It was a big shock for Pakistan cricket authorities when they come to know that their prolific batsman Mohammad Yousuf is all set to join the ‘rebel’ Indian Cricket League (ICL).

Mohammad Yousuf left Karachi on Monday for New Delhi to play in the Indian Cricket League. The right hand batsman has been named in the national squad for the up-coming series against the West Indies.

PCB officials confirmed they have learnt from Yousuf’s wife that he would be playing in the ICL, dealing a severe blow to the national team which has witnessed a series of defections to ICL in the recent years.

A new study suggests post natal depression, an acuter form of ‘baby blues’ that could cost the life of a new mother or baby, is more due to nature than nurture.  This is in contrast to the findings of previous studies that claimed the serious mood disorders were related to the mother’s circumstances, personality and hormonal changes and which often went undiagnosed and untreated.  A long-lasting condition affecting 10 to 15% of women, it prevents mothers from bonding with their babies, causes suicidal thoughts and if untreated both not only the mother, but the child also suffers which affects the short or long-term development of the baby.

Lahore, Nov 5: Setting up tandoors on roadsides is a lucrative business in Lahore these days, especially after the launch of the “Sasti Roti” scheme by the Punjab government. Under the scheme, those running tandoors or road-side dhabas would get a 20-kg bag of flour at Rs 250.

After the launch of the scheme, the number of registered tandoors and hotels in Lahore has reached almost 3300, against around 1450 till one and-a-half months back.

Paris - French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday sent a letter to US President-elect Barack Obama congratulating him on what he called a "brilliant victory."

After extending the "warmest congratulations" on his behalf and that of the French people, Sarkozy wrote that Obama's election triumph "crowns an exceptional campaign ... (that) has shown the vitality of American democracy to the entire world."

Sarkozy added, "In choosing you, the American people have chosen change, openness and optimism."

Moscow - Russia said Wednesday it anticipated a "fresh approach" to leave behind the "stereotypes" in relations with the United States after Barack Obama's victory in the presidential elections.

"The US election result testifies to the fact that everyone correctly counted on a fresh US approach to all the major problems," Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin told news agency Interfax on Wednesday.

"We believe that the US president will himself shape the tone of relations with Russia. As to the president's advisors, they will also have the possibility to look in a new way at the old approaches and maybe to review the stereotypes that earlier were intrinsic to them," Karasin said.

Dr. Muhammad Siddiq, head of the Islamic Medical Association, has been suspended for 12-months over the ‘offensive and homophobic’ letter sent by him to Pulse, a magazine published for general practitioners.

In his letter, Dr. Siddiq claims gays ‘were the root cause of many sexually transmitted diseases’ and required the ‘stick of law to put them on the right path’.  Such comments, according to Andrew Popat, Chairman of the General Medical Council panel are not in the best interests of his patients, tend to undermine public confidence in the medical profession and bring it into disrepute.