Washington Informer
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KABUL (AP) -- U.S. Marines swooped down behind Taliban lines in helicopters and Osprey aircraft Friday in the first offensive since President Barack Obama announced an American troop surge.
About 1,000 Marines and 150 Afghan troops were taking part in "Operation Cobra's Anger" in a bid to disrupt Taliban supply and communications lines in the Now Zad Valley of Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, the scene of heavy fighting last summer, according to Marine spokesman Maj. William Pelletier.
Hundreds of troops from the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marines and the Marine reconnaissance unit Task Force Raider dropped by helicopters and MV-22 Osprey aircraft in the northern end of the valley while a second, larger Marine force pushed northward from the main Marine base in the town of Now Zad, Pelletier said.
About 1,000 Marines and 150 Afghan troops were taking part in "Operation Cobra's Anger" in a bid to disrupt Taliban supply and communications lines in the Now Zad Valley of Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, the scene of heavy fighting last summer, according to Marine spokesman Maj. William Pelletier.
Hundreds of troops from the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marines and the Marine reconnaissance unit Task Force Raider dropped by helicopters and MV-22 Osprey aircraft in the northern end of the valley while a second, larger Marine force pushed northward from the main Marine base in the town of Now Zad, Pelletier said.
Forward Operating Base Shank, Afghanistan (AP) -- Veterans of Iraq recall rolling to war along asphalted highways, sweltering in flat scrublands and chatting with city-wise university graduates connected to the wider world.
Now fighting in Afghanistan, U.S. soldiers invariably encounter illiterate farmers who may never have talked to an American as they slog into remote villages on dirt tracks through bitterly cold, snow-streaked mountains.
"Before deploying here we were given training on language, culture, everything. I thought that since I was an Iraq combat veteran, I didn't need any of that stuff. I was wrong. Both countries may be Muslim but this is a totally different place," says Sgt. Michael McCann, returning from a patrol in the east-central province of Logar.
Now fighting in Afghanistan, U.S. soldiers invariably encounter illiterate farmers who may never have talked to an American as they slog into remote villages on dirt tracks through bitterly cold, snow-streaked mountains.
"Before deploying here we were given training on language, culture, everything. I thought that since I was an Iraq combat veteran, I didn't need any of that stuff. I was wrong. Both countries may be Muslim but this is a totally different place," says Sgt. Michael McCann, returning from a patrol in the east-central province of Logar.
Artwork called, Symbols of Peace, made from bullet casings found on the streets of Liberia, represent one way The Center for Peace Education raises money to alleviate ongoing turmoil in the war-torn nation. Photo by Yoko Shimada In October, the Liberian national hosted several fundraisers in the Washington metropolitan area, to promote the Center for Peace Education, a nonprofit that he established to teach peace education throughout the Liberian school system.
“The war in Liberia is not necessarily over,†Benda, 39, said.
PORT-AU-PRINCE (NNPA) - Wadneicia may never know how blessed she was to open her eyes on January 20 in Saint Pierre Square, on the ground, lying on old packing boxes. It was 9:00 am when Joane Kerez, 20 years old, gave birth to her first child under a cloth tarpaulin with only her mother assisting her.
All around, people went about their business, though curious onlookers crowded the small space just six feet square in size. "I would have rather been somewhere else, in a cleaner place without all those people looking at my body," says Kerez, embarrassed at the lack of modesty.
All around, people went about their business, though curious onlookers crowded the small space just six feet square in size. "I would have rather been somewhere else, in a cleaner place without all those people looking at my body," says Kerez, embarrassed at the lack of modesty.
Lansara Koroma, right, founder and executive director of the International Forum for the Rights of Black People with shop owner Ishmael Donzo. Courtesy Photo By Abdul R. Sulay of the Philadelphia TribuneAfter the attempted bombing of a passenger plane by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian national, the question arises again within the African immigrant community. According to the U.S. Justice Department, Abdulmutallab, 23, was charged in a federal criminal complaint with attempting to destroy Northwest Airlines passenger flight 253.
The U.S. government will reduce the amount of money it spends on American contractors and nongovernmental organizations working in Pakistan this year, even as Washington begins to spend the first tranche of a new $7.5 billion aid package in that country, according to a report from the State Department.
Instead, more of the money will go to Pakistani NGOs and contractors, a move that has raised concerns among U.S. development workers. The document, the "Pakistan Assistance Strategy Report," was sent to Congress last week and outlines how the State Department plans to spend and oversee the aid package.
It calls for spending $3.5 billion on what it calls high-impact, high-visibility infrastructure programs, particularly in energy and agriculture; $2 billion on humanitarian and social services; and $2 billion on governance, security and legal institutions. The report also said the United States will rely more on Pakistani public accounting firms to monitor that money.
Instead, more of the money will go to Pakistani NGOs and contractors, a move that has raised concerns among U.S. development workers. The document, the "Pakistan Assistance Strategy Report," was sent to Congress last week and outlines how the State Department plans to spend and oversee the aid package.
It calls for spending $3.5 billion on what it calls high-impact, high-visibility infrastructure programs, particularly in energy and agriculture; $2 billion on humanitarian and social services; and $2 billion on governance, security and legal institutions. The report also said the United States will rely more on Pakistani public accounting firms to monitor that money.
A top UN official recently announced the “great progress†made in Zimbabwe’s road to humanitarian recovery, following a decades-old economic decline.
“It has been refreshing to see great progress in so many aspects that worried us in February. I trust this positive trend will continue,†Catherine Bragg, UN assistant secretary general for humanitarian affairs said.
President Robert Mugabe Courtesy Photo
The United Nations asked for additional funds, $378 million dollars (256 million euros) in aid for 2010, saying the humanitarian situation in the country remains “fragileâ€.
Bragg met Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on Wednesday and government ministers. She is expected to meet President Robert Mugabe this week.
Since the formation of the unity government of one-time rivals Mugabe and Tsvangirai, the former opposition leader, hospitals have re-opened and basic services have improved.
“It has been refreshing to see great progress in so many aspects that worried us in February. I trust this positive trend will continue,†Catherine Bragg, UN assistant secretary general for humanitarian affairs said.
President Robert Mugabe Courtesy PhotoBragg met Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on Wednesday and government ministers. She is expected to meet President Robert Mugabe this week.
Since the formation of the unity government of one-time rivals Mugabe and Tsvangirai, the former opposition leader, hospitals have re-opened and basic services have improved.
The Indian Government through its Department of Commerce is investigating rice exports to Ghana and some 20 other countries.
Confidential documents cited by an independent special overseas reporter point out that the investigations seek to take suitable measures to make sure that future rice allocation for export to what the India government described as "friendly and needy countries", which included Ghana and Sierra Leone was not diverted.
India's opposition in Parliament during a recent debate noted that the shocking allegations and maneuverings by government officials in India and other countries should not be swept under the carpet.
Confidential documents cited by an independent special overseas reporter point out that the investigations seek to take suitable measures to make sure that future rice allocation for export to what the India government described as "friendly and needy countries", which included Ghana and Sierra Leone was not diverted.
India's opposition in Parliament during a recent debate noted that the shocking allegations and maneuverings by government officials in India and other countries should not be swept under the carpet.
Proposed legislation would impose the death penalty for some gay Ugandans, and their family and friends could face up to seven years in jail if they fail to report them to authorities. Even landlords could be imprisoned for renting to homosexuals. Gay rights activists believe the bill fosters hatred against homosexuals. Many also believe the bill is part of a continent-wide backlash because Africa's gay community is becoming more vocal.
“It’s a question of visibility,†said David Cato, who became an activist after he was beaten up four times, arrested twice, fired from his teaching job and outed in the press because he is gay. "When we come out and ask for our rights, they pass laws against us."
Gay rights activists say the legislation is likely to pass. But the bill is still being debated and could undergo changes before a vote, which has not yet been set.
The Ugandan legislation in its current form would mandate a death sentence for active homosexuals living with HIV or in cases of same-sex rape. "Serial offenders" also could face capital punishment, but the legislation does not define the term. Anyone convicted of a homosexual act faces life imprisonment.
“It’s a question of visibility,†said David Cato, who became an activist after he was beaten up four times, arrested twice, fired from his teaching job and outed in the press because he is gay. "When we come out and ask for our rights, they pass laws against us."
Gay rights activists say the legislation is likely to pass. But the bill is still being debated and could undergo changes before a vote, which has not yet been set.
The Ugandan legislation in its current form would mandate a death sentence for active homosexuals living with HIV or in cases of same-sex rape. "Serial offenders" also could face capital punishment, but the legislation does not define the term. Anyone convicted of a homosexual act faces life imprisonment.
A Greek ship-owning company paid a ransom to Somali pirates holding one of its freighters for the past seven months, and the ship’s release was expected this week. Athens-based Alloceans Shipping declined to specify the sum paid, but a man claiming to be speaking for the pirates said it was $2.8 million.
According to reports from the Associated Press, with whom pirates spoke with, The Ariana was seized May 1 near of the Seychelles islands, carrying a cargo of soya from Brazil to Iran. Alloceans Shipping general manager Spyros Minas said the ship’s 24-member Ukrainian crew was in good health. In the Somali coastal town of Hobyo, a self-proclaimed pirate who gave his name as Ahmed Gedi said his group had been paid $2.8 million to free the Ariana. It was not possible to independently verify the amount of ransom paid.
“After we check and count it, we will leave the ship and free it,†Gedi reportedly told AP by phone.
According to reports from the Associated Press, with whom pirates spoke with, The Ariana was seized May 1 near of the Seychelles islands, carrying a cargo of soya from Brazil to Iran. Alloceans Shipping general manager Spyros Minas said the ship’s 24-member Ukrainian crew was in good health. In the Somali coastal town of Hobyo, a self-proclaimed pirate who gave his name as Ahmed Gedi said his group had been paid $2.8 million to free the Ariana. It was not possible to independently verify the amount of ransom paid.
“After we check and count it, we will leave the ship and free it,†Gedi reportedly told AP by phone.
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