Tax Exemption for Cricket Team

                  NEW DELHI: In a bid to encourage the Indian Cricket team to play even better, finance minister Jaswant Singh on Sunday announced income tax exemption on the prize money earned by the heroes. In a statement, the finance minister said, "I congratulate the Indian team for exemplary performance against Pakistan yesterday. The prize money given to players, individually or as a team, will be exempt from income tax."

Fresh Lashkar Threats to Vajpayee, Advani

          RAWALPINDI: Terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba has issued a fresh threat to unleash a spate of suicide attacks in India and among the targets are Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his deputy LK Advani, reports Pakistan media. The Pakistani weekly, Friday Times, quoted LeT chief Hafeez Saeed's taped speech, played at a mosque in Rawalpindi, as saying "listen to (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee, we are about to unleash a spate of suicide attacks. I have ordered my warriors to undertake this duty."

           Lashkar also threatened Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani saying that his days were numbered, the weekly reported. To Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf Saeed said, "Listen to Musharraf! We shall not submit to you or your Government ... We will not allow you to besmirch the jihad ... " The speech did not spare even US ambassador to Pakistan Nancy Powell, saying, "We cannot tolerate unholy presence of Nancy Powell ... Pakistan should cleanse itself from her unholy existence."

Pak Bartered N-technology to North Korea for Missiles: US Experts (Go To Top)

          NEW DELHI: Pakistan is believed to have bartered away nuclear technology to North Korea as a "means of payment" for procuring Taepodong ballistic missiles, according to American experts and intelligence officials. "(US) Intelligence officials now believe that Pakistan decided to transfer nuclear technology as a means of payment. This barter proved a perfect match," John E Carbaugh Jr, a policy analyst, who advises the US administration and major US multinational firms, said in a recent paper.

          Carbaugh said there were indications that Islamabad had originally agreed to pay for the ballistic missiles in cash. "But missiles are expensive; by the time they were delivered by North Korea in the spring of 1996, Pakistan's economic situation had deteriorated badly. It was dependent on bailouts by the International Monetary Fund". This led Islamabad to offer nuclear technology as barter for the missiles, he said.

           Regarding Pakistan's missile programme, Aura Kampani, a senior research associate at Monterey Institute's Centre of Non-proliferation Studies said the history of missile development in any country showed that the process took one or two decades, but Pakistan tested its missiles "all of a sudden". Kampani said "Pakistan is probably one of the only cases where it has no history of testing or development and all of a sudden it displays a fully-developed ballistic missile.

One Killed as Cricket Fans Turn Violent (Go To Top)

          AHMEDABAD: A Muslim youth died in Gujarat after police opened fire on Hindu and Muslim cricket fans who clashed over India's World Cup triumph against rival Pakistan, police said on Sunday. The 18-year-old died overnight after police fired to disperse dozens of Hindu and Muslim fans hurling stones at each other late on Saturday in Ahmedabad which saw religious riots a year ago.

           Ramnaresh Gupta, an anti-riots Rapid Action Force personnel, said the situation was under control. "As of now the situation is peaceful. We have moved in one company of 100. At night when the India-Pakistan match was going on, there were celebrations which led to some riots. But the Rapid Action Force moved in quickly," said Gupta. Ejaj Sheikh, an eyewitness, said: "When Dravid (Indian wicket keeper Rahul Dravid) was playing, everyone got excited and came to know that India would win. Celebrations also started subsequently. But some people started teasing 2-3 men of the other community which led to clashes. But now everything is peaceful."

Iraq Begins Destroying Six More Missiles (Go To Top)

          BAGHDAD: Iraq began Sunday to destroy six more banned Al-Samoud 2 missiles under the supervision of the United Nations at a site close to Baghdad, sources said. Destruction of six missiles started at Al-Taji, a huge military complex, some 20 km north of Baghdad, Iraqi and UN sources said.

US in 'Dirty Tricks' Battle to Win Vote on Iraq War: Report (Go To Top)

          LONDON: The US is waging a secret dirty tricks campaign targeting UN Security Council delegations in New York in its battle to win votes in favour of war against Iraq, a press report said on Sunday. A weekly has obtained a document providing details of a surveillance operation, which involves interception of the home and office telephones and the e-mails of UN delegates.

          The paper said the disclosures were made in a memorandum written by a top official at the National Security Agency (NSA), the US body, which intercepts communications around the world, and circulated to senior agents in his organisation and to a friendly foreign intelligence agency.

Pope to Send Peace Envoy to Bush (Go To Top)

          VATICAN CITY: Pope John Paul will send a senior cardinal to Washington with a letter for President George Bush in a personal peace mission to try to avert an invasion of Iraq, reports Dawn. Cardinal Pio Laghi, a former ambassador to the United States and a personal friend of the Bush family, will leave in the next few days. "The cardinal ... will illustrate the position and the initiatives taken by the Holy See to contribute to disarmament and peace in the Middle East," the Vatican said on Saturday. Showing an energy that belies his 82 years, the Pope has become increasingly involved in diplomatic efforts to prevent a second Gulf war, which he has said would be a "defeat for humanity". In the past month he received a stream of foreign leaders, including British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

Ivanov, Kasuri Discuss Iraq (Go To Top)

          ISLAMABAD: Pakistani and Russian foreign ministers discussed the Iraqi crisis and bilateral ties on telephone and agreed to visit each other's country "in the near future", the foreign ministry said, reports Dawn. A ministry statement said on Saturday the talk lasted 40 minutes after Russian foreign minister Igor Ivanov telephoned Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri.

           "The two foreign ministers discussed bilateral relations and the latest developments with regard to the Iraqi crisis," it said. The talk was the first high-level contact between the two countries after President Pervez Musharraf's visit to Russia last month when the two countries agreed to develop cooperation in various fields. The foreign ministry statement said Ivanov spoke to Kasuri about the "Russian position with regard to the Iraqi situation" in the framework of a memorandum Russia had presented to the Security Council on Febrtuary 24 together with France and Germany for a peaceful settlement of the crisis.

Pakistan Hands Over Al Qaeda Mastermind to US (Go To Top)

          WASHINGTON: Suspected terrorist mastermind of Al Qaeda Khalid Shaikh Mohammad has been handed over to the US authorities by Pakistan. Khalid Sheikh Muhammad was said to be behind the September 11 attacks in the United States. "We have finally apprehended Khalid Sheikh Muhammad," presidential spokesman Rashid Qureshi was quoted as saying. "It was the work of Pakistani intelligence agencies ... It is a big achievement. He is the kingpin of Al Qaeda."

           Khalid, who is on the American FBI's most wanted list, was among three people arrested in Rawalpindi on Friday. The US officials regard Khalid as a key Al Qaeda lieutenant and organiser of the September 11 attacks in the US. Khalid, 37, has not been charged in the September 11 attacks, but accused of a 1995 terror plot. He is one of the FBI's most wanted terror suspects, and the US Government was offering up to 25 million dollars for information leading to his capture.

           Kuwait-born Khalid is the uncle of convicted 1993 World Trade Centre bombing conspirator Ramzi Yousef, a senior Kuwaiti official told reporters. An elder brother is a member of Osama Bin Laden's Al Qaeda terror network and another brother died in Pakistan when a bomb he was making exploded. The second man arrested in Rawalpindi was also of Middle Eastern origin but has not been identified. The third man who was arrested has been identified as Abdul Qadoos. A Pakistani. interior ministry spokesman Iftikar Ahmad said that Qadoos was linked to a terrorist organisation, but he refused to identify it. He said that Qadoos had received training in Afghanistan.

No Pak Leader Can Afford to Ignore Kashmir Issue: Musharraf (Go To Top)

          NEW DELHI: No Pakistani leader can afford the risk of ignoring Kashmir issue and one who does will be ousted from the country, said Pakistan President Gen Pervez Musharraf on Sunday. He said there could never be a dialogue between India and Pakistan without Kashmir being the core issue. "Kashmir is, therfore, a compulsion in any bilateral talks between the two countries."

           In an interview with Aaj Tak, Pakistan President denied the involvement of Pakistan in sponsoring cross-border terrorism in Kashmir. According to him, people in Kashmir are fighting for freedom. He admitted that Kashmir under Simla agreement is an issue and expressed his readiness to initiate dialogue with the Indian Prime Minister.

           He said that Kashmir has a special place in the hearts of the people of Pakistan and it cannot be dislodged. Calling terrorism in Kashmir as a freedom struggle, he agreed that it can be resolved through a political solution. Musharraf blamed non-inclusion of Kashmir issue in the official draft as the reason for the failure of the Lahore declaration.

          Without denying the likely presence of terrorists in Pakistan who masterminded the attack on Indian Parliament, the Pakistan President reiterated that his Government will go all-out to nab them. But he rejected the list of terrorists given by India. He also refused to make any comment on Dawood Ibrahim's activities. Though Musharraf favoured disarming of Iraq, he said the call for war on Iraq was uncalled for.

Clinton Urges India Against Hindu-Muslim Polarization (Go To Top)

          NEW DELHI: Former US president Bill Clinton urged India not to polarize itself along religious lines if it wanted to be the "right kind" of world power. Clinton, in a speech broadcast to a New Delhi conference late on Saturday, said the Hindu-Muslim riots that left 2,000 dead last year in Gujarat were one of the saddest events since he left office in 2001. He urged India to sort out its communal problems as it headed to becoming a "giant" on the world stage. "To identify and categorize people based on faith will keep India from becoming the right kind of giant in the 21st century," Clinton said in remarks released by the conference's host, India Today magazine.

BJP Blames Himachal Defeat on Rebels (Go To Top)

          NEW DELHI: The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday attributed its defeat in the Assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh to rebellion within the party. The top leadership of the party met in New Delhi a day after the main Opposition Congress party wrested power from the BJP in a poll which is seen as a pointer to how the parties may fare in national elections.

           The victory was a comeback for the Congress which lost heavily in December to the Hindu nationalists in Gujarat, torn by communal riots. With five more States, including key Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, set to vote this year and national polls due in 2004, analysts had seen the vote in Himachal Pradesh, a small hill State of 6.1 million, as a barometer of the BJP's popularity.

           BJP general secretary Pramod Mahajan quoted Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee as saying that people were miffed with the internecine battles in the party. At least 16 rebel candidates from the BJP fought as independents, severely denting the party's prospects. "It appears that we have not been able to project a picture of unity in the elections, it has not been able to fight the elecitons as a one-unit force. If we had been together, we would have surely fared better," Mahajan told reporters after the meeting.

           The Congress won 40 seats in the 68-member Assembly, nine more than in the previous Assembly. The BJP took 16, down from 31. In the remote north-east, racked by separatist and tribal revolts, BJP won eight seats in Nagaland. Both the Nagaland People's Front (NPF) and BJP - major constituents of the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN) _ have expressed confidence to form the Government with support of smaller parties and independents as the State elected its first hung Assembly in 20 years. Mahajan said Vajpayee appreciated the party's new-found success in the north-east.

Pacino to Play AIDS Victim in TV Series (Go To Top)

          WASHINGTON: Hollywood legend Al Pacino is all set to play an AIDS victim in 'Angels in America', a television series to be screened on Channel 4 next year. According to a report in People News, the 62-year star of Heat and the Godfather will play a 1980s political power broker who contracts AIDS in the six-part series. Meryl Streep and Emma Thompson (who will play an angel) will also star in the 40-million pound production, directed by Mike Nichols of the Graduate fame. The series has been adapted from two Tony award-winning Broadway plays: Millennium Approaches - which also won the Pulitzer prize for drama - and Perestroika, written by Tony Kushner.

Carey to Star in 'Guys and Dolls' (Go To Top)

          WASHINGTON: After a not-so-glittering foray into Hollywood with her maiden movie 'Glitter', singer Mariah Carey is all set to star in several other crossover flicks. According to a report in People News, following the success of movie-musical Chicago, Carey has been approached by many producers to star in their projects. The singer is reportedly said to have agreed to star in the first of many such projects, a big screen remake of Guys and Dolls - a role reportedly offered to Nicole Kidman, who turned it down. "For Guys and Dolls they wanted someone who can really belt 'em out - a trained singer," said a source. The obvious choice was ursine action man Vin Diesel, slated to star alongside Maz in the forthcoming film. "Mariah is the most successful female singer of all time," the source clarified, "so she should make the grade." However, singing is not everybody's cup of tea as has been proved by pop stars like Britney Spears and Jennifer Lopez. Thus, it remains how Carey performs in 'Guys and Dolls.'

Pitt to Play Celebrity Chef (Go To Top)

          WASHINGTON: Hollywood star Brad Pitt is all set to enter the kitchen. According to Jamie Oliver, a movie adaptation of the series Jamie's Kitchen is set to star Brad Pitt as the mockney chopper himself. Oliver claims that Pitt has been approached to play the part of a celebrity chef mentoring a group of unemployed London youths. According to a report in People News, Pitt will be attempting to mould the 16 to 24-year olds into professional foodsmiths and responsible citizens. The remarkable revelations come after Oliver claims he was approached by Hollywood producers eager to buy the rights to Jamie's Kitchen. "We're contacting Brad Pitt to be Jamie Oliver," the producers told the chef's office.

          Vegetarian Pitt has expressed interest in the past in culinary cinematography. While the film has yet to materialise, he is rumoured to have signed to play Anthony Bourdain in an adaptation of the chef's best-seller, Kitchen Confidential.

-ANI

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