Abbas sees Palestinian unity as Fatah rallies in Gaza

GAZA (Reuters) - President Mahmoud Abbas predicted the end of a five-year split between the two big Palestinian factions as his Fatah movement staged its first mass rally in Gaza with the blessing of Hamas Islamists who rule the enclave.

"Soon we will regain our unity," Abbas, whose authority has been limited to the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the 2007 civil war between the two factions, said in a televised address to hundreds of thousands of followers marching in Gaza on Friday, with yellow Fatah flags instead of the green of Hamas.

The hardline Hamas movement, which does not recognize Israel's right to exist, expelled secular Fatah from Gaza during the war. It gave permission for the rally after the deadlock in peace talks between Abbas's administration and Israel narrowed the two factions' ideological differences.

The Palestinian rivals have drawn closer since Israel's assault on Gaza assault in November, in which Hamas, though battered, claimed victory.

Egypt has long tried to broker Hamas-Fatah reconciliation, but past efforts have foundered over questions of power-sharing, control of weaponry, and to what extent Israel and other powers would accept a Palestinian administration including Hamas.

An Egyptian official told Reuters Cairo was preparing to invite the factions for new negotiations within two weeks.

Israel fears grassroots support for Hamas could eventually topple Abbas's Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank.

"Hamas could seize control of the PA any day," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday.

The demonstration marked 48 years since Fatah's founding as the spearhead of the Palestinians' fight against Israel. Its longtime leader Yasser Arafat signed an interim 1993 peace accord that won Palestinians a measure of self rule.

Hamas, which rejected the 1993 deal, fought and won a Palestinian parliamentary election in 2006. It formed an uneasy coalition with Fatah until their violent split a year later.

Though shunned by the West, Hamas feels bolstered by electoral gains for Islamist movements in neighboring Egypt and elsewhere in the region - a confidence reflected in the fact Friday's Fatah demonstration was allowed to take place.

"The success of the rally is a success for Fatah, and for Hamas too," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri. "The positive atmosphere is a step on the way to regain national unity."

Fatah, meanwhile, has been riven by dissent about the credibility of Abbas's statesmanship, especially given Israel's continued settlement-building on West Bank land. The Israelis quit Gaza unilaterally in 2005 after 38 years of occupation.

"The message today is that Fatah cannot be wiped out," said Amal Hamad, a member of the group's ruling body, referring to the demonstration attended by several Abbas advisers. "Fatah lives, no one can exclude it and it seeks to end the division."

In his speech, Abbas promised to return to Gaza soon and said Palestinian unification would be "a step on the way to ending the (Israeli) occupation".

(Editing by Dan Williams, Alistair Lyon and Jason Webb)

Read More..

Football: Perth Glory in talks with Owen

SYDNEY: Perth Glory are in talks with the management of Michael Owen about bringing the former England player to Australia's A-League, reports said Saturday.

Owen, 33, who scored 40 goals in 89 internationals for England and had stints at Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester United, is currently playing for Stoke City in the English Premier League.

Glory have one spare position in their squad for an international player after releasing Irish striker Billy Mehmet this week and do not have a marquee player.

The West Australian newspaper said if Owen was recruited as the club's marquee player, his wages would not be included in the competition's salary cap.

A Glory spokesman confirmed the club was interested in securing Owen's services, but said negotiations were in their infancy.

"Michael Owen's agent has enquired about Michael playing in the A-League," the spokesman told the newspaper.

"Perth Glory are interested but are yet to find out Michael's terms and conditions.

"Until these are known, Perth Glory will not enter any further negotiations."

If Owen joins Glory he will become the fourth high-profile international player in this season's A-League, along with Italy's Alessandro Del Piero, Japan's Shinji Ono and England striker Emile Heskey.

- AFP/fa

Read More..

IonMonkey delivers a faster Firefox

Firefox JavaScript performance on Mozilla's own Kraken benchmark.

(Credit:
Mozilla)

A new version of Firefox released today puts some extra speed into online games and Web apps powered by JavaScript, thanks to a new compiler called IonMonkey.

Mozilla stated in a blog post announcing the update to
Firefox 18 (download for Windows | Mac | Linux) that the new engine makes JavaScript-powered Web sites run up to 25 percent faster than before.

Firefox will now look better on Macs thanks to new Retina support, and all versions of the browser work with W3C touch screen events in addition to MozTouch events.

One security change to the browser lets you disable insecure content at will on HTTPS-secured Web sites, but you can do this only via about:config. The browser now includes built-in PDF reading and early support for WebRTC, which lays the groundwork for giving Firefox the ability to perform voice calls, power video chats, and run P2P apps without plug-ins.

Firefox for Android (download) now offers search suggestions as you type in the location bar to speed up the search process. Mozilla has taken some steps to protect your privacy, though, so the first time you type into the location bar to search, the browser will ask you to opt-in to search suggestions.

Firefox JavaScript performance on Google's V8 benchmark.

(Credit:
Mozilla)

The company noted in its blog post announcing the updates that the searches are also conducted over a secure connection.

Firefox for
Android will now warn you when you visit Web sites that may be used for phishing or malware distribution. This is a common feature on desktop browsers and is a feature that
mobile browsers are likely to get as they become more popular.

Read More..

At least 3 killed after small plane hits home in Fla.

A scene of a plane crash in Palm Coast, Florida, Jan. 4, 2013. / CBS/WKMG/Flagler Live

PALM COAST, Fla. Authorities say at least three people are dead after a small plane crashed into a house while trying to land at a central Florida airport.

The Florida Highway Patrol confirmed the deaths Friday afternoon.

The Federal Aviation Administration says the pilot reported mechanical problems shortly after 2 p.m. Friday. The Beechcraft BE35, which had three people onboard, had been heading to Downtown Island Airport in Knoxville, Tenn., but diverted to the Flagler County Airport. FAA officials didn't immediately know where the plane took off.

The Flagler County Sheriff's Office reports that the plane hit a Palm Coast home just east of the airport a few minutes after the pilot's call. The house caught fire and the home's owner was taken to a nearby hospital in stable condition.

Read More..

Obama Poised to Name New Defense, Treasury Chiefs

With the "fiscal cliff" crisis behind him, President Obama is poised to name two new key players to his cabinet, with both announcements expected to come next week.

Obama will name the replacement for outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta as soon as Monday, sources told ABC News. Former Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel is the likely nominee, they said.

Meanwhile, the president is also eyeing a replacement for outgoing Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, the longest-serving member of Obama's first-term economic team and one-time lead negotiator for the administration in the "fiscal cliff" talks.

Current chief of staff Jack Lew is all but certain to get the nod for Treasury, according to people familiar with Obama's thinking.

A White House spokesman cautioned that the president has not yet made a final decision on either post, calling reports about Hagel and Lew "merely guessing."

Still, when Obama returns from his Hawaiian vacation on Sunday, he's expected to waste little time filling out his team for a second term.

Geithner has said he would remain at his post "until around the inauguration" Jan. 20, a Treasury spokesperson said Thursday, putting the department potentially in transition just as the administration confronts the next financial "cliffs" over automatic spending cuts and the nation's debt limit.

Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images

3 Dead After Plane Crashes Into Florida Home Watch Video

Pilot Arrested After Failing Breathalyzer Test Watch Video

Colorado Police Officers on Leave After Killing Elk Watch Video

During an appearance on ABC's "This Week" in April, Geithner said the next Treasury secretary would need to be someone who is "willing to tell [Obama] the truth and, you know, help him do the tough things you need to do."

Lew, a former two-time Office of Management and Budget director and trusted Obama confidant who has held the chief of staff role since early 2012, is the front-runner for the job.

Meanwhile, Sen. John Kerry -- Obama's nominee to replace outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton -- has begun making more regular appearances at the U.S. State Department before his expected confirmation later this month.

His Senate hearings are set to begin shortly after Obama's inauguration, sources say. The administration still expects Clinton to testify about the Sept. 11 Benghazi, Libya, attacks before Kerry is confirmed.

But it is the potential nomination of Republican Hagel that has caused the most stir.

Critics from across the political spectrum have taken aim at the former senator from Nebraska's record toward Israel and what some have called a lack of experience necessary to lead the sprawling Pentagon bureaucracy or its operations. The controversy has set the stage for what would be a contentious confirmation process.

"A lot of Republicans and Democrats are very concerned about Chuck Hagel's position on Iran sanctions, his views toward Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah, and that there is wide and deep concern about his policies," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told "Fox News Sunday."

He would not say whether Republicans felt so strongly as to expect a filibuster of the nomination.

"I can tell you there would be very little Republican support for his nomination," Graham said. "At the end of the day, they will be very few votes."

Still, Hagel, 66, a former businessman and decorated veteran who served in the Vietnam War, has won praise and admiration from current and former diplomats for his work on Obama's Intelligence Advisory Board and Panetta's Policy Advisory Board.

Read More..

Eleven dead in Damascus gas station blast

AZAZ, Syria (Reuters) - At least 11 people were killed and 40 wounded when a car bomb exploded at a crowded petrol station in the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday, opposition activists said.

The station was packed with people queuing for fuel that has become increasingly scarce during the country's 21-month-long insurgency aimed at overthrowing President Bashar al-Assad.

The semi-official al-Ikhbariya television station showed footage of 10 burnt bodies and Red Crescent workers searching for victims at the site.

The opposition Revolution Leadership Council in Damascus said the explosion was caused by a booby-trapped car.

There was no immediate indication of who was responsible for the bombing in the Barzeh al-Balad district, whose residents include members of the Sunni Muslim majority and other religious and ethnic minorities.

"The station is usually packed even when it has no fuel," said an opposition activist who did not want to be named. "There are lots of people who sleep there overnight, waiting for early morning fuel consignments."

It was the second time that a petrol station has been hit in Damascus this week. Dozens of people were incinerated in an air strike as they waited for fuel on Wednesday, according to opposition sources.

In northern Syria, rebels were battling to seize an air base in their campaign against the air power that Assad has used to bomb rebel-held towns.

More than 60,000 people have been killed in the uprising and civil war, the United Nations said this week, a much higher death toll than previously thought.

DRAMATIC ADVANCES

After dramatic advances over the second half of 2012, the rebels now hold wide swathes of territory in the north and east, but they cannot protect towns and villages from Assad's helicopters and jets.

Hundreds of rebel fighters were attempting to storm the Taftanaz air base, near the highway that links Syria's two main cities, Aleppo and Damascus.

A rebel fighter speaking from near the Taftanaz base overnight said much of the base was still in loyalist hands but insurgents had managed to destroy a helicopter and a fighter jet on the ground.

The northern rebel Idlib Coordination Committee said the rebels had detonated a car bomb inside the base.

The government's SANA news agency said the base had not fallen and that the military had "strongly confronted an attempt by the terrorists to attack the airport from several axes, inflicting heavy losses among them and destroying their weapons and munitions".

Rami Abdulrahman, head of the opposition-aligned Syrian Observatory for Human Rights which monitors the conflict from Britain, said as many as 800 fighters were involved in the assault, including Islamists from Jabhat al-Nusra, a powerful group that Washington considers terrorists.

Taftanaz is mainly a helicopter base, used for missions to resupply army positions cut off by the rebels, as well as for dropping crude "barrel bombs" on rebel-controlled areas.

Near Minakh, another northern air base that rebels have surrounded, government forces have retaliated by shelling and bombing nearby towns.

NIGHTLY BOMBARDMENTS

In the town of Azaz, where the bombardment has become a near nightly occurrence, shells hit a family house overnight. Zeinab Hammadi said her two wounded daughters, aged 10 and 12, had been rushed across the border to Turkey, one with her brain exposed.

"We were sleeping and it just landed on us in the blink of an eye," she said, weeping as she surveyed the damage.

Family members tried to salvage possessions from the wreckage, men lifting out furniture and children carrying out their belongings in tubs.

"He (Assad) wants revenge against the people," said Abu Hassan, 33, working at a garage near the destroyed house. "What is the fault of the children? Are they the ones fighting?"

Opposition activists said warplanes struck a residential building in another rebel-held northern town, Hayyan, killing at least eight civilians.

Video footage showed men carrying dismembered bodies of children and dozens of people searching for victims in the rubble. The provenance of the video could not be independently confirmed.

In addition to their tenuous grip on the north, the rebels also hold a crescent of suburbs on the edge of Damascus, which have come under bombardment by government forces that control the center of the capital.

On Wednesday, according to opposition activists, dozens of people died in an inferno caused by an air strike on a petrol station in a Damascus suburb where residents were lining up for fuel.

The civil war in Syria has become the longest and bloodiest of the conflicts that rose out of uprisings across the Arab world in the past two years.

Assad's family has ruled for 42 years since his father seized power in a coup. The war pits rebels, mainly from the Sunni Muslim majority, against a government supported by members of Assad's Shi'ite-derived Alawite minority sect and some members of other minorities who fear revenge if he falls.

The West, most Sunni-ruled Arab states and Turkey have called for Assad to step down. He is supported by Russia and Shi'ite Iran.

(Additional reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis in Amman and Dominic Evans in Beirut; Writing by Peter Graff; Editing by Ruth Pitchford and Giles Elgood)

Read More..

Football: Lampard braced for season-end Chelsea exit, says agent

LONDON: Frank Lampard will definitely leave Chelsea at the end of the season, the England international's agent confirmed Thursday, but he will not be tempted to see out his career in China.

The 34-year-old Lampard is into the final months of his contract with the European champions and a new deal has yet to be agreed.

"At the moment, Frank is only thinking of the present. As far as the future is concerned, the only thing that is certain is that his team will change at the end of the season," agent Steve Kutner told www.Cittaceleste.it.

"Frank wants to play for a great team, fight for important goals and win other trophies.

"A player of his calibre should continue playing at the highest level. Serie A could be more than just a possibility," added Kutner, who insisted that a move to China or Russia was not on the agenda.

Los Angeles Galaxy, Chinese Super League side Guizhou Renhe and Premier League strugglers QPR have all been recently linked with a move for Lampard.

-AFP/ac

Read More..

Windows 8 gains market share in December

Desktop market share in December 2012. The Windows 8 Touch market share -- 0.05 percent -- has been included in Other, bringing the Windows 8 total to 1.77 percent.

(Credit:
Net Applications)

Despite a mixed reaction to its arrival at the end of October, Windows 8 continued to grow in market share by the end of December 2012.

New desktop market share numbers released by Net Applications show that
Windows 8 jumped from 1.06 percent market share at the end of its first full month on the market to 1.77 percent by the end of December. That's a month-to-month jump of almost 60 percent. Note that these numbers include Windows 8 and Windows 8 on touch screens, but not Windows RT.

For what it's worth, the feature-limited Windows RT claimed 0.01 percent of global market share during the same time period. However, CNET sister site ZDNET also noted that the Surface RT is the most popular single device running either Windows 8 or Windows RT. This isn't a surprise, though, as none of the new Windows 8 or Windows RT devices has gotten the singular push that the Surface RT has.

Other market share shifts included a slight decrease for Macs, a bump for
Windows 7. Most importantly for Microsoft, this is the first time since February 2012 that overall Windows market share has seen an uptick, from 91.45 percent to 91.74 percent.

Read More..

Veteran's improbable survival gives heart to shell-shocked surgeon

(CBS News) AUBURN, Ala. -- The carnage Lee Warren encountered in the combat hospital at Balad, Iraq, in 2005 was like nothing he had ever seen as a neurosurgeon. And no patient was worse-off than a soldier brought in by helicopter after being hit by a roadside bomb.

"I unwrapped his head in the emergency room and looked at him and thought he was dead," Warren says.

He was, Warren later wrote, "one of the most horrifically injured people I have ever operated on."

"His scalp and the front part of his face was all gone, and then I could see his frontal lobe on the left side sort of protruding out onto his face," he says. "His brain was exposed and hanging out."

After four hours in surgery, Warren and three other doctors managed to get him on a medevac flight out of Iraq still alive. Warren called the soldier's father but could offer little hope.

"I just didn't see how anybody with that injury could survive," he says.

Warren left the military and started a successful practice, but he had nightmares about all the wounded soldiers whose fates he never learned.

Finally, he faced his demons by opening a trunk he had brought back from Iraq. He found bullets and shrapnel he had pulled from brains and a thumb-drive with files of his cases, including the soldier with that horrible head wound. Warren looked him up online.

Veterans turn to music therapy to reintegrate into civilian life
Intimacy lost: Veteran and his wife speak out on hidden toll of war
Caregivers of U.S. veterans bear scars of war

"And he popped up on a CBS interview -- very much alive and well," Warren says.

Army Spc. Paul Statzer

/

CBS News

He was Army Spc. Paul Statzer, and CBS had met him at Walter Reed Army Medical Center six months after he was hit.

He took off his helmet to show his injuries. Statzer had lost part of his frontal lobe but was still cogent.

"I'm a little slow on certain things but not that bad," he said at the time.

Asked what lesson a brain surgeon can draw from Statzer's case, Warren says, "The power of the human spirit and -- and indomitable faith can do a lot, sometimes more than I can with my two hands."

Over the years, Paul Statzer has suffered multiple infections and seizures. He's not able to work, and he's not up for another television interview. But when they met, he told the surgeon who thought he would never make it that he is up for living.

"That was one of the questions I asked him: 'Are you happy?' and he said, 'Yeah,' and he said, 'Thanks for saving me,'" Warren says.

And with that, the patient helped save the doctor from his own demons of Iraq.

Read More..

James Holmes Defense: Was He Insane?

Jan 3, 2013 5:30pm

James Holmes appears in court, Centennial, Colo., July 23, 2012. RJ Sangosti/AP Images.

ABC’s Clayton Sandell and Carol McKinley report:

A judge ruled Thursday that public defenders for accused Colorado theater shooting suspect James Holmes can call two unidentified witnesses at next week’s preliminary hearing to testify about the defendant’s “mental state.”

Arapahoe County, Colo. prosecutors had sought to keep the witnesses out of court, but Judge William Sylvester ruled that the now-25-year-old accused killer has a right to call the witnesses at a preliminary hearing.

The Jan. 7 preliminary hearing will essentially be a mini-trial in which prosecutors will present witness testimony and evidence to convince the judge that there is enough of a case against Holmes to proceed to a trial.

Witnesses to be called for the prosecution include the Aurora police lead detective, first responders, the Arapahoe County coroner and likely a computer forensic specialist, according to prosecution sources who declined to be identified, citing a gag order in the case.

A top priority, the prosecution sources say, will be showing that Holmes acted with premeditation when he allegedly murdered 12 people and wounded 58 on the night of July 20 during a midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Rises.”

Defense attorneys may pursue a legal strategy to show that Holmes was not in his right mind at the time of the shooting.

Holmes, who has not yet entered a plea, has been repeatedly described in court by his legal team as mentally ill. While a graduate student at the University of Colorado, he was in the care of a psychiatrist.

Prosecutors say they will also present photos, video and 911 calls during the hearing, which is expected to last all week.

It’s not clear what the two witnesses’ relationship is to the shooting, or to Holmes.

Prosecutors, Judge Sylvester’s order says, contend that “neither witness has personal knowledge of the events at the Century Aurora 16 Theater.”

Sylvester said the witnesses are non-expert “lay witnesses” who have so far chosen not to be interviewed by defense investigators but have been cooperating with law enforcement.

SHOWS: World News

Read More..