Leila Lopes of Angola is crowned Miss Universe

SAO PAULO: Newly crowned Miss Universe Leila Lopes hopes her victory will allow her to assist her native Angola further escape its history of war and impoverishment and said she plans to focus on combatting HIV around the globe.

Speaking in a timid voice early Tuesday shortly after taking the crown in South America’s largest city, the 25-year-old Lopes said that “as Miss Angola I’ve already done a lot to help my people.”

“I’ve worked with various social causes. I work with poor kids, I work in the fight against HIV. I work to protect the elderly and I have to do everything that my country needs,” she said. “I think now as Miss Universe I will be able to do much more.”

Responding to questions, Lopes said that she has never had cosmetic surgery of any kind and that her three tips for beauty were to get a lot of sleep, use sun block even when it’s not sunny and to drink lots of water. She said her smile was her best weapon in the competition.

Asked about racism in light of the fact that she’s one of the few blacks ever crowned Miss Universe, Lopes said that “any racist needs to seek help. It’s not normal in the 21st century to think in that way.”

Lopes is Angola’s first winner. She beat out 88 other competitors to win the title during the 60th anniversary of the world’s biggest beauty pageant. She replaces last year’s winner, Ximena Navarrete of Mexico.

She deftly handled the interview question that is asked of the remaining top five contestants. She was questioned about what physical trait she would change if she could.

“Thank God I’m very satisfied with the way God created me and I wouldn’t change a thing,” Lopes said. “I consider myself a woman endowed with inner beauty. I have acquired many wonderful principles from my family and I intend to follow these for the rest of my life.”

The first runner-up was 23-year-old Olesia Stefanko of Ukraine and the second runner-up was Priscila Machado of Brazil. The third was Miss Philippines and the fourth Miss China.

Contestants spent the past three weeks in Sao Paulo, trying to learn samba dance steps, visiting impoverished children and kicking a football around for cameras as the Miss Universe pageant came to Brazil for the first time.

Despite battling against a home country favorite, Lopes won over the audience, speaking in the shared language of Portuguese. Angola, like Brazil, is a former Portuguese colony.

“She captivated the crowd and we were all behind her,” said Brazilian Natalie Bursztyn, 20, who was in the crowd inside Credicard Hall where the event took place. “It was great that the judges also saw what the fans saw and gave her the crown. Her dress was beautiful and she knew exactly what to say when they asked her the question about her looks.”

Another fan in the audience, Carolina Rocha, said Lopes’ win was “well deserved, we were cheering for her all along. Her smile and her friendliness was what set her apart from the others. She also answered her question very well, that likely helped her a lot.”

US broadcast journalist Connie Chung was one of the celebrity judges, and said before the competition that she was taking the contest seriously.

“I know my job and I’ll be tough, but fair,” Chung said. “You have to keep in mind that these women are not objects just to be looked at. They’re to be taken seriously. I want to choose somebody I take seriously and the world takes seriously, too.”

Paula Shugart, president of the Miss Universe organization, was hyped for the night.

“It’s our 60th anniversary, it’s a very big show,” she said. “We’re anticipating close to a billion viewers from around the world.”

Shugart said it was fitting the globe’s biggest beauty pageant be held in Brazil at this time, as the nation prepares to host some major events in the coming years.

“I don’t think there is any doubt in the rest of the world’s mind that Brazil is the place, between hosting the Olympics and hosting the World Cup,” she said. “I love the fact we’re going to kick it off. I always say we’re the ‘World Cup’ of beauty.”

The contestants must never have been married or had children and must be at least 18 years of age and under 27 years of age by Feb. 1 of the competition year.

The pageant, hosted by NBC “Today” anchor Natalie Morales and the Bravo network’s Andy Cohen, was broadcastr live on NBC and distributed to about 170 countries. The contest is co-owned by Donald Trump and NBC, and the celebrity judges included Chung and two prominent Brazilians, supermodel Isabeli Fontana and Indy race car driver Helio Castroneves.

Morales, who is half Brazilian, said that “what’s most important is for the women to be beautiful inside and out.”

For Cohen, the task of hosting was an easy one.

“It’s a fun job. All I have to do is stand there, smile and scream the names of countries,” he said.

Sharply dressed women and men jostled for chances to have their photos taken with stars on the red carpet. Some traveled from across the globe to support contestants.

Jehona Dreshaj, 17, arrived from Kosovo to cheer on her sister, Aferdita Dreshaj, who is representing the European country.

“It doesn’t really matter the outcome, she is already a winner in our eye and we are so proud of her,” she said. “This has been an incredible experience for her and for all of us. It’s great for her to be representing our country in an event like this”

There have been no headline-grabbing gaffes going into this year’s competition, as opposed to past years that have seen controversies of various stripes. The show itself went off without a hitch.

Some of the contestants have complained to the local news media about the size of bikinis used in some photo shoots, with Miss Mexico Karin Ontiveros saying they were “very small.”

That was enough to draw chuckles in Brazil, where women from all walks of life, not just beauty queens, sport barely there swimwear on beaches throughout the country.

Miss USA Alyssa Campanella, from California, failed to end a long losing spell for the US in the competition. An American has not been named Miss Universe since Brook Lee won the title in 1997.

The pageant started as a local bathing suit revue in Long Beach, California, organized by a swimwear company. 

Mausam’ withdrawn from Toronto film festival

TORONTO: Veteran Indian actor Pankaj Kapur’s eagerly awaited directorial debut “Mausam” was pulled from the Toronto film festival line-up on Tuesday, one day before it was to premiere.

Organizers said in a statement they were informed by the studio that the film had not received regulatory approvals in India in time to screen the film this week in Toronto.

“We ran into a delay getting approvals from the Indian Air Force and the Board of Film Certification in India,” producer Sheetal Talwar said.

The studio Eros International Media Limited had granted the Indian Air Force final approval on the film prior to clearing the Indian censor board in exchange for using its image.

Three screenings on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in Toronto as well as a press conference with world media were canceled at the last minute.

In the film, Kapur’s son Shahid plays an Indian Air Force pilot from the Punjab whose love for a woman from Kashmir (Sonam A. Kapoor) is thwarted by their differences – he is Hindi, she is Muslim.

Sangakkara seeks S Lanka win in 100th Test

COLOMBO: A hugely proud Kumar Sangakkara hopes Sri Lanka will celebrate his 100th Test appearance with a series-levelling victory over Australia in the final match in Colombo from Friday.

“It’s a great honour to have represented my country for a period of time, and also a great honour to play 100 Test matches,” Sangakkara told reporters ahead of his landmark match at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC).

“It’s not often that a player gets that opportunity and I’m very, very proud and also very privileged to be given the opportunity to represent my country and my people for so long.

“But the most important thing is to contribute as much as I can to the side winning games. It’s nice to participate, but you want to say to your team-mates and others that we are winners.

“That is what everyone wants, go out there and win matches. It’s what the whole team is chasing at the moment, to try to win and be the best.”

Sangakkara, who turns 34 next month, will be the fifth Sri Lankan to play a century of Tests after Muttiah Muralitharan (132 matches), Mahela Jayawardene (121), Chaminda Vaas (111) and Sanath Jayasuriya (110).

The elegant left-hander has provided substance and stature to Sri Lanka’s batting along with good friend Jayawardene since his debut against South Africa in Galle in 2000.

His 8,572 runs in 99 Tests at an average of 55.66 with 25 hundreds are second in his country’s all-time list, behind Jayawardene’s 9,801 runs from 121 matches.

Sangakkara said his goal was to compile 10,000 Test runs and score 30 centuries before he hung up his boots, but retirement is still far from his mind.

He could not have asked for a better venue than his favourite hunting ground at the SSC to mark his 100th Test and lead the team’s bid to draw the three-match series 1-1.

In the 18 Tests he had played at the SSC, Sangakkara has scored 1,864 runs at an awe-inspiring average of 74.56 with seven three-figure knocks, including three double centuries.

It was at the same venue that Sangakkara and Jayawardene recorded the highest partnership ever in Test cricket: 624 for the third wicket in 2006 against a South African attack that included Dale Steyn and Makhaya Ntini.

Sangakkara made 287, while Jayawardene smashed 374 before being bowled by Andre Nel agonisingly close to West Indian Brian Lara’s world record of 400 not out.

Sangakkara has scored centuries in each of his last three Tests at the SSC, including knocks of 219 and 42 not out against India last year.

But Sri Lanka have not won a Test since the retirement of world bowling record holder Muralitharan last year, losing three of the 10 played since then, but Sangakkara asked fans to be patient.

He also said the younger players in the team should be given an extended run to prove their worth at the highest level.

“They’ve got to be comfortable in the fact they are here because they are good enough and also they are going to be given a nice, long-lasting run to prove what they can do,” he said.

Sangakkara, who gave up the captaincy after the World Cup in April to concentrate on his batting, said his successor Tillakaratne Dilshan was working hard to improve the team’s fortunes.

But he felt a lot still depended on how the senior players performed.

“The results will come but the senior guys have to keep putting their hands up and keep performing, which will allow the newcomers to perform even better”, he said.

Pakistan thrash Maldives 4-0 in AFC U-16 opener

KARACHI: Pakistan teenagers got off to a great start in Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-16 Football Championship qualifying rounds as they thrashed Maldives 4-0 in the opening match at Ali Al Sabah Stadium, Kuwait City under lights on Tuesday.

Pakistan boys maintained their fine run after winning the SAFF U-16 Championship victory as they torn apart Maldives defence.

According to report received from Pakistan Football Federation (PFF), Pakistan took the lead after 13 minutes when Muhammad Bilal scored off a well-placed pass from star striker Mansoor Khan. Bilal’s shot hit the post and went in as Pakistan went 1-0 up.

Three minutes later, Mansoor got his name on the scoresheet when his well-placed shot just inside the box found the net as Maldives defence were in complete disarray.

At half-time, Pakistan looked comfortable 2-0. In 63rd minute, a Mansoor Khan cross found the head of Bilal, who flicked it on for impressive winger Sher Ali who finished with aplomb as Pakistan went 3-0 up and took the game well beyond the reach of Maldives. Midfielder Raza Ali then made it 4-0 when his 20 yard shot flew past the goalkeeper three minutes later as Pakistan ended the game with a dominating performance over their fellow SAFF rivals.

In other games of the group, Yemen was held 1-1 by UAE, Kuwait came from behind to draw Afghanistan 1-1 earlier in the day to avoid a humiliating loss. The results mean that Pakistan is currently on top in Group B with three points. Pakistan now faces hosts Kuwait in next game on Thursday.

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Beautiful Neelum Valley Of Azad Kashmir

It is a valley of fountains, springs, waterfalls, flowering trees and plants. Geographically too, it is a hospitable valley. The Neelum Valley, 90 miles long bow-shaped with majestic pine, fir and deodar trees, lies north-south of Muzaffarabad (capital). This ninety-mile long kingdom of vegetation is ripped apart by the indigoblue Neelum river which flows serpentinely down hills to merge itself into the river Jhelum at Domail. Domail, the confluence of two mighty rivers, presents highly fascinating scene of youthful embrace. This heart-warning spectacle is most soothing to the eye. The valley, starting from Muzaffarabad, the capital of Azad Kashmir, is about 150 miles long. It lies on both sides of the river Neelum. The geographical features enhance the natural beauty of the Valley. Its elevation, a mere 2,000 feet at the start, gradually rises till it attains a respectable height of 8,000 feet. On both sides there are high mountains and peaks. Nearly all the forest wealth of Azad Kashmir is to be found in this part of the State. There are two approaches to the valley. One from the Kaghan Valley which is linked with it at two points, the Nuri Nari Hali (Pass) and the Ratti Gali and many minor Passes. From Dawarian it takes two days for hiking or riding and night stay at Dharian at 12,000 feet. The second approach is from Muzaffarabad. It is a distance of 55 miles which is jeepable in fair weather. The Neelum meets the Jhelum river at Domali (meeting of the two) on the outskirts of Muzaffarabad city. From Paticka forest one reaches Nosari, 24 miles ahead of Muzaffarabad. Next come Chaliana (height 3,200 feet), Qazi Nag, Barian, Salkhela, Kundal Shahi, Athmaqam on this road. On a number of places, the local population has built rope crossings on the river. It is a very dangerous device and the very thought of crossing these points is horrible but thrilling. Tao Butt is an example of vegetational generosity of the liberal nature. The spot is donned with all delicacies and niceties. Nature flirts here with fantastic environment. The forest wealth abounds in the Neelum Valley. Deodar, pine, fir, wild walnut, strawberry and hosts of other high statured trees and other types of wild growth and herbs are the treasure of the valley. Besides being invaluable in economic terms, the variety of natural growth offers a captivating scenery. Shunder Hill tops are covered with green forests and the fields are lush green with crops

Mangla Dam, Ramkot Fort: Mirpur

District Mirpur is located at the extreme South of the State and is linked with Pakistan and the districts of Azad Kashmir through several routes. District Mirpur comprises party plain and party hilly areas. Its hot climate and other geographical conditions closely resemble to those of Jhelum and Gujrat, the adjoining districts of Pakistan. The people of this area are basically agriculturists. During the last four decades a large number of people from this district have gone aboard, especially to United Kingdom. Today they are the major foreign exchange earning resource for Pakistan. As it adjoins the industrial cities of Pakistan,  the Government of Azad Jammu & Kashmir has successfully endeavored to develop it as an industrial place and promote private investment for establishing Textile, vegetable ghee, garments, scooters, cosmetics and many other industries.

Mirpur:

Mirpur, the district headquarter is situated at an elevation of 459 meters A.S.L. It is linked with the main Peshawar-Karachi grand Trunk Road at Dina, a small town about 15kms short of Jhelum city. The construction of Mangla Dam converted the old Mirpur town into a big artificial lake and effected a population of about 50,000. But it paved the way for existing new Mirpur town situated on the bank of Mangla Lake. The city is well planned and buildings are mostly of modem design. Mirpur has developed into an industrial city very rapidly. All the basic amenities of life are available in Mirpur. Colleges, hospital, banks, shopping centers, hotels,telephone & telegraph units, forest, PWD, Industries and Tourist rest houses exist in the city. Bus and wagon transport services are also available.

Mangla:

Mangla is a small beautiful modern town. It is situated at a distance of 110Kms from Islamabad and is 15Kms short of Mirpur City. The construction of Mangla reservoir having perimeter of 100Kms and presence of Mangia and Ramkot Forset of Mughal period has turned this place into an attractive tourist spot. Mangia has special attraction for the tourists coming on short visits because of its proximity to Jhelum, Lahore and Rawalpindi/ Islamabad.

Ramkot Fort:

Picturesquely located on the summit of a hill, Ramkot Fort is built over the site of and old Hindu Shiva temple.3 sides of this hill top are surrounded by River Jhelum (ancient “Vitasta”). Excavations relics of the 5^th and 9^th century AD have been discovered near one of the temples. In the 16^th 17^th century AD “the Muslim rulers of Kashmir while safe guarding their boundaries built numerous forts. Ramkot , sitting atop at the confluence of the river Jhelum & Poonch is one of them. The sikh Maharaja of Kashmir further fortified Ramkot. Ramkot Fort is located on the opposite side of the Mirpur Town and one has to cross Mangia Lake one boat to reach there. A 10 minutes travel by road from Mirpur leads to Sukhian and nearby Arm water Sports Club from where boats are available for access to Ramkot Fort. It takes 45minutes to reach there.

Shrines in MIRPUR

Hazrat Pir Shah Ghazi (RA)

The mausoleum of Pir-e- Shah Ghazi is the glory of District Mirpur. The holy shrine of the saint is situated at Khari Sharif, a town 8 km away from Mirpur.

Hazrat Pir Shah Ghazi was amongst the famous saints of 12′ century. He belonged to Qadri Mystical school of thought. His miracle of disappearing and re-emerging in a river earned him a great deal of recognition among his devotees and established his stature as a mystical figure. Due to his sanctity, piety and learning. The number of his followers swelled tothousands. His personality has been elaborated in great detail by his able Pupil. Sufi Scholar Mian Muhammad Buksh in his work “Tazkar-e­Muakeemi” the biography of Pir-e-Shah Ghazi.

His annual URS is celebrated on 13 and 14 Shaban every year. Hundreds and thousands people come from all over the country to have spiritual satisfaction.

Hazrat Mian Muhammad Buksh (RA) Khari Sharif

The shrine of the saint is situated at Khari Sharif near the Mausoleum of Hazrat Pir-e-Shah Ghazi. Hazrat was born in 1426(AH), the year 1826. He was instinctively interested in poetry and mysticism from his early age. On attaining youth, he set oull embarked on an extensive tour of Kashmir during which he visited almost all the shrines of noteworthy saints and sufis. His rnaster piece poetic work, “Saif-ul- Malook” attained enormous popularity in religious circles, which resulted in the translation of the master piece/creative work into other languages also. His writings and lofty ideas carry great deal of serenity and soft tone which make them sole piece of admiration, The master piece enjoys significant stature in the Punjabi literature, Mian sahib had written seventeen books in total of which “Hidayat-al-Muslameen” endorses I validates his stature as religious scholar of Hadiths and shows his profound insight into history, Besides being a Sufi saint, Hazrat was also fiery poet and lover of the Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (PB), He left I departed for the Heavenly abode in 1907, His annual URS is held on 6th and 7^th of Zillhajj of Islamic year.

Moreover, the Shrines of Pir Shahab Gonoi Bin Sain Dudyal, Bathak Manjwari, Hazart Jhula Bahi, Darbar Shari, are also present in district Mirpur.

Salman Khan to be treated for nerve disorder

MUMBAI: Actor Salman Khan is heading out to the US next week to treat a nerve disorder he was diagnosed with earlier this month.

Khan, 45, whose ‘Bodyguard’ opens in cinemas next week, will be in the US for treatment after the film's release.

"It's a non-surgical procedure and doctors have told I'll be back to work within four days," Khan told.

The actor had been suffering from pain in his jaw and the condition was recently diagnosed as trigeminal neuralgia.

"It's been happening for the past 4-5 years and just got diagnosed this month," Khan told.

Khan is known for his box-office dominance over the Eid weekend. His biggest hits in the last few years have come during this period, with ‘Dabanng’ being 2010’s blockbuster.

Khan is also scheduled to do a number of big-ticket films, including ‘Ek Tha Tiger’ with Katrina Kaif. With the success of ‘Ready’ in June, he cemented his place as a star who can pretty much guarantee box-office success with his charisma. (Reuters) 

'One Day' feel like it lasts years and years

LOS ANGELES: Vague approximation of a guy meets sketchy notion of an intelligent woman, and then they spend two decades circling each other for no apparent reason. It's not exactly "boy meets girl," but that's the best that the new romance "One Day," based on a best-selling novel that I have not read, has to offer.

Author David Nicholls may have made these characters more substantial on the page, but in the big-screen adaptation (which he wrote), the leads are so lightweight and barely-there that a stiff breeze in the projection booth could make them disappear entirely.

And since the whole movie is about the two of them and whether or not they ever get together, that's kind of a problem.

On July 15, 1988, Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter (Jim Sturgess) hook up at the end of a drunken night celebrating their graduation from college. (Sorry, university: They're supposed to be from the UK, although if you didn't get that from Hathaway's vague accent, you're not alone.)

What's supposed to be a booty call gets terribly awkward -- she puts Tracy Chapman's "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution" on as mood music, he gets dressed to leave while she's prepping in the bathroom -- and then leads to what will become a lifelong friendship.

And so, we check in with these two every July 15 and observe the passage of time and the ups and downs of their lives.

Emma spins her wheels waiting tables at a Mexican restaurant and dating an untalented would-be stand-up comic (Rafe Spall), while Dex becomes a D-bag television personality and all-around shallow jerk. (One of the laziest tropes in contemporary fiction is to make one of your characters become famous, and "One Day" does it twice, as Emma eventually blossoms into a successful author of young-adult fiction, complete with Audrey Hepburn-esque makeover.)

Along the way, characters die, relationships begin and fall apart, but Emma and Dex somehow stay close and keep their unrequited love burning between them. But why, exactly?

"One Day" never bothers to spell out for us just who these people are, what they want, or why they do what they do. So it's next to impossible to get revved up about their feelings for each other, except for the fact that Emma and Dex are the principal characters, and they're being played by attractive, charismatic performers.

Nicholls' wafer-thin screenplay eventually beats down both Hathaway and Sturgess, who try desperately to give this couple something approximating depth.

And the whole same-time-next-year business -- which must have worked on the page, since the novel was huge with the book-club set -- winds up feeling gimmicky and pointless.

Jumping through the turn of the 21st century was no doubt lots of fun for the hair and wardrobe department -- Hathaway spends the first chunk of the film being frumped up with unflattering glasses and outfits, but Sturgess goes from posh preppy to '90s fashion victim, sporting an array of looks you'd prayed would never return.

(If only any of Sturgess' lines had been as interesting as his hairdos.)

The music supervisor had a bit of a lark as well, throwing in Clinton-era jams from the likes of Fatboy Slim and Del Amitri, with some Robbie Williams karaoke thrown in once the film makes it to the 2000s.

But there's only so much fun to be had with "Jurassic Park" references, denim vests, and "Sowing the Seeds of Love."

Rather than tell a story that would organically elicit certain emotions, it feels like Nicholls and director Lone Scherfig ("An Education") want us to yearn wistfully here and tear up there, and then they set out to create moments that would hit those marks. So we're left with a plot that feels forced (and subsequently predictable) being acted out by ciphers.

Patricia Clarkson, as Dex's mother, shines brightest among the cast, even though she's saddled with a thankless role that's all wise advice and the stoic avoidance of tears in a time of crisis. She's taken the pudding cup the movie gives her and somehow transforms it into chocolate mousse.

The people behind "One Day" no doubt thought that the passing of the years within the story would be a potent reminder of how life slips right by us, but the more likely response is along the lines of, "Ugh, it's only 2008? Is this movie ever going to be over?" (Reute

Rehman dosen't mind Zulfiqar Mirza's statements

ISLAMABAD: Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik Sunday said Senior Sindh Minister Dr. Zulfiqar Mirza was (just like) his younger brother and that he did not mind the latter's statements, Geo News reported.

In his reaction to Dr. Zulfiqar Mirza's tirade against him and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Rehman Malik said Dr. Mirza issued the statements against him in a state of anger and "I don't mind this kind of statements".

He said the crack down in Karachi was being carried out only against criminals who are enemies of innocent people. Not a single innocent would be harmed, he added. 

Karachi violence: Zulfiqar Mirza resigns, levels serious allegations against MQM

KARACHI: Senior Pakistan People's Party leader Dr Zulfiqar Mirza has announced to resign from all party/government posts, Geo News reported Sunday.

Addressing the news folk at Karachi Press Club, he accused Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik of siding with the killers, misleading the party leadership, and contorting facts. He declared him an enemy of the state and a compulsive liar.

Malik is a compulsive liar and responsible for Karachi bloodshed, Mirza said, adding Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) doesn't have a real mandate in Karachi or Hyderabad, they extort votes at gunpoint.

Levelling another very serious allegation against MQM Chief Altaf Hussain, he said: "During a meeting with Altaf Hussain in London he (Altaf Hussain) said the US wanted to disintegrate Pakistan and he and his party (MQM) would side with the US in their goal. Therefore, Altaf Hussain said he would kill the Pathans"

Dr. Zulfiqar Mirza went on to say: "Altaf Hussain wrote a letter to the then British Prime Minister Tony Blair asking him to bust ISI before it produces any more Osama Bin Ladens."

He asked as to what sin was committed by Wali Khan Babar, a Geo News reporter who was murdered in Karachi.

Mirza said five accused who were involved in the killing of Wali Khan Babar belonged to MQM and named one of them as Liaquat who, he said, was still at large. "Liaquat is the one whose car was used in the killing and he was the one who opened fire on Wali Khan Babqar."

"MQM is the killer of Wali Khan Babar," he reiterated.

He said MQM had held hostage all industrialists, businessmen and shopkeepers of Karachi.

Dr. Mirza also alleged that the present CPLC Chief Ahmed Chinoy holds an important position in Khidmat-e-Khalq Foundation (KKF) which is a welfare wing of MQM.

Before starting the press conference he swore on the Holy Quran to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.

Praising ISI and Pakistan Army Mirza said Pakistan's existence is due to the sacrifices of our security forces.

Senior provincial minister, Works & Services Dr Zulfiqar Mirza is the Vice President of PPP Sindh and also a Central Executive Committee member besides a close aide of President Asif Zardari. He was elected from Sindh Assembly seat PS-57 Badin I.

Pledging at the beginning he requested reporters to take him seriously for the first and the last time. He arrived at the Karachi Press Club at 4:20pm. The best decision of my life is to marry Dr Fehmeda Mirza, he said.

Mirza noted that he has never bend the laws and he follows the principles of Shaheed Zulfiar Ali Bhutto. Allah Almighty through Mohrarma Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari blessed me with all that I own.

He added that I see eye to eye with my party. I'm a party worker and will always be that way. I am a Sindhi and proud of it, he added. He vowed never to bow down to cruelty.

Mirza said if anything happens to me then killers of Imran Farooq and Wali Baber would be responsible.

Mirza's press conference ended at 6:15 pm which started around 4:25 pm.

Dr. Mirza also alleged that the present CPLC Chief Ahmed Chinoy holds an important position in Khidmat-e-Khalq Foundation (KKF) which is a welfare wing of MQM. 

Ferry sinks in Indonesia, leaving at least 10 dead

JAKARTA: An overcrowded ferry has sunk in eastern Indonesia, killing at least 10 people.

Reppind, a search-and-rescue official in Kolaka town, says that so far, 93 people have been safely rescued from the passenger ship, which went down in waters off Sulawesi Island just after midnight. Others are feared missing, but it’s not clear how many.

Mr. Reppind said Saturday that many of those on board the Windu Karsa were heading home to celebrate the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. 

President rejects allegations against Buland Rana

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has rejected the accusations against proposed officer for the post of Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP), Akhtar Buland Rana Saturday, Geo News reported. The president has responded to the letter written by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry.

The new Auditor General will take oath today in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

The CJP was asked to take oath from Buland Rana as new AGP by the president on the advice of Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani.

The CJP wrote a letter to President Zardari leveling serious charges against Rana regarding his character and antecedent.

Sources told Geo News that the president has written back to chief justice, saying that Rana is appropriate for the post and accusations against him were never proven right. He is the senior most officer of the audit department and according to service rules, his dual nationality can not be considered a hamper while the accusation of holding fake national identity card was also proved wrong.

President Zardari also rejected the sexual harassment allegation against Rana saying that the investigation into the matter proved it false.

While accepting the president’s response, the chief justice has decided to hold the oath taking ceremony today (Saturday) afternoon and the relevant officers have also been informed about the decision.

Sallu’s pretty face in big pain

MUMBAI: Bollywood star Salman Khan is suffering from trigeminal neuralgia, a facial nerve disorder. For the first time, he reveals that he is going through “the worst pain on the planet.”

“I am suffering from trigeminal neuralgia, a facial nerve problem I have had since the last seven years. But now, it’s getting worse” says the 45-year-old, who had to undergo an angiography (medical imaging technique used to visualise the body from within) last month.

Even though he’s been suffering since long, Khan has never let that hamper his professional commitments. He is busy promoting his forthcoming film, Bodyguard, in full swing. “I’m doing fine. It’s just that now, I had no choice but to pay attention to my health” Salman said. 

'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark'

LOS ANGELES: It's the thing you don't see that's always the scariest part of a horror movie. And it's those places you can't see as a kid -- underneath the bed, inside the closet, up in the attic -- where the horrible child-eating monsters are always waiting to get you.

Put those things together, and you've got "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," a goosebump-y haunted-house flick where the floorboards and the mattresses and the big old furnace in the basement really are hiding something deadly.

A remake of a fairly-effective TV movie from 1973 -- the monsters were cheap, but the suspense was smartly ratcheted -- the new "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" was directed by first-timer Troy Nixey, although you'd be forgiven for thinking it's a new movie from Guillermo del Toro, whose name gets the most prominent placement on the posters and in the advertising.

Even if del Toro didn't yell "Action!" and "Cut!" the movie bears his imprint, from his fascination with scary stories told from a child's point-of-view ("The Devil's Backbone") to the elegantly grotesque creatures (which bear more than a resemblance to the creepy-crawlies from "Pan's Labyrinth").

The child in question this time around is Sally (Bailee Madison), an unhappy young girl being shuttled from her unstable mother to go and live with her father Alex (Guy Pearce), who's in the process of restoring a gorgeous old mansion with the help of his girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes).

Kim does her best to get close to Sally, particularly since the work-obsessed Alex doesn't pay much attention to her, but Sally resists. And while exploring one day, Sally finds a sealed-off room that Alex opens up over the warnings of Harris (Jack Thompson), the house's longtime caretaker.

And you can pretty much imagine what happens from there -- beasties get loose, Sally hears and eventually sees them, no one believes her. But Nixey (working from a script by Del Toro and Matthew Robbins) cranks up the suspense with each appearance of the creatures; as "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" progresses, we learn more and more about just what these terrifying imps have in mind, and why we should grip our armrest when we see them make off with a pair of scissors.

Strong performances anchor the film. In movies like "Bridge to Terabithia" and "Brothers," and even in the ludicrous "Just Go With It," Madison has proven herself to be an expert at tween gravitas, and she nails Sally's fear and hopelessness throughout.

Even Holmes gets the pitch of the film just right, juggling her initial skepticism about monsters in the house with having stepmom duties suddenly thrown at her. If Pearce registers less than his two co-stars, it's because the character he's playing is so inert that he can't avoid slipping into the background.

If there's one big flaw with "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," it's that in 2011, there's only so long that we can watch movie characters face the perils of a haunted house without thinking,

"GET OUT ALREADY!"

Long after it should be thoroughly obvious to even the most hardened skeptic that something very unnatural is going on in that old mansion, Alex insists that they stick around, and there aren't enough plot demands to make his stubbornness ring true.

(As clunky as "The Haunting in Connecticut" was, at least the script made it clear that the family couldn't afford to move.)

But if you're a fan of Guillermo del Toro's baroque brand of horror -- there's a disturbing mural here that would fit perfectly into almost any of the Mexican filmmaker's movies -- you'll find plenty of fun scares and popcorn-box-twisting tension. (Reuters) 

Hurricane Irene to hit North Carolina today

NEW YORK: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Friday ordered an unprecedented mass evacuation and the closure of the subway as millions of Americans along the east coast battened down for Hurricane Irene.

US President Barack Obama cut short his summer vacation and urged Americans in the path of the storm to take immediate action, saying "all indications point to this being a historic hurricane."

The Category Two hurricane, packing winds of 100 miles (160 kilometers) per hour, was set to slam into the coast of North Carolina on Saturday before churning up the eastern seaboard towards Washington, New York and Boston.

The densely populated corridor, home to more than 65 million people, was under the threat of flooding, storm surges, power outages and destruction that experts said could cost up to $12 billion.

Bloomberg told a news conference he had ordered the first-ever mass evacuations from low-lying areas across the densely populated city that are home to some 250,000 people, calling it a "matter of life or death."

"We have never done a mandatory evacuation before, and we wouldn't be doing this now if we didn't think the storm had the potential to be very serious," Bloomberg said.

Authorities had earlier announced that New York's massive transit system would begin to shut down midday Saturday in another rare move that could hinder transport into Monday's rush hour.

Heavy rains on ground already soaked from weeks of wet weather could worsen the risk of falling trees, and the wind-driven seawater could swell already high new moon tides, sending a storm surge up the Hudson river that could swamp lower Manhattan and the city's underground train system.

New York state meanwhile said major links into the city would be cut if winds exceeded 60 miles per hour, as predicted, and authorities called up 900 National Guard troops and 2,500 power workers to prepare for emergency repair work, the largest ever deployment.

Neighboring New Jersey on Thursday ordered 750,000 people out of the Cape May area.

At 5:00 pm (2100 GMT) Friday, Hurricane Irene was around 265 miles southwest of North Carolina, where tropical storm-force winds were already pummeling the coast, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

It said Irene had weakened slightly and would lose strength once it hit land on Saturday, but would remain a hurricane as it passed over or near the mid-Atlantic Saturday night before churning north towards Canada.

Irene's approach stirred painful memories of Hurricane Katrina, which smashed into the Gulf Coast in 2005, stranding thousands of people in New Orleans and overwhelming poorly-prepared local and federal authorities.

The popular North Carolina beach resort of Kill Devil Hills was a ghost town Friday, as forecasters predicted up to 15 inches (38 centimeters) of rain in some places and the first power outages were reported.

"We haven't seen a hurricane threat like this in quite a few decades," Chris Vaccaro, a spokesman from the National Weather Service, told AFP.

"This is going to be a very long weekend for the residents of the Mid-Atlantic and the northeast."

Irene will be accompanied by an "extremely dangerous" storm surge that could raise water levels by as much as 3.4 meters (11 feet), the NHC said.

"We're ordering all of our citizens off the coast," North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue said, noting that the state could not forcibly eject holdouts but would leave them "at the mercy of themselves and the storm."

Further north in Washington residents packed into supermarkets to stock up on emergency supplies, cleaning out shelves of bottled water and batteries.

And in City Island, a historic seafaring community in the Bronx, local boat owners scrambled to pull vessels out of the water. Some were forced to strip down equipment and sails, and leave the boats at their moorings in the water.

Hurricanes are rare in the northeastern United States -- the last major hurricane to hit New York was Gloria in 1985.

Obama has spoken with senior emergency officials and local authorities to coordinate federal help, but he warned people to take immediate precautions.

"If you are in the projected path of this hurricane, you have to take precautions now. Don't wait. Don't delay," he said.

The US military said up to 101,000 National Guard soldiers were available if needed and designated military bases in three states as staging areas.

Ships with the navy's Second Fleet sailed out of their home port in Virginia to ride out the storm at a safe distance, and aircraft cleared off the tarmac at air force bases in three states.

Chuck Watson, research director at Kinetic Analysis, which does computer modeling of predicted storm damage, estimated $11 or $12 billion from Irene in a "worst-case scenario." (AFP) 

Kate Winslet escapes fire at Branson holiday home

LONDON: British Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet was among the guests who escaped unhurt from a fire which swept through Richard Branson's Caribbean holiday retreat overnight.

Branson said the blaze was caused by a lightning strike on The Great House on Necker Island, and that the building was completely destroyed.

Branson, his wife Joan and son Sam were staying in a nearby property, but among those who fled the affected building were 35-year-old Winslet, her boyfriend and family, Branson's mother Eve and his daughter Holly.

"Around 20 people were in the house and they all managed to get out and they are all fine," Branson said in comments released to the British media.

"We had a really bad tropical storm with winds up to 90 miles per hour. A big lightning storm came around 4 a.m. and hit the house.

"My son Sam rushed to the house and helped get everyone out. Kate Winslet, her boyfriend and her family were there and Holly and some of her friends were also staying. My mother was there and they managed to get her out and she is fine."

He said his office was based in the main house, and that he had lost thousands of photographs in the fire.

Branson added that he planned to rebuild the property, which British media said had been expected to be the venue for the marriage later this year of Holly to fiance Fred Andrews.

Necker Island is part of the British Virgin Islands and is privately owned by Branson. (Reuters)

'One Day' feel like it lasts years and years

LOS ANGELES: Vague approximation of a guy meets sketchy notion of an intelligent woman, and then they spend two decades circling each other for no apparent reason. It's not exactly "boy meets girl," but that's the best that the new romance "One Day," based on a best-selling novel that I have not read, has to offer.

Author David Nicholls may have made these characters more substantial on the page, but in the big-screen adaptation (which he wrote), the leads are so lightweight and barely-there that a stiff breeze in the projection booth could make them disappear entirely.

And since the whole movie is about the two of them and whether or not they ever get together, that's kind of a problem.

On July 15, 1988, Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter (Jim Sturgess) hook up at the end of a drunken night celebrating their graduation from college. (Sorry, university: They're supposed to be from the UK, although if you didn't get that from Hathaway's vague accent, you're not alone.)

What's supposed to be a booty call gets terribly awkward -- she puts Tracy Chapman's "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution" on as mood music, he gets dressed to leave while she's prepping in the bathroom -- and then leads to what will become a lifelong friendship.

And so, we check in with these two every July 15 and observe the passage of time and the ups and downs of their lives.

Emma spins her wheels waiting tables at a Mexican restaurant and dating an untalented would-be stand-up comic (Rafe Spall), while Dex becomes a D-bag television personality and all-around shallow jerk. (One of the laziest tropes in contemporary fiction is to make one of your characters become famous, and "One Day" does it twice, as Emma eventually blossoms into a successful author of young-adult fiction, complete with Audrey Hepburn-esque makeover.)

Along the way, characters die, relationships begin and fall apart, but Emma and Dex somehow stay close and keep their unrequited love burning between them. But why, exactly?

"One Day" never bothers to spell out for us just who these people are, what they want, or why they do what they do. So it's next to impossible to get revved up about their feelings for each other, except for the fact that Emma and Dex are the principal characters, and they're being played by attractive, charismatic performers.

Nicholls' wafer-thin screenplay eventually beats down both Hathaway and Sturgess, who try desperately to give this couple something approximating depth.

And the whole same-time-next-year business -- which must have worked on the page, since the novel was huge with the book-club set -- winds up feeling gimmicky and pointless.

Jumping through the turn of the 21st century was no doubt lots of fun for the hair and wardrobe department -- Hathaway spends the first chunk of the film being frumped up with unflattering glasses and outfits, but Sturgess goes from posh preppy to '90s fashion victim, sporting an array of looks you'd prayed would never return.

(If only any of Sturgess' lines had been as interesting as his hairdos.)

The music supervisor had a bit of a lark as well, throwing in Clinton-era jams from the likes of Fatboy Slim and Del Amitri, with some Robbie Williams karaoke thrown in once the film makes it to the 2000s.

But there's only so much fun to be had with "Jurassic Park" references, denim vests, and "Sowing the Seeds of Love."

Rather than tell a story that would organically elicit certain emotions, it feels like Nicholls and director Lone Scherfig ("An Education") want us to yearn wistfully here and tear up there, and then they set out to create moments that would hit those marks. So we're left with a plot that feels forced (and subsequently predictable) being acted out by ciphers.

Patricia Clarkson, as Dex's mother, shines brightest among the cast, even though she's saddled with a thankless role that's all wise advice and the stoic avoidance of tears in a time of crisis. She's taken the pudding cup the movie gives her and somehow transforms it into chocolate mousse.

The people behind "One Day" no doubt thought that the passing of the years within the story would be a potent reminder of how life slips right by us, but the more likely response is along the lines of, "Ugh, it's only 2008? Is this movie ever going to be over?" (Reuters) 

This James Bond keeps his personal life undercover

If British actor Daniel Craig plays undercover agent 007 with elan, he is equally efficient at guarding his personal life as was evident when he tied the knot with Oscar winning actor Rachel Weisz, who starred inThe Mummy — an event the paparazzi couldn’t sniff out.

News of Craig’s wedding with Weisz last month surprised everyone. “It’s not about safeguarding; I don’t want to safeguard my personal life. I just don’t want to talk about it and after all you really can’t stop the paparazzi from knowing what they want to, can you?” said the 43-year-old James Bond actor.

In his almost two-decade long career, Craig has acted in two Bond movies — Quantum of Solace and Casino Royale. “I like working on all genres, but personally I am a huge fan of the action genre,” he said.

He is about to start working on the new Bond movie titled Bond 23, to be directed by Sam Mendes, but Craig is reluctant to reveal the details. “It is too early to talk about it but, yes, my next Bond movie is Bond 23 and the script is in really good shape. I’m very excited about it and I’m delighted that Sam is going to direct it.”

His new film Cowboys and Aliens, directed by Jon Favreau, released on July 29. Set in Arizona in 1873, the film is about a loner named Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) who awakens with no memory of his past and a mysterious shackle on his wrist. This is the first time that Daniel Craig has worked together with Harrison Ford of Indiana Jones. Craig praised his co-star and said: “It was a privilege to work with Ford. He’s a really nice, generous, funny man and he’s an actor who just wants to get it right.”

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Football: Pakistan beat India 1-0

Pakistan under-16 football team beat arch-rivals India 1-0 in the South Asian Football Federation Championship currently underway in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Striker Mansoor Khan starred for the team lobbing the ball into the net in the 20th minute off a long pass by captain Muneer Aftab, that ensured Pakistan’s young guns won the encounter.

The under-16 team adopted an attacking style right from the start of the match to overcome the Indian defence and the tactics worked beautifully with the winning goal. India tried their level best to equalise but were unable to break the deadlock handing Pakistan a winning start to the campaign

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Serena downs Bartoli for Stanford title

Former world number one Serena Williams surged past Marion Bartoli 7-5, 6-1 to win the WTA Stanford crown, her first title in more than a year, signalling her US Open intentions.

Williams, a 13-time Grand Slam champion who is battling to rebuild her ranking after an injury layoff of almost a year, claimed her first title since Wimbledon 2010.

“Coming back and hearing the claps when I walk out there are moments that I truly missed,” said Williams. “It’s so awesome to be back and to be a part of those moments. I don’t know if ‘star’ sounds full of myself but I’ve worked hard for that title.”

The American was twice down a break in the opening set but broke Bartoli as the French third-seed served for the set at 5-4. That launched a roll of eight straight games to the American as she pocketed the first set and took a 5-0 lead in the second.

After Bartoli held serve for 5-1, Williams served out the match after one hour and 22 minutes.

With the victory Williams avenged her fourth-round loss to Bartoli at Wimbledon and showed that even though her ranking had plummeted to 169, she could be a contender at the last Grand Slam of the year, the US Open that starts in New York on August 29.

“I haven’t thought about the US Open,” said the former world number one. “My confidence is better, which is what I was planning for. When I get there, I’m going to have the same chance as everybody else.”

www.dailytelegram.net

Pakistanis in N.Y. hold big Independence Day parade

NEW YORK, : A large number of Pakistanis from the  tri-state area—New York, New Jersey and Connecticut—joined a colourful parade on Sunday marking the 64th anniversary of Pakistan, pledging to do everything possible to support their homeland beset with several challenges. Under clear blue skies, men, women and children—mostly clad in national dresses—participated in this annual event in an unwavering show of enthusiasm and liveliness as they exchanged Independence Day greetings. Raising loud “Pakistan Zinda bad” slogans and waving the national flag, the people warmly cheered the parade as it moved along one of New York City’s main avenues, which was decorated with Pakistani and American flags.