Reporter who exposed Pak Navy men's link with al-Qaida killed

A well-known Pakistani investigative reporter who had complained of threats from the country's Inter-Services Intelligence was found dead on Tuesday, two days after he disappeared following the publication of his articles that exposed links between Pakistan navy personnel and al-Qaida operatives.

Syed Saleem Shahzad, 40, the Pakistan bureau chief for Asia Times Online, was found dead in Punjab province about 200km from Islamabad. His body, fished out of a canal, was identified by his brother-in-law Hamza Amir. It bore marks of torture, police said, one officer adding that he had cuts on his face.

He is survived by his widow Anila, and sons — Fahad (14), Syed Rehman (8) — and daughter Amina (12).

Soon after Shahzad went missing on Sunday evening while on the way to a TV station from his Islamabad home, a representative of Pakistan's Human Rights Watch, Ali Dayan Hasan, told the Daily Times of Pakistan that "credible sources" claimed Shahzad was apprehended by the ISI. Members of Shahzad's family told the editor of Asia Times that many of Shahzad's friends believed him to be in ISI custody and that he was "safe and would be released after 48 hours".

"He told us that if anything happened to him, we should inform the media about the situation and the threats," Hasan said.

Shahzad had on several occasions been warned by ISI officers over his reports they considered "detrimental to Pakistan's national interest".

His last report on May 29 gave details of contacts between the Pakistan navy and al-Qaida operatives and how the terror group had infiltrated the Mehran base in Karachi and helped organize the devastating attack on May 22.

Police said Shahzad's body was found near his white Toyota Corolla car at Sarai Alamghir near Jhelum town. After police informed Shahzad's family, a relative went to the site and identified the body. Shahzad's family had earlier told the media that the description provided by police did not match with that of the missing journalist, which initially led to hope that he might be alive.

While scores of angry and shocked journalists gathered at his Islamabad home to pay their last respects, there was no word from the government or the army on the killing and neither did any authority visit his home. Pakistani journalists have planned a rally in Islamabad on Wednesday to protest the killing of Shahzad.

US Soldiers take turns Raping 14 year Old IRAQI Girl

Andhra techie dies in US mishap

A 36-year-old software engineer, M. Satish Reddy, died in a road mishap in Virginia, US, at around 6.40 am (IST) on Monday.

He hailed from Kesireddypalli village of Bachchannapet mandal in Warangal district. According to Satish’s cousin, Mr Venkateshwar Reddy, Satish had gone to the US about eight years ago and was a green card holder.

He is survived by his wife, Ms Narmada, and a son. While Ms Narmada, who had joined Satish in the US, is still in a state of shock and is yet to get in touch with Satish’s family in India, their son is staying with her parents.

Though Satish lived in Roseberg, the accident occurred on the Loudoun County highway in Virginia. “He might have gone to visit a friend,” Mr Venkateshwar Reddy said. On hearing the news, Satish’s father, Mr Madhava Reddy, a retired bank employee, left Kesireddypalli village for Hyderabad. The family is in touch with the Telugu Association of North America.

Casey Anthony's Mother Testifies in Murder Trial, Casey Anthony accusing her Father and Brother for sexually molesting her

How can Casey kill such a cute daughter?

Casey partying after her daughter died

Casey Anthony (Right), Caylee (little girl on Left) 

Casey Anthony, 25, faces a series of charges related to the disappearance and death of her daughter, Caylee, ranging from first degree murder to providing false information to law enforcement. She could face the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charge.

It was the day everyone was waiting for and it happened, oddly enough, on a Saturday.

Casey Anthony's mother, Cindy Anthony, testified for the first time in her daughter's murder trial. Her husband, George Anthony, has testified three times so far. 

Cindy Anthony talked about not seeing her granddaughter for weeks, which was highly unusual. The Anthonys were basically helping to raise their granddaughter, seeing her nearly every day since she was born.

Cindy called the authorities and reported Caylee missing on July 15, 2008. It had been a month since she had seen the two-year-old, she said. She also said there was always an excuse provided by her daughter, Casey.  

Cindy Anthony began to grow suspicious.

On Saturday, she began crying and, at one point, asked the prosecutor to take down a photo of Caylee on a large projection screen in the courtroom. It showed Caylee's Winnie the Pooh-themed bed.

Prosecutors went over details of the Anthony's home, specifically the ladder that provided access to the pool. Casey's defense says that Caylee was never missing, that she drowned in the family pool on June 16, 2008. They also claim that Casey's father found her body.

Aside from Cindy taking the stand, another factor in court made big headlines and that was Casey herself. The 25-year-old mother became enraged and was seen sobbing and talking angrily with her attorneys after her mother took the stand.

The emotions were evident during a recess ordered by Judge Belvin Perry. Casey's attorneys had their arms around her. Her mother's comments seemed to make her upset.

"How long did you go without seeing your granddaughter?" asked prosecutors. 

"I don't think I ever went more than 24 hours without seeing Caylee," Cindy Anthony said.

Casey's mother also said that she thought that her daughter went back to work at Universal Studios when Caylee was born.

It was a job that prosecutors claim never existed.

Cindy Anthony also testified about the now-infamous"Zanny," the nanny.  However, Casey's mother says she never met the Zanny.

Casey Anthony explained to her parents that she met the woman through a colleague, Jeff Hopkins. After Casey's arrest in July 2008, the young mother told detectives that Caylee was left with Zanny, also known as Zeniada Gonzalez, at the Sawgrass Apartments. Detectives say that Casey told them Zanny kidnapped Caylee, and that the reason Casey never called the police is that she was doing her own search and investigation.

Cindy Anthony testified that she tried searching for the nanny herself on July 15, 2008, the day she reported Caylee missing. She added that she never stopped looking for her, until a few weeks ago. That's when the Anthonys learned that Casey would say in court that Caylee drowned.

Cindy Anthony talked about the "reasons" that she couldn't see Caylee.  Her daughter, Cindy said, always came up with something as to why Caylee wasn't around. 

"There was always a reason that Casey wasn't with Caylee and that Caylee was at a meeting, or Caylee was in bed. Always a reason I missed her," Cindy Anthony said.

In fact, Cindy testified that she truly thought that Caylee and Casey were in Tampa or Jacksonville at times.

Then, there was the MySpace page.

Cindy said she was extremely upset and ended up making a MySpace page to so her daughter would talk with her, after the two were arguing.

Judge Perry recessed at 1 p.m.

Cindy Anthony was still on the stand and said court would resume Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. to hear motions in the case.

 

        

David Headley first trained by Lashkar, then ISI

Dissatisfied with the military and espionage training received by Mumbai attacks accused David Coleman Headley from the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Pakistan's spy agency ISI gave him special coaching in surveillance tactics before 26/11.

The training was given by Major Iqbal, Headley's ISI handler, on the streets and in a two-storey safe house in Lahore near the airport, the 50-year-old said.

"ISI did provide me (espionage) training," Headley told a Chicago court as he was grilled by defence attorney Charles Swift who's trying to prove Headley's friend and co-accused, businessman Tahawwur Rana, was in the dark about the Lashkar operative's terror role.

Headley told the court that when he met Major Iqbal in 2006, he was told Lashkar's training was "very elementary" and "not very good". So Major Iqbal, who was identified by Headley as Chaudhery Khan, decided to personally coach him. It was a double-storey house with a small compound outside in a residential neighbourhood, Headley described.

In answer to repeated questions on Thursday, Headley said he did not know the full name of Major Iqbal, but was sure he was from the ISI. Although Headley never saw Major Iqbal in military uniform, he came to meet him several times in a military jeep and his subordinates had military designations, he said.

He was introduced as Major Iqbal to him.

Headley said he never went to the ISI headquarters and added that he was introduced to Major Iqbal by military personnel.

The disclosures are part of the testimony of Headley, who has pleaded guilty, and cements India's charges that elements of ISI were involved in the 26/11 attack. Delhi's fears are being corroborated by information given by federal prosecutors in the documents to the court, which have been unsealed.

The ISI and Major Iqbal were particularly motivated by the fact that he was born in the US. As an American national, he would be able to conceal his real identity in India, they felt.

"They (ISI and Major Iqbal) wanted me to have a business so as to have the ability to have a long-term stay in India. In discussion with them I suggested it to take the help of Dr Rana's (Tahawwur Rana) business to get this objective," he said.

According to the new documents, Headley began attending terror training camps of the Lashkar in February 2002. By December 2003, Headley had attended five separate courses, and had been trained in, among other things, Lashkar's philosophy, the use of weapons and grenades, combat tactics, survival skills and counter-surveillance methods.

After completing several camps, Headley became acquainted with senior Lashkar member Zaki-ur Rehman Lakhvi, who was responsible for Lashkar's military operations and one of the brains behind 26/11.

Visitor gets 15 years in jail for kidnap and rape of schoolgirl (Man threatened to chop her body into pieces if she told anyone)

A Pakistani visitor faces 15 years in jail for kidnapping an eight-year-old schoolgirl and raping her even as she clutched the Quran in fear.

The Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the 21-year-old Pakistani, M.R., of kidnapping the Bangladeshi schoolgirl and threatening to chop her body into pieces if she told anyone that he raped her.

"The accused will be deported after the completion of his jail term," said Presiding Judge Hamad Abdul Latif Abdul Jawad in courtroom four.

"I carry signs of electric shock on my back… the police electrocuted me and coerced me to confess that I kidnapped the girl and raped her. Sir, you can see the torture signs on my back. I am not guilty. The girl is the one who asked me to give her a lift," argued the convict when he defended himself in court.

His lawyer told the court that her client did not commit the crime. The advocate asked the court to dismiss the girl's statement "because she is very young".

According to the chargesheet, M.R. lured the girl into his car while she waited with her friends in front of a Quran learning centre. The defendant deceived the girl to join him after promising to pay her Dh10 and claiming that he wanted to buy juice to distribute to the rest of the students, according to records. Prosecutors charged him with raping the girl while she cried and held on to the Holy Book in fear. He was also arraigned with threatening to kill her and chopping her body to pieces if she cried and did not comply with his demands.

‘Begged him'

"My friends and I were waiting in front of the centre… he stopped in front of us and offered to buy us juice. He drove off then stopped in a building's parking lot and moved back to the rear seat where I was. He slapped me when I rejected to undress. He beat and threatened me and then abused me after he undressed me… I cried and begged him to leave me," said eight-year-old N.K. who informed her parents about what happened.

Records said M.R. dropped her in front of the centre and she walked back home. Her friends had already informed her father that N.K. was kidnapped and the father and the police were searching for her, according to records.

Two policemen testified that primary interrogations led to the arrest of M.R.., who N.K. identified in a police lineup.

The primary judgment remains subject to appeal within 15 days.

Air India airline fined for fake visas

For every such passenger who is detected and deported, Air India is penalised Dh5,000

Air India is paying thousands of dirhams in penalties while sending back workers who land in the UAE on fake, cancelled, or mismatched visas, a top official told XPRESS.

"In the last six months alone, we have paid a penalty of Dh70,000 in addition to the cost of providing for the workers' meals and one-way tickets back to India," said Abhay Pathak, Regional Manager of Air India for Gulf, Middle East & Africa.

Defending the Indian national carrier's stringent Okay to Board (OTB) rules whereby sponsors or representatives of passengers are required to produce the original visas in person to get an OTB stamp on the passenger's reservation, he said the practice is not out of line.

"While other Indian airlines - like Jet Airways and Kingfisher - claim they do not have any OTB requirements, Air India Express strictly goes by the clearance, without which passengers are not allowed to board the plane at the port of embarkation.

And unlike other airlines like Emirates which permit visa copies to be sent by fax or e-mail, Air India requires that the original document is produced in person.

Some exceptions

Pathak clarified that the airline does make exceptions and accepts copies of visas by fax or e-mail where there are official requests made by an organisation whose credentials are not questionable.

However, requests by individual sponsors or agents are not entertained and they must present the visas in original at the Air India office.

He said the large bulk of labourers from India - along with Kathmandu, Bangladesh and Pakistan - who come to the UAE fly the low-cost Air India Express. As such, it runs a higher risk of carrying passengers whose visas could be manipulated by sponsors or others who make last-minute changes.

He said there have been instances where up to 30-40 labourers have landed on a single flight on visas that are either fake, mismatched or cancelled by sponsors or agents.

"We have even had one full flight of such workers who arrived from Bangladesh," he said. And for every such worker who is detected and deported, the airline is fined a sum of Dh5,000, in addition to Dh1,000 per day that the worker spends at the airport.

"Why should an airline be penalised for no fault on its part?" said Pathak, adding that Air India has been impressing upon local authorities and the Government of India to put a corrective mechanism in place.

Asked why a Dh15 fee is being charged for the OTB stamp, he said it is a service fee by the GSA (general sales agent).

He said Air India operates 207 flights (102 Air India and 105 Air India Express) from the UAE to 16 destinations with a total of 111 aircraft whose average age is five-and-a half years.

The airline is working on the development of a sub-hub in Dubai or Sharjah which will minimise flight delays and operational inefficiencies, he noted.

Pockets of the UAE are experiencing empty petrol pumps

Pockets of the UAE are experiencing empty petrol pumps, leading to long line-ups and frustrated drivers.

Motorists can expect continued disruptions at Enoc and Eppco gas stations in Sharjah as company officials upgrade new petrol pumps at select locations, says a spokesperson.

Khalid Hadi, director of brand and corporate communications for Enoc, the parent company, told Gulf News Thuirsday that modernizing pumps will take some time, but no deadline has been set for completion.

He acknowledged that some stations were not working earlier this week in Sharjah.

The shortages at the pumps this week fall not long after competing petrol stations were reportedly disrupted at stations in Dubai in April.

Enoc issued a statement noting that the company is working to keep fuel flowing through the company's stations while work continues to upgrade facilities.

"Enoc is managing its fuel supplies to meet the current demand. This involves a two-pronged approach of regulating the distribution of fuel through our network, as well as upgrading selected stations," the firm said.

Upgrade

"Enoc is working with concerned authorities to further enhance the supplies. Simultaneously, we are accelerating the upgrade process.

"Selected stations will be upgraded progressively with the result that the operation of some petrol islands would be temporarily suspended. We regret any inconvenience caused to our customers."