Commandoes Free Some People from Mumbai Luxury Hotels
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Taj Mahal and Oberoi were invaded by heavily armed gunmen Wednesday, several foreigners are among 101 people killed in terror attacks
The Indian prime minister says the terror attacks in the country's financial capital, Mumbai, were carried out by militants based outside the country. Meanwhile, commandoes have freed some people from the luxury hotels, the Taj Mahal and the Oberoi, which were invaded by heavily armed gunmen. An unknown number remain trapped or held hostage. There are several foreigners among the 101 people killed and more than 300 injured in the audacious and massive terror attack. Anjana Pasricha reports for VOA from New Delhi. Foreign tourist breaks down after being rescued safely from hotel following attack in Mumbai, India, 27 Nov 2008 After a day-long operation, commandoes and soldiers evacuated scores of people from the two luxury hotels - which were attacked by gunmen in Mumbai. On Thursday, teams of commandoes mounted an operation at three different locations, two luxury hotels and a Jewish center which were besieged late at night by terrorists. Explosions and bursts of gunfire were heard through the day as security forces stormed the buildings. The gunmen are still believed to be holding hostages, including foreigners at the Oberoi Hotel. Officials say a British, Australian and Japanese national are among those who have died in the attacks.
Prime Minister says attackers based outside countryManmohan Singh (file)In an address to the nation, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the attackers chose high-profile targets and indiscriminately killed foreigners to create a sense of panic. "It is evident that the group which carried out these attacks based outside the country had come with single-minded determination to create havoc in the commercial capital of the country," he said. "We will take the strongest possible measure to ensure that there is no repetition of such terrorist attacks." He warned neighboring countries who provide a haven to militants, and said there would be a "cost if suitable measures are not taken by them."
Police chief says aggressive operation targets terroristsIndia's National Security Guard commandos take positions from an adjoining building of Nariman Bhawan, where suspected militants took Jewish families hostage, Colaba, Mumbai, 27 Nov 2008As the operation to flush out the terrorists continued into the evening, Mumbai's Director General of Police, A.N. Ray, told local television they are mounting an aggressive operation. "Wherever there are these terrorists holed up, we will either catch them alive or shoot them," he said. "So, all our forces are completely geared up. Either they will kill them or nab them." Information about how many terrorists are involved is sketchy. Authorities say several of them have been killed.
Gunmen entered Mumbai by seaThe heavily armed gunmen apparently entered the city via sea and mounted a series of coordinated attacks late Wednesday at 10 locations - including hotels, hospitals, a Jewish Center, a restaurant and a rail station. India's thriving business hub shut down Thursday as authorities grappled with the most audacious terror attack in the country. Stock markets were closed, and several flights were canceled. Mumbai has witnessed terror strikes in the past in 2006 bomb blasts targeting rail commuters killed 186 people. But this is the first time militants have specifically targeted foreigners.
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Iraq's Parliament Approves Security Pact with US
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Agreement allows US troops to remain in country until 2011
Parliament member Osama al-Najaifi speaks to reporters outside parliament in Baghdad, 26 Nov 2008The Iraqi parliament has approved a security pact with the United
States that allows U.S. troops to remain in Iraq until the end of 2011.A majority of Iraqi lawmakers - 144 of 198 present - approved the deal Thursday in Baghdad by a show of hands. The
vote came after last minute deals that included Iraqi Shi'ite leaders
conceding to a Sunni bloc that a referendum on the pact will be held
within six months. Sunni parties also extracted a promise of political
reforms guaranteeing their minority voice a greater say in government. The
U.S.-Iraqi security pact must now be approved by Iraq's three-member
presidential council, a move widely expected, before it comes into
force.It would then replace the United Nations mandate for the U.S. military presence in Iraq that expires on December 31.The
deal calls for U.S. forces to withdraw from Iraqi cities by June 30
as an interim step. It also gives Iraq strict oversight over U.S.
forces in the country.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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Bush Marks Last Thanksgiving as President
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US president is spending holiday at Camp David mountain retreat in Maryland; thanks American people for 'good will, kind words and heartfelt prayers' in weekly radio address
U.S. President George Bush is marking America's Thanksgiving holiday at Camp David - the presidential mountain retreat in Maryland. VOA White House Correspondent Paula Wolfson reports it will be a quiet holiday for the Bush family. President George Bush boards Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House, prior to departing for Camp David for Thanksgiving, 26 Nov 2008In his weekly radio address - released early to coincide with the holiday - Mr. Bush reflected on his last Thanksgiving Day as president.He offered personal words of thanks to the American people."I am thankful for the good will, kind words and heartfelt prayers that so many of you have offered me during the past eight years," said President Bush. "I have been blessed to represent such decent, brave and caring people. For that, I will always be grateful and I will always be honored."In his address, the president made special mention of Americans who serve their communities and their country - including members of the military who are far from home during the holiday season."Lately, I have been asked what I will miss about the presidency," said Mr. Bush. "And my answer is that I will miss being the Commander-in-Chief of these brave warriors. In this special time of year, when many of them are serving in distant lands, they are in the thoughts and prayers of all Americans."Mr. Bush is expected to make holiday telephone calls to members of the military from Camp David on Thanksgiving Day.He is scheduled to spend several days at the secluded mountain retreat with members of his immediate family.President-elect Barack Obama will be observing Thanksgiving at his home in suburban Chicago, with a houseful of guests.On Wednesday, the president-elect, his wife and their two children volunteered at a Chicago church, handing out food to the needy. He said he wanted to make sure his daughters realize how fortunate they are and to impress upon them the importance of helping others.
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Americans Celebrate Thanksgiving Holiday
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Millions participate in traditional feast with friends and family centered on turkey or ham, squash, cranberry dressing and pumpkin pie
US troops eat their Thanksgiving meals at base in Baghdad, Iraq, 27 Nov 2008 Millions of Americans are celebrating the annual Thanksgiving Day
holiday Thursday with a traditional feast with friends and
family.
Thanksgiving, which is held in the United States on the fourth Thursday
of November, is one of the biggest travel holidays of the year. The
day is centered on a meal usually including turkey or ham, potatoes or
squash, stuffing, cranberry dressing, and pumpkin pie.President George Bush is spending the holiday at the Camp David presidential retreat outside of Washington, while his successor, President-elect Barack Obama is in Chicago.Thanksgiving feast shuttle astronauts will eat in space consists of green beans and mushrooms, candied yams, cranapple dessert, cornbread stuffing and smoked turkeyEven the astronausts and a cosmonaut aboard the International Space Station are marking the day. The U.S. space agency NASA says the crew of the orbiting outpost are dining today on a special freeze-dried meal of traditional foods. In addition to the feast, many Americans spend the day watching nationally televised events such as New York City's annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, sponsored by Macy's department store, a national dog show, and football games.Friday after Thanksgiving is seen as the official start to the holiday-shopping season, with many stores offering big discounts and opening in the pre-dawn hours for the rush of shoppers.The United States has officially observed Thanksgiving since 1863, although the first Thanksgiving is believed to have taken place in 1621.That year, British colonists at the Plymouth settlement in what is now the northeastern U.S. state of Massachusetts held a feast with a Native American tribe the Wampanaog, who taught the colonists how to grow food and hunt for game in their new home.
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Obama: Top Priority Will Be Struggling US Economy
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US president-elect announces new member of economic team: former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, who has been nominated as chairman-designate of Economic Recovery Advisory Board
President-elect Barack Obama has left little doubt that the struggling U.S. economy will be his number one priority when he takes office on January 20. VOA National correspondent Jim Malone reports from Washington.President-elect Barack Obama (r) with former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, chairman-designate of the Economic Recovery Advisory Board, 26 Nov 2008On three consecutive days, Barack Obama held news conferences to announce members of his economic team, and to reassure the public that turning around the weakened economy was on the top of his presidential agenda."My first priority and my first job is to get us on the path of economic recovery, to create 2.5 million jobs and to provide relief to middle class families," he said.Rutgers University political science professor Ross Baker says the president-elect's relentless focus on the economy is clearly by design."They may have initially planned to make their national security appointments first," he said. "But now it appears that they have moved the economic team to the head of the cue. So I think that really is a measure to reassure the public because so much of the problem involved with the economic crisis is psychological."Voters said the weak U.S. economy was the main issue in the presidential election, so Mr. Obama has little choice but to make economic revitalization his top priority, even before he is sworn in as president in January.But Mr. Obama made many other promises during the campaign, including promises to address energy, health care reform and climate change.Rutgers expert Ross Baker says action on some of those issues may have to wait. "The agenda of the president-elect has really been set by the economic crisis," he said. "Any newly elected president would have to do deal with this and it is certainly affecting many of his plans. I suspect that some of his efforts to curb greenhouse gases and so on may have to be set aside temporarily. I think that certainly his proposals on national health insurance may have to be postponed."Mr. Obama has moved quickly to put his economic team in place, as well as key members of his incoming White House staff.That has not always been the case with presidential transitions.For example, former President Bill Clinton got a late start on many of his appointments, and that caused him problems early in his first year as president."This incoming administration has done a wonderful job of studying the mistakes of the past and figuring out two things," said Bruce Buchanan, a presidential scholar at the University of Texas. "One, how important it is to have your plan ready to go, to take advantage of this brief window of opportunity to hit the ground running. The Obama team is now taking shape much earlier than either the Clinton or Carter teams did. And it also means that you need to involve the opposition party early in the deliberations."In the coming weeks, Mr. Obama is expected to announce his foreign policy and national security team, including some familiar faces.The current Defense secretary, Robert Gates, is reportedly willing to stay on in the new administration.Mr. Obama is also expected to name former Democratic presidential rival Hillary Clinton as secretary of state.Bruce Buchanan says the Clinton choice is Mr. Obama's most surprising so far."It is risky," he said. "It is a bold move by Obama to attempt to work with someone against whom he fought so vigorously so recently. It's also a widely believed fact that the Clinton's represent not only great talent, but also great complexity and difficulty and ambitions of their own, and it's an open question whether Mrs. Clinton can subordinate herself to even a President Obama."There are plenty of precedents for appointing former political opponents to the cabinet.In 1824, President John Quincy Adams chose rival Henry Clay to be secretary of state.Following the election of 1860, President Abraham Lincoln reached out to several former opponents and included them in his cabinet, a feat documented by historian Doris Kearns Goodwin in her 2005 book entitled 'Team of Rivals'.It's a book Mr. Obama often cited during the 2008 campaign for the White House.
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Thai Government to Declare State of Emergency at Bangkok Airports
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Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat's cabinet makes decision in effort to end People's Alliance for Democracy's occupation of airports
Thailand's Cabinet plans to declare a state of emergency around two Bangkok airports to end opposition blockades. As Ron Corben reports from Bangkok the failure to break the political deadlock has led to increased fears of violence between pro and anti-government supporters. Thailand's Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat talks with reporters in Chiang Mai province, northern Thailand, 26 Nov 2008Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat's Cabinet made the decision to impose emergency law at the airports in a meeting Thursday in the northern city of Chiang Mai.Thousands of protestors led by the People's Alliance for Democracy occupy the international and domestic airports at Bangkok, halting all flights. Kudeb Saikrajang, a spokesman for the governing People's Power Party (PPP), says the plan is to create an emergency zone around the airports. The question, however, is whether security forces will enforce the decision. "The government has to order the law enforcement officers to do their duty to clear the area. But whether the law enforcement officers will do their duty by the order of the government - I don't know," Kudeb said. The PAD leaders ignored calls by the prime minister and the Thai army chief to end the occupation of the international airport, which began Tuesday, and the blockade of the domestic airfield, which started Thursday. The army chief also has called on the prime minister to dissolve parliament and call new elections, which Mr. Somchai says he will not do. Thousands of passengers have had travel plans disrupted. The Thai news media and members of the tourism industry have widely criticized the PAD. But PAD spokesman Parnthep Pourpongpan says the occupation will continue until the prime minister resigns. Mr. Somchai rejects that demand, saying his government is democratically elected. "We don't worry about [the public backlash] because we follow the constitution - we still have a right to continue our rally peacefully. That is what we are doing - we are going to fight for," Parnthep said.The government also says the situation may force it to cancel the annual meeting of the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The meeting is to be held next month in Chiang Mai.The PAD's steadfast stance adds to fears of increasing clashes with government supporters. In recent days several small explosions have occurred in Bangkok and there have been sporadic battles between groups. Small blasts at a PAD compound in the city have killed two protesters and injured scores. Many political analysts and Thai citizens express fear that violence would push the military to step in, leading to widespread bloodshed or a takeover. The PAD accuses Mr. Somchai of acting as a proxy for his brother-in-law, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. He was ousted in a coup two years ago after being accused by the urban middle class of corruption and authoritarianism. Mr. Thaksin fled Thailand in August just before a court sentenced him to two years in jail for corruption. But he remains popular with the urban working class and in rural areas because of his populist economic policies.
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4 Killed in Car Bombing Near US Embassy in Kabul
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Mid-morning blast appears to target convoy of foreign troops at busy traffic circle
A suicide car bomb attack near the U.S. Embassy in Kabul has killed at
least 4 people and wounded 18 others. The mid-morning blast appeared to
target a convoy of foreign troops at a busy traffic circle. VOA's Barry
Newhouse reports from the Afghan capital.Afghan policeman near site of explosion in Kabul, 27 Nov 2008Witnesses at Kabul's
landmark Massoud traffic circle said the bomber was driving erratically
as he neared a convoy of foreign troops. This man says he was
standing near the road, when the bomber almost hit him. He says the
driver then hit three other cars and exploded. The Massoud
traffic circle is a busy intersection in an upscale area of Kabul that
contains foreign missions, international organizations and news
agencies. The U.S. Embassy is located about 200 meters away,
behind two heavily fortified checkpoints. The embassy was hosting a
Thanksgiving Holiday foot-race and some foreigners were arriving at the
time of the explosion.Interior Ministry spokesman Zamary
Bashary says officials believe the attacker was targeting the convoy of
international troops. "Prior to reaching the convoy, the
bomber who was sitting in a small vehicle, detonated the bombs that
were in the car and as a result of that unfortunately, a number of
civilians were killed and a number were injured," said Bashary.One bystander said most of the victims were city sanitation workers. President
Hamid Karzai condemned the blast, saying Afghans are fed up with such
attacks after 30 years of invasions and terrorism. Foreigners
in Kabul have been targeted in a string of recent kidnappings and
shootings. The city's last suicide attack occurred nearly a month ago
at the Afghan Culture Ministry, when three militants stormed the
building, killing five people.
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Somali Police Search for Kidnapped Foreign Journalists
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Unidentified gunmen abducted two European journalists Wednesday, after they reported on piracy in Boosaaso area
Police in Puntland, the semi-autonomous region of northern Somalia, are
searching for journalists who were kidnapped in the port city of
Boosaaso. As Derek Kilnerreports from VOA's East Africa bureau in
Nairobi, two European journalists, along with two Somalis, were
abducted on Wednesday, after reporting on piracy in the area.A
British reporter and a Spanish photographer were abducted by
unidentified gunmen as they left the International Village hotel in
Boosaaso, for their airport on Wednesday. The National Union of
Somali Journalists identified the men as Colin Freeman of the Daily
Telegraph newspaper, and photojournalist Jose Cendon, as well as two
Somali journalists who were acting as fixer and translator. The
journalists had been in Somalia for the past week, reporting on the
activities of pirates in the area and were preparing to leave the
country. Puntland's presidential media advisor, Bile Mohamoud
Qabowsade, told VOA that the journalists were traveling without armed
security guards.He said he had told the Somali fixers before
the journalists arrived that it would be difficult to guarantee the
journalists' safety without additional security. They had obtained
security guards but had let them go before traveling to the airport. He
said the police and other security services are working hard to locate
the journalists and secure their release.Foreign journalists
and aid workers have been prominent targets for kidnappers in Somalia,
who are generally looking for ransom payments. Over a dozen foreigners
have been abducted in Somalia this year, a particularly high figure
given that the number of foreigners operating in the country has
steadily declined over the past two years. Earlier this month, two
Italian nuns were kidnapped from a town on the border between Somalia
and Kenya.Puntland had long escaped much of the violence that
has plagued southern and central Somalia, but security has deteriorated
in the past year. Six people were killed in twin suicide bombings in
Bosasso in October.The hijacked Saudi-owned oil tanker MV Sirius Star is at anchor off the coast of Somalia, 19 Nov 2008 Meanwhile over 200 crew members - most of
them foreigners - are being held on hijacked ships off the coast of
Somalia. The seized vessels include a Saudi Arabian tanker carrying
over $100 million worth of oil, and a Ukrainian ship carrying over 30
military tanks.Security in Somalia has steadily declined since
the latest insurgency, pitting Islamist rebels against the struggling,
internationally-backed transitional government, and its Ethiopian
allies, began in January 2007.On Wednesday, the transitional
government signed an agreement to share power with a moderate Islamist
faction, the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia. But the more
radical al-Shabab faction has rejected the deal and vowed to continue
fighting
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Arab Nations Call for Palestinian Reconciliation
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Ministers say Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas should remain in power until deal reached between Hamas, Fatah
Arab League foreign ministers' emergency meeting at the League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt, 26 Nov 2008 Arab governments are calling on rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah to work together toward reconciliation.Arab foreign ministers maintained their neutrality during a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday, aimed at resuming dialogue between the Palestinian groups.The two sides have been deeply divided since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip from Fatah in 2007, leaving Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah party with authority only in the West Bank.Mr. Abbas has threatened to call elections early next year if the Palestinian factions do not reconcile by then. Hamas has rejected the plan, saying Mr. Abbas has no power to dissolve the current parliament in which Hamas has a large majority.The Arab ministers say the Palestinian president should remain in power until a deal is reached.The group also said Arab governments would send food and medicine into the Gaza Strip, which has been blockaded by Israel following recent cross-border rocket attacks and clashes.Earlier on Wednesday, officials said a Libyan boat loaded with 3,000 tons of food, medicine, and other supplies left the Libyan port of Zuwara and headed for Gaza.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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US-Based Habitat for Humanity Builds Homes for America's Poor
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Charity organization has built 300,000 houses with zero-interest mortgages - in effort to reduce poverty
Scores of volunteers continue to put up new homes, like these in Naples, Florida The U.S.-based charity, Habitat for Humanity has built more than 300,000 houses for low-income people around the world since the group was founded in 1976.
Habitat helps to construct homes and offers zero-interest financing for low income people, in an effort to reduce poverty.
VOA's Brian Wagner visited one fast-growing community built by Habitat in Florida.
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