BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi forces detained five U.S. security contractors in connection with the killing of a fellow American contractor last month in Baghdad's Green Zone, an Iraqi government spokesman said on Sunday.
Major General Abdul-Karim Khalaf, the Interior Ministry spokesman, said the five men were being held at an Iraqi police station in the capital's heavily-fortified central district while a joint Iraqi-U.S. committee investigated.
The detainees could become the first Americans to face local justice since a bilateral security pact came into force at the start of this year making U.S. contractors subject to Iraqi law.
"There are no formal charges against them so far, but they were detained because of the murder of the contractor last month," .
Citing an unnamed Iraqi official involved in the investigation,The men had been detained on Friday in a pre-dawn raid on their company's office in the Green Zone.
The murdered contractor, James Kitterman, was a 60-year-old Texan who owned a construction company operating in Iraq.Kitterman was found bound, blindfolded and stabbed to death on May 22 in the heavily-fortified district.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Peruvian police killed
Nine Peruvian policemen seized by Amazonian indigenous protesters have been killed during a rescue bid which freed 22 others, officials say.
A further seven were still missing after the military moved to free them from protesters angry at plans to drill for oil and gas on ancestral land.
The hostages were taken on Friday during clashes near Bagua which left at least 22 tribesmen and 11 police dead.
A police official accused the protesters of killing the hostages.
This is the worst violence in Peru since the end of the Shining Path insurgency in the 1990s and the biggest internal challenge faced by President Alan Garcia since he came to power in 2006, the BBC's Americas editor Emilio San
Peruvian police chief Miguel Hidalgo said that the 38 officers had been captured at a petrol facility they were defending in the area about 1,400 km (870 miles) north of Lima, the capital."Of the 38, 22 have been rescued by the army, nine have died at the hands of the natives and seven have disappeared," he told Peruvian radio station RPP.
Speaking before the rescue operation, Peruvian Prime Minister Yehude Simon accused the protesters of a "plot against democracy". He said the 38 policemen had been held hostage by about 1,000 protesters but the army had had them surrounded.
The authorities said there had been five civilian deaths and more than 100 injuries. But indigenous leaders said at least 25 protesters had been killed.
Eyewitnesses in the northern city of Jaen told the BBC they believed the number of dead to be even higher.
Friday's violence erupted as police tried to dislodge protesters from a major road which they had been blocking
A further seven were still missing after the military moved to free them from protesters angry at plans to drill for oil and gas on ancestral land.
The hostages were taken on Friday during clashes near Bagua which left at least 22 tribesmen and 11 police dead.
A police official accused the protesters of killing the hostages.
This is the worst violence in Peru since the end of the Shining Path insurgency in the 1990s and the biggest internal challenge faced by President Alan Garcia since he came to power in 2006, the BBC's Americas editor Emilio San
Peruvian police chief Miguel Hidalgo said that the 38 officers had been captured at a petrol facility they were defending in the area about 1,400 km (870 miles) north of Lima, the capital."Of the 38, 22 have been rescued by the army, nine have died at the hands of the natives and seven have disappeared," he told Peruvian radio station RPP.
Speaking before the rescue operation, Peruvian Prime Minister Yehude Simon accused the protesters of a "plot against democracy". He said the 38 policemen had been held hostage by about 1,000 protesters but the army had had them surrounded.
The authorities said there had been five civilian deaths and more than 100 injuries. But indigenous leaders said at least 25 protesters had been killed.
Eyewitnesses in the northern city of Jaen told the BBC they believed the number of dead to be even higher.
Friday's violence erupted as police tried to dislodge protesters from a major road which they had been blocking
Friday, June 5, 2009
Berlusconi Angered by naked Photos
Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi has reacted angrily to the publication in Spain of photographs showing topless women and a naked man at his villa.
He has threatened to sue Spain's El Pais newspaper, calling the photos an invasion of privacy.
The photos - banned in Italy on privacy grounds - were taken from outside Mr Berlusconi's villa in Sardinia during a party for a Czech delegation.
He also faces a probe for using state aircraft to fly guests to Sardinia.
The prime minister is said to have used Italian aircraft to ferry guests to and from Villa Certosa, "almost every weekend" between the summer of 2007 and January of this year, El Pais reports.
Mr Berlusconi is being investigated for misuse of public funds, and confirmed on Thursday that he had been formally placed under investigation by prosecutors.
But he said the probe would be "swiftly shelved", insisting he was allowed to transport "people he needs" for security reasons.
He has threatened to sue Spain's El Pais newspaper, calling the photos an invasion of privacy.
The photos - banned in Italy on privacy grounds - were taken from outside Mr Berlusconi's villa in Sardinia during a party for a Czech delegation.
He also faces a probe for using state aircraft to fly guests to Sardinia.
The prime minister is said to have used Italian aircraft to ferry guests to and from Villa Certosa, "almost every weekend" between the summer of 2007 and January of this year, El Pais reports.
Mr Berlusconi is being investigated for misuse of public funds, and confirmed on Thursday that he had been formally placed under investigation by prosecutors.
But he said the probe would be "swiftly shelved", insisting he was allowed to transport "people he needs" for security reasons.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Carradine found dead
Kill Bill and Kung Fu star David Carradine has been found dead in a Bangkok hotel room on Thursday.
Thai police told the BBC the 72-year-old was found by a hotel maid sitting in a wardrobe with a cord around his neck and other parts of his body.
The US star was in Thailand filming his latest film, Stretch, according to his personal manager Chuck Binder.
Mr Binder said the news was "shocking", adding: "He was full of life, always wanting to work... a great person."
A US embassy official confirmed the actor's death, but added that the cause of death had not yet been established.
Mark Kermode pays tribute to David Carradine
However, Thai newspaper The Nation reported that police believe the actor took his own life, and preliminary investigations found that he hanged himself.
Carradine was part of an acting dynasty which included his father, John Carradine, and brothers Bruce, Keith and Robert.
The star was best known for his role as Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s TV series Kung Fu, which spawned sequels in the '80s and '90s.
Thai police told the BBC the 72-year-old was found by a hotel maid sitting in a wardrobe with a cord around his neck and other parts of his body.
The US star was in Thailand filming his latest film, Stretch, according to his personal manager Chuck Binder.
Mr Binder said the news was "shocking", adding: "He was full of life, always wanting to work... a great person."
A US embassy official confirmed the actor's death, but added that the cause of death had not yet been established.
Mark Kermode pays tribute to David Carradine
However, Thai newspaper The Nation reported that police believe the actor took his own life, and preliminary investigations found that he hanged himself.
Carradine was part of an acting dynasty which included his father, John Carradine, and brothers Bruce, Keith and Robert.
The star was best known for his role as Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s TV series Kung Fu, which spawned sequels in the '80s and '90s.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
North Korea Choses Successor.
SEOUL, South Korea -- North Korea's Kim Jong Il has anointed his 26-year-old son - said to be competitive, proficient in English and a heavy drinker - as the next leader of the communist state, news reports said Tuesday.
Two major South Korean newspapers said Tuesday that North Korea's military, party and government officials were informed that Kim Jong Un, the youngest of three, is in line to take the world's first communist dynasty into a third generation.
The announcement was made in the days after North Korea's provocative May 25 nuclear test, the Hankook Ilbo newspaper reported, citing unnamed South Korean lawmakers briefed by the spy agency.
The son already is being hailed as "Commander Kim," and North Koreans are learning the lyrics to a new song praising him as the next leader, the Dong-a Ilbo newspaper said. South Korean lawmaker Park Jie-won told a radio show Tuesday that the regime already is "pledging its allegiance to Kim Jong Un." He said he was briefed by South Korea's spy agency.
The National Intelligence Service would not confirm the reports
Two major South Korean newspapers said Tuesday that North Korea's military, party and government officials were informed that Kim Jong Un, the youngest of three, is in line to take the world's first communist dynasty into a third generation.
The announcement was made in the days after North Korea's provocative May 25 nuclear test, the Hankook Ilbo newspaper reported, citing unnamed South Korean lawmakers briefed by the spy agency.
The son already is being hailed as "Commander Kim," and North Koreans are learning the lyrics to a new song praising him as the next leader, the Dong-a Ilbo newspaper said. South Korean lawmaker Park Jie-won told a radio show Tuesday that the regime already is "pledging its allegiance to Kim Jong Un." He said he was briefed by South Korea's spy agency.
The National Intelligence Service would not confirm the reports
Missing Air France Jet Found
Brazilian military planes found a 3-mile path of wreckage in the Atlantic Ocean, confirming that an Air France jet carrying 228 people crashed in the sea, Defense Minister Nelson Jobim said today.
Jobim said the discovery "confirms that the plane went down in that area" hundreds of miles from the Brazilian archipelago of Fernando de Noronha.
He said the strip of wreckage included metallic and nonmetallic pieces, but did not describe them in detail. No bodies were spotted in the crash of the Airbus in which all aboard are believed to have died.
228 Souls Lost as Paris-Bound Plane Vanishes After Brazil Takeoff
Passenger List: Two Americans on Flight 447
Earlier today Brazilian military pilots reported that they spotted an airplane seat, an orange buoy, and other debris and signs of fuel in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
Jobim said the discovery "confirms that the plane went down in that area" hundreds of miles from the Brazilian archipelago of Fernando de Noronha.
He said the strip of wreckage included metallic and nonmetallic pieces, but did not describe them in detail. No bodies were spotted in the crash of the Airbus in which all aboard are believed to have died.
228 Souls Lost as Paris-Bound Plane Vanishes After Brazil Takeoff
Passenger List: Two Americans on Flight 447
Earlier today Brazilian military pilots reported that they spotted an airplane seat, an orange buoy, and other debris and signs of fuel in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
Sekyi Hughes erred.
The Parliamentary Service Board (PSB) has officially faulted the ex-Speaker of the House, Mr Ebenezer Begyina Sekyi Hughes, for illegally taking away furnishings from his official residence after the end of his tenure. In its reaction to the ex-Speaker's response to an ad hoc committee report on the affair, the PSB also expressed regret at Mr Hughes's conduct; noting that he did it without authority. "The PSB regrets the conduct of the former Speaker in relation to the issue on furnishings and disposal of same without proper authority," it said. An official statement signed-by the Director of Public Affairs of Parliament, Mr Jones Kugblenu, said: "The board has decided that the former Speaker should return all the items to the official residence of the Speaker within 10 days to enable the board to conclude this regrettable matter." The 10-day ultimatum is expected to expire by Friday next week. It explained that the board's attention was drawn to the matter on Thursday, March 12 during its first meeting and, it subsequently enquired from the former Speaker about the whereabouts of the items.According to the statement, since the board received evasive responses from the ex-Speaker, it scheduled an emergency meeting to decide on its next line of action.
Ghanaian President in an Accident.
In Wa, June 2, GNA - Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) John Ferguson Dzineku, Upper West Regional Commander of Motor, Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU) on Monday dispelled rumours in the Region that an accident that involved President Mills' convoy at the week-end was politically motivated.He said Mr Osman Sulemana who caused the accident that damaged one of the dispatch motors was a staunch National Democratic Congress (NDC) member.DSP Dzineku speaking to Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Wa said the accident occurred at a U-turn near Wa School for the Blind when Sulemana driving a Ford Ranger pick-up attempted to turn round in the presidential convoy.He said Lance Corporal Kenneth K. Kuranche, the Dispatch Rider who was in the inner lane trying to keep order in the convoy hit the side of the pick-up and somersaulted over its bonnet.DSP Dzineku said Lance Corporal Kuranche, who received serious injuries had been discharged after receiving treatment at Wa Regional Hospital, while Sulemana was on enquiry bail.
"Soon after the accident, rumours went round Wa Municipality that the accident was caused by NDC's political opponents which is not true. This is just an accident involving a presidential convoy and I do not know where these people had their information, "he said. DSP Dzineku advised activists and supporters of political parties to refrain from driving and riding along side convoys to avoid accidents.
"Soon after the accident, rumours went round Wa Municipality that the accident was caused by NDC's political opponents which is not true. This is just an accident involving a presidential convoy and I do not know where these people had their information, "he said. DSP Dzineku advised activists and supporters of political parties to refrain from driving and riding along side convoys to avoid accidents.
Monday, June 1, 2009
U.S To Visit Ghana.
The proposed visit of US President, Barack Obama, to Ghana has whipped up frenzy among ordinary Nigerians and is now turning into a political and diplomatic ‘tug of words’. Mr Obama and his wife Michelle will visit Ghana in July, his fist trip to Africa as an American head of state.
Since the announcement was made earlier this month, some Nigerians, including some at the top of the political hierarchy are furious that Mr Obama’s choice of Ghana ahead of Nigeria, a strategic partner to the US and the ‘heavy weight’ of Africa, is not only a snub but a shame. But many simply argue that whilst Nigeria is a failed state Ghana is both a thriving democracy and a political success in Africa, thus Obama’s preference.
The latest to join the battle of words is the popular Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, who indicated that Obama’s choice of Ghana is a wise decision: "If Obama decides to grace Nigeria with his presence, I will stone him. The message he is sending by going to Ghana is so obvious, is so brilliant that he must not render it flawed by coming to Nigeria any time soon," he said.
Since the announcement was made earlier this month, some Nigerians, including some at the top of the political hierarchy are furious that Mr Obama’s choice of Ghana ahead of Nigeria, a strategic partner to the US and the ‘heavy weight’ of Africa, is not only a snub but a shame. But many simply argue that whilst Nigeria is a failed state Ghana is both a thriving democracy and a political success in Africa, thus Obama’s preference.
The latest to join the battle of words is the popular Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, who indicated that Obama’s choice of Ghana is a wise decision: "If Obama decides to grace Nigeria with his presence, I will stone him. The message he is sending by going to Ghana is so obvious, is so brilliant that he must not render it flawed by coming to Nigeria any time soon," he said.
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