US teen held in Kuwait returns home

Gulet Mohamed was stuck in Gulf state after being placed on the US no-fly list, prompting a lawsuit on his behalf. Last Modified: 21 Jan 2011 18:03 GMT

Mohamed says he was tortured while being detained in Kuwait at the behest of the US authorities [AP] A US teenager stuck in Kuwait for a month after being placed on the US government's no-fly list was reunited with his family at a Washington airport. Gulet Mohamed, 19, of Alexandria, Virginia, expressed concern for others who may be in the same situation he was in after greeting family members on Friday. Mohamed claims he was blindfolded, beaten and tortured while he was detained for nearly a month in Kuwait at the behest of the US authorities. "There are probably people out there being tortured like I was, whose voices are not being heard," he said. His return to the US was delayed for weeks because US authorities had apparently placed him on the no-fly list. His homecoming follows a lawsuit filed earlier this week in the US District Court of Alexandria. 'Wrongfully assumed' The Council on American-Islamic Relations sued on Mohamed's behalf seeking an order that would require the government to allow the teenager to return to the US. But before a judge issued any order, a government lawyer said Mohamed had been released from detention in Kuwait and was heading back home. In its lawsuit, CAIR alleges that the no-fly list has expanded dramatically in the last year and that 400,000 individuals have now been placed on the list. Mohamed was born in Somalia but came to the US at age three and is a naturalised citizen. In March 2009, Mohamed travelled to Yemen and Somalia, where he still has family, to learn Arabic. He stayed in those countries for just a few months and settled in Kuwait in August 2009, where he lived with an uncle. Gadeir Abbas, Mohamed's lawyer, said it is wrong for the government or anyone else to assume Mohamed was engaged in something nefarious because he travelled to Yemen and Somalia, two countries labelled as terrorism hot spots with the US state department. For years, he said, Yemen has been a natural place to visit for people of Somali descent who want to learn Arabic. "Somalis go to Yemen like Americans go to Canada," Mohamed’s lawyer said.

Source: Agencies

Bin Laden threatens France

Al-Qaeda leader says in audio tape hostages will die if country does not pull out troops from Muslim lands. Last Modified: 21 Jan 2011 13:20 GMT

Bin Laden says in the audio message that France it will pay dearly for its policy in Afghanistan and elsewhere [AFP] The leader of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, has called for the withdrawal of French troops from Muslim lands in exchange for the release of hostages, in an audio message. Referring to French hostages being held in Niger, the speaker on the tape, who sounded like Bin Laden, says their release depended on moves by their own government. He says France will pay dearly for its policy in Afghanistan and elsewhere. "President Nicolas Sarkozy's refusal to remove his forces from Afghanistan is nothing but a green light for killing the French hostages," Bin Laden says in the recording, broadcast on Al Jazeera on Friday. "We repeat the same message to you: The release of your prisoners in the hands of our brothers is linked to the withdrawal of your soldiers from our country." This is the second tape that Bin Laden, believed to be hiding in the mountainous border areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan, has released an audio recording attacking French policy and linking the French presence in Afghanistan to the kidnapping of its nationals in Niger. Seven foreigners, including five French nationals, were kidnapped in Niger in September, with the group's north African wing Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claiming responsibility. AQIM also claimed responsibility for two Frenchmen found dead last week after a failed rescue attempt in Niger, but the group did not say how the men died. Following the kidnappings last year, an AQIM spokesman, Salah Abi Mohammed, said in an audio message: "We inform the French government that the mujahedeen will later transmit their legitimate demands." The September kidnapping was an escalation of hostilities between AQIM and France. AQIM killed 78-year-old Frenchman Michel Germaneu last July after French commandos took part in a failed raid to free him. France has eight hostages held across the world, five held by AQIM in Niger, two in Afghanistan held by the Taliban, and one in Somalia. Bin Laden's last audiotaped message to France, released on Al Jazeera in October, attacked France's planned ban on full-face Islamic veils, a subject also latched on to in reported demands made by the AQIM kidnappers for its repeal. In August 2009, al-Qaeda's number two, Ayman al-Zawahri, criticised France over what he called its hatred for Muslims and issued a list of historical grudges he said Muslims should feel for France's colonial actions in the Middle East and Africa.

Source: Agencies

Guantanamo tribunals may resume

Criticism follows report that Obama administration might lift its ban on military trials at the US prison. Last Modified: 21 Jan 2011 19:31 GMT

Over 30 detainees at the Guantanamo prison await prosecution, possibly before a military panel [File: GALLO/GETTY] The prospect of the United States charging Guantanamo Bay detainees before new military tribunals has unleashed a torrent of protests from human-rights groups. The New York Times reported on Wednesday that Robert Gates, US defence secretary, would soon lift an order blocking new cases from being initiated against detainees in special courts known as military commissions, a ban Barack Obama, US president, had ordered on his first day in office. The Pentagon would not immediately confirm the report. According to the US daily, three detainees will be referred for new charges, including Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, accused of having organised the 2000 attack on the USS Cole that killed 17 sailors in Yemen. Al-Nashiri is among three Guantanamo detainees US authorities acknowledge were tortured. He was subjected to the simulated drowning technique of waterboarding, as well as threatened with a gun and a power drill. "Trying Guantanamo detainees in a system that is designed to ensure convictions, not fair trials, strikes a major blow to any efforts to restore the rule of law," the American Civil Liberties Union said in a statement. It urged the Obama administration to try the suspects in US federal courts, which have "well-established rules of procedure and evidence". A legal quagmire While the decision to resort to military commissions for cases such as Nashiri's is seen by some as a reversal of the Obama's promise to close Guantanamo, Mason Clutter, counsel for the rule of law programme at The Constitution Project, a Washington-based think-tank, told Al Jazeera that the move is not a step back. "We're moving forward, but we're moving forward in the wrong system. We should be moving forward in our traditional criminal justice system," he said. Guantanamo numbers According to Human Rights first, as of January 18, the following figures apply to prison: - 779 prisoners in total - 173 currently held - 48 held without charge - 6 deaths in custody - 5 convictions by military tribunal Clutter said it was "disappointing" that Obama's administration has given "new life" to the military tribunals, allowing for new cases to proceed under the system. She said this will only "delay justice for the victims of 9/11 and their families". Military tribunals - even as amended by the Obama administration - present issues that are not present in the US civilian justice system, under which one Guantanamo detainee, Ahmed Ghailani, was tried and convicted in the fall of 2009 (he was found guilty of one of 286 charges levelled against him in connection with the 1998 bombings of two US embassies in Africa). His sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 25. For example, Clutter said that certain types of evidence that would not be admissible in a civilian court - such as hearsay - are admissible before a military panel. It is possible that allowing for new cases to proceed via military tribunal is the administration's way of moving things forward, given that the defence authorisation bill passed by congress in December limits the president's ability to transfer detainees using defence funds. But Clutter argued that there are still fund available from other sources, such as the US justice department, to help facilitate the transfer. "This is the first time that we have seen congress overstepping and dictating how and where detainees should be tried, essentially tying the hands of the president, Clutter said. Still, 59 of the detainees held at the facility have been scheduled for release by the Obama administration, although given the concerns tied to their release - diplomatic wrangling, issues with repatriating detainees into countries with security issues, such as Yemen etc - the men have yet to be freed. Even though the new cases will make it harder for Obama to shutter Guantanamo, Clutter has faith that Obama is focused on ultimately clearing out Guantanamo Bay, which has not had a new detainee since 2006. "The administration remains committed to closing the facility," she said. Challenged repeatedly About 30 detainees at the Guantanamo prison, a US naval base Obama had hoped to close within his first year in office. But he later backpedalled in the face of congressional opposition. The use of military tribunals at Guantanamo Bay, a US naval base, began in 2006, when the US congress passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006, allowing for the indefinite imprisonment of "unlawful enemy combatants", preventing them from access to the evidence against them and holding that "no court, justice, or judge shall have jurisdiction to hear or consider any claim or cause of action whatsoever". Numerous legal challenges to the law (Rasul v. Bush, Hamadi v. Rumsfeld, Hamdan v. Rumsfeld and Boumediene v. Bush) eventually yielded change when the order was ultimately amended in 2009, making some changes in what sort of evidence could be used against defendants in military tribunals and how that evidence could be used against them. While a comparison between the 2006 and the 2009 versions of the act shows notable differences, human-rights groups criticise the decision to allow more cases to be tried under even the new version of the act. The Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents some Guantanamo detainees, said it was "very disappointed" in Obama, predicting the move will "cost the United States foreign popular and diplomatic support that is essential to legitimate law enforcement efforts against terrorism". Joining the chorus of critics was Human Rights First, which cited Obama's own defence one month ago of using federal courts to try terrorism defendants. "But with the exception of one Guantanamo detainee who was convicted in federal court last month, President Obama has failed to use that tool," the group said. Additional reporting by Al Jazeera's D. Parvaz

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

S Korea rescues hijacked ship crew

All 21 crew members aboard a hijacked ship freed and eight Somali pirates killed in navy operation. Last Modified: 21 Jan 2011 08:02 GMT

South Korean navy personnel secure a boat after seizing it from the pirates [REUTERS] South Korea's navy has rescued all crew members aboard a South Korean chemical ship hijacked by Somali pirates in the Arabian Sea, President Lee Myung-bak said. Navy commandos stormed the hijacked vessel on Friday, killing eight pirates and capturing five during the rescue mission, military officials said at a separate briefing. "Our soldiers rescued all of 21 crew aboard Samho Jewelry, including eight Koreans, who were hijacked by Somalia pirates," President Lee told reporters. The vessel, en route to Sri Lanka from the United Arab Emirates, was seized at the weekend. Aboard was a crew of eight Koreans, 11 Myanmar nationals and two Indonesians. All were rescued alive, although a South Korean skipper of the chemical freighter suffered a non-critical gunshot wound to his stomach during the raid. Firefight The firefight left several pirates missing and believed killed although their bodies have not been found, spokesmen said. Three South Korean commandos were slightly hurt. Seoul ordered a destroyer on patrol in the Gulf of Aden to give chase after reports of the vessel being hijacked. President Lee ordered "all possible measures" to save the crew. Commando's chased the hijacked ship for days, and started a rescue attempt before dawn on Friday. The mission lasted five hours. This hijacking came two months after an oil supertanker belonging to the same firm was freed after seven months in captivity, the government and local media said. The pirates said they had received a record ransom of $9.5m for the release of the supertanker. According to the London-based International Maritime Bureau, which monitors maritime crime, there have already been 22 incidents reported off the coast of Somalia in 2011, including four hijackings. Currently, 31 vessels are being held by Somali pirates, the Bureau reported.

Source: Agencies

Qatar show they can play football

Late 3-2 defeat to Japan in Asian Cup quarter-final gives hope to hosts as they build towards World Cup 2022. Paul Rhys in Doha Last Modified: 21 Jan 2011 17:33 GMT

Fabio Cesar put Qatar 2-1 up before Japan fought back to deny the hosts a first Asian Cup semi-final [Reuters] World Cup – check. Stadium plans – got those. Now Qatar has shown it has a football team to go with the grand schemes off the pitch. It is a work in progress. Qatar were knocked out of their home Asian Cup on Friday in a pulsating quarter-final against Japan, after twice taking the lead against a team ranked 76 places above them in the world. The hearts of 20,000 Qataris who had relentlessly roared on the team at Al Gharafa stadium were broken a minute before full time when Masahiko Inoha punished an overwhelmed defence to send 10-man Japan into the semifinals with a 3-2 win. What had come before should give hope for the future of a Qatari team that will play against the planet's best at the World Cup in 11 years' time. "We have shown the whole world that the Qatar team can play football," French coach Bruno Metsu said afterwards. "You can see from the reaction of the Japan players how hard it was for them. You do not get a team that has played in two World Cups celebrating like that if they have not played against a good side." Rough and ready With the showpiece Khalifa International Stadium reserved for Uzbekistan v Jordan later in the day, the hosts made do with the rough-and-ready Al Gharafa across town. In a tournament that has witnessed poor crowds and a lack of atmosphere, the more confined arena was a boon. The men and women of Doha came, they saw a football match, and they stayed for 90 minutes – banging drums, waving portraits of the Emir and the Heir Apparent, and responding to the shouts of "Wehda!" (unity!) and "Shaja'a Al Anabi!" (support the Maroons) booming from the throat of a man with a loudhailer. Qatar showed their intent when right-back Mesaad Ali came close with two efforts in as many minutes. His shot from the right was parried away by Eiji Kawashima for a corner, before the defender unleashed a rising drive from almost 40 yards that the Japan goalkeeper again did well to keep out. Japan captain Makoto Hasebe celebrates reaching the semi-finals as Qatar rue defeat [Reuters] Then, on 13 minutes, came a goal that brought a first Asian Cup semi-final for Qatar a step closer – a goal made in Uruguay, before being imported by Qatari football's tiger economy. Sebastian Soria now holds a different passport to that of his countryman Diego Forlan, but he showed all the poise and conviction of the World Cup star to beat the offside trap from halfway, twist Maya Oshida inside out, and sidefoot underneath Kawashima into the net. Dreams of an upset lasted 16 minutes before CSKA Moscow midfielder Keisuke Honda lifted the ball into the path of Shinji Okazaki, who lobbed Qasem Burhan for Borussia Dortmund striker Shinji Kagawa to head into the empty net. Half time coincided with the call to prayer, and much of the crowd was still putting their shoes back on and retaking their seats when Soria almost broke again. But this time a lack of pace was telling and Japan were able to clear. With Soria now being cancelled out in a bad-tempered battle with Yasuyuki Konno, Qatar injected creativity with the introduction of Brazil-born Fabio Cesar Montezine, the former Napoli player whose free kick had capped a 3-0 defeat of Kuwait to qualify for the quarters. Harsh yellow The impact was instant. Oshida received a harsh second yellow for a tackle on Yusef Ahmed, resulting in a 60th-minute free kick on the right wing that was tailor-made for a cross to the far post. Instead, the midfielder curled a left-foot shot that crept inside the near upright, taking Kawashima with it into the net. "We have shown the whole world that the Qatar team can play football. You can see from the reaction of the Japan players how hard it was for them" Bruno Metsu, Qatar coach The roar was worthy of a World Cup final. Fabio sprinted to the corner of the ground to be jumped upon by teammates as ecstatic fans reached over the hoardings to pound the players on the back. If destiny seemed to be on Qatar's side, the reality of a gulf in class between the teams proved more telling. Honda combined again with Okazaki and Kagawa, who took advantage of some mixed-up defending to sprint clear and finish past Qasem. Japan continued to launch attacks despite their one-man disadvantage. Qatar could still have won it, with captain Mohammed Bilal, Soria and Fabio all going close, but defensive legs were looking tired with no let-up in the tempo. As extra-time approached, desperate defending in the Qatar box would almost certainly have resulted in a penalty for a late tackle had defender Inoho not taken the decision out of the referee's hands. He prodded home a loose ball, sending the three-times champions into the semi-finals to the delight of their balloon-waving supporters. A minority of home fans immediately headed for the exits with four minutes of injury time still to play. Those who stayed to bring down the curtain on Qatar's first campaign since winning the right to host the World Cup have cause for hope on the long road to 2022.

Source: Al Jazeera

German reality TV star Cora dies after sixth breast op

Carolin Berger died in Hamburg

German tabloids have been mourning reality TV star Carolin "Sexy Cora" Berger, who died in a coma after her sixth breast operation, aged 23.

Ms Berger, a sex film celebrity, had joined the German version of Big Brother last year, where she behaved more and more outrageously.

She embarked on a series of breast enlargements in a bid to keep her publicity going.

Hamburg prosecutors are investigating her doctors for negligence.

Ms Berger was put in an artificial coma on 11 January because of serious complications after her sixth operation, which took place at a clinic in the north German city.

It is believed she suffered two cardiac arrests after the procedure to enlarge her breasts from a 70F to a 70G (UK: 34F to 34G).

She had wanted to increase the size of her silicone breast enhancements from 500g (18oz) to 800g (28oz) each, Bild newspaper reported.

'Senseless death'

"The senseless death of Big Brother star Cora shocks the whole of Germany," Bild said.

"[Her] frail, 48kg (106lb) body struggled against death for 224 hours. She lost. Cora is dead!"

Hamburg tabloid Morgenpost, which had a special section called simply "Cora", said Ms Berger had recently come back from a cruise to Dubai with her husband.

Just before the operation, the Berlin-born TV star tweeted her fans a cute photo of her dog sleeping in a laundry basket, it added.

Prosecutors in Hamburg announced they were investigating the anaesthesiologist and the surgeon who performed the operation at the Alster plastic surgery clinic, on suspicion of negligent homicide.

They said a post-mortem would be performed on Ms Berger.

George Clooney recovering from malaria

George Clooney is scheduled to appear on Piers Morgan's new US talk show

Hollywood actor George Clooney contracted malaria during a trip to Sudan earlier this month, but is now fully cured, a spokesman has revealed.

The 49-year-old is a frequent visitor to the African country to help raise awareness about the Darfur conflict.

He said his own experience shows how the right medication can turn "the most lethal condition" into "a bad 10 days instead of a death sentence".

Publicist Stan Rosenfield said it was Clooney's second bout with the disease.

The actor is expected to discuss the condition and his work in Africa on Piers Morgan's CNN show on Friday.