urgent football togolese team fired on in angola injuries report
paris jan afp
several togolese footballers in angola for the african nations cup were
injured some seriously when their team bus was fired on french infosport
television reported friday
alert
football togolese team bus fired on in angola injuries french tv
canada largest newspaper chain for sale
ottawa jan afp
one of the world largest media firms canwest global filed for bankruptcy
protection on friday for its canadian publishing group as it tries to sell its
websites dailies and community newspapers
the winnipeg based company television operations and its flagship national
post newspaper were put under court protection several months ago when
advertising revenues dropped in dour economy
however canwest newspaper division and dozens of its websites had been
operating outside of this creditor protection
in statement the company said its creditors had agreed to take over the
newspaper group unless buyer comes forward with better offer
rbc capital markets has been asked to oversee the sale and search for buyer
tennis atp chennai open results
chennai india jan afp
results from the fifth day of the dollar atp chennai open tennis
tournament here on friday denotes seeding
quarter finals
stanislas wawrinka swi bt michael berrer ger
gm puts saab put into liquidation despite new bids
stockholm jan afp
general motors loss making unit saab was put into liquidation friday despite
last ditch bids for the iconic swedish brand by formula one boss bernie
ecclestone and dutch sportscar maker spyker among others
the us auto giant confirmed the swedish brand closure friday saying it had
selected consulting firm alixpartners to supervise the orderly wind down of
saab
the wind down process is expected to take several months and will ensure that
employees dealers and suppliers are adequately protected the company said
gm also said it had received several proposals for saab and is continuing to
evaluate these proposals this evaluation is not affected by the appointment of
alixpartners
the head of sweden influential if metall union stefan loefven blasted gm for
moving to close the company at the same time as it is evaluating bids for the
loss making brand
it is irresponsible of gm as an owner to go in two directions both pursuing
the sale of saab and the winding up loefven said
several groups including dutch sportscar maker spyker and one comprised of
formula one boss bernie ecclestone and luxembourg investment firm said they
presented gm with last ditch bids to rescue saab
swedish media also reported friday swedish group was interested in acquiring
saab and scaling down its operations to build to cars year
in the last year for which figures are available saab sold cars
worldwide
it is unintelligible and irresponsible to start the wind down now without
reviewing the serious bids that have been placed for saab loefven said
gm decision is not in line with the signals we have received from the company
about its sincere intentions of wanting to sell saab and seriously reviewing
incoming bids he added
gm europe spokesman stefan weinmann explained to afp on friday that his
company was going ahead with the closure of saab but at the same time
considering any new bids
essentially the two processes will continue in parallel we will look at
the proposals and analyse them and see whether we can find good solution for
everybody he said
gm actions regarding the saab sale which it put on the block year ago have
been repeatedly criticised by the swedish government and saab unions with
questions arising over whether the us giant really intended to sell the unit
we will see what we can do in order to if possible contribute to positive
sale of saab joeran haegglund swedish enterprise ministry state secretary
told swedish news agency tt on friday
he will be heading swedish delegation travelling to detroit on saturday to
hold talks early next week with officials from gm and ford which is in the
process of selling its swedish unit volvo to chinese carmaker geely
saab employs people in sweden and is one of four storied brands being shed
by gm as part of massive restructuring effort that began in and
accelerated last year when the largest us automaker went bankrupt
analysts have warned that some jobs could be lost with saab closure
the swedish brand which has been owned by gm for two decades has been on the
verge of extinction since gm said on december it would wind down saab citing
failed talks with spyker
guinean opposition lays down its own terms for talks
dakar jan afp
guinea opposition on friday welcomed an offer from interim junta chief general
sekouba konate to end the west african country political crisis but laid down
terms of its own
one of guinea main opposition leaders cellou dalein diallo welcomed the
speech of appeasement konate made on wednesday but pointed out that he had
taken no account of the major demands of the opposition
this is speech of appeasement that constitutes an opportunity to relaunch the
dialogue between the forces vives coalition of opposition groups trade
unions and civil society and the authorities said diallo the leader of the
union of democratic forces for guinea speaking by telephone from paris
nevertheless the major demands of the opposition have not been taken into
account in this speech diallo added after meeting in paris with five other
members of guinea opposition
we need first to agree on the length of the transition the non candidacy of
junta and government members in eventual elections we have to set up
framework for consultations on the institutions of the transition draw up
road map and timetable for the transition he said
in his speech konate invited the opposition to choose the next prime minister
ahead of the formation of transition government and called on opposition
leaders who fled to return saying he guaranteed their safety
konate who is also defence minister took charge after junta leader captain
moussa dadis camara was shot in the head and seriously wounded on december by
his aide de camp during an altercation camara has since been hospitalised in
morocco
on friday source in the guinean presidency said that konate was ailing and
would be flown to dakar for medical treatment but guinea health minister
strongly denied the report
sekouba konate is not sick he is well no evacuation is planned to senegal he
was to go to dakar for consultations with president abdoulaye wade but it
not health problem colonel abdoulaye sherif diaby said
konate proposals were welcomed by the united states and the regional economic
bloc ecowas on thursday and led one exiled opposition leader mouctar diallo
to say he would return
the bauxite rich west african country has been under military rule since
december and tensions peaked last september when troops massacred
at least people at an opposition rally
four of the leaders at the paris meeting left guinea after the massacre in
conakry stadium when hundreds of people were wounded and many women and young
girls raped in what the united nations has called crime against humanity
we wanted together to analyse and draw the lessons of the speech by general
sekouba konate diallo said
many people are focused on the nomination of prime minister but we first
need to define the institutional framework he added it matter of logic
it would be best to define his mandate and the institutional framework in which
he will act
oil tops china nigeria talks agenda
abuja jan afp
china foreign minister yang jiechi held talks with nigerian officials friday
on oil exports to energy hungry beijing during tour of africa
specific issues of interest to china include increased investment in
transmissional power generation export of oil and non oil products to china by
nigeria said statement from nigeria foreign ministry
china state oil giant cnooc last year made an offer to buy six billion barrels
of oil from nigeria but the bid was turned down
nigeria was for years africa largest oil exporter but it has been caught up
recently by angola
the six billion barrels of oil cnooc is seeking to buy is equivalent to one in
every six barrels of the proven reserves in nigeria
the bids pitch china into competition with western oil giants including shell
chevron total and exxonmobil which partially or wholly control and operate in
nigeria
china has aggressively stepped up trade and economic ties with the resource rich
africa in recent years prompting critics to accuse it of taking neo
colonialist attitude
in november at meeting of china africa leaders in egypt beijing pledged
billion dollars in concessional loans to african countries
the friday talks were also to discuss boosting communication technology and the
development of nigeria delapidated railway infrastructure
million dollar chinese built satellite launched into space less than two
years ago for nigeria communications revolution failed last year and could
not be recovered
on the political front the west african giant struggling to regain the
international clout built during former presdent obasanjo era will also seek
the support and co operation of the chinese government for nigeria bid for the
un security council seat
immigration security extradition issues are also lined up for discussion said
the statement adding that nigerians had built up reputation for violence
drug trafficking and over staying their visas which is an embarrassment to the
image of the country
yang who has been to kenya is to proceed saturday to sierra leone then algeria
and morocco
blast kills eight insurgents at pakistan militant safe house
karachi jan afp
eight suspected insurgents were killed friday when explosives intended for
bomb attack accidentally blew up destroying militant safe house in pakistan
financial capital karachi police said
guns grenades and suicide vests were recovered from the house in poor karachi
neighbourhood which officials said was den for islamist insurgents involved
in the escalating campaign of violence in the nuclear armed nation
karachi police chief waseem ahmad said that early intelligence suggested the
militant cell had been planning to attack court in the city possibly when
interior minister rehman malik was due to appear
in other incidents in pakistan northwest five militants were killed in khyber
district by suicide bomber from rival islamist militia two people died in
bombing in bajaur and us missile strike killed five insurgents
militant attacks have intensified as pakistan armed forces with vocal support
from washington push into northwestern taliban strongholds
fayyaz khan senior police official in the southern port city of karachi said
eight bodies had been pulled from the rubble of the flattened house
so far evidence on the ground shows the occupants of this house were trying to
shift explosives and weapons when the blast occurred he said
ahmad told reporters that hand grenades three kalashnikov rifles ammunition
and two suicide jackets were recovered from the rubble
we have the information that these terrorists wanted to attack court and the
interior minister was also scheduled to appear in the court and it is possible
that these people were trying to attack that court he said
malik who appeared in karachi court over year old abuse of power case on
friday said he had been warned about possible threats to his security
today karachi was saved from large devastation malik told reporters
the people who failed in swat south waziristan and fata are now trying to
bring destruction in karachi he said referring to northwestern areas where
the military is engaged in operations to eliminate taliban strongholds
suicide bombings and attacks by islamist militants have intensified in recent
months as the military pursues its assaults and in karachi last month bomb
ripped through shiite muslim procession killing people
in khyber tribal district on friday five people were killed and wounded when
suicide bomber blew himself up at the offices of rival militant group local
administration chief shafeerullah khan told afp
in bajaur district in the north of the tribal belt meanwhile an anti taliban
leader and another man were killed by planted bomb local administration
official ghulam saidullah said
more than people have been killed in pakistan since july in attacks
by militants who oppose islamabad alliance with the united states in the
eight year war against the taliban in neighbouring afghanistan
washington has praised pakistan action against the taliban but is urging the
country to also crack down on militants who hide out in the lawless northwest
and cross the border to attack nato and us troops in afghanistan
the two nations are also at odds over increasing missile strikes by unmanned us
aircraft targeting militants in pakistan northwest on friday two missiles
fired from drone hit house in north waziristan tribal district
the house was completely destroyed five militants were killed and three were
injured in the attack senior security official told afp on condition of
anonymity
the attacks on pakistani territory fuel anti american sentiment in the nuclear
armed muslim nation and the government publicly condemns the strikes
speaking during visit to islamabad on friday us republican senator john
mccain defended the attacks
we will continue to try to find common ground with the pakistani government as
we have to do everything we can to protect americans from the attacks of
terrorists who may be based here and operate out of pakistan he said
urgent canada largest newspaper chain for sale
ottawa jan afp
one of the world largest media firms canwest global filed for bankruptcy
protection on friday for its canadian publishing group as it tries to sell its
websites dailies and community newspapers
afp europe news summary
paris jan afp
top european news stories on friday
portugal society gay politics
lisbon portugal parliament approved bill to legalise same sex marriages
less than years after the country revoked its ban on homosexuality
sweden us auto company saab gm liquidation
stockholm swedish carmaker saab whose us owner gm has received several bids
for the loss making brand was placed in liquidation the head of sweden main
industrial union said
europe weather
london europe was blasted by more snow and ice after britons endured their
coldest night of the winter forcing the cancellation of airline flights
eurostar trains and weekend premier league football matches
nireland britain politics attacks
belfast car bomb seriously injured police officer near british army
barracks in the latest upsurge of violence in northern ireland as looming
political crisis threatened the province already strained government
eu eurozone economy growth unemployment
brussels the human cost behind europe jobless recovery was laid bare with
data showing that one in every workers across the continent core euro
currency area is now unemployed
greece finance economy tax
athens the greek government announced percent increase in tobacco and
alcohol taxes and higher inheritance tax as it fended off eu pressure for
drastic action to tackle its debt mountain
eu spain economy
madrid spain plans to use its eu presidency to push for form of european
government on economic issues with the promise of rewards for members who
meet binding targets and the threat of sanctions for those that don
georgia russia conflict diplomacy border aviation
tbilisi russia and georgia re opened air links with the first direct flight
from the georgian capital since the two countries war in august an afp
journalist witnessed
science mathematics france offbeat
paris french software engineer using completely standard desktop
computer has claimed world record for calculating pi the constant that has
fascinated mathematicians for millennia
alert
canwest to sell newspaper chain
european stocks close slightly firmer after us data
london jan afp
europe main stock markets closed firmer on friday with london ftse
index of leading shares edging up percent to ponts
in paris the cac added percent to points and in frankfurt the
dax put on percent to points
us stocks mixed after jobs data disappoints
new york jan afp
wall street stocks traded mixed friday after disappointing government data on
the troubled labor market revived investor concerns about the pace of economic
recovery
the dow jones industrial average dropped points percent to
at gmt
the technology heavy nasdaq composite rose points percent to
while the broad market standard amp poor index fell
points percent to
the labor department reported the us economy lost jobs in december while
the unemployment rate held at percent
the payrolls number was much worse than the unchanged reading anticipated by
most analysts while the jobless rate was in line with consensus expectations
the market and global investors expected good employment report now we can
see how much they are disappointed said al goldman at wells fargo advisors
the civilian labor force declined by in the month suggesting that more
people are stopping their search for employment
the unchanged unemployment rate of percent understates labor market slack
since labor force participation fell sharply said sophia koropeckyj at moody
economy com
accordingly the broader measure of unemployment increased to percent
she said
analysts said the jobs data dampened speculation that the federal reserve would
raise near zero interest rates sooner than anticipated as the economy emerges
from the most severe recession in decades
the december employment report will temper any tightening concerns for the time
being which in turn should weigh on the dollar in the near term said patrick
hare at briefing com
fred dickson at da davidson amp co noted that job losses over the past two
years totaled million
our reaction is that the economic recovery remains very fragile as employers
still are not hiring he said
among stocks in focus package delivery firm ups powered percent higher to
dollars after raising fourth quarter earnings guidance and saying it would
cut us jobs
google rose percent to dollars the internet search giant google is
seeking government authority to buy and sell electricity in the united states
further expansion of its operations aimed at boosting renewable energy
bonds slipped the yield on the year treasury bond edged up to percent
from percent thursday and that on the year bond rose to percent
from percent bond yields and prices move in opposite directions
two journalists abducted body of one found in north mexico
saltillo mexico jan afp
police on friday found the body of one of two recently abducted mexican
journalists in saltillo northern mexico their newspaper reported online
the body of valentin valdes espinosa local news reporter lay outside motel
along with warning message in the city in northern coahuila state the daily
zocalo saltillo said on its website without giving details of the message
the other journalist who was not named was abducted with valdes on thursday
night according to the website
mexico north has seen some of the country worst drug violence which has
left more than dead in the past three years
brutal competing drug gangs often send their adversaries grim warnings with
written messages beheadings or dismemberments
mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for the press
according to international rights groups
total of journalists were killed in mexico in according to recent
report by the geneva based press emblem campaign pec
clinton working to restart mideast talks without preconditions
washington jan afp
us secretary of state hillary clinton on friday said she was working to restart
peace talks between palestinians and israelis without preconditions
we are working with the israelis the palestinian authority and the arab
states to take the steps needed to relaunch the negotiations as soon as possible
and without preconditions she said
clinton made the comments at joint press conference with her jordanian
counterpart nasser judeh who is washington for talks
the top us diplomat expressed hope that israelis and palestinians could agree
on an outcome which ends the conflict and reconciles the palestinian goal of an
independent and viable state and the israeli goal of jewish state with
secure and recognized borders
peace talks have been stalled for over year with us efforts so far failing to
bring the two sides to the negotiating table
head of los angeles getty museum steps down
los angeles jan afp
the director of the getty museum in los angeles one of the most prestigious
cultural institutions in the united states will step down at the end of
january the getty foundation said
michael brand was named director of the museum in for five year term
his tenure led to an end to tensions between the institution and italy which
said numerous pieces on display at the museum had been exported to the united
states illegally in he signed deal vowing to return pieces to rome
david bomford director of collections will temporarily assume brand
position until permanent replacement can be found brand will remain
consultant for the museum through the end of the summer
founded by oil magnate john paul getty the museum is backed by the richest
foundation in the world with its endowment valued at billion dollars in
football big freeze hits epl programme
london jan afp
four of this weekend english premier league fixtures have been postponed
because of concerns for the safety of spectators making their way to grounds in
freezing conditions
saturday fulham portsmouth sunderland bolton and burnley stoke matches
were all called off on friday as was sunday liverpool tottenham match at
anfield
with much of britain blanketed in thick snow almost half this weekend
fixtures in england lower divisions have been called off and only handful of
matches have survived in scotland
although all premier league clubs are required to have under soil heating which
means the playing surfaces would be in good condition iced up streets
surrounding the grounds mean there is safety risk for supporters and clubs
generally follow advice from local police in making decision
clubs are also wary of delaying decision to call off match until the last
possible minute for fear some supporters may have already embarked on long
journeys as happened to bolton fans who had travelled to london for midweek
match at arsenal only for the game to be postponed in late afternoon
arsenal manager arsene wenger however feels that matches are being called off
too easily
personally know only the inside of the stadiums don know the
surroundings well enough but must say it is the price we pay for living in
society where everybody wants percent security wenger said friday
nobody accepts any risk any more and everybody is always guided by fear
if one of people has an accident you feel very guilty and nobody
accepts anymore that the slightest insecurity could exist in our society and
that is why the games are postponed when there is no real need for it
guinea junta chief not sick minister
dakar jan afp
guinea interim junta chief general sekouba konate is not sick he is well
and no medical evacuation to senegal is planned friday guinean health minister
colonel abdoulaye sherif diaby said
sekouba konate is not sick he is well no evacuation is planned to senegal he
was to go to dakar for consultations with president abdoulaye wade but it
not health problem diaby told france television
earlier source in the senegalese presidency stated that konate was ailing
and confirmed report by the senegalese aps news agency that plane had flown
to conakry to fetch him
the same source said that konate could be admitted to the principal
hospital in dakar which is the biggest in senegal and close to the presidential
palace
volcanic lava flows unabated in dr congo national park
goma dr congo jan afp
lava from an erupting volcano in the dr congo was still flowing friday
vulcanologist said threatening wildlife in national park that is home to some
of the world last mountain gorillas
the amount of lava being spewed from mount nyamulagira was sustained and won
stop as soon as all that goma vulcanological observatory director karume
katcho told afp six days after the eruption started
the lava trail initially gained speed as it hit steep ground in the virunga
national park he said then slowed down by friday to be about seven kilometres
four and half miles long and metres feet wide
for the first time since the eruption the wind changed last thursday night
and volcanic ash fell on the town of goma more than kilometres from the
volcano without causing any damage katcho said
even in sake town in the path of the lava flow about kilometres south of
nyamulagira the population is not directly threatened in spite of the ash that
has rained down
people are on the alert and are taking hygienic precautions tap water isn
affected but rain water will be highly contaminated katcho said at the
beginning of the week relief agencies announced that they would supply fresh
water in tanks
katcho estimated that the lava had burnt about hectares acres of the
virunga park which contains large numbers of species including elephants
hippopotamus and buffalo along with range of reptiles and birds
the worst threat to the park in recent years has come from human beings in the
shape of rebel bands and government troops who kill wildlife including
endangered species
the park lies in the eastern part of the democratic republic of congo that is
still most ridden by conflict between the congolese army fardc renegade
soldiers and rebels from neighbouring rwanda and uganda
unesco world heritage site the park is home to around of the world last
mountain gorillas but they are east from the volcano near the border with
rwanda
nyamulagira is twin to mount nyaragongo which lies about kilometres
southeast the two are the only active volcanos among the eight forming the
virunga chain on the borders of the dr congo uganda and rwanda
in january nyaragongo erupted spectacularly with lava flow that reached
goma destroyed about percent of the town and killed people
the last two eruptions of nyamulagira considered the most active volcano in
africa were in may and november no human settlements were affected
eruptions can last from several days to several months like that of september
which ended at the beginning of
guinea junta chief not sick minister
dakar jan afp
guinea interim junta chief general sekouba konate is not sick he is well
and no medical evacuation to senegal is planned friday guinean health minister
colonel abdoulaye sherif diaby said
sekouba konate is not sick he is well no evacuation is planned to senegal he
was to go to dakar for consultations with president abdoulaye wade but it
not health problem diaby told france television
earlier source in the senegalese presidency stated that konate was ailing
and confirmed report by the senegalese aps news agency that plane had flown
to conakry to fetch him
the same source said that konate could be admitted to the principal
hospital in dakar which is the biggest in senegal and close to the presidential
palace
air of anticipation for underwear bomber hearing
detroit michigan jan afp
two bomb sniffing golden retrievers paced from room to room in detroit
courthouse friday as it prepared for the highly anticipated first hearing for
the alleged underwear bomber
security in the ornate marble floored theodore levin courthouse was at its
highest level ahead of the appearance of the fresh faced umar farouk
abdulmutallab who is charged with trying to blow up northwest plane in mid
air
the year old nigerian was badly burned in the attack when device allegedly
stitched into his underwear failed to detonate properly sparking small fire
he has been under arrest since and us officials say he has provided valuable
information under interrogation
the botched plot sparked global panic triggering series of ramped up
security measures at airports around the world
amid freezing temperatures and light dusting of snow news and cameras crews
had already set up by early morning in parking lot across from the austere
building where bright splashes of red white and blue bunting hung from between
four towering columns
inside the two dogs and their handlers cautiously combed every corner of the
depression era courthouse in central detroit leaving nothing to chance
our security measures have been ramped up to the highest level said kevin
pettit spokesman for the us marshals
we don anticipate any problems but we re taking this seriously
the city had narrow escape with the thwarted al qaeda plot as flight
with people on board had been expected to blow up as it approached
detroit after transatlantic flight from amsterdam
small sign declaring no loitering stood outside the courtroom of judge
bernard friedman and warned no one would be admitted to the hearing due to start
at pm gmt without pass
staff flanked by about dozen blue blazered marshals were busy handing out
chits to people securing place for the hearing an overflow room with video
feed was set up across the hall in anticipation of large crowd
some rows of seats inside the courtroom had been set aside for the public and
others were designated for the media there were reports that abdulmutallab
family were planning to attend from nigeria
as part of standard procedures in every us courthouse every visitor had to pass
through metal detectors to enter the building members of the public were not
allowed to bring laptops cameras recording devices or cell phones inside
muslim leaders were planning to rally outside the courthouse later after friday
prayers to protest that the terror attacks carried out in the name of islam
are not supported by most muslims
the collective goal of all of us as our president has spoken about is to
