initial aid to haiti and will add to that in coming days while spain which
holds the eu rotating presidency has also sent three million
among other eu members britain has earmarked nearly seven million euros and the
netherlands earmarked two million euros
brussels tally of aid coordinated with eu nations and their neighbours showed
that belgium britain france iceland luxembourg and the netherlands were
sending search and rescue teams with spain sending special dog unit
belgium france italy norway and sweden were sending field hospitals or
medical personnel while germany is providing water purification equipment
but the tally was already being overtaken as more eu members weighed in with
aid with poland promising search and rescue experts sniffer dogs and
four tons of equipment
spain announced thursday it was sending six planes with humanitarian supplies
and experts as well as rescue dogs field hospital and water treatment
unit
speaking in vienna spanish prime minister jose luis rodriguez zapatero said
we ve determined the most urgent measures with the president of the european
commission
with the different development ministries we aim to draw up an aid plan that
is as structured as possible
canadian aid may reach million dollars for haiti
ottawa jan afp
the canadian government is ready to match its citizens donations for quake
stricken haiti up to combined total of million canadian dollars
million us it announced thursday
canada will match the contributions of individual canadians to eligible
canadian charitable organizations in support of humanitarian and recovery
efforts in haiti to total of million dollars which offers potential of
million dollars of humanitarian assistance foreign affairs minister
lawrence cannon said thursday
the funds would be allocated to established canadian and international
humanitarian and development organizations who have an established presence in
haiti he said
cannon also announced that first wave of canadian evacuees from haiti
arrived in the neighboring dominican republic and were expected to land in
montreal aboard hercules aircraft by day end
more evacuations are to follow over the next few days he said
three canadians reportedly died in the magnitude quake on tuesday nurse
who had just arrived in haiti geographer of haitian origin and his wife said
canadian media citing relatives of the deceased
we are deeply saddened by reports of canadian casualties as result of the
earthquake in haiti cannon said without confirming the death toll
unfortunately the reality in the aftermath of the catastrophic events is that
we expect more casualties to be reported as search and rescue operations
unfold he said
defense minister peter mackay meanwhile said second hercules aircraft
and massive military transport plane departed for haiti in the morning
with military personnel and aid
second globemaster iii would also depart trenton military base in
southern ontario for haiti later in the day
race to find survivors in ruined haiti
port au prince jan afp
rescuers raced against the clock thursday to find earthquake survivors among
thousands of corpses in haiti as planeloads of international aid began arriving
in the ruined nation
with officials warning the overall death toll may top there were fears
that survivors in one of the world poorest nations will soon fall prey to
hunger and disease as unclaimed bodies lined the streets of port au prince
an international aid operation was swinging into place with planeload of
chinese soldiers among the first to arrive in the capital airport bringing
with them three sniffer dogs
the trickle of early aid is set to become flood with massive operation being
put into place by the united states among other nations
food water and shelter were all in desperate supply as scores of people began
erecting makeshift tents from sheets and awnings in city square
schools hospitals hotels ministries and the presidential palace lie in ruins
and people caked in blood and dust pleaded for help as they lay trapped beneath
mountains of concrete in port au prince
and global charity warned that two million children may be at risk following
the disaster as they struggle to cope alone many sleeping next to dead bodies
reflecting the grim mood in the impoverished capital city of two million
totally unprepared to cope with tragedy of this magnitude preacher warned
in creole about the end of the world
but us president barack obama sought to lift up despairing people who through
the long nights since tuesday powerful quake have at times come together
in prayer and song
to the people of haiti we say clearly and with conviction you will not be
forsaken you will not be forgotten obama said
the president offered every element of our national capacity our diplomacy and
development assistance the power of our military and most importantly the
compassion of our country following the disaster
washington is sending ships helicopters planes rescue teams floating
hospital and more than troops
meanwhile special us rescue team from virginia and their sniffer dogs were
combing the rubble in port au prince there were shouts of joy as one man was
pulled alive and in good shape from the rubble of one building
he punched the air in triumph as he walked down the ruins seemingly unscathed
to be hugged by his rescuers
it was rare moment of hope among deepening despair
this is an unbelievably traumatic experience for children in haiti said
gareth owen director of emergencies for the london based global charity save
the children
no generation of haitian children in hundred years has experienced this scale
of disaster before and we have to act fast to minimize both the physical and
psychological damage to them owen said
with every hour crucial international rescue teams began arriving with heavy
lifting gear sniffer dogs and desperately needed medicines food and water
the priority is to find survivors said elisabeth byrs spokeswoman for the
un office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs we are working
against the clock
casualty figures were impossible to calculate but prime minister jean max
bellerive said the final death toll from the magnitude quake could be well
over
us secretary of state hillary clinton who canceled an asia trip and returned to
washington said the death toll would reach tens of thousands
she warned of an unimaginable disaster in country which is already the poorest
in the western hemisphere
canada france germany the netherlands russia and spain all offered teams
australia britain and japan were among the countries who made multi million
dollar aid pledges
other rescuers headed to the impoverished nation by sea
the uss carl vinson aircraft carrier was to arrive thursday with destroyers and
more coast guard ships en route and troops on stand by
with thousands of people still missing dazed survivors in torn clothes wandered
through the rubble as aftershocks rocked port au prince
injured survivors were carried on makeshift stretchers past piles of smashed
concrete from which crushed bodies protruded
the earthquake was the latest tragedy to hammer haiti which has been scarred by
years of unrest crime political tumult and natural disaster
former us president bill clinton united nations special envoy to haiti
warned of an unprecedented humanitarian disaster
early estimates indicate that nearly three million people almost third of
haiti population may need aid making this one of the great humanitarian
emergencies in the history of the americas clinton said in the washington
post
un chief ban ki moon said un staff had been killed in the quake as
spokeswoman said that more than of its expatriate staff members are still
missing including the head of the mission hedi annabi
china sending lower level rep to six power meet on iran us
washington jan afp
china will send lower level representative to meeting saturday of six world
powers in iran nuclear program state department spokesman said thursday
we are aware that the representation will be below the level of political
director state department spokesman philip crowley said it will be useful
meeting to have regardless of the chinese representation
us secretary of state hillary clinton announced monday that the six powers
the united states china russia france britain and germany would meet over
the weekend in new york to consider new sanctions against iran
the united states and other western powers fear that iran despite tehran
denials is using uranium enrichment program to develop fissile material for
nuclear weapons
alpine skiing slovenian jerman heads second wengen training
wengen switzerland jan afp
slovenian andrej jerman clocked the best time in the second downhill training
run on thursday ahead of the world cup events here this weekend
jerman won the last world cup downhill in bormio italy on december after
shining in training and this time around completed the gruelling course in min
sec
switzerland didier cuche one of the big favourites here after heading up the
first training run on tuesday finished second off the pace in th position
racers here face super combined of downhill and slalom on friday with
downhill to be held on saturday and slalom on sunday
andrej jerman slo
klaus kroell aut
peter fill ita
mario scheiber aut
werner heel ita
hans olsson swe
marco buechel lie
didier cuche sui
steven nyman usa
adrien theaux fra
twenty two un staffers killed in haiti quake un chief
united nations jan afp
at least un staffers were killed in the haiti quake and some are still
missing un chief ban ki moon said thursday
ban said the dead were troops and police serving with the un mission in haiti
minustah
scientists optimistic as symbolic doomsday clock reset
new york jan afp
the minute hand of the doomsday clock was moved back slightly thursday
indicating the world has inched away from nuclear or environmental catastrophe
but stressing it was not out danger
we are encouraged by recent developments but we are mindful of the fact that
the clock is ticking said lawrence krauss co chair of the board of sponsors
of the bulletin of atomic scientists which created the symbolic clock in
he then nudged the clock minute hand back by just one minute at its home in
new york
we have unique opportunity right now to begin to free ourselves from the
terror of nuclear weapons and to slow drastic changes to our shared global
environment we must take advantage of that opportunity now said krauss
the panel of scientists including nobel laureates who decide to move the
clock minute hand either forward or backward agreed this year to only nudge
it back by one minute to show that much remains to be accomplished krauss
said
we moved it back by just one minute what that means is that there great
potential for it to move again in either direction
the bulletin of atomic scientists was founded in by scientists from the
university of chicago who had helped to develop the first atomic weapons
the clock is intended to convey what progress if any the world has made in
moving away from the risk of nuclear or other catastrophe
midnight on the clock signifies the apocalypse and the minute hand symbolizes
the countdown to nuclear explosion or climatic disaster
urgent twenty two un staffers killed in haiti quake un chief
united nations jan afp
at least un staffers were killed in the haiti quake and some are still
missing un chief ban ki moon said thursday
israel police nab man suspected of enslaving women children
jerusalem jan afp
israeli police said on thursday they have arrested sect leader suspected of
enslaving and sexually abusing women and the children he had with them
goel ratzon is accused of keeping at least women and children in cramped
apartments in several locations in the tel aviv area police spokesman micky
rosenfeld said
in one case police raided three bedroom apartment where women and
children were found in terrible state living in horrible conditions he
said
ratzon has been known for several years to head sect of women who were said to
adulate him have sex with him and raise his children
police suspect that ratzon also raped and impregnated his own daughters
the grey bearded long haired man who was arrested on monday following
lengthy undercover investigation held the women under his strict control
enforcing draconian book of rules which specified behaviour and punishments
police said ratzon had instructed the women and children to commit suicide if
anything happened to him
speaking to reporters in court ratzon attorney shlomtzion gabai denied all
charges and insisted the women were not held against their will
attack on egypt copts shows intolerance us official
cairo jan afp
christmas eve attack in southern egypt in which six coptic christians were
killed reveals an atmosphere of intolerance us assistant secretary for human
rights michael posner said on thursday
the united states is very concerned about the tragic events in nagaa hammadi
posner told reporters in cairo it part of what we see as an atmosphere of
intolerance
on january the eve of the coptic orthodox christmas three gunmen raked
worshippers emerging from mass in nagaa hammadi with bullets in the deadliest
attack since when copts were killed in sectarian clashes
reconciliation efforts between christians and muslims alone are not enough
posner said
there needs to be prosecution there needs to be break in the sense of
impunity and there needs to be justice he said
following the attack residents of nagaa hammadi were furious at what they
called government attempts to hush up egypt sectarian problem
three people were arrested and charged with premeditated murder after the attack
which also saw one muslim policeman killed
but posner said more information needed to come to light
who was involved who may have ordered the killings he asked
copts who account for nearly percent of egypt population of million
are the middle east largest christian community but complain of routine
harassment and systematic discrimination and marginalisation
posner was on his first visit to egypt in his capacity as assistant secretary
for the bureau of democracy human rights and labour as part of tour that
also took him to jordan and israel
german kids bound for africa spark police search
berlin jan afp
three young schoolchildren sparked panicked search when they slipped out of
their kindergarten to flee wintry germany and fly to africa authorities said
thursday
the rogue youngsters aged five and six took advantage of an unobserved moment
to break out of their class in the southern city of nuremberg police said in
statement
their teachers called the police immediately and took part in the search which
included federal officers the fire brigade and police helicopter
about two hours later they were found safe and sound and said they had aimed to
catch plane to africa
on the way they wanted to make stopover at toy store on trier street
police said
last january two childhood sweethearts aged six and seven tried to elope from
northern germany and tie the knot under the african sun
the pair who had taken along the five year old sister of the bride as
witness were picked up by police and returned to their relieved parents
alert
twenty two un staffers killed in haiti quake un chief
greece has eu backing in debt crisis spain
milan jan afp
greece has the backing of the european union as it struggles to overcome ominous
debt and deficit crises the spanish finance minister whose country holds the
eu presidency said thursday
it is important that the greek finance minister feels the support of all of the
eu elena salgado told press conference after meeting his italian counterpart
giulio tremonti
salgado is also to visit athens where the government on thursday unveiled plans
to put its chaotic public finances in order and to restore international
credibility with its eurozone partners and investors
the plan outlined by greek prime minister george papandreou is to be presented
to the european union executive commission on friday
greece is under mounting eurozone pressure to curb its public deficit and debt
which last month prompted all three leading ratings agencies to downgrade the
country credit standing
spain last week ruled out an eu rescue package for greece
papandreou on wednesday insisted his government was committed to remaining in
the eurozone and would not seek financial assistance from the international
monetary fund
an imf team of experts is currently in athens to advise the government on
technical measures to manage its finances
dow jones newswires contributed to this report
obama unveils million dollars of haiti aid
washington jan afp
president barack obama promised haitians thursday they would not be forsaken or
forgotten offering million dollars in immediate earthquake aid and every
element of us power to help them
in white house statement he said the human toll from the quake in which
tens of thousands are feared dead was nothing less than devastating
in remarks he addressed directly to the people of haiti obama said few in the
world have endured the hardships that you have known
long before this tragedy daily life itself was often bitter struggle and
after suffering so much for so long to face this new horror must cause some to
look up and ask have we somehow been forsaken
to the people of haiti we say clearly and with conviction you will not be
forsaken you will not be forgotten in this your hour of greatest need
america stands with you the world stands with you
obama offered every element of our national capacity our diplomacy and
development assistance the power of our military and most importantly the
compassion of our country following the disaster
this is one of those moments that calls out for american leadership obama
said flanked by key cabinet members including secretary of state hillary
clinton and secretary of defense robert gates
we stand in solidarity with our neighbors to the south knowing that but for
the grace of god there we go
the president announced an immediate investment of million dollars to
support relief efforts and to buy life saving equipment food water and
medicine
this investment will grow over the coming year as we embark on the long term
recovery from this unimaginable tragedy
obama reported that the first waves of us relief experts were on the ground had
secured the airport and had scouted priority areas for assistance ahead of
planned round the clock relief effort
he said elements of the army nd airborne division would arrive later on
thursday and marine unit aircraft carrier and naval hospital ship were on
the way
but he warned roads in haiti were impassable communications rudimentary and
that aftershocks were still rattling the devastated and impoverished caribbean
nation
before the statement obama met in the oval office with several members of his
national security team for briefing on the aftermath of the haiti earthquake
and the us fight against al qaeda an official said
zagreb and ankara to join forces to help bosnia enter nato and eu
zagreb jan afp
croatia and turkey announced thursday that they will join forces to help bosnia
with its desired entry into nato and the european union
we have decided to start series of talks about the situation in
southeastern europe on how to contribute to the stability peace and prosperity
of the region and to see how we can help bosnia on its euro atlantic path
croatian foreign minister gordan jandrokovic said after meeting with his
turkish and bosnian counterparts
we are delighted that turkey will join us in this because we have already
worked together in the when we he contributed to help calm down the
situation in bosnia during the war in bosnia he added
bosnia together with kosovo remains one of the countries in the western
balkans that is the least advanced in the process of securing both nato and eu
membership
observers say this is mainly due to the failure of bosnian politicians to adopt
the reforms needed for the state institutions in the county to run smoothly the
decision making process is often blocked due to conflict among the countries
different ethnic groups
since the war bosnia consists of two halves the serbs republika
srpska and the muslim croat federation they are linked by weak central
institutions and each has its own government
the unclear division of authority between the two entities often leads to
paralysis which usually has to be resolved by the intervention of the high
representative
the post of this international envoy was due to be phased out in but the
mandate was extended because of political instability and the failure of local
politicians to pass reforms
putin slams us chicken producers
moscow jan afp
prime minister vladimir putin slammed us poultry producers on thursday
demanding that they comply with new rules that toughen russia standards for
imported chicken
unfortunately with some of our trade partners above all companies in the
united states we do not yet see readiness to comply with russian standards
putin said in televised remarks
if certain foreign suppliers do not want or are not ready to meet our safety
standards then we will use other sources for supplies
putin comments came after new rules took effect in russia on january banning
the import of chicken treated with chlorinated water procedure commonly used
by us producers to disinfect chicken
the new rules have been criticised in the united states but putin denied that
they were politically motivated
the european union has banned the import of us chicken since the late
because of the chlorinated water treatment even though us officials insist the
procedure is safe
russian deputy prime minister viktor zubkov said imports of us chicken could be
stopped as of january in connection with the chlorine issue the interfax
news agency reported
russia is the top export market for us poultry producers who lobbied hard
against the new rules
denmark cuts interest rate to percent
copenhagen jan afp
denmark central bank on thursday said it had shaved percentage points off
its benchmark interest rate to record low of percent
the new lending rate will come into force on friday the bank said in
statement
the interest rate reduction is consequence of purchases of foreign exchange
in the market during longer period it said
the bank also cut the current account rate by points to percent the
rate on certificates of deposit by points to percent and the discount
rate by points to percent
lower interest rates mean lower returns for investors and so normally lead to
weakening in currency
denmark is member of the european union but is not part of the nation
eurozone where interest rates are set by the european central bank
the scandinavian country has fixed exchange rate policy with the euro that
allows the krone to fluctuate within percent range
world scrambles rescue teams aid to quake hit haiti
washington jan afp
rescue teams doctors and soldiers rushed by land sea and air thursday to help
drag survivors of haiti devastating earthquake from the rubble and bring its
people life saving food and medicines
us president barack obama promised haitians they would not be forgotten
offering million dollars and every element of us power to help them
nations from all corners of the world also joined the vast relief operation as
hundreds of thousands of homeless injured and traumatized awaited help on the
corpse strewn streets and sidewalks of port au prince
planes began arriving at the capital still functioning airport bringing
surgeons field hospitals water and emergency medical supplies while search
and rescue teams with sniffer dogs readied to pick through the debris
governments and aid organisations unlocked millions of dollars and launched
appeals for more to help survivors and reconstruct ruined homes schools and
hospitals in one of the world poorest nations
haiti prime minister said tuesday magnitude quake which flattened port
au prince may have killed more than people
as wealthy neighbor with the world most powerful military the united states
was well placed to lead the effort
to the people of haiti we say clearly and with conviction you will not be
foresaken you will not be forgotten obama said offering every element of
our national capacity our diplomacy and development assistance the power of
our military and most importantly the compassion of our country
secretary of state hillary clinton said the disaster was beyond our
comprehension
former us president bill clinton now un special envoy to haiti appealed for
funds for what he said was one of the great humanitarian emergencies in the
history of the americas
us army spokesman said the first members of brigade of us troops will
begin arriving in haiti thursday while the aircraft carrier carl vinson was
also set to arrive with destroyers and more coast guard ships
things are in motion army spokesman gary tallman said we re getting folks
there as fast as we can to provide humanitarian assistance
chinese aircraft bringing relief workers and tonnes of aid reached haiti
and was unloaded by un chinese soldiers
planeloads of rescue teams and relief supplies were also sent from countries
including belgium britain canada france germany italy the netherlands
poland portugal russia spain and switzerland
the red cross launched million dollar appeal for donations the world food
programme offered tonnes of food and the world bank pledged an extra
million dollars in aid the international monetary fund also offered million
dollars its head dominique strauss kahn announced
we are entering critical period there must be massive humanitarian aid
arriving this evening said olivier bernard president of the medical relief
agency organisation medecins du monde
britain said it would donate close to ten million dollars as rescue team it
sent touched down to help the hunt for survivors prime minister gordon brown
described the disaster as tragedy beyond imagination
the international red cross said that it was sending tonnes of medical
supplies while the international organisation for migration called for tents
tents and more tents to shelter the homeless
israel said it was sending two planes with field hospital and around
emergency personnel
cuba which felt the quake sent doctors to join staff already in haiti
brazil said it was providing million dollars in immediate aid while peru
venezuela mexico colombia guatamala and chile also promised help
canada readied two warships helicopters and planes with supplies as well as
large relief and rescue force
from the asia pacific region australia pledged nine million dollars while
japan well used to quakes pledged five million dollars and offered tents and
rescuers taiwan south korea and new zealand also offered aid
the world health organization is deploying specialists to help handle mass
casualties and corpses warning of the danger of communicable diseases
niger unions oppose useless sacrifices
niamey jan afp
trade unions in niger on thursday rejected president mamadou tandja call for
economic sacrifices in the deeply poor west african country which faces
financial and diplomatic sanctions
we don intend to make useless sacrifices of ourselves for the pleasure of
few nigeriens innocent raphael leader of the democratic confederation of
workers of niger cdtn said on the private dounia radio
chaibou tankari of the progressist trade union of workers uspt said that
what the president asks isn responsible and accused tandja of being the
cause of the sanctions
niger has been plunged into crisis since tandja after almost years in power
obtained an extension of his mandate in controversial referendum
his second five year term which was due to expire on december has now been
prolonged for at least three years
the referendum boycotted by the opposition led to storm of international
criticism especially since tandja had previously dissolved parliament and the
constitutional court when they opposed the poll
last october tandja went on to hold parliamentary elections that were again
boycotted by the opposition and led to the suspension of niger from the
nation economic community of west african states ecowas and halt of
european union development aid
the united states also imposed diplomatic and economic sanctions
since the announcement of these sanctions niger trade unions have feared that
they will affect the payment of wages for civil servants
on wednesday prime minister ali badjo gamatie disclosed on state television
that the budget evaluated at billion cfa francs billion euros
billion dollars was dependent on foreign aid to the tune of more than
percent
football mali algeria teams
luanda jan afp
teams for the africa cup of nations group game here on thursday
algeria
faouzi chaouchi madjid bougherra rafik halliche nadir belhadj abdelkader
laifaoui karim ziani yassine bezzaz hassan yebda yazid mansouri capt
karim matmour abdelkader ghezzal
coach rabah saadane
mali
soumaila diakite abdoulaye maiga adama tamboura bakary soumare ousmane
berthe mahamadou diarra capt seydou keita mohamed sissoko tenema
iaye moustapha yattabare modibo maiga
