hutu rebels in the east of the country with the backing of un troops the
congolese army says
words moved
ny mayor bloomberg begins rd term
new york jan afp
billionaire new york mayor michael bloomberg began his third term friday with
vow to prove doubters wrong and not run out of energy following his
controversial reelection
conventional wisdom holds that by third term mayors run out of energy and
ideas but we have proved the conventional wisdom wrong time and time again and
promise you we will do it one more time bloomberg said after taking the
oath of office on the steps of city hall
bloomberg said highlight of his agenda would be promoting nationwide
immigration law reform and easing procedures for new entrepreneurs in city
that continues to thrive to thanks to immigrants
feel more strongly than ever that the future of our city and our country
depends on newcomers he said at markedly subdued inauguration ceremony
bloomberg won an unexpectedly tight reelection in november after spending
record breaking approximately million dollars all from his own media
fortune on the campaign
term limits approved in referendum had barred bloomberg from seeking to keep
his job however he persuaded the city council to change the law step that
provoked major controversy
this term is special opportunity one that comes with extraordinary
responsibilities he acknowledged friday
the next four years pose big challenge for the veteran mayor
national recession has plunged new york into major economic uncertainty with
city and state tax revenues strained and unemployment topping percent
bloomberg who gave up the traditional inauguration party for visits to charity
volunteers throughout the city said he would not shirk from the hard
decisions and expressed optimism about new york future
we have experienced financial crisis and economic recession and weathered them
better than most we have suffered devastating attacks and rebounded faster than
anyone thought possible and we ve refused to be terrorized he said
bloomberg also said that to keep staff on their toes he would ask every first
deputy commissioner to spend three weeks at different city agency
he said the job swap was something he done successfully when he ran his
bloomberg lp financial information and media empire it was an eye opening
experience that improved teamwork generated new ideas and launched the company
to greater heights
and as tell everyone hire don screw it up he added
bloomberg ran on republican and independent party lines defeating his
democratic challenger but is not party member
commentators noted the absence of major state politicians at the relatively
downbeat inauguration ceremony which was not attended by governor david
paterson or new york two us senators
football ghana suffer paintsil injury blow
accra jan afp
ghana suffered an african nations cup setback on friday when fulham defender
john paintsil was ruled out of the january tournament in angola because of
injury team source said
paintsil who was hurt in his club premier league defeat against chelsea
on monday will be replaced in ghana man squad by getafe derek boateng
afp graphics advisory
paris jan afp
these are the latest graphics available
pakistan lakki marwat attack
two maps of northwest pakistan locating suicide bomb attack in lakki marwat
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pakistan waziristan attack
map locating us missile strike in north waziristan pakistan
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body scanner fact file
graphic fact file on full body security scanners
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tasmanian devil fact file
fact file on the tasmanian devil scientists have made breakthrough in the
genetic analysis of facial cancer killing the endangered animals raising
hopes that the species future may be secured
text slug australia animals devils
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journalists killed in
world map showing countries were journalists were killed in with
information on previous years and on reporters kidnapped or arrested
text slug media unrest rsf
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china shaolin temple map
map locating the shaolin temple in china the abbot is said to have refuted
reports that the monastery will go public as part of travel joint venture
text slug china religion buddhism tourism stocks
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football african nations cup
presentation of the african nations cup football tournament on january
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paris hong kong
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us security firm blackwater record in iraq
washington jan afp
security firm blackwater firm sent around staff to iraq after the us
invasion
it held leading role protecting us government personnel there but after
series of controversies has changed its name and left the country
here are some key facts about the company and pivotal moments in the case in
which five of its security guards were accused of having killed people in
baghdad in september
us judge dismissed the case against them thursday
headquartered in north carolina blackwater was once among the largest security
firms operating in iraq after the us led invasion of
while iraq operated under the us administered coalition provisional authority
foreign liaison missions and contractors including private security guards
were declared immune from iraqi legal processes
blackwater first came under scrutiny on march when four of its
employees were killed by an angry mob in fallujah then sunni arab insurgent
stronghold
the crowd mutilated their bodies and strung them from bridge the month long
assault on fallujah that followed left us soldiers insurgents and
civilians dead
on september blackwater guards opened fire with automatic weapons
while escorting an american diplomatic convoy through baghdad nisur square
blackwater said their guards had under attack
an iraqi investigation disagreed saying the guards had opened fire without
reason killing civilians and wounding more
us prosecutors put the death toll at civilians and charged five former
blackwater guards with manslaughter in federal court in washington all five
pleaded not guilty
in the month after the attack the iraqi cabinet backed law revoking the
immunity that in the then us administrator for iraq paul bremer had
granted to private security firms operating there
democratic lawmakers meanwhile called on the state department to explain press
reports that it offered immunity to blackwater security firm employees following
the baghdad shooting
report in the washington post said federal bureau of investigation agents who
took over the investigation into the shootings had been barred from using any
information obtained in the state department probe
the new york times said officials in the state department investigative unit
the bureau of diplomatic security had made the immunity offer even though they
lacked authority to do so
in january iraq government banned blackwater over the killings the us
state department subsequently refused to renew annual contracts for the company
which renamed itself xe
founder erik prince announced in march that he was stepping down as chief
executive by then however more allegations were surfacing about blackwater
activities in iraq
media reports in august suggested that the cia had hired the company in as
part of failed program to find and kill top al qaeda terrorists
and in november new york times report said executives at blackwater had
approved secret payments of about one million dollars to iraqi officials to
silence their criticism over the civilian killings
but on december us federal judge dismissed the charges against the five
accused guards
prosecutors had violated their rights by using incriminating statements made
under immunity during state department probe to build their case the judge
said
the iraqi government vowed to take its own measures to bring blackwater to
justice
suicide car bomb kills at pakistan volleyball game
peshawar pakistan jan afp
suicide bomber blew up car packed with explosives in the middle of crowd
gathered for volleyball game in northwest pakistan village on friday
killing at least people
it was the highest death toll from suspected militant strike since massive
car bomb on october killed people in crowded market in the northwestern
provincial capital peshawar
the latest bombing marked bloody start to for pakistan which has seen
surge in attacks blamed on taliban in recent months as islamist fighters avenge
military operations aimed at crushing their northwest strongholds
britain condemned the attack as horrific and vowed to work with islamabad to
tackle the threat posed by violent extremism
man detonated his vehicle as sports fans gathered at field to watch two
local teams face off at volleyball in the village of shah hasan khan in bannu
district which borders the taliban stronghold south waziristan
the villagers were watching the match between the two village teams when the
bomber rashly drove his double cabin pick up vehicle into them and blew it up
district police chief mohammad ayub khan told afp
at least people have died and more than were wounded he added
estimating the crowd at the game to number about
khan said that more than houses on both sides of the open ground where the
match was being played had collapsed
four paramilitary soldiers are also among the dead he added
ramzan bittani year old driver told afp by telephone from local
hospital that he had left the match to take call
as was listening saw huge blue and white spark followed by an ear
piercing blast when was able to figure out what had happened saw bodies
and smoke all around my hand was fractured he said
anwer khan student said that he had just stepped out of his house and he
saw black pick up speeding up towards the spectators
giant flame leaped towards the sky there was bright light everywhere just
like flash and then very huge blast shook everything two pellets hit my
forehead and blood started flowing khan said
district police chief khan said that women and children were pulled from the
rubble of nearby house that collapsed in the blast and said that the remote
area was struggling to cope with the scale of the attack
he blamed the bomb on islamist extremists who were the target of military
operation in bannu district last year
security has plummeted over the last two and half years in pakistan where
militant violence has killed more than people since july
the northwest has suffered the brunt of the militant campaign with suicide
bombings increasingly targeting civilians
the military is now locked in its most ambitious assault yet on taliban
strongholds in south waziristan sending troops into battle in the
district on the afghan border on october
washington however is urging pakistan to do more to also stamp out al qaeda
sanctuaries and dismantle havens of militants who cross the border and attack us
and nato troops stationed in afghanistan
on friday in north waziristan district missiles fired from us drone air craft
killed three suspected militants kilometres nine miles east of miranshah
the main district town close to the afghan border
us drone fired two missiles targeting vehicle and killing three
militants senior security official in the area told afp
the official requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the us strikes in
pakistan which have killed at least people since august and greatly
inflame anti american sentiment in the muslim nation
separate earlier us drone attack killed four militants in machikhel village
about kilometres east of miranshah
the region saw rise in us strikes last year after president barack obama took
office and established pakistan as front line in the war on al qaeda
foreign forces in afghanistan also rely on pakistan as transport route for
supplies and on friday gunmen ambushed two tankers travelling though the
southwestern province of baluchistan headed to nato troops
local police official mohammad ansar told afp that one of the trucks was badly
damaged by fire but no one was killed in the attack
also friday an anti taliban tribal leader and four others were killed in
roadside bomb in bajaur tribal district the latest in wave of attacks against
respected elders allied with the government against the extremists
french journalists abducted in afghanistan alive source
kabul jan afp
two french journalists kidnapped in eastern afghanistan this week are thought to
be alive and in good health source involved in efforts to free them said
friday
but the condition of three afghan assistants abducted with the journalists from
france public television broadcaster on wednesday was unclear the source told
afp from kabul
the two french journalists appear to be alive in good health and being well
treated said the source
suspected taliban militants snatched the journalists in the war torn country
around kilometres miles from the afghan capital according to french
journalist working with them
the kidnappers were yet to issue any claim of responsibility late friday more
than hours after the journalists disappeared
criminal groups and taliban insurgents have kidnapped several dozen foreigners
many of them journalists since the us led invasion ousted the taliban
regime in kabul sparking nine year insurgency
the journalists accompanied by their afghan translator and the translator
brother and cousin were kidnapped on the road between surobi and tagab their
french colleague told afp
she blamed the kidnapping on the taliban saying they had laid an ambush on the
road for the group in kapisa province
spokesman for local authorities in the province confirmed the kidnapping and
said french soldiers and afghan security forces had launched hunt
the journalists employer public broadcaster france televisions did not
formally confirm their abduction saying simply there had been no news from them
for hours
on assignment for channel france the team arrived wednesday morning in the
town of surobi to meet contact who agreed for them to continue on the road to
tagab
tennis nadal wins federer sinks in desert
abu dhabi jan afp
rafael nadal gets an early new year opportunity to avenge the worst defeat of
his career saturday when he tackles bitter rival robin soderling the man who
dumped him out of the french open
world number two nadal was defeated for the first time at roland garros in
where he was four time champion by the towering swede setback which sent his
season into downward injury hit spiral
nadal who also lost to soderling at the atp world tour finals in london gets
his chance for revenge when the two meet in the final of the capitala world
tennis championship an exhibition tournament here on saturday
soderling made the final by beating world number one roger federer
in his semi final on friday
very happy to be here in abu dhabi it the perfect place to prepare
for doha and the australian open said nadal who heads for the qatar open next
week before defending his title in melbourne
feel ok had the best five months of my career at the start of and
after that had few problems but anyway didn have bad results lost
in the semi finals in all the tournaments and made one final it impossible
to be per cent all the time
nadal who beat compatriot david ferrer in an all spanish semi final
is without an atp final since may with his second half of the season badly
affected by knee tendinitis and stomach strain
soderling achieved his first career win over federer having lost all previous
times they had met including in the roland garros final
federer said known robin for while and it was great to see his
incredible run at the french open think he really picked it up and it
great to see
it was obviously hard starting the year against him in rematch of roland
garros had fun though
alpine skiing fill heel make wengen return
paris jan afp
italians peter fill and werner heel will return to competition for the world cup
alpine skiing downhill race at wengen switzerland on january their team
said on friday
fill the world championship super silver medallist last year suffered
torn groin and stomach muscles during training in argentina at the end of august
and underwent surgery
twice on the world cup podium last season the year old heel suffered left
knee injury during the super at val gardena on december
blackwater chief hails ruling in iraq shooting case
washington jan afp
the ceo of the company formerly known as blackwater praised us judge
decision to dismiss charges against five of his firm security guards charged
with fatally shooting unarmed iraqis
the company supports the judge decision to dismiss the charges said joseph
yorio chairman and ceo of xe services which changed its name from blackwater
last year
from the beginning xe has stood behind the hundreds of brave men who put
themselves in harm way to protect american diplomats working in baghdad and
other combat zones in iraq he said
like the people they were protecting our xe professionals were working for
free safe and democratic iraq for the iraqi people read the statement
received by afp on friday
with this decision we feel we can move forward and continue to assist the
united states in its mission to help the people of iraq and afghanistan find
peaceful democratic future
yorio remarks came after federal judge dismissed criminal charges against
the security guards who were accused of having gone on shooting rampage in
heavily trafficked baghdad intersection in september
judge ricardo urbina without ruling on the merits of the case said prosecutors
had violated the defendants rights by using incriminating statements they had
made under an immunity deal with the us state department
the government used the defendants compelled statements to guide its charging
decisions to formulate its theory of the case to develop investigatory leads
and ultimately to obtain the indictment in the case urbina ruled
prosecutors engaged in reckless violation of the defendants constitutional
rights in building the case against the security workers who were to have
gone to trial in february
blackwater worldwide changed its name to xe pronounced zee in february
following what the company said was change of business focus
critics however suggested that the rebranding was an effort to polish an image
tarnished by an alleged culture of lawlessness and lack of accountability among
blackwater workers as they carried out their duties in iraq
base hit by afghan bombing key to us drone program report
washington jan afp
the us facility struck this week by suicide bomber in afghanistan was key
anti terror installation that oversaw vital drone program targeting al qaeda
and taliban on pakistan border news reports said friday
the suicide attack killed seven cia officers at forward operating base chapman
an installation that plays major role in choosing al qaeda and taliban targets
for strikes by the remote controlled aircraft according to the washington post
which cited former intelligence officials who have visited the facility
the post said base also is center for recruiting and debriefing informants
wednesday suicide attack was one of the deadliest blows ever against the cia
which said taliban bomber managed to penetrate the defenses of the forward
base detonating an explosives belt in room described as gym
the post wrote that forward operating base chapman is former afghan army
installation and was used jointly by american and afghan security forces during
their military campaign against the taliban beginning in
in recent years the base added an intelligence gathering function and had
housing compound for us intelligence officers it is physically separate from
the main us military base nearby forward operating base salerno the daily
wrote
intelligence experts said it was possible that the base let its guard down in
searching the bomber who may have been coveted as an informant
seven cia employees died and another six were wounded
it was the deadliest single incident for the cia since when eight agency
employees were believed to be among the dead when islamic militants bombed the
us marine barracks in beirut killing americans and french
the attack comes as the united states increasingly relies on the cia and other
covert forces to pursue strategic goals cia and special forces were at the
forefront of the us invasion of afghanistan after the september
attacks paving the way to overthrow the taliban extremist regime
more recently and controversially the cia has been operating unmanned
drones that target extremists in lawless areas of pakistan
iraq takes steps to bring blackwater to justice
baghdad jan afp
iraq said on friday it had begun taking steps to bring blackwater to justice
over the deaths of civilians in one of the bloodiest incidents
involving private security firm in the country
us court decision on thursday to drop charges against five blackwater security
guards accused of the deaths has unleashed anger in baghdad
human rights minister wejdan mikhail had told afp she was astonished by the
decision to dismiss the criminal charges against the guards
there was so much work done to prosecute these people and to take this case
into court and don understand why the judge took this decision she said
government spokesman ali al dabbagh said the iraqi government has started to
take the necessary measures to bring blackwater to justice for the killing of
iraqi citizens
he also called in his statement for the us justice department to appeal the
decision
asked later by state funded broadcaster al iraqiya what specific measures were
being taken he replied we will use all possible means and our relations with
the united states to prosecute the criminals from this company because real
crime has been committed
the iraqi government has put all of its institutions to work we will not
forget the victims blood
earlier dabbagh said an iraqi investigation had shown that the guards were
responsible for the deaths of the civilians
us federal judge ricardo urbina dismissed the charges against the five saying
prosecutors violated their rights by using incriminating statements they had
made under immunity during state department probe
the case was among the most sensational that sought to hold blackwater employees
accountable for what was seen as culture of lawlessness and lack of
accountability as the company operated in iraq
the guards who had been part of convoy of armoured vehicles had been charged
with killing unarmed iraqi civilians and wounding others during an
unprovoked attack at busy baghdad roundabout using guns and grenades
iraq says people were killed
one of them has said what happened in nisur square how they killed innocent
iraqi people that were just in their cars without any weapons mikhail said
am very astonished and am waiting for the us embassy to give me the judge
decision in full
what happened was very bad because so many innocent iraqi people young
students were shot by someone who liked to shoot unarmed people
mikhail said she requested meeting with us embassy officials in baghdad the
embassy did not immediately confirm that the meeting would take place or if it
did who it would involve
the judge ruling was welcomed by blackwater chief executive joseph yorio who
said the company supports the judge decision to dismiss the charges
from the beginning xe blackwater has stood behind the hundreds of brave men
who put themselves in harm way to protect american diplomats working in
baghdad and other combat zones in iraq
the firm renamed itself xe after the iraqi government banned it last january
over the killings
foreign security teams in iraq long operated in legal grey area but under
military accord signed with washington in november baghdad won
concession to lift the immunity to prosecution previously extended to us
security contractors
ordinary iraqis expressed anger at urbina ruling
dropping the charges against those guards disrespects the lives of the
innocents who were killed said abu uday university professor who did not
want to give his first name
blackwater ended its operations in iraq in may after the us state department
refused to renew annual its contracts
headquartered in north carolina blackwater was one of the largest security
firms operating in iraq with about staff and had been employed to protect
us government personnel since the invasion
dead in suicide bomb at pakistan volleyball game police
peshawar pakistan jan afp
at least people were killed and more than wounded friday when suicide
car bomber blew himself up as people gathered to watch volleyball game in
northwest pakistan police said
at least people have died and more than were wounded district police
chief mohammad ayub khan told afp
he said that it was suicide car bomb that caused the devastation in shah hasan
khan village in troubled bannu district using more than kilograms of
explosives
khan said that more than houses on both sides of the open ground where the
match was being played had collapsed
four paramilitary soldiers are also among the dead he added
britain condemns horrific attack in pakistan
london jan afp
britain condemned the horrific attack at pakistan volleyball game on friday
that killed at least people and vowed to work with islamabad to tackle the
threat posed by violent extremism
we condemn this horrific attack that has led to the needless loss of so many
lives our thoughts are with the families of those who have lost their lives or
who have been injured foreign office spokesman said
we will continue to work with pakistan to counter the threat that it faces from
violent extremism
it is threat that the international community must help pakistan to tackle
in the interests both of pakistan people and of wider stability
suicide bomber blew up car packed with explosives in the middle of crowd
gathered for volleyball game in northwest pakistan village on friday
killing at least people and wounding more than according to police
it marked bloody start to for pakistan which has seen surge in attacks
blamed on taliban militants in recent months as islamist fighters avenge
military operations aimed at crushing their northwest strongholds
urgent dead in suicide bomb at pakistan volleyball game police
peshawar pakistan jan afp
at least people were killed and more than wounded friday when suicide
car bomber blew himself up as people gathered to watch volleyball game in
northwest pakistan police said
football rangers urged keep boyd as celtic challenge looms
glasgow jan afp
rangers midfielder steven davis has urged his club to ensure in form striker
kris boyd in contract talks remains at ibrox beyond the january transfer
window
boyd is on hot streak having scored five goals in the midweek crushing of
dundee united performance which saw him surpass former celtic star henrik
larsson as the all time top goalscorer in the scottish premier league
last year boyd was set to join birmingham and more recently he has been linked
with newcastle trabzonspor and kayserspor in turkey and french club sochaux
from the players point of view we think it vital that we keep hold of him
said davis
don think there are many players who can guarantee you goals plus
season and boydy done that since ve been here
think he probably one of the most lethal finishers around and obviously
we re desperate to keep him here
rangers visit city rivals celtic in this season second old firm derby at
parkhead on sunday in game tony mowbray side can afford to lose
win for rangers would see them open ten point lead over the hoops at the top
of the scottish premier league albeit celtic have played game less as the
season reaches the half way stage
boyd has netted just one goal against celtic in his career so far but davis
added the way he playing if we can create the chances for him then nine
times out of he ll score hopefully he can do that at parkhead for us
but the gers will be missing boyd strike partner kenny miller after he lost
his appeal thursday against straight red card on wednesday
kenny been playing magnificently for us and he been one of our best players
on the run we ve been on and managed to get amongst the goals as well said
davis
so he ll be big miss for us it gives the manager little headache somebody
else will come in and hopefully do job for us
manager walter smith says that boyd form means he is likely to start for the
first time in match at parkhead since the former returned to the club two
years ago
right at the present moment the team is doing extremely well and don
envisage situation where you would go along there and play without him
aiding boyd case is the fact that nacho novo and sasa papac are suffering from
sickness bug and madjid bougherra is off to the african nations cup with
