Washington, November 25 : Madonna, it seems, is following in the footsteps of Oprah Winfrey, for the singer has invited donations for a girl’s school in Malawi, Africa.

Like Oprah, who had opened a school for deprived girls in Johannesburg, South Africa in January 2007, the Queen of Pop asked, in a video uploaded on Malawi/Kabbalah website, for help to raise the school building.

Islamabad, Nov 25 : The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the UK have reportedly distanced themselves from the frequent drone attacks in Pakistan, said Senate Standing Committee on Defence Chairman Nisar Memon last evening.

The two have asked the Pakistan government to raise the issue (of drone attacks) with the US.

Johannesburg - Child welfare authorities in South Africa are investigating the case of an Austrian man, who kept his 8-year-old son prisoner in his home for four years before he was discovered abandoned and hungry by neighbours, The Star newspaper reported Tuesday.

South Africans have been shocked by the story of the boy, dubbed Tarzan of Suburbia after he was discovered on November 17 at home alone in suburban northern Johannesburg, wearing tattered clothes and fearing contact with people.

Neighbours became aware there was a boy alone in the house when he pushed two 5 rand cent coins through a gap in the wall and asked employees from a business across the road to get him something to eat.

Seoul - South Korea's GM Daewoo Auto and Technology Co, a subsidiary of the financially troubled US carmaker General Motors Corp, said Tuesday that it would halt a production line in December because of sagging sales brought on by the global financial crisis.

The assembly line for mid-sized cars and sports utility vehicles at GM Daewoo's largest plant at Bupyong near Seoul is to come to a halt from Monday through January 4, a company spokesman said in Seoul.

A second production line at Bupyong for compact cars is to be closed down from December 22 to January 4, just like GM Daewoo plants at Kunsan and Changwon.

New Delhi, Nov 25 : Prabhat Goyal, the captain of the hijacked Japanese owned cargo vessel"MT Stolt Valor", reached the national capital with rest of the crew members on Tuesday, days after being released by Somali pirates.



Captain Prabhat Goyal received a hero''s welcome.



Expressing relief at returning home, Goyal said they had lost all hopes of coming back.

Berlin - Germany is ready to contribute up to 1,400 military personnel to a European Union security mission to combat piracy off the coast of Somalia, a leading daily reported Tuesday.

The Frankfurter Allgemeine said the defence ministry had given the green light for the troops and sailors to take part in Operation Atalanta, due to be launched around mid-December.