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Saturday, July 7, 2012

N. Nigeria City Fears Both Police Brutality and Boko Haram

http://www.voanews.com/content/kano-residents-fear-police-brutality-boko-haram-equally/1364429.html

Libyans Cast Ballots in Historic Election


Libyans are going to the polls in the country's first multi-party elections in 60 years.
Voters on Saturday are choosing candidates for a 200-seat National Assembly. The assembly will form a temporary government and draft a constitution, ahead of another election set for next year.
Security forces are on guard near polling centers to prevent any possible violence.
Some voters are turning up draped in the new Libyan flag with its red, green and black colors.
The voting is taking place less than a year after long-time leader Moammar Gadhafi died shortly after being captured by Libyan anti-government fighters.
More than 140 parties and small factions campaigned in the election. Analysts predict Islamists will do well, along with a secular group of officials who played a role in the country's post-Gadhafi transition.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

PHCN Lagos spends N2bn on upgrade

Residents still lament lack of improvements in power supply
The Eko Electricity Distribution Company of Power Holding Company Nigeria (PHCN) on Tuesday, announced it had spent over N2 billion on reinforcing and maintaining its network this year.
Speaking to journalists in Lagos, the Chief Executive Officer of the zone, Oladele Amoda, said over N500 million was spent to replace obsolete 33 KVA and 11 KVA switch gears in some parts of the state.
According to him, such replacements were made in many injection substations in Festac, Satellite, Amuwo, Ademola, Beckley, Orile, Coker, Lekki, and Oke-lra Kekere, among others.
"Another N750 million was spent to construct additional 500KVA/300KVA distribution transformers installed to reinforce the network," he said.
He added that the project would boost the country's power sector, acknowledging the financial support of the Ministry of Power.
Amoda also said that 17 Nigeria Independent Power Projects (NIPP) in the zone would be completed by the end of the year, adding that ten had already been completed and inaugurated.
He said about 28,000 pre-paid meters, single and three-phase, were installed in the last six months, while 50 KVA transformers had been distributed to various NIPP projects.
Meanwhile, a resident, Gbenga Fabowale, said there was nothing to justify the huge spending going into the country's power sector.
"We still don't have good light; all we hear is that they have spent money on this and that, but nothing to show for it," he said.

Boxing world champ Vitali Klitschko injured in Ukraine riots after police use teargas on protesters angry over language reforms

Boxing champion Vitali Klitschko was injured today in violent clashes with police after Ukraine's government voted to make Russian an official language instead of his home tongue.
The muscle-bound prizefighter-turned-politician had to be treated after he was sprayed in the eyes with teargas suffered a gash to his left arm in the commotion.
The WBC Heavyweight Champion was among rioters angry at the Ukranian government's decision to make Russian, rather than Ukrainian, the main language in schools and local government in some parts of the former Soviet republic.
Support: Vitali Klitschko was among rioters angry at the Ukranian government's decision to make Russian, rather than Ukrainian, the main language in schools and local government in some parts of the former Soviet republic
Strong support: Vitali Klitschko was among rioters angry at the Ukranian government's decision to make Russian, rather than Ukrainian, the main language in schools and local government in some parts of the former Soviet republic
Klitschko, who is 6ft 7ins, has founded his own opposition party, Udar (meaning Blow), and took part in the protest.
 


'There are millions of us and they cannot pretend that nothing has happened,' he said.

Police fired teargas and used batons to disperse hundreds of protesters in the capital Kiev.
Fighting tough: Klitschko, who is 6ft 7ins, has founded his own opposition party, Udar (meaning Blow), and took part in the protest.
Fighting tough: Klitschko, who is 6ft 7ins, has founded his own opposition party, Udar (meaning Blow), and took part in the protest.
When he talks you listen: WBC Heavyweight Champion Vitali Klitschko, center in white t-shirt, talks to riot police at an opposition protest rally in front of the Ukrainian House in central Kiev, Ukraine
When he talks you listen: WBC Heavyweight Champion Vitali Klitschko, center in white t-shirt, talks to riot police at an opposition protest rally in front of the Ukrainian House in central Kiev, Ukraine
The clashes occurred after protesters, led by opposition members of parliament defending the role of Ukrainian as the only state language, massed in front of a building where President Viktor Yanukovich was due to hold a press briefing.
The chamber rushed the language bill through on Tuesday giving opponents little time to cast their vote and prompting scuffles both in parliament and on the streets.
Teargas: Opposition parties and millions who speak Ukrainian as their first language see the bill as a threat to sovereignty
Teargas: Opposition parties and millions who speak Ukrainian as their first language see the bill as a threat to sovereignty
Stand off: Police fired teargas and used batons to disperse hundreds of protesters in the capital Kiev
Stand off: Police fired teargas and used batons to disperse hundreds of protesters in the capital Kiev

The clashes occurred after protesters, led by opposition members of parliament defending the role of Ukrainian as the only state language, massed in front of a building where President Viktor Yanukovich was due to hold a press briefing
The clashes occurred after protesters, led by opposition members of parliament defending the role of Ukrainian as the only state language, massed in front of a building where President Viktor Yanukovich was due to hold a press briefing
Make them listen: The chamber rushed the language bill through on Tuesday giving opponents little time to cast their vote and prompting scuffles both in parliament and on the streets
Make them listen: The chamber rushed the language bill through on Tuesday giving opponents little time to cast their vote and prompting scuffles both in parliament and on the streets
Though the bill needs Yanukovich's signature and that of parliament speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn - who has offered to quit - to become law, protesters took to the streets and stayed there overnight to bring pressure on the president.
Opposition parties and millions who speak Ukrainian as their first language see the bill as a threat to sovereignty, keeping Ukraine in Russia's sphere of influence after 20 years of independence following the break-up of the Soviet Union.
As black-helmeted riot police moved to push the crowds back, Lytvyn himself tendered his resignation, apparently siding with the opposition which complained of procedural irregularities.
People in large swathes of Ukraine speak Russian as their mother tongue and the bill would recognise it as a regional language in predominantly Russian-speaking areas in the heavily industrialised east and southern regions such as Crimea
People in large swathes of Ukraine speak Russian as their mother tongue and the bill would recognise it as a regional language in predominantly Russian-speaking areas in the heavily industrialised east and southern regions such as Crimea
United protest: A Ukrainian opposition activist holds a poster showing President Viktor Yanukovych with his pre-election slogan, reading 'I Will Hear Each One!'
United protest: A Ukrainian opposition activist holds a poster showing President Viktor Yanukovych with his pre-election slogan, reading 'I Will Hear Each One!'
Klitschko, who sees the European Union as Ukraine's 'model for our future political and economic development', became the leader of the political party UDAR of Vitaliy Klychko in April 2010.
He has been vocal in his opposition of Yanukovych who he blames for 'deliberately destroying the integration (into Europe) prospects of Ukraine'.
During the 2010 Ukrainian local elections, his party won representatives in Ukrainian municipalities and regional parliaments.
In October 2011, Klitschko announced that he would compete in the 2012 Kiev mayoral election.
Klitschko most recently hit the headlines after beating Brit boxer Derek Chisora in a high profile fight in Berlin last December.
The champ: Klitschko most recently hit the headlines after beating Brit boxer Derek Chisora in a high profile fight in Berlin last December
The champ: Klitschko most recently hit the headlines after beating Brit boxer Derek Chisora in a high profile fight in Berlin last December
Fighter: After the fight Chisora, right, was banned from the sport following a televised brawl with David Haye
Fighter: After the fight Chisora, right, was banned from the sport following a televised brawl with David Haye

After the fight Chisora was banned from the sport following a televised brawl with David Haye who had recently lost his WBO title to Vitali's younger brother Vladimir.
People in large swathes of Ukraine speak Russian as their mother tongue and the bill would recognise it as a regional language in predominantly Russian-speaking areas in the heavily industrialised east and southern regions such as Crimea.
The bill will be welcomed particularly in neighbouring Russia whose leaders have pressed Yanukovich (pictured) to deliver on an election pledge in 2009 to upgrade the status of Russian.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to visit Ukraine on July 12 for a meeting with Yanukovich in Yalta on gas supplies when the language law seems certain to crop up in conversation.
But given the level of protest, it is by no means certain that Yanukovich will sign the bill into law even though it will be popular in his power base in the east of the country.
Opponents of the bill say it was pushed through by Yanukovich's party in order to win back disenchanted voters in Russian-speaking regions ahead of the October poll.

Palestinians to perform autopsy on Yasser Arafat's body

Palestinians to perform autopsy on Yasser Arafat's body

At the request of his widow, Yasser Arafat's remains will be exhumed for tests.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat talks to the media during a press conference at his headquarters, in the West Bank town of Ramallah. Yasser Arafat's body may be exhumed to allow for more testing of the causes of his death after a Swiss lab said it found elevated levels of a radioactive isotope in belongings the Palestinian leader is said to have used in his final days.
Muhammed Muheisen/AP/File
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The Palestinian president cleared the way Wednesday for a possible autopsy on Yasser Arafat's remains, following a request from his widow after a Swiss lab said it found elevated levels of a lethal radioactive isotope on the longtime Palestinian leader's belongings.
The developments have reignited a storm of speculation over what killed Arafat, who died on Nov. 11, 2004 at the age of 75 at a military hospital outside Paris after decades of fighting with Israel.
Arafat's widow, Suha, who rejected an autopsy at the time of his death, said she wanted one done now in the wake of the lab's findings, first reported by the Arab satellite TV station Al-Jazeera. In an interview with the station, she did not explain why she waited nearly eight years to have the belongings, including a toothbrush and a fur hat, tested.

French doctors said at the time that Arafat died of a massive brain hemorrhage — weeks after he fell violently ill at his West Bank compound.
Arafat had suffered intestinal inflammation, jaundice and a blood condition known as disseminated intravascular coagulation, or DIC, according to French medical records.
But the records were inconclusive about what brought about DIC, which has numerous causes including infections, colitis and liver disease. Outside experts who reviewed the records on behalf of The Associated Press were also unable to pinpoint the underlying cause.
The uncertainty prompted many in the Arab world to allege he was killed by Israel, which viewed him as an obstacle to a peace treaty. Israeli officials have vociferously denied any foul play.
Francois Bochud, who heads the Institute of Radiation Physics in Lausanne, Switzerland, told the AP on Wednesday that his lab examined belongings that Arafat's widow said were used by Arafat in his final days, as well as others that he hadn't worn.
Suha Arafat said the items were kept in a secure room at her attorney's office in Paris after Arafat's death and stayed there until Al-Jazeera approached the lab on her behalf at the beginning of this year, he added.
Experts found what Bochud characterized as "very small" quantities of polonium, an isotope that is naturally present in the environment.
But there were higher quantities of polonium in, for example, a urine stain on underwear worn by Arafat and a blood stain on hospital clothing than on belongings he hadn't used, such as new and unworn socks stored in the same bag.
Polonium is best known for causing the death of Alexander Litvinenko, a one-time KGB agent turned critic of the Russian government, in London in 2006. Litvinenko ingested tea laced with the substance.

Bochud said an "elevated" level of more than 100 millibecquerel, a measurement of radioactivity, was found on belongings used by Arafat— compared with levels of some 10 millibecquerel in the reference samples.

This would not necessarily mean Arafat was poisoned, Bochud said, adding that it is not possible to say where the polonium might have originated.
"What is possible to say is that we have an unexplained level of polonium, so this clearly goes toward the hypothesis of a poisoning, but our results are clearly not a proof of any poisoning," Bochud said by telephone from Switzerland.
Denis Gutierrez, a senior French military doctor, said he did not know whether French medics checked Arafat for polonium while he was at France's Percy military hospital, and was unaware of anything about poisoning in the 558-page classified report on his death.
But Gutierrez said nothing was sent from the hospital to the Swiss lab, raising questions about the reliability of the belongings that were tested. "Samples taken in the hospital remain in the hospital," he said.
Even if further testing does take place, the mystery surrounding Arafat's death may never be solved.
Alastair Hay, professor of environmental toxicology at the University of Leeds in England, said bone marrow and hair samples should be tested for signs of poisoning.
"You don't know much about the provenance of the clothing and whether it had been tampered with later on. You'd want to test the body," he said.
But Bochud said Arafat's medical records say his bone marrow was in good shape and he didn't lose his hair, unlike in Litvinenko's case.
In addition, polonium breaks down relatively quickly, meaning that after eight years, much of any sample would be gone. Also, Arafat'scondition in the French hospital briefly improved before sharply deteriorating in his final days. Such improvement might lean against poisoning as a cause.
A 2007 study by radiation experts from Britain's Health Protection Agency concluded that once Polonium-210 is deposited in the bloodstream, its potent effects are nearly impossible to stop. A poisoning victim would experience multiple organ failure as alpha radiation particles bombard the liver, kidneys and bone marrow from within.
John Croft, a retired British radiation expert who worked for the British agency during the Litvinenko crisis, said a Polonium-210 sample large enough to kill would likely have to come from a government with either civilian or military nuclear capabilities.
"You would need to have access to very sophisticated facilities," he said. That could indicate involvement by Israel, which has two nuclear research facilities, as well as dozens of other countries.
Croft said, however, that he was "not convinced" sufficient levels of the isotope would still be in Arafat's remains to conclusively prove poisoning.

The widow's call for an autopsy — to allow for more conclusive testing — put Arafat's successor, President Mahmoud Abbas, in a bind. Digging up the remains of the still widely revered Arafat would go against the traditions of conservative Muslims and could stir angry protests. At the same time, refusing to exhume the body could be seen as an attempt by Abbas to block an investigation.

Arafat and his wife, a Christian, had lived apart for years before his death, and she did not return to the Palestinians territories afterward. She was widely unpopular among Palestinians, in part because of her penchant for a luxurious lifestyle.
In a statement issued by his office, Abbas said he is willing to cooperate with further testing, provided Arafat's family agrees.
"The Palestinian Authority was and remains fully prepared to cooperate and to provide all the facilities needed to reveal the real causes that led to the death of the late president," the statement said. "There are no religious or political reasons that preclude research on this issue, including an examination of the remains of the late president by a reliable national medical body, upon request and approval by his family."
The top Muslim cleric in the Palestinian territories, Mufti Mohammed Hussein, said there would be no objections on religious grounds to an autopsy.
With Mrs. Arafat and religious authorities in agreement, it was unclear what other steps were needed for the body to be exhumed from his grave in the West Bank town of Ramallah.
At the time of his death, Arafat was confined by Israel in the Ramallah government compound. The United States and Israel viewedArafat as largely responsible for the outbreak of the second Palestinian uprising.
In a radio interview, Dov Weisglass, the chief of staff of Israel's then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, insisted Israeli officials never considered killing Arafat and, in fact, Sharon was opposed to the idea because "he didn't think his physical extermination would help. On the contrary."
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor was dismissive of the latest developments, saying "the circumstances of Arafat's death are not a mystery ... He was treated in France, in a French hospital by French doctors and they have all the medical information."
Moulson reported from Berlin, Germany. Associated Press writers Karin Laub in Jericho, West Bank, Blake Sobczak in Jerusalem and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed reporting.

International court takes on Boko Haram

Preliminary investigations into Boko Haram attacks by the International Criminal Court(ICC) have began in Nigeria.This was made known on Tuesday by the ICC Chief Prosecutor, Fatou Ben Sounda of the Gambia who met with President Goodluck Jonathan, with a delegation at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
"Our intention is to meet with concerned authorities in Nigeria. We are meeting with the Minister of Justice, we are also meeting with various authorities that are concerned with this problem and the discussions will take place at that level.
Of course these crimes are taking place, but we are happy at the moment that Nigeria is also taking steps to address these crimes.
As you know, these crimes may be called terrorist attacks but they could also qualify as crimes against humanity and the ICC is not court of such instance, it is a court of last resort" she said.
The prosecutor commended the Nigerian government on efforts it was making in handling the campaign of violence in northern Nigeria by the militant group, who have killed over 1,000 people since 2009.

Police lack evidence to prosecute Farouk Lawan

The Police Force claim that the alleged audio and video recordings over the $3million bribery scandal involving Farouk Lawan and Femi Otedola is not enough to prosecute the lawmaker.
The Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, who spoke on the bribery scandal, said there was not enough evidence to prosecute Lawan, and asked for the full clips of the recordings.
The Police spokesperson demanded for the full video component of the recording. He said that without the whole recordings,  going to court will be a waste of time.
“You just don’t rush to court for the fun of charging people to court. That is why courts are congested and that is why we don’t make progress. It does not make sense. It is unproductive; it is a waste of public resource.” he said.

Police lacks evidence to prosecute Farouk Lawan

Jamaat dress code for tourists in J&K: Do not wear skimpy dresses

SRINAGAR: The Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir has asked tourists visiting the Valley to desist from wearing skimpy clothes and warned them of an angry reaction if they failed to do so. "Some tourists, mostly foreigners, are seen wandering in short mini-skirts and other objectionable dresses openly which is against local ethos and culture.

"This is not acceptable to civil society at all," the Jamaat, a politico-religious organisation, said yesterday in a statement here.

The Kashmir Valley is witnessing a surge in tourist arrivals over the last two years.

Nearly 15 lakh tourists arrived here last year and over five lakh tourists have visited the Valley this year so far.

Jamaat asked the state tourism department to "impress on tourists to honour local ethos".

"It is the duty of the department officials to impress on tourists to honour local ethos failing which they can even force an angry reaction," it said.

The Jamaat said the guests were "supposed to respect sentiments of the host". It said "for simple monetary benefits, no nation can compromise on its morality and obligatory customs and as such endanger its future generation."

"We need no such guests who can become a cause of derailing society from the right track and spread immorality and immodesty in the name of tourism," the Jamaat said.

Iran says it can destroy US bases "minutes after attack"

DUBAI: Iran has threatened to destroy US military bases across the Middle East and target Israel within minutes of being attacked, Iranian media reported on Wednesday, as Revolutionary Guards extended test-firing of ballistic missiles into a third day.

Israel has hinted it may attack Iran if diplomacy fails to secure a halt to its disputed nuclear energy program. The United States also has mooted military action as a last-resort option but has frequently nudged the Israelis to give time for intensified economic sanctions to work against Iran.

"These bases are all in range of our missiles, and the occupied lands (Israel) are also good targets for us," Amir Ali Haji Zadeh, commander of the Revolutionary Guards aerospace division, was quoted by Fars news agency as saying.

Haji Zadeh said 35 US bases were within reach of Iran's ballistic missiles, the most advanced of which commanders have said could hit targets 2,000 km away.

"We have thought of measures to set up bases and deploy missiles to destroy all these bases in the early minutes after an attack," he added.

It was not clear where Haji Zadeh got his figures on U.S. bases in the region. U.S. military facilities in the Middle East are located in Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Turkey, and it has around 10 bases further afield in Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Scepticism

Defence analysts are often sceptical about what they describe as exaggerated military assertions by Iran and say the country's military capability would be no match for sophisticated U.S. defence systems.

Iranian media reported that this week's three-day "Great Prophet 7" tests involved dozens of missiles and domestically-built drones that successfully destroyed simulated air bases.

Iran has upped its fiery anti-West rhetoric in response to the launch on Sunday of a total European Union embargo on buying Iranian crude oil - the latest calibrated increase in sanctions aimed at pushing Tehran into curbing nuclear activity.

Revolutionary Guards commanders have also threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, through which more than a third of the world's seaborne oil trade passes out of the Gulf, in response to the increasingly harsh sanctions.

Major powers have said they would tolerate no obstruction of commercial traffic through the Strait, and the United States maintains a formidable naval presence in the Gulf region.

Iran accused the West of disrupting global energy supplies and creating regional instability and says its forces can dominate the vital waterway to provide security.

"The policy of the Islamic Republic is based on maintaining security in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz for all ships and oil tankers," Iranian English-language state Press TV quoted the chairman of parliament's national security and foreign policy committee, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, as saying.

The United States and its allies accuse Iran of using its nuclear program to covertly develop all the components required to produce nuclear weapons, accusations the Iranian officials have repeatedly denied.

The world's No. 5 oil exporter maintains that it is enriching uranium for nuclear fuel only to generate more energy for a rapidly growing population.