Pak Air Force Chief, 16 Others Killed in Air Crash

          ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Air Chief Marshal, Mushaf Ali Mir, 55, died in an air crash on Thursday morning. He was travelling in a Fokker-27 aircraft along with his wife and seven air force personnel from here to Kohat. The plane had eight crew. All the 17 perished in the mishap near the Afghan border on the north-west.

           The debris of the plane was found 27 km from the border town of Kohat. The cause of the crash is not yet known, and according to sources, there are no survivors. The dead may have included two air marshals. The plane had taken off from Chaklala air force base near Islamabad at 8 am. The last radio messages from the ill-fated plane showed nothing untoward.

          Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has appointed Air Marshal Syed Qaiser Hussain as the new chief of the Pakistan Air Force.

Dawood Brother in Police Remand Till March 6

          MUMBAI: Ejaz Ahmed Pathan, a key suspect in the wave of bomb blasts that rocked Mumbai in 1993, was on Thursday produced at a TADA court in the city. Pathan, along with Iqbal Kaskar, brother of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, was arrested late last night after they were deported by the United Arab Emirates.

           Police say Pathan is wanted in connection with the blasts that killed at least 260 people and is being questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation. Iqbal Kaskar, a fugitive who is the main accused in the blasts, is wanted in murder and extortion cases and is being questioned by Mumbai police. Iqbal has been remanded to police custody till March 6. City Police Commissioner RS Sharma said the arrests could help them gain crucial information about the gang. He added he expected Dubai to deport more fugitives.

J-K National Highway Closed Due To Rainfall (Go To Top)

          SRINAGAR: : Fresh snowfall in Jammu and Kashmir forced authorities to close down the vital Jammu-Srinagar highway. More than 500 heavy vehicles could be seen stranded at the 300-km road, the only surface link between Kashmir Valley and the rest of the country. The upper reaches of the State are receiving snowfall since Sunday. Authorities have rushed earth-movers to clear the snow on the highway. "Right from Ram Banapur to Shaitani nullah, there are some places where landslide has taken place. And there are a few places where still snow is falling. But we are on the job, we do expect that today or tomorrow, traffic will be restored," a policeman said.

          The neighbouring Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal States have also received fresh snowfall, reviving cold weather conditions.

Four Killed in Baramullah Explosion (Go To Top)

          BARAMULLAH: Four people were killed in a powerful explosion in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. Local people said the blast occurred near a bank in Baramulla town, 55 km from Srinagar. No militant group has claimed responsibility for the incident yet. Officials say more than 38,000 people have been killed in the 13-year revolt against Indian rule in the disputed region. Separatists put the toll at 85,000.

Country-wide Protests Against War on Iraq (Go To Top)

          NEW DELHI: Dozens of activists of Samata Party, a key ally of the ruling coalition at the Centre, took to the streets here on Thursday to protest against the United States' plan to attack Iraq. The protest comes in the wake of reports that US President George W Bush is planning to strike the oil-rich nation in the next two weeks, with or without the consent of the United Nations.

           The protestors shouted slogans in support of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and urged Bush to give up "bossing" over other countries. "No country can go against or over the decision of the United Nations. America is making useless excuses," said Samata Party leader Jaya Jaitley. "When the weapons inspectors are there carrying out search operation, when they are saying that they are not able to find anything, when Saddam Hussein is also saying that he will follow all rules, despite all this Bush, I feel, has purposely closed both his eyes and ears and is ready to wage a war," she added.

           Another anti-war rally was taken out by medical professionals and school children in Ludhiana on Thursday. Hundreds of protestors marched through the streets shouting slogans like "America Down Down". They urged the US to seek peaceful resolution of the dispute by giving due respect to the United Nations. School children carried placards that said "attack illiteracy not Iraq".

Campaigning Picks Up Momentum in Tripura (Go To Top)

          AGARTALA: Campaigning for Assembly polls in insurgency-racked Tripura gathered momentum with major political parties addressing rallies on Thursday. The Sate goes to the polls on February 26 along with three other States. Leaders of ruling Left Front and Opposition Congress party alongwith a host of sundry regional parties seek the support of over one million voters.

           The Left Front and Congress took out separate rallies in Agartala, State Capital, on Thursday. Tripura has been caught in the grip of an insurgency movement because it offers an easy transit point between Bangladesh and the strife-torn neighbouring States of Assam and Nagaland. The Left Front has accused the Congress of forming an electoral alliance with Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT), which it says is an ally of the banned militant outfit National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT).

           In 1998 general elections, marred by violence, the Left Front secured 47 per cent votes, the Congress 45 per cent and the BJP 7 per cent. The NLFT is one of several rebel groups fighting for autonomy or independence in heavily forested and hilly north-eastern region where many political movements are linked to tribal feuds or ethnic rights.

US Offers Turkey 24 Billion Dollar Package (Go To Top)

          WASHINGTON: The United States has offered Turkey a package of up to 24 billion dollars in financial aid to offset the impact that a war in Iraq could have on the fragile Turkish economy. Washington has proposed two alternative packages, one of six- billion-dollar grants and a second of long-term loans of about 24 billion dollars. A two-billion-dollar tranche of the grants would be in the form of writing off loans taken out by Turkey to purchase US military equipment. It is not known whether Turkey was satisfied with the size of the proposals, but said it was unhappy with the US Congressional approval required for the release of the assistance, which could drag on for weeks.

Spice Girls Not To Be Back in Business (Go To Top)

          LONDON: The much-expected re-union of Spice Girls has now been ruled out. Sport spice Melanie Chisholm, 29, emphasised that the gathering of the group at Posh's home on Monday was just a social event and had nothing to do with business. "It was just a friendly get-together. None of us is interested in a re-union. There's not going to be a greatest hits," Mel C said on Steve Wright's Radio 2 show. "We haven't met for a long time. I've no plans to tour with them and I'm concentrating on my solo career. But I never say never," she was quoted by the Sun.

          Mel described what happened at the meeting at 'Beckingham Palace' in Herts - owned by soccer ace David Beckham and wife Posh Spice, 28. Beckham was out, and Mel and Victoria were joined by Geri Halliwell, 30 - who quit as Ginger Spice in 1998 - Baby Spice Emma Bunton, 27, and Scary Spice Melanie Brown, 27.

It's Time for BAFTA Awards! (Go To Top)

          LONDON: It's treat time for star-spotters. Mask of Zorro star Catherine Zeta-Jones and husband Michael Douglas will show up alongside best actress nominee Nicole Kidman at BAFTA awards on Sunday. Also expected are Chicago-star Renee Zellweger, horse-faced Nicolas Cage and lippy beauty Angelina Jolie at the ceremony at London's Odeon Leicester Square cinema, according to a report in People News. The awards have become important indicators of who can expect Oscar glory. Gangs of New York and Chicago lead the BAFTA nominations with 12 each. The Hours lags slightly behind with 11.

Bets Placed on Wedding of Charles, Camilla (Go To Top)

          LONDON:  Bookie William Hill have revealed that bets have been placed on a 2004 wedding for Prince Charles and his lover Camilla Parker Bowles. According to People News, William Hill is offering odds of 16-1 that the couple will get married this year, 4-1 in 2003 and 7-4 a year later in 2004. The speculation comes after a Channel 4 News survey of 1,000 people showed that 40 per cent would support the match, provided Camilla does not become `Her Highness.'

Britney Takes a Swipe at Justin (Go To Top)

          WASHINGTON: Move over Justin Timberlake, it's now the turn of former girl friend Britney Spears to take centrestage. After he slagged her off in one of his songs, pop princess Britney has returned the favour. If Justin's hit 'Cry Me A River' hinted that Britney had cheated on him, then her new track 'ClubSong' suggests he used their break-up to boost publicity for his solo album 'Justified,' reports the Sun. She sings: "Playing me publicly, twisting the story, see, made it the talk of the town."

-ANI