How Indian diplomacy ended crisis in Maldives

NEW DELHI: It was an "understanding" between India and Maldives that resolved an embarrassing political situation in the island country after former president Mohamed Nasheed took refuge inside the Indian high commission, drawing India into the heart of the ongoing political crisis there.

The resolution, which showcased Indian diplomacy at its most effective, confirmed India's position as the pre-eminent power in the Indian Ocean.

Both countries have denied there was a "deal", and there wasn't. Since the moment Nasheed became a refugee in the mission, India and Maldives and, after a while, even Nasheed himself, were looking for a way to end the agony.

On the Indian side, the initiative was led jointly by NSA Shivshankar Menon and foreign minister Salman Khurshid. Khurshid spoke with his counterpart Abdul Samad Abdulla several times in the past week to soften up the government there to the fact that a face-saving solution had to be found for all concerned.

Menon undertook the more complex job of directing the Indian effort, issuing instructions to the Indian team as well as keeping the larger picture of national interest in view. Foreign secretary Ranjan Mathai worked the phones with his counterpart and other leaders in Male from Washington DC where he was travelling. But it was the low-key actions of Harsh Vardhan Shringla, joint secretary in the ministry of external affairs, that finally won the day in Male.

Shringla and his team met an entire cross-section of the Maldives leadership — defence minister Mohamed Nazim, foreign minister Abdul Samad Abdulla, attorney general Aishath Azima Shakoor, even Abdulla Yamin, leader of the Progressive Party of Maldives (Gayoom's party), as well as acting foreign secretary Abdul Azeez Yoosuf, among others. The mission was two-fold — first to convince them that India had no role to play in the political crisis.

Second, to make sure that the election process in Maldives had the field open for all candidates.

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FDA approves new targeted breast cancer drug


WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-a-kind breast cancer medication that targets tumor cells while sparing healthy ones.


The drug Kadcyla from Roche combines the established drug Herceptin with a powerful chemotherapy drug and a third chemical linking the medicines together. The chemical keeps the cocktail intact until it binds to a cancer cell, delivering a potent dose of anti-tumor poison.


Cancer researchers say the drug is an important step forward because it delivers more medication while reducing the unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy.


"This antibody goes seeking out the tumor cells, gets internalized and then explodes them from within. So it's very kind and gentle on the patients — there's no hair loss, no nausea, no vomiting," said Dr. Melody Cobleigh of Rush University Medical Center. "It's a revolutionary way of treating cancer."


Cobleigh helped conduct the key studies of the drug at the Chicago facility.


The FDA approved the new treatment for about 20 percent of breast cancer patients with a form of the disease that is typically more aggressive and less responsive to hormone therapy. These patients have tumors that overproduce a protein known as HER-2. Breast cancer is the second most deadly form of cancer in U.S. women, and is expected to kill more than 39,000 Americans this year, according to the National Cancer Institute.


The approval will help Roche's Genentech unit build on the blockbuster success of Herceptin, which has long dominated the breast cancer marketplace. The drug had sales of roughly $6 billion last year.


Genentech said Friday that Kadcyla will cost $9,800 per month, compared to $4,500 per month for regular Herceptin. The company estimates a full course of Kadcyla, about nine months of medicine, will cost $94,000.


FDA scientists said they approved the drug based on company studies showing Kadcyla delayed the progression of breast cancer by several months. Researchers reported last year that patients treated with the drug lived 9.6 months before death or the spread of their disease, compared with a little more than six months for patients treated with two other standard drugs, Tykerb and Xeloda.


Overall, patients taking Kadcyla lived about 2.6 years, compared with 2 years for patients taking the other drugs.


FDA specifically approved the drug for patients with advanced breast cancer who have already been treated with Herceptin and taxane, a widely used chemotherapy drug. Doctors are not required to follow FDA prescribing guidelines, and cancer researchers say the drug could have great potential in patients with earlier forms of breast cancer


Kadcyla will carry a boxed warning, the most severe type, alerting doctors and patients that the drug can cause liver toxicity, heart problems and potentially death. The drug can also cause severe birth defects and should not be used by pregnant women.


Kadcyla was developed by South San Francisco-based Genentech using drug-binding technology licensed from Waltham, Mass.-based ImmunoGen. The company developed the chemical that keeps the drug cocktail together and is scheduled to receive a $10.5 million payment from Genentech on the FDA decision. The company will also receive additional royalties on the drug's sales.


Shares of ImmunoGen Inc. rose 2 cents to $14.32 in afternoon trading. The stock has ttraded in a 52-wek range of $10.85 to $18.10.


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Pistorius' Brother Facing Own Homicide Trial












The attorney for Oscar Pistorius' family said today that the Olympian's brother is facing a culpable homicide charge relating to a 2008 road accident in which a motorcyclist was killed.


Carl Pistorius, who sat behind his younger brother, Oscar, every day at his bail hearing, will now face his own homicide trial for the accident five years ago, which his attorney, Kenny Oldwage, said he "deeply regrets."


Carl Pistorius is charged with culpable homicide, which refers to the unlawful negligent killing of another person. The charges were initially dropped, but were later reinstated, Oldwage said in a statement.


Full Coverage: Oscar Pistorius Case


Pistorius quietly appeared in court on Thursday, one day before his Paralympic gold-medalist brother was released on bail, Oldwage said. His next appearance is scheduled for the end of March.






Liza van Deventer/Foto24/Gallo Images/Getty Images











'Blade Runner' Murder Charges: Oscar Pistorius Out on Bail Watch Video











Oscar Pistorius Granted Bail in Murder Case Watch Video





It was the latest twist in a case that has drawn international attention, after 26-year-old Oscar Pistorius, a double amputee who ran in both the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games, was charged with the premeditated murder of his model girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.


On Saturday, Carl Pistorius' Twitter handle was hacked, according to a family spokeswoman, prompting the Pistorius family to cancel their social media accounts.


Steenkamp's parents speak about the Valentine's Day shooting that ended their daughter's life in a sit-down interview on South African television tonight.


On Saturday, the model's father, Barry Steenkamp, told the Afrikaans-language Beeld newspaper that Pistorius will have to "live with his conscience" and will "suffer" if his story that he shot Steenkamp because he believed she was an intruder is false.


RELATED: Oscar Pistorius Case: Key Elements to the Murder Investigation


After a four-day long bail hearing, Pistorius was granted bail Friday by a South African magistrate.


The court set bail at about $113,000 (1 million rand) and June 4 as the date for Pistorius' next court appearance.


Pistoriuis is believed to be staying at his uncle's house as he awaits trial. As part of his bail conditions, Pistorius must give up all his guns, he cannot drink alcohol or return to the home where the shooting occurred, and he must check in with a police department twice a week.



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Football: Man City leave Chelsea trailing, Newcastle edge Saints






LONDON: Manchester City galvanised their grip on second place in the Premier League and trimmed Manchester United's lead back to 12 points with a 2-0 victory at home to nearest rivals Chelsea on Sunday.

After Chelsea's Frank Lampard had seen a penalty saved by England colleague Joe Hart, City prevailed through a pair of fine second-half goals from man-of-the-match Yaya Toure and substitute Carlos Tevez.

Although City's chances of retaining their league title remain decidedly slender, they now have a seven-point advantage over Chelsea, who could slip to fourth if Tottenham Hotspur overcome West Ham United on Monday.

Both City manager Roberto Mancini and his Chelsea counterpart Rafael Benitez flooded their sides with midfielders at the Etihad Stadium, while Benitez opted to leave John Terry and Fernando Torres on the bench.

City deployed Sergio Aguero as a lone striker and although he had to plough a lone furrow, it was the hosts who dominated the first half.

Visiting goalkeeper Petr Cech had to tip a header from Matija Nastasic over the bar, while Gary Cahill did well to block a goal-bound volley from Pablo Zabaleta.

City handed a rare start to Jack Rodwell and the midfielder threatened twice shortly before half-time, extending Cech with first a 25-yard drive and then a header from the resulting corner.

Chelsea were gifted an opportunity to open the scoring early in the second half when Hart was adjudged to have fouled Demba Ba, but the England goalkeeper redeemed himself with an excellent save from Lampard's spot-kick.

Aguero dinked a shot onto the roof of the net before City's enterprise finally told in the 63rd minute.

Toure collected a pass from David Silva and deftly evaded the attentions of four visiting defenders before shaping a shot around Cech that nestled in the bottom-right corner.

Tevez settled the encounter in style in the 85th minute, collecting the ball 22 yards from goal and arrowing a shot into the top-left corner.

In the day's other game, Newcastle edged relegation rivals Southampton 4-2 in a topsy-turvy game at St James' Park that took Alan Pardew's side six points clear of the bottom three.

In honour of their growing French contingent, Newcastle had dubbed the day 'French Day', handing out berets to their supporters and playing the French national anthem prior to kick-off.

However, it was a Frenchman in a red shirt who broke the deadlock, as midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin converted a Rickie Lambert knockdown to give Southampton a third-minute lead.

Newcastle's reaction was swift and in the 32nd minute they went ahead thanks to two French players of their own.

Yoan Gouffran forced a save from Artur Boruc after darting into the box from the left and when the ball ran across goal, Moussa Sissoko sped in to touch it over the line.

The hosts' momentum did not abate and in the 42nd minute they went ahead with a stunning goal, as Papiss Cisse cracked home a looping half-volley from 25 yards.

Newcastle lost captain Fabricio Coloccini to injury just before half-time and saw Southampton equalise five minutes into the second half when Lambert swept home a low cross from Adam Lallana.

However, Newcastle hit back once again and took the lead for the second time in the game when Yohan Cabaye converted a 67th-minute penalty awarded for a handball by Danny Fox.

The suspense in a stretched game finally dissipated in the 79th minute, when an own goal by Jos Hooiveld put Newcastle 4-2 ahead and confirmed the hosts' success.

- AFP/fa



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Plaint against Baba Ramdev for slamming Gandhis

BELGAUM: A complaint has been registered against yoga guru Baba Ramdev in the fourth JMF Court for allegedly making derogatory statements against AICC president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

Former KPCC member Shankar Munavalli filed the case. In a complaint, he alleged that Baba Ramdev, during his visit to Hubli on February 20, said that corruption had increased in the country because "AICC president Sonia Gandhi and his son Rahul were exporting money to Italy".

He also said that both should be expelled from the country, if the country has to become free from corruption. Munavalli claimed that Ramdev deliberately attempted to defame the image of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi without any evidence.

Besides, no complaint had been filed in any court on them as alleged by Ramdev. Munavalli urged action against the yoga guru, saying that his statement hurt the sentiments of Congress party workers.

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FDA approves new targeted breast cancer drug


WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-a-kind breast cancer medication that targets tumor cells while sparing healthy ones.


The drug Kadcyla from Roche combines the established drug Herceptin with a powerful chemotherapy drug and a third chemical linking the medicines together. The chemical keeps the cocktail intact until it binds to a cancer cell, delivering a potent dose of anti-tumor poison.


Cancer researchers say the drug is an important step forward because it delivers more medication while reducing the unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy.


"This antibody goes seeking out the tumor cells, gets internalized and then explodes them from within. So it's very kind and gentle on the patients — there's no hair loss, no nausea, no vomiting," said Dr. Melody Cobleigh of Rush University Medical Center. "It's a revolutionary way of treating cancer."


Cobleigh helped conduct the key studies of the drug at the Chicago facility.


The FDA approved the new treatment for about 20 percent of breast cancer patients with a form of the disease that is typically more aggressive and less responsive to hormone therapy. These patients have tumors that overproduce a protein known as HER-2. Breast cancer is the second most deadly form of cancer in U.S. women, and is expected to kill more than 39,000 Americans this year, according to the National Cancer Institute.


The approval will help Roche's Genentech unit build on the blockbuster success of Herceptin, which has long dominated the breast cancer marketplace. The drug had sales of roughly $6 billion last year.


Genentech said Friday that Kadcyla will cost $9,800 per month, compared to $4,500 per month for regular Herceptin. The company estimates a full course of Kadcyla, about nine months of medicine, will cost $94,000.


FDA scientists said they approved the drug based on company studies showing Kadcyla delayed the progression of breast cancer by several months. Researchers reported last year that patients treated with the drug lived 9.6 months before death or the spread of their disease, compared with a little more than six months for patients treated with two other standard drugs, Tykerb and Xeloda.


Overall, patients taking Kadcyla lived about 2.6 years, compared with 2 years for patients taking the other drugs.


FDA specifically approved the drug for patients with advanced breast cancer who have already been treated with Herceptin and taxane, a widely used chemotherapy drug. Doctors are not required to follow FDA prescribing guidelines, and cancer researchers say the drug could have great potential in patients with earlier forms of breast cancer


Kadcyla will carry a boxed warning, the most severe type, alerting doctors and patients that the drug can cause liver toxicity, heart problems and potentially death. The drug can also cause severe birth defects and should not be used by pregnant women.


Kadcyla was developed by South San Francisco-based Genentech using drug-binding technology licensed from Waltham, Mass.-based ImmunoGen. The company developed the chemical that keeps the drug cocktail together and is scheduled to receive a $10.5 million payment from Genentech on the FDA decision. The company will also receive additional royalties on the drug's sales.


Shares of ImmunoGen Inc. rose 2 cents to $14.32 in afternoon trading. The stock has ttraded in a 52-wek range of $10.85 to $18.10.


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Fiery Last-Lap Daytona Crash Injures 15 Fans











A fiery last-lap crash at the Daytona International Speedway injured a number of spectators today, who were seen being carried away from the stands on stretchers.


Fifteen spectators were taken to the hospital, according to ESPN, with one on the way to surgery with head trauma.


The 12-car crash happened moments before the end of the Nationwide race, and on the eve of the Daytona 500, one of NASCAR's biggest events.




The crash was apparently triggered when driver Regan Smith's car, which was being tailed by Brad Keselowski on his back bumper, spun to the right and shot up the track. Smith had been in the lead and said after the crash he had been trying to throw a "block."


Rookie Kyle Larson's car slammed into the wall that separates the track from the grandstands, causing his No. 32 car to go airborne and erupt in flames.


When a haze of smoke cleared and Larson's car came to a stop, he jumped out uninjured.


His engine and one of his wheels were sitting in a walkway of the grandstand.


"I was getting pushed from behind," Larson told ESPN. "Before I could react, it was too late."


Driver Michael Annett was taken to the hospital after he slammed head-on into a barrier during the chaos. NASCAR officials told ESPN the driver was awake and alert.


Tony Stewart pulled out the win, but in victory lane, what would have been a celebratory mood was tempered by concern for the injured fans.


"We've always known this is a dangerous sport," Stewart said. 'But it's hard when the fans get caught up in it."



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Football: Berbatov's magic moment sinks Stoke






LONDON: Fulham forward Dimitar Berbatov produced a moment of magic to end his side's poor run with a 1-0 win over Stoke at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

Berbatov marked his 200th Premier League appearance with his 85th goal in the English top-flight and it was one of the former Manchester United star's best as he netted a superb volley just before half-time.

Martin Jol's team still needed a second half penalty save from Mark Schwarzer, who kept out Jon Walters' effort, to clinch just their fourth win in 19 Premier League games.

Berbatov and Schwarzer's heroics lifted Fulham to 11th, nine points clear of the relegation zone, and continued the away-day misery for Stoke, who have won just one in their last 23 leagues games on their travels.

Fulham's first sight of goal fell to Berbatov after Sascha Riether's cross picked out the Bulgarian forward for a close-range volley that looped just over.

Bryan Ruiz had the ball in the net moments later but Fulham's celebrations were cut short as referee Lee Probert correctly ruled that the Costa Rican forward had used his hand to score.

Steven Nzonzi needed treatment after a collision with Berbatov left the Stoke midfielder with blood dripping from the bridge of his nose.

Nzonzi still seemed miffed following that incident and he was fortunate to escape with a booking after cuffing Ruiz around the head in an off-the-ball incident.

A ferocious free-kick from Fulham's Greek midfielder Giorgos Karagounis brought the best save of the half from Asmir Begovic.

Stoke sent on American midfielder Brek Shea for his debut when Matthew Etherington hobbled off with a back injury.

Jol's team pushed on and finally broke the deadlock in first half stoppage-time when a cross was only half cleared to Berbatov, who showed superb technique to lash a brilliant volley into the top corner of Begovic's goal.

Fulham defender Philippe Senderos almost gifted Stoke an equaliser immediately after the interval when his attempt to shepherd the ball back to Schwarzer allowed Peter Crouch to nip ahead of him and flick a shot that the Australian saved well.

Schwarzer came to Fulham's rescue again in the 54th minute after Dejagah conceded a penalty when he blocked Shea's cross with his raised arms.

Walters stepped up to take the spot-kick, but the Stoke striker has a poor record with penalties this season and his luck was out again as Schwarzer dived to his right to save.

- AFP/fa



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Rockets hit Aleppo, killing at least 29: monitor


BEIRUT (Reuters) - Rockets struck eastern districts of Aleppo, Syria's biggest city, on Friday, killing at least 29 people and trapping a family of 10 in the ruins of their home, activists in the city said.


"There are families buried under the rubble," said an activist called Baraa al-Youssef, speaking by Skype after visiting the scene in his Ard al-Hamra neighborhood.


"Nothing can describe it, it's a horrible sight."


Video footage posted by several activists showed a burning building and people carrying the wounded to cars to be ferried to hospital. It was hard to gauge the scale of the damage in the night-time footage but rubble was clearly visible on the ground.


Rami Abdulrahman of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said three explosions shook Aleppo and reported at least 29 people had been killed. Another 150 were wounded, he said, and the final death toll was likely to be higher.


Youssef said 30 houses were destroyed by a single rocket.


On Tuesday activists said at least 20 people were killed when a large missile of the same type as Russian-made Scuds hit the rebel-held district of Jabal Badro.


(Reporting by Mariam Karouny and Dominic Evans; Editing by Stephen Powell)



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Laptops to be Samajwadi Party's anniversary gift to students

LUCKNOW: UP chief minister AkhileshYadav is set to mark his first year in power by distributing free laptops to students who passed their intermediate examination last year during the anniversary week celebrations of his government from March 10 to 15. Free laptops were promised by Akhilesh as a poll sop for the youth.

In the first phase, 10,000 laptops will be distributed in Lucknow and Mainpuri districts to students from government and government-aided schools. Set to cost the state government a total of Rs 2,800 crore, laptops will be embossed with tamper-proof stickers of Akhilesh and SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.

It's not laptop alone that the students will get as 'gift'. The machines will be loaded with an open source operating system (Ubuntu) apart from Windows 7 Home Basic. The systems will also come pre-loaded with MS Office software, a specially designed computer literacy programme for first-time users, spreadsheets, multimedia and cloud computing among other things. A special software, designed by the British Council, will have 'How to Learn English', along with 'Hindi to English' and 'English to Hindi' dictionaries. The students will also have access to a photo gallery, movie maker software, photosynth and an editing software.

In another student-friendly initiative, the laptops will be pre-loaded with sample papers of engineering and medical entrance test papers of AIEEE, IIT-JEE, AIIMS, BITS, NIFT, PMT and CLAT. The laptops will come with webcam, blue tooth, wi-fi compatibility, DVD writer and a media reader. Users will have three language options- Hindi, English and Urdu.

Over 15 lakh units are to be distributed over the next seven months. A call centre will be set up in Lucknow with service centres in every district to cater to the beneficiaries. "The service centres will be made operational before the distribution begins," a senior UPEC official said.

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