Ιtaly's Chief Blasts U.S. Aid Workin Haiti,[ 593 ]

Italy's Disaster Chief Blasts 'Pathetic' U.S. Aid Work in Haiti

Monday, January 25, 2010

FILE: Guido Bertolaso, Italy's top disaster official, blasted the U.S.-led relief effort in Haiti as a 'pathetic' failure and faulted aid groups for preening in front of TV cameras.

Italy's top disaster official blasted the U.S.-led relief effort in Haiti as a "pathetic" failure that is turning a national tragedy into a "vanity show for the television cameras."

Guido Bertolaso, the head of Italy's Civil Protection Agency, told Italian television on Sunday that the U.S. military "tends to confuse military intervention with emergency intervention," and that despite the presence of 13,000 U.S. troops there, "no one is giving orders."

He said there is a danger that aid will be lost by the "inefficient" operation.

Bertolaso threw darts at targets ranging from former President Bill Clinton to the United Nations, which he faulted for throwing aid packages at the island and hoping for the best.

"They thought they could bring something to eat and drink and the problem would be resolved," he told a television interviewer.

Bertolaso called for the appointment of a civilian international humanitarian coordinator.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini quickly distanced the government in Rome from Bertolaso's comments and said the Cabinet-level official was not speaking in an official capacity when he lit into the U.S.

"We have lamented from the first day that there has been a lack of adequate coordination," Frattini told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. "But this doesn't mean that Italy has any intention of criticizing the U.S. efforts."

Speaking again Monday alongside Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Frattini told reporters in Washington of Italy's appreciation for U.S. leadership.

"I want to repeat here how highly we value the important and generous efforts of the United States to help the people in Haiti," Frattini said. "We highly value, we strongly appreciate the personal commitment of President Obama and Secretary Hillary Clinton to help people there."

Bertolaso is well respected in Italy for coordinating relief efforts after the 2009 earthquake in L'Aquila, which killed over 300 people. He showed President Obama around the area in central Italy when he visited for the G-8 summit in July.

The U.S. took over the only working airport in Haiti after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck on Jan. 12, killing at least 150,000 and leaving millions homeless. Dispatching 13,000 troops to the island, the U.S. has coordinated an international relief effort topping $1 billion in donations.

For its part, the U.S. has already sent nearly $184 million in aid to Haiti since the quake struck, according to the latest U.N. estimates. Italy has donated over $9 million, and like the U.S. has sent in recovery teams to help manage the living and recover the dead.

A spokeswoman for USAID, the government organization heading up relief efforts there, directed calls to the State Department, which wouldn't address Bertolaso's comments but defended U.S. work in Haiti.

"I think we have had major successes. I don't think we'll ever be happy with what has been done in a crisis of this scale," said Charles Luoma-Overstreet, spokesman for Western Hemisphere affairs at the State Department.

"The airport at Haiti is an airport that handled some 13 flights daily previously, and we're pushing it to the very limit now trying to get as many flights in and as much supplies as possible," he said, noting logistical challenges at every step, including a taxed and damaged port that made shipments difficult to bring to shore.

Secretary Clinton defended those efforts Monday, calling Bertolaso's swipes "Monday morning quarterbacking," and emphasizing the critical role of U.S. troops in the aid effort.

But Bertolaso also struck out at aid groups sending millions in relief and hundreds of volunteers to help the struggling island. He said the forces helping Haiti were often more focused on public relations than providing assistance.

"Once they've arrived on the scene of a disaster, organizations too often think about putting up a big poster with their symbol on it, to look good in front of cameras, rather than getting to work to bring aid to those who need it," he said.

Bertolaso accused those aid groups of "putting on a vanity show for the television cameras instead of rolling up their sleeves," singling out Bill Clinton, the U.S. Special envoy to Haiti, for a special thrashing.

Clinton made a show of helping with water supplies during his time in Haiti, Bertolaso said, "but went back after a day."

Yet despite the horrific conditions on the ground — exacerbated by downed communications and ruined roads — relief groups say it's remarkable that aid is reaching people who desperately need it.

"Given the extreme logistical challenges in Haiti and the scale of the devastation, the fact that aid is getting through and is flowing and is being stepped up every day — that's really good news," said Alina Labrada, a spokeswoman for CARE.

Speaking Monday to an Italian news agency, Bertolaso began backpedaling his comments, praising the "important effort from the U.S." But he still had stern words about the overall campaign, which he said was leaving "thousands of Haitians abandoned unto themselves."

Fox News' Greg Burke contributed to this report.

"Chemical Ali"..gone [ 592 ]

'Chemical Ali' executed in Iraq

(BBC) 16:31 GMT, Monday, 25 January 2010 Ali Hassan al-Majid, a former Iraqi official known as "Chemical Ali", has been executed by hanging, a government spokesman has announced. Majid, an enforcer in Saddam Hussein's regime and his cousin, had earlier been sentenced to death four times for genocide and crimes against humanity. Earlier this month, he was sentenced to death for ordering the gas attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja in 1988. It is believed that about 5,000 people died in the attack. Iraqi jets swooped over Halabja and for five hours sprayed it with a lethal cocktail of mustard gas and the nerve agents Tabun, Sarin and VX. Brutality Majid was "executed by hanging until death," Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a statement. "The execution happened without any violations, shouting or cries of joy," he added, in sharp contrast to Saddam's death on the gallows in 2006. FOUR DEATH SENTENCES Jan 2010: For ordering the gas attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja in 1988 in which 5,000 people died March 2009: For the 1999 killings of Shia Muslims in the Sadr City district of Baghdad Dec 2008: For his role in crushing a Shia revolt after the 1991 Gulf War June 2007: For his role in a military campaign against ethnic Kurds, codenamed Anfal, from February to August of 1988 News of the hanging came shortly after three suicide car bombs struck in central Baghdad. It was not immediately clear whether the attacks were linked to his execution. Majid was first sentenced to hang in June 2007 for his role in a military campaign against ethnic Kurds, codenamed Anfal, that lasted from February to August of 1988. In December 2008 he also received a death sentence for his role in crushing a Shia revolt after the 1991 Gulf War. In March 2009 he was sentenced to death, along with others, for the 1999 killings of Shia Muslims in the Sadr City district of Baghdad. The BBC's Jim Muir in Baghdad says Majid could have been hanged earlier - after his first death sentence for the Anfal campaign. But it was important to Iraqi Kurds to see him convicted of the Halabja attack, seen as one of the worst atrocities of Saddam Hussein's regime. No remorse Our correspondent says there will be great rejoicing or, at the very least, quiet relief among both Iraq's Shia and Kurdish communities, which have suffered greatly at his hands. There was a mixed reaction from ordinary Iraqis to news of the execution. "I give my condolences to the Iraqi people on the death of Ali Hassan al-Majid, who was killed by traitors and hooligans," said a resident of Majid's home town, Tikrit. But Baghdad resident Ali Suhail said the execution was just: ''He had executed so many people. So he deserves to be executed." A resident of Halabja also said he was pleased: ''We, the families of those killed in the attack on Halabja, are very pleased to hear that Ali Hassan al-Majid was executed. "Once again we call upon the Iraqi people and government to be united and serve the Iraqi people and families of those killed in poison gas attack." Majid - the King of Spades in the US military's pack of cards of most-wanted Iraqis - was arrested in August 2003. He has refused to express remorse at any of his trials, insisting that he was acting in the interests of Iraqi security. The Iraqi High Tribunal was set up to try former members of Saddam Hussein's mainly Sunni government and was the same one that sentenced the former president to death. Footage of Saddam's execution in December 2006 was posted on the internet. It showed the dictator being confronted by opponents who jeered and clapped as he was being hanged.

Plane Crashes Into Mediterranean[ 591 ]

Plane Carrying 90 Crashes Into Mediterranean

Monday, January 25, 2010

AP/Boeing

FILE: An Ethiopian Airlines 737-800.

BEIRUT — An Ethiopian Airlines plane carrying 90 people crashed into the Mediterranean Sea early Monday just minutes after takeoff from Beirut, authorities said.

Four bodies were recovered in the hours after the crash as authorities combed through the choppy waters under gray skies, a Lebanese military official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known, but a police official ruled out terrorism and said the crash was likely weather-related. Beirut has seen heavy rain and lightning since Sunday.

The Boeing 737-800 took off around 2:30 a.m. (7:30 p.m. EST) for the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, said Ghazi Aridi, the public works and transportation minister.

"The weather undoubtedly was very bad," Aridi told reporters at the airport. He added that the plane went down about 2 miles off the Lebanese coast.

The Lebanese army said in a statement saying the plane was "on fire shortly after takeoff."

The wife of the French ambassador to Lebanon was on the plane, according to an embassy official who asked that his name not be used because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Helicopters and naval ships were scrambled for a rescue effort amid intermittent rain, thunder and lightning.

Ethiopian Airlines released a statement on its Web site confirming the plane was missing.

"A team is already working on gathering all pertinent information," the statement said. "An investigative team has already been dispatched to the scene and we will release further information as further updates are received."

Calls to the airline were not immediately returned.

Relatives of the passengers began arriving at the airport early Monday, many of them crying and hugging. Officials led them into a VIP area.

The plane was carrying 90 people, including 83 passengers and 7 crew. Aridi identified the passengers as 54 Lebanese, 22 Ethiopians, one Iraqi, one Syrian, one Canadian of Lebanese origin, one Russian of Lebanese origin, a French woman and two Britons of Lebanese origin.

Ethiopian Airlines reported that there were 82 passengers and eight crew; the discrepancy could not immediately be explained.

Ethiopian Airlines has long had a reputation for high-quality service compared to other African airlines, with two notable crashes in more than 20 years.

A hijacked Ethiopian Airlines jet crash-landed off the Comoros Islands in the Indian Ocean when it ran out of fuel in November 1996, killing 126 of the 175 people aboard. The plane had just left Addis Ababa when three hijackers stormed the cockpit and demanded to be taken to Australia.

In September 1988, an Ethiopian Airlines jet crashed shortly after taking off when it ran into a flock of birds, killing 31 of the 104 people on board.

Japan Arts & Entertainment[ 590 ]

Novelist takes the baton in restoration of historic Atami villa

NovelistYasuhide Saeki

(Mainichi Japan) January 24, 2010

Novelist Yasuhide Saeki has taken over the historic holiday house of Shigeo Iwanami, the late founder of Iwanami Shoten Publishers, and will begin full-scale restoration of the structure from this spring, it has been learned.

The structure, named Sekireki-so, is located in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture. Built in the style of a tea ceremony house, it is regarded as a masterpiece of the architect Isoya Yoshida, who is known for designing the Kabuki-za theater that was rebuilt in Tokyo after World War II.

The Sekireki-so was completed in September 1941, and it was a resting spot for many cultural figures during and after the war. In recent years, however, it has remained largely unused.

Saeki's connection with the Sekireki-so came from his workplace being located nearby in Atami. Several years ago he heard that a search was on for someone to take over the home. Fearing that it would not survive as a cultural asset if it passed into the hands of a developer, Saeki purchased the premises and adjacent land -- an area of about 2,900 square meters -- two years ago.

Around the structure are gently curving narrow stone steps. The entrance, which consists of only a wooden door and sliding screen, is simple enough to be mistaken for a back entrance. Opening the fusuma panels in the Japanese room beyond the entrance reveals a breathtaking view of the outside scenery. In the distance beyond the open garden is the blue sea, and Hatsushima Island. The home is not too far away from the bustling hot spring district of Atami, but it feels like time has been frozen for 70 years.

In the center of the garden are two sawtooth oak trees. One of them, supported by poles, has been there from the time the home was built. At the time, Iwanami requested that the sea be visible from all rooms in the home. He also asked that that none of the trees be cut down, and Yoshida fulfilled both requests. The name "Sekireki-so," which is made up of the characters for "pity," "sawtooth oak" and "cottage" evolved from this anecdote.

No luxuries have been spared in the materials for the home, from the black granite bath to the parquet-style flooring and tokonoma shelves, and one can sense the watchful eye of both benefactor and designer in the planning, down to the finest details. The black Nachi pebbles used for a rain drain were brought in from an old home in Kyoto, as new pebbles would have detracted from the intended atmosphere.

The opening from the living room to the garden offers a surprise: there are four screens -- a shoji, glass door, screen door and shutters, all of which slide into a shutter pocket and disappear from view. The glass door slides easily across the frame and the shutters close tightly like pieces of a puzzle, revealing the skill of the joiner.

A number of famous cultural figures such as the politician Yukio Ozaki, who earned the title of "the father of parliamentary government," author Rohan Koda, poet Kotaro Takamura, and novelist Naoya Shiga were invited to the Sekireki-so, where they wrote manuscripts, and spent a leisurely time in hot springs. It was also at the Sekireki-so that editing work of the well-known "Kojien" Japanese dictionary was carried out, and Polish film director Andrzej Wajda was said to have once made a sketch in the rain there.

"There was the option of leaving the holiday home as it was, but that would result in the home soon falling apart, starting from the damaged sections," Saeki says. "The aim of repair and maintenance work is to preserve it for a long time while maintaining the home's current appearance."

The structure will be temporarily dismantled and reinforced from the ground, and it will then be restored to its original form. With the exception of some of the flooring in the bathroom which is badly damaged, nothing will be added or taken away, Saeki says.

Participants in the restorative work will include Motoyoshi Itagaki, 69, an architect who trained under Yoshida; a master carpenter with restoration experience; and Mizusawa Komuten, a company that has an established reputation in work on structures built in the style of tea ceremony houses.

"Last year I focused on things different from my normal routine, like creating a design map for the restoration work and conducting geological surveys. I also studied architecture with my daughter and made discoveries. It takes time and money, but I want to spend time thinking about how I can give something back to society," Saeki says. "Shigeo Iwanami was the 'master of Sekireki-so' but I guess I'm the 'minder of Sekireki-so.' "

With the renovation efforts, it seems that the architectural dream which two masters -- Shigeo Iwanami and Isoya Yoshida -- had 70 years ago has been passed on to a bestselling author of the Heisei era.

Bin Laden....[ 589 ]

Bin Laden claims U.S. plane attempt, vows more attacks

DUBAI (Reuters)Sun Jan 24, 2010 2:29pm EST -Tamara Walid

Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the failed December 25 bombing of a U.S.-bound plane in an audio tape aired on Sunday, and vowed to continue attacks on the United States.

In his message addressed "from Osama to (U.S. President Barack) Obama," bin Laden said the attempt to blow up the jet as it neared Detroit was a continuation of al Qaeda policy since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

White House adviser David Axelrod said he could not confirm the authenticity of the tape, which was broadcast by Al Jazeera television before international meetings this week on how to deal with militancy in Afghanistan and Yemen.

But Abdelbari Atwan, editor of Al-Quds-Al-Arabi newspaper who met the al Qaeda leader in 1996, said: "It is bin Laden's voice and style. The poetry, the references he makes are identifiably his."

Bin Laden praised the Nigerian who has been charged with trying to blow up Northwest Flight 253.

"The message sent to you with the attempt by the hero Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is a confirmation of our previous message conveyed by the heroes of September 11," he said. "If it was possible to carry our messages to you by words, we wouldn't have carried them to you by planes."

The botched attack by the Yemen-based regional wing of al Qaeda on Christmas Day, and subsequent threats in Yemen, raised global pressure for a crackdown, helping to prompt Sanaa to declare an open war on the militant group within its territory.

Defense and counterterrorism officials say Washington quietly has been supplying military equipment, intelligence and training to Yemen to destroy suspected al Qaeda hide-outs.

Since the attempted bombing, Yemen has launched a series of air strikes targeting al Qaeda leaders and has declared that some top regional leaders, including Qasim al-Raymi and Ayed al-Shabwani, have been killed.

But Al Qaeda denies the claims. Yemen subsequently attacked the rural home of Shabwani but gave no hint on the result.

On Sunday's tape, bin Laden cited Washington's support for Israel as a motivator for more attacks on the United States, and vowed to keep on as long as Palestinians cannot live in peace.

"Our attacks against you will continue as long as U.S. support for Israel continues," bin Laden said. "It is not fair that Americans should live in peace as long as our brothers in Gaza live in the worst conditions."

White House adviser Axelrod attacked bin Laden on CNN TV. "Assuming that it is him, his message contains the same hollow justifications for the mass slaughter of innocents that we've heard before," he said.

Libyan analyst and former bin Laden associate Noman Benotman said the tape was intended to send a message to the Arab world.

"It's a very smart 'back to basics' message, reminding his audience it is all about Israel and America. His main audience is the Arab World, where al Qaeda has lost substantial moral support," Benotman said.

"The reference to September 11 gives al Qaeda's actions a continuity and a definable shape."

SOLDIERS KILLED IN YEMEN

Britain, before the meetings on Afghanistan and Yemen Wednesday and Thursday in London, raised its terrorism threat level to "severe" -- the second highest level -- on Friday.

The decision to raise the level from "substantial" means security services now consider an attack in Britain, a key U.S. ally, to be highly likely. But the government said it had no information to suggest an attack was imminent.

Yemen gained a reputation as an al Qaeda haven after the 2001 attacks. It came again under a spotlight after crackdowns on the group in Pakistan and Afghanistan raised fears Yemen was becoming a training and recruiting center for militants.

The high profile London meetings on Afghanistan and Yemen are aimed at stabilising both nations and stopping al Qaeda from using either country as a base.

The Afghanistan meeting on Thursday is meant to chart a path for the country to take greater responsibility for its security. Britain says the conference also will look at how Afghanistan's neighbors could work together to help stabilize it.

On Wednesday, foreign ministers of Yemen's main Western and Gulf partners will also meet to try to mobilize support for the country and identify what needs to be done by the government and its allies to tackle its challenges.

In addition to fighting a resurgent al Qaeda, Yemen also is fighting a separate northern Shi'ite rebellion and trying to contain southern separatists.

(Additional reporting by Amena Bakr in Dubai and Mohamed Sudam in Sanaa; Writing by Cynthia Johnston; Editing by Michael Roddy)