billion euros more for production to be completed successfully
talks were held in berlin last week between representatives from belgium
britain france germany luxembourg spain and turkey and eads directors on
how to share the extra costs
urgent us top court drops noriega extradition appeal
washington jan afp
the us supreme court monday refused to take up an appeal from panamanian former
dictator manuel noriega against his extradition to france where he is wanted on
money laundering charges
au peacekeepers reaffirm support for somali government
mogadishu jan afp
the top civilian official with the african union peacekeeping force in somalia
on monday reassured the nation fragile government of its total support in the
fight against insurgent groups
boubacar diarra the au representative in somalia flew into mogadishu for his
first visit since taking office last month together with un special envoy
ahmedou ould abdallah and au peace and security commissioner ramtane lamamra
they were discreetly welcomed upon their arrival by general nathan mugisha of
uganda who commands the au force here known as amisom
then wearing flak jackets and helmets they were driven by convoy to meet
president sharif sheikh ahmed and prime minister omar abdirashid sharmarke
the internationally backed government has been boxed into tiny perimeter in
the capital by an insurgency launched in may by the al qaeda inspired
shebab group and its more political hezb al islam allies
sheikh sharif fledgling administration has owed its survival largely to the
military protection of amisom which numbers ugandan and burundian troops
our commitment to the tfg is total malian diplomat diarra told press
conference referring to the transitional federal government
we are here so that amisom can completely fill all aspects of its mandate
and we hope to work in close collaboration with the tfg
earlier this month the member african union renewed amisom mandate for six
months the force has been deployed in somalia since march
somali government officials have vowed that massive offensive is imminent to
reconquer mogadishu and push back the insurgents
amisom together with somalis are making real difference will be year
of major developments in somalia lamamra said
un representative ould abdallah argued that sharif first year in office had
moved somalia from failed state to fragile state
he said amisom has been more effective with percent less resources than
other peacekeeping missions
amisom is accused by insurgents of being an occupying force that is bent on
introducing christianity to muslim somalia while it has also been criticised
for killing scores of civilians during retaliatory shelling
police arrest over nigeria inter religious clashes
lagos jan afp
police in nigeria central plateau state have arrested suspects from last
week inter religious violence that killed nearly people spokesman said
monday
we have people arrested state police spokesman mohammed lerama told afp
he did not immediately give details of the charges they faced
some of those arrested over the last few days were moved to the federal capital
abuja police and government sources said
we are querying that aspect we are worried about that and we need answers
said senior official of the plateau state government who asked not to be named
because he does not have authority to speak on behalf of the state authorities
each time there is violence here the suspects are taken to abuja their files
disappear and they are not prosecuted it looks like another way of evading
justice some people want to shield them from justice he added
vice president goodluck jonathan pledged last week that the ringleaders of the
violence would be brought to justice no matter how highly placed
and lerama in statement on sunday vowed that anybody arrested will be dealt
with firmly and decisively
figures provided by medical and aid officials religious and community leaders
as well as global rights watchdog human rights watch hrw put the death toll in
the clashes at
human rights watch quoting figures provided by muslim officials said that
of the dead were muslims
us existing home sales fall in december
washington jan afp
sales of us existing homes fell more than expected in december by nearly
percent following three month surge driven by government tax credit an
industry organization said monday
the national association of realtors nar said sales fell percent to
seasonally adjusted annual rate of million units from million in
november
the sharp decline was worse than average analyst forecast of million units
and was the steepest monthly drop since nar began tracking the data series in
the industry group said the decline was expected after sales surged from
september through november as first time buyers rushed to take advantage of
federal tax credits originally due to expire on november
congress passed and president barack obama signed an extension of the first time
tax credit that expands it to include other home purchases made prior to april
the december number was percent above the year ago level of million
units
it significant that home sales remain above year ago levels but the market
is going through period of swings driven by the tax credit said lawrence
yun nar chief economist
we likely have another surge in the spring as home buyers take advantage
of the extended and expanded tax credit by early summer the overall market
should benefit from more balanced inventory and sales are on track to rise
again in
first time home buyers represented percent of the market in december
compared with percent the prior month
the industry group noted that sales had risen every month since april apart
from slight dip in august and had often topped expectations
for all of sales of existing homes totaled million gain of
pecent from
it was the first annual sales gain since nar said
police arrest over nigeria inter religious clashes
lagos jan afp
police in nigeria central plateau state have arrested suspects from last
week inter religious violence that killed nearly people spokesman said
monday
we have people arrested state police spokesman mohammed lerama told afp
he did not immediately give details of the charges they faced
some of those arrested over the last few days were moved to the federal capital
abuja police and government sources said
we are querying that aspect we are worried about that and we need answers
said senior official of the plateau state government who asked not to be named
because he does not have authority to speak on behalf of the state authorities
each time there is violence here the suspects are taken to abuja their files
disappear and they are not prosecuted it looks like another way of evading
justice some people want to shield them from justice he added
vice president goodluck jonathan pledged last week that the ringleaders of the
violence would be brought to justice no matter how highly placed
and lerama in statement on sunday vowed that anybody arrested will be dealt
with firmly and decisively
figures provided by medical and aid officials religious and community leaders
as well as global rights watchdog human rights watch hrw put the death toll in
the clashes at
human rights watch quoting figures provided by muslim officials said that
of the dead were muslims
alert
us supreme court drops noriega request to block extradition
african bloc to try central bank fraud eguinea
malabo jan afp
leaders of the central african group cemac are to take legal action over
multi million dollar embezzlement scandal at their joint central bank
equatorial guinea president said monday
the six nation economic and monetary community of central africa cemac is
under pressure to act after admitting that its banking arm the bank of central
african states beac lost vast sums to fraud and bad investments
we re going to file suit with the cemac court which will judge the civil
servants implicated in the embezzlements president teodoro obiang nguema said
in remarks recorded sunday and broadcast monday on state television
based in chad capital ndjamena the cemac court of justice has the dual powers
of court of law and an audit office its rulings are binding
obiang nguema gave no timetable for going to court but he warned that all those
involved will go to prison and their assets will be confiscated
he was reporting on the decisions of cemac summit on january and in the
central african republic that sought to address the fraud
obiang nguema was last week appointed to supervise wide ranging audits of the
community financial institutions launched after the magazine jeune afrique
exposed the embezzlement scandal last year
according to an internal report published in october million euros
million dollars of funds destined for the operations of beac subsidiary in
paris were embezzled by employees between and
the cemac court can be called in to monitor budgetary activities in its member
states cameroon and the central african republic as well as oil rich chad the
republic of congo equatorial guinea and gabon
oil prices edge higher after sharp falls
london jan afp
oil prices rose on monday on bargain hunting following slump last week against
background of weak global demand for energy and concerns about the strength of
the wider economy
new york main futures contract light sweet crude for delivery in march
climbed cents to dollars barrel
brent north sea crude for march delivery gained cents to dollars at
about gmt
jason feer at energy analysts argus media said flurry of buying was made
possible owing to an oversold market
it hard to say whether it just short term trend higher that can be
sustained he added
prices retreated in recent days as traders fretted over possible moves by
beijing to rein in the booming chinese economy major consumer of oil
china economy expanded percent in the december quarter and by percent
for the whole of
the market was also dampened last week as us president barack obama unveiled
plans to crack down on the us financial sector amid fragile economic recovery
oil prices declined last week in line with other commodity and equity
markets with risk aversion still dominating investor sentiment following
president obama proposal to reform the way banks conduct their business vtb
capital analyst andrey kryuchenkov said
there was no relevant data out on friday as market participants were still
trying to make sense out of the latest set of inventory numbers which yet
again confirmed anaemic energy demand in the us
the us department of energy doe on thursday said that gasoline reserves in the
world biggest economy increased by stronger than expected million
barrels in the week ending january striking two year high
it also said refineries operated at percent their lowest rate in at
least two decades apart from the immediate aftermath of hurricane
oil prices jumped by about percent in as traders were heartened by
evidence that the battered global economy was on the mend with the eurozone
japan and the united states escaping deep recession
however crude futures have struggled to make much headway in early as
economic data disappoints
israeli pm heads to poland for emotional auschwitz visit
jerusalem jan afp
israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu travels on monday to poland for
highly emotional visit to the auschwitz death camp after warning that jews are
again facing calls for their extermination
ceremony on wednesday will mark international holocaust remembrance day and
the th anniversary of the liberation of the camp in nazi occupied poland where
some one million jews perished between june and january
netanyahu will be accompanied by delegation of israeli mps and holocaust
survivors
the visit was set to be particularly emotionally charged for the hardline
premier whose wife father was the only member of his family to survive the
nazi holocaust in which some six million jews were murdered
this will be very emotional visit no jew can go to such venue without
having the weight of history and memory on his shoulders the premier
spokesman mark regev said
the son of prominent nationalist historian netanyahu views the jewish state
as the shield against recent years growing expressions of holocaust denial
and calls for the extermination of jews mainly by iranian president mahmoud
ahmadinejad
there is evil in the world if it is unstopped it expands and it is expanding
and it is threatening the same people the jewish people but we know it only
starts with the jewish people netanyahu said on monday
there is new call for the extermination of the jewish people he said at the
opening of an exhibition of the auschwitz death camp blueprints at the yad
vashem holocaust memorial in jerusalem
iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad has repeatedly said the jewish state was
doomed to be wiped off the map and has questioned the scale of the holocaust
israel considers iran to be an existential threat
on the eve of monday trip netanyahu also warned against new rise of anti
semitism in the wake of israel devastating war in the gaza strip last year
when some palestinians and israelis were killed
the fight against anti semitism is more important than ever because there has
been significant rise in the number of expressions of anti semitism since
operation cast lead he said on sunday
this anti semitism is mixed with new attempt to deny the jewish state the
right of self defence
israel on sunday released report saying that was record year for acts
of anti semitism across the world in decades
on tuesday netanyahu will also visit the warsaw ghetto and hold talks in the
polish capital with president lech kaczynski prime minister donald tusk and
other officials
the auschwitz birkenau nazi concentration camp outside the city of krakow was
liberated on january by soviet troops the day was designated
international holocaust memorial day by the united nations in
british pm admits mistake over post war iraq planning
london jan afp
british prime minister gordon brown admitted monday it had been mistake to
fail to prepare adequately for rebuilding iraq following the removal of
saddam hussein
but speaking days before his predecessor tony blair testifies to britain iraq
war inquiry brown who will face the probe himself within weeks insisted
that the war was justified by previous un resolution
think the mistake in the war was not to do the reconstruction and plan it in
the way that was necessary so that iraq could recover quickly after saddam
hussein fell brown said at his monthly press conference
challenged about the legality of the us led invasion brown said he would
address such issues when he appears before the public inquiry into the war
but he added as far as the war is concerned have always said that the un
resolution that said to saddam hussein for over years that he had to take
action to deal with the threat he was posing to other countries was very
decisive part of the reasons why we had to take the actions we did
he is due to give evidence over the next few weeks after blair who was prime
minister at the time of the conflict gives his eagerly awaited version of
events on friday
brown added stand by all the actions have taken and welcome the chance
to explain not only the circumstances in which our government made the decisions
it did but also the circumstances in which we brought our troops home from
iraq
he had initially been expected to give evidence after the general election
which is expected to take place by june but his offer to appear earlier was
accepted
algeria criticises us double standards over watchlist
algiers jan afp
algeria foreign minister hit out monday at the united states decision to put
it on terror watchlist as part of new aviation security measures accusing
washington of double standards
mourad medelci said he had told visiting us diplomat janet sanderson in talks in
algiers that algeria regrets that methods used by certain countries to ensure
their security correspond to policy of double standards
sanderson the us state department deputy assistant secretary for the gulf
began an official visit on sunday
asked if algeria had received guarantees that it would be scratched from the
list medelci said the real guarantee is the quality of the relationship
between algeria and the united states
this guarantee is founded on confidence and armed with this confidence am
persuaded that we will eventually find more satisfactory solutions which are
acceptable to the international community plan to work together and in more
efficient manner against the scourge of terrorism which concerns us all he
said
sanderson was quoted by the state news agency aps as saying she was aware of
algeria stance but reiterating that the united states was not targeting any
particular country with the measures which she said would evolve
washington compiled nation terror watchlist in the wake of the failed
christmas day airliner bombing
travellers flying directly or indirectly to the united states from countries on
the list are subject to enhanced security screening
the list includes iran nigeria syria and yemen and number of countries have
strongly protested against their inclusion
britain urges global deal on bank tax
london jan afp
britain stepped up its push for global tax on financial transactions monday as
part of broad plans to reform the banking sector following the financial crisis
amid concerns that the us may act alone
prime minister gordon brown insisted that his proposal for an international levy
on financial transactions was gathering support around the world day after
british finance minister alistair darling hit out at us proposals
meanwhile paul myners britain financial services minister said international
agreement on an extraordinary bank levy would be the most important legacy of
the state led response to the financial crisis
the comments by city minister myners in the guardian newspaper came as he
chaired seminar monday on the practicality of imposing such tax on financial
institutions
the london meeting was arranged to canvass opinion among officials from
nations the imf world bank and academics on the practical challenges of
implementing insurance levies according to the treasury
brown has urged leading economies including the united states france and
germany to consider tax on financial transactions to make banks more
accountable to society
the british leader has pressed the idea of so called tobin tax but said
nations could also consider an insurance scheme aimed at preventing repeat of
the huge state bailouts of banks caused by the financial crisis
tobin tax was originally proposed in by nobel prize winning economist
james tobin as means of reducing speculation in global markets but tobin
himself later doubted his own idea was workable
on monday meanwhile brown told press conference there is very big risk
that if we don take the action that is necessary sometimes very
controversial that banks will relapse into what they were before taking
reckless risks at the expense of the customers
us president barack obama recently proposed levying fee on top us banks to
raise billion dollars in years to recoup every single dime of the recent
wall street bailout
and in bid to radically change the financial landscape obama last week
announced plans to limit the size and scope of us banks saying they would
never again get so big that taxpayers have to bail them out
but the president proposals have failed to win over britain
on sunday chancellor of the exchequer darling expressed scepticism at obama
banking reform plans saying they would not have prevented the financial crisis
and warning they risk undermining the global consensus
myners writing in the guardian daily said that finding new way to keep
taxpayers from shouldering the bill for future bailouts will be far from easy
but the uk will continue to lead the international effort to do so
he added global agreement on this issue would be the most important legacy
of our response to this crisis and it is prize all governments have duty to
pursue
the imf is due to publish report in april expected to outline what it
considers to be the best form of extraordinary taxation on financial
institutions
israel pm wife sues paper for libel amid staff scandal
jerusalem jan afp
israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu wife sara sued leading israeli
newspaper for libel on monday spokesman said amid growing scandal over her
alleged treatment of household staff
sara netanyahu filed the million shekel dollars euros
lawsuit against the maariv daily charging recent article accusing her of
firing year old gardener at the premier residence was lie said shaya
segel spokesman for the netanyahu family
the maariv article was an attempt to humiliate the prime minister wife and
portray her as an unfeeling woman who preys on the weak treating veteran
gardener cruelly and firing bereaved father without reason segel said in
statement
there is not shred of truth in the false article the gardener who worked at
the prime minister residence was never fired by the plaintiff and continues to
work there as gardener to this day according to the papers filed at
jerusalem court
the libel claim comes on day when another newspaper reported that sara
netanyahu was facing second lawsuit from housekeeper
the case was filed more than two months ago but the court imposed gag order at
the request of the housekeeper who made the complaint yediot aharonot reported
on monday
while no details of the case were given the revelation is certain to cause
further embarrassment to the hawkish prime minister who has tried in vain to
get the media to stay out of his family affairs
in the first lawsuit which came to public attention earlier this month
housekeeper lillian peretz claimed that while in netanyahu employ she was
made to shower and change her clothes several times day and to compliment the
first lady telling her she was pretty and smart
the lawsuit alleges peretz woes were like the story of cinderella evidently
comparing sara netanyahu former air stewardess and now practising
psychologist to the fairy tale evil stepmother
netanyahu piled on her impossible tasks tyrannised her and screamed at her
insulted her femininity until her mental and physical collapse
the year old mother of four claimed she was paid less than the minimum wage
and the netanyahus did not pay her social benefits when she worked at their
weekend home in the plush coastal town of caesarea between and
the netanyahus have vehemently rejected the allegations saying in statement
that the lawsuit is riddled with slander and inventions against the prime
minister wife
bur gr jk srm
police arrest over nigeria inter religious clashes
lagos jan afp
police in nigeria central plateau state have arrested suspects over last
week inter religious violence that killed nearly people spokesman said
monday
we have people arrested state police spokesman mohammed lerama told afp
he did not immediately give details of the charges they faced
vice president goodluck jonathan pledged last week that the ringleaders of the
violence would be brought to justice no matter how highly placed
figures provided by medical and aid officials religious and community leaders
as well as global rights watchdog human rights watch hrw put the death toll in
the clashes at
human rights watch quoting figures provided by muslim officials said that
of those killed were muslims
afp graphics advisory
paris jan afp
monday graphics
iraq unrest
graphic map of the centre of baghdad locating series of suicide car bomb
attacks in which over people were killed
text slug iraq unrest
mm
available by gmt
available now
lebanan ethiopian plane crash map
two graphic maps detailing the crash of an ethiopian airliner near beirut
airport
text slug lebanon plane crash
mm and mm
haiti quake toll
updated haitian earthquake death toll with map
texts slug haiti quake
mm
sri lanka vote factfile
factfile on the sri lankan presidential election scheduled for tuesday
text slug srilanka vote
mm
afghanistan taliban map
map of afghanistan showing the provinces with the strongest taliban presence
text slug afghanistan unrest politics vote
mm
melamine food factfile
factfile on the chemical melamine which has reportedly been found in food
products made by three chinese companies
text slug china food safety milk child
mm
icon foldable aircraft factfile
factfile on the icon sport and leisure aircraft with foldable wings for road
transport and amphibious landing gear the craft is in production in the united
states with first deliveries expected in
stand alone graphic
mm
asia pacific markets
closings for key asia pacific markets
text slug stocks
mm
moved earlier
auschwitz birkenau map mm
paris hong kong
tel
afp gmt economics news advisory
paris jan afp
duty editor bryan mcmanus
telephone
us politics economy obama
washington
president barack obama throws the spotlight on creating jobs and trimming the
massive budget deficit previewing his state of the union address this week
which he is hoping to use to revive his bond with us voters
words gmt by stephen collinson
britain finance regulate banking imf worldbank tobin ndlead
london
britain leads push for global deal on reforming the banking sector that
could include widespread agreement to impose an extraordinary tax on lenders
amid concerns that the us may go it alone
words gmt
italy auto company earnings fiat rdlead
milan
italian automaker fiat reports higher than expected net loss in but
forecasts return to profit this year as long as european governments continue
to offer incentives to buy eco friendly vehicles
words gmt
netherlands electronics company earnings philips ndlead
the hague
dutch electronics giant philips reports slightly better than expected fourth
quarter net profit but warns it will stay focussed on cost cuts and innovation
as uncertain times lie ahead
words by gmt
sweden telecom equip earnings cuts company ericsson thlead
stockholm
ericsson announces an extra job cuts under restructuring which bit deeply
into fourth quarter net profit at the firm the world leader in phone network
equipment
words gmt by marc preel
eu competition australia britain mining iron riotinto bhp thlead
brussels
the european union announces new probe into controversial anglo australian
iron ore giants rio tinto and its peer bhp billiton who are already under
pressure from china the world biggest importer
words gmt
stocks europe lead wrap
london
european stock markets turn narrowly mixed in choppy trade as investors wait for
key us data and federal reserve meeting after president barack obama roiled
sentiment with his pledge to come down hard on the banks
words gmt
forex europe wrap
london
the dollar holds in narrow range ahead of federal reserve policy meeting and
key speech by us president barack obama later this week
words gmt
commodities energy oil price ndlead wrap
london
oil prices edge higher as traders seek bargains following slump last week
against background of weak global demand for energy and concerns about the
strength of the wider economy
words gmt
china us it internet google thlead wrap
beijing
china denies any state involvement in cyberattacks on google and accuses the
united states of double standards as row with washington over internet
freedom intensifies
words moved by susan stumme
hongkong russia rusal ipo advancer
hong kong
