Russia rejects trial criticism

Foreign ministry bristles at foreign criticism over second corruption conviction for oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

Last Modified: 29 Dec 2010 02:19 GMT

Russia has fired back at foreign criticisms over the second conviction of a jailed oil tycoon, saying that other governments should "mind their own business". On Tuesday, US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, and other Western leaders criticised the guilty verdict handed to billionaire businessman Mikhail Khodorkovsky on Monday. Clinton said the conviction raised "serious questions about selective prosecution and about the rule of law being overshadowed by political considerations". Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt wrote in a blog post on Tuesday that the ruling "makes it difficult to liberate oneself from the suspicion that the verdict was steered by political dictate rather than by judicial balance". Germany called the ruling a step backward, while a statement from Canada said that "political considerations should have no role in the judicial process". Russia's foreign ministry bristled at the criticisms and singled out the United States in particular. "We expect everyone to mind their own business - at home and in the international arena,'' the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. The case against Khodorkovsky and his business partner involves "serious charges of tax evasion and money laundering" and "in the United States, by the way, people are given life sentences for such crimes''. 'Politicised case' On Monday, as police scuffled with demonstrators chanting "Freedom!" outside the Moscow courthouse where the trial has taken place, judge Vladimir Danilkin found the jailed tycoon and his business partner Platon Lebedev guilty of embezzling $27bn worth of oil. Al Jazeera's Neave Barker, reporting from the capital, said that a lesser charge involving the theft of shares of an oil company has been dropped. "All indications are now that the two may well spend another six years in prison, bringing their total period of incarceration to 14 years," he said. The complete verdict may take up to five days to read. Khodorkovsky , who has sponsored political rivals of Vladimir Putin, Russia's former president and current prime minister, is already serving an eight-year sentence for tax evasion in a case his supporters say is politically motivated. Khodorkovsky himself had always insisted that the case against him amounted to a vendetta. US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks indicate that US officials feel the charges against Khodorkovsky are politically motivated. One cable states that Khodorkovsky's trial reveals "the effort that GOR (government of Russia) is willing to expend in order to save face, in this case by applying a superficial rule-of-law gloss to a cynical system where political enemies are eliminated with impunity." "Khodorkovsky had somewhat resigned himself to spending old age behind bars," our correspondent said. "His supporters, his defence team and he himself, along with his associate Platon Lebedev, believe that this was very much a politicised case; that Khodorkovsky was being punished for mixing essentially business and politics in the 1990s; punished for having political ambitions that directly challenged the authority of former president Vladimir Putin," said Barker. 'External pressure' Vadim Klyuvgant, Khodorkovsky's lawyer, said external pressure on Viktor Danilkin, the judge, influenced the guilty verdict. "From what we are hearing, we have no hesitation in saying that the court was under pressure. The court was not free to make a decision, because even if they theoretically found some kind of a crime, a free and reasonably-thinking man couldn't have written the things in the verdict a priori (according to the facts) couldn't have happened," he said. Klyuvgant also told hundreds of supporters and media gathered outside of the courthouse before the verdict on Monday that he will appeal the decision.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

Baghdad mulls fewer checkpoints

Improving security prompts officials to consider the possible removal of some road blocks in the Iraqi capital. Last Modified: 29 Dec 2010 05:10 GMT

Security forces use a widely discredited wand-like mechanism that is supposed to be able to detect explosives [EPA] Iraq's leaders are investigating the possibility of removing some of Baghdad's hundreds of unpopular checkpoints because of the improving security situation. Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, asked commanders on Tuesday to evaluate the security situation in Baghdad and decide which of the roughly 870 checkpoints that dot the city can be removed. The checkpoints are manned by Iraqi soldiers and police and designed to catch anti-government fighters, but they also slow down traffic in the already congested city. The development comes amid remarks by al-Maliki that US troops, which provide security back-up for Iraqi government forces, must leave the country by the end of 2011. He told the Wall Street Journal newspaper there will be no extension to the planned US withdrawal. It was his first Western media interview since he began a second term as prime minister, nine months after inconclusive elections. Risky decision With security improving last year, al-Maliki started to remove some of the concrete blast walls that snake their way across the city, dividing neighbourhoods and protecting buildings. But the decision was fraught with risk. The removal of some of the walls was followed by a series of deadly blasts targeting government institutions, killing hundreds of people. Soon some of the concrete barriers went back up. Baghdad residents generally abhor the checkpoints which can make life unbearable for people going to work or school. Each Baghdad resident has a story about being stuck at a checkpoint for an hour or more. "Checkpoints are a useless measure because they just ask people 'Are you carrying weapons?' and they say no and they check the trunk and that's all," Lwaa Adnan, a 19-year-old taxi driver who carries students to Baghdad University every day, said. When asked how many checkpoints he passes through on a daily basis, Adnan counted at least six he must negotiate to get from his neighbourhood in northern Baghdad to the university in the southern part of the city. Another driver described in frustration of how high-ranking government officials in their security convoys with lights flashing bypass the long line of vehicles at the checkpoints while regular citizens are forced to stew, sometimes for hours. Residents sceptical Even more frustrating is that most Baghdad residents do not even consider the checkpoints to be remotely effective. Security forces at the checkpoints use a wand-like, handheld mechanism made in the UK that is supposed to be able to detect explosives in passing vehicles but has been widely discredited. British authorities banned its export to Iraq and Afghanistan after a report raised serious questions about it. The captain in charge of one checkpoint in the Karradah neighbourhood said less than a week ago his men found a bomb attached to the undercarriage of a minibus and defused it. But Captain Odai Hamid Allah Ali said he understands drivers get frustrated at having to wait in line and that removing the concrete blast walls and checkpoints could help bring back some of Baghdad's once fabled beauty. Al-Moussawi said a committee responsible for evaluating the security situation would make a recommendation to al-Maliki in a week on whether some checkpoints can be removed and if so how many. Al-Maliki will make the final decision.

Source: Agencies

Drug gang 'threatens Guatemala war'

Group claiming to belong to Zetas cartel issues warning on radio broadcasts after Guatemalan forces launch crackdown. Last Modified: 29 Dec 2010 06:14 GMT

Guatemalan security forces launched the state of siege on December 19 in the country's north [AFP] Men claiming to belong to Mexico's Los Zetas drug gang have threatened to launch a war in a northern Guatemalan province where the government has declared a "state of siege". Authorities said on Tuesday that the men forced radio stations in the northern city of Coban to broadcast their threat. The men arrived at three radio stations in the city on Monday and said they would burn the buildings down and kill the journalists if their message was not broadcast, Nery Morales, an interior ministry spokesman, said. In the message, which radio broadcasters read out on Monday, the group threatened violence unless Alvaro Colom, the Guatemalan president, fulfils unspecified promises. "War will start in this country, in shopping malls, schools and police stations," the message read. State of seige Colom's administration launched the month-long "state of siege" in the northern province of Alta Verapaz on December 19. Police say the province is a corridor for smuggling gangs from Honduras to Mexico and a haven for Mexico's Zetas drug gang. He said on Tuesday that his forces would not back down, though he did not specifically mention the threat against the radio stations. "We are going to keep hitting the Zetas hard. Their threats are not going to intimidate me," he said during a public event. His government's state of siege declaration gives security forces the power to detain suspects without warrants, conduct warrantless searches and interrogate suspects while limiting freedom of movement and assembly. As part of the crackdown on drug cartels, security officials said earlier this week that they had captured nearly two dozen suspected drug traffickers, automatic weapons and small planes in the biggest blow yet to the Zetas gang. The Zetas, originally formed by Mexican army deserters, once the armed wing of Mexico's Gulf Cartel. But they broke off on their own and are now fighting their former employers for control of valuable drug trafficking routes.

Source: Agencies

England crush Australia in Ashes

Loss in the fourth Test in Melbourne leaves the hosts with merely a chance to level the series. Last Modified: 29 Dec 2010 04:57 GMT

Wednesday's victory marks the first time England have won the Ashes in Australia in 24 years [GALLO/GETTY] England wrapped up a crushing innings and 157-run victory over Australia in the fourth Test to retain the Ashes at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It has been 24 years since England last won the Ashes Down Under when Mike Gatting's team claimed the series 2-1. Australia's humiliation was complete when Ben Hilfenhaus was the last man out before lunch on Wednesday, the fourth morning, caught behind off Tim Bresnan for a duck after Ryan Harris was unable to bat because of an ankle injury. "Winning the Ashes in Australia has always been a bit of a Holy Grail for English sides," skipper Andrew Strauss said. "We haven't won the Ashes yet but we obviously retain the urn which has been one of our primary goals and the guys deserve everything they get because the players stood up and performed when it mattered." There was only going to be one outcome after Australia were routed for a miserable ground record low of 98 on Sunday's opening day after Strauss had won the toss and put the Australians into bat on a greenish wicket. The English responded with a towering 513 to hold a match-winning 415-run innings lead which Australia found totally beyond them. Man of the match Wicketkeeper Brad Haddin was left unbeaten with a defiant 55 including four fours and a six in Australia's second innings of 258 for nine. Bresnan finished as England's best bowler with 4-50 off 21.4 overs, while England number three Jonathan Trott was named man-of-the-match for his unbeaten 168. "The really important thing we need to do is pay credit to England and the way they played for the whole tour," Australian skipper Ricky Ponting said. "Apart from the third Perth Test, they've played a really high level of cricket the whole way through, not only this series, but the tour games as well. Credit to them for the way they prepared." In 1986 England won the series and the Ashes after their innings and 14-run victory at the MCG. Australia can still level the series if they can fight back and win next week's fifth Sydney Test, but the Ashes are gone. "Our objective was to come out here and win the series, so we haven't achieved that yet," Strauss said. "It's very reassuring to know that the Ashes are going to remain in England for the next couple of years, but it would leave a very sour taste in the mouth if we weren't able to go on and convert our position into a series win in Sydney." Heavy defeat England last won at the MCG in 1998 with Dean Headley taking 6-60 in the second innings as the tourists won by just 12 nail-biting runs. The heavy defeat was only Australia's second in their last 12 MCG Tests, the previous coming two years ago against South Africa by nine wickets. It was England's 20th win in 54 Ashes Tests at the MCG. A small crowd, dominated by the celebrating Barmy Army and other English supporters, witnessed the final rites, with the Australian fans giving up on a lost cause. Australia lost Mitchell Johnson in the second over of the final day, bowled by Chris Tremlett for six. Haddin and Peter Siddle stalled England's victory push with some lusty hitting in a 86-run partnership with both clubbing sixes off spinner Graeme Swann. Siddle finally fell for his Test best 40 when he hoisted Swann to Kevin Pietersen on the long on boundary. Hilfenhaus only lasted four balls before the axe finally fell on Australia. Pressure on captain Australia's loss - the sixth biggest behind England's innings and 579 run win at The Oval in 1938 - will heap further pressure on Ponting. It was Ponting's third loss of an Ashes series following his earlier defeats in England in 2005 and last year. "The fact that I've lost those three Test series is disappointing for me," he said. "Hopefully, I am not only remembered as the guy that lost those three Ashes series, there's lot of other great things I've been part of in my career." Given the lack of experience in the scarred Australian team, Ponting is expected to hold on to the captaincy for next week's Sydney Test, fitness permitting with his fractured little finger. Australia's next Test after Sydney is not due until August against Sri Lanka.

Source: Agencies

US travel plans frozen by snow

Three major airports reopen but travellers feel ripple effect of transport chaos across the country. Last Modified: 29 Dec 2010 05:42 GMT

A British Airways jet carrying 300 passengers waited five hours for an open gate at JFK airport [Reuters] A snow storm that has covered major travel hubs in the northeastern US, continues to freeze travel plans, grounding flights and stranding buses and subway trains across the country. Significant snow levels blanketed Virginia, Philadelphia, and Boston and northern New Jersey and New York, where hundreds of airline passengers were stranded for up to 10 hours on the tarmac at John F Kennedy airport on Tuesday. Ambulances struggled to get patients through unswept streets of New York City - where the storm dumped as much as two feet of snow - and city buses sat abandoned. Officials warned it could take until January 1 or later to rebook all passengers and straighten out the transport mess created by the bad weather, which shut down all three of New York's major airports for 24 hours and caused a ripple effect of chaos throughout the country. Airports reopen The three major area airports - JFK, LaGuardia and Newark International in New Jersey - reopened on late on Monday, but the cancellations of over 5,000 flights meant a huge backlog and more delays. In general, US airlines operating domestic flights are not allowed to keep passengers waiting on the tarmac for more than three hours. But the rule does not apply to international flights or foreign airlines. Many passengers at JFK had been stranded inside the airport terminal and could be seen sleeping on makeshift beds. "There is no service, no facilities. So we spent a night in conditions, in animal conditions, I think," Italia Bongarzone, a passenger from Italy, said. A Cathay Pacific flight that had been diverted to Toronto spent 10 hours on the tarmac, and a second Cathay Pacific jet with 250 people was still on the runway after eight hours as of Tuesday afternoon. Maria Chang, a Cathay Pacific passenger flying from Hong Kong, said it had taken her 40 hours to reach New York. She estimated that it would have taken her about that long to "go around the world". New York's airports struggled to get flights in and out and some jetliners couldn't even get to the gate. Airlines were dispatching jets to the airport without lining up gate space first, causing back-ups on the ground, according to Steve Coleman, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates Kennedy. Cathay Pacific spokesman Gus Whitcomb said the jets had taken off under the assumption that they would have somewhere to go upon landing. Vehicles stranded The chaos was also reflected in New York's streets, where hundreds of abandoned city buses and dozens of ambulances still sat in the middle of snow drifts from the storm. Officials predicted streets would not be clear until Wednesday - a day later than they first promised - and have appealed to private companies to help out, but residents are frustrated as they attempt to dig out their vehicles out of the snow. On one street in the Howard Beach area of Queens, residents were becoming frustrated as they attempted to dig their vehicles out of the snow. In New Jersey, police in helicopters counted at least 60 vehicles stranded along a highway at the shore. Al Jazeera is not responsible for the contents of external websites

Source: Agencies

Government Forces Top Chinese Blogger to Shut Down Magazine

Published December 28, 2010

| Associated Press

Amazon.cn

The cover of popular Chinese blogger Han Han's magazine Party is seen on Amazon.cn.

BEIJING – One of China's most popular bloggers announced Tuesday he was forced to shut down his freewheeling print magazine after just one issue because government officials appear to have blocked the printing of any new editions.

Han Han, a novelist and race car driver, has amassed a huge readership with his sly online critiques of China's social problems and hoped to tap that audience with an arts and literature magazine, Party.

Han wrote in a blog post that it appeared that the government was behind the closure, but he was unsure which department and why they had objected to the magazine.

China's media is tightly controlled by the government, which censors, fines, or shuts down publications seen to be treading on politically sensitive issues.

But Han wrote that he didn't think China's news or propaganda officials objected to the magazine and hinted that a personal grudge rather than content may have been a factor. He said his publisher and other partners had so far refused to explain.

"Perhaps it's because there are too many relevant people in too many relevant departments," Han wrote, using phrases that refer broadly to Chinese bureaucrats and government institutions. "So many people have the ability to turn a piece of literature and art into a relic. I myself don't know exactly what has happened or what friend I may have insulted."

The first issue of Party came out in July, featuring poetry, essays, and part of an upcoming novel by Han titled "I Want to Have a Talk With The World." It was a top seller on Amazon.com's Chinese language retail site and sold 1.5 million copies, Han said.

Top 10 Foods to Watch in 2011

By Tanya Zuckerbrot

Published December 28, 2010

| FoxNews.com

iStock

How will this year’s Top 10 Foods to Watch impact your nutrition and weight-loss efforts? Read on.

1. Small pies. Think sweet and savory, bite-sized to extra large. Picture stand-alone pie shops as well as plethora of pies integrated into countless menus. Nutritionally speaking, opt for bite sized! Depending on a pie’s circumference and ingredients, the portion size can fluctuate. Research shows wedge-shaped foods such as pies and pizza to be among the most difficult to accurately determine portion size. I tell my patients to count bites—4 modest bites for women and 5 men help keep portion size in check. Remember, the first bite tastes the same as the last so minimize those in between to keep your diet on track.

2. Sausage. Nutritionally speaking, there aren’t many good things to say about sausage. It is a combination of fatty meats stuffed into a casing, not to mention their high sodium content. The fact that the sausage is local won’t change its nutrition content…it’s still a high fat meat.

3. Nutmeg. No calories and a great complementary spice to cinnamon, clove, and so many more. Enjoy!

4. Moonshine. This alcohol is now legally distilled in some parts of the country and is predicted to be a hot commodity in 2011. This fermented corn mash packs similar caloric content to your average liquor, with about 70 calories per ounce. Just remember to count the calories of your mixer if you can’t get it down without one. Everything in moderation…

5. Gourmet Ice Pops. Better known as paletas in Mexico, these delicious treats are often worth the calories, but do your research. Seek out the best place in town and plan your calories accordingly- perhaps an extra Zumba class this week or an extra 15 minutes on the treadmill can help justify “spending” up to hundreds of calories on these hot weather goodies.

6. Grits. It’s true they can be delicious, but grits are mostly refined grain meaning they deliver less than desired fiber and other nutrients. Additionally, they’re often dressed with butter and/or cheese to give them a creamier texture. Maybe you can substitute No. 7 for the grits?

7. Sweet potatoes. A naked sweet potato is a great veggie loaded with nutrients and has a higher fiber content than your average potato. However, beware of sweet potato fries…because a fry is a fry…and any version of a loaded sweet potato which could be fat and sugar-ridden.

8. Fin fish. Again, be cautious of the fried variety, but otherwise Americans could use more fish in their diet. Remember, a portion’s size for fish is about the size of a check.

9. Cupuaçu fruit. We’ll trust the Food Channel’s prediction for this sister of the acai berry. When you see it arrive at a grocery store near you, pick it up for the nutrients and antioxidants it promises.

10. Beans. They’re good for your heart and so much more. This is the food trend dietitians have been pushing for years.

Here’s to a Happy, Healthy 2011!