according to politico
dodd elected to the senate in had been deeply involved in the bitter
debate over overhauling the us health care system as well as the measures
enacted by the obama administration to contend with the financial crisis
israel army to get legal advice during operations media
jerusalem jan afp
israel top general has ordered the military to seek legal advice while in the
heat of battle and not just during the planning stages the haaretz newspaper
reported on wednesday
military chief of staff lieutenant general gabi ashkenazi issued the order
despite opposition from several commanders the paper said
the decision follows widespread criticism of the military conduct during its
devastating day gaza offensive one year ago and comes at time when israel
delayed visit by senior military officers to britain over fears they could be
arrested there on war crimes charges
legal advisors took part in the planning ahead of the gaza operation but were
rarely consulted once combat began the newspaper said
under the new rules legal advisors will work with divisional headquarters while
combat is under way though not with brigade or battalion headquarters as is the
case in several western armies it said
haaretz also said greater emphasis is being placed on training officers in the
rules of war and international law
the military did not immediately comment on the report
un fact finding mission last year said both israel and palestinian militant
groups were guilty of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity during the
gaza war that ended on january with mutual ceasefires
israel is concerned the allegations could be taken up by the international
criminal court in the hague
last month tzipi livni the leader of israel main opposition party kadima and
foreign minister during the gaza war cancelled visit to britain after an
arrest warrant was issued against her by british court sparking diplomatic
row
and on tuesday deputy foreign minister danny ayalon announced that planned
trip to britain by group of officers was postponed and would only take place
if israel receives guarantees there would be no criminal lawsuits
the gaza war which israel launched on december in response to rocket
fire from the hamas run territory killed some palestinians and
israelis
signs appear of double dip recession in spain survey
brussels jan afp
accelerating decline in spanish private sector services activity in december
raised fears of renewed recession on the iberian peninsula well watched
survey said on wednesday
it is worrying to see spain showing signs of ouble dip recession and
lagging so far behind the other large euro area service economies said markit
economist rob dobson as purchasing managers index pmi data was released
the overall picture of improving health masks severe national divergences
however with both france and germany appearing to be fighting fit but spain
displaying worrying symptoms of slipping back into recession
private sector business grew across the eurozone as drew towards close
with composite pmi figures compiled by his group taking in manufacturing data
rising to points from points in november
that marked its highest reading for months with the upturn led by strong
manufacturing gains but supported by similar expansion in services throughout
continental europe despite slight downgrade from an earlier flash estimate
the final services index posted points in december down from the
anticipated but up from points in november which represented the
fastest rate of growth across the countries using the euro since late
growth was firmly led by france and germany but the major disappointment from
spain was joined by news that activity in ireland declined for the rd
successive month albeit at the weakest rate since the start of the run
nevertheless dobson said had clearly ended on positive note stressing
that the recoveries in both the manufacturing and service sectors are gaining
traction and the labour market is moving closer to stabilisation
howard archer of ihs global insight said the further rise in the services sector
the engine for modern economies suggests overall fourth quarter
growth of at least the percent posted in the previous three months
however he warned that the eurozone services sector is by no means completely
out of the woods yet citing significant financial sector problems muted
consumer expenditure and relatively limited business spending
japan sumitomo mitsui plans huge share sale
tokyo jan afp
japan sumitomo mitsui financial group smfg announced plans wednesday to
raise up to almost billion dollars from investors to shore up its finances
battered by the global economic crisis
japan third largest bank said it would issue new shares worth billion
yen billion dollars through public offering
it is the latest in series of fund raising moves by japanese banks which
escaped the worst of the us born subprime loan crisis but were hit hard by the
subsequent turmoil that rocked global financial markets
japan top bank mitsubishi ufj financial said in november it aimed to raise
about one trillion yen in fresh capital in the largest ever share issue by
japanese financial institution
lenders are also bracing for global regulations to introduce stricter capital
requirements
dow jones newswires contributed to this story
israeli airport security in spotlight after foiled attack
tel aviv jan afp
as airports across the world tighten security after foiled christmas day
attack on us bound plane security experts claim israeli profiling methods
would have stopped the would be bomber on the ground
israel strict airport screening based in part on the ethnicity of passengers
has proved controversial but highly successful so far
year old nigerian whose name appeared on us list of suspected al qaeda
activists boarded an amsterdam bound plane from lagos and then flight to
detroit with explosives sewn into his underwear
he was not detained until passengers overpowered him as he tried to detonate the
explosives
current security checks at airports across the world are aimed at finding
explosives or weapons but not at identifying the terrorists said shlomo
harnoy the head of sdema group an israeli security consultancy
young muslim travelling alone on ticket paid with cash and without luggage
would have been immediately identified and searched he said
israel passenger profiling applied for decades at the country ben gurion
international airport and by israeli airlines abroad entails assessing the risk
posed by passenger according to his nationality ethnicity background and
behaviour
israeli security agents consider passengers with arab or muslim background as
potentially high threats
agents at airports interview passengers in process that for some takes just
few minutes but for others is an exhaustive questioning at times followed by
thorough body and luggage search
the procedure has drawn some criticism but security officials consider it
extremely effective
no aircraft departing ben gurion has ever been hijacked or bombed the only
attack on the airport in was carried out by gunmen who had arrived on
foreign carrier
as many countries tightened their airport security after the september
attacks in the united states israel did not change its screening methods
an official with the shin bet domestic security agency declined to comment
directly on the security level at ben gurion following the christmas attempt
but said we are constantly re evaluating the situation and the threats
other countries though have yet to respond effectively to the new threats said
harnoy former head of shin bet aviation security section
even the latest us decision to apply enhanced security measures on flights from
nations are unlikely to prove effective he said
al qaeda is always one step ahead of technology said harnoy
defence ministry spokesman shlomo dror former aviation security officer
believes washington is wasting huge sums of money on security procedures which
are not very effective
sweeping orders to confiscate water bottles and checking shoes are folly and
pointless
both harnoy and dror believe that combining profiling methods with cutting edge
technology is the best way to keep flights safe
there needs to be general shift in the perception of the threat abroad
the americans use random checks which are useless technology must be used far
more effectively harnoy said
the assumption is that the main threat comes from muslims we can develop
profiling systems for anywhere in the world
but applying ethnic profiling in the united states and many other countries
would be certain to cause massive uproar and could prove unconstitutional
madagascar mediators in fresh peace bid
addis ababa jan afp
international mediators met wednesday in fresh attempt to resolve madagascar
long running political crisis
the meeting of the international contact group for madagascar at the african
union headquarters follows several initiatives to end the crisis sparked by the
march coup by then antananarivo mayor andry rajoelina
disagreements between the country four main political groups have scuttled
efforts at ending the impasse with de facto leader rajoelina disregarding
previous deals with rivals to form unity government
our discussions should focus on defusing the situation and finding way out of
the crisis said jean ping the au commission chief criticising rajoelina
unilateral decisions
the army backed rajoelina last month cancelled the appointment of prime
minister agreed on in power sharing deal with his rivals and named new one
none of the political foes including rajoelina the president he ousted marc
ravalomanana and two former presidents were represented at wednesday talks
along with ping chief mediator in the crisis joaquim chissano french state
secretary for cooperation alain joyandet and au peace and security commissioner
ramtane lamamra were in the talks
this meeting is to give fresh impetus to the attempts at resolving the
madagacar crisis statement by joyandet office said
myanmar video journalist jailed for years rights groups
bangkok jan afp
myanmar court has handed down year jail term to video journalist who
worked with exiled media rights groups said wednesday as the ruling junta
continues its crackdown on dissent
freelance reporter hla hla win was arrested in september after visiting
buddhist monastery in the northern town of pakokku paris based reporters
without borders and the burma media association said in joint statement
hla hla win was sentenced by court in pakokku on december for an alleged
violation of the country electronics act the groups said man accompanying
her was sentenced to years in jail they added
there was no immediate confirmation of the sentence from authorities in myanmar
formerly known as burma which remains under tight us and eu sanctions because
of its record on human rights
we are outraged that this young woman has been given year jail term the
two organisations said in the statement
the jailed reporter had worked with the myanmar exile broadcaster democratic
voice of burma dvb based in oslo norway
she had already been sentenced in october to seven years in jail under the
export import act for allegedly using an illegally imported motorcycle the
groups said
all these laws are just an excuse to punish her for the work she was doing as
undercover journalist within burma said dvb oslo bureau chief aye chan
naing
reclusive junta leader than shwe said at an independence day ceremony on monday
that plans were underway for elections promised by the regime some time this
year but warned citizens to make correct choices at the polls
people had been expecting signs of an opening and goodwill gestures from the
military junta in this election year but this extremely severe sentence on
year old video maker and the junta chief recent threatening comments leave
little hope that the elections will be free the groups said
reporters without borders said at least journalists and bloggers were
currently detained in myanmar
the very dangerous work carried out by burma video reporters is crucial
for the dissemination of independent propaganda free information both
domestically and abroad they said
hla hla win went on hunger strike for several days after her arrest and had to
be hospitalised for an unspecified period said the statement
myanmar has handed heavy jail terms to scores of activists monks student
leaders and journalists for their alleged roles in anti junta protests in
and for helping victims of cyclone nargis in may
pro democracy icon aung san suu kyi has been detained for most of the last two
decades and had her house arrest extended in august last year effectively
ruling her out of the coming elections
the united states expressed doubt monday that the polls would be credible
greece must not expect eu bailout ecb
rome jan afp
greece struggling with double digit public deficit cannot expect the
european union to save it the european central bank chief economist said in
an interview published on wednesday
greece problems are decidedly greek as prime minister george papandreou has
himself admitted juergen stark told the italian financial daily il sole
ore
the markets are fooling themselves if they think that at some point the other
eu member states will put their hands in their pockets to save greece he said
he spoke as officials from the ecb and from the european commission began
mission in athens to examine with greek officials crisis programme to
stabilise national greek finances which the greek government is to submit to the
eu commission by the end of january
greece deficit the difference between spending on central welfare and local
government budgets and revenues is estimated to be percent of gross
domestic product
finance ministry source has said on tuesday the day before the eu and ecb
mission began work that athens had reduced by year its timetable for reducing
its public deficit to the maximum ceiling permitted under the stability and
growth pact of percent of gdp this would now be achieved within three
years
late last month greece was hit by financial crisis that has fuelled debate in
financial circles about the cohesion of the nation eurozone
credit rating agencies downgraded their ratings of greek debt the price of
government debt bonds used to finance the debt fell and the interest demanded by
lenders rose sharply
in addition the ecb which manages eurozone monetary policy and the european
commission put intense pressure on greece to produce revised budget to correct
public finances and restore national credibility on financial markets
participation in the monetary union doesn confer any right for member state
to demand financial support stark said
these past few years greece has not kept its public accounts under control or
worked to improve its competitivity he said
these problems are not tied to the global crisis but are homegrown and must
be addressed with appropriate economic measures he added
snow brings chaos to britain as europe shivers
london jan afp
britain most brutal winter in decades caused chaos for travellers wednesday as
snow and ice hit airports and roads while bitterly cold temperatures cloaked
much of europe
millions of people in london and the south east of england woke up to heavy snow
after storms spread overnight from scotland and the north of england where they
have caused problems for days
the current cold weather started in mid december and it has been the most
prolonged spell of freezing conditions across the uk since december
forecasters the met office said
bitterly cold and wintry weather is forecast to continue for the next couple of
weeks with further snowfall expected at times
southern counties could be hit by to centimetres inches of snow the met
office said
temperatures across much of the rest of europe are also freezing norway
currently dogged by cold front from siberia has been among the coldest with
temperatures in the central town of roeros falling to degrees celsius
the wintry conditions have raised concerns about how britain infrastructure
can cope
the country biggest salt mine warned it was having to ration supplies because
it was simply not possible to meet demand from all the country local
authorities who are fighting to keep roads gritted and accessible
transport links in the densely populated southern and central parts of england
were hit hard by the cold weather
london gatwick airport was closed as staff battled to clear snow from the
runway while luton birmingham and southampton airports are also suffering
delays and cancellations
travellers catching flights from london heathrow are being warning to check with
their airline before travelling to the airport and leave extra time for their
journeys
meanwhile the military was called in to help the drivers of up to cars
which were stranded overnight on major road in hampshire southern england
many commuter train routes into london were also delayed or cancelled along
with those in the north of england
hundreds of schools around the country are closed and string of football games
have been called off including tuesday night carling cup derby between
manchester united and manchester city
after days of bad weather attention is now turning to how infrastructure
services in britain are coping
the national grid issued gas balancing alert for only the second time ever
on monday after percent surge in demand because of the weather
this is an indication that it may be necessary to cut supplies or get hold of
more in order to avoid what it calls gas supply emergency spokeswoman
stressed that supplies were in place to cope with demand
but the main opposition conservatives have obtained figures which they say shows
britain has only eight days of supplies in storage based on current usage
levels
when will the government understand we need more storage capacity and the
ability to get gas to consumers so nobody has to face the possibility of going
without gas during cold snaps like this one
meanwhile the operators of britain biggest rock salt mine winsford in
cheshire northwest england said it was facing unprecedented demand
we would obviously like to be able to fulfil every authority needs in full
but the reality of the situation at present is that that is simply not
possible the winsford salt union said
we are therefore working closely with customers and with government agencies
to try to prioritise deliveries according to local needs
greece must not expect eu bailout ecb
rome jan afp
greece struggling with double digit public deficit cannot expect the
european union to save it the european central bank chief economist said in
an interview published on wednesday
greece problems are decidedly greek as prime minister george papandreou has
himself admitted juergen stark told the italian financial daily il sole
ore
the markets are fooling themselves if they think that at some point the other
eu member states will put their hands in their pockets to save greece he said
he spoke as officials from the ecb and from the european commission began
mission in athens to examine with greek officials crisis programme to
stabilise national greek finances which the greek government is to submit to the
eu commission by the end of january
greece deficit the difference between spending on central welfare and local
government budgets and revenues is estimated to be percent of gross
domestic product
finance ministry source has said on tuesday the day before the eu and ecb
mission began work that athens had reduced by year its timetable for reducing
its public deficit to the maximum ceiling permitted under the stability and
growth pact of percent of gdp this would now be achieved within three
years
late last month greece was hit by financial crisis that has fuelled debate in
financial circles about the cohesion of the nation eurozone
credit rating agencies downgraded their ratings of greek debt the price of
government debt bonds used to finance the debt fell and the interest demanded by
lenders rose sharply
in addition the ecb which manages eurozone monetary policy and the european
commission put intense pressure on greece to produce revised budget to correct
public finances and restore national credibility on financial markets
participation in the monetary union doesn confer any right for member state
to demand financial support stark said
these past few years greece has not kept its public accounts under control or
worked to improve its competitivity he said
these problems are not tied to the global crisis but are homegrown and must
be addressed with appropriate economic measures he added
yemen captures key al qaeda chief as foreign missions reopen
sanaa jan afp
yemeni security forces under us pressure to rein in extremists wednesday
captured key al qaeda leader believed to be behind threats that saw foreign
embassies in sanaa closing their doors police said
mohammed al hanq had evaded arrest on monday during security force raid in
arhab kilometres miles north of sanaa in which two of his relatives
were killed and three other people wounded
he was arrested wednesday along with two others who were wounded in the attack
at hospital in the province of amran north of sanaa security official
said
the us embassy followed by the british and the french missions had closed over
security concerns prompted by fears of an al qaeda threat against foreign
interests just days after failed attack on us airliner claimed by the al
qaeda franchise in yemen
the us mission cited successful security operations north of the capital as it
reopened for business on tuesday saying that yemeni security forces had
addressed specific area of concern the previous day thought to be
reference to the crackdown on hanq group
the british and french embassies resumed operations on wednesday although the
british mission kept its consular services shut
yemen interior ministry has given the assurance that all foreign missions and
interests in yemen are safe saying security measures around embassies and the
residences of foreigners had been reinforced
the ministry also said it arrested five terrorist elements during the past two
days near sanaa but gave no details
long standing concerns that yemen country on the southern tip of the arabian
peninsula has become haven for islamic terror groups were thrown into sharp
focus when nigerian man allegedly trained in yemen was charged with trying to
blow up us bound jet
the botched christmas day attack was claimed by al qaeda in the arabian
peninsula aqap which also urged attacks on western interests in yemen
the would be bomber umar farouk abdulmutallab reportedly confessed to
being trained by an al qaeda bombmaker in yemen for the suicide mission on the
northwest flight from amsterdam to detroit
explosives allegedly sewn into the man underwear failed to detonate and
passengers jumped on him
in the wake of the failed attack general david petraeus the us regional
military commander jetted into sanaa for talks with yemeni president ali
abdullah saleh
at the same time yemen sent army reinforcements to the eastern provinces of
abyan bayada and shawba where al qaeda militants have hideouts and raised the
alert level in those regions
petraeus according to the saba news agency reaffirmed washington support for
yemen in its efforts to fight terrorism
he also delivered message from us president barack obama related in particular
to bilateral cooperation in the fight against terrorism and piracy
on monday us secretary of state further upped the pressure on yemen saying the
lack of security in the impoverished country has international ramifications
the instability in yemen is threat to regional stability and even global
stability clinton told reporters in washington
the situation in yemen where aside from al qaeda setting up lairs in remote
mountainous regions the government is battling shiite rebellion in the north
and facing down secessionists in the south prompted obama on tuesday to suspend
transfers of freed guantanamo bay inmates to the country
the us administration is under intense pressure from domestic critics not to
send more detainees back to yemen because of fears they will slip back into
extremism in the arab nation where obama says the thwarted bombing was planned
obama also lambasted us intelligence on tuesday saying it had missed red
flags in the arabian peninsula that could have disrupted the plot to blow up
the us bound plane vowing to stop future lapses
the united states has also unleashed barrage of measures to stop would be
attackers riding planes into the country overhauling its terror watchlists and
adding dozens more suspects to no fly lists
further boosting security measures all travellers coming from or via terror
linked countries among them yemen will have to undergo compulsory enhanced
screening
blasts gunshots in indian kashmir summer capital police
srinagar jan afp
suspected muslim militants on wednesday hurled grenades and opened fire in
srinagar the summer capital of indian administered kashmir police and
witnesses said
militants have hurled grenades and opened fire in lal chowk police
spokesman said referring to srinagar main commercial area
the attack has sparked panic in the busy market area he said adding that one
or two militants were reported have entered hotel
television news channels broadcasting live footage from the scene reported that
at least three security personnel and one journalist had been wounded in the
violence
indian paramilitary troops and police have ringed the area
an insurgency against indian rule in kashmir has left more than people
dead since its eruption in
indonesians missing after tugboat capsizes off singapore
singapore jan afp
eleven indonesians were missing and two others were rescued after singapore
registered tugboat capsized wednesday in waters off the city state authorities
said
the maritime and port authority mpa said passing supply vessel rescued two
people from the tugboat who were aboard life raft about nautical miles east
of pedra branca island where singapore operates lighthouse
the pair told the authorities that people were aboard their capsized boat
the remaining are still unaccounted for search and rescue operation by
mpa the republic of singapore air force republic of singapore navy and
commercial vessels is currently underway singapore port authority said
assets deployed include helicopter and patrol vessels mpa has issued
navigational broadcasts to vessels in the vicinity to assist with the search and
rescue
all of the are indonesians the authority added
mpa said it has also informed maritime authorities in neighbouring indonesia
about the incident the tugboat was on its way from batam indonesia to matak
also in indonesia batam is less than an hour by ferry from singapore
indonesians missing after tugboat capsizes off singapore
singapore jan afp
eleven indonesians were missing and two others were rescued after singapore
registered tugboat capsized wednesday in waters off the city state authorities
said
the maritime and port authority mpa said passing supply vessel rescued two
people from the tugboat who were aboard life raft about nautical miles east
of pedra branca island where singapore operates lighthouse
the pair told the authorities that people were aboard their capsized boat
the remaining are still unaccounted for search and rescue operation by
mpa the republic of singapore air force republic of singapore navy and
commercial vessels is currently underway singapore port authority said
assets deployed include helicopter and patrol vessels mpa has issued
navigational broadcasts to vessels in the vicinity to assist with the search and
rescue
all of the are indonesians the authority added
mpa said it has also informed maritime authorities in neighbouring indonesia
about the incident the tugboat was on its way from batam indonesia to matak
also in indonesia batam is less than an hour by ferry from singapore
kraft reveals takeover snub by cadbury shareholders
london jan afp
kraft foods said on wednesday that only percent of shareholders in british
confectioner cadbury had accepted the us group hostile takeover approach
the result comes as no surprise as the cadbury board has repeatedly rejected
kraft cash and shares offer worth about billion pounds billion
euros billion dollars
kraft foods said in statement published on wednesday that it had received
valid acceptances representing approximately percent of the existing
issued share capital of cadbury
late last year kraft offered to buy cadbury for pence in cash and
new kraft foods shares an offer deemed derisory by the british company
board
in bid to win over cadbury kraft sweetened its hostile offer on tuesday by
proposing bigger cash component but faced fresh rejection from the
british firm and objections from its largest shareholder
kraft made its latest move with the sale of its north american pizza division to
swiss rival nestle for billion dollars enabling the us firm to put more
cash behind its struggling bid for the british based confectioner
in twist to events billionaire investor warren buffett holding company
berkshire hathaway said that it opposed plan by kraft to raise cash needed to
buy cadbury via new share issue
kraft is the world second biggest snacks group after nestle cadbury is
meanwhile the second largest confectionery company behind mars
tie up between kraft and cadbury would merge leading kraft brands oreo
biscuits and maxwell house coffee with cadbury dairy milk chocolate and
trident chewing gum
blasts gunshots in indian kashmir summer capital police
srinagar jan afp
suspected muslim militants on wednesday hurled grenades and opened fire in
srinagar the summer capital of indian administered kashmir police and
witnesses said
militants have hurled grenades and opened fire in lal chowk police
spokesman said referring to srinagar main commercial area
kraft reveals takeover snub by cadbury shareholders
london jan afp
kraft foods said on wednesday that only percent of shareholders in british
confectioner cadbury had accepted the us group hostile takeover approach
the result comes as no surprise as the cadbury board has repeatedly rejected
kraft cash and shares offer worth about billion pounds billion
euros billion dollars
kraft foods said in statement published on wednesday that it had received
