Another leftist wins in Latin America

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 07:26:12 GMT

Mauricio Funes is a former TV journalist

El Salvador's left-wing party candidate Mauricio Funes has won the presidential election to end the ruling of right-wing after two decades.

Right-wing candidate Rodrigo Avila conceded defeat late Sunday.

Funes from the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) won 51.3% of the vote.

"My party, the FMLN, has shown to the whole world it is ready for a new government," Funes was quoted as saying by Reuters in a victory speech.

Avila of the conservative Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), which has ruled El Salvador since 1989, trailed with 48.7% support.

It was a historic victory after a bitter campaign that split the small Central American nation, where memories of the 1980-92 civil war that killed 75,000 people are still strong.

The victory boosts a growing group of left-wingers in Latin America, led by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

It is also a defeat for Washington after spending billions of dollars in supporting a string of right-wing governments in the fight against the FMLN during the civil war, although Funes insists he will look for good relations with the US.

CIA report: Israel will fall in 20 years

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 14:44:41 GMT | PressTV International lawyer Franklin Lamb A study conducted by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has cast doubt over Israel's survival beyond the next 20 years. The CIA report predicts "an inexorable movement away from a two-state to a one-state solution, as the most viable model based on democratic principles of full equality that sheds the looming specter of colonial Apartheid while allowing for the return of the 1947/1948 and 1967 refugees. The latter being the precondition for sustainable peace in the region." The study, which has been made available only to a certain number of individuals, further forecasts the return of all Palestinian refugees to the occupied territories, and the exodus of two million Israeli - who would move to the US in the next fifteen years. "There is over 500,000 Israelis with American passports and more than 300,000 living in the area of just California," International lawyer Franklin Lamb said in an interview with Press TV on Friday, adding that those who do not have American or western passport, have already applied for them. "So I think the handwriting at least among the public in Israel is on the wall...[which] suggests history will reject the colonial enterprise sooner or later," Lamb stressed. He said CIA, in its report, alludes to the unexpectedly quick fall of the apartheid government in South Africa and recalls the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, suggesting the end to the dream of an 'Israeli land' would happen 'way sooner' than later. The study further predicts the return of over one and a half million Israelis to Russia and other parts of Europe, and denotes a decline in Israeli births whereas a rise in the Palestinian population. Lamb said given the Israeli conduct toward the Palestinians and the Gaza strip in particular, the American public -- which has been voicing its protest against Tel Aviv's measures in the last 25 years -- may 'not take it anymore'. Some members of the US Senate Intelligence Committee have been informed of the report.

Olmert pronounces Greater Israel dead

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says the idea of "Greater Israel"-- the main motto of the Zionist founders of the Israeli regime-- is dead.

"'Greater Israel' is finished. There is no such thing as that anymore. Whoever talks in those terms is only deluding himself," the prime minister admitted at a cabinet meeting.

"It doesn't help Israel. The international community has changed its perspective ahead of the possibility of Israel becoming a bi-national state," he said.

" I believed that the land from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean was all ours since in every place there that is excavated, there is evidence of Jewish History. But finally, after a lot of suffering and misgivings, I came to the conclusion that we need to share the land with whom we are residing if we don't want to become a bi-national state," Olmert said.

The premier also warned that the clock is "not ticking in Israel's favor."

The remarks came as the Israeli regime faces one of its worst political crises in its history. While Olmert is likely to be indicted over his corruption cases, the ruling Kadima Party is grappling with a power struggle.

The 33-day war against Lebanon during which Hezbollah managed to prevent the regime from achieving its goals, also dealt a serious blow to Israel.

revisited : excerpt Sun, 14 Sep 2008 19:36:07 GMT | PressTV

Tsvangirai: Fatal car crash genuine

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:30:29 GMT | PressTV

File photo of Morgan (L) and Susan Tsvangirai

Zimbabwe's premier says that the car crash which killed his wife has been an accident after reportedly hinting that it had been planned.

"There is a one in a thousand chance that there was foul play,” said Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on Monday almost dismissing that the incident had been premeditated, African Press Agency reported.

The fatal accident took place on Friday on the highway from the capital, Harare to Masvingo where Tsvangirai and his wife, Susan, were traveling in a three-car convoy. A Semi reportedly veered off its lane hitting their middle vehicle and causing it to roll over several times.

The prime minister sustained non-threatening injuries, but lost his wife and driver.

Later, Tsvangirai told officials from his party the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) that the lorry had deliberately moved into their lane, LeadershipNigeria website reported.

"If there had been a police escort maybe what happened Friday could not have happened," said the MDC Secretary-General Tendai Biti speaking at a Friday press conference.

"(The) Police escort would have warned oncoming vehicles of a VIP arriving. I think authorities must understand the omission."

"We hope that this omission will be rectified, that the prime minister must be given the protection that ought to be accorded to a prime minister."

Yesterday, the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) in South Africa also expressed doubts.

"(We are) deeply suspicious as to the cause of the crash coming less than a month after Mr. Tsvangirai was sworn in as prime minister and with Mr. Tsvangirai having been a victim of multiple political assassination attempts," said the party in a statement.

Tsvangirai's row with President Robert Mugabe has been implicated in the case. The two have just set aside their differences after last year's presidential election which saw Mugabe controversially extending his 20-year-old rule over Zimbabwe.

MDC also argues that the ruling regime has done without many of his supporters in a 'systematic terror campaign'.

Guantanamo detainees admit to orchestrating 9/11

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 08:49:40 GMT     |  PressTV

The world-changing attacks of 9/11 on the World Trade Center in New York killed some 3000 American civilians.

Five detainees at Guantanamo Bay charged with plotting the 9/11 attacks have accepted responsibility for the deaths of nearly 3,000 people.

Five men held in the notorious US prison camp have filed a document admitting that they belonged to a consultative assembly responsible for planning the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

According to the New York Times, the five detainees, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who has described himself as the mastermind of the attacks, have "expressed pride at their accomplishment".

An unnamed government official, who had access to the document, told a reporter that the inmates believed the American government's accusations had brought no shame on them.

"To us," read the document, "they are not accusations. To us they are a badge of honor, which we carry with honor."

The military judge presiding over the case, Col. Stephen R. Henley of the Army, said the strategic aim of filing the document is not clear and the men have sought no specific legal action.

President Barack Obama issued an executive order to close the Guantanamo Bay detention camp on his first day in office. He, however, added that the order would take a considerable amount of time to be operational.

As a result of the presidential command, all the military proceedings at Guantanamo have been halted and the case of the five men is on hiatus until the government decides on how to proceed.

Dalai Lama: Tibetans suffer 'hell on earth'

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 08:38:12 GMT        |        PressTV

Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama has accused China of having caused "untold suffering and destruction" to the Himalayan region since the March 1959 revolt.

"These thrust Tibetans into such depths of suffering and hardship that they literally experienced hell on earth," the Tibetan spiritual leader said Tuesday on the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising.

In a speech broadcast via the Internet to exiles and supporters worldwide, the 73-year-old Dalai Lama said justice "will prevail" for Tibet.

Buddhist monks led peaceful protests in Lhasa in 2008 on the anniversary of the Tibetan protest 50 years ago, but the demonstration transformed into a wide-scale anti-China insurrection.

Tibetan exiles say more than 200 people were killed last year by Chinese security forces.

Beijing says the Tibetan spiritual leader seeks independence for Tibet, while the Dalai Lama maintains he only wants more autonomy within China.

"From time immemorial, the Tibetan and Chinese peoples have been neighbors," the Dalai Lama said from the main Buddhist temple in Dharamsala, the north Indian town where the Tibetan government-in-exile is based.

A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman has reacted to the Dalai Lama's comments, describing them as "lies".

"I will not respond to the Dalai Lama's lies," Ma Zhaoxu told reporters.

"The Dalai Lama clique is confusing right and wrong. They are spreading rumors. The democratic reforms (under Chinese rule) are the widest and most profound reforms in Tibetan history," Ma said. 

China reacts to 'illegal' US navy operations

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 07:48:11 GMT   |    PressTV

China responds to US claims that its ship was harassed, accusing Washington of illegally surveying off its southern island of Hainan.

The Chinese embassy in Washington issued a statement on Monday in response to Pentagon claims that one of its ocean surveillance ships was shadowed aggressively in international waters.

"The US navy vessel concerned has been in China's special economic zone conducting illegal surveying activities," the website of Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television quoted Beijing as saying in the statement on Tuesday.

"China cannot accept these baseless accusations. China demands that the United States halt all illegal surveying activities," reads the statement.

According to the Pentagon, five Chinese vessels maneuvered dangerously close to a US Navy ship in the South China Sea -- about 75 miles (120 kilometers) from Hainan Island -- on Sunday, approaching within 25 feet (8 meters) of the unarmed surveillance ship.

China says it has repeatedly used diplomatic means to demand that the US side halt its activities in the Chinese special economic zone -- where Beijing authorities have also sent vessels to carry out law enforcement activities.

The Chinese embassy also rejected the US claim that it had been operating in the high seas, adding that the Chinese government would issue a formal statement about the incident.

Republican Congress member Mark Kirk said "It's surprising in that the Chinese challenged a United States ship just two and a half weeks before the Obama/Hu Jintao summit" scheduled to be held in London in April.

Kirk recalled a similar challenge against former president George W. Bush just two months after he took office in January 2001 and urged a forceful response from the Obama administration.

He suggested that Washington once again send its surveillance ship USS Impeccable to the region escorted by a destroyer to send a clear message that it cannot be bullied in international waters.

US-China Working Group in the US House of Representatives will formally condemn the confrontation in a "strongly worded letter" to Chinese President Hu Jintao, Kirk continued.

Mossad linked to 9/11 attacks: Report

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 08:26:15 GMT     |     PressTV

At least 2,970 people died on the morning of September 11, most of them civilians.

New found information has implicated the Israeli Intelligence agency Mossad in the staging of the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.

According to a recent article published in the American Free Press proof weekly, the revelation that the cousin of alleged 9/11 hijacker Ziad al-Jarrah was in fact working as a longtime Mossad agent is that Israel had a hand in the terror attacks on US soil.

The New York Times recently reported that Lebanese national Ali al-Jarrah, a supposedly earnest Palestinian supporter, had been actually working as a highly valued spy for Israel over the past two decades.

Al-Jarrah reportedly admitted that he had been conducting covert espionage activities against Palestinian groups and the Lebanese Hezbollah since 1983.

"It is not the family's first brush with notoriety. One of Mr. Jarrah's cousins, Ziad al-Jarrah, was among the 19 hijackers who carried out the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001," said the Times.

His connections with one of the key masterminds of the terror attacks have fueled speculations about Israel's recruitment of people claiming to be Muslims as undercover assets.

Israeli connections to 9/11, according to the New York Times, can be traced back to the five 'dancing Israelis' who were witnessed jumping and high-fiving with shouts of 'joy and mockery' as Flight 11 and Flight 175 slammed into the World Trade Center in New York.

The Israelis were reportedly held in custody for 71 days before being quietly released after they were suspected of being Mossad agents.

Citing two former CIA operatives, the Forward weekly then reported that at least two of the detained Israelis were found to be members of a Mossad surveillance team.

"There was no question but that [the order to close down the investigation] came from the White House. It was immediately assumed at CIA headquarters that this basically was going to be a cover-up so that the Israelis would not be implicated in any way in 9/11," the weekly stated.

At least 2,970 people died on the morning of September 11, most of whom were civilians.

Former Italian prime minister Francesco Cossiga has touched on the issue, suggesting that the events of 9/11 were none other than a CIA-Mossad inside job.

"All the [intelligence services] of America and Europe ... now know well that the disastrous attack has been planned by the CIA and the Mossad in order to put under accusation the Arabic countries and in order to induce the western powers to take part ... in Iraq [and] Afghanistan," the Italian ex-premier was quoted by Corriere della Sera as saying.

Jewish personnel working at the center were reportedly advised to skip work on September 11, 2001.

His argument was further strengthened by leaked reports that employees of Israeli telecom firm Odigo -- which provides instant messaging services -- received a warning two hours before the attacks on the World Trade Towers and forewarned Jews to stay away from work that day.

Odigo headquarters is situated 2 blocks away from the former location of the World Trade Towers.

Economic crisis to topple capitalism: Poll

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 19:09:53 GMT  |   PressTV

Respondents to a Press TV poll say that collapse of capitalism will be the most likely scenario for the aftermath of the US economic crisis.

Almost half of some 8,001 respondents to the recent Press TV survey are of the opinion that the biggest US economic crisis since World War II will lead to the collapse of capitalism.

Meanwhile, 43 percent believed that the capitalistic system will modify itself and survive the crisis.

Some 12 percent of the respondents said that US President Barack Obama would defuse the crisis without any major modifications in the capitalistic system.

In mid-February, US President Barack Obama signed a record 787-billion-dollar bill to bail out the beleaguered economy and keep burgeoning financial woes at bay.

Meanwhile, US home prices plunged to a record 18.5 percent in December from a year earlier, with the pace of decline accelerating, according to the S&P/Case Shiller home price index. 

US Sergeant converts to Islam, Marries Iraqi woman

An interesting video, on the AFP News website of how US Sergent Blackwell married a Muslim woman in Iraq. His US Army superiors objected to the Sargeants wish to convert to Islam and marriage. The commanders tried to press charges against him.

Strange when the US Administration say they are there for the benifit of Iraqi people, who are incidentally mostly Muslim.

Anyway Sean is out of the Army and I wish Sean, Ehda and family all the best InshaAllah

US related truck triggers Tsvangirai road ordeal

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 06:34:37 GMT

Morgan Tsvangirai (L) and his wife Susan

The truck involved in the death of Zimbabwean Premier Morgan Tsvangirai's wife belongs to a contractor for the US and British governments.

The truck was marked with a logo of the US Agency for International Development and was purchased using US government funds and its driver was hired by a British development agency, ABC News quoted unnamed American officials as saying.

The car crash took place around 5 pm on the highway from Harare to Masvingo when the articulated truck swerved from the oncoming lane into a three-car convoy in which the Tsvangirais were traveling, clipping their middle vehicle and causing it to overturn several times, police said.

The truck has been impounded by Zimbabwean authorities and its driver is in custody.

Tsvangirai and his wife, Susan, along with an aide and the driver were all rushed to Harare hospital for treatment following the Friday accident which occurred while they were en route to their hometown in Buhera district.

The premier's wife was declared dead upon arrival at a hospital in Beatrice, south of Harare. Tsvangirai, however, did not sustain serious injuries and was reportedly in a stable condition.

Later, President Robert Mugabe, accompanied by his wife, Grace, as well as Vice-President Joyce Mujuru and government officials visited Tsvangirai at the hospital, the BBC reported.

There was no immediate statement from Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) on the crash and party officials said there were no plans to issue one.

Heightened differences between Tsvangirai and Mugabe just three weeks after the formation of the national unity government following a bitter post-election standoff between the two have raised suspicions that the collision might have been politically motivated.

Fatal Tsvangirai crash ‘was not accident’, says MDC

HARARE, March 7 — malaysianinsider — source : Daily Telegraph

The wife of Zimbabwean leader Morgan Tsvangirai has been killed in a car crash in what his party claims may have been an assassination attempt.

Movement for Democratic Change leaders in South Africa said they suspected the head on collision with a lorry which left Prime Minister Tsvangirai injured and his wife Susan dead was not a genuine accident.

Rumours that the fatal incident was a botched assassination attempt spread quickly in the country which has a history of political killings.

It is understood that the couple were travelling to a rally in his hometown of Buhera yesterday afternoon when their car was hit on a road south of the capital Harare by a freight truck travelling in the opposite direction. Local reports said the driver of the truck had fallen asleep at the wheel.

Susan Tsvangirai died at the scene and her husband was taken to hospital with minor injuries, where he was visited by President Robert Mugabe. The couple been married for 31 years and had six children.

A statement issued by the MDC said: "We suspect that this is not a genuine accident and we appeal to Zimbabweans in South Africa to remain calm as facts continue to surface.

"We strongly believe that these are the evil acts of a few individuals bent on derailing the progress of the Inclusive government.

"We are, however, alive to the fact that a lot of Robert Mugabe's opponents died in suspicion road accidents involving army trucks."

Tsvangirai, who has survived three previous attempts on his life, was sworn in as prime minister last month but has a tense relationship with his former rival Mugabe.

A spokesman for Tsvangirai's MDC said there was growing unrest among supporters in Harare.

Mugabe brutally suppressed opposition until being forced into a power-sharing deal following last year's close election, and thugs from his Zanu-PF movement have been accused of carrying out hundreds of political murders.

"It's just going crazy, everyone's phones have been ringing constantly, clearly the suspicion is that this is not as innocent as it might appear," said a businessman who refused to be identified.

"We're hearing the MDC saying it was an accident, fine, if it is then it's tragic but we can accept that. But this is a typical way people are bumped off here. It'll be very difficult to calm people down."

There were also questions about why Tsvangirai's security detail had failed to prevent the crash.

"These guys are supposed to travel in a cavalcade and the prime minister's car is never in the lead, it's police or a dummy car," a Harare lawyer told The Daily Telegraph. "There are obviously too many questions at the moment, and that's where the trouble lies."

Tsvangirai, 56, had long feared that groups loyal to Mugabe would take his life. In 1997 an unidentified gang tried to throw him from a 10th floor office window, and in 2007 he was admitted to hospital after a brutal assault by police at a prayer rally.

Although she preferred to stay out of the limelight and was not herself politically active, Mrs Tsvangirai provided vital support for her husband, bringing him food in prison after his police beatings and nursing him back to health afterwards.

The demur Mrs Tsvangirai was also at her husband's side when he was sworn in last month, cutting a very different figure to Mugabe's extrovert wife Grace who appeared at the ceremony in a lurid leopard skin dress.

The son of a bricklayer, Tsvangirai had no formal education, worked in a nickel mine before becoming involved in politics. Although he supported Mugabe's rise to power and Zimbabwe's independence from Britain in 1980, he became an outspoken critic of the regime's excesses as head of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions. He formed the MDC in 1999, leading the party to 57 seats the following year and fighting in opposition for nearly a decade before joining the government this year.

Tsvangirai's wife killed in car crash

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:37:35 GMT | PressTV

Moragan Tsvangirai (center) and his wife Susan (l) in the Prime Minister's inauguration ceremony

Zimbabwe's Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is rushed to a hospital after his car collided with a truck in an accident that killed his wife.

"Yes I can confirm that he was involved in a car accident along Harare-Masvingo road," Tsvangirai's spokesman, James Maridadi told CNN on Friday.

Tsvangirai along with his wife, an aide, and the driver, were all rushed to Harare hospital for treatment, Maridadi added.

The prime minister's wife, Susan, however, died in the hospital of the wounds she sustained doing the head-on collision. The extent of Tsvangirai's injuries remains unclear.

Morgan and Susan Tsvangirai, who got married in 1978, have six children.

The premier is said to have been en route to his rural home in Buhera, where he planned to hold a weekend rally, when the accident took place near Beatrice.

Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe's main opposition leader was sworn in as prime minister last month, after endless rounds of talks with his arch-rival President Robert Mugabe.

The leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was offered the post of prime minister after his disputed defeat against Mugabe in the March 2008 presidential elections.

Tsvangirai won a majority of votes by a narrow margin in the election, but failed to secure more than 50 percent of the ballot while accusing the government of poll rigging.

The MDC leader initially planned to take part in a run-off against Mugabe in June, but withdrew from the elections, after his supporters were targeted in a campaign of violence led by the government. About 200 MDC supporters were killed.

After endless rounds of talks, mediated by South Africa's former president Thabo Mbeki, the two sides finally set aside differences and agreed on September to share power.

However mistrusts between the two arch-rivals continued as they sparred over who should control key ministries such as finance, information and home affairs.

The concerns were finally addressed when Zimbabwe's parliament approved a law that places Mugabe and Tsvangirai on a National Security Council that will allow all parties control of the security forces.

The two rivals' perpetual political row saw many opposition figures and activists killed and repeatedly arrested, including the premier himself.

US jobless claims surge to 8.1 percent

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 01:38:45 Colin Campbell, Press TV, Washington

Recession claims 651,000 new US victims

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:57:04 GMT      |    PressTV

Americans line up to talk to job recruiters at a career fair in Los Angeles. The US lost 651,000 jobs in February alone, the worst monthly loss since 1949.

More than 650,000 Americans lost their jobs in February as US employers feel the strain of an ailing economy, the Labor Department says.

Some 651,000 jobs were shed in February alone as the unemployment rate in the US reached 8.1 percent -- its highest in 25 years--, a Labor Department report revealed on Friday.

Job losses were spread across nearly all major industries with economists saying that they see no end to the recession in sight.

More Americans have lost their jobs every month since January 2008, creating a decline in payroll employment of about 4.4 million, with more than half having occurred in the last 4 months.

According to CNN, the February drop marked the worst six-month job purge since the end of World War II.

The US officially slipped into a recession in December 2007; however, its impact was disguised by an emergency tax rebate introduced by the administration of former US president George W. Bush last spring.

The erratic decline, economists say, turned into a full-out plunge on almost every front since September 2008, followed by a sharp fall in all economic indicators.

US February unemployment worst since 1983

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 00:57:32
Mike Kellerman, Press TV, Washington

USM archaeologists unearth ancient Kedah buildings

SUNGAI PETANI, March 4 — Bernama

A group of archaeologists has unearthed two prehistoric buildings from the third century AD in the Bujang Valley recently.

The group, from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)’s Centre for Global Archaeological Research, found a building and a smelting factory, following an excavation project in Sungai Batu, Semeling.

Discovered in two areas near an oil palm plantation in Jalan Lencongan Merbok recently, the buildings proved that an ancient civilisation had existed in the Bujang Valley.

USM Vice-Chancellor Prof Tan Sri Dzulkifli Abdul Razak disclosed today that the discoveries were important historical findings.

He said the date depicted the early beginnings of commercial smelting activities in the Bujang Valley.

The excavation — conducted with the cooperation of the National Heritage Department with an approved grant of RM2.3 million by the unity, culture, arts and heritage ministry -- began on Feb 1, with a total of 70 participants, including USM students.

“This finding is solid proof that the prehistoric civilisation depended on basic knowledge, trade and large-scale industrial production,” he told reporters after a working visit to the site.

The excavation project was headed by USM Centre for Global Archaeological Research director Prof Madya Dr Mokhtar Saidin, and it resulted in two weeks of digging before the buildings were unearthed.

Dzulkifli said the project was part of a plan to develop the National Heritage Department Bujang Valley Heritage Park.

“The finding at Sungai Batu is different from artifacts found in other sites in the Bujang Valley. Previously, archaeologists only found buildings that had the characteristics of ancient temples.

“This latest finding at Sungai Batu I were of bricks believed to be from a house or office, and another at Sungai Batu II which functioned as a smelting factory,” he said.

According to Dzulkifli, both findings were important as it could unravel questions regarding the real date when civilisation started in the Bujang Valley.

Dr Mokhtar said coal samples found at the foundry were sent for Radiocarbon Dating tests at the Beta Analytic Inc, Florida, US, which confirmed that it dated back to the third or fourth century AD.

He added that the Sungai Batu area would be gazetted as the Bujang Valley Heritage Park next year, after research was completed.

The Bujang Valley area consists of almost 300 sq km of land from Gunung Jerai to Sungai Muda, Seberang Perai.

Captain James Low identified the Bujang Valley civilisation after discovering more than 20 temples in Kampung Bujang in 1840.

Research and excavation activities carried out found that the Bujang Valley was a main port in South-East Asia from the fifth century AD to 13 century AD.

SPRM Penyiasatan Terpilih atau Prosedur Undang-undang (Bhg.1)

Forum ini membincangkan tentang perkembangan terkini SPRM dalam menangani gejala rasuah di Malaysia dengan membariskan Dr. Dzulkifly Ahmad, YB Salahuddin Ayub dan Mohd Nazree Mohd Yunus.

Mr Mugabe turned 85 on 21 February but his party is being held a week later.

Mr Mugabe marked his birthday with a cake reportedly weighing 85kg (187lb)

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has vowed to continue seizing land from white farmers after a spate of "farm invasions" over the past month.

 

Speaking at a rally to celebrate his 85th birthday, he also promised to push for majority Zimbabwean ownership of companies operating in the country. 

Mugabe supporters raised $250,000 (£176,000) for a lavish birthday party in Chinhoyi, north-west of Harare. 

Zimbabwe asked African states for $2bn (£1.4bn) in economic aid just days ago.[read more]

[ related article : Tsvangirai may not attend Mugabe's fete ]

World's oldest axes found in Malaysia

Sat, 31 Jan 2009 17:18:08 GMT | PressTV

Mokhtar Saidin holding a 1.8 million-year-old artifact during a press conference on Penang Island, Malaysia

Malaysian archeologists say they have discovered the world's oldest axes during excavations in the country's northern state of Perak.

The stone axes were found along with other tools in June 2008 and were tested by the Japanese laboratory, Geochronology Japan Inc.

Experts say the result has a margin of error of 610,000 years and the find has to be approved by other experts as well, AP reported.

Studies showed that the seven axes dated back to about 1.8 million years ago, said director of the Center for Archaeological Research at Malaysia's University of Science Mokhtar Saidin.

"It's really the first time we have such evidence (dating back) 1.83 million years," he said, adding that the previous record belonged to 1.6 million-year-old axes found in Africa.

Archeologists are trying to find human skeletal remains at the site, but the humidity of the area has made it nearly impossible. The oldest bones found in Perak are at most 10,000 years old.

The oldest evidence of human existence in Malaysia were stone tools dating back to about 200,000 years ago which were found at the same site.