Tag Archives: area

Last-gasp Barcelona edge through to final

A stunning last-gasp strike from Andres Iniesta put 10-man Barcelona in the Champions League final on the away goals rule, giving the Catalan giants a 1-1 draw at Chelsea on a night of high drama at Stamford Bridge. With the clock showing two minutes gone out of an extra four minutes at the end of the game, Spanish international Iniesta fired in a sublime shot from the edge of the area to break Chelsea’s hearts and take Pep Guardiola’s side through to a dream final against holders Manchester United in Rome on May 27. Following last week’s cagey goalless draw at the Nou Camp, all the talk before the match was whether Barca’s stunning attacking prowess could pierce Chelsea’s solid defense.

Share

Orphanage caught in Pakistan crossfire

About 80 boys and 20 staffers in an orphanage were trapped during intense fighting between the Pakistani military and the Taliban Wednesday, the orphanage director said. The children trapped in the four-story building in the town of Mingora in Pakistan’s Swat Valley felt as if they were under siege because the fighting was so close, said Muhammad Ali, director of the orphanage. Staff members said they only had enough food to last two more days.

Share

Pakistani forces, Taliban clash in Swat Valley

The Pakistani military and the Taliban clashed in the country’s Swat Valley Wednesday as thousands of civilians fled the area, a local official said. An estimated 40,000 people fled the city of Mingora in northwestern Pakistan, as military clashes raged on, said Khushhal Khan, district coordination officer in the area

Share

Fabregas double extends Arsenal unbeaten run

Captain Cesc Fabregas scored both goals as Arsenal extended their unbeaten Premier League run to 20 matches with a comfortable 2-0 victory over relegation-threatened Middlesbrough at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. On a warm sunny afternoon in north London, Russian Andrey Arshavin — who scored all four of Arsenal’s goals at Liverpool on Tuesday — again pulled the strings for Arsene Wenger’s side, who go into Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal against Manchester United at Old Trafford in good heart. Just 48 hours after receiving an English FA misconduct charge following the FA Cup clash with Hull City last month, Spanish playmaker Fabregas put Arsenal ahead with a sublime 26th-minute goal

Share

Baghdad Bombings: Is Iraq Unraveling Again?

At least five bomb attacks in Iraq in the past 48 hours have left some 140 people dead, wounded dozens more and raised fears that the country may be returning to the sectarian violence from which it has only just emerged. On Thursday three bombs in central Baghdad and areas northeast of the capital killed at least 80 people and wounded more than 100

Share

Pakistan deal enshrines sharia law

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari signed into law Monday a peace deal for the nation’s violence-plagued Swat Valley, according to a presidential spokesman. The deal implements Islamic law, or sharia, in the Swat Valley region of North West Frontier Province. Last week, pro-Taliban cleric Sufi Mohammad announced he was pulling out of a peace deal for Swat Valley, saying the government was not serious about implementing Islamic law, or sharia, in the region.

Share

Funerals begin for victims of Italian earthquake

The youngest hadn’t even lived half a year. The oldest had lived nearly a hundred of them. The official government list of victims from this week’s earthquake in central Italy reached 287 on Friday, when Italians planned a mass state funeral to lay the victims to rest.

Share

Pro-Taliban cleric pulls out of peace deal

Pro-Taliban cleric Sufi Mohammad has announced he has pulled out of a peace deal in the violence-plagued Swat Valley, saying the government is not serious about implementing Islamic law, or sharia, in the region. Mohammad brokered the cease-fire in late February between the Pakistani government and his son-in-law, Maulana Fazlullah, who commands the Taliban in Swat Valley. With the deal, the area would come under sharia law, which — under the Taliban’s strict interpretation — would prevent women from even being seen in public without their husbands or fathers

Share