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الجمعة، 17 فبراير 2012

Lincoln Tribune

400 flights canceled as ground controllers strike at Frankfurt airport
119 inmates escape as gunmen storm Nigerian prison
Pre-election violence hits district in Indonesia’s Papua
Latest U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan kill 21 suspected militants
Six killed, dozens injured in West Bank school bus accident

400 flights canceled as ground controllers strike at Frankfurt airport

Posted: 16 Feb 2012 09:01 PM PST

FRANKFURT, GERMANY (BNO NEWS) -- More than 400 flights have been canceled at Frankfurt Airport in Germany after ground controllers launched a two-day strike over a wage dispute on Thursday, aviation officials said on early Friday.

Only 16 of the 200 ground controllers reported for work on Thursday after the German union for air traffic workers (GdF) announced a seven-hour strike between 3 p.m. and 10 p.m. local time. As a result, at least 150 flights were canceled on Thursday at Europe's third-biggest airport.

But GdF announced it would strike again on Friday between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. local time, threatening 1,082 scheduled flights. As of 6 a.m. on Friday morning, 257 scheduled flights for Friday had already been canceled, and airport officials expect that number to increase throughout the day as airlines are forced to scrap flights.

The strike comes after the air traffic control labor union failed to reach a wage agreement with airport operator Fraport. The company says the union's demands are too high, and rival labor groups at the airport have voiced anger at GdF, portraying it as greedy.

"The union remains completely intransigent and irresponsible in its demands for high, double-digit pay increases and other adjustments for working hours and special benefits ranging between 50 and 70 percent," said Herbert Mai, Fraport's executive board member for labor relations.

Mai accused GdF of intentionally spreading incorrect information and being unwilling to find a compromise solution. "Indeed, Fraport has largely accepted GdF's demands as far as Apron Control employees are concerned," he said. "Regarding the other staff groups in the traffic operations center and involved in supervision activities on the airport ramp, the union's demands are extremely high in relation to comparable activities in other areas - and thus cannot be implemented."

But the Fraport official said it remains committed to resume talks with GdF. "We regret that GdF's rigid position has been taken at the expense of the passengers, airlines and employees," he said. "We remain committed to our offer and to resuming talks, as long as GdF is willing to engage in realistic negotiations."

119 inmates escape as gunmen storm Nigerian prison

Posted: 16 Feb 2012 07:58 PM PST

ABUJA (BNO NEWS) -- More than 100 inmates have escaped from a prison in central Nigeria after armed men broke into the facility on late Wednesday evening, officials said on Thursday. One officer was killed during the attack.

The incident took place on late Wednesday evening when about 20 gunmen on motorbikes stormed the jail in Koton-Karifi in Kogi state, located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of the capital Abuja. The attackers used bombs and heavy gunfire, killing one prison officer.

During the attack, which lasted approximately 30 minutes, the gunmen were able to free at least 119 inmates, a prison service spokeswoman told the BBC on Thursday. Most of the prisoners were awaiting trial and none were described as high-profile detainees.

No group immediately claimed responsibility, but the Islamist militant Boko Haram group is usually blamed for such attacks. The group has carried out similar jailbreaks before, including a massive 2010 attack on a prison further north in Bauchi state, freeing about 700 prisoners. Many of the inmates were members of the Boko Haram.

However, Hadijha Aminu of the Nigerian Prisons Service told the BBC that officials did not suspect Boko Haram to be behind Wednesday's jailbreak. She declined to explain why the Boko Haram had been ruled out, the broadcaster said on its website.

The Boko Haram group has been blamed for most of the region's terrorist attacks and seeks the imposition of an extremist stance of the Shariah law, which is a Muslim code of conduct. The group's name, in the local language of Hausa, roughly translates as 'Western religion is sacrilegious' or 'non-Islamic religion is a sin.'

Pre-election violence hits district in Indonesia’s Papua

Posted: 16 Feb 2012 07:47 PM PST

JAKARTA, INDONESIA (BNO NEWS) -- Supporters of rival political candidates have clashed in Indonesia's restive Papua province this week, just days ahead of district elections, the Jakarta Globe reported on Thursday.

Several buildings were destroyed in the Tolikara district of Papua, halting much of the activity in the district capital of Karubaga. Stores and offices have remained closed since Tuesday when the violence first erupted.

"There has been a clash between supporters of John Tabo and [running mate] Edi Suyanto and supporters of Usman Wanimbo and [running mate] Amos Jikwa," Tolikara Police Chief Rahmat Siregar told the Jakarta Globe. Tabo is supported by the Golkar Party and Usman is backed by the Democratic Party, and both are running for district head.

The local Democratic Party office and the local Central Statistics Agency (BPS) office were both set on fire on Wednesday as violence continued to escalate. "A number of important documents were destroyed and the building was burned to the ground," BPS Papua chief Djarot Sutanto told the newspaper. He added that no one was hurt in the incident.

Rahmat declined to confirm whether anyone had been injured in the clashes.

The polls are scheduled to open on Friday. Papua has seen a spate of politically charged violence, particularly in the newly established district of Puncak Papua, where at least 30 people have been killed in a feud lasting nearly seven months.

Violence has plagued Papua since 1969 when Indonesia took over control of the region from the Dutch, ignoring Papuan demands for political sovereignty. Jakarta granted the region special autonomy in 2001, but this failed to quell widespread separatist sentiments.

Latest U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan kill 21 suspected militants

Posted: 16 Feb 2012 07:40 PM PST

MIRNSHAH, PAKISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- At least 21 suspected militants were killed on Thursday when U.S. drones carried out two airstrikes in northwest Pakistan's tribal region, Pakistani intelligence officials said. Several others were injured.

The first attack happened on Thursday morning when a U.S. drone fired two missiles at a suspected militant compound in the town of Spalga, not far from Miranshah which is the main town in Pakistan's North Waziristan near the border with Afghanistan. At least six suspected militants were killed in the strike, while several others were injured.

Hours later, at least 15 suspected militants were killed when a U.S. drone destroyed a vehicle in the same region, near the town of Mir Ali. One intelligence official said the victims were believed to be Uzbek Islamist fighters, although it was not possible to get independent confirmation.

Thursday's drone strikes come just one week after four suspected militants were killed when a U.S. drone fired two missiles at a suspected militant compound in Miranshah. Among those killed was Badar Mansoor, a senior militant commander who had links to both al-Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban. He was suspected of operating a militant training camp in the region and being involved in numerous attacks throughout Pakistan.

That attack came just one day after a U.S. drone fired two missiles at a house in the village of Tappi, approximately 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) southeast of Miranshah, killing 10 people. The house was allegedly used by fighters of the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani Network, which is one of the top terrorist organizations and threats to U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.

Late last month, U.S. President Barack Obama, for the first time during his presidency, publicly acknowledged that U.S. drones regularly strike suspected militants along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. He confirmed that many of these strikes are carried out in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan, targeting al-Qaeda and Taliban suspects in tough terrain.

Few details about casualties from the strikes are usually available, but allegations of civilian casualties regularly spark protests in Pakistan. According to the Washington-based think tank New America Foundation, as many as 2,680 individuals were killed as a result of U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan between 2004 and early 2012.

And according to a report released by the Conflict Monitoring Center in January, at least 609 people were killed as a result of 75 drone strikes in Pakistan in 2011 alone. The group has documented 303 drone strikes since 2004, with a total death toll of at least 2,661.

The U.S. considers the Pakistan-Afghan border to be the most dangerous place on Earth. The area is known to be a stronghold of the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani Network, which is one of the top terrorist organizations and threats to U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.

But controversy has surrounded the drone strikes as local residents and officials have blamed them for killing innocent civilians and motivating young men to join the Taliban. Details about the alleged militants are usually not provided, and the U.S. government does not comment on the strikes.

Six killed, dozens injured in West Bank school bus accident

Posted: 16 Feb 2012 05:56 PM PST

RAMALLAH, WEST BANK (BNO NEWS) -- At least six Palestinians, including five children, were killed on Thursday morning when an Israeli truck hit a Palestinian school bus in the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority's health minister said.

The accident happened when a truck, driven by an Israeli-Arab man, collided head-on with a bus carrying school children as young as four years old. The school bus had left the West Bank city of Ramallah for a field trip but was returning due to heavy rain and strong winds.

Fathi Abu Moghli, the Palestinian Authority health minister, said five Palestinian children and their teacher were killed in the accident. Another 39 people were injured, including the truck driver who was reported to be in a critical condition at Esawiah hospital.

"They had very little time to escape the bus from the moment of impact. A fire broke out very soon afterward," police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told The Jerusalem Post from the scene. "The bus is completely burned out on the inside."

Both Israeli and Palestinian emergency responders arrived at the scene of the accident and evacuated the victims to Israeli and Palestinian hospitals. Police suspect the wet conditions on the road led to the accident, although an investigation is still being carried out.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who called the accident a 'national catastrophe', announced a three-day mourning period and said flags will fly at half mast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered any necessary aid needed by the Palestinian Authority.

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الجمعة، 17 فبراير 2012

Lincoln Tribune

Lincoln Tribune

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