Police seize pricey ancient Gandhara antiquities

Pieces were sold to Europe

Karachi —Authorities in Karachi seized dozens of precious antiqui-ties dating from ancient Gandhara civilisation, illegally dug from the country’s restive northwest, media reports quoted officials having said on Friday. The haul included statues of Buddha, life-sized idols, bronze artefacts, utensils and decorative plaques, Qasim Ali Qasim, director of Sindh prov-ince archaeology department, told a foreign news agency. Police intercepted a flatbed truck in Karachi and found the antiquities from the 2,000-year-old civilisation hidden under plastic and wooden items, officials said.

Pak, India not to indulge in unprovoked firing: JS

new delhi—The border forces of two nations have issued a joint statement (JS) promising not to indulge in unprovoked firing. The statement came after a marathon four-day meeting of the Border Security Force and the Pakistan Rangers here. Addressing a joint press conference, BSF Director General U K Bansal and chief of Pakistan Rangers Major General Rizwan Akhtar said both the forces will work to ensure that such ceasefire violations do not take place along the border.

Reopened supply routes to save $100m per month: US

Washington—Pakistan’s decision to reopen ground supply routes on its border with Afghanistan will allow the Defense Department to save tens of millions of dollars transporting material in and out of Afghanistan, a senior Pentagon spokesman told reporters here on Friday. Navy Capt. John Kirby said officials estimate that use of the reopened routes will save $70 million to $100 million per month.

Resume duties at once, LHC order to doctors

Lahore — Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday ordered striking doctors to join their duties in emergencies immediately. The court expressed displeasure over the strike being staged by the Young Doctors Association (YDA) and issued summons for its leadership. Lahore High Court while hearing a petition against the ongoing strike of young doctors in Punjab’s public hospitals, ordered the protesting doctors to resume their services in the emergency wards by 9:00am on Saturday. Lawyer Azhar Siddique had submitted an application in Lahore High Court requesting the court to order protesting doctors to resume their duties.

Awan paid Rs24.2m as govt cases fee

Islamabad— In the National Assembly session Friday details of fees paid to the senior government lawyers for prosecuting important cases at the Supreme Court were tabled in the house Speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza chaired the session. According to the details, Babar Awan was paid Rs24.2 million, Hafeez Pirzada Rs7.6 million and Waseem Sajjad Rs5.9 million in government cases.

Flood warnings issued in UK

London—Severe flood warnings have been issued for large parts of Britain on Friday after forecasters warned that a month’s rain could fall in the next 24 hours. The Environment Agency said two bands of very heavy rain are expected to cross the country with Yorkshire, the North East, the Midlands and East Anglia set to bear the brunt of the heavy downpours.

Obama, still not assured transcendent win

Washington—Presidents live in a world of wins and losses quickly forgotten. Rarely are they presented with the kind of defining moment that President Barack Obama experienced when the Supreme Court upheld his health care law. It’s one that will transcend his presidency, change America’s social safety net and shape how he is likely to be remembered. Then there’s the catch. If Obama does not win a second term in November, he risks losing both the law and the core of his legacy. Republican Mitt Romney will try to gut the law and impose something else. All the rest of what Obama accomplishes will fall under the dimmer view of history assigned to one-term presidents. Immediate attention isn’t on the lasting consequences. Right now, the campaign retains its focus and remains a biting contest between two men with vastly different visions about how to fix the economy.