strauss said there was no reason to be concerned about england poor record at
newlands where they have lost three successive tests against the host nation
generally the players haven been involved in the previous defeats here
the only player who was involved in the last newlands test the guys have no
fear of playing at newlands
instead of worrying about their past record england were looking forward to
playing at newlands where tickets have been sold in advance including
many to travelling england supporters
newlands test match is one of the great occasions strauss said it
usually result wicket so there are lot of reasons to be switched on and
ready
bomb kills civilians in southwest afghanistan official
herat afghanistan jan afp
five civilians were killed and six wounded when their pick up truck detonated an
improvised explosive device in southwestern afghanistan the governor of nimroz
province told afp saturday
the attack was carried out by the taliban in the district of bakwan farah
province said governor ghulan dastagir azad whose province borders farah
the area where the attack took place is on the border between farah and nimroz
he said both provinces are under taliban influence
he said the blast occurred as the victims tried to travel to market regularly
targeted by taliban racketeering
civilians have become the main victims of the afghan war in the first months
of civilians were killed in the conflict percent more than over
the same period in the previous year according to the united nations mission in
afghanistan
nearly percent of those killed died in attacks carried out by the insurgents
according to the un
luge world cup results
konigsee germany jan afp
results here on saturday in the fifth leg of the luge world cup
women
tatjana fner ger
natalie geisenberger ger
stefanie sieger ger
anke wischnewski ger
erin hamlin usa
overall standings after five of the eight legs
tatjana fner ger points
natalie geisenberger ger
anke wischnewski ger
erin hamlin usa
corina martini ger
oldest san francisco quake survivor dies report
san francisco jan afp
the woman believed to be the oldest survivor of the devastating san
francisco fire and earthquake has died at the age of newspaper reported
on saturday
jeanette scola trapani died last monday the san francisco chronicle said
citing her daughter dolores legge the newspaper said trapani had been
suffering from pneumonia and illnesses related to her old age
legge said that although her mother was only four years old at the time of the
earthquake she had clear memories of the disaster the paper noted
she vividly remembered the terrible smell of the smoke from the burning city
and how she and her family had to live in tent in the presidio the chronicle
quoted legge as saying referring to former army post
the quake is seen as one of the united states worst natural disasters
cricket ntini decision sensitive admits smith
cape town jan afp
south african captain graeme smith acknowledged on saturday that decision on
whether to drop veteran fast bowler makhaya ntini for sunday third test
against england at newlands went beyond purely cricketing issues
ntini the only black african in the south african team is under fire after
taking only two wickets in the first two tests
he had figures of none for in his team innings defeat in the second test
in durban and there have been calls for him to be replaced by friedel de wet
who took four wickets as england slipped close to defeat in the first test in
centurion
smith echoed coach mickey arthur in saying that the selectors faced tough
decision he said he wouldn be part of the decision
as far as know the selection process is that mickey will have the final call
on the eleven said smith
the selectors pick the squads have an input but since ve been captain
haven had vote on the selection
smith said he expected to have final team by saturday evening after meeting
between arthur and the selectors but said the eleven would only be announced
shortly before play on sunday
asked whether dropping ntini would be sensitive issue smith said it
sensitive issue in south africa that being honest
makhaya is an icon to the country he not only the most iconic player of
colour we ve had he also been one of the most iconic cricketers in terms of
performance over the last decade
smith indicated that the struggles of ntini who has taken wickets in
tests presented challenges for the team management
when senior players are at the point where lot of questions are being asked
about them it always tough time for leadership group to manage
we ve always tried to support makhaya as much as we can behind the scenes and
he been working hard on his game let hope there some confidence left in
him for the future
smith said it was crucial match for his team who are one nil down in the
four match series but said the situation was not greatly different to what they
had faced in the past
look over the last period of time we ve had many many important test
matches he said
you can afford to take any for granted obviously in this series with us
being one down this is crucial match but we play and prepare for each test
match the same we re ready for tomorrow
we were outplayed in durban we are honest about that we ve had look in the
mirror we ve trained well prepared well and it ground we ve got lot of
confidence on
history is on south africa side they have won of the most recent tests
at newlands and have come back from deficits twice in the past three seasons
to win home series against india and the west indies in
but smith admitted that south africa had slipped from the high standards they
set when they won away series against england and australia in
he said an emphasis on limited overs cricket with view to this year world
twenty and next year world cup had resulted in changes in personnel and
shift in focus
it difficult to put your finger on the little thing that is missing he
said
as team the style of play hasn changed maybe players haven produced the
level of performance that we have over those previous two years it
important that we get back to that starting tomorrow
yemen rebels say ready to talk if war stops
dubai jan afp
shiite rebels battling government forces in north yemen told afp on saturday
they are ready for talks with sanaa once the government declares definitive
end to hostilities against them
when the war stops we will be ready for dialogue mohammed abdelsalam told afp
in dubai by telephone adding that he was reacting to an appeal from president
ali abdullah saleh
in an article published on friday to mark the new year saleh appealed for
reason from the insurgents
he urged the zaidi rebels also known as huthis to agree to the conditions laid
down by the government for return to peace saying they should cease
hostilities withdraw from official buildings and respect the law
if these elements accept this plea for peace the state will offer the hand of
peace he wrote in the government daily al thawra
abdelsalam said today we favourably welcome the proposal of the president of
the republic to renew dialogue which we view as positive gesture and step
toward peace and the re establishment of security and stability
saleh also called on the rebels to end their incursions into saudi arabia
saudi forces entered the fray on november after the rebels protesting against
alleged saudi backing for sanaa killed saudi border guard and occupied two
small villages inside saudi territory the previous day
abdelsalam said the rebels had never sought to attack saudi territory and were
simply acting to rebel saudi aggression against yemeni territory
last week the rebels offered to withdraw from saudi positions if riyadh stopped
attacking them but the saudis ignored them
sanaa has been engaged in sporadic fighting with the rebels since
on august government forces launched operation scorched earth an
all out offensive to stamp out the uprising among the zaidis minority in
mainly sunni yemen but the majority group in the northern mountains
the rebels complain of being marginalised and oppressed by the government which
accuses them of seeking to reinstate form of clerical rule that ended in
republican coup in the rebels deny the claim
aid agencies estimate that the violence has caused people in northern
yemen to flee their homes in the five years since the fighting first broke out
the conflict with northern rebels is just one issue threatening the stability of
the country
on other fronts al qaeda has been moving to make yemen one of the poorest
countries on earth base for its activities
long standing concerns about that were highlighted on christmas day when
nigerian man allegedly trained in yemen was charged with trying to blow up us
airliner
umar farouk abdulmutallab reportedly confessed to being trained by an al qaeda
bomb maker in yemen to blow up the plane as it came in to land in detroit
yemen is also troubled by separatist movement in the south
south yemen was an independent nation from the british departure until
when north and south united
the south seceded in may sparking short lived civil war that ended with
northern troops invading the region
afghan parliament starts vote on karzai nominees
kabul jan afp
afghanistan parliament saturday began voting on president hamid karzai
cabinet nominees nearing the end of long process that should fill the
political vacuum with government officials said
parliamentarians began casting secret ballots for ministerial portfolios
with the results expected to be announced late saturday parliamentary spokesman
hasib noori told afp
all ministers will be voted for today he said the result is expected to
be announced after finishing the counting by six clock today then the cabinet
will be approved today
the position of foreign minister the th cabinet post will not be filled
until after the london conference set for january which will be attended by
outgoing incumbent rangin dadfar spanta he said
the timetable for swearing in the new cabinet is up to the president
spokesman said but he could give no indication of when that might be
karzai was announced the winner of the august presidential election poll
which was later proved to have been riddled with corruption he was inaugurated
in november
the political vacuum that followed the poll dragged on for more than four
months amid pressure from the international community to ensure ministers are
competent and as clean as possible given afghanistan prevailing corruption
international graft watchdog transparency international has said afghanistan is
the second most corrupt country in the world after somalia
diplomats have expressed overall satisfaction with karzai choices for his
cabinet as he has left some respected officials in place and limited the number
of warlords who backed him in the poll
it cabinet we can work with one senior western diplomat said
the international community maintains troops in afghanistan under us and
nato command battling an increasingly deadly taliban insurgency with the toll
of foreign soldiers surpassing in compared with for
facing threats of losing support from his backers karzai used the cabinet list
as evidence of his commitment to fighting corruption
the cabinet list includes many old faces who have won approval from the
international community as well as two warlords some former ministers making
return to public office and few new faces
each nominee must receive vote of confidence from parliament before being
confirmed in the post
afghanistan western allies made it clear that the billions of dollars in
military and development assistance that pour into afghanistan will depend on
concrete action being taken against corruption
karzai has long relied on warlords to prop up his fragile government but aides
say he has recognised the need to appease the west to stay in power and bring
some momentum to the development of the poverty stricken country
warlord ismail khan has been nominated energy minister powerful post seen as
reward for delivering substantial votes in the august ballot
the most notorious warlords abdul rashid dostum and mohammad mohaqiq leaders
of two minority ethnic groups who supported karzai in the election and were
expected to be rewarded with high office were not nominated
western military source said they were likely to receive lower profile but
still influential rewards for aiding karzai re election
the lack of substantial change in the cabinet line up meant the government would
continue to be as dysfunctional as it has been for the past several years
said haroun mir director of afghanistan centre for research and policy
studies
don see how this government could become effective and improve with same
people remaining in key positions he said
the biggest issue right now is that the government as whole has no agenda we
don know what are the priorities for president karzai or any of his cabinet
don see any sign of improvement he said
sports handball henry still fan favourite
paris jan afp
thierry henry notorious handball offence against ireland has done little to
diminish his popularity among french sports fans
the barcelona striker placed third in equipe annual poll of the nation
favourite sportsmen and women behind rugby player sebastien chabal and world
rally champion sebastien loeb
that did represent fall in his popularity from november when he topped
the poll but the furore that followed the irish game could have been expected
to hit him harder
henry set up the crucial extra time winner for the french in paris playoff
game when the referee missed what was blatant hand ball
he was widely criticised round the world for his action and world governing body
fifa has put him under investigation although he is fully expected to be part
of the french world cup squad in south africa
chabal rise to the top follows his return from english club rugby to play for
paris side racing metro in the top elite division and his performances for
the national xv
greek policemen suspended over beating of chilean
athens jan afp
five greek policemen were suspended on saturday after chilean man detained for
alleged weapons possession was tortured and beaten in an athens police cell
officials said
on new year eve foreign prisoner was turned into punching bag by inhuman
and unprincipled police officers citizen protection minister michalis
chrysohoidis said in statement
chrysohoidis said the year old chilean man had been tortured and beaten
separate police statement said the detainee was hospitalised with serious
injuries to his torso and limbs after being punched kicked and struck with
baton by two cell guards
two other policemen who witnessed the incident failed to intervene and their
supervising officer improperly filed the incident as an attempted escape
police investigation found
the chilean was assaulted after pushing guard who struck him when he asked for
assistance to use an inoperable cellphone the police said
he had been arrested in athens on december after allegedly threatening
another man with steel blade the police said and was detained pending his
deportation
the new greek socialist government elected in october has pledged to crack down
on cases of police brutality that mainly target immigrants and which in the past
have rarely resulted in punishment for errant officers
dead after suicide car bomb in pakistan
peshawar pakistan jan afp
investigators sifted through rubble saturday after suicide car bomber
detonated his explosive filled vehicle in crowd watching volleyball game in
northwest pakistan killing at least
friday bombing marked bloody start to for pakistan which has seen
surge in attacks blamed on the taliban in recent months as islamist fighters
avenge military operations aimed at crushing their northwestern strongholds
the huge blast in the village of shah hasan khan in bannu district bordering
the taliban stronghold of waziristan was pakistan deadliest in more than two
months
it caused the collapse of more than houses some with families inside
in islamabad prime minister yousuf raza gilani denounced the attack and said
the authorities were determined to stamp out terrorism
the entire nation is against terrorists he told reporters their agenda is
foreign their agenda is to destabilise the government deteriorate law and
order and create fear and panic
we have the ability and resolve to eliminate terrorists he said adding that
help would come from the international community
in shah hasan khan local resident riaz ahmad said that pieces of human
flash and dried blood could still be seen on the ground and people were sifting
through rubble searching for dead and injured
the bomber drove pick up vehicle packed with some kilograms of explosives
onto the site of the volleyball match and detonated his lethal cargo
five more people died overnight in the government main hospital in lakki
marwat town raising the death toll to district police chief mohammad ayub
khan told afp blaming militants who were targeted in military operation in
bannu last year
six children and five paramilitary soldiers were among the dead
khan said three member team had been formed to investigate
collective funerals for victims were held in the village while others were
being buried individually local police spokesman shahid hameed told afp
the volleyball tournament was organised by peace committee which had supported
government operation to expel militants from the area
it was the highest death toll from suspected militant strike since massive
car bomb on october killed people in crowded market in peshawar the
northwestern provincial capital
ramzan bittani year old driver told afp that he had left the match to
take call
as was listening saw huge blue and white flash 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 when
he saw the black pick up speeding up towards the spectators
giant flame leapt 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
many of the injured complained about facilities at the lakki marwat hospital
there are no medicines and bedding available and the government should take
note of the situation taj alam labourer with shoulder injury told afp
he said that locals had brought beds from their houses for the injured
security has plummeted over the past two and half years in pakistan where
militant violence has killed more than people since july
elsewhere militants blew up two boys schools and health centre in the bajaur
tribal region late on friday officials said
local taliban commander ehsanullah gandapur and his four companions were
killed in an exchange of fire with troops in kolachi village kilometres
miles west of the northwestern town of dera ismail khan on friday
gandapur and his companions opened fire on an army patrol but got killed when
the troops returned the fire local police official iqbal marwat told afp
obama blames al qaeda affiliate for airliner attack
honolulu hawaii jan afp
us president barack obama saturday for the first time accused an al qaeda
affiliate of arming and training young nigerian man for thwarted suicide
mission to blow up us airliner
obama in his weekly radio and video address promised to hold the group al
qaeda in the arabian peninsula to account for the attack declaring the united
states was at war with far reaching network of violence and hatred
the president vacation in his home state of hawaii has been interrupted by the
ramifications of the failed attack on northwest jet heading for detroit on
christmas day
obama has reviewed preliminary results of probes he has ordered into the attack
and said details were becoming clear about the year old nigerian suspect umar
farouk abdulmutallab
we know that he traveled to yemen country grappling with crushing poverty
and deadly insurgencies obama said in his address posted on the white house
website early saturday
it appears that he joined an affiliate of al qaeda and that this group al
qaeda in the arabian peninsula trained him equipped him with those explosives
and directed him to attack that plane headed for america
previously us officials have not said publicly that the northwest attack was
the work of al qaeda though had noted there was linkage with the terror
group
the arabian peninsula franchise of al qaeda had on monday claimed the failed
december bombing of jet in statement picked up by us monitors
abdulmutallab is accused of trying to blow up the plane as it approached detroit
on flight from amsterdam by setting off explosives stitched into his
underwear the attempt failed when he was stopped by passengers
obama said that because of past attacks by the al qaeda affiliate he had even
before the christmas day attempt stepped up us cooperation with insurgency
scarred yemen
training camps have been struck leaders eliminated plots disrupted he said
in the address
and all those involved in the attempted act of terrorism on christmas must
know you too will be held to account
obama also put the northwest attack in the context of the wider threat from
terrorism following complaints from some republicans that he has not adopted
the war on terrorism formulation of his predecessor george bush
he noted that it was almost year since he came to office and delivered his
inaugural address
on that day also made it very clear our nation is at war against far
reaching network of violence and hatred and that we will do whatever it takes
to defeat them and defend our country even as we uphold the values that have
always distinguished america among nations
on thursday the us director of national intelligence dennis blair warned his
staff that al qaeda attacks were sure to get more cunning
in between recreational activities with his family and friends on friday obama
consulted top national security advisors to discuss two reviews of the thwarted
bid to bomb the jet
he spoke to national security council chief of staff denis mcdonough and his top
anti terror advisor john brennan white house official said on condition of
anonymity
angered by how narrowly tragedy was averted in country still scarred by the
september attacks obama was to spend the weekend poring over the
preliminary reports of two probes he demanded into the christmas day attack
the president plans to meet heads of intelligence agencies and relevant
government departments tuesday in washington to discuss the findings
obama has ordered one assessment of the no fly list system and separate probe
into how abdulmutallab sneaked an explosive device past security at amsterdam
airport onto plane bound for the united states
as the focus of the west is trained on alleged terror havens in yemen british
prime minister gordon brown called an international meeting friday on combating
extremism in the country
brown office said the meeting would take place in london on january
running in parallel with conference on afghanistan which is expected to be
attended by senior ministers or leaders from about nations
on saturday yemen welcomed the initiative it step in the right direction
that will mobilise international support for yemeni development and its efforts
to battle unemployment and the effects of poverty the saba news agency quoted
an official yemeni spokesman as saying
british flagged ship hijacked off somalia sofia
sofia jan afp
british flagged cargo ship with crew including eight bulgarians has been
hijacked miles kilometres off somalia the bulgarian foreign
ministry announced saturday
the asian glory which was hijacked on friday evening was transporting cars
from singapore to jeddah in saudi arabia
as well as the bulgarians including the ship captain the crew includes
ukrainians romanians and indians according to zodiac shipping which hired the
bulgarians
british foreign office spokesman told afp in london on saturday that there
are no british nationals on board the asian glory
we will be in touch or have been in touch with the asian glory management
company and we will keep in regular contact with them and offer support wherever
possible the spokesman added
five other bulgarians were among the crew from nine different countries on the
st james park british flagged chemical tanker which was seized on monday in
the gulf of aden en route from spain to thailand
that ship is now on the somali coast and the crew have been able to telephone
their families foreign ministry spokesman dragovest goranov said
they are in good health and they have food and water he said without
indicating whether ransom had been demanded
suspect in mohammed cartoonist attack remains in hospital
copenhagen jan afp
suspect shot by police after trying to kill danish cartoonist over his
drawing of the prophet mohammed was in hospital saturday but authorities
planned to charge him with attempted murder
he will be charged for two murder attempts on cartoonist kurt westergaard
and on police officer east jutland police superintendent ole mabsen told
afp
the somali suspect accused of carrying out the attack at westergaard home
late friday would be charged later saturday he said the year old who lives
in denmark had not been identified
police said they shot and wounded the intruder as he threatened them with an axe
and knife
he is in the hospital at the moment mabsen said he will be taken into court
in the afternoon where we will ask the judge to bring him into custody
the somali national had terrorist intent and was close to the radical somali
shebab movement and leaders of al qaeda in east africa the internal security
service pet said in statement
westergaard has received several death threats since danish newspaper five
years ago published his drawing featuring mohammed wearing turban in the shape
of bomb
he was at his home with five year old granddaughter when the intruder tried to
get in
locked myself in our safe room and alerted the police he tried to smash the
entrance door with an axe but he didn manage westergaard told danish
news agency ritzau
he used insults don remember which but it was bad language he spoke poor
danish and he wound up saying he be back said the badly shaken cartoonist
bent preben nielsen chief police inspector for east jutland told afp that
police fired at the aggressor who was threatening them with an axe and knife
hitting him in the hip and the right hand
the suspect injuries were not believed to be life threatening
pet said in its statement the attempted murder of cartoonist kurt westergaard
is linked to terrorism the person arrested has close links with the somali
terrorist organisation al shebab as well as with the heads of al qaeda in east
africa
he is also suspected of being implicated in terrorist activities when he was in
east africa the individual arrested has also been member of terrorist
network implanted in denmark that has been under surveillance by pet for long
time
westergaard is one of cartoonists whose drawings focused on islam were first
published in danish newspaper jyllands posten in september
the cartoons were considered offensive by many muslims and their publication
sparked violent protests worldwide in january and february
two tunisians were arrested in denmark in on suspicion of planning to
murder westergaard and later released without trial after they appealed
government order for their expulsion on national security grounds
demonstrators burned danish flags in protests that culminated in february
with the torching of danish diplomatic offices in damascus and beirut and dozens
of deaths in nigeria libya and pakistan
internet hackers last april attacked website run by denmark free press
society selling prints of westergaard controversial cartoon the group
director lars hedegaard said
despite the hacking hedegaard said close to of the signed prints
had been sold over half of them to foreign buyers for dollars apiece
denmark muslims make up percent of the population and are the
country second largest religious community after the state run lutheran
church
football totti keen on world cup spot
rome jan afp
italian veteran francesco totti has declared himself ready to play for his
country in the world cup if coach marcello lippi asks him to do so
if lippi comes calling and if am in good form and the squad needs me will
go and think that will please the younger ones the roma striker told the
repubblica newspaper
totti played under lippi in italy world cup triumph and he said that he
had great respect for the coach
the year old who has played with roma since resisting all big money
attempts to lure him away said that he felt he could play for further five
years during which he wanted to win another italian league title with the club
california governor promises budget and tax reform
los angeles jan afp
california governor arnold schwarzenegger says he is planning to undertake
budget and tax reform this year to give the state more solid and reliable
source of revenue
will talk more about this in my state of the state but the bottom line is
our budget and tax systems are the root of lot of our state fiscal
problems schwarzenegger said friday in his new year radio address
over the last months california faced billion dollar deficit and
percent unemployment rate
the governor said the deficits have led to painful spending cuts and tax
increases which hold the economy back from its full potential
so this year we must finally find the will to fix them and to give california
more solid more reliable source of revenues schwarzenegger said as we
embark on this new year have great hopes for california
