tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36164231367759973042024-02-21T03:18:26.414+01:00AFRICAN NEWS WATCH Latest News, US news report, African News Report, Global News, Asia, Middle East News, US News, Politics, Technology, Financial Articles, Sports news, Entertainments, , and lots more Visit us Today for the best UPDATE!
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.comBlogger632125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-35398243085935787942013-10-10T15:50:00.004+02:002013-10-10T15:50:57.646+02:00Ontario NDP pour cold water on Tory efforts to force election over $1.1-billion cost of cancelled gas plants<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<img alt="The Liberals killed the gas plants to hang on to power in the 2011 election, and should be defeated in a non-confidence motion as quickly as possible, said Opposition Leader Tim Hudak, shown here in a July file photo" class="attachment-single-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" height="299" src="http://wpmedia.news.nationalpost.com/2013/10/no-113817_61783cr.jpg?w=620" width="400" /></div>
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TORONTO — Ontario’s New Democrats poured cold water Wednesday on
efforts by the Progressive Conservatives to force a snap election over
the $1.1-billion the Liberal government spent to cancel gas plants in
Oakville and Mississauga.<br />
<br />
The Liberals killed the gas plants to hang on to power in the 2011
election, and should be defeated in a non-confidence motion as quickly
as possible, said Opposition Leader Tim Hudak.<br />
<a href="http://www.google.com/">Ontario NDP pour cold water on Tory efforts to force election over $1.1-billion cost of cancelled gas plants</a><br />
“They have no moral authority to govern this province when they’re
willing to use whatever it takes, $1.1-billion, to save a handful of
Liberal seats,” he said.</div>
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Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-82340429807682674812013-10-10T13:49:00.003+02:002013-10-10T13:50:12.286+02:00Did Kanye West, Jimmy Kimmel Make Nice After Twitter Feud?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Funnyman Jimmy Kimmel, left, and singer Kanye West are shown in these file photos. </div>
<span class="caption_credit">Randy Holmes/ABC | Francois Mori/AP Photo</span>
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Kanye West and Jimmy Kimmel quickly dispelled the idea their so-called
rap feud was a publicity stunt during a sometimes uncomfortable
appearance on the comedian's television show.</div>
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Speculation that the rapper's anger over a "Jimmy Kimmel Live" parody
skit that mocked him was staged was immediate after West lashed out at
Kimmel in late September. But both said that their beef was authentic
during a 30-minute interview on Wednesday night's show in which West
discussed a range of topics including his artistry, paparazzi, family,
fashion and the idea of celebrity.</div>
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Kimmel said early in the interview that he knows West personally and always found him friendly, but that he seems misunderstood.</div>
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"I don't know if you know this, but a lot of people think you're a
jerk," Kimmel said after West called himself a genius. West was
objecting to the idea that he's "just a celebrity."</div>
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"When you said you think you're a genius, I think that upsets people,"
Kimmel said. "But the truth is a lot of people think they're geniuses,
but nobody says it because it's weird to say it. But it is most
certainly more honest to say, 'I am a genius.'"</div>
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"I'm totally weird and totally honest and I'm totally inappropriate
sometimes, and the thing is for me not to say I'm not a genius I'd be
lying to you and to myself."</div>
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The fight broke out the day after Kimmel hired a child actor to portray
West in a recreation of an interview West gave on BBC Radio 1 in which
he discussed the limitations he's faced as his fame has grown, among
many other topics.</div>
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West told Kimmel he's often upset with his portrayal in the media but
usually keeps his reaction to himself. This time, though, since he knew
Kimmel, he felt he had a license to reach out by phone and discuss his
disapproval man to man.</div>
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"That elevates sometimes," West said. "Jimmy does his thing, I do my
thing, and at some point egos can flare up, and we kind of took it back
to high school."</div>
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Kimmel showed the highlights from West's resulting Twitter rant — "You
should have seen the second set of tweets," West joked — and admitted
he'd just seen a few snippets of the BBC interview before approving the
skit and didn't realize how personal it was.</div>
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"I really felt bad about all this stuff, I did," Kimmel said after West
walked on stage. West responded: "Mmm huh," but smiled widely after
watching a portion of the skit.</div>
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In a sometimes stream-of-consciousness delivery, West talked
passionately about discrimination based on class, protecting his music
publishing from covetous drug dealers, false humility and his thoughts
on and experience with high fashion. He also ranted against the
Hollywood Walk of Fame organization for denying his girlfriend, Kim
Kardashian, a star and reflected on his recent negative interactions
with paparazzi.</div>
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"The way the paparazzi talk to me and my family is disrespectful also,
you know what I'm saying?" West said. "We bring something of joy to the
world. When people hear my music they have a good time, and I should be
respected as such when I walk down the street. Don't ask me a question
about something you saw on the tabloids. Don't try to antagonize me,
because it's not safe for you in this zoo, you know? Never think that
I'm not from Chicago for one second."</div>
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Though both denied it was a publicity stunt, they did take advantage of
the opportunity. A commercial touting West's concert tour ran during the
show and ABC's "Nightline" aired a segment on West in the wake of the
appearance. West's appearance went long, pre-empting an appearances by
Arctic Monkeys.</div>
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Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-32055151393523319122013-10-10T13:47:00.001+02:002013-10-10T13:47:03.699+02:00Dreamliner Flight Diverted Back to San Diego<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A Boeing 787 Dreamliner headed to Tokyo was diverted back to San Diego
because of a possible problem with the aircraft's deicing system.</div>
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NBC-7 in San Diego reports the Japan Airlines flight left Lindbergh
Field shortly after 1:30 p.m. PDT Wednesday. But the plane turned around
and landed back in San Diego by 3:10 p.m. PDT.</div>
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Airline officials told the television station the pilot received an
error message for the deicing system. The pilot made the decision to go
back to San Diego so repairs could be made.</div>
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The Dreamliner has suffered a few glitches, most notably overheating
lithium-ion battery systems that caused the planes to be grounded
worldwide for three months this year. Boeing redesigned the battery
systems to the satisfaction of U.S. aviation regulators.</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-1079335046542820862013-10-10T13:31:00.003+02:002013-10-10T13:31:20.509+02:00Canadian Alice Munro wins Nobel prize for literature <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
STOCKHOLM - Canadian Alice Munro won the Nobel Prize in Literature for
being the "master of the contemporary short story," the award-giving
body said on Thursday.<br /><br />Munro was awarded a prize of 8 million crowns ($1.25 million).<br /><br />The
literature prize is the fourth of this year's crop of prizes, which
were established in the will of Swedish dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel
and awarded for the first time in 1901.</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-58464085463019801992013-10-10T13:08:00.000+02:002013-10-10T13:08:00.491+02:00Libyan PM says fine after former rebels free him <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
TRIPOLI - Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan, freed by former rebels who
seized him from a hotel at dawn, said on Thursday on Twitter that his
captors had wanted him to step down.<br /><br />"I am fine, thank God. If
the aim of the kidnapping operation was for me to present my
resignation, then I won't resign. We are taking small steps, but in the
right direction."
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-43911022331125155342013-10-10T12:37:00.003+02:002013-10-10T12:37:53.668+02:00Assange slams WikiLeaks film in letter to actor Benedict Cumberbatch <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
LOS ANGELES - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange penned an open letter to
British actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who portrays Assange in an upcoming
film, praising the actor's talents but slamming his involvement with the
film and turning down the actor's invitation to meet in person.<br /><br />Assange,
who is currently holed up at the Ecuadorean embassy in London, wrote a
letter to Cumberbatch dated Jan. 15, 2013, that was published on
Wednesday on the anti-secrecy website ahead of the Oct. 18 theatrical
release of Walt Disney Co's DreamWorks film <span style="font-style: italic;">The Fifth Estate</span>.<br /><br />In
the letter, Assange tells Cumberbatch he is "fond" of the actor's
previous work, and adds "I think I would enjoy meeting you," but urged
the actor to drop his involvement in the film, saying "I do not believe
it is going to be positive for me or the people I care about."<br /><br />"I
know the film intends to depict me and my work in a negative light. I
believe it will distort events and subtract from public understanding.
It does not seek to simplify, clarify or distil the truth, but rather it
seeks to bury it. It will resurrect and amplify defamatory stories
which were long ago shown to be false," Assange wrote.<br /><br />The
enigmatic WikiLeaks founder turned down Cumberbatch's invitation to meet
ahead of shooting for the film, citing his issues with the film's angle
of his own story.<br /><br />"I believe you are well-intentioned, but
surely you can see why it is a bad idea for me to meet with you. By
meeting with you, I would validate this wretched film, and endorse the
talented, but debauched, performance that the script will force you to
give," Assange said.
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-41116315723673996342013-10-10T12:33:00.003+02:002013-10-10T12:33:26.987+02:00Four Egyptian security personnel killed in Sinai suicide bombing <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Four Egyptian security personnel were killed in a suicide bombing in the Sinai Peninsula on Thursday, the BBC reported.<br /><br />Three of them were soldiers, and one was a policeman, security officials said.
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-59718586367773827922013-10-10T12:31:00.002+02:002013-10-10T12:31:51.285+02:00'I don't deserve Nobel yet', says Malala<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Mingora (Pakistan) (AFP) - Malala Yousafzai, the teenage activist
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, says she has not done enough to
deserve the award, as her old school closed Wednesday to mark the first
anniversary of her shooting by the Taliban.<br />
<br />
The 16-year-old was
shot in the head by the Pakistani Taliban on October 9 last year for
speaking out against them. She has gone on to become a global ambassador
for the right of all children to go to school.<br />
Feted by world
leaders and celebrities for her courage, she has addressed the UN, this
week published an autobiography, and on Friday will learn if she has won
the Nobel Peace prize.<br />
<br />
But in an interview with Pakistani radio
station City89 FM, Malala spoke of her desire to do more to promote
education, saying she felt she had not yet earned the Nobel accolade.<br />
<br />
"There
are many people who deserve the Nobel Peace Prize and I think that I
still need to work a lot. In my opinion I have not done that much to win
the Nobel Peace Prize," she said.<br />
<br />
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<a class="body-related-link body-related-image landscape get-lbdata-from-dom onesize go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp" data-rapid_p="8" data-uuid="0b1411dc-5e20-35b6-a777-f9b668595213" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/bookstore-sells-copies-memoirs-pakistani-child-activist-malala-photo-093931347.html" title="A bookstore sells copies of the memoirs of Pakistani …"><div class="img-wrap">
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In
Swat valley, in deeply conservative northwest Pakistan where women are
often expected to stay at home to cook and rear children, officials say
only around half of girls go to school -- though this is up from 34
percent in 2011.<br />
<br />
Malala was taken to Britain for treatment in the wake of the attack and now goes to school in the central city of Birmingham.<br />
<br />
On
the first anniversary of the shooting that came within a whisker of
ending her life, her old school in Mingora, the main town of Swat, was
closed to mark the occasion.<br />
<br />
"All sections of our school have been
closed today to express solidarity with Malala on the anniversary of
attack on her. The school will reopen as usual tomorrow," a teacher in
Khushhal Public School told AFP on condition of anonymity.<br />
<br />
Malala
first rose to prominence with a blog for the BBC Urdu service
chronicling the difficulties of life under the rule of the Taliban, who
controlled Swat from 2007 until they were kicked out by the army in
2009.<br />
<br />
<div class="body-related">
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Pakistani female students attend a class at a school in Mingora, the capital of Swat Valley, on Sept …</div>
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Though
their brutal rule has ended, pockets of militancy remain, with schools
regularly being destroyed by insurgents. Fear of the men of violence
means there will be no public event to mark the anniversary.<br />
"We
did not organise any function in Swat on the anniversary of attack on
Malala because people fear they can also be attacked like her," district
education officer Dilshad Bibi told AFP.<br />
<br />
"Many girls are scared that they can be attacked if they are attached with Malala."<br />
While
Malala has enjoyed acclamation around the world, in Pakistan the
response to her rise to stardom has been more sceptical, with some
accusing her of acting as a puppet of the West.<br />
<br />
But with her message of hope and determination she has managed to inspire some of the youngsters in her home area.<br />
<br />
"The
incident of attack on her one year ago is unforgettable. Education is
our life and Malala raised her voice for it, so we like her very much,"
said 12-year-old Humera Khan.<br />
"I also aim to fight for education when I grow up."</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-63179423723798410492013-10-10T12:28:00.001+02:002013-10-10T12:28:42.957+02:00Court imposes travel ban on former Olmert aide Zaken <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The Tel Aviv District court issued a travel ban on Shula Zaken, former
top aide to ex-prime minister Ehud Olmert, who was hospitalized on
Wednesday night on the eve of her cross-examination in the Holyland
case.<br /><br />Zaken's cross-examination on Thursday was postponed to
Sunday, but Judge David Rozen decided that the trial will continue on
Sunday even if Zaken remains in the hospital.
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-84116734265875584722013-10-10T12:17:00.001+02:002013-10-10T12:17:34.755+02:00Libyan PM freed after being seized over U.S. raid: officials<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
TRIPOLI - Former rebel gunmen freed Libya's prime minister
on Thursday after holding him for several hours in reprisal for the
capture by U.S. forces at the weekend of a Libyan al Qaeda suspect in
Tripoli, officials said.<br />
<br />
A Reuters journalist at the scene said protesters had opened fire at
the building where Ali Zeidan was being held to demand that the group,
which is affiliated with the government, free the premier.<br />
<br />
"The prime minister has been released," a government official said. A security source also said Zeidan was free.<br />
<br />
Two years after a revolution ended Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year rule,
Libya is in turmoil, with its vulnerable central government and nascent
armed forces struggling to contain rival tribal militias and Islamist
militants who control parts of the country.<br />
<br />
The militia, which had been hired by the government to provide
security in Tripoli, said it "arrested" Zeidan after U.S. Secretary of
State John Kerry said Libya had a role in the weekend capture in the
city of Abu Anas al-Liby.<br />
<br />
"His arrest comes after ... (Kerry) said the Libyan government was
aware of the operation," a spokesman for the group, known as the
Operations Room of Libya's Revolutionaries, told Reuters.<br />
<br />
Before his release, an official in the Interior Ministry anti-crime
department told the state news agency that Zeidan, a former diplomat and
exile opposition activist against Gaddafi, was being held there and was
being treated well.<br />
<br />
The Libyan government in a statement confirmed the premier was taken at dawn to "an unknown place for unknown reasons."<br />
<br />
The prime minister was taken from the Corinthia Hotel, where many
diplomats and top government officials live. It is regarded as one of
the most secure places in Tripoli.<br />
<br />
The kidnapping, however brief, raised the stakes in the unruly OPEC
nation, where the regional factions are also seeking control over its
oil wealth, which provides Libya with the vast bulk of government
revenues.<br />
Brent oil prices rose on the news.<br />
<br />
"Everybody is watching this... We still haven't seen any disruption
to supply from Libya, so we don't expect a spike in prices," said Ken
Hasegawa, a commodity sales manager at Newedge Japan.<br />
<br />
A mix of striking workers, militias and political activists have
blocked Libya's oilfields and ports for more than two months, according
to Oil Minister Abdelbari Arusi, resulting in over $5 billion of lost
revenues.<br />
He said on October 2 that oil exports could return to full capacity in days once the strikes ended.<br />
<br />
Repsol and Eni, involved in western Libya, have seen output largely
restored since fields reopened last month. But companies invested in
eastern Libya are entering a third month of closures at several
important export terminals.<br />
<br />
Oil companies have become more wary of North Africa after an attack
in January on the Amenas gas plant in neighboring Algeria, a top gas
supplier to Europe and an oil-producing OPEC member.<br />
<br />
UNKNOWN LOCATION<br />
U.S. special forces on Saturday seized Nazih al-Ragye, known by his
alias Abu Anas al-Liby - a Libyan suspected in the 1998 bombings of U.S.
embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Liby is being held on a Navy ship in
the Mediterranean Sea.<br />
<br />
After Zeidan was seized, the U.S. State Department said it was "in
close touch with senior U.S. and Libyan officials on the ground."<br />
<br />
The Operations Room of Libya's Revolutionaries had been affiliated
with the Interior Ministry which assigned them to provide security in
the capital as part of a program to reintegrate former fighters.<br />
Guards at the hotel said there were no shots fired or clashes during the incident.<br />
<br />
Al-Arabiya television channel quoted Libya's justice minister as
saying that Zeidan had been "kidnapped" and showed what it said were
video stills of Zeidan frowning and wearing a grey shirt undone at the
collar surrounded by several men in civilian clothes pressing closely
around him.<br />
<br />
Zeidan said on Tuesday Libyans accused of crimes should be tried at
home, but that the raid to capture Liby would not harm U.S. ties -
trying preserve relations with a major ally without provoking a backlash
from Islamist militants.<br />
<br />
But the raid angered militant groups, including one blamed for the
assault on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi in 2012, who called for
revenge attacks on strategic targets including gas export pipelines,
planes and ships, as well as for the kidnappings of Americans in the
capital.</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-64078145611993580282013-10-10T12:12:00.002+02:002013-10-10T12:12:23.169+02:00Gunmen abduct Libyan prime minister in Tripoli<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zidan was
snatched by gunmen before dawn Thursday from a Tripoli hotel where he
resides, the government said. The abduction appeared to be in
retaliation for the U.S. special forces' raid over the weekend that
seized a Libyan al-Qaida suspect from the streets of the capital.<br />
<br />
Zidan's
abduction reflected the weakness of Libya's government, which is
virtually held hostage by powerful militias, many of which are made up
of Islamic militants. Militants were angered by the U.S. capture of the
suspected militant, known as Abu Anas al-Libi, and accused the
government of allowing the raid to happen or even colluding in it.<br />
<br />
Witnesses
told The Associated Press that up to 150 gunmen drove up in pickup
trucks and laid siege to the Corinthia Hotel before daylight Thursday. A
large group of them entered the building, some stayed in the lobby
while others headed to the 21st floor where Zidan was staying.<br />
<br />
The
gunmen scuffled with the prime minister's guards before they seized him
and led him out at around 5.15 a.m., said the witnesses, speaking on
condition of anonymity because they feared for their own safety. They
said Zidan offered no resistance while he was being led away.<br />
<br />
In a
sign of Libya's chaos, Zidan's seizure was depicted by various sources
as either an "arrest" or an abduction — reflecting how interwoven
militias are in Libya's fragmented power structure.<br />
<br />
Mohammed
Shaaban, Corinthia's security manager, said the gunmen showed the
hotel's management an arrest warrant they claimed had been issued by the
public prosecutor.<br />
The public prosecutor's office said it had issued no warrant for Zidan's arrest.<br />
<br />
With
the country's police and army in disarray, many militiamen are enlisted
to serve in state security agencies, though their loyalty is more to
their own commanders than to government officials and they have often
intimidated or threatened officials. The militias are rooted in the
brigades that fought in the uprising that toppled the late dictator
Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, and are often referred to as "revolutionaries."<br />
<br />
A
statement on the government's official website said Zidan was taken to
an "unknown location for unknown reasons" by a group believed to be
"revolutionaries" from a security agency known as the Anti-Crime
Committee. The Cabinet held an emergency meeting Thursday morning,
headed by Zidan's deputy, Abdel-Salam al-Qadi.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile,
Abdel-Moneim al-Hour, an official with the Anti-Crime Committee, told
the AP that Zidan had been "arrested" on accusations of harming state
security and corruption.<br />
<br />
A government official said gunmen broke
into the luxury hotel in downtown Tripoli where Zidan lives and abducted
him and two of his guards. The two guards were beaten but later
released. The official spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity for
fear of retaliation.<br />
<br />
A grainy photograph widely posted Thursday on
social networking sites purportedly shows Zidan being led from the
Tripoli hotel by two young men, one of them bearded, holding him from
both arms. The prime minister is frowning and looking disheveled. The
photo also shows the arm of a third man resting on Zidan's left
shoulder.<br />
<br />
Hours after the abduction, the streets of Tripoli
appeared normal, with the bustle of the morning rush hour traffic.
Children went to school as usual and stores opened.<br />
<br />
State
Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki, traveling with Secretary of State John
Kerry in Brunei, said Washington was "looking into these reports and we
are in close touch with senior U.S. and Libyan officials on the
ground."<br />
<br />
The snatching of Zidan came hours after he met with the
family of al-Libi, whose real name is Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai — the
al-Qaida suspect seized by the Americans in a bold raid in Tripoli on
Saturday morning. U.S. officials said al-Libi was immediately taken out
of the country and is now being held on a U.S. warship.<br />
<br />
On
Tuesday, Zidan said the Libyan government had requested that Washington
allow al-Libi's family to establish contact with him. Zidan insisted
that Libyan citizens should be tried in their homeland if they are
accused of crimes, stressing that "Libya does not surrender its sons."<br />
<br />
Al-Libi
is alleged to be a senior al-Qaida member and is wanted by the United
States in connection to the bombing of American embassies in Tanzania
and Kenya in 1998, with a $5 million bounty on his head.<br />
Immediately
after the raid, the Libyan government issued a statement saying it was
carried out without its knowledge and asking Washington for
"clarifications" about the operation.<br />
<br />
"The U.S. was very helpful
to Libya during the revolution and the relations should not be affected
by an incident, even if it is a serious one," Zidan said at a press
conference in Tripoli.</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-65263767441130341452013-10-10T12:08:00.000+02:002013-10-10T12:08:35.419+02:00The real force behind Egypt's 'revolution of the state'<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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CAIRO,
Oct 10 (Reuters) - In Hosni Mubarak's final days in office in 2011, the
world's gaze focused on Cairo, where hundreds of thousands of
protesters demanded the resignation of one of the Arab world's longest
serving autocrats.<br />
<br />
Little attention was
paid when a group of Muslim Brotherhood leaders broke free from their
cells in a prison in the far off Wadi el-Natroun desert. But the
incident, which triggered a series of prison breaks by members of the
Islamist group around the country, caused panic among police officers
fast losing their grip on Egypt.<br />
One
officer pleaded with his comrades for help as his police station was
torched. "I am faced with more than 2,000 people and I am dealing with
them alone in Dar al Salam, please hurry," the policeman radioed to
colleagues as trouble spread. "Now they have machine guns, the youth are
firing machine guns at me, send me reinforcements."<br />
<br />
In
all, 200 policemen and security officers were killed that day, Jan 28,
called the Friday of Rage by anti-Mubarak demonstrators. Some had their
throats slit. One of the Muslim Brotherhood leaders to escape was
Mohamed Mursi, who would become president the following year.<br />
<br />
Egypt's
Interior Ministry, which controls all of the country's police forces
including state security and riot police, never forgot the chaos. In
particular the Wadi el-Natroun prison break became a powerful symbol
inside the security apparatus of its lost power. Officers swore revenge
on the Brotherhood and Mursi, according to security officials.<br />
<br />
When
army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi appeared on television in July this
year to announce the end of Mursi's presidency and plans for elections,
it was widely assumed that Egypt's military leaders were the prime
movers behind the country's counter revolution. But dozens of interviews
with officials from the army, state security and police, as well as
diplomats and politicians, show the Interior Ministry was the key force
behind removing Egypt's first democratically elected president.<br />
<br />
Senior
officials in the Interior Ministry's General Intelligence Service
identified young activists unhappy with Mursi's rule, according to four
Interior Ministry sources, who like most people interviewed for this
story, asked to remain anonymous. The intelligence officials met with
the activists, who told them they thought the army and Interior Ministry
were "handing the country to the Brotherhood."<br />
<br />
The
intelligence officials advised the activists to take to the streets and
challenge Mursi, who many felt had given himself sweeping powers and
was mismanaging the economy, allegations he has denied. Six weeks later,
a youth movement called Tamarud - "rebellion" in Arabic - began a
petition calling for Mursi to step down.<br />
<br />
Though
that group's leaders were not among the youth who met the intelligence
officials, they enjoyed the support of the Interior Ministry, according
to the Interior Ministry sources. Ministry officials and police officers
helped collect signatures for the petition, helped distribute the
petitions, signed the petition themselves, and joined the protests.<br />
<br />
"They
are Egyptians like us and we were all upset by the Brotherhood and
their horrible rule," said a 23-year-old woman in the Tamarud movement
who asked not to be named.<br />
<br />
For the
Interior Ministry, Tamarud offered a chance to avenge Wadi el-Natroun;
the reversal of fortunes has been remarkable. The state security force,
both feared and despised during Mubarak's 30-year rule, has not only
regained control of the country two and half years after losing power,
but has won broad public support by staging one of the fiercest
crackdowns on the Muslim Brotherhood in years.<br />
<br />
The
interior minister openly speaks of restoring the kind of security seen
under Mubarak. A renewed confidence permeates the police force, whose
reputation for brutality helped fuel the 2011 uprising. Egyptians now
lionise the police. Television stations praise the Interior Ministry and
the army, depicting them as heroes and saviours of the country.<br />
<br />
The
Interior Ministry's most dreaded unit, the Political Security Unit, has
been revived to deal with the Brotherhood. Under Mubarak, officers in
that department were notorious for treating citizens with a heavy hand
and intruding into their lives. When activists broke into the agency's
premises shortly after Mubarak was forced to quit on Feb. 11, 2011, they
found and posted online documents, videos and pictures of what they
described as a torture chamber with a blood-stained floor and equipped
with chains.<br />
<br />
The interior ministry has apologised for "violations" in the past and has said they will not be repeated.<br />
Key
to the turnaround has been the Interior Ministry's ability to forge
much closer ties to the army, the most powerful and respected
institution in Egypt. It was a tactic that began almost as soon as
Mubarak stepped down.<br />
<br />
<br />
FUMING SILENTLY<br />
Weeks
after Mubarak was overthrown, the Interior Ministry called a meeting at
the police academy in Cairo. The gathering, headed by the interior
minister and senior security officials, was the first in a series that
discussed how to handle the Brotherhood, according to two policemen who
attended some of the gatherings.<br />
Thousands
of mid- and lower-ranking officers were angry and said they could not
serve under a president they regarded as a terrorist. Senior officers
tried to calm them, arguing that the men needed to wait for the right
moment to move against Mursi. "We tried to reassure them but the message
did not get through," said a senior police official. "They just fumed
silently."<br />
<br />
The senior state security
officer told Reuters there were no explicit orders to disobey Mursi but
that a large number of officers decided they would not be "tools" for
the Brotherhood.<br />
<br />
"I worked during Mursi's
time. I never failed to show up at any mission. This included securing
his convoys. Yet I never felt I was doing it from the heart," said one
major in state security.<br />
<br />
"It was hard to
feel that you are doing a national job for your country while what you
are really doing was securing a terrorist."<br />
<br />
Resentment
grew when Mursi pardoned 17 Islamist militants held since the 1990s for
attacks on soldiers and policemen. One of the militants had killed
dozens of policemen in an attack in the Sinai. None of them publicly
denied the charges or even commented on them.<br />
<br />
Mursi's
decision last November to grant himself sweeping powers triggered a
wave of public protest. On Dec. 5, protesters rallied in front of the
Ittihadiya, the main presidential palace in Cairo. As the crowd grew,
Mursi ordered security forces to disperse them. They refused. A senior
security officer said there was no explicit order to disobey Mursi but
they all acted "according to their conscience."<br />
<br />
The
Muslim Brotherhood brought in its own forces to try and quell the
unrest and Brotherhood supporters tried to hand some protesters to
police to be arrested. But the police refused, Brotherhood officials
said at the time.<br />
<br />
"Do they think the police forgot? Our colleagues are in jail because of the Brotherhood," said a state security officer.<br />
<br />
Ten
people were killed in the ensuing clashes, most of them Brotherhood
supporters. Liberal activists accused Brotherhood members of beating and
torturing anti-Mursi protesters.<br />
<br />
Mursi
miscalculated further by calling off a meeting sought by the army to
discuss how to calm the storm, according to two army sources.<br />
<br />
"It
was a veiled message to stay out of politics, and we got it, as we
understood that Mursi was an elected leader and (it) would be hard to
defy that," said an army colonel. "But it was clear by then where his
rule was driving the state."<br />
<br />
<br />
"CONSTANT FIGHTS"<br />
In
January 2013, Mursi fired Ahmed Gamal, former senior state security
officer, as interior minister and replaced him with Mohamed Ibrahim who
was the senior-most official with the least exposure to the
anti-Brotherhood factions inside the ministry, security sources said.
Ibrahim was seen as weaker and more malleable than Gamal, who was blamed
by the Brotherhood for not acting harshly enough against anti-Mursi
protests.<br />
<br />
But appointing Ibrahim, who was
previously an assistant to the interior minister for prison affairs,
proved to be a costly mistake. He moved to get close to the army,
attending events to establish direct contact with army chief Sisi and
regularly complimenting the general on his management techniques, said
the police major.<br />
Sisi had served as head
of military intelligence under Mubarak. He was known to be religious and
had the charisma to inspire younger army officers. Mursi believed those
younger officers posed less of a threat than the old generals who had
served under Mubarak and whom he fired in August 2012, two months after
he took office.<br />
<br />
But the country's police chiefs had one message for the military: The Brotherhood is bad news.<br />
"We
are in constant fights on the streets. This made us tougher than the
army and ruthless," said the police major. "We don't understand the
language of negotiating with terrorists. We wanted to handle them from
day one."<br />
<br />
Ibrahim rejected requests by
Reuters for an interview and would not answer questions sent by email.
Sisi could not be reached for comment.<br />
<br />
By
early 2013, army officers and Interior Ministry officials had begun
meeting in the military's lavish social and sports clubs, some of which
overlook the Nile. Over lunch or steak dinners, officials would discuss
the Brotherhood and Egypt's future, according to senior state security
officers and army officers who took part in the meetings.<br />
<br />
The
Interior Ministry argued that the Brotherhood was a threat to national
security and had to go, according to one senior security officer. In the
1990s, during the Interior Ministry's battle with the Muslim
Brotherhood, the ministry had referred to all Islamists as terrorists.
It urged the army to adopt the same terminology.<br />
<br />
"I
have gone to some of those meetings with the army and we spoke a lot
about the Muslim Brotherhood. We had more experience with them then the
army. We shared those experiences and the army became more and more
convinced that those people have to go and are bad for Egypt," the
senior security officer said.<br />
"The army
like many people who have not dealt directly with the Brotherhood and
seen their dirtiness wanted to believe that they have something to offer
to Egypt. But for us it was a waste of time."<br />
<br />
Officials
in the Interior Ministry warned the military that Mursi's manoeuverings
were merely a way to shore up his power. The Muslim Brotherhood, they
told their army colleagues, was more interested in creating an Islamic
caliphate across the region than serving Egypt.<br />
<br />
"The
Brotherhood have a problem with the Egyptian state," said the state
security officer. "I am certain that Mursi came to implement the plan of
the Brotherhood ... They don't believe in the nation of Egypt to begin
with."<br />
<br />
Over time, middle-ranking Interior
Ministry officers became more vocal with the military. The message got
through at the highest level. Early this year, army chief Sisi warned
Mursi that his government would not last.<br />
"I
told Mursi in February you failed and your project is finished," Sisi
was quoted as saying in an interview published this month in the
newspaper al-Masry al-Youm.<br />
<br />
Interior
Ministry officials believed that the Brotherhood planned to restructure
the ministry, one state security officer said. Concerned officials
discussed the issue in a private meeting in the parliament. One option
was the cancellation of the police academy. Many saw that as a threat to
their institution and careers.<br />
"The news
became known to young officers. This action is against the interest of
the officers. He was fighting their future," said the state security
officer.<br />
<br />
Muslim Brotherhood officials have
denied plotting against the Interior Ministry and say there were no
plans to dismantle the police academy. They have previously accused
Interior Ministry officials of working to undermine the government,
refusing to protect Brotherhood leaders, and trying to turn the public
against the group's rule.<br />
<br />
"We cooperated
with the Interior Ministry all along. We never had plans to undermine it
or the police academy. It was the Interior Ministry that refused to
work with us," said Brotherhood official Kamal Fahim. "All along they
resisted us and tried to turn Egyptians against us."<br />
<br />
<br />
"DOWN, DOWN"<br />
Pressure from the Interior Ministry on Sisi and the military grew, helped by the emergence in May of the Tamarud.<br />
<br />
At
first the group was not taken seriously. But as it gathered signatures,
Egyptians who had lost faith in Mursi took notice, including Interior
Ministry officials. Some of those officials and police officers helped
collect signatures and joined the protests.<br />
<br />
"Of
course we joined and helped the movement, as we are Egyptians like them
and everyone else. Everyone saw that the whole Mursi phenomena is not
working for Egypt and everyone from his place did what they can to
remove this man and group," said a security official.<br />
<br />
"The
only difference was that the police and state security saw the end
right from the start but the rest of the Egyptians did not and had to
experience one year of their failed rule to agree with us."<br />
<br />
On
June 15, the Interior Ministry held a meeting of 3,000 officers,
including generals and lieutenants, at its social club in the Medinat
Nasr district of Cairo to discuss the death of a police officer killed
by militants in Sinai. Islamist militancy in Sinai, mainly targeting
police and army officers, had risen sharply after Mursi's election.<br />
<br />
Some at the meeting blamed "terrorist elements ... released by Mohamed Mursi," said the state security officer.<br />
<br />
Police
officers started chanting "Down, down with the rule of the General
Guide," a reference to Muslim Brotherhood General Guide Mohamed Badie,
now in jail on charges of inciting violence during the the Ittihadiya
protests.<br />
<br />
On June 30 - the anniversary of
Mursi's first year in office - angry Interior Ministry officers joined
Tamarud members and millions of other Egyptians to demand the
president's resignation. Four days later, Sisi appeared on television
and announced what amounted to a military takeover. Some security
officials called the move "the revolution of the state."<br />
<br />
<br />
TEARGAS, BULLETS AND BULLDOZERS<br />
For
weeks after Mursi's overthrow, Western officials tried to persuade Sisi
to refrain from using force to break up Brotherhood protest camps in
Cairo. But the hardline Interior Ministry, which had quickly regained
its old swagger, pressed for a crackdown. Police officials argued that
Brotherhood members had weapons.<br />
"For us,
negotiations were a waste of time," said the state security major. "We
know what was coming: terrorism. And now after this horrible experience I
think everyone learned a lesson and appreciates us and that we were
right about those people."<br />
<br />
Early on the
morning of Aug. 14 policemen in black uniforms and hoods stormed the
Rabaa al-Adawiya camp, one of two main vigils of Brotherhood supporters
in Cairo.<br />
<br />
The police ignored a plan by the
army-backed cabinet to issue warnings and use water cannons to disperse
protesters, instead using teargas, bullets and bulldozers. Hundreds
died there and many more died in clashes that erupted across the country
after the raid.<br />
<br />
Army officers later asked
the police why the death toll was so high, according to a military
source. The interior minister said his forces were fired on first.<br />
<br />
"It
is one thing for decisions to be taken by officials in suits and
sitting in air-conditioned rooms," said a state security officer in
charge of some top Brotherhood cases. "But we as troops on the ground
knew that this decision can never be implemented when dealing with
anything related to this terrorist organisation. Force had to be used
and that can never be avoided with those people."<br />
<br />
Despite the use of force and the deaths, liberal Egyptians who had risen up against Mubarak seemed sanguine.<br />
<br />
The
liberal National Salvation Front (NSF) alliance praised the actions of
security forces. "Today Egypt raised its head up high," said the NSF in a
statement after the raid. "The National Salvation Front salutes the
police and army forces."<br />
<br />
Two years after
the Wadi el-Natroun prison break, the Interior Ministry had power again.
It announced it would use live ammunition when dealing with protesters
it accused of "scaring citizens." Trucks used by the once-dreaded
anti-riot security forces now have signs on them which read "The
People's Police."<br />
<br />
The government has
jailed the Brotherhood's top leaders in a bid to crush Egypt's oldest
Islamist movement. Muslim Brotherhood officials now face trial in
connection with the Ittihadiya protests.<br />
<br />
Senior
security officers say their suspicions about the Brotherhood were
confirmed in documents they found when they raided the group's
headquarters. The documents suggested that Mursi planned to dismantle
the army under the guise of restructuring, they said. One of the
documents, which a state security officer showed to Reuters, calls for
the building of an Islamic state "in any eligible spot."<br />
<br />
Muslim Brotherhood leaders could not be reached to comment on this document because most of them are either in jail or hiding.<br />
<br />
Police
officials say they no longer abuse Egyptians and have learned from
their mistakes under Mubarak. But not everyone is buying that line.<br />
<br />
Muslim
Brotherhood leader Murad Ali, who was recently imprisoned, wrote in a
letter smuggled out of prison and seen by Reuters that he was put in a
foul-smelling, darkened cell on death row and forced to sleep on a
concrete floor. Lawyers for other Brotherhood members say prisoners are
crammed into small cells and face psychological abuse. One elderly
Brotherhood prisoner said guards shaved his head and brought vicious
dogs around to scare him, inmates near his cell told Reuters.<br />
<br />
There
were no complaints of the type of whipping or electrocution seen in
Mubarak's days. But Brotherhood members say the current crackdown is
more intense. "The pressure never subsides. None of my Brotherhood
colleagues sleep at the same place for too long and neither do I," said
Waleed Ali, a lawyer who acts for the Brotherhood. (Writing by Michael
Georgy; Edited by Richard Woods and Simon Robinson)<br />
</div>
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Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-67297646617264706892013-10-10T12:00:00.001+02:002013-10-10T12:00:44.316+02:00Taliban mock US over government shutdown<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<img alt="Afghan security forces search a building following an insurgent attack on a road construction workers' camp in Karukh district of Herat on August 17, 2013" height="224" src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/rXeWlg_pttlzcGUp7.4GEw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTQyMTtweG9mZj01MDtweW9mZj0wO3E9NzU7dz03NDk-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/a453ee902f2aae5348a2e548b5d2719fef3e797f.jpg" width="400" />
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Kabul (AFP) - Taliban militants fighting US troops in Afghanistan
taunted Washington over the government shutdown on Wednesday, accusing
US politicians of "sucking the blood of their own people".</div>
</figure>The
Islamist militants issued a statement describing how US institutions
were "paralysed", the Statue of Liberty was closed and a fall in tourist
numbers had hit shops, restaurants and hotels in the capital.<br />
<br />
"The
American people should realise that their politicians play with their
destinies as well as the destinies of other oppressed nations for the
sake of their personal vested interests," the Taliban said.<br />
<br />
The
insurgents accused "selfish and empty-minded American leaders" of taking
US citizens' money "earned with great difficulty" and then "lavishly
spending the same money in shedding the blood of the innocent and
oppressed people".<br />
<br />
"Instead of sucking the blood of their own people... this money should be utilised for the sake of peace," they added.<br />
<br />
The
US embassy in Kabul has said that it expects "to function normally in
the short term" due to the shutdown, though its Twitter feed would not
be regularly updated.<br />
<br />
Embassy press staff were not immediately available to comment on the rebels' statement.<br />
The
Taliban, who were ousted from power in a US-backed offensive in 2001,
often use their website to issue colourful verbal attacks on Washington
and the Kabul government.<br />
<br />
About 57,000 US troops are deployed in Afghanistan, with most of them set to pull out by the end of the next year.<br />
<br />
The
US shutdown has seen hundreds of thousands of workers sent home without
pay after Congress failed to pass a budget for the 2014 fiscal year
that began October 1.</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-33775860933824874122013-10-10T04:56:00.002+02:002013-10-10T04:56:40.439+02:00United States renews nuclear overtures to Iran<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>United Nations: </b>A top US official stepped up overtures to Iran to prove that it wants a nuclear proliferation deal with the West.<br /><br />"We
should be cautious but cognizant of potentially historic
opportunities," Rose Gottemoeller, US assistant secretary of state for
arms control told a UN disarmament committee.<br /><br />"We must continue
to push to bring Iran back into line with its international nuclear
obligations," Gottemoeller told the forum, which included Iranian
diplomats.<br /><br /><div class="clr" id="interactive">
</div>
"The United States is ready to talk. We are ready to listen.
We are ready to work hard and we hope that every country in this room is
ready to do the same," Gottemoeller said.<br /><br />"The road toward the
next steps might not be familiar and it will require difficult
negotiations and complicated diplomacy," said the US official.<br /><br />Western
nations say they are waiting for the Iranian government to follow up on
statements made by President Hassan Rouhani that his country wants an
accord to end western doubts about Iran's nuclear drive.<br /><br />The
United States, Britain and France say they believe Iran seeks a nuclear
bomb capability. Iran, which is under several rounds of UN sanctions
over its uranium enrichment, denies the charge.<br /><br />European foreign
policy chief Catherine Ashton - negotiating for the United States,
Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China - is to meet with Iranian
negotiators in Geneva next Tuesday.<br /><br />Western diplomats say this
will be a first chance to test Iran's intentions. Rouhani said he wanted
a deal within a year. US President Barack Obama has insisted though
that Iran must follow up with concrete actions.<br /><br />Gottemoeller said
North Korea, which like Iran faces UN sanctions over its nuclear
program, must also "meet its own denuclearization commitments."<br /><br />"It too can have an opportunity to reintegrate into the international community if it does so," the US official added.<br /><br />Gottemoeller
said there has to be greater international efforts to "further arms
reductions, increase transparency, ban the production of fissile
material for nuclear weapons use and more."<br /><br />She renewed calls for
the "immediate commencement of long-delayed negotiations on a fissile
material cut-off treaty at the (UN) Conference on Disarmament."<br /><br />"This
treaty is the obvious next step in multilateral disarmament and it is
time to get to the negotiating table," Goettemoeller said adding to
mounting calls made at the meeting for negotiations to start.<br /><br />Pakistan
has repeatedly blocked international attempts to start talks on a
treaty to control fissile material for nuclear weapons.</div>
</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-86263523010823711232013-10-09T22:24:00.002+02:002013-10-09T22:26:27.503+02:00 Brown approves abortion provider bill<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="tools">
<ul class="list-inline clearfix"></ul>
</div>
<figure class="article-image"><a href="http://www.utsandiego.com/photos/2013/apr/09/985560/"><img alt="Assemblywoman Toni Atkins" height="225" src="http://media.utsandiego.com/img/photos/2013/04/09/atkins_r620x349.jpg?75d51d0aea2efce5189afce216053cbc530c46a8" width="400" /></a></figure><br />
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p1">
<span class="dateline">SACRAMENTO</span>
— Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday signed a controversial measure that
will greatly expand the number of abortion providers in California.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p2">
The
legislation carried by San Diego Assemblywoman Toni Atkins would allow a
nurse practitioner, certified nurse-midwife or physician assistant who
completes specialized training to provide so-called aspiration abortions
during the first trimester of pregnancy.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p3">
Abortion has long polarized the nation and California and this legislation has proved just as contentious.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p4">
Atkins,
a Democrat, has said many women must travel great distances or go
without early pregnancy care because of the limited number of physicians
who can perform abortions.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p4">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p5">
“We
need accessibility throughout the state — not just in urban centers,”
Atkins said in an interview after her Assembly Bill 154 cleared the
Legislature.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p5">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p6">
Opponents, including many Republicans, had argued that only a licensed physician or surgeon can perform an abortion safely.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p6">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p7">
“I
would urge caution — deep and profound tough and soul-searching. It is
no light matter. Abortion is a serious medical procedure with vast
complications,” said Sen. Jim Nielsen, R-Gerber.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p7">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p8">
“I
would argue that only the best-trained should conduct such an
operation, It has direct and profound impact on lives — the mother and
the baby. There is a baby in there,” he continued.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p8">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p9">
Supporters
point to the results of a University of California, San Francisco pilot
program that concluded the aspiration procedure can be safely done by
nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwifes or physician assistants.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p9">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h910031-p10">
Aspiration is a type of abortion that involves vacuum or suction as part of the procedure.</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-83134635094410734412013-10-09T22:16:00.000+02:002013-10-09T22:16:35.825+02:00Divided government requires bipartisan negotiation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p1">
For three years, Congress and
the White House have been building to this moment. Not the debt limit or
Obamacare specifically, but this clarifying moment of Washington
dysfunction. President Obama has led us here by continually thwarting
the will of Congress and dismissing its role in our constitutional
republic. This must end.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p2">
The
president not only has refused to negotiate on issues of debt and
spending but also has mocked the very idea of engaging with Congress.
President Obama has repeatedly made clear that he feels it is beneath
the office of the presidency to work in a bipartisan way with the
legislative branch.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p3">
The
Constitution gives Congress the power of the purse and the power to
borrow. The president was given the power to veto measures, including
those related to spending and borrowing. These separate powers created
checks and balances but also forced the executive and legislative
branches to work together.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p3">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p4">
As
James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 48, “It is equally evident, that
none of [the branches of the federal government] ought to possess,
directly or indirectly, an overruling influence over the others, in the
administration of their respective powers.”</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p4">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p5">
In
the 224 years of our nation’s history, one party has controlled the
House, Senate and White House for 130 years. Obama enjoyed two of those
years, and it’s no surprise he wishes that were still the case. Yet,
while 28 of 44 U.S. presidents have found a way to lead in divided
government, this president has not.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p5">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p6">
In
2006, then-Sen. Obama said: “Washington is shifting the burden of bad
choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America
has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve
better. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America’s
debt limit.”</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p6">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p7">
Seven years
later, and after the nation’s debt had doubled, President Obama refuses
to even sit at the same table as Republicans and work to solve the “debt
problem” he correctly identified as a senator. That is a much larger
failure of leadership.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p7">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p8">
This
has, unfortunately, been the case since 2011. Obama has often chosen to
unilaterally circumvent the law under the guise of executive authority.
Most recently, that was demonstrated in July with his delay of Obamacare
mandates for corporations, but it has been a hallmark of this
presidency.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p8">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p9">
Courts have held
that President Obama violated the Constitution with certain “recess”
appointments, ignoring the required consent of Congress. He has abused
executive-branch “rule making” rather than working with Congress to pass
laws. He has ignored the letter of the law when it comes to religious
liberty and work requirements for welfare.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p9">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p10">
President
Obama has used executive orders to unilaterally change U.S. immigration
laws. His administration has used waivers to change laws such as No
Child Left Behind to compel states to adopt new policies.</div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p10">
<br /></div>
<div class="permalinkable" id="h909912-p11">
In
some of these instances, the president attempted to garner statutory
authority, failed to do so and then acted in defiance of that. In other
instances, he never bothered to find consensus and ignored Congress from
the outset, usually contending that he simply had no choice. This is no
way to govern, and it cripples the system of checks and balances that
our Founding Fathers envisioned.</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-13110647136320389102013-10-09T22:14:00.000+02:002013-10-09T22:14:05.990+02:00Chemical watchdog seeks temporary Syria ceasefires<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
THE HAGUE (AFP) -- The head of the world's chemical weapons watchdog
called Wednesday for temporary ceasefires in Syria's raging civil war in
order to meet tight disarmament deadlines.<br /><br />"I think if some
temporary ceasefires can be established, I think those targets could be
reached," Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons head
Ahmet Uzumcu told journalists in The Hague, Netherlands.</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-3622034134876208752013-10-09T22:12:00.000+02:002013-10-09T22:12:00.129+02:00Man injured as Israeli forces raid Jenin<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Israeli forces raided Jenin early Wednesday, leading to clashes with local Palestinians, witnesses said.<br /><br />Israeli
forces set up checkpoints in the city and drove military jeeps through
main streets in the center of town, locals told Ma'an.<br /><br />Muhammad Ashour Zakarneh, 20, was hit by a tear gas canister during clashes and taken to Jenin hospital for treatment.<br /><br />No detentions were reported during the raid.<br />
<img alt="Print" src="http://www.maannews.net/eng/images/ViewDetails/PRINT_ICON.jpg" style="cursor: pointer;" /></div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-71335459998898694472013-10-09T22:06:00.007+02:002013-10-09T22:06:27.676+02:00Passenger lands small plane after pilot falls ill<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="entry-content">
<div class="first">
LONDON (AP) — A passenger with no flying experience safely landed a light airplane at a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381344720846_3">British airport</span> after the pilot became incapacitated, officials said Wednesday.</div>
<div class="first">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui-tmp-15">
The plane, carrying two people, issued a mayday call
as it returned to the Sandtoft airfield in northeast England on Tuesday
evening.</div>
<div class="legend">
<strong></strong></div>
<span class="yui-media yui-editorial-embed" style="height: 315px; width: 420px;"><br /></span>Officials at Humberside Airport, near the airfield, put
emergency plans into place and successfully helped the passenger land
the plane.<br />
<br />
"The passenger flew over the airport a couple of times and then was
talked down by two flight instructors, and the emergency services were
waiting for them when he landed safely," the airport said in a
statement.<br />
The aircraft landed with a thump, with some witnesses saying sparks came off the front of it.<br />
<br />
Rob Murray, one of the flight instructors, said the passenger had
never flown a plane before and had done a "remarkable job" given the
circumstances.<br />
<br />
"It's a fantastic feeling, knowing I have achieved something and probably saved somebody's life," Murray said.<br />
<br />
The passenger was unhurt but the pilot later died, police said. An
inquest will be carried out to establish what caused his death. Their
names have not been released.<br />
</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-69777357485280620382013-10-09T22:06:00.005+02:002013-10-09T22:06:23.379+02:00Passenger lands small plane after pilot falls ill<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="entry-content">
<div class="first">
LONDON (AP) — A passenger with no flying experience safely landed a light airplane at a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381344720846_3">British airport</span> after the pilot became incapacitated, officials said Wednesday.</div>
<div class="first">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui-tmp-15">
The plane, carrying two people, issued a mayday call
as it returned to the Sandtoft airfield in northeast England on Tuesday
evening.</div>
<div class="legend">
<strong></strong></div>
<span class="yui-media yui-editorial-embed" style="height: 315px; width: 420px;"><br /></span>Officials at Humberside Airport, near the airfield, put
emergency plans into place and successfully helped the passenger land
the plane.<br />
<br />
"The passenger flew over the airport a couple of times and then was
talked down by two flight instructors, and the emergency services were
waiting for them when he landed safely," the airport said in a
statement.<br />
The aircraft landed with a thump, with some witnesses saying sparks came off the front of it.<br />
<br />
Rob Murray, one of the flight instructors, said the passenger had
never flown a plane before and had done a "remarkable job" given the
circumstances.<br />
<br />
"It's a fantastic feeling, knowing I have achieved something and probably saved somebody's life," Murray said.<br />
<br />
The passenger was unhurt but the pilot later died, police said. An
inquest will be carried out to establish what caused his death. Their
names have not been released.<br />
</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-659163827366447262013-10-09T22:03:00.004+02:002013-10-09T22:04:06.192+02:00A Plan to Save the Republican Party<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="translateBody">
<div class=" " id="graphic-well">
<img height="256" src="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/files/images/repubs168869793.jpg" width="400" /></div>
<br />
The
United States no longer has a two-party political system. As the events of the
past few weeks have shown, the Republican Party has split into at least two
groups that are no longer just factions. Though it may be hard to believe, this
division has created an enormous opportunity for the GOP's leadership. But
don't worry -- they'll probably blow it.
<br />
<div class="gray_nav_opt addthis_default_style" id="share-box">
<a href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3616423136775997304" style="cursor: pointer;"></a><div id="featured-few">
</div>
</div>
A common
narrative holds that the rift in the GOP had its roots in the vice presidential
candidacy of Sarah Palin and the subsequent blossoming of the Tea Party. The
archconservative, ideological wing of the party finally coalesced, posing a
threat to the more pragmatic and centrist elements. The first big symptom of
this change was a bulge in <a href="http://go.bloomberg.com/political-capital/2012-12-14/getting-primaried-the-dreaded-verb/" target="_blank">primary
challenges</a> against apparently safe Republican incumbents by far-right
members of their own party.<br />
<br />
In the
midst of this infighting, the Republican establishment was slowly losing
control of its congressional caucus. In the fight against fiscal stimulus after
the 2010 election, John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, and their cohorts were happy
to exploit the energy of the Tea Party, since they shared its goals. Now,
however, the two factions have come into open conflict over legislative issues,
namely funding the government and the debt ceiling. Boehner's colleagues say he
may even <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/04/us/politics/debt-limit-impasse.html?_r=0" target="_blank">abandon
the Hastert Rule</a> by putting a bill to a vote in the House without the
support of a Republican majority.<br />
<br />
Unofficially,
the GOP today is a coalition of two parties. One party constitutes a majority
of Republicans in the House and Senate, but not a majority of votes in either
chamber. The other party includes perhaps <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-11-08/tea-party-freshmen-to-become-sophomores-by-keeping-house-seats.html" target="_blank">50
or more</a> members of the House and a <a href="http://www.tennessean.com/interactive/article/20130926/NEWS/309260134/Sen-Bob-Corker-tells-tea-party-senators-stop-stalling-vote" target="_blank">handful</a>
of senators. Despite its much smaller size, this second party appears to wield
just as much power as the first.<br />
<br />
Why is
that? As anyone who follows politics in Israel, Italy, or more recently the
United Kingdom can tell you, the votes at the margin make all the difference to
a coalition; they can tip the balance when bigger parties lack majorities but
still vote uniformly. When a fringe party does decide to join a coalition, it's
usually for reasons of power: positions on committees and in the ruling
cabinet. This is particularly prevalent in parliamentary systems, where a
legislative majority comes with executive powers as well.<br />
<br />
Yet this
is not the case in the United States. On the contrary, far-right Republicans
have little to gain by kowtowing to the party's official leadership. Seats on
committees might allow the far-right members to bring more pork to their states
and districts, but open opposition to the Republican establishment grants them
the spotlight of the national media and a chance at even higher office. Ted
Cruz may not have won over his colleagues with his recent <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/09/25/ted-cruz-all-night-long/" target="_blank">grandstanding</a>
in the Senate, but his <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/28/ted-cruz-poll_n_4005446.html" target="_blank">name
recognition</a> across the country has certainly grown.<br />
<br />
In fact,
Boehner and other Republican leaders in the House now have to worry about their
own posts, thanks to the rising threat of a revolt by Cruz's allies. If the
far-right group had their own official party, they would have little hope of
forcing Boehner to resign before the next Congress begins in January 2015. But
because they are still nominally Republicans, the far-right group still has a
say over who holds the gavel.
<br />
Herein
lies the first hint of a counterintuitive conclusion: In the long term,
establishment Republicans in Congress might wield more power if they expelled
the far-right group from the party. This would be especially true if, after
doing so, they seized the opportunity to move their party closer to the center.<br />
<br />
Democrats
have long dreamed of just such a schism in the GOP, on the assumption that it
would cement their own party's domination of the national electorate. But they
could easily be wrong. The expulsions would be a political earthquake, a
dramatic move whose repercussions would capture the attention of Americans for
weeks on end. A reinvigorated Republican Party, under the banner of centrists
like Chris Christie and Rob Portman, would no longer have its low-tax and
small-government messages polluted by anti-gay, anti-immigrant, and anti-poor
rhetoric. Such a party might even gain enough seats in swing and Democrat-held
districts to replace the far-right votes it had lost.<br />
<br />
Yet none
of this is likely to happen, because Boehner, McConnell, and the rest of the
formal Republican leadership are far too concerned about their own power. Their
narrow focus on maintaining their posts in the current Congress has made them
incapable of taking a long-term view of the strategies that might benefit their
party. And an official split would almost certainly put them in a weaker
position for the remainder of the Obama presidency.<br />
<br />
That's
too bad, because the moment is now. The distorting and extorting tactics of the
far right are on display for all Americans to see. Approval ratings for
Congress and the Tea Party are at <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/30/politics/cnn-poll-congress-approval/index.html?hpt=hp_t2" target="_blank">all-time
lows</a>, and the public is desperate for an end to the logjam in Washington.
There's still a year before the next midterm election, and there are three
years to plan for the presidency. For all of these reasons, the showdown that
should be happening today is not between Republicans and Democrats, but between
Republicans and Republicans.
<br />
</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-31047356871215136362013-10-09T22:00:00.003+02:002013-10-09T22:00:17.507+02:00South Korea suspends some U.S. beef imports over feed additive<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span id="tab-container-landscape"><span id="tab-container">SEOUL/CHICAGO
Oct 9 - South Korea has suspended some U.S. beef imports
after detecting the cattle feed additive zilpaterol in meat supplied by a
unit of JBS USA, raising concerns that the controversial animal growth
enhancer may still be in the supply chain weeks after Merck & Co
halted sales of Zilmax, the top-selling zilpaterol-based drug.<br />
<br />
The
South Korean claim of zilpaterol-tainted beef is the first to come to
light since Merck suspended sales of Zilmax on Aug. 16 amidst concerns
about its impact on the health of cattle. However, a Merck spokeswoman
told Reuters the company has not recalled supplies of Zilmax already on
the market at the time it suspended sales, so it is possible some cattle
feeders still are dispensing Zilmax to their animals.<br />
<br />
"Our
decision to temporarily suspend Zilmax in the U.S. and Canada did not
require that customers return product to us," said Merck spokeswoman Pam
Eisele in an email to Reuters.<br />
<br />
Eisele
noted that the Food and Drug Administration and other worldwide
regulatory agencies have reviewed comprehensive data on the use of
Zilmax in cattle and concluded that, when used according to label
directions, the beef from cattle fed Zilmax is safe to eat and poses no
safety risk to humans.<br />
<br />
Zilmax, which
contains the active ingredient zilpaterol, is given to cattle during the
last few weeks they are in feedlots and has a three-day withdrawal
period before the animal is slaughtered. Unwanted residue of the drug
could linger if those guidelines are not properly adhered to, livestock
economists said.<br />
<br />
Some veterinareans have
said trace amounts of zilpaterol linger longer in organs, such as kidney
and lungs, which are not popular in the United States but are widely
consumed in Korea and other Asian countries.<br />
<br />
South
Korea is among a number of Asian countries, including China, that ban
feed additives such as zilpaterol due to concerns about the side effects
of these drugs. Many European countries also ban the import of
zilpaterol-fed beef. However, South Korea does accept imports of beef
fed with a related variety of beta-agonist drug, ractopamine.<br />
<br />
A
JBS spokesman and the U.S. Department of Agriculture could not
immediately be reached for comment about the finding from South Korea.<br />
<br />
It
is rare for importers to accidentally receive meat that is fed with
unwanted drugs because meat packers and processors have "hugely
controlled programs" to separate different meats destined for customers
with different requirements, said Keith Belk, a professor at the Center
For Meat Safety and Quality at Colorado State University.<br />
<br />
"These are all auditable programs," he said. "It would be pretty rare for them to mislabel a box."<br />
If South Korea received meat from cattle that should not have been fed zilpaterol, "somebody screwed up," Belk said.<br />
<br />
The
South Korea action came amidst a government shutdown that has led to
uncertain trading activity in livestock markets, and response in the
Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle market was subdued.<br />
Traders
this week have mainly focused on the ongoing partial U.S. government
shutdown in which U.S. Department of Agriculture livestock price
information, which is crucial for producers and packers to price hogs
and cattle and for investors making trading decisions.<br />
<br />
At
11:58 a.m. CDT (1658 GMT) CME live cattle futures for October delivery
were down 0.325 cent per lb 127.950 cents, and up from an early morning
low of 127.850 cents.<br />
<br />
"That's (South
Korea) a secondary issue. The government shutdown and fallout from the
debt ceiling situations, which could hurt beef demand, are responsible
for the weakness in the market right now," said Rich Nelson, chief
strategist with Allendale, Inc in McHenry, Ill.<br />
<br />
Feed
additives have been under the spotlight since a video appeared in the
United States in August, showing animals struggling to walk and with
other signs of distress after taking a growth drug.<br />
<br />
South
Korea's food ministry said it had halted imports from a work site at
Swift Beef Co, a unit of food processing firm JBS USA Holdings Inc, and
asked the United States to investigate the cause of the contamination
which was found in 22 tonnes of meat.<br />
<br />
The ministry said it had strengthened scrutiny of U.S. beef since Taiwan had also detected zilpaterol in U.S. beef last month.<br />
<br />
Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration said it had asked the importer of the contaminated cargo to destroy or send back the meat.<br />
<br />
"As
of now, we don't clearly know when we will complete examining U.S. beef
from Swift Beef Co. We plan to inspect all of the meat from the
company," said Ahn Man-ho, vice spokesman for the food ministry in
Seoul.<br />
<br />
"If we find further zilpaterol in U.S. beef or in any other meat, we will take a similar action."<br />
Brandon
Depenbusch, who oversees research for Innovative Livestock Services,
which runs feed yards in Kansas and Nebraska said Zilpaterol residue is
more likely to be found in so-called variety meats, like organ meat,
than in prime cuts.<br />
<br />
"If they did find it,
it would probably be in those variety meats," he said. "That would be
easier for me to swallow. It'll be more concentrated in the liver or
kidney."<br />
<br />
Depenbusch said that according to
Merck, zilpaterol detected in South Korea was 10 to 20 times less than
what the FDA has established as safe in the United States.<br />
<br />
Sterling
Smith, a Citigroup futures specialist in Chicago, said South Korea has a
long-standing reputation for being particular about its food supply,
particularly with regard to feed additives and vaccines.<br />
"Any
sort of additive, they've always been very quick to push the button
when they've had a problem with imports of that," said Smith.<br />
<br />
Because
this was specific to one particular company and a specific unit of the
company, it is possible that they (South Korea) would replenish that
product from another JBS plant or buy it from one of their competitors,
he said.<br />
<br />
South Korea imported 75,426 tonnes of U.S. beef from January to September, with 4,697 tonnes coming from Swift Beef.<br />
<br />
<br />
PRESSURE TO CURB ADDITIVES<br />
Merck
on Aug. 16 suspended sales of its highly popular Zilmax drug while it
carried out an audit of how it was being used in cattle. Merck said it
remained confident in the safety of the product, which had sales of $159
million last year in the United States and Canada.<br />
<br />
U.S.
meat producers will have to shun additives to stimulate growth if they
want a bigger stake in the fast-expanding market in Asia, industry
officials say.<br />
<br />
"China will not change its
stance on lean-meat drugs," said Kong Pingtao, deputy secretary general
of the Chinese Association of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine in
Beijing.<br />
<br />
The withdrawal of Zilmax in the
United States was also likely to make it more difficult for Merck to
convince livestock farmers in Australia, the world's No. 3 beef
exporter, to use the product. China is a large market for
Australia-raised beef.</span></span></div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-63730605411249625702013-10-09T21:58:00.001+02:002013-10-09T21:58:26.559+02:00Home> Politics USDA Warns CA Poultry Producer Linked to Outbreak<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The Agriculture Department is threatening to shut down three California
poultry processing facilities linked to a salmonella outbreak that has
sickened 278 people across the country.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
USDA said Wednesday that Foster Farms, owner of the three facilities,
has until tomorrow to tell the department how it will fix the problem.
The company was notified Monday.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Sampling by USDA in September showed that raw chicken processed by those
facilities included strains of salmonella that were linked to the
outbreak. But the company has not recalled any of its products.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
In a letter to Foster Farms, USDA said those samples coupled with
illnesses suggest that the sanitary conditions at the facility "could
pose a serious ongoing threat to public health."</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The first illnesses in the outbreak were reported in March and the
outbreak has had a high rate of hospitalizations. The CDC said 42
percent of victims were hospitalized, about double the normal rate, and
it is resistant to many antibiotics, making it a more severe outbreak.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The Agriculture Department can halt production by withdrawing meat
inspectors. In the letter, Yudhbir Sharma of USDA's Alameda, Calif.
district office said Foster Farms has failed to demonstrate that it has
adequate controls in place to address the salmonella issue. He said that
in one of the facilities, 25 percent of the samples taken were positive
for salmonella.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The letter said that prior to the outbreak, USDA inspectors had
documented "fecal material on carcasses" along with "poor sanitary
dressing practices, insanitary food contact surfaces, insanitary nonfood
contact surfaces and direct product contamination."</div>
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<br /></div>
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In a statement Monday, Foster Farms President Ron Foster said the
company regretted any illnesses and was taking steps on its own to
ensure food safety. He said the company is working with USDA.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
According to CDC, the most recent illness began two weeks ago and the
outbreak is ongoing. The majority of illnesses have been in California
but people in 17 states have been infected, from Texas to Michigan to
North Carolina.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
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Salmonella is a pathogen that contaminates meat during slaughter and
processing, and is especially common in raw chicken. The infections can
be avoided by proper handling and cooking of raw poultry.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The pathogen can be life-threatening to those with weakened immune
systems and causes diarrhea, abdominal cramps and fever within a few
days of eating a contaminated product.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
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Consumer advocates have for several years petitioned the department to
change the way salmonella outbreaks in meat are handled. Because
salmonella is so prevalent in poultry and is killed if consumers handle
and cook it properly, the government has not declared it to be a
so-called "adulterant," or illegal, in meat, as is E. coli. Outbreaks of
salmonella in poultry can take longer to discover and recalls don't
happen as quickly.</div>
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The federal shutdown has also been hampering the government response to
food safety issues. </div>
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<br /></div>
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While USDA's meat inspectors are on the job, the CDC
had furloughed many of those who work to investigate outbreaks. But the
agency recalled many of those workers Tuesday to work on the salmonella
outbreak.</div>
</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-53583096777728845832013-10-09T21:52:00.001+02:002013-10-09T21:52:41.319+02:00Families of fallen U.S. troops to get death benefits amid shutdown<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="first">
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381346232972_1">Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel</span> said on Wednesday families of troops who die during the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381346232972_2">government shutdown</span> will receive a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381346232972_4">death benefit payment</span>, despite <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381346232972_5">legal restrictions</span> on the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381346232972_3">Pentagon</span>, thanks to a deal reached with a private charity.</div>
<div class="first">
<br /></div>
Hagel made the announcement in a statement after attending a
ceremony honoring the return to the United States of the bodies of four
soldiers killed by insurgents in Afghanistan on Sunday. <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1381346232972_6">The Pentagon</span> was unable to pay the $100,000 "death gratuity" to those families during the shutdown.</div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3616423136775997304.post-71968197639377039172013-10-09T21:50:00.001+02:002013-10-09T22:04:17.486+02:00Hezbollah, Iraqi militia capture Damascus suburb - opposition<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span id="tab-container-landscape"><span id="tab-container">AMMAN,
Oct 9 (Reuters) Iraqi and Lebanese Shi'ite militia backed by Syrian
army firepower overran a southern suburb of Damascus on Wednesday,
opposition activists said, in a blow to Sunni Muslim rebels trying to
hold onto strategic outskirts of the capital.<br />
<br />
At
least 20 rebels were killed when Hezbollah guerrillas and Iraqi
militiamen captured the town of Sheikh Omar under cover of Syrian army
artillery and tank fire and aerial bombardment, the activists said, with
tens of Shi'ite fighters killed or wounded.<br />
<br />
Sheikh
Omar sits between two highways leading south of Damascus that are
crucial to supplying President Bashar al-Assad's forces in the provinces
of Deraa and Sweida on the border with Jordan.<br />
Syria's
2-1/2 year war has killed more than 120,000 people and forced millions
from their homes into sprawling refugee camps in neighbouring countries.<br />
<br />
It
began with peaceful demonstrations against four decades of iron rule by
the Assad family. With regional powers backing opposing sides in the
conflict and Russia blocking Western efforts to force Assad aside, there
is little sign of an end to the bloodshed.<br />
<br />
Regional
security officials say up to 60,000 fighters from Iraq, Iran and Yemen
and Hezbollah are present in Syria supporting Assad, whose Alawite sect
is an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam.<br />
<br />
The
country has also seen the influx of 30,000 Sunni Muslim fighters to
support the rebels, including foreign jihadists and Syrian expatriates.<br />
<br />
Hezbollah
has acknowledged fighting openly in support of Assad, its main patron
together with Shi'ite Iran, but the group does not comment on the
specifics of its operations in the country.<br />
<br />
The
deployment of the Iraqi and Lebanese militia has been vital in
preventing all southern approaches to Damascus from falling into rebel
hands, according to opposition sources and the regional security
officials.<br />
The foreign Shi'ite fighters
together with soldiers and local paramilitaries loyal to Assad have been
laying siege to rebel-held southern suburbs of the capital near the
Shi'ite shrine of Saida Zainab for the past six months, residents say.<br />
<br />
The
siege has squeezed rebels in areas further to the centre of the city
and caused acute shortages of food and medicine that have hit the
civilian population.<br />
<br />
<br />
FLOOD OF WOUNDED<br />
Wardan
Abu Hassan, a doctor at a makeshift hospital in southern Damascus, said
the facility and another nearby received 70 wounded people, both
fighters and civilians, since 4.00 a.m.<br />
The
wounded came from Sheikh Omar and the nearby suburbs of al-Thiabiya and
al-Boueida, where the rebels were trying to hold off the Shi'ite
militia advance, he said.<br />
<br />
"Most of the casualties are from air strikes, and fire from tanks and multiple rocket launchers," the physician told Reuters.<br />
<br />
An
opposition group, the Damascus Revolution Leadership Council, said a
baby girl died on Wednesday in the southern district of Hajar al-Asswad
from malnutrition caused by the siege. The report could not be
independently confirmed.<br />
<br />
Rami al-Sayyed
from the opposition Syrian Media Centre mentoring group said rebel
fighters were trying to hold off the Hezbollah and Iraqi fighters in
al-Thiabiya and al-Boueida.<br />
<br />
"It is tough
because the regime is providing Hezbollah and the Iraqis with heavy
artillery and rocket cover from high ground," he said.<br />
<br />
Sayyed
said much of the fire was coming from the 56th army brigade in the
hilly region of Sahya. That area was evacuated after the threat of U.S.
strikes following a nerve gas attack in August on other rebellious
Damascus suburbs that killed hundreds.<br />
<br />
The
area became operational again after the threat receded following a deal
to destroy Assad's chemical weapons arsenal, Sayyed said.<br />
<br />
Buoyed
by the receding prospect of U.S. intervention, Assad has been seeking
to tighten his grip on the centre of the country, the coast, areas along
the country's main north-south highway as well as the capital and its
environs.<br />
<br />
Large areas of southern
Damascus, including the areas of Hajar al-Assad and the Yarmouk refugee
camp, are inhabited by poor refugees from the Israeli occupied Golan
Heights, who have been at the forefront of the revolt against Assad, as
well as Palestinian refugees.</span></span></div>
Dr. Victor Ogbonna. S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07218012825454741295noreply@blogger.com0