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Gillard staffer resigns as leak links up
A press secretary to the Prime Minister has quit after it was confirmed there was a leak to the tent embassy about Tony Abbotts whereabouts and comments.
Tags: Press
Posted by Admin at 11:17 AM. Placed in Uncategorized category
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The French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, said on Friday that France and Afghanistan have agreed to ask Nato to bring forward the handover of all combat operations to Afghan forces to 2013.
Sarkozy also announced an accelerated exit for France, the fourth-largest contributor of troops in Afghanistan – marking a break from previous plans to adhere to the US goal of withdrawing combat forces by the end of 2014. The proposal comes a week after four unarmed French troops were killed by an Afghan soldier.
Sarkozy, alongside Afghan president Hamid Karzai who was in Paris for a previously planned visit, said France had told the US of its plan, and will present it at a meeting next week of Nato defence ministers in Brussels. He said he would call the US president, Barack Obama, about it on Saturday.
The new idea floated by Sarkozy would accelerate a gradual drawdown of Nato troops that Obama has planned to see through until the end of 2014.
Sarkozy said France will withdraw combat troops by the end of 2013, a reversal from his repeated commitment in recent months to stick with other allies on a US-led schedule.
At the same time, he said France will restart its training missions of Afghan troops. After the shootings on 20 January, he suspended the training and joint French military patrols with Afghan forces.
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Posted by Admin at 7:00 AM. Placed in Uncategorized category
Syrian forces pressed their
crackdown against anti-government protesters as the United
Nations argued over a resolution that would pressure Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad to transfer power to his deputy.
Eleven Syrians were killed today in violence across the
country as security forces stormed and shelled towns on the
outskirts of Damascus, the Syrian capital, Al Arabiya television
said, citing activists. More than 100 Syrians died in clashes
yesterday, the highest number in one day since the uprising
started, Al Jazeera television reported today, citing activists.
The violence comes after the UN Security Council discussed
yesterday a revised draft resolution calling on Assad to
transfer power to his deputy. Previous language, which urged
Assad to abandon power to pave way for “fair elections,” was
replaced with a call for him to hand over “full authority” to
his deputy and for the “formation of a national unity
government,” according to the draft obtained by Bloomberg News.
Opponents of Assad’s government broke into Syria’s embassy
in Cairo yesterday, Egypt’s state-run Middle East News Agency
reported, without saying where it got the information. An oil
pipeline was damaged by a blast in a town near Deir Al Zour,
after shelling by the Syrian army, Al Jazeera television said.
Eleven months into the unrest, the European Union and the
US have yet to overcome Russia’s resistance at the UN’s
decision-making body to hold Assad responsible for a crackdown
that the UN estimates has killed more than 5,000 people.
Draft Changes
“Unfortunately, the draft that we saw today not only
ignored our red lines, but also added some new elements that we
find unacceptable as a matter of principle,” Russian Ambassador
Vitaly Churkin told reporters after yesterday’s meeting. “The
Security Council cannot go about imposing political solutions in
crisis situations in various countries of the world.”
To mollify Russia, which says Western powers are seeking
regime change in Syria, the draft underwent three changes.
Previous language that urged Assad to relinquish power was
replaced with a call for him to delegate power to his deputy, a
move that could leave Assad the nominal leader even if he is
devoid of powers, according to a UN diplomat who spoke on
condition of anonymity because the talks are private.
Arab League Secretary-General Nabil El-Arabi and Qatari
Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani plan to travel
to New York this weekend and present Syria’s crisis dossier to
the Security Council on Jan. 31. The draft resolution affirms a
transition plan put forward by the Arab League calling for a
national unity government within two months to implement a
peaceful handover of power.
To contact the reporters on this story:
Glen Carey in Riyadh at
gcarey8@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Andrew J. Barden at
barden@bloomberg.net
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Posted by Admin at 8:18 AM. Placed in Uncategorized category
CHICAGO — Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose is looking forward to the challenge of facing the Miami Heat on Sunday afternoon, but he wants to keep things in perspective.
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BEIRUT: Five Iranians kidnapped in Syria in December have been moved to north Lebanon, Irans English-language Press TV, quoting a source in north Lebanon, reported Saturday.
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About Beau Dure
Former USA TODAY staffer Beau Dure covered soccer and Olympic sports from 1999-2010 and sees plenty of crossover between those sports and MMA, at least on the business side. At press conferences, hes the one who never uses the term ring rust. Hes grateful to his summer camp judo teacher for teaching him how to fall. He loves studying MMA history but never again wants to see the Joe Son-Keith Hackney bout. More about Beau
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Posted by Admin at 10:10 AM. Placed in Uncategorized category
Three wickets for England and 73 runs for Pakistan meant the outcome of an intriguing second Test remained in the balance after the fourth morning at the Zayed Stadium.
Monty Panesar (four for 59) ended a determined fifth-wicket stand between Azhar Ali (68) and Asad Shafiq, and then James Anderson and Stuart Broad struck once each with the second new ball.
But Pakistan nonetheless battled to a lunchtime 198 for seven, and a lead of 128, to stay in with a chance of taking a series-clinching 2-0 advantage with just one match to play next week.
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Posted by Admin at 9:25 AM. Placed in Uncategorized category
Michigan State University officials have signed a $12 million deal to buy The Grand Rapids Press building and parking lots near the schools College of Human Medicine.
The Press and the Lansing State Journal report the universitys Board of Trustees on Friday announced the planned purchase of the newspapers headquarters in downtown Grand Rapids and five parking lots. The properties are expected to ease immediate parking needs and could provide future research space at the medical school.
Medical school Dean Marsha Rappley tells the Grand Rapids newspaper that officials will look at renovating the 47-year-old structure.
The Press is moving out of the building as part of a restructuring that puts the publication in the hands of the MLive Media Group. Its leasing space in another downtown location.
AP-WF-01-27-12 2329GMT
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Posted by Admin at 10:31 PM. Placed in Uncategorized category
In this Dec. 2003 photo provided to the Associated Press by HH Photographers, Todd Remis, left, is shown with his then-bride Milena Grzibovska of Latvia during their wedding at Castle-on-the Hudson in Tarrytown, NY Remis, now divorced, sued HH Photographers in 2009, saying the studio did a shoddy job of shooting the wedding and didnt make good on a promise to retouch the pictures. The studio says it stands by its work and offered to adjust the pictures.
Photo: HH Photographers
/ AP
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Posted by Admin at 9:37 AM. Placed in Uncategorized category
PASADENA
When the women of Wisteria Lane bid their final farewells in Mays series finale, dont expect to see them return on the big screen a la the Sex and the City characters. There will be no Desperate Housewives movie, says creator Marc Cherry.
After eight years? Boy I think were done, Cherry told reporters at the television critics press tour. Im just never sending these gals to Dubai. Thats all Im saying.
Cherry certainly wasnt saying how the iconic ABC series will wrap up its soapy run. But he has envisioned the final act ever since the show launched and he hasnt wavered from it.
The general premise has always been the same, he said, but Im so not revealing what the end will be. Im hyper protective about it.
Cherry appeared at the shows final press-tour panel accompanied by its main women — Teri Hatcher, Marcia Cross, Felicity Huffman, Eva Longoria and Vanessa Williams. Also in attendance were the guys of Wisteria Lane — Ricardo Antonio Chavira, James Denton and Doug Savant.
Cherry and fellow executive producer, Bob Daily, did say that the show will continue to bring back familiar characters and echoes of the past over the final episodes. Cherry also plans to make a cameo appearance in the finale.
Im gonna do a Hitchcock, he said.
During the press conference, the cast reflected on their favorite scenes, special moments and how Desperate Housewives made a substantial impact
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