KABUL: The Afghan government has fined a privately run television station 1,000 dollars for broadcasting "unIslamic" material, including raunchy clips from Bollywood movies, officials said on Saturday.

KABUL: Former Afghan skiing champion Hamayoon Kargar is a lonely man with a mountain to climb.

He’s trying, almost single-handedly it seems, to promote skiing in his country after decades of war. With a pair of ancient, battered skis and tatty poles, Kargar trudges up a small hill in the snow-clad Afghan capital. He swooshes down in seconds, displaying the skills that before the war took him to international competitions in Europe and Japan.

Kalpana Lajmi is a director who hardly needs an introduction. Though her last flick 'Kyon' came and disappeared before anyone could ask 'Kyon?', her upcoming flick 'Chingaari' may have a better outing at the box office due to the presence of Sushmita Sen who plays the central character of a prostitute. The movie also stars Mithun Chakraborty along with Anuj Sawhney and is a Vikas Sahni production. Aadesh Srivastava, who has become quite selective off late, returns to compose for this movie and one expects some situational tracks in the album that has lyrics by Sameer.

18 (Xinhuanet) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed here Wednesday that "decisive further steps" should be taken against Iran if Tehran failed to reconsider its nuclear program.

Before meeting visiting French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, Merkel said, "We have to think step by step, and above all send a signal to Iran that shows the international community will not accept it if Iran doesn't respect commitments that are expected of it and the promises it has made."

De Villepin, who was on a one-day visit here to meet Merkel, said reporting Iran to the Security Council could not be excluded "today" but suggested the door remained open for further diplomacy.

Both Merkel and de Villepin urged the international community to stand firm amid the Iran nuclear crisis.

De Villepin said that Iran could be brought before the UN Security Council following a vote by the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The vote is scheduled on Feb. 2-3 at an emergency meeting, which is to convene in the request of the European Union troika, Germany, France and Britain.