Sunday 26 October 2014

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

Nurse 'disrespected' in Ebola fight

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Washington (AFP) - The mayor of New York said that a quarantined nurse had been disrespected, but gave no indication he would bow to White House pressure over the controversial move intended to stop the spread of Ebola in the United States.Kaci Hickox, who became the first American health worker isolated under the new quarantine orders on Friday, claims she was made to feel like a criminal and that her compulsory quarantining was inhumane.New York, New Jersey and Illinois have drafted in measures that see medics returning from West Africa -- epicenter of the most deadly Ebola outbreak on record -- quarantined for three weeks, while a fourth state, Florida, has ordered twice-daily monitoring during that period.New York Mayor Bill de Blasio attempted to quell the firestorm over Hickoxs outspoken remarks over the weekend, in which she hit out at the attitude of officials toward her from the moment she landed at Newark International Airport in New Jersey on Friday.This hero was treated with disrespect, was treated with a sense that she had done something wrong, when she hadnt; was not given a clear direction, de Blasio told a press conference.We owe her better than that and all the people better than that.Health authorities have also expressed concern that the strict new rules will discourage badly needed health workers from volunteering in the crisis in West Africa, where more than 4,900 people have already died of the hemorrhagic Ebola virus.And US President Barack Obamas administration has urged the governors of New York and New Jersey to reverse the quarantine rules, The New York Times reported.The administration was consulting on a daily basis with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and his New Jersey counterpart Chris Christie to modify their orders, according to the report.- Rights violated -But de Blasio gave no hint he would support an easing of the restrictions, while railing at the treatment of Hickox -- who has not tested positive for Ebola -- and other health care professionals said to have been stigmatized after working with patients suffering from the disease.On Thursday, 33-year-old doctor Craig Spencer became the first confirmed case of Ebola in New York, after returning from West Africa. He remains in a serious but stable condition in hospital.Anyone who has heard the nurse explain her situation in her proud, passionate, intelligent voice, knows that what happened to her is inappropriate, said de Blasio.There have been nine cases of Ebola in the United States so far, most among health workers who volunteered in Africa, with only one death.Hickox, who was helping treat patients in hard-hit Sierra Leone before her return to the United States, has been isolated outside the main hospital building.She has only been allowed to wear paper scrubs, and the tent is equipped with just a hospital bed, a non-flush chemical toilet and no shower.On Saturday, she wrote a scathing assessment of her experience.I feel like my basic human rights have been violated, she told CNNs State of the Union show, insisting she was not contagious because she has shown no symptoms and tested negative for the disease.To put me in prison... is just inhumane.- Haphazard -Some health experts have sided with Hickox.The best way to protect us is to stop (the outbreak) in Africa, and one of the best ways to stop it in Africa is to get health workers who are going there and helping them with their problem, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci told CNN.When they come back, they need to be treated in a way that doesnt disincentivize them from going there.His comments came as the US envoy to the United Nations, Samantha Power, worried the new quarantine policies were haphazard and not well thought out.We cannot take measures here that are going to impact our ability to flood the zone with health workers, said Power, as she began a tour of West African nations struggling with the disease.We have to find the right balance between addressing the legitimate fears that people have and encouraging and incentivising these heroes.

Saudi women's driving campaign a 'success'

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Riyadh (AFP) - Activists pushing for womens right-to-drive in Saudi Arabia declared their online campaign a success Sunday, in the worlds only country where women are not allowed to operate cars.The campaign that began last year and revved up again since the beginning of the month encouraged women to post online images of themselves driving.Dozens of women have driven and posted during the latest campaign, one activist said, although she knew of only two who hit the streets Saturday and Sunday as the campaign peaked.A day hasnt gone by without receiving one or two videos of women driving, said the activist.Men and women have also posted messages of support.More than 2,800 people have signed an online petition at www.oct26driving.com asking authorities to lift the ban on women driving.The activist said she did not want to be named because the interior ministry has threatened her with arrest if she speaks publicly about the campaign.Last year, activists also focused their demands on October 26, when at least four driving videos were posted on YouTube.Sixteen or more women were fined for taking the wheel on that day.There is a huge risk for female drivers, the activist said when asked why more had not posted images of themselves this year.Women have previously been arrested, cars have been confiscated, and one received 100 lashes, she alleged.So, women are afraid, the activist said.She added that, apart from driving, the campaign is also about creating a storm over the issue.On Thursday the interior ministry issued a warning to would-be female drivers and their supporters.The ministry said it would strictly implement measures against anyone who contributes in any manner or by any acts, towards providing violators with the opportunity to undermine the social cohesion.That means the campaign has had an impact, the activist said.I think its pretty successful. If were getting a reaction, that means were effective.- Half a citizen -Sahar Nasief defied the warnings and got behind the wheel anyway on Sunday.The roads were full of police cars... everybody was on alert, she told AFP from the Red Sea city of Jeddah after running a 15-minute errand in her car because her driver wasnt available.The authorities response shows the driving campaign has been very successful, she agreed.Its sad that you live in a country where you feel like half a citizen, that you are a threat to national security, another driver said in a YouTube video posted on Saturday.Dressed in black with only her eyes exposed, she said she was driving in Riyadh on the weekend.Saudi women are required to dress in black from head to toe and still need permission from a male guardian to work and marry.Activists say womens driving is not against the law.Tradition and custom are behind the prohibition, which is not backed up by an Islamic text or judicial ruling, the online petition states.But activists said they feel the conservative society is becoming more accepting of women motorists.A lot of people now are for the campaign, Nasief said.Another activist, Aziza al-Yussef, said people notice that she is a woman driver and dont seem to care.We are just waiting for a decree from the king to allow it, she said, optimistic that a change is coming.Hardline clerics protested when King Abdullah, in January last year, decided to give women a 20 percent quota in the previously all-male Shura Council, an advisory body.The unnamed activist said its hard to say if women are closer to the right to drive.In the meantime activists say they will keep raising their voices, and getting behind the wheel.

Thirty adolescents abducted in northeast Nigeria: local chief

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Maiduguri (Nigeria) (AFP) - Around 30 adolescents -- some of them girls aged as young as 11 -- have been abducted in northeast Nigeria over the weekend by suspected Boko Haram rebels, a local village chief told reporters on Sunday.The insurgents... grabbed young people, boys and girls, from our region, said Alhaji Shettima Maina, who is in charge of the Mafa village around 50 kilometres (30 miles) east of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.They took all boys aged 13 and over... and all girls aged 11 and more. According to our information, 30 young people were abducted in the last two days.Another village elder, Mallam Ashiekh Mustapha, confirmed the account.Both men said 17 people were also killed in recent days in a Boko Haram attack on the nearby village of Ndongo.Boko Haram, which has been waging a bloody insurgency since 2009, has been responsible for waves of attacks and abductions.In April, the Islamist rebel group snatched more than 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in northeast Nigeria, triggering an international outcry.Kidnapping young women and girls -- as well as forcibly conscripting young men and boys to fight for Boko Haram -- is a well-established tactic by the militants.Some estimates put the number of women held by the group in the high hundreds. Most are believed to be forced into marriages with rebels.The latest kidnapping comes despite the Nigerian government declaring a truce with the insurgents and the army retaking control of Abadam in the north-east on Saturday, according to a senior security official in the region.But local chief Maina said his village and areas around it were targeted in nearly daily raids by Boko Haram, and many residents have fled to Maiduguri for fear of being killed or losing their children.He said he had pleaded for help from the Nigerian government but that so far none had been forthcoming.Earlier this month the government and army had announced an accord with Boko Haram, whose insurgency has left more than 10,000 dead over the past five years. But on the ground in north Nigeria the truce has not taken hold as attacks have continued.The reported retaking of Abadam, near lake Chad, from Boko Haram fighters could not be immediately confirmed by the Nigerian army and witnesses could not be reached as most of the inhabitants fled to neighbouring Niger when the Islamists had taken over the village.In another neighbour, Cameroon, where Boko Haram attacks have increased in recent months, the defence ministry on Sunday said in a note sent to AFP that it pushed back three incursions Friday by Boko Haram in the countrys extreme north, including at the village of Glawi where four Nigerian refugees were killed and a Cameroonian civilian was wounded by the Islamists.Cameroons army also claimed to have killed 39 Islamists. That could not be independently confirmed. There were also no details on any casualties suffered by the military.The attacks and kidnappings have called into doubt Abujas claim to have negotiated a ceasefire with the extremist group.Boko Haram, which wants to create an Islamic state in mainly Muslim northern Nigeria, is a fractured group with different commanders controlling rival cells in various regions.Analysts doubt that the individuals in talks with Nigeria have the influence to enforce a blanket ceasefire.

US disease expert argues against Ebola quarantine

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NEW YORK (AP) The gulf between politicians and scientists over Ebola widened on Sunday as the top U.S. infectious-disease expert warned that the mandatory, 21-day quarantining of medical workers returning from West Africa imposed by several states is unnecessary and could discourage volunteers from going to the hot zone.The best way to protect us is to stop the epidemic in Africa, and we need those health care workers, so we do not want to put them in a position where it makes it very, very uncomfortable for them to even volunteer to go, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.Meanwhile, Kaci Hickox, the first nurse forcibly quarantined in New Jersey under the states new policy, said in a telephone interview with CNN that her isolation at a hospital was inhumane, adding: We have to be very careful about letting politicians make health decisions.Saying the federal health guidelines are inadequate, the governors of New York and New Jersey announced a mandatory quarantine program Friday for medical workers and other arriving airline passengers who have had contact with Ebola victims in West Africa, and Illinois soon followed suit. . Florida Gov. Rick Scott ordered twice-daily monitoring for 21 days of anyone returning from Ebola-stricken areas. Twenty-one days is the incubation period for Ebola.New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Sunday defended quarantining as necessary to protect the public and predicted it will become a national policy sooner rather than later.I dont believe when youre dealing with something as serious as this that we can count on a voluntary system. This is governments job. If anything else, the government job is to protect the safety and health of our citizens, said Christie, who is expected to run for the Republican nomination for president in 2016. And so, weve taken this action, and I absolutely have no second thoughts about it.The Obama administration considers the policy in New York and New Jersey to be not grounded in science and has conveyed its concerns to Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, said a senior administration official. The official wasnt authorized to comment by name and insisted on anonymity.Fauci made the rounds on five major morning talk shows to argue that policy should be guided by science and that science says people with the virus are not contagious until symptoms appear. And even then, infection requires direct contact with bodily fluids.Fauci said that close monitoring of medical workers for symptoms is sufficient, and warned that forcibly separating them from others, or quarantining them, for three weeks could cripple the fight against the outbreak in West Africa an argument that humanitarian medical organizations have also made.If we dont have our people volunteering to go over there, then youre going to have other countries that are not going to do it and then the epidemic will continue to roar, Fauci said.The World Health Organization said more than 10,000 people have been infected with Ebola in the outbreak that came to light last March, and nearly half of them have died, mostly in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.Christie, traveling the country as head of the Republican Governors Association, said he was not worried that quarantining would discourage volunteers from going to West Africa.Other than saying last week that those under quarantine could be confined to their homes or medical facilities, Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo have given no details on how the measure would be enforced and what would happen to those who refused to cooperate.But Cuomo, who is up for re-election next week, said the order is legally enforceable, and expressed confidence that medical professionals would go along.Earlier this month, four members of a family in Texas that Ebola victim Thomas Eric Duncan stayed with before he died were confined to their home under armed guard after failing to comply with a request not to leave their apartment. Also, 75 Dallas hospital workers were asked to sign legally binding documents in which they agreed not go to public places or use mass transit.The New York-area quarantine measures were announced after Dr. Craig Spencer returned to New York City from treating Ebola victims in Guinea for Doctors Without Borders and was admitted to Bellevue Hospital Center last Thursday to be treated for Ebola. In the week after his return, he rode the subway, went bowling and ate at a restaurant.Hospital officials said Sunday that Spencer was in serious but stable condition, was looking better than he did the day before, and tolerated well a plasma treatment from an Ebola survivor.Hickox, the quarantined nurse, said she had no symptoms at all and tested negative for Ebola in a preliminary evaluation.Its just a slippery slope, not a sound public health decision, she said of the quarantine policy. I want to be treated with compassion and humanity, and dont feel Ive been treated that way.Hickox now has access to a computer, her cellphone, magazines and newspapers and has been allowed to have takeout food, New Jersey Health Department officials said.New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called Hickox a returning hero and charged that she was treated with disrespect, as if she had done something wrong, when she was put into quarantine. He said that she was interrogated repeatedly and things were not explained well to her.Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who arrived in Guinea on Sunday, criticized the new quarantine policies introduced by states back home.Before leaving for West Africa, she told NBC News that the new quarantine policies are haphazard and said returning U.S. health care workers should be treated like conquering heroes and not stigmatized for the tremendous work that they have done.Power, the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia during the outbreak, is trying to highlight the need for increased international support to combat Ebola and swing the spotlight back to a region where nearly 5,000 people have died from Ebola and both supplies and workers are badly needed.Fauci appeared on Fox News Sunday, ABCs This Week, NBCs Meet the Press, CBS Face the Nation and CNNs State of the Union. Christie was interviewed on Fox and Power spoke to NBC.

South African football captain Meyiwa shot dead

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Johannesburg (AFP) - South Africa and Orlando Pirates captain and goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa was shot dead late Sunday near Johannesburg, a police spokesman told AFP, with club officials describing his slaying as a loss to the nation.Lieutenant-General Solomon Makgale said Meyiwa, 27, was gunned down at a house in Vosloorus, a township about 30 kilometres south of the city, and declared dead on admission to hospital.We can confirm that Bucs (Pirates) goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa has been shot and sadly declared dead on arrival at hospital, the South African Police Service (SAPS) said on its Twitter feed.Police later said there were seven people inside the house, including Meyiwa, when two suspects entered and another remained outside.Makgale said that the motive behind the attack remained unclearThe incident happened at around 2000 SA time (1800 GMT) in Vosloorus township, added police who did not comment on some media reports that the shooting was sparked by a row over a mobile phone.There was an altercation and Senzo Meyiwa was shot. The three suspects fled on foot after the shooting.“We can assure South Africans that we will do all we can to bring Meyiwa’s killers to book.A reward of up to R150 000 ($14,000) is being offered for any information that can lead to arrests.Pirates, one of the most popular and successful South African football clubs, also confirmed that the player had been killed.@Orlando_Pirates family has learned with sadness of the untimely death of our number 1 keeper & captain Senzo Meyiwa, the club tweeted.Irvin Khoza, the club chairman, added: This is a sad loss to Senzos family especially his children, to Orlando Pirates & the nation.Meyiwa played for his club in Soweto Saturday and has been in outstanding form for the national team during recent 2015 Africa Cup qualifiers.The death of the national football team captain is the second tragedy to hit South African sport within three days after former world 800-metre athletics champion Mbulaeni Mulaudzi died Friday in a car crash.South Africa team-mates Dean Furman and Andile Jali were among the first to react to the Meyiwa tragedy on Twitter.Beyond devastated at the loss of our captain and friend Senzo Meyiwa. Thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this terrible time, tweeted England-based Furman, who plays for Doncaster Rovers in the third-tier in the English league.Just got a call and I was sleeping, but now I cannot sleep because of what I just heard, tweeted Jali, who moved from Pirates to Belgium club Ostend this year.After many years in the South African football shadows, Meyiwa had a meteoric climb to fame with club and country.He displaced national squad goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs as first-choice at Pirates, the only South African side to be crowned African champions.And a recent injury to South Africa captain and goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune gave Meyiwa a chance in the national team, popularly known as Bafana Bafana (The Boys).New national coach Ephraim Shakes Mashaba not only promoted Durban-born Meyiwa to replace Khune but also made him captain of a team that has been in the doldrums for some years.Meyiwa responded to his promotion by leading the team to victories over Sudan and Congo Brazzaville and draws with Congo and Nigeria, a country South Africa traditionally struggle against.He did not concede a goal in the four matches and if South Africa defeat Sudan in eastern city Nelspruit on October 15 they will qualify the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations tournament.He was also made captain of Pirates and helped the club defeat Ajax Cape Town 4-1 Saturday in a South African League Cup quarter-final.Meyiwa gave a flawless performance and the only Ajax attempt that beat Meyiwa came from a penalty kick.

Brazil's Rousseff, a fighter who held on for new term

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Brasilia (Brazil) (AFP) - President Dilma Rousseff, a former leftist guerrilla once imprisoned and tortured by Brazils military regime, upheld her reputation for toughness in a hard-fought campaign that won her a new term Sunday.Rousseff, Brazils first woman president, won a second four-year term in a tight run-off election against business-world favorite Aecio Neves.Rousseff, 66, is known as a no-nonsense manager with a commanding grasp of even the smallest policy details who upbraids her ministers in public when they fall short of her standards.She showed her fighting spirit in her re-election campaign, attacking Neves aggressively and battling back from behind in the opinion polls.An economist by training, she developed her image for tough efficiency as chief of staff to former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who picked her to succeed him after presiding over eight years of prosperity and landmark gains against poverty.But Rousseff, who lacks the natural charisma of her predecessor and mentor, had to battle voters frustration over a recession, corruption scandals and poor public services to secure a second term.Under Lulas tutelage, she developed a warmer campaign style in the buildup to the elections.Opening up to journalists and voters, she discussed her leisure activities -- she loves Game of Thrones and books, saying I cant sleep without reading -- and even confessed to once escaping the presidential palace on the back of a friends Harley-Davidson, cruising through the streets of Brasilia unnoticed.People always say about women in power that theyre hard, managerial. But Dilma is a person with a great sense of humor, fun, extremely caring and generous, said Ieda Akselrud de Seixas, who was jailed with Rousseff in the 1970s.Rousseff also began alluding more frequently to her imprisonment under the military regime, a topic she once shunned.When opponents jeered her during the opening ceremony of the World Cup in June, she responded by saying: I have come up against hugely difficult situations in my life, including attacks which took me to the limit physically.Nothing knocked me out of my stride.- Something different -Born December 14, 1947 to a Brazilian mother and Bulgarian businessman father, Rousseff grew up comfortably middle-class in the southeastern city of Belo Horizonte.She developed her political spine as a Marxist militant opposed to the 1964-1985 dictatorship.She was arrested in January 1970 and sentenced to prison for belonging to a violent underground group responsible for murders and bank robberies.The judge who found her guilty dubbed her the high priestess of subversion, journalist Ricardo Amaral wrote in a biography.The book shows a bespectacled Rousseff aged 22 staring defiantly at her military judges.After nearly three years behind bars, during which she said she was tortured by electric shock, Rousseff was released at the end of 1972.She resumed her political path, helping found the Democratic Labor Party (PDT) in 1979 and eventually switching to Lulas Workers Party in 2000.When Lula took office in 2003, he named Rousseff his energy minister and then, in 2005, his cabinet chief.She came here with her little computer, Lula said after appointing Rousseff to her first cabinet post in 2003. She started to talk and I felt something different in her.To bring her out of his shadow and into the spotlight ahead of the 2010 campaign, Lula made sure she was by his side when he cut ribbons on big public works projects.To smooth her somewhat lumbering image, Rousseff underwent a makeover, whitening her teeth, redoing her hair, ditching glasses for contacts and having wrinkles removed from her brow.The effect made her look much younger than the year before, when she was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer and endured chemotherapy that forced her to cover up hair loss with a wig.The cancer is now in complete remission, doctors say.Twice married, Rousseff has a daughter, Paula, from a 30-year relationship with ex-husband and fellow leftist militant Carlos de Araujo.

Kurds thwart new IS bid to cut off Syria's Kobane

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Mursitpinar (Turkey) (AFP) - Kurdish forces thwarted a new attempt Sunday by Islamic State group fighters to cut off the Syrian town of Kobane from the border with Turkey before Iraqi Kurdish reinforcements can deploy.The pre-dawn assault marked the fourth straight day the jihadists had attacked the Syrian side of the border crossing as the Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga fighters prepare to head for Kobane, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.Kurdish forces, backed by US-led air strikes, have been holding out for weeks against an IS offensive around Kobane, which has become a high-profile symbol of efforts to stop the jihadist advance.The US military said in its latest update that American warplanes carried out five air strikes near Kobane on Saturday and Sunday, destroying seven IS vehicles and an IS-held building.Ground fighting for Kobane has killed more than 800 people since the IS offensive began on September 16, with the jihadists losing 481 fighters and the Kurds 313, said the Britain-based Observatory, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria for its information.Among the dead are 21 civilians, but the figures exclude IS losses to US-led air strikes, which the Pentagon has said run to several hundred.The jihadist assault prompted nearly all of the enclaves population to flee, with some 200,000 refugees streaming over the border into neighbouring Turkey.Last week, under heavy US pressure, Turkey unexpectedly announced it would allow the peshmerga fighters to cross its territory to join the fight for Kobane.The main Syrian Kurdish fighting force in the town has close links with the outlawed rebel Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has fought a three-decade insurgency in southeastern Turkey and Ankara had previously resisted calls to allow in reinforcements.- Peshmerga ready to go -The peshmerga forces are ready to go, but they are not expected to deploy to Kobane before Monday at the earliest, Kurdish news agency Rudaw reported.Technical issues concerning their transit through Turkey still had to be resolved, Rudaw said without elaborating.The Democratic Union Party (PYD) which dominates Kobane agreed to the offer of the peshmerga troops.But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan charged in comments published Sunday that the terror group did not really want the peshmerga forces to deploy to Kobane for fear of seeing its influence diminished.The PYD does not want the peshmerga to come, Erdogan said.They dont want the peshmerga to come to Kobane and dominate it.The PYD thinks its game will be spoilt if the peshmerga come. Their setup will be ruined.The PKK and its allies have long had difficult relations with the parties that control the Kurdish regional government and its peshmerga forces in northern Iraq.By contrast Ankara has developed a good working relationship with the Iraqi Kurdish authorities.- Destroying Iraqi civilisation -The lions share of recent coalition strikes have been in neighbouring Iraq, as Washington has voiced mounting confidence Kobanes fall to the jihadists can be prevented after US arms drops this month.Twelve air strikes were launched in Iraq on Saturday and Sunday -- three of them near Fallujah west of Baghdad and nine around the strategic northern dam of Mosul, which IS briefly held in August and has repeatedly tried to seize back.On Sunday Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi paid a visit to Jordan, one of the five Arab nations taking part in the US-led air strikes.After meeting with his Jordanian counterpart Abdullah Nsur he called for greater cooperation in the battle against IS, which he warned was destroying Iraqi civilisation.Jordan borders Iraqs Anbar province, much of which has been overrun by the IS.The country has also been struggling to cope with an influx of refugees from the war in neighbouring Syria, where government air strikes on two besieged, rebel-held areas of Homs province killed at least 31 people, the Observatory said Sunday.

Honours even as United leave it late against Chelsea

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London (AFP) - Robin van Persies goal deep into stoppage-time snatched a 1-1 draw for Manchester United against Premier League leaders Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday.Chelsea were on the brink of going six points clear at the top of the table when defender Branislav Ivanovic was sent-off late on for a second bookable offence.From the ensuing Angel di Maria free-kick, Marouane Fellainis header was well-saved by impressive Chelsea goalkeeper Thibault Courtois but van Persie followed up to score.It had seemed Didier Drogba, making his first start in the Premier League this season, had struck the decisive blow when, in the absence of injured forwards Diego Costa and Loic Remy, he powered in a 53rd minute header which went in off van Persie to give the veteran Ivory Coast forward his first English top-flight goal since March 2012.Afterwards Mourinho could not hide his frustration at Ivanovics dismissal, particularly as the Blues defender had earlier been denied what looked like a penalty when he went down under the challenge of Chris Smalling.The red card, I was seeing it coming, Mourinho told the BBC.If I have to speak about the second yellow (for Ivanovic) I have to speak about lots of things -- the penalty that Ivanovic should have been given...I know I speak always with my heart and get in trouble.Asked about the 36-year-old Drogbas display, the Portuguese manager added: For me as a coach its not fair to speak about Didier because my team was fantastic. They were brilliant.- Good sign for United -This result left Chelsea four points clear of second-placed Southampton and ensured honours were even between Mourinho and Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal, under whom the Blues boss worked when the Dutchman was in charge of Barcelona.Ive said to the players we could have won but nevertheless we didnt and thats our fault, van Gaal told the BBC.When you can do that against the best team in this league at this moment it is a good sign, added the United manager, whose side are now 10 points behind Chelsea.Im not pleased as I still have the feeling we could have won today and that we dont take our opportunities at the moment.Earlier, Newcastle United climbed out of the bottom three with a 2-1 win away to Tottenham Hotspur while winless Burnley remained rooted in the relegation zone after a 3-1 loss at home to Everton.Fresh from their first victory of the season, at home to Leicester last weekend, Newcastle came from behind at White Hart Lane to enjoy back-to-back victories for the first time in nearly eight months.Emmanuel Adebayors 18th-minute header gave Tottenham the lead but just six seconds after the break, Newcastle were level when Sammy Ameobi, a half-time substitute, chased down a long ball from Jack Colback and beat Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.And their comeback was complete when Ayoze Perez expertly headed in a cross to the back post from Remy Cabella, another half-time substitution by Newcastle manager Alan Pardew, in the 58th minute.It was good to get on -- I actually told Jack Colback to get the ball into the corner from the kick-off, said Ameobi. To get out of the relegation zone gives us a great lift..Elsewhere, veteran Cameroon striker Samuel Etoo scored twice for Everton in a comfortable win at Turf Moor.Promoted Burnley fell behind in just the fourth minute after Etoo headed in Leighton Bainess cross.But Burnley hit back with a 20th-minute equaliser from striker Danny Ings after Chelseas Romelu Lukaku gave the ball awayBut Lukaku went from villain to hero by restoring the visitors lead in the 29th minute when, after his initial effort was blocked, he struck from close range.Etoo then made it 3-1 with a superb curling shot from the edge of the box four minutes from time and only the post then denied him a hat-trick.Everton manager Roberto Martinez hailed Etoos display by telling Sky Sports: I think what he brings is a real know-how, a real experience.

US envoy visiting Ebola-hit Africa condemns world response

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Conakry (AFP) - The US ambassador to the United Nations criticised the level of international support for nations hit by Ebola as she began a tour Sunday of west African nations at the epicentre of the deadly outbreak.Samantha Power said before arriving in Guinea that too many leaders were praising the efforts of countries like the United States and Britain to accelerate aid to the worst-affected nations, but were doing little themselves.The international response to Ebola needs to be taken to a wholly different scale than it is right now, Power told NBC News.She said many countries are signing on to resolutions and praising the good work that the United States and the United Kingdom and others are doing, but they themselves havent taken the responsibility yet to send docs, to send beds, to send the reasonable amount of money.Besides Guinea, Power will travel to Sierra Leone and Liberia -- the three nations that account for the vast majority of the 4,922 deaths from the Ebola epidemic.In Conakry on Sunday, the US envoy met with religious leaders and Ebola survivors at Guineas largest mosque and assured them of US support.Were in this with you for the long haul, she said, also paying tribute to the survivors whose strength, having gone through this horrible experience, was a metaphor for how the affected country would ultimately emerge stronger from the Ebola crisis.More than 10,000 people have contracted the virus in west Africa, according to the latest World Health Organization figures.Another country in the region, Mali, was scrambling to prevent a wider outbreak after a two-year-old girl died from her Ebola infection following a 1,000-kilometre (600-mile) bus ride from Guinea. She was Malis first recorded case of the disease.- Feel like a criminal -In the United States, An American nurse who was placed in quarantine after caring for Ebola sufferers in Sierra Leone has complained she was made to feel like a criminal upon arrival in New Jersey.Kaci Hickox, who later tested negative, was the first person to be placed under a mandatory 21-day quarantine for medical staff returning to parts of the US who may have had contact with Ebola patients in west Africa.The new rules took effect in the states of New York, New Jersey and Illinois on Friday, the same day Hickox returned.This is not a situation I would wish on anyone, and I am scared for those who will follow me, Hickox wrote in The Dallas Morning News.I am scared about how healthcare workers will be treated at airports when they declare that they have been fighting Ebola in west Africa. I am scared that, like me, they will arrive and see a frenzy of disorganisation, fear and, most frightening, quarantine.She said she was being kept outside the main hospital building, with only a hospital bed, a non-flush chemical toilet, and no shower.To put me in prison is just inhumane, she told CNN Sunday.In response, Power expressed concern that the new quarantine policies were haphazard and not well thought out.We cannot take measures here that are going to impact our ability to flood the zone with health workers, Power said.We have to find the right balance between addressing the legitimate fears that people have and encouraging and incentivising these heroes.US health officials also voiced concern that the new rules could discourage much-needed medical personnel from volunteering to go to west Africa.When they (health workers) come back, they need to be treated in a way that doesnt disincentivise them from going there, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci told CNN.President Barack Obama told Americans Saturday they must be guided by the facts, not fear after a 33-year-old US doctor returned from Africa became the first Ebola case in New York City.Australian authorities said Sunday a teenage girl was in isolation in hospital and undergoing tests for Ebola after she developed a fever following her arrival from Guinea 11 days ago.The 18-year-old, who arrived in Australia with eight other family members, had been in home quarantine in Brisbane before she developed a raised temperature overnight.- Mali sees no symptoms -The WHO has warned the situation in Mali was an emergency after a girl died from Ebola following a bus ride from Guinea to Mali with her grandmother.But an advisor to the Malian health ministry told AFP the 43 people placed under medical observation in Kayes in western Mali -- where the girl died on Friday -- do not show for the moment any signs of the illness, said doctor Lamine Diarra.About a dozen other people are also being observed in the capital Bamako, where the little girl had spent about three hours visiting with relatives on the way to Kayes, he added.Mauritania meanwhile reinforced controls on its border with Mali, which effectively led to the frontier being closed, according to local sources.Ebola is spread though close contact with the sweat, vomit, blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person.

Gulf oil producers seen riding out price plunge

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Kuwait City (AFP) - Energy kingpin Saudi Arabia and other wealthy Gulf states are set to resist pressure to tighten the taps significantly to shore up oil prices as the global economy stumbles, analysts say.Oil prices have fallen by a quarter since June as excess supply and weaker demand create a glut on world markets, prompting some other exporters to call for cuts in output.But while curbing production could help to arrest the price decline, it would also leave the Gulf states at risk of losing market share.Fortunately for the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) -- which sit on 40 percent of the worlds oil and a quarter of its natural gas -- they are flush with cash, analysts said.The GCC states are in a strong position to remain steadfast for a few years if there is a dispute over production, Kuwaiti oil analyst Mussa Maarafi said.Saudi Arabia and most Gulf states will not be bothered a lot, at least in the short term and will be able to resist pressure to cut production and lose market share, Maarafi, a former member of Kuwaits Supreme Petroleum Council, told AFP.The benchmark US oil price has fallen to levels not seen since mid-2012, while in London Brent North Sea crude is around a four-year low.The price of US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stood at around $81 a barrel on Friday while Brent was changing hands for about $86.Prices had rebounded briefly on Thursday as traders reacted to an unconfirmed report that Saudi Arabia trimmed its crude supplies slightly in September.But the recovery proved short-lived as markets grew sceptical about the report and fretted over sluggish demand.- Fiscal cushion -Analysts said the Gulf nations were likely to remain relatively sanguine about market conditions.I dont think GCC states will be harmed a lot by the drop in oil prices in the short term, Saudi economist Abdullah el-Kuwaiz told AFP.The Gulf nations have based their budgets on an oil price of $80 a barrel or less, said the former senior GCC economic official.Most of the GCC states have built a strong fiscal cushion that allows them to bear the consequences of the price fall, Kuwaiz added.Four GCC states -- Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- together produce 16 million barrels a day, accounting for more than half of the total pumped by the OPEC oil exporters cartel.The other two, Oman and Bahrain, are not members of OPEC.The revenues of the GCC states, mostly from oil, rose from $366 billion in 2009 to $729 billion last year, according to figures from Kuwaiti investment firm KAMCO investments and the IMF.As a result, the GCC states have built fiscal reserves worth a massive $2.45 trillion, accumulated from the oil windfall over the past decade, according to the International Institute of Finance (IIF).- Defending share -Saudi Arabia -- the worlds top crude exporter -- and other Gulf states have repeatedly cut crude prices for the Asian markets and shrugged off calls to reduce production or to hold an emergency OPEC meeting.Statements coming out from Saudi Arabia do not indicate that the kingdom will give up any part of its output to cool the market, said Kuwaiz.According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Saudi Arabia actually increased its output in September to 9.73 million barrels a day, despite the market rumours to the contrary.Riyadh appeared determined to defend its market share, the IEA said.Analysts at the British bank HSBC estimate that Saudi Arabia has enough financial reserves to fund three full years of public spending at the current price.But while they are better placed than other producers such as Russia and Iran to ride out the storm, even the GCC states face a dimming outlook.Kuwaits budget surplus is expected to dive to $3.1 billion this fiscal year, from $45 billion last year, unless prices rebound, said the head of parliaments budgets committee, Adnan Abdulsamad.Kuwaiti Finance Minister Anas al-Saleh called Saturday for economic reforms by the Gulf states to diversify their economies and reduce dependence on oil.Saudi Arabia for its part accounts for 22 percent of OPEC crude reserves, 31 percent of its output and the bulk of the worlds spare production capacity, said Ali Aissaoui, senior consultant at Arab Petroleum Investments Corp.Over time, however, warming Iranian relations with the West and a return to stability in Iraq could lead to production gains that challenge Saudi Arabias leadership, he added.

Dilma Rousseff re-elected president of Brazil

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RIO DE JANEIRO (AFP) - Brazilians narrowly voted leftist President Dilma Rousseff back into office on Sunday after a virulent election campaign that split Latin Americas biggest economy between poor north and richer south.Rousseff, Brazils first woman president, went into the run-off contest as slight favorite and defeated center-right challenger Aecio Neves by around three million votes.With 99 percent of votes counted, she had won a 51.52 percent vote share to 48.48 percent to Neves, the business world favorite. Thankyou very much, Rousseff, 66, tweeted as it became clear she had won. The race to lead the worlds seventh-largest economy was seen as a referendum on 12 years of government by the Workers Party (PT) -- eight under working-class hero Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and four under Rousseff, with voters weighing the PTs social legacy against Nevess promise of economic revival.The bitterness of the campaign, the most vitriolic since democracy was restored in 1985 after two decades of military rule, threatens to leave the country sorely divided.The PT endeared itself to the masses with landmark social programs that have lifted millions from poverty, increased wages and brought unemployment to a record-low 4.9 percent.But the outlook has darkened since Rousseff first took office in 2010, the year economic growth peaked at 7.5 percent.She has presided over rising inflation and a recession this year, amid protests against corruption, record spending on the World Cup and poor public education, health care and transport.Neves vowed to reboot the economy with market-friendly policies while safeguarding the PTs social programs.But Rousseffs supporters cast him as a fat cat who will govern for the upper class and that view looked to have prevailed, Mark Weisbrot of the US Center for Economic and Policy Research told AFP, saying Neves more liberal plans would not have guaranteed badly needed investment.It may seem like the markets are demanding such things, but if they ever got them, they would not react well at all, said Weisbrot, citing the experience of the Eurozone, where the markets had demanded austerity.The resulting triple-dip recession did not attract investment -- rather it repelled investment, Weisbrot said.Rousseff cast her ballot in Porto Alegre, the southern city where she grew up.We are voting for a more equal Brazil with more opportunities, Rousseff said.Neves, 54, gave V for victory signs as he cast his ballot in Belo Horizonte, where he served two terms as governor of Minas Gerais state, insisting that change has already begun.Despite support for her social policies, Rousseff has been hit by corruption scandals, especially a multi-billion-dollar embezzlement scheme implicating dozens of politicians -- mainly her allies -- at state-owned oil giant Petrobras.As the fiery campaign wrapped up, conservative news magazine Veja quoted a suspect in the case as saying Rousseff and Lula personally knew of the scam -- a claim the president vehemently denied.But the issue will dog her, said independent consultant Andre Cesar.If the allegations are confirmed that could spark a political crisis, Cesar told AFP.The graft issue swayed some, but not others.I am voting for Neves. We are fed up with corruption scandals, Roberto Carlos da Silva, a 34-year-old doctor in a chic Sao Paulo suburb, told AFP.But civil servant Maria de Fatima de Oliveira Borges from Brasilia said: Im voting for the PT because I believe in its project of social change.The campaign has been a fierce battle for Rousseff, a former guerrilla once jailed and tortured for fighting the countrys 1964-1985 military regime.First, she had to fend off environmentalist Marina Silva, who exited the first round three weeks ago with 21 percent of the vote to 42 percent for Rousseff and 34 percent for Neves.Silva then endorsed Neves, whose comeback briefly lifted him into first place -- and prompted a furious Rousseff counter-attack.She accused Neves of nepotism as Minas Gerais governor and played up a report that he once hit his then-girlfriend in public.Neves, the grandson of the man elected Brazils first post-dictatorship president, responded by accusing Rousseff of lying and collusion in the Petrobras kickbacks.As well as their president, voters also elected governors in run-offs in 14 states, with Luiz Fernando Pezao of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) -- a Rousseff coalition ally -- winning in Rio de Janeiro.Nationwide 281 people were arrested for election-related irregularities -- one for taking a selfie in the poll booth in Sao Paulo state, while two buses were set on fire in the same state.

Tennis: Murray outlasts Robredo to win Valencia title

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VALENCIA (AFP) - Andy Murray saved five match points to win his third title in the past month by beating Tommy Robredo 3-6, 7-6 (9/7), 7-6 (10/8) in a marathon Valencia Open final on Sunday.Murray had also saved five match points to beat Robredo in the final in Shenzhen last month, but appeared to be suffering from the exertions of playing his 20th match in 28 days when he dropped the first set.However, the Scot somehow ground out the victory as he saved match points in both tie-breaks in the second and third sets to seal his 31st career title in the longest ATP final of the year after three hours and 19 minutes.Victory is also a huge boost to Murrays hopes of making the ATP World Tour finals as he moves up to fifth in the Race to London standings with just the Paris Masters next week to come.Unbelievable match, (hes a) great fighter, said an exhausted Murray.Hes 32 now and in unbelievable shape, hes still improving. I dont know what else to say, but I have a lot of respect for you and Im sorry about today.Robredo, meanwhile, paid tribute to Murrays never say die attitude.He is so tough, he has more lives than a cat. Players like him dont gift you anything, to beat them you have to play a spectacular match, said the world number 21.Robredo seemed on course for his first title in 15 months as he broke a seemingly shattered Murray twice to take the first set.Murray responded by breaking at the start of the second, but Robredo broke back to level at 4-4 and take it into a tie-break.The 32-year-old had his first two chances to close out the match with two match points when 6-5 and 7-6 ahead, but Murray wasnt to be denied as he eventually levelled when Robredo fired long.Murray was on the ropes again in the deciding set as he cramped up and double faulted twice to gift Robredo the break at 4-3.The two-time Grand Slam champion recovered again, though, to break straight back and Robredo had to save a match point himself when serving to stay in the match.Robredo had three more match points in the tie-break, but Murray battled back once more and he finally sealed victory with a backhand winner.

Van Persie rescues 1-1 draw for United vs Chelsea

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MANCHESTER, England (AP) - Robin van Persie rescued Manchester United with a goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time to earn a 1-1 draw with leader Chelsea in the Premier League on Sunday.The Netherlands striker rammed home a loose ball from 10 meters to make amends for his error that helped Chelsea take the lead in the 53rd minute through veteran striker Didier Drogba.Drogba met a corner from Cesc Fabregas with a towering header that should have been kept out by Van Persie, who was supposed to be guarding the near post.Chelsea looked like seeing the game out until right back Branislav Ivanovic was sent off in stoppage time for picking up a second booking for a foul on Angel Di Maria. United scored from the resulting free kick, with Van Persie pouncing after Marouane Fellainis header was parried out by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.Chelseas lead has been cut to four points by surprising Southampton but Jose Mourinhos unbeaten team is now six points ahead of third-place Manchester City, arguably its biggest rival for the title.Still this was an opportunity lost by Chelsea, which threw away two points in Manchester like it did a month ago a month ago when conceding late in a 1-1 at City.Is it a good result? I dont think so, Mourinho said. Was it a good performance? Yes.United stayed 10 points behind Chelsea but is showing great fighting spirit under Louis van Gaal, having also scored late in a 2-2 draw at West Bromwich Albion on Monday.Ive said to the players we could have won, Van Gaal said. And when you can do that again the best team in this league at this moment it is a good sign.I am pleased that they are fighting to the end.A draw was arguably a fair result in a match that pitted two of world footballs best tacticians in Mourinho and Van Gaal, who mentored the Portuguese coach during their time together at Barcelona from 1997-2000.They shared a warm embrace before kickoff for their first head-to-head meeting since the 2010 Champions League final. On that occasion, Mourinhos Inter Milan beat Van Gaals Bayern Munich for a win for the pupil over his master.Four years on, they are widely regarded as two of the most wily, respected managers around and it was always likely to be a tight, tactical affair at Old Trafford. That was how it turned out.The first half ebbed and flowed with each goalkeeper having only one genuine save to make. Courtois spread himself well to deny Van Persie, who had run onto a through-ball from the lively Adnan Januzaj in the 23rd minute as United made the faster start.At the other end, Drogba starting a league game for the first time in his second spell at Chelsea with top scorer Diego Costa and Loic Remy unavailable drove a shot at goal from Oscars cut-back but it was kept out by the feet of David de Gea.De Gea did even better to deny a low shot from Eden Hazard at the start of the second half after the winger dribbled through the heart of the United defense. However, the goalkeeper wasnt helped by the defending from the resulting corner.Drogba drifted to the near post and leapt above the diminutive Rafael de Silva to meet an inswinging cross from Fabregas with a header that flew between Van Persie and the near post. Van Persie had left his position on the post, only to belatedly retreat and was off-balance when the ball went past him.The Dutchman made up for it with his late intervention in the final scheduled minute of injury time.It was not our best performance. Thats a pity, because at this moment you have to show yourself against the better teams, Van Gaal said. But we have created more chances than Chelsea.

Football: South Africa captain shot dead - police

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JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - South Africa captain and goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa was shot dead late Sunday near Johannesburg, a police spokesman told AFP.Lieutenant-General Solomon Makgale said Meyiwa, 27, was shot at a house in Vosloorus, a township about 20 kilometres south of the city, and declared dead on admission to hospital.Makgale said the circumstances surrounding the shooting were unknown and police were at the scene investigating.The South African club also confirmed that the player had been killed.@Orlando_Pirates family has learned with sadness of the untimely death of our number 1 keeper & captain Senzo Meyiwa, the club tweeted.Meyiwa played for the Orlando Pirates in Soweto Saturday and has been in outstanding form for the national team during recent 2015 Africa Cup qualifiers.The death of the national football team captain is the second tragedy to hit South African sport within three days after former world 800-metre champion Mbulaeni Mulaudzi died Friday in a car crash.South Africa team-mates Dean Furman and Andile Jali were among the first to react to the latest tragedy on Twitter.Beyond devastated at the loss of our captain and friend Senzo Meyiwa. Thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this terrible time, tweeted England-based Furman who plays for Doncaster Rovers in the third-tier in the English leagues.Just got a call and I was sleeping, but now I cannot sleep because of what I just heard, said Jali, who moved from Pirates to Belgium this year.After many years in the South African football shadows, Meyiwa had a meteoric climb to fame with club and country.He displaced national squad goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs as first-choice at Pirates, the only South African side to be crowned African champions.And a recent injury to South Africa captain and goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune gave Meyiwa a chance in the national team, popularly known as Bafana Bafana (The Boys).New national coach Ephraim Shakes Mashaba not only promoted Durban-born Meyiwa to replace Khune but also made him captain of a team that has struggled in recent years.Meyiwa responded by leading the team to victories over Sudan and Congo Brazzaville and draws with Congo and Nigeria, a country South Africa traditionally struggle against.He was also made captain of Pirates and helped the club defeat Ajax Cape Town 4-1 Saturday in a South African League Cup quarter-final.The only Ajax attempt that beat Meyiwa came from a penalty kick.

Golf: Streb wins McGladrey Classic in playoff

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SEA ISLAND (AFP) - Robert Streb rolled in a birdie putt on the second playoff hole to beat two others and claim his first USPGA Tour win at The McGladrey Classic on Sunday.The 27-year-old American defeated Zimbabwes Brendon de Jonge and Will MacKenzie, of the US, in the $5.6 million event at the Seaside Course at Sea Island Resort. Streb posted the low round of the day making birdie on four straight holes on the back nine for a seven-under 63. He got in first at 14-under-par 266. De Jonge carded a five-under 65, while MacKenzie shot two-under 68 to join Streb at 14-under.They returned to the 18th hole for the playoff. MacKenzie found a greenside bunker with his approach before Streb and de Jonge hit the green with their second shots.MacKenzies par putt missed and after Streb and de Jonge two-putted for their pars, MacKenzie was knocked out.On the second playoff hole, de Jonge hit his tee shot at the par-three 17th to about 20 feet. Streb then landed his tee ball within four feet. De Jonges birdie try rolled past the edge.Streb drained his birdie putt for his first US Tour win.Last years winner Chris Kirk carded a three-under 67 to move into a share of fourth place at 12-under. He was joined there by Ken Duke (66), Kevin Kisner (65) and Russell Henley (69).Mark Wilson (67), Argentinas Fabian Gomez (68), Andrew Svoboda (71) and Kevin Chappell (65) tied for eighth place at 11-under-par 260.
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