Pakistan ex-PM's kidnapped son rescued in Afghanistan

May 10, 2016- The kidnapped son of Pakistan's ex-Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani has been rescued in Afghanistan in a joint Afghan-US special forces operation.

Pakistani officials said he would be transferred to Pakistan after undergoing medical checks.

Ali Haider Gilani was kidnapped three years ago in Multan as he was campaigning in elections for the Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP).

The Taliban were long believed to be behind the kidnapping.

PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto tweeted the news, saying the captive had "been recovered in a successful operation".

Pakistan's foreign ministry confirmed it had received the news from Afghan security officials.

Bargaining chips

Ali Haider Gilani is the youngest son of Yusuf Raza Gilani who was prime minister of Pakistan from 2008 until 2012.

He had been contesting a seat in the Punjab provincial assembly in the 2013 elections. He was seized by gunmen who opened fire on a campaign rally in May 2013, two days before the general election.

Suspicion immediately fell on the Pakistani Taliban, which had been openly threatening the governing PPP and other secular parties in Pakistan in the run-up to the election.

Kidnapping was also a tactic frequently used by militant groups across Pakistan, who needed the ransom money for revenue and used the hostages as bargaining chips in negotiations with the authorities.

sources:eKantipur

Germany knife attacker kills man in Grafing

May 10, 2016- One man has been killed and three others wounded by a knife-wielding man near Munich, with police investigating a possible Islamist connection.

The man attacked four commuters shortly before 05:00 (03:00 GMT) on Tuesday at Grafing station. One of the victims died of his wounds in hospital.

A 27-year-old German man was eventually overpowered by police and arrested.

Some witnesses said he shouted "Allahu akbar" ("God is great" in Arabic) but the motive for the attack is unclear.

An Upper Bavaria police spokesperson said that a "political motive" had certainly not been ruled out.

Police spokesman Karl-Heinz Segerer told German television that the man "expressed political motivations" during the attack.

They gave no details, saying it is a matter for the investigation.

He identified the suspect as a 27-year-old German national who does not live in Bavaria.

Footage from the scene showed bloody footprints on a train and the station platform in Grafing, a Bavarian town 40km (25 miles) east of Munich.

The police spokesman said one of the victims had been stabbed on the train and others at the station or outside the building.

The mayor of Grafing, Angelika Obermayr, expressed shock at the attack.

"The idea that people get on an S-Bahn train on a beautiful morning or do their paper round and then become victims of a maniac is terrible," she was quoted as saying.

One of the platforms at Grafing station has been cordoned off and commuter trains have been hit by delays.

sources eKantipur

Narayanhiti Durbar Museum collects over Rs 174 m revenue

May 10, 2016- Since its gates were thrown open to general people and foreigners some seven years ago, the flow of visitors to the Narayanhiti Durbar Museum continues. 

A total of 2,079,760 people including foreigners have visited the former royal palace from which  Rs 174.2 million has been collected as entry and parking fees, according to the museum management committee. 

Turned into a museum on June 15, 2008, the museum was open to general people on February 26, 2009, following the declaration of Nepal as federal republic after the fall of age-old institution of monarchy that followed the 2058 BS royal massacre. 

The museum management committee chief Rohit Kumar Dhungana said that so far 19 chambers of the museum are open to general people. 

He added that other 12 chambers are yet to be opened for public viewing in lack of budget. 

Dhungana also said that the plan is afoot to provide a day package to those visiting the museum. 

He said that the second phase of the reconstruction of the structures damaged by the April 25 earthquake will be completed within the Nepali year of 2074 BS, while the first phase of the reconstruction of Tribhuvan Sadan, where the royal massacre occurred, is in final stage. 

Former King of Nepal Birendra Shah including his family members and relatives were murdered in cold blood in 2058 BS.