indonesian president susilo bambang yudhoyono pays tribute to former
president abdurrahman wahid who died on december aged from complications
arising from diabetes and stroke
briton executed
condemn the execution of akmal shaikh in the strongest terms and am appalled
and disappointed that our persistent requests for clemency have not been
granted
prime minister gordon brown reacts to china execution of british national
for drug smuggling who has mental health problems
see through goldfish
you can see tiny brain above the goldfish black eyes
yutaka tamaru an associate professor in the department of life science at
mie university where japanese researchers succeeded in producing goldfish whose
hearts and brains can be seen through translucent scales and skin
iran mousavi ready to die for opposition cause
tehran jan afp
iranian opposition leader mir hossein mousavi said on friday that he was ready
to sacrifice his life in his campaign for reform after the disputed june re
election of president mahmoud ahmadinejad
am not unwilling to become martyr like those who made that sacrifice after
the election for their rightful national and religious demands mousavi said in
his first statement on his kaleme org website since deadly clashes on sunday
my blood is no redder than theirs he added
mousavi nephew ali was among at least eight people who died during sunday
opposition protests during shiite muslim rituals for ashura
the opposition head website carried call from political prisoners in
tehran evin jail for the public to hold memorial on sunday to mourn those
who died during the protests
he called on ahmadinejad government to halt its crackdown against his
supporters which saw hundreds of people arrested during last sunday
demonstrations
the former prime minister urged the government to take responsibility for the
problems it has created in the country release political prisoners and
recognise people right to lawful assembly
he rejected demands from hardliners for him to renounce his accusations of fraud
in the june election in which he was ahmadinejad main challenger
clearly and explicitly say that the order to execute kill or jail former
parliament speaker and pro reform presidential candidate mehdi karroubi
mousavi and people like us will not solve anything
supposedly you calmed things down through your arrests violence threats and
closure of newspapers and other media what appreciation does that show for the
change in public opinion about the islamic republic
mousavi rejected charges by ahmadinejad and other officials that he and his
supporters were lackeys of iran western foes
we are neither americans nor britons we have sent no congratulations cards to
the leaders of major powers he said in mocking allusion to card the iranian
president sent to barack obama on his election as us president in
we are loyal to the constitution he added dismissing accusations by
hardliners that the opposition protests against ahmadinejad re election have
turned into campaign to topple the islamic regime
we want an honest and compassionate government that considers diversity of
opinion and the popular vote to be opportunities not threats
we consider invasion of people privacy interrogations ransackings
newspaper closures and restrictions on what is published to be violations of the
constitution
mousavi proposed that to resolve the crisis the government announce it will be
directly accountable before the nation parliament and the judiciary and not
demand unconditional support regardless of its shortcomings or weaknesses
the fourth candidate in the june election former revolutionary guards chief
mohsen rezai hailed mousavi comments as basis for compromise between
the opposition and regime hardliners and wrote to supreme leader ayatollah ali
khamenei asking him to intervene to broker solution
mr mir hossein retreat from rejection of mr ahmadinejad government and his
constructive proposal that parliament and the judiciary act based on their legal
duty to make the government accountable was late but can be new start to
unite the protesters with the rest the isna news agency quoted rezai as saying
in the letter
message from you or advice through speech can strengthen the new
movement which has started for unity and forgiveness rezai said
but hardline cleric ahmad khatami slammed mousavi statement as new
provocation
there is no crisis in the country and you are creating crisis stop it the
isna news agency quoted him as saying
hardline cleric ahmad janati criticised the pace at which opposition supporters
detained during sunday protests were being put on trial
the judiciary must allocate more judges to this revolutionary judges not
weak ones he said
but tehran prosecutor abbas jafari dolatabadi said the first trials would open
soon
investigations are rapidly being carried out regarding defendants who committed
offences on this day and soon some of these cases will be sent to court with
their indictments the official irna news agency quoted him as saying
ski jump schlierenzauer takes nd leg of four hills
garmisch partenirchen germany jan afp
austrian gregor schlierenzauer the defending world cup champion won the second
leg of the four hills ski jump event on friday
following poor showing last tuesday at oberstdorf where he could only place
ninth schlierenzauer made no mistake this time as he leapt and for
total of points
that was enough to see off compatriot wolfgang loitzl who twice jumped for
points while swiss rival simon ammann was third after jumping and
for points
austrian andreas kofler who won at oberstdorf came in fourth with leaps of
and for points
finnish five time overall winner janne ahonen second at oberstdorf on his
comaback from retirement could only manage sixth this time after jumps of
and gave him points
after the two races kofler leads the way with point advantage over loitzl
with ahonen third
the next leg comes sunday at innsbruck with the final leg also in austria at
bischofshofen on january
iraq expresses astonishment over dropping of blackwater case
baghdad jan afp
iraq expressed astonishment friday over the dropping of charges against
blackwater guards accused of killing civilians in one of the bloodiest
incidents involving private security firm here
the decision by us judge to dismiss the criminal charges also sparked outrage
among iraqis and baghdad government spokesman vowed that it would act
forcefully and decisively to prosecute the blackwater criminals
was astonished by this decision human rights minister wejdan mikhail told
afp there was so much work done to prosecute these people and to take this
case into court and don understand why the judge took this decision
us federal judge ricardo urbina on thursday dismissed the charges against the
five saying prosecutors violated their rights by using incriminating statements
they had made under immunity during state department probe to build their
case
the case was among the most sensational that sought to hold blackwater employees
accountable for what was seen as culture of lawlessness and lack of
accountability as it carried out its duties in iraq
the guards who had been part of convoy of armoured vehicles had been charged
with killing unarmed iraqi civilians and wounding others during an
unprovoked attack at busy baghdad roundabout using guns and grenades
one of them has said what happened in nisur square how they killed innocent
iraqi people that were just in their cars without any weapons am very
astonished and am waiting for the us embassy to give me the judge decision
in full the iraqi human rights minister said
what happened was very bad because so many innocent iraqi people young
students were shot by someone who liked to shoot unarmed people
mikhail added that she had requested meeting with us embassy officials in
baghdad the embassy did not immediately confirm that the meeting would take
place or if it did who it would involve
government spokesman ali al dabbagh said iraq would act forcefully and
decisively to prosecute the blackwater criminals
he added that an iraqi investigation had shown that the five guards were
unquestionably responsible for the deaths of the civilians
according to iraq civilians were killed in the shooting but the guards were
charged with deaths
inquiries carried out by the iraqi government clearly confirm that the
blackwater guards committed crime and used weapons when there was no threat
necessitating the use of force dabbagh said
foreign security teams in iraq long operated in legal grey area but under
military accord signed with washington last november baghdad won concession
to lift the immunity to prosecution previously extended to us security
contractors
ordinary iraqis expressed anger at urbina decision to dismiss the charges
dropping the charges against those guards disrespects the lives of the
innocents who were killed said abu uday university professor who did not
want to give his given name
the rights of the families of the victims must be guaranteed those who lost
their sons because of the rashness of guards who tried to show off their
abilities with no respect for people lives
the top us commander in iraq general ray odierno said he feared backlash
against private security firms working here
we all know that it was not us soldiers sailors or marines who did this it
was private security company odierno told press conference
what worry about is there will be backlash against private security companies
that continue to operate in iraq wouldn like to see that
blackwater ended its operations in iraq in may after the us state department
refused to renew annual contracts for the company
the firm renamed itself xe after the iraqi government banned it last january
over the killings
headquartered in north carolina blackwater was one of the largest security
firms operating in iraq with about staff and had been employed to protect
us government personnel since the invasion
british pm calls high level meeting on yemen
london jan afp
british prime minister gordon brown has called an international meeting on
fighting extremism in yemen for january in london statement from his
downing street office said friday
the meeting on the same day as conference on afghanistan comes after an
alleged bid by nigerian man suspected of receiving al qaeda training in yemen
to attack plane as it came in to land in detroit on december
logging exports banned in sierra leone
freetown jan afp
the government in sierra leone announced friday an immediate ban on the
transport and export of logs in an effort to crackdown on largely
uncontrolled multi million dollar industry
president ernest koroma office said in statement that illegal logging is
having adverse effect on the country environment and depleting the ozone layer
and most be stopped with immediate effect
it warned that violations of the logging export ban could result in court fines
and confiscation of property
at least logging companies are officially registered in the west african
nation but dozens of others operate illegally said the executive director of
the sierra leone environmental group emmanuel touray
trade and customs officials told afp that tens of millions of dollars worth of
logs were smuggled out of the country to middle eastern and southeast asian
countries to be made into furniture and household decorations
government forestry guards said that between january to november last year
power saws and other tree felling implements were confiscated from dodgy
loggers operating deep in the country lush forests
court proceedings against those who are caught drag on for months often end up
with minimal fines of to dollars senior guard said speaking on
condition of anonymity
think the ban is the most effective punishment so far and hope the
government will seize the opportunity to draft new legislation to protect our
forest and the environment he said
afp gmt news advisory
paris jan afp
duty editor chris otton
tel
top stories
killed in blast at pakistan volleyball match
iraqi fury as us court clears blackwater guards
iran opposition leader ready to die for cause
pope benedict makes new year plea for tolerance
pakistan unrest ndlead wrap
peshawar pakistan
suicide bomber blows up car packed with explosives in the middle of crowd
of people watching volleyball game in northwest pakistan killing at least
spectators
words gmt by lehaz ali
iraq us justice security blackwater reaction lead reax wrap
baghdad
iraq expresses astonishment over the dropping of charges against blackwater
guards accused of killing civilians in one of the bloodiest incidents
involving private security firm here
words gmt by mehdi lebouachera picture
iran politics unrest opposition thlead wrap
tehran
iranian opposition leader mir hossein mousavi says he is ready to sacrifice his
life in his campaign for reform after the disputed june re election of president
mahmoud ahmadinejad overturned
words gmt file picture
newyear world lead wrap
new york
pope benedict xvi issues new year day call for tolerance after massive
celebrations worldwide ushered in fresh decade under heavy security and amid
warnings of more extremist plots
words gmt
europe
britain iraq hostage iran ndlead
london
briton freed this week after being kidnapped in iraq in is expected to
fly home for reunion with his family as the controversy over his ordeal
refuses to die down
words gmt by katherine haddon file picture
finland crime shooting ndlead
helsinki
finland is in mourning after jealous ex lover shot dead his former girlfriend
and four of her work colleagues in the latest armed rampage which has reignited
debate on the country gun controls
words gmt by rebecca liebermann pictures
mideast
us attacks newyear britain nigeria yemen meet rdlead
london
british prime minister gordon brown calls an international meeting on combatting
extremism in yemen for later this month following the bid to blow up us
airliner planned by al qaeda militants based in the arab nation
words gmt
iraq unrest toll lead wrap
baghdad
violence in iraq dropped dramatically in but monitoring group warns that
security gains are levelling off and insurgents have shifted tactics to larger
scale bombings
words gmt by prashant rao picture
americas
iraq us justice security blackwater company facts
washington
the controversial blackwater security firm held leading role protecting us
government personnel after the invasion of iraq but has since changed its
name and left the country
words gmt
asia
nkorea us diplomacy thlead
seoul
north korea calls for an end to hostile relations with the united states vowing
to work towards nuclear free peninsula seven months after its last atomic test
angered the world community
words moved by park chan kyong
africa
drcongo un unrest offensive
kinshasa
democratic republic of congo forces are to mount new offensive against rwandan
hutu rebels in the east of the country with the backing of un troops the
congolese army says
words moved
suicide car bomb kills at pakistan volleyball game
peshawar pakistan jan afp
suicide bomber blew up car packed with explosives in the middle of crowd
gathered for volleyball game in northwest pakistan village on friday
killing at least people
suicide bombings blamed on taliban militants have surged in recent months as
islamist fighters avenge fierce military operations against them across the
northwest while washington is urging pakistan to do more to battle extremism
in the small town of shah hasan khan in bannu district which borders taliban
stronghold south waziristan man detonated his vehicle as sports fans gathered
at field to watch two local teams face off at volleyball
the villagers were watching the match between the two village teams when the
bomber rashly drove his double cabin pick up vehicle into them and blew it up
district police chief mohammad ayub khan told afp
at least people have died and the toll is likely to rise he added
estimating the crowd at the game to number about
one of his deputies habibullah khan said that people were also wounded
mushtaq marwat member of local anti taliban group told geo television that
the committee was meeting at nearby mosque when the bomber stuck
suddenly there was huge blast we went out and saw bodies and injured people
everywhere ten houses and three shops were destroyed he said estimating
that the death toll was going to rise significantly
mohammad ayub khan said that women and children were pulled from the rubble of
nearby house that collapsed in the blast and said that the remote area was
struggling to cope with the scale of the attack
security has plummeted over the last two and half years in pakistan where
militant violence has killed more than people since july
the northwest has suffered the brunt of militant campaign with suicide
bombings and attacks increasingly targeting civilians at least people were
killed in suicide car bomb in october in provincial capital peshawar
the region has also seen an increase in missile strikes by us spy planes in the
past month in its tribal belt
on friday morning us drone aircraft struck vehicle carrying suspected
militants in ghundikala village kilometres nine miles east of miranshah
the main town of north waziristan and close to the afghan border
us drone fired two missiles targeting vehicle and killing three
militants senior security official in the area told afp
the official requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the us strikes in
pakistan which have killed at least people since august and greatly
inflame anti american sentiment in the muslim nation
we saw vehicle engulfed in flames after the missile strike local
tribesman in the area told afp by phone on condition of anonymity
the bombing comes the morning after us drone attack killed four militants in
machikhel village about kilometres east of miranshah
the region saw rise in us strikes last year after president barack obama took
office and established pakistan as front line in the war on al qaeda
north waziristan neighbours south waziristan where pakistan has been focusing
its most ambitious military offensive yet against homegrown taliban militants
it sent about troops into the region on october
also friday an anti taliban tribal leader and four others were killed in
roadside bomb in bajaur tribal district the latest in wave of attacks against
respected elders allied with the government against the extremists
obama administration is pressuring islamabad to crack down on not only the
pakistani taliban but also al qaeda fighters and militants who cross the border
and attack us and nato forces stationed in afghanistan
the foreign forces in afghanistan also rely on pakistan as transport route for
supplies and on friday gunmen ambushed two tankers travelling though the
southwestern province of baluchistan headed to nato troops
local police official mohammad ansar told afp that one of the trucks was badly
damaged by fire but no one was killed in the attack in province troubled by
both islamist and separatist violence
urgent british pm calls high level meeting on yemen
london jan afp
british prime minister gordon brown has called an international meeting on
combatting extremism in yemen for january in london statement from his
downing street office said friday
alert
british pm calls international meeting on yemen for january
norwegian carlsen is youngest to top chess rankings
vienna jan afp
norwegian chess grandmaster magnus carlsen became the youngest player ever
to top the world rankings friday
the list of top players published by the international chess federation fide
put carlsen in the lead with points five points ahead of bulgaria
veselin topalov
indian world champion viswanathan anand was third with points
chess experts attribute carlsen spectacular rise to his coaching over the past
year by former russian world champion gary kasparov who was ranked world number
one record times during his career
anglican leader laments terrible and gruelling decade
london jan afp
the world had endured terrible and gruelling past decade the archbishop of
canterbury said in new year message friday that called for cooperation to
tackle issues like extremism and global warming
rowan williams the leader of the world million anglicans added though
that people should not give up on the hope for change or shrug our shoulders
and lower our expectations
it had been terrible and gruelling years in all kinds of ways he said
stressing the global nature of many of today concerns
the truth is that there are fewer and fewer problems in our world that are just
local
suffering and risk spread across boundaries even that biggest of all
boundaries between the rich and the poor crises don stop at national
frontiers
it one thing that terrorism and environmental challenge and epidemic disease
have taught us
williams urged people to push their governments to change the world for the
better for example by tackling poverty
we ve seen some signs of change we can make more by supporting efforts to
help children out of poverty across the world and locally as well by
campaigns to protect our environment by keeping up pressure on our
governments he said
we share the risks the big question is can we share the hopes and create the
possibilities because it when we do share the hopes that we really see what
it is to belong together as human beings
williams new year message was pre recorded and broadcast on the bbc friday
suicide car bomb kills at pakistan volleyball game
peshawar pakistan jan afp
suicide bomber blew up car packed with explosives in crowd of people
watching volleyball game in northwest pakistan village on friday killing
spectators police said
more than people were also injured in the blast in bannu district in north
west frontier province which is plagued by attacks by taliban rebels avenging
military offensives aimed at crushing their northwestern strongholds
the villagers were watching the match between the two village teams when the
bomber rashly drove his double cabin pick up vehicle into them and blew it up
district police chief mohammad ayub khan told afp
at least people have died and the toll is likely to rise
another local police chief habibullah khan said people were wounded in shah
hasan khan village kilometres miles south of lakki marwat town and near
the tribal district and taliban stronghold south waziristan
mushtaq marwat member of local anti taliban group told the private geo
television station that the so called peace committee was meeting at nearby
mosque when the bomber stuck the village field outside
suddenly there was huge blast we went out and saw bodies and injured people
everywhere ten houses and three shops were destroyed he said estimating
that the death toll was going to rise significantly
mohammad ayub khan said that women and children were pulled from the rubble of
nearby house that collapsed in the blast and said that the remote area was
struggling to cope with the scale of the attack
it is remote and backward area and the local hospital does not have doctor
local residents have put the casualties into their own vehicles and drove to
lakki marwat hospital he added
the police and army launched an operation against taliban militants in bannu
last year they claimed success but unrest has rumbled on and mohammad ayub
khan said he thought the islamist extremists were behind the attack
now they have found an opportunity to carry out this attack he said
prime minister yousuf raza gilani condemned the bombing and said such
terrorist acts cannot weaken the government resolve to fight the menace of
terrorism till its complete elimination according to statement from his
office
the military have launched their most ambitious offensive yet against homegrown
taliban militants in south waziristan tribal district they sent about
troops into the region on october
security has plummeted over the last two and half years in pakistan where
militant attacks have killed more than people since july and which
washington has established as front line in its war on al qaeda
insurgents have responded to the offensives with wave of attacks
increasingly targeting civilians and causing massive casualties
on monday people were killed in suicide bombing at shiite religious
parade in pakistan southern financial hub karachi
tennis tsonga out of doha event
doha jan afp
french world number jo wilfried tsonga has pulled out of the season opening
atp event in doha starting monday with wrist injury organisers said friday
am really disappointed not to be able to participate in this tournament owing
to wrist injury hope to be able to play in the future in doha but for now
hope the tournament goes off well happy new year to everyone tsonga said
in statement
swiss world number one roger federer spanish world number two rafael nadal and
russian world number seven nikolay davydenko are all scheduled to play doha as
they bid to lift the trophy won last year by scot andy murray
murray has this season switched his opening week focus to perth australia as
he bids for hopman cup glory alongside fellow briton laura robson
petraeus hails progress as us transforms iraq command
baghdad jan afp
top us general hailed progress in iraq on friday while american forces
underwent transformation with their command renamed to reflect the fact that
no other countries have troops here
multi national forces iraq mnf the name of the command of the coalition
that invaded iraq in was changed to united states forces iraq usf in
ceremony attended by senior generals and iraqi ministers at al faw palace at us
camp victory on baghdad outskirts
since left in september have noted progress each time returned
general david petraeus the current us regional military commander and former
top general in iraq told reporters
that is not to say there have not been considerable challenges there have not
been periodic horrific attacks and that there have not been innumerable
obstacles
but there has been sustained progress and that progress has been maintained
even after us forces moved out of the cities and progress continues even as us
forces have drawn down
the odd people who attended the ceremony among whom were defence minister
abdel obeidi and iraqi army chief lieutenant general ali ghaidan majeed saw
general ray odierno the top us commander in iraq roll up the mnf flag and
unfurl new one for usf
after the departure of british romanian and australian troops in july the
remaining odd us troops are now the only force in mnf spurring the
decision to change the command name
at the start of the invasion the so called coalition of the willing
included nearly countries aside from the united states including britain
australia and poland
it drew criticism however because many of the countries contributed only
handful of troops with several pulling out or dramatically reducing their
military commitments shortly after the invasion
as part of security deal signed by baghdad and washington in november us
troops withdrew from iraq cities at the end of june and must leave the country
entirely by the end of
football everton suspend jo after brazil jaunt
liverpool england jan afp
english premier league club everton said friday they have suspended brazilian
striker jo for breach of club discipline after he made trip back to his
homeland without permission
jo joined the struggling toffees on season long loan deal from manchester city
but the ban throws into some doubt his future at goodison park
jo went back to brazil without permission from the football club he is now
back but is suspended at the present time coach david moyes said
am disappointed we like jo he has been really good lad and we have
enjoyed having him but there has to be discipline at all football clubs he
left over busy period when we were short of players found it very difficult
so he is suspended from the club
dead in suicide bomb at pakistan volleyball game police
peshawar pakistan jan afp
at least people were killed and dozens more wounded friday when suicide car
bomber blew himself up as people gathered to watch volleyball game in
northwest pakistan police said
at least people have died and the toll is likely to rise district police
chief mohammad ayub khan told afp
he also confirmed that it was suicide car bomb that caused the devastation in
shah hasan khan village in troubled bannu district
the villagers were watching the match between the two village teams when the
bomber rashly drove his double cabin pick up vehicle into them and blew it up
he said
