PAKISTAN: At least 80 dead in an attack to avenge the death of bin Laden

AFP - Two suicide bombers killed Friday at least 80 people by detonating bombs in the middle of police cadets who went on leave in the north-west Pakistan, the Taliban is claiming a "first attack" in revenge for Osama bin Laden.

These insurgents, who have pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda and making an extremely deadly bombing campaign in Pakistan, had promised reprisals against Islamabad and its security forces, whom they accuse of complicity in the deadly U.S. raid Ben Laden 11 days ago in the north.

At dawn, Shabqadar, a village northwest, a suicide bomber on a motorcycle detonated his bomb when the cadets, who were dressed in their civilian clothes, were preparing to board the minibus to take them home for 10 days of leave, told AFP Nisar Khan Marwat, the police chief of District Charsadda.

The blast targeted a training center of the Frontier Constabulary, a paramilitary police unit responsible for monitoring the borders.

Then, just as police and rescue workers had gathered to help the wounded, another suicide bomber on a motorcycle led a second massacre.

"At least 80 people died, 69 members of the Frontier Constabulary, and 11 civilians," said Bashir Ahmed Bilour, minister without portfolio in the province of Pakhtunkhwa-Khyber, where the tragedy occurred. Over 140 others were injured, one quarantine between life and death, according to medical sources.

"I was sitting in a minibus and waited for my colleagues," he told AFP Ahmad Ali, a cadet injured contacted by telephone to the hospital."I heard someone shout 'Allah Akbar!" (God is greatest!) Before a loud explosion, "he recalls.

"Then I heard a second, so I jumped from the van, I was bleeding," recalls Ahmad Ali yet.

This is the deadliest attack this year in Pakistan.

"This is a first action to avenge the martyrdom of Osama, it was conducted by two of our fighters," said the telephone to AFP Ehsanullah Ehsan, a spokesman for the Movement of Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

"Expect more massive attacks in Pakistan and Afghanistan," he threatened.

TTP, which has pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda in 2007, is primarily responsible for the wave of more than 450 attacks, mostly suicide, who made more than 4.300 deaths across the country in nearly four years. In summer 2007, right after bin Laden himself, TTP had declared jihad on Islamabad for supporting Washington in its "war against terrorism."

Shabqadar is located near the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, Pakistani Taliban stronghold and the main sanctuary in the world of Al Qaeda.These areas are also the basis behind the Afghan Taliban, Haqqani Network in particular, bete noire of American soldiers who make up two thirds of international forces in Afghanistan.

Training camps of the Pakistani Taliban in the tribal areas are also used by Al Qaeda, who are then trained its suicide bombers who perpetrated the attacks or attempted to commit the United States or Europe, those of September 11, 2001 to those in London in 2005, to Madrid in 2004, and Times Square in New York in 2010.

It is in these mountainous border regions Experts believed ten years to find Bin Laden and not in the tidy town of Abbottabad garrison, two hours drive north of Islamabad.

That's when a lightning raid of 79 elite U.S. soldiers had dug in and killed the night of 1 to May 2

This unilateral operation performed under the auspices of the CIA who said he had not wanted to warn Islamabad for fear of leaks, has sparked a new skirmish between Washington and its allies.

The most senior U.S. officials asked Pakistan to investigate how could bin Laden into hiding for several years without complicity at the highest level in a garrison town populated by about 10,000 soldiers.Charges that Islamabad has described as "absurd", claiming that Pakistan is the country that pays the heaviest price for the "war against terrorism", with the bombing campaign of al-Qaeda loyalists.

Public opinion is overwhelmingly anti-American, whereas the U.S. has "imported" their war against Al Qaeda in Pakistan after an abortive campaign in Afghanistan.

Additional signs of defiance, Islamabad, Washington has threatened Thursday to reconsider its cooperation in fighting terrorism, and number 2 of the Pakistani Army, General Khalid Shameem Wynne, overturned Friday a planned visit to the United States "because of the climate prevail ".

MOROCCO: AQIM denies his involvement in the fatal attack Marrakech

AFP - Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has denied any involvement in the fatal attack April 28 in Marrakech, Morocco, in a statement broadcast by a private agency Mauritanian information online, Nouakchott Information Agency ( ANI).

In this text, dated Friday published in Arabic, AQIM recalls the attack that killed 17 people, including 8 French and then the information released by the Moroccan authorities describing the main suspect as "an admirer of al-Qaida."

"We deny any connection with the explosion and say no way being involved in this operation," says the regional branch of the Islamist network.

This statement could not immediately be authenticated but the NIA has regularly published in the past releases or statements from members of AQIM have never been disproved.

FRANCE: The bodies of victims of the attack in Marrakesh returnees in Paris

AFP - The bodies of eight French killed in the attack in Marrakesh, which killed 16 people April 28, were repatriated Tuesday in France, where President Sarkozy paid tribute to them and promised their families that "crime" would not "go unpunished".

The plane carrying the body, chartered by the French state, landed shortly before 5:00 p.m. Tuesday at Orly.

The eight coffins draped with the tricolor flag were aligned on the tarmac.Nicolas Sarkozy, came with his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, welcomed the families and relatives, then was collected before the coffins before the Republican Guard n'entonne La Marseillaise.

In a very personal speech, in which each victim, including a 10 year old girl, Camille, was mentioned by name, the Head of State promised that the "crime" of the attack would not remain "unpunished" .

"France, I say here I say it before returning the bodies of eight French with a little girl of ten years, I say to you who will now have to live with this pain but with this terrible feeling inside ourselves tonight, France will not let this crime go unpunished, "Sarkozy said.

"Terrorists, my dear compatriots, now know they will have no respite, nowhere, never.Wherever they are, wherever they are hiding they are sought after, followed the trail, flushed out by all means and they will be accountable for their crimes, "he said in an allusion to the death of Chief Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, who was killed Sunday by U.S. commandos in Pakistan.

After his speech, the President spoke about thirty minutes with families in honor of the flag of the airport.

In the morning at the Marrakech airport, shortly before the departure of the plane to Paris, the families had gathered in the intimate, attended by the Moroccan Interior Minister Taieb Cherkaoui, and French diplomats.

"I have a hatred of terrorists, terrorists are not the defenders of Islam", told the press the father of a victim who did not give his name.

A remote-controlled bomb blew coffee on April 28, the Argana, on the Jamaa El Fna, the Mecca of tourism in Marrakech, killing 16 dead and 21 wounded.

Besides the eight French, three Moroccans, a Briton, a Canadian, a Dutchman, one Portuguese and one Swiss were killed in the attack, the deadliest in Morocco since 2003.

The attack was not claimed, and no arrests have been announced, but the involvement of the likes of Al Qaeda in the region was discussed.

The Moroccan authorities have reiterated Monday that they favored the track Al Qaeda."We're still on the track announced that conjured up acquaintances with Al-Qaeda," he told AFP spokesman Khalid Naciri government.

The day of the attack, King Mohammed VI had ordered a prompt and transparent investigation and asked that the public is kept informed of its progress.

Among the tracks contained the sketch of a suspect to statements made by two Dutch tourists.It would be an Arab, young, clean shaven and with long hair who was seen at the Cafe Argana, minutes before the explosion.

All the French wounded in the attack have been repatriated to France, said Tuesday the embassy of France. The latter have been medicalized in two planes Tuesday morning.

NIGERIA - PRESIDENTIAL: Victory Goodluck Jonathan backdrop of riots in the North

The outgoing leader Goodluck Jonathan, won the presidential election in Nigeria, shaken Monday by rioting in the predominantly Muslim north, where the dead were enrgistrées.

Result of the 36 states of the Nigerian federation, the federal capital Abuja over, give 22 million votes out against 12 million in the second, a former military junta leader, Muhammadu Buhari, according to full results released Monday by the Electoral Commission National.

Jonathan also won over 25 per cent of the votes in more than two-thirds of the 36 states, a necessary condition for being declared the winner in the first round.

But the victory of Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian South, led to riots in the Muslim north.

"Deaths have been reported," particularly in Kano and in the neighboring state of Kaduna, said a security official, Yushau Shuaib, unable to give a more accurate assessment.

In a country marked by deep divisions and regional community, the rioters burned the house of Vice President Namadi Sambo in Zaria, Kaduna State, and that of the emir of the city, according to one resident.They also released many detainees.

"The protesters burned the residence of the Vice-President, the palace of the emir, before attacking the jail," said Mahmud Aliyu by telephone.

The first violence erupted Sunday after the vote, provoked by accusations of fraud against the camp of Mr. Jonathan.

Monday, they were still burning in Kano, the second largest city, and had won Jos in the Centre, and other cities.

In Kano, mobs armed with clubs, knives and boards faced soldiers, a shopping center was burned and shops and schools were closed.A curfew twenty-four hours was imposed in the neighboring state of Kaduna.

The crowd supported Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim North unsuccessful rival for the presidency of Jonathan, also attacked two suspected Christians.

In the city of Potiskum in Yobe State, north-east, witnesses reported that the crowd had tried to sacrifice a Christian passing a flaming tire around the neck but she was saved by residents.

"Young people set fires in the streets and burning the houses of supporters of the ruling party. Soldiers were called.The streets are deserted except for the demonstrators, "said one resident, Kabiru Usman.

Violence has also been reported in the cities of Kaduna, Zaria and Sokoto in the north, and Jos in the Centre, which marks the frontier between Christian and Muslim majorities and scene of frequent sectarian violence.

The main opposition party, Congress for Democratic Change which Mr.Buhari was the candidate has formally objected to the irregularities of the presidential result.

These accusations are contained in a complaint sent to the electoral commission said the party chairman, Tony Momoh.

Before the end of the count, the commission on Monday gave an advance Goodluck Jonathan as he is assured of winning. He came first in 22 of the 36 states of the federation with more than 21 million votes against 9,000,000 for Mr. Buhari, former head of a military junta in 1984-1985.

Although in general, observers judged the election on Saturday more honest than previous results in abnormally high for Mr.Jonathan, in its strongholds of South Christian, have cast doubt: the state of Akwa Ibom State gave him 95% of the vote and that of Bayelsa, his home state, 99.63%.

"Such figures above 95% seem invented and raise serious questions about the credibility of the election," said Jibrin Ibrahim of the NGO Centre for Democracy and Development.

These results confirmed a clear division between the pro-Muslim north and Christian south Buhari pro-Jonathan.

In the North, many hoped a victory by Mr.Buhari, 69, to revive a North economically marginalized by the oil rich south of the country's most populous country.

Goodluck Jonathan, 53, is a candidate of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) won the first round every presidential since the end of military rule in 1999.

LIBYA: The insurgents forced back towards the town of Ben Jawad

Syria: The government has submitted his resignation to President Bashar al-Assad, who accepted it. Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Otri, who headed the government since 2003, has been charged with handling current business. The composition of the new government should be known by the end of the week. Bashar al-Assad will address the nation Wednesday for the first time since the start of the contest. Libya: The insurgents were repulsed by Ben Jawad, east of Sirte, the hometown of Muammar Gaddafi, the cons-offensive by the armed forces. The latter are accused of killing at least 142 people in their offensive in Misrata, according to a doctor at the hospital in the city.Two loud explosions also rocked Tripoli in the area of ​​residence of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and seven others were heard in Tajura, a suburb east of the capital, according to an AFP reporter and witnesses. United Kingdom: A forty countries and organizations met in London in the wake of military strikes in Libya have shown their unity to build the country's political future around an almost unanimous conclusion: "Gaddafi has to leave."
Among them, the United States, France and the United Kingdom, but several Arab countries, including Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Qatar, Tunisia, Turkey and the UAE.

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SOMALIA: Allied forces take over a position insurgents Shebab

The pro-government forces resumed Saturday Somali control of a border town with Kenya as part of a major offensive against insurgents Shebab has caused many deaths in the ranks of the African Union force in Mogadishu .

Saturday morning, a coalition of allied forces in TFG troops chased the insurgent town of Bulo Hawo, located on the border with Kenya and Ethiopia, according to several sources.

"We have total control" of the city, told the press Khalif Abdi Mohamed, head of the local district.

Shebab a commander, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the withdrawal of insurgent fighters in the city Saturday, but added that it was a strategic withdrawal.

"We will resume Bulo Hawo.Shebab troops who have withdrawn for military reasons are not far away, "he said.

The Shebab, who profess allegiance to Al Qaeda, control most of southern and central Somalia and vowed the loss of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) backed by the international community.

The pro-government troops who retook the city are made up of militiamen led by local warlord Barre Shire Hirale and members of the armed group Jamaa wal Sunnah Sufi Ahlu, supported, according to several security sources interviewed by AFP, by elements of the Ethiopian army who carried out artillery fire during the fighting.

Bulo Hawo, which adjoins the Kenyan town of Mandera, had already been taken to Shebab in October 2010 before being abandoned a few weeks later by pro-government forces on substantive disagreements with the TFG.

The recent fighting in Bulo Hawo were triggered at the same time as the offensive by government forces and African Union force (AMISOM) in Mogadishu from 19 February.

The simultaneous opening of these fronts - a third was opened in Beledweyne (center-west) - is it seems to stretch the lines Shebab and prevent them from concentrating all their troops in Mogadishu.

After controlling a network of trenches and tunnels in Mogadishu, used by insurgents for their supply and infiltration operations, the TFG forces and the Burundian contingent of AMISOM had delivered Feb. 23 to resume a bloody battle strategic positions in the north of the city.

According to military sources corroborating Amisom recorded in this offensive the biggest losses since its deployment in March 2007, well beyond the eight deaths officially accepted by the force.

"The official date given is completely false.In fact, 43 soldiers of the Burundian contingent of AMISOM were killed, four others were missing and 110 were wounded during the latest offensive joint Somali government in Mogadishu-Amisom, "he told AFP a military source Mogadishu, who requested anonymity, contacted by telephone.

A senior Amisom and the commander of the force refused Saturday to Nairobi to reveal the exact number of casualties in their ranks, preferring to emphasize the importance of the positions listed the insurgents, including the building of the former Ministry of Defence, which dominates the north of the capital, and the former dairy plant.

"The positions we have conquered the past two weeks break the grip of militant extremists in Mogadishu," has provided to the press Wafula Wamunyinyi, deputy representative for Somalia of the Committee of the African Union.

UNITED KINGDOM: The trial of Julian Assange ends this Friday

AFP - Julian Assange arrived Friday mid-morning at Belmarsh court in east London, who must complete the review of the request for extradition to Sweden by the founder of Wikileaks in a case of alleged rape, has a journalist from AFP.

The Australian of 39 years was accompanied by three of his lawyers.

The court must hear from 10.30am (local time and GMT) the conclusions of the defense and prosecution in this case.

The court in Belmarsh, which began to address this matter on Monday, the hearing was originally scheduled to close Tuesday, but the intervention of the witnesses called by the defense was longer than expected.

Justice will rule on the admissibility of extradition made by Sweden.The use is, however, that in such cases, the decision is taken under advisement.

Mr. Assange is claimed by the Swedish court in a case of alleged rapes and sexual assaults on two women during a stay in Sweden in August. He has always denied the charges against him.

His lawyers argue in particular that the fact that the Swedish court wants to question does not justify his extradition. They also argue that the warrant of arrest for their client was disproportionate, and that the charges against Mr.Assange are not crimes under British law.

Arrested in early December in London, founder of Wikileaks has lived for two months on parole in England.

His supporters say the charges against him were intended to discredit the work of its website Wikileaks, which was published last year many secret U.S. documents that have embarrassed Washington. Following the dissemination of American diplomatic telegrams, Wikileaks had been victim of several cyber-attacks last December.

Release of twenty Cuban dissidents, including cyberjournalist Guillermo Farinas

AFP - Police on Thursday released the Cuban opponent Guillermo Farinas, 2010 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament and a score of dissidents in custody after seven hours in Santa Clara in the center of the island , said Mr. Farinas told AFP.

"We are free. They had us arrested for coming to the aid of a family they wanted to remove.The opposition should devote themselves to peaceful protests of citizens such as we have done, "said the opponent by telephone from Santa Clara, 280 km east of Havana.

This cyberjournalist psychologist and 48 years, who had observed a hunger strike for 135 days last year, was renewed by the police at his home around midnight and ensure they were not mistreated.

"The police wanted us to sign a recognition of pre-criminal social dangerousness + +, but we did not.After three such, they can introduce you to court, "Farinas said.

The police justified the arrest by the "scandal" that opponents led by haranguing the authorities, while trying to evict a family who illegally occupied housing, he said.

Farinas had stopped eating to demand the release of political prisoners after the death of prisoner of conscience Orlando Zapata Tamayo, 23 February 2010, after 85 days of hunger strike to protest against his conditions of detention.

He had ended his fast after 135 days when the government of Raul Castro, had begun an unexpected dialogue with the Church and allowed the release of 52 of the 75 dissidents arrested in 2003.

Forty-one of them have since been released. Forty agreed to leave the country and went to Madrid and one remained in Cuba.The eleven remaining refuse to emigrate to Spain and are held in prison.

The Cuban government accuses Farinas behavior "antisocial" and considers it, like other dissidents as "mercenaries" of the United States.

Farinas was represented by an empty chair at the Sakharov prize last December 15 in Strasbourg (north-eastern France), permission to travel having been refused.

Military training, a native of Santa Clara and son of two ardent revolutionary, he had distanced himself from the regime in 1989, opposing the execution of General Arnaldo Ochoa, accused of drug trafficking.

Became an opposition activist has been imprisoned three times before police custody on Wednesday and said he observed 23 hunger strikes since 1990.