^^He was very canny in not answering the war crimes question. I'm sure he doesn't want them (war criminals) to try and do a runner just yet

Dealing with dangers of war reporting As a new memorial is unveiled to journalists killed while carrying out their work, BBC Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen describes how war reporters deal with danger as a routine part of their job. If you asked most journalists whether a story was worth their life, they would say absolutely not. But then I have never met a journalist (and in that I include all varieties of news people) who goes out on a day's work in a dangerous place expecting to die. I am always struck by what is left of a person's last few hours when I see bodies in mortuaries and back alleys and wrecked buildings and all the other places where people end up who have died violently. Small, even trivial thoughts can find their way past the overwhelming and hideous fact that their lives are over. What about their clothes? Did they think they were going to die when they put on their socks? And the knots in their shoelaces, tied by fingers that now are dead. What were they thinking when they were doing them up? Perhaps the day was already going badly. Was fear already pulling at their minds and their guts? Or did they have no idea what was coming? The answer is that when the day began most of them did not expect to die. If, as a journalist in a dangerous place, you worry that you are getting dressed for the last time every morning before you go to work, then you are probably in the wrong business. You need to know the risks, and to take precautions, but to be calm about them too, and even to deny them. That cannot be done without believing that you will make it through the day, and that if you have some close calls you will be able to make jokes about them when you are having dinner. You need to be able to deal with danger, to have had some training and done some planning if you are going to function in the realm of time and fear that James Fenton describes so brilliantly in the poem that was commissioned to go with the new memorial. You have to believe that you will stay alive because you are being careful, or because your experience will see you through, and it helps too if you are young and feel indestructible and the sun is shining and you just know it could not possibly happen to you. When journalists no longer feel at least some of that, they tend to stop covering wars. Listing the dead The chances are that it will be OK. Most journalists who work in wars do not die, and do not get wounded. But some do, and these days more people target journalists, when in the past the main problem was being in the wrong place at the wrong time. With so many risks out there, the unfortunate truth is that surviving in a war, even for the most experienced and best trained, requires a strong element of luck. And peoples' luck runs out. Sometimes they do not have it at all. Journalists need to know that if they go to places where people are getting killed they could get killed too. The area did not seem dangerous, but it was. Abed did not expect to die that day Jeremy Bowen Every journalist who has made a habit of going to wars has a list of dead friends and colleagues, people who did the same stories in the same places until they went to work one day and were killed. The other night a photographer who covered many of the wars of the 1990s told me that about 10 years ago he was one of six ushers at a wedding. All of them were in the news business. Now only two of his fellow ushers are still alive. Permanent memorial My list has more than a dozen names. I only include people who were friends or close colleagues. If I added the names of people who I knew only by sight the list would be longer. The new memorial, Breathing, is dedicated to Abed Takkoush, among others I had to do obituaries for some of them, and everyone who works in news knows how the caravan moves on to the next story. It is good that there is going to be a permanent memorial to our dead friends in the middle of London. My friend and colleague Abed Takkoush had been a driver and fixer for the BBC in Lebanon for 25 years when he was killed by a shell fired by an Israeli tank crew on 23 May 2000. With Malek Kanaan, our cameraman, I got out of Abed's car a few minutes before the shell hit it. He stayed in there because he was on the phone to his son. The area did not seem dangerous, but it was. Abed did not expect to die that day. I could have been in the car with him, because I had been on the phone too. But my call ended as we parked, and his did not. That is the only reason why he is commemorated by the new sculpture, and I am not. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7456018.stm

Street sweep truck sucks up dog A street-sweeping truck has sucked a dog up through its bristles on a New York street, leaving its horrified owner holding nothing but the lead. Robert Machin, 57, had just finished walking his two Boston terriers in the Bronx and was about to load them into his car when the truck appeared. He recalls being whipped around, only to glimpse Ginger meeting her end in the sweeper's round brushes. City sanitation officers described the dog's death as "rare and unfortunate". But Mr Machin, a retired public transport worker, questioned whether the driver had been observing proper procedures. The truck, he said, seemed to have been barrelling through the street at an unsafe speed. Truck chase "It happened so fast," he told the New York Daily News. "It spun me around, and as it spun me around, I caught a last glimpse of her. "I was devastated. I was completely dumbfounded and shocked. I mean, I just witnessed my dog sucked up into a street sweeper." He said he had chased the truck for about two and a half blocks, shouting for the operator to stop. The driver eventually came back but refused to turn off the whirring brushes that had crushed Ginger, until he arrived, the paper adds. The Department of Sanitation offered its condolences to Mr Machin and his family but added: "It is important for all New Yorkers to remember to maintain the safety of their animals while walking city streets." Ginger's master who, according to the New York Daily News, plans to contact the Humane Society and hire a lawyer, said his lost dog had been like family to him. "My children are all grown up," he said. "These two dogs, they're my life," he added, choking back tears. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7456051.stm

Images back Ethiopia abuse claim ( The town of Labigah pictured in 2005 (top) and 2008 (bottom)) US scientists say satellite images confirm reports that the Ethiopian military have burnt towns and villages in Ethiopia's Somali region. The American Association for the Advancement of Science says the images back up a Human Rights Watch's report The US-based group says the troops are systematically ill-treating civilians in their counter-insurgency campaign. Ethnic Somali rebels have been fighting for more autonomy for two decades in the region, also known as the ******. HRW also accused the United States and the European Union of ignoring widespread abuses there. The Ethiopia government has described the report as "unfounded and baseless". 'Confused' HRW cites evidence of extrajudicial detentions and killings, beatings and rapes in military custody, forced displacement of the rural population and the collective punishment of communities suspected of helping or sympathising with the ****** National Liberation Front (ONLF) rebels. "We found that over the last year the Ethiopian army has been killing, raping, torturing and systematically displacing civilians in the ****** region of Ethiopia," HRW's Georgette Gagnon told the BBC's Network Africa programme. She said there was no doubt about the identity of those carrying out the abuses. "All the victims and eyewitnesses that we interviewed clearly identified the Ethiopian army and soldiers as those who had raped them, for example, who had summarily killed people by strangling, and who had forcibly displaced them and burned their villages." According to the AAAS, eight "before" and "after" satellite images identified by HRW as possible locations of abuses bore signs of attacks described. These were primarily in villages and small towns in the Wardheer, Dhagabur, and Qorrahey Zones, the AAAS said. Propaganda One recurrent scenario was of the army's response to ONLF activity in a neighbourhood; they would call the inhabitants together and demand that they hand over the culprits, HRW says. Failure to do so resulted in village elders and others being arrested, beaten, sometimes killed. Young people, both boys and girls, were arbitrarily arrested and accused of being ONLF sympathisers; they were routinely beaten in custody and women often raped, HRW says. The apparently arbitrary nature of many of the arrests was explained to HRW by a former judge in the region who said the army could not tell the difference between rebels and civilians, he said they were confused as to who was who. The report concludes that the army is engaged in a deliberate policy of terrorising the local population; that the abuses are far too systematic and widespread to be considered simply the acts of rogue commanders. But Bereket Simon, special adviser to Ethiopia's prime minister, said that HRW had based its findings on ONLF propaganda. "Human Rights Watch is engaged in misinforming the public based on the information of the ONLF, whose forces have been destroyed by the actions of the Ethiopian government," he told AFP news agency. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7450533.stm

^^and Kasim's?

^^I will have to catch the highlights tonight.

^^It was only predictable

A Somali centred business/development forum would be good but a general business forum would be a bit dull.

Those two clauses in the agreement seem to be the focus again. I think they may have sold themselves short but if so, and things do not change in 120 days time, that failure for a withdrawal to materialise will rest with the UN thus making the resistance 100% legitimate beyond doubt to all parties. Therefore, the UN also has alot riding on this as they do not want to lose face.

^^Fat chance of that happening.

The Shiekh was basically answering questions posted in this forum after last week’s agreement and a good job he did at that. I like the part when he stated that there is resistance through fighting and resistance through politics. Paragon, Castro and Kashafa, it is time to play ‘the game’ gents. The game of politics for another 120 days or so. Much will be aired in the coming months, much will be said, discussed and a lot of finger pointing will occur. Jostling for position, seeking favours, sympathy and support among other nations will be the prime objective of the opposition. Let’s be patient and hope for a positive outcome.

I know. I heard on the radio this morning. Great to see them through.

What on earth happened last night? I was fast asleep by the time the footy started.

Originally posted by Brofessor_Geeljire: War Northener, was gwanin, saxiib, in Sheffield? Seems like ciyaalki are chewing down, bruv: I know saxib. Kuwaasi waa muqayaliin. I so a few who did nothing but play footy now do nothing but chew. Paragon, I would sign but I'm not there

Conservatives will ban khat Khat is a popular drug among Britain's Somali community but it is far from harmless and should be banned Sayeeda Warsi guardian.co.uk, Sunday June 15 2008 The debate about khat (also known as qat) is new to the majority of people in Britain. Khat is a drug which is chewed in leaf form and has its origins in East Africa and parts of the Arabian peninsula. It is said to enhance social interaction and act as a stimulant to improve performance. Traditionally, khat use was an activity for men over a certain age, especially at the end of celebrations such as weddings. It is not, however, a benign drug. Like amphetamines, it causes dependency. It is addictive. It can trigger paranoia and hallucinations. It is carcinogenic. This drug can be legally bought in Britain with no restriction on the age of the purchaser. About seven tonnes of it are estimated to pass through Heathrow airport alone each week and the leaves are then sold at around £4 for a 250g bunch in supermarkets in East London, Birmingham, Bristol and Sheffield. A recent survey found that 76% of respondents use more khat in the UK than in Somalia; in Sheffield, 59% of young Somalis chew khat. Unemployment rates among the Somali community are far above the national average. Academic achievement rates are far below the national average. And khat is in part responsible. Faisa Mohamed, from the Somali Well Women Project said, "Back home men were the breadwinners, but when they came to Britain without jobs and took up khat, it became an addiction. They chew it all night and during the day they can't do anything". In February 2005 during the passage of the Drugs Act 2005, the government discussed making khat a controlled substance. They heard how it is banned in the USA, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Uganda, Ethiopia and Madagascar, to name but a few. The government decided that its use was not prevalent enough among the wider community, and so it remained legal. It is almost inverse racism: they were almost frightened to act because it concerned minority communities, even though many people, especially the women, from within those communities were calling for action. This is a drug that is beginning to tear apart the social fabric of certain communities and people from those mainly East African communities are calling for action. On Thursday night I spoke to an audience from the Somali community in Brent. I listened to them share their stories of addiction and family breakdown. Abukar told how he spent four years addicted before ending up in hospital recovering from stab wounds. He said, "I see myself as a member of British society. I want to integrate. But then I see how this drug affects our children. I see our women suffering in silence. This is the biggest barrier to integration for us." All communities need to be treated equally under the rule of law irrespective of their background and we must never fail to take action on issues like khat because the prevalence of the drug in the UK is relatively low or because it is restricted to some minority communities. When any section of society is under threat, affected or underachieving, we must all stand up. That is why a future Conservative government would legislate to make khat a classified drug. Source: Guardian, June 15, 2008 Not a moment too soon. The Tories will win the next election. Lets hope Marc and his crew will be active and press for Qaad to be banned. I remember there was no Qaad for a few weeks due to a strike or something in Kenya. All the faaraxs we hadn't seen for years were all of a sudden out and about in the day time, play football etc

Things have changed in a big way. The approach by govnt's over the years has been solely based on what the media thinks and wants. The article touches on this and the never ending headlines on the red tops.

^^Yeah, thats when the floods start Boong!!!!

^^End of May is spring?? Apparently it was gorgeous for 2 whole weeks prior to our arrival. Everyone we saw kept commenting 'it was nice before you two came' :rolleyes: I wasn't too bothered about the weather.

^^He was probably stuck in a house and never shown around (typical reer London). The weather was ok that day.

Natural History Museum and surrounding

Here goes. We went from this and this to As we approached to land the pilot states "the weather in is, erm cool with a temprature of 17 degrees celcius and its raining". A huge oh nooooo bellowed out of the plane!

^^I have been sneaking a read here and there

yes but not here

^^Told you

^^who?