Dr. Safdar Mahmood is historian and leading political analyst. He has received Pride of Performance for his outstanding contributions in the field of history along with a number of other prizes and awards. His more than one dozen books have been favorably reviewed by Pakistani and foreign press and are widely quoted by foreign and Pakistani authors and research scholars. Some of his books have also been translated into German, Chinese, Bengali, Uzbek and Sindhi languages. His research articles are published in journals and magazines of international repute. He has also served at different administrative and posts as member of Central Superior Services, Government of Pakistan.

Ansar Abbasi (Urdu: انصار عباسی) is an investigative editor for one of the leading newspapers from Pakistan, The News International.After Masters in Mass Communication, Abbasi started his career as a professional journalist in 1991. His first stint was with an English language daily, The Democrat. Later, he worked for two months at Pakistan Times, before eventually joining The News International, of which he is now an editor.Abbasi was born in Murree and did his early education in his native village. Abbasi did his matriculation at Sir Syed School Rawalpindi. He then joined Government College Asghar Mall from where he completed his Intermediate and later graduated with a ‘Bachelors in Arts’ degree from the same college. He did his Masters at Balochistan University, Quetta. He later earned another Masters degree from Goldsmiths College, University of London. His research thesis was on child labor.

Hamid Mir (Urdu: حامد مير, born July 23, 1966) is a Pakistani journalist and editor. He is news anchor, terrorism expert, and security analyst who regularly participates in international conferences. He is also known for his columns in Urdu, Hindi, Bengali, and English newspapers and hosts a popular political talk show on Geo TV with the name of Capital Talk. He was banned from TV by the military regime of General Pervez Musharraf in 2007. He was again banned by the Zardari-led PPP government in June 2008.

CAIRO: A sea of protesters flooded downtown Cairo on Monday, brushing aside concessions by President Hosni Mubarak and vowing to topple his regime with strikes and million-strong marches in the capital and Alexandria.

In what is seen as a sop to the protesters, a new cabinet line-up was announced in which widely hated interior minister Habib al-Adly and the previous finance and culture ministers were axed.

But protesters massed in downtown Cairo vowed they would only be satisfied when Mubarak quits, and promised to step up their efforts to bring down his creaking regime.

Organisers announced an indefinite general strike and said Tuesday would see a “march of a million” in the capital after a week of revolt in which at least 125 people have been killed.

Another march was called in the Mediterranean port Alexandria, after national train services were cancelled in an apparent bid to stymie protests.

Tens of thousands of protesters carpeted Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the epicentre of demands for an end to the corruption, deprivation and police oppression indelibly associated with Mubarak’s 30-year rule.

“We will stay in the square, until the coward leaves,” the crowd chanted.

The army has positioned tanks around the area and was checking identity papers but letting protesters in. Civilian popular committee members were also checking papers to make sure no plain-clothes police get in.

“We are looking for police trouble makers. They want to come in and break our unity,” said a popular committee member who asked not to be named.

Eid Mohammed, one of the protesters and organisers, told AFP: “It was decided overnight that there will be a million man march on Tuesday. We have also decided to begin an open-ended general strike.”

The strike was first called by workers at a factory in the canal city of Suez late on Sunday.

Faced with the prospect of untold numbers trying to converge on the capital, authorities stopped all train traffic with immediate effect on Monday afternoon.

State-owned national carrier EgyptAir said it was cancelling all domestic and international flights from 3:00 pm (1300 GMT) to 8:00 am (0600 GMT) until further notice, coinciding with a curfew in Cairo, Alexandria and Suez.

Some flight times will be changed to take the curfew into account, the airline said.

LAHORE: A First Information Report (FIR) was registered on Monday against US citizen Raymond Davis for using an illegal weapon when he gunned down two men in Lahore.

The case against Davis has been registered on the investigation officer’s statement.

Davis is in the custody of the Lahore Police and is being questioned. Earlier, Davis was awarded a six-day physical remand by a court in Lahore.

Police have sent their investigation report to the Punjab government. The report states that Davis, the US embassy and the consulate in Lahore are not cooperating with the police. It states the officials concerned have not replied to a questionnaire sent to them. The report also claims that the Americans have not given the police information on the driver of a vehicle that ran over a third person during the incident.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government is set to inform the federal government of its investigations till now. It is also in contact with the US embassy and the consulate.

Senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders including the chief minister, IG Punjab and the Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore are meeting to discuss the police report.

Earlier, Pakistan had rejected the US demand to release Davis, saying that sub judice in a court of law and the legal process should be respected.

Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Ijaz Butt said on Monday that the captain for the World Cup Squad will be announced on February 4, 2011.

Talking to media in New Zealand, Butt said that the captain will be announced a day before the last One Day International (ODI) with New Zealand.

He said that Pak-India cricket ties are likely to resume after the interval caused by Mumbai attacks.

Butt said the talks are underway at government level and a series is expected at the end of this year at the neutral venue of England. He added that the new central contract will be announced soon.

He also said that new players including Ahmed Shahzad and Asad Shafiq will also be included in the central contract.

Earlier, former captain Shoaib Malik supported Shahid Afridi as the World Cup captain, saying that he can serve the team best.

Irfan Siddiqui is the Urdu columnist, known to be the great supporter of former prime minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif. He started writing his columns on Nawaiwaqt. In July 2008, Irfan Siddiqui left Nawaiwaqt and joined Jang. He has been found criticizing Pervez Musharraf and his regime in Pakistan, very bluntly. He was also unhappy with the late Benazir Bhutto and her Pakistan Peoples Party, and wrote the same in the columns. He is currently serving the Jang group of newspapers.

The Sindh government on Monday dismissed 12 advisors to Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, under the provisions given in the 18th amendment. The dismissed advisors include Sharmila Farooqi, Jamil Soomro, Imtiaz Sheikh, Waqas Malik, Siddiq Abu Bhai, Insha Saria, Kamran Dahan, Ferozuddin Hazarwi, Babar Laghari, Amir Bhutto, Jahangir Bilawal Khanji and Abdul Qadir Malkani. Earlier in the month, Sindh Law Minister Mohammad Ayaz Soomro had submitted a bill seeking reduction in the number of advisors to the chief minister. Soomro had said the 18th amendment calls for reduction in the number of provincial government advisors.

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, (Urdu: عبدالقدیر خان); born April 27, 1936), known as Dr. A. Q. Khan, is a Pakistani nuclear scientist and metallurgical engineer, widely regarded as the leader of gas-centrifuge enrichment technology for Pakistan’s nuclear program. A founder of Pakistan’s gas-centrifuge-based uranium enrichment program, Dr. Khan built Pakistan’s gas-centrifuge program. His middle name is alternatively rendered as Quadeer, Qadeer or Gaudeer, and his given names are usually abbreviated to A.Q.. In a July 2010 interview, Khan said that he is still regarded as a Mohajir.After years of home arrest, Islamabad High Court on February 6, 2009 declared Khan to be a free citizen of Pakistan, allowing him free movement inside the country. The verdict was rendered by Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Aslam. In September 2009, expressing concerns over the Lahore High Court’s decision to end all security restrictions on Khan, the United States warned that Dr.Khan still remains a ’serious proliferation risk’.