national basketball association thriller
bryant finished with points while lamar odom added season high points
and grabbed rebounds for the lakers
spain pau gasol had points rebounds and four assists one of which set
up bryant game winner from in front of the sacramento bench
bryant buried the three pointer as time expired and lakers fans at staples
center chanted
it was bryant third game winning shot of the season he scored of his
points in the second half
andrew bynum added points and four rebounds for the lakers who improved to
spencer hawes had career high points and grabbed rebounds for the kings
omri casspi scored points and beno udrih added points and assists
the lakers shannon brown had three pointer fail to drop with sec to play
and the kings were up when the ball went out of bounds off gasol knee
but sacramento ime udoka left the door open for the lakers when he missed two
free throws with seconds to play
after lakers timeout with remaining bryant sealed the win avoiding
stepping out of bounds as he released the ball in the nick of time
los angeles were without ron artest for the fourth straight game as he continues
to recover from concussion suffered in fall at his home
death toll in pakistan car suicide bomb rises to police
peshawar pakistan jan afp
the death toll from devastating suicide car bombing in northwest pakistan has
risen to marking bloody start to for the insurgency hit nation
police said on saturday
the bomber detonated his explosives packed vehicle on friday as fans gathered to
watch two local teams face off in volleyball tournament in village near the
taliban south waziristan stronghold
security has been tightened across bannu district which borders south
waziristan following the blast in shah hasan khan village police said
five more people died overnight in government main hospital in lakki marwat
town rising the death toll to district police chief mohammad ayub khan told
afp
the huge blast was pakistan deadliest in more than two months triggering the
collapse of more than houses some with families inside
the bomber appears to have used kilograms of explosives khan said adding
that three member team had been formed to investigate the attack
it was the highest death toll from suspected militant strike since massive
car bomb on october killed people in crowded market in the northwestern
provincial capital peshawar
the 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 northwest strongholds
the attack was condemned by britain and the united states with secretary of
state hillary clinton vowing the us would continue supporting pakistani people
in their efforts to chart their own future free from fear and intimidation
security has plummeted over the past two and half years in pakistan where
militant violence has killed more than people since july
the northwest has suffered the brunt of the militant campaign with suicide
bombings increasingly targeting civilians
spokesman for local police shahid hameed told afp that the funerals for those
killed in the attack would be held on saturday he did not however disclose
the place and time for security reasons
the military is now locked in its most ambitious assault yet on taliban
strongholds in south waziristan sending troops into battle in the
district on the afghan border on october
but washington is urging pakistan to do more to stamp out al qaeda sanctuaries
and dismantle havens of militants who cross the border and attack us and nato
troops stationed in afghanistan
snowbama time in hawaii
kailua hawaii jan afp
us president barack obama on friday took respite from the pile of grim news
clouding his vacation taking group of friends and their kids for chill
hawaii delicacy shave ice
at shave ice store near his vacation rental obama picked one of the
concotions made of ice and fruit syrup and known as the snowbama in his honor
flavored with lemon lime cherry and passion guava
that is the snowbama the president said when reporters questioned his choice
of treat after he ordered the group shave ice cones of various flavors
onlookers cheered obama who was with daughters malia and sasha and friends and
their children who have been sharing his vacation in his home state
obama arrived in hawaii just before christmas and is due to leave on monday his
hopes for rest have been disrupted by the attempt by suspected nigerian
extremist to bring down us airliner bound for detroit last week
his holiday was also jolted by the deaths of seven cia employees at forward
operating base in afghanistan
nba arenas scoffs at report of wizards wild west scene
los angeles jan afp
gilbert arenas friday disputed published report that he and washington wizards
teammate javaris crittenton brandished guns in locker room argument over
gambling debt
the washington post in story posted on its website on friday night quoted
arenas as saying that not the real story
the washington post reported friday afternoon that arenas is threatening to sue
the new york post which published story citing an anonymous source as saying
gilbert and crittenton drew guns on each other in christmas eve argument
the washington post also spoke to arenas father gilbert arenas snr who said
from the respect of guns being pulled in the locker room and at each other
that ludicrous
arenas who has acknowledged having unloaded firearms in container in his
locker at the nba team arena had scoffed at the new york post report in
twitter postings on friday
understand this is serious but if ever met me you know dont do serious
things im goof ball this story today dont sound goofy to me arenas said in
one tweet
washington dc police said last week they were investigating report that
weapons were found in locker room at the wizards arena and the team and
arenas said the player had stored unloaded weapons in his locker
on friday the wizards released brief statement regarding the latest
allegation
the washington wizards take this situation and the ongoing investigation very
seriously the team said we are continuing to cooperate fully with the proper
authorities and the nba and will have no further comment at this time
nba rules allow players to legally possess firearms but prohibits them from
bringing guns to league facilities or when traveling on league business
vietnam orders gold trading floors shut by end march
hanoi jan afp
vietnam where many people see gold as safe haven against economic
uncertainty has ordered public gold trading floors shut by march because
they rest on fragile foundation
the order affects about gold trading houses operated by banks and other
firms which have been running for more than two years the state run vietnam
news reported
retailing of gold jewellery will still be allowed it said
the gold trading floors have offered heavily leveraged trading in which
investors pay security deposit of only seven percent of the net asset value of
their trades while banks back the rest the report said
it very risky for traders involved in such highly leveraged operations
hanoi based investment analyst bui kien thanh told dow jones newswires
the government will need to reorganise the gold trading floors as part of
efforts to stabilise domestic financial and money markets thanh said
government statement said transactions at the gold trading firms total up to
thousands of billions of dong day hundreds of millions of dollars but occur
on fragile foundation that lacks legal economic and technical frameworks and
knowledge
in an early december report the world bank said vietnam experienced severe
shortage of foreign exchange between may and july and again in november
uncertainty regarding the level of international reserves also encouraged
precautionary demand for gold and dollars putting significant depreciation
pressures on the exchange rate it said
after burning through its official dollar reserves vietnam in november devalued
the dong in bid to bolster trade which has suffered during the global
financial crisis
the world bank has said vietnam was the world biggest importer of gold in
when the country inflation reached percent for the year
on thursday the government reported yearly trade deficit of billion
dollars down percent year on year but still too high an analyst said
basketball nba results and standings
washington jan afp
results and standings after friday national basketball association games
friday january st results
new york atlanta ot
orlando minnesota
los angeles lakers sacramento
eastern conference
atlantic div pct gb
boston
toronto
new york
philadelphia
new jersey
central div pct gb
cleveland
chicago
milwaukee
detroit
indiana
southeast div pct gb
orlando
atlanta
miami
charlotte
washington
western conference
northwest div pct gb
denver
portland
oklahoma city
utah
minnesota
pacific div pct gb
la lakers
phoenix
la clippers
sacramento
golden state
southwest div pct gb
dallas
san antonio
houston
memphis
new orleans
afp
four die as trains collide in fog bound northern india
lucknow jan afp
at least four people were killed when four express trains collided in separate
incidents in the fog bound northern indian state of uttar pradesh on saturday
police and railway officials said
in the first incident an inter city express rammed into the back of
stationary passenger train near the town of sarai bhupat kilometres
miles southwest of the state capital lucknow
additional police director general brij lal said at least passengers were
injured
four people died in the second accident minutes later when two other
expresses collided in similar fashion some kilometres miles southwest
of lucknow lal said
at least others were injured in the impact which damaged four carriages
lal told afp
senior railways official srivastava said the impact in both cases had been
minimised by the fact that the trains were travelling at low speeds because of
the dense fog
visibility at both accident sites was down to around metres feet
an estimated passengers mostly returning from year end vacations were
travelling in the four trains
malaysian muslim activists oppose allah ruling
kuala lumpur jan afp
muslim groups in malaysia have voiced opposition to court ruling allowing
catholic paper the right to use the word allah and said saturday they plan to
demonstrate
malaysia high court ruled thursday that the herald weekly had the right to use
the word allah after long running dispute between the government and the
paper in the muslim majority nation
the herald has been using the word allah as translation for god in its
malay language section but the government argued allah should be used only by
muslims
the court ruled the catholic paper had the constitutional right to use the
word allah declaring the government ban on the word illegal null and
void government lawyers have not yet decided whether to appeal
muslim groups have opposed the ruling
the court decision is not right and we are planning to hold major
demonstration to protest this syed hassan syed ali secretary general of malay
rights group pribumi perkasa told afp
he and other malay activists held small protest over the ruling outside
central mosque friday
we fear that the court victory will mean that christian missionaries will now
use the word confusing the identity of muslims and undermining religious
harmony he said
federation of malay students association advisor reezal merican said although
the court decision had to be respected the government needed to appeal it
we want to live in peace with all religions here but the word allah has
traditionally in malaysia been used to represent the muslim god which is
different from christianity and this must be addressed he told afp
northern perak state mufti harussani zakaria was also critical of the verdict
calling it an insult to muslims in this country according to the influential
malay language utusan malaysia newspaper
the herald is printed in four languages with circulation of copies
week in country with about catholics
the court case was among string of religious disputes that have erupted in
recent years straining relations between muslim malays and minority ethnic
chinese and indians who fear the country is being islamised
express trains collide in fog bound northern india
lucknow jan afp
four express trains collided in two separate incidents in the northern indian
state of uttar pradesh on saturday railway officials said blaming dense fog
for both accidents
in the first incident an express train rammed into the back of another near the
town of sarai bhupat kilometres miles southwest of state capital
lucknow
senior official srivastava said at least passengers had been injured
forty five minutes later two other inter city expresses collided in similar
fashion some kilometres miles southwest of lucknow the press trust of
india said some passengers had received minor injuries
visibility at both the sites was around metres feet due to dense fog
which led to the accidents srivastava told afp in lucknow
nba robinson seizes chance scores in knicks win
atlanta georgia jan afp
nate robinson playing for the first time since december scored of his
points in overtime friday to help new york to nba victory over
atlanta
got nervous robinson said of his reaction when knicks coach mike antoni
called him off the bench late in the first quarter butterflies don know
felt kind of sick was just real real nervous was just going to do
everything he asked me to do
but robinson had shaken off any nerves by the fourth quarter scoring the knicks
final eight points of regulation and posting his third career game of points
or more
he made of shots from the field came within four points of his career
high and handed out eight assists
guess he had games built up in him said atlanta jamal crawford who
grew up near robinson in seattle and was robinson teammate in new york for
four seasons
ve seen it since high school crawford said when he scoring he as
good as the best of them he did whatever he wants
against great team nate single handedly carried us said new york david
lee who had points it was unreal to watch him play tonight
three of robinson baskets in overtime gave new york lead including three
point play with to play that gave new york lead
we were kind of like everybody get out of his way antoni said
robinson was averaging points in only games he had points against
orlando on november and then played about minutes against phoenix on
december antoni didn play him again for month and robinson agent
recently told reporters he had asked the team to trade robinson
the nba fined robinson dollars over those remarks because players aren
permitted to make public trade requests even through their representatives
want the world to see can play the game of basketball robinson said
adding that trade was now far from his mind
this is where want to be and hope that can stay it new year
new start and not looking back
we ve just been trying to get him focused on winning and he obviously was
focused on that tonight antoni said
national hockey league results
washington jan afp
national hockey league results and standings after friday games
friday january st results
boston philadelphia ot
buffalo atlanta ot
eastern conference
atlantic division
new jersey
pittsburgh
ny rangers
philadelphia
ny islanders
northeast division
buffalo
boston
ottawa
montreal
toronto
southeast division
washington
atlanta
tampa bay
florida
carolina
western conference
central division
chicago
nashville
detroit
st louis
columbus
northwest division
colorado
calgary
vancouver
minnesota
edmonton
pacific division
san jose
phoenix
los angeles
dallas
anaheim
note overtime losses ot are worth one point in the standings and are not
included in the loss column
afp
national hockey league results
washington jan afp
national hockey league results and standings after friday games
friday january st results
boston philadelphia ot
buffalo atlanta ot
eastern conference
atlantic division
new jersey
pittsburgh
ny rangers
philadelphia
ny islanders
northeast division
buffalo
boston
ottawa
montreal
toronto
southeast division
washington
atlanta
tampa bay
florida
carolina
western conference
central division
chicago
nashville
detroit
st louis
columbus
northwest division
colorado
calgary
vancouver
minnesota
edmonton
pacific division
san jose
phoenix
los angeles
dallas
anaheim
note overtime losses ot are worth one point in the standings and are not
included in the loss column
afp
more than chinese visited taiwan in media
beijing jan afp
more than chinese tourists visited taiwan in state run media
reported saturday amid warming relations between the two sides
the visitors each spent nearly dollars during their stay on the
island tourism officials were quoted by the china daily newspaper as saying
years of isolation between the two sides have made taiwan an attractive place
for mainland tourists said zheng lijuan deputy general manager of unit of
travel group cits international
since july when regular air services were resumed between the
traditional foes about chinese tourists have visited taiwan and spent
billion dollars the english language daily said
taiwan and china have been ruled separately since the end of civil war in
but beijing claims the island as part of its territory and believes
reunification is only question of time
ties have improved since may when china friendly president ma ying jeou
took office in taiwan
japan emperor greets new year crowds
tokyo jan afp
tens of thousands of cheering japanese gathered in the imperial palace in tokyo
on saturday to hear emperor akihito pray for the nation happiness and world
peace in his traditional new year address
pleased to celebrate this new year together with you the year old
monarch said speaking in bright sunshine from balcony protected by
bulletproof glass
marking the beginning of this year wish people happiness and the world
peace akihito said as crowds shouted banzai long live and waved japanese
flags
over people mostly elderly japanese were at the palace for the event
where imperial family members including crown prince naruhito and crown princess
masako waved to the cheering crowds
akihito who marked the th anniversary of his reign last year after taking
over from his father hirohito who died on january has been restricting
his official duties in recent years
the role of japan emperor was reduced to ceremonial one after hirohito
renounced his divinity and his status as military commander in chief after world
war ii
on friday akihito used his separate new year statement to express sympathy with
those caught up in 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 he said
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
borneo mega dams proposal raises fears for tribes wildlife
kuala lumpur jan afp
massive tract of borneo jungle an area the size of singapore will soon
disappear under the waters of the bakun dam multi billion dollar project
nearing completion after years of controversy
the dam which forced thousands of indigenous people off their ancestral lands
has struggled through setbacks and delays since its approval in as well as
fierce criticism over its environmental impact
but even before the turbines of the billion dollar hydro electric facility
begin to turn activists have sounded the alarm over plans for more mega dams
on malaysia half of borneo which it shares with indonesia
balan balang an elderly chief of the penan tribe sighs as he talks of the
murum dam the first of the dozen dams envisioned for sarawak state which will
drown the hunting grounds and burial sites of his people
this government is very bad in the old days people would fight us using
machetes or spears but now they just sign away our lives on pieces of paper
said the headman who sports the elongated earlobes distinctive to his tribe
my people never want to leave our place we want to die in our place he said
after long journey from his rainforest home to seek help from indigenous
lawyers in miri coastal town in malaysian borneo
human rights activists are intent on avoiding repeat of the botched relocation
of some indigenous people in the bakun area who they say have made an
unhappy transition to life in resettlement areas
balan balang village is outside the murum resettlement area but some
people mostly penan but including another of sarawak tribes the kenyah
will be forced to abandon their homes for an uncertain future
the chief who is not sure of his birth date but reckons he is between and
years old has seen much hardship during his long life
as young boy he watched fearfully as japanese warplanes flew overhead during
the world war ii occupation while rampant logging later degraded the jungles
where his people forage for food wild game and materials for shelter
now the rivers are all polluted the wildlife has slowly disappeared wild
boar deer gibbons even the broad leafed plants that we use for roofing and
rattan which we use to make mats and baskets is gone he said
but what brought him to miri are new threats to his way of life the dam project
as well as plantation firms who want to clear what is left of the jungle and
grow palm oil and foreign timber species
our people oppose our area being included for the dam because that where we
come from our ancestors lived and died and were buried there for us we have no
other place that is our only place he said
the penan of sarawak famed for their ability to live off the jungle armed only
with blowpipes and machetes number around including thought to
be among the last nomadic hunter gatherers on earth
balan balang is just one of many tribal leaders who have sought the help of
harrison ngau former member of parliament who belongs to network of
indigenous lawyers fighting for tribal rights in sarawak
all these dams why do we need so many dams here it just an atm card for the
political leaders to make money said ngau who has been jailed in the past for
his stand against mega dams and logging of penan territory
there will be further loss of their heritage their land whatever forest they
have left he says from his humble offices
ngau said notice extinguishing the rights of the murum people over the
affected land has already been issued and construction has begun but so far
there is no formal relocation proposal or offer of compensation
he and his colleagues are now campaigning to halt the next of the dozen
projects the baram dam but he says it is difficult to prove ancestral
ownership as the oral history of his people is not admissible in court
it is quite sick to know that your own fellow man your fellow malaysian
doesn understand the customs and cultures and history of our people he said
that is the tragedy here
even the british colonial rulers were very respectful of communal rights they
even encouraged the native communities to record their traditional boundaries
they did much better than our present malaysian leaders
ngau said that the penan forced to shift from the bakun area more than decade
ago are still struggling to survive with insufficient farming land schools
clinics water supply and transport
you haven solved that problem you want to start new problem he asked
transparency international has labelled bakun monument of corruption and
highlighted debate over whether there will be enough customers in when it
becomes fully operational with mw capacity
all the valuable timber has already been removed from its catchment area and
