West and Russia on crossroads for Syria and Assad regime future

At the United Nations, the Security Council conveys to vote on a draft resolution supportingan Arab League plan calling for Bashar al- Assad to resign.

New York / NationalTurk – It was unclear if Russia, which has opposed significant council action on Syria would vote in favor at the crucial UN Syria vote, abstain or veto it.

West and Russia on crossroads for Syria and Assad regime future

Western diplomats in New York said the latest violence might make it more difficult for Russia to block it. “Would they dare, with what is happening in Homs?” one diplomat told Reuters.

The British U.N. mission posted on Twitter: “After the horror in Homs Friday (it is) vital all Council members back (the) resolution”.

Russia wants Assad regime to continue

Russia has balked at any language that would open to door to “regime change” in Syria, its crucial Middle East ally where Moscow operates a naval base.

In Cairo, a crowd stormed the Syrian embassy smashing furniture and setting fire to parts of the building in protest over the Homs bloodshed and massacre after Bashar al-Assad forces

Homs massacre in Syria angered Syrians in Europe

The gate of the embassy was broken and furniture was smashed on the second floor of the building, a Reuters witness said. It was the second attack on the mission in a week.

In London, more than 100 Syrians hurled stones at the Syrian embassy, smashing windows and shouting slogans, and five people were arrested after trying to break in, according to TV reports.

In Washington, about 50 people took part in a nighttime rally outside Syria’s embassy, chanting “Down with Assad”.

Assad as Hitler : But can the Homs massacre be a ruse and plot by western powers to topple Assad in Syria

Some Syrians living exiled carried signs including one that juxtaposed pictures of Assad and Adolf Hitler. “We want to show solidarity with the people in Syria being killed every day,” said Mohammad Kousha, a Syrian living in Washington.

In the cities of Hama and Idlib, activists report hundreds of Syrians took to the streets in solidarity against Bashar al-Assad. They chanted in Idlib: “Homs is bombarded, and you are still sleeping?”

Syria bloodbath in Homs : Last straw for Bashar al-Assad ?

Over 200 people killed in Syria’s Homs in shelling by Syrian forces before critical UN vote for Bashar al-Assads fate.

Damascus / NationalTurk – More than 200 Syrians were blasted in shelling by pro Assad Syrian forces in the city of Homs, Syria anti government activists stated , as the U.N. Security Council prepared to vote on a draft resolution backing the Arab League decision for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to give up power.

Death tolls cited by activists and opposition groups ranged from 217 to 260, making the Homs attack the deadliest and bloodiest so far in Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on protests which started 11 months ago, inspired by uprisings that overthrew three Arab leaders, called Arab Spring.

Syria government forces : Killed 200 in bombings but committed also suicide ?

Syrian forces were reported began shelling the Khalidiya neighbourhood in Homs at around 8 p.m. local time on Friday using artillery and mortars. At least 36 houses were completely destroyed with families inside.

As news of the newest wave of Syrian violence spread, a crowd of Syrians stormed the Syrian embassy in Cairo in protest, and rallies broke out outside Syrian missions in Britain, Germany and the United States.

It was not immediately clear what had prompted Syrian forces to launch such an intense bombardment, just as diplomats at the Security Council were discussing the draft resolution supporting the Arab League demand for Assad to step aside.

Some activists said the violence was triggered by a wave of army defections in Homs, a stronghold of protests and armed insurgents who Assad has vowed to crush.

Syrian activists say Khalidiya was a key anti-Assad district. Assad forces are believed to be bombarding Syrians to scare other rebel neighbourhoods. “It does not seem that they get it. Even if they kill 10 million of us, the people will not stop until we topple him.”

Syria National Council : Most horrific massacre during Syrian protests and uprising

The opposition Syrian National Council announced 260 civilians were killed, describing the shelling as “one of the most horrific massacres since the beginning of the uprising in Syria”.

It added that it believed Assad’s forces were preparing for similar attacks around Damascus and in the northern town of Jisr al-Shughour.

Another group, the Local Coordination Committees, gave a death toll of over 200. It is not possible to verify activist or state media reports as Syria restricts independent media access.

Syria Violance : Assad or forces to topple made this massacre ?

Disturbing video footage on the Internet showed at least eight bodies assembled in a room, one of them with the top half of its head blown off. A voice on the video said the bombardment was continuing as the footage was filmed.

One activist stated residents were using primitive tools to rescue the people. They feared many were buried under rubble after shelling paused.

“We are not getting any help, there are no ambulances or anything. We are removing the people with our own hands,” he pleaded, adding there were only two field hospitals treating the wounded. Each one had a capacity to deal with 30 people, but he estimated the total number of wounded at 500 in the Syria Homs massacre

“We have dug out at least 100 bodies so far, they are placed in the two mosques.” More on Syria Homs massacre on www.nationalturk.com/en

Castro traveled to Caracas, Venezuela on Friday to attend a summit of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) as well as an activity commemorating the unsuccessful 1992 coup attempt led by Hugo Chavez, who later became president via the 1998 elections.

Raul Castro is accompanied by Ricardo Cabrisas, one of his vice presidents, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez and Foreign Commerce and Investment Minister Rodrigo Malmierca, reported the dpa news service.

The ALBA is currently comprised of Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, San Vicente y las Granadinas, Dominica y Antigua y Barbuda. The ALBA Summit is scheduled for Sunday, February 5th.

Istanbul Fashion Week 2012 : Guest will be spoiled with Sense of Taste

Istanbul Fashion Week (IFW) is going to shine in Istanbul from Feb 8 to 11. For the first time in the glamorous event’s history, the main event tent is decorated by an architect and the models will be served from menus specially summoned for their sensitive tummies.

Istanbul / NationalTurk – Istanbul Fashion Week (IFW) 2012 will see Turkish designers and brands leaving their marks and showcase their work once again. As usual there will also be a lot going on off stage and backstage as well as the catwalk.

The ever prominent Sense of Taste catering services, which is renowned for its services provided for TV celebrities, superstars and statesmen such as Nelson Mandela, Beyonce, Jay-Z and the no use Kardashian family -whose jobs are syill unkown to the masses-, is set to create a special Turkish atmosphere with a menu prepared by Chef Joshua Cohen with trendy but delish philosophy of “healthy taste.”

Turkish cuisine to set the trend at Istanbul Fashion Week

Sense of Taste will provide services backstage to international standards, with filling, high-fiber recipes providing for daily calorie needs for models who sometimes take part in as many as five shows every day.

Wild rice pilaf and sautéed vegetable salad; fettuccine with low-fat mozzarella, mushroom and tomato sauce; broccoli roasted with soy and sesame oil; marinated fat-free grilled chicken breast, roasted red pepper, Thai noodles, tofu mixed vegetables and fruit salads will be prepared fresh every day for the models.
All meals will be cooked using only olive and sunflower oils. Pan and deep frying of all items has been eliminated, with Sense of Taste choosing to use only the healthiest cooking techniques such as steaming, poaching, braising and baking. Staff will also control the portion sizes of each meal to keep in line with the calorie content.

Sense of Taste to lift the mood at IFW with slices of heaven from Turkish Cuisine

Sense of Taste also aims to provide “the most loved” dishes from Turkish cuisine to boost the performance and strength of other backstage staff the unseen heroes and the backbone of the show. It will provide vegetable soup and fresh fruits for those who miss meals in the hectic backstage environment.

The tent hosting the fashion shows is to be put up in Beyoğlu, Taxim the heart and soul of Istanbul’s ever vbibrant life. For the first time in the event’s history, the tent will be built in the hands of an architect. Leyla Gök, who decorated the tent, sat her priority to create a place both practical and pleasing to the eye and mind and soul. Since the tent is made of white canvas, white wood has been used to match. Gök wants the heart of Istanbul to beat in this tent, so she has tried to add energy to it with color and animation.

Istanbul waits its honored guests for the fashion week

“We studied the details of all fashion weeks, especially in Europe. Yet, function, demand and concept shaped the composition of the place more than inspiration when forming the idea,” said Gök.

Inside the tent, there is a cloakroom and a bar section, comfortable sitting areas where the guests can listen to the DJ. There will be a live DJ performance all day long, which is a first in the event’s history.

There are also various sponsor stands, a VIP lounge section and a press lounge in the tent. The runway tent is 40 meters long, the lounge tent is 40 meters long and the kitchen tent annexed to the all important bar section is 8 meters long.

Such familiar and famous  names in the fashion world as Nejla Guvenc, Atil Kutoglu, Erol Albayrak, Aspen Büyükçınar, Gunseli Turkay, Zeynep Erdogan, John Saracoglu, Özlem Kaya, Simay Bulbul will present their individual fashion shows on stage.

Each place will present and reflect its integrated relation with its surroundings.

Israel : Iran can hit USA with nukes with new missiles

Israel says Iran can launch 4 nukes with the current uranium reserve, all of them capable of reaching US.

Tel Aviv / NationalTurk – Israel’s military intelligence chief has announced that Iranian scientists have already managed to enrich enough radioactive material to successfully produce four nuclear bombs ready to be launched and can reach US soil.

Israeli General Aviv Kochavi broke the news at a security conference. The intelligence believes Iran nuclear program is a year short of producing a crude device and two of manufacturing a nuclear warhead attached on a ballistic missile.

Israel on Iran Nukes : The pot calling the kettle black

Not sharing the nuclear arsenal Israel already has at its immediate disposal, the Israeli Deputy PM also claimed Aviv Kochavi claims confidently : “Iran is very actively pursuing its efforts to enhance its nuclear capacities, and we have evidence that they are seeking nuclear weapons.” However, no actual evidence was demonstrated or even referred to at the press conference.

Israel : Iran can hit USA with nukes with new missiles

The Israeli Deputy PM also claimes that Iran has also succeeded in building a new model long-range missile capable of putting the USA within its reach. Moshe Ya’alon, who had just returned from Washington where he discussed the Iran conflict with President Obama’s administration, chose to echo Kochavi’s words of warning, saying “The Israeli government will stop Iran one way or another.”

These latest statements are very much in line with the position of Israel and its allies who are accusing Iran of using its nuclear industry to mask plans to develop nuclear arms, a charge Tehran government officially has frequently and vehemently denied.

Attack on Iran : When ?

Israel, backed by its key ally the United States, has long pushed for tougher sanctions against Iran. Top level officials in both Tel Aviv and Washington DC have recently said they do not rule out a military attack against the Islamic Republic.

As sparks continue to fly around the powder keg of Iran’s supposed nuclear ambitions, the Middle Eastern state is not playing dead either. A defiant President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced on Thursday that the country is planning to double its military spending over the next year; a sign that is being interpreted by many as “taking a stand” against pressure from the West.

The United States and their NATO allies are also flexing their muscles, with recent transfers of US fighter jets and other military planes to the region. Troops have also been reportedly arriving at various American military bases in the Persian Gulf, with another ten thousand soldiers recently transferred to Israel – allegedly to test the US anti-ballistic missile defense system.

Persian Gulf : Waters heating, war drums beating

On top of that, two additional US Navy aircraft carriers – the USS Abraham Lincoln and Carl Vinson – are on patrol in the Persian Gulf and are expected to be joined by the USS Enterprise in March. The USS Annapolis, a nuclear submarine, was earlier reported to have entered the Red Sea and is rumored to be heading towards the Persian Gulf  through Hurmuz Strait as well.

Together with the US military bases already established in the region – for example, the 5th Fleet, stationed in Bahrain – all of this is interpreted by many pundits as nothing shy of intimidation, and some experts believe the US is trying to provoke Iran into making the first move, which Us and Israel are waiting for.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner held a phone conversation with her Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez, who reiterated his support of Argentina’s claim over the sovereignty of the Malvinas islands, the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry announced.

According to a communique both Heads of State “agreed in rejecting the military escalation being promoted in the area and in backing the multiple statements of the United Nation’s General Assembly that state that the UK has the obligation of ending the colonial situation in Malvinas islands.”

Chavez and Fernandez de Kirchner also talked about the bilateral relation and agreed to make further efforts to increase trade and economic exchange between both countries.

“Additionally, Chavez also congratulated Fernández de Kirchner on the improvement of her health and energy, following her thyroid gland surgery and subsequent three week leave of absence,” the communiqué concluded.

UEFA reregulates third party ownership of players, Almeida was subject to a Besiktas transfer story trough funding

As Uefa confirms Champions – and Europe League bans on players owned by third parties, plans on funding-based transfers and ownership of promising youngsters of Besiktas Chairman Demiroren and prominent footballers agent Jorge Mendes fail.

Nyon / NationalTurk – Uefa’s general secretary Gianni Infantino stresses UEFA’s readiness to take action against third parties owning players rights for future transfers.

Uefa has considered and finally confirmed it will ban all players from the Champions League and Europe League whose transfer rights are owned by third parties.

UEFA reregulates third party ownership of players

Gianni Infantino, the general secretary of European football’s governing body, stated the ownership of footballers by third parties via fundings and not the associated clubs themselves could not be allowed to continue hence Uefa regards this kind of player ownership as a growing threat.

Third party ownership of footballers is already outlawed in the Premier League and France’s Ligue 1 while Spain, Italy, Germany, Portugal and Turkey clubs use third party partners which own complete rights of footballers.

Executives from France and England have already complained to Uefa that clubs could use such investments to circumvent financial fair play regulations as Fifa’s rules do not prohibit investors buying stakes in footballers, providing they have no control over when they can play or when they are being transferred to other clubs.

The Premier League stands firmly agains third-party ownership with an official statement that said “Third party ownership threatens the integrity of competitions, reduces the flow of transfer revenue contained within the game and has the potential to exert external influences on players’ transfer decisions”. The decision was made after controversial Tevez and Mascherano transfers in 2007.

Besiktas has more than a few third party ownership and funding deals with star agent Jorge Mendes

UEFA’s decision on third party ownership of players affects Turkish giants Besiktas significantly. Besiktas chairman Yıldırım Demiroren and prominent player agent Jorge Mendes’s agency Gestifute have been considering cutting deals after deals for transfers and ownership of Besiktas’s young talents Muhammed Demirci, Necip Uysal, Atınc Nukan as Besiktas chairman Yildirim Demiroren needed more and more funding for the big signings of Almeida, Simao Sabrosa etc. Besiktas can face a threat of transfer ban apllied by FIFA.

You can read NationalTurk ‘s articles regarding Gestifute’s deal in Turkey with Besiktas Istanbul here

Another read on the topic : NationalTurk ‘s article reporting Gestifute’s deal on Hugo Almeida with Besiktas Istanbul 

Besiktas board and chairman Yıldırım Demirören had stirred a confusion in the Turkish sport press by signing Hugo Almeida in the previous transfer mid-season from Werder Bremen for 2 Mil. Euro by letting an Ireland based funding company ‘ISC Football’ be the financial sponsor of the deal. Later it was revealed that the company belonged to Jorge Mendes, a prominent agent in European soccer, agent of footballers such Christiano Ronaldo or managers like Jose Mourinho.

U.S. shares firmed as data showed new claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, pointing to more healing in the nation’s battered jobs market.

“The jobless claims continue the trend of decent news, though there have also been other indications of a general loss of momentum,” said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank in Cleveland, Ohio. “That suggests we’re in the right ballpark with estimates for the jobs report, but also that we aren’t likely to see a huge upside surprise.”

U.S. non-farm payrolls data for January are due on Friday. Analysts in a Reuters survey forecast a rise of 150,000, slower than December as some holiday workers were laid off.

But caution around the euro zone sovereign debt crisis kept markets wary and trading choppy.
The European financial crisis still threatens the U.S. recovery, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday.

Testifying before Congress, Bernanke said he was seeing signs that some of the uncertainty dampening U.S. business investment, including European banking woes, might be waning.

But he said it was far too soon to say whether the United States could remain unscathed.

And Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker, head of the euro zone finance ministers’ body known as the Eurogroup, said the outcome of this week’s European Union summit was “largely insufficient” when it came to tackling the sovereign debt crisis and described Greek debt talks as “ultra-difficult.

Athens is scrambling to wrap up talks on a 130-billion-euro rescue plan and a bond swap deal before big bond redemptions come due in March.

“The statement by Eurogroup chair Juncker that the Greek (private sector involvement) talks are ‘ultra difficult’ does not seem to suggest that they are ‘on the verge’ of a deal,” said David Watt, senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets in Toronto.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 8.86 points, or 0.07 percent, to 12,725.32. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 3.85 points, or 0.29 percent, to 1,327.94. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 16.51 points, or 0.58 percent, to 2,864.78.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares rose 0.23 percent, trading near a six-month high hit earlier in the session.

The euro surrendered early gains to dip 0.2 percent to $1.3132 against the dollar. The single currency fell 0.25 percentto 100.01 yen against the Japanese currency.

The MSCI world equity index gained 0.3 percent to 321.75, having risen over seven percent for the year to date.
Debt sales by Spain and France, which resulted in lower bond yields, also fueled worries about waning demand for euro zone government debt.

Spain sold 4.56 billion euros of three-, four- and five-year government bonds while France also sold nearly 8.0 billion euros of debt, including a new 10-year bond with lower average yields compared with the previous sales.
“A reasonable set of results but certainly not the humdinger of an outcome as seen at the last two sets of auctions,” said Richard McGuire, rate strategist at Rabobank.

Brent crude oil inched higher on Thursday to $112.20 per barrel, but retreated from early gains, as a large build-up of oil stocks in top consumer the United States countered upbeat economic data globally.
But U.S. crude fell to $96.54 per barrel on inventory data and expectations of plentiful flows into a key U.S. refining hub.

Reuters

The decision to conduct these drills was taken at the NATO-Russia Summit in Lisbon in November 2010.

“The exact timetable for the drills has not been determined yet,” Antonov said. “I think we may aim for March.”
Antonov downplayed the importance of the upcoming exercises in light of the current deadlock in missile defense talks between Russia and NATO.

Russia has proposed a joint system, while NATO favors two independent systems which exchange information.
Moscow is seeking written, legally binding guarantees that the U.S.-backed European missile defense network will not be directed against it. Washington, however, refuses to provide the guarantees, saying the shield is directed against threats from Iran and North Korea.

“Unfortunately, there has been no progress [in missile defense talks],” Antonov said. “It is a pity that the situation is not changing as our colleagues from the United States and NATO are still not ready to understand Russia’s concerns.”

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg : 'We don't build services to make money; we make money to build better services'

Facebook files for IPO. Facebook confirms plans to go public in deal that could rise Facebook’s value up to $100bn, Mark Zuckerberg’s stake will be round at $28bn.

New York / NationalTurk – With the Facebook initial public offering (IPO) now official, industry and financial analysts point out that a huge influx of cash could enable the social networking company to topple Google from its dominant position in the online world. Unseating Google would be no easy feat, though.

With an expected stock exchange valuation of $100 billion, financial analysts mark the IPO is worth about $5 billion. That’s a big potential troph for a company that has been fighting for social networking users and advertising dollars with the largest Internet company on Earth – Google. However the companies are not substitutes for each other. Google is the basis for most searches while Facebook is the basis for most social connections on Internet.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg : ‘We don’t build services to make money; we make money to build better services’

Eight years after the young student Marc Zuckerberg launched Facebook from his Harvard dorm room, the 27-year-old on Wednesday announced he is selling shares in the social network at a price that values his creation at up to $100bn – and values his stake in the business at $28bn.

Facebook’s initial public offering (IPO) will top the biggest technology IPO since Google’s in 2004. It is estimated that nearly 1,000 current and former Facebook employees could become paper millionaires when the social network company goes public. The sale will define the future for the new wave of social media firms now joining the US stock exchanges. But Facebook’s estimated value is jawdropping.

Facebook IPO : Ceo Zuckerberg’s monthly salary will be 1 US dollar !

As a regulatory filing process amid IPO move, Facebook gave the most detailed look yet at company’s business module. Facebook had 845 million users worldwide at the end of December 2011 and 483 million people were using it every day. The company had revenues of $3.7bn in 2011, up from $1.97bn in 2010, and made a profit of $1bn, up from $606m in 2010. At June 2009 Facebook had ‘only’ 250 million users.

In a letter to potential Facebook shareholders, Marc Zuckerberg stressed: “We don’t build services to make money; we make money to build better services,”. “These days I think more and more people want to use services from companies that believe in something beyond simply maximizing profits.”

Zuckerberg added: “Facebook was not originally created to be a company. It was built to accomplish a social mission — to make the world more open and connected.”

Faceboo IPO regulatory filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that:

Facebook IPO : Facebook now has 845 million users, of which 483 million use Facebook daily.

Facebook IPO : Revenues in 2011 were $3.71bn – 88% higher than revenues in 2010.

Facebook IPO : Facebook made $1bn in profit last year – equivalent to $1.10 per user.

Facebook IPO : Mark Zuckerberg owns 28% of the company, which could be worth $28bn if the firm fetches $100bn valuation mark.

Facebook IPO : Zuckerberg will be paid $1 in salary starting 1 January 2013.

With a lot of new incoming cash, Facebook could make a lot of moves. Facebook which wasn’t a company at the very beginning would become an business empire like from an utopia. Facebook can consider buying the struggling Yahoo, one of the proginetors of Internet , or with a bolder move even Twitter.

Barack Obama used a gas guzzling V-8 Hemi

U.S. President Barack Obama’s 2005 Chrysler 300C, his old car, is on sale at eBay.com for about 5,000 % above its resale price.

Washington / NationalTurk – Or at least that is what Lisa Czibor, an experienced used car seller, claims.

Czibor is eager to prove in detail that the grey sedan, currently at 20,000 miles, was really owned by the U.S. President Obama by posting scanned photos of the vehicle and scanned images of the title deed, one showing “Barack H. Obama” as the lessee according to a report on Economywatch.com.

Barack Obama used a gas guzzling V-8 Hemi

Czibor told why Barack Obama sold the car on eBay : ” Mr Obama received a lot of negative media attention in Detroit and from auto makers regarding his gas guzzling V-8 Hemi. He drove this Chrysler 300C from 2004 through the summer of 2007. Over 19,000 miles [30,577 km] were put on this car before Obama traded it for a 2007 Ford Escape Hybrid.”

She added that Obama drove the when he was a senator from Illinois and that it was possible he “drove the car in Washington D.C. and back to Chicago in 2005 and 2006.”

A car of the same year and model would normally would be tagged with a price of $20,000, Economywatch.com reported and added that Czibor believed certain people may be interested in the ‘prominent’ vehicle.

Other famious prominent cars which are subject to lucrative deals

Iran’s Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s 1977 “ancient” white Peugeot sold for approximately $2.4 million at an auction last year, Czibor said, adding that Adolf Hitler’s convertible blue Mercedes went for $8 million, Pope John Paul II’s 1975 Ford Escort GL sold for $690,000 and the current Pope Benedict’s 1999 VW sold for $244,000 though “he probably never drove it as he did not have a driver’s license as a cardinal but he had a driver.”

Sofia Vergara most desirable woman of Planet Earth

Sofia Vergara tops AskMen.com’s 2012 list of most desirable women followed closely by Kate Upton. Rooney Mara
is ranked third in the most desired chicks list.

Looking at the world’s most beautiful women, from actresses to musicians to models, AskMen.com wanted its users to consider one thing above all else: Would you date them? then invite them for hot coffee?

The traditional list of the “Top 99 Most Desirable Women of 2012″, based on the results of polling both horny readers and money greedy office staff. While it’s not as easy to qualify a woman you’ve only seen on TV as a potential girlfriend, the list isn’t just made up of gorgeous big titted, long legged and hot hips models. Brains matter too.

Most desirable women of 2012 : Which one is your desire ?

“Looks are obviously a big one for guys — there’s no question about that — but other factors are where a woman is in life, the kind of career she’s in and the success or ambition that reflects. Sincerity and loyalty, all of those values that guys appreciate. bla bla bla…

Sofia Vergara who’s most recent gig is ”Modern Family’s” ( a hillarious show btw) is the sexiest munchable female in the planet who is desired by most of the readers. She nabbed the top honors and, at age 39, holds the honor of being the most senior No. 1 at that list”.

While hot defilable models as -Quagmire from Family man woul say- have their fair share of representation on the list, a few surprises also sneaked into the top numbers.

Kate Upton, Rooney Mara, Miranda Kerr, Nicki Minaj, Emma Stone, Scarlett Johansson, Kim Kardashian, Rihanna and Candice Swanepoel made up the rest of the top 10.

While Victoria’s Secret models are enjoying more visibility these days because of increased TV specials, they’re at the same level of supermodels from the ’80s and ’90s, like Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer.

Noticeably absent were Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston. That doesn’t mean if one of these two would appear at the door of the voters at midnight and asked ‘ I’am scared and hungry would you like to warm and feed me? ‘, the voter would say’ sorry not on the list and slam the door against their faces.

It is believed men are “fatigued” by the two actresses. Jolie’s private, reserved life makes her too much of a mystery without allowing insight into her personality, while Aniston has never performed well on the list as well in most of her crappy movies.

A non talent person like Kardashian, whose job and career defination is still a mystery to the world is on the top ten of the list thanks to her hot ass.

Hot models, sexy actresses, dumb bimbos, jobless celebrities, dark meat, white meat, brainy ones : Here is the most desirable women of 2012

Newcomers like Lana Del Ray, Emilia Clarke, Adele, Kreayshawn, and Paz de la Huerta edged standbys from past years aside. Kristen Wiig outranked Tina Fey at No. 36, while Fey dropped to No. 97. Former child stars are also being perceived as the mature young women they’ve grown into, like Selena Gomez and Emma Watson, ranked respectively at Nos. 14 and 17 a satiricai salute to their respective ages.

Kate Middleton, making the list at No. 11, beat her sister, Pippa, by a long shot. Well many dream of defiling a princess during intercourse. The younger sibling barely made the list at No. 98, but that does not mean she is the dream toy for men.

The most desired women voting, which began in October, lasted just over six weeks, with an initial pool of 170 candidates.

Most desired women list

1. Sofia Vergara
2. Kate Upton
3. Rooney Mara
4. Miranda Kerr
5. Nicki Minaj
6. Emma Stone
7. Scarlett Johansson
8. Kim Kardashian
9. Rihanna
10. Candice Swanepoel

11. Kate Middleton
12. Zooey Deschanel
13. Mila Kunis
14. Selena Gomez
15. Daisy Lowe
16. Katy Perry
17. Emma Watson
18. Lady Gaga
19. Lea Michele
20. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

21. Natalie Portman
22. Kate Beckinsale
23. Olivia Wilde
24. Jessica Alba
25. Emmanuelle Chriqui
26. Mina Kelly
27. Kristen Stewart
28. Dianna Agron
29. Hayley Atwell
30. Kat Dennings

31. Lara Stone
32. Blake Lively
33. Brooklyn Decker
34. Jessica Gomes
35. Amber Heard
36. Kristen Wiig
37. Anne Hathaway
38. Sara Jane Underwood
39. Beyonce
40. Brittney Palmer

41. Amanda Seyfried
42. Alyson Hannigan
43. Liu Wen
44. Krysten Ritter
45. Stacy Keibler
46. Nicole Scherzinger
47. Jennifer Lawrence
48. Candace Bailey
49. Penelope Cruz
50. Carey Mulligan

51. Bar Refaeli
52. Jordana Brewster
53. Gisele Bundchen
54. Eva Mendes
55. Christina Ricci
56. Marisa Miller
57. Georgia Jagger
58. Freida Pinto
59. Anais Mali
60. Taylor Swift

61. Tamara Ecclestone
62. The Daily Girls
63. Michelle Williams
64. Leryn Franco
65. Olivia Munn
66. Aubrey Plaza
67. Irina Shayk
68. Arianny Celeste
69. Cheryl Cole
70. Priyanka Chopra

71. Adriana Lima
72. Chanel Iman
73. Lily Aldridge
74. Kreayshawn
75. Olga Fonda
76. Kate Moss
77. Zoe Kravitz
78. Rose Byrne
79. Caroline Wozniacki
80. Demi Moore

81. Elsa Pataky
82. Sunny Leone
83. Zoe Saldana
84. Camilla Belle
85. Maria Menounos
86. Jessica Chastain
87. Madalina Ghenea
88. Emilia Clarke
89. Lake Bell
90. Berenice Marlohe

91. Alessandra Ambrosio
92. Adele
93. Jennifer Lopez
94. Elizabeth Olsen
95. Lana Del Rey
96. Megan Fox
97. Tina Fey
98. Pippa Middleton
99. Paz De La Huerta

U.N. Security Council is at standstill on Syria

U.N. Security Council is at standstill on Syria as reports of deaths rise and President Assad stays on top. The possibility of an military intervention seems out of question, but only for now. Syria News..

Damascus / NationalTurk – The UN Security Council wants to avoid military intervention in Syria the council has agreed upon – however differences and obstacles remain over the way ahead. The U.S. – as well as its European and Arab allies – want Syrian President Assad out of power. For its part, Russia says the UN shouldn’t be used as a platform for excessive interference in Syrian affairs. Russia’s stance on Syria has much more international support than one may assume while the UN Security Council has been unable to agree on any resolution on Syria.

The Security Council is considering a draft resolution proposed by Morocco that calls for al-Assad to transfer power to his vice president. Both China and Russia appear poised to veto it.

Russia : Syria resolution unlikely

Russia’s envoy to the European Union said on Wednesday he believes a Western-Arab draft UN Security Council resolution cannot pass without language clearly ruling out potentialmilitary intervention.

At least 20 people were killed across Syria on Wednesday, opposition activists informed, as diplomats at the United Nations prepare to debate once again how to respond to the mounting crisis in Syria.

Twelve people were killed in Wadi Barada, in the Damascus suburbs, according to the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, an opposition group that organizes and documents demonstrations. The other deaths occurred in Homs, Idlib and Qamishli, the LCC said.

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights opposes Assad in Syria protests

The latest casualties include six defectors who were killed during clashes with government forces in the Damascus suburbs, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, another opposition activist group.

Syrian regime states taht Arab League observers’ report on Syria is part of a massive ‘disinformation campaign’ against the country, reminding those present that Syria had offered the observer mission an extension, while the Arab League turned the idea down.

Istanbul woke up to a picturesque but paralyzed city covered with a white blanket, Blue Mosque in Sultanahmed Square under snow

Istanbul woke up to a picturesque but paralyzed city covered with a white blanket this morning as heavy snow and cold weather gripped particullarly the European side of the Metropolis.

Istanbul / NationalTurk – Traffic was congested in many key points of the city in the morning rush hours as troubles were frequently exacerbated by sporadic accidents. So far no casualties have been reported in these accident but material damage is expected to be very high.

One person reportedly died after slipping and falling to the ground in Fatih district. Many are reported to be hospitalized with broken limbs or bruises.

Snow height more than half a meter in many suburbs of Istanbul

In higher sections and in western and northern parts of the city, snow height reached half a meter. Working class districts such as Bağcılar, Esenler and Sultangazi were especially affected, while main highways such as O-2 and O-3 were also hit, despite the efforts of municipality workers.

The metrobuses, big busses with a fancier name – Istanbul municipality’s brilliant solution to traffic jams – which many Istanbulites trusted to reach their jobs, were also paralyzed, as services between Küçükçekmece and more central Topkapı were halted. Tens of thousand stuck in traffic. Buses were also unable to move in many crucial districts. Tens of thousands of citizens tried to reach their workplaces on foot.

In many locations, the situation was made worse due to citizens who failed to chain their tires or did not use snow tyres.

Flights from Istanbul Atatürk Airport cancelled

As of this morning, nearly 180 domestic and international flights from the Istanbul Atatürk Airport were canceled. Many passengers whose flights were canceled starting from yesterday evening had to spend the night at the airport.

Due to strong northeast winds in the Marmara Sea, many seabus and fast ferry services were also halted. These include ferries from the Yenikapı port and Bandırma, a city on the opposite side of Marmara Sea.

Istanbul weather will be slightly better in the coming days as forecasters have said the severe cold, which has seen officials in Turkey report Istanbul’s lowest temperature for 30 years, will continue to spread west, with extreme low temperatures expected to drop to minus double figures, with a risk of snow blizzards. Weather in Istanbul is at the moment snow shovers and -1 .

Turkish Soccer fans as QR Code Generators

Turkish fans raised the bar at creativity and insulting rivals, as they put QR codes in use in recent rivalry game in İzmir, Turkey.

İzmir / NationalTurk – Karsıyaka and Göztepe are two fiercest rivals as far as rivalrys can be. The two sides from İzmir, Turkey’s 3rd biggest city and one of the most open-minded.

Turkish Soccer fans as QR Code Generators

Fans of two Turkish soccer teams show such intense rivalry that in the past when Karsiyaka face Göztepe there have been clashes with the police, fans have been arrested or wounded by knife or döner kebap blades, police officers have been wounded and matches halted for half an hour, if not cancelled.

QR Code As digital Insults in Turkey

At yesterdays game Karisyaka fans unfurled a QR Code banner which scanned as text designed to insult Göztepe fans as much as possible and at the same time avoid immediate confiscation by officials. The offending text is shown below.However either by Turkish medias recognization or by Turkish police awareness the ‘ digital ‘ insult didn’t go unnoticed and the fans and the club will face punishment and fines. The QR codes read insults in 8 different languages.

France Armenian Genocide Bill : Appealed by France's last sane parliamentarians

77 French senators appealed for rejection of Armenian genocide law to the French supreme Constitutional Council, a development that raised prospects of annulment of the controversial legislation which has provoked Turkey.

Paris / NationalTurk – More than 70 French parliamenters, members of senate and lawmakers appealed to the country’s highest court Tuesday to overturn a law that penalizes denial of mass Armenian deaths nearly a century ago during World War I era was genocide.

Amnesty says French genocide bill threatens freedom of speech

A minimum of 60 lawmakers is needed to make an appeal to the Constitutional Council, which has one month to make its decision after efforts from Turkish envoy im France tried to mobilize French senators for appeal. The move raises the possibility that the law, which sparked an angry reaction in Turkey, will be dismissed and rejected as unconstitutional and against freedom of expression after French court evaluates it.

The 11-member Constitutional Council has 30 days to decide whether the legislation is unconstitutional. But it may be forced to rule in eight days if the government requests an emergency decision.

France Armenian Genocide Bill : Appealed by France’s last sane parliamentarians

The bill, which received final approval on January 23, prompted Ankara to cancel all economic, political and military meetings with Paris. Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan attacked the French parliament for passing what he said was “discriminatory and racist” legislation.

More than 70 senators from across the political divide made the appeal to the court, said Jacques Mezard, a senator from a left-leaning party, the Democratic and Social European Group. Another 50 lawmakers in the lower house agreed to the appeal.

Armenia claims about 1.5 million Christian Armenians were killed in what is now eastern Turkey during World War One in a deliberate policy of genocide ordered by the Ottoman government. It is known that during the war Armenians have backstabbed the Turks and Kurds in the region and the rebel bands and after them Russians murdered many Turkish citizens with help from treacherous Armenians.

France Armenian Genocide Law: On the brink of Annulation

The Ottoman state was dissolved following the events of the World War I, but successive Turkish governments and the vast majority of Turks feel the charge of genocide is a direct insult to their nation and ‘nazifies ‘ Turkey undeservedly with a shameful scar unlike Germany is branded by some of the world still as ‘Nazis’ today. Ankara government argues there was heavy loss of life on both sides during fighting in the Eastern Anatolia, Turkey.

The France’s alleged Genocide bill, which received final parliamentary approval on Jan. 23, needs to be approved by French President Nicolas Sarkozy in order to go into effect. Sarkozy’s part backs the Armenian Genocide Law strongly. But the Constitutional Council may now cancel it on grounds of violating the French constitution and Freedom of Speech before it gets to Sarkozy(an).

Meet the French Constitutional Council brave and sane to see the folly and historical violation of France constitution

The Constitutional Council, whose 11 members include former French presidents and others appointed by the president, and presidents of the Senate and the French National Assembly, rule on conformity of legislation after they have been voted by Parliament and before they are signed into law by the president. Former French presidents Valerie Giscard d’Estaing and Jacques Chirac are currently members of the council, headed by Jean-Louis Debre.

Should the Armenian genocide bill go into effect in France, those who deny that the killings of Armenians during World War I era in eastern Anatolia were genocide ,will face crimianal charges and eventually punishments. It sets a sentance of up to one year in a French prison and a fine of 45,000 euros for those who deny or “outrageously minimize” the killings — putting such action on par with denial of the Great Holocaust, which unjustly marks many Germans today still as ‘Nazis’.

Turkey has protested the bill, saying it is an attack on freedom of expression. It has also warned it would impose unspecified sanctions if the measure eventually goes into effect. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attacked the French parliament for passing what he said was “discriminatory and racist” legislation. It is a woeful attempt to get the Armenian votes in France in the upcoming presidential elections

Turkey hails appeal for cancellation of France Armenian Genocide atrocity

On Tuesday, Erdoğan praised the French parliamentarians for seeking to reject the bill. “This is what befits France. The senators did what befits France,” he told reporters.

Göksel Gümüşdağ (L), Lütfi Arıboğan (C) and Mehmet Ali Aydınlar (R) at the start of TFF Grand Meeting convened to decide on match fixing penalties

Mehmet Ali Aydınlar, the president of Turkish Football Federation (TFF) and first and second vice-presidents, Göksel Gümüşdağ and Lütfi Ariboğan have resigned today.

Istanbul / NationalTurk – TFF president Mehemt Ali Aydinlar and two major officials at TFF board, Göksel Gümüşdağ and Lütfi Arıboğan, both vice-presidents, have resigned today from their duties at TFF. Such a move was expected after the TFF extraordinary meeting last week, but TFF announced yesterday that the president and the board would continue their spells nevertheless, as the match-fixing case took its toll on the TFF.

The shocking resignings have been announced today afternoon with a short statement from TFF. TFF will convey for another grand meeting on 27th February. Until then TFF will be represented by Hüsnü Güreli, a member of the TFF executive board.

News on Turkish Football Federation will be updated soon..

Project NEOShield will prevent this from happening

In other space news Star Trek tractor beam is offered to save Planet Earth from asteroid ArmageddonX. The Laser Tractor beam is one of three ways world’s top scientist will save us from possible planet eradicators.

Washington / NationalTurk –  A new international consortium of top scientist has been set up to figure out what Earthlings could do if an asteroid came hurtling towards the planet on a path of imminent destruction.

Project NEOShield : Savior of Planet Earth

The project NEOShield focuses on three methods of averting Armegeddon disaster: the Hollywoodesque solution of sending up a team of deep drillers with a powerful nuclear bomb to explode it, or frantically hurling all of our nuke arsenal at it; dragging it to safety with a Star Trek-inspired tractor beam; or hitting it with something we have more control over, like a big spaceship.

The project will explore the possibilities for kinetic impactors, gravity tractors and blast deflection as ways to save our planet from oblivion.

NEOShield focuses on 3 methodes

NEOShield will be led by the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), supported by €4m of European Commission money, and will include research institutes, universities and companies from the UK, France, Spain, Russia and the US as well as Germany.

“There is currently no concerted international plan addressing the impact threat and how to organise, prepare and implement mitigation measures,” a NEOShield initial report reads.

“Protecting the Earth from Near Earth Object (NEO) impacts is a global problem and, as such, any mitigation of damage strategy has to involve at least the most scientifically and technologically capable nations.”

The kinetic impactor idea (slamming into the asteroid with something heavy, like a gigantic spaceship) has already been explored by the European Space Agency in its Don Quijote mission, where it looked at sending a spacecraft to hit the space-rock, but that study didn’t answer every question.

Gravity Tractor is Star Trek tech

“The efficiency of momentum transfer from the impactor ( our spaceship, we will probably name it meotheorf..r ) to the hazardous NEO depends not only on the physical properties of the target… but also on the impact accuracy,” NEOShield stated, adding that it would focus on the guidance, navigation and control of the hit-spacecraft.

The gravity tractor, meanwhile, is strictly theoretical and has only been seen in action on Star Trek series and movies. This is where a spacecraft would affect the asteroid’s intended destructive path by dragging it one way or another using gravitational forces.

There’s obviously lots to be researched out there, new technologies are required including how big the tractor beam has to be, how much power it would take to deflect the NEO, the required distances between the two, how long it would take, and pretty much every other question coming into minds.

Nuke’m all

NEOShield will look finally at the conventional technique of “Hurling all our nukes at it!”, scientifically known as blast deflection, including burying the bomb on asteroid, although it admits that this would only be appropriate in extreme circumstances.

The first problem here will be to stop everyone freaking out when someone fires off a nuke by making sure nuclear response is internationally coordinated.

The scientists will also have to find a way which of the surface or buried blasts would be more effective, and if they did want to bury it, and figure it out if  the “current penetrator or drilling technology” would be sufficient to get the job done.

The NEO project is kicking off this week and is will be running for around three-and-a-half years with hopes to lay out the roadmap so we, the citizens of Earth are ready when an actual significant asteroid impact threat arises.

Kutlay won Diploma of Excellence which the highest esteemed accolade.

WPTA Accreditation Board said that;

“We have just completed the review and are extremely happy to report that Evren Kutlay’s presentation merits the WPTA Diploma of Excellence (WPTA dip-E) Accreditation, our highest esteemed accolade. WPTA Accreditation is a valuable professional asset that compliments the c.v., as well as any assessment situations including promotions, tenure applications and similar proceedings.

We congratulate Evren Kutlay on this important professional achievement and wish Kutlay success in her future endeavors.”

Asteroid Eros , Love from afar ?

Big Asteroid Eros Approaches Earth but will pass from a safe distant withoy impact. Space and sky observers will feast on the view wit telescopes.

Washington / NationalTurk – A huge asteroid named Eros will approach planet earth with no danger of possible impact, since it remains at a “safe distance”, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) stated.

Asteroid Eros is 34 kilometers long in diameter and is expected to come to the Earth as close as 27.7 kilometers on Wednesday early morning and will pass the night sky through Leo, Sextants and Hydra constellations, space experts told.

The Eros asteroid can be observed in some regions of the planet with simple telescopes until February 10, before it moves distant.

Asteroid Eros is an old friend of our planet

Eros, an asteroid composed by magnesium and iron silicate, was discovered on August 13, 1898 by astronomers Carl Gustav Witt and Auguste Charlois. The last recorded time Eros approached Earth was on 1975 and after 2012, it will approach Planet Earth, our home again in 2056.

Planet Earth on cosmic nera-miss highway for asteroids

Another asteroid hurtled past the Earth on last Friday in a cosmic near-miss, made its closest approach.

The asteroid, estimated to be about 11m (36ft) in diameter, was first detected on Wednesday.

At its closest, the space rock – named 2012 BX34 – passed within about 60,000km of Earth – less than a fifth of the distance to the Moon.

Kazim Richards Transfer from Galatasaray to Olympiakos on loan, good riddance ?

Greek giants Olympiacos have completed a shocking €900,000 loan deal for Galatasaray’s estranged Turkish international Colin Kâzım-Richards.

Istanbul / NationalTurk – Colin Kazim Richards, Kazim Kazim to Turks, was called many names in Turkey. Former Sunderland youngster Colin Kazim Richards was sent to Olympiakos from Galatasaray. Fatih Terim, Galatasaray manager and Kazim Richards relationship often was decsribed as one of son-father’s. But the eccentric and ego-centric forward / winger couldn’t carve a solid career in Turkey and with every passing week he fell from grace and lost his starting position at Galatasaray squad. And Galatasaray fans were also fed up with Richards and his antics and bad football.

Kazim Richards Transfer from Galatasaray to Olympiakos on loan

Lack of discipline and self indulgence are two major setbacks of the 25 year-old England born footballer. He failed in Fenerbahce and sent to Toulouse on loan returned, then found a new hope at Galatasaray but to no avail. He is bad and worse, he is the classic case of talented but troubled player, where the talent side is also fading, and fading fast.

Galatasaray sent Kazim Richards to Olympiakos on loan for a 900 000 Euro part of his wage with Olympiakos having an option to transfer the player completely and the tweet from Gicabaser summarizes it all :

The Olympiakos transfer committee who loaned Kazim Richards from Galatasaray failed the medical exam..

India censors The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Sony Pictures stand up against it

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is not allowed to enter India, because she shows her buttocks. The film got censored and banned by India’s Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

New Delhi / NationalTurk – Indians won’t see “The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo” after India’s Central Board of Film Certification found many scenes oh the film abusive and decided to blur them.

Sony Pictures decided then not to release its blockbuster movie in India after censors demanded that scenes showing “bare bottoms” be blurred. The much-awaited Daniel Craig starrer The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo won’t be seeing an India release as the film’s director David Fincher has personally refused to cut some scenes as specified by India’s Central Board of Film Certification.

India censors The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Sony Pictures stand up against it

The Hollywood film starring Daniel Craig about a journalist’s search for a woman missing for 40 years was due to be released on February 10, but it ran into problems with India’s CBFC. Over 1,700 foreign films are released in India every year after passing certification tests by India’s powerful censor board.

“Bare bottom and bare-breast scenes are not allowed in India,” J.P. Singh, an official at CBFC, told NationalTurk. “We stand up to several sex scenes in ‘The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo’ and wanted them to be blurred.” announced the reason behind the censorship.

Sony Pictures in India acknowledged in a statement sent to AFP on Monday its response and stated that Sony would not compromise on the content of the film, which has grossed 185 million dollars globally.

“The Censor Board has adjudged the film unsuitable for public viewing in its unaltered form,” the statement read.

“And while we are committed to maintaining and protecting the vision of the director ( david fincher), we will, as always, respect the guidelines set by the board.” The movie directed by David Fincher, whose previous hits include “Fight Club” and “The Social Network”, is the first US interpretation of a hugely popular book series by late Swedish writer Stieg Larsson.

Indians won’t see these scenes from The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo :

The scenes in question include two lovemaking scenes between the film’s principal female lead Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara) and Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig); a lesbian fingering scene featuring Lisbeth; a scene where Lisbeth is fiercely raped and savagely tortured.

In a follow-up scene, she tortures her tormentor as a video of her being assaulted plays in the background as payback or revenge.

Indians will see the movie eventually, as piracy is common in India like simians on the streets. Illegal copies of nearly every Hollywood movie can be found on every street corner in India.

Renegades of Funk in Latin America

Fidel Castro, the legendary leader of Cuban revolution praised Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez for its world politics and organization, slammed Us and Europe while sending gratitude to all South American anti-fascist states.

Havana / NationalTurk – Cuban Revolution Leader Fidel castro shed light on one of his most beloved South American leaders, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez.

Complete Text of Fidel Castro’s latest reflection

President Chavez presented his annual report on activities carried out in 2011 and his program for 2012 to the Venezuelan Parliament. After thoroughly carrying out the formalities required by this important activity, he addressed the official state authorities, members of parliament from all parties, and supporters and opposition members who had come to the Assembly to participate in the country’s most solemn act.

As usual, the Venezuelan leader was gracious and respectful to all those present. When anyone asked for the floor to make a clarification, he granted it as soon as possible. When one of the members of parliament, who had warmly greeted Chavez as did other opposition members, asked to speak, in a great political gesture Chavez interrupted his report presentation and gave her the floor. What surprised me was the extreme severity of the rebuke, launched against the president with words that really put to test Chavez’ chivalry and cold blood. The MPs statement was undoubtedly an insult, although this was not her intention. He alone was capable of calmly responding to the offensive word ‘thief’ that she had used to judge the president’s conduct in terms of the adopted laws and measures.

After verifying the exact term that was used, Chavez responded to the individual challenge for debate with an elegant and sedated phrase, “An eagle does not hunt flies,” and without adding another word he calmly proceeded with his report.

It represented an insurmountable test of mental agility and self control. Another woman, of unquestionable humble origins, expressed her astonishment in moving and heartfelt words over what she had just witnessed and the overwhelming majority present broke out in applause. Judging by the sheer volume, the applause seemed to be coming from all of Chavez’ friends and many of his adversaries as well.

Fidel Castro : Politics is an extensive and decisive battle of ideas

Chavez’ report lasted more than nine hours without the people ever losing interest. Maybe because of that incident, his words were heard by an immeasurable number of people. Many times I have given extensive speeches on difficult topics, always striving to make the ideas I was transmitting understandable. And I was really at a loss to explain how that soldier of humble origins was able to keep his mind so agile and his incomparable talent to deliver such an address without losing his voice or strength.

To me politics is an extensive and decisive battle of ideas. Publicity is the work of publicists, who perhaps know the techniques to get listeners, spectators and readers to do what they are told to do. If that science, or art, or whatever they call it is employed for the good of human beings, they deserve some respect; the same respect merited by those who teach people how to think.

Fidel Castro Reflections : Venezuela is the site of great battle where Chavez will be victorous

Venezuela today is the site of a great battle. Internal and external enemies of the revolution prefer chaos —as Chavez has said— to the just, organized and peaceful development of the country. Being accustomed to analyzing the events that have occurred over more than half a century, and to observing, with greater foundations for judgment, the eventful history of our time and human behavior, one learns to almost predict the future development of events.

To promote a far-reaching Revolution in Venezuela was no easy task. Venezuela is a country full of glorious history, but extraordinarily rich in resources that are of vital importance to the imperialist powers that have, and continue to map out guidelines in the world.

Political leaders the likes of Romulo Betancourt and Carlos Andres Perez lack the most minimal personal qualities to carry out such a task. Furthermore, Betancourt was excessively vain and hypocritical. He had many opportunities to learn about the situation in Venezuela. As a young man he was a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of Costa Rica. He had a strong grasp of Latin American history and the role of imperialism, of poverty rates, and the ruthless plundering of natural resources in South America. He could not ignore that in a vastly rich country such as Venezuela, the majority of the people lived in extreme poverty. The archival footage is irrefutable proof of that reality of life.

As Chavez has explained many times, for more than half a century Venezuela was the world’s major oil exporter. At the beginning of the 20th century, European and Yankee warships intervened to support an illegal and tyrannical government that handed the country over to foreign monopolies. It is well known that incalculable funds flowed out of Venezuela to swell the wealth of monopolies and the Venezuelan oligarchy.

I remember when I visited Venezuela for the first time —after the triumph of the Revolution, to give thanks for the support and friendliness afforded to our struggle—, oil was worth barely two dollars a barrel.

Afterwards when I went to Venezuela to take part in the swearing-in ceremony for Chavez, the day he took an oath on the “dying constitution” held by Calderas, oil was worth seven dollars a barrel, despite 40 years having passed since my first visit and almost 30 years since the “distinguished” Richard Nixon had cancelled the direct convertibility of the United States dollar to gold and the US began to buy the world with pieces of paper. For a century, Venezuela was a supplier of cheap fuel to the empire’s economy and a net exporter of capital to developed and rich countries.

Castro : Former Latin American generals were trained in US for  Coups d’état

Why did these repugnant situations dominate for more than a century?

Latin American Armed Forces’ officials went to their privileged schools in the United States, where the Olympic champions of democracies gave them special courses on maintaining imperialist and bourgeois order. Coups d’état were always welcomed if their objective was to “defend democracies,” safeguarding and guaranteeing this repugnant system, in league with the oligarchies. Whether voters knew how to read and write, whether they had homes, employment, medical services and education were unimportant as long as the sacred right to property was maintained. Chavez brilliantly explains this situation. No one knows as well as him what happened in our countries.

Even worse was that the sophisticated nature of weapons, the complex workings and use of modern armaments that require years of learning, the training of highly qualified specialists, and the almost prohibitive cost of such weapons for the weak economies of the continent created a very strong mechanism of subordination and dependence.

The US Government, employing mechanisms that did not require prior consultation with the other governments, set guidelines and policies for the military. The most sophisticated techniques of torture were passed on to the so-called security agencies to interrogate those who rebelled against the dirty and repugnant system of hunger and exploitation.
Despite all this, many honest officials, tired of so many indignations, bravely attempted to eradicate that embarrassing treason against the history of our independence struggles.

In Argentina, military official Juan Domingo Peron was able to design an independent and worker-based policy in his country. A bloody military coup overthrew him, expelled him from his country, and kept him in exile from 1955 to 1973. Years later, under the aegis of the Yankees, they once again attacked the government, murdering, torturing and disappearing tens of thousands of Argentines. They were not even able to defend the country during the colonial war that England carried out against Argentina with the conspiratorial support of the United States and henchman Augusto Pinochet with his cohort of fascists officers trained at the School of the Americas.

In Santo Domingo, Colonel Francisco Caamaño Deño; in Peru, General Velazco Alvarado; in Panama, General Omar Torrijos; and in other countries captains and officers who gave their lives anonymously were the antithesis of the traitorous behavior embodied by Somoza, Trujillo, Stroessner and the cruel tyrannies in Uruguay, El Salvador and other countries in Central and South America. The revolutionary military personnel did not expound elaborate theories, nor was this to be expected. They were not academicians educated in political science, but rather men with a sense of honor who loved their country.

But how far can honest men —who deplore injustice and crime— go along the path of revolution?
Venezuela is an outstanding example of the theoretical and practical role that the military can play in the revolutionary struggle for the independence of our peoples, as they did two centuries ago under the brilliant leadership of Simon Bolivar.

Chavez, a Venezuelan military officer of humble origins, stepped into the political life of Venezuela inspired by the ideas of the Liberator of America. On Bolivar, an inexhaustible source of inspiration, Marti wrote: “he won sublime battles with soldiers barefoot and half naked [...] who never fought so much, nor fought better, in the world for freedom …”

“… Of Bolivar, he said, you can talk only after climbing up a mountain to use it as a platform [...] or after freeing a bunch of peoples united in one fist …”

“… what he did not do, still remains undone today, because Bolivar still has things to do in the Americas.”
More than half a century later the famous, award-winning poet Pablo Neruda wrote a poem on Bolivar which Chavez frequently quotes. The final stanza reads:

“I met Bolivar one long morning, in Madrid, at the head of the Fifth Regiment, Father, I said, you are or not or who you are? And looking at the Mountain Headquarters, he said:
‘I wake up every hundred years when the people awaken.’ ”

But the Bolivarian leader is not limited to theoretical elaborations. His concrete measures are implemented without hesitation. The English-speaking Caribbean countries, which have to contend with modern and luxurious Yankee cruise ships for the right to receive tourists in their hotels, restaurants and recreation centers, quite often foreign-owned, but at least they generate employment, will always welcome fuel from Venezuela, supplied by that country with special payment facilities, when the barrel reached prices that sometimes exceeded US $100.

Fidel Castro reflects on Mexico : Mexico’s state saddens me deeply

In the tiny state of Nicaragua, the land of Sandino, the “General of Free Men”, the Central Intelligence Agency organized the exchange of guns for drugs through Luis Posada Carriles after he was rescued from a Venezuelan prison. This operation resulted in thousands of deaths and mutilations among that heroic people. Nicaragua has also received the solidarity support of Venezuela. These are unprecedented examples in the history of this hemisphere.

The ruinous Free Trade Agreement that the Yankees intend to impose on Latin America, as they did with Mexico, would turn Latin America and the Caribbean not only into the region with the world’s worst distribution of wealth, which already is. It will turn it into a huge market where corn and other staple foods that are traditional sources of plant and animal protein would be displaced by subsidized U.S. crops, as is already happening in Mexico.

Used cars and other goods are displacing Mexican industry manufactures; job opportunities are decreasing in both cities and the countryside; the drug and arms trades are escalating, growing numbers of youngsters aged 14 or 15 years are turned into fearsome criminals. Never before, buses or other vehicles full of people who even paid to be transported across the border in search of employment, have been kidnapped and mass murdered. Known figures grow from year to year. More than ten thousand people are now losing their lives each year.

It is impossible to analyze the Bolivarian Revolution without taking these realities into account.
The armed forces, in such social circumstances, are forced into endless and wearisome wars.

Honduras is not an industrialized, financial or commercial country, or even a major producer of drugs. However, some of its cities break the record of drug-related violent deaths. There instead stands the banner of a major base of the strategic forces of the United States Southern Command. What is happening there, and is already happening in more than one Latin American country, is the Dantesque picture painted above, from which some countries have begun to escape. Among them and first, Venezuela, not just because it has considerable natural resources, but because it has been rescued from the insatiable greed of foreign corporations and has sparked considerable political and social forces capable of great achievements. Venezuela today is quite another from that I went to only 12 years ago, which had already deeply impressed me, seeing it as a Phoenix rising again from the ashes of its history.

Mentioning the mysterious computer of Raul Reyes, in the hands of the U.S. and the CIA after the attack organized and supplied by them in full Ecuadorian territory, which killed Marulanda’s replacement as well as several unarmed American youths, a version has been released that Chávez supported the “narco-terrorist organization FARC.” The true terrorists and drug traffickers in Colombia are the paramilitaries that supplied drugs to American dealers to sell them in the largest drug market in the world: the United States.

I never spoke with Marulanda, but I did speak with honored writers and intellectuals who came to know him well. I discussed his thoughts and history. He was undoubtedly a brave and revolutionary man, which I do not hesitate to affirm. I explained that I did not agree with him on his tactics. In my view, two or three thousand men would have been more than enough to defeat a conventional army in the territory of Colombia. His mistake was to devise a revolutionary army with almost as many soldiers as the enemy. That was extremely expensive.

Today, technology has changed many aspects of war; the forms of struggle also change. In fact, the clash of conventional forces between powers possessing nuclear weapons has become impossible. We do not have to have the knowledge of Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking and thousands of other scientists to understand that. It is a latent danger and the result is known or should be known. Thinking beings could take millions of years to repopulate the planet.

Nevertheless, I hold the duty to fight, which in itself is something innate in man, to find solutions that will enable a more reasoned and dignified existence.
Since I met Chavez, now as president of Venezuela, from the final stages of the Pastrana administration, I always saw him interested in promoting peace in Colombia. He facilitated meetings between the Colombian government and the revolutionaries that took place in Cuba, note well, on the basis of reaching a true peace agreement and not a surrender.

I do not recall ever having heard Chavez promote anything but peace in Colombia, nor mention Raul Reyes. We always addressed other issues. He particularly appreciates the Colombians, millions of them live in Venezuela and everyone benefits from the social measures taken by the Revolution, and the people of Colombia appreciate that almost as much as those of Venezuela.

I wish to express my solidarity and appreciation to General Henry Rangel Silva, Head of Strategic Operational Command of the Armed Forces, and newly appointed Minister of Defense of the Bolivarian Republic. I had the honor of meeting him when he visited Chavez in Cuba a few months ago. I could see in him an intelligent, well-meant, capable, and yet modest man. I heard his calm, brave and clear speech, which inspired confidence.

He led the organization of the most perfect parade of a Latin American military force that I have ever seen. We hope it will serve as encouragement and example to other brother armies.

The Yankees had nothing to do with that parade, and would not be able to do better.
It is extremely unfair to criticize Chavez for the resources invested in the excellent weapons which were displayed there. I’m sure they will never be used to attack a neighboring country. The weapons, resources and knowledge must go along the paths of  unity to see America, as  The Liberator dreamed, ”… the greatest nation in the world, greatest not so much by virtue of her area and wealth as by her freedom and glory..”

Everything unites us more than Europe or the United States itself, except the lack of independence imposed on us for 200 years.

Fidel Castro Ruz
January 25, 2012

Israel to strike Iran initially with Herons, their unmanned aircfrafts if they won't crash even at test flights

Israeli superdrone Heron capable of striking Iran also known as spy drone crashes and explodes near base in Tel Aviv.

Tel Aviv / NationalTurk – Israel’ dreaded unmanned aerial vehicle, spy superdrone, Heron TP, also known as the IAI Eitan, has crashed during a test flight near the Tel Nof airbase, south of Tel Aviv, Israel.

A huge Israeli Heron TP drone that is the size of a Boeing 737 and can fly as far as Iran from Israel has crashed on a routine experimental test flight.

The Heron TP drone is expected to make a showdown prominently in any potential Israeli operation against Iran and its threatining nuclear program.

The Heron TP locally known as the Eitan has a wingspan of 27 meters, making it the biggest unmanned air vehicle for military purposes not only in Israel’s military arsenal.

Israel to strike Iran initially with Herons,unmanned aircfrafts

No injuries were reported in the accident on the ground. Israel’s military and air forces is understood to be launching an investigation into the crash. The Israeli Air Force states technical failure or human factor could have caused the incident.

The unmanned spy drone will be featured prominently in the coming Israeli operation against Iran and its expanding nuclear program.

Israel unmanned drones can cover 10000 kms

Israel’s Heron TP could perform strategic recon missions, provide surveillance with sensors, optical and infrared cameras, jam enemy communications and connect ground control and manned air force planes. With a cruise speed of 300 kilometers per hour, it can stay in the air for up to 36 hours, and is able to cover a distance of 10,000 kilometers, it could carry a deployable payload in a potential strike since its payload is up to 1.8 tons.

With a wingspan of 26 meters, the IAI Eitan resembles a small airliner, though it weights only four tons.

The IAI Eitan was passed into service in February 2010.

However this is not the first time this modern version of Heron unmanned spy drones have crushed. 4 smaller models of Herons crushed in 2011, 2 belonging to IAF in Israel one in use of Turkish Military in SE Turkey and one Israeli Heron also in Southern Turkey. The last Heron stirred controversy between Turkey and Israel after it crashed in Mediterranean. Turkey accused Israel on spying on Turkey in Turkish Air Zone.

Cocaine for all the nations

New York Police Department stated a shipment containing 18 kilograms of cocaine has been seized at the U.N.’s mail intake center.

New York / NationalTurk – The misterious shipment of 18 kg of cocaine from Mexico to the UN headquarters in New York without specifying a sender or addressee remains as a big question here. The drug was in a white bag that raised suspicions because it was stamped with what looked like a poorly concocted version of the U.N. logo. The bag with cocoaine is reportedly from central South America.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Saturday a joint probe between the governments of Mexico and the United States to throw light on the singular cargo received January 16th in the UN through international mail cargo service.

Worth more than 2 Mil Us Dollars

Camouflaged as 14 books, the security intercepted both suspicious packages with turned out to contain drug worth some two million USD.

”This was the work of narcotic traffickers that were trying to ship something into the U.S. and I think their plan must have gone wrong,” one UN official said trying to hide his smile.

Mexico and USA support eachother against fight with drug cartels and trafficking but in the meantime both officers at borders help drug dealers as well.

Liverpool v Manchester United : 2-1 bye bye for Manchester in FA Cup

Manchester United saw most of the ball, but Liverpool’s Dirk Kuyt’s late winner knocked Manchester United out of the FA cup.

London / NationalTurk – Liverpool sends Manchester United into oblivion of winning 0 trophies this season.

A late winner from Dirk Kuyt two minutes from time put Liverpool into the FA Cup fifth round at the expense of their fiercest rivals Manchester United. Although Manchester United controlled midfield for most of the game and seemed to have done enough to take the game to a return at Old Trafford that both Liverpool and Manchester United shunned, Patrice Evra was caught out of position near the end and the Liverpool substitute ever helping Kuyt spared Liverpool and even the defeated Manchester United another week of rehearsed hostility.

Liverpool v Manchester United : 2-1 bye bye for Manchester in FA Cup

United had begun the match looking the more threatening. Playing with only Carroll up front Liverpool rarely bothered De Gea apart from at set pieces, and though United also lacked their usual attacking edge in the absence of Wayne Rooney. After 21 minutes when Steven Gerrard swung one over from the left and MAnU keeper De Gea came for the ball but found himself blocked by Andy Carroll, leaving Daniel Agger an easy header. 1-0 for Liverpool. But Manchester United managed to get back into the game with a well-worked goal involving Valencia and Rafael and finally Park Ji-Sung

Dirk Kuyt said the last word two minutes before regulation and the game finished. Liverpool 2 Manchester 1. Man U can end yet another season trophyless.

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar, a suspect in the Turkey match fixing scandal shot in heels.

Two detained in Trabzon as suspects of the shooting of Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar, a suspect in the Turkey match fixing scandal. An armed gang of racketeers is the prime suspect of the shooting!

Trabzon / NationalTurk – The Trabzon club executive had been the victim of a shooting outside his residence in Trabzon last weekend and is still recovering and Mayor of Trabzon informed two suspects have been detained by Trabzon police.

Now the motives behind the armed attack to Nevzat Şakar are coming to light. Latest police reports indicate that a conflict of interests in Tranzonspor is the major reason for the shooting. An armed gang who want to racketeer and make illegal profit are behind the shooting!

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar was detained during the match fixing investigation as a suspect in Turkey then released by the court pending a trial. He has been shot in the leg with police still working to identify the culprit, according to Trabzonspor’s official website.

The Turkish executive assaulted at around 02.30 CET on Sunday while standing outside of his house in Trabzon. The culprit is believed to have fired three bullets, one hitting Trabzon vice-prsedint Sakar in the foot.

Despite being wounded and taken to hospital, the vice president was discharged this morning and is now recovering at home. Hiscondition is fine and he makes a full recovery.

A statement on Trabzonspor’s website had stated: “In front of his house last night, Mr Nevzat Sakar was the victim of a heinous attack. We hope the attacker is caught as soon as possible and brought to justice.

Various club presidents and mayor of Trabzon visited or sent speedy recovery wishes to the Trabzonspor executive, who is a match fixing suspect. Fenerbahce Istanbul, whose relations with Trabzonspor hit rock bottom after match fixing allegations also sent a message saying, ”we are sorry fo what happenned in Trabzon”

Mayor of Trabzon’s comments regarding Trabzon had highlighted the visit. ”This incident shocked us as it occurred in Trabzon, one of Turkey’s safest towns, ” the mayor stated. The Mayor stated after recent arrests that the case is close to be closed.

TFF Chairman Mehmet Ali Aydinlar close to resigning

Mehmet Ali Aydinlar, the president of Turkish Football Federation stressed his intent on resigning, after the TFF board failed at the grand TFF convention to change regulations for penalties on match-fixing.

Ankara / NationalTurk – TFF Chairman Mehmet Ali Aydinlar could not begin his spell as the head of Turkish Football at a worse time than this. The former TFF board member and businessman (owner of Acıbadem hospitals group) had to face with the biggest match-fixing scandal in Turkey in his 90th hour of TFF presidency.

Since July 3rd, when Fenerbahce Chairman Aziz Yıldırım detained, and was later to be imprisoned as the mastermind behind match-fixing allegations, Mehmet Ali Aydınlar found himself and his team in a more than diffucult situation.

At the extraordinary TFF meeting held yesterday in Ankara, he admitted the diffuculties TFF endured during that stretch but he didn’t get the help from the club chairmen he hoped for. The 58th article of TTF’s disciplinary regulations on penalties, including relagation for the teams even sligtly involved in match fixing activities have remained unchanged, although TFF board proposed a change for one-time measure and suggested point deduction instead of penalizing teams with relagation.

The proposal and the match-fixing case process have weared the Tff and its president out, as Mehmet Ali Aydinlar self proclaimed yesterday.

Top three clubs of the Turkish football, Fenerbahce, Galatasaray and Besiktas have been against a change of the article, Fenerbahce right from the start of it all, Galatasaray claimed teams involved in the match-fixing should be relegated according to the regulations, while Besiktas president Yıldırım Demiroren insisted a change in the regulations had to done.

However Besiktas chairman spoke toewrds the end of yesterdays meeting and -rather unexpectedly- he supported Fenerbahce by referring the club as ‘our Fenerbahce’. And BJK Chairman Yıldırım Demirören proposed the TFF board needs to be given a vote of confidence with a new election.

Mehmet Ali Aydınlar’s speech had reflected his dissapoinment and after the TFF proposal had been unaccepted by Tff members rumours of his resignment were talked throughout the lobbies and he implied his intent to resign. He accused club chairmen for not being honest and hypocrisy.

Daily life of residents in Istanbul has completely got paralyzed. Hundreds of travelers and vehicles have been stuck in traffic due to heavy snowfall.

Especially in the high hill areas like Pendik, Kartal, Maltepe of Umraniye district, the citizens have been facing trouble on commuting from their homes to offices due to the disruption in transport.

Hospitals and the fire service have put emergency teams on standby in preparation for snow-related accidents.

Mitt Romney for President : No, thanks USA

Mitt Romney, one of the Republican presidential hopefuls for US presidential elections of 2012, has shares in Turkcell, the leading telecommunication company in Turkey.

Washington / NationalTurk – Mike Romney has invested in Turkish Mobile Operator and telecommunication giants Turkcell, a release of his tax records for years 2010 and 2011 revealed, after he lost in the North Carolina primary to his rival Newt Gingrich.

The rich Americans work with off-shore banks, open bank accounts in Switzerland to exploit tax advantages are also revealed. The disclosure indicated that using such cunning financial ways Mitt Romney has lowered the tax rate he pays to 15 percent while average tax rate for Americans is at 35 percent. US President Barack Obama announced and repeated at his State of the Union 2012 speech that anyone making more than $1 million per year should pay no less than a 30 percent tax rate. This call from Barack Obama to increase taxes on the rich came hours after Mitt Romney, the multi-millionaire Republican presidential hopeful, released tax returns showing that he paid just 14 per cent on earnings of more than $21m.

Mitt Romney for President : No, thanks USA

Aside from Turkcell Mitt Romney has invested in institutions such as National Bank of Greece and Chinese Life Insurance Company, according to the tax records.

With a net worth estimated at $250 million Mitt Romney’s revenue for the last two years was $42,6 millions Mitt Romney’s tax return has revealed.

Turkcell is the first Turkish company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)(TKC), where its shares have been traded since July 11, 2000 along with trading on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB).

Chp Istanbul MP Umut Oran at Socialist International's Meeting in San Juan, Costa Rica

Socialist International (SI) has criticized the government of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) headlong for its repressive policies and lack of respect for the freedom of expression in a declaration issued during a meeting in Costa Rica.

San Jose / NationalTurk – Representing the main Turkish opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in the meeting, CHP’s Istanbul deputy Umut Oran stated “The AKP’s authoritarian, repressive and anti – democratic policies were strongly condemned in the declaration. As we can see, the mask has been thrown off, and the whole world is voicing its unease over the AKP’s repressive regime,” The latest example of unjustice shown by the governing party, which takes its name fron Justice and Development is the AKP government and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s support for the investigation into the main oppostion leader, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.

Main opposition leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, head of CHP had harshly denounced earlier this month the Turkish prime minister for backing a prosecution attempt to put him on trial as a war of words raged on between him and Tayyip Erdoğan.

CHP and Socialist International condemn AKP and Erdogan’s repressive regime

The declaration and he denouncement, unveiled with the tag ‘ The State of Freedom of Speech and Independency of Judiciary in Turkey’, in the Costa Rican capital San Jose at a two day meeting of the Socialist International that represents some 162 political parties from across the globe, criticized officially the recent investigation against Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.

“[Socialist International] condemns the decision of the Turkish judiciary to launch a probe against Mr Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu,” read the statement. “SI recognizes this attempt by the Turkish public prosecutor is the last part of a long term of oppression on any dissenting voice since 2007,” the statement from Socialist International added.

The government’s policies of repression have affected a wide ranging set of individuals, ranging from villagers opposing the construction of dams to students demanding free education, while over 90 journalists have been placed behind bars according to the Contemporary Journalists Association (ÇGD,) the declaration said.

Socialist International called on the Turkish government to show respect for the independence of the judiciary. “Following the referendum of Sept. 12, 2010, supported also by many of our friends in Europe, which claimed to make judiciary more independent and its composition more representative, the judiciary only became more linked to the government,” SI said in the statement.

Why CHP condemned Turkish PM Erdogan ?

CHP’s Istanbul MP Umut Oran explained the purpose of Socialist International: ”The Socialist International is the worldwide organisation of social democratic, socialist and labour parties. It currently brings together 162 political parties and organisations from all continents, protecting the right of labourrers, the poor and the oppressed” Oran said.

Republican People’s Party leader Kılıçdaroğlu had criticized Turkish Prime Minister with harsh words ‘The victim of yesterday has become the oppressor of today’.

Erdoğan had derided Kılıçdaroğlu for exaggerating the judicial move against him in a bid to earn himself a hero’s status, arguing that even he himself was the subject of investigations.

Kılıçdaroglu had stated the investigation against Erdoğan pertained to allegations of fraud and forgery. “How can you consider this as equivalent to freedom of thought?” he pointed out, referring to the charges pressed against him for criticizing the Turkey judiciary system.

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu had also urged Erdoğan to reveal the content of his secret meeting with former Army Chief Yaşar Büyükanıt in May 2007, held shortly after the Turkish military had issued the so-called “e-memorandum” to the government to block Abdullah Gül’s way to the president’s post in Çankaya.

Costa Concordia Passengers to be compensated ? Not so quick says Italian Consumer Group..

Costa Cruises have signed with Italian consumer groups an agreement to offer about 11,000 euros in compensation to each of the more than 3,000 passengers aboard the capsized Costa Concordia vessel near the Italian island of Giglio.

Roma / NationalTurk – Costa Cruises company has agreed to pay 11,000 euros compensation for items lost and any psychological damages to each of more than 3000 passenger who suffered no physical injuries. The cost of the cruise vessel and all transportation will be covered as well. Passengers injured while abandoning Costa Concordia will be dealt with individually wit a higher compensation.

Compensation procedures have certain conditions though. The victimized passangers who accept the compensation offer must agree to drop all future legal actions against Costa Cruises company, according to the agreement. Children will receive the same financial settlement as adults, and passengers will be paid within a week of accepting the offer.

Costa Cruises to compensate Concordia passengers : Consumer groups warn !

Codacons, the Italian consumer group that did not sign the compensation agreement with, recommended Concordia passengers not to accept the deal and urged them to undergo a check to see if they suffered any psychological trauma as a result of the shipwreck and the rescue, according to Carlo Rienzi, the Codacons group’s president.

Codacons is collecting names to file a class action suit in Miami against parent company Carnival Plc, requesting 125,000 euros for each passenger.

Costa, a unit of cruise operator Carnival Corp, will also reimburse passengers the full costs of their cruise, travel expenses and any medical expenses sustained after the grounding.

Costa Concordia Passengers to be compensated ?

The agreement was announced Friday after a day of negotiations between Costa representatives and Italian consumer groups representing 3,206 people from 61 countries who suffered no physical harm when the Costa Concordia hit a reef on Jan. 13 and capsized.”The deal concerns some 3,000 passengers from 61 countries, including some 900 Italians,” Adoc, one of the consumer groups that negotiated the agreement.

Passengers and crew are free to pursue legal action if they aren’t satisfied with the deal.

Costa Cruises has blamed contoversial Captain Francesco Schettino for committing “grave errors of judgement” by steering the ship too close to Giglio on an “unauthorised manoeuvre”.

Capt Schettino is currently under house arrest in Italy on suspicion of manslaughter, which he denies.

Share what you think with us. Would you accept 11000 Euros as compensation if you were aboard Costa Concordia and had been rescued ?

Suicide bombings rise in Iraq after Us Military departed

Routine life in Baghdad, Iraq ! A suicide car bomber has blasted at least 28 people and injured at least 60 gathered for a funeral in a predominantly Shia Muslim district of Baghdad.

Baghdad / NationalTurk – The bomb rigged car blasted in a market place as a funeral procession was passing Baghdad’s Zafaraniya district. The huge explosion claimed at least 28 lives, but the number is expected to raise. Body parts are reported to lie everywhere and giving a accurate number of dead seems an impossible task at the moment, officials state.

A security official told Reuters Agency the bomber had initially attempted to attack a police station.

Suicide bombings rise in Iraq after Us Military departed

Suicide bombings in Iraq, particularly in Baghdad are routine and bomb attacks in Iraq have risen since US troops left the country last month, with 16 people killed in attacks on Thursday.

The suicide attacker struck early Friday as mourners escorted by police cars were transporting the body of a man shot a day earlier for burial, police stated.

US Army in Iraq : US Army’s presence and absence gripes Iraq all the same

“It was a huge explosion,” Salam Hussein, a 42-year-old grocery store owner, was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency. I cannot tell you anythingHussein said – there are only arms and legs one or two decapatitated heads we do not know who they belong to.”

One of Salam Hussein’s employees was hurt and as he took him to hospital, he saw cars engulfed in flames. Where the bomber’s car had exploded, he saw “human flesh scattered around and several mutilated bodies in a pool of blood” the shocked Iraqi added.

Helicopters hovered as security forces cordoned off the site of the explosion, while distraught witnesses screamed in anguish. Outside the hospital, groups of men called out names, searching for missing relatives. Inside, people crowded around medics to ask about their loved ones, who are still in one piece.

One Iraqi nurse said simply: “I cannot tell you anything – there are only arms and legs, we do not know who they belong to.”

Thank you US : Bomb attacks kill everyday innocent people of Iraq

Thirteen people were also killed in bomb attacks on Thursday. Two brothers – both policemen – and at least eight of their relatives were reported to have been killed after insurgents bombed a house in Musayyib in the south of Baghdad.

Three people were also killed in Kirkuk in a separate bomb attack.

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar, a suspect in the Turkey match fixing scandal shot in heels.

Two detained in Trabzon as suspects of the shooting of Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar, a suspect in the Turkey match fixing scandal.

Trabzon / NationalTurk – The Trabzon club executive had been the victim of a shooting outside his residence in Trabzon last weekend and is still recovering and Mayor of Trabzon informed two suspects have been detained by Trabzon police.

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar was detained during the match fixing investigation as a suspect in Turkey then released by the court pending a trial. He has been shot in the leg with police still working to identify the culprit, according to Trabzonspor’s official website.

The Turkish executive assaulted at around 02.30 CET on Sunday while standing outside of his house in Trabzon. The culprit is believed to have fired three bullets, one hitting Trabzon vice-prsedint Sakar in the foot.

Despite being wounded and taken to hospital, the vice president was discharged this morning and is now recovering at home. Hiscondition is fine and he makes a full recovery.

A statement on Trabzonspor’s website had stated: “In front of his house last night, Mr Nevzat Sakar was the victim of a heinous attack. We hope the attacker is caught as soon as possible and brought to justice.

Various club presidents and mayor of Trabzon visited or sent speedy recovery wishes to the Trabzonspor executive, who is a match fixing suspect. Fenerbahce Istanbul, whose relations with Trabzonspor hit rock bottom after match fixing allegations also sent a message saying, ”we are sorry fo what happenned in Trabzon”

Mayor of Trabzon’s comments regarding Trabzon had highlighted the visit. ”This incident shocked us as it occurred in Trabzon, one of Turkey’s safest towns, ” the mayor stated. The Mayor stated after recent arrests that the case is close to be closed.

FBI is watching you !

FBI targets monitoring Facebook and Twitter, as it is looking for companies who might want to build a social network monitoring system for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The FBI has got tired of monitoring social media sites like Facebook and Twitter manually and wants to reinvent the process. Soon our messages or posts may instantly light up on a map as a big red dot if considered suspicious, marking the location of the ‘bad actor.’

Users of social networks like Facebook, Google+ and Twitter may have to watch what they do online – the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is planning to continuously monitor the global output of these services.

Social Media as the tool of FBI

“Social media has become a primary source of intelligence because it has become the premier first response to key events and the primal alert to possible developing situations,” says the Request for Information published by FBI on January 19. FBI claims it can use data pulled from these services to better respond to – and even foresee – crises.

”’The bureau’s wish list calls for the system to be able to automatically search “publicly available” material from Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites for keywords relating to terrorism, surveillance operations, online crime and other FBI missions. Agents would be alerted if the searches produce evidence of ‘breaking events, incidents, and emerging threats,’” NewScientist.com said.

It should also be capable of automated filtering of the data and of providing the operator with instant notification of breaking events and emerging threats. Under the plan, FBI agents can display tweets and other information captured by the system on a map, where they can add layers of other data.

FBI is watching you !

The FBI’s ‘market research’ shows that the bureau is planning to monitor all ‘publicly available’ data on social media sites through a new game-changing system. It should also be capable of automated filtering of the data and of providing the operator with instant notification of breaking events and emerging threats.

The bureau is looking for a company which is interested in and capable of building such a system and has published a list of requirements for it. Potential contractors were invited to reply by February 10.

The enquiry says that the system should provide an automated search and scrape capability of both social networking sites and open source news sites for breaking events, crises, and threats that meet the search parameters defined by the FBI. Also, the document suggests that the bureau wants to use social media to target specific users or groups of users.

FBI Agents as Soothsayers hunting at social networks

“But the idea of turning agents into digital soothsayers is plausible: researchers working at Facebook and in academia have shown that social media can be used to infer many things about an individual, including the existence of friendships that are not declared on social networking sites and the location of users who have not revealed where they are based,” it said.

It should also be capable of automated filtering of the data and of providing the operator with instant notification of breaking events and emerging threats.

The FBI places strong emphasis on the fact that the system should access only ‘publicly available’ data, taking every occurrence of this phrase in quotes throughout the whole document.
But most people do not realize that the data they are sharing with their friends on social networking sites is in fact publicly available.

The average user believes that only a narrow circle of close friends and relatives are reading his or her blog, and this gives them “the sense of freedom to say what they want without worrying too much about recourse,” says Jennifer Lynch at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, as cited by newscientist.com. “But these tools that mine open source data and presumably store it for a very long time do away with that kind of privacy. I worry about the effect of that on free speech in the US.”

FBI collects data from Twitter, Facebook and Google+

All the collected data will be stored in the FBI database and conveniently displayed on a map upon request (by the way, FBI prefers Google, ESRI, and Yahoo maps to any other service). Of course the functionality of the map will be increased beyond the limits set for the common user.

The interactive map will have additional layers, such as US domestic and worldwide terror data, US embassies and military installations around the world, weather conditions and forecasts, and video feeds from surveillance and traffic cameras.

Why FBI won’t care about privacy

The revelation of the FBI’s ‘market research’ raises even more concerns about the aspects of private data safety on the Internet, as more and more data about the users is being collected and stored – for different reasons – in numerous databases around the globe. Such data may include the locations of US embassies and military installations, details of previous terrorist attacks and the output from local traffic cameras.

Collecting the information in not a challenge anymore, but analyzing the data is. But there are companies, for example Google, which can crack such a problem.

FBI marks suspicious persons on Social Media as ‘bad actors’

Recently Google announced plans to bring all data collected from users’ separate accounts on its sites into a combined profile. Google is seeking ways of creating a simpler product experience and providing better services to its clients. But that move has triggered a lot of outrage and raised more questions about privacy on the Internet

“It notes that agents need to ‘locate bad actors…and analyze their movements, vulnerabilities, limitations, and possible adverse actions.’ It also states that the bureau will use social media to create ‘pattern-of-life matrices’ — presumably logs of targets’ daily routines — that will aid law enforcement in planning operations,” NewScientist said.

While the FBI claims it will use “publicly available” information, the Electronic Frontier Foundation – a digital rights advocacy group – warned of possible unwelcome impacts.

EFF’s Jennifer Lynch said many people post to social media expecting only their friends and followers are reading.

Such a sense of privacy gives people “the sense of freedom to say what they want without worrying too much about recourse,” she said.

“But these tools that mine open source data and presumably store it for a very long time, do away with that kind of privacy. I worry about the effect of that on free speech in the US,” Lynch said.

A separate article on tech site Mashable said the FBI’s Strategic Information and Operations Center (SOIC) inadvertently revealed this malicous  plan in a market research request for a “Social Media Application.”

The supposed application is to provide an automated search and scrape capability of both social networking sites and open source news sites for breaking events, crisis, and threats that meet the search parameters/keywords defined by FBI SIOC.

FBI will have the capability for automated search of national news, local news, and social media networks Facebook, Google+, Twitter and provide instant notifications of breaking events, incidents, and emerging threats that have been vetted

It can immediately access geospatial maps with coding in addition to providing critical infrastructural layers.

Francesco Profumo said the legal value of a qualification “is of great value for the country: the point is how it is assessed.”

Francesco Profumo spoke this morning at the ceremony for the inauguration of the academic year of Roma Tre University.

On the sidelines of the ceremony, the minister received a letter from the student representatives containing some points that students consider fundamental.

Besiktas president held a brief speech at the meetimg, where he supported Fenerbahce by referring the club as 'our Fenerbahce'. BJK Chairman Yıldırım Demirören proposed the TFF board needs to be given a vote of confidence with a new election.

Exchanged comments, even exchanged fists at the Turkish Football Federation extraordinary meeting! and yet it’s unclear what the TFF decide.

Ankara / NationalTurk – Galatasaray Chairman Ünal Aysal revealed that the club presidents of Turkish Super League sides want to rescind the voting for the changes on TFF disciplinary regulation.

The proposed amendment discussed by the TFF will reportedly be a one-time measure and Article 58 of the federation’s disciplinary regulations, which regulates penalties, including relagation for the teams even sligtly involved in match fixing activities will remain unchanged.

Galatasaray has announced his disapproval of the proposal for a change in the TFF regulation since the talks began. They want the current regulation will be carried out by TFF.

Fenerbahce claims the club is penalized without being given any chance to defend and justify itself. Fenerbahce’s jailed president Aziz Yıldırım and club executives state they refuse ant point deduction and add Fenerbahce rather plays in the second Turkish League.

Meanwhile Besiktas president held a brief speech at the meetimg, where he supported Fenerbahce by referring the club as ‘our Fenerbahce’. BJK Chairman Yıldırım Demirören proposed the TFF board needs to be given a vote of confidence with a new election.

Meanwhile presidents of Manisaspor and Orduspor are reportedlt involved in fist to fist fighting.

Göksel Gümüşdağ (L), Lütfi Arıboğan (C) and Mehmet Ali Aydınlar (R) at the start of TFF Grand Meeting convened to decide on match fixing penalties

Pushed to its limits amidst match fixing scandal Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has convened to decide on match-fixing penalties for clubs involved in match-fixing allegations.

Göksel Gümüşdağ (L), Lütfi Arıboğan (C) and Mehmet Ali Aydınlar (R) (Photo: AA)

Ankara / NationalTurk – The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) began its critical meeting on Thursday to decide on whether to amend regulations on penalties for teams involved in match-fixing.

The TFF extraordinary general meeting started with the opening speech from TFF head Mehmet Ali Aydinlar and then unexpectedly went into a 1 hour break. TFF President announced the 1 hour break right at the end of his speech and urged members in the court to vote for it. After a short ‘voting’session where members hesitated to vote for or against the 1 hour break, Mehmet Ali ASydinlar decided to call the 1 hour break.

This contoversial decision to pause after the 5th minute of a general meeting, for which the TFF had been preparing for months is slammed bt Turkish Football society and is widely regarded as a last minute attempt to lobby more. As if proving it, Fenerbahce fans gathered outside the meeting building and two presidents of Super League sides, Manisaspor and Orduspor are reported to be involved in fighting.

Hours before the important and decisive meeting, jailed Fenerbahçe Chairman Aziz Yıldırım, suspect #1 in match-fixing trial, whose team is at the center of a massive match-fixing investigation that rocked Turkish football, called for no change to regulations regarding the 58th article of TFF disciplinary regulations which state that teams involved in match-fixing could face relegation, while TFF Chairman Mehmet Ali Aydınlar highlighted the huge pressure the federation faces because of the investigation.

“This initiative will remain a black stain on the history of Turkish football,” Yıldırım said.

The proposed amendment discussed by the TFF will reportedly be a one-time measure and Article 58 of the federation’s disciplinary regulations, which regulates penalties, including relagation for the teams even sligtly involved in match fixing activities will remain unchanged.

Fenerbahce Vice President Nihat Özdemir said in an opening speech Fenerbahçe was against point reduction because it is “as clean as at least the other teams” and called on the TFF to issue a call for state prosecutors to investigate instances of match fixing in Turkish football since 1959, when the Turkish national league was first formed.

Reports in the Turkish sports media earlier said Fenerbahçe was lobbying other teams and the TFF to introduce penalties other than relegation, but Fenerbahçe Vice Chairman denied such reports last week, saying the İstanbul team wanted the relegation penalty to remain provided that the teams facing such a penalty are given the right to defend themselves in the face of accusations.

In addition to Fenerbahçe, two other heavyweights of the Turkish Super League, Beşiktaş and Trabzonspor, are also implicated in the match-fixing case.

Speaking soon after Yıldırım’s statement at the opening of the TFF meeting, TFF Chairman Mehmet Ali Aydınlar highlighted the challenge the match-fixing investigation poses to the federation and requested support, not more pressure.

“Seven months ago, I and 14 friends of mine were elected to lead the TFF. Ninety hours later, we faced the match-fixing probe. We were caught unprepared,” Aydınlar said in his speech. “We are facing the biggest crisis in history and it is impossible for the TFF to resolve it on its own.”

He said the TFF has worked with the best of intentions since the investigation first got under way in July with a wave of detentions and insisted that the TFF is an impartial organization that strives to maintain an equal distance from all parties.

“We are not responsible for this. We expect support, not pressure,” he said. Aydınlar also said there are certain people who want to “deepen the chaos for petty interests,” but did not elaborate.

Aydınlar added that it was now time for the accused to present their defense, following which the TFF’s Ethics Board will complete a report about the match-fixing allegations. “We will not let anyone’s rights be violated as long as we remain in charge,” he said.

With barely three percent of schools with internet access, Cuba is working today on a portable version of the website www.cubaeduca.cu that has contents and suggestions for different school levels.

According to Prensa Latina, it is sad that only 356 schools, of more than 10,600 existing in the country, have internet access, said Ivan Barreto, Head of Educational Computer Science of the Education Ministry.

“The country is giving final touches to the portable version that we will distribute in all schools,” he said of this initiative set to become the countrys largest when all material conditions are available for its development.

Regarding the difficulties in the distribution in several formats, the expert said that the current option is more expensive, but it is a temporary solution to use information and communication technologies.

What would be unforgivable is to wait for the time when all material conditions are guaranteed, said Barreto, who is in charge of the production and distribution of educational software.

“We are focusing on developing tools based on the web 2.0 to exchange and produce contents among teachers, students and families,” he said.

Barreto said the goal is to turn the website into a large community.

At the moment, some 200 people access the webpage on average (apart from those in the network Rimed), including users from the United States and Spain, he said.

Barreto said there are some 70,000 computers in schools, but they are mostly obsolete, resulting in high maintenance costs, and noted that the Education Ministry spends 15 million pesos (15 million USD) every year, including four million USD, in maintenance and replacement of parts and computer hardware.

Turkey : First face transplant patient utters his first words after Operation

First face transplant patient in Turkey utters his first words as he recovers after face transplant operation in Antalya.

Antalya / NationalTurk – The face transplant patient Uğur Acar’s first visitors at the hospital ward were Antalya Gov. Ahmet Altıparmak and Professor Israfil Kurtcephe, Akdeniz University’s rector.

Uğur Acar, the first person in Turkish history to receive a full face transplant, has spoken for the first time despite doctors’ predictions that he would not be able to speak for another two days. A clear sign that the 19 years-old recovers from the face transplant operation.

“He said ‘welcome.’ His voice was a bit muffled, but it was more than sufficient for us. He expressed his hunger and thirst. That was much better than what we had expected,” Özlenen Özkan, Assistant Professor, of Akdeniz University in the Mediterranean province of Antalya, announced at a press meeting yesterday.

Özlenen Özkan also stated they had discussed with Acar about whether he should watch television but added that they eventually decided against it because he might see his transplanted face on the TV screen.

“He responded with arm and hand gestures that this was not a problem for him. That made us happy,” she said, adding that Acar, who was removed from the intensive care ward Jan. 24, had also begun to grow some facial hair as well.

Özkan explained that Acar will slowly be able to make small facial expressions, adding that it will take about six months of intensive therapy for the young man to be able to make them fully. Acar, who has not yet seen his own appearance in a mirror, will be given the opportunity to see his new reflection next week. Özkan said psychiatrists will be at Acar’s side when he is provided with a mirror for the first time. The professor further added that the pictures being circulated in the press at present have been blurred due to bruising and swelling on the patient’s face.

Meanwhile, Atilla Kavdır who also underwent a parallel, triple-limb transplant with limbs taken from the same donor, which is a first time operation in World medicine history, is also in much better shape even though he must remain in intensive care for another couple of days, Özlenen Özkan said.

Tissue and organ rejection is the greatest risk for both patients, but neither patient has yet encountered any problem, Associate Professor Hüseyin Koçak said at the meeting.

Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Necdet Özel called Professor Ömer Özkan, who led the team of 25 doctors that carried out the limb and  face transplant operations, to express his pride at the operations.

Craig Bellamy is hero and subject of drama to come

Liverpool are through to the League Cup final, eliminating Manchester City and will face Cardiff City at Wembley, where they haven’y played a finals since 1996.

Liverpool / NationalTurk – Craig Bellamy made the difference after Liverpool picked up a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Manchester City to progress to the League Cup final.

Liverpool have booked their first finals trip to Wembley since 1996 and, after waiting so long, they will be eager to see how the old place has changed. Kenny Dalglish’s team deserve their place in the final because over both legs they played with the greater urgency and determination, culminating in Craig Bellamy’s decisive goal against Manchester City, his former club and a nostalgic form of jubilation at the final whistle.

Liverpool vs Manchester City : Craig Bellamy is hero and subject of drama to come

For Craig Bellamy it was an evening he will cherish, given the way his time at City ended so acrimoniously. He will have relished making his point to Roberto Mancini, the manager who marginalised and sold him, and the reward is considerable, with a final on 26 February against the Cardiff City team where he decamped last season.

Bellamy was also pleased with the night, however he was more delighted with who Liverpool are set to play than with his goal, as he booked a meeting with former club and home town Cardiff in the final.

“The omens were looking good going into tonight after I saw Cardiff go through,” the Welshman said.

“I was delighted for them and this couldn’t be a better final for me.

“Cardiff means so much to me. It’s funny how football can work out at times.”

Bellamy ends Liverpool ‘s drought for a Final at Wembley

For Liverpool, though, the story goes much further. Sixty different teams have visited Wembley since it was reopened in 2007 and, for a club with Liverpool’s past, it has been longer than they would care to remember since they last ventured south for what was once a near-annual excursion. They will be the clear favourites to beat the Championship’s third-placed team Cardiff City and win their first trophy of Dalglish’s second spell in charge. Manchester City will go back to thinking about the Premier League and clearing their minds after a gruelling run of fixtures while missing key players.

This was a night when Vincent Kompany’s absence was felt acutely by Manchester City and his replacement, Stefan Savic, was substituted at half-time. Mancini complained afterwards about refereeing decisions but was not willing to expand the argument to say that, over the two games, his team deserved to go through.

The truth was the team 19 points worse off in the league, with 35 fewer goals scored, played with the greater tempo. Liverpool never panicked after Nigel de Jong had opened the scoring, quickly equalised through Steven Gerrard’s penalty and held their nerve after Edin Dzeko had made it 2-1 midway through the second half. Bellamy’s winner arrived seven minutes later, exchanging passes with Glen Johnson inside the penalty area and placing his shot past Joe Hart.

Mancini’s grievances were focused on two moments in the first half. First he argued Man. City should have had a penalty for Charlie Adam’s challenge on Dzeko. His annoyance was exacerbated in the 39th minute when Daniel Agger’s shot was blocked by Micah Richards’s flailing arms and the referee, Phil Dowd, pointed to the spot. The ball had actually struck Richards on his knee first, ricocheting against his hands from close range.

Manchester City’s only hope for trophy reamins Premiere League

Roberto Mancini has become increasingly exasperated with refereeing standards since the turn of the year but the manager will have other concerns, too. Liverpool played with drive and purpose. They seemed determined to get the 3-1 defeat at Bolton Wanderers on Saturday out of their system, playing with far greater tempo, quicker to the ball and much more decisive in possession. Man. City, in contrast, flickered only in short bursts and Mancini’s decision to abandon their usual 4-2-3-1 system was a bad one. A semi-final at Anfield is no place to experiment with a three-man defence playing together for the first time. Savic, once again, looked raw and vulnerable and the new system lasted only until half-time before Mancini reverted to his usual formation.

De Jong’s goal arrived after 32 minutes and, at that stage, it was tempting to wonder whether this would become the now familiar Anfield story of lots of pressure from the home side but wasteful finishing. José Enrique ought to have scored after four minutes after Aleksandar Kolarov’s miscued clearance and, when the shot was blocked by Joe Hart, Stewart Downing’s follow-up effort smacked of a player with sapped confidence. David Silva started to become increasingly influential and De Jong’s goal was a beauty, curling his shot into the top left-hand corner of Pepe Reina’s net from 20 yards.

This was the point of the match when Liverpool demonstrated a togetherness and competitive spirit that was missing at Bolton. There was never once the sense of a team feeling sorry for themselves. Gerrard buried his penalty past Hart and Liverpool were as dominant at the start of the second half as they had been the first. Hart made several outstanding saves, the pick of them being to divert Martin Skrtel’s shot over the crossbar, and City had seldom threatened until Kolarov surged along the left wing and whipped in a low, penetrative cross for Dzeko to score at the far post. Both their goals were against the run of play.

The stage was set for Bellamy to have the final say and, afterwards, a Dalglish could not resist wondering whether City had any more outcasts they wanted to send 40 miles along the M62.

Syria accuses West of interference

Despite the boycott by the Gulf states, led by Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Syria accepted the proposal of the Arab League to extend the observers’ mission for another month.

Damascus / NationalTurk – Despite the boycott by the Gulf states, headed by Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Syria accepted the proposal of the Arab League to extend the observers’ mission for another month.

The new working period of the observers, who already visited 20 cities in 16 regions of Syria, will run from January 24 to February 22, according to a letter sent by Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallen to the AL General Secretariat and published on Wednesday by local media.

Arab League Undersecretary General Ahmad bin Hili affirmed in Cairo that the mission is still working. Regarding the boycott by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), he stressed that “the decision of sending or withdrawing observers is a sovereign option of each country.”

Syria accuses West of interference

Great Britain, France, Germany and Arab nations are already working on a new offensive against Syria that would face Russia’s opposition since it will call on the UN member countries to keep on supporting the sanctions and the new demands from the AL against the government of President Bashar al-Assad, al-Jazeera news agency reported.

At their latest session, which began on Sunday afternoon and ended on early Monday, Qatar and Saudi Arabia could impose a motion, at the Arab League Ministerial Council, demanding President Bashar al-Assad to resign and hand over governing power to his vice president, so that he can form an interim government and call elections.

Syrian authorities rejected such a demand, which they consider to be an open violation of national sovereignty and flagrant interference in Syria’s internal affairs.

Jailed Fener President writes letter to Uefa head Michel Platini

Aziz Yıldrım, the imprisoned Fenerbahce chairman, who is the suspect #1 in the match fixing trial in Turkey, claims the match fixing case indictment is comprised of contradictions via letter to UEFA Head Michel Platini.

Istanbul / NationalTurk – Aziz Yıldırım, the Fenerbahce Club President, who is in jail since July 2011 due to his involvement in the match fixing case in Turkey has written a letter to Uefa Chairman Michel Platini, where he points out that the contradictorial nature of the match fixing indictment is harming Fenerbahce community.

Aziz Yıldırım criticizes that the indictment, which is based on merely accusations is used as hard evidence and that it has been sent to Uefa and CAS (court of arbitration for sport). This ‘pile of accusations’ as quoted by Yıldırım, has been prepared by ‘special authorized persons and institutes’ legitimate only in Turkey and not in Europe.

Aziz Yıldırım pointed out, if Uefa uses the indictment as evidence, then it would contradict Uefa’s sense of right or wrong. Aziz Yıldrım attached to the letter parts from the match fiximg indictment, where he claims to be shown as the mastermind of the whole match fixing and game manipulation by having created an Empire of Fear through abductions and intimidation.

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar, a suspect in the Turkey match fixing scandal shot in heels.

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar, a suspect in the Turkey match fixing scandal shot in heels.

Trabzon / NationalTurk – The club executive has been the victim of a shooting outside his residence in Trabzon and is expected to make a full recovery, although the attacker still remains unknown to police.

Trabzonspor vice president Nevzat Sakar was detained during the match fixing investigation as a suspect in Turkey then released by the court pending a trial. He has been shot in the leg with police still working to identify the culprit, according to Trabzonspor’s official website.

The Turkish executive assaulted at around 02.30 CET on Sunday while standing outside of his house in Trabzon. The culprit is believed to have fired three bullets, one hitting Trabzon vice-prsedint Sakar in the foot.

Despite being wounded and taken to hospital, the vice president was discharged this morning and is now recovering at home. Hiscondition is fine and he makes a full recovery.

A statement on Trabzonspor’s website stated: “In front of his house last night, Mr Nevzat Sakar was the victim of a heinous attack. We hope the attacker is caught as soon as possible and brought to justice.

Various club presidents and mayor of Trabzon visited or sent speedy recovery wishes to the Trabzonspor executive, who is a match fixing suspect. Fenerbahce Istanbul, whose relations with Trabzonspor hit rock bottom after match fixing allegations also sent a message.

Mayor of Trabzon’s comments regarding Trabzon were the highlights of the visit. ”This incident shocked us as it occurred in Trabzon, one of Turkey’s safest towns, ” the mayor stated.

Obama speech State of the Union 2012 : Obama is Robin Hood

US President Barack Obama lays out the design for a ‘fairer America’ in his annual State of the Union speech last, assuring to make Us millionaires pay higher taxes and explains the reasons behind his stall for one of the most divisive US presidential elections in the recent past.

Washington / NationalTurk – The US economy continues to struggle and Americans are largely pessimistic, but dueling events at Tuesday State of the Union 2012 indicate why in politics it’s good to be the incumbent.

In Washington, President Obama harnessed one of the grand symbols of his office — a prime-time State of the Union speech — to present himself to voters as a champion for middle-class families struggling to get by and declare that “we’ve come too far to turn back now.”

Obama speech State of the Union 2012 : Obama is Robin Hood

In an intense speech, Us President Barack Obama contrasted his vision for an America “where everybody gets a fair shot” with a country run for the benefit of a monied elite, drawing the key battle-lines with his Republican opponents this November.

The outcome of the 2012 presidential election in USA depends in large part on which of those arguments Americans decide to embrace.

The centerpiece of Mr. Obama’s call for economic fairness was the so-called “Buffett Rule,” which is predicated on the notion that the wealthy investor should pay as much as his secretary in taxes. ( Obama said Tuesday night that anyone making more than $1 million per year should pay no less than a 30 percent tax rate; as learned earlier in the day that one of the chief contenders for the GOP presidential nomination, Mitt Romney, paid less than 14 percent on $21.7 million in income in 2010.)

Focusing on economic issues, Obama set the scene for an election that will be fought over jobs and restoring the national finances, with US unemployment still running at 8.5 per cent and a soaring $15 trillion national debt that continues to rise.

‘It is time to stop rewarding businesses that ship jobs overseas, and start rewarding companies that create jobs right here in America’

Obama pledged to increase spending on education, infrastructure and job creation and help pay for it by asking millionaires to pay at least 30 per cent in taxes. The President pointed to his successes from his first three years in office and the widening income gap between the rich and poor, hoping to appeal to the middle class during an election year.

The call to increase taxes on the rich came hours after Mitt Romney, the multi-millionaire Republican presidential hopeful, released tax returns showing that he paid just 14 per cent on earnings of more than $21m.

State of the Union 2012 : Obama focuses on fairness

Citing the example of Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor who admitted last year that he paid lower tax rates than his secretary, President Obama called on Washington to “stop subsidising millionaires” and rescind a trillion dollars of tax breaks for the wealthiest 2 per cent.

State of the Union 2012: Obama to make pitch for second term 24 Jan 2012

“You can call this class warfare all you want,” he said, as Mr Buffett’s secretary looked on from the box of the First Lady Michelle Obama, “But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most Americans would call that common sense.”

Obama attacked the “reckless” and “bad” behaviour of the banks that had caused the financial crisis and left millions of innocent Americans “holding the bag”, urging Congress to invest in rejuvenating America’s industry and infrastructure.

State of the Union 2012 : Obama playes the fairness and bash the wealthy card

“Millions of Americans who work hard and play by the rules every day deserve a government and a financial system that does the same. It’s time to apply the same rules from top to bottom: No bailouts, no handouts, and no copouts. An America built to last insists on responsibility from everybody,” he said.

After a year in which bitter ideological divisions between Democrats and Republicans have paralysed the US Congress, Mr Obama said it was little wonder that most American’s were cynical about politics and considered “Washington is broken”.

He cited the teamwork shown by the Navy SEALS that had captured and killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan last year, and urged both parties in Congress to stop their “perpetual campaign of mutual destruction” and build consensus around common sense ideas.

“We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by. Or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules.”

Today, in what is widely seen as the de facto start of his election campaign, Mr Obama will embark on a three-day tour of five key ‘swing’ states, including Iowa, Nevada and Arizona where pollsters say that the outcome of November’s elections will very likely be determined.

A new poll released on the eve of the speech by ABC News/Washington Post showed Mr Obama’s approval rating up by five points this month to 53 per cent as US unemployment continued to fall.

In a sign of the bitter debates to come, the Republican Party accused Mr Obama of presiding over an “explosion” of government spending and seeking to divide America at a time when tough measures to curb spending and stimulate real economic activity were most needed.

State of the Union – Republicans slam Obama for dividing America

“No feature of the Obama Presidency has been sadder than its constant efforts to divide us, to curry favor with some Americans by castigating others,” said Gov. Mitch Daniels of Indiana, a middle-ground Republican who many in his party had hoped would run for the presidency.

Far from helping the middle class, Mr Daniels said that Mr Obama’s “grand experiment in trickle-down government” had failed, stifling the true potential of American entrepreneurs.

“A government as big and bossy as this one is maintained on the backs of the middle class, and those who hope to join it,” he added as he delivered his party’s official response.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Romney, the long-term national front-runner for the Republican nomination to face Mr Obama, promised to lead America down a very different road if he was elected in November.
“This election is a choice between two very different destinies,” he said in a major speech delivered on the primary campaign trail in Tampa, Florida.

“This President puts his faith in government. We put our faith in the American people. Ours is the party of free enterprise, free markets, and consumer choice. …He leads the party of big government. He believes in ever-expanding entitlement. He’s wrong. We’re right.”

The central theme of President Obama’s State of the Union address on Tuesday night was the notion that in America, everybody deserves a fair shake – and that his policies will help make sure they have one.

The central theme of Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels’ Republican response was that Mr. Obama has shown himself to be a divisive failure that has chosen class warfare and stifling big government over economic progress.

The outcome of the 2012 presidential election depends in large part on which of those arguments Americans decide to embrace.

“Now, you can call this class warfare all you want,” he said. “But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most Americans would call that common sense.”

State of the Union 2012 : Obama hints at differences on class warfare

Class warfare is exactly what Republicans are calling it. House Speaker John Boehner – who sat behind Mr. Obama during the speech, along with Vice President Joe Biden – suggested earlier in the day that the president’s politics of “division and envy” are “almost un-American.” Daniels said that “no feature of the Obama Presidency has been sadder than its constant efforts to divide us, to curry favor with some Americans by castigating others.”

Us President Barack Obama would seem to have the advantage in this fight: A CBS News/New York Times poll out Tuesday found that 55 percent of Americans think upper-income taxpayers pay less than their fair share. And in the wake of the emergence of the “Occupy” movement, a Pew survey earlier this month found that two in three Americans now see a strong conflict between rich and poor. Even the two leading Republican presidential candidates, Romney and Newt Gingrich, have gotten into a fight over whether Romney’s former company Bain Capital engages in heartless capitalism that rewards the rich while leaving average Americans behind.

That’s why Republicans are not eager to spend the year fighting on Barack Obama’s terms. Instead, they want to put the focus squarely on the fact that Mr. Obama has spent three years presiding over an economy that has yet to recover from the 2008 financial crisis. Daniels said Tuesday night that the president “cannot claim that the last three years have made things anything but worse: the percentage of Americans with a job is at the lowest in decades. One in five men of prime working age, and nearly half of all persons under 30, did not go to work today.” (Daniels’ full remarks are at left; the president’s are above.)

This is the argument that Republicans want to have. A CBS/NYT poll earlier this month showed that just 40 percent of Americans approve of Mr. Obama’s handling of the economy, while 54 percent disapprove. Only 35 percent say the president has made real progress on the economy, which voters overwhelmingly say is their top concern. If Republicans can hammer home the notion that Mr. Obama has failed to guide the economy effectively – in a way that has harmed all Americans, rich, poor and middle-class – they will likely win the election.

From a political perspective, good news for the economy is bad news for the Republicans: Amid signs that the economy is improving, the survey showed a slight uptick in perceptions of the condition of the economy – and Mr. Obama’s handling of it. Still, the economic picture is unlikely to be rosy in November, and Republicans know their best hope is to convince Americans that Mr. Obama has squandered his opportunity to turn things around.

That’s the reason you heard Daniels speaking in relatively dour terms Tuesday night. “When President Obama claims that the state of our union is anything but grave, he must know in his heart that this is not true,” he said at the outset of his remarks. You can expect to hear the GOP hammering home that notion right up until Election Day.

The other key plank in the GOP offensive against Mr. Obama is the notion that he wants an overregulating, nanny-state government that doesn’t let American businesses succeed and American individuals make their own choices. That argument has long been effective for Republicans, which is why you heard Mr. Obama note Tuesday night that he “approved fewer regulations in the first three years of my presidency than my Republican predecessor did in his.” It’s also why he uttered a line you’d expect to hear from a Republican: That he believes “[g]overnment should do for people only what they cannot do better by themselves, and no more.”

But that’s playing defense, and Mr. Obama knows he needs to play offense. That’s why he brought Buffett’s secretary to his speech Tuesday night, and it’s why he’s embarking on a three day swing-state tour on Wednesday to hammer home his State of the Union arguments. The president and his re-election team believe that a focus on income inequality and economic fairness are good politics. They also know that while Romney may well be a formidable opponent if he gets the nomination, a focus on income inequality could transform what was supposed to be the former Massachusetts governor’s biggest strength – his time in the business world, which helped him reach a net worth in the hundreds of millions of dollars – into a weakness that puts him on the wrong side of an argument they are eager to have.

The President pointed to his successes from his first three years in office and the widening income gap between the rich and poor, hoping to appeal to the middle class during an election year.  President Obama’s reelection campaign is raising money and reaching out to voters and volunteers.

In Florida, the escalating battle for the right to challenge Obama threatened to further bloody the leading contenders — with Mitt Romney on the defensive over his tax rate as revealed by the Tuesday release of his 2010 returns and Newt Gingrich trying to fend off questions about his consulting work for mortgage giant Freddie Mac.

The day brought a reminder that, for all of Obama’s many political challenges and relatively low approval ratings, the White House has some reason for optimism.

In addition to the prospect of a protracted GOP nomination fight, Obama has been boosted as the jobless rate has ticked down in recent months. And a new Washington Post-ABC News poll found independent voters quickly souring on Romney, whose strength with that group not long ago made him the opponent that many Democrats feared most.

The president’s address Tuesday served far more as a roadmap for how Obama as a reelection candidate intends to capi­tal­ize on his built-in advantages than as a governing blueprint for the next year.

He sprinkled his remarks with anecdotes and shout-outs to key cities in election battlegrounds, from Raleigh to Pittsburgh and Milwaukee to Cleveland. He hit back against GOP attacks on an array of foreign and domestic policy areas — declaring victory on the auto bailout and his overhauls of health care and Wall Street regulations.

State of the Union 2012 : Obama states America is back

“America is back,” the president said at one point.

A gift of timing allowed Obama to draw a stark contrast with Romney.

It came, indirectly, as the president highlighted his quest for the “Buffett rule,” named for the billionaire investor who has criticized a tax system that allows him and other investors to pay a lower rate than their staffs. The rule would require people making more than $1 million a year to pay at least the same tax rates as middle-class Americans, which can be close to 30 percent. Buffett has said he paid an effective 17.4 percent rate last year.

Buffett’s secretary was sitting in the gallery, but Americans learned Tuesday that Romney, too, stands as a symbol of what the White House is portraying as a major inequity. In 2010, he paid an effective rate of 13.9 percent on $21.7 million in income, most of it from investments.

“We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by,” Obama said, “or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share and everyone plays by the same set of rules.”

He invoked a common refrain from Romney and other Republicans about his support for raising taxes on the right, saying: “Now, you can call this class warfare all you want. But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most Americans would call that common sense.”

Shadows lingering at Real Madrid, Mourinho to quit in the summer ?

Jose Mourinho berated his team for their miserable attitude after the loss to Barcelona, further raising tensions with players, never a good sign in Real Madrid if the coach wants to stay.

Madrid / NationalTurk – Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho is waiting to pull the trigger to end his 2 year spell at Real Madrid.

Relations in the dressing room and recent beefs with especially homegrown Real Madrid players such as Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos after repeated losses to arch-rivals Barcelona seem to force the iconic coach to leave its post at Madrid at the end of the season.

“Jose Mourinho has given clues and even mentioned a few words to the people around him that he would like to leave before June 30,” so the Madrid-based newspaper state.

On the same page, splashed alongside a photo of a grumpy looking Mourinho in black tracksuit, the paper added: “Mr Indispensable becomes Mr Mysterious.”
Barcelona-based daily Mundo Deportivo said the story that emerged of Mourinho’s possible exit at the end of the season would not be his first such threat.

Mourinho clearly unhappy at Real Madrid

Mourinho used the same tactic to convince the club to give him an extra striker last season, Mundo Deportivo said.
According to AS, Mourinho met after Real Madrid’s victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and managing director Jose Angel Sanchez.
“The Portuguese told those close to him that at the end of the season he is going, whatever happens,” the paper said.

According to AS, Mourinho was fed up with the whistles he received from fans in the Bernabeu despite Madrid’s victory, a split with the team and his treatment by the Spanish press.

The paper even interpreted Mourinho’s dress sense as a sign of departure, saying he had eschewed Madrid’s official clothing in favour of attire by his personal sponsor Porsche, “a brand that is a direct competitor with Real Madrid sponsor Audi”.

Jose Mourinho ‘s ‘Real’ nightmare : Barcelona

Clouds have gathered over the team since their 1-2 home loss to Barcelona in the Spanish Cup quarter-finals last week, their third loss in four matches with Barcelona this season.

The reported row between Real defender Sergio Ramos and Mourinho, and the alleged dressing-room split between Spanish and Portuguese players where Madrid’s Spanish players had grown unhappy at the fact that coach Jose Mourinho allegedly gave preferential treatment to the squad’s Portuguese and the final straw being that Madrid captain Iker Casillas had confronted Mourinho during a training session are more than enough signs readable even from Mourinho’s dress sense as a sign of departure, saying he had eschewed Madrid’s official clothing in favour of attire by his personal sponsor Porsche, “a brand that is a direct competitor with Real Madrid sponsor Audi”.

“At the moment, we’re leaders with a five-point lead on the team everyone says are the best in the world,” Mourinho said, speaking ahead of Wednesday’s quarter-final return leg against Barca.
“Before I arrived here, the club was used to being knocked out of the King’s Cup by teams from a lower division, and we won the competition last season.
“And then we won six games out of six in the Champions League. So I think we haven’t got as many problems as people want to say.”

Hugo and The Artist top 2012 Oscar nominations.

Martin Scorsese’s 3D children’s adventure Hugo and the silent film tribute The Artist lead the nominees for the 2012 Academy Awards, unveiled in Los Angeles early Tuesday morning.

Actor in a Leading Role

Demián Bichir in “A Better Life”
George Clooney in “The Descendants”
Jean Dujardin in “The Artist”
Gary Oldman in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
Brad Pitt in “Moneyball”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Kenneth Branagh in “My Week with Marilyn”
Jonah Hill in “Moneyball”
Nick Nolte in “Warrior”
Christopher Plummer in “Beginners”
Max von Sydow in “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

Actress in a Leading Role

Glenn Close in “Albert Nobbs”
Viola Davis in “The Help”
Rooney Mara in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
Meryl Streep in “The Iron Lady”
Michelle Williams in “My Week with Marilyn”

Actress in a Supporting Role

Bérénice Bejo in “The Artist”
Jessica Chastain in “The Help”
Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids”
Janet McTeer in “Albert Nobbs”
Octavia Spencer in “The Help”

Animated Feature Film

“A Cat in Paris” Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
“Chico & Rita” Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
“Kung Fu Panda 2″ Jennifer Yuh Nelson
“Puss in Boots” Chris Miller
“Rango” Gore Verbinski

Art Direction

“The Artist”
Production Design: Laurence Bennett; Set Decoration: Robert Gould
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″
Production Design: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
“Hugo”
Production Design: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
“Midnight in Paris”
Production Design: Anne Seibel; Set Decoration: Hélène Dubreuil
“War Horse”
Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales

Cinematography

“The Artist” Guillaume Schiffman
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Jeff Cronenweth
“Hugo” Robert Richardson
“The Tree of Life” Emmanuel Lubezki
“War Horse” Janusz Kaminski

Costume Design

“Anonymous” Lisy Christl
“The Artist” Mark Bridges
“Hugo” Sandy Powell
“Jane Eyre” Michael O’Connor
“W.E.” Arianne Phillips

Directing

“The Artist” Michel Hazanavicius
“The Descendants” Alexander Payne
“Hugo” Martin Scorsese
“Midnight in Paris” Woody Allen
“The Tree of Life” Terrence Malick

Documentary (Feature)

“Hell and Back Again”
Danfung Dennis and Mike Lerner
“If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front”
Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman
“Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory”
Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky
“Pina”
Wim Wenders and Gian-Piero Ringel
“Undefeated”
TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Richard Middlemas

Documentary (Short Subject)

“The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement”
Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin
“God Is the Bigger Elvis”
Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson
“Incident in New Baghdad”
James Spione
“Saving Face”
Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
“The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom”
Lucy Walker and Kira Carstensen

Film Editing

“The Artist” Anne-Sophie Bion and Michel Hazanavicius
“The Descendants” Kevin Tent
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
“Hugo” Thelma Schoonmaker
“Moneyball” Christopher Tellefsen
Foreign Language Film
“Bullhead” Belgium
“Footnote” Israel
“In Darkness” Poland
“Monsieur Lazhar” Canada
“A Separation” Iran

Makeup

“Albert Nobbs”
Martial Corneville, Lynn Johnston and Matthew W. Mungle
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″
Nick Dudman, Amanda Knight and Lisa Tomblin
“The Iron Lady”
Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland

Music (Original Score)

“The Adventures of Tintin” John Williams
“The Artist” Ludovic Bource
“Hugo” Howard Shore
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” Alberto Iglesias
“War Horse” John Williams
Music (Original Song)
“Man or Muppet” from “The Muppets” Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
“Real in Rio” from “Rio” Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown Lyric by Siedah Garrett

Best Picture

“The Artist” Thomas Langmann, Producer
“The Descendants” Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” Scott Rudin, Producer
“The Help” Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan, Producers
“Hugo” Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
“Midnight in Paris” Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
“Moneyball” Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt, Producers
“The Tree of Life” Nominees to be determined
“War Horse” Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers

Short Film (Animated)

“Dimanche/Sunday” Patrick Doyon
“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg
“La Luna” Enrico Casarosa
“A Morning Stroll” Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe
“Wild Life” Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby

Short Film (Live Action)

“Pentecost” Peter McDonald and Eimear O’Kane
“Raju” Max Zähle and Stefan Gieren
“The Shore” Terry George and Oorlagh George
“Time Freak” Andrew Bowler and Gigi Causey
“Tuba Atlantic” Hallvar Witzø

Sound Editing

“Drive” Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Ren Klyce
“Hugo” Philip Stockton and Eugene Gearty
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl
“War Horse” Richard Hymns and Gary Rydstrom

Sound Mixing

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Bo Persson
“Hugo”
Tom Fleischman and John Midgley
“Moneyball”
Deb Adair, Ron Bochar, Dave Giammarco and Ed Novick
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Peter J. Devlin
“War Horse”
Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson and Stuart Wilson

Visual Effects

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″
Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson
“Hugo”
Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning
“Real Steel”
Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor and Swen Gillberg
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”
Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Matthew Butler and John Frazier

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

“The Descendants” Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash
“Hugo” Screenplay by John Logan
“The Ides of March” Screenplay by George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
“Moneyball” Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin Story by Stan Chervin
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” Screenplay by Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan

Writing (Original Screenplay)

“The Artist” Written by Michel Hazanavicius
“Bridesmaids” Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig
“Margin Call” Written by J.C. Chandor
“Midnight in Paris” Written by Woody Allen
“A Separation” Written by Asghar Farhadi

Funeral services held for Pakistan Air Forces Shaheed Pilot inTurkey

Funeral services for Pakistan Air Force pilot Squadron Leader Massoud Hussein Chhachhar were held at Izmir Airbase

İzmir / NationalTurk – Funeral services for Pakistan Air Force pilot Squadron Leader Masood Hussain were held at Izmir Airbase on Monday at 4.00 p.m.

As a mark of close relations between Pakistan and Turkey and high esteem and respect for the Shaheed officer, Turkish Air Chief Gen. Mehmet Ertem specially flew to Izmir to participate in the funeral services. Land Forces Commander of the Aegean Region, Izmir Air Base Commander and all officers of the Base paid homage to the Shaheed officer. The funeral was attended by Gen. Recep Yüksel of Turkey’s Air Training Command, Turkish Ambassador to Islamabad Babür Hızlan, Punjab Provincial Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and ranking officers from the Pakistani Air Force. Turkish President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sent laurels to the funeral.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to Turkey H.E. Mr. Muhammad Haroon Shaukat, Defence and Air Attaché and officers of Pakistan Embassy also attended the funeral services. Chhachhar has been training Turkish pilots for the past two years as part of a military cooperation agreement between Turkey and Pakistan. The Pakistani Major had the most flight hours among servicemen in his rank and Turkish officials had requested to extend his tour of duty for another additional year due to “outstanding service,” the report stated.

Wrapped in Pakistani and Turkish flags, dead body was flown to Pakistan on special plane. Shaheed officer was on exchange posting to Turkish Air Force. His plane has crashed while on a routine training mission, with a Turkish under training pilot. Chhachhar was training Turkish pilot Lt. Serkan Sağır on a D-137 plane when it crashed into the Aegean Sea near the western province of İzmir, killing both pilots.

Smear Campaign against Cuba started by US, Spain&Chile over deceased prisoner

The attack on Cuba by the governments of the United States, Chile and Spain over the death of a prisoner has a marked political intention that goes away from the concern about Cubans.

Havana / NationalTurk – The attack on Cuba by the United States, Chile and Spain governments over the death of a prisoner has a marked political intention that goes away from the concern about Cubans, it merely a smear campaign over the deceased.

This new attack has nothing to do with a legitimate concern about the lives of Cubans, the text underlined.

After explaining that the accusations are supported by financial empires such as the Spanish Prisa Group and CNN in Spanish, Cuban news agencies noted that the Cuban government is being accused irrationally without an investigation that proves the reality of facts.

Smear Campaign against Cuba started by US, Spain&Chile over deceased prisoner

Neither the authorities nor the machine at the service of the media aggression confirmed the information, highlighted the editorial from Cuban doctors humanist vocation when referring to the death of prisoner Wilman Villar last Thursday.

Cuban doctors humanist vocation is known worldwide since they do not spare efforts or their limited resources to save lives and improve the health of Cuban people and of other peoples in the world, the note recalled.

Villar, who died last Thursday as a result of a multiple organ failure, had been serving a four-year sentence since 2011 for disorderly conduct, assault and contempt of authority.

However, the Chilean spokesman says nothing about the repression against students in that South American country, or about the implementation of an antiterrorist law against the representatives of the Mapuche community on strike.

It is incredible the hypocrisy of spokespersons from the United States, a country that holds a poor human rights record, the communiqué pointed out, referring to the mistakes committed in that country in death sentences.

In the United States, 90 prisoners have been executed since January 2010, while 3,200 are awaiingt their execution in the death row.

France genocide attrocity : Politics have won over law

France Armenian Genocide is strongly condemned byTurkey.  Retaliation will come after French Senate approved the France Armenian Genocide bill making it a crime denying mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks was genocide.

Ankara / NationalTurk – Relations between France and Turkey, the two NATO allies are at its lowest and Ankara’s ambassador in Paris states he’s ready to return to Turkey, after France shamelessly uses poor Armenian conscience as a cat’s paw for the upcoming France elections by approving the Armenian Genocide Bill in the Frencg senate.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused French President Nicolas Sarkozyan, who is seeking re-election in 2012, of using the law to please to France’s nearly 400,000 voters of Armenian origin.

France Armenian genocide attrocity : Politics have won over law

France Senate’s upper house approved the genocide bill late on Monday evening, criminalizing the denial of Armenians killed by Ottoman Turks during World War I was genocide. The approval of the Genocide bill will be finalized as a law after French President Sarkozyan signs it.

The dire event is condemned by Turkey whereas it found praise in Armenia. Armenian people who live in Armenia are not represented by themselves. The lobbyist Armenian diaspora all over the world decides for them.

The French Senate passed the bill – which allows for a potential one-year prison penalty sentence and a fine of up to 45,000 euros for those who deny that Armenian genocide committed by Turks occurred in 1915 – by a vote of 127 to 86. Of the 217 members of the senate 213 used legit votes. 107 was the number required so the law could be passed. The Armenian genocide bill, passed last month by France’s lower house, the National Assembly, must now be signed by French President Nicolas Sarkozyan before it can become law, which contradicts with the 34th ammendment of French constitution. The 34th bylaw of French Constitution is about freedom of speech and expression.

Sarkozyan licks the boots of Armenian voters

Nicholas Sarkozyan’s Foreign Minister Alain Juppe has also admitted the Turkey involving France Genocide bill is “untimely” while even French Senate’s committee chairman, Jean-Pierre Sueur, criticized the Armenian genocide bill as unconstitutional, stating that it could be rejected by France’s constitutional court. Sueur claims it specifically runs counter to constitutional provisions guaranteeing freedom of speech and academic research. He shoved his protests by slamming the French MP’s supporting the genocide bill by asking ” Who and what powers do you exactly you serve? ”, hinting at the tastleless motives behind the dire attempt to alter history for political gains.

Armenia praised and hailed the French Senate’s Genocide vote as a day “written in gold,” while Turkey lamented “a black day in France’s history.”

‘Permanent’ consequences in France Turkey Relations after Armenian Genocide Bill

France’s NATO ally Turkey, however, has threatened to raise the level of severe diplomatic fallouts if the genocide bill will be signed by Sarkozyan to be finalized as law before French parliament takes a break at the end of February ahead of the France presidential election. Ankara administration has already temporarily suspended all relations with Paris as Turkey’s government has frozen political and military ties with France. French President Sarkozyan whose party French UMP (the mainstream right-wing party in France) supported the France Armenian Genocide bill, needs to sign it into law, but that is largely considered a formality.

French genocide bill puts Nazis and Turks at same level

The Armenian genocide bill means that France will officially recognize two genocides of the last century- that of the Jews at the hands of the Nazis during the Second World War and the killings in eastern Turkey between 1915 and 1917 during World War I.

Turkey : Reactions to France Armenian Genocide Law Approval

Turkey has threatened retaliatory measures against France following a French senate vote approving a genocide bill that would criminalize a denial that the mass killings of Armenians in 1915 constituted had been genocide.

In a written statement following Monday’s vote, Turkey’s foreign ministry declared: “Turkey strongly condemns this decision which is… an example of irresponsibility.”

“Politicising the understanding of justice and history through other people’s past and damaging freedom of expression in a tactless manner are first and foremost a loss for France.”

Turkey’s justice minister Sadullah Ergin added that the France Genocide bill was “a great injustice” that showed “a total lack of respect” for Turkey and human rights.

 France Armenian Genocide Law will be ignored by Turkey

“Turkey will never accept such a law, and now everybody will pay a price, including Turkey, France, and the Armenian communities,” he warned, as Turkish Prime Minister annonced today at Turkish parliament that Turkey will ignore the law inacted by France.

“You can expect diplomatic relations will be at the level of charge d’affaires, not ambassador anymore.” ”Turkey is committed to taking all necessary measures against this unjust disposition, which reduces basic human rights to nothing,” Turkey’s Foreign Ministry announced in a statement issued later yesterday evening.

The Turkish embassy in Paris declared France was “in the process of losing a strategic partner.” ”If the law is adopted by the French government, the consequences will be permanent,” an Turkish embassy spokesman stated.

French politicians suggest Turkey and Turkish government should remain calm and avoid taking steps which could damage France’s relation with Turkey, an ally to France they claim hypocritically.

While Turkish government seems to have failed at carrying out a decent policy at handling the crisis, and becoming nothing more than a barking dog rather than biting, Turkish historians who are first historians and not nationalists claim, calling the events in 1915 a genocide is unjust.

But Turkey has to face its demons and Turkish people, more importantly younger Turks deserve to know the truth. ”  To say and claim that ”There is no Armenian genocide committed by Turks” should be backed up with proper history and policy. Turks and Armenians need and deserve to know why 300.000 Armenian people who were living in those lands before 1915 had to migrate. Migration never occurs without something forces you to migrate.