Iranian regime accused of using torture, murder and rape to suppress opposition

Tehran, Sep. 18 (ANI): The father of an Iranian student, who died in jail after being arrested for protesting against President Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election, has claimed that his son was beaten, got his bones broken and toenails pulled out while in prison.

Amir Javadifar, 24, was so badly beaten that he had to treated in hospital before being taken to the notorious Evin prison, Times Online reports.

Later, his father was called to collect his dead body. And, they ordered his family to say that he had died of a pre-existing condition.

“My son was not involved in politics. He loved his motherland – that’s all. I alone mourn him,” the report quoted his father, as saying.

According to reports prepared by the country’s opposition, Javadifar was just one among scores of alleged cases of murder, torture and rape. And, security forces have engaged in systematic killing and torture to try to break the opposition, the report adds.

“The use of rape and torture was similar across prisons in Tehran and the provinces. It is difficult not to conclude that the highest authorities planned and ordered these actions. Local authorities would not dare take such actions without word from above,” the report quoted one investigator referring to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as saying.

The documents suggest that at least 200 demonstrators were killed in Tehran, with 56 others still unaccounted for, and that 173 were killed in other cities.

According to the report, the documents also suggest that a chain of unofficial, makeshift prisons has been set up across Iran where rape and torture are common practice.

In Tehran alone, 37 young men and women claim to have been raped by their jailers. Doctors’ reports say that two males, aged 17 and 22, died as a result of severe internal bleeding after being raped, the report adds.

Female rape victims were mostly held for days, the report claims, adding that some victims had said that their jailers claimed to have “religious sanction” to violate them as they were “morally dirty”. (ANI)

Asda to sell salwar kameez under new Asian clothing range

London, Sep 14 (ANI): Supermarket giant Asda is set to launch an Asian clothing range, which will include the traditional Indian garments.

The store chain would sell garments such as salwar kameez suits and khurta tunics under the George range.

And the prices of the clothes would be starting at 7 pounds.

The George range is thought to be the first of its kind on the High Street.

“We are extremely proud,” The Daily Star quoted Fiona Lambert, brand director at George, as saying. (ANI)

Taliban now terrorise 80% of Afghanistan after eight years of war: Report

Kabul, Sep. 11 (ANI): Almost eight years after the war began in Afghanistan in the aftermath of the 9/11 carnage, the Taliban insurgency has spread across 80 percent of the country.

The violent incidents this week have drawn attention to the deteriorating security situation of northern Afghanistan, which had largely remained peaceful so far, the Christian Science Monitor reports.

The northern provinces are facing difficult times as heavy insurgent activity has spread to 80 percent of the country – up from 54 percent two years ago, the report says.

The militants’ focus has shifted to northern parts following continuous pressure from their Pakistani counterparts to attack NATO’s second supply route situated here, it adds.

“[Militants] have been trying to widen the ground for the insurgency in Afghanistan and now they have got momentum. The militants are eager to target this route to prevent a smooth supply chain from northern Afghanistan,” the report quoted Waliullah Rahmani, executive director of the Kabul Center for Strategic Studies, as saying.

Last week’s airstrike targeted two fuel tankers headed to supply NATO troops in Kabul that had been hijacked by the Taliban.

Although the increase in violence is only a recent phenomenon, the conditions had worsened long ago, the report says.

The violence can be linked to districts with large Pashtun populations, whose grievances the government has failed to address – making them sympathetic to the Taliban, who share their ethnicity and language, it adds.

“The districts which are turning violent are those which have had a very recent history of abuses against the Pashtuns.

The government has allowed these conditions to go unaddressed and this is now being addressed by the population by giving shelter to the Taliban and other insurgents,”the report quoted Prakhar Sharma, the head of research at the Center for Conflict and Peace Studies, as saying.(ANI)

Pak Qaeda hand in 2006 trans-Atlantic bomb plot revealed

London, Sep.8 (ANI): New evidence put before a British jury during a retrial of three Brit Muslim convicts suggests that the men used code words to discuss their plans with an al-Qaeda fixer based in Pakistan.

The e-mails and conversations suggest that the plot was in its final stages, possibly days away from execution in 2006.

The seven daily flights highlighted by the three plotters were: 14.15 United Airlines Flight 931 to San Francisco; 15.00 Air Canada Flight 849 to Toronto; 15.15 Air Canada Flight 865 to Montreal; 15.40 United Airlines Flight 959 to Chicago; 16.20 United Airlines Flight 925 to Washington; 16.35 American Airlines Flight 131 to New York; 16.50 American Airlines Flight 91 to Chicago.

According to The Telegraph and the Daily Express, the batteries the gang planned to use as part of their detonators were bought in Pakistan.

An ingredient in the bomb mix was the orange soft drink Tang – sold in Pakistan – which had a high sugar content to aid the explosion.

A British intelligence source said: “The use of drink bottles sold in Pakistan and batteries sold in Pakistan underline the plot’s ties to that country. The foot soldiers were from Britain – but the organisers were in Pakistan.”

A security source said of the conspiracy: “It was very clever and the airport scanners would not have picked up the devices at all.”

Prosecutor Peter Wright told the Woolwich Crown Court in South East London how the would-be bombers were “a cell of home-grown terrorists activated and directed by a designated leader in Pakistan.”

That was confirmed by a government source in Pakistan, who said the plot was believed to have originated “with al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.”

Seized e-mails showed the chain of terror stretched from there, across the lawless border to Pakistan, to London and to the woods of High Wycombe where explosives were buried.

The aim was to mirror the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, which killed 259 passengers and 11 in the Scottish town.

Aliases exposed during the trial revealed the terror kingpin in Pakistan was dubbed “Paps” or “Papa”.

Ali called himself Imran and Chacha and also set up email accounts in the bogus names Tippu Khan and Jameel Masood.

His co-conspirators used aliases such as Fatty, Arro and Nigga.

Hydrogen peroxide was known as “aftershave”, police surveillance as “skin problems” and martyrdom videos were referred to as “wedding tapes”.

It is also thought that the bomb makers received training at an al-Qaeda camp in Pakistan.

A mystery Pakistani, thought to be a top al-Qaeda envoy, made contact with the three would-be suicide bombers during a flying visit to Britain in June 2006.

Experts who tested the explosive mix on the aircraft were horrified.

A witness said: “It was absolutely devastating.” (ANI)

Brit female soldier ‘Combat Barbie’ advertises Armed Forces lingerie deal

London, September 7 (ANI): A British female soldier has been selected to promote a lingerie chain’s discount offer to members of the Armed Forces.

Katrina Hodge, nicknamed “Combat Barbie” by her Royal Anglian Regiment colleagues, is helping to promote La Senza’s offer of a 15 per cent off to servicemen and women.

“I am enjoying the attention and profile but my job is still as an army soldier. I love the army life and if this encourages more women to join up then that would be brilliant,” the Telegraph quoted her as saying.

“I’m so proud of this campaign and I really hope that it encourages other high street stores to offer discounts to men and women in the armed forces,” she added.

Hodge, 22, came second in this year’s Miss England contest, and served in Iraq, where she was recognised for her bravery. (ANI)

Senior FBI agent says Gaddafi may have sanctioned Lockerbie bombing

Jerusalem, Sep. 4 (ANI): A senior FBI agent has claimed that Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi must have personally okayed the 1988 Lockerbie bombing that killed 270 people.

Richard Marquise, an FBI veteran who led the US task force probing the December 1988 blast, said it is unthinkable that such a major terrorist attack in a regime like Libya could have been authorized without Gaddafi’s approval.

“If you were a senior minister, would you do this without telling the boss? I doubt it. I have to think [Gaddafi] knew something was going to happen, something that the US would be pissed about, and he said OK,” The Jerusalem Post quoted Marquise, as saying.

He said investigators had tried to pursue the chain of responsibility up through the Libyan hierarchy, but had been unable to muster the necessary evidence.

“We couldn’t make the connections… A lot of names came up… We had names of people in the Libyan hierarchy, buying radios, making inquiries about putting bombs in radios,” Marquise said.

The bomb that destroyed Pan Am 103 was hidden in a Toshiba radio cassette player.

“But there was no real overt act [that could serve as the basis for an indictment. It would have been nice to indict the entire Libyan regime, but our system wouldn’t allow for it. It would have been a real struggle to show Gaddafi and others in the chain,” he said.

Marquise said he was also convinced that Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, the former Libyan intelligence officer who is the only man ever convicted in the attack, was no “rogue” agent.

“It had been hoped that Megrahi would give us the whole story, and go up the chain. That didn’t happen. And Megrahi never talked. He did everything for his leader,” he said. (ANI)

Abilities India Pistons and Rings Ltd. awarded two gold trophies in ACMA awards

New Delhi, Sep 3 (ANI/Business Wire India): Abilities India Pistons and Rings Ltd. expert in manufacturing of Pistons and Piston Rings for 2 and4 stroke engines, for automobiles (mainly two / three wheelers) has won two Gold trophies, for excellence in Exports as well as in productivity and quality, in the golden Jubilee ceremony of ACMA awards (2008 – 2009).

Abilities India Pistons and Rings Ltd. is the largest manufacturer in India of two stroke pistons kits and is supplying it to USA, Europe and more than 35 countries through out the world.

Speaking on the occasion, Sunil Arora, Joint MD, AIP, stated that, “The real growth is going to start now. The market is ripe for the OEMs and there is tremendous scope to grow. With optimum capex and engineering excellence the company is gearing for the challenge. It was also a part of the ACMA Advance cluster which gave it the impetus to continuously strive for excellence.”

AIP is working as a leader for the manufacture of Pistons and Rings for automobiles (mainly two / three wheelers), chain saws, brush cutters, agriculture sprayers and compressors. AIP is a major OEM supplier for many reputed vehicle and engine manufactures of the country and overseas. AIP has to its credits the development of nearly 200 models of pistons for Chain Saws / Brush Cutters, which places it in a unique position to be a global supplier of Pistons to the OEM and after-markets as the necessary infrastructure for these models is readily available.

Abilities India Pistons and Rings Ltd. was established in the 1966 by R.S. Arora and converted into a limited company in 1995; the company has gone from strength to strength, overcoming many challenges on the way with great aplomb. It is an ISO/TS16949:2002 certified company, recognized EXPORT HOUSE as well as recipient of several AWARDS from EEPC and ACMA for excellence in Exports and Quality and Productivity.

Always keeping its employees first and firmly believing that the company’s success lies in its efficient and happy employees, the company continuously evolves practices that will ensure Total Employee Involvement. Stress is given to ‘all round improvement’ by making 5S, Poka Yoke, Kaizen, Deskilling and Talent development a part of its daily activities. (ANI)

Leeds masses break longest back massage chain record

London, September 3 (ANI): Masses in the UK have broken the Guinness world record by creating the longest back massage chain.

A massive army of 430 people in Leeds formed a line of masseuses organised by v, the National Young Volunteers Service, reports the Sun.

The crowd beat the previous record of 260 people before headliners Kings Of Leon and Kaiser Chiefs took to the stage.

The successful attempt was part of v’s Outdoor Favours campaign with the aim of setting up an example to show “how easy it is to do someone a favour”. (ANI)

Protest in Mumbai as local railway line trips

Mumbai, Sep 1(ANI): A brief halt in the Mumbai local railway line due to a technical snag caused uproar in Thane district on Tuesday, as commuters protested against railway authorities.

The trouble started when an overhead wire snapped near Borivali station leading to the delay, which created a chain reaction on the line, slowing down rush hour traffic.

“Train services on Western line were delayed by 20-30 minutes after an overhead wire snapped at suburban Borivali station,” said C David, Public Relations Officer of Western Railway.

According to reports, commuters protested and shouted slogans at the Nallasopora station, and also disrupted road traffic on the Western Express highway between Borivali and Mira Road, as local trains were not running as per schedule.

As the situation threatened to go out of control, police had to resort to lathi-charge and also fired five rounds in the air to disperse the crowd.

The line was soon repaired, and the situation was brought under control, a railway police official said. (ANI)

New ultrasensitive electronic sensor to speed up DNA testing (corrected)

Washington, Sept 1 (ANI): Singapore scientists have developed a new ultrasensitive electronic sensor that would speed up DNA testing for disease diagnosis and biological research.

The novel electronic sensor array would be rapid, accurate and cost-efficient.

According to lead researcher Dr Zhiqiang Gao, from Singapore’s Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), the Nanogap Sensor Array has shown “excellent” sensitivity at detecting trace amounts of DNA.

“By saving time and lowering expenses, our newly developed Nanogap Sensor Array offers a scalable and viable alternative for DNA testing,” said Gao.

The biosensor translates the presence of DNA into an electrical signal for computer analysis.

The distinctively designed sensor chip has the ability to detect DNA more efficiently by “sandwiching” the DNA strands between the two different surfaces.

“The novel vertical nanostructure design and two different surfaces of the sensor allow ultrasensitive detection of DNA,” said Gao.

“This sensitivity is best-in-class among electrical DNA biosensors. The design of the sensor also took into consideration the feasibility of mass production in a cost-effective way for expanded usage,” the expert added.

Presently, human DNA is detected through the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which while effective, is also expensive, cumbersome and time-consuming for widespread use.

Although effective, tests involving PCR may not be optimal for situations such as a pandemic outbreak.

The biosensor captures DNA strands more effectively. This is possible because the two surfaces of the sensor are coated with a chemically treated “capture probe” solution through an electrochemical technique specially developed by IBN.

This allows DNA strands to “stick” more easily to the sensor, resulting in a faster and more accurate analysis.

“This new biosensor holds significant promise to speed up on-going efforts in the detection and diagnosis of debilitating diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular problems and infectious viruses,” said Dr Jackie Y. Ying, Executive Director of IBN, one of the research institutes of Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR).

“We aim to make healthcare accessible to the masses with early disease diagnosis as the critical driving force behind the research we undertake here at IBN,” she added.

The study appears in Journal of the American Chemical Society. (ANI)

Photosynthetic viruses keep world’s oxygen levels up

London, August 31 (ANI): A new research has shown that photosynthetic viruses can keep the world’s oxygen levels up.

The viruses, which infect single-celled algae called cyanobacteria, are hyper efficient photosynthesisers thanks to a unique set of genes.

Previous work had shown that cyanophage viruses have some photosynthesis genes, apparently used to keep the host cyanobacteria on life support during the infection, which otherwise knocks out the cells’ basic functions.

Now, according to a report in New Scientist, Oded Beja from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa said that the cyanophages’ photosynthetic proficiency doesn’t stop there.

While screening DNA sequences in water samples collected during Craig Venter’s Global Ocean Sampling Expedition, his team discovered seven more photosynthesis genes coding for a complex of proteins collectively named photosystem I.

They believe the viral complex has a unique shape that makes cyanophage photosynthesis hyperefficient.

In normal photosynthesis, photosystem I grabs electrons from proteins higher up in the photosynthesis chain reaction.

According to the team, the viral photosystem I genes allow the cyanophages to not only take electrons from the proteins involved in photosythesis but also from other algal proteins.

“We suspect that when these phages enter the cell, they start to replace (the cell’s) photosystem,” said Beja.

“By grabbing electrons from all sources available at the time, they get more energy out of photosynthesis,” he added.

Eric Wommack of the University of Delaware in Newark said that the discovery suggests these viruses may play a role in global oxygen production.

“Their hosts produce half the world’s oxygen and roughly 10 per cent of these cells are infected by cyanophages,” he said.

“So it is possible that as much as 5 per cent of the world’s oxygen production results from cyanophage infected cells,” he added. (ANI)

Railway gangman killed by train robbers in Bihar

Patna, Aug 30 (ANI): A railway employee was killed and 10 others were injured when an armed gang looted cash and valuables from passengers of Jhajha-Patna local train in Bihar’s Jamui district on early Sunday.

The incident took place in the East Central Railway zone.

According to police sources, armed robbers boarded the train at Jamui and went on a looting spree.

The robbers snatched cellular phones, cash and other valuables worth around Rs 1 lakh from the passengers, police sources added.

The railway gangman, Mukesh Mandal, was shot at when he tried to resist looters near Mahesh Leta station.

Mandal, who sustained serious wounds, died on the way to a hospital at Jamui, sources said.

At least 10 passengers were wounded in a stampede, which was created due to the fire by the robbers.

The robbers managed to escape after pulling the chain of the train near Mahesh Leta station.

The Railway Police and the Bihar state Police are conducting search operation in the area for the robbers. (ANI)

Bihar students form human-chain to spread awareness about swine flu

Patna, Aug. 29 (ANI): Students of a biotechnology college in Bihar formed a human chain on Saturday (August 29) to create awareness about H1N1 influenza virus, commonly known as swine flu.

Students carried placards giving information pertaining to precautions and cure of the disease.

“Common people should know what’s swine flu and what are the precautions and cure that we can take so that we can’t have this type of disease. And also the people who are suffering from this disease swine flu, we are also making an awareness camp for that type of persons so that they can know how they can get the permanent cure for the swine flu,” said Anjali Sharma, a participant in the human chain.

Even though no causalities have taken place in Bihar due to swine flu but two positive cases have been reported in the state.

Fear of the swine flu has gripped various parts of the country.

India recorded its first H1N1 case in the southern city of Hyderabad in May and since then the virus has spread across the country.

The H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu, emerged in April in the United States and Mexico, and has spread internationally.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has termed H1N1 swine flu as unstoppable because many countries are not keeping a track and precise count of the virus cases. (ANI)

UN cautions over swine flu in birds

London, August 29 (ANI): UN has warned against the spread of the H1N1 virus after turkeys on farms in Chile were found infected by the disease.

The United Nations suggested the possibility that poultry farms elsewhere in the world may also be affected.

Chilean authorities reported two affected poultry farms near the seaport of Valparaiso and had set up temporary quarantine, letting the infected birds to recover rather than culling them.

“Once the sick birds have recovered, safe production and processing can continue. They do not pose a threat to the food chain,” the BBC quoted Juan Lubroth, interim chief veterinary officer of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as saying.

Dr Lubroth added: “In Southeast Asia there is a lot of the (H5N1) virus circulating in poultry. The introduction of H1N1 in these populations would be of greater concern.”

Colin Butter, from the UK’s Institute of Animal Health, also said: “We hope it is a rare event and we must monitor closely what happens next.

“However, it is not just about the H5N1 strain. Any further spread of the H1N1 virus between birds, or from birds to humans would not be good.

“It might make the virus harder to control, because it would be more likely to change.”

However, swine flu remains no more severe than seasonal flu, it was said. (ANI)

Pressmart Indonesia Print Media Awards launched

Indonesia, Aug 24 (ANI/Business Wire India): Pressmart Media Ltd, (www.pressmart.com), a global leader in the digital publishing and delivery solutions, today announced the launch of “Pressmart-Indonesia Print Media Awards (IPMA)” in a bid to recognize the best publishing houses in Indonesia over the calendar year 2009, just after associating with the magazine publishers in Singapore, for its awards as the lead sponsor.

IPMA will be conferred annually starting February, 2010, is the exciting new competition created to promote magazines, tabloids and newspapers – both in print and digital and also encourage the publishing industry in Indonesia.

The Indonesian leading newspaper publisher’s association, Serikat Penerbit Suratkabar (SPS) Pusat will host the Pressmart-Indonesia Print Media Awards.

The nominations are open to the registered members of the SPS and all other publications in Indonesia. IPMA finalist entries will be put in front of jury members led by Pressmart, SPS and highly reputed industry experts from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

SPS Chairman, Dahlan Iskan said: “The Pressmart-Indonesia Print Media Awards are unique in recognizing excellence, innovation and outstanding creative output throughout the print media supply chain. These awards will set new benchmarks, bring new insights and most importantly be an ideal learning opportunity for publishing houses to succeed in today’s uncertain economy.”

“We are delighted to launch the first of its kind publishing awards in Indonesia,” said Sanjiv Gupta, Chairman and CEO of Pressmart.

“Most importantly, we want to recognize all of these inspirational print media houses and encourage the publishing industry in Indonesia for the amazing work that they do,” added Gupta. (ANI)

UK’s popular healthcare firm Holland and Barrett to sell sex toys

London, Aug 22 (ANI): Britain’s popular High Street retailer Holland and Barrett has announced that it is to begin selling sex toys for women.

Known for selling myriad of natural healthcare products, the firm will now begin to sell intimate products.

The shoppers will be able to choose from a selection of ‘intimate massagers’, priced at 49.95 pounds and manufactured by a company called Emotional Bliss.

They are currently available online only, under the category of ‘Sexual Health’, but a spokesman said the products could be hit the stores if sales prove to be brisk.

“We believe sexual wellbeing is an important part of general health, so for us it was an obvious choice to stock Emotional Bliss as their values fit ours,” the Telegraph quoted Michelle Ingleby, senior buyer for non-food at Holland and Barrett, as saying.

According to Phil Geary, the company’s director of trading, the recession has led to increased demand for more intimate products.

“People are spending more time at home during these difficult economic times,” he added.

Paul Telford, a spokesman for Emotional Bliss, said he was delighted that such a prominent High Street chain had chosen to stock the products.

“We are over the moon that we are the first company of our kind to be taken up by Holland and Barrett online.

“It’s brilliant news that a well-established and respected British company like Holland and Barrett is supporting Emotional Bliis, a British manufacturer. We couldn’t be happier,” he added. ANI)

Waste by-product of malaria parasite’s reproductive process linked to devastating fever

Washington, August 21 (ANI): Studying hemozoin – a crystal-like by-product released during reproduction among parasites from the Plasmodium family – may help understand why malaria leads to devastating inflammation and fever, according to a Canadian study.

Lead researcher Dr. Martin Olivier, of McGill University in Montreal, points out that, inside the human body, the malaria parasite infects red blood cells where it survives and reproduces by feeding on the cells’ contents.

Eventually, says the researcher, the cells burst and release the parasites and hemozoin.

“Our results describe the mechanism by which the hemozoin activates the immune system, resulting in the production of inflammation mediators and in the high fever that we witness in malaria patients,” said study’s first-author Dr. Marina Tiemi Shio, of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC).

According to the researchers, hemozoin is first ingested by “cleaning” cells called macrophages, which leads to a chain reaction ending in the activation of the inflammasome: an important structure inside immune cells which lead to inflammation.

They say that the activation of the inflammasome leads to the production of the body’s fever mediator, interleukin beta (IL-beta).

“Our work is a milestone in that it is the first study that reveals the enzymes that act as intermediary between the hemozoin and inflammasome. Now our picture of the process that goes from infection to fever is more or less complete,” said Dr. Olivier.

“On the other hand, we also proved that malaria is too complex to be narrowed down to one single mechanism. In the absence of either IL-beta or a functional inflammsaome, the development of the disease is delayed but not completely stopped. Although the discovery of this relationship is important, there are other mechanisms at work,” he added.

Even though scientists have been familiar with the mechanisms that go from the activation of the inflammasome to the onset of the malaria symptoms, none of the previous studies has ever shown the beginning of the process.

“These results prove the primary role hemozoin plays in the development of malaria, and designates it as a favoured choice for future innovative treatments,” said Dr. Olivier.

The researchers believe it will be possible to familiarize the immune system to small quantities of hemozoin, and diminish the inflammatory response in the event of infection, according to a principle similar to that of vaccines.

The results of the study have been published in the journal PLoS Pathogens. (ANI)

Kerry Katona ‘used kids’ maintenance cash to fund cocaine habit’

London, Aug 20 (ANI): Kerry Katona uses maintenance funds sent by ex-husband Brian McFadden for their daughters to fund her cocaine habit, it has emerged.

McFadden pays 2,100 pounds per month for daughters, Molly aged seven, and one year younger Lilly Sue.

The ex-Atomic Kitten stooped to dipping into the child maintenance to fund the drugs she craves because all her other spare cash goes to pay off creditors.

The Mirror quoted a friend as saying: “It’s no secret Kerry has been really hard up recently. She’s had to find the cash to pay off an 82,000-pound tax bill as well as being declared bankrupt.

“All her assets have been frozen. So that regular payment from Brian, which is protected from the bankruptcy order, was a temptation she just couldn’t resist.

“She knew the money was untouchable. It goes towards the kids’ school fees and clothing and feeding them.

“Obviously, she hasn’t been spending every penny of it on drugs but she’s made no secret of the fact she’s been skimming off the top for herself.”

McFadden is unaware of Katona’s antics and pals say he will be furious when he finds out how the kids’ money is being spent.he friend said: “Brian will be absolutely furious when he finds out.

“He might have been in a very famous band once but he’s not exactly rolling in it himself and will be disgusted to hear that he is funding Kerry’s habit.

“He will think she is cheating the kids out of money that is rightfully theirs.”

The revelation comes after frozen food chain Iceland sacked Katona as its face from advertisements.

The 28-year-old lost out on 250,000 pounds a year because of the deal falling apart.

Katona was axed after she was caught on camera snorting cocaine at her Cheshire home. (ANI)

International Medical Center to be developed at IIT Kharagpur

Washington, August 19 (ANI): Officials of the University of California, San Diego Health Sciences and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur have signed a historic preliminary agreement to collaborate in the development of an International Medical Center (IMC) at IIT Kharagpur.

This agreement – marked by a signing ceremony in Kharagpur, West Bengal, India – is the beginning of a strong educational, research and clinical partnership between UC San Diego Health Sciences and IIT, Kharagpur.

IIT, Kharagpur is the first and largest of the IIT chain of higher education institutes in India that focuses on engineering and technology.

The goal is to jointly establish a state-of-the-art medical center at IIT Kharagpur, which will be the first of its kind between a US University and an Indian Institution.

“This exciting partnership is an extension of UC San Diego Health Sciences’ traditional core mission – to provide excellent and compassionate patient care, advance medical discoveries and educate future health care providers,” said Mounir Soliman, MD, MBA, executive director of UC San Diego Health Sciences International.

“The establishment of an academic medical center to include the best in clinical care, as well as undergraduate and post-graduate programs in medical education, will be a perfect partnership – bringing together the strengths of both institutions,” he added.

According to Professor Damodar Acharya, director of IIT, Kharagpur, “In addition to IIT’s strong education and research focus in engineering and the sciences, we also are keenly interested in medical science and technology, including biotechnology, imaging, drug development and other important areas of medical research.”

“The collaboration is believed to be among the first between an IIT and a public US university in the field of medical education and research,” he said.

“The aim is to initiate technology leveraged medical education and research to provide holistic health care for the entire life cycle at affordable cost to underprivileged, poor and tribal population of the region,” he added.

The agreement describes the two institution’s collaborative plan to build a 300-bed, state-of-the-art hospital on land provided by IIT, Kharagpur. (ANI)

ISPR rejects HRCP’s ‘mass grave’ allegations

Islamabad, Aug.19 (ANI): The Pakistan Army has rejected the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s (HRCP) report alleging that the security forces are involved in extra-judicial killings and human rights abuses in the war ravaged Malakand Division.

Speaking in a television programme, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Major General Athar Abbas said the army has a strong chain of command and it always carries out its work in a professional manner.

“It can never respond to terror with terror and has to conduct in a professional and legal way,” Major General Abbas said.

Responding to queries about the mass graves found in the Malakand Division, he said the security forces had nothing to do with it and claimed that the militants had themselves buried their associates killed in clashes during operation Reh-e-Rast.

When asked why the Taliban would bury their men in mass graves, Abbas said they had been doing so because they were in a hurry while retreating.

He said the army is ready for a full-scale investigation in the presence of independent journalists over the issue, The Dawn reports.

Speaking in the same programme, HRCP chairperson Asma Jehangir said that the commission had documented accounts of ‘extra-judicial killings’ by security forces and the ‘mass graves’ found in the Swat valley where the army was battling the Taliban.

Jehangir said a number of Swat residents had reported ‘sighting mass graves in the area’, including at least one in Kookarai village in Babozai tehsil and another in an area between Dewlai and Shah Dheri in Kabal tehsil. (ANI)