obama has directly linked the al qaeda network responsible for the september
attacks on the united states to the botched bid to blow up northwest
jet with people on board on flight from amsterdam to detroit
in the wake of the failed attack the administration has also ordered tight new
security measures for us bound passengers after year old nigerian umar
farouk abdulmutallab allegedly tried to bring down the jet
all passengers heading for the united states could now face random checks
patdowns or baggage checks
and all travelers flying from or via countries including iran nigeria and
yemen will have to undergo mandatory enhanced screening before boarding their
us bound flights under the new rules
according to us prosecutors abdulmutallab tried to bring down flight using
device containing the explosive petn also known as pentaerythritol
stitched into his underwear it was not spotted by traditional metal detectors
it failed to go off properly but sparked an on board fire that was swiftly put
out when passengers intervened
obama was monday receiving review into the incident from the cia and was
meeting with his top counter terrorism advisor john brennan
brennan on sunday defended the nation security agencies saying despite
apparent warnings from abdulmutallab father wealthy nigerian banker there
had been no smoking gun that could have helped unmask the plot earlier
as the country searched for answers to how the attack was only narrowly avoided
fbi agents were monday in ghana investigating abdulmutallab stay there amid
allegations he bought his ticket for detroit in the country
obama has also revealed that abdulmutallab had spent time in yemen during the
summer where he was allegedly in contact with the yemen based al qaeda in the
arabian peninsula aqap
the group has claimed responsibility for being behind the thwarted attack
us lawmakers are gearing up for series of hearings and briefings into the
botched attack next week and lawmakers expected to receive the preliminary
findings of the reviews ordered by obama
burton did not specify whether obama would address journalists after the tuesday
talks at the white house but said it was unlikely the results of the two
reviews ordered by the president would be published
think that coming out of that meeting we ll probably have more on what some
of the next steps are burton said
think that there will probably be some new information available but
wouldn anticipate full reading of what in those reviews
secretary of state hillary clinton said meanwhile monday that the united states
would only reopen its embassy in sanaa which closed on sunday when it was
believed to be safe
we review our security conditions constantly and we ll make decision on
reopening the embassy when the conditions permit the top us diplomat said
nasa kepler space telescope finds five new exoplanets
washington jan afp
nasa kepler space telescope has discovered five new planets beyond the solar
system the us space agency said monday just months after kepler launched
into space to find earth like planets
the discovery of the five exoplanets contributes to our understanding of how
planetary systems form and evolve from the gas and dust disks that give rise to
both the stars and their planets nasa william borucki principal science
investigator for the kepler mission said in statement
but all five exoplanets are too hot for life as we know it nasa said
the newly discovered planets are known as hot jupiters because of their large
masses and extreme temperatures which range from to degrees
fahrenheit degrees celsius hotter than molten lava
their orbits last between three and five days meaning they follow paths close
to their stars which are hotter and larger than the earth sun nasa said
the smallest of the newly discovered planets is roughly the size of neptune the
fourth largest planet in earth solar system and the biggest is around the
size of jupiter the largest planet in our solar system
one of the planets which have been given the unimaginative names of kepler
and is similar in many ways to neptune although its irradiation
level is much higher
another planet is one of the least dense ever discovered and along with the
other three confirms the existence of planets with densities substantially
lower than those predicted for gas giant planets
the five exoplanets were among discoveries made by the kepler space telescope in
the first six weeks after it became operational in may last year
borucki presented the early discoveries and other findings at meeting of the
american astronomical society in washington on monday
kepler looks for the signatures of planets by measuring dips in star
brightness which are caused by planets crossing in front of them and
periodically blocking out part of the starlight
the size of the planet can be derived from the size of the dip in brightness
while the temperature can be estimated from the characteristics of the star it
orbits and the planet orbital period
kepler is nasa first mission in search of earth like planets orbiting suns
similar to ours
it launched in march last year equipped with the largest camera ever sent into
space megapixel array of charge coupled devices and is expected to
continue sending information back to earth until at least november
it is searching for planets as small as earth including those orbiting stars in
warm habitable zone where liquid water could exist on the surface of the
planet
the kepler observations will tell us whether there are many stars with planets
that could harbor life or whether we might be alone in our galaxy said
borucki
because planets in the habitable zone of sun like stars only pass in front of
their star about once year and three transits are required before
discovery can be confirmed finding an earth size planet is expected to take
at least three years nasa said
jon morse head of the astrophysics division at nasa headquarters in washington
said scientists had expected that kepler would find massive planets in short
orbits before it found smaller earth like planets
but he added it was only matter of time before more kepler observations
lead to smaller planets with longer period orbits coming closer and closer to
the discovery of the first earth analog
kepler has already pleasantly surprised scientists by sending back images of
hot jupiter light years around quadrillion miles quadrillion
kilometers from earth that it took when it was still in calibration mode just
days after it launched
britain says bomb suspect intelligence was shared with us
london jan afp
british intelligence that nigerian accused of trying to blow up us plane
tried to contact radicals while living in london was shared with washington
prime minister gordon brown office said monday
brown official spokesman said that information gathered about umar farouk
abdulmutallab while he was student in london between and had been
passed to the us authorities
brown office at downing street was unable to confirm when this took place
while the daily telegraph newspaper said it was sometime in
report in the sunday times newspaper at the weekend suggested that british
security services had known about abdulmutallab contacts with islamic
extremists three years ago but failed to inform their us colleagues
clearly there was security information about this individual activities and
that was information that was shared with the us authorities that is the key
point brown official spokesman told reporters
he went on we are pretty certain that he was radicalised outside the uk he
left the uk in october
but it is also clear that whilst he was here he was attempting to make contact
with people and that is the intelligence that we were able to secure from the
intelligence services
abdulmutallab graduated in june from university college london with
degree in engineering with business finance
he was barred from re entering britain in may after applying for visa to
study at bogus college he was subsequently put on security watchlist
barring him from future entry into britain
brown spokesman defended the decision not to act on the intelligence
there are number of individuals who try and reach out to radicals and others
it does not necessarily mean they are going to be planning any specific action
he said
speaking about abdulmutallab he added whatever he decided to do he decided
to do whilst he was out of the country and then obviously tried to re enter the
country
nasa kepler space telescope finds five new exoplanets
washington jan afp
nasa kepler space telescope has discovered five new planets beyond the solar
system the us space agency said monday just months after kepler launched
into space to find earth like planets
the discovery of the five exoplanets contributes to our understanding of how
planetary systems form and evolve from the gas and dust disks that give rise to
both the stars and their planets nasa william borucki principal science
investigator for the kepler mission said in statement
but all five exoplanets are too hot for life as we know it nasa said
the newly discovered planets are known as hot jupiters because of their large
masses and extreme temperatures which range from to degrees
fahrenheit degrees celsius hotter than molten lava
their orbits last between three and five days meaning they follow paths close
to their stars which are hotter and larger than the earth sun nasa said
the smallest of the newly discovered planets is roughly the size of neptune the
fourth largest planet in earth solar system and the biggest is about the size
of jupiter the largest planet in our solar system
one of the planets which have been given the unimaginative names of kepler
and is similar in many ways to neptune although its irradiation
level is much higher
another planet is one of the least dense ever discovered and along with the
other three confirms the existence of planets with densities substantially
lower than those predicted for gas giant planets
the five exoplanets were among discoveries made by the kepler space telescope in
the first six weeks after it became operational in may last year
borucki presented the early discoveries and other findings at meeting of the
american astronomical society in washington on monday
kepler looks for the signatures of planets by measuring dips in star
brightness which are caused by planets crossing in front of them and
periodically blocking out part of the starlight
the size of the planet can be derived from the size of the dip in brightness
while the temperature can be estimated from the characteristics of the star it
orbits and the planet orbital period
kepler is nasa first mission in search of earth like planets orbiting stars
similar to our sun
it launched in march last year equipped with the largest camera ever sent into
space megapixel array of charge coupled devices and is expected to
continue its science operations until at least november
football spike lee lends support to us world cup bid
new york jan afp
outspoken film director spike lee has thrown his support behind the united
states bid to host the world cup in either or
the academy award nominated director has accepted an invitation to join the
board of the bid committee us soccer said wednesday
lee is known as keen sports fan who is frequently sighted at new york
basketball games perhaps less well known stateside is his passion for football
he supporter of english premiership club arsenal and season ticket holder
for italian club inter milan
spike lee owns distinct creative spirit and unbridled passion for sport and
we re privileged to be able to incorporate his voice into the development of our
bid said sunil gulati the chairman of the usa bid committee and president of
us soccer
as fan of soccer and father of youth level player spike will provide
unique and invaluable perspective to our board of directors
fifa man executive committee will decide the hosts of both the and
events in december of this year
australia england indonesia japan netherlands belgium russia and spain
portugal have also bid to host either of the world cups and qatar and south
korea bid for only
south africa is hosting this year world cup with brazil staging the
event
lee said football has global unifying aspect that allows it to break down
social barriers and sets it among other universal languages such as music and
the visual arts
honored to be part of the usa bid committee and its efforts to bring the
fifa world cup back to our country as we see the second half of our soccer
history develop in front of our eyes
lee has often referred to traditionally american sports such as baseball in his
films
he has yet to make film about football but after seeing biopic on france
zinedine zidane zidane st century portrait lee applied the film
format of numerous cameras tracking an individual player on the football field
to the basketball court for documentary on kobe bryant kobe doin work
electioneering starts in britain as blair waits in wings
london jan afp
britain political parties started campaigning in earnest monday for elections
due by june with its troubled economy the main battleground as the poll race
revs up after the christmas break
david cameron leader of the main opposition conservatives released part of his
party draft manifesto while finance minister alistair darling tried to
discredit tory plans to cut public spending and firm up britain finances
labour prime minister gordon brown has not yet set date for the election
although it must be held by june and experts say may is the most likely date
but both parties are jostling for an early advantage battered by record
recession and scandal over lawmakers expense claims britons now face the
prospect of five months of electioneering
cameron is tipped by opinion polls to oust brown who risks becoming one of
britain shortest serving premiers of recent times he only took over from
tony blair in june
meanwhile blair who resigned amid declining popularity after he strongly
supported the iraq war is set to return to haunt labour
he is due to give evidence to the public inquiry into the war in the second half
of january or early february senior labour figures are reportedly uneasy that
his appearance could cause the party problems on the campaign trail
blair former communications chief alistair campbell is due to appear on
january and could also stir things up
with britain still in recession the only major world economy yet to emerge
from the credit crunch and state borrowing at record levels the early focus
in campaigning is on the economy
the conservatives want quick cuts to bring public spending under control while
labour favours waiting until the economic outlook is clearer
chancellor of the exchequer darling accused the tories of failing to cost their
proposed savings properly but declined to say in detail how his party would
eventually cut back
the tories have made over billion pounds billion euros billion
dollars of promises but can barely explain how they can pay for quarter of
this this leaves them with credibility gap of billion pounds he said
you can fight an election on nod and wink sometimes claiming you are
committed to these promises and when challenged claiming you are not
the conservatives angrily denied labour claims about its spending plans
labelling labour document dissecting its plans the dodgy dossier
this was reference to highly controversial dossier published by blair
government just before the iraq invasion outlining the case for war
meanwhile cameron tried to counter what he says are labour class war
tactics which claim the tory leader educated at elite school eton and oxford
university is too privileged to understand the problems of ordinary britons
while stressing they would make cuts in public services to help the economy
cameron promised the tories would spend more money on improving the state run
national health service nhs in the poorest areas
we will cut the deficit not the nhs because the nhs is bedrock of fairer
society cameron said unveiling part of his party draft manifesto on health
we cannot go on like this let us make this year of change
he later appeared to run into trouble over promise to offer tax breaks for
married couples suggesting in bbc interview they could not be guaranteed but
then issuing statement saying they would definitely be introduced if the
consevatives won power
cameron centre right conservatives have been ahead of brown centre left
labour in opinion polls for months although the gap has narrowed recently
new yougov survey for saturday daily telegraph newspaper put the
conservatives on percent labour on percent and the third party centre
left liberal democrats on percent
us uncovers third gate crasher at india state dinner
washington jan afp
us authorities said monday that third gate crasher sneaked into november
white house state dinner for india prime minister after an uninvited couple
raised concerns about security
the secret service which protects president barack obama said that the
individual came to the white house along with the official indian delegation
from nearby hotel
the person went through required security checks and boarded bus or van from
the indian delegation hotel to the white house to attend obama gala party
for prime minister manmohan singh the secret service said
at present there is nothing to indicate that this individual went through the
receiving line or had contact with the president or first lady it said
the secret service declined to identify the person rahul chhabra the spokesman
for the indian embassy said the person was not part of the indian delegation
the embassy of india did not arrange his access he said
the secret service said that the state department which generally escorts
official guests has undertaken procedural changes on the handling of foreign
delegations
the white house was left red faced after dashingly dressed but uninvited
couple tareq and michaele salahi cleared through security and mingled at
the dinner where they shook hands with obama
the wife michaele was also pictured cozying up to vice president joe biden for
photograph
obama later called the couple entry screwup telling cbs television
minutes last month that he was unhappy with everybody who was involved in the
process
lawmakers have ordered the couple to appear before congress on january
ronald kessler the author of book on the secret service and its heavy
workload reported that the agency discovered the third gate crasher when it
tried to match surveillance footage with the guest list
the agency spotted an african american man wearing tuxedo who had not been
invited he appeared to be with members of the indian delegation kessler wrote
on newsmax com news website
the glitzy event was the first state dinner thrown by obama and invitations were
coveted prize in washington social circles
obama invited singh for the prestigious occasion in bid to show his commitment
to warming ties with the world largest democracy which has been uneasy about
the us administration early emphasis on china and pakistan
apple tablet computer may ship in march wsj
washington jan afp
apple inc plans to unveil long awaited tablet computer this month which may
begin to ship in march the wall street journal reported on monday
citing people briefed by the company the newspaper said the color screen
tablet is expected to be multimedia device that will let people watch movies
and television shows play games surf the web and read electronic books and
newspapers
the journal said the device which has been the subject of speculation for
years will come with to inch to centimeter touchscreen
the newspaper said the table would be unveiled later this month but did not say
exactly when
all things digital however technology blog owned by dow jones publisher of
the journal said apple had rented san francisco venue for january to hold
media event and announce major new product
britain financial times also reported last month that apple had rented the
yerba buena center for the arts in san francisco space apple has used in the
past but for january not january
apple the cupertino california company behind the macintosh computer iphone
and ipod routinely refuses to comment on products ahead of their release
the journal said apple does not plan on shipping the tablet until march although
the shipping time hasn been finalized and could change
the newspaper quoted analysts as saying they believed an apple tablet would be
priced at around dollars
apple is notoriously secretive about product launches and has declined to
address the rumors concerning an islate ipad or itablet which analysts
have said may resemble an oversized ipod touch or low cost netbook computer
court upholds moussaoui conviction life prison term
washington jan afp
us appeals court upheld monday the conviction and life prison sentence of
zacarias moussaoui french national for complicity in the september
attacks on the united states
the us court of appeals for the th circuit rejected claims by us lawyers for
moussaoui the only person charged in the united states over the attacks that
claimed nearly lives that his guilty plea and sentence were invalid
it also struck down their efforts to refer the case back to federal court in
alexandria virginia where he pleaded guilty in of complicity in the
suicide hijackings of passenger planes that crashed into new york world trade
center the pentagon and field in pennsylvania
we affirm moussaoui convictions and sentences in their entirety and deny his
motion to remand the three judge panel said in its ruling
moussaoui attorneys had asked that their client sentence and conviction be
remanded because the government had failed to provide classified evidence he
could have used for his defense
after dodging the death penalty during months long trial in the alexandria
court moussaoui was sentenced to life in prison the court of appeals upheld
that sentence
president barack obama administration has announced it would try five accused
plotters including self proclaimed mastermind khalid sheikh mohammed
in us federal court in new york
moussaoui who later recanted his testimony only to claim he was part of another
al qaeda plot is serving life sentence in solitary confinement at maximum
security prison in colorado
he can still ask the appeals court to examine his request in plenary session and
then make final appeal before the us supreme court
arrested several weeks before the al qaeda attacks in new york and washington
the french national was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of
release in may
it is normally forbidden to rescind guilty plea after sentence has been
imposed and the minimum punishment was life in prison
but the central intelligence agency cia handed moussaoui possible unintended
lifeline in november by admitting that it provided false information to the
court when the defense team requested interrogation tapes of two terror
suspects
the cia had said in may that it did not have any recordings adding it has
since found an audio tape and two videos
in court papers filed in november the prosecution argued that moussaoui
name is not mentioned in any of the three recordings and that therefore the
cia mistake was not detrimental to the defendant
the recordings still exist unlike interrogation videos of two al qaeda
suspects that the cia has admitted destroying in revelation that
triggered charges the agency was trying to cover up possible torture
dollar softens as strong data boosts risk appetite
new york jan afp
the dollar traded mostly lower to open the new year monday as strong economic
reports from the us and china encouraged riskier trades away from the safe haven
greenback
the euro rose to dollars at gmt from dollars in new york
late on thursday before the new year holiday weekend
against the japanese currency the us unit fell to yen from on
thursday
market participants said the dollar was subject to profit taking after strong
run in december and that positive us and chinese manufacturing data bolstered
hopes the worst of the global slump is over
the strong data encouraged investors to seek out riskier but higher yielding
currencies than the us unit
the broad selloff in the us dollar this morning indicates that risk appetite is
driving price action in the foreign exchange markets said kathy lien at global
forex trading
dealers said news that in december the us manufacturing sector was expanding at
its fastest pace since april gave all markets real boost especially
after the chinese figures earlier in the day
the institute for supply management said its purchasing managers index rose to
percent in december from percent in november fifth consecutive
expansion and well above forecasts for percent any number above percent
indicates growth
the sector may be benefiting from an excessive destocking cycle said norbert
ore chair of the ism survey committee
ian shepherdson at high frequency economics said the ism index was propelled by
rebound in the new orders index which tends to lead the other components and
therefore suggests the january headline index will rise further
dealers said the market will likely now wait for friday key us employment
report to see if the recovery is beginning to put dent in the high levels of
jobless
the big question this week is whether the us payrolls will rise for the first
time in two years lien said
many economists are optimistic and believe that job growth has returned
although we are skeptical we recognize that the price action in the dollar
reflects this same sentiment
the consensus forecast for friday report is for payrolls to be flat in
december after drop of in november following months of hefty job
losses
wells fargo analyst nick bennenbroek said traders are not sure of the dollar
trend for
we had some distinct trends in for the most part we saw weak us dollar
and we saw negative correlation between the dollar and equities and then in
december we saw year end positioning and correction to that trend he said
at the start of new year we re trying to figure out what trend is more likely
to appear in
in late new york trade the dollar stood at swiss francs after
thursday
the pound was at dollars from
fake plot shadowed obama inauguration report
new york jan afp
barack obama was inaugurated as president last year under the shadow of what
officials said was credible terrorist plot to attack the ceremony the new
york times reported monday
the threat proved false alarm but the incoming administration took it so
seriously the times reported that contingency plans were drawn up in case the
incoming government and president were killed
obama was inaugurated january on the steps of the capitol building in
washington dc
according to intelligence officials group of somalis was believed to be
crossing from canada to explode bomb as obama took the oath an event watched
by more than million people in the center of washington and millions more on
television worldwide
all the data points suggested there was real threat evolving quickly that had
an overseas component juan carlos zarate previous president george
bush deputy national security adviser for terrorism was quoted as saying
out of precaution the white house selected robert gates bush defense
secretary and set to remain in the post under obama as successor to the
leadership in worst case scenario
gates was sent to secret location during the inauguration the times reported
in the article published on its website
obama counterterrorism advisor john brennan told the times that as the
inauguration drew nearer the plot seemed to be growing in credibility and
relevance
brennan said he suspected poison pen threat in which militants revealed
information to harm rival groups the times quoted officials saying the plot was
declared false alarm hours after it was announced
major chilean copper mines go on strike
santiago jan afp
workers at two mines owned by chile codelco company the world biggest
copper mining concern went on strike monday demanding higher pay and better
work benefits
miners at the chuquicamata and mina sur mines which together account for four
percent of the world copper production are calling for percent pay
hike as copper prices hit month peak monday at more than dollars per
tonne
analysts said copper prices were sent higher by the strike amid fears that
market supply of the commodity will become tighter
both mines belong to the state owned chilean group codelco the national copper
corporation of chile which produces around million tonnes of copper per
year and employs around workers
about third of the unionized miners failed to show up when their shifts began
at am gmt monday
union leaders said percent of the work force at the two mines joined the
strike
from the start of the day we ve been monitoring the general situation and it is
peaceful codelco human resources chief humberto fernandois told reporters
some banners posted outside mining headquarters said all of chile is
benefiting from copper except calama referring to town near chuquicamata
the biggest open pit copper mine in the world
codelco said it has contingency plans to cope with the strike but offered no
details la tercera daily said the company has enough copper reserves for
days and will be able to honor all its january contracts
the government regretted the strike action in one of the treasury biggest
revenue generating sectors
we did everything possible to avoid it but it could not be done this is not
good for the country said president michelle bachelet as the strike got under
way
codelco said it was willing to continue negotiations with the strikers
there room for solution management is ready to talk today with union
leaders said fernandois
codelco has been beset by strikes and other worker actions in recent years
which have forced concessions from the company
codelco could lose eight million dollars per day of strike action it has
proposed percent pay rise and bonus
the miners demands for more concessions come as the price of copper which fell
significantly during the global economic crisis has jumped in recent months
amid renewed demand from china the world largest copper consumer
copper prices have rocketed by more than percent since the start of
driven by signs of global economic recovery after the steep worldwide downturn
chile in had copper output of some million tonnes and was estimated
