the world largest automaker is considering recalling corolla rav and other
models produced and sold in europe the mainichi shimbun reported adding that
it was not clear how many vehicles were involved
the models are equipped with similar accelerator pedal parts to those of
million vehicles recalled in the united states the latest in series of
recalls by toyota the daily said
the japanese company us division said thursday that the recall was to correct
accelerator pedals on the vehicles that become worn and then in some cases get
lodged in partially depressed position
the action was separate to an ongoing recall of about million toyota and
lexus vehicles that began last year due to risk of loose floor mats slipping
forward and jamming the pedals
an unnamed senior official of the company told the daily we cannot tell how
much this recall will cost but it can be handled within our reserve for
unexpected troubles
but mainichi said decline in toyota reputation for quality following the
malfunction may trim its earnings adding it could take time for toyota to
recover customers confidence in its production
toyota which overtook us rival gm in as the world largest automaker
returned to profit in the three months to september and upgraded its outlook for
the rest of the year thanks to demand for fuel efficient cars
ethiopian airlines orders boeing for million dollars
washington jan afp
us air manufacturer boeing announced friday that ethiopian airlines has ordered
next generation in deal valued at million dollars
ethiopian airlines based in addis ababa is aiming to expand its fleet and
broaden its network which has been operating boeing planes since the airline
founding in according to boeing
ethiopian airlines has been among the most profitable airlines in the region
and one of our most valued partners marlin dailey vice president of sales
boeing commercial airplanes said in statement
ethiopian airlines chief executive ato girma wake said the boeing series
has proven to be reliable and profitable component of our fleet
ethiopian operates five and two it also operates nine
and and was the first african carrier to sign up with boeing for its
dreamliner ordering of them in
earlier this month boeing said it delivered commercial aircraft in in
line with its forecast despite difficult economic conditions
the boeing remained the company top seller with deliveries for the
year
golf watson shines at rainy bob hope classic
la quinta california jan afp
wet weather was no impediment to bubba watson on friday as he fired under
par to take two shot lead after the delayed second round of the bob hope
classic
after rain storms washed out play on thursday the second round of the hole
event teed off in driving rain on friday
it was raining again as the round wrapped up but in between the long hitting
watson capitalized on the wet fairways as he built under total of
alex prugh was two shots back after for first round leader shane
bertsch carded for where he was joined by joe ogilvie martin
flores and chad collins
watson played his second round at silverrock the toughest of the four courses
in use for the tournament
watson round included an eagle and nine birdies with one bogey and his
improved on the silverrock course record of set by jason dufner last year
my length is definitely going to play part on that golf course because it
got wide fairways watson said can rip it if want to
while the wet course made the par fives less reachable the conditions still
suited watson especially with lift clean and place rules in effect
the wet weather just totally plays into his favor because his ball not going
to get out of control when it hits the ground bertsch said he can just fly
it his yards and plug it and lift it clean it and hit wedges into every
hole it doesn surprise me one bit
but watson said his recent focus on putting also paid off
putted well today that was my key he said hit lot of good shots but
putted well
the pros got through round two on the double their amateur counterparts on the
sidelines in bid to speed things up
the amateurs will return to action on saturday and even though the forecast for
the weekend is clear the fifth and final round is now scheduled to finish on
monday
tennis australian open results day six
melbourne jan afp
results from day six of the australian open at melbourne park here saturday
denotes seeding
women singles
rd round
samantha stosur aus bt alberta brianti ita
victoria azarenka blr bt tathiana garbin ita
vera zvonareva rus bt gisela dulko arg
tennis ninth seed zvonareva into open fourth round
melbourne jan afp
russia ninth seeded vera zvonareva moved into the fourth round of the
australian open when she beat argentine gisela dulko on saturday
she will next play seventh seed victoria azarenka
football gunners face another physical test
stoke on trent england jan afp
with the fall out from william gallas tackle on bolton mark davies having
barely subsided arsene wenger arsenal are bracing themselves for another
bruising confrontation with stoke
the gunners face tony pulis side at the britannia stadium in the fourth round
of the fa cup buoyed by their success in knocking chelsea off the top of the
premier league following the victory over bolton in midweek
but arsenal achievement in finally reining in the eleven point deficit that
had opened up between themselves and their title rivals at the end of november
was overshadowed by gallas ill judged challenge
the centre back escaped punishment during the game but referee alan wiley was
widely criticised for failing to issue red card to the defender
wenger though is anxious to put the matter to rest ahead of the meeting the
trip to stoke where the frenchman side can expect to face another full on
physical test
do not want to develop any paranoia said wenger but there was too much
made about this incident
it was mistimed challenge but without any intention to harm the player what
is more funny is that when we get kicked some people say before the game we
know how to play arsenal we have to kick them and nobody in the whole country
is upset by that
am always absolutely amazed that people get away with it when we get kicked
and lose the game the question get from the press is oh you did not fancy
that but nobody is upset or shocked by it when we are kicked they find that
it is absolutely all right
wenger concerns appear to be vindicated by the comments of stoke striker
ricardo fuller who made no attempt to disguise the tactics likely to employed by
the home side as they attempt to reach the last of the tournament
it couldn be better draw because we did well against them here last
year said fuller
the britannia it like fortress and if we do play to our strengths
don think arsenal can deal with the aggressive play
it been proved in the past that chelsea and bolton have roughed them up and
tried to bully them
we can also be rough and aggressive when we need to but we have quality too
and so we can mix it up
with arsenal set to enter the most important phase of their league campaign
wenger will be extremely cautious about fielding some of his key players
after this meeting the gunners face quartet of fixtures against aston villa
manchester united chelsea and liverpool that will go long way towards
determining whether they can last the pace in the title race
yet while wenger has no doubt about which is the most important prize at stake
he is also anxious not to suffer confidence sapping defeat
the premier league is priority he added but to win is the first priority
and we want to keep the positive momentum by beating stoke
they are very difficult side to play against we need team that is ready to
fight and to play over there so that is why we need some experience in the side
we will certainly use the squad it fair to see we will put team that can
get result but won harm our chances at aston villa
briton arrested for fraud over bomb detectors
london jan afp
british police arrested businessman who sold bomb detecting equipment to iraq
on suspicion of fraud friday as ministers banned the export of the devices amid
concerns they do not work
the director of british based company atsc jim mccormick was arrested on
suspicion of fraud by misrepresentation and bailed pending further
investigation police said
at the same time the british government announced it will ban the export of the
ade an atsc product marketed as bomb detector and reportedly bought in
large numbers by the iraqi military to use at security checkpoints
tests have shown that the technology used in the ade and similar devices is
not suitable for bomb detection the department for business innovation and
skills said in statement
as soon as it was brought to the attention of the export control organisation
and business secretary lord peter mandelson we acted urgently to put in
place export restrictions which will come into force next week it added
while atsc did not need an export licence because the ade is not officially
military technology the department said it is clearly of concern that it is
being used as bomb detection equipment
the ban will be limited to iraq and afghanistan the department said because
our legal power to control these goods is based on the risk that they could
cause harm to uk and other friendly forces
it added the british embassy baghdad has raised our concerns about the ade
with the iraqi authorities
we have offered co operation with any investigation they may wish to make into
the how the device came to be bought for their military as bomb detection
equipment
tennis azarenka destroys garbin to make open fourth round
melbourne jan afp
seventh seeded belarusian victoria azarenka destroyed italy tathiana garbin
in the third round of the australian open on saturday
football ferguson aims low to win title
manchester england jan afp
manchester united manager sir alex ferguson believes that points total as low
as could be enough to win the premier league this season
united have already lost eight games in all competitions this season and
unusually had slipped to five premier league defeats before the turn of the
year
chelsea who have suffered four premier league defeats have also passed up the
chance to take hold of the title race with arsenal who were written off in the
early part of the campaign leading the table ahead of united game against
hull
ferguson side have picked up seven points from their last three matches but
had points at the half way stage in the campaign
the united manager who is looking for record fourth straight premier league
trophy thinks that any team that puts run of form together will take the
title
tally of points has not been enough to win the league since united won the
premier league with just points in
last season united pipped liverpool by four points with final total of and
picked up and in and
chelsea two title victories saw them gain and points respectively in
and
but ferguson thinks that there will be nothing like that this time around
the title race is looking more complicated this season think it going to
be the lowest points total to win the title for while he said
maybe will do it whereas we won it with last season it going to be
tough race
what made it that way is the number of teams who are challenging to get into
the top four
and of course arsenal consistency in the past few weeks has made it three
way fight at the top
they are winning games now and that underlines what ve been saying about the
need for consistency of results
that what will give any of the front runners chance this season
when they lost to chelsea at the end of november even arsenal themselves
admitted it was going to be difficult for them they were well beaten that day
but teams dropping points and arsenal hitting good run has put them back on
top and they will feel they are in with great chance
united face arsene wenger side next sunday and the gunners face chelsea the
week after
it is crucial period of the campaign and united have regularly put together
consistent run at this stage of the season to win titles and ferguson thinks it
could be defining period
they ve got us next sunday and then they have to go to chelsea the following
week so it going to be interesting said ferguson
think that we re now only two points adrift of where we were this time last
season
ferguson admits he is considering prominent role for new signing mame diouf in
the coming weeks
the senegalese striker who joined from molde earlier this month has come
off the bench three times for united and scored in the win over burnley last
week
the boy diouf done very well said ferguson
he showed real sharpness in front of goal and it good to be able to bring
someone in at this time of the season he can be winner for us
his temperament looks good when young players come and respond instantly to
our training then you are encouraged hope he made for the big stage no
one doubting his temperament that for sure
there are some big challenges in big games coming up may start him and that
will be the big test for him
russia us in productive talks on nuclear treaty
washington jan afp
russian and us negotiators held productive talks on reaching new nuclear
weapons disarmament treaty the white house said friday adding it was pleased
with the progress
moscow and washington are locked in talks to hammer out new pact to replace
the strategic arms reduction treaty start signed in just before the
break up of the soviet union and which expired on december
we are pleased with the progress made and expect negotiations to continue as we
work to iron out the final details spokesman for the national security
council michael hammer said
national security advisor general james jones and the chairman of the joint
chiefs of staff admiral mike mullen joined two days of closed door talks in
moscow with their russian counterparts hammer added in his statement
they held productive talks with general nikolay makarov chief of the general
staff of the russian armed forces other senior russian military officials and
the russian start negotiating team
the talks discussed the ongoing effort to finalize start agreement as well as
other security issues including afghanistan iran missile defense and
continued us russian cooperation on issues of mutual concern
russian president dmitry medvedev said earlier this month the two sides had made
significant progress towards new nuclear disarmament treaty
negotiators from both sides have so far failed to agree successor treaty
despite intense negotiations in geneva officials were not able to overcome
before the christmas holidays range of disagreements on issues such as the
numbers of carriers and inspections
us president barack obama and his russian counterpart have set goal of
reducing the nuclear warheads stockpile to between and for each
country
the presidents also agreed that the number of carriers capable of delivering
the warheads should be limited to between and
the united states has said it currently has some nuclear warheads while
russia is believed to have about
tennis stosur races into open fourth round
melbourne jan afp
local hope and th seed samantha stosur cruised into the fourth round of the
australian open by thrashing italy alberta brianti saturday
she will next play either defending champion and top seed serena williams or
spanish nd seed carla suarez navarro
cycling armstrong contador row good for sport uci chief
adelaide australia jan afp
lance armstrong simmering row with tour de france champion alberto contador is
healthy for cycling and better than the usual doping controversies the
sport chief said on saturday
pat mcquaid president of the union cycliste internationale uci said the
verbal hostilities since last year race have long been part of cycling
see it as healthy rivalry don see it as being over the top he told
reporters in adelaide during the tour down under
think they re both saying things to position themselves in the lead up to the
tour de france and think that strategic aspect that there always been
throughout cycling
seven time winner armstrong has compared july tour de france showdown as ali
frazier after the former team mates fell out spectacularly during last year
race
contador has accused armstrong of being bad team mate calling their
relationship non existent and provocatively describing luxembourg andy
schleck as his main rival
mcquaid said cycling had benefited from previous rivalries including fausto copi
and gino bartali legendary clashes of the and and greg lemond and
bertrand hinault row in the
don think there anything unhealthy about it think it good for the
sport controversy of this type is lot better than many other types of
controversies which our sport has had over the last couple of years mcquaid
said referring to doping
from that point of view think it good thing it generates interest in the
tour and will be big talking point in advance of the tour and during the tour
the two individuals are bringing pressure on each other and think it how
they deal with that pressure and deal with the event that will all unfold during
july
armstrong is embarking on the second year of his comeback at the tour down
under while contador will start his season at next month tour of the algarve
football iron test for city slickers
scunthorpe england jan afp
english football haves and have nots collide here on sunday when manchester
city millionaires take on scunthorpe in an fa cup fourth round tie in the
unglamorous setting of glanford park
having already beaten the irons in the league cup earlier in the season
city will be confident of booking place in the last of the fa cup at the
expense of their cash strapped championship hosts
but they have been warned to expect much sterner test than scunthorpe provided
at eastlands in october
it ll be different game to the one at their place said defender david
mirfin we re in quite good form at the moment and while we respect them we
don fear them at home it up to us to play how we want to
mirfin added the best way to get at city is to carry on playing like we have
been as front four we can always score goals and think as back six we ve
become more solid
if we play at our pace and don let man city dictate the pace think we can
get at them
but it up to us to start as well just as we have done in the last couple of
games the longer you re at or up the more likelihood there is of
there being shock
if you go down you ve got mountain to climb teams at that level are
good enough to defend lead and even go on and score more
manager nigel adkins has an interesting selection dilemma over whether to recall
first choice goalkeeper joe murphy or stick with josh lillis lifelong city
fan who has excelled while standing in recently
city boss roberto mancini has indicated that he will rest carlos tevez with one
eye on wednesday league cup semi final second leg against manchester united at
old trafford which could mean million pound signing robinho partnering craig
bellamy in attack against side put together for fraction of the fee paid for
the brazilian
stephen ireland was on the bench for the first leg against united but is
expected to return to the starting line up here
manchester united and liverpool have both fallen victim to lower league
opposition in the cup and mancini has warned his players they could easily
suffer similar embarrassment
know city beat scunthorpe iin the league cup but we need to have the right
mentality the italian said it will be difficult on small pitch and they
will be strong have seen scunthorpe on video
the fa cup is important to us and we want to progress we must remember what
happened to liverpool against reading and manchester united against leeds
britain hikes terror threat to severe
london jan afp
britain raised its terror threat assessment friday from substantial to
severe the second highest level suggesting an attack on the country is
highly likely home secretary alan johnson said
the change was announced just weeks after failed plane bombing in the united
states and days ahead of two major international conferences on yemen and
afghanistan in london
the joint terrorism analysis centre has today raised the threat to the uk from
international terrorism from substantial to severe johnson said referring to
the assessment unit within the mi domestic intelligence agency
this means that terrorist attack is highly likely but should stress that
there is no intelligence to suggest than an attack is imminent
in television statement shortly afterwards johnson refused to say whether the
amended threat assessment to four in five level scale was linked to the
failed detroit plane bombing on december
we never say what the intelligence is he said adding it shouldn be
thought to be linked to detroit or anywhere else for that matter
but us official who requested anonymity said that the implication
the us department of homeland security said the announcement brought britain in
line with us security measures introduced over the last few weeks
johnson said the jtac looks at all factors and no one should draw any
assumptions from this adding that the higher threat level meant britain put
more resources in we heighten the state of vigilance
in statement issued by his office he added that the threat level which has
been made public on mi website since august was kept under constant
review
the analysis centre makes its judgments based on broad range of factors
including the intent and capabilities of international terrorist groups in the
uk and overseas he said
johnson stressed that britain continues to face real and serious threat from
international terrorism and urged the public to remain vigilant
the threat level was last at severe on july when it was downgraded
to substantial suggesting an attack remains strong possibility
prime minister gordon brown on wednesday reiterated the threats britain faced as
he unveiled new security measures sparked by the attempt to blow up us
airliner flying into detroit which has been claimed by al qaeda
we know that number of terrorist cells are actively trying to attack britain
and other countries he told lawmakers in the house of commons
brown said the crucible of terrorism was based on the afghan pakistan border
but noted how the failed detroit attack also highlighted the threat posed by
militants in yemen
the alleged bomber umar farouk abdulmutallab had reportedly trained in yemen
he had also studied in london for three years
britain has organised meeting to strengthen international support for yemen in
its efforts against al qaeda to take place in london on wednesday the day
before high level conference on afghanistan
there have been numerous attempted attacks on britain in recent years as well
as the successful one on july when four suicide bombers attacked the
london transport system killing themselves and others
since the threat levels have been made public they have twice briefly been
raised to the top critical level meaning an attack was expected imminently
the first time was on august after series of arrests linked to
plot to down transatlantic airliners and the second on june at the
time of failed attacks in london and glasgow
the two lower threat levels are moderate indicating an attack is possible but
not likely and low meaning that an attack is considered unlikely
bernanke fate in doubt as us senate opposition swells
washington jan afp
president barack obama administration scrambled friday to save the nomination
of federal reserve chairman ben bernanke as more opposition emerged from members
of the president own party
two senate democrats announced they would vote against bernanke bid for
second term underscoring shift in the political landscape after the loss of
seat in massachusetts that ended the senate supermajority for the party
obama believes the senate will confirm bernanke white house spokesman told
reporters traveling with the president en route to ohio
the president has great deal of confidence in what chairman bernanke did to
bring our economy back from the brink deputy white house spokesman bill burton
said
the comments came as two more democratic senators joined the ranks of those
saying they will vote against bernanke whose term is up january over sharp
criticism of his role in the global financial meltdown
under the watch of ben bernanke the federal reserve permitted grossly
irresponsible financial activities that led to the worst financial crisis since
the great depression democratic senator russ feingold said in statement
senator barbara boxer california democrat also came out against bernanke
saying he supported policies of former president george bush that led to the
current economic crisis and our next federal reserve chairman must represent
clean break from the failed policies of the past
as many as democrats are thought to be against bernanke along with several
republicans
independent senator bernie sanders one of bernanke chief critics said that
getting rid of bernanke would be an opportunity to rewrite rules for the
financial system
new obama appointee could transform the fed into an instrument for the middle
class of this country rather than high rolling wall street executives sanders
said
senate majority leader harry reid announced late friday that after some
hesitation he had decided to back the chairman
no one pretends for minute that our economy is back at full capacity reid
said in statement
reid said his support is not unconditional and that he would hold bernanke to
his pledge of transparency and accountability
reid said that bernanke an expert on the great depression helped steer us
away from second one
conventional wisdom rarely credits those who averted disaster but that
precisely what chairman bernanke did reid added
it was not clear exactly when the senate would vote having postponed key test
vote this week amid doubts that bernanke would get the votes needed to
overcome opposition
administration officials said treasury secretary timothy geithner and obama
chief of staff rahm emanuel were working to secure enough votes for the
nomination
the opposition highlighted deep national worries about the economy as dominant
theme ahead of november mid term elections bernanke most vocal critics charge
he has coddled wall street and turned deaf ear to main street
analysts said tossing out bernanke could trigger new turmoil in financial
markets
think what is going on now is that politicians feel that fed bashing and bank
bashing is the way to get back into favor with the american voters said
nariman behravesh chief economist at ihs global insight
if he is not reappointed think the markets would have fit this is
time when there is still fair amount of uncertainty but one area of certainty
is that there is steady hand on the helm at the federal reserve
time magazine named bernanke its person of the year in december
crediting him with helping guide the united states through financial turmoil
although many economists agree that bernanke efforts eased the impact of the
worst crisis in decades and likely averted new great depression number of
lawmakers blame bernanke for failing to stop the housing and credit bubble that
led to the crisis
scientologists heal haiti quake victims using touch
port au prince jan afp
amid the mass of aid agencies piling in to help haiti quake victims is batch
of church of scientology volunteer ministers claiming to use the power of
touch to reconnect nervous systems
clad in yellow shirts emblazoned with the logo of the controversial us based
group smiling volunteers fan out among the injured lying under makeshift
shelters in the courtyard of port au prince general hospital
wealthy private donor provided his airplane to fly in volunteers from los
angeles along with haitian american doctors in gesture worth
dollars said parisian volunteer who gave her name as sylvie
we re trained as volunteer ministers we use process called assist to
follow the nervous system to reconnect the main points to bring back
communication she said
when you get sudden shock to part of your body the energy gets stuck so we
re establish communication within the body by touching people through their
clothes and asking people to feel the touch
next to her lay year old student oscar elweels whose father rescued him from
the basement of his school where he lay with pillar on his leg for day after
the deadly january quake
his right leg was amputated below the knee and his left leg was severely bruised
and swollen
more than half of his fellow students died in the rubble of his school although
the rest of his family was unscathed he said thanking god
one hour ago he had no sensation in his left leg so explained the method to
him touched him and after while he said now feel everything said
sylvie
otherwise they might have had to amputate his other leg now his sister knows
the method and she can do it
asked about the method being used on him smiling elweels described it as
sort of harmony between the nerves kind of exercise couldn feel at all
but then could
does he know scientology yes it french organization he said
all the patients are happy with the technique said sylvie but some doctors
don like the yellow shirts it color thing she insisted
another group of scientologists distributed antibiotic pills the doctors said
give everyone with wounds antibiotics said italian volunteer marina
some doctors at the hospital are skeptical one us doctor who asked not to be
named snorted didn know touching could heal gangrene
