|  |  |  | | | | | The Guardian World News | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | July selection was set to begin Monday, but trial judge is trying to decide if Hasan's beard should be forcibly shaved A military appeals court on Friday postponed the court-martial for accused Fort Hood gunman Major Nidal Hasan while it decides if the trial judge can order his beard to be forcibly shaved. Hasan is accused of opening fire at the deployment center at Fort Hood, Texas, on 5 November 2009. He is charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder in the shooting at the sprawling central Texas complex. He faces the death penalty if convicted of murder. A practicing Muslim, Hasan has grown a beard in preparation for his death, which he believes is "imminent", attorneys said. Hasan's attorneys say the beard is an expression of his religious beliefs, but the unshorn facial hair is in violation of army grooming regulations. The Court of Appeal for the Armed Forces said all proceedings related to Hasan's case have been postponed until further notice. July selection was set to begin on Monday.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Russian leader accused of orchestrating case against trio found guilty of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred Three members of the Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot are facing two years in a prison colony after they were found guilty of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred, in a case seen as the first salvo in Vladimir Putin's crackdown on opposition to his rule. Maria Alyokhina, 24, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, were calmly defiant as a judge handed down the sentence, to cries of "Shame!" inside and outside court. Judge Marina Syrova said she rejected their arguments that they had not intended to offend religious believers but were protesting against the Orthodox church's support for Putin. The case has galvanised Russia's anti-Putin protest movement and raised the international profile of their cause, with dozens of protests held worldwide. British and American officials were quick to condemn what they described as a "disproportionate" sentence. The Foreign Office minister, Alistair Burt, said: "I am deeply concerned by the sentencing of three members of the band Pussy Riot, which can only be considered a disproportionate response to an expression of political belief." A spokeswoman for the US state department said: "We urge Russian authorities to review this case and ensure that the right to freedom of expression is upheld." Catherine Ashton, the EU's high representative, said she was disappointed by the verdict. "It puts a serious question mark over Russia's respect for international obligations of fair, transparent, and independent legal process," she said. Putin has alleged that foreign powers are behind the protest movement against his rule, launched shortly after he announced last autumn that he was returning to the presidency. Pussy Riot's supporters and opposition activists accused Putin of personally orchestrating the case against them. "They are in jail because it is Putin's personal revenge," said Alexey Navalny, the opposition's de facto leader. "The verdict was written by Vladimir Putin." The three women were arrested in March after performing an anti-Putin "punk prayer" inside Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. The case against them is seen as serving two functions: a warning to other dissidents, and an appeal to Putin's conservative base. Russia's growing campaign against gay rights is seen as a part of that effort, and on Friday Moscow's main court upheld a 100-year ban on gay pride rallies. On Friday night, the Russian Orthodox church repeated its criticism of the band's "blasphemous" protest, which it said displayed "crude hostility towards millions of people" but called on state authorities to show mercy to the women. Dozens of protesters were arrested outside court, including chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov and leftist opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov. Hundreds more remained long after the court session had ended, shouting: "Russia without Putin!" More than a dozen people have been arrested for taking part in a protest on 6 May against Putin, and could be jailed or fined under a new law against unauthorised demonstrations. Navalny faces up to 10 years in prison after he was charged in a fraud case widely seen as a means of cracking down on his activism. The country's rubber-stamp parliament has recently passed a law forcing nongovernmental organisations that receive international grants to declare themselves "foreign agents", and another that could prompt widespread censorship of the internet. Protests in support of Pussy Riot were held around the world – in New York, Vienna and dozens of other cities. The Royal Court theatre in London staged verbatim readings of the women's closing statement to the court to coincide with the verdict. Sir Paul McCartney, Madonna, and Björk are among the dozens of stars who have issued messages of support. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch called the sentence a bitter blow to freedom of expression inside Russia. Activists said the case has only strengthened the growing movement against Putin's rule. "Russia must stop being a laughing stock in the eyes of the world," said one woman protesting outside the court, who declined to give her name. "We must join civilised society. I really want to hope that our government will find common sense and stop showing itself in such a monstrous way." Boris Akunin, one of Russia's most popular authors, said that the verdict had doomed Putin to "another year and a half of international shame and humiliation. Other supporters were less optimistic. Tolokonnikova's husband Pyotr Verzilov said blame for the verdict rested with one man alone: "Whatever Putin wants, Putin gets." In public statements made earlier this month, Putin had called for the women to be judged "not too severely". Prosecutors had asked for a three-year sentence. The women remained defiant throughout the trial, issuing powerful closing statements that quickly entered the canon of Russia's dissident speeches. "We have won," Samutsevich said in her closing statement. "The whole world now sees that the criminal case against us has been fabricated. The system cannot conceal the repressive nature of this trial. Once again, the world sees Russia differently than the way Putin tries to present it." The women intend to appeal against the sentence.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Jim Messina wrote to Romney campaign asking for five years' worth of tax returns in exchange for an end to the issue The Obama campaign team has kept up the pressure on Mitt Romney's tricky position on tax, promising to stop hounding him on the subject if he releases five years' worth of returns. Obama's campaign manager, Jim Messina, wrote to his opposite number in the Romney camp, Matt Rhoades, making the offer in writing. The Romney campaign did not take up the offer. The letter is aimed at addressing one of the frequent complaints by the Romney campaign that if he releases five years' worth of tax returns, the Obama campaign will demand 10, and if he releases 10, they will demand 20. The Messina letter came after Romney, talking to reporters on the campaign trail Thursday, disclosed that he had paid at least 13.6% in taxes over a 10- year period. The Democratic Senate leader Harry Reid had claimed, based on an alleged informant inside Bain Capital, where Romney made his fortune, that the Republican presidential challenger had paid no tax whatsoever. Reid, not satisfied with Romney's answer, called on his to release his tax returns to prove his 13.6% claim. Romney has released his tax returns for 2010 and 2011 but the Obama team said he should follow the precedent of other presidential challengers by disclosing tax returns for a much longer period. Messina, in his letter, wrote: "I am writing to ask again that the governor release multiple years of tax returns, but also to make an offer that should address his concerns about the additional disclosures. "Governor Romney apparently fears that the more he offers, the more our campaign will demand that he provide. So I am prepared to provide assurances on just that point: if the governor will release five years of returns, I commit in turn that we will not criticise him for not releasing more – neither in ads nor in other public communications or commentary for the rest of the campaign." Messina added that, given Romney has already released tax returns for 2010 and 2011, he would only have to release a further three, dating back to 2007.
Rhoades, in his reply, said: "It is clear that President Obama wants nothing more than to talk about Governor Romney's tax returns instead of the issues that matter to voters, like putting Americans back to work, fixing the economy and reining in spending. "If Governor Romney's tax returns are the core message of your campaign, there will be ample time for President Obama to discuss them over the next 81 days."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Women performing apartheid-era toyi-toyi dance condemn mine company as they wait for news of victims of police shootings Nosisieko Jali's husband is missing. She has heard a rumour that a bullet hit him in the head, yet he survived. One witness said all his clothes were torn. "I don't know where he is," said Jali, numb with anxiety. "The hospital wouldn't let me come inside. I am hurting." Jali is among scores of wives at the Lonmin platinum mine in Marikana still waiting to discover if their husband is in a jail, hospital or mortuary after one of the bloodiest days in South Africa since apartheid. Thirty-four people were killed and 78 injured on Thursday when police with automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns opened fire on the strikers, many of whom were armed with spears, machetes and clubs as they demonstrated for higher wages. The shocking images, beamed to TV viewers around the world, provoked comparisons with massacres by the white minority regime of the country's past. On Friday, next to the killing field, wives took the place of their dead and wounded husbands to stage an angry, emotionally charged demonstration. The women raged against police brutality, mine exploitation and a lack of official information that has left them agonisingly in the dark. "How can we know whether people are dead or missing?" demanded Nowelcime Bosanathi, 35. "My husband went to the protest with a stick. I worried he might be dead. Then he called last night to say he's in a police van and he doesn't know where he's going. Now his phone is on voicemail." Waving sticks, whistling and ululating, the women performed the apartheid-era toyi-toyi dance up and down a dirt road. They sang songs, some mournful, some defiant, warning: "When you strike a woman, you strike a rock" and invoking the memory of heroes of the anti-apartheid struggle such as Oliver Tambo. They joined hands in a circle for a soulful rendition of Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, the national anthem and originally a hymn. They kneeled before police armed with shotguns and sang "What have we done?" in the Xhosa language. The group of about 100 women also brandished homemade cardboard placards with handwritten slogans condemning the police. "Police stop shooting our husbands and sons," one said. Another, referring to the new national police commissioner, Riah Phiyega, read: "Piega you celebrating your position by blood of our families." Primrose South, 51, was still waiting for news about Mishack Mzilikazi, 35, who lives on her property and is considered part of the family. "I last saw him at 8am on Thursday. He was going to work with his phone but now it's off. He also had a stick and he was quiet. "I don't know where he is now. He could be in prison or he could be dead. I don't know." She added: "We are feeling bad because the children now are crying, are hungry, are afraid even to sleep at night. The wives have no husbands now. Their husbands are lying dead in the forest." Whatever did happen here there is no shortage of blame – and competing accounts. The women point at the police and the Lonmin mine management. South, who works as a mine store manager, said: "The management sent the police to kill our husbands, brothers and sons. But we will fight for our rights like them." Many of these women followed their husbands from Eastern Cape province or neighbouring countries such as Lesotho, Swaziland or Zimbabwe. They live in the nearby Nkanini settlement in cramped shacks with pit toilets and an intermittent water supply. Above one of one of the world's richest platinum deposits, goats wander in adjacent scrubland strewn with discarded plastic bags and rubbish. They denied that the workers had opened fire first and said a turf war between rival unions was a sideshow to the dispute over pay. The unions are scrapping for members. The National Union of Mineworkers, a supporter of the ANC, had signed up to a pay deal with Lonmin. But the militant Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) rejected this and pushed for wages to be trebled. This comes amid a wider debate on whether the governing African National Congress (ANC) should curb mine owners' power. The youth league of the ANC argues that nationalisation of the country's mines and farms is the only way to redress the injustices of the past. The youth league said: "South Africa's exploitative mining regime, capitalist greed and the poverty of our people is the cause." For its part, Lonmin announced that it would provide support to all the families that have suffered loss this week. Simon Scott, its chief financial officer, said: "We have established a help desk at Lonmin's Andrew Saffy Hospital, which will help families with the identification of bodies, assist with all the burial arrangements and offer bereavement counselling. "Lonmin commits to provide funding for the education of all the children of employees who lost their lives. This funding will cover education costs from primary school to university." The company's London-listed share price slumped 9% early yesterday, though it ended 1.3% down at 639.5p. It plunged to a nine-year low on the Johannesburg exchange, where it is also listed. The South African Institute of Race Relations called for the immediate suspension of all police officers involved in the shootings. It said: "There is clear evidence that policemen randomly shot into the crowd with rifles and handguns. There is also evidence of their continuing to shoot after a number of bodies can be seen dropping and others turning to run. "This is reminiscent of the Sharpeville massacre in 1960," it said. The police, though, insisted they acted in self-defence, arguing that the mine workers even possessed a pistol taken from a police officer they are alleged to have beaten to death on Monday. At least 10 other people were killed during the week-old strike at the mine,80 miles north-west of Johannesburg, including two police officers said to have been battered to death by strikers and two mine security guards. It was into this highly charged atmosphere that President Jacob Zuma stepped, having cut short a visit to a regional summit. He announced that a commission of inquiry would be held into the tragedy. "This inquiry will enable us to get to the real cause of the incident and derive the real lessons too," he said during a visit to Marikana. "We've all been saddened and dismayed by the events of the past few days and hours around the Marikana mine. The loss of life among workers and members of the police service is tragic and regrettable. "These events are not what we want to see or want to become accustomed to in a democracy that is bound by the rule of law and where we are creating a better life for all our people. "Today our thoughts are primarily with the families of those who have lost their lives. As a government and as fellow citizens, we offer our sincere condolences to families who have lost their loved ones. Our thoughts are also with those who are recovering." He continued: "The events of the past few days have unfortunately been visited upon a nation that is hard at work addressing the persistent challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality. "We undertake this work in conditions of peace and stability, working with all sectors in our country. "We assure the South African people in particular that we remain fully committed to ensuring that this country remains a peaceful, stable, productive and thriving nation, that is focused on improving the quality of life of all, especially the poor and working class. "It is against this background that we have to uncover the truth about what happened here." He went on: "Today challenges us to restore calm and share the pain of the affected families and communities. "This is not a day to apportion blame. It is a day for us to mourn together as a nation. It is also a day to start rebuilding and healing."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Thompson to get a six-fold salary increase from his position as director-general of the BBC, according to a regulatory filing Mark Thompson, the outgoing director general of the BBC, is to receive a $3m (£1.9m) sign-on bonus when he takes over as chief executive of the New York Times Company in November, in a deal that could make him $6m in his first year. Thompson will receive an annual $1m (£636,000) base salary from the New York Times, plus a potential $1m annual bonus. The $3m "golden hello" is made up of a $1.5m performance-based award of New York Times Company stock, plus $1.5m of stock options. He will also receive a further $3m bonus for meeting the company's long-term incentives, which will be paid out over three years from 2013. To help the cost of moving from north Oxford to New York, Thompson will get up to $100,000 in relocation fees. He will move with his US-born writer wife, Jane Blumberg, and three children. He is eligible for an additional $25,000 to cover any legal fees. The $3m sign-on bonus looks small compared with the $24m payoff Janet Robinson received when she unexpectedly quit as the New York Times chief last December. Like Thompson, Robinson was on a $1m a year base salary at the newspaper group. In the regulatory filing, the New York Times said Thompson's salary would be subject to an annual review, but would not be decreased outside of across-the-board salary reductions. At £636,000 a year, Thompson's base salary is marginally more than the £613,000 he received in 2011 at the BBC. His total BBC remuneration last year was £622,000, having been reduced from £838,000 in 2010 as the corporation sought to cut executive pay levels. Thompson's New York Times remuneration was revealed in regulatory documents published by the company on Friday. The targets Thompson must meet to receive the performance bonuses were not revealed. Arthur Sulzberger Jr, the publisher of the New York Times, announced Thompson as the company's new president and chief executive on Tuesday. The venerable title is seeking to extend its brand overseas and keep apace with digital advances in news. The New York Times has a sophisticated digital paywall plan which contributed a reported $100m to overall revenues of $2.3bn. But the commercial challenge for Thompson is clear: from profits of $300m a year a decade ago, the Times recorded losses of $40m last year. Thompson said in a statement this week: "The New York Times is one of the world's greatest news providers and a media brand of immense future potential both in the US and around the world. It is a real privilege to be asked to join the Times Company as it embarks on the next chapter in its history. "I'm particularly excited to be coming to the New York Times Company as it extends its influence digitally and globally. I look forward to working with the board, Arthur and his highly talented management team to build on the success that has already been achieved and to explore new ways of bringing journalism of exceptional quality, integrity and depth to readers and users everywhere." • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication". • To get the latest media news to your desktop or mobile, follow MediaGuardian on Twitter and Facebook
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Contamination left by US navy found to have 400 times the EPA's human exposure limits, but military branch denies report It was called Treasure Island in honour of Robert Louis Stevenson's pirate classic, but the artificial island off San Francisco bay has nothing but trouble buried in its soil: radioactive contamination left by the US navy. Internal documents and emails from the navy and public health officials reveal that the contamination, a legacy of ships exposed to atomic blasts and radiation training during the cold war, is more widespread than previously thought. The navy reportedly bungled a clean-up, leaving topsoil with 400 times the Environmental Protection Agency's human exposure limits. The revelations have alarmed some of the island's 2,800 residents and cast a shadow over plans to start building high-rise apartments for 20,000 more people next year. The documents were disclosed by the Bay Citizen, a nonprofit news organisation covering the bay area. "The large volume of radiological contaminated material, high number of radioactive commodities [individual items or sources], and high levels of radioactive contamination … have raised concerns ... regarding the nature and extent of the radiological contamination present at Treasure Island," Stephen Woods, an environmental clean-up manager for the public health department, wrote in a 2011 email. A burgeoning file of radiation discoveries, Woods said, undermined the navy's continued use of a 2006 report as a basis for claims that some parcels were clear of radiation and ready for housing development. The navy and a separate state regulatory agency, the Department of Toxic Substances Control, said California's public health officials were wrong and that there was no health risk. Treasure Island, spanning 535 acres, was created by the federal government from landfill in 1937. It was named in honour of Louis Stevenson's book because he lived in San Francisco from 1879 to 1880. It hosted the 1939-40 Golden Gate International Exposition before being handed to the navy. The island used the base to repair and salvage vessels exposed to atomic blasts during the 1940s and 1950s. Cannon sights contained radioactive glow-in-the-dark material. A training ship, the USS Pandemonium, was intentionally doused in radiation so sailors could practise scrubbing it. The navy had a radiological "counting room" to test personnel and equipment for contamination. In 1993 the navy agreed to hand the island back to the city for $105m, a deal which required inspection and approval from state health officials. Naval operations ended there in 1997 and in a 2006 report the navy gave a clean bill of health to affected sites, saying 170 acres were suitable to transfer to San Francisco, paving the way for ambitious plans to create a new neighbourhood. The island found a new lease of life as a set for films including Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Flubber, Patch Adams, Bicentennial Man and The Caine Mutiny. Some visual effects from The Matrix were also filmed there. However in recent reports and emails state health officials faulted the navy's 2006 report. They noted that contractors removed 16,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil, some with radiation levels 400 times the EPA's human exposure limits. Residents on the island are required to grow plants in above-ground pots to avoid soil-borne chemicals. Emily Rapaport, president of Good Neighbors of Treasure Island and Yerba Buena Island, who has lived on the island for a decade, said residents were not fully informed about contamination. "They should have been more open and upfront, because there would have been people who would have chosen not to live here," she told the Bay Citizen. In a May memo to the Department of Toxic Substances Control Woods, the state environmental cleanup manager, accused the navy of rushing its evaluation of Treasure Island's radioactive legacy. It had delayed releasing sample data to state health inspectors and failed to test for radioactive soil at sites where it had found toxic chemical waste, he wrote. As of May, he noted, contractors had transported 1,000 truckloads of radioactive waste off the island with more still in the ground. The Department of Toxic Substances Control, however, said there was no risk to health, a version echoed by the navy's environmental cleanup co-ordinator, James Sullivan, who said concerns were exaggerated and inconsistent with the navy's commitment to safety.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Pledge on protecting WikiLeaks founder from US could lead to deal, says source as embassy complains of 'intimidating' police Ecuador is still willing to negotiate with the British government over the fate of Julian Assange, despite the Foreign Office's "threat" to arrest the WikiLeaks founder inside its embassy and the "intimidating" police presence in and around the building, according to a senior Ecuadorean diplomatic source. The South American country's decision to grant political asylum to the 41-year-old Australian, who faces allegations of sexual assault in Sweden, has provoked a bitter political row between Quito and London. The source complained that the UK government's written warning that it could use the Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act 1987 to arrest Assange inside the embassy had been accompanied by a large increase in the number of police officers at the Knightsbridge building. The police presence, it added, had risen from two or three to around 50, with officers on the embassy's fire escape and at every window. This was described as "an absolutely intimidating and unprecedented use of police" designed to show the British government's desire to "go in with a strong hand". However, the source said that Quito had been encouraged by a phone call made by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to the Ecuadorean ambassador on Thursday. "The FCO called the ambassador yesterday to confirm that it still had the will to talk and negotiate, so we'll keep talking," it added. "The fact that they called the ambassador makes us think that the letter with the threat of using domestic legislation to make an incursion into the embassy and arrest somebody inside was a mistake – as was the intimidating increase in the number of police surrounding the embassy on the same day the letter was delivered." It stressed that Ecuador was willing to co-operate with the British and Swedish authorities over the matter of Assange's extradition to Sweden. "In the negotiations with the FCO, Ecuador has been proposing that we would be prepared to accept an undertaking from the UK and Sweden that, once Julian Assange has faced the Swedish investigation, he will not be extradited to a third country: specifically the US. That might be a way out of it and Ecuador has always said it does not want to interfere with the Swedish judicial process; we could facilitate it." The source said the Ecuadorean government had been bolstered by the support it had received since deciding to grant asylum to Assange, adding: "We are moved by the overwhelming level of solidarity that Ecuador now has in the [Latin American] region." Asked how Assange was coping with the pressure of life in the small embassy, where he has been living for 55 days, the source said: "He's fine. He's not stressed out. Given the fact that he has been under pressure for so long and that his legal fight has gone through so many different levels, I think that for his safety he always had a last resort." Scotland Yard declined to comment on the policing operation at the embassy, while an FCO source said the letter sent to the Ecuadorean authorities on Wednesday was not menacing and that the rights of the country's officials would continue to be respected by the government. "The letter was not a threat," said the source. "There had already been many meetings with the Ecuador government. It was just that it was quite clear that they were close to making a decision and we wanted them to know the law. It was merely signposting the fact." The foreign secretary, William Hague, was informed about diplomatic developments on the Assange case, although a spokeswoman declined to divulge further details, saying: "We are not providing a running commentary." At a press conference on Wednesday, Ecuador's foreign minister, Ricardo Patiño, released details of the contentious letter, which he said was delivered through a British embassy official in Quito. The letter said: "You need to be aware that there is a legal base in the UK, the Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act 1987, that would allow us to take actions in order to arrest Mr Assange in the current premises of the embassy." It added: "We need to reiterate that we consider the continued use of the diplomatic premises in this way incompatible with the Vienna convention and unsustainable and we have made clear the serious implications that this has for our diplomatic relations." Patiño said that Ecuador rejected the "explicit threat" made in the letter, adding: "This is unbecoming of a democratic, civilised and law-abiding state. If this conduct persists, Ecuador will take appropriate responses in accordance with international law. If the measures announced in the British official communication materialise they will be interpreted by Ecuador as a hostile and intolerable act and also as an attack on our sovereignty, which would require us to respond with greater diplomatic force." Hague has denied suggestions that the FCO was threatening "to storm an embassy", saying: "We are talking about an act of parliament in this country which stresses that it must be used in full conformity with international law." He has also said that Assange will not be allowed safe passage out of the UK despite the asylum decision, and that diplomatic immunity should not be used to harbour alleged criminals. It is unclear whether Assange will address his supporters at the embassy on Sunday, as has been reported. HeAssange has described the granting of political asylum by Ecuador as a "significant and historic victory".
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Ana Botella is first high-level official to say publicly that Spain would need financial aid from European Union The mayor of Madrid, a prominent member of Spain's ruling party, said on Friday it seemed inevitable that the central government would apply for some kind of international aid package as the country's borrowing costs soar. Ana Botella, wife of the former prime minister José Maria Aznar, is the first high-level official to say publicly that Spain would need a financial rescue. "There's no doubt about it. It's very probable that we're going to have to ask for help from the European Union," she told the Spanish news agency Europa Press. "It seems inevitable." Spain's recession-hit economy, shattered banking system and sky-high unemployment are at the centre of concerns over the eurozone as investors worry that a bailout of the bloc's fourth largest economy would stretch its rescue funds to breaking point. Prime minister Mariano Rajoy has said he would not take a decision on whether to apply for a new aid package, on top of a €100bn (£78bn) loan for the country's banks, until he knew what conditions would be attached. Bad loans rose to a record high in June as assets tied to a deflating property market soured further. In the month Spain sought a 100-billion-euro ($123.63-billion) €100bn European bailout for its struggling lenders, their non-performing loans rose to 9.42% of outstanding portfolios from 8.95% in May, central bank data showed on Friday. Loans that fell into arrears increased by €8.4bn to €164.4bn.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | UN announcement of Kofi Annan's replacement comes as Russian bid to lead an appeal for an end to Syrian conflict fails The United Nations has confirmed that Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi will replace Kofi Annan as peace envoy to Syria. UN deputy spokesman Eduardo del Buey announced on Friday that the former Algerian foreign minister and longtime UN official would succeed Annan as joint UN-Arab League envoy. Brahimi, 78,k has worked in several high-profile positions at the UN, gaining a reputation as a tough, independent negotiator in is work as envoy to Afghanistan, Iraq and Haiti. He helped negotiate the end of Lebanon's civil war. Brahimi is a member of the Elders, a group of former world leaders working for global peace. Annan announced his resignation this month after failing to achieve a temporary ceasefire during a six-month tenure. Meanwhile on Friday, Russia cancelled a hastily called meeting of key nations and international organisations which it had hoped would issue an appeal to the Syrian government and opposition to end the 19-month conflict and start political talks. Russia's UN ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, surprised the UN security council, which is bitterly divided over Syria, with the announcement on Thursday of the planned meeting. The initiative came after the security council decided to end the UN military observer mission in Syria and back a small new liaison office to support any future peace efforts. Russia and China have vetoed three western-backed security council resolutions that would have stepped up pressure on the Syrian government. The antagonism, especially between Russia and the US and key European nations, has intensified with each vetoed resolution. UN diplomats said Churkin's announcement that Russia was calling for a meeting of countries that agreed on guidelines for a Syrian-led political transition in Geneva in June looked like a political move to put Moscow in the driver's seat while sidestepping the security council. Russia's UN mission said Friday's meeting was cancelled at the request of some members of the Action Group for Syria, which includes the UN and Arab League chiefs, the five permanent security council nations (the US, Russia, China, France and Britain), Turkey, the European Union, and Iraq, Kuwait and Qatar.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Crew of prince's RAF Sea King saves two teenage girls who were dragged out to sea off Anglesey coast Two teenage girls are recovering after being rescued from the sea by a helicopter piloted by Prince William. A rip current dragged the girls out to sea off the coast of Anglesey while they were body boarding. Prince William's Sea King, Rescue 137, was landing when it received the emergency call. He took off again and was hovering the aircraft over the girls within 38 seconds, the Royal Air Force said. The girls, aged 13 and 16, from Herefordshire, had been on Cymyran beach, Rhosneigr. The 13-year-old was understood to be body boarding when her sister swam out to help her. One of the girls, who did not have a body board, was exhausted and dipping below the surface as the helicopter prepared to lower the winch. The winchman, Master Aircrew Harry Harrison, told the BBC: "When I got to her, the elder girl was clearly exhausted and was going under the water for what was the very last time." The girls were taken to Gwynedd hospital in Bangor for treatment. Harrison said: "We never know what we'll face when we're called out. Sometimes its just a twisted ankle or a broken bone, but this was one rescue where we truly did arrive in the nick of time and managed to save two young lives." The crew had been called to a similar incident at Rhosneigr minutes earlier when a child and three adults were carried out by a rip tide but managed to get safely on to rocks. The co-pilot, Flight Lieutenant 'Schmoo' Smith, said: "This was a remarkably swift rescue, taking around 38 seconds from take-off until we arrived on scene."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Consumer sentiment was at a three-month high in August but rising food prices from drought sent inflation expectations up US consumer sentiment improved in early August to the highest level in three months as sales at retailers and low mortgage rates spurred Americans to boost their buying plans, a survey showed on Friday. But concerns about rising food prices caused a jump in both short- and long-term inflation expectations, according to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey. The data reinforced the view that economic growth could pick up in the second half of the year but still be lackluster. That was reinforced by July's leading indicator. Growth and hiring were disappointing in the spring, but hiring picked up in July and consumers are now feeling more confident about spending, though they remain concerned about the economic outlook. With stubbornly high unemployment and a weaker global economic picture, some analysts have raised their expectations that the Federal Reserve could launch a new round of bond buying to help prop up the economy. "We've had this mixed bag from the economic data," said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati, Ohio. "We are all just kind of wondering 'Is this recovery real?'" The preliminary reading on the index on consumer sentiment rose to its highest level since May, at 73.6 from 72.3 last month, topping economists' forecasts for a slight uptick to 72.4. Americans were also more optimistic about the state of the economy, with the measure of current economic conditions rising to its highest level since January 2008 at 87.6 from 82.7. Purchasing plans were bolstered by cheap prices, and the measure of buying conditions for household durables rose to 140 from 130. Consumers' outlook cooled, with the expectations index slipping to 64.5 from 65.6, the lowest since December. The majority of households expected no income increase during the year ahead, while one-in-four thought the unemployment rate would rise. "People are still concerned about jobs, but they're seeing home prices stabilise so they're feeling better about that," said Gary Thayer, chief macro strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors in St Louis. US stocks were little changed in late morning trading, while the dollar hit a five-week high against the yen. Treasuries yields edged down but remained near three-month highs. Growth in personal spending is likely to be just under 2% into early next year, said survey director Richard Curtin. The one-year inflation expectation rose to the highest level since March at 3.6% from 3% as consumers worried about the impact a drought in the US midwest could have on food prices. The five-to-10-year inflation outlook also gained, to 3% from 2.7%. Separate data showed a gauge of future US economic activity improved in July on a drop in new claims for jobless benefits and an increase in housing permits. Still, the reading pointed to sluggish growth ahead. The Conference Board said its Leading Economic Index climbed 0.4% to 95.8 for July, reversing a 0.4% decline in June. The odds that the Fed will launch a third round of bond buying, known as quantitative easing, have risen to 60%, according to a Reuters poll released on Friday. The majority thought the central bank's next policy meeting in September was the most likely time for an announcement. The consensus was for $500bn in bond purchases, adding to the $2.3tn in assets the Fed has already bought. As the summer winds down, analysts are turning their attention to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech at a gathering in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in late August as having the potential to shed some light on the central bank's plans.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Amid worst West Nile outbreak of the year, health officials near Dallas are hoping for clear, dry weather to help aerial spray Aerial spraying to combat the West Nile virus will continue tonight across north Texas despite the concerns of residents worried about potential health risks posed by the insecticide. Dallas is the center of the worst West Nile outbreak in the US this year, which prompted local officials to declare a state of emergency on Wednesday and dispatch two airplanes to spray the city and surrounding areas last night. The planes left Dallas' Executive Airport as planned at 10pm last night but were only able to spray about 52,000 acres, just over half their target, because of rain. "We'll look at our weather patterns tonight and see if we can add to the remaining block. We have two planes coming in today. If we have good weather, we can get 124,000 acres every three-and-a-half hours with two planes, so four planes would give us right at a quarter of a million acres. So, weather permitting, we'll try to get that," Dallas County judge Clay Jenkins told WFAA.com. The area could be sprayed again in the coming days once the effectiveness of this week's efforts to reduce the mosquito population have been assessed.
Confirmed West Nile virus deaths in Dallas and surrounding counties have now reached 14, with over 230 cases. The Texas Department of State Health Services has recorded 509 cases and 20 deaths across Texas, compared with two fatalities last year. Texas is by far the worst-hit state, with more than half of all US cases, though news media today suggested that the virus is gaining a foothold in the Chicago region. At least 26 people have died across the nation, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reporting that it was aware of 693 human infections through the second week in August. The CDC said that six people have died in Louisiana. West Nile was discovered in the US in 1999. Instances of infection typically peak from late August to early September each year. Scientists believe it is transmitted to humans when mosquitoes bite infected birds, then people.
About 80% of humans do not become ill after a bite, but around one in five may develop flu-like symptoms. Less than 1% of victims develop severe infections that can cause neurological diseases. Some counties adjacent to the city of Dallas have opted out of the aerial spraying, though many are using ground-based pesticides. Cities such as New York, Houston and Sacramento have previously used aerial spraying. Houston, Texas' largest city, has done so every year since 2002. However, Dallas has not employed the tactic since 1966, which has helped breed local anxiety about the safety of the method. Council members and residents have expressed doubts but the mayor, Mike Rawlings, insisted at a media briefing yesterday that the Duet pesticide was safe. However, the mayor did concede this week that the pesticide can be harmful to useful insects, such as honey bees. It is a synthetic pyrethroid which imitates natural pesticides found in some chrysanthemums. "There's a lot of sentiment that people don't want this, and there's a fear of the unknown," he said. You have the science, the CDC and EPA and all of these cities across the United States that say this is OK."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Shootings by Afghan soldier and police officer add to rising tide of attacks on Nato troops welcomed by Taliban leader An Afghan soldier and police officer have turned their guns on foreign troops they work with, killing two and injuring several others, hours after the Taliban's leader boasted about his fighters' infiltration of government security forces and called for more attacks. Two US special forces soldiers were killed in western Farah province by a newly recruited member of the Afghan Local Police, shortly after they handed him a gun during an inauguration ceremony. "As soon as they gave the weapon to Ismail to begin training, suddenly he took the gun and opened fire toward the US soldiers," Farah provincial police chief Agha Noor Kemtoz told the Associated Press. Hours later, in a volatile corner of southern Kandahar province, an Afghan soldier opened fire on a group of Nato troops, but was shot before he could kill anyone, said Nato spokesman Major Martin Crighton. The attacker later died of his wounds. It was the second Friday in a row that there have been "insider attacks" on foreign soldiers. Last Friday, six US troops were killed, and there were other non-fatal attacks this week. Last Saturday, an Afghan policeman also shot dead nine of his fellow officers. Afghan and Nato officials have been desperately searching for a way to staunch the growing tide of these shootings, which are badly damaging morale on the critical mission to train Afghan forces as foreigners head home. There are intelligence agents undercover in many Afghan army units to seek out insurgent sympathisers, and Nato has created a system of "guardian angels" – soldiers who watch over fellow troops when they are with armed Afghan forces. Even so, the attacks have been increasing, with 31 this year so far, compared with 21 in all of 2011. They have killed 39 people, while in all of last year 35 died. The attacks were welcomed by Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar in his annual message marking Eid al-Fitr, the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. He also called on more security forces to turn against their allies. "Mujahideen have cleverly infiltrated in the ranks of the enemy according to the plan given to them last year ... they easily carry out decisive and co-ordinated attacks, inflicting heavy losses," the message, published online in English translation, said. "We expect others to display the same boldness and spirit." The leader of Nato and US forces in Afghanistan, General John Allen, attacked the Taliban statement as "insane language", and described the police and soldiers who turn on their allies as "the worst of humanity … Mullah Omar has issued an unmistakable message of death, hate and hopelessness for the Afghan people". Nato commanders argue that the attackers account for the tiniest portion of security forces, now more than 300,000 strong, and say many are driven by personal grudges rather than ideology. But infiltration might be easier to tackle systematically than the chance collision of personal problems and anger at western troops. And the shooters' motivation has no bearing on how the attacks affect sentiment both in Afghanistan and the countries that lose soldiers.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Punk band members Maria Alyokhina, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina Samutsevich jailed amid global protests Three members of the feminist punk band Pussy Riot have been found guilty of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred and sentenced to two years in a prison colony. Maria Alyokhina, 24, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 29, were handed the sentence by a judge in Moscow amid a wave of protests around the world. The three stared ahead defiantly from inside a glass cage, their wrists shackled in handcuffs, as the verdict was read. Supporters and opposition activists blamed the case against the women – and the tough sentence – on Vladimir Putin. "Whatever Putin wants, Putin gets. That is the only thing to say," Tolokonnikova's husband, Pyotr Verzilov, said on leaving the court. Hundreds of people, many wearing Pussy Riot T-shirts, gathered outside the court to protest against the verdict. "We're trying to remain peaceful," said Maya Trapeznikova, 25. "But many are reaching their limits and waiting for the order to fight," she said of the growing movement against Putin. The judge said in the verdict that the three band members "committed hooliganism driven by religious hatred" and offended religious believers. The trio were arrested in March after a guerrilla performance in Moscow's main cathedral calling for the Virgin Mary to protect Russia against Vladimir Putin, who was elected to a new term as Russia's president two weeks later. Russian police have rounded up pro-Pussy Riot protesters, including the former world chess champion Garry Kasparov and leftist opposition group leader Sergei Udaltsov after one of the most closely watched court cases in recent Russian history. Hundreds of Pussy Riot supporters filled a narrow street outside the court where the verdict was delivered, chanting "Russia without Putin!" amid a heavy police presence. The case has attracted international attention as an emblem of Russia's intolerance of dissent. It also underlines the vast influence of the Russian Orthodox church. Although church and state are formally separate, the church sees itself as the heart of Russian national identity and critics say its strength effectively makes it a quasi-state entity. Celebrities including Paul McCartney, Madonna and Björk have called for the women to be freed and protests timed for just before the verdict or soon afterward were planned in more than three dozen cities worldwide. Prosecutors had asked for three-year sentences, and Putin said he hoped the sentencing was not "too severe". Before Friday's proceedings began, the defence lawyer Nikolai Polozov said the women "hope for an acquittal but they are ready to continue to fight". The case has come after several laws were passed to crack down on opposition, including one that raised the fine for taking part in unauthorised demonstrations 150-fold to 300,000 rubles (about £6,000). Another measure requires non-government organisations that engage in vaguely defined political activity and receive funding from abroad to register as "foreign agents".
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Where have all the cowboys gone? Sometime after Terminator, the machines took over (and Arnold left the movies behind, for a while). Stallone's latest gets the gang back together – a little older, a little softer – and tries to recapture some of the glory of that late, great era in American action films
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Once peripheral, Rand has veered close to the mainstream, garnering unprecedented influence thanks to US politicians As an atheist Ayn Rand did not approve of shrines but the hushed, air-conditioned headquarters which bears her name acts as a secular version. Her walnut desk occupies a position of honour. She smiles from a gallery of black and white photos, young in some, old in others. A bronze bust, larger than life, tilts her head upward, jaw clenched, expression resolute. The Ayn Rand Institute in Irvine, California, venerates the late philosopher as a prophet of unfettered capitalism who showed America the way. A decade ago it struggled to have its voice heard. Today its message booms all the way to Washington DC. It was a transformation which counted Paul Ryan, chairman of the House budget committee, as a devotee. He gave Rand's novel, Atlas Shrugged, as Christmas presents and hailed her as "the reason I got into public service". Then, last week, he was selected as the Republican vice-presidential nominee and his enthusiasm seemed to evaporate. In fact, the backtracking began earlier this year when Ryan said as a Catholic his inspiration was not Rand's "objectivism" philosophy but Thomas Aquinas'. The flap has illustrated an acute dilemma for the institute. Once peripheral, it has veered close to mainstream, garnering unprecedented influence. The Tea Party has adopted Rand as a seer and waves placards saying "We should shrug" and "Going Galt", a reference to an Atlas Shrugged character named John Galt. Prominent Republicans channel Rand's arguments in promises to slash taxes and spending and to roll back government. But, like Ryan, many publicly renounce the controversial Russian emigre as a serious influence. Where, then, does that leave the institute, the keeper of her flame? Given Rand's association with plutocrats – she depicted captains of industry as "producers" besieged by parasitic "moochers" – the headquarters are unexpectedly modest. Founded in 1985 three years after Rand's death, the institution moved in 2002 from Marina del Rey, west of Los Angeles, to a drab industrial park in Irvine, 90 minutes south, largely to save money. It shares a nondescript two-storey building with financial services and engineering companies. There is little hint of Galt, the character who symbolises the power and glory of the human mind, in the bland corporate furnishings. But the quotations and excerpts adorning the walls echo a mission which drove Rand and continues to inspire followers as an urgent injunction. "The demonstration of a new moral philosophy: the morality of rational self-interest." These, said Onkar Ghate, the institute's vice-president, are relatively good times for Randians. "Our primary mission is to advance awareness of her ideas and promote her philosophy. I must say, it's going very well." On that point, if none other, conservatives and progressives may agree. Thirty years after her death Rand, as a radical intellectual and political force, is going very well indeed. Her novel Atlas Shrugged, a 1,000 page assault on big government, social welfare and altruism first published in 1957, is reportedly selling more than 400,000 copies per year and is being made into a movie trilogy. Its radical author, who also penned The Fountainhead and other novels and essays, is the subject of a recent documentary and spate of books. To critics who consider Rand's philosophy that "of the psychopath, a misanthropic fantasy of cruelty, revenge and greed", her posthumous success is alarming. Relatively little attention however has been paid to the institute which bears her name and works, often behind the scenes, to direct her legacy and shape right-wing debate. "We are providing the intellectual ammunition," said Ghate, 42. "We are helping the Tea Party and others to understand what is going on in America, and to understand what the alternatives are. This is an exciting time. A tremendous opportunity." Intellectuals and policymakers largely scorned or ignored Rand in the 1950s. In the 1960s she was discovered by university students drawn to her radicalism and emphasis on self-reliance. Ayn, they learned, rhymed with mine. Her books became best-sellers and filtered down to high schools. However, politicians continued to shun her economic and social libertarianism. Democrats resented her attacks on government activism. Republicans chafed at her attacks on Christianity, the Vietnam war and Ronald Reagan, whom she considered a medieval throwback for mixing religion and politics. A decade ago, said Ghate, the institute struggled for attention. "We were knocking on doors and people were not answering." In the aftermath of 9/11 that began to change. Rand had warned of "Islamist totalitarianism" after the 1979 Iranian embassy crisis, a warning which seemed prescient to the neo-conservatives who cheered the Bush administration's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The institute, in fact, turned against the wars on the grounds attempted nation-building and democracy-spreading were "misguided altruism" which did not advance US interests. This iconoclastic critique from the right did not change US policy but gained the keepers of Rand's flame respect and credibility, said Ghate, a Canadian of German and Indian parentage with a PhD in philosophy. With annual revenue of around $8m and 40 staff the institute burrowed deeper into national consciousness, running an undergraduate degree course, sending hundreds of thousands of Rand's books to schools and drawing 20,000 entrants to essay contests with $10,000 prizes. (Last year's entries surged to 29,000.) And then, in February 2009, came Rick Santelli's televised rant against the Obama administration's mortgage bailout plan, a tirade which endorsed Rand and galvanised scattered anti-government protests into the Tea Party movement. The institute took off along with it. "There is no formal relationship between us and the Tea Party but we view them as a good phenomenon, a healthy reaction on the part of Americans," said Ghate. Tea Partyers were not the backward dimwits caricatured in the media. "They read and explore ideas. And they think America is headed in the wrong direction. This is a market for us." The institute supplied intellectual rigour in the form of speakers, commentators and publications to the Tea Party's legitimate "emotional response", said Ghate, whose office has portraits of Rand and Aristotle. "Obama is taking us further away from capitalism: look at the controls over the financial system, or Obamacare. Instead of freeing the economy he is distorting the market." He rejected the mainstream view that lax financial regulation fuelled the economic crisis and blamed excessive regulation and spending. This message has found echo in Paul Ryan, a Tea Party favourite who as the senior Republican on the House budget committee proposes sweeping cuts which could be enacted under a Romney administration. "His budget proposals are better than what anyone else is proposing but I don't think they're good," said Ghate, who wished Ryan would go even further to end the "legalised theft" that is the social welfare system. "Taking money from someone who has earned it and giving it someone who hasn't." A trickier problem for both sides is Ayn Rand's vocal support for abortion rights and hostility to religion – she considered faith in God a psychological disorder. Liberal foes, said Ghate, tried to use that as wedge between the institute and Tea Party social conservatives. Some in the movement recoiled upon discovering Rand's Godlessness, he said, but the de facto alliance would survive. "The Tea Party has tried to keep its focus on economic issues. The Republicans and Democrats pander more to religion." Rather than assail Ryan as a sellout who had abandoned Rand the institute's vice-president struck a conciliatory tone. "It's tempting for any politician to backtrack. His enthusiasm [for Rand] might be a bit more muted than before … but he is still influenced by her." The institute, said Jennifer Burns, author of Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right, was proving more pragmatic than its late prophet. "It has evolved very rapidly in the past 10 years and has made efforts to become part of the broader dialogue. It recognises, as Ayn Rand did not, that if you don't compromise you limit yourself to a very limited audience." In the same vein politicians like Ryan shunned her electorally toxic strands. "In her pure form she'll never be that powerful. Her most successful followers are those who have taken her ideas and blended them with others."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Al-Qaida offshoot, the Islamic State of Iraq, suspected to be behind string of attacks across Iraq ahead of Eid al-Fitr holiday Iraqi officials say a string of attacks have killed at least 93 people, as the extent of the violence grows clearer and mourners start to bury their dead. The attacks began early on Thursday in the north of Iraq and ended with deadly bomb explosions near busy markets, restaurants and ice-cream parlours shortly before midnight. It was Iraq's deadliest day in more than three weeks. The attacks seemed intended to strike fear into Iraqis and undermine faith in the Shia-led government's security measures ahead of what was supposed to be a Eid al-Fitr holiday weekend. More than 190 people have been killed in violence across Iraq since the start of August, showing that insurgents led by al-Qaida's Iraqi franchise remain a lethal force eight months after the last US troops left the country. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Co-ordinated bombings and related attacks are a favourite tactic of the al-Qaida offshoot, known as the Islamic State of Iraq. Among the higher casualty numbers disclosed on Friday were 21 people killed when a car bomb detonated shortly before midnight near an ice-cream shop in Baghdad's predominantly Shia Zafaraniya district, according to police and hospital officials. Another bomb exploded near an ice-cream parlour and vegetable stalls in the capital's Sadr City, another poor Shia district. A black, mangled car sat in the middle of the street. Broken chairs and blood-stained fixtures littered the pavement. That blast killed 14, the authorities said. Officials are tightening security ahead of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. They are hoping to thwart further violence as crowds gather in public places such as parks, shrines and mosques to mark the occasion. Thursday's attacks were the most deadly in weeks. On 23 July, a string of co-ordinated bombings and shootings left more than 100 dead.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Stamper did well in the taekwondo, but Hammer the cyclist and Mallet the swimmer clearly entered the wrong events Missing the Olympics? Getting withdrawal symptoms from that golden glory? Headline writers certainly are, with one particular protagonist grabbing the front page. Ticking every box, and fitting in them beautifully too, the brevity and onomatopoeia of Bolt is a dream, even though there are arguably limits on how many times "lightning" can "strike". But with such a surname, was Usain already destined for success? This prompts a question. How can your name affect behaviour, how others perceive you, and therefore your chosen career? Looking around the Guardian offices, there are a few examples to whom this might apply. If you're born with names such as Hodsdon, Adharanand, or dare I say Kimpton, it's a reasonable assumption that you've probably spent quite a lot of time since childhood having to ensure your name is correctly written. Could this have engendered a robust attitude to language? Quite possibly. But then again there are, within a short distance, three very correct and able Smiths among us. This is not a study in onomatology, though the Smiths in turn may well have been descended from extremely skilled craftsmen, and directed that skill towards the written word. However, I will admit William Shakespeare/Shakspere/Shaksper somewhat ruins that theory. If the evidence is right, the Bard was clearly rubbish at spelling. Perhaps he should have tried the javelin. However, with this subject in mind, let's concentrate on the London Games. Surnames may be acquired by accident, sometimes design or indeed history's mis-spelling, but once inherited, can a name affect an athlete's performance? Take Beth Tweddle for example, Britain's pioneering gymnast, at long last rewarded with a bronze. Tweddle undoubtedly achieved her success through years of hard work and natural talent, but for me her name already suggests something bendy and flexible like a pipe cleaner. And who in the Games could be better named as an exponent of taekwondo than Team GB's 68kg-class Martin Stamper, obviously born to be a fighter despite narrowly missing out on a medal? Now imagine, with arms as strong as her heart, how well would heroic, tearful judo silver medallist Gemma Gibbons have done by competing on the uneven bars as well as in the martial art? Perhaps British swimmer Craig Gibbons should also have taken a turn on the rings? Victoria Pendleton came so close to perfection (if only her name had been Pedalton, or for marketing purposes, Peddleton). And Bradley Wiggins? The cool surname of the mod star of cycling already, in my imagination, seems to evoke sounds of cogs whirring and gears changing. Laura Trott, British track cycling's new darling and double gold winner, is clearly a gifted cyclist, but if only she'd also had a go at the equestrian events. She is one of three Trotts who competed in the Games, none of whom rode horses or ran, although clearly born to move fast. But fans of Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses fans will doubtlessly be delighted at the success of USA's Deedee Trotter, who powered round the track in the 400m relay. However, it's probably best not to even mention stumbling Bulgarian hurdler Vania Stambolova. London 2012 was simply littered with athletes who nearly did the right event. The USA's Laura Hammer didn't win in the track cycling – she should have thrown herself into a field event alongside another also-ran/swam, French swimmer Gregory Mallet. They were not joined in the field by another unfulfilled chucker: the American Wallace Spearmon instead chose to be left behind by the Jamaican sprinters and came fourth in the 200m. The 100m runner Carmelita Jeter got medals, but If my O-level French is correct, her surname also throws up a question. Meanwhile young Brit Laura Weightman, coached by Steve Cram on the track, has great potential, but how about giving those barbells a lift? You never know. There were four Walkers in the Games, among them Jamaican hurdler Melaine, and USA pole vaulter Brad, but did they live up to their name? Not quite. Perhaps they should have followed in the fast footsteps of Jared Tallent – clearly made for any event. The Australian wiggled his hips to silver in the 40km walk. And let's not forget Colombia's athlete Sandra Arenas who clearly could have competed in any venue. Todd Skipworth rowed for Australia, but mate, with your name, why not give the triple jump a go? Perhaps he preferred to compete alongside his more aptly named colleague on the water, Thomas Swann. New Zealand's Jim Turner was perhaps the most appropriately chosen of several Turners – he sailed in Weymouth's choppy sea. Sailing and rowing aside, Britain didn't too well in the water. I really felt for long-suffering fourth-placed Keri-Anne Payne in the outdoor swim, for obvious reasons. Perhaps she was put off by the winner, Hungary's Éva Risztov, who has a reputation of not being afraid to use her elbows (as much as her wrists?) against competitors. Nor could the murky waters of the Serpentine have been of much assistance Britain's Daniel Fogg. Even if you are appropriately named it doesn't guarantee success. UK women's basketball didn't win a medal despite having Chantelle Handy in the team. However, our hockey women did get bronze with Ashleigh Ball there. See what I'm saying? Other questions however trouble me. Was France's equestrian Kevin Staut a bit heavy on his horse? Did the scientifically designed skintight suits help sporting success? If so, how did USA athlete Amanda Smock do? And what about the commercialisation of the Games? Was there a gold medal for runner Marcel Tschopp (till you drop) of Liechtenstein? What are your name theories? Don't be too serious. Looking forward to more at the Paralympics? For me, after all the highs, lows, triumphs and disappointments of the Olympics, Usain Bolt – physically, nominally and in personality – still occupies his own dimension. The name and the man are truly matched.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Police chief says officers opened fire and killed 34 strikers because they were being charged at with dangerous weapons South African police killed 34 people at the Marikana platinum mine when they opened fire to protect themselves from armed protesters, the country's police commissioner has said. Riah Phiyega told a news conference that her officers acted to protect their own lives after strikers armed with "dangerous weapons" charged. She said the strikers had not dispersed earlier, despite police use of water cannons and stun grenades. Police have been accused of a massacre after shooting at the mine workers on Thursday in one of the deadliest days of protest in South Africa since the end of apartheid. President Jacob Zuma is returning from a regional summit in neighbouring Mozambique to address the crisis that is seen as deepening the rift between his scandal-plagued ruling party and an increasingly angry electorate confronting massive unemployment, poverty and inequality. In scenes that evoked memories of some of the country's darkest days, national television showed pictures of police in helmets and body armour shooting at workers amid shouting, panic and clouds of dust at the Lonmin platinum mine. After three minutes of gunfire, bodies littered the ground in pools of blood. Newspaper reporter Poloko Tau tweeted from the scene: "Auto guns creacking [sic] and cocked like 100 at a time, scary … warzone down here, 1st shot fired … journalist running, diving and hiding amid shots, water canon spewing water at the strikers … my contact has just been shot dead …" The deaths came after a week of turmoil at the Marikana mine that had already seen 10 people killed, including two police officers and two security guards. Lonmin, the world's third biggest platinum producer, was forced to suspend production at the mine, about 60 miles north-west of Johannesburg, after what it called an illegal strike escalated into an alleged turf war between rival unions. His voice shaking with anger, the union leader Joseph Mathunjwa on Thursday accused the Lonmin management of colluding with a rival union to orchestrate what he described as a massacre. Mathunjwa, president of the militant Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), told the eNews channel: "We have to send condolences to those families whose members were brutally murdered by a lack of co-operation from management. We have done our bit. If the management had changed their commitment, surely lives could have been saved." Zuma on Thursday condemned the killings but made no reference to the handling of the situation by the police. "We are shocked and dismayed at this senseless violence," he said. "We believe there is enough space in our democratic order for any dispute to be resolved through dialogue without any breaches of the law or violence." The opposition called for an independent investigation. Helen Zille, leader of the Democratic Alliance, said: "We call on union leaders, the police and everyone else involved to immediately work towards a de-escalation of the conflict. All action must be taken to avoid further bloodshed. "An urgent independent investigation is required to determine exactly what happened; and who is responsible for this massacre. The families of everyone involved, and indeed the nation, deserve to know how and why this bloodshed occurred." Roger Phillimore, the chairman of Lonmin, said: "The South African police service have been in charge of public order and safety on the ground since the violence between competing labour factions erupted over the weekend, claiming the lives of eight of our employees and two police officers. "It goes without saying that we deeply regret the further loss of life in what is clearly a public order rather than labour relations-associated matter." The violence reportedly flared when police laying out barricades of barbed wire were outflanked by some of an estimated 3,000 miners massed on a rocky outcrop near the mine. Witnesses claimed that some of the miners were armed with pistols and fired first, while also charging the police with machetes and sticks. The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) said: "According to a Sapa [South African Press Association] report, police tried to disperse striking workers gathered on top of a hill, wielding pangas and chanting war songs. It ended in a three-minute shootout between the two groups, after police fired teargas and then used a water cannon to disperse the strikers, who retaliated by firing live ammunition at the police." The protests began last week when workers demanded a pay increase to 12,500 rand (£976) a month. The action turned deadly when the AMCU clashed with South Africa's dominant National Union of Mineworkers (NUM). The NUM rejected the charge of collusion with mine bosses. Spokesman Lesiba Seshoka said: "We are not surprised by his allegation … It is not true. Everyone can see through these lies." Seshoka blamed the AMCU – which has been poaching NUM members in platinum mines – for instigating the bloodshed. "These people said today they want to die on the hilltop. They said they will bring their children to die there. That is why we say the ringleaders must be arrested." There has been growing frustration with the governing African National Congress and its mainstream union allies for moving too slowly to deliver wage increases and public services. Radical and militant voices are making gains in some areas. Patrick Craven, the national spokesman for Cosatu, which is aligned to the ANC, said it would "convene an urgent meeting of the unions' leaderships to discuss what is emerging as a co-ordinated political strategy to use intimidation and violence, manipulated by disgruntled former union leaders, in a concerted drive to create breakaway 'unions' and divide and weaken the trade union movement". He added: "Cosatu calls upon all workers to remain vigilant but calm in the face of the most serious challenge to workers' unity and strength for many years." South Africa is home to four-fifths of the world's known platinum reserves but has been hit by union militancy and a sharp drop in the price of the precious metal this year. At least three people were killed in fighting in January that led to a six-week closure of the world's biggest platinum mine, run by Impala Platinum. Such incidents are seen as tarnishing South Africa's reputation among investors. This week's violence has forced Lonmin to freeze production at all its South African operations, which account for 12% of global platinum output. The company's London-listed shares fell more than 7% on Thursday. A spokesman at Lonmin's head office in London confirmed strikers had been served with an ultimatum to return to work on Thursday or face dismissal, but denied that might inflame the situation. "The mine cannot operate without the rock drill operators," he said. "The company tried every avenue it could to negotiate a settlement and we were left with no option."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Prime minister's office says Shimon Peres should not speak out on Iran as he is too prone to mistakes Aides to Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu have launched a stinging rebuke to the country's president, Shimon Peres, after he said Israel should not act alone in launching military action against Iran's nuclear programme. "Shimon Peres forgets what the role of the president of Israel is," officials from Netanyahu's office were quoted in the Israeli media as saying. The aides offered examples from the past when they said Peres's judgment had been wrong. The row is a stark example of the sharp differences at the heart of Israel's political, military and intelligence establishment over the merits and dangers of an early unilateral military strike on Iran. Speculation has intensified recently that Netanyahu and the Israeli defence minister, Ehud Barak, are considering launching a strike this autumn, before the US presidential election. In an interview on Israeli television, Peres said: "It is clear to us we cannot do it on our own. We can only delay [Iran's progress]. Thus it's clear to us that we need to go together with America. There are questions of co-operation and timetables, but as severe as the danger is, at least this time we're not alone." He said he was confident the US would take action, but added: "My estimate is that they will not do this before the elections, which are more than 80 days away." Following the remarks, a Netanyahu aide cited three previous occasions when he said Peres had been wrong. The first was after the Oslo Accords were signed in 1993 when Peres "thought there would be a new Middle East". The second was following Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005 when "he thought there would be peace … but in reality we got missiles". The aide continued: "But Peres's biggest mistake was in 1981 when he opposed [Israel's] bombing of the Iraqi reactor. Luckily, prime minister Menachem Begin ignored him." Peres later stood by his comments, saying: "I say what is in my heart with a loud and clear voice." The president's views echoed those of many former and current military, intelligence and political figures in Israel. US officials have also made repeated efforts to dissuade Netanyahu and Barak from unilateral action. Earlier this week, the US chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Martin Dempsey, said Israel did not have the capacity to eliminate Iran's nuclear programme. "I may not know about all of their capabilities. But I think it's a fair characterisation to say that they could delay but not destroy Iran's nuclear capabilities," he told reporters. Some observers believe the current frenzied speculation about a possible Israeli strike this autumn is aimed at forcing an unequivocal public statement in the coming weeks from President Obama on America's willingness to take military action against Iran should diplomacy and sanctions fail. Peres's intervention could be a decisive moment, according to one commentator. "The president's stance, along with the stance of the top security and intelligence officials, was apparently the final chord, the tiebreaker if you will, in the debate between the supporters and opponents of an Israeli strike," wrote Shimon Shiffer in daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. "Netanyahu, who declared that he and only he would decide whether to attack and when, will now have to reconsider his firm stance … Now it remains only to wait and see what Netanyahu will write in his memoirs about … why he apparently refrained at the last moment from giving the order." According to an opinion poll by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv university, 60% of Israeli Jews are against a strike on Iran without US co-operation. Eleven per cent strongly support unilateral action by Israel.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Prime minister's office says Shimon Peres should not speak out on Iran as he is too prone to mistakes The faultlines among Israel's leaders over whether to take unilateral military action against Iran's nuclear capability have deepened, with a prime ministerial aide launching a stinging public rebuke to President Shimon Peres after he said that the country should not act alone. "Shimon Peres forgets what the role of the president of Israel is," an official from Binyamin Netanyahu's office was quoted in the Israeli media as saying. The row – a stark example of the sharp disagreements at the heart of Israel's political, military and intelligence establishment over the issue – came as Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said Israel's existence was "an insult to all humanity". In a speech to mark al-Quds Day on the last Friday of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Ahmadinejad told a rally in Tehran that "the Zionist regime and the Zionists are a cancerous tumour" and warned against "one cell of them [being] left in one inch of [Palestinian] land in the future". He added: "The nations of the region will soon finish off the usurper Zionists in the Palestinian land … A new Middle East will definitely be formed. With the grace of God and help of the nations, in the new Middle East there will be no trace of the Americans and Zionists." The Iranian president has traditionally used al-Quds Day, on which rallies in support of the Palestinian people are held in many Muslim countries, to deliver invective against Israel. His words will inevitably be used to bolster arguments in favour of military action to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran. Speculation has intensified recently that Netanyahu and defence minister Ehud Barak are considering launching action this autumn, before the US presidential election. In an interview on Israeli television, Peres said: "It is clear to us we cannot do it on our own. We can only delay [Iran's progress]. Thus it's clear to us that we need to go together with America. There are questions of co-operation and timetables, but as severe as the danger is, at least this time we're not alone." He said he was confident that the US would take action, but added: "My estimate is that they will not do this before the elections, which are more than 80 days away." Following the remarks, Netanyahu's office openly attacked the president's judgment, suggesting three previous occasions when it had been wrong. The first, according to an aide quoted in the Israeli media, was after the Oslo accords were signed in 1993, when Peres "thought there would be a new Middle East". The second was following Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005 when "he thought there would be peace … but in reality we got missiles". The aide continued: "But Peres's biggest mistake was in 1981 when he opposed [Israel's] bombing of the Iraqi reactor. Luckily, prime minister Menachem Begin ignored him." Peres later stood by his comments, saying: "I say what is in my heart with a loud and clear voice." The president's views echoed those of many former and current military, intelligence and political figures in Israel. US officials have also made repeated efforts to dissuade Netanyahu and Barak from unilateral action. Earlier this week, the US chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Martin Dempsey, said that Israel did not have the capacity to eliminate Iran's nuclear programme. "I may not know about all of their capabilities. But I think it's a fair characterisation to say that they could delay but not destroy Iran's nuclear capabilities," he told reporters. Some observers believe that the current frenzied speculation about a possible Israeli strike this autumn is aimed at forcing an unequivocal public statement in the coming weeks from President Barack Obama on America's willingness to take military action against Iran, should diplomacy and sanctions fail. According to an opinion poll by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University, 60% of Israeli Jews are against a strike on Iran without US co-operation. Eleven per cent strongly support unilateral action by Israel.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | WikiLeaks founder spends comfortable night at Ecuadorean embassy in London as protesters plan show of solidarity The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange spent a comfortable night in the Ecuadorean embassy in London after the South American country's decision to offer him asylum, and is said to be "doing all right", according to a diplomatic source. More than a dozen Metropolitan police officers stood guard outside the redbrick Knightsbridge mansion block on Friday morning, accompanied by a handful of his supporters who are understood to be planning a show of solidarity and direct action tonight in protest at the British government's treatment of Assange. A strong international media presence remained behind barriers outside, where gutters were full of beer cans and coffee cups. One supporter, Tristan Woodwards, said he had spent the night camped out opposite the embassy to show sympathy. "I'm here to support Julian Assange and WikiLeaks and to show my disgust at the British government's threat to a sovereign nation's embassy," he said. "It's completely wrong. People talk about the [assault] allegations, but [the UK government's reaction] seems over the top for someone who's supposed to have committed a crime." Another supporter, Tammy Samede, said she had decided to keep watch on the embassy to make sure the government acted in accordance with international law. "To be honest, I'm not a fan of the British government for a lot reasons," she said. "But they're using the need to question him to get him out of here and get him to Sweden, who will extradite him to the US, who will probably imprison him forever or execute him." Samede said that while the women who had made the assault allegations had every right to due process, the case should be dealt with "in the proper manner and not in the political manner". She said Assange had offered to answer questions by videolink, but British authorities seemed unwilling to let him. Asked how long she would keep vigil, she said: "It's not the most comfortable place, but standing up for what's right is never comfortable. That's why [Assange] is stuck in a room without a window in the embassy."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Members of feminist punk band Pussy Riot have been sentenced to two years in jail over anti-Putin protest at Moscow cathedral. Follow the latest news and reaction here
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Get the latest news and reaction as feminist punk band Pussy Riot await a court verdict that could see three of their members jailed for participating in a protest in a cathedral
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