…towards raising its target of $460 million for the flood victims of Pakistan. But aid agencies on the ground (warned) that the crisis is continuing with dramatically worsening conditions in some areas, forcing tens of thousands more people to flee their homes. Millions of people need emergency assistance. From Islamabad, Jill McGivering reports. After a period of frustration, the United Nations is finally starting to sound optimistic about the donor response to Pakistan’s (crisis). More than half the funds requested in its emergency appeal has been pledged. By far the biggest single donor is the United States. Some of those in Pakistan have expressed dismay with the slow response. There’s been discussion about the need for transparency in allocating and spending the funds. The Pakistani politician and former cricketer Imran Khan has launched his own emergency appeal, saying the country cannot rely on the international (community). The head of the global Internet company Google has warned that some young people may have to change their identities in the future to escape their online pasts. Eric Schmidt says that people are unaware of how much personal information may leave (on) the Internet. Jonny Hogg reports. Eric Schmidt describes the Internet as the largest experiment in anarchy without the hand. He says we are unaware about the information about ourselves we leave littered on the web, and in his apocalyptic view of the future, he warns changing our names might be the only way to escape our online personas. Reaction to his comments has been mixed. Some feel his view is too auwillian; others agree with his (sentiment) but find it ironic coming from the head of a company which has itself being criticized for the way it collects and holds information about us. The Indian Army says three of its peacekeeping soldiers have been hacked to death in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Seven others were injured. The statement from the Indian military said about fifty rebels raided the peacekeepers’ (camp) in the middle of night and attacked them with machetes and knives. The authorities in southern Sudan have unveiled a $10 billion plan to rebuild the region’s cities and the shapes of animals and fruits. The United Nations says more than 90% of southern Sudan’s (population) lives on less than one dollar a day. Mary Harper has more. Elaborate blueprints for the new city have already been drawn up. The regional capital Juba will be relocated and designed in the shape of a rhinoceros. Wau, the capital of Western Bahr el-Ghazal state, appears in the somewhat unwieldy shape of a giraffe. The office of the regional president is situated where the animal’s eyes should be. And the sewage treatment plant is appropriated placed under the (giraffe)’s tail. There’s a talk that the town of Yambio will be shaped like a pineapple. World News from the BBC. A court in Venezuela has banned national newspapers from printing graphic photographs of murders and (violence). The month-long ban was introduced following the publication by two opposition newspapers of a frontpage photograph which displayed the bullet ridden bodies of murder victims piled up an morgue. The government says the ruling will protect children. But the newspapers which printed the images say the ban is an attack on the freedom of the press ahead of parliamentary elections in Venezuela in September. The supreme leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said Iran will not conduct talks with the United States about its nuclear program unless Washington drops sanctions and military (threats). Speaking on state television, he said that American was not acting honestly. Restrictions on the sale of alcohol in Russian capital Moscow have been extended in an attempt to tackle the problem of alcohol abuse. From the first of September, shops will no longer be able to sell drinks containing more than 15% alcohol between 10 o’clock at night and 10:00 in the morning. Yevgeny Brun, the government expert in (drug)& alcohol abuse, welcomed the ban. This decision can only be welcomed. It’s a very good measure that will reduce the alcohol extrain on the population. Thirty to forty percent of the population drink to excess, and this has economic, social and medical consequences. We are losing a lot because of this (segment) of our population. The new adverts by the McDonald fastfood chain featuring the cartoon characterictics the Gall has provoked outrage among some French critics who see it as a sellout to American consumerism. Asterix, often seen as an emblem of French fighting spirit, is depicted with his friends as talking into Burgers and chips in a takeoff of the (comic) strips Regular Village Banquette. BBC World News.