tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77293706277891052422024-03-13T14:32:50.915-07:00Google Bulletinebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-85195120877854108012009-09-30T01:18:00.000-07:002009-09-30T02:58:00.600-07:00Deadly quake tsunamis strike in Pacific near American Samoa islands<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 51);font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMjDExqCZI/AAAAAAAAAEA/W5snz96MNzY/s1600-h/tsunamis.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 80px; height: 80px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMjDExqCZI/AAAAAAAAAEA/W5snz96MNzY/s320/tsunamis.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387188114993842578" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 51);font-size:100%;" >Tsunamis triggered by a strong quake in the South Pacific have killed at least 90 people across a number of islands.</span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">At least 65 people were reported dead in Samoa, more than 20 in American Samoa and at least six in Tonga. </span></p> <a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMioVodWeI/AAAAAAAAAD4/GqM_BrvLros/s1600-h/High+waves+damaged+property+and+swept+cars+out+to+sea.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 282px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMioVodWeI/AAAAAAAAAD4/GqM_BrvLros/s320/High+waves+damaged+property+and+swept+cars+out+to+sea.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387187655662197218" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Samoan officials say whole villages have been destroyed while thousands of people are reported to have been made homeless in American Samoa. </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">An 8.3-magnitude quake struck at 1748 GMT on Tuesday, generating 15ft (4.5m) waves in some areas of the islands. </span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">The Samoa islands comprise two separate entities - the nation of Samoa and American Samoa, a US territory. The total population is about 250,000.</p> <a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMiUY68sBI/AAAAAAAAADw/VISfYXr1Kw0/s1600-h/A+damaged+boat+washed+up+inside+a+building+in+Pago+Pago,+American+Samoa..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 292px; height: 219px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMiUY68sBI/AAAAAAAAADw/VISfYXr1Kw0/s320/A+damaged+boat+washed+up+inside+a+building+in+Pago+Pago,+American+Samoa..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387187312947671058" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >A general tsunami warning was issued for the wider South Pacific region but was cancelled a few hours later. </span> <p style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:100%;">The general manager of Samoa's National Health Service told the BBC that 65 people had died and 145 people were injured.</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:100%;"> US President Barack Obama has declared a major disaster in American Samoa, enabling federal funding to made available to help victims.<br />Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi said he was shocked at the devastation. </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" ><a style="font-weight: bold;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMh6wSIdiI/AAAAAAAAADo/v_vgewKl28o/s1600-h/A+tsunami+from+a+powerful+earthquake+in+the+Pacific+kills+at+least+85+and+injures+scores+in+Samoa+and+American+Samoa..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 230px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMh6wSIdiI/AAAAAAAAADo/v_vgewKl28o/s320/A+tsunami+from+a+powerful+earthquake+in+the+Pacific+kills+at+least+85+and+injures+scores+in+Samoa+and+American+Samoa..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387186872542328354" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >"So much has gone. So many people are gone," he told the AAP news agency. </span> <p style="color: rgb(51, 0, 0); font-style: italic;"><b>False alarm</b></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"Some of the areas are only a few feet above sea level, so you can imagine the devastation," said Eni Faleomavaega, who represents American Samoa in the US. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"It caused severe damage to property, there are cars floating everywhere." </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><a style="font-weight: bold;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMfd4IxL8I/AAAAAAAAADg/WcPk-0Hb0QE/s1600-h/Deadly+tsunamis+strike+in+Pacific++Map.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 191px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMfd4IxL8I/AAAAAAAAADg/WcPk-0Hb0QE/s320/Deadly+tsunamis+strike+in+Pacific++Map.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387184177411076034" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" >Mr Faleomavaega told the BBC the waves had "literally wiped out all the low-lying areas in the Samoan islands". </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">He said the tsunami had hit within minutes of the quake, leaving people with no time to escape. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"There would have been no warning system capable of giving adequate warning to the people," he said. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Samoa's Deputy PM Misa Telefoni told Australia's AAP news agency that "the ocean went out within five minutes". </span></p> <a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMe5-G2CgI/AAAAAAAAADY/P6QUndp0nyA/s1600-h/Deadly+tsunamis+strike+in+Pacific.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 190px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMe5-G2CgI/AAAAAAAAADY/P6QUndp0nyA/s320/Deadly+tsunamis+strike+in+Pacific.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387183560538327554" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Tsunamis triggered by a strong quake in the South Pacific have killed at least 90 people across a number of islands.</span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">At least 65 people were reported dead in Samoa, more than 20 in American Samoa and at least six in Tonga. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Samoan officials say whole villages have been destroyed while thousands of people are reported to have been made homeless in American Samoa. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">An 8.3-magnitude quake struck at 1748 GMT on Tuesday, generating 15ft (4.5m) waves in some areas of the islands. </span></p> <p style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:100%;">The Samoa islands comprise two separate entities - the nation of Samoa and American Samoa, a US territory. The total population is about 250,000. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"With the location and the intensity... I don't know if anything better could have been done."<br />Officials at the Samoa Meteorology Division said many of those who died were killed by a second wave after they went to gather fish that had been washed up after the first. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Sirens reportedly blared out across the Samoan capital, Apia, again late on Tuesday but the warning was thought to be a false alarm. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Dr Lemalu Fiu, at a hospital in Apia, said the number of casualties was expected to rise as people arrived from coastal areas. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Mr Telefoni said there were fears the major tourism areas on the west side of Upolu island had been badly hit. </span></p> <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMelePdN_I/AAAAAAAAADQ/0TKy8w8x4xI/s1600-h/The+tsunami+wave+hit+right+in+the+middle+of+the+harbor+of+Pogo+Pogo,+the+capital..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 292px; height: 219px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMelePdN_I/AAAAAAAAADQ/0TKy8w8x4xI/s320/The+tsunami+wave+hit+right+in+the+middle+of+the+harbor+of+Pogo+Pogo,+the+capital..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387183208387131378" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" >"We've had a pretty grim picture painted of all that coast," he said. </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Australia said one of its citizens was feared dead with six missing. Both Australia and New Zealand are preparing to send emergency aid. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Samoan officials say it could take a week before the full extent of the damage is known. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">A government official in Tonga said at least six people had been killed and four more were missing.</span><br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">(<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" >CNN News</span> ) </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Deadly quake, tsunami strike Samoan islands</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"> -- </span><br /></span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">A magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck the Pacific near American Samoa, triggering towering tsunami waves that gushed over the island and leaving at least 77 people dead.</span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> American Samoa Gov. Togiola Tulafono, speaking from Hawaii, said Tuesday's quake ranked "right up there with some of the worst" disasters on the island. He said about 50 people had been treated for injuries so far but he expected that number to rise.</span></p> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMdpMobpzI/AAAAAAAAADI/8x-33BsOL-M/s1600-h/At+least+17+people+have+died+in+the+disaster,+Laumoli+said..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 292px; height: 219px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMdpMobpzI/AAAAAAAAADI/8x-33BsOL-M/s320/At+least+17+people+have+died+in+the+disaster,+Laumoli+said..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387182172867897138" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">The quake hit the small cluster of South Pacific islands early Tuesday morning. </span></span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> A series of aftershocks reverberated through the islands Tuesday and residents braced for more of nature's wrath. Entire villages lay flattened or submerged. The walls of water were so strong that they twisted concrete beams and mangled cars. Roads, buildings and private homes were heavily damaged. </span></p> <p> <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">By Tuesday evening, Laumoli, standing outside the LBJ Tropical Medican Center morgue in the capital of Pago Pago, confirmed 22 deaths. </span></span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> "I thought it was the end of the world," said Dr. Salamo Laumoli, director of health services. "I have never felt an earthquake like that before."</span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> In neighboring Samoa, the death toll climbed to 55, said Maulolo Tavita, a government minister. There, the fear was that the fatalities would continue to rise.<br /></span></p> <p> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Laumoli also feared more fatalities would turn up in American Samoa as rescue workers were still trying to access parts of the island severed by damaged infrastructure.</span></span></p> <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMdMfGgypI/AAAAAAAAADA/9BKZlEWJ-Q4/s1600-h/A+few+villages+have+been+badly+damaged,+said+Dr.+Salamo+Laumoli,+director+of+health+services..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 292px; height: 219px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMdMfGgypI/AAAAAAAAADA/9BKZlEWJ-Q4/s320/A+few+villages+have+been+badly+damaged,+said+Dr.+Salamo+Laumoli,+director+of+health+services..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387181679609694866" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Laumoli said people in outlying villages on one end of the main island have been cut off because the main bridge was washed away.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">"Two or three villages have been badly damaged," he told CNN International.</span> </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> Tulafono cited extensive damage to roads, buildings and homes, and said he had spoken to the military about mobilizing reserve forces for assistance.</span></p> <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, canceled tsunami watches and warnings for American Samoa about four hours after the earthquake hit. However, a tsunami advisory is still in effect for for the coastal areas of California and Oregon.</span></span><br /><a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMc4O-sQRI/AAAAAAAAAC4/vtD3vPEN4eQ/s1600-h/Deadly+quake,+tsunami+strike+Samoan+islands.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 265px; height: 239px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMc4O-sQRI/AAAAAAAAAC4/vtD3vPEN4eQ/s320/Deadly+quake,+tsunami+strike+Samoan+islands.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387181331684540690" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >The Japan Meteorological Agency also activated a tsunami advisory along its eastern coast. The precautionary alert means that the height of a possible tsunami wave would be less than a foot and a half.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMcbf5dN2I/AAAAAAAAACw/6loB24sC5HU/s1600-h/The+tsunami+hit+in+the+middle+of+the+harbor+of+the+capital..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 292px; height: 219px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMcbf5dN2I/AAAAAAAAACw/6loB24sC5HU/s320/The+tsunami+hit+in+the+middle+of+the+harbor+of+the+capital..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387180838009780066" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">President Barack Obama "declared a major disaster exists in the Territory of American Samoa" late Tuesday and ordered federal aid to supplement local efforts. The declaration makes federal funding available to affected individuals.</span></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><br /><br />The tsunami waves hit right in the middle of the Pago Pago harbor, the capital, said Cinta Brown, an American Samoa homeland security official working at the island's emergency operations center. The water devastated the village of Leone. </span>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-5923870047943302142009-09-30T00:55:00.000-07:002009-09-30T02:56:00.177-07:00Russia-Georgia war EU report due & Russia vows to protect S Ossetia<h1 style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">## Russia-Georgia war EU report due</span></h1> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" class="first">An independent report into who started last year's Russia-Georgia conflict is set to be published by the European Union.</p> <a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMQqGEkekI/AAAAAAAAACg/kNwwQIH2dh4/s1600-h/Report+will+say+who+was+to+blame+for+the+Russia-Georgia+conflict.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMQqGEkekI/AAAAAAAAACg/kNwwQIH2dh4/s400/Report+will+say+who+was+to+blame+for+the+Russia-Georgia+conflict.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387167894635575874" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >At the time both countries blamed each other for the outbreak of fighting. </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">The report is expected to say that while the Georgians fired the first shots, the Russians created and exploited conditions that led to war. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">The death toll from the conflict is generally put in the hundreds. Tens of thousands fled their homes. </span></p> <!-- E SF --> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">At the time, the Russians accused Georgia of shelling civilians and attacking their peacekeepers in the breakaway region of South Ossetia. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">For their part the Georgians say they were targeting separatist forces - and repelling a Russian invasion that was already under way. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Given the European Union's relations with Russia have improved compared to a year ago, reaction in Brussels may be muted - welcoming the report itself, but distancing the EU from its content. </span></span></p><h1 style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="font-size:85%;">## Russia vows to protect S Ossetia </span></h1> <p style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);" class="first"><span style="font-size:100%;">Russia's prime minister has vowed to protect the breakaway Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, a year after it recognised their independence.</span></p> <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMQDlg-rcI/AAAAAAAAACY/Du4XZl1k44o/s1600-h/South+Ossetia%27s+leader+thanked+Vladimir+Putin+for+his+country%27s+support.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsMQDlg-rcI/AAAAAAAAACY/Du4XZl1k44o/s400/South+Ossetia%27s+leader+thanked+Vladimir+Putin+for+his+country%27s+support.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387167233061334466" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Speaking at the opening of a direct gas pipeline to South Ossetia, Vladimir Putin said his country would not allow any "military escapades" by Georgia. </span><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">The two fought a war last year, during which Georgia's attempts to regain control of South Ossetia were repelled. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Earlier, Russia's military said it had halved its presence in the two regions. </span></p>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-60020206086972364192009-09-29T23:39:00.000-07:002009-09-29T23:51:09.567-07:00Iraq legacy for Afghan campaign<span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" >As the debate continues about increasing troops in Afghanistan, questions are being posed over whether an alternative strategy should be pursued to sever local support of the Taliban. Hugh Sykes in Baghdad reflects on the lessons that could be learned from the experience of British forces in Iraq.</span><br /><a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL_fk_UoyI/AAAAAAAAACQ/Q8LlhcizH1c/s1600-h/Iraqis+claim+the+Iraqi+military+were+the+ones+who+stopped+militias+in+Basra.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 325px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL_fk_UoyI/AAAAAAAAACQ/Q8LlhcizH1c/s400/Iraqis+claim+the+Iraqi+military+were+the+ones+who+stopped+militias+in+Basra.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387149022258832162" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >On the day United Kingdom troops hauled down the Union flag in Basra earlier this year, a British brigadier burst out of his office and shouted at one of my BBC colleagues: "That Hugh Sykes - get him in line." </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">He then stormed off without explaining what he was upset about. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">But I suspect he had heard a report of mine broadcast after I spent four days in Basra city itself, wandering about, asking people what the British had achieved there. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Most of them said not much had been achieved. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Everyone I spoke to complained that the infestation of competing militias in Basra was only really tackled after the British had retreated to their airbase out in the desert. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">They told me they believed that the militias were only truly neutralised by an Iraqi military operation called the "Charge of the Knights". </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">One man told me the British presence at bases in the city had actually made the militia problem worse, by acting as a magnet to the men with guns, with numerous civilians caught in the crossfire. </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" ><a style="font-weight: bold;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL_EB1aOUI/AAAAAAAAACI/DVFHV2aCcnM/s1600-h/The+British+legacy+seems+unknown+to+the+people+of+Basra.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL_EB1aOUI/AAAAAAAAACI/DVFHV2aCcnM/s400/The+British+legacy+seems+unknown+to+the+people+of+Basra.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387148548965546306" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >When I was there earlier this year, the city certainly felt calm. </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Market quest</span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Desperately seeking evidence of some positive legacy of nearly six years of British occupation, I asked the bookseller for directions to the fish market that had been reconstructed by British forces. It was one of the projects UK Ministry of Defence press officers had often told me about with pride. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" >"Fish market?" he pondered, "what fish market?" </span><br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">I asked several customers in the bookshop the same question. No-one knew what I was talking about. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Well the fish market does exist, but it is a tiny detail in a broken city. And people do not seem to know about it. </span></p> <p style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Cash incentive</b></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">I spoke to some of the young men that he had employed as labourers. One told me that he had been in the main local Mehdi Army militia before getting this job. </span></span><br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"I needed the money," he said. </span></p> <a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL-pHWW0uI/AAAAAAAAACA/VzhjZW4busI/s1600-h/Many+officers+think+more+major+civil+projects+are+needed.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL-pHWW0uI/AAAAAAAAACA/VzhjZW4busI/s400/Many+officers+think+more+major+civil+projects+are+needed.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387148086589444834" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >In Kabul, a young man started sobbing as he told me about his life. </span><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"Why is my country so miserable?" he asked. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"What have you done for us over the past eight years? If the Taliban come to see me now, I'll join them." </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Back in Basra, six years ago, walking around the city centre, British Captain Dan Guest told me that some of the young unemployed men there had to survive on a few dollars a month. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Then he told me that going rate for an insurgent to mortar a British base was $25 (£15.6). </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"It's a no-brainer," he added. </span></p>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-11430737061025166512009-09-29T23:18:00.000-07:002009-09-29T23:32:01.715-07:00Young Afghans see hopes crushed<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(204, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >"I want to be a doctor," says Nagina, six, wearing a small white headscarf.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><a style="font-weight: bold;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL7IdpySwI/AAAAAAAAAB4/pDaUg74qeqU/s1600-h/Afghan+girls+are+slowly+returning+to+the+classrooms.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL7IdpySwI/AAAAAAAAAB4/pDaUg74qeqU/s400/Afghan+girls+are+slowly+returning+to+the+classrooms.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387144227105950466" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" >"I want to be a pilot," says Hemat, eight, who adds that he is top of his class in maths. </span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">There is optimism among the young children at the Bibi Mahro school on the outskirts of Kabul and a cast-iron certainty about the jobs they would like to do in the future. </span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">With much going wrong in Afghanistan, education is seen as one of the rare success stories in the country.</span></span><br /></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL66IfuEhI/AAAAAAAAABw/4mLVd_hckRM/s1600-h/Competition+for+university+places+is+intense.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL66IfuEhI/AAAAAAAAABw/4mLVd_hckRM/s400/Competition+for+university+places+is+intense.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387143980908417554" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 0);">Educated workforce</span><b><br /><br /></b><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">"If a person does not have any higher education he can lose his hope," he says.</span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">"If I go to university, I will solve all my problems and I will serve my people and my country." </p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">And that is the point. If you have a functioning, effective government - so the argument goes - Afghans will be willing to support it. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">But Mushtaq warns that unless the government provides opportunities, then young people will be forced to find opportunities elsewhere. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"If our government doesn't pay attention to young people," he says, "the Taliban will be able to exploit them." </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Ultimately, the West wants to put the running of the country firmly back into Afghan hands. </span></p> <a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL6nzNV1AI/AAAAAAAAABo/uVwz5oHR-7Y/s1600-h/For+many,+the+idea+of+going+to+university+remains+a+dream.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL6nzNV1AI/AAAAAAAAABo/uVwz5oHR-7Y/s400/For+many,+the+idea+of+going+to+university+remains+a+dream.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387143665956541442" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >But there can be no long-term stability in the country without its own educated workforce. </span><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Anders Fange, however, believes that there has not been enough focus on developing the education sector. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"It's too feeble," he says. "It's too little. And crucially, what's coming now, it might be too late." </span></p>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-68012468396159282452009-09-29T22:40:00.000-07:002009-09-29T23:13:44.785-07:00Guinea protests 'will continue'<p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="first"><span style="font-size:100%;">A leading Guinean opposition leader has said protests will continue in the country to get rid of what he called the "criminal" military regime.</span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Alpha Conde, head of the Rally of the People of Guinea party, said he would return there to "mobilise the people". </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Rights groups say at least 157 people were shot dead by troops on Monday and that woman have been publically raped. </span></p> <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL29oHdfqI/AAAAAAAAABg/xbDE3sjeeC4/s1600-h/Guinea+protests+%27will+continue%27.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 146px; height: 110px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL29oHdfqI/AAAAAAAAABg/xbDE3sjeeC4/s400/Guinea+protests+%27will+continue%27.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387139642889698978" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" >But the interior ministry said 57 people died in the protests. Officials denied knowledge of sexual assaults. </span> <!-- E SF --> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"We can't fight and then draw back, we fought for change so we can't retreat now," Mr Conde, speaking from New York, told the BBC. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"We want free and democratic elections, but considering what happened yesterday, we now want the government to go and for it to be replaced by a national government that can organise elections." </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Mr Conde said the government had been "discredited" by the violence, which he said had been "planned and were directed by the president's own advisor".</span></span><br /></p><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL2kmiNDZI/AAAAAAAAABY/OlIgPqF5zpQ/s1600-h/Guinea+protests+%27will+continue%27+..jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/SsL2kmiNDZI/AAAAAAAAABY/OlIgPqF5zpQ/s400/Guinea+protests+%27will+continue%27+..jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387139212968267154" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >Guinean soldiers used tear gas, baton charges and fired live ammunition on Monday to break up demonstrations in the capital, Conakry. </span><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">About 50,000 people were protesting over rumours that Junta head Capt Moussa Dadis Camara intends to run for president in an election scheduled for next January. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">The Guinean Organisation for Defence of Human Rights put the toll at 157 people killed and more than 1,200 wounded. </span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Guinea's interior ministry told the BBC that a total of 57 people died during the violence. </span></p>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-43875882737670536232009-09-02T19:50:00.000-07:002009-09-02T19:57:17.432-07:00Gmail crash: millions of users across the world affected<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/Sp8wfIofCDI/AAAAAAAAAAU/8uqP1rpD4_Y/s1600-h/The+Google+mail+logo.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 250px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/Sp8wfIofCDI/AAAAAAAAAAU/8uqP1rpD4_Y/s400/The+Google+mail+logo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377069791555029042" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Google did not say what the cause was and added that it would endeavour to provide an update with details on when it expects to resolve the problem. </span></span> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> Both the email and instant chat facilities were experiencing problems on Tuesday, with the majority of users reporting difficulties from around 8.45pm.<br /></span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> David Besbris, Engineering Director of Google, apologised for the inconvenience <a href="http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/todays-gmail-problems.html">on the official Gmail blog</a>. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> "We know many of you are having trouble accessing Gmail right now – we are too, and we definitely feel your pain," he said. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> "Because this is impacting so many of you, we wanted to let you know we're currently looking into the issue and hope to have more info to share here shortly. </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> "We're terribly sorry for the inconvenience and will get Gmail back up and running as soon as possible." </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-size:100%;"> He added that users who had IMAP or POP facilities set up should still be able to access Gmail. </span></p>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7729370627789105242.post-79313640871448220902009-09-02T19:19:00.000-07:002009-09-02T19:34:32.913-07:00Indonesia earthquake: 15 dead as thousands evacuate Java News By Telegraph<a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/Sp8rIp5RW9I/AAAAAAAAAAM/8Ot8bUvK8lQ/s1600-h/People+look+at+a+damaged+home+in+the+West+Java+town+of+Sukabumi+after+a+7.0-magnitude+earthquake+struck+off+Indonesia%27s+Java+island.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 302px; height: 180px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PSllkcsRAfY/Sp8rIp5RW9I/AAAAAAAAAAM/8Ot8bUvK8lQ/s400/People+look+at+a+damaged+home+in+the+West+Java+town+of+Sukabumi+after+a+7.0-magnitude+earthquake+struck+off+Indonesia%27s+Java+island.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377063907788676050" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >The 7.0 magnitude quake, as recorded by the US Geological Survey, shook buildings in the capital Jakarta and flattened homes in villages closer to the epicentre in West Java.</span><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">The health ministry said it was sending medical teams to Tasikmalaya, near the epicentre of the quake in West Java.</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">"Many houses are flattened to the ground," said Edi Sapuan in Margamukti village, not far from Tasikmalaya. "Only the wooden houses remain standing. Many villagers are injured, covered in blood."</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">The quake was felt as far away as Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city, about 300 miles northeast of Tasikmalaya, and on the resort island of Bali, about 435 miles to the east.</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">At least 27 people were injured in Jakarta, a health ministry official said.</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Hundreds of people sheltered in a military base in Tasikmalaya, fearing that the initial powerful quake would be followed by aftershocks, an official at the disaster management agency said.</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Indonesia's main power, oil and gas, steel, and mining companies with operations in West and Central Java island closest to the quake's epicentre said they had not been affected and suffered no damage.</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">Local tsunami warnings were issued for coastal areas within several hundred miles of the epicentre soon after it struck, but were withdrawn about half an hour later.</span></p>ebulletinbdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01957557143440908516noreply@blogger.com0