barak visited ankara sunday refusing to cancel the trip despite severe
diplomatic row that saw ankara threaten to recall its ambassador from tel aviv
nato sole predominantly muslim member and the jewish state signed landmark
military cooperation accord in much to the ire of arab countries and iran
marking the outset of what was called strategic partnership
the pact eased israel isolation in hostile arab neighbourhood while turkey
gained an ally against syria then an arch foe and access to advanced military
technolodgy
in the first major projects after the accord israeli companies were awarded
contracts worth some million dollars to modernise about turkish
and fighter jets and sold turkey rockets and electronic equipment
in israeli military industries won million dollar tender to upgrade
tanks the delivery of which is scheduled to be completed in february
according to turkey defence industry agency
another ongoing deal worth million dollars involves the manufacture of
unmanned aircraft and related surveillance equipment for the turkish army in
joint venture led by israel aerospace industries
the project launched in has been delayed amid technical snags and
political tensions with turkish officials currently in israel to test the
drones
other deals have been concluded silently with some defence experts estimating
that in alone military equipment accounted for percent of the
billion dollar bilateral trade volume
ankara for its part offered an opportunity for israel air force to train in
vast air space unavailabe in its own country as part of joint drills in
central turkey
the two armies have also jointly held naval exercises in the mediterranean sea
as well as search and rescue drills
turkey is also said to have allowed israel access to its radars in monitoring
iranian and iraqi air space while other deals have involved the exchange of
military students and expertise on chemical weapons protection
in turkey alliance with israel was seen as crucial to cajole syria into
expelling kurdish rebel leader abdullah ocalan from his long time safe haven in
damascus after ankara threatened military action
in search and rescue teams from the israeli army were at the forefront of
international efforts to rescue surviors from devastating quake in
northwestern turkey with one complex of prefabricated homes in the region named
the israeli village
military cooperation was accompanied with boosted economic ties and flurry of
cultural contacts
turkey offered to ship water to israel to relieve its chronic shortage but the
project proved too costly and was dropped in
the following year the two sides announced plans to study the feasibility of
proposed multi profile pipeline to carry water as well as oil and natural gas
from turkey mediterranean coast to southern israel
initial signs of chilling ties came in when turkey then premier bulent
ecevit called an israeli offensive against the palestinians genocide but
the tensions were quickly defused
however israel war on the gaza strip last year marked sharp downturn in
relations as the islamist rooted government in ankara launched an unprecedented
barrage of criticism against the jewish state
turkey now flourishing ties with syria and close contacts with iran have made
its criticism even harder for israel to swallow
israeli rights groups slam crackdown on jerusalem protests
jerusalem jan afp
eleven israeli human rights groups on sunday condemned the detention of more
than dozen people who were demonstrating against housing evictions in annexed
arab east jerusalem
the human rights community in israel condemns the extreme silencing of protest
in israel silencing that has become particularly blatant and violent recently
in east jerusalem the groups said in statement
on friday police detained people at demonstration in the sheikh jarrah
neighbourhood where palestinian families have been evicted in recent months by
court orders won by settler groups claiming jewish ownership of the land
those arrested included the directors of the association for civil rights in
israel acri and rabbis for human rights two of the groups that signed the
petition which said the arrests indicated strong political agenda
police spokesman micky rosenfeld said the protest was illegal and the
demonstrators were arrested after refusing orders to disperse
police requested those who were demonstrating to leave the area based on the
fact that there was no coordination or request handed over to the police it was
an illegal gathering he said
it free country it democracy but protests have to be coordinated with
the israeli police
but spokesperson for one of the rights groups said no permit was necessary for
the demonstration because it was vigil
the protest on friday was not licensed however it was done within the
boundaries of the law so find it bit upsetting that the police are still
making that claim ronit sela spokesperson for acri told afp
she added that all the detainees were freed following ruling by jerusalem
court on saturday which dismissed all charges
israel occupied east jerusalem in the six day war and annexed it shortly
afterwards in move not recognised by the international community or the
palestinians who consider east jerusalem their capital
the status of east jerusalem which includes major christian jewish and muslim
holy sites has been one of the thorniest issues in the decades old middle east
conflict
disillusioned ukraine votes for new president
kiev jan afp
disappointed with the orange revolution failure to bring change ukraine on
sunday voted in presidential polls set to be led by the pro russia viktor
yanukovich at the expense of his west leaning rivals
opinion polls show yanukovich with lead of around percent over his
nearest challenger the charismatic prime minister yulia tymoshenko but with
candidates the election appears certain to require second round
the orange revolution swept ukraine old order from power and raised hopes
of new era free of kremlin influence for the country of million that would
set precedent for other former soviet states
but president viktor yushchenko the pro eu figurehead of the revolution is set
to record dismal single digit rating and be eliminated in the first round
punished for failing to end corruption and implement urgent reforms
voted for yanukovich am sick of the orange leaders want stability
these last five years were madness said volodymyr efremenko manual
labourer as he cast his vote in kiev school
yanukovich an ex mechanic jailed twice for petty crime in the soviet union
was ingloriously beaten in when the orange revolution street protests
forced re run of presidential polls marred by mass vote rigging in his favour
tymoshenko famed for her peasant style golden hair braid is seen as more in
favour of eu integration than yanukovich but has also played up her close ties
to russian strongman prime minister vladimir putin
today is not just the election of candidate but when ukraine determines its
future for the next decades tymoshenko declared as she voted in her home city
of dnipropetrovsk alongside her rarely seen businessman husband olexander
polls opened at gmt and were to close hours later with exit polls
expected to give the first indication of trends the run off vote is scheduled
for february
the bitter campaign saw the shady pasts of the candidates once again dredged up
yanukovich was jailed twice in the soviet era for theft and assault though the
convictions were erased in the late tymoshenko herself was briefly
detained in on smuggling charges that were later quashed
increasingly voters have critical attitude to all politicians they want to
see new faces said volodymyr fesenko director of the penta centre for
political studies in kiev
the level of cynicism in ukraine is such that one local politician is even
standing under the name of protivsikh against everyone while website
appeared last week offering voters the chance to auction off their votes
yanukovich should win around percent of the vote in the first round and
tymoshenko percent according to the latest polls by the kiev international
institute of sociology
third place is expected to go to businessman sergiy tigipko who appears to have
made late surge and is given an outside chance of springing first round
upset
andrew wilson ukraine expert with the european council on foreign relations
said the size of the gap between yanukovich and tymoshenko would be crucial in
the first round
less than percent and tymoshenko is confident she can close it in the second
round percent and the election will be close more than percent is
difficult he said
yushchenko and tymoshenko were comrades in arms in the orange revolution but
later became sworn enemies their relationship poisoned by perennial power
struggle and mutual accusations of criminal wrongdoing
since yanukovich has sought to reinvent himself with the help of western
pr strategists and to show he is not servant of the kremlin but defender of
ukrainian interests
he has also sought more support in the country ukrainian speaking west
traditionally the heartland of tymoshenko and yushchenko supporters while
holding on to his powerbase in the russian speaking east
india veteran marxist leader jyoti basu dies
kolkata india jan afp
jyoti basu the charismatic indian marxist who headed the world most
electorally successful communist party for two decades died on sunday at the
age of
basu who was the longest serving chief minister in indian political history
led the communist party of india marxist cpm to power in west bengal in
and ruled the state for an unbroken years
after an inconclusive general election in he was within hair breadth
of becoming prime minister at the head of centre left coalition prospect
that prompted the headline red star over delhi in one national newspaper
but the cpm central committee decided not to participate in the government
move that basu later described as historic blunder
prime minister manmohan singh paid tribute to basu legendary skills in
building consensus and praised his style of democratic and decentralised
governance
he died of multiple organ failure in hospital in kolkata capital of west
bengal state
the son of well off bengali family basu was born in in kolkata which
was then calcutta and the capital of british india
while training to be lawyer in england in the at the time of the
spanish civil war and the rise of fascism he was drawn to the communist
movement which he formally joined following his return to india in
after period of trade union activity basu launched his political career when
he was elected to the bengal legislative assembly
when the communist party of india split in basu became one of the first
politburo members of the newly formed cpm and several years later he became
deputy chief minister of west bengal
his more than two decade reign as chief minister began on june and will
be remembered for rural reforms which included the creation of village councils
and the redistribution of land to peasant farmers
but critics blame him for allowing west bengal economy to stagnate pointing
to his failure to rein in militant trade unions rejuvenate industry or
encourage foreign investment
an unabashed critic of the united states basu mischievously changed the address
of the us consulate in kolkata from harrington street to ho chi minh street
ill health forced him to step down as chief minister in
widower basu is survived by his son chandan who is an industrialist
afptv news advisory for sunday
paris jan afp
we will file the following videos
haiti coverage
first aid is small mercy at haiti quake epicentre
leogane haiti
first shipment of un food aid has arrived in the ruined haitian town of
leogane where street after street of homes and businesses was torn apart by
this week devastating earthquake thousands of people no one yet knows how
many were killed but with the international rescue effort concentrated in
haiti capital leogane people have so far been left to fend for themselves
in ad hoc squatter camps
news
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
un images to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
desperate haitians contemplate mass exodus
port au prince
relief workers in haiti struggled for the fifth day sunday to assist desperate
earthquake survivors amid anger over the chaotic aid effort as aftershocks
continued to shake the island with fears growing of epidemics and other heath
problems many inhabitants have now decided to try to flee the disaster
altogether
news
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
haiti holds first mass since quake in damaged churches
port au prince
haiti is holding its first catholic mass on sunday since violent earthquake
devastated much of the country many of the services in the devout country are
being held in cathedrals and churches severely damaged by the tremors
news
images to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
other offers
iraq chemical ali sentenced to death for halabja attack
baghdad
saddam hussein notorious enforcer chemical ali was sentenced to death on
sunday for ordering the gassing of kurds in the iraqi town of halabja brutal
attack that killed an estimated people ali hassan al majid will die by
hanging the state run al iraqiya television channel said having been found
guilty of the attack in the northeast of the country as the iran iraq war drew
to close in the ruling is the fourth time that majid better known by
his macabre nickname has received death sentence
news
archive images to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
disillusioned ukraine votes for new president
kiev
disappointed with the orange revolution failure to bring change ukraine on
sunday voted in presidential polls set to be led by the pro russia viktor
yanukovich at the expense of his west leaning rivals yanukovich has lead of
around percent in opinion polls over his nearest challenger the
charismatic prime minister yulia tymoshenko but with candidates standing the
election appears certain to require second round
news
images and soundbites to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
cliffhanger runoff presidential vote in chile
santiago
chileans choose sunday whether flamboyant billionaire or lackluster ex
president will be their country next leader with polls ahead of the vote
showing neither candidate with clear majority voter intention surveys put
sebastian pinera media magnate and big stakeholder in chile flagship lan
airline and eduardo frei an uncharismatic politician who was head of state
from to in technical dead heat pinera and frei are the only
candidates left standing after december first round vote knocked out other
presidential hopefuls
news
images and soundbites to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
israeli vice pm to host pope at rome synagogue
rome
israeli vice prime minister silvan shalom was to welcome pope benedict xvi to
rome great synagogue on sunday the first visit by pontiff to the site in
years will welcome the pope today when he comes to the great synagogue
shalom told israeli public radio by telephone from rome benedict xvi was in
israel less than year ago and visited yad vashem the holocaust memorial in
jerusalem and his visit today is an historic event that draws great emotion
he added the last papal visit to the site was by pope john paul ii in
news
images and soundbites to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
avatar eyes awards season gold at golden globes
los angeles
science fiction blockbuster avatar will be aiming to convert box office riches
into movie industry accolades sunday as hollywood awards season gets underway
in earnest at the th golden globes the horrors of the haiti earthquake are
likely to give somber tone to proceedings with many celebrities including
best actor nominee george clooney expected to encourage donations to help the
relief effort
culture amp lifestyle
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
istanbul launches year as european cultural capital
istanbul
istanbul on saturday launched year of art events as it became one of three
cultural capitals of europe for feting the occasion with concerts street
shows and firework displays the accolade bestowed by the european union is
seen by turkey as an opportunity to reaffirm its bid to join the bloc and
showcase diverse heritage shaped by both western and eastern cultures
festivities including light shows were organised at seven locations across the
city of million symbolising the seven hills on which ancient istanbul was
built
culture amp lifestyle
images to be transmitted by gmt
raw vid
web mmv
nile rises as global warming kicks in
nile delta egypt
global warming has reached the banks of the nile with experts warning it will
have major impact on the river that has nurtured civilisations for millenia
rising water levels are expected to submerge entire villages within half
century while farmers are already complaining that increasingly salinity is
wasting their crops
special report
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
as part of our africa cup of nations coverage we plan to offer the following
video
chelsea chances as african players score at home
london
chelsea may well be top of the english premier league but they re currently
coping with serious disadvantage four of their best players have left the
club for the whole month to play in the africa cup of nations so how are the
west londoners coping without the likes of didier drogba
sport
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
the quest for olympic gold four months after giving birth
boulogne billancourt france
with the winter olympics coming up in vancouver hopes are high that reigning
world ice dance champions isabelle delobel and olivier schoenfelder can bring
home medal for france but the duo know they re facing an uphill battle the
games come just four months after isabelle gave birth
sports
voiced report to be transmitted by gmt
nsv vid
broadcast ready vid
web mmv
contact
warwick wise
afptv
place de la bourse
paris france
tel
fax
corrected cycling britain sky storm to victory in debut race
adelaide australia jan afp
britain all new team sky stormed to one two win in the cancer council
helpline classic on sunday their debut race and prelude to next week
season opening tour down under
new zealand greg henderson took the victory narrowly ahead of australian team
mate chris sutton and htc columbia german rider andre greipel after tour de
france legend lance armstrong mid race challenge faded
the sky riders obliterated late attack by htc columbia to take the race
honours and send out an ominous warning to their rival teams on the uci protour
it doesn get any better henderson said we were joking about it in the
room we said the best way that team sky could put themselves on the map is the
very very first race we get together we end up winning the bike race
that happened tonight it was just unbelievable the lead out was so fast
don think ve been on the back of anything faster in the end my job was
pretty easy what an amazing feeling
sky left their attack until the race closing stages after breakaway led by
armstrong and fellow tour de france winner oscar pereiro was reeled in with
three laps of the adelaide streets to go
australia robbie mcewen finished fourth for katusha while reigning tour down
under champion allan davis of australia was seventh in the lap kilometre
miles event
armstrong finished eight seconds off the pace in nd with australia world
road race champion cadel evans th and pereiro th
the classic is separate prelude to the six stage kilometre mile
tour down under which starts on tuesday
korea kim views shattering military drill state media
seoul jan afp
north korean leader kim jong il has inspected joint military drill of
shattering intensity state media said on sunday in the first such disclosure
since he became military commander two decades ago
in what appeared to be fresh sabre rattling after he threatened last week to
battle south korea kim watched his troops shattering the enemy camp to
pieces and turning it into sea of flame
kim who viewed the drill by the army navy and air force from an observation
platform expressed great satisfaction the north korean central news agency
kcna reported
it did not disclose when or where the manoeuvres were held
pyongyang state television released photographs of kim on hilltop
overlooking the exercise and scores of multiple rocket launcher vehicles being
lined up for firing
it was the first time north korea has released news of kim inspecting such
joint drill since he was named supreme commander of the armed forces by his
father kim il sung in december
with the order for the start of the manoeuvres flying corps warships and
ground artillery pieces of various kinds showered merciless barrage at the
enemy group in close coordination thus shattering the enemy camp to pieces
and turning it into sea of flame kcna said
yang moo jin of seoul university of north korean studies said the report was
follow up to pyongyang sabre rattling towards seoul last week
pyongyang threatened on friday to break off all dialogue with south korea unless
seoul apologised for allegedly drawing up contingency plan to handle potential
political instability in the communist state
the north korean news release of kim watching the massive military manoeuvres
is designed to display show of force against south korea as part of its
psychological warfare yang told afp
unconfirmed south korean news reports say officials in seoul have drawn up
plan to administer the north in the event of regime collapse coup or
popular uprising
the north powerful national defence commission headed by kim said it would
stage sacred nationwide retaliatory battle to blow up the stronghold of the
south korean authorities that drew up the plan
in statement on kcna the commission termed the alleged document plan to
overthrow its socialist system
the north said last monday it wanted talks with the united states on treaty to
formally end the korean war before it makes any further moves towards
nuclear disarmament
south korea the united states and japan rejected pyongyang proposal for early
peace talks saying north korea must first return to nuclear disarmament
forum
the north abandoned the six party forum in april month before staging
second nuclear test
south korean defence ministry spokesman told afp that north korea military
was conducting regular field exercise that showed no unusual movements
some us troops are stationed in south korea in support of
strong south korean military that faces the north korean people army
of million troops
china baoshan iron amp steel profit falls
beijing jan afp
baoshan iron amp steel the listed unit of china biggest steel maker has
reported that its net profit fell percent according to the shanghai
stock exchange
the subsidiary of baosteel group corp said in brief statement on the stock
exchange website that its net profit in dropped to billion yuan
million dollars compared with billion yuan the previous year
the steelmaker gave no reasons for the drop
revenue also fell percent to billion yuan from billion year
earlier the company said in the statement posted saturday
baoshan iron had said earlier last year that it expected its revenue to drop in
china steel industry has suffered from the global financial crisis which has
impacted on demand for steel both domestically and abroad
iraq chemical ali sentenced to death for halabja attack
baghdad jan afp
saddam hussein notorious enforcer chemical ali was sentenced to death on
sunday for ordering the gassing of kurds in the iraqi town of halabja brutal
attack that killed an estimated people
ali hassan al majid will die by hanging the state run al iraqiya television
channel said having been found guilty of the attack in the northeast of the
country as the iran iraq war drew to close in
the ruling is the fourth time that majid better known by his macabre nickname
has received death sentence
three quarters of the victims at halabja were women and children in what is now
thought to have been the deadliest gas attack ever carried out against
civilians
this judgment is victory for all iraqis humanity and the kurds because
halabja is the biggest crime of modern times said majid hamad amin minister
of the martyrs and displaced in the kurdish regional government
halabja is not only kurdish case but it is an issue for all iraqis and the
rest of the world he added
close cousin of saddam majid earned his ghastly moniker for ordering
poisonous gas attacks in brutal scorched earth campaign of bombings and mass
deportations that left an estimated kurds dead in the
he had already been sentenced to hang for genocide over the kurdish offensives
when in december he received second death sentence for war crimes
committed during the ill fated shiite uprising in southern iraq
and in march last year the iraqi high tribunal handed down third death
sentence over the the murders of dozens of shiites in the sadr city
district of baghdad and in the central shrine city of najaf
however he is probably best known for the halabja attack when in march
iraqi jets swooped over the small town and for five hours sprayed it with
deadly cocktail of mustard gas and the nerve agents tabun sarin and vx
majid was the king of spades in the pack of cards of most wanted iraqis issued
by the us military in and was arrested in august of that year
like saddam majid hails from the northern town of tikrit where he was born in
according to court documents although he told tribunal last year that
he was born in
considered saddam right hand man and bearing strong resemblance to the
former dictator he was member of the decision making revolutionary command
council and regularly called upon to wipe out rebellion
he was most infamous for his role in northern iraq in march the ruling
baath party put him in charge of state agencies in the kurdish area including
the police army and militias
as iraq eight year war with iran drew to close fighters from the rebel
patriotic union of kurdistan with backing from tehran took over the farming
community of halabja near the border
as saddam henchman majid then ordered the gas attack to crush the uprising
new york based human rights watch has said majid was responsible for the deaths
or disappearances of around non combatant kurds when he put down the
revolt across the kurdish region
but majid said he ordered the attacks against the kurds who had sided with iran
in the war for the sake of iraqi security he has refused to express remorse
for the killings
uae confirms arrest of frenchman over plane bomb joke
dubai jan afp
airport authorities in the united arab emirates confirmed on sunday the arrest
of frenchman during his stopover in abu dhabi after he joked about bomb
jean louis lioret was arrested on tuesday in line with the current
international regulations which stipulate that passengers suspected of or even
joking about terrorism could be arrested an airport official told afp
in the end the official version of what happened was at variance with what
lioret brother described as happening
