Clinton clot 'behind right ear'

31 December 2012 Last updated at 17:24 ET

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is making "excellent progress" after a blood clot was found between her brain and skull, doctors say.

They said she will make a full recovery and will be released from hospital once a blood-thinning dosage has been set.

Mrs Clinton, 65, was admitted to a New York hospital on Sunday, having suffered a concussion earlier in the month when she fainted and fell over.

She is due to stand down before President Obama begins his second term.

Doctors said an MRI scan on Sunday had revealed the formation of a "right transverse sinus venous thrombosis" - a clot in the vein behind Mrs Clinton's right ear in the space between the brain and the skull.

"It did not result in a stroke, or neurological damage," said Dr Lisa Bardack and Dr Gigi El-Bayoumi, who were treating Mrs Clinton at New York's Presbyterian hospital.

The secretary of state was said to be in good spirits and "engaging with her doctors, her family, and her staff," added the doctors in a statement.

Doctors discovered the clot during a routine follow-up MRI scan on Sunday, said her spokesman, Philippe Reines, adding that she was being treated with anti-coagulants.

Gruelling schedule

At the time of her faint, Mrs Clinton was reported to have had a stomach virus and to have passed out after becoming dehydrated.

Mrs Clinton is due to give evidence before a Congressional committee in January in connection with the attack in September on the US consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi.

The US ambassador to Libya and three American officials were killed in the incident.

Mrs Clinton was appointed secretary of state at the start of Mr Obama's first term, in January 2009.

Her most recent foreign trip was to Dublin earlier in December: she is renowned for keeping a gruelling travel schedule.

She is the most travelled secretary of state in history, having visited 112 countries while in the job, the Associated Press says.

Earlier this month, President Obama nominated Senator John Kerry - the Massachusetts Democrat who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - to replace Mrs Clinton as secretary of state.

She has repeatedly said she only intended to serve one term in the post.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

UN imposes sanctions on DRC group

31 December 2012 Last updated at 19:15 ET

The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions on leaders of the M23 rebel movement in DR Congo.

Under the measures, those linked to the group will have their assets frozen and be barred from travel. Similar measures were taken against Rwandan FDLR rebels.

Made up of deserters from the army, the M23 captured Goma - on DRC's eastern border with Rwanda - from government and UN troops last month.

It later withdrew from the city, following international condemnation.

The New Year's Eve sanctions come the day before Rwanda joins the Security Council for a two-year term.

The UN and DR Congo government accuse Rwanda and Uganda of backing the rebels, an allegation they strongly deny.

Rwanda is widely seen as having backed armed groups in the east of DR Congo as a way to fight Hutu rebels who fled there after the genocide of the 1990s.

It has been accused of using militias as proxies in an on-going battle for the region, which is rich in minerals. The Rwandan government strenuously denies the accusations.

The M23 rebellion started when a militia that had been absorbed into the Congolese army mutinied and went on the rampage in the eastern part of the country.

Since then nearly half a million people have been displaced by fighting between the M23 and the army.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

N Korea's Kim in rare TV speech

31 December 2012 Last updated at 23:49 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Kim Jong-un stressed the need to "remove confrontation" between the two Koreas

The North Korean leader has delivered a new year's message on state TV, the first such broadcast for 19 years.

Kim Jong-un, in power since 2011, spoke of the need to improve the economy and also to reunify the Koreas, warning that confrontation only led to war.

The speech came less than a month after the conservative Park Geun-hye was elected president of South Korea.

In 1994, Mr Kim's grandfather, Kim Il-sung, spoke on radio and TV. His son, Kim Jong-il rarely spoke in public.

In addition to Mr Kim's televised address, new year's messages were issued in the form of a joint editorial by North Korea's three main newspapers.

Musical performance

Kim Jong-un said 2013 would be a year of creations and changes, calling for a "radical turnabout" that would transform the impoverished, isolated state into an "economic giant" and raise living standards.

But while he said confrontation between the North and the South should be removed, Mr Kim stressed that military power remained a national priority.

"The military might of a country represents its national strength. Only when it builds up its military might in every way can it develop into a thriving country," he said.

The message coincides with UN Security Council discussions on how to punish Pyongyang for a recent long-range rocket launch.

Under Mr Kim's leadership, North Korea has conducted two long-range rocket launches - actions condemned by the US and Pyongyang's neighbours as banned tests of missile technology.

The launch in April failed, but December's attempt appears to have been a success, placing a satellite into orbit.

The US, Japan and South Korea are seeking a response in the UN Security Council, which banned North Korea from missile tests after nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009.

Kim Jong-un saw in the new year by watching a musical performance with his wife, North Korean state media reported.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Turkey talks to PKK leader Ocalan

1 January 2013 Last updated at 04:24 ET

Turkey is holding talks with the jailed head of the PKK Kurdish militant group, Abdullah Ocalan, to push for its disarmament, officials say.

Ocalan, who has been found guilty of treason, is being held in solitary confinement on a remote island prison.

The Turkish prime minister's top political adviser said the government had concluded that it would be unlikely to defeat the outlawed PKK militarily.

Last year saw a surge in violence in the three-decades-old insurgency.

Dialogue

Prime ministerial adviser Yalcin Akdogan said the intelligence services were holding discussions with Ocalan.

"The goal is the disarmament of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party)," he said in an interview with NTV television.

"The government supports any dialogue to this end that could result in a halt to violence."

"You cannot get results and abolish an organisation only with armed struggle."

He said Ocalan was the "main actor" in efforts to resolve the Kurdish conflict. However he questioned whether Ocalan fully controlled the more hawkish PKK militants operating from northern Iraq.

Turkey's Hurriyet newspaper said officials from the National Intelligence Organisation held a four-hour meeting with Ocalan on 23 December.

Ocalan was sentenced to death in 1999, though that was later commuted to life imprisonment following the abolition of the death penalty in Turkey in 2002.

The PKK has waged a guerrilla campaign in south-east Turkey for more than 25 years, attempting to establish an ethnic homeland for the Kurdish people. Some 40,000 people, including civilians, have died in the conflict.

The conflict has reached its fiercest intensity in years during 2012, with the PKK stepping up its attacks on security forces. But the Hurriyet newspaper says the group has halted operations due to winter conditions.

The Kurdish minority are thought to make up more than 20% of the population of Turkey.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

US Senate approves key tax deal

1 January 2013 Last updated at 05:47 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

President Obama said a larger deal could be accomplished "in several steps"

The US Senate has approved a deal to avert general tax hikes and spending cuts known as the "fiscal cliff".

The bill, which raises taxes for the wealthy, came after lengthy talks between Vice-President Joe Biden and Senate Republicans.

The House is due to consider it later. Spending cuts have been delayed for two months to allow a wider agreement.

Congress missed the deadline to pass a bill, but few effects will be felt as Tuesday is a US public holiday.

Tax cuts approved during the presidency of George W Bush formally expired at midnight (05:00 GMT).

Without approval in the House, huge tax rises for virtually all working Americans will kick in automatically.

Analysts warned that if the full effects of the fiscal cliff were allowed to take hold, the resulting reduction in consumer spending could spark a new recession.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

American politicians certainly know how to take it to the wire - and just a little bit beyond"

End Quote

The compromise deal reached on Monday seeks to avoid this by extending the tax cuts for Americans earning under $400,000 (£246,000) - up from the $250,000 level Democrats had originally sought.

A huge spending cut that would see $1.2tn cut from the federal budget over 10 years has been deferred for two months, allowing Congress and the White House to reopen negotiations.

The Senate approved the compromise bill by 89-8. "If we do nothing, the threat of a recession is very real," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said. "Passing this agreement does not mean negotiations halt, far from it."

In addition to the income tax rates and spending cuts, the package includes:

Continue reading the main story

What is the fiscal cliff?

• On 1 January 2013, tax rises and huge spending cuts come into force - the so-called fiscal cliff
• The deadline was put in place in 2011 to force the president and Congress to reach agreement on the budget over the next 10 years
• Date coincides with expiry of Bush-era tax cuts
• There are fear that raising taxes while massively cutting spending will have a huge impact on households and businesses
• The fiscal squeeze could also push the US into recession, and have a global impact

• Rises in inheritance taxes from 35% to 40% after the first $5m for an individual and $10m for a couple

• Rises in capital taxes - affecting some investment income - of up to 20%, but less than the 39.6% that would prevail without a deal

• One-year extension for unemployment benefits, affecting two million people

• Five-year extension for tax credits that help poorer and middle-class families

'Imperfect solution'

President Barack Obama welcomed the Senate vote.

"Leaders from both parties in the Senate came together to reach an agreement that passed with overwhelming bipartisan support today that protects 98% of Americans and 97% of small business owners from a middle class tax hike," he said in a statement.

Continue reading the main story

Press reaction

Jennifer Steinhauer in The New York Times writes: "The confusing struggle to head off a national fiscal crisis has made one thing crystal clear: The era of the Big Deal is over."

In The Washington Post, David A Fahrenthold says:"The New Year's Eve agreement between [Vice-President Joe] Biden and [Senate Minority Leader Mitch] McConnell provided a glimpse at the ways that personality quirks and one-to-one relationships can still change the course of Washington politics."

The Wall Street Journal says: "The wider deal doesn't do much to control the US's long-term budget woes, which are driven largely by entitlement spending, especially on health care, left untouched in this agreement."

"While neither Democrats nor Republicans got everything they wanted, this agreement is the right thing to do for our country and the House should pass it without delay."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, said: "It took an imperfect solution to prevent our constituents from a very real financial pain, but in my view, it was worth the effort."

The BBC's Mark Mardell in Washington says many of the Republicans who dominate the House dislike the deal and may stand on their principle.

Speaker John Boehner said the House would consider the deal but left open the possibility of amending the Senate bill - which would spark another round of legislation.

"Decisions about whether the House will seek to accept or promptly amend the measure will not be made until House members... have been able to review the legislation," Mr Boehner and other House Republican leaders said in a statement.

The current House can legislate until Wednesday, when it is replaced by a new chamber chosen during last November's election.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hollande vows to revive supertax

1 January 2013 Last updated at 05:55 ET

France's President Francois Hollande says he still plans to raise the top rate of income tax after his 75% plan was struck down on technical grounds.

In a national address on New Year's Eve, he said the law would be redesigned, adding, "we will still ask more of those who have the most".

However, he did not mention the 75% figure, leading some to speculate that the move would be watered down.

The president also promised "all efforts" towards cutting unemployment.

The number of jobless broke the three-million barrier for the first time this year, prompting Mr Hollande to say the trend must be reversed.

Mr Hollande has been criticised for lacking direction, and his popularity levels have plummeted, since he took power in May.

He acknowledged the "serious and legitimate" concerns of the public, and that there had been "fits and starts" in his first six months.

But the president insisted France would emerge from the financial crisis "sooner and stronger" than expected because of action by his government.

"We've set the course - jobs, competitiveness and growth - and I will not deviate. It's the future of France," he said.

Business anger

The Socialist president said he would resubmit his flagship policy of raising income tax for those earning more than 1m euros (£817,000) a year.

It was rejected by the Constitutional Council on Saturday because, unlike other forms of income tax, it was to be applied to individuals rather than households.

Mr Hollande said while the law would be "redesigned" its objective would remain the same - that those who could afford to do so should pay more to France's effort to tackle its deficit.

The policy has angered France's business leaders and the right-wing opposition, who say it discourages entrepreneurship and wealth-creation. It has led to some wealthy citizens, like the actor Gerard Depardieu, to say they would emigrate.

While the measure is popular with Mr Hollande's supporters on the left, some analysts think it may be dropped or watered down, possibly by raising the income level at which it is paid.

"I suspect this tax will be shelved," Philippe Gudin, an economist for Barclays and a former French treasury official, told Reuters news agency.

"For the [low amount of] revenue it would raise, the outcry it has provoked and the damage it has done to France's image, it would be more sensible if it were quietly buried."

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pakistan charity workers killed

1 January 2013 Last updated at 07:02 ET

Seven charity workers, six of them women, have been shot dead in north-west Pakistan, police say.

The women, some of them teachers, were attacked near a health and education community centre. A male colleague died with them. All were Pakistani citizens.

Their vehicle came under gunfire near the centre run by Pakistani charity Ujala, or Light.

The incident happened in the Swabi district close to a road connecting Peshawar to the eastern city of Lahore.

"Four men came on two motorbikes. They attacked their van. They opened fire to the right and left of the van and fled on their motorbikes," Swabi district police chief Abdul Rashid Khan said, according to AFP.

He added that the driver of the vehicle had also been injured in the attack, which took place near a motorway junction.

No-one at the charity, which works in the education sector, was immediately available for comment.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack although militants in the conservative Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province oppose female education and have attacked female students and their schools.

Last month, in a series of attacks, gunmen killed nine health workers taking part in a national polio vaccination drive.

The killings prompted the UN children's agency and the World Health Organisation to suspend work on polio campaigns in the country.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sixty die in Abidjan new year crush

1 January 2013 Last updated at 07:10 ET

At least 60 people have been crushed to death and some 250 injured during new year festivities in Ivory Coast's main city Abidjan, rescue officials say.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Tuesday near a stadium in the central Plateau area of the city where a fireworks display was held.

The cause of the stampede is not clear. The victims included many children.

The site is littered with abandoned clothes and blood stains.

Relatives have gone to the scene, Felix Houphouet Boigny stadium, to get news of missing loved ones.

The distraught mother of a nine-year-old boy told local media: "I have just seen all those bodies, but I can't find my son."

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hillary Clinton has blood clot

30 December 2012 Last updated at 23:57 ET

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been admitted to hospital in New York with a blood clot, officials say.

Mrs Clinton suffered a concussion earlier this month after fainting and falling down.

At the time, she was reported to have had a stomach virus and to have passed out after becoming dehydrated.

Mrs Clinton, 65, is due to stand down as secretary of state before US President Barack Obama officially begins his second term in January.

Doctors discovered the clot during a follow-up examination on Sunday, her spokesman Philippe Reines said.

"She is being treated with anti-coagulants and is at New York-Presbyterian Hospital so that they can monitor the medication over the next 48 hours," he said.

"They will determine if any further action is required."

No information was given about where the blood clot had formed.

Mrs Clinton is due to give evidence before a Congressional committee in January in connection with the attack in September on the US consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi.

The US ambassador to Libya and three American officials were killed in the incident.

Mrs Clinton was appointed secretary of state at the start of Mr Obama's first term, in January 2009.

Her most recent foreign trip was to Dublin earlier this month.

Mrs Clinton, 65, is known for her gruelling travel schedule.

She is the most travelled secretary of state in history, having visited 112 countries while in the job, the Associated Press says.

Earlier this month, President Obama nominated Senator John Kerry - the Massachusetts Democrat who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - to replace Mrs Clinton as secretary of state.

She has repeatedly said that she only intended to serve one term in the post.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Chavez suffers new complications

31 December 2012 Last updated at 03:21 ET

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has suffered "new complications" after a cancer operation in Cuba, his vice-president has said.

In a televised address from Cuba, Nicolas Maduro said Mr Chavez continued to be in a "delicate state".

Mr Chavez underwent his fourth cancer operation on 11 December in Cuba but suffered a respiratory infection.

The president - who has been in power since 1999 - is due to be sworn in on 10 January for another six-year term.

Mr Maduro did not give details about Mr Chavez's condition but said the latest complications were connected to the respiratory infection.

"We have been informed of new complications that arose as a consequence of the respiratory infection we already knew about," he said.

"The president gave us precise instructions so that, after finishing the visit, we would tell the (Venezuelan) people about his current health condition.

"The state of health of President Chavez continues to be delicate."

He added that the treatment was "not without risk."

Mr Maduro, appearing solemn, spoke alongside Mr Chavez's eldest daughter, Rosa, his son-in-law Jorge Arreaza, and Venezuelan Attorney General Cilia Flores.

The vice-president said he would remain in Havana "for the coming hours" but did not specify how long.

Secrecy over condition

Continue reading the main story

Chavez's career

• Born in 1954
• 1992: Leads a failed coup attempt against President Carlos Perez
• 1999: Takes office after winning election
• 2006: Wins another six-year term as president
• 2011: Reveals he is being treated for cancer and has two operations in Cuba
• 2012: Has two more operations
• October 2012: Re-elected for another term as president

Following Mr Maduro's announcement, Information Minister Ernesto Villegas appeared in a special programme on Venezuelan TV, calling on Venezuelans not to believe rumours about the president's health.

"Do not get carried away with things on Twitter, you cannot play with Commander Chavez's health, it is a matter that affects the lives of others. We must act very responsibly, particularly those of us who communicate through mass media," he said.

Late on Sunday, Mr Villegas said a government-organised New Year's Eve concert in central Caracas had been cancelled and he urged Venezuelans to pray for President Chavez.

The BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Havana says it is now three weeks since Hugo Chavez has been seen or heard from in person.

There continues to be huge secrecy surrounding his precise condition, she says.

Continue reading the main story

Venezuelan constitution

• Article 231: The president-elect shall take office on January 10 of the first year of their constitutional term, by taking an oath before the National Assembly. If for any reason, (they) cannot be sworn in before the National Assembly, they shall take the oath of office before the Supreme Court.
• Article 233:(...) When an elected President becomes absolutely absent prior to inauguration, a new election...shall be held within 30 days.
• Article 234: When the President is temporarily unable to serve, they shall be replaced by the Executive Vice-President for a period of up to 90 days, which may be extended by resolution of the National Assembly for an additional 90 days.

There are also many questions about what will happen on 10 January when Mr Chavez is due to be re-inaugurated, our correspondent adds.

National Assembly head Diosdado Cabello recently said that the swearing-in ceremony would be delayed in the case of Mr Chavez's absence.

However, opposition leaders say postponing the inauguration would be unconstitutional.

The constitution states that if there is an "absolute absence" of the president, elections must be held within 30 days.

Mr Chavez has said that, should his health fail, Venezuelans should vote for Mr Maduro in fresh elections.

Officials have never disclosed the type or severity of Mr Chavez's cancer, which was first diagnosed in June 2011.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More