Tag: Hopes

ROME - Hopes faded on Thursday for some 150 African refugees fleeing Libya whose boat capsized in the middle of the Mediterranean in stormy weather, a day after 53 survivors were plucked from the sea.
"We are still searching for 150 people. The hope of finding other survivors is fading by the hour," Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said in parliament. Italian and Maltese coast guard vessels and planes, as well as two commercial vessels, were taking part in the high-seas rescue

ROME - Hopes faded on Thursday for some 150 African refugees fleeing Libya whose boat capsized in the middle of the Mediterranean in stormy weather, a day after 53 survivors were plucked from the sea.
"We are still searching for 150 people. The hope of finding other survivors is fading by the hour," Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said in parliament.
Italian and Maltese coast guard vessels and planes, as well as two commercial vessels, were taking part in the high-seas

NEW DELHI - The Indian Premier League cricket bandwagon rolls into action on Friday with organisers hoping India's World Cup victory last weekend will help the competition regain some of its lost sparkle. This year's edition -- spread over 51 days and comprising 74 matches across 13 venues -- will be the first after the ousting of its outspoken founder Lalit Modi, who was forced out last year under a cloud of corruption allegations.
The tournament's future had looked in doubt

TUNIS - The United Nations is talking to all parties in the Libyan conflict to provide aid to those in need "as soon as possible", an envoy said on Sunday. "Nothing is on the table ... the situation is very fluid and unpredictable," Rashid Khalikov, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Libya, told a news conference in Tunis.
"Timeframe, I can give you only one timeframe: as quickly as possible because we have to do something to reduce the suffering of the population ... Dialogue

ISLAMABAD - The Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution to condemn the Swabi Interchange blast in which several innocent people lost their life. The resolution moved by Senator Azam Khan Swati demanded the government hold an immediate investigation into the incident, identify the culprits and bring them to justice.
Speaking on the occasion, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Senator Ismail Buledi condemned the incident, saying the government had failed to provide

COLOMBO - ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat on Monday hoped the high-profile World Cup semi-final between arch-rivals Pakistan and India will build a bridge between the two nations. Title favourites India take on Pakistan at Mohali on Wednesday -- the first meeting between the two teams on Indian soil since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks carried out by Pakistan-based militants. Tickets have been sold out in advance and security ramped up with Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani

PARIS - French polling booths opened on Sunday for another round of local elections that have caused alarm and disarray in President Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling party since the far-right National Front surged in first-round voting.
The polls gauge the national mood a year before presidential elections and will determine whether the anti-immigrant National Front gains a foothold in a handful of local councils, levers of grassroots political power.
Sarkozy's UMP party has

WASHINGTON - Two US aerospace firms are jostling with global rivals to win a $11-12 billion Indian fighter jet contract, hoping a nascent US-India strategic partnership can help seal the deal. As defense contracts go, Delhi's bid to replace 126 aging MiG fighters is large, but hardly a show stopper. Still, in an industry where billion dollar contracts are commonplace, the project is turning heads. "It is not the price," explained Ron Somers, president of the US-India Business Council,

CHITTAGONG - Bangladesh made short work of their Dutch opponents in a Group B match to keep their World Cup quarter-final hopes very much alive on Monday but England will not be amused. The six-wicket victory at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium catapulted the co-hosts to the fourth place in the group, leapfrogging England, with six points from five matches. Bangladesh face South Africa in their final group assignment on Saturday but could be assured of a quarter-final berth even

MUMBAI - West Indies bowlers Kemar Roach and Sulieman Benn will be out to cause some damage to the Irish batting line-up when they clash in their World Cup match in Mohali on Friday. The pace-spin combination was at their destructive best when they skittled co-hosts Bangladesh for their lowest ever ODI total of 58, a feat that angered local fans who ended up hurling stones at the West Indies bus following the match in Dhaka.
Safe in the knowledge that they will not face any

Troubled actress Lindsay Lohan said she was keen to resume her career, but acknowledged she had a long way to go to regain the trust of the movie industry. Lohan, giving her first interview since leaving court-ordered rehab in January and being charged with stealing a necklace, told that she knew her problems have made her a risky bet in Hollywood.
"I need to prove that I can be insurable again, because I don't think I am right now," Lohan, 24, said in the interview. Movie and

LAHORE - The first female poet of Chitral Rahima Naz, who stepped in the field of poetry despite living in a conservative society, is optimistic to bring revolution in the district eradicating all frustration from the lives of women.
Rahima Naz was born in the paradise-like but backward area of upper Chitral Khot village (Tehsil Torkoh). Her father Haji Khan served in Pakistan Air Force (PAF). She passed her matriculation examination from Federal Government Public Girls High

KARACHI - Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram admitted that the lengthy bans handed out to Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer for corruption on Saturday represented a new low for the besieged sport in the country. "I feel sad for all three of these kids, two just over 20 and one just 18," Wasim told AFP.
"I feel for their families because they are key players. This is a low for Pakistan cricket." Wasim said he hopes the punishments will serve as a lesson. "Not only

LAHORE - The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF), in a bid to prove that Pakistan is safe for sports activities, is giving final touches to preparations for the series against Egypt.
After February 26, 2006 when Pakistan-India were locked 3-3, Pakistan has not hosted any series. Lately, Pakistan tennis suffered a setback when the International Tennis Federation (ITF) asked Pakistan to play their Davis Cup home tie in Hong Kong. The ITF was not satisfied with the security

ADELAIDE - Jonathan Trott scored a century and took his first one-day international wicket as England beat Australia by 21 runs at the Adelaide Oval on Wednesday to keep the series alive. Trott made 102 of England's impressive 299 for eight, then capped his night when he had David Hussey caught by Ian Bell for 28 in the 35th over just as the home side looked set for a late push for a series-clinching win on Australia Day.
Cameron White was then caught by Michael Yardy in the

LAHORE - Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, on the request of Ministry of Textile Industry and All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), has asked the Indian government to ensure early shipment of one million cotton bales of Pakistani importers stuck up in India since last three months due to the 'doctored default' by Indian exporters, reluctant in fulfilling the contractual obligations.
Textile Minister Rana Farooq Saeed and APTMA Chairman Gohar Ejaz called on

DOHA - India have a lot of work to do before they can consider hosting a major football tournament, Asian football chief Mohamed bin Hammam said, casting doubt on the country holding the World Cup any time soon. Seizing on comments by FIFA President Sepp Blatter, several British newspapers said the South Asian country could be an option for the 2026 World Cup as part of Blatter's drive to see the game spread to new frontiers.
But Bin Hammam said huge strides needed to be made if