COAS confirms death penalty to 9 terrorists

RAWALPINDI - Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif on Friday confirmed death sentences awarded to nine hardcore terrorists, who were guilty of committing heinous offences.
According to ISPR, the convicts were found involved in henious terror acts including attack on Parade Lane Mosque Rawalpindi, Inter Services Intelligence Headquarters Multan, attacks on Law Enforcement Agencies, kidnapping and killing civilians in Lahore.
These convicts were tried by military courts. The details of each case are as:The convict Muhammad Ghauri, son of Javed Iqbal was an active member of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and in-charge media cell of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.
He was involved in an attack on Parade Lane Mosque, Rawalpindi,which resulted in death of 38 persons and injuries to 57 others.
He admitted his offences before the Magistrate and trial court. He was tried on four charges and awarded death sentence.
Abdul Qayyum, son of Ameer Muhammad was an active member of Harkat ul Jehad-e-Islam, Punjab. He was involved in attack on Inter Services Intelligence Headquarters, Multan, which resulted in death of 7 individuals besides injuring 72 others.
He admitted his offences before the Magistrate and trial court. He was tried on seven charges and awarded death sentence.
Muhammad Imran, son of Abdul Manan was an active member of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. He was involved in terrorist’s acts and attacking Law Enforcement Agencies which caused death/injuries to civilians and soldiers.
He admitted his offences before the Magistrate and trial court. He was tried on four charges and awarded death sentence.Aksan Mehboob, son of Asghar Ali was an active member of Al-Qaida. He was involved in attacking the Law Enforcement Agencies by using fire arms which resulted in death and injuries to soldiers.
He admitted his offences before the Magistrate and trial court. He was tried on four charges and awarded death sentence.
Adbul Rauf Gujjar, son of Rehmat Ali, Muhammad Hashim, son of Muhammad Abdullah, Sulaman, son of Boneer, Shafqat Farooqi, son of
Malik Liaqat Ali and Muhammad Farhan, son of Muhammad Rafique was active member of Sepah-e-Sahaba.
All five were involved in killing of civilians at Lahore.While accused Rauf Gujjar was punished for target killing of four civilians identified as Syed Shakir Ali Rizvi, Syed Waqar Haider, Syed Arshad Ali and Ghulam Mustafa as well as causing injuries to Abdul Sattar Tahir and Anwar Hussain at Lahore.
Other accused Hashim and Farhan were involved in murder of Ghulam Mustafa and injuring Anwar Hussain. The both convicts admitted their offences before the Magistrate.
Convict Rauf Gujjar was tried on eight charges whereas convicts Hashim, Suleman, Shafqat and Farhan were tried on four charges each and all have been awarded death sentence.

Pop star Jess Glynne shows off her curves as she strips down to a black bikini while hitting the waves in Miami on New Year's break

She has enjoyed a stellar year in the charts.

So it's only right that Jess Glynne got away from the spotlight to enjoy some rest and relaxation.

The pop singer, 26, had jetted off to Miami, Florida for a festive break.

She headed to the beach this week and kicked off her trip with a morning dip in the ocean.

Showing off her curves in a sensible black bikini, the star ventured into the crashing waves in a long shirt, before whipping it off.

The singer deserves her holiday after taking over the pop charts in the last month.

After shooting to fame on the song Rather Be with Clean Bandit, she enjoyed several of her own hits, including Hold My Hand, which topped the charts for three weeks in March.

Her debut solo album I Cry When I Laugh also shot to the top of the UK album countdown, while she appeared during the Judges' Houses segment of The X Factor alongside Cheryl Cole.

Massive fire at Dubai skyscraper interrupts New Year's Eve fireworks

A huge fire which engulfed part of a luxury hotel in Dubai, near where revellers had gathered to watch a New Year’s Eve fireworks display, has been brought under control without any fatalities.

The inferno lit up the side of the Address Downtown hotel near the centre of the city, scattering bystanders and shoppers in a nearby mall.

The Dubai government said one person had a heart attack as a result of the smoke and the rush to get out of the building. One person was described as being moderately injured and 16 people were said to have suffered minor injuries.

A large fireworks display later went ahead at the world’s tallest tower in Dubai, the Burj Khalifa, in front of tens of thousands of people while plumes of smoke continued to billow from the nearby fire.

It took four hours for firefighters to put out the fire.

Maj Gen Rashed al-Matrushi, general director of the Dubai civil defence, reportedly told the television channel Al Arabiya earlier: “There are no injuries, thank God ... Of course, it will not affect the celebration.”

The Dubai police said the blaze started on the 20th floor of the building, which is also a residential address. Footage taken by witnesses and uploaded to the internet shows huge flames rapidly climbing the hotel’s exterior from what appeared to be a terrace or balcony.

The flames appeared to have soared to near the top of the building within seconds. More than an hour after the fire started, it still appeared to be out of control.

Burning debris rained down from the building as fire engines raced to the scene.

Witnesses said hotel staff and fire crews had evacuated all guests. The evacuation was aided by the fact that the blaze did not immediately penetrate the building, the flames instead feeding off the the outside of the 63-storey structure.

Survivors of the blaze said they were ushered out via fire stairs. “We were immediately shown where to leave,” said David Moran, a Dubai-based businessman who was dining in the hotel. “They were very good. They knew their jobs and people escaped without panic.”

Another witness told Dubai television of a crush to get out once guests realised the extent of the blaze. “They evacuated us into a shopping mall,” he said. “There were so many people running.”

“We had some dinner at about nine o’clock or 8.45pm. We ordered one drink and my partner noticed something falling from the building. She said ‘What’s that?’ and I said ‘I don’t know but I’ll have a look’. By the time I walked out the whole building was just ablaze. It was unbelievable. By the time I came back in I had lost her because the whole place was in panic. People were crushing each other trying to get out and get down the stairwell.

“I’ve never experienced anything like it, it was surreal.

“The heat was so intense outside it was unbelievable. Then it was panic stations. People started to panic, crushing each other trying to get downstairs and jumping over railings.

“I couldn’t believe how fast it actually happened. And you know what? There was actually no fire alarm. I could hear no fire alarm going off.”

Asked how people reacted, he said: “The problem was with human error and panic. Everyone was beginning to panic. I am not going to say I didn’t panic myself. I was absolutely terrified to be honest. The heat was unbelievable. Especially when I lost her [his partner] for a few minutes but I managed to find her and we got out.”

The hotel stands on a boulevard in downtown Dubai near the Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall, the world’s largest shopping mall. The area is one of the sites for the annual New Year’s Eve fireworks display, which is one of the largest in the world.

Last year, Dubai broke the world record for the largest fireworks display on New Year’s Eve, releasing 479,651 shells during the midnight pyrotechnic show.

Dubai’s glittering skyline has seen two similar fires in recent years. Many of the city’s buildings have floors well out of reach of conventional firefighting equipment and rely on advanced sprinkler systems and other fire retardants.

New Year's Eve 2015 celebrations - world celebrates start of 2016

New year news summary

And that's it. Welcome to 2016.

If you are just getting up, perhaps feeling a bit groggy, and want to know what has happened over night here are the headlines:

• New year celebrations ripple across the world
• At least 16 people injured in a fire that engulfed a tower in Dubai near the site of its new year fireworks display
• German authorities investigate alleged terror plot in Munich targeting new year celebrations
• Tim Peake issues happy new year message from the International Space Station
• 100,000 people lined the banks of the Thames to see in the new year in London
• The first baby of 2016 has been born in Manilla, Philippines
• The Royal Mint has issued a new range of coins to mark 2016
• The Archbishop of Canterbury has urged people to use hospitality of of love to conquer hate
• The arrival of the New Year was greeted by silence in Moscow - the fireworks display was five minutes late
• Men disguised as "Namahage" by wearing a demon-like mask and a costume made of straw yell to boost their spirits in Oga, northeastern Japan. Namahage, considered divine messengers bringing blessings to people, visit houses in the area every New Year's Eve, yelling and telling children they have to behave themselves in a tradition designated as one of Japan's important intangible cultural assets.

• Italian cities ban fireworks

  Smog is putting a bit of a damper on New Year's Eve celebrations across Italy, with Rome, Milan and other cities banning fireworks because of high levels of air pollution in the country.

  Dozens of towns and cities have canceled firework displays and banned setting off firecrackers and other personal pyrotechnics, saying poor air quality and the protection of animals, which can become agitated at the noise, is behind the decision.

  Rome and Milan are among the cities that have put restrictions on driving in recent days as levels of pollutions have exceeded legal limits, posing a public health risks. Government officials have drafted new measures to combat the rising pollution levels, exacerbated by a lack of rain and wind, including lowering thermostats and speed limits.
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