on saturday at paris main charles de gaulle airport traffic was suspended at
toulouse airport but expected to resume later saturday
meteo france posted weather warnings for several of metropolitan france
departments on saturday warning snow and ice may cause major transportation
difficulties and severely disrupt activities
several trains were cancelled and many high speed trains were running late the
national rail operator sncf said on saturday
ireland experiencing its worst weather since was again hit by fresh
snowfall in the east which led dublin airport to suspend all operations
education minister batt keefe ordered all state primary and secondary schools
to remain closed until january police and the automobile association said
temperatures were well below zero on all routes with dense freezing fog
causing additional problems
freezing temperatures were reported saturday in spain and portugal affecting
road links authorities in lisbon kept two metro stations overnight to shelter
the homeless
in norway temperatures hit minus degrees celsius in the central village of
folldal
in poland nine people died in hour period bringing the total weather
related deaths to since the start of november police spokesman said most
of the victims were homeless people
meanwhile switzerland kilometre mile gotthard tunnel part of
strategic trans european motorway that runs from germany to italy was due to
reopen to trucks following heavy snowfall
afptv advisory
paris jan afp
we will file the following videos
airline plot suspect in court caps week of intensified security measures
detroit michigan
the arraignment of umar farouk abdulmutallab on friday capped week of us
efforts to revamp counterterrorism strategy and prevent fresh attacks like the
one blamed on the nigerian the thwarted attempt to blow up an airliner on
christmas has triggered global alarms and led to ramp up of security checks
at airports around the world
news special report
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
winter chill tough on french high speed trains maintenance
paris
europe deep freeze has taken its toll on france transport system paralysing
the cross channel eurostar at times and causing delays along its high speed tgv
rail line in regional technical centre engineers and experts are toiling
away repairing windows and windshields shattered by ice and replacing frozen
rails
special report
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
serpentine swimmers not scared of big freeze
london
as the freezing weather continues to grip britain most people are wrapping up
to stay warm but group of regular swimmers at the serpentine lake in london
hyde park are continuing their morning swims breaking the ice and taking the
plunge
news offbeat
images and soundbites to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
music stars drum for peace in sudan
washington
drummers from pink floyd radiohead and the police are joining other musicians
to drum for peace in sudan as part of an international campaign to press world
leaders to prevent more bloodshed in africa largest nation the sudan
campaign launched on saturday starts exactly year ahead of key referendum
on southern independence in film features drumroll starting in the
war wracked nation and being picked up and passed like baton between drummers
in over countries including brazil egypt france japan south africa
and the united states
news culture amp lifestyle
raw images to be transmitted by gmt
raw
web mmv
thousands join procession of the black nazarene in manila
manila
more than million people were expected to take to the streets of manila on
saturday for the procession of the black nazarene life sized charcoal
coloured wooden sculpture of jesus christ said to hold miraculous powers
news
images see updated advisory for details
as part of our african nations cup coverage we plan to file the following
african nations cup leaves nice football club depleted
nice france
european football clubs face tough three weeks as they have to release their
african players for the african nations cup about players will be
temporarily leaving french league one clubs for angola nice is the worst hit
with players leaving to play for their home nation
sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
togo team mulls nations cup pull out after gun attack
luanda jan afp
togo football team would decide saturday whether to pull out of the african
nations cup after hooded gunmen ambushed their vehicle killing the driver and
injuring nine the squad captain said
african football officials were also due in angola restive cabinda enclave to
review security and probe the circumstances surrounding the deadly attack
players and others on board fearing for their lives cowered under seats for
minutes to escape the hail of bullets during friday assault squad member
thomas dossevi said it was as if they had been fired on like dogs
togo team captain and manchester city striker emmanuel adebayor said he would
convene meeting for the squad would discuss whether to stay in the tournament
think lot of players want to leave he told bbc radio five live in britain
early saturday
they have seen one of their team mates have bullet in his body who is
crying who is losing consciousness and everything said adebayor who was
shown on angolan television looking dazed and in tears shortly after the attack
if the security is not sure then we will be leaving tomorrow don think
they will be ready to give their life
two players were among the injured when gunmen fired at the team vehicles
killing driver after they crossed into angola restive cabinda province from
congo brazzaville on friday
organisers who have pledged that the tournament will go ahead said
delegation would be in cabinda on saturday morning while angola prime minister
paulo kassoma was set to meet the confederation of african football caf
president issa haytou
the meeting would take decisions to guarantee the smooth running of the
competition the body said friday
dossevi one of the strongest in african football said the assailants were
hooded and armed to the teeth
we stayed under the seats for minutes it was horrible he told afp
two english premiership players adebayor and aston villa midfielder moustapha
salifou emerged unharmed from the attack their clubs said
angola government denounced the attack by the separatist front for the
liberation of the enclave of cabinda flec and in statement vowed to
reinforce and strengthen all security mechanisms for the games
flec embroiled in decades long separatist struggle confirmed the one
fatality and said this operation is only the start of series of targeted
actions that will continue in all the territory of cabinda
flec signed peace deal with angola government in but has recently
claimed spate of attacks in the province which is physically separated from
the rest of the country by strip of the democratic republic of congo
caf spokesman souleymane habuba questioned why togo had elected to travel by
road
caf regulations are clear teams are required to fly rather than travel by
bus he said
he added our great concern is for the players but the championship goes
ahead
togo one of africa top sides and who appeared in the last world cup in
germany were scheduled to play ghana on monday in cabinda
in togo capital lome news of the shooting shocked locals
just all shook up can understand what happened said fan armel
adjoun
in the normal order of things togo shouldn play the tournament he added
despite long running security concerns oil rich cabinda is to host seven
nations cup matches this month in angola biggest sporting event since the end
of year civil war in
hundreds protest at un centre in kashmir
srinagar india jan afp
hundreds of residents staged protest against indian rule saturday outside un
office in indian kashmir main city accusing the police of shooting teenaged
boy witnesses said
the protesters said the year old muslim boy was fatally injured in firing by
police during an anti government demonstration the previous day in kashmir
summer capital srinagar
the boy died in hospital saturday sparking the protest police said they were
investigating the death
the protesters who defied police ban on demonstrations marched to the un
office and shouted anti india slogans witnesses said
the un centre in srinagar houses personnel who monitor violations of ceasefire
by india and pakistan along the line of control the de facto border which
divides kashmir between the two nuclear armed rivals
the demonstrators including relatives of the recently deceased boy blocked
street and demanded action against the officers alleged to have shot him
elsewhere in srinagar police fired teargas and used batons to break up similar
protests the witnesses said
on friday protesters and four policemen were hurt in an anti india
demonstration which erupted day after troops killed two militants holed up in
srinagar hotel
kashmir is in the grip of two decade long insurgency against indian rule that
has so far left more than people dead by official count
football wigan aston villa called off due to weather
london jan afp
wigan premier league home match against aston villa scheduled for saturday
afternoon has been postponed due to frozen pitch at the dw stadium
wigan undersoil heating system failed during friday and engineers have been
unable to repair it
referee stuart atwell inspected the pitch early saturday and decided the heavy
overnight frost had left the surface unplayable
iran ahmadinejad dismisses nuclear sanctions
tehran jan afp
iran president mahmoud ahmadinejad said on saturday that further un security
council sanction will not deter iran from pursuing its controversial nuclear
programme
the hardliner also vowed that iran will not back down one iota in the face of
international pressures over the atomic work which the west fears may be
cover for weapons development despite iran persistent denial
they issued several resolutions and sanctioned iran they think iranians
will fall on their knees over these things but they are mistaken ahmadinejad
said in speech in southern iran carried live on state television
we are not interested in conflicts but you are continually demanding things
he said to world powers led by the united states which are seeking to curb
iran atomic ambitions
they should not think they can put up obstacles in iranians way assure
the people that the government will whole heartedly defend iran rights and
will not back down one iota he said
iran is already under three sets of un security council sanctions over its
defiance and refusal to suspend enrichment which lies at the heart of
international fears about its nuclear programme
the process that makes nuclear fuel can also be used to make the fissile core of
an atomic bomb
world powers gave iran until the end of to accept un brokered deal to
ship most of iran low enriched uranium leu abroad to be further refined into
reactor fuel by russia and france
but the deadline was ignored prompting talk of fresh sanctions against the
islamic republic
iran has in return insisted on its counter proposal of staged swap of leu for
nuclear reactor fuel
the iranian leadership has also drawn international condemnation over its
treatment of anti government protests triggered by ahmadinejad june
disputed re election
on saturday ahmadinejad dismissed criticism of iran over human rights as
game
they cannot break the people and the islamic republic by such pressure and
propaganda he said after inaugurating new aluminium plant in the southern
port city of bandar abbas
the us administration is reportedly crafting new financial sanctions targeting
the iranian entities and individuals most directly involved in the crackdown on
anti government protesters
citing unnamed us officials the wall street journal said on saturday that us
treasury department strategists had already been focusing on iran
revolutionary guard corps which has emerged as the economic and military power
behind supreme leader ayatollah ali khamenei and ahmadinejad
fourth malaysian church attacked police church officials
kuala lumpur jan afp
malaysian church was firebombed saturday police and church officials said
the fourth such attack in two days as row escalated over the use of the word
allah by non muslims
the good shepherd lutheran church in southwest kuala lumpur was the latest
target there were no reports of injuries
at about pm gmt church authorities found that molotov cocktails had
been thrown at the windows of the first and second floors of the three storey
building the church bishop philip loke told afp
they narrowly missed it but part of the walls are burnt he said adding we
suspect this attack is linked to the other attacks
three other churches in the kuala lumpur area were hit friday prompting prime
minister najib razak to promise to crack down on race crime
one of the churches attacked on friday was badly burned while firebombs thrown
at two others failed to cause damage
selangor state police chief khalid abu bakar confirmed saturday attack saying
it had caused minor damage to the building and police were investigating
we believe this attack is linked to the three other attacks but nobody saw how
it happened there were no eyewitnesses he told afp
religious tensions were heightened in muslim majority malaysia last week when
court ruled in favour of the herald catholic newspaper in its dispute with the
government over the publication use of the word allah
enraged by the ruling muslim groups held protests outside mosques across the
nation friday
the row is among string of religious disputes that have erupted in recent
years straining relations between malays and ethnic chinese and indians who
fear the country is being islamised
about percent of malaysians are christians including some catholics
nba jamison embarrassed wizards fined for gun antics
washington jan afp
antawn jamison pleaded with washington fans to continue to support their team
the same day the nba slapped four wizard players with fines for their part in
gilbert arenas gun play antics
we need you guys to continue to support us jamison said in an unusual pre
game address to the crowd which follows probe into how arenas allegedly
managed to sneak gun into the nba team dressing room
to make this an exciting place place where you can bring your kids your
families your buddy to come have good time
jamison led all scorers with points and grab rebounds in wizards
victory over orlando on friday
the league announced late friday that andray blatche javale mcgee randy foye
and nick young would each be fined dollars
jamison said that his teammates never meant to make light of the situation when
they joined arenas at centre court before tuesday game against philadelphia
where arenas pretended to shoot his teammates with his fingers
there been picture that been shown of us taking this event very lightly
this is serious situation jamison said from centre court
this thing right here is very embarrassing for my teammates and the coaching
staff
arenas missed another game for washington as he is suspended indefinitely by the
league disciplinary officials for the dressing room gun incident
the united states in recent years has relaxed many of its anti gun laws under
the previous george bush government
in the us supreme court ruled that ban on handguns in washington dc was
unconstitutional and that americans have right to own guns for personal use
palestinians say peace talks require full settlement freeze
ramallah west bank jan afp
the resumption of middle east peace talks requires full israeli settlement
freeze in the west bank chief palestinian negotiator saeb erakat told afp on
saturday
resumption of peace talks requires the complete halt of settlements erakat
said day after us secretary of state hillary clinton urged both sides to
revive peace talks without preconditions
erakat also said negotiations should be picked up from the point they were left
when they broke down in december
iran ahmadinejad dismisses nuclear sanctions
tehran jan afp
iran president mahmoud ahmadinejad said on saturday that further un security
council sanction will not deter iran from pursuing its controversial nuclear
programme
the hardliner also vowed that iran will not back down one iota in the face of
international pressures over the atomic work which the west fears may be
cover for weapons development despite iran persistent denial
they issued several resolutions and sanctioned iran they think iranians
will fall on their knees over these things but they are mistaken ahmadinejad
said in speech in southern iran carried live on state television
we are not interested in conflicts but you are continually demanding things
he said to world powers led by the united states which are seeking to curb
iran atomic ambitions
they should not think they can put up obstacles in iranians way assure
the people that the government will whole heartedly defend iran rights and
will not back down one iota he said
iran is already under three sets of un security council sanctions over its
defiance and refusal to suspend enrichment which lies at the heart of
international fears about its nuclear programme
the process that makes nuclear fuel can also be used to make the fissile core of
an atomic bomb
world powers gave iran until the end of to accept un brokered deal to
ship most of iran low enriched uranium abroad to be further refined into
reactor fuel by russia and france
but the deadline was ignored prompting talk of fresh sanctions against the
islamic republic
iran has in return insisted on its counter proposal of staged swap of lew with
nuclear reactor fuel
urgent palestinians say peace talks require full settlement freeze
ramallah west bank jan afp
the resumption of middle east peace talks requires full israeli settlement
freeze in the west bank chief palestinian negotiator saeb erakat told afp on
saturday
alert
palestinians say peace talks require full israeli settlement freeze
boxing pacquiao eyes march title fight with clottey report
los angeles jan afp
manny pacquiao says he is ready to move on and now plans to take welterweight
title fight against joshua clottey in march instead of facing floyd mayweather
pacquiao promoter bob arum told sports illustrated that after six weeks of
failed negotiations mayweather is no longer on pacquiao radar screen and that
the filipino boxer now has tentative agreement to fight clottey
si com reported friday that pacquiao and ex champ clottey would meet in world
boxing organization welterweight title fight on march possibly at cowboy
stadium in dallas texas
they are just trying to get under manny skin arum told si com of
mayweather camp it serves no purpose to aggravate manny pacquiao
this is beyond stupid we are not negotiating with these punks anymore
but mayweather camp isn ready to throw in the towel golden boy promotions
chief executive richard schaefer has said he still feels one of the richest
fights in boxing history can be saved
croatians vote to elect president who will lead them in eu
zagreb jan afp
the winner of croatia presidential run off on sunday between leftwing
professor and the populist zagreb mayor was expected to lead the country
struggling with corruption and the economic downturn into the european union
final surveys gave ivo josipovic of the opposition social democrats sdp
solid lead of almost percent over milan bandic his former party colleague
running as an independent
josipovic won the december first round with percent of the vote more
than double the support for bandic
call the citizens to cast ballots choose justness just croatia
josipovic said on friday evening in final encounter with his rival on national
television on saturday all campaigning and reporting was banned ahead of the
poll
josipovic year old law expert and classical music composer vowed to lead
firm and uncompromised fight against corruption key criteria for zagreb
eu bid
croatia hopes to become the bloc th member by squarely within the next
presidents five year mandate
bandic veteran sdp member expelled from the party when he announced his
candidacy for the presidency last november called the electorate vote for
man and not for party
say yes for croatia of work unity dignity and pride the year old
said at the end of debate
he mounted last minute attack on josipovic by suggesting vote for the
leftwing candidate would mean choice for communist red croatia however
observers noted that bandic himself also emerged from the former communist sdp
party
during the campaign which ended at midnight friday the two contenders pledged
similar agenda the country eu entry during their five year mandate the
fight against corruption and improving of economic situation in the country
plunged into recession
despite the candidates wide ranging pledges croatian president has limited
powers curtailed by the incumbent stipe mesic who steps down on february
after serving the maximum two terms
the president of the former yugoslav republic that proclaimed independence in
is the supreme commander of the army helps shape foreign policy and takes
part in the nomination of secret service chiefs
despite similar platform bandic and josipovic have opposite images and view
points which analysts say led to polarisation between civil left or
nationalism playing with rightwing sentiments modern or conservative
croatia
according to analysts josipovic has reputation as competent mister clean
untarnished by corruption scandals that have engulfed croatian politics but the
bookish professor has trouble stirring up the popular vote they warn
by contrast the energetic and outspoken bandic has styled himself fighter for
the common man and tried to lure rightwing voters to try and bridge the gap with
josipovic
bandic is counting on the votes of supporters of the ruling conservative
croatian democratic union hdz whose candidate did not make it into the run
off
he is also very popular among the some ethnic croats living in bosnia
who are entitled to vote in the presidential elections
the devoutly religious mayor who said spends more time reading prayer books
than the constitution also enjoys the backing of croatia powerful catholic
church
during debates bandic made several gaffes about foreign policy and independent
observers point to his suspected links with corruption in the capital all of
which could work against him
total of million croatians are entitled to vote the polling stations open
at am gmt and close twelve hours later exit polls are to be released
shortly after polls close with the first official results expected by midnight
tennis spain wins third hopman cup
perth australia jan afp
tommy robredo lifted spain off the canvas to win their third hopman cup title
with win over great britain in thrilling final here saturday
great britain was on the verge of its first success in the mixed teams
tournament when year old laura robson stunned experienced spaniard maria jose
martinez sanchez to give her side the lead and world no andy murray then
breezed through the first set against tommy robredo
murray who declared pre match that he would not lose to the world no
hadn dropped set in singles all week and his early dominance on the back of
an impregnable serve suggested he would finish the year old spaniard off
quickly and claim the title for the british
however the pugnacious robredo seeking his second hopman cup title clawed his
way back into the contest as murray fell away slightly and ultimately notched
memorable victory in three sets setting up live mixed doubles
despite again robson belying her inexperience with her poise in tense doubles
clash murray struggled to recapture his best form and the fourth seeds won the
important points to take the deciding rubber
the british held three set points in the first set of the doubles at but
then dropped the next five points
although the british were able to save two championship points in the second
set it was third time lucky for the spanish and fittingly it was robredo
backhand winner down the line that sealed the result
spain also won the title in through emilio sanchez and arantxa sanchez
vicario and in when teenage robredo teamed with sanchez vicario
martinez sanchez admitted she thought the final was lost after her defeat at the
hands of robson
tommy was the hero of the day martinez sanchez said
however robredo said it was team effort
it was great final he said
want to congratulate maria she said today did great job but here no one
wins alone so it is for her and our team
although great britain were part of the inaugural hopman cup back in late
it was only their fourth appearance here and first since
in the women singles robson the world no stunned the th ranked
martinez sanchez who hadn previously been beaten in singles here this week
in straight sets confirming her status as player of
exceptional promise by rattling off winners
with one rubber already unexpectedly squared away the in form murray had the
chance to live up to his bold pre match declaration and therefore clinch the tie
for great britain
great britain first hopman cup title beckoned after murray flying start but
robredo regrouped and the spaniard levelled the match on the back of some
brilliant forehand winners before maintaining that form in the third set to win
yemen alone cannot tackle qaeda analysts
dubai jan afp
yemen insists it can win the war against al qaeda militants without us military
intervention but analysts fear osama bin laden ancestral homeland cannot
tackle the jihadists on its own
us led assistance much be accompanied by reform to appease tribes who hold sway
in the impoverished arabian peninsula country which is already fighting shiite
rebels in the north and worried by secessionists in the south they say
any assistance for yemen must be linked to political and structural reform
said military analyst riad kahwaji who heads the dubai based institute for near
east and gulf military analysis
the yemeni army does not have the capacity or the necessary training to make
good use of the military assistance it gets from western nations in its war
against al qaeda he said
smart weapons are used in targeted attacks on al qaeda positions but the
equipment of the yemeni army which includes soviet era jet fighters are not
adapted to such weapons he said
dhia rashwan an expert on radical islamist groups also believes that direct
foreign military intervention in yemen will have negative impact on public
opinion which already does not trust the government
al qaeda is present in yemen but regional coalition would be enough to
confront it he said dismissing the need for an international military force
to tackle the jihadists
kahwaji agreed that intervention in yemen by foreign force could backfire
because the armed forces are largely influenced by the tribal structure
inherent to yemen and that is why reform is needed
london has called an international conference on yemen for later this month and
that forum must adopt strategy for development and involve tribes in
political reform as tool to fight the jihadists he said
long standing concerns that yemen has become haven for islamic extremism were
thrown into sharp focus when nigerian man allegedly trained in yemen was
charged with trying to blow up us bound jet on christmas day
the botched attack was claimed by al qaeda in the arabian peninsula aqap
which also urged attacks on western interests in yemen
on thursday top yemeni official warned that us military intervention to help
fight al qaeda militants could backfire and strengthen the jihadists
any intervention or direct military action by the united states could
strengthen the al qaeda network and not weaken it deputy prime minister for
defence and security affairs rashed al aleemi said
our position is clear we will fight and chase the al qaeda group depending on
yemeni forces and security agencies he told sanaa press conference
however aleemi echoing other yemeni officials said yemen needs us help to
train yemeni counter terrorism units
over the past weeks yemen has announced series of victories in its war against
the jihadists with the interior ministry saying its forces had turned their
fight against terrorism into daily confrontation
authorities spoke of deadly aid air raids on suspected al qaeda hideouts on
december and that killed dozens of militants as well as the arrests of
several suspected islamists
