saturday, President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao issued orders to take all measures to rescue workers, while Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang was dispatched to the mine to oversee the operation, state media said.

The head of the mine, which is run by the Heilongjiang Longmay Mining Holding Group, and its chief engineer have been removed from their posts, the China News Service said.

The director of the work safety administration has been tasked with leading an investigation into the blast, it added.

According to the mining group’s website, the mine produces 1.45 million tonnes of coal a year and in 2009 ranked 12th out of China’s top 100 mining companies and seventh in terms of production volume.

China has a dismal work safety record, with thousands of people dying every year in mines, factories and on construction sites.

Its coal mines are among the most dangerous in the world, with safety standards often ignored in the quest for profits and the drive to meet surging demand for coal — the source of about 70 percent of China’s energy.

The central government has campaigned in recent years to modernise its collieries and control the leakage of gas, particularly methane, a pollutant responsible for several mine explosions.

Official figures show that more than 3,200 workers died in collieries last year, but independent labour groups say the actual figure could be much higher, as many accidents are covered up in order to avoid costly mine shutdowns.

Stephanie Spielman Death, Stephanie Spielman Died

Stephanie Spielman Death, Stephanie Spielman Died: COLUMBUS, Ohio — Stefanie Spielman, the wife of NFL and Ohio State star Chris Spielman who led a public fight against breast cancer, died Thursday after a lengthy battle with the disease. She was 42.
Stefanie Spielman died at the family’s home in Upper Arlington, surrounded by her family, said WBNS radio in Columbus, where Chris Spielman co-hosts a show.

“Stefanie has gone home to be with the Lord,” Chris Spielman said in a statement released by the station. “For that, we celebrate, but with broken hearts. I want to thank everyone for their support over the last 12 years. Together, with your help, hopefully we made a difference in this fight.”

Stefanie Spielman was 30 years old and three months pregnant in 1998 when she detected a lump in her breast. She later miscarried and discovered she had cancer. She survived four bouts with cancer before a fifth recurrence in March.

Chris Spielman was playing linebacker with the Buffalo Bills when he decided to give up football for a year to stay home with his wife and children. When his wife lost her hair because of chemotherapy treatments, he shaved his head.

“People say ‘It’s a great thing that you’re doing,’” Chris Spielman said at the time. “I always say it would be a terrible thing if I didn’t.”

The Spielmans became advocates for breast-cancer detection and research, winning several awards for their dedication to the cause. They raised more than $6 million for breast cancer research at Ohio State, where she also had attended school, through the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research.

She helped form a support group for young women with breast cancer, hosted an annual event that honored cancer survivors and created a fund to help breast cancer patients and their families who struggled financially. She was inducted into the Ohio Women’s Hall of Fame in 2002 for her work.

“We have lost a leader in the fight against cancer,” seven-time Tour de France winner and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong said. “Stefanie was a living example of courage and strength to everyone around her.”

Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel called Stefanie Spielman an inspiration.

“Stefanie has inspired the entire Buckeye nation and Columbus community with her courage and strength,” Tressel said in a statement. “We will miss her and will always remember the lessons we learned from her. She will always be a special Buckeye.”

Two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin, the president and CEO of the Ohio State Alumni Association, said Stefanie Spielman was a compassionate person who “took her personal struggle and used it as a platform to help other women battling breast cancer.” He said the Ohio State community was “tremendously saddened” by her death.
Source; google.com

U.S. Against Unilateral Offer of a Palestinian State

WASHINGTON : The United States voiced opposition Monday to unilateral Palestinian moves to seek recognition for an independent state, saying negotiations with Israel were the best way forward.

A State Department spokesman reiterated US commitment to a future Palestinian state but poured cold water on an initiative to ask the United Nations Security Council to recognize a state unilaterally.

“We support the creation of a Palestinian state that is contiguous. We are convinced that has to be achieved through negotiations between two parties,” said spokesman Ian Kelly.

On Sunday, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said they would “go to the UN Security Council to ask for recognition of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital and with June 1967 borders.”

This in turn drew a warning from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that “any unilateral action will undo the framework of past accords and lead to unilateral actions from Israel.”

Kelly said he was not aware the Palestinians had sought American support for their initiative and refused to be drawn on whether the US, if it had to, would veto any bid at the Security Council.

“I think that the thing we have to do is get the two parties to sit down and that is what we’re putting all of our efforts behind,” he said.

US Senator Joe Lieberman, an independent from Connecticut, said Washington was likely to veto such a proposal, which he said would be “a waste of time.

“I hope and presume that the United States would veto such an attempt when and if it ever came to the Security Council,” he told a press conference in Jerusalem.

The move for UN recognition is the latest in a series of options the Palestinians have warned they could take if the Middle East peace process remained stalled.

Others include unilaterally declaring independence, asking the UN to determine final borders of their promised state, dissolving the Palestinian Authority and seeking equal rights within Israel.

The administration of US President Barack Obama has so far been unable to convince Israelis and Palestinians to resume their peace talks amid deep disagreements on the issue of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.

The Palestinians insist on a freeze of all settlement activity before talks restart, while Israel is offering a temporary and limited ease on construction, saying the issue will be resolved during the negotiations.

Tony Alamo

latest news about, Tony Alamo: Convicted in the summer of taking five minor girls across state lines to have sex with them, evangelist Tony Alamo was sentenced to 175 years in prison by a judge in Texarkana, Arkansas

“May (God) have mercy on your soul”, USA District Judge Harry Barnes said Alamo, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.

Alamo, 75, is a time employer linen. The victims testified they were taken as “child brides” by the evangelist.
Source: npr.org

QB Terrelle Pryor says Buckeyes must avoid letdown

Terrelle Pryor has a warning for his Ohio State teammates: Forget last week and take Iowa seriously. Pryor said Wednesday night that the 10th-ranked Buckeyes must be careful not to follow last week’s big victory over Penn State with a letdown in the winner-take-all Rose Bowl battle against No. 15 Iowa on Saturday.

DC area relives terror as sniper’s execution nears (AP)

AP – When James D. Martin was shot dead seven years ago in the parking lot of a grocery store in suburban Washington, it got little attention on the nightly news.

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