Hollywood style icons turn fashion designers

LOS ANGELES: They sure know a thing or two about style, and Hollywood celebrities are putting their fashion skills to good use by launching clothing and accessory lines either independently or through tie-ups with companies.

From singers Jennifer Lopez and Victoria Beckham to actresses Katie Holmes and Lindsay Lohan, many Hollywood A-listers have taken the plunge.

Lopez, a hit singer and a modestly successful film actress, launched an entire range of clothes and accessories way back in 2003. It is called “JLO by Jennifer Lopez” and includes casual jeans, T-shirts, coats, belts, purses and lingerie. She also retails a jewellery line and has an accessory line that boasts of hats, gloves and scarves.

Two years after the success of her initial idea, she even kickstarted a new clothing line called Sweetface, followed by a new juniors’ line called JustSweet in 2007.

Following in the footsteps of Lopez, former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham too emerged victorious when she switched to creating her own line of jeans for clothing brand Rock & Republic in 2004. Later, she graduated to launch her own denim brand with the name dVb Style and, as a matter of fact, she is now more popular as a designer than as a singer.

‘This is a friendship that will never break, no matter what happens’

LONDON: “This is a friendship that will never break, no matter what happens,” said President Asif Ali Zardari outside the prime minister’s weekend retreat of Chequers, northwest of London.

The leaders of Britain and Pakistan moved Friday to shelve a row over a British attack on Islamabad’s security record, pledging to step up their cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

President Asif Ali Zardari had vowed to confront British Prime Minister David Cameron over recent claims suggesting that elements in Pakistan back the “export of terror,” which triggered the diplomatic spat.

But both leaders put on a show of unity after their talks near London, saying the bond between Pakistan and Britain was unbreakable, while Cameron accepted an invitation to visit Islamabad soon.

“This is a friendship that will never break, no matter what happens,” Zardari said outside the prime minister’s weekend retreat of Chequers, northwest of London.

Nato seeking long-term partnership with Pakistan: Rasmussen

ISLAMABAD: Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) said the organisation is seeking a long-term partnership with Pakistan, noting that Pakistan’s relation with Nato is not limited to Afghanistan only.

The  Nato  secretary general was speaking to the media in a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi during his first official visit to Islamabad. He further said that reports of al Qaeda’s presence in Pakistan are baseless.

Rasmussen said that Nato will not leave Afghanistan prematurely emphasising that a premature exit can result in a Taliban take over.

China likely to go ahead with nuclear deal

BEIJING: China is likely to go ahead with financing the construction of two nuclear power reactors in Pakistan despite concerns from certain quarters, Chinese experts have said.

A plan to build the reactors would be unveiled during a meeting of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) being held in New Zealand, said an article published in the China Daily on Wednesday.

“This is not the first time China has helped Pakistan build nuclear reactors, and since it will be watched by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the deal is not going to have any problems,” said Zhai Dequan, the deputy secretary-general of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association.

He said the US would not pressurise China too much because it has struck a nuclear deal with India. In 2008, the NSG, which represents 46 countries that control the world’s atomic trade, made an exemption allowing Washington to sell civil nuclear technology to New Delhi.

UK says Iran gas pipeline Pakistan’s internal matter

British Foreign Sec @WilliamJHague is in Pakistan. Send your questions on the region with tag #fsinpak. Answers here tmrw http://ht.ly/223vzISLAMABAD: Iran continued to dominate the political and diplomatic scene on Wednesday as Pakistan cautioned British Foreign Secretary William Hague that sanctions against the Gulf country beyond the ones mandated by the United Nations could have serious repercussions for Afghanistan and the Middle East.

The warning, Dawn has learnt, was conveyed by Pakistani diplomats during their talks with Mr Hague, who is in Pakistan on his first visit as foreign secretary.

According to Foreign Office sources, a significant part of the talks focussed on the latest UN sanctions on Iran and the subsequent efforts by the US and EU to take punitive measures against Tehran’s oil and gas sector.

Pakistan had on June 14 finalised a $7.6 billion gas pipeline deal with Iran, which is considered crucial for averting the energy crisis Pakistan is currently confronting. “Mr Hague was told that the US and EU sanctions could prove counter-productive and may force Iran to react,” a senior foreign ministry official informed Dawn.

Shaky economy could scuttle anti-terror war: Gilani

Richard Holbrooke, (L) the US special representative to Pakistan and Afghanistan, holds up an image during a joint news conference with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at Pakistan’s foreign ministry in Islamabad June 19, 2010. – Photo by Reuters.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani warned on Saturday that public support for war on terror could wane if the international community failed to honour aid pledges and bail out Pakistans troubled economy.

“Time is running out fast. Public support can only be kept intact if the international community start delivering on their pledges,” Mr Gilani told Richard Holbrooke, US Special Envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan, during a meeting at the Prime Minister’s House.

International donors had, at a conference in Tokyo in April last year, pledged over $5 billion to help stabilise Pakistans economy and continue its fight against militants. But most donors have yet to fulfil their pledges.

Two killed as Kyrgyz clashes trap Pakistanis

SUKKUR / TOBA TEK SINGH: Two Pakistani students have been killed and at least ten others taken hostage during ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan.

Ubaidullah Ansari, a student of medical science at the Osh State University, who has returned to Jacobabad, told Dawn on Sunday that more than 500 Pakistanis were stranded in the Central Asian state.

He said a female student of final year at a medical university and Ali Raza, a fourth-year student of engineering, were killed and more than a dozen others taken hostage in the south of Kyrgyzstan.

Pakistan-Iran ‘peace pipeline’ deal sealed

TEHRAN: Iran and Pakistan on Sunday formally signed an export deal which commits Iran to supplying Pakistan with natural gas from 2014.

The contract is the latest step in completing a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline between Iran and Pakistan within the next four years.

“This is a happy day,” Iran’s Deputy Oil Minister Javad Ouji told reporters at the contract signing ceremony in Tehran.

“After decades of negotiations, we are witnessing today the execution of the agreement… to export more than 21 million cubic metres of natural gas daily from 2014 to Pakistan,” he added.

India backs US aid to Pakistan, says Blake

WASHINGTON: India supports the US economic package for Pakistan, although it does have concerns about the military assistance, a senior US official said on Tuesday. “They believe we have a shared interest in helping to stabilize Pakistan,” said Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia.

“They’re certainly well aware that a spiral-down would not be in India’s interests,” he told a State Department blog forum.

In an earlier briefing on Monday afternoon, Mr Blake said the US had been “in the forefront of countries” urging Pakistan to not only continue its operations in Swat and South Waziristan, but also to address the problem in Punjab.

UN to slap fresh sanctions on Iran

UNITED NATIONS: For the fourth time in as many years, the UN Security Council readied fresh sanctions against Iran on Wednesday for refusing to come clean on its nuclear program, but Tehran remains defiant.

Adoption of a US-drafted sanctions resolution, co-sponsored by Britain and France with the backing of Russia and China, was a foregone conclusion despite efforts by Brazil and Turkey to head off the measures and promote a nuclear fuel swap deal they reached with Tehran last month.

Western powers say they were confident that they have more than the nine votes needed to adopt the text at a meeting scheduled to begin at 10:00 am (1400 GMT). Only Brazil, Turkey and Lebanon