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Imposter hits chemical giant with Bhopal payout hoax LONDON, Dec 4: The BBC’s international TV news channel apologised after being duped into airing an interview with a fake dow chemical spokesman .....more Bush keeps Rumsfeld, names Kerik Thompson leaves WASHINGTON, Dec 4: President George W Bush has asked Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to stay on in Bush’s second ......more India to work jointly with Russia to tackle cyber crime BANGALORE, Dec 4: India’s cyber emergency response team plans to jointly work with Russia to combat cyber . ......more Powell says us can’t hunt Iran nukes in caves WASHINGTON, Dec 4: US Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday ...more |
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Pakistan can do more to hunt Bin Laden: US WASHINGTON, Dec 4: Pakistan can do more to nab Osama bin Laden and other Al-Qaeda operatives, the White House has said. ....more Powell tempers US criticism about Russian democracy WASHINGTON, Dec 4: US Secretary of State Colin Powell tempered US criticism about a roll-back of Russia’s......more SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 4: Ebay inc has added a new "want it now" feature for people .....more Powell
says US can’t WASHINGTON, Dec 4: US Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday that Washington had no way to force Iran to allow UN Inspectors ........more |
Imposter hits chemical giant with Bhopal payout hoax LONDON, Dec 4: The BBC’s international TV news channel apologised after being duped into airing an interview with a fake dow chemical spokesman who said the firm would pay billions of dollars in compensation for India’s Bhopal disaster. BBC world broadcast the promise yesterday by a man identified as Jude Finisterra, but later said it had been the victim of "an elaborate deception". Dow chemical says it bears no responsibility for one of the world’s worst industrial disasters, 20 years ago yesterday, in which more than 3,500 people died after lethal gas escaped from a chemical plant in the central Indian city Bhopal. Activist Andy Bichlbaum convinced the British public broadcaster he was a dow spokesman by putting his number on a fake web site for the company. The BBC acknowledged it had been duped and apologised for airing the hoax. Bichlbaum later said his goal was to show that "another world is possible" if dow did the right thing and paid victims. In the interview, he told the BBC dow chemical was taking responsibility for the disaster and would pay 12 billion to victims. Dow chemical quickly said the story was not true and "finisterra" was not its employee. The company says it bears no legal responsibility for the disaster and owes victims nothing. The Bhopal factory was owned by union carbide, now a dow subsidiary, which paid 407 million to Bhopal residents in 1989. Several other news organisations including reported the phoney spokesman’s comments to the BBC. Reuters withdrew its story once BBC world said it had been deceived. "We apologise to Dow and to anyone who watched the interview who may have been misled by it," the BBC said in a statement read out during a subsequent news bulletin. "Of course, the bbc is investigating how the deception happened." Britain’s channel 4 television news later identified "Finisterra" as Bichlbaum, whose "yes men" group hoaxes businesses and Governments and has targeted Dow before over Bhopal. Bichlbaum told channel 4 he had carried out the hoax to show what the company should do for the victims for the disaster. "The 120,000 people that are estimated to need medical care because of the Bhopal catastrophe are going to need it for their whole lives. They’ve already needed it for 20 years," he said. Bichlbaum said he heard Bhopal residents broke down in tears when hearing of the report and he felt bad they were disappointed. "There were people in tears of joy when they found out, and indeed it is very sad that this isn’t the case. But you have to realise that this is Dow’s doing: Dow could make the tears of joy real," he said. He could face civil and criminal legal action if tracked down, legal experts say. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has in the past filed charges against individuals who have issued fraudulent statements about firms. "Finisterra has made false statements that have a connection with a trading market and if he knew they were false, that is a crime," said Professor Steve Thel of New York’s Fordham Law School. The SEC declined to comment. Dow shares fell 0.6 percent to 49.64 dollars in morning trading on the New York stock exchange, which took place after the hoax had been unmasked. They had earlier fallen in Frankfurt after the report by some two euros — more than three percent — but recovered to 37.40 euros, just 20 cents down. (AGENCIES) |
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Bush keeps Rumsfeld, names Kerik Thompson leaves WASHINGTON, Dec 4: President George W Bush has asked Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to stay on in Bush’s second term to keep running the Iraq war and adapting the US military to face post-cold war threats like terrorism, a senior Bush administration official said yesterday. As part of a broad overhaul of his second-term cabinet, Bush nominated former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik to head the US homeland security department and accepted the resignation of health and human services secretary Tommy Thompson yesterday. Rumsfeld, 72, faced calls for his resignation last summer over the prisoner abuse scandal at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison, and some lawmakers have accused him of not sending enough troops to control iraq after Saddam Hussein was toppled. But the White House decided it was better to stick with Rumsfeld at a time when the United States is at war in Iraq, with more troops being sent to help the country get ready for Jan 30 elections. Rumsfeld is also overseeing a major post-cold war transformation of the US military to make the force more mobile and responsive to new threats such as terrorism. Bush met with Rumsfeld on Monday and "asked Secretary Rumsfeld to stay in his post, and he has agreed," the senior official said, calling Rumsfeld "the right person" for the job. "Secretary Rumsfeld is a proven leader during challenging times. We’re fighting a different kind of war and it’s crucial that we win this war," the official said. Rumsfeld had made clear his preference to stay on in the job at least for a while. A senior defense official would not talk about bush’s decision. "I will simply tell you that the secretary is hard at work doing his job," the official said. The Secretary was often an antagonist of the more moderate Secretary of State Colin Powell on foreign affairs and military issues. Powell has resigned effective when his designated replacement, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, is confirmed by the senate. Kerik, 49, would replace Tom Ridge, the first Secretary of Homeland Security. With a wide range of experience that includes training Iraqi police, Kerik appeared headed toward easy senate confirmation. "I’m grateful he has agreed to bring his lifetime of security experience and skill to one of the most important positions in the federal Government," Bush said. Thompson, 63, told a news conference that after 40 years in public service, including 14 as Governor of Wisconsin, he was ready to go into the private sector. He said he almost resigned a year ago from the department that regulates health care but was persuaded to stay until the end of Bush’s first term. Mark Mcclellan, head of the agency that runs medicaid and medicare, is considered Thompson’s likely successor, officials said. Thompson said Mcclellan would be a good choice but also mentioned former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and the head of the centers for disease control, Julie Gerberding, as good candidates, among others. All told, eight of Bush’s 15 cabinet members have resigned. White House Spokesman Scott Mcclellan called it a natural turnover, since some have served all four years of Bush’s tenure and it is "good to have some fresh new faces in place from time to time." Bush told a White House ceremony with Kerik at his side that the one-time Manhattan beat cop "understands the duties that came to America on Sept. 11" by being at the twin towers when they collapsed, seeing the faces of the rescuers and attending the funerals of police officers killed. Kerik said he understood the challenges the United States faces in defending against Sept. 11-type attacks. "I promise you, Mr President, that both the memory of those courageous souls and the horrors I saw inflicted upon our proud nation will serve as permanent reminders of the awesome responsibility you place in my charge," Kerik said. Kerik would inherit a department that is only two years old and has had growing pains in attempts to meld 22 federal bureaucratic agencies into a single entity to improve domestic defenses against terrorism. It has 180,000 employees. (AGENCIES) |
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India to work jointly with Russia to tackle cyber crime BANGALORE, Dec 4: India’s cyber emergency response team plans to jointly work with Russia to combat cyber crime, including virus and hacker attacks in their computer networks, a top IT department official said today. "We are trying to see how best our cert can work with Russian authorities on information security and prevent attacks by virus, worms and hackers," Union IT department Joint Secretary Madhavan Nambiar said here. Delivering his address at the Indo-Russian Information and Communication Technologies Cooperation Conference here, Nambiar said the cyber security plan was in the early stages, but cert had already signed a protocol on e-security with russia. He said the three areas of cooperation in the it domain were software parks, information security and software services. The Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) was in the process of setting up a software park in Moscow, Nambiar said. Russian IT Minister Leonid D Reiman invited Indian software service firms to leverage the engineering talent in his country to export software to Europe and the United States. "We want to retain talent within Russia and Indian companies can work on projects in our country for customers in third countries like Europe and America," he said. Reiman said the Russian IT industry team, which has joined President Vladimir Putin’s delegation, was keen to learn about the success of India in the software sector and replicate it in their country. "We want to learn from the experiences of the Indian software industry and replicate it in a similar scale in Russia," said Reiman, adding that there were Indian firms working with Russian engineers to build software, but on a smaller scale. "Russian engineers are quite capable of doing high end R&D work and this has been proven by the fact that Russian specialists are working around the world. We want to take advantage of the advancement in communication to retain them here and develop projects," he said. He said Russia was investing enormous resources in computerisation and e-governance which offered opportunities to Indian firms. Reiman hoped that an Indo-Russian it pact would be signed in the next few years to accelerate the it cooperation between the two nations. (PTI) |
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Powell says us can’t hunt Iran nukes in caves WASHINGTON, Dec 4: US Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday that Washington had no way to force Iran to allow UN Inspectors unrestricted access to suspected nuclear sites despite US doubts tehran would come clean on its own. "I can’t make sure it is going to happen," he told in an interview as he prepares to leave office. "You can’t look in every cave that might be in Iran." Powell also said Iran’s agreement with European Nations last month to suspend some suspicious nuclear activities was inadequate, but the international community must still press Iran to reveal the full extent of its program. The Bush administration fears the Islamic republic may be developing a nuclear weapon at secret sites, where it may continue to work, while it has agreed to open other facilities to Inspectors. Powell acknowledged that Washington has failed to win international support, even from its major European allies, to demand unrestricted access. "We have to remain uneasy about this (European agreement) because it is still only a suspension ... We really need an end to that program," he said. "It is a question of whether or not the international community ... Will be diligent and will be persistent in pressing the Iranians to give us full disclosure of their programs." Washington says oil-rich Iran is developing weapons under cover of a nuclear energy program. Tehran says its atomic ambitions are limited to peaceful power generation. The Bush administration has been criticized for failing to halt the suspected nuclear arms programs of Iran and North Korea as senior officials remain divided over whether to confront or engage the two nations President George W Bush bracketed in an "axis of evil" with pre-war Iraq. This week, the UN nuclear watchdog rejected US demands that Iran be referred to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions and it passed an EU-sponsored resolution calling on Iran to freeze uranium enrichment activities. It noted the freeze was voluntary and non-binding. The United States’ false warnings about Iraq’s nuclear capabilities have undermined similar US claims about the dangers of Iran’s programs. Diplomats and arms experts said the UN Inspection process was dealt a severe blow this week when EU negotiators gave in to Iran’s demands that a clause insisting it grant the watchdog "unrestricted access" be removed from a draft resolution. But the international atomic energy agency sought to play down fears it was not getting access to sites. "We expect that we will continue to get required access to all sites we request to visit," said Melissa Fleming, a spokesman for the UN watchdog. That contradicted the claims of western diplomats who said the agency’s access has been severely restricted during its two-year probe. Iran has agreed to allow the agency the right to conduct short-notice, intrusive inspections of nuclear sites. But the IAEA has no legal right to inspect sites where it has no hard proof that nuclear material has been stored. The United States complained this week that Iran has not responded to a months-old IAEA request to visit the Parchin military complex where an Iranian exile group claims Tehran has been secretly developing a nuclear explosive device. (AGENCIES) |
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Pakistan can do more to hunt Bin Laden: US WASHINGTON, Dec 4: Pakistan can do more to nab Osama bin Laden and other Al-Qaeda operatives, the White House has said. Asked if President George W Bush was satisfied with everything Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf had done in hunting down Bin Laden, Press Secretary Scott Mcclellan said: I think there’s always more that can be done. However, he said, the US has had good, close cooperation with Pakistan in going after some of the remnants of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda members. And we’re going to continue working closely with them. We have good intelligence cooperation, and this is something that’s a priority for both our nations. Mr Mcclellan said an announcement on the sale of F-16 aircraft to Pakistan was unlikely after Gen Musharraf and Mr Bush meet at the White House today (Saturday). He was reacting to reports in the Pakistan media that with Bush’s reelection, the US might be closer to giving F-16s to Pakistan in recognition for the work in the war on terror. I don’t want to get ahead of the meeting. Let’s let the meeting take place, but I don’t expect any such announcements on matters like that at this time, Mr Mcclellan said. Asked if Mr Bush would push Gen Musharraf for restoration of democracy in Pakistan, he said the US has been making its views very clear publicly and privately when it comes for our support for democracy and moving in that direction. And there are some steps that Pakistan has taken, and we continue to talk to them about those issues. As for whether it was rare and unusual for a US President to meet with a visiting dignitary on a weekend, Mr Mcclellan said because Gen Musharraf was already visiting Latin America this was a convenient time for them to visit meet again. They’ve met on a number of occasions. We certainly work very closely with Pakistan in the global war on terrorism and addressing some of the issues along the border region there. The meeting would be an opportunity to continue to talk about our shared commitment to winning the global war on terrorism, he added. It would also serve as an opportunity to discuss bilateral relations and regional issues, like the situation between India and Pakistan, Mr Mcclellan said. (UNI) |
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Powell tempers US criticism about Russian democracy WASHINGTON, Dec 4: US Secretary of State Colin Powell tempered US criticism about a roll-back of Russia’s democracy yesterday and sent mixed signals about whether he believes Russia is committed to democratic institutions. Powell’s comments in a interview reflected a softer line than he took in September, when he expressed worries that Russia was "pulling back" on democratic reforms. Russia’s state Duma passed President Vladimir Putin’s plans to scrap gubernatorial elections and to allow the President to nominate Governors, subject to approval by local assemblies, a decision critics believe may undermine Russia’s democracy and shows the Kremlin may be turning increasingly autocratic. "There is no thought that Russia is going back to the days of the Soviet Union. That’s not the case. I think Russia is firmly grounded in democracy," Powell told . "We have some concerns about how that democracy is going to be firmly grounded in institutions, and with a free and open media and with respect to the selection to Governors, or how Governors are appointed, we have expressed some of our concerns to the Russians," Powell said. Within the Bush administration Powell has generally taken the hardest line in public about Russian democracy. (AGENCIES) |
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SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 4: Ebay inc has added a new "want it now" feature for people to request exactly what they want on the online marketplace, a spokesman said yesterday. "It’s an enhancement to search," Ebay spokesman Hani Durzy said of the new feature that mimics traditional classified ADs. The new function comes amid the all-important holiday shopping season that contributes to what is traditionally the strongest financial quarter for the no. 1 US shopping site. Ebay usually has about 30 million items listed at any given time. "Want it now" appears on the main Ebay page under the heading "specialty sites." Shoppers can post their requests for specific items. Sellers can browse those postings and contact potential buyers with information about items that may match their requirements. Sales follow Ebay’s normal procedures. Among the 2,700-plus items wanted are a 1976 port Chester, New York, high school yearbook antique wood stove parts red T-shirts with the blurb, "old men are good covers too" and a fully-leased strip mall in the San Francisco bay area. Ebay recently acquired 25 percent of local online classifieds company raigslist.Org. In November, Ebay bought marktplaats.Nl, the biggest Dutch classified advertising web site for about 290 million dollars in cash. The online auctioneer in April paid almost 150 million dollars for mobile.De, one of the leading vehicle classifieds web sites in Germany. (AGENCIES) |
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Powell says US can’t hunt Iran nukes in caves WASHINGTON, Dec 4: US Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday that Washington had no way to force Iran to allow UN Inspectors unrestricted access to suspected nuclear sites despite US doubts Tehran would come clean on its own. "I can’t make sure it is going to happen," he told in an interview as he prepares to leave office. "You can’t look in every cave that might be in Iran." Powell also said Iran’s agreement with European Nations last month to suspend some suspicious nuclear activities was inadequate, but the international community must still press Iran to reveal the full extent of its program. The Bush administration fears the Islamic republic may be developing a nuclear weapon at secret sites, where it may continue to work, while it has agreed to open other facilities to inspectors. Powell acknowledged that Washington has failed to win international support, even from its major European allies, to demand unrestricted access. "We have to remain uneasy about this (European agreement) because it is still only a suspension ... We really need an end to that program," he said. "It is a question of whether or not the international community ... Will be diligent and will be persistent in pressing the Iranians to give us full disclosure of their programs." (AGENCIES) US airborne troops headed for Iraq in major buildup WASHINGTON, Dec 4: The US military kicked off a buildup of forces in Iraq by 12,000 troops yesterday, with soldiers from the 82nd airborne division leaving fort Bragg, north Carolina to boost security for Jan 30 Iraqi elections. Officials at the base said first elements of two battalions, each with about 750 paratroopers, would move on yesterday and the transit of 1,500 would be completed early next week. The Pentagon said this week that a force of 138,000 US troops currently in Iraq would be increased by the end of December to 150,000, the highest level of the entire war, which began in March 2003, to battle insurgents and bolster polling security. Previously, the largest number of US troops on the ground in Iraq during the 20-month war was 148,000 in May 2003. But an increasingly violent insurgency has taken the lives of hundreds of US troops in recent months and more than 1,250 Americans have died since the invasion. The 150,000-strong US troop level will continue until at least March and will include extensions of promised yearlong Iraq tours of 8,100 army soldiers to 14 months and the seven-month tours of 2,300 marines to nine months. Army Brig Gen David Rodriguez, deputy Director of Operations on the US military’s joint staff, said the buildup would "keep insurgents on the run ... Keep the pressure on them." (AGENCIES) Tough leader proposed for US homeland security WASHINGTON, Dec 4: Bernard Kerik’s nomination to run the homeland security department shows President George W Bush wants the no-nonsense former police chief to settle turf wars in the sprawling bureau and better coordinate its wide-ranging responsibilities, analysts said yesterday. But some employees at the new department privately questioned Kerik’s management skills and asked whether the blustery former street cop would be able to handle 180,000 employees and continue the job of merging 22 federal agencies without ruffling too many feathers. Most homeland security analysts said Kerik, the 49-year-old former New York Police Commissioner who helped the city respond to the Sept 11, 2001 attacks, had the right experience to handle domestic security issues. "He certainly has credibility. He can clearly present a compelling case of ‘been there, done that,"’ said P J Crowley, a senior fellow at the center for American progress. The department is charged with protecting the nation from terror attacks. Its responsibilities range from immigration to customs and border control to aviation security and the coast guard. Outgoing Secretary Tom Ridge undertook the task of launching the massive organization in the largest Government overhaul in 50 years. Ridge focused mainly on standing up the department and on beefing up aviation and border security. (AGENCIES) Supermodel Klum dishes pearls of wisdom, Saucy Pix NEW YORK, Dec 4: When supermodel Heidi Klum decided to write a book, she didn’t want it to be just a picture book. She wanted to offer some words of wisdom. Of course the book, "Heidi Klum’s body of knowledge," does have pictures — 400 of them to be precise, including a number of nude shots and plenty of the German temptress clad in the underwear brand that launched her on the way to super-stardom. But that’s not the point of the book. Among eight ‘’rules of model behavior’’ Klum outlines are such maxims as ``you have to want it, baby’’ and ``have a blast while it lasts.’’ and there are tips on getting ahead at work and getting better sex — Heidi’s advice: ``become the fantasy.’’ "I wanted to write something because I thought I had so many great stories to tell and I had so many pictures and I didn’t want to just do a picture book," Klum said after signing copies at a wall street bookshop in New York on Friday. "It’s for guys who want to know more about girls and for girls who want to know more about guys," she says, adding that she sees it as her equivalent of a greatest hits album. Klum has enlisted a host of famous friends to share their favorite pearls of wisdom — among them Donald trump on how not to let criticism beat you down and Miramax movie Mogul Harvey Weinstein on how to break into show business. And just to prove that she’s a normal girl, Klum admits in the introduction of the book that she pigs out and gets pimples like anybody else. "In fact, thanks to my adolescent acne, some snotty kids in high school used to call me pizza face." (AGENCIES) Japan Defence Minister to visit troops in Iraq : Reports TOKYO, Dec 4: Japanese Defence Minister Yoshinori Ohno left for Iraq today in an effort to bolster public support for an expected extension of the troops’ mission to help rebuild the war-torn country, media reported. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s cabinet is expected day to extend the troops’ humanitarian and reconstruction on Friday aid mission for possibly another year beyond its initial deadline of Dec 14, media reports have said. But concern about the troops’ safety has stoked calls in Japan to pull out the soldiers when their mandate expires. A recent opinion poll showed 61 percent of the public opposes extending the mission. Koizumi, a close ally of US President George W Bush, has expended considerable political capital to support the US-led war in Iraq and to send about 550 troops to the southern Iraqi city of Samawa, a mission that critics say violates Japan’s Pacifist constitution. Ohno’s visit is aimed at allaying the Japanese public’s concerns about security in Samawa and stressing the need for continued aid by Japanese troops, newspaper reports said. Defence Ministry officials were not available for comment on Saturday, but Ohno had said on Friday that he wanted to take a first-hand look at the situation in Samawa. "I think it is something I need to see with my own eyes since it is an issue of public interest," Ohno said at a news conference. The Japanese camp in Samawa has been hit by rocket shells, but there have been no casualties in the riskiest and most controversial mission by Japan’s military since World War Two. Ohno, who will be the first Japanese Defence Minister to visit the southern Iraqi city, is to enter Iraq after visiting a US base in Kuwait where Japanese Air Force personnel taking part in the aid mission are based, the Yomiuri Shimbun daily said. Two officials from the ruling coalition — Tsutomu Takebe, the Secretary-General of Koizumi’s Liberal Democratic Party and his new Komeito party counterpart, Tetsuzo Fuyushiba — are also planning to visit Samawa around the same time, the reports said. The officials are eager to bolster public support for the troops’ aid mission, which includes water purification and helping to rebuild local infrastructure. (AGENCIES) |
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