Islamabad:
Pakistan has turned down the US plea for allowing US
and international inspectors to inspect its nuclear installations
and assets. This was one of the issues discussed by US secretary
of state, Colin Powell during his meeting with President
General Musharraf. Citing that the plea will be rejected
and disliked by the people and Opposition parties of the
country, the President rejected it, reports Online News.
General Musharraf also reportedly told Powell that Pakistan
has in place a comprehensive command and control system
for protection of its nuclear assets, and therefore, it
did not need U.S.assistance in this respect.
El
Baradei: Terrorists can go nuclear thanks to Khan (Go
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London:
Mohamed El Baradei, chief of the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA), has warned that terrorist networks
around the globe have the potential to go nuclear thanks
to the nuclear blackmarket promoted by Pakistan's top nuclear
scientist Dr. AQ Khan. "There's obviously a high level of
sophistication in the terrorist community. That heightens
the sense of concern that they (terrorists) might get their
hands on any nuclear device or nuclear material," El Baradei
was quoted as saying by the News en route to the IAEA headquarters
in Vienna after a trip to Washington. He was reacting to
questions relating to the impact of the 10 bomb blasts that
rocked the Spanish railway system last week, claiming the
lives of 202 people.
Daler
Mehndi to take Lahore, Karachi by storm (Go
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Lahore:
If there is any entertainer who can take Lahore by storm,
it is the Punjabi bhangra star Daler Mehdi. Mehndi flew
into Pakistan on Friday along with a 12-man troupe to perform
at a concert to raise funds for Imran Khan's Shaukat Khanum
Memorial Cancer Hospital (SKMCH) in Karachi and Lahore.
Bollywood artiste Pooja Bedi and the Ajoka Theatre Group's
performer, Samina Butt, also arrived here on the same flight,
reported the Daily Times. As soon as Mehdi came out of the
Allama Iqbal Airport lounge, the media made a beeline for
him in spite of the strict security surrounding him. Actors
Sohail Ahmed, Nawaz Anjum, Sakhawat Naz and Asif Iqbal received
the Indian pop star.
In
the evening, Mehndi flew to Karachi to perform in a fund-
raising concert on Saturday. On Monday, the famous singer
will perform in Lahore. Clad in an orange shirt, green turban
and charcoal grey trousers, Mehndi headed straight to the
Pearl Continental Hotel. Praising Lahore, Mehndi said: "It's
green. It's beautiful. The roads remind me of Dubai some
years ago. Lahore has become more beautiful since I last
visited." He further went on to say that Lahore had always
been an attraction for him as it was the birthplace of Guru
Nanak, the Sikh community's first spiritual head. "This
is my second visit to the city. So according to your famous
adage, today I have been born a second time," Mehdi quipped.
The Punjabi pop star said he travelled abroad frequently
"and you cannot imagine the kind of treatment I have to
put up with in some countries". He informed that he had
a whole line of new Punjabi songs up his sleeve. "Just wait
till I come to Lahore and perform. I will leave you good
memories in Lahore," he said. He praised Imran Khan and
the cause he is working for, the SKMCH. "I became a fan
of his when I was nothing and had heard about him. My friends
used to talk about him a lot. When I saw him I was impressed
and when I heard about his cause, I was bowled over. Otherwise
I am not into cricket at all," Mehndi said.
Iraqi
children to return after surgeries (Go
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Chennai:
Acclaimed Indian actor Kamal Hasan on Saturday met with
a group of Iraqi children, leaving for Baghdad after undergoing
life-saving heart surgeries in Chennai. Eighteen children
from the war-ravaged nation were treated free of cost at
an upmarket super-speciality hospital as a goodwill gesture.
Hasan said the children had crossed not just borders but
the barriers of faith itself. The Central government has
also sanctioned a grant of Rs 500,000 to the hospital, run
by renowned cardiac surgeon Dr Cherian, for its good work.
A year after U.S forces began their attack on Iraq, dethroning
Saddam Hussein, the impoverished nation is making a slow
progress towards normalcy. Analysts across the world have
severely criticized U.S entry into Iraq saying the move
was unjustified and has triggered a wave of Islamic militancy.
