Showing posts with label leader. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leader. Show all posts

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Hurt Yemen leader appears on TV

7 July 2011 Last updated at 18:39 GMT Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh delivers his speech. Photo: 7 July 2011 President Saleh stressed that dialogue was needed to resolve Yemen's problems Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has appeared on TV for the first time since being badly burned in an attack on his palace last month.

He did not move his arms, and both his hands were bandaged.

Mr Saleh has been undergoing treatment in Saudi Arabia since 6 June following the attack, which officials said was caused by a bomb.

Yemen has been rocked by months of unrest, with protesters calling for Mr Saleh's resignation.

He has refused to step down and has resisted several attempts at mediated solutions.

'Successful operations'

In Thursday's address aired on Yemen's state TV, the president said that dialogue was needed to resolve Yemen's problems.

He said he welcomed power-sharing, but stressed that it should be "within the framework of the constitution and in the framework of the law".

Referring to his injuries sustained during the attack on his compound in Sanaa in June, Mr Saleh admitted that he had undergone "more than eight successful operations".

Celebrations in Sanaa after President Saleh left Yemen (6 June 2011) Mr Saleh's departure was celebrated in Sanaa by anti-government protesters

"I had burns because of the accident. There were also a number of operations for a number of officials such as the speaker of parliament, the prime minister, his deputy, and the governor of Sanaa. More than 87 people were injured."

Mr Saleh is still recovering in Saudi Arabia, amid speculation in Yemen that he might soon return to the country.

Seven people were killed in the incident, while Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Mujawar and at least two other senior officials were also seriously injured.

Western diplomats have been helping the Yemeni authorities to investigate the attack and have confirmed that a large quantity of the high explosive TNT had been placed inside the mosque where President Saleh attended Friday prayers.

Mr Saleh has ruled Yemen since 1978. His departure followed weeks of unrest which has left more than 350 people dead.

Fighting has been particularly fierce in the southern province of Abyan, where militants have exploited the political vacuum to move into the towns of Zinjibar and Jaar.

Opposition groups accuse the Sanaa government of playing up the jihadist threat in an attempt to shore up Western support.

Mr Saleh has refused to sign a Gulf-mediated transition plan that would see him step down from power in return for immunity from prosecution over the deaths of protesters in the five-month uprising.


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Saturday, June 25, 2011

Fugitive Boston gang leader held

23 June 2011 Last updated at 07:25 GMT 1996 photo of James Whitey Bulger on the FBI website on 23 June 2011 Pictures of James "Whitey" Bulger on the FBI website are now captioned "Captured" Alleged Boston gang leader James "Whitey" Bulger has been arrested near Los Angeles following 16 years on the run, FBI officials say.

The 81-year-old was detained with his long-time girlfriend Catherine Greig, 60. Both are due to appear in court later on Thursday.

Bulger was on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted" list, and is accused of involvement in 19 murders.

Bulger was the inspiration for the Martin Scorsese film "The Departed".

He was played by Jack Nicholson in a movie that won four Oscars in 2007.

Bulger is accused of running the Winter Hill gang in the 1970s and 1980s.

The couple's arrest in Santa Monica, California, came days after the FBI began airing 30-second public service announcements, focusing on Ms Greig.

They specifically targeted programmes watched by women of Ms Greig's age, and urged them to keep an eye out for her.

Announcing the arrests, Richard Deslauriers of the FBI said the couple were detained "without incident".

The Winter Hill gang was a largely Irish-American mob that ran loan-sharking, gambling and drug rackets in the Boston area.

Bulger disappeared shortly before he was due to be arrested in connection with 21 killings and racketeering.

Following his disappearance, it emerged he had been a long-time FBI informant who turned in rival gangsters.

The revelations left the FBI fighting accusations that it had long been turning a blind eye to the alleged crimes of James Bulger and the Winter Hill gang.


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Senegal leader in run-off U-turn

23 June 2011 Last updated at 12:21 GMT Protesters cover their mouths as they run through a cloud of tear gas during a demonstration in Senegal's capital Dakar 23 June 2011 Clashes broke out earlier around parliament square and tear gas was fired Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade has dropped some of his planned constitutional changes, officials say.

He no longer wants to reduce the proportion of votes needed to win a presidential election, and avoid a run-off, from more than 50% to 25%.

As MPs met in the capital, Dakar, to discuss the planned amendments, riot police used tear gas and water cannon against demonstrators outside.

The bill also creates the elected position of a vice-president.

Government spokesmen Serigne Mbacke Ndiaye said Mr Wade had abandoned the idea of reducing the threshold to win a presidential election to 25%, Reuters news agency reports.

According to the AFP news agency, Justice Minister Cheikh Tidiane Sy informed MPs about the decision.

Clouds of tear gas hovered over the square in front of the National Assembly, where lawmakers had gathered on Thursday, AP news agency reports.

Abdoulaye Wade (left) and his son Karim (right) (file photo) Critics fear Abdoulaye Wade (l) will make his son (r) vice-president

Critics had said the run-off amendments were designed to ensure that Mr Wade, 85, was re-elected next year.

Mr Wade first came to power in democratic polls more than a decade ago but he is now facing growing anger at daily electricity cuts and the rising cost of living.

BBC West Africa correspondent Thomas Fessy says many people also fear that Mr Wade intends to give the role of vice-president to his son Karim, who is already a powerful minister in the current administration.

They say Mr Wade could then step down and hand power to his son.

The governments says the proposed new post is aimed at reinforcing democracy by sharing power between the president and vice-president.

Riot police also clashed with protesters earlier this week, while world-famous Senegalese singer Youssou Ndour urged the government to "see sense".


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