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Will Morgan
Tsvangirai wield real power?
Not yet, it seems in Zimbabwe?
The
new unity government of Zimbabwe, launched with fanfare on
February 13th, has got off to an inauspicious
start. It appears that orders issued by the new prime
minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for
Democratic Change, are already being countermanded by ZANU-PF,
formerly the sole ruling party, still bent on
keeping the upper hand. Rumors of a coup, planned by a cabal
of disgruntled senior security men and ZANU-PF bigwigs
opposed to any real power-sharing, are rife. No one knows
quite who is in charge.
There are even whispers—wishful thinking, perhaps—that
President Robert Mugabe may be tempted to use his
traditional birthday address to the nation on February 21st,
when he turns 85, to announce his resignation after ruling
his once-prosperous country with an increasingly despotic
hand since 1980. Some think he is physically flagging and
that his mind has begun to wander. But others say he is in
full possession of his faculties and determined to stay in
office until he dies.
Things started to go wrong on the day a new 31-minister
cabinet was [Read more]
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Malaria:
Spoonful of sugar could save thousands of children
-
A
teaspoon of moistened sugar under the tongue could save
the lives of thousands of children suffering from
hypoglycemia caused by malaria, a researcher who
conducted clinical trials said .Malaria
claims more than a million lives a year -- 800,000 of
them African children aged under five -- and sickens
hundreds of
. [ Read More]
Indian PM has successful heart surgery
-
India's
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh underwent
successful coronary bypass surgery, while confusion
surrounded who was in charge of government just months
before a general election. The 76-year-old leader will
be in hospital for
[ Read More]
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Call: Tony @
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Delta and Northwest Fly Into Bankruptcy - Delta Air Lines Inc. snatched pillows from most of its domestic passengers, and Northwest Airlines Corp. quit offering pretzels. They slashed thousands of jobs and pressed remaining workers to take pay cuts. They renegotiated debt and dropped money-losing flights, but it wasn't enough to keep both airlines out of bankruptcy court. Ultimately, both were undone by spiking fuel prices after Hurricane Katrina. Their other problems - heavy debt, mounting pension obligations, labor costs higher than their peers - were serious enough, but could be addressed later. But not the fuel. Northwest Chief Executive Doug Steenland said there were times in the days after Katrina that the airline was paying nearly $100 a barrel for jet fuel - almost double its cost at the beginning of the year. Delta and Northwest both filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York . Both companies said the timing was a coincidence. They became the third and fourth major carriers to enter Chapter 11 since the 2001 terrorist attacks. The nation's big airlines have lost lost more than $30 billion in those four years,[Read More] |
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Germany
beats Czechs; France on Course
LONDON
- Kevin Kuranyi scored two goals Saturday to put
Germany in control of its European Championship
qualifying group after a 2-1 victory at the Czech
Republic, and Nicolas Anelka kept France on course
with the goal in a 1-0 victory at Lithuania. Israel
held struggling England to a 0-0 draw and European
champion Greece lost its lead and tumbled 4-1 to
visiting Turkey. In a meeting of two clubs level on
points at the top of Group D, Germany moved three
ahead of the Czechs as Kuranyi scored with two
headers in Prague. Milan Baros
replied for the Czechs, who are now tied for second
with Ireland, which edged Wales 1-0.Not considered
for last year's World Cup by France coach Raymond
Domenech, Anelka scored a solo goal in the 73rd
minute ....[Read More]
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IS
KOBE THE MOST COMPLETE PLAYER IN THE NBA?
In
the past five games, Kobe Bryant has averaged 54
points per game. Think about that for a moment.
Fifty four! Most importantly, the Los Angeles Lakers
won all five, reversing a seven-game losing streak
that had threatened to ruin their season. In effect,
Bryant placed the entire team on his shoulders and
willed it back into a positive state. The Lakers are
now confident again, they have Luke Walton and Lamar
Odom back from injuries and they're no longer
looking like road kill for the West's top seeds come
playoff time. And they owe it all to Kobe. His
offensive game is so good, so fundamentally sound in
every aspect, that it may be time to debate whether
or not he's the most complete offensive player in
the history of the NBA. I'm not talking about the
best player – there are plenty of players who rank
well ahead of Bryant ....[Read More]
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No
joke: U.S. comedian wrecks rare Ferrari
LOS
ANGELES (Reuters) - Maybe Eddie Griffin should leave
the driving to his chauffeur. The comedian destroyed
a rare million-dollar Enzo Ferrari when he
crashed it into a barricade while promoting a movie.
He was unhurt in the low-speed incident, at Irwindale Speedway, about 20 miles (32 km) east of
Los Angeles. "The brother's good at karate and
all the rest of that, but the brother can't
drive," Griffin told reporters. He was
practicing for a celebrity charity racing event tied
to his upcoming film, "Redline." The car,
one of just 400 manufactured, belonged to the film's
producer, Daniel Sadek. Sadek estimated that the car
was worth $1.2 million, and seemed philosophical
about the loss, saying he was just happy that
Griffin was unharmed.......[Read More] |
Popular
Rapper Arrested -
Rapper
Tony Yayo of the G-Unit is now rocking bling in the
form of handcuffs. The 28 year old rapper, born
Marvin Bernard, has been arrested for allegedly
assaulting the 15 year old son of business rival
Czar Entertainment head Jimmy “Henchman”
Rosemond. According to several sources,Yayo and
several members connected with G-Unit Records
allegedly jumped Rosemond’s son last Tuesday.
Ources say the boy was on his way to an internship
at his father’s company after school when things
popped up. “As 50 was getting into his SUV, he
hand signaled to Yayo and his entourage to approach
and harass the boy,” After being interrogated for
several minutes as to why he was wearing a Czar
Entertainment sweatshirt, Yayo pushed the boy up
against athe wall.”According to sources, Yayo back
handed the boy and began screaming profanities about
Czar Entertainment,not realizing the boy was the son
of the company’s president. Czar entertainment
represents rapper The Game who is long time 50 Cent
rival.....[Read More]
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Tijuana,
Mexico
Mexico suspect says he dissolved 300 bodies
A Mexican drug
suspect has confessed to dissolving the bodies of 300 rivals
with corrosive chemicals near the U.S. border, in a claim
highlighting the brutality of Mexico's drug war.
Antiago
Meza, known as "The Stew Maker," told journalists he did
away with bodies in industrial
drums on the outskirts of the violent city of Tijuana.
More than 700 people died in Tijuana last year as rival
gangs battled for control of the city's lucrative drug
trade. Many others are missing and believed dead after being
abducted.
The suspect, who was paraded before journalists by the army
on Friday, said he was paid $600 a week by a breakaway
faction of the Arellano Felix cartel to dispose of slain
rivals with caustic soda, a highly corrosive substance.
"They brought me the bodies. ........... [Read More] |
Istanbul Turky
Three Turkish
officers arrested in coup probe
A Turkish court has formally
arrested and remanded in custody three lieutenants suspected
of involvement in an alleged plot to overthrow the
government, state-run Anatolian news agency reported.
The three were among some 30 people, including army and
police personnel, detained in a nationwide sweep.
The court was yet to decide whether to formally arrest the
remaining
detainees.
The detentions have added to strains between the government
and the secular establishment, including the military and
judiciary.
Eighty-six people, including retired senior officers, are
already.........[Read More] |
VIENNA
UN atomic agency suspends 22
Iranian aid projects.
A 35-nation meeting of the
International Atomic Energy Agency approved the
suspension of 22 nuclear technical aid projects to
Iran as part of United Nations sanctions. Tehran said
the move would not stop it from enriching uranium. The
decision by the agency, an arm of the United Nations,
was by consensus and expected. Even nations on the
agency board normally supportive of Iran backed the
suspension because it was recommended by the director
general, Mohamed ElBaradei, on authority of the UN
Security Council. Egypt's chief representative, Ramzy
Ezzeidin Ramzy, said before the decision that "I
have not heard anyone express dissatisfaction"
with ElBaradei's recommendations, reflecting the
meeting's consensus on the issue. Iran's chief
representative, Ali Ashgar Soltanieh, dismissed the
decision, along with other international moves to
pressure his government to suspend uranium enrichment,
as the work of a few countries seeking "to
deprive Iran from its inalienable rights for peaceful
use of nuclear energy.""None of these
projects are related to enrichment," he said of
the suspensions. "The enrichment program will
continue as planned." The projects aid the
peaceful use of nuclear energy in medicine,
agriculture, waste management,
management training or power generation. They are
provided to dozens of countries, most of them
developing nations......[Read More] |
Stolen
Diamond Found In Prison Shower.
A $25,000 diamond was found stuck in a shower drain at the
prison housing the man accused of stealing it two years ago.
Bret Allen Langford, 39, allegedly asked the owner of a
Jewelry Express store to show him a 2-carat colorless
diamond in April 2005. Langford then grabbed the diamond and
sped away, said sheriff's spokesman Jim Amormino. Langford
was arrested shortly after but the diamond was never
retrieved.".........[Read More]
Senate
Signals Support for Iraq Timeline.
WASHINGTON
- The Democratic-controlled Senate narrowly signaled support
Tuesday for the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq
by next March, triggering an instant veto threat from the
White House in a deepening dispute between Congress and
commander in chief.Republican attempts to scuttle the
nonbinding timeline failed, 50-48, largely along party
lines.The vote marked the Senate's most forceful challenge
to date of the administration's handling of a war that has
claimed the lives of more than 3,200 U.S. troops. It came
days after the House approved a binding withdrawal
deadline of Sept. 1, 2008,......[Read More] |
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Somalian
Islamists claim they destroyed AU peacekeeping plane.
Islamist militants said they had fired
missiles at a plane carrying Ugandan peacekeepers which
caught fire on landing at Mogadishu airport. "Today,
March 9, 2007, we destroyed a military plane at Mogadishu
airport," said the statement on the Qaadisiya.com Web
site, which is linked to an Islamist movement. "The
plane carrying the last invading troops was hit by two
missiles at the center of the aircraft," it added.The
AU peacekeeping force began deploying in Somalia on Tuesday,
amid continuing insurgent attacks........[Read More]
Rape, Gender Violence the Norm in Post-War
Liberia
When the West African state of Liberia was torn apart by 14
years of civil war, the victims of the brutal insurgency
included mostly women and children who were subject to rape
and sexual violence. "Not only are the terrible
consequences of this still felt by many Liberian women
today, but violence against women and rape continue
unchecked," says a new study on Liberia by ActionAid,
an international development agency based in South Africa.
Rape is currently the most serious crime plaguing Liberia,
with an average of ......[Read More]
Ethiopia opposition threatens strike, demonstrations
Ethiopia's biggest opposition party threatened to call a national strike and demonstration within 10 days if the government continued to "harass, kill and torture" its party members. Political tensions in Africa's top coffee grower have increased since a disputed May 15 election triggered opposition claims of fraud and protests in which 36 people were killed. "We warn that if the government continues to harass, kill and torture our members, we shall be forced to call for strike and demonstration within the next 10 days after the Ramadan is over," said Hailu Shawel, chairman of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD). .......[Read More]
Paris Club agrees debt deal with Nigeria -source
The Paris Club of sovereign creditors has signed a comprehensive debt relief deal with Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, a source close to the 19-member Club said on Thursday."The deal is done," the source said. The accord came less than four months after the Club reached a deal in principle which Nigeria said at the time represented a write-off of nearly $18 billion, or roughly 60 percent of the debt it owed the rich creditor nations........[Read More]
Nigerian Corruption Record Improves, Russia Worsens-Report
N igeria's corruption record appears to have improved in 2005, while the situation in Russia seems to have worsened, Transparency International said. The Berlin-based group's annual corruption index places Russia in 126th place and Nigeria at 152nd - with the country in first place being perceived as the least corrupt. This year's index has 159 countries, compared with 146 in 2004. The index is based on how businessmen and residents perceive the level of corruption in a particular country. Russia, the world's largest exporter of natural gas, was ranked 90th in last year's indexso its position alongside Albania, Niger and Sierra Leone this year is significantly
worseIn a statement, Transparency International said that less transparency in
........[Read More]
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US ambassador is held at gunpoint over Mugabe 'plot'
T he American ambassador to Zimbabwe has been accused of attempting to provoke "regime change" after straying into a military zone close to the residence of the country's President, Robert Mugabe.
Ambassador Christopher Dell found himself looking down the wrong end of a gun as he was held at bayonet and gunpoint for more than one-and-a-half hours by the presidential guard after walking up a restricted hill at the National Botanical Gardens. The hill overlooks one of President Mugabe's
official residences, located about a mile away......... [Read More]
War crimes tribunal issues warrant for Ugandan rebels
T he International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for five leaders of Uganda's feared Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), enforcing the first indictment by the permanent war crimes tribunal.
The warrants were issued on 8 July and sent to the government in Kampala, but were kept secret until yesterday to protect witnesses and victims. The warrants named the LRA's leader Joseph Kony, who has led a brutal uprising in Uganda for 19 years, and four of his top commanders. Mr. Kony faces 33 counts, including 12 counts of crimes against humanity for rape and sexual enslavement. The other 21 counts cover war crimes, including attacks against civilians and the murder and forced enlistment
in the army of children.......... [Read More]
Nigerian rebel who led oil protests is accused of treason
Nigeria has charged a militia leader with treason and plotting to overthrow the government, three weeks after his arrest triggered street protests and the closure of oil platforms. The charges are likely to stoke tensions in the oil-rich west African nation, coming one month before the 10th anniversary of hanging of Ken Saro-Wiwa, killed by Nigeria's former military dictatorship after leading protests against Shell's activities in the region........... [Read More]
Hundreds of Africans break through razor-wire into Spain
M ore than 300 Africans have broken through a razor-wire fence separating Morocco from the Spanish enclave of Melilla in the biggest wave so far of immigrants seeking a gateway to Europe........... [Read More] |
NIGERIA
Nigeria's
election campaign faces hurdles.
For the first time, a civilian succession is in the offing
At first, the rumor was that the patient was in a coma,
rushed off for emergency resuscitation. In the next swirl of
speculation the patient was already dead, and preparations
were being made for a hometown burial. Later, more concrete
information was released. The patient, Umaru Yar'Adua, 56,
the ruling party's candidate in the Nigerian presidential
election just weeks away, was in a German hospital
undergoing tests because of breathing problems. On
Wednesday, he assured the BBC's service in Hausa that his
health problems were "nothing serious" and that he
planned to return to Nigeria to resume campaigning soon.
Yar'Adua's health troubles — he has a kidney ailment, but
the severity and exact nature of his current illness have
not been made public — are the latest of several high-
profile stumbling blocks as Nigeria heads toward an election
that will either secure its place in the family of modern
African democracies or send it spiraling back toward chaos.
"This is really the historical test of whether they can
move from one elected incumbent to another without having
things break down," said J. Stephen Morrison, director
of the Africa Program at the Center for Strategic and
International Studies, a research group in Washington.
"There is a lot riding on this." Since its
independence from Britain in 1960, Nigeria has seesawed
between civilian and military rule, enduring a brutal civil
war and decades of misrule that siphoned billions of dollars
from the country's oil wealth. No civilian government in
Nigeria has handed power to another civilian government,
making April's election a watershed. But what was supposed
to be a triumphant transition has been marred by a messy
battle between the current president, Olusegun Obasanjo, and
his deputy, Atiku Abubakar, who wants to succeed Obasanjo
but has been blocked by a series of legal maneuvers seeking
to Once allies, the two have had a very public and
acrimonious falling out over whether Obasanjo should seek a
third four-year term. Obasanjo and his allies say Abubakar
is unfit to run because of corruption allegations against
him......... [Read More] |
WINDHOEK, Namibia
Namibia chips away at African taboos on gays
Growing national debate follows period of harsh condemnation As a boy of 14, Petrus Gurirab worried that he was gay. Seeking advice from a trustworthy adult, he went to see a teacher who had treated him kindly."I have feelings for other boys," Gurirab recalled telling her. "Like love feelings." There was a long silence."My advice is that it's not African" to be gay, the teacher replied, using a slur for the term."Ignore those feelings and try girls." She also apparently gossiped with colleagues. Other teachers started teasing Gurirab, asking him why he didn't play soccer and why he spent so much time around his mother. Then one morning, he said, the gym teacher invited him into his office, locked the door and forced him onto the desk for sex."Let's see how good you are at it," the teacher said, according to Gurirab, now 25, who recounted the story through tears....[Read More] |
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ZIMBABWE
ZIMBABWE,A.TURN.FOR.THE.WORSE.
AS REPRESSION in Zimbabwe grows more brutal, and as the
economy sinks deeper into the mud, analysts usually cite a
catalogue of reasons why change in the wretched southern
African country, though much-needed, is unlikely soon. The
political opposition is timid and led by men unwilling to
risk their own necks.
Religious and civic leaders do offer defiance of President
Robert Mugabe’s misrule, but are unwilling to work with
their political colleagues. Ordinary people, wary of
violence and remembering civil war in the 1970s, dare not
take to the streets... [Read More]
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