GAZA CITY, Palestine (AFP) -- When gunmen burst into Gaza's Palestine Bank on Monday and demanded a quarter of a million dollars the branch manager had to give in -- he couldn't say no to the police.

The incident in Gaza City took place when police run by the Islamist Hamas movement went to impose a court order unfreezing the assets of a health charity at the heart of a bitter factional dispute.

 

When the Friends of the Patient Society, which operates a small hospital in the impoverished territory, was taken over by Hamas earlier this year the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank blocked the assets.

A Gaza court run by Hamas then ordered the assets unfrozen and police were dispatched Monday to enforce it, putting them in the odd position of barging into a bank and asking it to hand over the dough.

"Police carried out a court order today in favour of the Friends of the Patient Society," police spokesman Ayman al-Batniji said.

"In the beginning there were some problems, but then the branch manager cooperated and implemented the order," he added.

An official at the Palestine Bank confirmed the police had taken around one million shekels (US$270,000, 200,000 euros) "by force" and said the lender had suspended operations in protest.

Hamas and the secular Fatah movement of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas have been split into geographically separated hostile camps since Hamas's *lo**y takeover of Gaza in June 2007.

Since then the factional tensions have seeped into nearly all public institutions, giving rise to rival ministries, agencies and organisations in the two territories.

Nearly all Gaza banks are still governed by the Palestine Monetary Authority in the West Bank and boycott Gaza's Hamas-run government.

They facilitate the payment of salaries to Palestinian Authority civil servants, who also boycott Hamas.

POLICE in Spanish Town, St Catherine, are keeping a close watch on a newly formed criminal network, which they fear could become as organised as the deadly One Order and Klansman gangs -- both based in the old capital.

Superintendent Assan Thompson, anti-crime chief for the St Catherine North Division, said the 'No Order' or the 'Lion Paw' gang is a break-away faction of the One Order gang, based in lower March Pen Road.

But its members, he said, back both the One Order and Klansman gangs -- providing guns, money and other resources to both groups.

The One Order gang aligns itself with the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), while Klansman is supportive of the Opposition People's National Party.

"No order is supportive of the JLP (Jamaica Labour Party) but they take no directives from the One Order gang," said Thompson. "They maintain their own leadership and get along with the Klansman people a little better than One Order, which is totally opposed [to Klansman]," he continued.

According to Thompson, No Order members tend to stay out of the conflict between One Order and Klansman members -- both engaged in a decade-long turf war, which has so far claimed the lives of more than 200 persons.

"But if they are called upon we see where support is lent to both rival groups," added Thompson, explaining that their reasons for doing so vary from economical gains to tribal disagreements.

In the meantime, the police are hopeful that a strategy to bring along utility

companies during curfews to disconnect illegal electricity and water connections, will help to stem violence in Spanish Town's most

violent communities.

"There are many residents who support or stay silent, thus allowing the violence to continue," Thompson said. "We believe it will send a message; if they support violence we will come back with the curfew and then the JPS and (National Water Commission) will come in and support us also. So they (residents) stand to lose at every turn," said Thompson.

A 52-year-old Farmer from Manchester has come forward and claimed the $240 million lotto jackpot, which has gone unclaimed since February.

He walked into Supreme Ventures Limited's (SVL) Kingston offices without notice yesterday and collected the record $240 million lotto jackpot that had been sitting idle for 49 days.

In a release from Supreme Ventures Ltd, it said the farmer claimed the prize today and knew he won from the day the draw was done. The farmer reportedly said in the release that when he heard the numbers he told his friends, he was going home to bath, eat and go to bed.

He said he then went home and signed the ticket and locked it away. He said he took so long to claim the February 21, 2010 draw as he decided to take some time and cool out. The farmer says he intends to invest majority of the money in real estate and farming, which is his first love.

After the 15 per cent tax, the farmer walked out with a cool $204 million.

Amid security concerns, SVL would only identify the winner as S. Gayle and released a heavily disguised picture of him posing with an oversized replica cheque.

-- Edited by $HABLA RUPTION$ on Thursday 1st of April 2010 10:26:27 AM

The principal of an all-age school in St Andrew received death threats recently after being accused of taking disciplinary action against a teacher who was involved in a fight with a student at the school last week.

Classes at the school were disrupted last week after a student and the teacher came to blows during a class.

Reports reaching THE STAR are that on March 16, two students were involved in a fight. It is alleged that the fight occurred during break time but spilled over into class time, when one student continued to provoke the other.

hit in the back with a desk

It is alleged that the girls became boisterous and began to use indecent language. The teacher reportedly asked one girl to leave the class but she reportedly refused and said she was the victim. THE STAR was told that the teacher got up and pushed a chair at the student, which hit her on the knee. The student reportedly pushed back the chair and the two continued doing this between each other until the student turned to leave the classroom. It is alleged that at this point, she was hit in the back with a desk.

Reports are that the student used the desk to hit the teacher in the chest before leaving the classroom. The teacher reportedly chased the student, choked her and inflicted several blows to the child's head and chest. The teacher reportedly had to be restrained.

THE STAR was told that after the school principal got involved in the matter, she received several threatening phone calls from a woman warning her that she would be killed if disciplinary action was taken against the teacher.

The Bull Bay police confirmed that an investigation is being carried out into the threats and said a report was made to them on March 19. When contacted, the school principal refused to comment on the threats, directing THE STAR to the police. She, however, admitted that there had been a fight at the school.

A St Catherine man who beat and slapped a man whom he claimed bought his woman a pair of pink slippers and was having an affair with her was given nine months hard labour yesterday.

The accused, Donovan Campbell, is of a St Johns Road, St Catherine address.

The facts outlined in court are that in early February, the complainant was at home when the accused called him to his house.

got angry

When he arrived, the accused told him that he saw his girlfriend with a new pair of slippers and he understood that the complainant had bought it for her.

The complainant denied the claim but Campbell, allegedly became angry and punched the man in his mouth and used a knife to hit him in the head.

He is reported to have told the complainant; "A me pick har up with six pickney."

After receiving the beating, the complainant is said to have gone to the Spanish Town Police station where he made a report.

Following an investigation, Campbell was arrested and charged with assault occasioning bodily harm by District Constable Michael Esson.

Campbell received the sentence from Resident Magistrate Simone Maddix.

Muslim women have rallied against a ban on child marriages, decrying any attempt to deprive little girls of their legal right to be sold to older men as un-Islamic. A mob of fully veiled women waving the Koran descended on the Yemeni capital to voice their opposition to any ban on child marriage; one protester had this to say: It is against Islam to set a minimum age for marriage. A girl can get married when shes an adult for some girls that is when they are 15 and for others when they are nine. Many of the most prominent advocates of a ban on child marriage are women, but apparently it is not only men who are interested in preserving the right of a child to marry. After its unification in 1990, Yemen set the minimum age for marriage at 15, but this law was never in enforced and was eventually abolished in 1999, meaning there was no minimum age for marriage. In 2009 a new law setting the age at 17 was passed by parliament, but it was subsequently rejected by the nations Sharia Committee as being un-Islamic. High profile cases of child marriage in Yemen have stiffened calls for the law to be reinstated; in one famous case, a 10-year-old girl was sold to a man for $1,000 she eventually fled from him after he mistreated her, but courts would not allow her to divorce him as her poor father could not refund the dowry. A lengthy legal battle eventually saw her allowed to divorce her husband. The judge who presided over her case supported a minimum age, though not due to concerns over the rights of children but instead out of fears that a little girl might not make a good mother: I support the idea of setting a minimum age for marriage that is not less than 18 years old. When a man marries a child and they have children, then you end up with a child raising a child. An MP stresses that puberty and not any arbitrary age of consent is the appropriate measure of ability to marry: We view a child as mature when it reaches puberty, not when its 18. He opposes any ban on the grounds that under Islam youthful sex can take place legitimately within a marriage, unlike in decadent western nations: We understand that young people are sexually active, but unlike in the West, they can marry here and not partake in immoral behavior. This of course conveniently ignores the likelihood of a husband being much older than the bride, or the issue of consent. The UN estimates that half of all marriages in Yemen occur under the age of 18, and in some areas half are estimated to occur below 15.

VATICAN CITY, (AFP) -- Pope Benedict XVI, under increasing fire for the Roman Catholic Church's handling of pedophile priests, urged Christians yesterday not to be intimidated by idle "chatter".

Celebrating Palm Sunday mass in St Peter's Square, the pope, without referring directly to the scandals that have swept Europe in recent months, said Jesus Christ "leads us to the courage to not be intimidated by the chatter of prevailing opinions".

The Vatican newspaper recently criticised the media over its coverage of the sex abuse scandals, but Vatican watcher Marco Politi warned against reading too much into the pope's words.

He said the pontiff had often referred to "chatter" in his frequent criticisms of "useless, materialistic things".

The pope "has never spoken of 'chatter' in reference to sexual abuse", Politi, who writes for the left-wing daily Il Fatto, told AFP.

The 82-year-old pope has come under intense pressure in recent days with allegations in the press that, as archbishop of Munich and later as the chief Vatican enforcer of Catholic doctrine and morals, he failed to act against predator priests.

On Thursday, the head of the world's 1.1 billion Catholics came under fresh scrutiny in a New York Times report on the case of an American priest accused of abusing up to 200 deaf boys who was never disciplined.

The influential US daily followed up Friday with allegations that Benedict was aware of the transfer of a known German abuser when he headed the Munich archdiocese.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said Saturday that Benedict would not be weakened by the scandals, which have prompted some commentators to suggest that the pope could be forced to resign.

In the 2,000-year history of the papacy, only two popes have resigned from the lifetime post, in 1294 and 1415.

"The recent media attacks have without doubt caused damage," Lombardi said.

"But the authority of the pope and the commitment of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith against sex abuse of minors will come out of this not weakened but strengthened," he said.

A poll in Germany's Stern magazine found falling confidence in the Catholic Church, standing at 17 per cent from 29 per cent in January, with faith in the pope down to 24 per cent from 38 per cent in the same period.

The conservative Benedict has continually spoken out and apologised for the "heinous crime" of child sex abuse by priests, meeting victims in the United States and in Australia.

Meanwhile national churches have lined up in defence of the pope.

Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian bishops' conference, blasted what it called a "stoning" of Benedict, a "frenetic desire to tarnish" him and the Church as a whole.

The Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano earlier charged that the New York Times had made an "ignoble attempt" to smear the pope and his closest aides "at all costs".

Yesterday, the leader of Catholics in England and Wales said there was "no strong reason" for the pope to resign over the abuse scandals as protesters gathered in London to urge the pontiff to quit.

"The pope won't resign. Frankly there's no strong reason for him to do so," Archbishop of Westminster Vincent Nichols told the BBC. "In fact it's the other way around -- he is the one above all else who has tackled these things."

As head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger initiated a decree issued by Pope John Paul II in 2001 ordering bishops to report abuse cases to the Vatican and remove abusers from contact with youth.

The Vatican says it received 3,000 reports between 2001 and 2010 of sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy committed over the past 50 years.

LONDON - Pop singer Lady Gaga has been compared to Michael Jackson by producer Rodney Jerkins who worked with her on "Telephone".

"We haven't seen an artist like Gaga in a long time, we havent seen an artist that really has no fear. I remember Michael Jackson used to tell me he was crucified for doing 'Thriller', but he had to do what he felt was needed at that time. Im just happy to be part of history, contactmusic.com quoted Jerkins as saying.

"I've always wanted to leave my stamp on music, and to be able to say that I worked with Michael Jackson and now Im working with Lady Gaga, wholl probably go down in history as one of the best female entertainers of all time."

A PROBE into failures to properly investigate the sexual and physical abuse of a girl aged SIX by more than 20 of her classmates has been launched.

The victim was regularly assaulted by 23 children, her own age, within school grounds.

The school and local authority said children's evidence could not be relied on so little could be done.

A serious case review published TWO YEARS after allegations of abuse first emerged has been slammed as a "shocking failure" by Children's Commissioner for Wales Keith Towler.

The investigation process in Wales is now under review in a bid to find out why those children allegedly involved in the abuse were free to remain at the school.

Children's Commissioner for Wales Keith Towler said: "This is a shocking failure and the bottom line is the family will never know what happened to their child.

"We are going to review the serious case review process in Wales to make sure they are much more timely published, within a year of incidents happening, so that we get really clear for everybody involved, what happened, why it happened and what we need to do to put things right."

The serious case review confirmed the assaults took place.

But the school and the local education authority both of which cannot be named said no action could be taken because the children involved were below the age of criminal responsibility.

The girl's mum only discovered the abuse after being told of similar incidents by another parent.

She recalled the terror on her daughter's face as she described what had been happening.

She said: "She was telling me things that I think every mother dreads to hear from their daughter. It was horrendous what she'd gone through.

"Every day she was being stripped. She was being physically and sexually abused every day. And every day she cried out for help and nobody ever came."

The serious case review came only after she moved her daughter to another school and began legal action.

Mr Towler said teachers needed better training and said the serious case review system in Wales would be changed to prevent similar failures in the future.

Neelam Bhardwaja, president of the Directors of Social Services in Wales, said the review into the bungled investigation would be completed in June.

The Welsh Assembly refused to comment on the case.

JAMAICA's food exports are on the up.

The country recorded a 3.2 per cent increase in exports for the January to November period last year when compared to the previous year, moving from US$107 million in 2008 to US$111 million in 2009.

 

Export Business Development and Information Services Officer at the Jamaica Exporters' Association (JEA) Royce Britton pointed out that ackee exports increased by 53 per cent over the period, moving from US$8.3 million in 2008 to US$12.8 million in 2009.

He also noted that Jamaica's overall imports from its Caribbean Community (Caricom) neighbours fell from US$865 million in 2008 to US$678 million in 2009 and explained that the reason for that was a reduction in the fuel

import bill.

Britton said that for the similar period, exports to Caricom grew from US$61.1 million to US$62.8 million.

Meantime, the JEA's Vice president, Michael Ming, is urging the Government to review its no-waiver policy for the importation of raw material for the agro-processing sector.

He argued that the policy has resulted in a loss of markets, since exporters are not able to obtain waivers for the importation of raw materials when local supplies are unavailable or are inadequate to meet production demands.

"We are asking that a policy be implemented that whenever there is a shortage, a verified shortage of whatever the agricultural raw material, processors can have access to a permit," Ming said.

"The Ministry of Agriculture has all the extension officers out there and they will be able to identify what is short, from what is not. But the time that it is taking now for them to do the verification, which is anywhere between one and two months, we lose a significant amount of sales because of that."

The state minister for finance, Arthur Williams is reporting that Jamaica has passed the requirements of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for March. 

In order to meet the IMF requirements the government was required to keep the fiscal deficit at under $107 billion as well as maintain a primary surplus of 66.9 billion and an overall public sector deficit of 133.6 billion. 

Senator Williams told The Gleaner Power 106 News that it will be even more significant that the country passes the May test. 

Meanwhile financial analyst Ralston Hyman said hes surprised that the country would have passed the test based on the data released by the finance ministry.

The management of Air Jamaica is denying swirling claims that the work visas of some of its crew members have not been renewed by the United States (US) authorities.

Speculation has been rife that the work visas of some Air Jamaica employees were rejected for renewal due to the extradition row between Jamaica and the US. However, Bruce Nobles, Chief Executive Officer of Air Jamaica, says there is no truth to the claims. Mr. Nobles told RJR News Monday night that apart from one minor incident involving the renewal of the work visa of one of the airline's pilots, he was not aware of any other problems. "We had one pilot whose crew visa was up for renewal and the US service wanted some clarification about his status going forward but that's it, I'm not aware of any other," he said.

A motorist attempting to escape police in America must have thought he'd given them the slip when he abandoned his car and jumped over a fence - only to realise that he'd landed in a prison yard.

Police in Garfield Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio say that the badly thought-out escape attempt followed a high-speed chase, which reached speeds of 90mph.

The chase ended when the driver and his passengers abandoned the vehicle. The driver and one of the passengers made a break for the nearby fence, and scaled it - apparently not aware that it was the outside fence of the state women's prison.

The two prison-breakers were arrested, along with two other passengers who chose to flee in a different direction.

UK-based Zest Group is in deeper debt with £4.3 million ($572 million) in accumulated losses following the disposal of reggae label Greensleeves, one financial year ago -- but it hopes to boost revenue from Dominican reggae star Nasio Fontaine in 2010.

The group made a trading loss of £283,000 over 12 months ending September 2009, which was added to previous losses totalling £4.05 million up to 2008 when the group disposed of Greensleeves, according to data released Monday, March 29, 2010. Equally troubling is the group's balance sheet showing that for £1 held in assets £8 in liabilities was owed up to September 2009. Prior to Greensleeves' disposal in 2008 total assets were 3.5 times its liabilities. The reduction of its net assets in 2009 -- to less than half its called up share capital-- has invoked a legal requirement to "convene a general meeting for the purposes of considering whether any... steps should be taken to deal with the company's current financial position", accompanying notes in the financials stated.

 

During the year, Stephen Weltman, chief executive officer was paid £100,000 and £650 per month car allowance, £450 per month medical and other benefits allowance and £155 per month salary continuance allowance. The group paid no bonuses in 2009 but it paid £135,000 as bonuses in 2008 following the "successful disposal of Greensleeves", despite making a loss from the disposal.

During the year, the group continued to seek to "exploit the publishing and recording rights arising from its retained roster of artistes which include Tara Chinn, Nasio Fontaine and Tony Fennell".

Zest said it was also seeking to conclude a new worldwide distribution deal for Fontaine's five albums of which it owns 100 per cent of the masters and publishing rights which will commence towards the end of this calendar year.

During 2009 the group actually impaired (write-off) the £473,000 (2008: £533,000) in artiste advances, which is recoupable from income generated from record sales.

"There is no certainty with regard to the level of income, if any, to be generated by these artistes, which could impact on the recoverability of these balances, and as a consequence a provision for impairment has been included within the financial statements of £473,000 (2008: £533,000)," it stated.

On 15 February, 2008, Zest disposed of its entire shareholding in Greensleeves Records Limited, Greensleeves Publishing Limited and Greensleeves USA, its reggae music publishing business, for a £3 million plus deferred consideration of £100,000 (totalling $412 million, at the current exchange rate).

Rival VP Records bought the reggae label to become the largest independent reggae label in the world. Critics stated that it would reduce avenues for reggae artistes to negotiate contracts, especially with the music industry in continued contraction.

DANCEHALL popette Tami Chynn has joined forces with fashion designer Lubica, to launch a new clothing line named anúna by Tami&Lubica. Among the items in the new range of female clothing are dresses, tops, skirts, and pants.

Lubica Slovak, the creator of the Lubica fashion line, said: "The anúna line provides a woman with a true feel of versatile, easy-to-wear outfits made from high-quality fabrics that remain relevant to a fast-paced Jamaican lifestyle. The soft, fresh and simple designs Tami and I created make a woman comfortable in her own skin, while looking fashionable but not like a fashion victim."

Tami Chynn and Lubica will preview their new line to specially invited guests, including the winner of Chynn's Facebook fanpage competition, on Wednesday, April 7th at the Spanish Court Hotel in New Kingston. While guests sip c**ktails from Barefoot Wine, the designs will be modelled in preparation for the anúna debut at |FAT| -- Toronto's Alternative Arts and Fashion Week in April.

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) -- A Lebanese man sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia on charges of witchcraft is due to be beheaded this week, his lawyer said Wednesday, urging officials and rights groups to intervene on his behalf.

"Last night we got news through unofficial channels that Ali Sabat would be beheaded within 48 hours," May el-Khansa, Sabat's attorney in Beirut, told AFP.

"I have since been contacting Lebanese officials, including President Michel Sleiman and Lebanon's ambassador to Saudi Arabia to appeal his case."

Sabat was sentenced to death in November of last year by a Saudi court for practising witchcraft.

He was arrested in May 2008 by the religious police in Medina, where he was on a pilgrimage before returning to his native Lebanon.

The case against him was brought after he gave advice and made predictions on Lebanese television.

Khansa said Lebanon's ambassador to Saudi Arabia was in contact with Sabat and someone from the embassy had visited him on Wednesday in his jail cell.

"It is very important that we save the life of this one person," she said. "He is not a criminal."

She added that Sabat's family was in shock and that his mother was seriously ill with doctors saying she could die anytime.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International joined the fray of rights groups who have expressed concern about Sabat's case.

"Ali Hussain Sabat appears to have been convicted solely for the peaceful exercise of his right to freedom of expression," Malcolm Smart, head of Amnesty's Middle East and North Africa programme, said in a press release.

"It is high time the Saudi Arabian government joined the international trend towards a worldwide moratorium on executions," Smart said, urging Lebanese authorities and Saudi King Abdullah to stop the execution.

PARIS, France (AFP) -- A consortium of scientists reported on Wednesday that they had identified new potential treatments to combat a form of sleeping sickness that kills around 30,000 Africans a year.

The breakthrough entails disabling an enzyme essential for the parasite causing human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), as the disease is called.

Further work is needed to narrow down the shortlist of candidates for the orally taken drug, and the most promising one could be available for human trials "in around 18 months", the team said in a press release.

Between 50,000 and 70,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa are infected with HAT, which is transmitted in the bite of the tsetse fly, according to World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates.

It is sometimes called sleeping sickness because the parasites infect the brain and disrupt the sleep cycle.

Two drug types already exist for tackling HAT, but are laden with problems.

One, melarsoprol, is an arsenic-based treatment that kills around five per cent of patients.

The other, eflornithine, is costly, requires long hospital treatment, is not effective against all forms of the disease and appears to be encountering parasite resistance.

Because people infected with HAT are generally the rural poor, there is little motivation for pharmaceutical companies to search for new drugs, which makes the disease high on the WHO's list of so-called neglected sicknesses.

The paper, published in the British journal Nature, was led by the Drug Discovery Unit for Tropical Diseases at the University of Dundee, Scotland. Researchers from the University of York and the Structural Genomics Consortium in Toronto also took part.

Another form of trypanosomiasis, called Chagas disease, is prevalent in 15 Central and South American countries. It is spread by *lo**-sucking triatomine bugs that hole up in walls and roofs and feed on the victim's face at night.

AIR Jamaica could be forced to shut down prematurely, leaving a major gap in air seats to the island, if the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) turns down an urgent request the national airline is making.

On March 24, the airline wrote to the DOT asking for permission to continue to operate on the terms of its existing authority during the six-to-12-month transition period expected under the divestment agreement with Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL), which is to take effect on April 12, 2010.

Failing that permission, the airline is asking the Americans for an urgent waiver of the DOT's standard ownership and control policy, in order for it to maintain services for the one-year period under its Transitional Services Agreement (TSA) with Caribbean Airlines.

It was not clear what led Air Jamaica to make the request at the eleventh hour, but the airline left no doubt that it needed a decision immediately.

"Air Jamaica respectfully requests the Department's expedited consideration of the matters raised in this letter, with a definitive DOT determination by no later than April 5, 2010," the airline's Washington-based counsel, George Carneal, wrote.

"Absent the economic support derived from such an interim structure, Air Jamaica would face the prospect of a near-term shut down, which would have a catastrophic impact on the approximately 1,900 personnel employed by Air Jamaica/Air Jamaica Holdings, countless booked passengers, and the vital tourism industry in Jamaica which relies so heavily on adequate air transportation services," the letter warned.

It was not immediately clear how the US would react, given the stand-off between Kingston and Washington over the stalled extradition of Tivoli Gardens strongman, Christopher 'Dudus' Coke.

The Bruce Golding Government said it would not bow to US demands for Coke whom they want to face trial on gun and drug-trafficking charges. Jamaica said the US evidence against Coke was obtained in breach of his constitutional rights.

Reached last night by phone overseas, Chief Executive Officer of Air Jamaica Bruce Nobles confirmed the contents of the letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Observer, but would not speculate.

As part of the transit agreement, Air Jamaica would continue to operate under its existing authority under the contractual agreement with Caribbean Airlines and "we are asking the Department of Transportation for their concurrence with that strategy", Nobles said.

Asked what the implications would be if DOT does not return a favourable response by April 5, Nobles admitted "it is unclear".

"There are different opinions about what might happen or not happen if the determination has not been made and it is premature to try to speculate," he said.

But in the letter to DOT, Carneal noted that prompt implementation of the required interim structure was essential to ensure Air Jamaica's continued commercial operations during the transition period, until such time as CAL was able to take over key Air Jamaica routes.

"In the event the department nevertheless concludes that as a result of this arrangement Air Jamaica no longer satisfies the "effective control" requirements, Air Jamaica hereby requests a limited, short-term waiver of DOT's ownership and control policy to the extent necessary to allow Air Jamaica to continue operations for up to one year under its DOT exemption authority," Carneal asked.

The letter stated that pursuant to a TSA beginning on or about April 12, 2010, Air Jamaica planned to continue to operate under certain Jamaica-US routes authorised by its "open-skies" DOT exemption authority.

This includes continuation of Jamaica-US routes under its JM designator code, homeland Operating License, Air Operator Certificate, and US operations specifications and economic authority.

"The carrier's key management personnel (as required and approved by the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority), as well as a limited number of other personnel necessary to maintain Air Jamaica operations, will remain direct Air Jamaica employees for as long as Air Jamaica continues air transportation services under its licence and AOC," the letter stated.

A central Indiana woman faces two felony counts of animal cruelty after she allegedly doused her two pet dogs with gasoline and set them on fire.

PARIS, France (AFP) -- Jamaican sprint king Usain Bolt will compete at the Paris meet of the IAAF Diamond League on July 16, organisers said yesterday.

Bolt, the world and Olympic champion in the 100 and 200m -- in both of which he is also world record holder (9.58 and 19.19sec, respectively), will take part in the 100m.

The Jamaican won the event when he appeared at last year's Golden League meeting at the Stade de France, clocking 9.79sec despite cold and rainy conditions.

"His potential remains an enigma; nobody knows what he's capable of," said Paris meet organiser Laurent Boquillet.

"He is in a class of his own, but his presence should electrify the rest of the race. We may see other athletes benefit from the high pace to record some very good times."

Bolt will be up against team-mate and former world record holder Asafa Powell (9.77 in 2005, 9.74 in 2007).

The Paris meet is the ninth of the 14-leg Diamond League, launched by the IAAF this season to replace the Golden League series of six meetings in a bid to enhance the worldwide appeal of athletics by going outside Europe for the first time.

The Qatari capital of Doha will be the location for the first event on May 14 with the series concluding in Brussels on August 27.

Jamaica's outstanding sprinters Usain Bolt (left) and Asafa Powell set to contest the 100 metres

Chin drops a bombshell during cross examination

Why would govt be giving a man under investigation so many of our tax dollars in contracts? What about open bids and the best offer wins? If it smells like it...


Chin drops a bombshell during cross examination
The star government witness in the Cuban light bulb trial, Rodney Chin, on Tuesday admitted that he received more than $200 million in government contracts while he was an accused in the case.


Mr. Chin made the admission while under cross examination from defence attorneys for former junior minister Kern Spencer and his former executive assistant Coleen Wright.

GAZA MI SEH STILL BUT MI RATE WEH HIM SEH....

DOWNLOAD

Okay, so what's really going on with Tanbad, Ms Thing and Director (at Terminal 4 Media with Psycho), Jay Jay?  Looks like both of them are Psycho's women and ah jus so it go.

I dont see whats the big deal about them being topless- they are on a topless beach in St Maarten. I done pree that a lot of us women that are hating are doing so because we dont have the guts to make this move. Now posting them to facebook (they are on Psycho and Ms Thing's pages), obviously they were awaiting exactly this- the media and blogosphere creating a frenzy around it.

A few of the pics disappeared from Tanbad's facebook page since yesterday, lucky for us, they were already circulating. Check out the last two photos!!!!

VJ CRAIG wrote 1m, 46s ago:

RAY_KING wrote 1m, 56s ago:

Wyzco :tun2:

Black Flame wrote 1m, 57s ago:

even tho we both came from tha same places tha money and tha fame made us all change places

Black Flame wrote 2m, 7s ago:

Black Flame wrote 2m, 12s ago:

luuuuuu

RAY_KING wrote 2m, 18s ago:

DMX - LET ME FLY

RAY_KING wrote 2m, 20s ago:

DMX - LET ME FLY

Black Flame wrote 2m, 22s ago:

even tho we both came from tha same places tha money and tha fame made us all change places

Baggoo24 wrote 2m, 26s ago:

Baggoo24 wrote 2m, 32s ago:

who ago a spring break a negril 2nite

LIKE WHAT THE  EFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!! ?UNNO CYAAH SEH HIM NAAH BLEACH OUT JUST CAZ HIM A PRESIDENT ... THIS LIKKLE PUPPET U SI

-- Edited by steppz on Monday 22nd of March 2010 08:29:51 AM

MI NUH FIND DIS FUNNY A *lo**CLATH... MI SEE IT WA DAY YA PON TV... KISSTEETH


TELL ME IF  MI JUS IGNORANT...
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x78jm2_are-you-there-jah-y-it-s-me-ras-tre_fun




-- Edited by BEN on Thursday 25th of March 2010 11:06:45 AM

RAPPER LIL WAYNE SIGNS A REPORTED $200 MILLION DEAL . . . MAKING HIM THE RICHEST RAPPER IN THE GAME!!!!


February 19, 2010. If you thought 50 Cents Vitamin Water deal was big, well hold your horses. We just learned from a VERY CREDIBLE source that rapper Lil Wayne is about to become one of the wealthiest rappers in music history.

The business insider told us that Weezy just signed a deal which will be announced in the next few days - for a new Young Money clothing line.

But we're not talking about just ANY clothing line. The line will be inspired by Lil Wayne and his Young Money artists.

The general line will be Weezy's domain, but there will also be a preppy line of clothes that will be inspired and modeled by rapper Drake. And there will even be a ladies line, fashioned in the style of Young Money's first lady Nicki Minaj.

But get this, the deal will be worth a reported $200 million to Lil Wayne.

Get that PAPER Weezy!!!!

BALLLL-LING!!! RAPPER TI BUYS HIMSELF A GETTING OUT OF JAIL PRESENT . . . A $400,000 MERCEDES!!!

MediaTakeOut.com just obtained photos of rapper TI's brand new car. Word on the street is that he just picked up his brand new 2010 Mercedes Maybach 57s the other day.

Dang . . . must be nice to be rich . . .

WTF??? BOBBY BROWN IS PHOTO'D IN A MALL IN ATLANTA CARRYING A GUCCI MAN-PURSE!!! (THAT'S HOW THEY DO IT IN THE A)

The men in Atlanta take METROSEXUALITY to a whole 'NOTHER level. That's R&B singer Bobby Brown carrying a man bag . . .

Lee Milla - Mel Cooke

Hellshire, St Catherine, is the place where life is a beach, and fish and festival are always ready. A bit away from the beach, though, Lee Milla builds beats at home, determined to one day "run the music, like how Dave Kelly did back in the day, or a Timbaland era."

It is not a home studio, since the creator of rhythms like the Evil Heads (on which Vybz Kartel did A Wha Do Dem) and other rhythms does voicing in a professional studio environment.

However, Hellshire is the place where he sets the mood with Timbaland, Swizz Beats, Dave Kelly and Sly and Robbie productions, then lays down the drum loop to start a new rhythm. On that bedrock, he then lays keyboard phrases.

He has come a far way from his first sensible rhythm, the 2007 Poco Poco which had songs by Scratchy B and Twin of Twins, Deva Bratt and Fambo. And even before that, the 22-year-old had gone through the learning curve at the Toronto Audio and Recording Academy (TARA), where he started his eight-month training in September 2005.

Milla is not the typical music fanatic who knew his calling from the days when he would make what he thought were killer beats, but his teachers thought was just noise on a desk at Camperdown.

master at work

He was interested in music then, but as a rapper in the Syko Squad, with a group of friends. However, his mother, Margaret Seymour, worked at King of Kings studio in Princeville Plaza, Constant Spring Road, and he would get the chance to see well-known producer, Cordell 'Scatta' Burrell, at work.

Watching Scatta work at ProTools, he was convinced that he could do it too. Now finished with high school, when his mother asked Lee what he wanted to do, he said music. She was not surprised, but told him whatever aspect he chose to go into, he had to be serious about it.

too shy

"I said, me too shy to be an artiste, so better me do it behind the scenes and still contribute," Milla said. So he chose engineering and went off to Canada.

There, he was exposed to rock and roll, techno and blueg****, in addition to the reggae, dancehall and hip hop that he was already comfortable with. It was at TARA that he actually started building beats, along with a Canadian schoolmate named Bradshaw. "Everybody start with Fruity Loops," Milla said, laughing. He got valuable feedback at school on the projects he did at home.

Now his home projects are taken to the studio for full production, the latest single being Run Whe De Bway, with Laden, on the Mid-70s rhythm.

Milla says although he is currently deep into dancehall, over time, he will probably go into the more cultural side of music as "me love the one drop thing". He also plans to go back to school to learn to play the keyboard professionally. "The next instrument me would probably want to learn is the guitar," Milla told THE STAR.

	DAYUMMMMMMM!!! THE POLICE IN NEW YORK ARE NOT PLAYING . . . SINCE THE LATEST TERRORIST ATTACKS . . . THEY''E READY TO GET IT CRACKIN IN A SECOND!!

VIEW PREVIOUS RED CARPETS FEATURE

NUH UHHHHHHHHHH!!! SOME PLACES ON A WOMAN'S BODY REALLY SHOULDN'T BE TATTED . .. ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE A PLUS SIZED GAL!!!

RUMOR: NBAS JASON KIDD AND NEW BABYS MOM SPLIT!!

MediaTakeOut.com just heard some pretty sad (or maybe not so sad) rumors. Remember when we EXCLUSIVELY broke the news that NBA All Star Jason Kidd and Russell Simmons' ex Porshla Coleman had a child together.

Well word amongst the NBA wives is that Jason and Porshla have split. The streets are saying that Porshla already has a lawyer and is looking to LOCK THE DUDE into some hefty child support payments.

We don't even feel sorry for dude . .. he knew EXACTLY what he was getting himself into .

The Termites' tunnel into Paris bank to steal cash and jewellery worth £22million in French 'crime of the century'

At least £22million in cash and jewellery has been stolen after four men tunnelled into the vaults of a Paris bank and emptied 200 safes.

The heist - already being described as France's 'crime of the century' - saw the gang start digging in a neighbouring cellar, before using pickaxes and a even a flame thrower to break through 31in thick walls to the vaults.

Once inside the Credit Lyonnais branch, which was closed for refurbishment, they tied up a guard and warned him he would be shot if he did not stay still.

They then spent 'a leisurely time' breaking open and emptying the high-security private safe deposit boxes, police said.

The gang, nicknamed The Termites, is thought to have spent several days weakening the walls before they struck.

A police officer added: 'The whole thing was clearly meticulously planned - the criminals were ice cool and determined.'

The robbers entered the bank, in the upmarket Avenue de l'Opera, at around 10pm on Saturday and left at 7am on Sunday. After filling bags with cash, jewels and valuables, they started a fire which set off sprinklers to flood the basement and destroy evidence.

A spokesman for the Paris Criminal Brigade said the heist bore the hallmarks of previous robberies of smaller banks around the French capital in which walls were broken down during periods of refurbishment.

A spokesman for Credit Lyonnais said the branch, near the Louvre Museum, had been closed for weeks while being modernised. 'Unfortunately we weren't able to remove the safety deposit boxes during this period,' he added.

The crime has echoes of a £6million robbery in Nice in 1976 when self-styled master criminal Albert Spaggiari spent two months drilling a 25ft tunnel into a bank.

His gang spent four days in the bank over a holiday weekend and left a message behind which read: 'Without hatred, without violence, without weapons.'

The branch is situated at the bottom of an office block which was completely deserted at the weekend. There was only the one private security guard on duty.

The Paris Criminal Brigade is investigating the latest heist. A spokesman said the fire had undoubtedly damaged the crime scene, making the compilation of evidence difficult.

He said no exact figure could be put on what they got away with, as it was not known exactly what was in the boxes.

However, he estimated that the cash and valuables would be worth many millions.

 

The government Tuesday night unveiled massive increases in property taxes which are scheduled to take effect in less than 24 hours.

The widely expected surge in rates was announced by Audley Shaw, Minister of Finance during the Standing Finance Committee of Parliament which is meeting to consider this year's budget. Mr. Shaw told the Committee the increases in property taxes, which take effect on Thursday, are expected to yield $3.4 billion. The money will be used to cover street lighting and solid waste expenses. "In order to achieve that, with effect from April 1, 2010, the flat rate which is applicable to the unimproved values of property of up to $300, 000 in value will be increased from the current flat rate of $600 to a new flat rate of $1,000," Mr. Shaw said. The finance Minister also announced increased rates for properties in which the unimproved value exceeds $3,000. "For every dollar there after, it is being increased from the present rate of half of 1% to three quarter of 1%, which is a 50% increase. I have signed the order which will be gazetted on Wednesday and therefore effective April 1, these new rates will apply." He said.

A schoolgirl has been killed in a coach crash as Britain was blasted by "absolutely atrocious" snowstorms - four days into British Summer Time.

The 17-year-old died and 11 other youngsters from Lanark Grammar School were injured after their bus travelling to Alton Towers plunged into a river during heavy blizzards.

Emergency services took four seriously injured children to hospital after the coach drove into water off the A73, at Wiston, in South Lanarkshire, shortly after 6am.

Local resident Bill Wood described "absolutely atrocious" conditions with heavy snow and high winds.

A Strathclyde police spokesman said the reason for the crash was still being investigated. But he said driving conditions in the area were "horrendous".

Strathclyde Fire and Rescue and the ambulance service attended the scene and treated casualties. A spokesman for the ambulance service said casualties had been taken to Wishaw General Hospital, while those with minor injuries were being assessed at the scene.

The dead girl was identified by a teacher and her parents are understood to have been told.

Superintendent Iain Murray, head of road policing for Strathclyde Police, said: "Our hearts and our thoughts go to the families and those who have been seriously injured."

He also paid tribute to motorists who assisted at the roadside.

Two of the crash victims were airlifted to Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, which specialises in serious head injuries.

OutAroad.com gets to understand Flippa Mafia AKA the Flossin King is currently in USfederal custody at the Miami Detention Centre located east of Miami, at the corner of NE 4th Street and N. Miami Avenue.

When OutAroad.com checked with the FDCwebsite the Flossin King pops up asAndrew Kendrick Davis -- REGISTER #:83023-004 -- AGE-RACE-SEX: 31-Black-M --RELEASE DATE: Unknown -- LOCATION:MIAMI FDC.

Public Affairs Officer, Nicole Navas also confirmed his detention at the facility but its still not confirm whether he has been charged with any crime.

TO VIEW FDC WEBSITE INMATE LOCATOR CLICK HERE

OutAroad.com will keep you posted

NEW YORK - The Obama administration is to pledge $1.15 billion over the next two years to help with Haiti's post-earthquake reconstruction, according to a senior U.S. official.

The official said Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton would announce the pledge on Wednesday at a United Nations donors conference that is expected to raise a total of about $4 billion.

This initial assistance will be used to rebuild schools, hospitals, courthouses and neighborhoods destroyed in the Jan. 12 quake, which killed up to 300,000 people. The official spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the formal announcement at the conference that Clinton is co-chairing with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.

Representatives of more than 130 countries are expected to attend the meeting.

The money would provide financial support for a Haitian government recovery plan that includes decentralizing the economy to create jobs and wealth outside Port-au-Prince, the capital of some 4 million people.

Estimates of the total damage inflicted by the earthquake range between $8 billion and $14 billion.

'A new future'Former U.S. President Bill Clinton is to co-chair a committee overseeing the pledges, along with the island state's Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive.Clinton was tapped for the role earlier this week, Bellerive said. Clinton, who as U.N. special envoy to Haiti visited three times since the earthquake, will likely be spending much more time in the impoverished country in his new role.

"I was pleased to be invited by President Preval," Clinton said in an e-mailed statement. "The Haitians are committed to building back better expanding economic opportunities, strengthening basic services, and increasing the capacity of government. They want to create a new future for themselves and I am committed to assisting them through the IHRC."

The committee will include two Haitian legislators, local authorities, union and business representatives, and a delegate from the 14-nation Caribbean Community trade bloc.The board will also have a representative of each donor who is pledging at least $100 million over two years or $200 million of debt reduction currently the United States, Canada, Brazil, France, Venezuela and European Union along with the Inter-American DevelopmentBank, World Bank and United Nations.

Haiti was already the poorest country in the Western hemisphere before the magnitude 7.0 quake, with high unemployment and illiteracy among its 9 million people, almost 80 percent of whom lived on less than $2 a day.

But Bill Clinton said there was an opportunity to change that during the rebuilding process.

"The country has the best chance in my lifetime ... to build a modern self-sustaining state," former U.S. president Bill Clinton, a U.N. special envoy for Haiti, said in a speech last week.

The European Union and a coalition of U.S.-based humanitarian groups have indicated they are likely to pledge more than $2.7 billion for Haiti at the U.N. conference.

Barack Obama has asked Congress for a total of $2.8 billion in funds for Haiti relief and reconstruction costs.

Ministries destroyed
Cheryl Mills, counselor and chief of staff to the Secretary of State, said on Tuesday that the United States was planning to help Haitirebuild in the areas of agriculture, energy, health, security and justice.

The United Nations is also urging countries to support rebuilding Haiti's government capacity after all but one of the country's ministries were destroyed and almost a third of civil servants killed.

Donors and aid partners are insisting that Haiti directs the reconstruction, but monitoring mechanisms are being included in plans to finance the rebuilding effort. The World Bank is due to act as "fiscal agent" of a Multi-Donors Trust Fund to be created for Haiti.

Aid workers are urging donors not to ignore the immediate needs of more than 1 million homeless quake survivors still camped out in streets and open spaces, vulnerable to the approaching rains and hurricane season.

Census Apologizes for 'Negro' Line

So just how should black Americans identify themselves on the new 2010 census? Black? African-American? Maybe Negro?

When it came time to decide, the agency punted in the racial classifications and included all three, stirring some anger in the black community over the dated "Negro" reference.

On Friday's C-SPAN Washington Journal, the issue caught up with Census Bureau Director Robert Groves. He was challenged by a caller, prompting an unusual apology and a prediction that the word will be erased in the next census in 2020.

"I am black. I did not appreciate the black, the African-American, and Negro," said the caller. "It really hurt my feelings ... that, to me, is racist."

Groves was ready with his apology. "First of all, let me apologize to you on behalf of all my colleagues." He then explained. "The intent of every word on the race and ethnicity questions is to be as inclusive as possible so that all of us could see a word here that rings a bell for us it was not to be offensive, and again, I apologize on that. My speculation is that in 2020 that word will disappear and there are gonna be other words that are gonna change."

---> Click Here To Listen Now <---




-- Edited by Bad Influence on Wednesday 31st of March 2010 02:14:24 PM

( l - r ) Gibralta , Tanto Blacks - Colin Hamilton

Contestants in the Magnum Kings and Queens of the dancehall competition have been busy campaigning, as at least four of them have been hosting weekly events to raise funds for voting.

There is Gibralta Thursdays in McCooks Pen in St Catherine. Tanto Blacks will start Blue Tooth Wednesdays in Olympic Way next week. And previously there was Tanto Thursdays in Spanish Town.

Gallawas also has Waspy Sundays in Fairburn District in Clarendon but she is planning to move it to Ritches district. There is also Press Fyah Tuesdays in Buff Bay Portland.

Unable to go out and campaign as hard as some of his fellow contestants, Press Fyah said he decided to start the event last week Tuesday. And he held the party the same night at Ocean nightclub in his parish.

"It's a community effort, everyone supporting it. Last week we didn't get a massive turnout. When you going out inna di streets, you don't get as much. And, 'cause mi haffi work, mi caan find the time fi do the campaigning full hundred," Press Fyah told THE STAR.

In addition to raising funds to help keep him in the competition, he said Press Fyah Tuesdays has been helping in other ways.

"It a help inna many ways. It nuh only a help wid the campaign but it a help open people eyes to young talent. Yuh start see a love inna di community from the competition start. Mi want it be a continuous thing even if mi nuh go through after Saturday. It bring a positive vibe inna di community," he said.

Gallawas - Winston Sill

Gibralta said he started his weekly event two weeks ago. He said it had been working so far because he is still in the competition.

"I start it 'cause it help mi to raise funds to buy phonecards. It keep mi sharp and current. I get to see what the people like and it help me to choose my songs," he told THE STAR.

Seventeen-year-old Gallawas said people have been supporting Waspy Sundays since it started and it has been helping her to stay in the competition.

mi have the ability to win it

"Cause mi just waan raise some money. If you don't vote you will drop out," Gallawas told THE STAR.

And, whether or not she is in the competition, the event will go on.

"Mi still a go ahead with it 'cause a music wi seh. Mi feel like mi have the ability to win it. Mi know dat," she said.

Tanto Blacks is adamant that he will win Magnum Kings and Queens of Dancehall. Hence, there will be no end to Blue Tooth Wednesdays.

"Mi ago still inna di competition 'cause mi a campaign hard towards mi career. A me a win the million dollars. Mi nuh have no sponsor so mi haffi buy back some credit towards the competition to vote for myself," he said.

A police officer who is accused of collecting money from a complainant in exchange for the return of his firearm that was seized, and who reportedly lied to his senior officers about the transaction, appeared in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday.

Charged with eight counts of breaching the corruption prevention act and one count of perverting the course of justice is Anthony Hudson.

The court was told that the complainant had been arrested and charged by officers from the Narcotics Division. It is alleged that the accused approached the complainant and offered to help him to get his firearm back. He, however, told the complainant that he would have to pay.

collected a total of $300,000

It is further alleged that the accused collected a total of $300,000 from the complainant, all in various instalments. The court was told that the accused told his superiors that he was going to conduct a sting operation involving persons who he said were going to be exporting drugs from the island. The court was told, however, that there was no such sting and that in actuality he was going to meet the complainant at Devon House to collect money.

The complainant had, however, made a report to the Anti-Corruption Branch and the accused was arrested and charged when he showed up.

The accused man's lawyer told the court that he has worked in law enforcement for 15 years. He also told the court that the accused would be contesting the allegations.

The matter was set for trial on July 5. The accused was granted bail and is to report to the police three times a week. A curfew order effective between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. was also issued, as well as a stop order and an order to surrender his travel documents.

Seven hundred and sixty two workers employed to West Indies Alumina Company (WINDALCO) are to lose their jobs Wednesday as the alumina company officially ceases operations.

WINDALCO was last year forced to scale back production due to a sharp decline in the demand for alumina on the world market. It subsequently decided to retain employees on a three day work week. However, this did not prove to be viable against the background of the continued weak demand for alumina and the company made the decision earlier this year to end the shortened work week and close its production plants. Vincent Morrison, President of the National Workers Union, says all categories of employees at WINDALCO will be affected by Wednesday's redundancy exercise. What's next? WINDALCO's parent company, aluminium giant UC Rusal, has also been facing financial difficulties as well as problems with the Russian government. Vincent Morrison, NWU President. And according to Mr. Morrison Wednesday's closure of WINDALCO has serious implications for the local bauxite/alumina sector which has been hit hard by the protracted global recession. "What we'll have to ponder from here is what is going to happen to the sector. A year ago, (Alumina Partners of Jamaica) ALPART closed its operations and we have not heard what will be the outcome of the sector. We know that the government had set up a task force which was to be supposed to be monitoring the sector," he said. Mr. Morrison expressed concern that the Bauxite Task Force has not met since it was established by the government a year ago. What are the plans to restore the bauxite sector asks Peart In the meantime, the Parliamentary Opposition says it is concerned that the government has been silent on the future of the troubled bauxite/alumina sector. Michael Peart, Mining Spokesman. Michael Peart, Spokesman on Mining, has taken his government counterpart James Robertson to task for failing to indicate whether there are plans on the drawing board to help revive the industry. According to Mr. Peart, this has left displaced bauxite workers and residents of mining communities in an unsettled state. "They're laying off more than 700 workers right now. We have bauxite community councils in the bauxite mining areas of St. Ann, St. Catherine, Manchester, Clarendon and St. Elizabeth yet the minister has not called us through the Jamaica Bauxite Institute to meet with theses community councils to sensitize them to plans that the government has in regards to restoring the bauxite sector, if they have any," he said.

LAWD HAMMMERCY!!! R&B SINGER TREY SONGZ IS ONE SEXY AZZ DUDE . . . CHECK OUT HOW THEY GOT HIM ON THE COVER OF VIBE MAGAZINE!!!