The eight-day long “operation silence" has ended with the death of Maulana Abdul Rasheed Ghazi, and his 70 aides in addition to 8 security troops, including a lt. colonel and a captain.

Qari Hanif Jalahindari, one of the members of four-member Ulema delegation which was supposed to meet Mr.

CROI: Recent infection responsible for one-quarter of HIV transmission ...

Recent HIV infection appears to be responsible for at least a quarter of onward HIV transmission according to two studies presented to the recent Fifteenth Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Boston. In addition, one of the studies focused primarily on gay men in London suggests that rapid onward transmission may have driven the substantial increase in HIV diagnoses seen in gay men in the UK between 1999 and 2003. Contact tracing vs. phylogenetic analysis Understanding who is most likely to transmit, and how sexual networks interact with each other is important if we are to understand how to curb the HIV epidemic. In the past, epidemiologists have used traditional contact tracing where individuals recently diagnosed with HIV name the partner(s) they believe have exposed them to the virus although, contact tracing has its limitations.

Jane Seymour Happy With Chris Pine as Captain Kirk in "Star Trek"

Jane Seymour couldn't be happier that Chris Pine was tapped to play the young Captain Kirk in J.J. Abrams' new "Star Trek" movie. She likes Chris, plus she has some bragging rights. Jane recalls when Pine came in to audition for "Blind Dating," the romantic comedy that just came out on DVD in which she costars, she and husband James Keach produced, and Keach directed. .

Hip-Hop Rumors: More Detox Delays? The Fantastic Four-gotten Movie!

Pap is really a helluva MC – remember those? I would induct him in the illseed movement, but he's already established. Here is a double dose of Papoose.

Suri conception not Cruisey says book

Biographer Andrew Morton also claims Cruise's former wife, Nicole Kidman, fears the release of tapes made with Scientologists revealing intimate sexual details. Cruise has strongly denied the claims and has already instructed lawyers to draw up a $110 million lawsuit against the book's publisher, St Martin's Press. Andrew Morton's wild claims include that Cruise's 20-month-old daughter, Suri, was conceived "like Rosemary's Baby" - with wife Katie Holmes impregnated with the sperm of dead Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Morton also claims that Ni cole Kidman was threatened with blackmail by Scientologists as her marriage to the Top Gun star foundered. The book, due out next Tuesday, may not be published in England because of defamation laws. Australia's strong defamation laws mean it will more than likely avoid publication in Australia too.

Reyes has strong outing against Mets

JUPITER, FLA. (AP) -- Cardinals right-hander Anthony Reyes thought a strong performance Thursday against the New York Mets was because of hard work in the offseason. Reyes threw 30 pitches in a 7-0 victory over the Mets, 23 for strikes. He allowed two singles and did not walk a batter in three innings. Outfielder Skip Schumaker led the Cardinals with three hits and former two-time American League MVP Juan Gonzalez had two hits. Gonzalez was the designated hitter. He is looking for a spot on the club as a pinch-hitter and reserve outfielder. But the most encouraging news in Jupiter, Florida, was on Reyes, who was 2-14 last season and is 8-23 in 43 big league outings. He said he worked hard in the offseason, and is starting to feel like he used to when he throws.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press.

Arts funding: Winners and losers

More than 200 theatres have lost their grants from Arts Council England, leaving them facing uncertain futures.

But some were given last-minute reprieves, while others were awarded new funding.

So what do the decisions mean for some of the organisations involved?

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Football recruiting

While we've had several great ones, now I don't mind saying A.J. is the best all-around athlete we've ever had."

Cobell, government to file closing remarks in lawsuit

The 11-year legal battle pitting a half-million Native landowners against the U.S. government has closed another chapter, but it isn't over yet.A 10-day trial wrapped up late last week in the Cobell v. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.Lawyers on both sides have 36 days to present written closing arguments to the newly appointed federal judge overseeing the case.

An Odyssey to See Barack Obama

I pointed her to Real Clear Politics for great coverage of the important stories of the day, the latest polls, head-to-head matchups between Obama and McCain and Clinton and McCain, and more.

The time seemed to fly by because I was so enjoying talking to the numerous people around me. At 5 p.m., I asked the undecided student if he could get the Web on his cell phone. Yeah, why, he asked. Because Virginia's results are in, I said. The polls closed at 7pm. He looked up the news.

ESPN Classic to air Friday's awards banquet from NY

With the Big Apple as the backdrop, NASCAR will honor the top drivers in Nextel Cup racing at the series' annual awards banquet Friday night from the Waldorf-Astoria at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN Classic and ESPN360.com. The event will be re-aired at midnight on ESPN2.

Daddy's Little Girl

Heath takes a break to relax with his 7-month-old daughter Matilda in June of 2006. On being a new dad, Heath said, "Matilda is adorable, and beautifully observant and wise. Michelle and I love her so much. Becoming a father exceeds all my expectations. It's the most remarkable experience I've ever had - it's marvelous."