money and jobs to cajole taliban fighters into laying down arms
will be making statement at the conference in london to the effect of
removing taliban names from the un sanctions list karzai told reporters in
istanbul
the idea had previously met resistance but as we are talking today there is
more willingness that this can be reconsidered he said
white house spokesman robert gibbs noted that top us generals david petraeus and
stanley mcchrystal had drawn parallels between afghanistan and reconciliation
schemes that had worked with factions in iraq
gibbs did not comment in detail on karzai plan
but he said washington was open to similar path to what happened in iraq
provided that whoever this is accepts the afghan constitution renounces
violence and publicly breaks with groups that advocate violence
that think what people expect under the notion of reconciliation
karzai wants to bring low and mid level fighters into mainstream society to end
the gruelling insurgency but the leadership of islamist insurgent groups active
in the battered country is hostile to negotiations
mcchrystal the nato military commander in afghanistan has voiced support for
negotiated peace
as soldier my personal feeling is that there been enough fighting us
general stanley mcchrystal said in an interview with britain financial times
published monday
believe that political solution to all conflicts is the inevitable outcome
and it the right outcome
the white house has several times brought up the tactics of then us iraq
commander petraeus who worked with local sunni leaders fed up with al qaeda
after the iraq war troop surge
karzai was in istanbul for talks with pakistani president asif ali zardari on
monday to be following by meeting with leaders of his country neighbors on
tuesday
under plan announced by us president barack obama in december extra us
troops will be in afghanistan this year on top of more than already
there before they begin withdrawing in july
karzai will fly on to berlin and then london where the conference will focus on
corruption security good governance and reconciliation with the taliban
balkan states to share crime intelligence report
belgrade jan afp
six balkan countries have agreed to improve intelligence sharing in the fight
against organised crime the beta news agency reported on monday
prosecutors from albania bosnia hercegovina croatia macedonia montenegro and
serbia signed deal in rome following meeting organised by the european
union
this agreement allows us to share documents intelligence and evidence more
quickly and efficiently in criminal cases the serbian prosecutor spokesman
tomo zoric told beta on monday
the western balkans is key route for the trafficking of drugs and people into
western europe and the eu has made tackling these trades priority for
countries in the region hoping to join the nation bloc
us backs afghan vote delay
washington jan afp
the united states on monday voiced support for afghanistan decision to delay
parliamentary elections saying it was most important that the vote be conducted
well
this was an afghan decision think we support that decision state
department crowley told reporters
the fact that it takes little bit more time gives us time to make sure the
security will be appropriate for that and that the electoral bodies can make
sure that it is an effective election he said
afghanistan independent election commission on sunday postponed the vote for
four months in the face of spiraling taliban insurgency and lack of funds
that world powers feared would undermine the democratic process
us president barack obama has ordered thousands more troops to afghanistan in
renewed drive to root out islamic extremism and bring stability to the nation
that was home to al qaeda during the september attacks
the administration is haunted by last year presidential election in which
president hamid karzai was re elected despite widespread allegations of vote
rigging and high profile us effort that persuaded him to call run off
us will not back away from internet freedom push
washington jan afp
the united states said monday it will not back away from an internet freedom
push that has raised hackles in china amid dispute between beijing and web
giant google over cyberattacks
we are aware that china has different position with respect to restricting
information state department spokesman philip crowley said
we think this is inconsistent with the information environment and
prerequisites of the st century crowley told reporters
so we will continue to promote the free flow of information unfettered access
to information the ability to have virtual freedom of association
these are all we believe fundamental tenets of the environment that we live
in and we will not back away from advocating that this should be something that
all countries should promote crowley said
the spokesman also recalled that us secretary of state hillary clinton delivered
major policy speech on internet freedom last week in which she talked about
being able to surf the internet without restrictions
beijing lashed out at clinton speech last week saying it was harmful to
relations and chinese spokesman on monday denied any state involvement in the
cyberattacks which google said originated in china
the internet giant has said that following the cyberattacks on the email
accounts of chinese human rights activists it is no longer willing to censor web
search results in china even it that means it has to leave the country
spokesman for china ministry of industry and information technology said
monday that the accusation that the chinese government participated in any
cyberattack either in an explicit or inexplicit way is groundless and aims to
denigrate china
china policy on internet safety is transparent and consistent the spokesman
told state news agency xinhua saying the country with the world largest
online community was itself the biggest victim of hacking
the white house said last week that president barack obama was troubled by the
chinese based cyberattacks on google and other us companies and was seeking
official answers
the google row which erupted almost two weeks ago has threatened to damage
sino us ties which are already dogged by trade and currency issues us arms
sales to taiwan and climate change
cold snap kills in eastern europe
bucharest jan afp
more than people have died this week as eastern and central europe battles
siberian cold snap that has cut power and roads disrupted air travel and
stranded whole villages officials said monday
snow has blanketed swathes of western turkey bulgaria and romania with lows of
minus degrees celsius minus fahrenheit while poland has again been
gripped by deep freeze that has killed more than in the country since
november
an ice and snow front moved monday into germany causing the cancellation of more
than flights out of frankfurt airport europe third biggest
international air hub according to the airport management company
in bulgaria schools remained closed on monday in many eastern towns while
rescuers fought their way through four metre feet high snowdrifts to bring
bread and other necessities to cut off villages
temperatures plummeted to minus degrees celsius in central romania where
roads were cut and dozens of trains cancelled
twenty two people have died across romania since the start of the cold snap five
days ago the health ministry said
most of them were elderly homeless people junior minister raed arafat said
on realitatea tv channel
with no let up in view before wednesday authorities are struggling to get
thousands of homeless people into shelters
in turkey five people died after fierce snowstorm caused power outages at the
weekend in istanbul while further west near the greek and bulgarian borders
villages and major roads were blocked by snow
snow was expected to reach up to centimetres inches in some parts of
istanbul city of million according to the natural disaster coordination
centre
in bulgaria three people died at the weekend as officials recorded minus
degrees celsius in the northern town of glavinitza and monday was set to be the
coldest day so far this winter
in poland temperatures as low as minus celsius claimed lives over the
weekend police said monday taking the toll since november to
most of the victims were homeless men aged to under the influence of
alcohol who refused to stay at shelters for the homeless police spokeswoman
kamila szala said
this winter death toll is tragic despite constant police warnings and aid
to people at risk she added
police believe alcohol also played part in the death of year old boy who
suffered hypothermia near his village home in glowienka south east poland
we know that kamil was drinking alcohol saturday with his year old brother
and year cousin who both went home to alert parents police spokesman
told afp
the parents alerted the police sunday morning when it was already too late
weather forecasters have predicted more severe sub zero temperatures across
poland in the coming days
and eastern germany was bracing monday for night time lows of minus degrees
celsius in winter that has already killed homeless people across the
country according to national shelter group
iraq hangs chemical ali saddam cousin and henchman
baghdad jan afp
saddam hussein notorious cousin and henchman chemical ali was executed on
monday just days after he was sentenced to death for the gassing of
thousands of kurds crime that shocked the world
ali hassan al majid was better known by his macabre nickname and as the king of
spades in the pack of cards of most wanted iraqis issued by the us military in
and will forever be associated with mass killings
he was executed by hanging until death government spokesman ali al dabbagh
said the execution happened without any violations shouting or cries of joy
in sharp contrast to saddam death on the gallows he added
state television later aired two still photographs of majid showing him wearing
an orange red jumpsuit and the first of which clearly displayed his face
the second picture showed him on platform with black hood over his head and
with two men wearing balaclavas standing on either side
the execution which was welcomed by kurdish victims came as three massive car
bombs targeting hotels rocked central baghdad killing at least people and
wounding in an apparently coordinated but as yet unclaimed attack
majid was sentenced to death on january for ordering the gassing of kurds in
the northeastern town of halabja which killed an estimated people and was
one of the worst crimes committed by saddam iron fisted regime
was happy to see the news of the execution on television said kamal
abdelkadir who lost his parents five sisters and brother in the atrocity
and who continues to require medical treatment for his injuries
fadhel rifat who now lives in sulaimaniyah the eponymous kurdish province
in which halabja is situated was also just young boy at the time of the
attack
my father and many relatives died because of chemical ali he said am
happy that he is dead
three quarters of the victims at halabja whose crumpled bodies were shown in
television broadcasts to an appalled world were women and children in what is
thought to have been the deadliest ever gas attack against civilians
his conviction for the gas attack that came as the iran iraq war drew to
close was the fourth time that majid who was arrested in august had
received death sentence
handing down the ruling judge abud mustapha al hamani branded majid offences
as deliberate murder crime against humanity when the verdict was delivered
amid muffled applause in the courtroom
prime minister nuri al maliki said majid execution was warranted as he was
one of the worst henchmen of the former regime who committed heinous crimes
against the iraqi people
his name is associated with the mass graves that fill iraqi land from north to
south maliki said this turns another dark page in the genocide repression
and crimes against humanity committed by saddam and his agents
majid execution had previously been held up by legal wrangling it had first
been due to be carried out by october but was delayed so as not to coincide
with the muslim holy month of ramadan
saddam majid close cousin was himself hanged in december for the
killing of shiite villagers after an attempt on his life in
in contrast with majid hanging however footage of that execution posted on
the internet showed shouts of applause and barracking of the dictator both
before and as he died
majid earned his moniker for ordering poisonous gas attacks in brutal
scorched earth campaign of bombings and mass deportations that killed an
estimated kurds in the
he had already been sentenced to hang for genocide over the kurdish offensives
when in december he received second death sentence for war crimes
committed during the ill fated shiite uprising in southern iraq
last march the iraqi high tribunal handed down third death sentence over the
murders of dozens of shiites in the sadr city district of baghdad and in
the central shrine city of najaf
majid orchestrated the halabja attack when in march iraqi jets swooped
over the small town and for five hours sprayed it with deadly cocktail of
mustard gas and the nerve agents tabun sarin and vx
considered saddam right hand man and bearing strong resemblance to the
former dictator he was member of the decision making revolutionary command
council and was regularly called upon to crush rebellion
two other saddam cohorts former defence minister sultan hashim al tai and ex
army deputy operations chief hussein rashid al tikriti were ordered to hang
for the brutal offensives known as anfal but they remain in custody
presumed dead as ethiopian plane crashes off lebanon
beirut jan afp
rescuers found bodies but no survivors on monday in massive search operation
launched after an ethiopian airliner with people on board plunged flaming
into the sea off lebanon
ethiopian airlines flight lost contact with beirut airport shortly after
takeoff at am gmt and crashed into the mediterranean nautical
miles off the coastal town of naameh south of the airport in stormy weather
three minutes after takeoff the control tower lost contact with the aircraft
the cause of the crash is as yet unknown but intensive search efforts are still
under way information minister tarek mitri told reporters
he ruled out foul play
all those involved say there is nothing that indicates an act of sabotage he
said echoing comments by president michel sleiman and defence minister elias
murr who said it appeared the storm was to blame
by late afternoon at least bodies had been recovered including that of
three year old rescue officials said
red cross volunteers transported bodies and some body parts to the state
hospital
one rescue official told afp that some victims had been dismembered
the bodies found were apparently of passengers who did not have their seat
belts on and who floated to the surface he said on condition of anonymity
divers are working to recover the bodies of those who had their seat belts on
and sank to the bottom of the sea
at the hospital where anguished family members awaited news grim faced
officials played down hopes of anyone being found alive
we do hope but it unlikely health minister mohammed jawad khalifeh told
reporters he said the ministry had set up crisis unit to identify victims
through dna tests or personal belongings
luggage and debris from the boeing which had been bound for addis ababa
washed up south of beirut during the day
empty seats gift wrapped children toys and even coffee machine from the
plane were found near the airport an afp correspondent said adding that
soldiers were dragging metal pieces of debris along the shoreline
witnesses reported seeing flames as the plane plunged into the sea in huge
ball of fire
relatives of passengers some weeping uncontrollably huddled at beirut
airport vip lounge and at the state hospital to await news
sleiman prime minister saad hariri parliament speaker nabih berri and
ministers and deputies rushed to comfort them
we are working with all the power we have to try and find missing people from
this tragedy hariri said from the airport we are working to find the black
box that will tell us what really happened on the plane
later he chaired an emergency meeting with officials including murr khalifeh
army commander jean kahwaji and police chief ashraf rifi
the lebanese army navy the united nations interim force in lebanon unifil
and aircraft from france britain cyprus and the united states were all
assisting in rescue efforts officials said
an american destroyer the uss ramage which specialises in rescue operations
arrived on site at pm gmt us embassy spokesman said
the ethiopian news agency in addis ababa said ethiopian airlines sent team to
beirut to investigate the crash
officials said passengers and seven crew members were aboard the doomed
flight
the passengers included lebanese ethiopians one french woman one
briton one iraqi one syrian one turk and another of as yet undetermined
nationality
the french passenger was identified as marla sanchez pietton wife of paris
ambassador to lebanon denis pietton the french embassy told afp
three lebanese passengers had dual nationality from britain canada and russia
thousands of ethiopians are employed as domestic workers in lebanon and
ethiopian airlines operates regular service between addis ababa and beirut
the boeing entered commercial service in and is one of the latest
versions of the world most widely used short to medium haul airliner capable
of carrying passengers
ethiopian airlines established in and operating an all boeing fleet is
considered one of africa best carriers
however it has had two major crashes since in november flight
was hijacked between addis ababa and nairobi by three ethiopians seeking
political asylum
it crashed into the indian ocean off the comoros when it ran out of fuel
killing of the people on board
nigeria restricts troops amid muslim christian clashes
kaduna nigeria jan afp
nigeria restricted troop movements monday to avoid soldiers being dragged into
muslim christian clashes as local said around more bodies had been
recovered some of them decapitated
with tensions running high in the central plateau state after last week
bloodshed police said they had arrested more than people suspected of
role in the four days of violence
the authorities have not issued death toll but figures from medical and aid
workers religious and community leaders and human rights watch put the number
of dead at more than
the head of the armed forces lieutenant general abdulrahman danbazzau said
troops were ordered to remain at their postings and only travel with permission
to avoid attempts to pull the army into the violence
we are aware of the fact that there is tension in the country he told
reporters in abuja we also got intelligence information that some people are
trying to infiltrate our ranks he said
generally we want to ensure that we control the movement of troops to protect
them against people who will try to take advantage of them and to protect the
system danbazzau said
the soldiers also needed to be available for security operations he said
troops were deployed last week to help restore order after the clashes which
erupted in the central city of jos on sunday last week but spread to
neighbouring villages and towns
the chief of defence staff air marshal paul dike also warned members of the
armed forces to steer clear of politics
meddling in political issues does not complement our constitutional role in any
way shape or form dike said
nigeria africa most populous country has only been under civilian rule for
years since first military coup in
the head of muslim team of volunteers burying bodies from the violence told
afp meanwhile that more bodies had been retrieved from two villages near jos
some of them have been decapitated dismembered and the body parts hoisted on
stakes mohammed shittu told an afp reporter in the northern city of kaduna
locals said last week that at least bodies were recovered from wells
human rights watch hrw relying on the reports from muslim leaders told afp
that most of those killed were muslims
the police in plateau state said monday they had rounded up people suspected
of part in the inter religious violence
state police spokesman mohammed lerama could not immediately say what they would
be charged with
some of those arrested over the last few days were moved to the federal capital
abuja police and government sources said
vice president goodluck jonathan pledged last week that the ringleaders of the
violence would be brought to justice no matter how highly placed
jonathan has reacted angrily to the outburst of violence which has flared
before in jos with about people killed in religious clashes in the city in
late
the latest violence which erupted on january has seen around people
flee their homes with buildings and cars torched and attackers reported to have
been armed machetes as well as guns
plateau state governor jonah jang former senior air force officer held
meeting on sunday with religious leaders to find way to end the flashes of
unrest
nigeria million strong population is divided almost equally between
followers of islam and christianity
caracas police dispel students protesting tv station closures
caracas jan afp
venezuelan police on monday used truncheons and tear gas to disperse scores of
students protesting government shutdown of six television stations including
one opposed to president hugo chavez government
the students who had blocked access to roads near the university vowed not to
be dissuaded from taking to the streets to express their displeasure over the
new rules
we won be deterred regardless of what the government does said roderick
navarro student leader form the central university of venezuela one day after
the closure of the stations
the government ordered the closure of the television stations on sunday for
refusing to broadcast chavez speeches as required under law passed in
december
under the new measure every television or radio station whose programming is at
least percent venezuelan made is considered national media outlet
the measure requires among other mandates that national media outlets air
speeches by chavez and other top officials as well as government announcements
but chavez critics view many of those speeches which can last for hours as
government propaganda
in addition to the opposition station rctv the dropped channels include ritmo
son momentum america tv american network and tv chile
journalism and human rights groups have expressed concern over the muzzling of
press freedoms and have called for peaceful protests against the law
officials in caracas said the government would be willing to reverse the
shutdown of rctv if it reverses its opposition to the law and totally revamps
its programming over the next few months
the blackout rankled venezuelans who missed sunday much anticipated final game
of local baseball championship
oil prices rebound after selloff
new york jan afp
oil prices rebounded monday after last week selloff lifted by shift in
market sentiment boosted by rising wall street stocks and weaker dollar
new york main futures contract light sweet crude for delivery in march
climbed cents to close at dollars barrel
in london brent north sea crude for march delivery gained cents to settle at
dollars
oil is little bit oversold and there little bit of natural resistance
around dollars said independent analyst ellis eckland
under pressure in opening trade the benchmark new york futures contract briefly
dipped as low as dollars before climbing during the remainder of the
session
stocks stopped going down people are more comfortable in buying eckland
added
slight weakening of the dollar also supported prices by making dollar priced
oil relatively cheaper for buyers using stronger currencies
there were no fundamental reasons for prices going down the last couple of
days and for the rebound today the market is being driven strictly off
currencies and the stock market eckland said
the barrel had lost dollars over the wednesday through friday period as
investors mulled abundant us petroleum inventories china moves to cool rapid
economic growth and us president barack obama plans to limit the banking
sector
we believe the current range is the most comfortable for this quarter with
sustained movements upwards more likely to result in the second quarter said
amrita sen at barclays capital noting the range was between and dollars
investors also kept an eye on large crude oil spill at port arthur that has
shut down parts of the major southeast texas port
the spill occurred early saturday after tanker and harbor vessel collided
the coast guard said
powers to back truce with taliban commanders us envoy
washington jan afp
world powers meeting in london this week will back plans for truce with local
taliban commanders in afghanistan provided the fighters renounce al qaeda us
envoy richard holbrooke said monday
the special us envoy for afghanistan and pakistan said nations meeting in
london on thursday would back kabul proposal to set up reintegration fund to
persuade taliban fighters to lay down arms
the reintegration program that president hamid karzai is announcing and the
international community will support is an opportunity for people fighting at
the local commander level to stop fighting come in from the cold and rejoin
afghan society if they renounce al qaeda he said
the proposals come as the united states and other allies aim for an eventual
withdrawal from afghanistan after eight years of battling brutal islamist
insurgency
but holbrooke who was speaking during debate to be broadcast on german ard
television angrily denied accusations that washington was ready to negotiate
terms with the taliban in order to end the bloody war
reintegration is not negotiation with the taliban leadership he said
his comments came as us general stanley mcchrystal the nato military commander
in afghanistan also voiced support for negotiated peace
as soldier my personal feeling is that there been enough fighting us
general stanley mcchrystal said in an interview with britain financial times
published monday
under plan announced by us president barack obama in december us
troops are to be deployed in afghanistan this year in addition to more than
already there before us forces begin withdrawing in july
nba crittenton gets probation for guilty plea on gun charge
washington jan afp
washington wizards guard javaris crittenton was sentenced to one year of
probation and fined dollars after pleading guilty on monday to
misdemeanor gun possession charge in plea agreement
the charge came in connection with locker room incident last month involving
nba teammate gilbert arenas who faces sentencing next month after pleading
guilty to felony weapons charge
district of columbia superior court judge bruce beaudin passed the sentence on
crittenton year old nba reserve after prosecutors dropped second
misdemeanor charge and suggested only probation in exchange for guilty plea
crittenton had been charged with unlawful firearm possession and attempting to
carry pistol without license which each carry maximum punishment of one
year in jail
mr crittenton who was years old at the time of this incident has never
before been arrested or charged with any crime and with today misdemeanor plea
to possession of an unregistered firearm accepts responsibility for his
conduct said peter white crittenton attorney
he looks forward to explaining his actions to the nba and returning to the
basketball court as soon as possible
the move comes days after arenas pleaded guilty to felony gun charge in
plea deal arenas was indefinitely suspended by the nba and will be sentenced
march
prosecutors agreed not to seek more than six months in jail for arenas in
exchange for his guilty plea
the charges stem from december locker room incident involving arenas that
was rooted in dispute over gambling debts during an airplane flight in which
crittenton and arenas joked about how they would attack each other crittenton
saying he would shoot arenas in the knees
two days later arenas brought four guns into team the locker room and put
them on chair near crittenton locker with note saying pick one in what
he later called joke
prosecutors said crittenton told arenas he did not need any of his guns and then
brandished one of his own
mr crittenton brought lawfully owned unloaded handgun into washington only
because he legitimately feared for his life white said in his statement
the government proffer of facts acknowledges that his handgun was not loaded
and that he never threatened anyone with it
the gun was legally purchased but bringing it into the district even for self
defense violated the city strict gun control laws
police searched crittenton home earlier this month but did not find gun or
seize any evidence
crittenton who has not played this season because of injuries is set to become
free agent after the season
haiti reconstruction may take decade donors say
montreal jan afp
rebuilding haiti out of the ruins left by massive earthquake could take at
least decade canadian prime minister stephen harper warned monday as donors
began to map out long term strategy
it was not an exaggeration to say that at least years of hard work awaits
the world in haiti harper said as international leaders gathered in the wake
of the magnitude quake which ravaged the caribbean nation
we must work to ensure that every resource committed every relief worker
every vehicle every dollar is used as effectively as possible
he urged donors to start drawing up the beginning of plan that will guide
reconstruction in haiti in way that is effective coordinated and strategic
for the decade to come
haitian prime minister jean max bellerive earlier said his nation needed help
for what he called this colossal work of reconstruction
in seconds we lost nearly percent of our gross domestic product because
all of haiti resources were concentrated in small area around our seat of
government he said
