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THE CONTACT WEEKLY NEWSPAPER ISSUE - 679, 9 - 15 AUGUST 2016 PH: (905) 671 - 4761

INTEL AGENCIES TRACK PAK-FUNDED HACKER

by Shashank Shekhar Pro-Pakistan hacker Afzal Faizal who breached the firewalls of more than a thousand Indian websites in the last two years has come under the scanner of Indian security agencies, five days after he claimed to have got access to the e-payment system of a nationalized bank.

Intel officials said earlier, Faizal restricted his hacking efforts to defacing random websites and teasing Indian techies, but has now stepped up to target websites of the Indian government and critical institution such as banks.

WAGING A CYBER WAR Cyber security experts went into tizzy when on August 2, Faizal claimed to have got access to E-payment gateway of nationalized bank. Officials, however, claim that no financial loss or data leak took place.

After the defacement, he also challenged Indian hackers to secure the Indian cyber space as Continued on Page 2

DAWOOD PLANNED A TERROR OUTFIT

by Arvind Ojha D-company was trying to trigger communal violence by killing Hindu-leaders and throwing

alcohol bottles at churches in India, reveals chargesheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the murder case

of two BJP leaders in Bharuch in Gujarat in 2015. Investigation also revealed that international terror module was trying to lure their recruits by offering handsome money and jobs in foreign countries.

NIA investigation shows that a new terror outfit was being planned by D-company and the conspiracy was hatched in Karachi and South Africa. They had asked its recruits in India to throw petrol bombs and indulge in arson in churches. The entire motive to kill Hindu leaders Continued on Page 2

Brides being used to fulfil foreign dreams Boat tragedies and foreign jails This is not an isolated case. have failed to dampen the spirits The commission has received of Punjabis, who continue to half-a-dozen such cases where adopt novel ways to fulfil their women have been subjected to foreign dreams.

The latest is to invest in a bride by sponsoring her education, IELTS test and foreign trip. The Punjab State Women Commission was shocked when it started receiving complaints of this nature.

In her complaint, Navpreet Kaur, a resident of Bathinda in Punjab, told the commission that she got married on September Paramjit Kaur, chairperson of 27, 2014, to a local man Punjab State Women's who wanted to marry a Commission woman with an IELTS certificate. When she failed to harassment by their in-laws go abroad, he allegedly started when they couldn’t qualify in the torturing her. She has now IELTS tests or get a student approached the Punjab State visa.

Women Commission for help.

Continued on Page 2

Issue - 679 (2)

9 - 15 August 2016

BRIDES BEING USED... Intel agencies track Pak-funded...

Continued from Page 1 “The boys in Punjab, Malwa belt in particular, are not as educated as the girls. The boys are either nouveau riche or belong to moneyed families. They approach a poor family whose daughter is brilliant, but not in a position to pursue higher studies.

“They sponsor her education and even the marriage expenses. She is sent abroad for studies to pave the way for a spouse visa. She is harassed if the dreams fail to take off at any stage,” says Paramjit Kaur Landran, chairperson of the Punjab State Women Commission.

Preeti Katoch, 23, who hails from Pathankot in Punjab, wants to pursue higher studies in microbiology. She knows several girls who come from remote areas. “Girls do IELTS for a plethora of reasons, and marrying an NRI is one of them. It has

become a trend to go abroad.

These are not marriage but business proposals,” she says.

The trend has resulted in the word IELTS being frequently used in matrimonial ads.

This has also led to the mushrooming of institutes all over Punjab which provide training in IELTS and groom women and men to earn the IELTS tag or a student visa.

According to an estimate, nearly 50,000 people get student visas in Punjab every year.

While a sizeable chunk of boys drop out of school in the middle, girls outnumber them in senior secondary classes and later pursue higher studies.

IELTS, though, has become a burden for Punjab’s educated women, who are being compelled to pass the test by their grooms to fulfil their foreign dreams.

Why some male frogs have sex on land

Continued from Page 1 he may target more such critical websites in the future.

Similarly, in June this year, he had hacked the websites of the Indian Embassy in up to seven countries and defaced them with proPakistan messages as a warning to India.

The hacked websites had an image of a person in a red and black hooded jacket, with a message: “Intruder Here. You got hacked”.

This included websites of Indian embassies in Dushanbe (Tajikistan), Bucharest (Romania), Athens (Greece), Ankara (Turkey), Mexico City, Sao Paolo and Pretoria. The hackers also left a message on the front page of the website that read, “Hey Indian Government, Don’t Mess with Us.” “Faizal and other members of ProPakistan hacking community have carried out some serious attacks recently. They have hacked several government websites in northeastern and southern states. They have also made a breakthrough in web security system of banks and educational institutions. They are mocking Indian web security at a time when country is pushing for digital India,” a senior officer of central security agency told Mail Today. He explained that all such

attempts are being seriously monitored and as most of these hackers are based out of India.

He added that they are being tracked and monitored online.

Experts believe that Faizal was also tracked in Dubai recently and may be routing his attacks from South-Asian countries, including Indonesia.

VULNERABILITIES NOT BEEN PATCHED YET Earlier, Pakistani hackers used to carry mass defacement but now they are more focused on targeting government websites.

Even state police websites are being defaced by Pakistani hackers where they post anti-India comments with an image of the Pakistan flag.

However, Indian hackers have taken on the mantle for retaliation and claim a similar large scale attacked will be launched against Pakistan. “He has created nuisance in Indian cyber world and we will destroy their web space,” said a hacker, requesting anonymity.

“We had tracked Faizal and even got his accounts blocked in past but now we are working on getting access to their critical establishment and will expose their security by hacking their

bank accounts and websites on August 15 and celebrate our Independence Day,” the hacker told Mail Today.

Cyber security experts say that attacks coming from Pakistan are alarming, but believe that it is the handiwork of young techies.

“These are nationalistic hacker groups and they flaunt each successful hack. But, the damage they could create should not be ignored. Each attack on government websites or banks should be treated seriously, which unfortunately is not being done at the moment.

Indian hackers have informed about several vulnerabilities in Indian banks, which have not been patched yet,” Kislay Chaudhary, a cyber security analyst and CEO of Indian Cyber Army said.

Another cyber crime expert, Deep Shankar believes that recent hack attempts are just warm up before Independence Day. “India and Pakistan’s Independence Days, which fall on August 15 and August 14 respectively, has seen mass defacement the past few years.

My analysis shows that Faizal is still carrying out random attack and they are not targeted,” he said.

Dawood planned a terror outfit

New York When it comes to sex, frogs can do it in water, on land and on leaves, but some male frogs have developed the preference for reproducing on land in order to keep competitors aways, new research suggests. It was earlier assumed that natural selection drove frogs to take the evolutionary step to reproduce on land as a way for parents to avoid aquatic predators who feed on the eggs and tadpoles. The new study, published in the journal American Naturalist, showed that some frogs hide eggs on land to reduce competition from other males who also want to fertilise those eggs. “We thought maybe it’s not just natural selection driving the adaptation to reproduce on land, maybe this is actually sexual selection,” said corresponding

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author Kelly Zamudio, Professor at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. In the study, researchers analysed data on reproductive modes for two families of frogs - Hylidae, or tree frogs, and Leptodactylidae, including about 900 species that are mostly found in Central and South America.

Frogs are known to have up to 40 reproductive modes, with new ones still being discovered.

Some species build hidden chambers on land or females lay eggs in folded leaves or in bromeliads, others lay eggs in water and move them or their tadpoles to land, and others get rid of the tadpole stage entirely.

The study sheds light on evolutionary forces that drive diversity. Also, the results give conservationists insights on habitats and species that may need more protection, Zamudio said. “More specialised reproduction modes, like the ones that are terrestrial, are less frequent, and typically, when species get threatened, because of climate change or habitat disturbance, the species that go first are the ones that are more specialised.

They have requirements above and beyond just having a pond,” Zamudio noted.

Continued from Page 1 and attack churches was to create communal tension. The central agency mentioned in the chargesheet against ten accused which was accessed by Aaj Tak. Former BJP president of Bharuch and senior RSS member Shirish Bangali and general secretary of Bharatiya Janta Yuva Morcha Pragnesh Mistry were shot dead in the district by two unidentified gunmen on November 2, 2015.

D-COMPANY NIA Chargesheet mentions that the conspiracy was to kill Hindu leaders allegedly involved in the 2002 Gujarat riots and who were perceived to be anti-Muslim.

The accused youths were lured with money and promise of foreign jobs and some of them were asked to kill Hindus in the name of Islam while others were asked to extort money using the name of ‘D gang’.

The D-Company, through Javed Chikna planned to target Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal leaders who were active in the Gujarat riots of 2002 and who are generally vocal and perceived to be anti-Muslims.

“As part of the plan, Javed Chikna (based in Pakistan) and another senior member of D-Company (based in South Africa) Zahid Miyan alias Jao contacted several of their men including Chikna’s brother Abid Patel and Yunus (also called Manjrao) and asked them to prepare a list of such leaders,” NIA mentioned.

A total of 12 accused were arrested in connection with the case and

were booked under relevant sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, IPC, Arms Act the Gujarat Police Act. The accused are: Abid Patel

(brother of Dawood’s close aide Javed Patel alias Chikna who is based in Pakistan), Saiyed Imran, Zuheb Ansari, Inayat Patel, Mohmad Yunus, Haider Ali, Nissarbhai Sheikh, Mohsin Khan Pathan, Mohmed Altaf Shaikh and Abdul Salim Ghanchi.

Mail Today had earlier reported that ISI has started using the DCompany’s men across the country to set up terror modules.

ISI is once again seeking the help of underworld to strike violence in the country.

TARGETS Funds are being transferred from abroad and local men are picked up by the underworld to target prominent people and places, which eventually can trigger communal violence across the nation.

A senior officer said, men of the D-gang have an easy access to local logistics.

They have reportedly made a hit list of political leaders and prominent people.

The underworld, according to security agencies, is also trying to trigger communal clashes by using the Babri and Godhra slogans.

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Issue - 679 (3)

9 - 15 August 2016

PARTIES FIGHT OVER JANATA DARBARS

By MANJEET SEHGAL Janata Darbars have caught the fancy of Punjab politicians these days.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, for instance, has started organising Sangat Darshan (Janata Darbar) in far-flung areas of the state to distribute funds and listen to people’s grievances.

But these events, organised by the CM, haven’t seen smooth sailing.

Controversies have arisen from the fact that Congress workers and MLAs were not allowed to attend.

An interesting detail about his Janata Darbars was that they were also organised in the constituencies of opposition MLAs to woo voters.

Taking a cue from him, Punjab Congress chief and former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh also launched ‘Lokan Da Darbar’.

Singh listened to the grievances of the people and told them to submit their complaints to his party workers, who in turn promised that this would be done as soon as the Congress formed its government in the state.

“Everybody knows what Badal does in his ‘Sangat Darshan’ programmes. He showers government funds on Akali Dal leaders. These programmes have become a source of wasting public money. People get no solution. I would assure them of a time-bound resolution by setting up a task force in the first 100 days of the Congress government,” said Singh, who started his Janata Darbar from Jalalabad, Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal’s constituency.

CM Badal’s reaction to the Captain’s barbs was equally scathing. He compared his ‘Lokan Da Darbars’ to imperial darbars.

He also slammed Singh for imitating him and said that during his tenure as chief minister, the Captain never bothered to meet the people and was engaging in a futile exercise to woo them.

“Captain (Amarinder) is a king who wants to attain power for enjoying it rather than serving the people. He is gifting false hope to the people as he indulges in selfglorification and bashes political rivals in

his programmes. He goes into hibernation after assuming power. The voters of his constituency (Amritsar), where he rarely pays a visit, can tell the truth,” said Badal senior.

The third politician who could not avoid the

arrogance, cannot listen to others or take questions from them”, he observed.

The Punjab Congress vice-president maintained that the Delhi CM has spent crores of rupees on the advertisement campaign ahead of his ‘Talk to Kejriwal’

lure of Janata Darbars is AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal.

He has so far organised community-based meetings and rallies in the state to woo various sections of voters.

He has also asked people to accept money in case it is offered by the rival parties and justified it by saying that it actually belongs to them.

The numerous Janata Darbars have resulted in a war of words between the Congress and the AAP. The Punjab Congress Committee ridiculed Delhi Chief Minister more as a personal monologue than a public dialogue.

“Captain Amarinder allows the public to speak and ask questions instead of making self-promotional monologues.”

Citing massive support for the Captain, Rana alleged that Kejriwal had been trying to copy the Congress model but failed miserably on that front.

“Kejriwal, given his self-righteous

programme, that virtually ended up in ‘Listen to Kejriwal’.

Taking a dig at Kejriwal, he reminded how these advertisements were circulated more in Punjab newspapers than in Delhi, where he is and should be answerable to the public about what he has done during the past one-and-a-half years.

The AAP, in return, has accused the Captain of arm twisting his party to fulfil his ambition to become a chief minister.

AAP leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira said that a careful perusal of the Captain’s political innings confirmed that he only believed in

Few things you need to know about ‘Iron Lady’ Irom Sharmila Irom Sharmila is on Tuesday expected to end her 16-year hunger strike against alleged army atrocities. Her decision to call off the protest and join politics has invited death threats. Many supporters and some family members want her to continue the fast. As Sharmila embarks on a new journey, here is a look at girl from a small Manipur village who took on the Indian state: 1) Often called the Iron lady of Manipur, Irom Sharmila is the youngest of nine siblings. She wanted to be a doctor but chose to be a rights activist to wage war against the armed forces special powers act (Afspa) that allegedly gives soldiers the “licence to kill”.

2) Sharmila was born in 1972 and was 28 when she began her fast on November 4, 2000, two days after Assam Rifles personnel gunned down 10 people, including teenage students on way to tuition classes, at Malom near Manipur capital Imphal.

3) She has since become the face of the anti-Afspa movement in Manipur and elsewhere in the country, easily recognisable from her free-flowing curly hair and a feeding tube stuck to her nose.

4) Sharmila has been in the custody of

Imphal’s Sajiwa Central Jail but spends her time in the city’s Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences. At least 40 persons, including five doctors, 12 nurses and three policewomen, ensure she gets her injections of nutrients through the nasal tube.

5) After her first arrest in 2000, Sharmila has

been released and rearrested several times for attempt to commit suicide, which is still a crime. The Rajya Sabha on Monday passed a bill that decriminalises suicide bid.

The bill will now go to the Lok Sabha.

6) Sharmila is an author and poet in her native Meiteilon language. Among her literary works is Fragrance of Peace – a collection of 12 poems of “passion, protest and hope” that she wrote before starting the marathon fast.

victory and could never play the role of an effective Opposition leader.

“After leading the Congress to a debacle in 2007 and 2012, the Captain went into wilful political exile and was unable to face the wrath of the current Badal government.

His complete absence from the Vidhan Sabha as a legislator from Patiala (2007-14) and zero performance as deputy leader in the Lok Sabha from 2014 onwards, also substantiate our allegations that he is a non-performer, non-serious and a failed leader,” said Khaira.

The AAP said that the Captain has defended himself and family members in various corruption cases, by paying hefty fees to high-profile lawyers in the High Court and the Supreme Court, but never bothered about the party workers who were facing as many as 50,000 cases.

“Amarinder Singh and his party will lose the 2017 assembly elections in Punjab like the two humiliating defeats in 2007 and 2012. But will he make a commitment to the people of Punjab that he will not run away from active politics and will perform his duty as an Opposition leader? Because, as stated earlier, the Captain is in the habit of cooling his heels either in cozy places of Himachal Pradesh, or safe overseas havens like Dubai and London, after his party suffers defeat,” alleged Khaira.

Janata Darbars are an important way to attract voters.

While the ruling Akali Dal openly uses these gatherings to influence people by offering on-the-spot ‘solutions’, the AAP and the Congress are feasting on those who return empty-handed from Badal’s ‘Sangat Darshans’.

Issue - 679 (4)

9 - 15 August 2016

Holy Cow! Under politic--al pressure, India’s prime minister Narendra Modi broke his silence on “Gau Rakshaks” (cow protectors) after four Dalits (low-caste “untouchables”) in Gujarat were brutally beaten by vigilante Gau Rakshaks for allegedly killing a cow which later investigations revealed to have been killed by a lion. At a town-hall meeting on Saturday, Modi said: “I get so angry at those who are into the GauRakshak business. A Gau-Bhakt (cow devotee) is different, Gau Seva (cow protection) is different. I have seen that some people are into crimes all night and wear the garb of Gau Rakshaks in the day. 70-80% will be those who indulge in anti-social activities and try to hide their sins by pretending to be Gau Rakshaks.

If they are true protectors, they should realize that most cows die because of plastic, not slaughter. They should stop cows from eating plastic.”

Eating of cows has been forbidden by Hinduism for three millennia, but in the

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current generational Crisis era the question of protecting cows has become heavily tied into Hindutva or Hindu nationalism - which sometimes is used to excuse violence towards Muslims, Christians and Dalits. Although Modi and his ruling Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) party have not supported or praised these attacks, they haven’t spoken out against them either until Modi’s statement on Saturday. It’s possible that there may be a backlash in the days ahead from the extreme nationalist members of his own party.

Pawan Pandit, who is chairman of one gau rakshak group, the Bhartiya Gau Raksha Dal (BGRD), defends his movement: “We are not anti-Muslim or anti-Dalit. We are a fraternity which wants to save the cow because she is our mother ... because that is what my religion, my parents, my holy book, taught me. ... “Forget that cow slaughter hurts our sensibility, forget that our holy book considers slaughter of cow as the biggest crime, forget that we are a majority ... at least, look at the cow as the biggest source of economy for rural India. And look at the scientific reasons, the benefits of using its products - be it milk, urine or cow dung. I am not the one saying all this. International research claims so. America, in fact, has patented a cow urine drug.”

As far as I can say, there’s a parallel here between India and Pakistan. In India, Hindu nationalists can get somebody killed by falsely accusing him of defiling a cow while in Pakistan, Muslim nationalists can get somebody killed by falsely accusing him of defiling the Koran.

History of cow protection in India and Hinduism The origins of the veneration of the cow in Hinduism can be traced back almost three millennia to India’s Vedic period.

With the rise of the ideal of ahimsa (“noninjury”), the absence of the desire to harm living creatures, the cow came to symbolize a life of nonviolent generosity.

In addition, because her products supplied nourishment, the cow was associated with motherhood and Mother Earth. During the Medieval era, especially when the Muslim Mughal Empire was in the power, there was always tension between Muslims who consider pigs to be unclean and Hindus who consider cows to be venerated. This led to tensions during Generational Awakening eras and sometimes led to wars during Generational Crisis eras.

In the 1850s, veneration of cows became a major trigger in the extremely bloody Generational Crisis war, the 1857 Indian Rebellion, also called India’s First War of Independence from the British colonial power. In the 1850s, the British East India Company, that was governing India, introduced a new sort of ammunition for a

new model of the Enfield rifle. To be SUNNY BAINS loaded, this cartridge had to be torn open so that the powder it contained could be poured down named Veer Savarkar from Maharashtra the barrel of the muzzle-loading gun, and whose book “The Indian War Of because the soldier’s hands were full, this Independence-1857” was published in was done with the teeth. Then the bullet 1909 and contained descriptions like the had to be rammed down the rifled barrel. following: “England seized the innocent To facilitate its passage, the cartridges Hindu villagers, sentenced them to be were greased with tallow that was made hanged and then pierced them with of beef and pork fat. bayonets, and then, Heavens! They thrust These cartridges were used by British beef dripping with blood – the blood of the soldiers and were also issued to sepoys cow – down their throats, at the point of (Indian soldiers) who served under the the bayonet – a desecration to which they command of the British army. There’s would have preferred being hanged and, some dispute as to whether the cartridges even, being burnt alive?” Savarkar was issued to the sepoys were also greased jailed for insurrection, and later on he with beef and pork fat, but there’s no doubt became an extremely violent Hindu that once the issue became public and nationalist terrorist and started the Hindutva suspicions were raised, rumors spread movement which still exists today.

There were two other well-known figures that came out of the generational Awakening and Unraveling periods following the Indian anti British rebellion: Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian peace activist and Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who became the founder of Pakistan. Gandhi launched a “non-cooperation movement” against the British involving civil disobedience. The Awakening era climax occurred on April 10-12, 1919 with the Jalianvala Bagh Massacre rapidly among the sepoys that the British (Amritsar Massacre) when British troops were defiling their bodies and destroying opened fire on 10,000 Sikhs holding a their lives by breaking their castes which protest meeting, killing hundreds. That was the punishment for eating beef. The event convinced both the British and the Muslim sepoys were also offended that Indians that Britain should completely give they had been eating pork fat. This was a up the control of India.

Generational Crisis era and anti-British Cow protection had already started again xenophobia and nationalism were already as a symbol of Hindu nationalism as early high, but the greased cartridges triggered as 1882, as cow protection societies began riots and mutinies that spread across to be formed at that time. Cow protection India. The war lasted over two years and became more and more important as a resulted in hundreds of thousands of nationalist symbol in the following decades deaths. as a decision was made for India to leave There were dramatic changes during the the British Empire and become an Recovery Era that followed the end of the independent state. The debate in 1946 war. The British Indian Empire was created following World War II centered on two out of the former East India Company, and choices: Should there be a single Indian India was under the direct rule of the state with separate regions under the British Crown. However, the Indian tribes control of Muslims and Hindus, or should and families were given a great deal more there be a two-state solution, a Muslim state autonomy. There was a blossoming of living side-by-side in peace with a Hindu culture with new universities, colleges and state? The argument that won the day was schools opened by Indians and there was that Muslims can’t stand pigs and Hindus new technology, including new railroads can’t eat cows, so they can’t live together. and irrigation systems. However, it’s Finally, Jinnah and Gandhi agreed that there typical of the government in such had to be two separate states, India and situations to do everything possible to Pakistan. prevent anything so horrible from The 1857 rebellion was still fresh in happening again and in this case it meant everyone’s mind, and it was believed that a harshly suppressing any dissent, even new war could be avoided by Britain giving jailing protestors. It’s remarkable that the up control of India. If Britain had tried to histories of the 1857 rebellion, that were keep India as part of the British empire, written in the following decades, were all there might well have been a new war similar written by the British authors and almost to the 1857 rebellion. So that was never by the Indian writers. prevented, but in a generational Crisis era The first major Indian account of the 1857 you have the rise of young generations with Rebellion was by a young Hindu activist no memory of the past, a feeling of invulnerability and a desire for war - any war.

So India and Pakistan were created, leading to the 1947 Partition war between Muslims Union for Conservation of and Hindus, possibly the largest and Nature (IUCN) said in a bloodiest battle of the 20th century, statement. It cited data from eclipsing the bloodiness of the 1857 a survey it carried out with the Rebellion. Since then, India and Pakistan Maldives Marine Research have fought three wars. One of these, the Center (MRC) and the US 1971 war in Bengal (East Pakistan) was a Environmental Protection generational crisis war that created the Agency (EPA). “Preliminary nation of Bangladesh. Today, Hindu findings of the extent of the bleaching are nationalism is again rising, and it will alarming, with initial coral mortality already undoubtedly have the same result that it had in 1946 and 1857. observed,” said Ameer Abdulla.

‘Alarming’ bleaching of Maldives corals GENEVA Coral reefs in the Maldives are under severe stress after suffering mass bleaching this year as sea temperatures soared, a top conservationist body warned Monday.

Around 60 percent of Maldives’ coral colonies have been bleached, with the figure reaching 90 percent in some areas, the International

Issue - 679 (5)

9 - 15 August 2016

Japan’s ageing emperor hints at abdication

Where do we get our ideas?

From where does creativity spring forth? Sometimes it may feel as if that particular well has run dry and that no matter how much we pump on the handle, our bucket remains empty. But a change in the weather makes all the difference and inspiration can rain down like a monsoon. Where the grounds of your imagination seemed parched and dry, you’ll soon find fertile planting beds for your thoughts to bloom. You’ll have the power to envision a better future for yourself, and the energy to put it into action. !!!

When we want to know someone better, especially if we desire romantic entanglement, we have to step out of our comfort zone.

First, there is the advance: the process of broaching the possibility of taking a relationship to the next stage. Then, of course, there are all the compromises that must be made once a partnership has been established. So why bother? Because nothing brings more comfort than discovering there’s someone with deep feelings that mirror your own. There are two sides to every story, but you can write yours however you want. !!!

Make a shopping list. But don’t just include vegetables, cereals and other sundries. Include some of the bigger items you’d like to put in your basket. Success at work?

Aisle 7. A positive new outlook? Aisle 3, shelf 4.

Untold riches? Well, maybe you won’t find those on the supermarket shelves. But there’s a sense that your heart and mind can work as one, and that what drives you can produce the reward you long for; in both the material and spiritual sense. If the cupboard has felt bare of late, it’s time to restock the larder. !!!

It’s my way or the highway.

You’d better do as I say. I’m in charge here, and I know what’s best for you. I have the solution, and I don’t need your input. Now, here’s what you need to know if you want to have better relationships and encourage harmony: don’t be me. Don’t tell someone how to be and don’t demand that they subscribe to your views. You may well have the answers and believe that you can fix a situation, but if you lead by example, rather than diktat, you’ll find your ideas are graciously received. !!!

Why is it that emotion is taken less seriously than reason? Emotions affect us at a deeper level. The most savvy political operators know this, and the best campaigns are designed to speak to people’s hearts. Studies show that debates only entrench opposite viewpoints, no matter the statistics employed or the evidence presented. Whereas, creating suspicion, blaming and inspiring hope are far more effective tools when it comes to winning an argument. You can learn a lot from Machiavelli. This isn’t a matter for grey matter, but a time to be soulful. !!!

What’s the fastest thing you can think of? Faster than supersonic jets.

Faster, even, than the speed of light in a vacuum.

Nothing, according to science, should be able to travel faster. Nothing material that is. The speed of thought is faster still. In an instant, we can imagine ourselves on Pluto, waiting patiently for light to catch us up. The universe is now urging you to think fast. Of course, there’ll be issues to address, problems to solve and changes to oversee. Fortunately, it also provides you with the sources to deal with all that comes your way.

TOKYO Emperor Akihito said Monday his advancing age and weakening health mean he may no longer be able to carry out his duties, setting the stage for Japan to prepare for an historic abdication. “There are times when I feel various constraints such as in my physical fitness,” the 82-year-old said in a national address. “As we are in the midst of a rapidly ageing society, I would like to talk to you today about what would be a desirable role of the emperor in a time when the emperor, too, becomes advanced in age,” he said.

Speculation about Akihito’s future emerged last month with reports he had told confidantes that he would like to step down in a few years, in what would be the first abdication from the Chrysanthemum Throne in two centuries. “I am worried that it may become difficult for me to carry out my duties as the symbol of the state with my whole being as I have done until now,” he said, wearing a dark suit and sitting at a table in the pre-recorded video. Akihito spoke obliquely - never mentioning the word abdication and stressing he is legally prevented from commenting on the imperial system - but analysts and media said his intention was clear. “His majesty the emperor hints at abdication”, read a two-page extra edition by the top-selling

Yomiuri Shimbun daily. The comments will now allow the government to begin creating the legal mechanism for a royal departure, which currently does not exist.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in a swift response, said the

that 84 percent of people surveyed backed the idea.

Akihito has had surgery for prostate cancer and heart problems, both of which he alluded to in his address, though he stressed that he currently enjoys good

government would take his remarks “seriously”.

“Considering the emperor’s duties, as well as his age and the burden (of the job), we have to firmly look at what we can do,” he said.

Tomitaro Hashimoto, an assistant professor at Reitaku University, said while the emperor did not use the word abdication, “his message clearly called on the public to concretely consider the way for that in the future”. “Legally, he can’t request a revision of law,” said Hashimoto, an expert on the imperial system.

“That’s why he can’t ask directly.” Any eventual move

by Akihito to step down, which would see him replaced by his eldest son Crown Prince Naruhito, appears to have wide support. A survey by the Asahi Shimbun daily published Monday showed

health. Public reaction to the speech was sympathetic.

“Since his majesty is getting so old, I was worried about his health, but he made his intention clear and the abdication issue came up,” said 20-year-old Ryota Utsumi. “It gives me a sense of relief,” added Utsumi, who watched the address on a big screen in a busy Tokyo shopping area. It was only the second time Akihito had spoken directly to the nation. The first was in the days after the March 2011 triple earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster as he sought to calm a nation undergoing its worst crisis since the war. Japan’s imperial house is said to be the world’s oldest hereditary monarchy, and according to legend stretches back some 2,600 years in an unbroken line. It is deeply

ingrained in the nation’s native Shinto religion. The speech came in a historically sensitive month. The country commemorated the US atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Saturday and does so again on Tuesday for Nagasaki.

And next Monday Japan pauses to recall the anniversary of its defeat in World War II under Akihito’s father Hirohito, an annual event at which the emperor delivers a speech.

At last year’s event Akihito expressed “deep remorse” over World War II. He has keenly embraced the role of symbol of the state imposed after the conflict ended. Previous emperors including his father had been treated as semidivine. Akihito is credited with seeking reconciliation both at home and abroad over the legacy of the war fought in his father’s name.

He has ventured to a number of locales that saw intense fighting, including Okinawa at home and Saipan, Palau and the Philippines abroad, offering prayers for the souls of all the dead and not just Japanese. His life has also been characterised by a more personal openness previously unknown among Japanese royals. His wife Empress Michiko was a commoner when they met and they chose to raise their children themselves, forgoing the traditional use of nannies.

Giant panda cub born in Vienna VIENNA A naturally conceived giant panda cub has been born in Vienna, the city’s main zoo announced on Monday, a rare event that it said is unique in Europe to the Austrian capital.

Getting the shy, bamboo-eating mammals to mate is a famously difficult task, so much so that breeding centres usually turn to artificial insemination instead. “As far as giant pandas are concerned, Vienna is obviously fertile ground,” Vienna’s Schoenbrunn Zoo, set in the landscaped gardens of a former imperial summer residence, said in a statement. Pictures and

video footage released by before, all of which are now 100 grams (3.5 ounces), so the zoo showed the tiny in China. The latest arrival, small that zookeepers have pink newborn clinging to its born on Sunday at 5:05 been unable to determine its gender. “Yang Yang is an experienced mother and is taking great care of her offspring,” the zoo’s director, Dagmar Schratter, said. “But one must bear in mind that the mortality rate of giant pandas within their first year is roughly 40 percent.”

Impotence?

mother Yang Yang, who a.m. local time (0305 has given birth to three other GMT), is just 10 cm (four naturally conceived cubs inches) long and weighs

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9 - 15 August 2016

India never far from romance of Fleet Street London As the last two journalists on the iconic Fleet Street left last week, the occasion sparked a wave of nostalgia among reporters and others for an era spanning more than three centuries when the area provided a model for journalism across the English-speaking world, including India.

Located a few minutes’ walk from India House, Fleet Street has long been the metonym for the good, bad and ugly in British journalism since 1702, when London’s first newspaper, Daily Courant, was published from there. History hangs heavy in every part and pub here.

Reflected in films and literature, Fleet Street has reported the first draft of the history of the modern world, including the rise and fall of the British Empire. India featured prominently in its output, even if it was not until the 1970s and 1980s that Indian journalists appeared on the scene.

Mihir Bose, noted writer and sports journalist, was among the first Indians on Fleet Street. “It was a different world. Most editors didn’t know anyone of colour, they were not aware that they could write.

It was considered that Indians could not write English

well,” he said.

Bose, who wrote for The Sunday Times and other newspapers, said there were no Indians in the

media magnate Rupert Murdoch took on powerful printers and moved the publication of The Times and The Sun to Wapping. Other

that the other would not visit,” Bose recalled.

An Indian journalist in a leading role was such a novelty even in the 1970s

newsroom of any leading British newspaper based within a half-mile radius on Fleet Street in the 1970s and 1980s.

Other rare Indians at the time were sports writers Dicky Rutnagar and Sukumar Sen and cartoonist Abu Abraham. The main writers on India were those who had returned after reporting the country’s freedom struggle and independence, or prominent journalists such as James Cameron and Ian Jack.

The fortunes of Fleet Street as the centre of British journalism dwindled in the late 1980s, particularly after

newspapers subsequently moved out.

Left behind were memories of an era marked by smoke-filled newsrooms (mostly male-dominated), major technological changes (letter press, typewriters, telegraph, hot metal printing) and a culture that saw specific pubs patronised by specific newspapers and category of journalists.

“There was a lot of drinking. Lunch-time drinking was big. Every editor had a bar cabinet in his office.

Sub-editors, writers, photographers – each group had its own favourite pub

that when prominent broadcaster Kailash Budhwar was appointed the first Indian head of any BBC section in nearby Bush House in 1979, it became national news.

“There was no space for us Indians on Fleet Street. The BBC in fact held a press conference to announce my appointment as the head of Hindi service, it was reported widely. Until then, Indians were only contributors, not at the editorial level,” he said. The first Indian-origin editor of a mainstream publication was Amol Rajan of The Independent, appointed in 2013.

Clocking 380kph, world’s fastest train to be launched in China next month Beijing The world’s fastest train with the maximum speed of 380kph will be launched

in China next month.

The fastest train would run on Zhengzhou-Xuzhou high-speed track from next month, state-run People’s Daily Online reported.

After the new train is launched, the travel time between Zhengzhou, Central China’s Henan province, and Xuzhou, East China’s Jiangsu province, will be shortened from 2hour 33-minute to about 80-minute.

Compared to the last generation bullet train, the new train’s continuous operating speed has increased 50kph to 350kph, and the highest speed is 400kph in testing phase.

In future, the new generation train will be mainly used to carry passengers in China.

China has built about 16,000 kms of his speed train tracks connecting most of its top cities in-

cluding the Beijing-Shanghai train which made a $1billion profit last year.

More lines are being constructed as the government tries to bolster the economy with infrastructure investment and make travel more convenient.

China is also trying to aggressively market its high speed train technology abroad especially in India.

A Chinese train firm is currently conducting feasibility study for Chennai-New Delhi high speed train.

In the 1980s, some Indian newspapers, including Hindustan Times, set up offices on Fleet Street, but closed them over the years.

That was the decade when more Indian journalists were seen on the street, which was facing tumultuous times.

Ashis Ray, who headed the ABP Group office on Fleet Street during 1981-89, said: “Offices of Indian newspapers are part of Fleet Street history. There was much interaction between us Indians and British journalists. We were members of the Scribes club and often interacted with journalists from Daily Mail, Observer.”

Besides providing the model for Indian journalism since 1780, when the first journal was published in colonial Calcutta, Fleet Street had a significant influence on contemporary Indian journalism – now a matter of research in British academia.

Swansea University academic Savyasaachi Jain said: “It was on Fleet Street that Murdoch introduced and perfected his ‘bottom line’ approach to journalism, which was quickly adopted in India since the early 1990s.

The ‘Murdochisation of Indian journalism’ is a reality and now a key theme in jour-

‘Pizza ATMs’ are now a thing in the US Washington Pizza lovers in the US can now relish their favourite cheesy delicacy by using the first-ever ‘Pizza ATM’ in the country installed at a university campus.

The pizza vending machine on the campus of Xavier University (XU) in Ohio can hold seventy 12-inch pizzas and dispense them fresh and hot in just three minutes. Customers can select what kind of pizza they want using the 24hour machine’s touchscreen. The pizza ATM, which opens for public on August 10, has a temperature-controlled refrigeration system that allows the pizza to stay fresh and a convection oven that en-

ables it to be served nice and hot in just three minutes. Once users decide what type they want, the ATM then slides the option

as well as a student card, ‘Tech Times’ reported. According to Jennifer Paiotti, marketing director of XU auxiliary services, it is the

in the oven, cuts it into slices, places the pizza into a cardboard box and ejects the meal. The cost of each pizza is around $10, with the ATM accepting credit and debit cards,

“best pizza” she has ever eaten. The ATM has a dependable process that preserves taste and quality -the pizza and its ingredients never touch any part of the machine, Frenchbased company Paline, which developed the ATM, said on its website. The machine offers full remote communication for custom settings and tracking, realtime email and text alerts, webcam monitoring, remote error and shutdown detection.

Hundreds of Taiwan drivers fined after Pokemon Go launch TAIPEI Nearly 350 drivers in Taiwan were slapped with fines for playing on their phones after Pokemon Go launched on the island, which has already resulted in broken legs and museum bans. The gaming app has sparked a global frenzy since its launch last month as users hunt for virtual cartoon characters overlaid on real-world locations using augmented reality

technology. A total of 349 fines were issued since the game launched in Taiwan on Saturday, with the majority of the offenders

nalism studies.”

India was reflected prominently in Fleet Street’s output in the heydays of the empire. Successive governments from the late 18th century onwards sought the support of Fleet Street while passing legislation related to India in the House of Commons.

The first prominent pro-India editor on Fleet Street was the irrepressible James Silk Buckingham, a Whig who edited the successful Calcutta Journal in Calcutta from 1818 to 1823, but was deported to London after taking on top officials of the East India Company.

Back in London, Buckingham launched the Oriental Herald and Colonial Review and continued his fulminations against the company government in India. During his time in Calcutta and in London, he encouraged the growth of “native” Indian press and sought increasing freedom for it.

Until last Friday, reporters Gavin Sherriff and Darryl Smith were known mostly to readers of the Dundeebased Sunday Post, but will now be known as the last of mainstream print journalists in Fleet Street, also known as the “Street of Shame”.

driving motorcycles, according to the National Police Agency.

While Pokemon Go has been praised for motivating people to become more active, authorities have warned players to remain alert. “Catch the rare creatures, but don’t let accidents catch up with you!” Taiwan’s Premier Lin Chuan said

on the cabinet’s Facebook page. Drivers face fines of Tw$3,000 ($95) if caught using their phone, while motorcyclist have to hand over Tw$1,000.

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9 - 15 August 2016

China’s Jade Rabbit lunar rover Ludhiana woman says NRI father made rape bid before hitting her, killing self dies in blaze of online glory BEIJING China’s troubled but beloved Jade Rabbit lunar rover has whirred its last, state media said Wednesday, after it bid

humanity farewell on social media. The device, designed for a lifespan of a mere three months, surveyed the moon’s surface for 31 months, the official Xinhua new service said, overcoming numerous technical problems and design flaws to become a national icon.

But the machine has stopped operations, Xinhua cited the State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense as saying Wednesday.

The rover was part of the Chang’e-3 lunar mission.

Millions of Internet users took part in an online contest to select its name, which comes from the pet

of a moon goddess in Chinese mythology.

It began its adventure on December 2013, sending back photographs of the lunar surface and gaining

huge popularity with Internet users along the way. Not long after landing its legend grew after a “mechanical control abnormality” forced it offline, prompting anxiety from its many supporters.

The rover later turned dormant and stopped sending signals during the lunar night, which lasts for two weeks and sees temperatures plummet.

But it made a dramatic recovery, to the delight of its admirers.

It was not clear on which day the device finally “retired”.

An official media account carried a post written as a first-person message from the plucky rover to its fans

on Sunday saying: “This time it really is goodnight.

“There are still many questions I would like answers too, but I’m the rabbit that has seen the most stars!” it added. “The moon says it has prepared a long, long dream for me.”

The post also contained a link to “Universal Traveler”, a song by French electronica band Air. It has received nearly 100,000 shares, likes and comments, with one poster promising it “countless carrot pies” according to Xinhua. Another said: “I don’t know why I am so heartbroken. It’s just a machine after all.” The Chang’e-3 probe’s landing was the third such softlanding in history, and the first of its kind since a Soviet mission nearly four decades ago. It has been a source of national pride.

China sees the space programme as a symbol of its rising global stature and technological advancement, as well as of the Communist Party’s success in reversing the fortunes of the onceimpoverished nation.

By 2018 the country aims to land its Chang’e-4 probe - named for the moon goddess in Chinese mythology - on the dark side of the moon.

China’s online population exceeds 700 million BEIJING The number of web users in China - already the world’s largest online population - has risen over 700 million, authorities said Wednesday as they seek to turn the internet into a new growth driver.

The country had 710

double the number of people in the United States and means more than half of the world’s largest national population are now using the internet.

Beijing imposes strict controls on online content, while e-commerce is a vital part of its efforts to

million internet users defined as those who have gone online at least once in the past six months - by June, up 3.

1 percent from the end of December, the government-linked China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) said in a statement.

The number is more than

transform the economy into one driven more by consumer demand.

The government is pushing for a so-called “internet plus” project that aims to expand the application of online technology in industry as part of attempts to modernise.

The CNNIC said that 92.

5 percent of Chinese users

go online through their mobile phones.

“The social lifestyle formed by the mobile internet was further developed and the internet plus project facilitated the government and companies diversifying and mobilising their services,” it said.

But the number of rural users remained low accounting for less than a third of the total - as residents in the countryside either have no knowledge of computers or the internet, or are not interested, said the CNNIC. Several Chinese tech firms, such as Jack Ma’s Alibaba, have become multi-billion-dollar giants in recent years as the country’s online population has boomed.

At the same time Beijing blocks websites it deems politically sensitive in a system dubbed the “Great Firewall of China”, and social media companies censor user-generated content.

Ludhiana The 22-year-old girl who was hospitalised on Thursday after her NRI father allegedly slit her throat before killing himself, has claimed that he had tried to rape her. She also accused her father of forcibly solemnising marriage with her.

Basti Jodhewal station house officer Ashok Kumar said, on the complaint of the girl, police have added section pertaining to rape attempt in the FIR against the NRI. The woman, who is undergoing treatment at Christian Medical College (CMC), is stable. SHO Kumar said the girl told police that her father had brought her to Ludhiana

from Andhra Pradesh a few days ago. She further alleged that the accused had introduced her to neighbours as his wife.

She said her father attempted rape on her on Wednesday. When she resisted, her father slit her throat and also killed himself. Police said on Wednesday some

relatives of the NRI had come to Ludhiana looking for him. According to his relatives, he was married in 1995. After dispute with wife, he got separated and solemnised a second marriage in 2001. The girl whose throat he slit is from his first marriage. He has two daughters from the second marriage too.

Tomb Raider concert for London A ‘Tomb Raider’ concert is to be held in London’s Hammersmith on December 18 to celebrate 20 years of the franchise. A ‘Tomb Raider - Live in Concert’ event will take place at Hammersmith Apollo, west London, on December 18, and several themes from the

iconic game will be played by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra and conducted by Robert Ziegler. The show will coincide with the world premiere of the Tomb Raider Suite a project that sees game’s first three soundtracks rerecorded by an orchestra.

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9 - 15 August 2016

Malaysian Islamic leaders say Malaysian man, who raped 14-year-old, Pokemon Go could be harmful escapes jail term after marrying her

Kuala Lumpur Islamic leaders in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday said Muslims should avoid playing Pokemon Go because the popular mobile game was harmful and could “lead to gambling”.

Senior religious official Zulkifli Mohamad al-Bakri said the city’s Islamic Legal Consultative Committee had taken into consideration top scholars’ opinions on the cartoon creatures.

“Pokemon Go and all the Pokemon characters should be avoided as it can bring harm,” he was quoted as saying by the national news agency Bernama.

“The game promoted a search for power and deities with certain powers which could lead to gambling.”

Pokemon Go is not yet available officially in Malaysia.

The Muslim-majority country has long practised a moderate form of Islam but conservative attitudes are rising.

The viral game uses satellite locations, graphics and camera capabilities to overlay cartoon monsters on real-world settings, challenging players to capture and train the creatures for battles.

While Pokemon Go has been praised as a fun way to get people outdoors, it has also attracted safety warnings about not walking into oncoming traffic, straying into restricted areas, or becoming victims of crimes.

Last month Indonesian civil servants were ordered not to play Pokemon Go at work in a bid to protect “state secrets”.

Kuala Lumpur A Malaysian man charged with raping a 14-year-old girl (now 15) has avoided prison after he married her in a case that has sparked anger from rights groups. Ahmad Syukri Yusuf, 22, was charged with statutory rape of the girl late last year and faced up to 30 years in jail and whipping for the offence, but he married the teenager under Islamic law, according to prosecutor Ahmad Fariz Abdul Hamid. A Malaysian court ruled there was no need to proceed with the case after Yusuf submitted a marriage certificate and the girl withdrew her complaint.

HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE? Under Malaysia’s civil laws, the legal minimum age for marriage is 18, but Muslim girls who are under 16 can obtain permission to marry from Islamic courts.

There are about 16,000 girls in Malaysia who were married before their 15th birthday, according to Human Rights Watch citing the latest available government statistics in 2010.

Ethnic Malays, who are Muslim, make up about 60 per cent of the country’s 30 million population.

Critics say in the conservative Muslim-majority, sometimes victims’ families would rather marry the girl to her rapist instead of her name being tarnished in court. Malaysian laws have also been criticised for not recognising marital rape.

GOVERNMENT INTERVENES Malaysia’s government, meanwhile, has called for a review

Tanzania’s straight women are marrying each other and feminism is not the reason Tanzania In a remote village of Nyamongo in northern Tanzania, 27-year-old

Anastasia Juma lives with her 49-year-old wife Mugosi Maningo and they are not the only married same-sex couple living in the region.Increasing number of women in Nyamongo are choosing to marry other women under a local tradition called nyumba ntobhu (house of women).Why?Nyumba ntobhu, an alternative family structure, has been a part of Nyamongo’s tradition for years now. But the tradition has been undergoing a “modern revival”,

according to a report byMarie Claire magazine . Anastasia and Mugosi are members of the Kuria tribe, a cattle-herding community

with a population of roughly 7,00,000 which has its own tribal law.The couple’s marriage under this law is similar to a heterosexual marriage as they live, cook, work, raise children and even share a bed together.

The only difference they claim is that they do not indulge in sexual activities.

Empowering widows This local tradition enables widows to keep their property.

When Mugosi’s husband left her 10 years ago since she could not

bear his children, he left their homestead and moved to regional capital. He did not formally divorce her and when he died 18 months ago, his property could have gone to a male relative. But it was this tradition of the same-sex marriage that saved Mugosi from losing six thatched huts and some land.According to the tribal law, only men can inherit property but under nyumba ntobhu, if a woman does not have sons, is widowed or her husband leaves her, she can marry a younger woman who can engage with a male lover to give birth to heirs on her behalf.

Not a homosexual union The custom is unlike the concept of same-sex marriage in the West as homosexuality is strictly forbidden. Marie Claire magazine reported that most Kuria people do not even know of gay sex, especially between women, and that such a practice exists in other parts of the world.Anastasia and Mugosi divide the work equally, they take care of their sons- Muita (11), Dominico (7) and Daudi (4) and hardly have any arguments.

of the case. “The ministry through the social welfare department will intervene to prevent such marriages,” said Malaysia’s Women, Family and Community Development Minister Rohani Abdul Karim.

crime,” Kuala Lumpur-based Women’s Aid Organisation spokeswoman Tan Heang Lee told Thomson Reuters Foundation. “It sends a message a person will be freed from his charge if he enters into this kind

She said the deputy public prosecutor will ask the high court to review the case, saying, “A rape case is still a rape case, the offender must be sentenced if he is found guilty, the case cannot be dropped by marriage.”

OUTRAGE OVER LOOPHOLES IN LAW The court ruling - delivered last week - has prompted fury in the country. “Rape is rape is rape is rape - no matter whether it was in a five star hotel, in a bush or done under a marriage certificate,” read an article on theheatmalaysia.com.

Highlighting further victimisation of the rape-survivor, the article said, “Now, she has to allow herself to be raped everyday, because those around her have said it is okay for her rapist to do so.” Malaysian women’s rights groups are angry too. “It is very common for rapists to marry their survivors, especially when they are underage, to cover up their

of marriage of convenience with the girl,” said Ann Teo, vicepresident of the Kuching-based Sarawak Women for Women Society.

NOT A FIRST Back in 2013, a similar case was reported where 40-year-old Riduan Masmud raped a 12-yearold in a parked car and married her three months later. Married and the father of four at the time, Masmud claimed to take her as his second wife “by mutual consent”. Speaking to reporters, he said he would let his child-wife finish schooling and then get her to work with his first wife - a make-up artist. His first wife, he said, had accepted the marriage and would look after the wifevictim. Later, the victim’s father alleged Masmud had paid him RM 5,000 as compensation under native laws, for permission to marry her. The following year, a high court sentenced him to 12 years in jail.

Islamic body rejects Pak govt’s proposal to include Quran in school syllabus

Islamabad The Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) has rejected the Pakistan government’s proposal to include teachings of Quran in the schools syllabus up to tenth standard.The ministry of federal education and professional training had sent a set of books containing Quran verses with translation to the CII for vetting and proposed to teach these books in schools up to tenth standard.However, the CII members rejected the proposal and said that too many lacunas were present in the books.The council also held discussions on the Hague convention on

Parental Responsibility and Protection of Children, sent by the law ministry and ruled that Pakistan should not sign it.

CHARGED

DRUNK & DRIVING? CALL VICKY SINGH

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9 - 15 August 2016

Indonesia arrests 6 militants Futuristic ‘straddling for planning attack on Singapore bus’ hits road in China Singapore Indonesia’s counter-terrorism police on Friday arrested six suspected militants, believed to be linked to the Islamic State, who were allegedly planning to launch a rocket attack on downtown Singapore from nearby Batam Island.

The Indonesian men were captured on the Indonesian island, about 25 km southeast of Singapore, said National Police spokesman Maj Gen Boy Rafli Amar.“We have strong indications that the six men were

planning to launch a rocket at Singapore’s Marina Bay from Batam,” Amar said. He would not confirm whether an actual rocket had been found in the police raid. Marina Bay is a busy area close to the heart of Singapore’s downtown filled with office towers, waterside eateries

and tourist attractions, including one of Asia’s biggest casinos.

The arrested men claimed they were members of Katibah Gigih Rahmat, a little-known extremist group that helps Indonesian militants travel to Syria. Police

Hindu doctor shot dead in Karachi

Islamabad In yet another attack on miniorities in Pakistan, a 56-year old doctor belonging to the Hindu community was shot dead in Karachi, it was reported on Friday.“Pireetam Das was sitting in his clinic located in Hasrat Mohani Colony at midnight on Thursday when someone attacked him,” Akhtar Farooq, SSP Investigation said.

The police official added the doctor’s attendant had gone to buy a mobile card when the

doctor was attacked.

“Hearing the gunshot, the assistant rushed to the clinic and found the doctor bleeding,” added Farooq.

SSP Investigation said the suspect(s) did not take any valuables. He added police were investigation the incident.

Earlier, two members of the Hindu community were among three people shot dead in an attack on a wine shop in the Abbas Town area of the metropolis.

Polygamous, patriarchal and not feminist Among the Kuria tribe, men use cows as currency to buy multiple wives. Anastasia’s father forced her to marry a 50-year-old man when she was just 13. The man gave her father eight cows in exchange and treated her “like a slave”. According to a 2013 Ministry of Health and Social Welfare survey, 45 per cent of women aged between 15 and 49 had experienced sexual or other physical violence at their homes in Tanzania.

Anastasia, in her late teens, gave birth to a baby boy and ran away with the child.

She got involved with two boyfriends and had two more

sons but the men failed to stay with her. “I didn’t trust men after that,” said Anastasia. She then met Mugosi through neighbours and married her in June 2015.

Anastasia and Juma’s match was perfect. While one was struggling to raise three sons, the other needed male heirs to sustain her property. They did not have a wedding ceremony but Mugosi paid Anastasia’s original “bride price” of eight cows to the family of her first husband.

Marriages within the Kuria tribe, whether to a man or a woman, involves dowry or a price which is given to the younger woman’s family.

believe it has received funds from Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian fighting with the Islamic State in Syria.

Naim has been linked to a succession of poorly executed attacks in Indonesia, including a suicide bombing outside police headquarters in Solo city last month that killed the bomber.

The arrests, which included the 31-year-old alleged leader of the group, highlight the continued threat posed by extremists in Indonesia despite a sustained crackdown by authorities.

Singapore was not surprised by the arrest of the suspected militants for plotting an attack on the city-state, a minister said.

“We were aware of the plans being made to attack us with rockets,” home affairs minister K Shanmugam said in a statement.“The attacks can come from terrorists who seek to come into Singapore; and they can come from terrorists who locate themselves just outside Singapore. Our small size increases these risks,” he said.The statement said Singapore’s security agencies coordinated with Indonesia to monitor the activities of the group and apprehend those involved.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, suffered a spate of deadly attacks by members of the Jemaah Islamiyah militant network, including the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists. In recent years, smaller and less deadly strikes have targeted government agencies, mainly police and antiterrorism forces.

BEIJING It may look like something from the future, but China’s longawaited “straddling bus” ran its inaugural test in Hebei province this week. The 2m-high Transit Elevated Bus (TEB) straddles the cars below, allowing them to pass through.Powered by electricity, the bus is able to carry up to 300 passengers in its 72ft (21m) long and 25ft wide body.

A video of a mini-model of the vehicle caused great excitement when it was released in May. The trial run was conducted on a 300m-long controlled track in the north-eastern city of Qinhaungdao.

The vehicle is expected to reach speeds of up to 60km per hour, running on rails laid along ordinary roads. Up to four TEBs can be linked together.“The biggest advantage is that the bus will save lots of road space,” the project’s chief engineer, Song Youzhou, told state-media agency Xinhua earlier this year.

“The TEB has the same functions as the subway, while its cost of construction is less than one fifth of the subway,” another engineer Bai Zhiming told news outlet CCTV. One TEB could replace 40 conventional buses, according to the firm.However, it is unclear when the vehicle will be widely used in Chinese cities. It is not a new idea, but it was not seriously considered until a minimodel of it was launched at the 19th China Beijing International High-Tech Expo in May.A month later, developers announced that the TEB would be ready for a test-run in August. Thousands took to micro-blogging site Weibo to express their amazement and incredulity.

“I saw images of this not long ago and now it’s actually happening?” asked one user.

“This is truly build at ‘Chinese speed’”.“I swear I just saw ideas of this in pictures. Now it’s appeared in real life,” said another.

Kabul The seven-member crew of a Pakistani helicopter that crashed in a lawless region of Afghanistan is being held by Taliban fighters, officials said on Friday.Hamidullah Hamid, governor of Azra district in Afghanistan’s Logar province, said all seven people aboard the helicopter were detained by the Taliban after Thursday’s crash.

The government has “no control of the area” where the helicopters crashed and burst into flames, he said.

Pakistani military spokesman Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said the Russian-made helicopter was

being flown to Russia via Uzbekistan for maintenance.

The crew includes one Russian and at least two Pakistan Army officers.Taliban spokesman

commanders in their controlled areas in Logar,” a source was quoted as saying. “They all are safe and a final decision will be taken by the leadership.”

Erection Problem?

Zabihullah Mujahid said an “investigative team” is being sent to the area as it is not contactable by phone.Taliban sources also confirmed all crew members of the helicopter, which belonged the government of Punjab province, were in their custody, The Express Tribune reported.

“All crew members, including a Russian national, are in the custody of the Taliban

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani instructed security forces to recover the crew of the helicopter, his special envoy for Pakistan, ambassador Omar Zakhilwal, said.“The President has been in the loop from the outset and has instructed the governor of Logar as well as our security forces to assist in recovering of the hostages. I do believe there will be a peaceful ending to this,” he said.

Crew of crashed Pakistani chopper being held by Taliban

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Issue - 679 (10)

Punjabi Sikh parents seek a match for their Canadian born & raised, clean shaven son, 33 yrs. old, 6’-1" tall, handsome, Doctor M.D., completed internal Medicine residency & fellowship (Specialization), now working as a specialist in G.T.A. The girl should be resident Doctor/M.D. or Physician, Born & raised in Canada from Ontario, beautiful atleast 5’-6" tall with family values. Please send your biodata and recent picture to: sm9058@hotmail.com ***682*** Khatri parents seeking a suitable match for their daughter, 28 yrs. old, 5’-2” tall, Amrican Citizen, professionally settled (Doctor) in her job. The boy should be American Citizen, well educated and well settled in job. Please Call : 1-347-251-9112 ***679** Prajapat parents invite matrimonial alliance for their daughter 25 yrs. old, 5’-2” tall, B.Sc. Nursing degree holder, working in govt. job in India, beautiful, family oriented. The boy should be American Citizen, educated and from a good family background. Close relatives well settled in America. Please Call : 1-916-505-8907 Or : 011-9195929-25551 ***679*** Saini parents invite matrimonial alliance for their daugher, 28 yrs. old, 5’-2” tall, beautiful, family oriented American Citizen, Master’s degree in Computer information systems and working in IT Deptt. The boy should be well educated, professionally employed with family values from California or willing to relocate to California. Doaba area prefered.

Please email recent picture and bio-data to: saini.bayarea@gmail.com Or Call : 1-408-338-7681 ***679*** Jat Sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their beautiful daugher, 25 yrs. old, working as RN in Seattle (USA), completed BSN in Nursing. The boy should be born in Canada/ Ameriaka, well educated, professionally (Doctor, Dentist) employed and with moderate family values from BC only.

Please send your bio-data and recent picture to: madamk1940@gmail.com Or Call: 1-778-564-5300 ***679*** Arora Sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their daugher, 34 yrs. old, 5’-4” tall, B.A. B.Ed., M.B.A., Certification in beautician, beautiful, family oriented, living in India. The boy should be American Citizen/ Green Card holder, educated, well settled, non-drinker in America. Please email recent picture and bio-data to: kumarsonia660@gmail.com Or Call: 1-408-476-0721 ***679*** Sharma family seek a suitable match for their son, 34 yrs. old, 5’-8” tall, fair, M.B.A, M.C.A, Canadian Immigrant, working as

9 - 15 August 2016

a IT Engineer in BMO, Toronto.

The girl should be Canadian/ American Immigrant/Citizen, well educated/qualified. The girl on student/visitor/work permit can also be considred. Caste no bar. Please send you bio-data and recent picture to: aseemsharma27@gmail.com Or Call :647-641-9402 ***679*** Sikh Saini family seeking suitable match for their US-born son, 25 yrs. old, 6' tall, Masters in Biomedical Engineering and working in a medical company.

The family resides in California USA. The girl should be educated, tall, family oriented.

The family resides in California.

USA Preferred. Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: cheraj@msn.com or call: 1-408612 4563 *** 679*** Jat Sikh (Dhanoa) Parents seeking a Canadian Match for their slim & beautiful daughter, 29 yrs. old, 5'-5" tall, B.Tech in Computer Science, Masters in Business Administration(MBA), living in India near Patiala.

Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: pj.bhangu@icloud.com or call: 1587-435-0052 (evenings only) *** 679*** Sikh Parents seek a suitable match for their beautiful, tall, slim, professionally qualified and settled, Canadian citizen daughter, 40 yrs. (looks far younger), 5'-4'' tall, innocently divorced (no issue), Well versed in both cultures. The boy must be educated and well settled, Canadian resident.Caste immaterial. Please respond with biodata and picture at: maymatrimonial2014@gmail.com or call: 416-848-8457 *** 679*** Sikh (Ramgarhia) family seek a suitable match for their son, 32 yrs. old, 5'-10" tall, B-Tech., clean shaven, USA permanent resident. The girl should be well educated, beautiful, of matching height, good family history and in USA. Please send your biodata & recent picture to: 19perfectmatch84@gmail.com or call: 1-510-240-2847 *** 679*** Jat Sikh Virk parents invite matrimonial alliance for their only son, 29 yrs. old, 6’ tall, handsome, software, engineer in Delhi in a US based reputed company. Parents are well settled in California (USA).

Please respond with latest picture and bio-data to: gurjeetsingh913@gmail.com Or : www.gurjeetsinghvirk.wix.com/ gurjeetsingh Or Call :1-510-5639205 Or : 1-510-459-3183 ***679*** Toronto based Jat Sikh parents seek a compatible match for their son, 05/1987 born, 5'-7" tall, family oriented, Engineer, B.Eng. from Ryerson University, M.Eng. from University of Toronto, employed with Ontario Power Generation

in their Nuclear Power Plant in GTA as Senior Technical Engineer, drawing handsome salary. The girl should be slim, University graduate, well settled, preferably from Toronto area.

Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: rdrandhawa @yahoo.com or call: 647- 2949721 (week days after 5 PM & week ends any time) *** 679*** Ramgarhia Sikh family seek a suitable match for their son. 33 yrs. old, 6' tall, Working as Engineer in MNC, salary $85,000 annually. The girl should be well educated, Canadian Citizen / Immigrant. The girl on work Permit or Student visa can also be considered. Please send your biodata & recent picture to: rajveer99@yahoo.com *** 679*** Jatt Sikh family seek a suitable match for their daughter, 33 yrs. old, graduated from SJSU CA, USA with Masters in Computer Eng., working in San Francisco on H1B Visa. Please send your biodata & recent picture to: matchforjaspan@gmail.com or call: 1-925-755-4509 *** 679*** Jat sikh parents seek a suitable match for their daughter, born and raised in India, presently a Canadian citizen. 35 years old (never married), 5’-2" tall. slim, beautiful, Holding a Master’s degree (Computer Engineering) from Canadian university and professionally employed in Ontario, Canada. The boy should be well educated, professionally settled in Canada/USA. Please send your bio-data & recent pictures to: jsingh_2014@ hotmail.com or Call: 1-226-7914566 *** 679*** Well settled Jat Sikh family seeks a professionally qualified matc.h for their son, born September 1981, 5’-11” tall, settled in Canada, Clean shaven, Delhi University, Graduate, MBA from one of the top University of Northern America, working as a area Manager for a well known MNC in Vancouver Canada. Late grand father was a pilot and father retd. as high ranking Police Officer in India. Please respond with bio-data and recent picture to: amangat@outlook.com or call : 778-708-7720 ***679*** Kashyap Rajput parents invite matrimonial alliance for their son, 27 yrs. old, 5’-9” tall, Mechanical Engineer, Diploma in Business Management from Canada, presently on work permit and well settled in job, belongs to a good family. The girl should be Canadian Immigrant/Citizen, educated and family oriented, girl on student visa/work permit may also be considered. Please email recent picture and bio-data t o : maninder_kashyap@yahoo.ca Or Call : 647-212-5152 ***679*** Ramdasia Weaver parents invite matrimonial alliance for their son,

31 yrs old, 5-6” tall, Canadian Immigrant, B.tech, post graduate diploma in desiginig from Canada, professionally settled in his field, innocently divorced (no kids). The girl should be Canadian Immigrant, educated, family oriented. Girl on student visa/work permit may also be considered. Caste no bar.

Please Call : 647-725-6598 ***679*** Hindu Khatri Behl family seek a suitable match for their daughter, 31 yrs. old, 5’-5” tall, Graduate, living in U.S.A. on Multiple Visa, slim, beautiful, fair complexion. The boy should be educated, family oriented, Canadian/American Immigrant or Citizen. Brother & Parents are well settled in Canada. Please send you bio-data and recent picture to: gauravbehl12@yahoo.ca Or Call : 647-966-0012 ***679*** Jat Sikh parents seek a suitable match for their son, 31 yrs. old, 5’-10” tall, Canadian born, working as a RN and teacher.

The girl should be equally educated, beautiful, family oriented at least 5’-6” tall. Please send you bio-data and recent picture to: g0110sekhon@hotmail.com Or Call : 1-604-501-9234 Or : 1-778-317-1349 ***679*** Jat Sikh parents seek a suitable match for Canadian born & raised only son, 35 yrs. old, 5’-10” tall, works as a long shoreman, self employed. The girl should be born & raised in Canada beautiful & family oriented preferrably from Vancouver area.

Call : 1-604-671-0002 ***679*** Jatt Sikh family seek a suitable match for their beautiful daughter, 32 yrs. old, 5'-4" tall, California born, university graduate, professionally employed. The boy should be living in USA, educated & from Sikh family.

Please call: 1- 916-913-5905 *** 679*** Khatri Sikh Parents from West Vancouver seeking a suitable match for their beautiful daughter, 30 yrs. old, Canadian Lawyer, B.A, LL. B, LLM, FCIArb First Class, working for the Government. The boy should be handsome, professional or business minded. Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: dalipmehta@hotmail.com or call: Dalip Singh Mehta at: 1778-927-4669 *** 679***

Arora/Khatri California based Sikh family seek a well educated, beautiful, professional match US Citizen match for their son, 29 yrs. old, 5'-10" tall, MBBS from India, cleared USMLE Exams, doing Masters in Public Health in US on student visa. Please send your bio-data & recent pictures to: jagjeet0063@gmail.com or call: 1-209-636-3891 *** 679*** Jat sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their Amritdhari son, USA citizen, Engineer, 29 yrs. old, Working as an engineer in a reputed organization. The girl should be Amrithari and professionally qualified. Please send your Biodata & recent picture to: grewlon@gmail.com or call: 1-530-631-5588 or through WhatsApp *** 679*** Tonk Kshatriya family seeking a suitable match for their daughter, 40 yrs. old, 5’-4” tall, M.A.B.Ed. Working as a teacher in reputed Convent School in Amritsar, never married before. The boy should be Canadian Immigrant/ Citizen, educated with family values.

Please Call : 647-969-3053 ***679*** Punjabi Khatri parents invite a matrimonial alliance for their daughter, 25 yrs. old, 5’-3” tall, beautiful, family oriented, Convent educated, B.Sc. Nursing degree holder, currently living in India. The boy should be Canadian Immjgrant/ Citizen, well educated, well settled and with family values.

Caste no bar.Please Call : 647881-5483 ***679*** Well settled Jat Sikh Mann parents in USA seeking a suitable match for their son, Born June 1984, 6’-1” tall, US Citizen, Currently working in NYC at govt. job. NYC Tristate area prefered. Please send you bio-data and recent picture to: gmann55@gmail.com ***679*** Ramdasia Sikh (Weaver) family seeks a suitable match for their beautiful daughter, 38 yrs. old, 5’-3” tall, M.A.B.Ed., innocently divorced after a short marriage (no kids) at present on visitor visa in Canada. The boy should be Canadian Immigrant/Citizen, well settled and family oriented.

Caste no bar. Please email recent picture and bio-data to: neeti6@hotmail.com Or Call : 416-877-0947 ***679***

House-Keeper White House Canada in Brampton, requires a Live-in housekeeper. Hotel experience preferred but will train the suitable candidate. Must be available to stand, walk and bend for extended periods of time.

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Pls. call

647-632-3999

Issue - 679 (11)

9 - 15 August 2016

UK Muslim woman detained for reading Syria art book on plane London A newly-wed British Muslim woman was detained by airport police in the UK after cabin crew reported her reading a Syria art book on her honeymoon flight.

Faizah Shaheen was quizzed by officers at Doncaster Airport in South Yorkshire region of

England last month after being reported by Thomson Holidays cabin crew.

The 27-year-old on Thursday said it had been a “hurtful and unpleasant” experience.

“I was queuing at passport control and saw police staring at me. I just got through passport control and then two police officers approached me and took me aside and asked me to show my passport again,” she told The Independent newspaper.

“I asked what was going on and they said I had been reported due to a book I was reading and was to be questioned under the Terrorism Act. I became very angry and upset. I couldn’t understand how reading a book

could cause people to suspect me like this. I told the police that I didn’t think it was right or acceptable,” she said.

Shaheen, who works with the UK National Health Service to prevent teenage mental health patients from becoming radicalised, said she had been reading the book

‘Syria Speaks: Art and Culture from the Frontline’ on the flight to her honeymoon destination of Marmaris, Turkey. She was questioned by police when she returned two weeks later on July 25.“I’m aware that security is very important where terrorism is concerned but they need to keep a sense of proportion. To go off and contact the anti-terror police is quite an extreme overreaction,” she said.

A spokesperson from Thomson Holidays said customer and employee safety was of “primary importance”.

“We appreciate that in this instance Ms Shaheen may have felt that over caution had been exercised, however like all

Dhaka terror attack: UK citizen, Toronto University student arrested

Dhaka Bangladeshi police on Thursday said they had formally arrested two foreign nationals of Bangladeshi origin in connection with the July 1 attack on the Holey Artisan bakery that left 20 hostages dead.Hasnat Karim, a university teacher with British citizenship, and Tahmid Hasib Khan, a student of the University of Toronto have been detained by security agencies shortly after the attack but their whereabouts were not known for the past few weeks.Dhaka metropolitan police spokesman Masudur Rahman said the duo had been arrested.They were produced before a court in Dhaka on Thursday and police sought their remand for 10 days.

Dhaka’s Metropolitan Magistrate Nurunnahar Yasmin granted police permission to interrogate both for eight days.Khan and Karim were

present in the cafe in the elite Gulshan area on the day of the attack.Karim was a former teacher of North South University of Dhaka, where at least one of the attackers had studied.

Amateur videos shot by people living near the cafe had shown Karim speaking with the attackers even while the siege was on.The families of both the arrested had complained that they were not informed of their whereabouts.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch had called on Bangladeshi authorities to clarify about their status.The IS had claimed the attack. It had emerged that Tamim Chaudhury, a Canadian national of Bangladeshi origin, was the leader of IS in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh government, had rejected the claim, saying local militants were responsible.

airlines, our crew are trained to report any concerns they may have as a precaution,” the spokesperson said.

A spokesperson for South Yorkshire Police confirmed Shaheen had been “stopped and examined” under Schedule 7 of the UK’s Terrorism Act 2000.

“She was not arrested, she was held for 15 minutes and was subsequently released,” the spokesperson said.

The award-winning book by Malu Halasa that Shaheen was reading is a collection of essays, short stories, poems, songs, cartoons and pictures from Syrian authors and artists.

She said she felt discriminated against because of her faith and now intends to make formal complaints against the police and Thomson Airways.

Indian-origin Labour MP Keith Vaz, who chairs the House of Commons’ Home Affairs Committee, said the airline had overreacted and must apologise.

He said: ”In the current climate people are worried. But there is always a balance to be struck in circumstances of this kind. We want the public to report suspicious activity.

“Reasonable people would not regard reading a book on Syria on its own, without any other concerns, as warranting the questioning of an individual.

Thomson Airways should accept that a mistake was made and apologise to the woman concerned. I am sure if they had done so there would have been a better understanding of the entire situation.”

US designates Pakistan’s Jamaat-ur-Ahrar as ‘terrorist group’, sanctions imposed

Islamabad The United States on Wednesday announced it had added the Pakistani militant outfit Jamaat-ur-Ahrar to its list of global terrorists, triggering sanctions against a group that has staged multiple attacks on civilians, religious minorities and soldiers.

Jamaat-ur-Ahrar claimed responsibility for at least five major attacks in Pakistan since December, including the Easter Sunday bombing in a public park that killed 70 people in the eastern city of Lahore.

It is a splinter faction of the Pakistani Taliban movement that has also declared loyalty to Islamic State’s leadership in the Middle East.

The group also claimed responsibility for the killing of two Pakistani employees of the

US Consulate in the northwestern city of Peshawar in early March.

Jamaat-ur-Ahrar has not yet commented on the designation.

Announced by the State Department, the designation means anyone who supports Jamaat-ur-Ahrar could have their assets frozen by the US government.

In recent years, Pakistan has also cracked down on movements that target its own citizens and institutions, including the Pakistani Taliban who are fighting to topple the government, and install a strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Most recently, it launched a paramilitary crackdown in Punjab, the country’s richest and most populous province, after the Easter bombing in Lahore, the provincial capital.

Islamic State names new leader of Nigeria’s Boko Haram Cairo The Islamic State (IS) has named a new leader of Boko Haram, the Nigerian militant group which last year swore allegiance to it.Abu Musab al-Barnawi was named Islamic State’s governor for West Africa in a two-page interview in its weekly magazine, al-Naba, which was circulated late on Tuesday.Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler who took office last year, has made it a priority to defeat Boko Haram, which has tried to create a state adhering to strict sharia law in the northeast during a seven-year insurgency.Boko Haram controlled a swathe of land in northeast Nigeria around the size of Belgium at the end of 2014 but was pushed out by Nigerian troops, aided by soldiers from neighbouring countries, early last year.In the interview, al-Barnawi said Boko Haram was “still a force to be reckoned with” and that it had been receiving new recruits.Despite having been pushed out of most of the territory it controlled, Boko Haram has carried out suicide bombings in

northeast Nigeria and neighbouring Cameroon, Niger and Chad, focusing on busy public areas such as markets and mosques.Fulan Nasrullah, a security analyst, said al-Barnawi had been a senior figure within Boko Haram who was previously the group’s military commander.

The Islamic State publication did not mention Abubakar Shekau, who was the group’s leader and represented the Nigerian jihadists in videos during an insurgency that has killed about 15,000 people and displaced more than two million.

Shekau, whose death has been reported on numerous occasions

by the army only for him to reappear in videos, was last seen in a video circulated in March in which he seemed to suggest he was ailing and Boko Haram was losing its effectiveness.

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9 - 15 August 2016

US asks Pak to act against terror groups targeting neighbours Washington In a strong message, the US has asked Pakistan to act against terror groups targeting its neighbours and not just the ones that pose a threat to it, virtually endorsing the stand taken by India at the Saarc ministerial meet.

“We have been very clear with the highest levels of the government of Pakistan that they must target all militant groups and that includes those that target its neighbours. They must also close all safe havens,” the state department deputy spokesperson Mark Toner said on Thursday at his daily briefing.

He said Pakistan was going after terror groups “selectively”. “...They’re going after groups, but selectively. We need to see them go after all groups and as I just said, even those groups that might not threaten Pakistan itself but threaten its neighbours,” Toner said. “We obviously believe that Pakistan needs to do all it can to confront all terrorists operating on its soil. We have seen it make progress; we want to see more progress on its part,” Toner said when asked about home minister Rajnath Singh’s visit to Islamabad for the Saarc meeting. Addressing the Saarc home ministers’ meeting in

Islamabad, Singh had said mere condemnation of terrorism and terrorists is not enough and that there are “no good terrorists or bad terrorists”, while asking

“We encourage that kind of regional dialogue regarding counter-terrorism efforts. We advocate for closer cooperation, certainly, between India and

Calling the two countries to fight together against terrorism, Toner said, “Terrorism is obviously a reality in both countries, and in order to effectively confront it,

Pakistan to stop encouraging terror groups and “glorification” of terrorists.

Asked about the Saarc meet, Toner said it was important to have a forum where countries can “talk about in a candid way” on the areas of disagreement and concerns and advocated closer cooperation between India and Pakistan to deal with terror threat in both the countries.

Pakistan to deal with terrorist threats in both countries.”

they need to work together.

That’s something we have long

Terror in Europe puts armed cops on London streets

London There is an increased visible presence of armed policemen in London Underground and other public places after a new operation was launched on Wednesday by the head of Scotland Yard, who believes a terror attack is a matter of ‘when, not if’.

In the second major statement this week, Bernard Hogan-Howe, commissioner of the Metropolitan Police responsible for policing London, said ‘Operation Hercules’ had begun, in which additional firearms officers are deployed in visible roles in the capital.

Hogan-Howe said: “Anyone who’s been following events in Europe over the past few weeks will understand why we want to show our determination to protect the public. We are deadly serious about the protection that we are offering the people of London and we will never be complacent”. ”Despite the fact they are carrying guns they are still police officers and I want the public to approach and talk to them, they

are out on our streets to reassure and help the public. Equally important in how we protect our capital is the relationship that our mainly unarmed officers have built with communities over many years”.

The Yard said in a statement the operation is not based on any specific intelligence but is a longterm response to best use the increasing number of armed officers to make London as hostile an environment as possible for any would-be attacker.

“That means the locations, types of tactics and the numbers of officers deployed at once will continually change to be most effective and avoid predictability”, it said.

Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, said: “?The threat level here in London has not changed, but it does remain at severe and especially in light of recent deadly attacks in Europe it is important we are prepared should the unthinkable happen”.

“We will see more armed officers on our streets, but there is no reason to be alarmed.

encouraged.”

“So it is important that these have these forum, rather, to talk about in a candid way some of the areas of disagreement and some of the areas of concern between the two of them,” he insisted.

Asked about Pentagon’s decision to withhold 300 million dollar military aid to Pakistan after defence secretary Ashton Carter declined to give a certification to the Congress that Islamabad is taking sufficient action against Haqqani network, Toner said, “We’ve urged Pakistan to address this and to pursue closer counterterrorism cooperation with Afghanistan against all groups that pose a long-term security threat to the region, not just to Pakistan.”

“We believe that Pakistan has taken and is taking steps to counter terrorist violence and certainly focusing on those groups that threaten Pakistani or Pakistan’s stability,” he said.

Israel approves jailing ‘terrorists’ from age 12, ‘will not be shown mercy’ Washington Israeli lawmakers have approved jailing children as young as 12 convicted of “terrorist offences” following repeated attacks by young Palestinians, parliament said on Wednesday.

“The ‘Youth Bill,’ which will allow the authorities to imprison a minor convicted of serious crimes such as murder, attempted murder or manslaughter even if he or she is under the age of 14, passed its second and third readings...

Tuesday night,” an Englishlanguage statement said. It added that the seriousness of attacks in recent months “demands a more aggressive approach, including toward minors.”

The statement quoted Anat Berko, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party and the bill’s sponsor, as saying “to those who are murdered with a knife in the heart it does not matter if the child is 12 or 15.”

Violence in the Palestinian territories and Israel since October has killed at least 219 Palestinians, 34 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese, according to an AFP count.

Most of the Palestinians killed

were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities.

Many of the assailants were

begin on September 22.

Along with a 15-year-old cousin he stabbed and seriously wounded a 20-year-old and a

young people, including teenagers. Other youths have been shot dead during protests and clashes with security forces.

Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked gave the bill full backing when it came before a ministerial committee last year.

“Youths, such as Ahmed Manasra, who engage in terror and seek the death of Jewish civilians will not be shown mercy by the law,” media quoted her as saying.

Manasra, a 14-year-old Palestinian, was convicted in May of the attempted murder of two IsrUaelis in a knife attack last October. He was 13 when he carried out the attack.

His sentencing hearings will

12-year-old boy in the Jewish settlement neighbourhood of Pisgat Zeev in annexed east Jerusalem.

The cousin was shot dead by security forces, while Manasra was hit by a car as they fled.

Manasra, an east Jerusalem resident, was the youngest Palestinian to be convicted by an Israeli civilian court in the current round of violence.

Israeli rights group B’Tselem criticised the bill and Israel’s treatment of Palestinian youths.

“Rather than sending them to prison, Israel would be better off sending them to school where they could grow up in dignity and freedom not under occupation,” it said in a statement Wednesday.“Imprisoning such young minors denies them the chance of a better future.”

Military law, applied to Palestinian residents of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, already allows imprisonment of 12-year-olds. A 12-year-old Palestinian girl from the West Bank, convicted of attempted murder by a military court as part of a plea bargain and sentenced to four months, was released from prison in April.

Iran executes 20 Sunni ‘terrorists’: State media Tehran Iran has executed a group of 20 “terrorist” Sunni prisoners for committing several murders and undermining national security, state media reported on Thursday.

“These people had committed

murder... killed women and children, caused destructions and acted against the security and killed Sunni religious leaders in some Kurdish regions,” IRIB television quoted prosecutor general Mohammad Javad Montazeri.

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9 - 15 August 2016

650 Pakistanis fighting in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Afghanistan Some 650 Pakistanis are fighting in conflict zones in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Afghanistan and Central Asian states and their return to the country could add to

Asian states had put Pakistan on the verge of sectarian violence”. This prompted the NCMC to advise the interior ministry to take steps to prevent

sectarian strife, according to a media report on Wednesday.

Intelligence agencies have identified 132 of these Pakistanis and expressed fears about their return after being defeated by international forces, the influential Dawn newspaper reported.The National Crisis Management Cell (NCMC) of the federal government has alerted law enforcement agencies to take preventive measures and to tighten security on Pakistan’s borders, especially in Balochistan, KhyberPakhtunkhwa and coastal regions, and at airports.

An unnamed security official was quoted as saying by Dawn that the “defeat of fighters in Middle East, Afghanistan and Central

the return of these fighters, the official said.

“The NCMC directed the intelligence and law enforcement agencies to also keep surveillance on families of the individuals who had travelled to conflict zones and might create multiple security risks for Pakistan on their return,” the official said.

Another unnamed senior official said intelligence agencies had reported about Pakistani fighters’ plans to return to the country. He said these fighters were gathering in Afghanistan and planning to take refuge on the border.A source said foreign fighters who have suffered heavy losses in Afghanistan, Middle East and Central Asian region

could also take refuge in Pakistan.

“Fighters of other nationalities, especially those belonging to the Central Asian states, might find Afghanistan as a safe haven. But our own nationals who are fighting in Syria and Iraq would prefer moving back to Pakistan,” the source said.

“The return of foreign terrorists to our region has the potential of creating multiple security risks for Pakistan. Their increased strength in Afghanistan would also lead to a new wave of instability in our immediate neighbourhood with the potential of spillover effects into (the Federally Administered Tribal Areas).”The NCMC had issued a similar alert in January, asking police chiefs of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provinces and the commandant of the Frontier Constabulary to improve checking at inter-provincial check posts as huge catches of arms were being smuggled into Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province.

Amir Rana, the director of the think tank Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies, said: “Though sectarian violence in Pakistan has decreased in the last few years, the expected return of the foreign fighters would increase the fear that the scourge may raise its head again. Therefore, the government is taking preventive measures.”

Australia: 31-year-old charged with planning terror attack

A 31-year-old man appeared in an Australian court on Sunday charged with planning a terror attack, following a series of counter-terrorism police raids.

Phillip Galea was charged with acts done in preparation for a terrorist act and collecting or making documents likely to facilitate a terrorist act, after being arrested in police raids in Melbourne on Saturday. Police did not give details of the target but said it was in the southern state of Victoria.

“I will be fighting these charges and I believe they are a conspiracy against the patriot movement,” Galea told a Melbourne Magistrates’ Court hearing during in a brief

appearance on Sunday according to the Australian Associated Press.

Australian media outlets reported Galea had links to far-right organisations Reclaim Australia and True Blue Crew. Reclaim Australia posted on Facebookthat it had no links to the arrested man and that it “always denounced violence”.

Far-right political parties opposed to Islam and Asian immigration are on the rise in Australia.

Reclaim Australia and True Blue Crew, which are not political parties, have previously been involved in violent clashes with pro-immigration groups at rallies in Melbourne.

In his own words, Birbhum Islamic State man’s video, ‘caliphate’ dream A 25-year-old alleged Islamic State (IS) operative arrested in West Bengal last month has told interrogators that he had been instructed to behead a Hindu man and rape the man’s companion, make videos of both attacks, and send them to his handler across the border in Bangladesh.

The video of the beheading, the man is learnt to have told interrogators, was to have been then sent to the IS in Syria, to be released on the Internet by the communications wing of the terrorist organisation, along with a formal announcement of the establishment of the ‘caliphate’ in India.

While several videos of Indians professing allegiance to the IS, and calling upon Indian Muslims to join them have been released

by IS sympathisers over the past few years, none of them has been shot in India. They also haven’t shown any violent act, let alone beheading, the signature propaganda tool of the IS. During the Dhaka cafe attack recently, the attackers took pictures and made videos, which were later released by the IS’s official PR machine, the Amaq Agency. Like the several attacks in Bangladesh in recent times, the man who was arrested in West Bengal too was initially asked to carry out lone wolf attacks using a machete.

On July 6, based on information provided by the Intelligence Bureau and NIA, West Bengal Police apprehended Birbhum resident Masiuddin alias Abu alMusa from Burdwan railway

village, Labhpur. Musa had earlier worked for the man on a borewell contract. “I knew there would be anywhere between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 6 lakh in his house, which I could use to further IS

station. During interrogation by state police, intelligence agencies and NIA, Musa is learnt to have narrated the IS’s plan for a formal announcement of its arrival in India with a signature video of brutal murder.

Musa told interrogators his handler — who first identified himself as Jihadi John, the British Arab man seen in several IS beheading videos, but who was actually Mohammed Suleiman of the Jamaat-ulMujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) — had asked him to chose nonMuslim (kafir) targets, behead them, and record it.

Musa chose a businessman who lived in a farmhouse outside his

activities,” interrogators quoted Musa as having told them.

Watch Video: What’s making news Musa’s interrogation has also revealed that he had intended to rape a woman who lived with the man, and make a video of that crime as well.

To execute his plans Musa allegedly recruited Sheikh Abbasuddin alias Amin and Saddam Hussain alias Sheikh Kalu. Both men have been arrested.

According to interrogators, the Bangladeshi handler, Suleiman, had asked Musa to send him these videos, which the IS would release with the announcement

of its wing in India.

From dreams to jihad According to interrogators, Musa, the son of an impoverished father, was the only one among five siblings to study.

He married against the wishes of his family, but left his wife behind to travel to Kolkata, where he enrolled in an evening college, while working through the day.

“He told us he hoped to become a clerk,” an interrogator said.

For a while, Musa did odd jobs as a waiter. However, within a year, his family began to pressure him to take his wife away. So Musa quit studies and moved to Tirupur in Tamil Nadu in 2010 and worked as watchman for some time. His elder brother was already in Tirupur then.

He came back to Birbhum for some time, only to go back to Tirupur for a job in a textile factory that paid him Rs 6,000 a month. Soon Musa got access to a smartphone and a computer.

Once, while surfing the Net he “liked” the Facebookpage of the Islamic State in Bangladesh.

Days later Musa, a follower of Deobandi Islam, was contacted by “Jihadi John” on Surespot, an encrypted chat messenger.

Musa was aware of the name, the nom de guerre of the IS poster boy seen beheading “nonbelievers” in the outfit’s videos.

Musa promptly responded, and

thus began an online relationship.

“Jihadi John” allegedly encouraged Musa to read jihadi literature on jihadology.net, and to check the web sites of various terror organisations, in particular al-Shabaab, the al-Qaeda affiliate in Somalia, his interrogation has revealed.

Around the same time, in 2014, Musa came in contact with Yusuf al-Hindi, an Internet figure who is suspected to be former Indian Mujahideen (IM) member Shafi Armar, now working with the IS. By early 2015, Musa had tried his hand at running a shop, and had also been fired from his job. He returned to Birbhum after selling the goods in his shop, his interrogation reveals. Back in West Bengal, he had no job, but Rs 80,000 and a purpose to “fulfill the ultimate goal for a Muslim: to establish a Caliphate”.

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9 - 15 August 2016

Queen’s old love letter reveal her first crush

By SHARI MILLER Many a teenage crush has been formed over the allure of a young man in uniformand - as a touching collection of letters reveals - Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was no exception.

The young lady, who was one day destined to become Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, apparently developed feelings for a Private James Harding, one of many soldiers sent to recuperate at her family home, Glamis Castle, Angus, during the First World War. Since the 14th century, the Scottish landmark has been the ancestral home of the Lyon family, and was used as a makeshift hospital during the war years.

Lady Elizabeth, whose brother Fergus was killed in the battle of Loos in 1915, helped nurse the wounded soldiers alongside her sister, Rose.

As one of the letters reveals, the enigmatic 16year-old enjoyed playing a game of Hearts with the soldiers. The object of the game is to avoid the Queen of Spades, the holder of which receives 13 penalty points.

However, it appears Harding and his companions, including a Private Nix, played tricks on the young teenager to ensure she always received the Queen of Spades.

On November 29, 1916, she sent a photograph of herself to Harding and wrote: ‘I’m so glad you liked the photo, personally I think it’s dreadful!

‘Yes the games of ‘Hearts’

were great fun. I enjoyed them very much, even tho’ I was treated badly by you and Nix!’.

Almost a month later, on December 22, she composed a poem about the devious pair: ‘I sometimes go into the Ward/ And play a game or two/ And if I get the Queen of Spades/ T’is only due to you/Private Harding.’

Just a few weeks before the war ended, a third letter reveals Lady Elizabeth and Harding are still in correspondence and she attempts to make plans to meet.

On October 2, 1918, she wrote: ‘I am going to stay with my sister near Musselburgh next Tuesday and shall be arriving at Waverley Station at 4.49.

‘I don’t know if you are doing work of any kind yet, but if you are not, I should be so pleased to see you for a few minutes if you could come…it would be rather nice if I brought a pack of cards an we could play ‘Hearts’ on the platform!’

The fifth letter, written September 13, 1919, expresses Lady Elizabeth’s concerns for Harding that he is unable to find employment.

‘It seems to be very difficult now…I wonder what sort of a job you want? I might by chance heard of one that you’d like, though you’d probably want to be in Edinburgh…I do hope something will turn up.’

She also expresses her ‘terrific excitement’ at Glamis ‘when a motor van drove past the castle. We all rushed out and gazed at it. It was really very

exciting!’

In the final letter, written December 11, 1919, Harding has found a job.

‘I can’t tell you how pleased I am to hear the good news,’ she writes. ‘It is too splendid, after so long, and I am only so sorry that I was so useless and couldn’t help you more. But I will certainly let you know at once if I hear of anything very tempting. Could you please write and tell me what your previous jobs were, as people always want to know. I do hope that you will get on well in your new job.’

Four years later, in 1923, Elizabeth married Albert, Duke of York, the second son of King George V and Queen Mary.

In 1936, her husband unexpectedly took the throne when his brother, Edward VIII, abdicated in order to marry the American divorcée Wallis Simpson.

Elizabeth became Queen until her husband’s death, aged 51, in 1953. Thereafter she was seen as the family matriarch. She was a consistently popular member of the family, even when approval ratings for the rest of the Royal Family went into decline.

Elizabeth died in 2002, aged 101, just seven weeks after the death of her younger daughter, Princess Margaret.

The six letters between Lady Elizabeth and Private Harding are being auctioned at Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctioneers on Thursday, with an estimated price of between £5,000 and £7,000.

Kuwait arrests man accused of helping Indian IS recruit Areeb Majeed New Delhi Law enforcement authorities in Kuwait have arrested a person on the charges of providing financial help to Kalyan man Areeb Majeed and his associates to go to Syria to join the Islamic State (IS).

Majeed travelled with Shaheem Tanki, Fahad Sheikh and Aman Tandel, all from Maharashtra’s Kalyan town, to Iraq in May 2014 on the pretext of a pilgrimage but disappeared midway to join the IS. After spending six months in the IS and taking part in active combat there, Majeed came back to India in November.

Majeed got injured while fighting for the IS and came back to India via Turkey.

He was arrested and charge sheeted by the NIA. It emerged later that one of his associates, Tanki, was killed in a combat in Syria.

According to a National Investigation Agency (NIA) spokesperson, the central anti-terror probe agency had sent a Mutual Legal Assistance Request to Kuwait in respect of transfer money by a Kuwaiti national to Majeed and his associates while

they were living in Iraq in May 2014.

“The Kuwaiti authorities have now informed that one Abdullah Hadi Abdul

been charged in an FBI sting with attempting to support the Islamic State group.

The FBI says he is the first

Rahman al-Enezi sent $1,000 to Areeb Majeed through Western Union Money Transfer,” the NIA spokesperson said.

Al-Enezi has admitted to Kuwaiti authorities that he started financing terrorist outfits after his return from Pakistan in 2013. The Kuwaiti authorities have registered a case against him and arrested him on these charges.

Majeed is currently in Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail serving a sentence of waging war against friendly countries.

FBI charges first ever US police officer in terror case for supporting ISIS Authorities say a Washington, DC-area transit police officer has

law enforcement officer in the US to be charged with a terror-related crime.

Court documents say 36year-old Nicholas Young of Fairfax was arrested on Wednesday morning.

According to an affidavit, Young bought nearly $250 in gift cards he intended for the Islamic State to use to purchase mobile apps that would facilitate communication. But Young actually gave the gift cards to an undercover FBI source.Documents show Young has been under surveillance since 2010, and that he traveled to Libya twice in 2011, where he said he joined rebel forces seeking to oust dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

Issue 679 (15)

9 - 15 August 2016

Not just an inspirational tale

by Devarsi Ghosh Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Mayur Patole, Tillotama Shome, Shruti Marathe Direction: Soumendra Padhi Ratings: 4 Stars The real Budhia Singh ran a 65-kilometre marathon from Bhubaneshwar to Puri at the age of four. In the film Budhia Singh - Born to Run, he does it at the age of five because 4 is unbelievable, even by Bollywood standards. After Budhia (a perfectly adequate Mayur Patole) has completed almost half the distance that he has promised to complete (70 kilometres), the scene slows down - there’s Budhia running in slow motion, his coach Biranchi Das (Manoj Bajpayee, the man can play anything, you know) accompanies him on a cycle. Behind them are hordes of guys cheering them on bicycles.

Behind them are ambulances, CRPF on motobikes, and some army vehicles. The temparature is 50 degrees

Celsius. Everything has gone silent save the amplified sound of Budhia’s breathing. He pleads to his coach for water.

Biranchi takes a water bottle but instead of giving it to Budhia, makes the boy run for it, like a dog chasing a bone. A white woman documenting it all turns her camera away. A few journalists frown.

Soumendra Padhi’s film based on the child prodigy from Odisha, who completed 48 marathons by the age of five, is not afraid to delve into such dark, confusing territory.

Padhi could take the easier route and go for a one-dimensional inspirational-cum-patriotic story and this material was perfect for such a film. Isn’t it the climate for such films? But Padhi, in the guise of making a film about a tragic national hero, tells a more nuanced story about one man who can go to any disturbing length to see that his ambition is fulfilled and in the process, if a five-year-old collapses,

breaks down, falls sick, so be it. His film focuses on the media circus, on token nationalism, on politics being played around a poor boy where everyone has a stake, except, perhaps, the boy himself. Before the end-credits roll, the film tells us that there is a ban on Budhia running ever again and that all he needs is a Biranchi to take India to Olympic glory, but one cannot be sure if Padhi indeed believes that. If he did, Budhia Singh - Born To Run would be a different kind of film and definitely, a bland and boring one.

The film falters, somewhat, because of its length. As much as you go handheld, use Amit Trivedi, and try quasi-documentary, you won’t or can’t lose the instincts of an Indian filmmaker and the run-time reminds one of that. Padhi, after a point, is probably not sure about how to end the story. The boy has run the marathon, Padhi has sufficiently shown the ‘bad side’ of the hungama, he has milked the story to its

fullest, now what?

So he keeps throwing scenes of more and more problems for Budhia and Biranchi. That is another

drawback of the film.

Budhia Singh - Born To Run should be watched. It is well-made with its heart in the right place. Good

performances, a pleasing story, a national hero angle (Like Airlift, Neerja, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag) - what more do you want?

Warner Bros’ suicide mission to destroy the DC Cinematic Universe

by Tatsam Mukherjee Cast: Viola Davis, Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Cara Delevingne, Jay Courtney and others.

Direction: David Ayer Ratings: 2 Stars The DC vs Marvel war is over.

The studio executives at Warner Bros finished it when they asked director David Ayer to re-shoot portions to up the humour quotient in Suicide Squad. This was a direct consequence of the near-unanimous trashing of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The Zack Snyder film had a recurring criticism that it was too dark and grim, and that it took itself too seriously, unlike the more successful Marvel movies. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (or the MCU) put in a lot of invisible work at the foundation of the empire they’ve built today.

DC has been playing catch-up on building up a cinematic superhero universe and the panic of having arrived late to the party

has led to some questionable decisions.

Let’s start at the beginning in 2008, when Christopher Nolan spoiled Warner Bros forever. He made The Dark Knight, and earned them a billion dollars. Marvel, on the other hand, was busy rolling out origin-films for what was supposed to be the first stage of their cinematic universe and preparing an out-of-rehab Robert Downey Jr to play Iron Man. Too happy with the reliable Christopher Nolan, the Warner Bros executives rolled back and relaxed while the third film of the Dark Knight trilogy grossed another billion dollars.

Then, in the same year, Joss Whedon’s The Avengers released and it was a roaring success. Nolan, on the other hand, distanced himself from superhero films, saying that he wouldn’t direct the Superman reboot. In the confusion that followed, we got to see movies like Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and now this overcrowded,

convoluted mess, which doesn’t know what to do with its many interesting characters. Suicide Squad is a big, bloated mess of a superhero film, with a bipolar screenplay. Known for his realistic, gritty films like End of Watch and Fury, you can see flashes of the old David Ayer in this film.

Too few and far between though. The shifting tone confuses the audience as they never know what to feel. Also, the humour looks forced in a lot of places. The problem at the centre of all this are a few people trying to ape a ‘successful formula’ over and over again, even when said formula doesn’t work in their narrative. One of the biggest flaws of Suicide Squad is how spectacularly it lets its brilliant cast down thanks to a plot thinner than a potato wafer. In a film with incredible actors like Viola Davis, Will Smith, Margot Robbie and yes, Academy Award winner Jared Leto playing The Joker - the film never really lets them

reach their potential with all the buffoonery around them. And it is really frustrating because you see the actors give a lot to the film only to be abandoned in the end. Jared Leto’s Joker was going to be one of the highlights of the film after the late Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the same character. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have the delicious lines Ledger did which is sad because Leto looks more than game to

try and fill Ledger’s gigantic boots. Margot Robbie’s character Harley Quinn sinks her teeth into the pure craziness of the character and yet for some reason Ayer thought it was a good idea to have her cry for someone else’s unfulfilled romance. Viola Davis is daunting as the badass Amanda Waller and yet the film undermines her acting cred with its lack of a well-conceived plot. Will Smith as

Deadshot oscillates between an assassin who never misses, and his role of a father in Pursuit of Happyness. Sorry, but that just doesn’t work anymore.

All eyes now on the Wonder Woman film, and its director Patty Jenkins. In a world where most men have driven an entire comic universe to the ground, maybe it is a woman who might just save it from complete annihilation.

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9 - 15 August 2016

Hollywood is my next plan says Esha Gupta Esha Gupta might be taking slow steps to establish a strong footing in the Hindi film industry but the ‘Raaz 2’ star is already eyeing Hollywood and says it is next on her wishlist. The 30year-old actress, whose looks have long been compared with Hollywood star Angelina Jolie’s, says she is hoping to begin a career in the West soon. “I would really love to do a Hollywood film. I have not tried anything now. Not even given any audition or meeting but I am looking forward to it. I think that’s my next plan,” Esha told PTI. Heaping praise on Bollywood stars Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone, who are gearing up for their big Hollywood debuts, Esha said the two actresses have taken India to the next level, globally. “I respect Priyanka and Deepika, where they have reached. They have taken not only themselves but India on a different level of map. We have sportsmen who are known and otherwise there are film stars who are more famous than anyone,” she said. “People may not know who is the PM but they will know which country a particular star comes from. Now, people are going to say Priyanka and Deepika are from India.”

Esha will be next seen in Akshay Kumar-starrer ‘Rustom’, which hits theatres on August 12. Her other forthcoming ventures include Vipul Amrutlal Shah’s ‘Commando 2’ and Milan Luthria’s next directorial venture ‘Baadshaho’, alongside Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi.

I’m blown away by Alia Bhatt’s work says Saiyami Kher

Saiyami Kher, who is making her Bollywood debut with Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s ‘Mirzya’, says she finds it “mind-blowing” to see Alia Bhatt’s range as an actor.

“There is so much to learn from any generation (of actors). Currently, I am completely blown away by Alia’s work. She is completely on another level altogether,” Saiyami told IANS. “The kind of films she does is mind-

blowing. I watched ‘Udta Punjab’ and she is phenomenal,” she added.

In her debut film ‘Mirzya’, Saiyami is paired with newcomer Harshvardhan Kapoor. Asked if she hopes to make inroads into international cinema someday, Saiyami said: “I would love to, becasue I don’t see language as a barrier in acting. If something comes along, it would be wonderful. I would love to do a Japanese film some day.”

Sanjay Dutt, SRK, Aamir, Katrina are No idea about female lead in my close friends says Salman Khan ‘Golmaal 4’ says Ajay Devgn Bollywood superstar Salman Khan says he considers Sanjay Dutt, Shah Rukh, Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif as his

close friends. “I have a lot of friends in the industry both male and female, birds, animals all. Whose name should I take? All are my

friends here (in film industry),” Salman told reporters here at an event.

“But among close friends, I have Sanju (Sanjay Dutt)

who I have seen since childhood...Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan,” he said. The 50-year-old star, who was talking at the

trailer launch of brother Sohail Khan’s upcoming directorial film “Freaky Ali”, said in a lighter vein that his male friends might not be of interest to the media.

“These all names you are finding boring right?

Should I give names of some girls?

Katrina Kaif is my friend,” he said. “Her film (“Baar Baar Dekho”) is releasing with our film (Sohail Khan’s “Freaky Ali”).

So I am both the ways (as Sohail’s film is also there and even Katrina’s film is there),” the actor added.

Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn says the female lead for the forthcoming instalment of hit comedy franchise ‘Golmaal’ has not yet been finalised.

‘Golmaal Again’, the fourth installment of the hit comedy franchise ‘Golmaal’, marks the reunion of director Rohit Shetty and the 47-yearold actor after hit films like ‘Bol Bachchan’ and the ‘Singham’ franchise.

According to some reports, the makers are considering Alia Bhatt or Deepika Padukone for

and Devgn says audience should expect the same mad-cap fun which the franchise is

the female lead. When asked if any actress has been finalised, Ajay said in an interview, “No not yet. Not that I have any idea about that now.”

The movie will release during Diwali next year,

known for.

“Right now I have not started preparing for it.

(But audience should expect) same as what they expect from ‘Golmaal’. That’s what we want to do also.”

CAUGHT

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Issue 679 (17)

9 - 15 August 2016

Anna Kendrick warns her exes: Be scared of my memoir

Actress Anna Kendrick is working on her tell-all memoir “Scrappy Little Nobody” and she says she’ll reveal highs and lows of her past loves in it. The 30-year-old

“Pitch Perfect” actress says some of her exes should be scared of her upcoming book, reported Digital Spy. “I do feel like there are probably some exes

who will maybe not be thrilled. But all I can say is, it was my perception of how it happened,” Kendrick said. “I definitely wake up in cold sweats thinking, ‘... I

need to cut that. What was I thinking?’ There are times when I really want to censor a lot of it but then I just think, ‘Well then, why the hell am I doing it?’“

Brie Larson starts preparing for Captain Marvel Actress Brie Larson has started research for her role in Captain Marvel.

The 26-year-old Oscar-winning actress, who was announced as Captain Marvel during Comic-Con, posted a photo of herself on Instagram busy doing her homework for the role of Carol Danvers.

“LARSON INDUSTRIES R&D DEPT. @ALECKSU,” she captioned the picture which features her relaxing on a sofa wearing a Captain Marvel outfit and reading “Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More” by Kelly Sue DeConnick and David

Lopez. Carol, an air force pilot, is a half-Kree (alien species), half-human

hybrid. There is no director on board as yet for the film. “Captain Marvel” will be out in cinemas in 2019.

Angelina Jolie to teach Cara Delevingne dogged by criticism at Georgetown University

Actress Angelina Jolie will be reportedly teaching a class at Georgetown University in Washington.

In May, the 41-year-old actress announced she would be teaching at the prestigious London School of Economics (LSE), which is the sister institution to Georgetown

University, for the fall term. Now, she “will do the same guest spot at Georgetown University”, a source told usmagazine.com. Jolie, who did not attend college, will share her knowledge in lectures, workshops and research focussed on women,

peace and security -subjects that are close to her heart. The course, the first-of-its-kind internationally, was launched last year by Jolie and former British Foreign Secretary William Hague, who will also serve as an unpaid visiting professor at the LSE.

Cara Delevingne has reportedly upset animal lovers after her dog Leo was spotted wearing a ‘pepper spray’ training collar. The anti-barking device, which is fitted round her pup’s neck, gives off a spray of citronella whenever a certain decibel level is reached by the animal, to discourage it from barking. The supermodel is extremely close to her dog, which is named after her star sign, and has brought him with her on the press tour for her

latest blockbuster film Suicide Squad. Cara, 23, was spotted leaving Claridge’s Hotel where she has been staying with the husky crossbreed she adopted last year, on Friday night with the collar firmly attached.

The use of the device is quite controversial and Lynn Barber, the training and behaviour manager for Dogs Trust charity, told a website: “At the Dogs Trust, we don’t recommend the use of any adverse technique or

equipment for any kind of behaviour issue. You have to find out the cause of the dog’s behaviour rather than punish it.”

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Issue 679 (18)

9 - 15 August 2016

First Mr. Gay China wins title in Shanghai pageant Beijing Meng Fanyu is the strikingly handsome heartthrob with a sculpted body who was declared “Mr Gay China” in the first such pageant to be held in the Communist country.

That the pageant, affiliated to the international franchise “Mr Gay World”, was held in Shanghai over the last weekend wasn’t a surprise. China’s financial capital is possibly the country’s most cosmopolitan and open city; it has held several lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) pride parades since 2009. There wasn’t too much hype or reporting on the pageant.

In fact, even on China’s vibrant Twitter-like Weibo platforms, there wasn’t much discussion on the event or the 27-year-old winner. One reason would be that the government had banned the pageant in 2010. Police had then barged into the venue and shut it down, saying it wasn’t licensed. It wasn’t the case in 2016, and neither the police nor the Shanghai municipal au-

thorities interfered with the colourful event. For four weeks, participants performed and competed for the title. In the strip tease category, Meng turned in

a winning performance to American singer and civil rights activist Nina Simone’s song “Feeling Good”. Meng himself was feeling good but circumspect after winning the event. “Something like this event is a great platform to raise awareness of the LGBT community. Many people don’t really know what LGBT is, and coming out can still be difficult, so you really have to prove yourself to be an upstanding person,” Meng told The Guardian newspaper.

China’s relations with the

LGBT community continues to be complicated. According to state media, China has an estimated 70 million people in the LGBT community. Homosexual-

ity was a criminal offence till 1997 but considered a mental illness till 2001.

Though society is gradually opening up to homosexuality, prejudices exist.

In March, for example, government banned depictions of homosexuality on television as part of a crackdown on “vulgar, immoral and unhealthy content”.

Chinese censors released new regulations for content that “exaggerates the dark side of society”, deeming homosexuality, extramarital affairs, one-night stands and underage relationships

as illegal on screen. But the Shanghai pageant was a sign of opening up, said Cyrielle Nifle from Beijingbased NGO Crossroads, which works on human rights and women’s issues. “This is definitely good news for the Chinese LGBT community and the acceptance of LGBT people from the society. The more there are such public events in China, the more awareness there will be from people, and the more acceptance there will be on a long-term basis. It is also very important that the media objectively write about such stories,” she told Hindustan Times. According to Nifle, a lot more – and that’s a lot more – needs to be done. “There are still LGBT events shut down in China, and I believe LGBT issues are still very taboo/not spoken about much within Chinese society. There's still huge pressure from the society, and from the family circle that LGBT people feel, that stops them from coming out,” she said.

Meng could become a symbol for the community.

Brother-in-law of Charlie Hebdo killer detained in Bulgaria

Paris The brother-in-law of one of the men who attacked the satirical Charlie Hebdo newspaper in Paris has been jailed in Bulgaria, and authorities say he is suspected of trying to join extremists in Syria.

Mourad Hamyd was initially suspected of a role in the January 2015 attack on the paper, but his high school classmates launched a successful social media campaign to

clear his name, saying he was in class at the time. “I am a student who lives peacefully with his parents,” he said then.

The Paris prosecutor’s office said Monday that someone close to Hamyd flagged his probable trip to Syria, and he was detained near the border in late July.

Hamyd’s sister was married to Cherif Kouachi, one of two brothers who carried out the deadly attack at the Charlie Hebdo offices.

Issue 679 (19)

9 - 15 August 2016

Boy, 12, dies in Kansas on world’s largest water slide Kansas City A 12-year-old boy died Sunday on a Kansas water slide that is billed as the world’s largest, according to officials.

Kansas City, Kansas, police spokesman Officer Cameron Morgan said the boy died at

the Schlitterbahn Waterpark, which is located about 15 miles west of downtown Kansas City, Missouri.

Schlitterbahn spokesperson Winter Prosapio said the child died on one of the park’s main attractions, Verruckt, a 168foot-tall water slide that has 264 stairs leading to the top.

Morgan said he did not have any details about how the child died or his identity, and Prosapio declined comment beyond a prepared statement.

The park is closed Sunday and Monday, and the ride is closed pending an investigation, she said.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time,” Prosapio said in the statement.

Verruckt, which means “insane” in German, was certified as the world’s tallest water slide by Guinness World Records. Verruckt riders go down the slide in multi-person rafts and have to be at last 54 inches tall, according to the park’s website.

The park’s 2014 opening was delayed a few times, though the operators did not provide reasons for the delays. Two media sneak preview days in 2014 were canceled because

of problems with a conveyor system that hauls 100-pound rafts to the top of the slide.

Prosapio said in 2014 that park officials would not hesitate to delay operation again for however long it takes to make sure the slide is safe.

In a news article linked to the news release announcing a 2014 delay, Schlitterbahn coowner Jeff Henry told USA Today that he and senior designer John Schooley had based their calculations when designing the slide on roller coasters, but that didn’t translate well to a water slide like Verruckt.

In early tests, rafts carrying sandbags flew off the slide, prompting engineers to tear down half of the ride and reconfigure some angles at a cost of $1 million, Henry said. A promotional video for a show about building the slide includes footage of two men riding a raft down a halfsize test model and going slightly airborne as it crests the top of the first big hill.

Pakistan authorities arrest blacklisted American citizen Islamabad An American citizen who was deported from Pakistan and blacklisted years ago has been arrested upon returning to the country, officials said Saturday.

serious.”

Barrett, a 33-year old Alabama native, was previously arrested May 2011 in the Fateh Jang area near a highly secretive military research facility.

Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency officials arrested Mathew Craig Barrett from an Islamabad guest house, said Sarfaraz Hussain, a spokesman for the country’s Interior Ministry.

He said Barrett was deported in 2011 after being found in the area of a sensitive installation. He did not elaborate but said, “If someone was blacklisted there should have been something

He had lived in Pakistan for four years, married a Pakistani woman and had two children. In media reports and a letter smuggled from jail in 2011 to the Guardian newspaper, Barret strongly denied local suspicions that he was a spy and claimed he was a victim of simmering tensions at the time between the U.S. and Pakistani governments. He was eventually deported and banned

from the country.

Hussain said Barrett obtained a visa from the Pakistani consulate in Houston and managed to clear the airport immigration counter. An FIA official said a court has allowed the agency to hold him for three days for investigation. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media.

He said Barrett mentioned a “family visit” and a one-month intended stay in Islamabad in his travel documents.

US embassy spokesman said in a text message that the privacy act “prohibits us from releasing information about American citizens without their consent.”

Hussain said the interior minister has ordered a thorough inquiry into how Barrett managed to enter Pakistan again and suspended the airport immigration staff.

Family of Muslim teen arrested for homemade clock sues Texas school Dallas The family of Ahmed Mohamed, a Muslim boy who was arrested after his homemade clock brought to school was mistaken as a bomb, filed a federal lawsuit on Monday against Texas school officials and others, saying the incident violated the 14-year-old boy’s civil rights, prompted death threats and forced them to leave the United States.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Mohamed, who was arrested at his suburban Dallas high school in September and charged with having a hoax bomb.

He says he brought the homemade digital clock to school to show his English teacher.

Ahmed showed off the clock, made out of a plastic pencil box and electrical wire and other hardware salvaged from his parents’ garage, on Monday during a news conference with his parents and attorneys.

Irving police later dropped the charge, but he was still suspended for three days. He never returned to the school; his family opted to have him take classes elsewhere.

The lawsuit names Irving Independent School District, the city of Irving and the school’s principal, and asks a jury to determine the damages. In November, the family asked the district and city to pay $15 million or else face a suit. District spokesperson Lesley Weaver said in a statement on Monday that attorneys for the district will review the suit and determine a

course of action.

“Irving ISD continues to deny violating the student’s rights and will respond to claims in accordance with court rules,” she said, adding that school officials for now will have no further comment.

The Mohamed family questioned whether the boy was mistreated

due to his religion but the district has denied the claim.

The family has since moved to Qatar, citing threats and a scholarship offered to Ahmed in the Persian Gulf country. Ahmed moved back to the US last month for the summer to visit family and friends, and will do some traveling around the country, but will return to Qatar next month to start 10th grade at Qatar Academy, a private school in Doha.

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Issue 679 (20)

PM Modi faces flak from Hindutva groups and the Opposition after taking on fa

:+(1 02', :$9(' 5(' )/$* $7 6$))521 %8// The RSS might have backed Narendra Modi’s strong position against fake cow protectors and attacks on Dalits, but the Prime Minister has faced flak from other Hindutva organisations and the Opposition. Responding to the PM’s call for action against fake cow protectors, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad joint general secretary Surendra Jain said the organisation will continue to protect the sacred animal. The VHP leader, however, declined to comment on the attacks on Dalits and Muslims by cow vigilantes, saying it was a controversial issue. RSS general secretary Bhaiyaji Joshi, the second in command after Sar Sanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat, had issued a statement on Sunday denouncing the attacks on Dalits. “Taking law in one’s own hands to harass Dalits is not only illegal, but also inhuman,” Joshi said. Joshi had also said that several political parties and leaders of various castes were trying to create a situation of uncertainty through half-baked information which was not conducive to harmony. “RSS also would like to appeal to political parties and various heads that there is a need to normalise the situation of uncertainty through public cooperation,” Joshi said. “By sympathising with the victims, there is a need to think that such incidents do not take place,” Joshi added in his statement. Earlier, PM Modi had condemned perpetrators of violence against Dalits in the name of cow protection. He had said that if need be they should shoot him, but stop attacking the Dalit brethren. The Opposition also attacked the Prime Minister for his remark. Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh said Modi should stop making “drama” over the Dalit issue and prevent people from giving objectionable statements. “The kind of statement PM is giving, like, ‘I have become helpless. Do not kill Dalits, shoot me’, does not behove of any Prime Minister.

This kind of statement by a PM is proof that he is indeed helpless,” Singh said outside Parliament, referring to the PM’s statement on the Dalit community in Telangana. On the other

hand, BJP ally the Shiv Sena asked the Prime Minister to spell out the reasons for the rise of such elements over the last two years, while cautioning him that he may have to face the wrath of Hindutva supporters. “We will not be surprised if the Prime Minister has to face the wrath of the believers of Hindutva for his comments on cow vigilantes,” an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamana said. With the PM calling on the state governments to act against ‘fake’ cow protectors, the police in poll-bound Punjab booked Gau Raksha Dal chief Satish Kumar for allegedly targeting people on the pretext of cow protection.

Amid a row on cow vigilante groups, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Monday accused the BJP of creating differences in society in the name of cow protection and deviating from the discussion on development.

The BJP’s attitude on the issue of cow is well known. “Cows are owned by farmers in villages. You can find cows with us (Yadavs)... but tell me which person in BJP in a city owns a cow?” he said after a cabinet meeting. The chief minister charged that the saffron party was creating social tensions in the name of cow protection and sad the BJP was focused on how to deviate from a healthy discussion on development.

His comments come a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi lashed out at fake cow protectors.

“I would like to tell all countrymen that they beware of these fake cow protectors. These handful of people must not be allowed to destroy your good work for their vested interest,” Modi had said, while addressing a public meeting in Telangana on Sunday.

(21)

9 - 15 August 2016

ake cow protectors, as Congress veteran Digvijay ngh accuses Si him of ‘making drama’

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by Vishwas Kumar and Harish Sharma Various Gau Raksha groups may have turned into mafias running protection rackets for cattle transporters in Punjab, the nerve centre of cow vigilantism, a week-long India Today investigation has revealed.

After local traders complained to India Today about bribes they have to pay these thugs, a special investigation team of its reporters went undercover as truckers to probe the accusations.

They met several leaders of cow vigilante gangs, which have been striking cattle freight with increasing force and speed in Punjab, a hotbed of self-styled Gau Raksha squads.

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By Baishali Adak Prime Minister Narendra Modi may have given a clarion call for ‘gau raksha’ from plastic and garbage, but this is an issue Delhi has been wrestling with for decades now, unable to find a solution.

The national Capital of India is infested with ‘illegal dairies’ which unleash their cattle on the streets every morning. As per the 19th Livestock Census of India (2012), Delhi has about 3.5 lakh bovines. This includes cows, bulls, calves and buffaloes. Only a fraction of them are housed in the city’s 10 ‘legal dairy colonies’ in the outskirts Kakrola, Goela, Nangli, Jharoda, Bhalaswa, Gharoli, Ghazipur, Shahbad, Madanpur and Masoodpur. The rest are packed in thousands of smaller illegal dairies spread across the city. One can spot them in ‘lal dora’ areas, meaning rural belts of Delhi or unauthorised colonies such as Kotla Mubarakpur, Sangam Vihar, Govindpuri, Munirka, and Mahipalpur. Sometimes, these appear even in the middle of well-monied colonies. The owners of such illegal dairies are greedy, and milk their female cattle twice a day. They are unwilling to invest in even the basics for their ‘cash cows’. The animals are let loose and forced to forage on trash for food. The three municipal corporations, meanwhile, sit twiddling their thumbs citing grey areas in the existing laws.

Mukesh Yadav, spokesperson for the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), told Mail Today: “Large-scale commercial keep of cattle is allowed only in our designated dairy colonies

which are on the border areas of Delhi.

In the ‘lal dora’ belt or villages in our jurisdiction, each family is allowed to keep only one cow or buffalo.�

Dr Hari Lal, director of Veterinary at East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC), underlined the confusion in the law, saying: “Lal Dora is still determined by our SDM/Revenue records which identify an area as ‘agricultural land.’ However, since many of them have turned into unauthorised colonies over years, we are seeking ‘lal dora’ certificates from SDMs for giving out ‘cattle keeping’ license. It is a difficult process.� Rajdeep Datta Roy, a gaushala owner, said: “It is extremely sad how these bovines are made to starve and suffer immense pain.

Unlike dogs, cows don’t have claws to tear open packets. On finding food in dhalaos (garbage sheds), cows consume polybags full of food as a whole. This keeps collecting in their rumen till they can’t eat anything.� “Only a few organisations in India conduct an operation called Rumenotomy, through which plastics are surgically removed.

These include the Karni Mata Gaushala in Bikaner and Panna Lal Dhamarastra Gaushala in Jodhpur. Several thousand cows die each year of 70-100 kgs of polybags in their system,� he said.

Khushboo Gupta of NGO, World Animal Protection, said: “If the illegal dairies kill their cattle in one way, legal dairies do it another way. They keep cows and buffaloes in dingy, dark rooms. These poor animals suffer from diseases like Mastitis (infection of the udders). Even at that time, they are milked.�

REVELATIONS In Hoshiarpur, India Today’s reporters visited a key member of the Bajrang Dal, Sher-e-Punjab Singh Arora.

The man, in his early 40s, claimed he led a well-oiled cow protection racket across the state. “How can I lie to you? There have been many fights. We have damaged and burned down many vehicles. We even filed cases (against cattle transporters). There’s nothing to be ambiguous about. We have done many things,� he told reporters posing as Delhi-based truckers seeking a safe passage for their livestock freight through Punjab.

Arora insisted he had between 5,000 and 10,000 men operating under his command in one district alone.

As Gau Rakshaks, the vigilantes have spread across various parts of the country, he said. “My job, my responsibility is for Punjab,� Arora remarked.

He quoted a bill of Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000 for promising protection to each cattle truck passing through the state. “Between 15 and 20,� he said. “Between 15,000 and 20,000 per truck?� asked the reporter to double-check the figure he quoted. “I am giving you an idea. It’s not a fixed figure. I won’t confirm. It may come down...,�

Arora replied. He then explained he’d be sharing the bribes with others participating in his syndicate. “Whatever is the setting. I’ll keep Rs 5,000 per vehicle with myself. Then I’ll let you know whether it’s 10,000 or 15,000. I’ll tell you clearly,� the Bajrang Dal member continued. He also admitted his criminal system exercised a no-holds-barred approach on its save-the-cow plank.

Initially, Arora promised his cover to fictitious cow vans for few districts in the state. But as discussions with the SIT progressed, he offered full protection from vigilantes for all of Punjab. “I’ll have you cross the entire state of Punjab. After Ambala, it’s my responsibility to have you (your livestock trucks) travel safely across Pathankot. I won’t be responsible beyond Pathankot,� Arora said. But soon, he indicated the racket had its tentacles stretched across various states.

Arora assured undercover reporters of a similar bulwark in Jammu when they requested security for their transport beyond Punjab. “I’ll have to speak with (our people) in Jammu... That’s a Hindu belt.

Okay, I’ll arrange in whatever way it’s possible,� he said.

Vigilantism in the name of cow protection has left legitimate traders of livestock deeply distressed in Punjab.

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Issue 679 (22)

9 - 15 August 2016

Six Britons in Indian jail

UK urged to intervene London Family members of six Britons sentenced to jail in India for allegedly carrying unlicenced arms aboard a merchant vessel have urged Prime Minister Theresa May to intervene forcefully with Indian authorities to seek their freedom. The six are

Modi and others.

Over 375,000 people have signed an online petition, seeking freedom for the six Britons, who were sentenced to five years in prison in January. The British government has been accused of not trying hard enough to secure their release. Lisa Nunn, sister of

and betrayed by the government and the country that he once served…There is overwhelming evidence that supports the men and proves that they were not involved in any wrongdoing,” Nunn told The Guardian. Britain’s head of export controls has report-

among 35 members of American anti-piracy vessel ‘MV Seaman Guard Ohio’ that was intercepted by the Coast Guard off Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, on October 12, 2013. Britain has since taken up their case with Prime Minister Narendra

Nick Dunn, one of the six, has urged May and foreign secretary Boris Johnson to step up efforts to secure their release, stating the mental state of the arrested had begun to deteriorate in jail.

“Nick’s always maintained that he feels abandoned

edly confirmed to the court in Tamil Nadu that the arms and ammunition carried by the American company owning the vessel had been given licenses in 2012 and 2013.

Dunn added: “I appreciate and understand that the government have spoken

Shirtless Canadian PM Justin Trudeau becomes summer internet fascination Toronto Sightings of a shirtless Justin Trudeau are causing something of a stir across Canada and internationally this summer.

The Prime Minister was most recently photo-

graphed shirtless while taking a break from surfing and simultaneously photobombing a couple getting married on a Tofino, British Columbia, beach.

A Vancouver Island wedding photographer, Marnie Recker, tweeted the photo of Trudeau on Saturday with his surf

board standing several meters (feet) away from the bride, generating plenty of retweets and fanfare online.

It wasn’t clear exactly when the photo was taken, but Trudeau has been in British Columbia

for the past week.

The 44-year-old Trudeau took office in November and carries one of the most famous names in Canadian political history.

His late father was prime minister for the better part of 16 years, between 1968 and 1984, and remains the rare Canadian politician who is

recognized in America.

A previous sighting of Canada’s shirtless Prime Minister gained international attention.

The BBC and Time magazine reported on a Canadian family that encountered Trudeau while hiking in Quebec’s Gatineau Park last month and took a selfie with the Prime Minister who was not wearing a shirt.

Reporting on the same Quebec encounter, American online news provider Mic called shirtless Trudeau “one of Canada’s most prized national treasures.”

The satirical news website the Syrup Trap poked fun at the online obsession over the Prime Minister's physique with a story headlined: “Family on camping trip doesn’t know how to tell shirtless Justin Trudeau to leave them alone.”

to various Indian counterparts over the last nearly three years, but for the evidence that’s there, it’s beyond belief that our government haven’t pushed harder.”

“They keep saying we’ve talked with this Indian counterpart, but it was apparent a long, long time ago that talking makes no difference to the Indian authorities.

We need more robust action.”

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: “Our staff in India and the UK remain in regular contact with all six men and are continuing to support them and their families, working to make sure their welfare is protected in prison”.

“We recognise what a difficult time this is for those involved. We cannot interfere with India’s independent legal system, just as other countries cannot interfere with ours, but we will continue efforts to make sure this case is resolved swiftly. Ministers will continue to raise this case at the highest levels.”

Keep it simple Strike where it hurts most IS to recruits in West

London The dreaded ISIS has instructed its Western terror recruits to embark upon “simple and effective” spontaneous attacks rather than making “intricate” plans in the latest edition of its online propaganda magazine.

“Indeed, you are behind enemy lines, able to strike them where it hurts them most. The command is clear. Kill the disbelievers,” the article in ‘Dabiq’ reads.

“As for a final word of advice... do not make intricate plans, but instead keep it simple and effective.

If you can obtain a weapon, do so and use it as soon as possible and in a place that will cause the most damage and panic,” it adds.

In the article written by an American Muslim convert fighting in Syria, followers in the West are urged to

carry out attacks at home if they are thwarted from travelling to the Middle East.

“If you are unable to do so, know that you have been blessed with the opportunity to serve a much greater purpose than dwelling among Muslims,” it says in its message to Western IS recruits.

The new instructions reported in ‘The Sunday Times’ emerge as Scotland Yard chief Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe warned recently that it was “a case of when, not if” an attack would be launched in the UK. The force had also announced an additional 600 armed officers to guard major spots around London earlier this week. Since August 2014, the terror threat level in Britain has been “severe” -- the second highest level -- meaning an attack is “highly likely”.

Young man killed while playing Pokemon Go at tourist attraction

San Fransisco A 20-year-old man was shot to death while playing “Pokemon Go” at a tourist attraction along San Francisco’s waterfront, authorities and a family friend said on Sunday.

Calvin Riley was shot on Saturday night by an unknown assailant at Aquatic Park near Ghiradelli Square, the U.S. Park Police said. A family friend told KGO-TV Riley and a friend were playing the hit mobile game when he was shot. “From what we know there was no confrontation. There was nothing said back and forth. It was just senseless, just came

up and shot in the back and ran away for nothing,” John Kirby said. Kirby said Riley and his friend had noticed someone watching them from the top of a hill that overlooks the park, but it was dark and they were mostly looking at their cellphones. National Park Service spokesman Lynn Cullivan said investigators believe there are witnesses to the attack because it happened in the bustling Fisherman’s Wharf area.

They are seeking tips. Sgt. Robert Jansing, a detective with the U.S. Park Police, said the gunman did not take any of Riley’s belongings or try to rob him.

It’s unclear whether the attack had anything to do with “Pokemon Go,” which has become a national sensation this summer as legions of fans visit realworld landmarks in order to find and trap cartoon creatures.

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9 - 15 August 2016

Iran executes nuclear scientist who returned after defecting to US Tehran Iranian authorities on Sunday said the country had executed a nuclear scientist who defected to the US in 2009 and later returned to the Islamic Republic under mysterious circumstances a year later, acknowledging for the first time that they had secretly detained, tried and convicted a man once heralded as a hero.

Shahram Amiri vanished in 2009 while on a religious pilgrimage to Muslim holy sites in Saudi Arabia, only to reappear a year later in a series of online videos filmed in the US. He then walked into the Iranian interests section at the Pakistani Embassy in Washington and demanded to be sent home.

In interviews, Amiri described being kidnapped and held against his will

by Saudi and American spies, while US officials said he was to receive millions of dollars for his help in understanding Iran’s contested nuclear program. He was hanged the same week as Tehran executed a group of militants, a year after his country agreed to a land-

mark accord to limit uranium enrichment in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

Speaking to journalists on Sunday, Iranian judiciary spokesman Gholamhosein Mohseni Ejehi said Amiri was convicted of spying as he “provided the enemy with vital informa-

tion of the country”.

Amiri had access to classified information “and he was linked to our hostile and number one enemy, or the Great Satan,” Ejehi said, referring to the US. Ejehi did not explain why authorities never announced Amiri’s conviction or his subsequent

failed appeals court bid.

He said Amiri had access to lawyers. “He neither repented nor compensated and he was trying to leak some information from inside prison, too,” Ejehi said, without elaborating.

News about Amiri, born in 1977, has been scant since his return to Iran.

Last year, his father Asgar Amiri told the BBC’s Farsi-language service that his son had been held at a secret site since coming home. BBC Farsi also quoted Amiri’s mother saying her son’s neck bore ligature marks suggesting he had been hanged by the state. The Associated Press could not immediately reach Amiri’s family.

Other side of the mystery US officials told the AP in 2010 that Amiri was paid $5 million to offer the CIA

information about Iran’s nuclear program, though he left the country without the money. They said Amiri, who ran a radiation detection program in Iran, travelled to the US and stayed there for months at his own free will. Analysts abroad suggested Iranian authorities may have threatened Amiri’s family back in Iran, forcing him to return.

But when he returned to Iran and was welcomed by government officials, Amiri said Saudi and American officials had kidnapped him while he visited the Saudi holy city of Medina.

He also said Israeli agents were present at his interrogations and that CIA officers offered him $50 million to remain in America. “I was under the harshest mental and physical torture,” he said.

US doctor fires Muslim dental assistant Passports of 68 Malaysians for refusing to work without hijab revoked over Islamic State links Washington In a case of alleged discrimination in the US, a young Muslim woman was fired from her job at a dental clinic for wearing a hijab as her employer

wanted to keep a “neutral environment” in office.

Najaf Khan, who was hired as a dental assistant at Fair Oaks Dental Care in Fairfax County, Virginia, said she was fired from the new job because she wore a Muslim head scarf to work. “I was really upset.

The day that it happened, I was devastated,” Najaf told NBC Washington.

She did not wear the hijab for her interview or on the first two days of employment. On the third day, she chose to wear it because Najaf felt that she would stay at the job and wearing it was part of her spiritual journey.

At work that day, she said the owner of Fair Oaks Dental Care, Dr Chuck Joo, told her to take off the hijab.

Joo told her that they wanted to keep a “neutral

environment” in office.

The employer asked her to remove it because the Islamic head scarf would offend patients and he wanted to keep religion out of the office.

Khan said Joo gave her an ultimatum -- she could continue wearing the scarf and be fired or work without it. “When I said that I would not compromise my religion for that, he held the door open for me and I walked out,” Khan said. Joo was quoted as saying that open displays of religion are not allowed at his business because he wants to keep it neutral.

If his employees want to

wear a hat, it must be a surgical hat for sanitary reasons, Joo said.

Reacting to the case, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) said, “No employee

should face termination because of his or her faith or religious practices. We call on Fair Oaks Dental Care to reinstate the Muslim employee and to offer her reasonable religious accommodation as mandated by law.”

Najaf said she would likely refuse an offer to return to the dental office.

“I was astonished because he (boss) had been saying I had been doing so well. I received an email Friday morning (July 29) saying how much positive enthusiasm I was bringing into the dental office,” she told Fox News.

Kuala Lumpur Malaysian authorities have revoked the passports of 68 citizens over their involvement in Islamic State’s activities abroad, deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said, warning the threat from the dreaded terror outfit is real.

Ahmad, who is also the home minister, said the passports were revoked two weeks ago after a directive was issued by Prime Minister Najib Razak.

“They no longer have travelling documents as Malaysian citizens. In fact, when they come back to this country, action will be taken against them under the Immigration Act,” Hamidi said on Sunday.

The 68 Malaysians included two families which had travelled to Syria with the intention to fight for the Islamic State (IS) and achieve martyrdom, he said, adding the families comprised couples with children aged between 3

was real, and that the government is not trying to divert the public’s attention away from other issues as claimed by certain quarters.

“There are 10 hand grenades in the possession of the terrorists we are track-

and 11.

“They went to supposedly fight for IS, but are working as cleaners and sweepers there,” Hamidi said.

Hamidi added the IS threat

ing. Two were used in the night Club bombing here last month. We do not know when or where the next (attack) is going to take place,” he said.

Islamic State militants claim US weapons haul in Afghanistan Kabul Militants linked to Islamic State (IS)?have released photos that purport to show weapons and equipment that belonged to American soldiers were captured by the group in eastern Afghanistan.

The photos, which came to light on Saturday, show an American portable rocket launcher, radio, grenades and other gear not com-

monly used by Afghan troops, as well as close up views of identification cards for a US army soldier, specialist Ryan Larson.

The US military command in Kabul denied any sug-

gestion that the soldier had been captured, saying he “has been accounted for and remains in a duty status within his unit”. American special operations troops have been fighting alongside Afghan forces in a renewed offensive against militants who claim allegiance to Islamic State in Nangarhar Province, which borders Pakistan.

Issue 679 (24)

9 - 15 August 2016

The New Moon brings an excellent opportunity to take a romantic or business relationship to the next level. And if you’re signing deals or contracts at this time, you’ll get things off to a winning start. On the whole, this is a constructive week in which you’ll be eager to overcome obstacles and forge ahead. Should anything stand in your way, you'll apply sheer willpower to overcome it.

Monday’s New Moon could be the perfect time to begin a diet or start an exercise routine.

There’s also a very powerful focus on your zone of leisure and pleasure, which could see you excited about creative opportunities, particularly if they relate to entrepreneurial ideas. If you’ve been thinking about starting your own business, this might be a good time to research your options.

Have you been thinking about inviting a special person on a date? Monday might be the day to go ahead. With Mercury in Libra, charming conversation can pave the way for future outings. However, you may be more cautious when it comes to getting involved, preferring to take things one day at a time rather than jump in at the deep end.

A change in the family dynamic or DIY projects associated with your home are best implemented on Monday. The New Moon can help get things off to the best possible start. And with just a little planning you’ll be even more successful.

When it comes to writing, communicating in general, or selling something, you can do really well now.

Monday is the day to sign deals, collaborate on projects, or start an advertising campaign. This week’s New Moon can help things get moving! For business appointments or important dates, you’ll need to pin people down to a time and place or it could be a no-show. You might have an opportunity to considerably increase your income.

Monday’s New Moon could coincide with a new beginning for your finances, with a chance to reduce stress and get everything in order. Avoid making any impulsive purchases that might set you back rather than contribute to any gains. Setting a practical budget can be a great help right now. It seems you’re on a roll with a positive lineup of planets jogging through your sign.

Monday’s New Moon in your sign may be the best of the year for you. This is the time to implement changes in key areas of your life. Make a start over the next few days and you’ll notice a difference even sooner. You might find it useful to write down your goals, as this will kick-start the process and help you achieve them.

There’s a more relaxed focus showing up that encourages you to kick back and enjoy life. Monday’s New Moon in your spiritual sector could entice you to take up a spiritual practice that might help you achieve greater peace of mind. You’ll also be eager to contribute to community events and collaborate on projects, especially any that might be a bit of a challenge.

Interesting and lucrative opportunities could show up for you this week, bringing a chance to move up the career ladder or expand your business in a new direction.

Along with this, the New Moon in your social sector is actively encouraging you to move in new circles. Doing so could lend wings to your professional aspirations.

Your willingness to learn stands you in good stead right now, not only because it offers a chance to upgrade your skill set but also because it expands your understanding of what’s possible. You may get a chance to apply your newfound abilities when this week’s New Moon entices you to consider the possibility of a new job.

Money matters look much improved, although Jupiter in your zone of shared finances could be pushing you to think big when it comes to business. If there’s an opportunity to pool your skills and resources with others, this could be a good way to make progress sooner rather than later.

Relationships seem to be a major focus and a very pleasant one at that. With Venus currently dancing through Virgo with Jupiter and Mars, there could be more passion and interest than there has been for some time. You’ll be more inclined to do things with your love interest, friends, or family and include others in your plans.

Issue 679 (25)

9 - 15 August 2016

Technology ‘Bullish’ tweets offer clues to stock performance Can financial intelligence be found in the “twitterverse” which can provide clues to how a stock will perform? Yes, says a team from Johns Hopkins University. A strong co-relation does exist between the mood of a day’s worth of tweets about a particular stock and the performance of that stock, added Jim Kyung-Soo Liew from Hopkins’ Carey Business School.

“When Apple does well within the day, participants are tweeting with bullish sentiment, showing that a positive correlation exists between contemporaneous price movements and tweet sentiments,” Liew stated.

The new paper, forthcoming in The Journal of Portfolio Management, shows that tweet-like posts on the

StockTwits financial microblogging platform are strongly related over a given day to the behaviour of the stock being tweeted about during that day.

According to Liew, this use of social media to determine stock performance should be added as a “sixth factor” to the Fama-French five-factor model well known in financial circles as a method for explaining market behaviour.

Liew and his co-author as-

sociate professor Tamas Budavari of the Hopkins Krieger School of Arts and Sciences were granted access to all StockTwits posts about

15 companies that drew the most Twitter commentary from January 2012 to October 2015.

The companies were Apple, Facebook, Netflix, Yahoo, Amazon, Google, Disney and American Airlines, among others.

Facebook rolls out new features for Indian businesses

In a move to make its Pages feature valuable for businesses online, Facebook on Thursday announced two new Page sections - Services and Shop - for emerging markets including in India where 57 percent of people on Facebook are connected to a business.

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The Shop section provides businesses with a new way to prominently display the products they are selling on their Page.

It allows people to easily discover, browse and make offers to purchase products through messaging from the businesses they care about, Facebook said in a statement.

The Services section allows service businesses to showcase a list of their offerings on their Page. If we look at the Indian small and medium businesses (SMB), over 1.99 billion interactions are being generated between businesses and people in the country. There were two million SMB Pages on Facebook in India as of October last

year. “With the Shops and Services sections on Pages, businesses around the world can help people discover the products and services they care about in a more visually appealing way,” said Adrian Nam, a product marketing manager at Facebook.

Facebook launched Pages to help people market their businesses and make customers learn about products and services for free.

Services section makes it easier for people to find the information they are looking for and decide whether to work with the business. Globally, more than one billion people on Facebook are connected to at least one business. “The Shops and Services sections are a continuation of our efforts to make Facebook Pages the most valuable online presence for the more than 60 million businesses around the world that use Pages each month,” added Ryan Ebanks, another product marketing manager at Facebook.

People who post on StockTwits can state in their tweets whether they feel positive (“bullish”) or negative (“bearish”) about a stock.

Mining this data, the researchers discovered “a particular intuitive relationship between tweet sentiment and prices over time.”

“Namely, we show that the aggregated daily sentiment matters for equity daily returns. Positive sentiment is associated with positive returns,” they wrote.

Some critics say the realtime status of a tweet can make it irrelevant after, say, minutes or hours.

But Liew begs to differ.

“There appears to exist a strong positive relationship between the daily time-series of aggregated tweet sentiments and their corresponding security returns,” he pointed out in a university statement.

A previous study that Liew wrote for The Journal of Portfolio Management found a strong link between the mood of Twitter posts and the performance of an initial public offering (IPO).

Indian hacker uncovers VINE’s source code, rewarded $10,080 by Twitter!

An Indian hacker was rewarded a bounty of $10,080 (roughly Rs. 6,73,000) byTwitter for discovering a security fault in Vine – a video sharing service currently owned by the microblogging website. As per reports, the entire code source of Vine was available publically online.

Avinash Singh, who goes by the nickname ‘avicoder’, uncovered a loophole in the popular video service that allowed him to easily access the cache of code online. Apparently, he was able to download a Docker image containing complete source code of Vine while searching for vulnerabilities, using censys.io.

Censys is a search engine that allows computer scientists to discover vulnerable Internet-connected devices. In March, he reported the faulty to Twitter, which has fixed the problem within five minutes and awarded him $10,080 Bounty award.

It is said that so far, Singh has reported nearly 20 vulnerabilities to Twitter ever since he started contributing as an active bug bounty hunter from 2015.

Vine, a short-form video sharing service where users can share six-secondlong looping video clips, was founded in June 2012, and was acquired by Twitter in October in the same year.

Google India showcases cloud-centric enterprise solutions Search engine giant Google on Thursday showcased its smart, modern and secure offerings here that will enable customers take advantage of the emerging digital technologies. Google`s enterprise offerings comprise the full array of IT needs from communication and productivity with apps to application hosting, data analysis and infrastructure with cloud platform and workplace devices with chrome and android hardware.

Senior leaders from etailer Flipkart, Hero MotoCorp, market research form PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Mahindra`s startup arm SmartShift were present at the event who spoke about the adoption of Google`s enterprise

offerings that are enabling their teams to be more connected, collaborative and competitive.

For enterprises, Google is providing a seamless experience from desktop to

heavy investments in growth areas, particularly Google Cloud Platform, its cloud infrastructure offering that benefits from deep networking and machine learning expertise to pro-

mobile -- accommodating the current needs of a digital, collaborative, connected and integrated workforce while continuing to build for future shifts, the company said in a statement.

Further, Google is making

vide businesses with powerful application hosting, data analysis and computing resources.

Google India hosted over 2,000 business leaders and also arranged livestreaming sessions at the event.

Issue 679 (26)

9 - 15 August 2016

Bangladesh kicks out N Korea diplomat Chinese tourist mistaken as for smuggling 1 mn cigarettes refugee, gets asylum in Germany Dhaka timetable for his departure. stalks of expensive cigaBangladesh has kicked out a North Korean diplomat after he was caught smuggling more than one million cigarettes as well as electronics into the country in a shipping container, Dhaka officials said today.

Han Son Ik, the first secretary of the North Korean embassy in Dhaka, has been ordered to leave the country after failing to declare the goods worth nearly half a million dollars to customs.

Bangladesh foreign secretary Shahidul Haque confirmed the order had been made to the North Koreans, but declined to give a

Local media said he had been ordered to leave by today.

“We have asked North Korea to take him back for violating diplomatic norms,” Haque, Bangladesh’s top foreign bureaucrat, told AFP, de-

clining to give details.

A senior customs official told AFP the North Korean used his diplomatic immunity earlier this month to import the goods which were suspected destined for the blackmarket.

“The diplomat declared that his cargo contained food and soft drinks. But when we opened the cargo, we found 1.6 million

rettes and electronics,” Moinul Khan, head of intelligence at Bangladesh customs, told AFP. “At market prices these products are valued at 35 million taka ($430,000). We suspect that he brought the products to sell to local smuggling gangs,” he said. AFP was unable to immediately contact the North Korean embassy for comment.

In March last year, another North Korean diplomat was forced to apologise after he was caught at Dhaka airport trying to smuggle nearly 27 kilogrammes (60 pounds) of gold, worth $1.7 million, into the country. In 2012, customs authorities issued a 2.5-million taka fine after seizing illegal wines from another North Korean envoy. Last year, a North Korean restaurant in Dhaka was shut down after officials found it was selling wine and drugs such as Viagra without permission.

Berlin A Chinese tourist got tangled up in the red tape of Germany’s migrant influx after being mistakenly sent to a refugee home for nearly two weeks, media reports said on Monday.

The 31-year-old b a c k p a c k e r, who spoke neither German nor English, wanted to report his wallet missing to police in the southwestern city of Stuttgart but ended up at a different municipal office which handed him an application for asylum.

After unwittingly signing the request, the man, who was not identified, was swiftly placed in a shelter in the western city of Dortmund where his passport was taken from him.

“Machinery kicked into gear from which he couldn’t immediately escape,” Christoph Schluetermann of the German Red Cross told news agency DPA. Public broadcaster WDR said the man complied

with standard procedure for refugees including allowing his fingerprints to be taken, undergoing a medical examination and accepting pocket money.

translation app and it soon became clear that the man didn’t want asylum but to continue his European tour.

“I want to go walking in a

But staff eventually noticed that the man was unusually well-dressed for an asylum seeker and when the likelihood of a mistake dawned on them, sought help at a local Chinese restaurant.

The owners suggested Schluetermann try using a Mandarin smartphone

foreign country,” one of the translated messages said, WDR reported.

Twelve days into his stay, the man was able to set off for France and Italy.

Germany let in nearly 1.1 million migrants and refugees last year, posing an enormous challenge for its overstretched bureaucracy.

Issue - 676 (27)

19 - 25 July 2016

Indian man arrested for sexually assaulting woman on US flight NEW YORK A 58-year old Indian man has been charged with sexually touching a woman sitting next to him on a flight from Los Angeles to New Jersey.

Veerabhadrarao Kunam, a resident of Visakhapatnam inAndhra Pradesh is charged by the complaint with one count of abusive sexual contact.

He appeared before US Magistrate Judge Joseph Dickson on Tuesday in Newark federal court and was released on a $50,000 secured bond.

The charge carries a maximum potential penalty of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.Kunam was arrested on July 30 when his flight arrived at Newark and was taken into federal custody by the FBI. According to the complaint, Kunam was seated next to a woman who occupied a middle seat on a flight from Los Angeles to Newark. While the plane was in the air, the woman fell asleep.

She woke up to find Kunam sexually touching her.

Upon noticing Kunam touching her, the victim alerted her male travel companion who traded seats with her and confronted Kunam. The accused allegedly told the victim’s travel companion that he wanted everyone to forget about the incident and offered to buy the travel companion a drink for any trouble he may have caused.

The travel companion declined Kunam’s offer and alerted a flight crew member about the incident.A member of the flight crew then moved Kunam to another seat and instructed him not to return to his original seat.

He allegedly told the flight crew member that he would not touch the victim again.The federal government has exclusive jurisdiction over all sexual abuse cases that occur on aircraft in flight in the United States.

A spokesperson of the airline said in a statement that the plane’s crew was “alerted to reports of a disruptive individual who was accused of inappropriately touching a fellow passenger.”

“Our crew are trained for such situations, and they immediately moved the individual in question to another seat, monitored him to ensure he did not move from his seat, and alerted law enforcement, who were waiting for the aircraft when it arrived at the New Jersey airport,” he said.

US couple abandons toddler to play Pokemon Go, arrested LOS ANGELES A couple has been arrested in the US for abandoning their two-

boy at 10:30 pm on Thursday after a neighbour dialed 911 and told authorities she found a child

year-old son alone at home while they drove around playing the widely popular location-based augmented reality game Pokemon Go. Brent Daley, 27, and Brianne Daley, 25, left their 2-year-old boy at San Tan Valley home in Arizona for 90 minutes in scorching heat without water while they played Pokemon Go in surrounding neighbourhoods.

The couple was charged with child neglect and endangerment after they abandoned their toddler to play Pokemon Go, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Police found the

who appeared to have been abandoned. When deputies got to the home, they say the boy was in the front yard trying to get in the front door of the home.

He was “screaming and crying (and) attempting to get into the residence,” the statement said, adding that the boy was barefoot, red-faced and filthy.

In the home, deputies found a phone number for Brent Daley, so they called and told him his child had been abandoned.Daley allegedly answered, then said, “Whatever”, before hanging up, officials were quoted as saying

by NBC News.The couple eventually returned and admitted to driving around the area, stopping at parks and elsewhere while playing Pokemon Go, they said.

Sheriff Paul Babeu offered the alleged crime up as a cautionary tale, saying that what the couple had done was “beyond comprehension.”

The incident comes amid a surge in incidents of people

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getting into trouble while playing Pokemon Go.Last month, two Canadian teenaged brothers inadvertently crossed the USCanada border while playing Pokemon Go, causing a rare international incident.

Cleveland Police issued a warning after a driver in Stourbridge, West Midlands, was fined for playing while driving.

In another incident in the US, someone drove into a police car while playing the game at the wheel. A teenager was shot dead in Guatemala after being ambushed while playing the game with his cousin.

New York Post publishes nude photos of Trump’s wife Melania

NEW YORK A city tabloid caused a major stir when it published nude photographs of Melania Trump, wife of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, during her modelling days in the 1990s.

“You’ve never seen a potential First Lady like this,” the New York Post said on its front page on Sunday below a nude photograph of Melania.

The “some rarely seen and others never published” pictures were taken during a shoot in 1995 in Manhattan for a photo spread for a now-defunct French men’s magazine, the paper said.

The pictures, obtained exclusively by The Post, were shot by French photographer Ale de Basseville.

Slovenian-born Melania was then 25 years old and known by her professional moniker Melania K. She had then recently arrived in the city after doing modeling stints in Paris and Italy.

When asked about the photos, Trump told The Post: “Melania was one of the most successful models and she did many photo shoots, including for covers and major magazines. This was a picture taken for a European magazine prior to my knowing Melania. In Europe, pictures like this are very fashionable and common”.The photos show

Trump’s wife in nothing but high heels. “Melania was super-great and a fantastic personality and she was very kind with me,” de Basseville told The Post, adding the former model never once felt uncomfortable posing for the nude pictures.“I was quite surprised when I saw the pictures because it was a racier shoot than I expected,” said a fashionindustry insider who was present for one of the photo sessions.“But Melania seemed very comfortable with the whole thing, and she was very professional,” De Basseville said the photos “show the beauty and the freedom of the woman, and I am very proud of these pictures because they celebrate Melania’s beauty”.She was introduced to the billionaire Trump during a New York Fashion Week party in 1998.

The two wed in 2005 in a ceremony at Trump’s resort in Florida.Key adviser to Trump Jason Miller said there’s no problem with the Post’s publication of the nude photograph of his wife on its Sunday cover.“They’re a celebration of the human body as art,” Miller said on CNN’s ‘Reliable Sources’.“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” Miller said. “She’s a beautiful woman.”

Monkey gets another chance to claim his ‘selfie’ NEW YORK The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) animal rights organisation has filed an appeal to the US Court of Appeals for justice to Naruto, a now-famous monkey known for taking a “selfie” that prompted an unprecedented copyright lawsuit, at claiming ownership over his image.

The image was taken in 2011 by Naruto, then a six-year-old male freeliving crested macaque in Indonesia. Photographer David J Slater had left his camera unattended in an Indonesian forest which allowed Naruto to take several photos of himself. Slater and his company, which both claim copyright ownership, published the photos that Naruto indisputably took.laiming that Naruto was the author of the photos and that Slater had infringed on Naruto’s copyright.Disappointingly, in January, a federal judge

dismissed the monkey selfie suit, finding that a non-human animal could not own a copyright.“In every practical (and definitional) sense, he [Naruto] is the ‘author’ of the works,” argued PETA in the appeal brief

filed on Tuesday.“Had the Monkey Selfies been made by a human using Slater’s unattended camera, that human would undisputedly be declared the author and copyright owner of the photographs. Nothing in the Copyright Act limits its application to human authors.

A... [P]rotection under the Copyright Act does not depend on the humanity of the author,

but on the originality of the work itself,” the appeal read.According to PETA, if the lawsuit succeeds, it will be the first time that a nonhuman animal has been declared the owner of property rather than a piece of property himself or herself.It will also be the first time that a right has been extended to a nonhuman animal beyond just the basic necessities of food, shelter, water, and veterinary care. In our view, it is high time.“The fact that copyright ownership by an animal has not been previously asserted does not mean that such rights cannot be asserted,” PETA wrote.PETA is seeking the court’s permission to administer and protect Naruto’s copyright in the “monkey selfies,” without compensation, with all proceeds to be used for the benefit of Naruto and his community.

Naruto is known to field researchers in Sulawesi who have observed and studied him for years as they work in the region.

Issue - 676 (28)

19 - 25 July 2016

Head of Google’s self-driving car effort hits the road SAN FRANCISCO The chief technology officer for Google’s self-driving car mission announced Friday he would be hitting the road, and that the day marked his last at the company.

Roboticist Chris Urmson said in

a blog post that after leading the autonomous car team and helping make the leap from research to development, he is “ready for a fresh challenge.” He did not specify what that challenge might be.

“I have every confidence that the mission is in capable hands,” Urmson said. “It has been a

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privilege and honor to be part of a team that has been at the forefront of bringing this lifesaving technology to the world.”

Urmson joined what was then a secret project inside Californiabased Google a little more than

seven years ago.

Autonomous cars were among the big-vision ideas being pursued by an X Lab at Google at the time.

Urmson had previously been a research scientist on a Carnegie Mellon University self-driving car team that fielded a contender in a competition by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, an arm of the US military focused on new technology. US media reported that Urmson may have been unhappy with the project’s trajectory since a car industry executive was hired last year to turn it into its own company at Google parent Alphabet.

“Chris has been a vital force for the project, helping the team move from a research phase to a point where this life-saving technology will soon become a

500-year-old German engraving surfaces at French flea market BERLIN Long-dead German artist Albrecht Duerer is causing a stir after a collector donated a lost work, bought for a few euros on a French flea market, to a Stuttgart museum.The bronze engraving titled “Mary crowned by an angel” dates back to the year 1520, Anette Frankenberger of the Staatsgalerie art museum told AFP on Friday, and is in “very good condition”.A retired French archaeologist noticed the work on a bric-a-brac stand in Sarrebourg in eastern France, after the seller cleared it out of a house in the town.Alerted by his keen eye, he quickly bought the piece - only to find the stamp of the Staatsgalerie on its back and decide to donate it anonymously.The man came “personally with his wife” to return the engraving, which had been missing since the end of World War II, Frankenberger said. The museum spokeswoman added

that the piece had likely been wrapped in paper for some of the intervening decades, keeping it in good condition. It was owned by a former deputy mayor of Sarrebourg before ending up at the second-hand stall, she said.

The museum has not yet decided how to put the engraving on display. “We have to find the right setting to present it in,” Frankenberger said. Duerer was born in 1471 in the southern German city of Nuremberg and travelled through Italy, becoming one of the first artists to introduce the Renaissance in Germany and northern Europe.

reality,” Google spokesman Johnny Luu said in response to an AFP inquiry. Luu maintained that Urmson is departing “with our warmest wishes” and would not comment on reports that he may have clashed with the team’s new boss.

Google has driven its autonomous cars some 1.5 million miles (2.4 million kilometers) with only some minor dust-ups. In May the company announced plans for its selfdriving car program to put down roots in the Detroit area with a technology center.The facility will house engineers and others testing vehicles provided by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Alphabet said at the time.The 53,000 square foot (5,000 square meter) center will enable Google and its partners to “further develop and refine self-driving technology,” according to Alphabet.

Google added 100 new 2017 Chrysler Pacifica hybrid vehicles to its fleet of self-driving vehicles in a major expansion that same month. The collaboration with Fiat Chrysler marked the first time the internet giant has worked directly with an automaker to build self-driving vehicles. The tech giant began testing its autonomous driving technology in 2009 using a Toyota Prius equipped with Google equipment.

It now has some 70 vehicles, including Lexus cars, adapted by Google in addition to its in-house designed cars unveiled in 2014.

Sasha Obama takes up summer job at seafood joint

BOSTON US President Barack Obama’s younger daughter Sasha, who has lived a luxurious life in the confines of the White House, has taken up a summer job serving food at a seafood restaurant.

Sasha, 15, who is using her full name Natasha while working at Nancy’s, a seafood restaurant on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, has been learning the ropes of the service industry.

“She’s been working downstairs at takeout. We were wondering why there were six people helping this girl, but then we found out who it was,” a server at the busy island eatery was quoted as saying by the Boston Herald.

Sasha was accompanied to her summer job by a contingent of six Secret Service agents, who sat outside the restaurant in a large SUV and on the takeout benches while the president’s daughter waited on hungry tourists.

When her shift ended, Sasha

and a friend, who also was wearing the navy blue Nancy’s T-shirt and baseball cap, brought a tray of drinks out to her security contingent, got in the SUV and took off.Nancy’s is a favorite stop for the First Family, who always stop by for seafood when they are on their annual Martha’s Vineyard vacation. The Obamas reportedly are friends with Nancy’s owner Joe Moujabber, which is how Sasha scored her summer job, the paper said.

The Obamas’ youngest daughter has been working an early fourhour shift at the busy, 350-seat restaurant, finishing up just a half hour after it opens for business at 11:30 AM.The Obamas have been attempting to raise their daughters as normally as possible which may be why they are letting Sasha get a taste of working a summer job in a resort area.Sasha and her older sister Malia, who will attend Harvard University in 2017 after taking a ‘gap year’, attended their firstever state dinner in March.

To stop abuse of family, 14-year-old Ohio girl kills dad as he slept Cleveland A 14-year-old Ohio girl fatally shot her father in the head as he slept to stop him from abusing her family, her attorney said on Friday.

The girl denied a charge of aggravated murder on Wednesday in Trumbull County Juvenile Court. She has been held in juvenile detention since the early morning shooting on July 28 at her family’s home in Warren, about 55 miles southeast of Cleveland.

“This was a classic situation of a battered woman as it relates to mom,” said Cleveland attorney Ian Friedman. “The girl and her siblings witnessed this every day.

It reached a point where it’s selfdefense and defense of others.”

Prosecutors haven’t determined if they will ask a judge to order the teen tried as an adult.

Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor Stanley Elkins said Friday that his office and police continue to investigate.

Asked about the abuse allegations, Elkins said he’d only heard about them from the media.

“I’m not finding any evidence of that,” Elkins said.

The girl’s 41-year-old mother told WJW-TV in Cleveland on Thursday that she filed for a protective order against her husband five years ago but later dismissed it. The mother called

abuse that had occurred the previous day and evening, Friedman said. “In her mind, this was the only opportunity she had to defend her family and her mother.”

her daughter a hero for her actions.

The girl shot her 41-year-old father once in the head with his .45-caliber handgun as he slept on a living room couch and her mother sleeping on the floor next to her husband, Friedman said.

He described the father as controlling and said he required his wife to constantly remain near him.

The shooting was a reaction to

The Associated Press generally does not name juveniles accused of crimes.

Two of the teen’s siblings, a 20year-old brother and a 19-yearold sister, were in the home when the shooting occurred, Friedman said.

A pretrial hearing has been scheduled for August 30.

Friedman said he would be cooperating with prosecutors in their investigation.

Issue - 676 (29)

19 - 25 July 2016

Indian-American woman wins Washington open primary Washington Indian-American Pramila Jayapal has swept an open Congressional primary in Washington State and could make history as the first woman

from the community to be elected to the US House of Representatives if she wins the November general election.

Born in India and raised in Indonesia and Singapore, 50year-old Jayapal would be facing either of the two candidates she defeated in the open primary by more than 16%.Besides Pramila, there are three other serious Indian-American contenders for seat in US House of Representatives.Ami Bera is seeking his third term from California. He is the only IndianAmerican in the current

Congress. Two others running for a House seat are Raja Krishnamoorthi from a suburb of Chicago and Ro Khanna from Silicon Valley.

All four are considered to have a

bright chance of winning the November general elections.

Running from the seventh Congressional district in Washington State, Jayapal swept the Tuesday night open primary with 38.2% of the votes.

Her two other rivals were Joe McDermott (21.5%) and Brady Walkinshaw (20.9%).

“Thank you so much to the voters of the 7th Congressional District!

You have fueled the flame of our movement with the clear belief that we together can and will reclaim our government to work for all of us!” Jayapal told her

Muslim American couple evicted from US flight ‘for sweating, saying Allah’

supporters at a victory speech.

Jayapal was endorsed by former Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders.

“Pramila just proved that candidates can run a strong progressive campaign funded by small-dollar donors and win big,” Sanders said.“The peoplepowered movement that propelled our campaign to victory in states around the country is already changing how campaigns are run up and down the ticket,” he added.Jayapal trailed early in the race, but saw a steady climb in the polls following Sanders’ endorsement on April 13. In addition to campaigning with her, the Vermont senator helped Jayapal raise USD 226,000 from 27,692 individual donations and recruited volunteers to make 140,314 phone calls and knock doors.“When you think of the political revolution, I want you to think about Pramila,” Sanders said.Jayapal has spent the last 20 years working both internationally and domestically as a leading national advocate for human rights.

She led one of the largest voter registration efforts in Washington State, helping over 23,000 new Americans to register to vote.

In May 2013, she was recognised as a White House “Champion of Change”.

A Chennai-born Malayali, she came to the US in 1982 to attend Georgetown University.

China slams US for groundless comment on jailing activists

Washington Lashing out at the US for calling jail sentences given to four human rights activists as “politically motivated”, China on Saturday said the American accusations are groundless and constituted interference in its internal affairs.“The US accusations are groundless and China urged the United States to respect the facts, speak and act cautiously, and stop making irresponsible remarks on the case,” foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.She said that China firmly opposes American interference in its internal affairs and judicial sovereignty.Hua was commenting on the remarks made by US State Department deputy spokesperson Mark Toner concerning the conviction of four Chinese human rights activists.

Toner had said the charges against the activists were “vague and apparently politically motivated” and urged Chinese officials to release the detainees and remove restrictions on their freedom of movement and professional

activities. “China is a country under the rule of law, and Chinese judicial authorities deal with related cases in accordance with law so that the legitimate rights and interests of defendants could be effectively protected,” Hua was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency. She claimed that Chinese people widely supported the trial and generally oppose any actions that endanger the national security and undermine the social stability. A court in Tianjin had convicted them for subverting state power after serial trials in the past four days.

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Oak Creek residents remember victims of mass shooting Washington A Muslim American couple was thrown off a Delta Airlines flight by its crew because the man was “sweating” and said the word “Allah” several times.

Faisal and Nazia Ali, who are of Pakistan descent, were escorted off the plane in Paris for their return journey home to Cincinnati, Ohio by a Delta Airlines employee on July 26.

They told The Independent newspaper the employee told them he wanted to them to get off. A French police officer waiting outside was satisfied with their answers.

“The Delta employee then explained that the pilot had decided to ask them to leave as one of the crew members had felt ‘uncomfortable’ in their presence, as the crew member had reportedly seen Mr Ali hide his phone as they walked by, and that Mr Ali had been sweating and saying ‘Allah’,” The Independent said citing the couple. They were put on a flight the next day, but not before being interrogated again, this time by

a US customs agent, who told them, according to The Independent, “You have done nothing wrong, unfortunately this is the way the world is right now.

It is Delta’s word against yours.”

The airline said in a statement it is investigating the matter and will issue a “full refund of these customers’ airfare”.

The Council for American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an advocacy group, lodged a complaint against the airline, and staff lawyer Sana Hassan said, “By falsely construing their simple and normal actions into something scary and threatening, it is clear that Mr and Mrs Ali were being singled out due to their Muslim appearance and name.” CAIR also sought a “thorough examination into the prevailing practices of major American air carriers, including Delta Airlines, and to develop policy guidelines on the objective factors that are to be considered when determining that a passenger may legally be removed from a flight”.

Washington Residents of Oak Creek, IndianAmericans, members of the Sikh community and lawmakers on Friday remembered victims of the tragic mass shooting by a white supremacist four years ago that claimed the lives of six Sikhs at a gurdwara in the Wisconsin city.

In Oak Creek, the local Sikh community will be organising the fourth annual Chardhi Kala 6K Run/Walk, blood drive, and food drive on August 6.

On Sunday the victims’ families are expected to speak at a function.

“We hold this event to bring communities together, to bring people of various backgrounds together to show them who we are and to learn who they are in hopes of creating a stronger bond and preventing something like the August 5, 2012 shooting to ever happen again,” said Navi Singh Gill, founder of the Chardhi Kala 6K event, and son of one of the founding members of the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin.

“Building safe and inclusive communities takes sacrifice, dedication, hard work, and deliberate practice,” Pardeep Singh Kaleka, eldest son of the

late Satwant Singh Kaleka, the president of the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin who was killed in the shooting, told NBC News.

“If we don’t bring people together because of fear, then we are cowards and have no business

attacked an entire community of the faithful. Today’s anniversary serves as another reminder of the importance of engaging in a national conversation about hate in America and the policies we can enact to disarm it by keeping

calling ourselves Sikhs,” he said.

Six Sikhs were killed and three more were wounded, along with an Oak Creek police officer, when a white supremacist armed with a gun attacked the Oak Creek Sikh Temple in Wisconsin.

Responding officer Brian Murphy was shot fifteen times before the shooter was brought down.

“Four years ago a man driven by hate and armed with a gun invaded such a place, took six innocent lives, and, in doing so,

guns out of dangerous hands,” said Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign in a statement.

Congressman Donna Edwards in a tweet urged people to honour the six victims and four survivors by acting to end gun violence.

“We remember the victims of the Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting four years ago today,” said AntDefamation League (ADL) in a tweet. “Oak Creek reminds us all that backlash targets Sikhs, South Asians, Muslims, Arabs,” said Sikh Coalition.

Issue - 676 (30)

19 - 25 July 2016

Bitcoin not money, judge rules in victory for backers Bitcoin, a Florida judge says, is not real money. Ironically, that could provide a boost to use of

the crypto-currency which has remained in the shadows of the financial system. The July 22 ruling by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Teresa Pooler means that no specific license is needed to buy and sell bitcoins. The judge dismissed a case against Michel Espinoza, who had faced money laundering and other criminal charges for attempting to sell $1,500 worth of bitcoins to an undercover agent who told the defendant he was going to use the virtual money to buy stolen credit card numbers. Espinoza’s lawyer Rene Palomino said the judge acknowledged that it was not illegal to sell one’s property and ruled that this did not constitute running an unauthorized financial service.

“He was selling his own personal bitcoins,” Palomino said. “This decision clears the way for you to do that in the state of the Florida without a money transmitting license.” In her ruling, Pooler said, “this court is unwilling to punish a man for selling his property to another, when his actions fall under a

statute that is so vaguely written that even legal professionals have difficulty finding a singular

meaning.” She added that “this court is not an expert in economics,” but that bitcoin “has a long way to go before it is the equivalent of money.” Bitcoin, whose origins remain a mystery, is a virtual currency that is created from computer code and is not backed by any government.

Advocates say this makes it an efficient alternative to traditional currencies because it is not subject to the whims of a state that may devalue its money to cut its debt, for example. Bitcoins can be exchanged for goods and services, provided another party is willing to accept them, but until now they been used mostly for shady transactions or to buy illegal goods and services on the “dark” web. Bitcoin was launched in 2009 as a bit of software written under the Japanese-sounding name Satoshi Nakamoto. This year Australian programmer Craig Wright claimed to be the author but failed to convince the broader bitcoin community.

In some areas of the United States bitcoin is accepted in stores, restaurants and online

transactions, but it is illegal in some countries, notably France and China.It is gaining ground in countries with high inflation such as Argentina and Venezuela.But bitcoin values can be volatile. Over the past week its value slumped 20 percent in a day, then recouped most losses, after news that a Hong Kong bitcoin exchange had been hacked with some $65 million missing.

Arthur Long, a lawyer specializing in the sector with the New York firm Gibson Dunn, said the July court ruling is a small victory for the virtual currency but that it’s not clear if the interpretation will be the same in other US states or at the federal level.“It may have an effect as some states are trying to use existing money transmitting statutes to regulate certain transactions in bitcoin,” Long told AFP.Charles Evans, professor of finance at Barry University, said the ruling “absolutely is going to provide some guidance in other courts” and could potentially be used as a precedent in other countries to avoid the stigma associated with bitcoin use. Bitcoins can store value and hedge against inflation, without being considered a monetary unit, according to Evans, who testified as an expert witness in the Florida trial.“It can be used as an exchange,” he said, and may be considered a commodity which can be used for bartering like fish or tobacco, for example. Evans noted that “those who are not yet in the bitcoin community will be put on notice: as long as they organize their business in a particular way they can avoid the law.”But he added that “people who are engaged in illegal activities will continue to do what they are going to do because they are criminals.”

New York woman runner found strangulated, possibly sexually assaulted, in park

A New York woman was killed on an early evening run in a secluded section of a marshland park after her father warned her it might not be safe to go there without him, the New York police said on Wednesday.

An autopsy found that Katrina Vetrano died from strangulation after her body was discovered late Tuesday night in Queens.

Her clothes were in disarray, indicating a possible sexual assault, said police, who were still searching on Wednesday for her assailant.

WHAT HAPPENED Vetrano, 30, runner, left for her daily run at about 5 pm on a trail in Spring Creek Park, part of a recreation area that’s adjacent to her home in the Howard Beach neighborhood, police said.

Normally, the victim ran with her father, but he stayed home because of a bad back, they said.

The father, retired firefighter Philip Vetrano, “asked her not to run this path, not without him,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce said Tuesday at a briefing near the scene of the crime. “If you’re a runner you understand that you run every night as part

of your routine, so she went, and said she’d be all right.”

Vetrano didn’t return on time and didn’t answer her father’s phone calls, so he contacted a police commander neighbor, who called 911. After police used cellphone signals to narrow the search area, her father spotted her body face down in the tall grass and brush along an unpaved emergency access road about 15 feet off the running trail, police said.

POLICE INVESTIGATIONS ON Vetrano was last heard from by a friend with whom she texted, police said. There was also security video of her running along the edge of the park at about 5.45 pm.

The New York police were examining other video to try to identify a suspect, Boyce said.

“There’s a lot of forensic evidence as well as digital evidence in the area,” he said.

The running trail Vetrano used is connected to a much longer network of paths ringing Jamaica Bay that’s popular with cyclists and runners. However, people often bypass the section where her body was found because it’s more overgrown and desolate.

Declassified information reveals indirect 9/11 link to Saudi royal Prince Bandar Newly declassified information from a 2002 congressional report on the 9/11 attacks, dubbed the “28 pages,” reveals an indirect link to a Saudi royal, CNN has reported .

The alleged link between alleged al Qaeda operative Abu Zubaydah and a company associated with Prince Bandar bin Sultan, former Saudi ambassador to the United States and a key member of the country’s royal family, was previously hidden from the American public.

The connection to Bandar was made through the phone book of Zubaydah, allegedly a recruiter for al Qaeda and a member of Osama bin Laden’s inner circle, who was captured in Pakistan in 2002. In it, the FBI found numbers linked to the US, including an unlisted number for a company that managed Bandar ’s estate in Aspen, Colorado. An unlisted number was also found for a bodyguard who worked at the Saudi

Embassy in Washington.

“Both of those numbers were unpublished, so they had to have gotten into Zubaydah’s phone book through a personal contact who knew what those numbers were and what they represented,” said former Sen. Bob Graham, co-chair of the congressional commission that compiled the 28 pages.The CIA and FBI had concluded that there was no evidence anyone from the Saudi royal family knowingly provided support for the 9/11 attacks.

But Graham said the indirect connection to the respected former Saudi ambassador was “one of the most stunning parts of the investigation” and worthy of pursuing further.

Bandar was the Saudi ambassador to the US from 1983 to 2005, during the Ronald Reagan, George H W Bush, Bill Clinton and George W Bush administrations. He later served as secretary general of Saudi Arabia’s National Security Council and head of Saudi

Arabia’s General Intelligence Presidency, the equivalent of the CIA, until last year.

He was known to have the closest relationship with George H W Bush, because of Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in the 1990

aided the 9/11 hijackers.

The 28 pages also raise questions about another possible link between Bandar and the attacks: the prince’s relationship with a Saudi national named Osama Bassnan, who was living

Gulf War. Saudi Arabia viewed the Iraqi aggression as a threat and supported the subsequent US military action.

The declassified information detail a web of Saudi nationals living in the US who may have

in the US on 9/11 and was investigated to determine if he helped two of the hijackers. The declassified pages reveal previously undisclosed amounts of money that Bandar and his wife sent to the man’s family.

According to a document of the 9/11 commission, Bassnan, a former employee of the Saudi government’s educational mission in Washington, lived across the street from two of the 9/11 hijackers in San Diego: Nawaf al Hazmi and Khalid al Mihdhar. Hazmi and Mihdhar were on the plane that crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.

Bassnan admitted to an FBI asset that he met Hazmi and Mihdhar while the hijackers were in San Diego, then denied this in a subsequent conversation.

Neither the FBI nor Saudi embassy commented on the CNN’s story. But former CIA analyst Bruce Riedel defended Bandar.“He had tremendous access to the White House. He had access to the CIA, Department of Justice, the Hill, media,” Riedel said. “I just find it stretches credulity that he would somehow be involved in a plot to attack the United States of America,” he said.

Issue - 676 (31)

19 - 25 July 2016

Thai mother indicted over one-word ‘royal slur’ Facebook message

BANGKOK The mother of a leading activist against the military junta in Thailand was charged on Monday with insulting the country’s monarchy in a oneword Facebook post.

Patnaree Chankij was brought to a military court in Bangkok after the country’s attorney general decided to press charges despite police saying earlier that they would not pursue a case against the 40-year-old woman.

According to her lawyer, Patnaree was charged with violating Thailand’s royal insult laws for writing the word “ja” which means “yeah” in Thai - in response to a private Facebook message critical of the royals.

She was released on bail.

“The court accepted the case from the attorney general and freed Patnaree on bail,” said Anon Numpa, her lawyer.

Under Article 112 of the criminal code, anyone who “defames, insults or threatens the king, queen, heir-apparent or regent” faces up to 15 years in prison.

The case has drawn international criticism since May, when police first issued an arrest warrant for Patnaree and charged her with defaming the monarchy.

The police subsequently said they would drop the charges.

The United States and several rights organisations, including the New York-based Human Rights Watch, condemned Patnaree’s arrest and the

charges brought against her.

The State Department in May said it created a “climate of intimidation”. The junta has clamped down on dissent ahead of a referendum next week on whether to accept a militarybacked constitution that critics say is designed to enshrine military power. Patnaree’s son, Sirawith Seritwat, is a student activist with the New Democracy Movement and Resistant Citizen, groups that the authorities have regularly targeted because of their activities, including handing out leaflets urging people to reject the draft constitution. During its two-year rule, the military government has taken a hardline stance against perceived royal insults and has handed down record sentences. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who also heads of the junta, has said he would show zerotolerance to insults of the monarchy. For more than a decade, Thailand has been bitterly divided between rival camps, one led by former populist premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was toppled in a 2006 coup, the other dominated by the royalist and military establishment who accuse Thaksin of corruption and nepotism, charges he denies.

National anxiety over the frail health of 88-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej has compounded the political tensions.

Top chef gives Brazil’s poor a taste of the high life RIO DE JANEIRO Restaurant-goers usually pay hundreds of euros to eat the creations of Massimo Bottura, but he will be serving poor Brazilians for free at the Olympics.

The 53-year-old Italian modernist chef owns Osteria Francescana in Modena, rated best in the world by Restaurant magazine this year.

He is known for dishes such as “An eel swimming up the Po River” - eel with polenta, Campanie apple jelly, burnt saba onion and charcoal salt.

It will set you back 220 euros at his restaurant, which has three Michelin stars. In Rio de Janeiro, Bottura will be serving up scraps, and his customers won’t pay a cent.The idea is to tackle the twin social ills of waste and poverty with one creative, delicious project - set against the backdrop of Rio de Janeiro’s lush landscapes amid the excitement of the Olympics.

Bottura’s ingredients will be garbage-bound surplus food donated by the catering companies at the Olympic park and athletes’ village.

He and a team of celebrity chefs plan to use that to make some 5,000 meals for some of the most “vulnerable” people in Brazil, a country plagued by poverty and inequality.Their restaurant, called Refettorio Gastromotiva, will open Monday in the trendy Lapa neighborhood.

The 108-seat restaurant is funded by corporate sponsors.

Customers will be chosen by charities working in Rio’s poorest neighborhoods.

The restaurant was decorated by renowned Brazilian artist Vik Muniz, with furniture designed by the Campana brothers, icons of Brazilian design.

It is the brainchild of Bottura,

Brazilian chef and activist David Hertz and journalist Alexandra Forbes. “I promised my mother I would use my fame to make

spokeswoman said.

Co-founder David Hertz, who runs a “social gastronomy” charity in Brazil called

invisible people visible. The time has come to give back to the world what it has given to me,” said Bottura. “We have an opportunity with this project, which is cultural, and not a charitable project, to fight wastefulness. If we change the way people think, we can help give birth to a new tradition,” he told a press conference.

His kitchen team will include French chefs Alain Ducasse and Claude Troisgros, Spain’s Andoni Aduriz and Brazilians Alex Atala, Felipe Bronze, Roberta Sudbrack and Rafa Costa e Silva.They will take turns cooking, setting the menu based on the ingredients available which will be surplus food, not leftovers.Rio city hall has granted them the site free of charge for 10 years.After the Olympics and Paralympics, Refettorio Gastromotiva will operate as a culinary institute as well as a regular restaurant.Patrons paying to eat there will also donate a meal to someone in need, under the motto “buy lunch, give dinner,” a

Gastromotiva, said the project is more about changing the way people think than feeding them.“We had never worked with the issue of food waste before.

That’s a legacy we’ll leave,” he said.The project builds on a similar one, Refettorio Ambrosiano, that Bottura launched last year for the World’s Fair in Milan.He is working on others in Los Angeles, New York and Montreal, to open next year.

Saudi princess robbed of million-euro watch in Paris PARIS A Saudi princess told police she was attacked in central Paris and robbed of a million-euro ($1.1 million) watch, authorities said Friday.

She reported to police she was “violently” robbed on Thursday in the French capital’s second arrondissement by two men, who then escaped with her highend Swiss brand Richard Mille watch. The woman was not hospitalised, police said.

Geeks win millions for teaching computers to battle each other LAS VEGAS A software program dubbed “Mayhem” was poised to win the final round of a three-year contest to teach computers to launch and defend against cyber attacks, earning a $2 million prize for the team that wrote the winning code.

The event, known as the Cyber Grand Challenge, concluded Thursday evening in a Las Vegas convention center ballroom after a digital battle among software programs running on seven supercomputers on a stage in a Las Vegas ballroom.

Thousands watched as announcers presented a play-byplay account of the competition.

It took place ahead of Friday’s start of Def Con, a hacking convention expected to draw more than 20,000 people to two sprawling Las Vegas convention centers.The contest was sponsored by DARPA, or the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the US military

laboratory credited with creating the Internet. DARPA spent $55 million on the effort, which it dubbed the first “capture the flag” hacking contest played solely by

computers. Agency officials said it succeeded in its goal of stimulating development of technologies for automating the process of protecting computer networks against cyber attacks.DARPA program director Mike Walker said the seven

machines succeeded in identifying a total of 650 code vulnerabilities and rewriting 421 programs to fix them. “A spark was lit today,” he said. “We have

proven that autonomy is possible.” Previous DARPA contests include one for selfdriving vehicles that is widely credited with kick-starting the now robust autonomous-vehicle industry. The hacking challenge included 96 rounds in which

computers were charged with examining software programs, identifying bugs, patching them and finding ways to attack rival machines.DARPA said it hoped the contest would speed the slow process of identifying and patching real-world bugs. It can take more than a year from the time a vulnerability is uncovered until a vendor releases a software patch, according to DARPA.That delay gives hackers time to attack unprotected systems, one factor that security experts say has contributed to the surge in cyber attacks. “Mayhem” was provisionally named winner, pending an overnight review of the results.

The winning program was created by eight computer experts from San Francisco and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are affiliated with Carnegie Mellon University, which regularly produces teams that earn top scores in the annual Def Con hacking

contest.Mayhem will compete against Carnegie Mellon students and other elite hackers when this year’s Def Con contest starts Friday. It is the first time a computer has competed.Second place went to a program dubbed Xandra, created by security experts from the University of Virginia and GrammaTech Inc, earning $1 million. A program known as Mech Phish, which was born at the University of California, placed third, earning its creators $750,000.

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Issue - 676 (32)

19 - 25 July 2016

‘Burqini day’ plan for Muslim women sparks outrage in secular France Marseille Plans for a waterpark in Marseille to set aside a day just for Muslim women wearing burqinis - full-body swimsuits sparked outrage in secular France on Thursday.

The “Pool Day” tentatively set for September 10 at the southern city’s Speedwater Park smacks of “dyed-in-thewool communalism,” said Florian Philippot, a top advisor to far-right leader Marine Le Pen. The event is the brainchild of Smile 13, a women’s association catering for Arabs in the port city, whose population of nearly two million includes around 220,000 Muslims, mainly of Algerian origin.

But Speedwater Park said the event has not yet been confirmed, although Smile 13

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has begun accepting reservations online.

The water park said in a statement that it “understands” why the plan “is of particular interest to the media during an emotionally difficult period”, while noting that as a private company it had a right to hold a private event.

Criticism of the plan also came from the political left, with Senator Michel Amiel - who is mayor of the northern suburb, Les Pennes Mirabeau, where the waterpark is located saying he would seek a ban.

“I am shocked and angry. I see this event as a provocation that we don’t need in the current

10-year-old Indian-origin girl named ‘Child Genius 2016’ in UK

London A 10-year-old Indian-origin girl has been crowned Britain’s brightest child after she won a popular television quiz competition in the UK. Rhea shot ahead in the final of ‘Child Genius 2016’ on Channel 4 on Tuesday with six correct answers and then drew with her opponent Saffy with nine points each as they entered the final question round.Rhea, who moved to the UK with her family from the US six years ago and now lives in west London, correctly spelled the word “eleemosynary”, meaning relating to charity, to claim the title at the end of four weeks of demanding rounds.“It meant getting up early, going to sleep late, studying. It just feels really, really great,” Rhea said after her win.Her mother, Sonal, who gave up her job as an obstetrician to train Rhea, had stepped in to contest an incorrect answer that she had given during her

specialist subject round on Florence Nightingale’s influence on military and healthcare reform.Independent adjudicator Olivia van der Werff agreed the question had been too general and accepted Rhea’s answer of Dr Duncan Menzies to the question: “To which medical officer did Florence Nightingale report to in the Crimea?” With this Rhea was able to avoid a tiebreak with Birmingham-born Stephen, who came in third, and Saffy and Rhea secured their place in the final.The move triggered some social media backlash against Sonal, who was called “pushy”.One Twitter comment read: “Rhea is such a smart young lady but her mother is shocking! This isn’t about you...”“Rhea’s parents are ridiculously pushy, poor kid,” read another tweet.Earlier, Sonal had rejected concerns that programmes such as ‘Child Genius’ can put too much pressure on youngsters.

climate,” he told the daily Aujourd’hui in the wake of two jihadist attacks that rocked France last month.

Valerie Boyer of the right-wing Republicans party said “there is nothing anodyne about... the battle of the veil”, which she called “the visible expression of fundamentalists’ wish to mark their territory.”

She said it was a way for “Islamism to wear a uniform and exert real social control.”

Islamic dress is a hot-button issue in France, where the fullface veil is banned in public places. The appearance of high-fashion burqinis and hijab

headscarves by designers targeting the Muslim market prompted French Family Minister Laurence Rossignol in March to liken Muslim women who wear the headscarf to “negroes who supported slavery”. The following month Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the veil was being used as a political symbol for the “enslavement of women” and that it challenged France’s prized secular society.

Inter-faith solidarity Senator Stephane Ravier of Le Pen’s National Front said the planned burqini day showed that despite assurances from

the Muslim community following the terror attacks, “a certain number of Muslims voluntarily set themselves apart from... our society.”

Last month’s attacks -- the Bastille Day truck massacre that left 84 dead in the Riviera town of Nice, followed by the grisly knife murder of a priest near northern Rouen less than a fortnight later -- led to an outpouring of inter-faith solidarity.

Last Sunday, Muslims attended Catholic mass in churches around France, responding to a call by the French Muslim council to show “solidarity and compassion” o v e r t h e p r i e s t ’s m u r d e r.

Reverend Jean Rouet at Notre Dame church in southwestern Bordeaux welcomed the “occasion to show (Muslims) that we do not confuse Islam with Islamism, Muslim with jihadist”.

Socialist politician Stephane Mari worried that the burqini day would draw intensive media coverage. If it goes ahead, it would “once again favour the party (that promotes) the values of hatred and exclusion,” he said in a reference to the xenophobic National Front.

Private company wins US clearance to fly to the moon CAPE CANAVERAL A Florida-based company won US government permission on Wednesday to send a robotic lander to the moon next year, the firm’s founder said, marking the first time the United States has cleared a private space mission to fly beyond Earth’s orbit. The Federal Aviation Administration’s unprecedented go-ahead for the Moon Express mission also sets a legal and regulatory framework for a host of other commercial expeditions to the moon, asteroids and Mars.As approved by the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation, the privately held Moon Express, headquartered in Cape Canaveral, plans to fly a suitcase-sized lander to the moon for a two-week mission in 2017, said the company founder and chief executive Bob Richards.

The spacecraft will carry a number of science experiments and some commercial cargo on its one-way trip to the lunar surface, including cremated human remains, and will beam back pictures and video to Earth, the company said. Before now, no government agency was recognized as having authority to oversee private missions beyond Earth’s orbit, though a 1967 international treaty holds the United States responsible for any flights into space by its non-

government entities. So far, only government agencies have flown spacecraft beyond the orbit of the Earth. To address the conundrum, the FAA, which already exercises jurisdiction

2018, a mission that raises a host of issues dealing with protecting potential indigenous life on the planet from contamination by Earth microbes.Among other private

over commercial rocket launches in the United States, led an interagency review of the Moon Express proposal, which included steps the company would take to ensure compliance with the 1967 Outer Space Treaty.“It’s been a very steep mountain,” Richards said in a telephone interview. “We had to lay the track at the same time that we wanted to do the mission.”Other companies are expected to soon follow the same framework.Elon Musk, founder and chief executive of Space Exploration Technologies, plans to fly a spacecraft to Mars in

space ventures in the works are missions to mine asteroids, operate science labs and repair and service satellites.

Planetary protection is less of a concern on the moon, but Moon Express did have to contend with concerns about disturbing Apollo and other historic lunar landing sites, among other issues.“We proposed a scenario that built on the existing FAA missionapproval framework,” Richards said.NASA and other agencies, including the Defense, State and Commerce departments, ultimately agreed that no new law was necessary, Richards said.

Issue - 676 (33)

19 - 25 July 2016

British MPs face Parliament drinking ban from 2020

London Come 2020 British MPs will have to move out of their Palace of Westminster Parliament building as it is renovated and face a drinking ban in their temporary premises nearby because it has been leased for an Islamic bond scheme, a media report said on Saturday.The Times claims to have seen a leaked report according to which MPs will be relocated to the Department of Health offices in Whitehall while a multi-billion-pound refurbishment of the House of Commons and House of Lords begins in 2020.Lords’ peers will be transferred across Parliament Square to the Queen Elizabeth II Centre.As the new temporary home for MPs, Richmond House, is held under an Islamic bond scheme, it forbids the sale of alcohol.A Department of Health source told the newspaper that staff were getting ready to move out of Richmond House next year.That will give authorities three years to transform the property into a functioning

parliament. It is thought that the debating chamber will possibly be housed there.The lease on Richmond House, where MPs are due to move, was transferred to finance an Islamic bond scheme two years ago. This means that it cannot be used for anything that is not sanctioned

by Sharia law. One of the terms agreed with the UK Treasury is that the sale of alcohol is forbidden, whereas at their current location in Westminster, MPs have the choice of 10 licensed bars and restaurants.The 200-millionpound bonds, known as ‘Sukuk’, were launched as part of an initiative by former Chancellor George Osborne to make Britain “the western hub of Islamic finance”.Devout Muslims cannot buy traditional government bonds because they pay interest.

Sukuk, an Islamic alternative, permit guaranteed returns if they are linked to rental payments.

Moving MPs and peers out of the Palace of Westminster will enable the building work to be

French artist eyes record with giant hillside portrait

GENEVA Armed with a spray gun and lugging buckets of flour, water, and pigment, a French artist has overcome storms and burrowing moles to turn a hectare of Swiss hillside into what is believed to be the world’s largest painting on grass.

It took five days for Guillaume Legros, better known as Saype, to paint a pipe-smoking shepherd onto 10,000 square metres (12,000 square yards) of grass near Leysin in the Alpine canton of Vaud. Keen to protect the environment, Saype, 27, used only natural products for his artwork, which will gradually fade as the grass grows and as rain falls. Altitude and the sheer scale of the project were challenges for

the artist. “If I forgot a bucket of paint down the hill, it would take me half an hour to go and fetch it,” he told the 24 Heures newspaper. Saype had to make several emergency repairs to the painting, filling in the burrows made by moles, before its official launch on Saturday.

“I painted an immense man. But he is nothing compared to the immensity of nature. That’s what I wanted to reflect on,” he told the paper. According to Guinness World Records, Saype’s work is slightly smaller than the largest painting on any surface. That honour belongs to Croatian artist Duka Siroglavic, whose “Wave”, covers 10,800 square metres of canvas and was first exhibited outside a university in Zagreb.

completed quicker and more cheaply in six years, costing between 3.5 billion and 3.9 billion pounds, the leaked report indicates.A vote in Parliament on the recommendations is due after the ongoing summer recess.The move is an attempt to prevent the 19th-century Gothic building from disintegrating beyond repair.

The restoration and renewal unit of the British Parliament has said that since the UNESCO world heritage site’s construction in the mid-1800s “many features have never undergone major renovation”. “The roofs are leaking, asbestos is present throughout, corrosion has occurred in gutters and downpipes and internal plumbing regularly fails, causing visible and sometimes irreversible damage to the Palace’s carved stonework ceilings and Pugin-designed historic interiors,” it says.

UK net addicts go on ‘digital detox’ to get a life

London Fifteen million internet users in Britain have undertaken a ‘digital detox’ in a bid to strike a healthier balance between technology and life beyond the screen, according to a new report on Thursday by communications regulator Ofcom.

Ofcom’s Communications Market Report 2016 reveals how reliance on the internet is affecting people’s personal and working lives, leading many to seek time away from the web to spend time with friends and family.

It finds that one in three adult internet users (34%), equivalent to 15 million people in the UK, has sought a period of time offline.

Most internet users (59%) consider themselves ‘hooked’ on their connected device, while a third (34%) admitting they find it difficult to disconnect.

Of these digital down-timers, 25% spent up to a day internetfree; 20% took up to a week off; and 5% went web-free for up to a whole month, it said.

Many people found their time offline to be a positive experience: a third (33%) said they felt more productive, 27% found it liberating, while a quarter

(25%) enjoyed life more.

However, 16% experienced a ‘fear of missing out’ or FOMO while on the web wagon, 15% felt lost and 14% ‘cut-off’.

Three in four internet users (75%) consider the web ‘important’ to their daily lives. Nearly eight in 10 (78%) agree it helps keep them up-to-date about current affairs and social issues, while almost two-thirds (63%) credit it with inspiring them to try new things such as travel destinations, restaurants, recipes or entertainment.

As a result of the internet’s importance in many people’s daily lives, adult users in the UK currently spend an average of one day per week (25 hours) online; 42% say they go online or check apps more than 10 times a day, while around one in 10 (11%) access the internet more than 50 times daily.

Jane Rumble, Director of Market Intelligence at Ofcom said: “The internet has revolutionised our lives for the better. But our love affair with the web isn’t always plain surfing, and many people admit to feeling hooked”.

“So millions of us are taking a fresh look at the role of technology in our lives, and going on a digital detox to get a better tech-life balance.”

Hackers hit Czech minister’s companies to protest gambling law PRAGUE The Anonymous hackers’ group briefly shut down company websites of billionaire Czech Finance Minister Andrej Babis’s food and agriculture empire in protest at a law giving the state the power to close illegal gambling sites.

Babis, the country’s secondrichest man, founded a political movement that stormed to power in 2013.

But his businesses have left him exposed to criticism of potential conflicts of interest, and hackers have now also taken aim at his companies. Cz, a private news agency, reported that Czech hackers from Anonymous shut down the websites of Babis’s holding company Agrofert and bakery group Penam for a short period on Monday evening.

An Agrofert spokesman confirmed on Tuesday the websites were down for around five minutes.The hacker group has threatened more website attacks against Agrofert and lawmakers and called for the cancellation of the new law that places greater restrictions on

gambling and allows the ministry to close sites operating illegally in the Czech Republic.

“The Finance Ministry led by

collection to boost state coffers since becoming finance minister in 2014.

The gambling laws and online

Andrej Babis gets almost limitless power to censor the internet.

It is time to move against it,” Anonymous said in a video posted on Youtube on July 18 describing what it called Operation Blockade.

The hackers also demanded the end of a planned online system for monitoring retail sales that the finance ministry is launching at the end of the year.

Babis has put new emphasis on battling tax fraud and improving

sales reporting system are part of that effort.

He told Reuters on Tuesday he had met before with a representative of Anonymous and added he would file a criminal complaint over the attacks.

“We only want to apply rules used by 18 (European Union) countries already, nobody wants to censor the internet.

It is aimed against gambling companies that do not pay taxes,” Babis said.

Issue - 676 (34)

19 - 25 July 2016

Britain’s new i360 tower a ‘pier in the sky’ BRIGHTON The world’s tallest moving observation tower, the i360, opens to the public on Thursday, a futuristic landmark that has transformed the historic seafront in the English tourist resort of Brighton.

A 162-metre (530-foot) high steel tower is ringed by a doughnutshaped glass observation pod that gently glides up and down.

The design is meant to be a 21stcentury take on the Victorian pleasure piers that characterise British seaside towns: this time, a vertical pier in the sky, according to project chiefs.

It is hoped that the attraction will further boost tourism in the southeastern resort of Brighton, a gem of 1700s and 1800s architectural grandeur.

Designed by David Marks and Julia Barfield, the tower is the sequel to their London Eye observation wheel, which opened in the British capital in 2000 and is one of its most popular visitor attractions.

Several places wanted a copy of the giant wheel, but the husbandand-wife team felt the concept wasn’t viable in smaller cities.

Instead they took the chance to recalibrate it for Brighton, already Britain’s most popular seaside destination for foreign tourists, in this project that has taken 13 years of work to come to fruition.

“The key ingredient, as with the London Eye, is moving very slowly to a great height for a fantastic view,” said Barfield.

The i360 sits at the entrance to the 1866-built West Pier, which burnt down in 2003.

With a height to diameter ratio of 40 to one, it is the world’s slenderest tall tower, according to Guinness World Records.

“This is very much in the spirit of the West Pier, whose purpose was to delight, entertain and inspire people,” Marks told AFP, standing at the top of the tower.

“Just as it invited Victorian society to go out and walk on water, the i360 turns that concept vertically and invites people to walk on air and get a new perspective on the city.“Everybody seems to love a great view,” he added.

“It’s a pleasure both to the eyes and the intellect not only to gaze at the horizons but to look beyond them.

“The tower cost £46 million ($61 million, 55 million euros) to build but promises to break even as long as it attracts around half its estimated annual 700,000 visitors.

From the top, visitors can see for 26 miles (42 kilometres) along the coast and out over the English Channel.

Until now, the Royal Pavilion has been Brighton’s standout

Nicaragua’s Ortega puts wife as VP on re-election ballot

MANAGUA President Daniel Ortega on Tuesday put his wife, Rosario Murillo, down as his future vice president on a joint ticket for his re-election in a November 6 vote.The unusual step cemented Murillo’s political ascent.

Currently, the First Lady is a government minister and the main spokesperson for Ortega’s administration. For many in Nicaragua, with her higher public profile, Murillo is seen as wielding the real power in the country over the past decade. Ortega and Murillo officially submitted their candidacy to the country’s electoral tribunal on Tuesday, accompanied by their Sandinista party’s legal adviser. Hundreds of party supporters applauded the couple when they left the building.

If Ortega, 70, wins a third consecutive term from 2017 to 2022, as many expect given the

fragmented opposition, Murillo, 65, would replace current Vice President Moises Omar Halleslevens Acevedo. The opposition fears her promotion sets the scene for a family dynasty in charge of the poor Central American nation.Ortega is a former leftwing rebel who has made many moves opposition critics consider authoritarian. He has notably said he will not permit foreign observers to monitor the November 6 elections, which will also choose a new legislature.

Ortega has presented his wife a legitimate politician in her own right, and stressed that women represent 40 percent of his government.Public opinion surveys suggest Murillo has more than 80 percent support. “There are no legal obstacles to Murillo being presented for election as vice president or even president,” a political analyst and former

landmark: an over-the-top, mock Indian palace completed in 1823 as a seaside residence for King George IV, who was known for

welcomed by locals.

The tower’s nicknames range from the “iSore” to more sexually innuendoed names, and some

his indulgent lifestyle.

The Sussex city is also known for its Georgian and Regency terraces, as well as its later Victorian piers, and is now home to an up-and-coming arty crowd and is often considered Britain’s “gay capital”.

The tower’s designers say the new structure, which dominates the city’s skyline, is in keeping with Brighton’s history of bold architecture built for pleasure, but it has not been universally

residents decry the local authority taking on a £36 million loan to fund the project - though the city council insists it is charging the i360 a higher rate than the borrowing costs.

- Alien spacecraft-style pod The 18-metre diameter pod technically an oblate ellipsoid shape - is pulled up by a giant cog and steel cable winch system, located underground.

It also uses a counterweight within the tower.

Christian Bouvier, vice-president of French cable car experts Poma, which built the pod and the drive mechanism, said the vertical lift system was a new technical challenge for the company.

“This has never been done before,” he told AFP. The 200-capacity pod looked like a visiting alien spacecraft when first assembled next to a cornfield in France, Bouvier said.

Looking out from his maiden ride in the pod, he said: “It’s really the wow effect.

It is sensational to see, as if in a helicopter.

“Bouvier compared the i360 to Paris’s most famous tower.

“David Marks is really the Gustave Eiffel of our century,” he claimed.

The tower’s lattice steel cladding is designed to diffuse the wind so that it does not wobble, and to protect it from expanding in the sun. “The results of this actually turned out better than the theory,” said Bouvier.

The pod, which will cost visitors £15 (18 euros/$20) per ride, will travel up and down around 200 times a week, and is set for its first wedding in September.

Singapore PM wife sparks dino purse frenzy SINGAPORE A dinosaur print purse designed by an autistic teenage boy has completely sold out after photographs of the Singaporean prime minister’s wife wearing it at the White House went viral.

Sales of the $11 blue purse with a white dinosaur motif have soared since Ho Ching was photographed carrying it during husband Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s official visit to the United States earlier this week.

Ho bought the purse last weekend at a fundraising event for the Autism Resource Centre (ARC) in Singapore, for which she is an advisor. The dinosaurs were drawn by See Toh Sheng Jie, 19, who attends the Pathlight school for students with autism run by the ARC. Photos of Ho holding the purse on the White House lawn went viral, spurring massive demand for the accessory, with Pathlight saying its stock of 200 sold out within a day and it was now on backorder with a twomonth wait. The school said that it usually took months to sell this many purses. The purse was part of a series curated by the school, which puts their students’ artwork on different products, earning the artists royalties from the designs sold.

Ho, also one of Asia’s most powerful businesswomen, garnered praise on social media for her unusual choice of accessory.

“So good of Mrs Lee to use it at such a high profile occasion!

Great job ADP artist Sheng Jie!” wrote Facebook user Su Yeo. Another user, Leong Geok Hoon, called it a “world class fashion of the heart” while others noted that while Ho could have chosen

any other designer, she went with one from a cause she supports.

“It gave such a great mileage for the artists on our Artist

communicative but when we once gave him a dinosaur toy during a tantrum, he calmed down. That’s when we knew he

Development Programme and The Art Faculty merchandise,” Pathlight principal Linda Kho told AFP. See Toh’s family has also been overwhelmed with media attention but for the autistic teenager, the son of a taxi driver with a love for dinosaurs and beetles, it makes little difference.When AFP visited the family’s suburban governmentbuilt housing flat, he nonchalantly sat at a table in the living room drawing his favourite dinosaurs and watching television.He has filled countless notebooks and folders with his drawings, his parents said.“When the school first told us that Ms Ho Ching brought Sheng Jie’s pouch to the White House, we thought it was a joke,” See Toh’s father, Jason told AFP Friday.When shown a picture of Ho with the bag bearing his design, See Toh was delighted, his parents added.“He is not very

liked dinosaurs,” the elder See Toh told AFP.The youth has an encyclopaedic knowledge of dinosaurs and must watch every dinosaur movie he comes across. He also makes intricate dinosaur toys from polymer clay, filling an entire display cabinet in the family’s flat. “We’ll just let him do what he likes because you can’t force him to draw when he doesn’t want,” Wendy See Toh said.

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Dipa vaults into history, makes Olympic gymnastics final Dipa Karmakar, who rose from the sporting wilderness of India’s remote northeast, landed a risky front handspring with a double summersault to book a spot in the vault finals, keeping hopes alive of the country’s first Olympic gymnastics medal.

Karmakar followed up the Produnova — dubbed the vault of death — with a Tsuk double full twist, tumbling sideways on the landing, but ending eighth on the overall individual points tally.

That was enough to make it to the medals round at the Rio Olympic Arena next Sunday.

“That I have reached the final is an amazing achievement. My coach is very happy because I executed what he had taught me to do,” said Karmakar, who celebrates her 23rd birthday on Tuesday.

But, she wants more — a medal at Rio and teammates in Tokyo. “I’m sure there will be more girls, I’m

sure that in 2020, we’ll go to Japan with a team,” she told Hindustan Times, just after her qualifying round.

The enormity of Karmakar’s achievement doesn’t just lie in the fact that she chose the

Produnova — the highscoring but the singlemost difficult and dangerous manoeuvre in gymnastics that would be attempted by just one other competitor at Rio. She also overcame flat feet to become one of the country’s best gymnasts, who hardly enjoy any state or private patronage.

In a cricket-mad country of 1.2 billion, Karmakar started the sport aged seven in Tripura, which lacked proper infrastructure and equipment.

“I am under so much pressure. Everyone in India is

expecting Dipa to create history in Rio,” her coach Bisweshwar Nand said after he watched Karmakar soar into the air as she practiced her trademark vault.

“I feel that we are carrying the dreams of a billion Indians who just cannot understand how difficult it is for Dipa to get a medal

here.”

Karmarkar can die doing what she does. No other gymnast at the Olympics attempted the ‘death vault’ to earn her place in the final. No one else was willing to risk the vault named after the Russian who first managed the two somersaults in the air after a front handspring.

It is a manoeuvre that can leave your body broken. If the gymnast is unable to pull off those tricky two flips, after all they barely manage to spring up about eight feet in the air, then she may break a leg.

Worse, she may land on her butt and impact the spine.

Here at Rio only two gymnasts are looking to attempt the manoeuvre. One is the oldest woman in the fray, the 41-year-old Uzbek gymnast Oksana Chusovitina competing in her seventh Olympics. She did not attempt the Produnova in the qualifying. But she says she will in the final. She wants to go out with a bang.

Abhinav Bindra misses bronze by 0.1 point

In his last appearance on the Olympic stage, which was his third final in five attempts, Abhinav Bindra came within 0.1 of winning a second medal at the pinnacle of world sport. In the end, he bowed out of the competition at fourth place in the final of the men’s 10m air rifle with cumulative score of 163.8 at the Olympic Shooting Centre on Monday.

Having entered the final with a stunning recovery in the qualification round earlier on Monday, the 33year-old Bindra held his composure - honed over years of zen-like focus and training - to move up the table and into the top three.

However, just towards the end he fell back to fourth and then fell agonizingly short of claiming bronze;

Russia’s Vladimir Maslennikov came in third.

Gold was claimed by Italian Niccolo Campriani - his second such - and the Ukraine’s Serhiy Kulish took silver. In the first series of three shots, Bindra shot 29.9. In the second, he dropped down to seventh place with a score of 60.1. In the third, super shots worth 10.7 and 10.8 moved him to third and into bronze medal position.

That became second as Bindra nailed another 10.7, moving to within 0.5 behind the leader.

As the tension ratcheted up, Bindra began the sixth series with a 9.7 shot. His second was 10.5. It call came down to his last shot, which was a 10 - but not enough to win him bronze.

them down. The good thing is Vijay has been in a good headspace. He’s back to the nets and back to field-

bing, KL got a chance and he hasn’t looked back since. We conveyed to Mandeep that unfortunately it was an injury and nothing can be done about that. We need to look at the balance of the side,” explained the skipper. Kohli said his bowlers learnt a useful lesson from the drawn second Test.

“It turned out to be more challenging on day five. We know that we had the upper hand throughout.

If we had play on day four we would have probably wrapped up things. The momentum was with us and it is a massive factor in cricket, in all formats, especially in Test cricket and that can only be attained by playing consistent cricket.

Cricket South Africa bans four Virat Kohli Hints at Continuing With cricketers for match-fixing Lokesh Rahul in Opening Slot Cricket South Africa said Monday they had banned four players following a match fixing probe of the 2015 domestic Twenty 20 competition.

The banned players were named as Jean Symes, Pumelela Matshikwe, Ethy Mbhalati and Thami Tsolekile, the former South African Test wicketkeeper.

“The banning of these four players follows a lengthy investigation,” said the organisation in a statement. The player have been banned from the sport for between seven to 12 years following the probe of the domestic Twenty20 competition.

“Whilst there has been no evidence to suggest that an

actual fix in any match was carried out, these players all participated in material discussions about match fixing,” said Cricket South Africa chief executive Haroon Lorgat. Tsolekile, who received a 12-yearban, is said to have failed to disclose to the authorities “details of an approach to engage in corrupt conduct” in the 2015 competition.

Tsolekile, 35, toured England as South Africa`s back-

up wicketkeeper in 2003 and played in three Test matches, two against India and one against England, in 2004.

He remained on the fringes of the team and toured England and Australia in 2012 and the United Arab Emirates for a series against Pakistan in 2013 without winning further caps. Matshikwe, a bowler formerly contracted to the Lions, is said to have received a payment or incentive to fix a match. He was given a 10 year ban, and so was Ethy Mbhalati, a bowler formerly contracted to the Titans. Symes was handed a seven year ban for failing to disclose to the authorities a payment given to him.

India skipper Virat Kohli on Monday dropped hints that he would like to persist with KL Rahul, who seized the opportunity by scoring a hundred in the absence of injured Murali Vijay in the second Test against the West Indies.

Rahul scored 158 when he replaced Murli Vijay, who had to sit out due to a hand injury. “The good thing is all three openers are playing well. The bad thing is that you can only choose two between three. That is a call we need to take as management. We’ll sit down today and do that. Getting injured when playing well is not in your hand. That’s why they say injuries can really upset people and bring

ing and we will take a call on that,” Kohli said on the eve of the third Test.

“Injuries are not in anyone’s hands. Even in the IPL, I remember a game where Mandeep Singh was fit and set to play. While I was at the toss he split his web-

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RESTRAINT FOR CITIZENS, NO MERCY ON TERROR

By ABHIJIT MAJUMDER One of the most senior figures in the national security establishment has told Mail Today that India will play strictly by the book in Kashmir, exercising the utmost restraint in dealing with peaceful citizens - but showing no mercy to those using violence against the State.

“Every stratum of security has been asked to exercise complete restraint in dealing with citizens. But terrorists will not be spared. In fact, the desperation of separatists is triggered by systematic elimination of terrorists in the Valley.

Action against terror will continue, and in that, security forces have a free hand,” he said, requesting anonymity. Admitting that infiltration from across the border has risen, he said the elimination of terrorists has also increased.

The central and state governments have started quietly reaching out to people from all sections of Kashmiri civil society to calm their nerves, he said.

This comes at a time when parts of Kashmir have erupted with protests and violent clashes after

security forces killed local Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in a shootout.

So far, 55 people including two CRPF men have died in the ensuing turmoil.

Non-lethal guns Some have started comparing the situation with the bloody and turbulent 1990s, when militancy reached its peak and Pandits were cleansed from the Valley.

“This is not even remotely close to what happened in the ‘90s,” said the senior government official. “But even supposing it were so, should we be intimidated? Has any group or individual achieved anything in independent India through violence?” He said: “The basic right of every organism, individual, and even a nation is the right to self-preservation. India has the right to act in selfpreservation against terrorists sent or sponsored by Pakistan, and we will do it.”

Will the State stop using the much-vilified pellets guns?

“We are perhaps the only

country which uses nonlethal weapons against mobs using stones, guns and grenades. Imagine the casualty if we had used bullets instead of pellets,” he said.

State Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti came in for praise.

Taking considerable political risks, Mufti has been doing more than any other J&K chief minister would do to

defuse the situation, he said.

The security source ruled out speaking to separatists.

“It is pointless speaking with people who have no power to take decisions, who have a gun held to their heads by Pakistan.”

The senior official said the media needed to stop either being hypernationalistic or taking the

separatists’ line.

“In our jingoism, we often pit India against Kashmiris.

We forget they are our own people, and only a very small section is working in Pakistan’s interest. Such coverage deepens faultlines and places citizens against citizens.”

According to the official, incidents of violence have been reported in nine of the state’s 22 districts and

recruitment for terror is happening in five or six districts, mainly in south Kashmir.

“An overwhelming majority of Kashmiris is disgusted by all this. Many of them some of them local imams - are being bullied by terrorists at gunpoint to join protests,” he said. “We need to empower this majority.”

Quetta explodes in grief as attack kills 75 At least 65 people were killed and over 150 others injured when a suicide bomber struck mourners,mostly lawyers

and journalists, gathered at a government-run hospital in Pakistan’s restive south-

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western Balochistan province in one of the worst attacks in the country this year.

The bomber struck the

Civil Hospital in Quetta where the body of president of Balochistan Bar Association (BA) Advocate Bilal Anwar Kasi, who was shot dead earlier in the day, was being brought.

Gunfire followed the explosion. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, police said it was a suicide attack where eight kilogrammes of explosives were used.

Television footage showed scenes of chaos, with panicked mourners fleeing through debris as smoke filled the corridors of the hospital’s emergency ward.

A contingent of Frontier Corps and police arrived and cordoned off the hospital following the blast, restricting access to the area. A loud explosion was heard as lawyers and journalists had gathered at the emergency department where Kasi’s body was brought for autopsy.

Several lawyers have been targeted during a recent spate of killings in Quetta.

Today’s suicide attack appeared to target Kasi’s mourners, Anwar ul Haq, a spokesman for the Baluchistan government, said. It is the second deadliest in Pakistan this year so far, after a bombing in a crowded park in Lahore over Easter killed 75. Bomb Disposal Squad officials also confirmed theexplosion was a suicide bombing. As many as 65 people have been killed

and over over 150 others were injured in the attack, Haq said, adding the death toll could increase.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Mamnoon Hussain strongly condemned the attack. Sharif ordered the provincial government to arrest the culprits. “No one will be allowed to disrupt the peace of theprovince,” Sharif said.

A journalist was among the deceased while another was critically injured, according to reports. “This was a

security lapse and I am having this personally investigated,” Balochistan Home Minister Sarfaraz Bugti said.

Panic tore through the hospital after the incident and emergency has been declared at hospitals in Quetta. The provincial government has

announced three-day mourning during which Pakistan’s National Flag will remain at half mast on government buildings.

Social networking site Facebook activated its “safetycheck” feature after the blast in the provincial capital bordering Iran and Afghanistan.

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Health How alcohol and pot may Brain area that adapts to hearing loss identified influence your sexual behaviour A specific part of the brain that older adults rely on to differentiate speech sounds in background noise has been identified in a move that could revolutionise the treatment of hearing loss, reveal researchers.

As people age, their peripheral and central auditory system areas of the brain that help to intake and interpret sound decline in function.

The results showed that in order to adapt for hearing loss, the speech motor area of the brain’s frontal lobe steps in to help an older adult interpret someone talking in a noisy room. “Our study was able to show that we appear to tap into the speech motor areas, regions of the brain that are

important for speech articulation and production, and use that information to identify speech embedded in noise,” said Claude Alain, Assistant Director at Baycrest Health Sciences Canada-based re-

search and education hospital.

Significant hearing loss is one of the most common chronic health conditions in older adults that affects 90 per cent of seniors who are 80 years and older.

A loss of hearing greatly affects an older adult’s

ability to socialise and their quality of life.

The finding can pave the way for programs to be designed to assist seniors with hearing loss and to adapt the way hearing aids are developed, the researchers said in the study published in the journal Nature Communications.

“By showing there are other brain areas that affect hearing you can design training programs that target these brain areas to see if we can improve their use,” Alain added.

For the study, the team analysed the brain activity of 16 young and 16 older adults and their ability to identify syllables, while the level of noise changed in the background.

While both alcohol and marijuana appear to potentially increase risk for unsafe sex, alcohol use may increase the likelihood of having sex with a stranger, leading to less post-sex satisfaction, suggests new research.

For the study, the researchers compared self-reported sexual experiences related to use of alcohol and marijuana. “Sexual encounters on marijuana tended to be with someone the individual knew,” said one of the researchers Joseph Palamar, Assistant Professor at New York University Langone Medical Center (NYULMC). “Sex on alcohol was often with a stranger so the situation before sex may be much more important than the drug used,” Palamar noted.

The researchers noted that the sexual effects tended to be similar across males and females, and both alcohol and marijuana were generally associated with loss of inhibitions. Both

drugs appear to be potentially associated with increased feelings of self-attractiveness, but possibly more so for alcohol, and participants reported feelings of increased sociabil-

Palamar said.

“Participants reported feelings of regret more frequently after sex on alcohol, but compared to alcohol they generally didn’t report poor judgment after us-

ity and boldness while consuming alcohol. While some participants reported that marijuana use made them more selective in choosing a partner, many participants -- both male and female - felt that their “standards” for choosing a partner were lowered while under the influence of alcohol. “It wasn’t surprising that alcohol use reportedly led to less post-sex satisfaction than marijuana,”

ing marijuana,” Palamar noted. In this study, the researchers interviewed 24 adults (12 males and 12 females, all self-identified as heterosexual and HIVnegative) who recently used marijuana before sex.

Alcohol was more likely than marijuana to lead to atypical partner choice or post-sex regret, showed the findings published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Stop mom-shaming those wanting to breastfeed Even as the World Breastfeeding Week is being observed year after year, shaming of women who feed their infants in public continues brazenly.

It is strange that men can urinate in public but women cannot feed in public!

Even as we are in 2016, feeding in public is frowned upon, targeted and shamed. Women are compelled to leave home post delivery, whatever be the reason. And the baby does feel hungry. And no, rushing back home to sit behind closed walls is not an option! The theme that is to be observed this year globally to mark the breastfeeding week (August 1-7) is about how breastfeeding is a key element in getting us to think about how to value our wellbeing from the start of life. And, more importantly, on how to respect each other and care for the world we share. Nursing in pub-

lic is stigmatised the world over, as much in India, which is overly conservative. With breastfeeding considered “gross”, the concept of nursing rooms for moms in public places also continues to be a dream. Being able to get out of home following birth is incredibly important for women as they are likely to suffer postnatal depression. And so please, it is not appropriate to confront, ridicule, scoff at, harass, or mistreat a woman who is breastfeeding.

Indian women, while feeding in public, do not bare their breast. It is certainly unacceptable in a country that brags of moral policing and cultural vigilantism. The breastfeeding mothers do “cover up” fearing lashes but several mothers feel that the child is put to a lot of discomfort. How would it be like to eat all

covered up, under a blanket? To put things into perspective, Brock Smith from Florida was filmed by his wife eating at a restaurant under a blanket -- some-

has demoralised women to a great extent as they hesitate to satiate the hunger pangs of their infants once they step out, even as it is proven time and

thing many babies are forced to do when being publicly breastfed, in order not to upset onlookers.

Public places with nursing rooms in India are not in plenty. And a few that are blessed with such rooms, mostly remain unused. The stigma attached to feeding anywhere outside home

again that breast milk is the best.

For a civilised society of the 21st century, shaming of women who feed in public seems to be overdoing of things. The mother is being judged, chastised, and pressured for trying to avoid bottles to boost immunity and protect the child

against chronic conditions. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Medical Association (AMA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommend breast-feeding as the best choice for babies.

Breastfeeding helps defend against infections and prevent allergies. Often called the “perfect food” for a human baby’s digestive system, breast milk’s components -- lactose, protein (whey and casein), and fat -are easily digested by a newborn. To add to the physical benefits, some studies suggest that children who are exclusively breastfed have slightly higher IQs than children who are formula-fed.

Busting myths that a mother can never regain her shape, breastfeeding burns calories and helps shrink the uterus so nursing mothers may be able

to return to their pre-pregnancy shape and weight quicker. Also, studies show that breastfeeding helps lower the risk of breast cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease -and also may help decrease the risk of uterine and ovarian cancer. Mothers should get it straight that none of the antibodies found in breast milk are available in manufactured formula feeds, so these can’t provide a baby with the added protection against infection and illness that breast milk does. Now, with all the positives of mother’s milk, it is very important to encourage women and show a positive attitude towards breast-feeding. Spouses should be made to understand the importance of the natural feed as the mother is much likely to continue with her husband’s support. And finally, give the thumbs up to women breastfeeding in public.

Issue 679 (38)

9 - 15 August 2016

Air pollution may shorten survival chances in lung cancer patients Air pollution may shorten survival chances in patients with lung cancer detected at an early stage of the disease, particularly adenocarcinoma, according to a study. Adenocarcinoma is the most common type of non-small cell lung cancer, which accounts for 80 per cent of lung cancer cases. Air pollution has been linked to a higher incidence of lung cancer and death, but little is known about its potential impact on an individual’s chances of survival after diagnosis.

To clarify this, the researchers tracked the health outcomes of more than 3,52,000 people newly diagnosed with lung cancer with an average age of 69.

More than half (53 per cent) of the cancers were diagnosed at an advanced stage (distant spread) and the average survival time for early stage disease was 3.6 years.

For patients with early

stage disease, average survival time was shortest for those with small and large cell cancers (around 1.5 years) and longest for those with adenocarcinoma (around 5 years).

Participants’ average expo-

sure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), particulate matter of less than 10 um (micrometre) and less than 2.5 um, in diameter (PM10 and PM2.5) was calculated using data from air quality monitoring stations, mapped to area of residence.

Almost half of the study participants (45.4 per cent) lived more than 1,500 metres away from a major interstate motorway while less than 10 per cent lived within a 300 metre radius of one.

Their risk of death from any cause was then estimated, based on disease stage and tumour cell type.

“After taking account of these, and other potentially influential factors, the calculations showed that higher exposures to each of the four pollutants were

This is what energy drinks can do to your heart!

Energy drinks are a beverage that are highly popular among today’s youth. They are also used as a source of fuel for those who are fitness-crazy before a workout session.

They may do wonders for your energy-levels and give you a boost while keeping you active and on your toes, however, a recent case report might give you a rude awakening. As per the report, in the Journal of Addiction Medicine ( the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM)), the high levels of caffeine in energy drinks may lead to cardiac complications.

As it turns out, this isn’t the first time such a case has been reported. It simply adds to previous reports of adverse cardiovascular events related to consuming energy drinks, including abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias) or improper beating of the

heart, whether irregular, too fast or too slow.

In this case, a 28-yearold patient was seen in the emergency department after developing vomiting with blood.

On examination, the

only abnormality (other than obesity) was a very fast heart rate -about 130 beats per minute.

An electrocardiogram revealed an abnormal heart rhythm called atrial fibrillation: a common type of arrhythmia that can lead to serious complications if sustained.

Further tests showed no other heart problems.

The reason? Consumption of two cans of energy drinks per day –

for a total caffeine content of 320 milligrams – plus two or three beers.

With medications, the atrial fibrillation resolved over 48 hours. Endoscopy showed a tear of the stomach and esophagus, probably caused by forceful vomiting. The patient was sent home in stable condition. At one year’s follow-up, he had no further symptoms of arrhythmia.

Although several factors might have contributed to the patient’s atrial fibrillation, the researchers said, “We believe that energy drink consumption played a key role.”

Marketed as “nutritional supplements,” these beverages are not subject to the caffeine limits on soft drinks, or to the safety testing and labeling required for medications.

“We suggest that arrhythmia could be a complication of energy drink consumption,” wrote Maryam Sattari of University of Florida, Gainesville and lead author of the report.

associated with a correspondingly heightened risk of death and shorter average and five-year survivals,” said Jaime E. Hart, researcher at the Harvard Medical School in the study published in the journal Thorax.

But the magnitude of heightened risk was greatest for patients with early stage disease, among whom average survival was 2.4 years for those with high PM2.5 exposure (at least 16 ug/m3) and 5.7 years for those with low exposure (less than 10 ug/m3).

Overall, for patients with early stage disease, risk of death from any cause was 30 per cent greater for NO2; 26 per cent greater for PM10; and 38 per cent greater for PM2.5. The impact of exposure to O3 was small (4 per cent).

These trends were particularly evident among patients with early stage adenocarcinoma.

“This study provides compelling initial evidence that air pollution may be a potential target for future prevention and intervention studies to increase cancer survival,” she writes.

Five surprising health benefits of laughter you didn’t know about!

Indeed, laughter makes us feel better in the moment, but a good laugh has great health benefits as well.

Laughter, which is a key component of a happy life, is clinically proven to be have a powerful and positive effect on physical, mental and social health and wellbeing.

New Delhi: Indeed, laughter makes us feel better in the moment, but a good laugh has great health benefits as well. Laughter, which is a key component of a happy life, is clinically proven to be have a powerful and positive effect on physical, mental and social health and wellbeing.

• Laughter helps lower blood pressure, reducing the risk of a heart attack and stroke.

• Laughing reduces the levels of stress hormones cortisol, epinephrine

(adrenaline) and dopamine, and increases the production of serotonin and endorphins, which are responsible for your happiness.

• Laughter is a powerful antidote to pain with many studies validating the pain relieving effects of a good lauch.

• Laughter helps in cancer recovery by increasing the levels of IFN (Interferongamma) in the body. IFN stimulates the B-cells, Tcells, NK cells, and immunoglobulin that are integral to a healthy immune system and the lines of defense against the abnormal growth of tumors in the body.

• Laughter increases the blood circulation around your face which stimulates facial muscles, helping to mkae you look younger and healthier.

Contraceptives with oestrogen may up Vitamin D in women Women who use birth control pills or other contraceptives containing oestrogen -- hormones important for sexual and reproductive development in females -- are likely to improve their Vitamin D levels, a study says.

The findings, after adjusting for seasonal exposure to sunlight, showed that the use of contraceptive pills, patch or ring containing oestrogen was associated with a 20 per cent higher 25-hydroxy Vitamin D level. ”The study found that women who were using contraception containing oestrogen tend to have higher Vitamin D levels,” said lead author, Quaker E. Harmon from National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in North Carolina, US. On the other hand,”such levels are likely to fall when they cease to use such contraceptives,” Harmon added.

Women who stop the use of contraceptives containing oestrogen may run the risk of developing Vitamin D deficiency just when

they want to become pregnant, the researchers said in the work published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

women face an increased risk of developing Vitamin D deficiency, according to the Endocrine Society’s Clinical Practice Guideline

“For women who are planning to stop using birth control, it is worth taking steps to ensure that Vitamin D levels are adequate while trying to conceive and during pregnancy,” Harmon suggested.

About 10 per cent of the body’s vitamin D supply comes from food, including fatty fish and milk fortified with the Vitamin.

During pregnancy, women produce increased amounts of the active form of Vitamin D to support formation of the foetal skeleton.

As a result, pregnant

on Vitamin D deficiency.

For the study, the team conducted a data analysis of 1,662 African-American women between the ages of 23 and 34.

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Chicken and Corn Chili Ingredients: 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 1 (16 ounce) jar salsa 2 teaspoons garlic powder 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon chili powder salt to taste ground black pepper to taste 1 (11 ounce) can Mexican-style corn 1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans Directions: Place chicken and salsa in the slow cooker the night before you want to eat this chili. Season with garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper.

Cook 6 to 8 hours on Low setting.

About 3 to 4 hours before you want to

Chicken and Red Wine Sauce

eat, shred the chicken with 2 forks.

Return the meat to the pot, and continue cooking.

Stir the corn and the pinto beans into the slow cooker. Simmer until ready to serve.

Penne and Chicken Ingredients: 1 (16 ounce) package penne pasta 1 1/2 tablespoons butter 1/2 cup chopped red onion 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into bite-size pieces 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts in water 1 tomato, chopped 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 teaspoon dried oregano salt to taste ground black pepper to taste Directions: In a large pot with boiling salted water cook penne pasta until al dente. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-high heat melt butter, add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add chopped chicken and con-

cup brown sugar. Pour red wine around chicken.

Cover, and simmer about 15 to 20 minutes; lightly baste chicken with wine sauce while cooking. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Hawaiian Chicken Kabobs

tinue cooking, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium- low.

Drain and chop artichoke hearts and add them, chopped tomato, feta cheese, fresh parsley, lemon juice, dried oregano, and drained penne pasta to the large skillet.

Cook until heated through, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Season with salt and ground black pepper. Serve warm.

Ingredients: 3 tablespoons soy sauce 3 tablespoons brown sugar 2 tablespoons sherry 1 tablespoon sesame oil 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 2 inch pieces 1 (20 ounce) can pineapple chunks, drained skewers Directions: In a shallow glass dish, mix the soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic powder. Stir the chicken pieces and pineapple into the marinade until well coated. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2

hours.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken and pineapple alternately onto skewers.

Grill 15 to 20 minutes, turning occasionally, or until chicken juices run clear.

Casserole

Three Cheese ManiCoTTi Ingredients: 1 (8 ounce) package manicotti shells 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided 2 cups ricotta cheese 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided 1 tablespoon minced garlic 1 egg 2 tablespoons dried basil 2 (26 ounce) jars pasta sauce Directions: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add manicotti and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon minced garlic 3 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 1 tablespoon paprika 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup red wine salt and pepper to taste Directions: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Cook garlic in oil until tender. Place chicken in the skillet, and cook about 10 minutes on each side, until no longer pink and juices run clear.

Drain oil from skillet. Sprinkle chicken with paprika and 1

In a bowl, mix 3 cups mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, garlic, egg, and basil. Stuff cooked manicotti with the mixture.

Spread about 2 cups pasta sauce over the bottom of the prepared baking dish.

Arrange stuffed manicotti in the dish, and cover with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.

Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven.

Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan, and continue baking 10 minutes, until mozzarella is melted and bubbly.

Ingredients: 1 pound ground turkey 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce 1 teaspoon white sugar 1 (8 ounce) container sour cream 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese 1 (12 ounce) package uncooked egg noodles 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute the ground turkey for 5 to 10 minutes, or until browned. Drain the turkey, stir in the tomato sauce and sugar, and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the sour cream and cream cheese. Mix well and set aside.

Cook noodles according to package directions. Place them into a 9x13-inch

baking dish, then layer the turkey mixture over the noodles. Then layer the sour cream mixture over the turkey, and top with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 20 to 35 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

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