Italy rescuing more migrants in Mediterranean

2015-01-02 12:46
Rome - An Icelandic Coast Guard ship was towing a cargo vessel to Italy with about 450 migrants who were abandoned by smugglers, leaving the vessel navigating without a crew, authorities said Friday.

Italian Coast Guard Cmdr. Filippo Marini said that after several hours of struggling in rough seas, rescue teams managed to secure the Ezadeen for towing toward the southern Calabrian region. The Icelandic ship, part of a European new European patrol force to aid migrants at sea, was doing the tow.

Children and pregnant women were among the migrants, most of who were believed to be Syrian, said Marini. The Sierra-Leone-flagged cargo ship apparently set sail from Turkey, he said.

The exact port of the Ezadeen's arrival will depend on sea conditions, authorities aid.

Earlier on Friday, Marini said that a migrant had called for help saying: "we're without crew, we're heading toward the Italian coast and we have no one to steer."

The Ezadeen is the second cargo ship full of migrants to be abandoned while still sailing this week. Days earlier, the Italian Coast Guard in a daring attempt, lowered officials onto another, Moldovan-flagged cargo vessel so they could take control of the ship, which was only a few miles from crashing into the Italian coast.
More than 170,000 migrants were intercepted or needed rescue by Italian navy, coast guard and air force patrols last year. This apparently new technique by smugglers of abandoning a ship after setting it on a crash course complicates rescue efforts, Marini told Italian state radio, "but the important thing is there are lives to be saved."

- AP

Delhi rapes increase by one third in 2014

2015-01-02 12:46
New Delhi -The number of rapes reported in New Delhi increased by nearly a third in the last year, police said Friday, highlighting the alarming levels of sexual violence against women in the Indian capital.

At an annual briefing with reporters, Delhi Police Commissioner Bhim Sain Bassi said that a total of 2,069 rape cases were reported in New Delhi in the 12 months leading up to December 15, against 1,571 reported the previous year, an increase of 31.6 percent.

The city sealed its reputation as India's "rape capital" two years ago when a medical student died after being gang-raped on a moving bus, prompting mass protests and triggering a series of policing and legal reforms.
The figures were released the same day that an Uber taxi driver accused of raping a female passenger in Delhi last month made his second appearance in court.

Shiv Kumar Yadav, 32, was remanded in custody for another three days over the alleged December 5 attack.


But the police commissioner insisted the new figures did not necessarily indicate that the city was becoming more dangerous for women but rather highlighted a growing willingness of victims to come forward.
"More cases are being reported now as women feel more confident about approaching us," he told reporters, while adding that more still needed to be done to change attitudes and increase sensitivity about sex crimes.

"Both society and police's mindset needs to change for crimes (against women) to be reported and registered," he said.

Bassi said that police received another 36,284 complaints on other issues at women's help desks in the city's police stations, which have mostly been established in the recent years.

In the last two years, there has also been an increased emphasis on training officers to handle of rape cases as well as a drive to attract more female police recruits.

Bassi said that the city police solved 62 percent of all crimes reported against women within a week.
"As for crimes against women, we are taking different steps including self-training classes for women," the commissioner added.

- AFP

Barca can win trophies despite transfer ban - Iniesta

2015-01-02 12:46
Barcelona - Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta is confident that despite their transfer ban the team has the depth to win trophies as they start the new year with a trip to face Real Sociedad on Sunday hoping to keep the pressure on La Liga leaders Real Madrid.

The Catalan club will be unable to reinforce their squad in the following two transfer windows as their appeal against a FIFA sanction over the transfer of foreign Under-18 players was rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), this week.

The decision is likely to cause most concern for Barca's defence where they have continued to look weak despite making several signings ahead of the season.
 In particular, there is a lack of cover at right back for Dani Alves who himself has received plenty of criticism for below par displays.

Still, Barca are only a point off an imperious Real who have played a game less and take on Valencia this Sunday looking for their 23rd straight win in official matches.

"It is not even crossing our minds the idea of not winning anything this season," Iniesta told reporters.
"The squad that we have has sufficient quality to win trophies and the important thing is to believe in ourselves and that we can keep improving so as to reach our maximum.

"I don't know the full legal details (of the CAS verdict) but having come through the La Masia (Barcelona youth system) myself, I think that the opportunity that it gives to youngsters not only on a footballing level but also personal, is very high.

"We cannot sign now and that is obviously a handicap but we need to concentrate on this season with the players we have and look to win."

Iniesta believes that the team is on the right course while he also has not ruled out the title chances of third-placed Atletico Madrid, who face Levante on Saturday.

"They (Real) won a lot of trophies last year and they will be in the fight. All teams go through ups and downs and while Real are doing well now we are making good progress," he said.

"Atletico though are the reigning league champions and it is our job to take the trophy from them. They have done well for several seasons and we know that they will be challenging."

- Reuters

203 soldiers dismissed from the Nigerian Army

2015-01-02 12:46
Maiduguri – More than 203 soldiers were let off by the Nigerian Army after being detained for 90 days due to allegedly not complying with a commanding officer on Friday, reports Vanguard Nigeria.
The soldiers state they are also owed five months worth of salaries.

It is reported that they requested more weapons from their commanding officer after they had suffered a massive blow in a fight in Damboa loosing another commanding officer and several soldiers.
Instead they were told to stand down and the next day was requested to submit their weapons and uniforms.

19 killed in rebel fire on Syria's Aleppo

2015-01-02 15:11
Beirut - At least 19 people were killed overnight by Syrian rebel fire on government-controlled parts of the northern city of Aleppo, a monitor said on Friday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the dead included at least five children, three of whom were killed with their mother when a rocket hit the car they were in.

The Britain-based group said at 32 people were wounded in Thursday night's violence in the western part of the city.

Once Syria's economic hub, Aleppo has been ravaged by fighting that began there in mid-2012.

The city is divided with government forces controlling the western part and rebels controlling the east.
However, government forces have advanced steadily around the eastern outskirts of the city, threatening to besiege opposition-held districts.

More than 200,000 people have been killed in Syria since the beginning of the conflict in March 2011, according to the Observatory.

- AFP

2 injured as plane veers off runway in Scotland

2015-01-02 15:11
London — Scotland's ambulance service says two people were injured when a plane veered off a runway on Scotland's wind-whipped Isle of Lewis.
The Saab 340 plane operated by Scottish regional airline Loganair came off the runway as it tried to take off Friday morning from Stornoway Airport in strong winds. Photos showed the plane sitting in the grass with its nose touching the ground.

The plane, with 28 people aboard, was trying to leave the island off Scotland's west coast and fly to Glasgow.

The Scottish Ambulance Service said two people were taken to Western Isles Hospital with minor injuries.

Stornoway Airport said "efforts to remove the aircraft from the runway are ongoing and investigations into the cause of the incident are underway."

- AP

You are here: Home / News / ‘Rivers’ monthly allocation slashed by 50%’ ‘Rivers’ monthly allocation slashed by 50%’

The Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, said on Thursday that the monthly federal allocation to the state had been slashed by over 50 per cent as a result of the dwindling oil prices.

Amaechi, who disclosed this during his New Year message broadcast live, explained that his administration would continue to review its finances in order to cushion the negative impact the reduction had on the people.

The governor said that apart from the reduction in the state’s monthly allocation, the ceding of oil wells in Soku and Etche to the neighbouring states by the National Boundary Commission had also affected the finances of the state.

Amaechi expressed sadness that there had been no plan to return the lost oil wells to Rivers State in spite of the evidences in favour of the state. He, however, said that his administration would not relent in its campaign for the return of the oil wells.

The governor said that while his administration inherited a monthly wage bill of about N2.5bn, the Rivers State was now managing a wage bill of about N9.2bn every month.

“We inherited a wage bill of about N2.5bn but we now pay almost N9.2bn every month. We do not regret the injection of needed manpower into the system especially in the health and education sectors for the sake of the future of this state, but our monthly allocation has dropped by over 50 per cent.

“Our administration has been faced with the battle of confronting the injustices that have been visited on our people. Besides the denial of economic opportunities, we have lost many of our assets. Our oil wells in Soku and Etche have been ceded to neighbouring states by the National Boundary Commission, with no plan to return them despite numerous evidences in our favour.

“We will continue to demand for our rights as a people because that is a debt that we owe you. With oil prices crashing below budgeted levels, the pressure on our finances is very high.

“Despite these, Rivers State is one of the few states in Nigeria that have paid salaries up to December 2014. We will continue to review our finances and the options before us so as to reduce the impact of these natural and man-made pains inflicted on our people,” Amaechi said.

Stating that his administration would review some of its projects in the face of fresh financial constraints, Amaechi promised that his government would not only pursue these projects and programmes, but would document them properly for handover.

The governor said his administration had embraced transparency with audited accounts and open transactions.