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Pakistan dam burst, rain toll rises to over 130

     Nani Mandir (Baluchistan): Over 130 people have been killed across Pakistan in the heaviest rains in 16 years that caused a dam to burst, provincial officials said late on Friday. Authorities rushed thousands of troops to join rescue operations in the remote southwestern province of Baluchistan, where some 20,000 people had been affected by the floods, said Raziq Bugti, a government spokesman in the province. Officials said at least 60 people died on Thursday night after Baluchistan's Shadikor dam burst, sweeping through villages near the coastal town of Pasni. More than 40 died from heavy rains in other parts of the province. Some reports said hundreds were missing, though officials said there were no reliable estimates. Army, paramilitary rangers, coast guards and non-government Edhi rescue volunteers were trying to pull out people stranded in the flood water.

Bhutto confirms contacting Musharraf (Go To Top)

     Lahore: Former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, has confirmed that she has been in touch with the present Pakistan government at regular intervals. "There are constructive contacts (with the government), and if these can lead to a better understanding between the major forces in the country, I believe that would be in Pakistan's interest," she told the Geo News channel in an interview. She also said that she saw the recent release of her once jailed husband, Asif Ali Zardari, and the flexibility shown to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shahbaz Sharif as important confidence building measures (CBMs) by the government. "Mr. Zardari's release and a breathing space for Shahbaz Sharif can't be called a deal with the government, they are merely CBMs. What my husband and the junior Sharif got was their basic rights as Pakistanis," The News quoted Benazir as saying.

      She also confirmed that she would remain in touch with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, whom she had met this week in Jeddah alongwith Zardari. She said it was important to give the process time to develop, comparing the present thaw to the peace dialogue between Pakistan and India. "There are many obstacles ahead but the process of dialogue and contact is important," she was quoted by the Daily Times as saying. Commenting about her meeting with Nawaz Sharif in Jeddah, Benazir described it as important for her personally. "It was cathartic," she added. Meanwhile, both Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri and Information and Broadcasting Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed have confirmed that contacts with the PPP leaderships since 1999. Kasuri is said to have held several meetings with Benazir Bhutto, and those involved in arranging these meetings say that it was he who first initiated these contacts after getting a Šgreen signal from General Headquarters. Kasuri-Bhutto rapprochement dates back to after the 1990 election when Kasuri emerged as the secretary general of the Pakistan Democratic Alliance, which also included Air Marshal Asghar Khan, reports The News. Benazir's interview, the first after her first ever formal meeting with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif since 1996, is to be aired on Geo TV's programme "Follow Up With Fahd" on Monday (February 14) at 10:30 p.m.

Sania becomes first Indian to win WTA title (Go To Top)

     Hyderabad: Sania Mirza beat Alyona Bondarenko of Ukraine 6-4, 7-5, 6-2 to win WTA Hyderabad Open today. Nursing an ankle injury, Sania Mirza is the first Indian to enter a WTA event final. Her dream run since the Australian Open third round encounter with Serena Williams continues. She trounced fourth-seeded Jie Zheng of China in the second round, Tzipora Obziler of Israel in the quarter-final and Maria Kirilenko of Russia 6-4 7-6 to reach the singles finals. Sania said she was pulling out of next week's WTA event in Columbia due to injury. She further added though she was in the middle of a fine season, she was very much concerned about the ankle injury. "The injury woes are increasing and increasing. I played with pain. But when I take to courts, I forget about everything. It's only me, my opponent and ball," Sania said. "I am close to peaking. I hope to get rid of injuries". Meanwhile, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee on Saturday congratulated Sania Mirza on her historic title win in the WTA Hyderabad Open tennis tournament. Chatterjee said that young Sania Mirza's saga of success in winning this major championship would inspire the youth across the country. He also congratulated the organisers of the tournament.