they requested that the use of heavy weaponry be stopped with the halt in
use of heavy weaponry the congress gained strength and the victory in tamil
nadu can be attributed to this decision by the government of sri lanka
the congress party easily won the elections which concluded in may at about the
same time sri lankan troops finally secured victory over the tigers
weeratunga said the congress government had to be seen to do something to stop
what the rest of the world wrongly saw as the massacre of tamils in sri lanka
the united nations reported that at least civilians were killed in the
first four months of last year alone as sri lankan troops moved to finish off
the tigers who had fought for an independent tamil homeland since
sri lanka percent minority tamil community has close cultural and
religious links with india tamil nadu state which was once the staging post
for sri lankan tamil separatists
lanka govt helped india ruling party in election report
colombo jan afp
sri lanka stopped using heavy weapons against tamil tiger rebels to help the re
election bid of neighbouring india ruling party top official in colombo
said thursday
lalith weeratunga senior aide to president mahinda rajapakse said new delhi
requested the complete halt in the offensive against the tamil tigers because
it affected the tamil vote in the southern indian state of tamil nadu
weeratunga said rajapakse did not want to stop the offensive against tamil
separatists but was ready for compromise to help congress retain power
ok what do you want me to do to ensure victory of the congress party the
president had asked weeratunga said in video interview with colombo daily
mirror website
they requested that the use of heavy weaponry be stopped with the halt in
use of heavy weaponry the congress gained strength and the victory in tamil
nadu can be attributed to this decision by the government of sri lanka
the congress party easily won the elections which concluded in may at about the
same time sri lankan troops finally secured victory over the tigers
weeratunga said the congress government had to be seen to do something to stop
what the rest of the world wrongly saw as the massacre of tamils in sri lanka
the united nations reported that at least civilians were killed in the
first four months of last year alone as sri lankan troops moved to finish off
the tigers who had fought for an independent tamil homeland since
sri lanka percent minority tamil community has close cultural and
religious links with india tamil nadu state which was once the staging post
for sri lankan tamil separatists
afptv advisory
paris jan afp
we will file the following videos
feared dead in haiti quake
port au prince haiti
frantic haitians awaiting global rescue effort claw through the ruins of their
capital seeking survivors from calamitous earthquake which left streets strewn
with corpses as the prime minister warns the death toll may top
news
images of damaged presidential palace bodies lined up in the streets shot by
an afp photographer refile of better quality us coastguard aerials
already transmitted
raw vid
web mmv
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
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broadcast ready vid
web mmv
clients please note we have filed the following images overnight
raw aerials images of the quake shot by the us coast guard
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yemen clerics call for jihad in case of foreign intervention
sanaa
yemen council of clerics called thursday for jihad or holy war in case of
foreign military intervention amid speculation the united states might join
sanaa pursuit of al qaeda extremists
news
images and soundbites to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
berlusconi trial to resume
milan
the trial for corruption against italian premier silvio berlusconi resumes on
friday as he stands accused of having bought the silence of his former british
lawyer david mills
special report
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
defiant china internet users back google
beijing hong kong
defiant chinese internet users flood the web appealing for google not to close
down its operations in the country after the us giant ultimatum to beijing
over censorship and cyberattacks
science amp technology
images transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
as part of our african nations cup coverage we will file the following report
algeria look for improvements in african nations cup
algiers
after their humiliating defeat to malawi on monday the algerian team are taking
on mali in the african cup of nations they ll need the help of their supporters
who are already buoyed by the team qualification for the world cup later in
the year
sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
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broadcast ready vid
web mmv
as part of our coverage ahead of the vancouver games beginning next month we
will file the following report
hosting the olympics during the great recession
vancouver canada
olympics organisers couldn have seen the worldwide recession coming when they
won the bid to host the winter games in vancouver and whistler seven years
ago but as canada prepares to welcome athletes and fans from across the world
it boasts completed state of the art venues and facilities even if there were
some challenges in pulling them all together
economy sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
voiced vid
tintin breaks through in china
beijing
more than years after tintin first landed in china all of the comics will be
published in mandarin this year this time with very carefully vetted
translation it will mark new start for the cartoon character of an intrepid
reporter in china where he has in the past fallen victim to hapless copies and
bad translations
culture amp lifestyle
voiced report transmitted by gmt
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broadcast ready vid
web mmv
polish ski stations cash in on cold snap
goldap poland
europe cold snap has covered poland in blanket of snow gift to the
country private ski resorts afptv reports from the mazurian lakes region in
the north of poland
economy sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
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broadcast ready vid
web mmv
french producers find ethics in traditional foie gras
aux assat france
foie gras that standard bearer of french haute cuisine is eaten primarily in
winter often as an exceptional dish served up during christmas and new year
meals its production involves the force feeding of ducks and geese procedure
condemned by rights groups who blame the automated methods of several producers
but in handful of farms across france artisanal methods and respect for
the animals hold sway producing foie gras they say is the taste of true
french tradition
culture amp lifestyle economy
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
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china defends web rules after google threat
beijing jan afp
china declared its internet open on thursday but defended censorship that has
prompted web giant google to threaten to pull out of the country adding
potential new irritant in china us relations
but google appeared to be winning the battle for hearts and minds with chinese
online users flooding the web and visiting the company beijing offices to
express support and urge the internet giant not to leave china
the chinese government administers the internet according to law and we have
explicit stipulations over what information and content can be spread over the
internet foreign ministry spokeswoman jiang yu told reporters
jiang comment marked china most direct response yet after google shock
announcement tuesday that it would stop bowing to chinese internet censors and
could pull out of the world largest online population of million users
google said the move was protest against censorship and what it called highly
sophisticated cyberattacks on its systems aimed at chinese human rights
activists and believed to have originated in china
the issue looked likely to shape up as the latest addition to growing list of
disputes between china and the united states over trade climate change and
human rights
china employs vast system of web censorship dubbed the great firewall of
china that blocks content such as political dissent pornography and other
information viewed as objectionable
jiang declared the country internet open but declined to offer detailed
response to us secretary of state hillary clinton call for china to explain
the alleged cyberattacks
believe if there are some appeals for that authorities will investigate
it jiang said at regular news briefing
she refused to elaborate and also refused to comment when asked repeatedly
whether the purported attacks originated in china and were orchestrated by the
government
but state media said chinese parliamentary leader wu bangguo told group of
visiting us senators the two sides should respect each other core interests
and properly handle sensitive affairs without specifically mentioning google
the statement by wu nominally china second ranking political figure is
typically used by beijing to express displeasure about what they view as
unwanted interference in chinese affairs
on wednesday white house spokesman robert gibbs confirmed that the obama
administration had held talks with google while declining to offer details he
stressed the united states backed the right to free internet
the president and this administration have beliefs about the freedom of the
internet gibbs added
however top chinese official said tight internet controls were needed saying
the nation online environment faced severe challenges as it grew and became
more central to the nation economy
wang chen head of the central government information office said the nation
must strive to build healthy civilised safe and orderly internet
environment wording usually employed to justify censorship
as the diplomatic battle heated up chinese internet users flooded the web with
messages of support for google
it not google that withdrawing from china it china that
withdrawing from the world one user said on twitter sentiment echoed in
other tweets the micro blogging site is currently blocked by beijing
strongly asking google to stay the government is really too overbearing
said one posting on baidu com google chief rival in china
at google offices in beijing dozens of supporters stopped by to voice their
support leaving messages flowers and fruit
goodbye google you can build the wall but you can separate the hearts of
the people we want to see the other side of the wall said message from one
supporter
freedom said another message in english and chinese
year old employee at an internet company who only gave his surname zhang
said censorship had gone too far
in the last few years it has become harder and harder to go around the great
firewall you have to spend more time and money he said
an editorial in china english language global times newspaper said google
departure would be blow for the free flow of information
it would be setback to china and serious loss to china net culture said
the paper run by the communist party mouthpiece the people daily
afptv advisory
paris jan afp
we will file the following videos
feared dead in haiti quake
port au prince haiti
frantic haitians awaiting global rescue effort claw through the ruins of their
capital seeking survivors from calamitous earthquake which left streets strewn
with corpses as the prime minister warns the death toll may top
news
images of damaged presidential palace bodies lined up in the streets shot by
an afp photographer refile of better quality us coastguard aerials
already transmitted
raw vid
web mmv
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
clients please note we have filed the following images overnight
raw aerials images of the quake shot by the us coast guard
raw vid
web mmv
yemen clerics call for jihad in case of foreign intervention
sanaa
yemen council of clerics called thursday for jihad or holy war in case of
foreign military intervention amid speculation the united states might join
sanaa pursuit of al qaeda extremists
news
images and soundbites to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
berlusconi trial to resume
milan
the trial for corruption against italian premier silvio berlusconi resumes on
friday as he stands accused of having bought the silence of his former british
lawyer david mills
special report
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
defiant china internet users back google
beijing hong kong
defiant chinese internet users flood the web appealing for google not to close
down its operations in the country after the us giant ultimatum to beijing
over censorship and cyberattacks
science amp technology
images transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
as part of our african nations cup coverage we will file the following report
algeria look for improvements in african nations cup
algiers
after their humiliating defeat to malawi on monday the algerian team are taking
on mali in the african cup of nations they ll need the help of their supporters
who are already buoyed by the team qualification for the world cup later in
the year
sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
as part of our coverage ahead of the vancouver games beginning next month we
will file the following report
hosting the olympics during the great recession
vancouver canada
olympics organisers couldn have seen the worldwide recession coming when they
won the bid to host the winter games in vancouver and whistler seven years
ago but as canada prepares to welcome athletes and fans from across the world
it boasts completed state of the art venues and facilities even if there were
some challenges in pulling them all together
economy sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
voiced vid
tintin breaks through in china
beijing
more than years after tintin first landed in china all of the comics will be
published in mandarin this year this time with very carefully vetted
translation it will mark new start for the cartoon character of an intrepid
reporter in china where he has in the past fallen victim to hapless copies and
bad translations
culture amp lifestyle
voiced report transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
polish ski stations cash in on cold snap
goldap poland
europe cold snap has covered poland in blanket of snow gift to the
country private ski resorts afptv reports from the mazurian lakes region in
the north of poland
economy sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
french producers find ethics in traditional foie gras
aux assat france
foie gras that standard bearer of french haute cuisine is eaten primarily in
winter often as an exceptional dish served up during christmas and new year
meals its production involves the force feeding of ducks and geese procedure
condemned by rights groups who blame the automated methods of several producers
but in handful of farms across france artisanal methods and respect for
the animals hold sway producing foie gras they say is the taste of true
french tradition
culture amp lifestyle economy
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
olympics winter olympic greats
vancouver canada jan afp
profiles of some of the all time greats of the winter olympics ahead of the
games which take place here and at whistler from february
alpine skiing
jean claude killy fra
killy wrote himself into the history books and into french folklore with his
three gold medals in three different discplines the downhill giant slalom and
slalom at the winter olympics on home snow in grenoble
the alpine star born on august had served notice of his abilities on
the piste with world cup title in after wins in outings and
repeated that feat the following season
alpine skiing
annemarie moser proll aut
moser proll who set new women record by winning the world cup overall title
six times during the is widely accepted as the greatest woman downhill
racer of all time
she bagged two silvers at the nagano games in the giant slalom and
downhill as well as gold in the combined but missed the games in innsbruck
four years later after abruptly announcing her retirement
but she came back year later and after two second places in world cup
competition in and she won her record sixth title in
at the lake placid games in moser proll finally won an olympic gold medal
in the downhill
cross country skiing
bjorn daehlie nor
the norwegian won olympic medals and record eight golds during the
daehlie or rocketman as he was known won golds in the km pursuit km
freestyle and the relay in albertville in followed up with more triumphs
by taking the km classical and km pursuit in lillehammer in and then
won the km classical km freestyle and the relay at nagano in
daehlie bagged medals overall at olympic and world championship level out of
maximum winning nine world titles along the way
figure skating
jayne torvill and christopher dean gbr
torvill and dean transfixed the fans at sarajevo in as they danced their
way to glory with stunning routine which saw them even outshine german diva
katarina witt
they turned in once in lifetime showing gaining perfect scores right across
the board for artistic impression in their interpretation of ravel bolero
never before had marks been achieved in compulsory dance in european world
or olympic competition
in dean persuaded torvill to return to the amateur circuit with him and in
they won the european championships for the fourth time before taking the
bronze medal at the lillehammer games
figure skating
katarina witt gdr former east germany
with two olympic gold medals four world titles and six european crowns and
looks to die for katarina witt was for most of the the charming face of
figure skating
although fate had decreed that she would be part of the east german sports
machine whose reputation would become so sullied through doping abuse and lurid
tales of political intrigue witt was the absolute antithesis of the east bloc
production line robot
gold in sarajevo saw her shoot to global stardom and attract estimated
love letters even former east german leader erich honecker was said to be
smitten by kati who promptly won gold again four years later at calgary
those consecutive titles made her the first woman to retain her olympic crown
since the legendary sonja henie who triumphed in and
ice hockey
vladislav tretiak ussr former soviet union
one of the greatest goaltenders ever tretiak was the backbone of soviet team
that won three olympic titles and world championships between and
as well as his ten world titles tretiak added nine european crowns and the
canada cup trophy before retiring in
five years later he became the first ever non north american player to be
elected to the hockey hall of fame
nordic combined
ulrich wehling gdr former east germany
east germany wehling entered the winter olympics hall of fame after becoming
one of only five athletes in history to win gold medal in three consecutive
games
he caused sensation at the winter games at sapporo when aged only
and with only world junior title under his belt he came from nowhere to snap
up his first gold medal
ski jumping
matti nykanen fin
brilliant and deeply flawed four time olympic gold medallist nykanen was world
junior champion at and large hill senior world champion at
at calgary in nykanen became the first jumper to win three gold medals in
single olympic competition when he destroyed the opposition in the normal and
large hills before helping finland to the team title
then the rot set in three failed marriages followed and the downward spiral
continued when he picked up four month suspended prison sentence for beating
his fifth wife mervi tapola
he was jailed in march after stabbing friend in drunken frenzy after
losing finger pulling contest
on christmas day he was arrested on suspicion of attempting to murder his
wife although the complaint was dropped
speed skating
bonnie blair usa
blair carved her name into olympic history at albertville in when she won
the and to become the first american woman to win three winter
olympic golds
two years later in lillehammer blair repeated that feat and in winning the
became the first speed skater to ever win the same event three times in row
among women competitors only soviet speed skater lydia skoblikova can top
blair tally with her six golds
speed skating
eric heiden usa
heiden made history during nine days of madness in when he became the first
skater to win all the individual speed skating events at the same winter games
he added world record in the to the five gold medals won at lake
placid
he flirted briefly with competitive cycling winning the us pro championship in
but his only participation in the tour de france in ended with
hair raising crash
heiden eventually followed his father into medicine becoming an orthopaedic
surgeon and made his comeback at the salt lake city olympics this time as
team doctor
un court closes investigation of khmer rouge leaders
phnom penh jan afp
cambodia un backed genocide court announced thursday it had completed
investigations against surviving senior leaders of the murderous late
regime as it prepares for its second trial
the five leaders of the hardline communist regime charged in the case are
currently being held at the court while the tribunal is preparing to give
verdict in its first trial of one of the detained former prison chief duch
the notification of the conclusion of the investigation today is clearly
milestone in the judicial process in case said tribunal spokesman lars
olsen in press conference
lawyers could now have days to request further investigations olsen said
and judges would work to issue an indictment in the case by september the
earliest the second trial could start is the end of this year he added
former khmer rouge ideologue nuon chea head of state khieu samphan foreign
minister ieng sary and his wife minister of social affairs ieng thirith are
all being held for genocide and other charges in the case alongside duch
duch real name kaing guek eav has already been tried for his role as head of
the regime torture centre and final arguments were heard in november
olsen told reporters investigative judges would decide in their indictment
whether all five suspects would be tried
after several years of haggling between cambodia and the un the tribunal was
created in to try former khmer rouge leaders
up to two million people were executed or died of starvation or overwork as the
khmer rouge regime emptied cambodia cities and forced the population
to work on collective farms in its bid to forge communist utopia
olympics history of the winter olympics
vancouver canada jan afp
the winter olympics takes place here and in whistler from february
here afp sports takes look at the highs and lows of previous games
chamonix
canada outscoring their opponents in five straight wins walked away with
the ice hockey title
america charlew jewtraw became the first winter olympic gold medallist by
winning the metres speed skating title sweden gilis grafstrom won his
second men figure skating title his first came in the summer games at
antwerp
fifty years after the event an error was discovered in the ski jumping results
and year old norwegian born anders haugen of the united states was awarded
bronze medal
st moritz
sonja henie of norway won the first of her three olympic titles in women
figure skating she had competed as an year old four years earlier at
chamonix
andree joly and pierre brunet of france who dominated pairs figure skating from
until they turned professional in shocked figure skating
traditionalists when joly wore black like her partner female skaters had
previously always wore white
norway finished top of the medals table followed by the united states
lake placid
the united states finished top of the medals table but the american performance
was built on controversial results from the speed skating competition for which
local organisers changed the rules instead of racing against the clock the
competitors were forced to race against each other in mass starts five times
olympic champion clas thunberg of finland refused to compete and the americans
won of the speed skating medals
american gold medal bob sledders hubert stevens and his brother curtis caused
raised eyebrows when they used blow torches to heat their runners practice
which is now illegal
eddie eagan competing in the us four man bobsled became the only person to win
