in neighboring afghanistan us led soldiers were on alert after two militant
attacks claimed the lives of eight americans and five canadians while two
french journalists were reported kidnapped by taliban
for cyprus new year eve was the last chance to smoke in pubs clubs and cafes
with new anti smoking law in force from january
and in south africa president jacob zuma used his new year message to rally for
unity for the football world cup the first ever to be held in africa
new year eve also presented the world with blue moon the name for
second full moon in one single month for only the second time in nearly two
decades
obama to examine probes into foiled plane attack
honolulu hawaii dec afp
president barack obama planned to ring in the new year by plowing through
initial probes into the botched bombing of us plane after slamming systemic
intelligence failures
the top us intelligence official dennis blair meanwhile delivered sobering
warning that future attacks would be harder to stop as al qaeda deepens its
knowledge of us defense systems and how to get past them
obama angered by how narrowly tragedy was averted in country still scarred by
the september attacks said he was expecting to receive two reports on
reviews he demanded into the christmas day attack later in the day
he went to see the hollywood blockbuster avatar with his children and friends
and then played golf thursday but aides said he would make an in depth study of
the reports in the evening
after reviewing the assessments over the weekend the president plans to meet
heads of intelligence agencies and government departments next week to discuss
the findings after returning from vacation in hawaii
on tuesday in washington will meet personally with relevant agency heads to
discuss our ongoing reviews as well as security enhancements and intelligence
sharing improvements in our homeland security and counter terrorism operations
obama said in statement
the president spoke earlier thursday about the two reviews with homeland
security secretary janet napolitano and his top counterterrorism advisor john
brennan
obama has ordered one assessment of the no fly list system and separate probe
into how suspect umar farouk abdulmutallab sneaked an explosive device past
security at amsterdam airport onto plane bound for the united states
intelligence itself and the collection thereof is always going to be difficult
and is not always going to result in complete information and he understands
that senior us official said on condition of anonymity
but by the same token when we do have good information the failure to
share that information is not going to be tolerated
obama has been receiving regular updates on the probes and issues related to the
attack on paper and online and officials and us agencies were working overtime
to plug gaps in the us aviation security system
it heck of happy new year the official said
blair the director of national intelligence told his staff in letter on
thursday that the fight against al qaeda which has claimed the christmas day
attack was about to get even tougher
what concerns me most now is not only stopping the types of attacks of the
past but also anticipating and stopping the different more cunning attacks of
the future he said
al qaeda and its affiliate organizations as well as individual suicide
terrorists have observed our defenses and are designing future attacks to
circumvent them
these attacks will be even harder to uncover interpret and stop
blair also referenced obama scathing assessment of intelligence failures ahead
of the attack
this is tough message for us to receive but we have received it and now we
must move forward and respond as team he said
blair vowed his office would review what mistakes were made and said have
no doubt in our ability to close the gaps that these attacks exposed
we are an adaptive learning organization we can and must outthink outwork
and defeat the enemy new ideas he said
an official traveling with obama in hawaii said that he did not see the message
before it was released
in another development napolitano said she would send senior deputies to meet
officials in charge of airport security in asia europe africa the middle east
and south america
we are looking not only at our own processes but also beyond our borders to
ensure effective aviation security measures are in place for us bound flights
napolitano said
nigeria said thursday that abdulmutallab had started his journey in ghana and
transited through lagos before connecting with the northwest flight in
amsterdam
he is accused of trying to blow up the plane as it approached detroit by setting
off explosives stitched into his underwear the attempt failed when he was
stopped by passengers
according to the washington post and the new york times electronic
communications intercepted from yemen by the national security agency had warned
that an unidentified nigerian was training for an al qaeda mission
other communications spoke of plans for christmas day attack
pakistanis and afghans arrested in china heroin bust report
hong kong jan afp
two pakistanis and two afghans could face the death penalty in china following
their arrest in major heroin bust report said friday days after briton
convicted on drugs charges was executed
the four whose nationalities had hitherto not been revealed were among nine
people arrested after the police in september uncovered about kilograms
pounds of heroin stuffed inside cotton bales in shenzhen the south china
morning post reported
the case was the biggest heroin haul in the southern chinese city and
authorities there believed the drugs were intended for the local market the
newspaper said citing an unnamed local government worker familiar with the
case
it also highlighted how china has turned from the biggest transition point into
major primary market for drugs as the society becomes more affluent and demand
for illicit goods increases
in the drugs were often produced in the golden triangle myanmar
thailand and laos and smuggled via mainland china to hong kong where they
could fetch high prices the source told the newspaper
this has since changed since most heroin has been flowing in from
afghanistan it is often sold in big mainland cities not just guangzhou
shenzhen or shanghai but also urumqi chongqing or chengdu the source said
the case came to light after the execution of briton akmal shaikh on
tuesday sparked diplomatic row between beijing and london which accused china
of ignoring evidence that shaikh was mentally ill and duped into smuggling for
criminal gang
shaikh was arrested two years ago in china far west xinjiang region after
customs officials found four kilograms of heroin in his bags
china regularly executes drug smugglers but shaikh was the first european
national to receive the death penalty in china in more than years according
to london based charity reprieve
south korean cargo vessel capsizes off philippines police
manila jan afp
south korean cargo vessel capsized off the coast of the northern philippine
island of luzon but all crewmen survived the ordeal police said friday
the nam yang which was loaded with magnetite went down off the coast of
aparri in cagayan province hours after it left port thursday night provincial
police chief roberto damian said
the south korean crew managed to save themselves by deploying life boat after
abandoning the ship
they reached the shores of nearby claveria town friday morning damian said in
report to manila headquarters that was released to the media
all crew members were in good health except for one who was injured by the
ship propeller damian said
the ship captain jon ki ung told local officials the vessel listed to its
left side because of its unbalanced cargo
he did not say where the boat was headed with the magnetite magnetic material
commonly used in the manufacture of steel magnets paints ink and cosmetics
sea accidents are common in the philippines where corruption has for years
allowed ship operators to skirt maritime safety laws
at least six people were killed and dozens more believed missing after the mv
baleno ferry sank off the coast of batangas province south of manila on
december
on christmas eve another philippine ferry the wooden hulled catalyn collided
with fishing vessel and sank in manila bay on christmas eve leaving four dead
and missing according to the manifest
china manufacturing activity expands in december
beijing jan afp
china manufacturing activity expanded for the th straight month in december
as the recovery in the world third largest economy continued to gather pace
official data showed friday
the china manufacturing pmi or purchasing managers index rose to percent
in december from in november the china federation of logistics and
purchasing said in statement on its website
reading above means the sector is expanding while reading below
indicates an overall decline
the rising index suggests the chinese economy has further consolidated its
recovery researcher zhang liqun said in the statement
but pullback in new export orders in december suggested china key trading
partners were still suffering from the impact of the financial crisis zhang
said
new export orders slipped one point to in december from the previous month
the data showed
it is too early to be optimistic about the recovery in the global market
zhang said
china export driven economy is expected to easily exceed the government oft
stated target of eight percent growth in mainly as result of massive
stimulus spending to combat the crisis
the nation economy expanded by percent in the third quarter up from
percent in the second quarter and percent in the first three months
in manufacturing accounted for more than percent of economic output in
china which has been hit hard by evaporating demand for its products in key
export markets such as the united states and europe
hsbc is due to release its china manufacturing pmi on monday
china manufacturing activity expands in december
beijing jan afp
china manufacturing activity expanded for the th straight month in december
as the recovery in the world third largest economy continued to gather pace
official data showed friday
the china manufacturing pmi or purchasing managers index rose to percent
in december from in november the china federation of logistics and
purchasing said in statement on its website
reading above means the sector is expanding while reading below
indicates an overall decline
the rising index suggests the chinese economy has further consolidated its
recovery researcher zhang liqun said in the statement
but pullback in new export orders in december suggested china key trading
partners were still suffering from the impact of the financial crisis zhang
said
new export orders slipped one point to percent in december from the
previous month the data showed
it is too early to be optimistic about the recovery in the global market
zhang said
china export driven economy is expected to easily exceed the government oft
stated target of eight percent growth in mainly as result of massive
stimulus spending to combat the crisis
the nation economy expanded by percent in the third quarter up from
percent in the second quarter and percent in the first three months
in manufacturing accounted for more than percent of economic output in
china which has been hit hard by evaporating demand for its products in key
export markets such as the united states and europe
hsbc is due to release its china manufacturing pmi on monday
japan population sees sharpest fall since world war ii
tokyo jan afp
japan population fell by an estimated people in the biggest fall
since world war ii amid soaring elderly welfare costs according to data
released friday
the welfare ministry estimated japanese citizens were born in on
japanese soil while died
it marked the third straight year of population decline for japan whose seniors
enjoy increased life expectancy while many young people continue to defer
starting family because of the burden on their lifestyles and careers
the trend has created demographic crisis where rapidly ageing population has
increased financial pressure on the welfare system which is in turn being
supported by smaller working population
new york crowd cheers in amid high security
new york dec afp
huge crowd crammed under tight security into new york times square to
witness the traditional midnight drop of the new year crystal ball and the first
seconds of
revelers watched by worldwide live tv audience shrugged off snow and rain to
attend the massive annual gathering in the heart of manhattan
the descent of the multi colored waterford crystal ball marked the final moments
of in more than century old tradition before ton of confetti showered
on the cheering crowd
partygoers on the square exchanged kisses whooped and swayed to the rhythm of
feel good patriotic and classic songs as fireworks from central park lit up the
manhattan skyline
for the security services however this was no time to relax
new york is on heightened state of alert following the christmas day alleged
attempt by nigerian man to detonate explosives on northwest airlines plane
flying to detroit
thousands of police officers were deployed in and around times square backed by
undercover officers surveillance cameras rooftop snipers and devices able to
detect radiation or biological agents
partygoers crowding into times square were not allowed to carry backpacks or
alcohol and were banned from reentering the zone once they left
jitters increased wednesday when police sent bomb disposal experts to check
van parked for two days in times square the van was declared all clear shortly
after but not before police had evacuated the area including the nasdaq stock
market building
city police commissioner ray kelly told cbs television thursday that the failure
to detect the van earlier was concern but kelly insisted that times square
was the safest area in the city
there will be big uniformed presence and lots of unseen officers in plain
clothes radiation sensors police spokesman paul browne said on fox
television it probably the most protected real estate in the city or even
the country for that matter
new york state governor david paterson and governor jon corzine of neighboring
new jersey announced their respective police agencies would step up cooperation
while there have been no known threats in the region both governors agreed
that extra security measures should be taken as precaution they said in
statement thursday
the ball which slides down pole for seconds and stops at exactly midnight
is favorite new york tradition and is watched live on television by viewers
all around the world
mayor michael bloomberg who will be sworn in for third term on friday after
narrow reelection victory in november pressed the button that sets the ball in
motion
this year the arrangement of crystals featured ribbon pattern in celtic
style knot illustrating the theme chosen by organizers let there be courage
elsewhere in the city the opulent tavern on the green in central park staged
its last dinner before bankruptcy while at madison square garden pop star
mariah carey sang the new decade in
the good news for security is that is on course to see new york lowest
murder rate since data was collected with homicides compared to high of
in
us missiles kills three militants in pakistan officials
miranshah pakistan jan afp
at least three militants were killed friday in the second us missile strike in
as many days targeting pakistan wild tribal region of north waziristan
officials said
the morning attack by drone aircraft struck suspected militant hideout in
ghundikala village kilometres nine miles east of miranshah the main town
of north waziristan and 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 identity of militants is not known yet it is also not clear whether any
high value target was present in the area when the attack took place
another security official confirmed the strike and the casualties both
officials requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the us strikes in
pakistan which have inflamed anti american sentiment
it was not clear which group was targeted with north waziristan rife with
taliban militants al qaeda fighters and members of the haqqani network
powerful group known for staging attacks on foreign troops in afghanistan
the bombing comes the morning after similar us drone attack killed four
militants machikhel village about kilometres east of miranshah
the region has seen rise in us strikes which fan anti americanism in the
nuclear armed muslim country since us president barack obama took office and
put the country on the frontline of the war on al qaeda
his administration is pressuring islamabad to crack down not only the pakistani
taliban but also al qaeda fighters and militants who cross the border and
attack us and nato forces stationed in afghanistan
north waziristan neighbours south waziristan where pakistan has been focusing
its most ambitious offensive yet against homegrown taliban militants sending
about troops into the region on october
dead hundreds hurt in philippine new year revelry
manila jan afp
at least five people were killed and about others were injured in
traditional riotous new year eve revelry involving fireworks and guns across
the philippines officials said friday
five year old boy and his mother were killed after being trapped inside the
family owned pyrotechnics store that went up in flames just hours before
midnight thursday in gingoog city on southern mindanao island police said
the inferno started when the boy father and uncle tested firecracker inside
the store setting off chain reaction police said
the boy was sleeping inside the store and his mother rushed into the flames in
failed bid to save him while store helper also perished police said
in zamboanga city also on mindanao another two revelers were killed and five
others injured when footbridge collapsed as they converged to watch
pyrotechnics show minutes before midnight police said
elsewhere in the philippines another people were injured by firecrackers
and by stray bullets health secretary francisco duque said
thirty six cases or six percent had blast burn injuries that needed
amputation of mangled fingers or limbs duque told news conference
he said this year new year eve injuries were less than when people
were wounded by firecrackers and by stray bullets
he said the lower firecracker related injuries may be attributed to the
government scare tactics
these included television advertisements that showed gruesome images of severely
mangled limbs and tray of surgical instruments used in the amputation of
limb
making noise by exploding firecrackers and firing guns into the air are common
ways of greeting the new year in this southeast asian nation of million
people
the philippines is mainly roman catholic but the celebrations draw on ancient
superstitions and chinese traditions in which the noise is meant to drive away
evil spirits and bring good luck in the coming year
adding to the danger of the fireworks there are over million unlicensed
firearms in the philippines and some of those are used in the festivities
japan emperor offers sympathy for public money woes
tokyo jan afp
japanese emperor akihito used his new year statement on friday to express
sympathy with those caught up in the effects of japan worst recession in
decades
last year many people faced hardships due to the continuing severe economic
conditions and my heart goes out to them the year old emperor said in an
english language edition of his new year thoughts
in this new year that we are greeting hope that everyone will help one
another and support each other to overcome the challenges they are facing
in japan economy spiralled downwards forcing employers to cut jobs as
consumers kept tight grip on their purse strings
japan royal family is set to cost taxpayers around billion yen
million dollars in the financial year to march
figure for the family personal wealth was not readily available
us missile strike kills two militants in pakistan officials
miranshah pakistan jan afp
at least two militants were killed friday in the second us missile strike in as
many days targeting insurgents in pakistan tribal region of north waziristan
security officials said
the attack by drone aircraft took place at am gmt in ghundikhel
village kilometres nine miles east of miranshah the main town of north
waziristan which borders afghanistan
us drone fired two missiles targeting vehicle and killing two militants
senior security official in the area told afp gt
another security official also confirmed the strike and the casualties
urgent us missile strike kills two militants in pakistan officials
miranshah pakistan jan afp
at least two militants were killed friday in the second us missile strike in as
many days targeting insurgents in pakistan tribal region of north waziristan
security officials said
alert
us drone missile strike kills two militants in nw pakistan officials
nba spurs close out year by crushing heat
san antonio texas dec afp
tim duncan scored points and grabbed rebounds thursday as san antonio
launched their new year celebrations with nba victory over miami
argentina manu ginobili added points for the spurs who have won of
their last
but miami were the first vanquished opponents in that stretch with winning
record fact that tempered spurs coach gregg popovich enthusiasm for the
accomplishment
the last time the spurs had beaten team with winning record was november
against houston since then they had faltered against division leaders boston
and denver and fallen to utah phoenix and portland
prior to the game popovich indicated he was not quite as impressed with the
streak as he might have been had it come against higher caliber competition
if all nine recent wins were against cleveland orlando phoenix or the
lakers be pretty impressed with us popovich said before the game but
that not the case hence not quite as impressed
but he couldn argue with his team performance on thursday as they handed
the heat their most humiliating loss this season
michael beasley scored and dwyane wade had before watching the blowout
from the bench in the fourth they were the only miami players to score in
double figures
miami made just field goals in the second half
we couldn get anything to go for us wade said they played exceptionally
well normally with team when we get down we can make run but we just
couldn do it tonight
they throttled us heat coach erik spoelstra said we got what we deserved
tonight very disappointing loss
duncan poured in points in the first quarter and the spurs barely needed him
after leading at halftime
he shot of from the field as the spurs rolled to their biggest victory
margin of the season
france tony parker had points and rookie dejuan blair had for the spurs
ginobili said the victory was sign the spurs were moving in the right
direction
believe that we ve got lot to improve to really become contenders and be
respected as one of the best teams in the league ginobili said we re not
that steady so far this season but we re on the right track
nba collison free throws lift thunder over jazz
oklahoma city oklahoma dec afp
kevin durant scored points but it was nick collison free throws with
seconds left that sealed oklahoma city nba victory over utah on
thursday
collison came up with the ball after durant missed jump shot and was fouled by
paul millsap
collison who had missed three of his previous four free throws made both as
the thunder notched their first five game winning streak in more than four
years
ronnie price missed pointer at the final buzzer for the jazz who got
final surge from deron williams to pull ahead before collison game winning
free throws
carlos boozer scored points and mehmet okur had points and rebounds
for utah williams scored of his points in the last five minutes
including three point play in the final minute that gave the jazz the lead
durant surpassed points for the sixth straight game tying club record set
by spencer haywood in january
the victory gave the thunder an record the same as the jazz at this time
last year their new year eve victory over golden state was only their fourth
of the season
the thunder franchise which relocated from seattle to oklahoma city before last
season hadn won five in row since march
taiwan leader vows not to seek independence
taipei jan afp
taiwan president ma ying jeou on friday renewed his pledge not to seek formal
independence for the island and to work towards improving ties with former rival
china
at the present stage any radical political choice whether it be unification or
independence would trigger serious confrontation and turbulence ma said in
his new year address
insist on maintaining the situation of no unification no independence no
use of force to promote cross strait exchanges and cooperation for peaceful
developments in the taiwan strait he said
taiwan and china have been governed separately since but china still views
the self ruled island as part of its territory awaiting reunification by force
if necessary
ties were strained under ma predecessor chen shui bian who often angered
beijing with his policies pushing for the island independence from china but
have improved since ma took office in
taiwan is keen to sign sweeping trade pact known as the economic cooperation
framework agreement ecfa with china to help boost its export dependent
economy
ma stressed that taiwan needs the pact amid stronger international competition
after china and countries in the association of southeast asian nations asean
bloc established the world biggest free trade area friday
ma said he hoped any pact with china would include clause to lower tariffs on
taiwanese exports to china so that we will not be marginalised in the export
market
taiwan government says the pact which calls for the removal of barriers to
ensure the smooth flow of goods and personnel between them could lift economic
growth by one percentage point
but the opposition warns that it would cost million jobs and imperil the
island separate status
snowboarding america pearce injured in training
park city utah dec afp
american snowboarder kevin pearce was injured thursday while training in the
halfpipe at park city mountain resort us snowboarding said
brief statement issued by the federation said pearce had been taken to the
university of utah medical center in salt lake city for treatment
media reports said pearce suffered serious head injury when he hit his head on
the halfpipe while attempting trick
the new york times citing pearce mother pia reported that doctors planned
to perform procdure to relieve fluid buildup in pearce brain
the year old was training for olympic qualifying events in mammoth mountain
california next week
pearce is among the few riders who have beaten olympic gold medallist shaun
white in head to head competition in recent years and was among the favorites to
make the us team for the vancouver games
football japan getting more serious about world cup dream
tokyo jan afp
japan national football coach takeshi okada says growing number of his
players share his ambitious goal of semi final spot in this year world cup
honestly am surprised myself he told reporters when asked if the number of
his players who are seriously aiming for top four finish in south africa
had risen
the players have ups and downs and they can flinch when they hit the wall so
can say how many on constant basis okada said in the interview embargoed
for release on new year day
but have feeling that the number was just few this time last year and has
since exceeded and then he said
his target has been snubbed as unrealistic because japan have not won world
cup match on foreign soil since okada guided them to their finals debut at
france in his first stint as national coach
they came home after three straight losses at the group stage
securing just one point at the group stage in south africa is widely seen as
tall order for japan who are pitted against the netherlands cameroon and
denmark all of them ranked above the three time asian champions
japan best world cup result was last round spot in the tournament
which they co hosted with south korea who finished fourth
at germany japan bowed out after losing to brazil and australia and
drawing with croatia
okada who took over from bosnian ivica osim in late said he had been
asked in an interview with football governing body fifa about the source of
his confidence
it is not only me but also my players and staff who feel that we can make it
the bespectacled year old said that tour of the netherlands last september
had boosted his blue samurai squad
during the tour japan came out fighting in their first ever encounter with
world number three the netherlands but eventually lost they also battled
from behind to beat the highly physical ghana
that tour has made clear to us what we need to do to survive the battles
okada said
japan squad features midfield led by shunsuke nakamura who has struggled to
earn playing time at espanyol after moving from celtic last june
their firepower is expected to be fuelled by year old catania striker
takayuki morimoto who made his international debut in october and goal machine
