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Obama Joining PM To Pay Tribute To Saudi King

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 24 Januari 2015 | 18.46

Prime Minister David Cameron and The Prince of Wales, representing the Queen, are flying to Saudi Arabia today following the death of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz.

They will join a host of international dignitaries in Riyadh to pay their respects to the Saudi royal family.

President Obama has cancelled the end of his visit to India - which included a visit to the Taj Mahal - in order to fly to Saudi Arabia, a long-standing ally of the United States.

Mr Obama will travel to Riyadh on Tuesday to meet with King Salman, the White House has confirmed.

King Abdullah, 90, died on Thursday evening after almost two decades leading the world's biggest oil exporter.

Both Mr Cameron and the Queen said they were "saddened" by his death.

Their decision to fly to Saudi comes amid sharp criticism over a decision to lower flags at Whitehall and across England a mark of respect for the late monarch.

Downing Street and Whitehall buildings, including Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace, were instructed by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on Friday to lower the Union Flag for 12 hours in tribute.

But some politicians and human rights campaigners have slammed the tributes to Abdullah who presided over a country where a woman was recently beheaded in public, a blogger was sentenced to receive 1,000 lashes for 'insulting Islam' and where women have been banned from driving.

Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, dismissed the flag tribute as "a steaming pile of nonsense", adding that it was "a stupid act on its own and a stupid precedent to set".

Former Conservative MP for Corby, Louise Mensch, took to twitter to vent her anger: "It is so unacceptable to offer deep condolences for a man who flogged women, didn't let them drive, saw guardian laws passed and starves them."

She even tweeted "F*** YOU" in reply to a tweet from the British Embassy in Riyadh which quoted the Prime Minister's sorrow at the king's death.

The head of Amnesty International implored the world not to forget the country's human rights abuses amidst the tributes to the dead king.

Salil Shetty said: "The Saudi regime seems insensitive to human rights and human dignity and unfortunately they are also protected by many Western countries because they have oil and because they are seen as allies in the fight against terrorism."

But Westminster Abbey argued refusing to lower its flag would not have helped the "desperately oppressed Christian communities of the Middle East".

"For us not to fly at half-mast would be to make a noticeably aggressive comment on the death of the king of a country to which the UK is allied in the fight against Islamic terrorism," a spokesman said.

A spokesman for UKIP leader Nigel Farage said lowering the flags showed "respect for an ally in the war against terror" and that the issue of human rights should be taken up with the new king.

But one of his MPs, Douglas Carswell, disagreed, saying officials had seriously blundered and showed "immoral" values far from those of the British public.

Referencing the civil service mandarin from television series Yes Minister, he said: "Sir Humphrey's values need to be aligned more closely to people in this country rather than being quite so immoral.

"Saudi Arabia is a country that doesn't let women drive and publicly executes people."

Archbishop of Canterbury The Most Rev Justin Welby told Sky News: 'Freedom of religion is essential and freedom to express Christian faith in Saudi Arabia is something that should happen.

"A few weeks ago there was a group of migrant workers arrested for holding a private service in a flat. That's not right.

"But I know that King Abdullah himself - it's a complicated place Saudi Arabia, like all countries - King Abdullah himself is someone who has worked very very hard on these issues and has contributed much and I think it's right that the prime minister should send condolences and should recognise what he's done over the years."

King Abdullah had run the country as de facto leader since the mid-1990s after his predecessor King Fahd suffered a debilitating stroke.

He was admitted to hospital on 31 December suffering pneumonia and the royal court announced that he was breathing with the aid of a tube.

He has been succeeded by his 79-year-old half-brother, Salman.


18.46 | 0 komentar | Read More

Greek Poll: PM Warns Of Election 'Catastrophe'

By Robert Nisbet, Europe Correspondent

The Greek prime minister has urged voters not to take the country to the "brink of catastrophe" in this weekend's general election.

Antonis Samaras told the final campaign rally of his centre-right New Democracy party that he had little choice to enforce austerity because the "ship was sinking".

Starting in 2010, Greece agreed to make drastic cuts to public spending and increase taxes in order to unlock two successive bailouts, totalling €240bn (£179bn).

As the Greek electorate enters a "day of reflection" to consider the wide array of parties on offer, the front-runner, the radical left group called Syriza, has extended its lead in the polls.

Forty-year-old leader Alexis Tsipras has said he wants to end the tough bailout conditions, which he argues have locked the country into a straitjacket of debt, unemployment and stagnation.

His opponents counter by saying the policies have spurred the country to a primary budget surplus and a slow return to growth.

It's still difficult convincing many Greeks though, as youth unemployment is running at almost 60%, with general unemployment over 27%.

The election has wide-ranging implications for the rest of the Eurozone.

If Mr Tsipras is able to win a simple majority he will be able to take a much stronger stand with Greece's creditors.

That would be tempered if he had to govern in a coalition with more centrist, pro-European parties.

He has said he wants to stay within the Euro, but his critics warn that if he's too tough in his negotiation, the so-called troika of the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Union may withdraw their support.  

That could lead to a debt default and a so-called "Grexit", or departure from the single currency.

Syriza's hand will be determined by the dynamics of the electoral system.

The 300 seats in the Greek parliament are handed out according to proportional representation, with the most popular party securing a 50 seat bonus.

To enter the chamber, parties have to achieve a 3% share of the total vote. Polls suggest seven parties may achieve that on Sunday.

The more support that goes to the smaller parties the more  Syriza's chance of an overall majority are diminished.

That's an outcome which will be watched with interest across Europe and by those with their hands on the levers of the world's economy.


18.46 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ten Dead As Rebels Fire On Ukraine Homes

Rebels have pounded a residential area in a government-held port in the south-east of Ukraine - killing ten people, police have said.

Ukraine's Interior Ministry said rockets hit a busy open air market in the port city of Mariupol as well as homes and shops, setting some alight - a military checkpoint was also hit.

It condemned the attack on ordinary residents.

Pro Russian separatists have launched a fresh advance in recent days threatening to increase their campaign - potentially dashing European hopes of a protracted cease-fire.

A peace deal signed was signed in September but is has been repeatedly violated by both sides.

There has been a significant increase in fighting in the last two weeks and the United Nations says 262 lives have been claimed in the past nine days alone.

However, the separatists have denied responsibility for the attack saying: "This is blatant misinformation and a lie. Rebel forces did not open any fire in the direction of Mariupol, especially not on residential areas." 

Mariupol city council dismissed suggestions Ukrainian armed forces were planning to withdraw from the government-held city, which is strategically important because it lies between mainland Russia and Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in March.

In a statement, urging residents not to panic, the council said: "On the contrary, all units are on fully battle-ready. Security measures in the city have been strengthened."

Vyacheslav Abroskin, the head of the regional police posted on Facebook: "As a result of shelling by rebels of a residential sector of Mariupol ... ten people have been killed."


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Deadly Shell Attack On Tram Stop In Ukraine

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 22 Januari 2015 | 18.46

Deadly Shell Attack On Tram Stop In Ukraine

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At least 13 people have been killed after a tram was hit by shelling in the eastern Ukraine city of Donetsk, say reports.

Ukraine's defence ministry blamed pro-Russian rebels, saying in a statement: "On Thursday, the terrorists shelled a trolleybus in Donetsk.

"The terrorists shelled the passenger transport from city residential areas controlled by the illegal militias."

The deadly artillery attack in the rebel stronghold came as talks on the country's crisis led to an agreement to pull back heavy weaponry from a demarcation line defined in last year's Minsk agreement.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier brokered the deal with his counterparts from France, Russia and Ukraine during talks in Berlin.

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  1. Gallery: Fierce Fighting Continues On Front Line In Ukraine

    A Ukrainian serviceman fires a weapon during fighting with pro-Russian separatists in Pesky village near Donetsk

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko accused Russia on Wednesday of sending 9,000 troops to back separatist rebels in the east of his country, something Russia strongly denied

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Local residents remove debris at a house damaged by recent shelling in Donetsk. IMF chief Christine Lagarde said she backed extra financial help for Kiev as the conflict inflicts severe economic damage

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A Ukrainian armoured vehicle during fighting with pro-Russian separatists in Pesky

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An overnight blast destroyed a railway bridge in the eastern Ukrainian region of Zaporozhye, cutting a railway link between the city of Mariupol and Ukraine's west

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Deadly Shell Attack On Tram Stop In Ukraine

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At least 13 people have been killed after a tram was hit by shelling in the eastern Ukraine city of Donetsk, say reports.

Ukraine's defence ministry blamed pro-Russian rebels, saying in a statement: "On Thursday, the terrorists shelled a trolleybus in Donetsk.

"The terrorists shelled the passenger transport from city residential areas controlled by the illegal militias."

The deadly artillery attack in the rebel stronghold came as talks on the country's crisis led to an agreement to pull back heavy weaponry from a demarcation line defined in last year's Minsk agreement.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier brokered the deal with his counterparts from France, Russia and Ukraine during talks in Berlin.

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  1. Gallery: Fierce Fighting Continues On Front Line In Ukraine

    A Ukrainian serviceman fires a weapon during fighting with pro-Russian separatists in Pesky village near Donetsk

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko accused Russia on Wednesday of sending 9,000 troops to back separatist rebels in the east of his country, something Russia strongly denied

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Local residents remove debris at a house damaged by recent shelling in Donetsk. IMF chief Christine Lagarde said she backed extra financial help for Kiev as the conflict inflicts severe economic damage

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A Ukrainian armoured vehicle during fighting with pro-Russian separatists in Pesky

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An overnight blast destroyed a railway bridge in the eastern Ukrainian region of Zaporozhye, cutting a railway link between the city of Mariupol and Ukraine's west

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18.46 | 0 komentar | Read More

Video: Police Shoot Black Man As He Surrenders

Newly released footage has revealed the moment a man was shot dead during a police traffic stop in New Jersey as he got out of a car with his hands raised.

The footage, captured by a police dashboard camera, shows officers making a traffic stop in Bridgeton, New Jersey, on 30 December.

But the situation becomes increasingly tense as one officer warns his partner that he has seen a gun in the glove compartment of the Jaguar car.

Officer Braheme Days repeatedly shouts at the passenger "show me your hands!" while warning him not to "reach for something" inside the vehicle.

He then appears to reach into the car and remove a gun, but the passenger, Jerame Reid, gets out of the vehicle and is shot several times.

Officer Days and his partner have been placed on leave pending a Cumberland County prosecutor's office investigation.

The shooting has sparked protests in Bridgeton and comes after months of demonstrations over the killings of unarmed black men by white police officers in New York and Ferguson, Missouri.

In the footage, the officers pull over the Jaguar for going through a stop sign.

Officer Days steps back, pulls out his gun and tells the men inside the car to "show me your hands".

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  1. Gallery: Archive: Protests After Eric Garner Grand Jury Decision

    Protesters took to the streets after a grand jury decided not to charge a white policeman over the chokehold death of an unarmed black man

Father-of-six Eric Garner, 43, died after he was restrained by police

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Kurds: Give Us More Help Or IS Threat Will Grow

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

The Islamic State terror threat to the West will increase if the Kurdish Peshmerga are not given more help fighting the Islamist militants, their commander has warned.

Speaking exclusively to Sky News on the eve of a major conference, Lieutenant General Jabar Manda delivered a message to the 21 foreign ministers gathering in London.

"We need more equipment, we need new weapons and we need the air strikes," he said.

"We need the continuous support and training. We are in need of ammunition. We need new weapons to win this war."

He thanked the British military for their help training his troops and said it has helped the Peshmerga push IS fighters back.

Despite this, 800 Kurdish soldiers have been killed and 4,000 wounded because of insufficient protection and Lt Gen Manda said armoured cars are needed to stop so many soldiers being killed.

He also said that stores of ammunition are decreasing after an early rush of donors.

"IS is an international terrorist group threatening all over the world just like we saw in France. They are threatening America and Britain and other countries," he said.

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  1. Gallery: Kurdish Forces Battle IS Militants In Iraq

    Smoke rises during clashes between Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and Islamic State (IS) militants on the outskirts of the Iraqi city of Mosul

Kurdish forces in northern Iraq said they had cleared Islamic State insurgents from nearly 500 square kilometres of territory

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IS Demands $200m Ransom For Japan Hostages

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 20 Januari 2015 | 18.46

Islamic State has issued a video threatening to kill two Japanese hostages unless a $200m (£133m) ransom is paid within 72 hours.

In the video, a black-clad militant brandishing a knife addresses the camera in English as he stands between two hostages wearing orange jumpsuits.

"You now have 72 hours to pressure your government into making a wise decision by paying the $200m to save the lives of your citizens," he says.

The footage, identified as being made by the militant group's al Furqan media arm and posted on militant websites, also sees the militant criticising the Japanese government's support for US-led airstrikes against IS.

But the Japanese government has said it will not bow to extremism.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a news conference in Jerusalem: "I strongly demand they not be harmed and that they be immediately released.

"I am extremely indignant at such an act."

The militant who appears in the video is apparently the same man involved in the beheadings of other IS captives.

Speaking in a British accent, he says: "To the prime minister of Japan: Although you are more than 8,000 and 500 kilometres (5,280 miles) from the Islamic State, you willingly have volunteered to take part in this crusade.

"You have proudly donated $100m to kill our women and children, to destroy the homes of the Muslims."

The two hostages are identified as Kenji Goto Jogo and Haruna Yukawa.

In August, a Japanese citizen believed to be Mr Yukawa - a private military company operator - was kidnapped in Syria.

Mr Goto is a freelance journalist who went to report on Syria's civil war last year.

IS has seized swathes of territory across Iraq and Syria to form an Islamic Caliphate.

Videos featuring a British-accented jihadi were published showing the murders of US hostages James Foley and Steven Sotloff and British hostages David Haines and Alan Henning.

The Foreign Office said it was investigating the video and reports that the militant is British.

"We are aware of the video and we are studying the content," a spokeswoman said.

The Japanese Prime Minister is currently on a six-day visit to the Middle East.

Last week, he pledged around $200m in non-military assistance for countries battling IS.

Japan's foreign ministry said it was checking the video, but if it was genuine "such a threat by taking hostages is unacceptable and we are extremely resentful".

:: Ransom demands and the countries who pay up


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Catholics Don't Need To 'Breed Like Rabbits'

Pope Francis urged the world's 1.2 billion Catholics to practice "responsible parenting" as he upheld the Church's ban on contraception.

"Some think, and excuse the term, that to be good Catholics, they must be like rabbits," the Pontiff said to journalists on the flight home from the Philippines.

He said there were many "licit" forms of birth control, in an apparent reference to the Natural Family Planning method of monitoring a woman's cycle in an attempt to avoid pregnancy.

It follows a tour of Asia, where the Pope has showed his more conservative side by defending the church's stance on artificial contraception and gay marriage.

The Pontiff argued that no external organisation should enforce its views on family size, criticising the imposition of Western values on the developing world.

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  1. Gallery: Pope Draws Huge Crowds In Manila

    Huge crowds filled Manila's main park and surrounding areas for Pope Francis' last mass in the Philippines before his return to Rome

Air force pictures show a packed Rizal Park - the landmark and areas around it had an estimated six million people attending

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Ransom Demands And The Countries Who Pay Up

Britain and the US have stated that they do not pay ransoms for hostages, but extremist groups rely on countries which do as a source of income.

European nations, including France and Italy, are believed to have paid large sums for the safe release of kidnapped citizens.

The money is most commonly paid through a network of proxies in contact with extremist organisations, often disguised as development aid for a particular country.

A New York Times investigation last year found that al Qaeda and its affiliates have made at least $125m (£83m) from kidnappings since 2008 - including $66m (£44m) in 2013.

The US and UK insist that paying ransoms increases the likelihood that citizens will be taken hostage in future.

:: Italy - aid workers Greta Ramelli, 21, and Vanessa Marzullo, 20, were kidnapped on 31 July, 2014, in Syria.

Their release last week sparked speculation in Italy that the government had paid €15m (£11.5m) in ransom, although foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni denied the reports and told the Italian Parliament: "We are against paying ransom".

Italy is also believed to have paid $2m (£1.3m) to the Taliban in 2006 to release a kidnapped photographer in Afghanistan.

:: France - reportedly paid for four journalists - Nicolas Henin, Pierre Torres, Edouard Elias and Didier Francois to be released in Syria in 2014. Reports claimed the figure was $18m (£12m), but the French government denied it had paid a ransom.

:: Spain - paid £2m ransom to Somali pirates for the release of 36 crewmen on a Spanish trawler.

:: Austria - reportedly paid $3.2m (£2.1m) to al Qaeda for the release of two of its citizens in 2008.

:: Switzerland - $12.4m (£8.2m) reportedly paid to al Qaeda in 2009 for two Swiss hostages and one German.

:: Qatar - helped secure the release of US journalist Peter Curtis from al Qaeda.

:: Oman - has handed over more than $20m (£13.2m) to al Qaeda since 2013.

:: Israel - has often struck deals to secure the return of its citizens, including prisoner exchanges.


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Donetsk Airport 'Retaken From Separatists'

Written By Unknown on Senin, 19 Januari 2015 | 18.46

Donetsk Airport 'Retaken From Separatists'

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Ukrainian troops have launched an attack on Donetsk airport, retaking territory from rebel separatists, according to a military spokesman.

Houses were destroyed and electricity was cut for many homes and businesses as explosions ripped through parts of the Donetsk region.

The Ukraine defence ministry has claimed a child and a teenager have been killed by shelling in east Ukraine.

With rebels at one point claiming to control the airport, about 10 Ukrainian tanks rumbled across the snow toward the front lines on Saturday to reinforce soldiers desperately trying to defend it, local television showed.

"The decision was taken for a mass operation," said military spokesman Andriy Lysenko during a televised briefing.

"We succeeded in almost completely cleaning the territory of the airport, which belongs to the territory of Ukrainian forces as marked by military separation lines."

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  1. Gallery: Ukraine Army Volunteers Head For Front Line

    Relatives of new volunteers for the Ukrainian Interior Ministry's Azov battalion watch before the troops depart to the frontlines in eastern Ukraine.

The Azov battalion was formed in May 2014 and is an all-volunteer paramilitary detachment which reports to the Ukraine Ministry of Internal Affairs. Click through for more pictures...

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Donetsk Airport 'Retaken From Separatists'

We use cookies to give you the best experience. If you do nothing we'll assume that it's ok.

Ukrainian troops have launched an attack on Donetsk airport, retaking territory from rebel separatists, according to a military spokesman.

Houses were destroyed and electricity was cut for many homes and businesses as explosions ripped through parts of the Donetsk region.

The Ukraine defence ministry has claimed a child and a teenager have been killed by shelling in east Ukraine.

With rebels at one point claiming to control the airport, about 10 Ukrainian tanks rumbled across the snow toward the front lines on Saturday to reinforce soldiers desperately trying to defend it, local television showed.

"The decision was taken for a mass operation," said military spokesman Andriy Lysenko during a televised briefing.

"We succeeded in almost completely cleaning the territory of the airport, which belongs to the territory of Ukrainian forces as marked by military separation lines."

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  1. Gallery: Ukraine Army Volunteers Head For Front Line

    Relatives of new volunteers for the Ukrainian Interior Ministry's Azov battalion watch before the troops depart to the frontlines in eastern Ukraine.

The Azov battalion was formed in May 2014 and is an all-volunteer paramilitary detachment which reports to the Ukraine Ministry of Internal Affairs. Click through for more pictures...

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Mastermind Of Jihadist Cell 'Still At Large'

The suspected mastermind of the jihadist cell dismantled in Belgium is still at large, a Belgian minister has said.

The comments from Justice Minister Koen Geens come amid reports the suspect is in Greece.

When asked if the ringleader remained on the run after four people were arrested in Athens on Saturday, Mr Geens told VRT television: "That is indeed the case."

He added: "Last night's arrests did not succeed in nabbing the right person. We are still actively looking for him and I presume we will succeed."

Belgian media have named the suspected leader of the cell uncovered by police in the eastern town of Verviers as Abdelhamid Abaaoud, a 27-year-old Belgian of Moroccan origin.

Two suspects were shot dead in a fierce gun battle with police during the raid, which smashed a cell plotting to kill Belgian officers on the street, local authorities said.

According to Belgian media, Abaaoud spent time fighting alongside Islamic State militants in Syria.

He was already known to security forces after appearing in an Islamic State video, at the wheel of a car transporting mutilated bodies to a mass grave.

Belgium's Flemish-language VTM channel said Abaaoud had made calls from Greece to the brother of one of the two heavily-armed suspects killed in Verviers.

A Greek police source said anti-terrorism investigators sent DNA samples and fingerprints to Belgium to establish whether Abaaoud was among the suspects arrested in Athens.

Initial reports had put the number of suspects in Greek custody at four but a police source said only two people were detained, at least one of whom was released without charge.

A spokesman for the Belgian federal prosecutor's office, Eric Van Der Sypt, said there was "no connection" between the suspects and their enquiry.

In Belgium, 13 people were arrested in connection with the probe. Five have been charged with "participating in the activities of a terrorist group."

Weapons, bomb-making materials, police uniforms and fake documents were found during searches of their homes.

Furthers searches were made Sunday in the Brussels district of Molenbeek where Abaaoud lived, media reports said.

Two fugitives who left Belgium immediately after the attack were arrested in France.

The Paris atrocities, in which 17 people were killed, have rekindled fears about young Europeans returning home after fighting alongside extremist groups in the Middle East.

Two of the three terrorists responsible for the attacks, brothers Said and Cherif Kouachi, were buried over the weekend in anonymous graves.

There has been no word on burial plans for the third gunman Amedy Coulibaly, who murdered five people before he was shot dead by police.


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Boko Haram 'Abducts' 50 Children In Cameroon

Suspected Boko Haram fighters have abducted up to 80 people, many of them children, in a deadly assault on villages in northern Cameroon, officials say.

"According to our initial information, around 30 adults, most of them herders, and 50 young girls and boys aged between 10 and 15 years were abducted," a senior army officer deployed to northern Cameroon told news agency Reuters.

That would make it Boko Haram's largest abduction in Cameroon to date.

Government spokesman Issa Tchiroma Bakary confirmed that three people were killed in the attack on Sunday, which targeted the village of Mabass and several others along the Nigerian border.

He said soldiers had intervened and exchanged fire with the assailants for around two hours.

He added that up to 80 houses were destroyed.

The assault comes just days after Amnesty International released satellite images of "catastrophic" Boko Haram attacks on two towns in Nigeria.

It believes hundreds of people were killed and that over 3,700 structures were either damaged or destroyed in the attacks in Baga and neighbouring Doron Baga earlier this month.

The campaign group said the pictures, taken on 2 and 7 January, provided "indisputable and shocking evidence" of the scale of the assaults.

The Islamist organisation was also responsible for the kidnap of more than 200 teenage girls from a school in the northern Nigerian town of Chibok last April.

Boko Haram has been fighting a bloody six-year insurgency to create an Islamic state which has left thousands dead and forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes. 

Attacks are increasing in frequency as Boko Haram continues to seize territory in northern Nigeria, and expands its insurgency across the border.

Chadian troops began to arrive in Cameroon on Sunday in order to help repel the extremists' offensive.


18.46 | 0 komentar | Read More

Qatar Migrant Worker Claims 'A Dirty Game'

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 18 Januari 2015 | 18.46

By Paul Kelso, Sports Correspondent

Complaints about the treatment of migrant workers in Qatar are "a dirty game" to discredit the country, a senior government minister has told Sky News.

Human rights groups and trade unions have raised concerns over the treatment of migrant labourers driving the construction boom in Qatar, with the government admitting that almost 1,000 workers from Nepal, India and Bangladesh died in 2012 and 2013.

There are concerns that without reform, many more could die as construction on 2022 World Cup facilities accelerates in the coming months and years.

In an interview with Sky's economics editor Ed Conway, however, Abdullah bin Hamad al Attiyah, a former advisor to the Emir of Qatar and now president of the Administrative Control & Transparency Authority, said critics had "a heightened agenda".

"I think this is a big trick. People start talking about human rights, they just have a heightened agenda and they just try and use it against Qatar. This is what I call the dirty game," he said.

"Just to come only to talk about human rights. What of the human rights in Israel? What of the human rights in Europe? What about human rights in America? Why are you just talking about a small country trying to create a scapegoat and try to blame it just as human rights?

"I believe we have a lot of nationalities who work in Qatar who save their family and their own home. We create millions of jobs for people who come. And they can buy their choice. No one forced them."

The minister's comments are in contrast to the official government line, and the position of the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, which says it has committed to a series of measures to improve worker safety.

Migrant workers make up around 75% of Qatar's 1.9 million population, with many of them employed under the kafala system, under which labourers cannot change job or leave the country without permission from their sponsor.

Qatar 2022 has introduced a code of conduct for companies wishing to secure World Cup contracts worth an estimated £100m.

These include agreeing to audits of workers' conditions and guarantees on pay.

The standards set by Qatar 2022 do not apply to wider infrastructure projects, and Amnesty International believe that Abdullah bin Hamad al Attiyah's comments suggest that the government is only paying lip-service to reform.

"It is very surprising to hear claims like this from a senior member of the Qatari government when we have been told in public several times that the Qatari government does accept there is a problem," said James Lynch of Amnesty.

"This would seem to indicate there is division in the government or there is a difference between the public line and what people really think.

"Time is running out for this World Cup to be built free of exploitation. If you still have senior government ministers refusing to accept that there is a problem that does not bode well at all."


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Indonesia: Foreigners Executed By Firing Squad

Six people, including five foreign nationals, have been executed by firing squad in Indonesia after they were convicted on drug charges.

The foreigners, from Brazil, the Netherlands, Vietnam, Malawi and Nigeria, were executed at around midnight, authorities said, despite international appeals.

The sixth, an Indonesian woman identified as Rani Andriani, was also killed.

"The execution of the six convicts has been carried out,"  spokesman for the attorney general's office, Tony Spontana, told news agency AFP.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff had issued a last-minute plea to Indonesian authorities to spare former pilot Marco Moreira.

It was rejected by Indonesian President Joko Widodo who said the judicial proceedings had followed Indonesian law. 

The Dutch government had issued a similar appeal for its citizen Ang Kiem Soei.

Brazil and the Netherlands have recalled their ambassadors from Indonesia in the wake of the executions.

Clemency appeals for the pair, as well as Namaona Denis of Malawi, Daniel Enemuo of Nigeria, and female convict Tran Thi Bich Hanh of Vietnam were rejected in December.

All six had been sentenced on drug charges from 2000 to 2011.

"What we do is merely aimed at protecting our nation from the danger of drugs," Attorney General Muhammad Prasetyo told reporters on Thursday.

"There is no excuse for drug dealers, and hopefully this will have a deterrent effect."

Five of the convicts were killed on Nusakambangan Island, off the south coast of the Indonesian island of Java.

The sixth was killed in Java's Boyolali district.

They were the first executions carried out since President Widodo took office in October.  

At least 138 people are on death row in Indonesia, mostly for drug offences. 

Roughly a third of them are foreigners.


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Record Six Million Attend Pope Francis Mass

Record Six Million Attend Pope Francis Mass

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Record crowds have filled Manila's main park and surrounding areas for Pope Francis' last mass in the Philippines before he returns to Rome.

An estimated six million worshippers attended the event, making it the largest ever papal gathering, despite constant rain.

The turnout easily surpassed the previous record of five million for a mass by John Paul II at the same venue in 1995.

Francis arrived at Rizal Park in a 'popemobile' based on the design of a jeepney, a common form of public transport in the capital.

He was wearing the same plastic yellow rain poncho handed out to the masses during his visit to typhoon-hit Tacloban on Saturday.

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  1. Gallery: Pope's Final Mass In Manila

    Huge crowds filled Manila's main park and surrounding areas for Pope Francis' last mass in the Philippines before his return to Rome

People make their way through the streets to Rizal Park, where the event was being held

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The 78-year-old Pontiff was mobbed as he arrived at the park. Continue for more images

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Record Six Million Attend Pope Francis Mass

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Record crowds have filled Manila's main park and surrounding areas for Pope Francis' last mass in the Philippines before he returns to Rome.

An estimated six million worshippers attended the event, making it the largest ever papal gathering, despite constant rain.

The turnout easily surpassed the previous record of five million for a mass by John Paul II at the same venue in 1995.

Francis arrived at Rizal Park in a 'popemobile' based on the design of a jeepney, a common form of public transport in the capital.

He was wearing the same plastic yellow rain poncho handed out to the masses during his visit to typhoon-hit Tacloban on Saturday.

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  1. Gallery: Pope's Final Mass In Manila

    Huge crowds filled Manila's main park and surrounding areas for Pope Francis' last mass in the Philippines before his return to Rome

People make their way through the streets to Rizal Park, where the event was being held

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The 78-year-old Pontiff was mobbed as he arrived at the park. Continue for more images

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