Mubarak warns Israel against another incursion in Gaza
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak warned Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday against initiating "any new assault" on Gaza, state-run Nile TV reported.
The warning came as the two Middle East leaders met in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to discuss the stalled peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
Mubarak said Egypt would reject "any new assault on the people of Gaza," Nile TV said. Two years ago, an Israeli incursion into Gaza killed more than 1,400 Palestinians, accoding to Gaza officials.
The Israeli military said 1,166 people were killed in the 22 days of fighting, 60% of whom were "terror operatives."
Nile TV said the 82-year-old Egyptian leader emphasized to Netanyahu "the necessity for Israel to reconsider their position and policies, and to take the initiative and conduct procedures that will build trust with the national Palestinian authorities."
Talks between Israel and the Palestinians ended in September after an Israeli moratorium on settlement construction in the occupied West Bank expired.
But Netanyahu said there remained a possibility for a resumption of talks.
"Netanyahu reiterated that he believes that a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians is possible provided that the latter are willing to end the conflict," a statement from the Israeli prime minister's website said. "He asked President Mubarak to act to persuade the Palestinians to move to direct, intensive and serious negotiations -- in which all core issues will be raised -- forthwith."
The statement added, "Netanyahu said that Israel is committed to aggressively fighting terrorist elements in Gaza that endanger its security and peace."
Palestinian officials have been calling for a halt to Israeli construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which they consider to be the capital of a future Palestinian state.
Israel, which annexed the eastern part of the Jerusalem in 1967, considers the entire city to be its sovereign capital, a claim not recognized by the international community.
Source: CNN
West Bank civilian dies in Israeli army raid in Hebron
Israeli troops have shot dead a 67-year-old Palestinian man by mistake in an operation to arrest members of the Islamist militant organisation, Hamas.
The pre-dawn raid happened in Hebron, in the West Bank, a day after six supporters of Hamas had been released from jail by the Palestinian Authority.
The man who died was a neighbour of one of the Hamas men.
Hamas has said it holds the Palestinian Authority and the Israel responsible
Reports from the scene of the shooting said it took place in a bedroom on the building's first floor.
The Reuters news agency has reported that the man, Amr Qawasme, was shot and killed in his bed when soldiers broke into his home before dawn.
His wife, Sobheye, said she heard several shots fired and later saw her husband lying in a pool of blood.
"I was praying when they entered. I do not know how they opened the door. They put their hand to my mouth and a rifle to my head," she told Reuters.
"I was shocked. They did not allow me to talk. I asked them, "What did you do?" They asked me to shut up."
The IDF said in a statement: "A Palestinian man who was present in one of the terrorist's homes was killed. The IDF regrets the outcome of the incident." The army has ordered an investigation.
Reports say Israeli forces carried out a number of raids across the city, rounding up five men.
On Thursday Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas ordered the release of six Hamas prisoners who had been on hunger strike. Five were being held in a Hebron jail, while the sixth was imprisoned in Bethlehem.
The Palestinian Authority exercises limited control over parts of the West Bank. The territory is under overall Israeli security control.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, settling close to 500,000 Jews in more than 100 settlements. There are about 2.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank.
Source: CNN
Medical experts appointed to probe source of cholera epidemic in Haiti
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday named four top medical experts to an independent panel to investigate the cause of a cholera epidemic in Haiti amid media reports that Nepalese peacekeepers from the United Nations mission there may have been the source.
The panel will be chaired by Alejandro Cravioto of Mexico, from the International Center for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Bangladesh. The other three members are Claudio Lanata of the Instituto de Investigacion Nutritional in Peru, Daniele Lantagne of Harvard University in the United States, and Balakrish Nair of the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases in India.
“The members of the panel have been selected based on their global stature, expertise and extensive experience working with cholera in all its aspects,” a statement issued by Ban’s spokesperson said, stressing that the panel will operate completely independently of the UN and have access to all UN records, reports and facilities as it probes an epidemic that, as of last month, has killed at least 2,800 people and infected 130,000 others.
Widespread media reports have said Nepalese troops from the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) were the likely source of the outbreak, with infected water spreading from their base into a nearby tributary of the Artibonite River, used for drinking and washing by many rural Haitians.
In announcing his intention to appoint the panel last month, Ban noted that there were several theories, and not all reports reached the same conclusion, with MINUSTAH and the government conducting several tests, all of them negative. But he stressed that “there remain fair questions and legitimate concerns that demand the best answer that science can provide.”
Thursday’s statement said Ban had been deeply concerned by the outbreak since the first cases were detected in October.
“Determining the source of the cholera outbreak is important for both the United Nations and the people of Haiti,” it added.
The epidemic has struck while Haiti is still reeling from a devastating earthquake that killed over 200,000 people and displaced some 1.3 million others, most of them still living in crowded and unsanitary tent camps as the disaster’s first anniversary approaches on 12 January.
MINUSTAH, currently with nearly 12,000 military and police personnel, has been on the ground in Haiti since mid-2004 after then president Jean-Bertrand Aristide went into exile amid violent unrest.
Government failing Barbadians, says opposition leader
Barbados opposition leader, Owen Arthur, said that the administration now led by Freundel Stuart is a "broken government" with broken promises, which they intend to show Barbadians through a strong and vigorous campaign.
Arthur was speaking to reporters after the nomination of the candidates for St John on Wednesday afternoon in which Hudson Griffith is opposing Mara Thompson, widow of the late Barbadian Prime Minister, David Thompson, for the constituency held by her late husband.
The opposition leader said that the by election will not only be bringing to light the issues affecting the people of that constituency, but the people of Barbados in general and the failure of the government to address them.
The Barbados Advocate newspaper reported that the former prime minister added, "In this campaign you are going to hear about the issues that concern the people of Barbados... you have a government that is broken, you have an economy that is in shambles, and all across Barbados there is a sense of despair and we are bringing hope."
He added that the Barbados Labour Party is a mass-based party, and it is the oldest political institution in the Caribbean.
Solemn goodbye for TNT 1st President
Many persons among them parents and guardians with their children filed pass the casket of Sir Ellis Clarke, TT’s first President, to pay their respects and be part of a historic occasion.
The mood at the rotunda of the Red House was solemn with only the strains of classical music punctuating the quiet atmosphere.
Karen Brooks brought her five-year-old son to the viewing. She told Newsday she had downloaded information on Sir Ellis to share with him. While her son had no memory of the man whose coffin he passed, Brooks was overcome with emotion and her eyes became glassy. She paused to compose herself and said, “I wanted him to be here to have the experience.” Brooks herself said she had fond memories of Sir Ellis.
Larry Joseph of Chaguanas brought his daughter Selisha, 11 years. “I wanted to see the first President. I wanted to offer my condolences,” she said. Joseph said he wanted his daughter to see what a state funeral was about. She also wanted to see the rotunda of the Red House. Joseph said he had never been in the rotunda and took the opportunity to visit for the first time. (The area is closed to the public and has been this way following the 1990 coup.) Sue Charles brought nine year-olds Stephanie Hernandez, Alisha Edinburgh and Tishana Jack.
Lawrence Samuel said he brought his son Adam, because Adam was a history student and wanted to be part of the experience.
“I find it is a good thing to remember in the future and for them to see it,” Samuel said.
Hart Edwards, chairman of the TT National Commission for UNESCO, and former permanent secretary, Ministry of National Security said he wanted to pay tribute to a great “son of the soil”.
He said Sir Ellis was a “tower of power and man of the people. He exemplified the best that we have and are.” Former government minister Lindsay Gillette said Sir Ellis was a great President and he saw him many times in the Catholic church. “He was a pillar of strength in the Catholic church.”
Consultant cardiologist Dr Rasheed Rahaman said his visit was in recognition of Sir Ellis’ role in the development of the country.
“He was a true patriot, a good role model. I came primarily to be part of it and recognise that.”
Gwenyth Brizan, of Maryland, said she felt blessed and privileged to be “part of a historic event” and had to sign the condolence book. She left TT in 1964 and recently returned for Christmas. Brizan extended condolences to the Clarke family. Ernie Downing also said he felt a “great part of history”. He said Sir Ellis did a lot for laws in TT and his death was a sad day. “I wish politicians would follow in his footsteps instead of talking and not working.” Students from schools around Port-of-Spain took time to view Sir Ellis’ casket. Among them was South East Port-of-Spain students Shenika McAlister and Symoi Mottley. they said, “we came to see the first local governor general, and president and pay our tribute.”
Sir Ellis, 93, died on December 30. He will be buried today.
Debit, credit card fraud racket busted in Jamaica
FOUR men are now in police custody following investigations by detectives from the Organised Crime Investigation Division (OCID) into a major debit and credit card fraud racket.
A 24-year-old man, who police said worked for a major bank, was last week arrested by OCID detectives on suspicion of conspiring with a fraud gang to pin debit cards that were fraudulently produced. He is expected to be questioned today.
"The cards were then used at various merchants to make purchases. Cards belonging to one bank but fraudulently pinned with another bank’s details were allegedly found in the man’s possession," said the police in a statement late last night.
OCID detectives said that further investigations led them to the arrest of a 22-year-old man from Montego Bay, St James.
He was allegedly found with several debit cards belonging to bank customers who had already fallen victims to cloning and had lost several hundred thousand dollars. He is further alleged to have fraudulently pinned those cards.
The detectives said that increased card fraud in western Jamaica led them to arrest two men of Green Island, Hanover addresses. One of the men is said to be a student at the University of the West Indies.
These two men were allegedly found with credit and debit card manufacturing equipment, including:
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One credit/debit card reader which is used for fraudulently encoding numbers on the magnetic strip of cards;
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One Embossing machine, used for placing numbers on the plastic of fraudulently made credit cards;
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Lists of credit card numbers belonging to customers of various banks;
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One laptop computer used with the card reader to encode cards;
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Fraudulent Florida driver’s license;
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Fraudulent Visa card suspected to have been made by the two men.
The two are also accused of recently cloning the card of a foreign visitor to Jamaica. Charges totalling US$8,000 were then made to the card at various merchants in western Jamaica.
Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com
Group buying: Fad or future Facebook?
Group buying websites enjoyed massive growth in 2010 grabbing new customers and the headlines as the sector's biggest player, Groupon turned down a reported $6 billion offer from Google in early December.
But how will Groupon and its rivals fare in 2011? Is this a recession-led fad, driven by cash-strapped consumers desperate for a bargain? Or will the sector spawn a Facebook of the future and revolutionize our buying habits the same way social media has transformed communications?
In their "Top 11 Crucial Consumer Trends for 2011," trendwatching.com says group buying sites are "springing up everywhere," and are "here to stay."
And Doug Aitken, managing director of Hong Kong-based ValuUp, thinks there's nothing remotely faddy about group buying websites.
"It brings offline and online together in a very unique way, which banner ads simply don't do. It's definitely opening people's eyes up to the way e-commerce can be transactive," Aitken said.
Group buying websites like ValuUp, and the more familiar bigger brands like Groupon and LivingSocial offer discounts of up to 90% to subscribers depending on how many sign-ups they attract for a given product or service.
Aitken founded ValuUp in June 2010 and has around 10,000 subscribers.
Being in one of the world's leading financial centers, getting good deals is "kind of in the nature of people here," Aitken says of Hong Kong.
The challenge for ValuUp in 2011 will be to make the site more "social" Aitken says.
"We're seeing a lot of consumer fatigue. People are used to seeing deals and they don't really share anymore."
Mobile applications could remedy the situation, he thinks, by integrating "local-based tools with real-time deals."
Aitken says the existing group buying model clearly works, but challenges remain.
Daniel Latev, manager of non-store retail research at Euromonitor International expects the sector to grow in 2011 saying that even the market leaders like Groupon and LivingSocial are "barely scratching the surface of e-commerce" in some markets.
"Currently these (businesses) have very little penetration. For example, after Groupon's international acquisitions, the site reported to have 13 million subscribers, which is well below the number of online consumers," Latev said.
He also expects the scope of offers available to consumers to expand in the year ahead.
"Currently the majority of the offers are for services such as restaurants, or entertainment and as the scope of products expands the business generated through these will grow," he said.
Another key to success in 2011 will be the "continuing convergence of retail and communication channels," Latev says.
"Consumers do not necessary want to purchase goods through Facebook, but many smaller stores have found their traffic and sales increasing after integrating some social tools such as the Facebook "Like" button," he said.
It's a tactic that a very big store, Walmart put to good use in October last year, when they launched their CrowdSaver app in Facebook which triggered a deal offering 18% off a plasma TV if 5,000 people clicked on the "Like" icon.
According to Walmart it took less than 24 hours for the deal to be activated.
Latev is also predicting increasingly tailored services to subscribers.
"We expect that sites will also evolve to offer more targeted offers through more sophisticated technology which allows recipients to indicate types of offers they like or don't like," Latev said.
Chicago-based Groupon ended 2010 announcing that it had raised $500 million in financing and will surely be looking to expand its reach abroad in 2011 -- 29 countries and counting.
For ValuUp, the ambitions are more modest for now, but no less challenging as they seek to build on their early success.
They're understandably tight-lipped on the details of their 2011 strategy -- given they already have around 20 competitors in the region -- but Aitken is looking to take the existing model forward while accommodating different demographics and different clients.
"At the end of the day we have to separate ourselves from the larger players -- we don't have the largest database in Hong Kong. But we've got a good niche of quality subscribers that resonate with the type of people that we are trying to offer deals," Aitken said.
Crops, coal and steel inundated by Australia's flooding
Major flooding across eastern Australia is putting a squeeze on the region's farmers, destroying crops and cutting off routes to market.
"Across the state ... agricultural and primary producers in particular are really feeling the impact of the flood waters," CNN's Phil Black reported Thursday. "A lot of agricultural producers have suffered major crop loses -- vegetable producers, fruit growers, as well as grain growers and sugar cane growers."
Those farmers who haven't lost their crops are having trouble getting them to market over washed-out roads, bridges and rail lines. The flooding also has affected the global transport of commodities such as coal and steel out of Queensland.
The Fitzroy River crested at 9.2 meters (about 30 feet), or more than 2 meters (7 feet) over flood stage, according to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. It's expected to remain above the "major flood" level for another week.
The forecast calls for isolated rain, which isn't expected to change the situation much.
"Here in Rockhampton, it is residential areas, some small businesses that have very much felt the impact of these rising flood waters," Black reported.
Some authorities have put damage estimates across Australia as high as AUS $2 billion, while Prime Minister Julia Gillard said Friday that the flooding in Queensland will cost "hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars."
The seasonal flooding in the state of Queensland intensified last month after monsoon rains caused rivers to spill over their banks and reach record levels. The floodwaters cover an area the size of France and Germany combined and now stretch into the state of New South Wales.
Images from CNN affiliate Seven Network Australia showed residents traveling down the streets in boats. From the sky, the tops of houses and trees poked out from seas of murky brown water. Snakes whipped about from under the water's surface.
Neil Roberts, Queensland minister for police, corrective services and emergency services, said Wednesday that 1,200 to 1,500 people had to be evacuated in parts of Queensland. Roberts said some residents probably can't return to their homes for at least another week.
He said the recovery could take "many months, and potentially over a year."
World Bank issues yuan-denominated bonds
The World Bank is issuing its first bonds denominated in China's yuan in Hong Kong, joining a growing number of borrowers tapping the new debt market as Beijing gradually promotes its tightly controlled currency abroad.
The World Bank said buyers of its 500-million yuan (US$76-million), two-year bond were mainly Hong Kong-based financial institutions, companies and wealthy individuals.
It said the money will go into its general fund, rather than being raised for a specific purpose.
The yuan is not traded on global currency markets but Beijing has loosened controls and allows Hong Kong banks to use it.
Hong Kong is Chinese territory but has its own currency and a Western-style legal system, and often is used as a site for mainland companies to interact with foreign investors.
Beijing began allowing foreign companies to issue yuan debt last year.
The Asian Development Bank, Caterpillar Inc and McDonald's Corp have sold yuan-denominated debt to finance activities in China.
Buyers of such bonds hope to gain from both interest payments and the growing strength of the yuan, which is rising against the US dollar.
China is set to gain a bigger say in the World Bank after a restructuring last year to boost the voting power of developing countries.
If approved, China will be the third-biggest voting power after the United States and Japan. The World Bank provides low-interest loans and technical assistance to developing countries.
Platform for international banking
Beijing is promoting Hong Kong as a platform for yuan-based international banking.
Hong Kong banks started handling yuan in 2004 and now offer services ranging from deposits to credit cards to trade financing that allows foreign companies to pay Chinese business partners in yuan.
Analysts say Beijing wants to see the yuan, also known as the renminbi, or people's money, become a global currency like the dollar or euro, though that could take years or decades.
Increased use of the yuan abroad could help China by reducing the exchange-rate risks faced by its exporters, who now are paid mostly in dollars.
"There are so many benefits that China can achieve from shifting trade to the local currency," said Credit Agricole economist Darius Kowalczyk.
Borrowing costs for China's government and companies also would decline if foreign investors were willing to buy more yuan-denominated bonds.
In August, McDonald's Corp sold nearly $30 million in yuan bonds to pay to build new restaurants in China.
Caterpillar sold US$150 million in yuan bonds to provide financing for buyers of its heavy equipment.
Also last year, the Asian Development Bank sold US$181 million in bonds to raise money to provide development projects in China.
Source- AP
Dominican Republic back to deporting Haitians
The Dominican Republic has launched its first major crackdown on illegal Haitian immigrants since last year's devastating earthquake, rounding up and deporting hundreds of people in recent days, officials said Thursday.
Haiti and the Dominican Republic share the Caribbean island of Hispaniola and have a long history of cross-border tension. Relations improved in the aftermath of the Jan. 12 quake, with the Dominican government providing assistance and serving as a staging ground for the international relief effort. Still, human rights groups complain that Haitians are subjected to bitter discrimination.
The Dominican government, which suspended deportations after the earthquake, resumed anti-illegal immigration efforts this week, stopping and detaining people at checkpoints around the country. In a rare move, checkpoints were also set up outside the capital.
More than 700 Haitians have been deported since Monday and more are expected in coming days, said Ambiorix Rosario, Department of Migration spokesman.
Dominican officials said the crackdown is necessary to stem growing illegal immigration since the earthquake and to prevent the spread of cholera, which has killed more than 3,000 people in Haiti since the outbreak began in October. About 150 have been sickened in the Dominican Republic.
"We are trying to strengthen our immigration controls to prevent Haitian citizens and people of other nationalities from illegally entering our territory," said Sigfrido Pared Perez, director of the Department of Migration. "In no case have we violated anyone's human rights."
Immigration agents and soldiers were stopping and questioning people as they reached the outskirts of the capital in buses and vans that each day carry people from Haiti to Santo Domingo. Those without the required papers were being loaded up on buses and taken back to the border.
"If I was alone, I'd be back in Haiti, that's my country, but I have three kids and need to work," an unidentified woman told local television station CDN before she was taken on a bus back to the border carrying a small suitcase.
The United Nations estimated before the earthquake that some 600,000 Haitians were living illegally in the Dominican Republic. Dominican authorities say that number has grown to 1 million over the past year, in a country with a population of nearly 10 million. Migrants tend to work harvesting sugar cane, as domestic servants or in other low wage jobs.
Human rights groups criticized the deportations, accusing authorities of stopping and questioning people based on their physical appearance.
"The acting authorities are clearly following a racial profile to decide who should be detained," said Francisco Leonardo with the Jesuit Refugee and Migration Service.
The crackdown also has increased the amount some Dominican border agents are asking for passage, from about $6 to nearly $14, said Davide Sala, an activist with the Jesuit organization.
Human traffickers also are charging more: $135 per person compared with $95, he said.
About a dozen suspected traffickers were arrested this week along with dozens of Haitian migrants, said Francisco Gil, army commander for the country's north region.