Friday, July 16, 2010

Museveni declares war on al Shabaab

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has vowed to crush the militant Somali group al Shabaab groups, which has claimed responsibility for last Sunday’s twin bomb attacks, which killed 74 people in Kampala.

“We are going to go on the offensive and go for all who did this in all areas, starting here,” he said on Wednesday evening.

“We were just in Mogadishu to guard the airport and the presidential palace – that was all. Now they have mobilised us to look for them. We were just doing our small mandate…now we are taking interest. It was a very big mistake on their side,” Mr Museveni told journalists at a news conference at his Ntungamo country home in western Uganda.

The attacks at the Ethiopian Village Restaurant and Kyadondo rugby grounds also injured over 50 people, who had gathered at the venue to watch the World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands.

Mr Museveni, speaking for the first time since investigations into the attacks got underway, also blamed intelligence failure.

Kenya arrests over 100 illegal Somalis

(AFP) – 3 hours ago

NAIROBI — Kenyan police arrested more than 100 Somalis in an overnight crackdown in the capital Nairobi on illegal immigrants, an official said Friday.

The operation was conducted in the wake of bombings in neighbouring Uganda that killed at least 73 people and were claimed by Somalia's Al Qaeda-linked Shebab rebels but police refused to link the raid to the Kampala blasts.

"We have intensified a crackdown on all aliens. We arrested 102 Somalis last night and the crackdown is going on," Nairobi province police officer Anthony Kibuchi said.

"This crackdown will be carried out in all the estates and it will continue. It is not something we are going to stop any time soon," he said, adding the individuals would appear in court on Friday.

Two Nairobi districts, one of which is dominated by Kenyans of Somali origin and Somali refugees, were targeted in Thursday night's operation.

At least 30 Ethiopians were also rounded up during a similar police swoop in Nairobi on Wednesday night.

Earlier this week, the army said it had intensified security along the country's porous border with Somalia, with truckloads of troops deployed there following Sunday's explosions in Kampala.

The blasts that tore through a crowd watching the World Cup final were the deadliest in the region since the Al Qaeda-claimed bombings of US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in 1998.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Iran scientist Shahram Amiri free to leave, US insists

The US insists that an Iranian nuclear scientist who has turned up in the country is there voluntarily and is free to leave.

The state department rejected claims by Tehran that Shahram Amiri, who surfaced at a Pakistani embassy building, had been abducted by US agents.

Mr Amiri vanished more than a year ago.

In June, three videos apparently showing him - and containing contradictory information on his whereabouts - emerged.

He has been in the United States of his own free will and obviously he is free to go

PJ Crowley State department spokesman Profile: Shahram Amiri Timeline: Shahram Amiri mystery

He said in the first that he had been kidnapped by US and Saudi agents, in the second that he was living freely in Arizona, and in the third that he had escaped from his captors.

On Monday evening, he arrived at the Iranian Interests Section of the Pakistani embassy in Washington, which handles Iranian affairs in the US capital.

Iranian media say Mr Amiri had worked as a researcher at a university in Tehran, but some reports say he worked for the country's atomic energy organisation and had in-depth knowledge of its controversial nuclear programme.

Analysis

James Reynolds

There is very little to suggest that 2209 Wisconsin Avenue in Washington is home to employees of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Iranian Interests Section is on the ground floor of an anonymous office block and displays no flags or symbols.

A crowd of journalists is near the front door. A man tells me he's Iranian and asks what's going on. I tell him that a controversial Iranian scientist is inside - and may be heading back to Iran. "He's crazy," the bystander concludes.

At the time of his disappearance, he was thought to be on a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

US TV network ABC reported in March that he had defected and was helping the CIA by revealing valuable information about the Iranian nuclear programme.

But earlier this month, Tehran said it had proof that Mr Amiri was being held in the US.

'His alone'

State department spokesman PJ Crowley said: "He has been in the United States of his own free will and obviously he is free to go.

"In fact, he was scheduled to travel to Iran yesterday, but was unable to make all of the necessary arrangements to reach Iran through transit countries."

There are no direct flights from the US to Iran and the two countries have no diplomatic ties.

Mr Crowley added that Mr Amiri had informed American authorities that he wished to leave the US - which seems to confirm that American officials have been in touch with him.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told reporters at a news conference that Mr Amiri had been kidnapped during the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and taken to the US against his will.

He said Mr Amiri should be allowed to return home "without any obstacle".

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Mr Amiri was free to go, and highlighted the case of three young Americans held by Iran since July 2009 and accused of illegally entering the country.

Hillary Clinton: "He is free to go, in fact he was scheduled to return to Iran yesterday"

"These are decisions that are his alone to make," she said.

"In contrast, Iran continues to hold three young Americans against their will, and we reiterate our request that they be released and allowed to return to their families on a humanitarian basis."

Mrs Clinton also mentioned the case of Robert Levinson, a former FBI agent who disappeared in Iran in 2007.


Adopted from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/middle_east/10617656.stm

US trade deficit at 18-month high

The US trade deficit widened to its highest level in 18 months in May, driven by demand for imported cars, computers and clothing.

The deficit increased by 4.8% to $42.3bn - the largest since November 2008, Commerce Department data showed.

The 2.9% rise in imports outpaced the 2.4% climb in exports.

US manufacturing has benefited from the global economic recovery, but some fear that problems in Europe will hurt sales in the future.

Debt troubles in the eurozone have also caused the value of the euro to weaken against the dollar this year - making US-made goods less competitive in the 16 nations using the euro.


Adopted from: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/10614531.stm

Microsoft announces Windows tablet PC plans

Tablet devices which run the Windows 7 operating system will launch in the coming months, according to Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer.

Asus, Dell, Samsung, Toshiba, and Sony are among the manufacturers working on Windows slate PCs, he told delegates at a company conference.

Mr Ballmer said the area was "terribly important" to Microsoft, but did not mention any specific release dates.

Apple's iPad touch-screen device sold 3 million units within 80 days of launch.

"This year, one of the most important things that we will do in the smart device category is really push forward with Windows 7-based slates," Mr Ballmer said at the firm's annual World Partner Conference.

The devices will come in various forms, some dockable and some with keyboards, he added.


Adopted from: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/10611568.stm

BP's Strategy to Limit Liability in Regard to Its Gulf Oil Gusher

tal Amount of Oil Released to Date: 4,455,000 barrels
Amount of Oil Recovered by BP to Date (via Containment Cap): 771,100 barrels
Oily Water Recovered: 694,286 barrels of oily water = 69,429 barrels of oil
Oil Consumed by Controlled Burns: 237,857 barrels
Total Amount of Unrecovered Oil in Gulf of Mexico to Date: 3,376,614 barrels

Oil_spill_june_13_th_2005_as_seen_from_cupe_coy_Rueben_Thompson-_Nature_Foundation_SXM_2Currently, the official release rate of oil from the Deepwater Horizon blowout is estimated to be 35,000 to 60,000 barrels per day. Unofficial credible estimates indicate that 80,000 to 100,000 barrels of oil may be spewing from the damaged well each day. Two vessels, the Q4000 and the Discoverer Enterprise, are collecting approximately 25,000 barrels of oil per day. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) expects BP's third containment vessel, the Helix Producer, to increase total collection capacity to approximately 53,000 barrels of oil per day.

Under the Clean Water Act (CWA), BP faces fines of up to $4,300 for each barrel spilled. Furthermore, pursuant to Section 2702 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90), BP may be required to pay royalties (18.75%) owed to the federal government for the oil gushing from the well.

BP owns 65 percent of the Deepwater Horizon well, Anadarko owns 25 percent, and Mitsui owns 10 percent. Under OPA 90, responsible parties and guarantors are jointly and severally liable for the costs incurred. In this incident, BP has been named the responsible party. Pursuant to OPA 90, a "responsible party" means, in the case of an offshore facility, the lessee or permittee of the area in which the facility is located. Under the definition of responsible party in OPA 90, the fact that Anadarko and Mitsui are also "lessees," may relate to the potential liability of Anadarko and Mitsui. However, the role of Anadarko and Mitsui as solely financial partners rather than operators of the well is a key issue. Passive investors like Anadarko and Mitsui would normally be required to pay their pro rata share of liability unless it is possible to prove gross negligence on the part of BP.


Adopted from: http://www.rightsidenews.com/2010071310985/energy-and-environment/bps-strategy-to-limit-liability-in-regard-to-its-gulf-oil-gusher.html

Monday, July 12, 2010

Obama-led US has 'better relations' abroad

WASHINGTON - The United States has better relations with almost every nation on the planet thanks to President Barack Obama's foreign policy "outreach," his spokesman said on Sunday.

The bullish claim came in an interview in which White House spokesman Robert Gibbs fiercely defended Mr Obama against accusations he has failed to reform US foreign policy from the damaging era of his predecessor George W Bush.

"We have better relationships with virtually every country in the world as a result of the president's foreign policy outreach," Mr Gibbs hit back. "There's no doubt that we have taken foreign policy in a different direction."

NBC interviewer David Gregory listed several points - the failure to close Guantanamo, the Afghan war escalation, an expected U-turn on plans to give chief 9/11 suspect Khalid Sheikh Mohammed a civilian trial, and the same old sanctions strategy on Iran and North Korea - as examples of Mr Obama's stalled foreign policy reforms.

Mr Gibbs said this was "oversimplified" logic, noting how Mr Obama managed to win backing from Russia and China for tougher sanctions against Iran.

A Pew survey of 24,000 people in 22 nations published last month showed a largely favourable view of the US for a second year, in sharp contrast to perceptions of America under Mr Bush.

When asked whether the US President would "do the right thing" in world affairs, 87 per cent in France, 90 per cent in Germany and 84 per cent in Britain expressed confidence in Mr Obama.

Meanwhile, Mr Obama will unveil tomorrow a new national strategy to curb the Aids epidemic by slashing the number of new infections and increasing the number of people who get care and treatment.

"Annual Aids deaths have declined, but the number of new infections has been static and the number of people living with HIV is growing," says a final draft of the report.

The administration plans to reduce the annual number of new HIV infections by 25 per cent within five years. "Approximately 56,000 people become infected each year, and more than 1.1 million Americans are living with HIV," the report says.

The report does not propose a major increase in federal spending.

The government now spends over US$19 billion ($26.25 billion) a year on domestic Aids programmes.

The report says tens of thousands of people with the virus are not receiving any care. Also, far too many people infected with HIV are unaware of their status and may unknowingly transmit the virus to their partners. Agencies

Published at: http://www.todayonline.com/World/EDC100713-0000083/Obama-led-US-has-better-relations-abroad

In Attack, al Qaeda-Linked Somali Group Expands Reach

WASHINGTON—In claiming responsibility for Sunday's deadly bombings in Uganda, the Somali group al Shabaab appeared to raise its sights from running large swaths of one of Africa's most lawless countries to embracing al Qaeda's call for global jihad.

The triple bombing in Kampala, which left 76 dead, would mark the first foray beyond war-torn Somalia by a group whose primary focus for years was to impose a radical Islamist agenda inside Somalia. The attacks show what Africa and terror experts say is the growing influence in the group of foreign fighters with ties to Osama bin Laden's global terror network.

Bomb Blasts Hit Uganda

Ronald Kabuubi/Reuters

People carried an injured man upon his arrival at Mulago Hospital, Monday.

More photos and interactive graphics

Al Shabaab was formally created in about 2003 as a successor movement to violent Islamist groups that had been crushed in the late 1990s. It is now the target of an offensive by Somalia's elected government, which controls a sliver of Somalia's capital.

In recent years, al Shabaab has claimed to have moved closer to al Qaeda. In late 2008, al Shabaab leaders pledged fealty to Mr. bin Laden. Early the next year, al Qaeda welcomed al Shabaab to its global fight. Earlier this year, al Shabaab announced it was formally linking its local fight to al Qaeda's global jihad.

"The links between al Qaeda and al Shabaab are stronger," said David Shinn, the former U.S. ambassador to Ethiopia and an expert on al Shabaab. He and a U.S. counterterrorism expert said the two groups work together to train operatives.

Al Shabaab's force numbers a few thousand fighters, by some estimates, to more than 10,000. A contingent of foreign fighters is said to number a few hundred and include other Africans, Arabs and even Westerners.

In late 2008, a score of Somali-Americans left Minnesota to join al Shabaab. Last month, two men were arrested at JFK International Airport allegedly on their way to join the Somali group. One of al Shabaab's top commanders, known as Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, is from Alabama.

Top commanders have spent time in Afghanistan and Pakistan, says Rashid Abdi, Horn of Africa analyst in Nairobi for the International Crisis Group. "What al Shabaab has become is a multinational terror network, like al Qaeda if not al Qaeda," he says.

Analysts say two factions have emerged within the group. One wants to stay focused on bringing down the government, a goal for which they'll need to retain some support among Somalia's population. Those aligned with al Qaeda don't share those priorities, says Anneli Botha, a senior researcher on terrorism at the Institute for Security Studies, a think tank based in Pretoria.

Three bombs hit Uganda's capital, killing at least 64 people, in an attack targeting crowds watching the World Cup final match. Peter Wonacott discusses. Also, Jacob Schlesinger reports from Japan about the fallout from Sunday's elections, in which the ruling DPJ party lost critical support.

But to some extent there is an alignment of goals between Somali nationalists with an eye on regional expansion and jihadists eager to strike out at perceived regional enemies that include Christians, other Muslims, moderate politicians and supporters of Somalia's interim government.

In recent months, al Shabaab had threatened countries, including Uganda, that contribute peacekeeping troops in support of the Somali transitional government. The U.S. is the major backer of the African peacekeeping troops.

"This is really an unpleasant confluence of goals between the nationalist and international wing of al Shabaab," said Roger Middleton, a Somalia analyst at London-based think tank Chatham House.

"Regionalization of the conflict is a rational strategy for al Shabaab. They are stronger when there are foreign boots on the ground, and weaker otherwise," said William Braniff, an instructor at the Combatting Terrorism Center at West Point.

The links between al Shabaab and al Qaeda—especially al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen—could pose the biggest threat to the U.S. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, as the Yemeni affiliate is known, was behind several recent high-profile attacks on the U.S., including the failed Christmas Day bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner.

—Siobhan Gorman, Peter Wonacott and Nicholas Bariyo contributed to this article.

Write to Keith Johnson at keith.johnson@wsj.com


Published at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703283004575363421023828364.html

Deadly Uganda bombings could indicate new roles for al-Qaeda affiliates

The attacks, intended to inflict maximum damage on civilian targets, mark the first major international assault by Somali militants in a region where the United States and its allies are attempting to stem the rise of Islamist militancy. At least one American was killed and several were wounded in Sunday's strikes.

The United States has provided millions of dollars in military and economic aid, training, equipment, logistical support and intelligence to regional counterterrorism allies such as Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya. Uganda is a training ground for soldiers for Somalia's transitional government, which al-Shabab is seeking to overthrow, in a program backed by the United States and European nations. Troops from Uganda and Burundi make up a U.S.- and Western-backed African Union peacekeeping force in the Somali capital of Mogadishu that protects the fragile government.

A top spokesman for al-Shabab, speaking from Mogadishu, said the militia carried out the bombings, and he alluded to the group's aspiration to use Somalia as a launching pad for international attacks. Ali Mohamud Raghe, the spokesman, threatened further attacks if Uganda and Burundi continue to supply troops to the African Union force.

A Ugandan military spokesman vowed that his nation's soldiers will not leave Somalia. "It increases our resolve to make sure Somalia is pacified. These criminals cannot have room to expand and grow because they are a threat to regional and international peace," said Felix Kulayige, the spokesman. "If they have hoped this cowardly act will make us leave Somalia, they are totally mistaken."

Importing violent tactics

Al-Shabab's new boldness comes as foreign fighters trained in Afghanistan and Pakistan are gaining influence inside the movement and importing their violent tactics. Suicide bombers, including foreigners of Somali descent, have in recent months staged several attacks in Mogadishu. The militia also continues to attract Americans to the Somali conflict, including two New Jersey men arrested last month by U.S. authorities and charged with intending to join al-Shabab. The United States has deemed al-Shabab a terrorist organization.

Sunday's attacks come seven months after al-Qaeda's branch in Yemen -- al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula -- showed its global aspirations with its failed Christmas Day attack on a Detroit-bound airliner. Another group with al-Qaeda links, the Pakistani Taliban, helped orchestrate the botched attempt to bomb Times Square in May.

Top al-Shabab leader Mukhtar Abdurahman Abu Zubeyr last week accused the African Union forces of committing "massacres" against Somalis. He warned that his forces would take revenge against the people of ganda and Burundi.

Banning soccer

The militia, which seeks to create an Islamic emirate and has imposed Taliban-like dictates, has banned soccer in many areas and prohibited broadcasts of the World Cup, describing the sport as "a satanic act" that corrupts Muslims.

The explosions in Kampala tore through the Kyadondo Rugby Club and the Ethiopian Village restaurant, where boisterous soccer fans, including clusters of foreigners, had gathered to watch Spain beat the Netherlands in the World Cup final.

Among the dead at the rugby club was Nate Henn, 25, of Wilmington, Del., a worker for Invisible Children, a California-based aid group that helps child soldiers, the organization said on its Web site. Emily Kerstetter, 16, of Ellicott City was injured, according to WMAR-TV in Baltimore. She was in Kampala with her grandmother's church group from Pennsylvania.

Joanne Lockard, a U.S. Embassy spokeswoman, said there were no directives for embassy staff members or other U.S. citizens to leave Kampala, which is widely considered one of the safest capitals on the continent. Unlike neighbors Kenya and Tanzania, where al-Qaeda bombed U.S. embassies in 1998, Uganda had never been a target of international terrorism.


Story published at : http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/12/AR2010071205431.html

After Attacks in Uganda, Worry Grows Over Group

WASHINGTON — The deadly bombings in Uganda during the World Cup final have deepened worries among American authorities about another once localized Islamic group that is spreading its terrorism across borders, using a playbook written by Al Qaeda.

Mohamed Sheikh Nor/Associated Press

Shabab fighters patrolled a market in Mogadishu, Somalia. The group claimed responsibility for the coordinated attacks that struck Kampala, Uganda.

The group, the Shabab, claimed responsibility for the coordinated bomb attacks that tore through festive crowds in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, killing at least 70 people, including an American aid worker. The synchronized nature of the attacks, a senior American official said Monday, bore the hallmarks of a Qaeda strike, suggesting that the Shabab got support or at least inspiration from Al Qaeda and its affiliates in East Africa.

Analysts and officials said the emergence of the Shabab on the world stage fit a pattern of localized Islamic militant groups that have been able to mount sophisticated operations farther and farther afield, including the attempt by a Qaeda-linked group to blow up a plane on its way to Detroit on Dec. 25. The bombings also illustrate how the region has become a hive of Islamic militancy, complicating the efforts of the United States, which has thrown its support behind Somalia’s embattled transitional government.

“This was a localized cancer, but the cancer has metastasized into a regional crisis,” said Johnnie Carson, the assistant secretary of state for African affairs. “It is a crisis that has bled across borders and is now infecting the international community.”

The Shabab have been in the cross hairs of intelligence and counterterrorism officials for years. But the group’s growing force and alliances with a shifting array of Somali warlords has posed a constant, vexing challenge for the Obama administration’s efforts to bolster Somalia’s weak government and stabilize the country. Last year, after what a senior administration official described as a fierce internal debate, President Obama halted American food aid to Somalia after evidence mounted that the Shabab was siphoning some of the aid for its operations.

The group has also recruited young fighters from the frustrated ranks of Somali immigrants in the United States. In October 2008, a Minneapolis teenager, Shirwa Ahmed, became the first confirmed American suicide bomber, when he drove a car laden with explosives into a compound in northern Somalia. He had traveled to Somalia and was apparently trained as a fighter by the Shabab.

Despite the group’s foreign recruits, a senior intelligence official said the United States believes it is still mainly focused on fighting the Somali government and those who support it, rather than the West. On Monday, a spokesman for the Shabab threatened to single out another African country, Burundi, which, like Uganda, has sent troops to Somalia to help shore up the weak federal government.

In drawing up a list of potential terrorist targets during the World Cup, the intelligence official said, an attack somewhere in Africa was high on the list. Given the continent’s often porous borders and haphazard security, he said, it would have been relatively easy for the Shabab to send suicide bombers to Uganda. The group has conducted cross-border raids into Kenya with impunity for some time.

But other terrorism experts said that running a clandestine operation in Uganda, which lies hundreds of miles away, on Kenya’s western border, requires sophistication, as does pulling off simultaneous bombings, at a rugby field and an Ethiopian restaurant.

The Shabab appears to relish its membership in the international brotherhood of jihadi groups. In 2008, it traded messages on militant Web sites with Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born cleric now in hiding in Yemen, whom intelligence officials say had had a role in the attempt to blow up the Northwest Airlines plane to Detroit on Dec. 25.

“We would like to congratulate you on your victories and achievements,” Mr. Awlaki wrote to the group, saying it provided “a living example of how we as Muslims should proceed to change our situation.” In a response, the group thanked “Sheikh Anwar” for his recommendations and noted that the “enemies of Islam” were directing more of their efforts to the battle for “hearts and minds” through the media.

“Al Shabab is emerging as one of these archetypal 21st-century terrorist groups,” said Bruce Hoffman, an expert in counterterrorism at Georgetown University. “Ten years ago, no one would ever have heard of them. These are not the kinds of groups that would have had the ability to operate across borders.”

Mr. Hoffman said the Shabab had the ingredients to turn itself into even more of an international threat: a savvy communications operation; an expatriate Somali population from which to recruit; charismatic figures it could send out to attract followers; and a proven capacity, after this weekend, to operate in foreign countries. The Kampala attack, he said, might represent a bid by more ambitious members of the group to ally it more closely with Al Qaeda and Al Qaeda’s affiliates.

There are cracks in the group’s armor, however. The Somali population has grown increasingly fed up with the Shabab’s harsh brand of Islam, and the group’s efforts to recruit in the United States seem to have faltered after it lured several young men from the Minneapolis area two years ago. Reports about life on the battlefield apparently chilled the appetite of some potential fighters, while officials said the F.B.I. warned the Somali-American community to keep an eye on its youth.

On Sunday, Mr. Carson spoke to Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, and said he was confident that the president would not allow the attack to bully Uganda’s government into withdrawing its troops from Somalia. A few members of the Ugandan Parliament have demanded a review of the peacekeeping force.

The United States sent three agents from the F.B.I. to help the Ugandans collect evidence, as well as two Diplomatic Security agents to help in the investigation. There is a further F.B.I. team on call in Washington. “The United States stands shoulder to shoulder with Uganda in the fight against terrorism,” said the State Department spokesman, Philip J. Crowley.

He declined to say whether the United States planned any other response. Despite the death of the aid worker, and five other Americans who hospitalized with injuries, officials said they did not believe the attacks were aimed at Americans.

The United States helps with counterterrorism operations in the countries that border Somalia, officials said. But the root causes of the problem are much larger: widespread poverty, hunger, a crippled economy and the absence of a function central government for almost 20 years.

Mr. Crowley said the United States would work with Uganda, Kenya, and other African countries to help stabilize the Somali government. But American officials said the Shabab were an outgrowth of a daunting array of other issues, including refugees, illegal trade in arms and other goods, and piracy on the seas off Somalia.

Scott Shane contributed reporting.

Ending the Spill, Finally

After days of preparation, BP’s effort to replace the loose-fitting cap that has been collecting oil for the last few weeks with a sealing cap appears to have gone successfully. On Monday evening, the cap was installed over the gushing well, raising hopes that the company will be able to either seal off the well entirely, ending the leak, or at least to contain all of the flow over the next few weeks by sending it upward to several surface collection vessels.

For more information, see http://www.newsweekparentsguide.com/2010/07/12/ending-the-spill-finally.html?from=rss

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger refuses meeting with Barcelona offcials over Cesc Fabregas transfer - report

Arsene Wenger has rejected Barcelona’s attempt to set up a meeting with Arsenal officials at the World Cup about a possible deal for captain Cesc Fabregas.

Barcelona president Sandro Rosell traveled to South Africa with the intention of sitting down with Wenger and Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis prior to the World Cup final on Sunday.

However, Wenger and Gazidis refused to meet with the Catalan giants and have once again declared that Fabregas is not for sale at any cost, according to The Mirror.

With Arsenal already turning down a £30 million bid, the refusal to meet is the latest hitch in Barcelona’s attempts to bring Fabregas back to his boyhood club.

For more information: http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/premier-league/2010/07/12/2021200/arsenal-boss-arsene-wenger-refuses-meeting-with-barcelona

Fabregas feels with Arsenal team-mate van Persie

ohannesburg - Midfielder Cesc Fabregas said his first thought after winning the World Cup with Spain on Sunday night was for his Arsenal team-mate Robin van Persie, who was on the losing Dutch side.

Andres Iniesta's goal four minutes from the end of extra time not only gave Spain a 1-0 victory, they also became only the second country after Germany in 1972 and 1974 to win the World Cup as reigning Euro champions.

Fabregas, who came on late in the second half, said that when the final whistle went, he saw his team-mate Xavi and then thought about going to his family.

'But my first thing was to go to Robin. I had to go to Robin, that was the first thing that I did, instead of celebrating, I went to Robin.

'I think he deserved it as well, you know, it is really hard for him. He was injured for a long time, he had his moment there. Of course, if it was not us he was playing against, I would have been on his side and I was really sad for him because he deserved it as well.'


For more information, see http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/europe/news/article_1570094.php/Fabregas-feels-with-Arsenal-team-mate-van-Persie

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger refuses meeting with Barcelona offcials over Cesc Fabregas transfer - report

Spain midfielder Cesc Fabregas has declared that the win over Netherlands and resulting 2010 World Cup glory has made up for the fact that he did not feature more prominently during the tournament.

Fabregas was influential for la Furia Roja after coming off the bench and provided the assist for Andres Iniesta to score and hand them their first ever World Cup triumph.

The Arsenal captain is now already setting his sights on further glory at the European championships in 2012 with the world champions.

"It is an historic moment which we do not know if it will ever be repeated," he said to AS. "I dedicate the win to my whole family.

For mor einformation, see http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2890/world-cup-2010/2010/07/12/2021185/world-cup-2010-arsenal-captain-cesc-fabregas-says-spain

Lula seeks stronger economic ties

The recent visit by Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to Kenya, has reinforced the latter’s new foreign policy of closer trade ties with emerging markets in addition to its traditional partners.

Related Stories

Although President Lula only visited Kenya and Tanzania out of the five East African Community countries, it was clear that Brazil — that has lately taken keen interest in Africa — is eyeing the integration process and the opportunities it offers in trade and investment.

But Kenya is still disadvantaged by its trade imbalance with Brazil.

For instance in 2009, Kenya exported goods worth $947,730 to Brazil compared with the $58 million worth of imports from the country.

President Mwai Kibaki said that Kenya was especially keen on exploiting Brazilian advances in the area of bio-diesel technology, in an effort to become more efficient in the management of the energy sector.


For more information, see http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/news/Lula%20seeks%20stronger%20economic%20ties/-/2558/955802/-/gylwlh/-/

64 dead in Uganda blasts

By NATION Team and AFP

Posted Monday, July 12 2010 at 07:13

Bomb explosions that tore through two bars in the Ugandan capital at the weekend left at least 64 people dead and wounded 65 others, a national police spokeswoman said Monday.

Three separate blasts went out in the Ugandan capital – Kampala as residents watched the 2010 World Cup final on giant screens.

Police said among the dead were foreigners. One blast went off at the Ethiopian Village Restaurant in Kabalagala, a Kampala suburb, while Daily Monitor reporters counted about 40 bodies at Kyaddondo rugby grounds where a huge crowd was watching the Spain Vs Netherlands Word Cup final.

Another blast was reported to have gone off in Ntinda, another Kampala suburb, as more than 100 were reported admitted in hospitals and clinics in the capital including the national referral hospital - Mulago.


For more information, see http://www.nation.co.ke/News/africa/64%20dead%20in%20Uganda%20blasts/-/1066/956216/-/qevo43/-/

Brazil takes aim at Kenya’s budding digital TV market

The cost of set top boxes that convert analogue signals to digital is likely to surge beyond the reach of many consumers if Kenya allows Brazil to supply the gadgets.

Brazil last week tabled before Kenyan authorities a proposal seeking to replace the Digital Video Broadcasting Terrestrial (DVB-T) technology currently in the market with the Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting (ISDB) version commonly used in South America arguing that the latter is superior .

The proposal was made to the Ministry of Information during Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva’s visit to Nairobi last week.

Though Brazil has promised to refund money that has been spent on the DVB-T technology if the country agrees to the proposed change, senior government officials said the alternative technology would isolate Kenya in the region in terms of TV sales and slow down the migration digital TV because of high costs.


For more information, see http://www.nation.co.ke/News/africa/64%20dead%20in%20Uganda%20blasts/-/1066/956216/-/qevo43/-/

Biden jokes about 'hot' Russian spy with Jay Leno

US Vice-President Joe Biden has been cracking jokes about the Russian spy scandal on a TV chat show.

Referring to one of 10 agents sent back to Russia, comedian Jay Leno on The Tonight Show asked Mr Biden: "Do we have any spies that hot?"

Mr Biden said: "It wasn't my idea to send her back." He also defended only getting four spies released by Moscow for the 10 that they returned.

The US and Russia made a spy swap on Friday on airport tarmac in Vienna.


For more information, see http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/us_and_canada/10586484.stm

Fifa 'pressures' Mandela to attend World Cup final

Nelson Mandela's grandson says the former South African president has been put under "extreme pressure" by Fifa to attend Sunday's World Cup final.

Mandla Mandela said the engagement would be "strenuous" for a man who turns 92 next week.

Nelson Mandela cancelled plans to attend the opening ceremony after his great-granddaughter died in a car crash the night before the tournament.

Fifa head Sepp Blatter has said it will be "wonderful" if Mr Mandela attends.


For more information, visit http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/africa/10589713.stm

Obama’s right wing enemies see Kenya as new battleground

A group of US congressmen has been visiting our country this past week where they held various meetings with political players. They went as far as any other US official has gone to back the enactment of the proposed constitution.

Unknown to many Kenyans, there is a sideshow to the big local fight for the draft law that is playing itself out in Washington DC. You hear about it intermittently from reports that certain congressmen sitting on the Africa sub-committee of the US House of Representative’s Committee on Foreign Affairs have been lambasting the Obama administration for supporting a Kenyan draft law that “legalises” abortion (the monopoly for untruths is by no means confined to Kenyan provocateurs).

And there are the scattered reports of US-based evangelical churches allegedly funding their Kenyan counterparts on the ‘No’ side. The most vocal US politician concerning our draft law is New Jersey congressman Chris Smith, the top Republican on the Africa sub-committee.

It so happens that virtually all the US politicians busy trashing our draft constitution are Republicans.

In this campaign abortion is just an excuse. In fact, I doubt very much if they care a hoot about the draft constitution, which they most likely have not read.


For mor einformation, visit http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Opinion/Obamas%20right%20wing%20enemies%20see%20Kenya%20as%20new%20battleground%20/-/440808/955458/-/ttxn9/-/

Google Wins Renewal of Its China License, Xinhua Says

By Brian Womack and Mark Lee

July 11 (Bloomberg) -- China’s government confirmed today that it renewed Google Inc.’s Internet license, the official Xinhua news agency reported. This followed the company’s statement that its application for a permit was approved by authorities last week.

The renewal of Google’s license was confirmed by an unidentified government agency, according to the Xinhua report. No other details were provided.

Google was surprised by how quickly China renewed the company’s Internet-services license, Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt said in a July 9 interview. There were no formal negotiations between Google and Chinese officials over the decision, a person familiar with the matter said.


For more of this story, see http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-07-11/google-wins-renewal-of-its-china-license-xinhua-says.html

NTV to Air Tusker Project Fame

NTV will be exclusively airing this year's Tusker Project Fame reality show, according to very close sources. This is a take over from Royal Media's Citizen TV which aired the second and third TPF exclusively. However it is not the first time the station is to air the show, it did the first TPF only during the second season, they chose to air the Zain University Challenge over TPF.

Tusker Project Fame is a musical reality show that hosts new talent from the East African countries in a house with music professionals, teachers and the winner bags a record deal and a heavy cash prize.


For more information, see http://niaje.com/ntv-to-air-tusker-project-fame/

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Nelson Mandela autopsy painting sparks South Africa row

Adopted from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/africa/10567091.stm


Painting by Yuil DamasoThe painting is a modern take on a famous Rembrandt piece

A painting that depicts the body of Nelson Mandela undergoing an autopsy has been condemned by South Africa's ruling party.

The African National Congress (ANC) said the artwork, which is being completed at a Johannesburg shopping centre, violated Mr Mandela's dignity.

The piece shows Mr Mandela's body being cut open, while prominent leaders crowd around.

But artist Yiull Damaso says his aim is to make people confront death.

"Nelson Mandela is a great man, but he's just a man... The eventual passing of Mr Mandela is something that we will have to face, as individuals, as a nation," he told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme.

The BBC's Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg says that speaking of Mr Mandela's death is taboo and seen as disrespectful in South Africa because of his iconic stature.

Our correspondent says that South Africans do not speak publicly of Mr Mandela dying, out of reverance for him, and perhaps out of a fear of accepting the reality that they would someday be without him.

'Stripped naked'

The painting is seen as a take on The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp, a 17th Century masterpiece by Rembrandt which portrays an autopsy undertaken in front of a small group of people, mostly doctors.

In Mr Damaso's picture, Mr Mandela is lying on a table, while the late Nkosi Johnson, an Aids activist who died at the age of 12, performs the autopsy.

A group of spectators, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former presidents FW de Klerk and Thabo Mbeki, and politicians Helen Zille and Trevor Manuel, look on.

The ANC also criticised the Mail and Guardian newspaper for publishing a picture of the painting, describing it as "gutter journalism and soul-less sensationalism".

The party's statement said the piece violated Mr Mandela's dignity by "stripping him naked in the glare of curious onlookers, some of whom have seen their apartheid ideals die before them".

The management of the Hyde Park Mall, where the painting is on display, have received complaints, including from some of Mandela's relatives.

"We feel it is a controversial piece... but we support freedom of expression and art," said Marketing Manager Nicola van Kan.

TPF1 Star Valerie Kimani Gets a Baby

I think I said it before, this seems to be a good season for star babies. Tusker Project Fame 1 winner Valerie Kimani is now a mother of a baby boy too. She joined the motherhood league early this week. Valerie has been active in theater and has been part of very successful ventures.

She has worked closely with Eric Wainaina on projects like Mo Faya which was entered at a New York festival a while ago. Rumors however circulated early this year that she was having an affair with Eric who is married, suggesting that he could be the father of her baby. No confirmations yet from either side and Valerie's baby-daddy still remains unknown.

Congrats Valerie, welcome to parenting


Adopted from: http://niaje.com/tpf1-star-valerie-kimani-gets-a-baby/