Shell's $1.1bn Nigeria pipeline nears finish

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The 60-mile Nembe Creek pipe collects crude from 14 oil pumping stations and is part of a programme to replace old pipelines in the Niger River delta.

The Anglo-Dutch company said the pipeline was part of an ongoing programme to keep its facilities well-maintained in the Niger Delta, one of the world's largest wetlands, where land and water have been polluted.



FTSE 100 above 4,800 for first time since October

FTSE 100 lifted by oil price, Asian gainsShell's Nigerian subsidiary works in partnership with the state-run Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. The pipeline replacement is part of its joint venture that includes local subsidiaries of French oil major Total and Italy's Eni.
Oil pipelines in the area have been the subject of frequent attacks by saboteurs and protesters.
"It is important to understand that projects such as these will have only a limited impact on oil spills until the widespread oil theft, sabotage and vandalism activities are stopped," Mutiu Sunmonu, managing director of Shell's Nigerian operations, said.

Skate champions set for dream wedding on ice

It is a fairy tale romance of Olympic-sized proportions: China's 2010 gold medal pair skaters Zhao Hongbo and Shen Xue are getting married Saturday in front of thousands of fans -- on ice.


The wedding, scheduled to take place at Beijing's Capital Gymnasium, has been an affair three years in the making. Zhao proposed to Shen after a gold medal-winning performance at the 2007 World Figure Skating Championships.
Zhao and Shen have been skating together since 1992, and fell in love between practices and competitions around the world. After a short retirement, the pair returned to the ice to win gold in Vancouver in February, breaking nearly half a century of dominance by Russian and Soviet pairs.
Zhao and Shen, both born and raised in China's northeast city of Harbin, were legally married in China in 2007, but most Chinese do not consider a couple formally married until after a festive celebration with family and friends.

"We have been waiting a long time for this," Zhao said. "After the Olympics, we had some time to choose a place and we are so happy the time has finally come."

It won't be just any ordinary friends in attendance on Saturday evening. Taking part in the couple's wedding will be some of the world's best skating stars who have flown into Beijing to perform as their gift to the couple. 2006 Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko of Russia will skate to "Sex Bomb" while Japan's 2010 Olympic silver medalist Mao Asada will perform a tango-inspired program.

The men's 2002 Olympic champion Alexei Yagudin of Russia and two-time World Champion Stephane Lambiel of Canada will also hit the ice with Zhao and Shen.
The newlyweds will conclude their wedding festivities with the classic "Turandot."
Perhaps the only program that might outshine Zhao and Shen will be American Johnny Weir's performance to Lady Gaga's "Poker Face," which is slated to immediately follow the wedding vows.

Interview with George Galloway

U.K. Member of Parliament George Galloway was denied entry into Canada in the spring of 2009. Mr. Galloway is now embroiled in a court case with Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney in Canada to win the right to enter Canada. Am Johal caught up with him while he was on the campaign trail in the United Kingdom.
Q - How is the U.K. election shaping up? What do you make of the choice between Labor and the Conservatives?
Well it was a choice between Tweedledum and Tweedledee until the first election debate between the party leaders—the first in British history incidentally—and the Liberal Democrat Nick Clegg stormed through the middle. So now there's a third dog in the fight, Tweedledummer. According to the latest opinion polls, Labor is now third, behind the Lib Dems and
Tories. … But really it has all been based on style rather than substance. All three are promising savage cuts, although, to the credit of the Lib Dems, they want to scrap Trident and provide an amnesty for illegal immigrants. My campaign in Poplar and Limehouse has been roaring along, principally from the top of an old, red, open-topped London bus. The reception has been fantastic, better at this stage than it was at the same point five years ago.

Conflict Minerals: the New Blood Diamonds

First there were "blood diamonds," the gems that fueled conflict and human rights abuses in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Then there was "conflict cocoa," the chocolate source that's harvested by children and funds civil war in Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Now concern is rising about the minerals that go into common consumer electronics.
Countries rich in minerals such as cobalt, coltan, cassiterite, copper and gold are often marred by corruption, authoritarian repression, militarization and civil war. Rebel groups, governments and mining companies exploit mineral resources, fuelling civil and interstate conflict as players vie for control over riches.
Countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DROC), previously known as Zaire, have fallen victim to rebels who use revenue from minerals such as coltan and cassiterite to purchase arms and fuel conflict. Governments often establish repressive military regimes in mineral producing regions to protect their "national interests," but local populations rarely see the profits and are subjected to environmental damage wrought by corporations.

Sambo/Makarfi: When Fate Turns Friends to Rivals

The death of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, though expected in many quarters considering the illness that bedevilled him since last year, had thrown the entire political landscape into deep soul-searching and maneuverings. As it is typical of politicians, the death opened an opportunity for those seeking favour in the Goodluck Jonathan Presidency to perfect their negotiation skills with a view to getting something either for themselves, or their anointed candidates.

The need to appoint a vice president, as provided for in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, pitted various interest groups against each other, with the intent of getting their way and possibly scoring a huge political gain in the scheme of things in the country.
From media reports, the two powerful groups who fought it all the way were the Governors Forum and the Northern Caucus in the Senate. To many, the latter’s position reflected the position of the entire legislative arm of government at the Federal level. As it turned, the two groups eventually settled for one of their own: Governors endorsed Architect Namadi Sambo of Kaduna State while the senators went for Ahmed Muhammed Makarfi. Incidentally, Makarfi served as the executive governor of Kaduna State between 1999 and 2007, before handing over power to Sambo three years ago.

What many do not know is that both politicians are bosom friends who have played huge parts in the political lives of each other. While the relationship has gone a bit sour in the last two years, the haste with which both leaders moved to mend fences proved how well they value each other and how determined they are to make the friendship work, at least politically. To some analysts, this becomes imperative considering the fact that with the positions the two are holding, it will amount to a political suicide for one to abandon the other midway.

Even though Sambo has since established himself as a formidable politician worthy of notice in the Northern political landscape, he very much owes his meteoric rise to his predecessor, Makarfi. It was the latter who against all odds, stood for Sambo during the party primaries to select who flies PDP’s flag in the 2007 gubernatorial polls. Before then, not much has been heard about Sambo, except that his company, Nalado Construction, handled some juicy contracts during Makarfi’s tenure. In the end, Sambo defeated the then front-runner in the race Senator Isaiah  Balat and eventually won the election, defeating close rival and candidate of the All Nigeria peoples Party (ANPP), Hon. Sani Sha’aban.

While many expected the relationship between Makarfi and his successor to be smooth, it actually turned frosty, and at a time, many PDP supporters in Kaduna feared the worst. Ironically, the two personalities have never acknowledged the existence of any misunderstanding between them, at least publicly. In the same vein, their top aides, in various interviews and statements, denied knowledge of any conflict between the two leaders.
So when last February a peace and reconciliation meeting was convened to reconcile the two leaders, the question on the lips of many was that were they fighting? What has happened between them that will warrant reconciliation? Speaking at the well-attended event which held at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim Government House in Kaduna, Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party’s National Peace and Reconciliation Committee (NPRC), General Ike Nwachukwu (rtd) said as leaders in the state, both Sambo and Makarfi must bury their differences and work for the unity and progress of both the PDP and Kaduna state.

The committee read out the agreement earlier reached in Abuja with the former governor, Makarfi and the incumbent , Sambo. The agreements are as follows: “To endeavour to meet more regularly so as to resolve minor issues before they snowball into huge problems, to resume the earlier practice of appearing together at public functions, as this would send positive signals to the followership, that regular meetings of the state party Caucus be resumed and be convened by the state party chairman in collaboration with the state governor.
“That, since Kaduna remained a media centre, Party problems should be kept away from the mass media, that the NRPC should arrange to pay a solidarity visit to Kaduna to assure Party members that peace had been restored to Kaduna PDP. The unforgettable legacy of that reconciliation meeting was the public hugging of the two leaders amid cheers from their supporters and other PDP chieftains in Kaduna.”

Since that fateful gathering, the peace between the two leaders has, for much part, held, and the two have remained in touch, and have attended occasions within and outside the state together. On the day when Yar’Adua will be buried, both Makarfi and Sambo flew to Katsina for the burial rites together in the same plane. Makarfi’s first port of call that morning was Kaduna Government House where he condoled with Sambo over the demise of the former President, as well as join him on a chartered flight on the trip to Katsina. Unknown to them however, fate was waiting to pitch them together in a battle for Nigeria’s number two citizen.

For many especially in Kaduna and environs, there is nothing in common between the two leaders. While Makarfi has been in active politics for close to two decades, Sambo only picked interest in every day political activities after he was anointed as the PDP’s candidate by Makarfi in early 2007. And all through his political life, he has maintained a strong sense of honesty, an attitude which seems to be rare among a large chunk of politicians. In government, he based his vision on the 11-point agenda which he said would be used to transform Kaduna. The 11 points are security, free and compulsory primary education, agriculture, poverty alleviation, youth and women empowerment, infrastructural development, healthcare delivery and industrial regeneration. Others are provision of housing for all, particularly low income earners, transformation of rural areas and finally improved welfare package for workers.

In achieving his set target, Sambo remained largely under the shadow of his predecessor, preferring instead to function from the background and allow his work to speak for him. This laid back attitude, according to some, played a huge part in making President Goodluck Jonathan to nominate him to serve as the Vice President, ahead of Makarfi. Expounding further on this point, human rights activist and public affairs commentator, Shehu Sani, told THISDAY in an interview that the decision to choose between Sambo and Makarfi was never a difficult one.
“This is because Sambo will offer unconditional loyalty to the President. He is honest no doubt, but my fear is that he is not your everyday politician who has the clout to deliver his region in case Jonathan decides to run. Makarfi on the other hand has the political clout, has huge followership but he is too independent-minded to be trusted for loyalty. Of the two, I am sure no leader will leave Sambo for Makarfi,” he said.

Giving an anecdotal insight into the friendship between the two politicians, Sani said it started on a very strong footing, got thawed along the line and is now threatening to go gaga. “The friendship started like that of former Lagos state Governor Bola Tinubu and his successor, Raji Fashola. It became like that of Nassarawa State Governor Aliyu Akwe Doma and his predecessor, Abdullahi Adamu. At a point, it was threatening to be like that of Enugu Governor Sullivan Chime and his former boss Chimaroke Nnamani, and possibly that of Rashidi Ladoja and his estranged godfather, Lamidi Adedibu.”
For James Bawa Magaji, the former Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Sambo’s humane disposition is what is needed in the country’s political scene. “He has exemplary good character of honesty, responsibility, accountability and scholarship. His greatest achievement, as far as I can tell, is his legacy of commitment and integrity, due process and honesty as a public servant and as a politician for the younger ones to emulate.”

Though he lost out to a person he may have nurtured into governorship position, Makarfi is a formidable politician who left an enviable record of performance as a governor. In the Senate, he is respected by his fellow senators as a thorough-bred lawmaker who takes his assignments seriously. As chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Makarfi is seen by his colleagues as a man to rely on in times of decision. Though not in the best of health, he has carried out his assignment with verve and dignity since his election into the upper chamber of the National Assembly in 2007.
For the people of Kaduna, the choice between the two leaders was no doubt a good one for the state. Despite its acclaimed fame as the capital of Northern Nigerian politics, this is the first time an indigene of Kaduna is getting a slot at Nigeria’s seat of power, either as President or Vice President. Incidentally, it came down to a straight choice between two good friends. As expected, the entire state has been thrown into unbridled Sambo and Makarfi better friends, or will it signal a relapse into murky waters of rivalry and possible confrontation? Time will tell.

Jonathan: Electoral Reforms’ll Enthrone Legitimate Govt

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday gave fresh insights into his administration’s drive to reform the electoral process which he said would be the basis for the emergence of a credible and legitimate government after 2011 elections.
This is coming on a day the former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, said the Federal Government must ensure that the next chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the commissioners must be people of acknowledged integrity.

Speaking at a three-day African Regional Conference of the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) jointly organised by CAPAM and the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation, President Jonathan said the reform process was designed to ensure that winners in 2011 elections could exercise legitimate authority.
“This administration is convinced that the best way to start is to accord priority attention to electoral reform. This is to ensure that winners in the forthcoming 2011 elections, at all levels of government, can exercise legitimate authority, having been freely elected by the people through an honest and transparent process of free and fair elections in which every valid vote of the electorate counts.

“The entire world is looking forward to seeing how we are going to manage the process in the months ahead. Let me assure you that we shall neither fail our nation nor our admirers all over the world who are counting on us to make a significant difference”, President Jonathan, who was represented by the Minister of Interior, Captain Emmanuel Iheanacho, said.
Another challenge the administration was facing, according to him, was the issue of critical infrastructure, the most compelling being epileptic power supply.
“This is important to stimulate economic growth, ensure poverty reduction and employment generation as well as enhance economic competitiveness”, he said

The third priority concern of the administration, he said, was the issue of the anti-graft campaign which was based on his government’s
zero tolerance for corruption. He noted that his government was
determined to ensure that “all offenders are appropriately sanctioned
within the ambit of the rule of law and observance of due process”.
On the appointment of the next INEC chairman, Chief Anyaoku noted that
the nation was watching President Jonathan’s government to see that he
appoints an electoral chairman with acknowledged integrity.

“We are now looking to the President to see that the leading personnel
of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), especially
the chairman and the commissioners, are people of acknowledged
integrity and non political partisanship who can ensure that the
entire electoral process including in particular, the compilation and
timely display of the electoral register, and the logistics
arrangement for voting are transparently and correctly effected”, he
said.

Anyaoku also appealed to the legislature to, in their review of the
electoral act, recognise among other desirable changes that if the
electoral changes must endure, “all elected representatives and office
holders should not after election be allowed to change their political
parties without first resigning and going back to seek a fresh mandate
on the basis of their new political parties”.
He also kicked against money politics maintaining that elections
should not only be for the super rich.

Building Agricultural Institutions: Transferring the Land Grant Model to India and Nigeria (Westview Special Studies in Social, Political, and Economic Development)

Wounded rogue Thai general dies as chaos continues

A rogue Thai general who helped anti-government protesters and was shot by an unidentified sniper died Monday from his wounds, raising fears of new violence after five days of street battles that have killed 36 people in downtown Bangkok. Maj. Gen. Khattiya Sawasdiphol, a renegade army officer accused of creating a paramilitary force for the Red Shirt protesters, died Monday of gunshot wounds, the Vajira Hospital reported. The death came five days after he was shot in the head by a sniper in downtown Bangkok while talking to journalists inside the perimeter of the protest zone.
The attack on Khattiya, more popularly known as Seh Daeng, triggered widespread street fighting between anti-government protesters and the army in central Bangkok.
"Seh Daeng has accomplished his duty. All of us here have the duty to carry on the quest for justice," a Red Shirt leader, Jatuporn Prompan, said. He said that the only hope now to end the violence was intervention by Thailand's revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
The 82-year-old monarch, hospitalized since September, has remained publicly silent on the crisis unlike decades past when he stepped in to stop bloodshed.
The Red Shirts have been protesting since mid-March demanding the immediate resignation of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, the dissolution of Parliament and new elections.
Anti-government unrest that has boiled over in downtown Bangkok spread Sunday to other areas of the capital. The Thai military has defended its use of force, and the government flatly rejected protesters' demands that the United Nations intercede to end the chaos.
Rapid gunfire and explosions echoed before dawn Monday outside luxury hotels bordering the barricaded protest zone, where the military has attempted to seal in thousands of demonstrators camping in the downtown streets. Guests at the upscale Dusit Thani hotel were rushed to the basement for safety, and the management Monday morning asked all guests to check out by noon.
Reporters at the scene said the gunfire came both from government forces and protesters holed up inside the encampment who appear to have stockpiled a sizable arsenal of weapons.
On Sunday, towering plumes of black smoke hung over city streets where protesters set fire to tires, fired homemade rockets and threw gasoline bombs at soldiers who used rubber bullets and live ammunition to pick off rioters who approached their lines. Army sharpshooters crouched behind sandbags carefully taking aim and firing to keep attackers at bay.
Leaders of the protesters, who have dubbed themselves Red Shirts, said they wanted talks mediated by the United Nations, provided the government agreed to an immediate cease-fire and pulled its troops back.
Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn, however, said a pause was unnecessary since troops were "not using weapons to crack down on civilians." The government maintains it is targeting only armed "terrorists" among the demonstrators.
Authorities insisted they would continue the crackdown aimed at choking off the Red Shirts, who have occupied a 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) protest zone — barricaded by tires and bamboo spikes — in one of Bangkok's ritziest areas since early April.
The political conflict is Thailand's deadliest and most prolonged in decades, and each passing day of violence deepens divides in this nation of 65 million — a key U.S. ally and Southeast Asia's second-largest economy. Thailand has long been considered a democratic oasis in Southeast Asia, and the unrest has shaken faith in its ability to restore and maintain stability.

Senators reject motion to probe Yar’Adua’s death

Senators yesterday rejected a motion urging the Federal Government to set up a judicial panel of enquiry to probe the management of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s health from November 23, last year till May 5.

Former President Yar’Adua died at the State House on May 5 after months of treatment in Saudi Arabia.

Many senators kicked against the probe, stressing that it is against the religion of the late President but would be in the interest of the nation to avoid controversies now.

Senate President David Mark, Deputy Senate President Ike Ekeremadu, Senate Deputy Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba, among others, backed the probe, but majority of the senators rejected it.

The Senate observed a one-minute silence in honour of the late President, and approved two delegations to comiserate with President Goodluck Jonathan and Yar’Adua’s family.

It also urged the Federal Government to name a public institution after the late Yar’Adua.

The resolutions, which followed yesterday’s valedictory session in honour of the late president, also gave the senators an opportunity to urge President Jonathan. They demanded improvement in the power sector, credible elections, peace in the Niger Delta and keeping up the fight against corruption.

Mark said: "Clearly, the Federal Government owes the nation an explanation on the shortcoming surrounding the management and handling of our late president when he took ill."

The late Yar’Adua’s health status was shrouded in secrecy, Mark said, stressing that this provided a fertile ground for mischief makers, rumour mongers and spin doctors of all kinds to feed the nation with fairy tales.

"Unfortunately by twist of fate, the death of this peace loving prince of Katsina has generated more questions than answers; we were expectantly waiting for the resumption in office of our president, having been assured at various times that he was recuperating, only to be confronted with the shocking news of his death," the Senate President said.

Mark went on: "If I know the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua very well, these controversies, questions and confusion are the exact opposite of what he would have wished."

But Mark insisted that "the Federal Ggovernment must provide answers to these questions".

Moving the motion earlier, Ekweremadu regretted that inspite of his enormous good will, Yar’Adua had a controversial end, for no fault of his.

He said: "The half truth, deceit and secrecy orchestrated from 23rd of November 2009 when he was flown out on medical vacation to the time of his death was an insult and an embarrassment to the politics which was played with his illness and hospitalisation.

"Some questions that cry for answers are: what exactly was the ailment that killed our president? Did he have the best possible medical treatment? Why did his handlers prefer Saudi Arabia to Germany where he was receiving treatment initially? Was he recovering in Saudi Arabia? Why was he brought home in February? Was he truly aware of the things going on around him? Who was behind the policy of denial of access to our president from the time he left Nigeria in November till his death? What was the reason for the denial of access to all those who had sought to see him, especially his vice president?" he queried.

"He was our president. We need to clear our minds and ensure that such embarrassment will not arise again in this country in future."

Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba said: "Mr. President, I rise on behalf of the entire caucus of the South-South of this Senate to join the Deputy Senate President and all of you that have spoken in accenting to all the sentiments that have been expressed. Mr. President, it is our view that President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was indeed a good man."

VP slots: Jonathan call for the CV's five nominees

WITH the seven-day mourning of former President Umaru Yar’Adua over today, all eyes will be on the battle for vice president.

Six candidates appear to be ahead in the race, according to a source who said last night that the President called for their CVs.

They are Secretary to the Government of the Federation Yayale Ahmed, former Kaduna Governor Ahmed Makarfi; Deputy Governor of Sokoto State Mukhtar Shagari; Governor Sule Lamido(Jigawa); Ambassador to South Africa Gen. Buba Marwa; and Governor Aliyu Babangida (Niger State).

The Northern Senators Forum yesterday opted for Makarfi, but some governors want Babangida and former President Olusegun Obasanjo is believed to be insisting on Shagari.

But there is opposition against Shagari over a 2008 Court of Appeal judgment.

A source in the Forum, who spoke in confidence, said: "We actually voted to pick Makarfi as our recommended candidate for the VP slot. Of 45 Senators, Makarfi garnered about 42 votes; Senator Kanti Bello scored two and one of us abstained.

"We believe that Makarfi has the experience as a finance expert to assist the President to develop the nation.

"Although Marwa is not a Senator, we made him our alternative choice on merit too. We have taken our resolution to the President of the Senate, Chief David Mark, to pass it to the President.

"What we did was to contribute our quota to the search for a new VP for the nation; it is not a binding recommendation."

According to investigation, some governors have also made a strong case for Aliyu, who is seen as a loyalist of Jonathan.

But some party leaders are said to be saying that "a governor should not be distracted; he should be allowed to finish his tenure and programmes".

It was, however, learnt that Obasanjo’s recommendation of Shagari is causing disquiet.

Some leaders of the North, some members of the Presidential Advisory Council and party leaders are opposed to Shagari.

Instead, these leaders, it was said, want either Makarfi or Lamido.

The opposition against Shagari followed a pronouncement by the Court of Appeal against him.

Many leaders of the party from the North have photocopied the Court of Appeal (Kaduna Division) judgment of April 11, 2008, which nullified the 2007 Sokoto State governorship poll, sending it to the Presidency and security agencies to stop Shagari.

They claim that the court faulted the nomination of Shagari as a deputy governorship candidate and that such a controversial candidate should not be made VP.

They also alleged that Shagari purportedly swore to a nomination affidavit in Nasarawa State with conflicting dates on the form and the receipt issued.Trade and politics in the Niger Delta, 1830-1885;: An introduction to the economic and political history of Nigeria (Oxford studies in African affairs)

Conservative Cameron takes the reins in Britain

LONDON – Britain woke up to a new political era Wednesday with its first coalition government since World War II, an unlikely marriage between the right-wing Conservative Party — reborn under modernizing new Prime Minister David Cameron — and the left-leaning Liberal Democrats.
With a handshake, smiles and waves, Cameron welcomed his new coalition partner, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, outside the shiny black door at 10 Downing Street and set off on the business of running the country.
The alliance was necessary because no party won a majority of parliamentary seats in last week's national vote. Britons struggling to make ends meet during a punishing recession have been enraged at politicians of all stripes after a damaging lawmakers' expense scandal last year.
Once described as sandal-wearing hippie academics, Clegg's Liberal Democrats have emerged from the political fringe to the top rung of government. The party is expected to gain five Cabinet seats and more than a dozen junior government roles in what will be one of the least experienced governments since Tony Blair's Labour Party won a landslide victory in 1997.
"Of course, we must recognise that all coalitions are about compromise," Cameron wrote. "This one is no different."
Cameron said the coalition agreement commits the next government to a significantly accelerated reduction in the budget deficit, to cut 6 billion pounds ($8.9 billion) of government waste and to stop an increase in the national insurance tax.
Cameron, in an e-mail to supporters, said the agreement allows Conservatives to move forward on school and welfare reform and rejects Liberal Democrat pledges to get rid of nuclear submarines, offer amnesty to illegal immigrants or handover any additional powers to the
The government will immediately begin tackling Britain's record 153 billion-pound ($236 billion) deficit. It is still unclear whether the Liberal Democrats will back the Conservatives' plan to begin immediate spending cuts — a punishing course of action that isn't likely to win praise from the electorate.
Bank of England governor Mervyn King gave a strong endorsement to the new government's plans for attacking the deficit, calling it the single most important problem facing the United Kingdom."
"And the agreement that I have been informed about that was been reached between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats is a very strong and powerful agreement to reduce that deficit and to take more action," King said.
One of the first calls of congratulation to the new prime minister came from President Barack Obama, an acknowledgment of Britain's most important bilateral relationship. Obama invited Cameron to visit Washington this summer.
Both Cameron and Clegg have acknowledged that Labour under Blair was too closely tied to Washington's interests. Both men back the Afghanistan mission, but Cameron hopes to withdraw British troops within five years. Clegg has said he's uneasy at a rising death toll. Leaner coffers may also mean less money to enter foreign-led military operations.
The new foreign secretary, William Hague, told the BBC that the new government wanted a "solid but not slavish relationship" with the United States and described the so-called special relationship between the two countries as being of "huge importance."
"No doubt we will not agree on everything," Hague said of the United States. "But they remain, in intelligence matters, in nuclear matters, in international diplomacy, in what we are doing in Afghanistan, the indispensable partner of this country."
Relations with European neighbors could also become problematic. Cameron's party is deeply skeptical over cooperation in Europe and has withdrawn from an alliance with the parties of Germany's Angela Merkel and France's Nicolas Sarkozy. Clegg, once a member of the European parliament, has long been pro-European.
Labour, meanwhile, took steps to regroup, with the maneuvering under way for the job of party leader. David Miliband, the former foreign secretary, has emerged as a top candidate and has earned the backing of another early favorite, former Home Secretary Alan Johnson.

Britain's David Cameron becomes PM; Brown out

The Six Wives of Henry VIIIThe Six Wives of Henry VIII David Cameron, the youthful leader who modernized the party of right-wing icon Margaret Thatcher, became prime minister Tuesday after the resignation of Gordon Brown — capping a gripping election saga that returns the Tories to government after 13 years of Labour Party rule.
Following tradition, Queen Elizabeth II appointed Cameron at Buckingham Palace — a stately denouement to a behind-the-scenes dogfight between Cameron and Brown for the cooperation of Britain's third-place party, after an election that left no party with a majority.
Within minutes, the 43-year-old Cameron was installed at No. 10 Downing Street, becoming the youngest prime minister in almost 200 years, since Lord Liverpool took office at age 42.
An announcement followed that Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg would become deputy prime minister — a rarely awarded and prestigious post — after days of hard bargaining with his former political rivals. Four other Liberal Democrats also received Cabinet posts.
Cameron and Clegg agreed to form a coalition after Cameron's Conservative Party won the most seats in Britain's May 6 national election, but fell short of winning a majority of seats in Parliament. The agreement, reached over five sometimes tense days of negotiation, delivered Britain's first full coalition government since World War II.
"Nick Clegg and I are both political leaders who want to put aside party differences and work hard for the common good and for the national interest," Cameron said.
President Barack Obama telephoned to congratulate Cameron, and invited him to visit Washington this summer, according to the White House. Obama told Cameron that he looked forward to meeting at an international economic summit to be held in Canada next month.
Britain's new government could spell changing relationships with its foreign allies.
Both Cameron and Clegg have signaled they favor looser ties to Washington than those held by Brown and his predecessor, Tony Blair. Cameron and Clegg back the Afghanistan mission but Cameron hopes to withdraw British troops within five years. Clegg has said he's uneasy at a rising death toll.
Relations with European neighbors could also become problematic. Cameron's party is deeply skeptical over cooperation in Europe, and has withdrawn from an alliance with the parties of Germany's Angela Merkel and France's Nicolas Sarkozy. Clegg, once a member of the European parliament, has long been pro-European.
The Conservative Party said ex-leader William Hague will serve as Foreign Secretary, senior lawmaker George Osborne as Treasury chief, and lawmaker Liam Fox as defense secretary. Other leading positions were being finalized, as were key policy decisions ahead of the presentation of the coalition's first legislative program on May 25.
The coalition has already agreed on a five-year, fixed-term Parliament — the first time Britain has had the date of its next election decided in advance. Both parties have made compromises, and Cameron has promised Clegg a referendum on his key issue: Reform of Britain's electoral system, aimed at creating a more proportional system.
"We are going to form a new government — more importantly, we are going to form a new kind of government," Clegg said in a news conference after his party's lawmakers overwhelmingly approved his decision to enter a coalition with Cameron.
Their priority will be to spur a once high-flying economy, rooted in world-leading financial services, that has run into hard times. At least 1.3 million people have been laid off and tens of thousands have lost their homes in a crushing recession. Cameron has pledged an emergency budget within 50 days.
Arriving at London's Downing Street hand-in-hand with his wife, Samantha, Cameron said he believed that Britain's "best days lie ahead."
"We have some deep and pressing problems — a huge deficit, deep social problems, a political system in need of reform," Cameron said. "For those reasons, I aim to form a proper and full coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats."
Cameron, who became Conservative leader in 2005, has overhauled his group — which a senior colleague once acknowledged had earned its nickname "the nasty party." He took up a green agenda, softened the tone of policy on immigration and promoted more female and ethnic minority candidates.
Hundreds of onlookers, many of them booing, crowded the gates of Downing Street to watch on, as Cameron swept into his new home in a silver limousine.
Less than 90 minutes earlier, an emotional Brown made a brief farewell address outside 10 Downing St., speaking in strained tones as he wished Cameron well.
"Only those who have held the office of prime minister can understand the full weight of its responsibilities and its great capacity for good," said Brown, who held the job for three years.
The 59-year-old Brown then walked hand-in-hand with his wife, Sarah, and young sons John and Fraser down Downing Street, where a car waited to take him to the palace for a 15-minute meeting.
Minutes later he arrived at Labour Party headquarters, where he was greeted warmly by cheering staffers.
Brown told party workers his deputy Harriet Harman would become interim Labour leader until a formal leadership takes place to select his permanent successor.
Labour, which lost 91 seats and finished behind the Conservatives in the election, opened their own formal talks with Clegg's party Tuesday but saw the chances of a deal quickly vanish.
Senior Labour legislators said they feared such a pact — dubbed a "coalition of the defeated" by some — would lack legitimacy and anger the public, who would exact revenge on the party at a future election.
"I think we have got to respect the result of the general election and you cannot get away from the fact that Labour didn't win," Labour's Health Secretary Andy Burnham told the BBC.
Clegg's party said in a statement that Labour Party officials "see opposition as a more attractive alternative to the challenges of creating a progressive, reforming government."
Brown's resignation ended five days of uncertainty after last week's general election left the country with no clear winner. The vote left Britain with its first so-called hung Parliament since 1974. Britain's Conservatives won the most seats but fell short of a majority, forcing them to bid against the Labour Party for the loyalty of the Liberal Democrats.
Conservative and Liberal Democrat teams met for several hours Tuesday. Rank-and-file members of the two parties held separate talks in London late into the night and both approved the coalition deal.
Former Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown said the coalition had agreed on a policy platform all members of his party would be proud of. But he said he regretted that Labour had failed to strike a deal with his party.
"The Labour Party had an opportunity to create a progressive coalition and they walked away from it," Ashdown said. "That was an act in my view of straight cowardice."
Brown's departure follows three successive election victories for his center-left Labour Party, all of which were won by Blair, who ousted the Conservatives in 1997.

Profile: Goodluck Jonathan, Nigeria's new leader

As his name suggests, Nigeria's new President Goodluck Jonathan has a habit of being in the right place at the right time.
Until November 2009, he was serving out his time as a low-key deputy to a low-key president.
But then, President Umaru Yar'Adua was taken to hospital in Saudi Arabia and was not seen in public until he died on 5 May 2010.
Step forward, Mr Jonathan. After months of political wrangling, Nigeria's elite finally accepted him as acting leader in February when the ailing president returned home, but remained too ill to govern.
Barely 12 hours after Mr Yar'Adua's death, Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in as the new president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Africa's most populous nation - one of its most fractious democracies.
Not bad for a man who has never been elected to major public office in his own right.
Hand-picked deputy
Born in 1957 in the oil-rich Niger Delta region, Mr Jonathan is a Christian from the Ijaw ethnic group.
His family's trade was canoe-making, but he studied zoology at university.

There has not been any rise that's been so meteoric in Nigeria Analyst Charles Dokubo

He worked as an education inspector, lecturer and environmental protection officer before going into politics in 1998.
Just as his rapid rise to power in the federal government owed a lot to luck, so too did his promotion to state governor.
Elected as deputy governor for his home state, Bayelsa, in 1999, he was once again serving his time without particular distinction.
Until, that is, his boss was impeached on corruption charges.
Mr Jonathan took over as governor and two years later was hand-picked by former President Olusegun Obasanjo to run on the ruling PDP's ticket as vice-presidential candidate in 2007.
The BBC's Fidelis Mbah says insiders regard him as a politician without a political base - and more of an administrator than a leader.
It has been suggested that Nigeria's many groups of power-brokers agreed to let him formally become acting president only because he was not seen as a threat - and crucially would not seek to contest the election due in 2011.
But there can be no doubting the speed and relative smoothness of his assumption of power.

Nigerians lobby to be Jonathan's vice-president

The ceremony took place in the presidential villa in Abuja

Nigerian groups are lobbying for the post of vice-president after Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in as president following the death of Umara Yar'Adua.

Whoever is named vice-president could be a strong contender for presidential elections due in 2011, analysts say.
It remains unclear whether Mr Jonathan will seek to stand for the governing People's Democratic Party.
There is no deadline for him to name a new deputy but an announcement is expected within the coming days.
Many shops and business in Nigeria remain closed as the seven days of official mourning continue.
But the BBC's Caroline Duffield in the capital Abuja says politics ticks on - over the phone and in private meetings.

POSSIBLE VICE-PRESIDENTS Nuhu Ribadu - former anti-corruption chief Aliyu Gusau - newly appointed national security advisor Alhaji Yayale Ahmed - cabinet secretary Sule Lamido - governor of Jigawa state David mark - president of the senate Murtala Yar'Adua - late president's nephew

She says there are still no answers to the big questions about Nigeria's future.
The political deal that has traditionally ensured peace between north and south is coming under strain, our correspondent says.
The PDP has a tradition of alternating power between the mainly Muslim north and the largely Christian south.
Mr Jonathan is a southerner and Mr Yar'Adua died less than half-way through the north's "turn" of two presidential terms.

Yar'dua's death: Nigeria's flag at half mast in New York

Nigeria’s green-white-green flag at the Nigeria House was lowered at half mast at exactly 8 p.m., New York time on Wednesday, as a mark of honour for late President Umaru Yar'Adua. Yar’Adua died at the Presidential Villa on Wednesday in Abuja. The North American Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the flag was lowered at half-mast on top of the 21-storey Nigeria House on 828 Second Avenue in midtown, Manhattan, New York. Prof. Joy Ogwu, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN; her deputy, Bukun-Olu Oneomola; Consul-General, Ibrahim

Jonathan

Auwalu; the Defence Adviser, Brig.-Gen. Garba Audu and some workers in the mission were present at the solemn event. Conveying her heartfelt condolences on the death of the president, Ogwu admonished the members of the Nigerian community and workers at the mission to join the family of Yar'Ádua and the country to mourn ``this great loss’’. While underscoring Yar’Adua’s effort in championing the affairs of the country, she praised the untiring and unwavering efforts of Acting President Goodluck Jonathan ``during this trying period’’.
She prayed the good Lord to continue to give the family of the late president the fortitude to bear the loss. NAN reports that a condolence register has been opened at the Nigerian mission and representatives of some UN-member states have been calling to sympathise with the nation.
NAN also reports that the Federal Government has declared Thursday a public holiday and a one-week mourning period to enable Nigerians mourn the late president.

Portugal buffeted by Greek budget storm

Portugal is under pressure to convince investors that its public finances are under control - a tough job for the Socialist government after the country's credit rating was downgraded.
Prime Minister Jose Socrates has been briefing parliament on the government's austerity plans. He says Portugal is being targeted by "speculative attacks".
His room for manoeuvre may be limited as the markets probe eurozone weaknesses and many investors now see Portugal through a Greek prism. Portugal's growth depends largely on its trading partners.
This week the ratings agency Standard & Poor's lowered Portugal's credit rating two notches, sending yields on its euro-denominated bonds to record highs. So investors are demanding a higher price for lending to Portugal.
The People's Party, the smaller of two centre-right groups in parliament, also blames speculators but says the government failed to act decisively and thus left the economy vulnerable.
Party leader Paulo Portas warned of the impact as the cost of borrowing rises, "on a banking sector that will have difficulty financing itself, on companies that face losing access to some or all credit, on families that may see their mortgage payments increase in the medium term, and above all on economic confidence".
In 2009 Portugal's budget deficit reached 9.3% of gross domestic product and the public debt rose to 77% of GDP.

Greek transport halts as anti-austerity strike extends

Public anger in Greece is growing over government austerity measures

A general strike has been called across Greece as protests against planned spending cuts and tax rises continue.

Trains, planes and ferries are at a standstill as transport workers join public sector workers who began their own 48-hour strike on Tuesday.
Austerity measures planned in return for a 110bn euro (£95bn) international rescue package for the debt-struck economy have sparked widespread anger.
The Greek parliament is to vote on the measures by the end of the week.
Measures include wage freezes, pension cuts and tax rises. They aim to achieve fresh budget cuts of 30bn euros over three years, with the goal of cutting Greece's public deficit to less than 3% of GDP by 2014. It currently stands at 13.6%.
The general strike is the third to hit Greece in as many months.
Meanwhile, the German parliament has begun considering the bail-out plan for Greece.
Chancellor Angela Merkel will defend her government's decision to take part in the deal agreed by European finance ministers, which requires Germany to pay the largest proportion of the loans to be made available to Greece.

Sudan president wins election, officials say

Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir won the country's controversial but historic presidential election with roughly two-thirds of the vote, the National Election Commission said Monday.
The elections were the first in 24 years in the oil-rich African nation, which has been riven by fighting in Darfur and a civil war between north and south.
A top United Nations official in southern Sudan called the voting "a necessary step in moving towards democratic governance in Sudan."
"The fact that it has come this far can seen as a step forward. It is a step forward in the peace agreement" signed in 2005, said David Gressley, UN resident coordinator for southern Sudan.
He confirmed that two supporters of an independent candidate for governor in Unity State were killed in clashes in the state capital Bentiu on Friday. But he said that in general, the post-election period has been relatively quiet.
The United States and other international observers criticized the elections, saying there were irregularities in many parts of the country.
The elections were "an essential step" in the peace process, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said in a statement last week.
But there were problems with the process, he said, citing "reports of intimidation and threats of violence in South Sudan, [and the] ongoing conflict in Darfur did not permit an environment conducive to acceptable elections."
Al-Bashir won 68.24 percent of the vote in the presidential race, getting just under 7 million votes, the commission said.

Pakistan police: Car bomb attack kills 4 officers

An early morning suicide attack killed four police officers in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, according to authorities.
Police official Akhtar Ali told CNN a suicide bomber rammed a car into a police check post in the Pir Bala area just outside of Peshawar, the capital of Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa province.
Ali said the bomber was likely trying to enter the city limits of Peshawar.

At least 10 people were injured in the attack, Ali said.

Flight disruptions cost airlines $1.7bn, says IATA

Richard Branson: "I don't think we will ever, ever see a blanket ban again"

Global airlines have lost about $1.7bn (£1.1bn) of revenue as a result of the disruptions caused by the Icelandic volcanic eruption, a body has said.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said that at its height, the "crisis" hit almost a third of global flights.
It also estimated that 1.2 million passengers a day were affected.
On Tuesday night, flights started landing in the UK after a six-day shutdown of UK airspace.
The decision to lift the ban followed safety tests that showed plane engines could cope in areas of low density ash.
A separate report by the the Centre for Economics and Business Research, commissioned by price comparison website Kelkoo, has estimated the cost to airlines of the disruptions to be 1.08bn euros ($1.45bn; £942m) over the six days.
David Frost, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, told the BBC that the cost to the UK economy of the flight disruptions was likely to have been more than £100m a day.
Compensation call
IATA noted that airlines had saved about $110m a day on fuel while planes were not flying, but said they had also faced additional costs from looking after stranded passengers.

Airspace was being closed based on theoretical models, not on facts Giovanni Bisignani, chief executive, IATA

"For an industry that lost $9.4bn last year and was forecast to lose a further $2.8bn in 2010, this crisis is devastating," said Giovanni Bisignani, chief executive of IATA.
Mr Bisignani also criticised governments for the haste with which they closed airspace, and called on them to provide compensation to the airlines.
"Airspace was being closed based on theoretical models, not on facts. Test flights by our members showed that the models were wrong.
"[The crisis] is an extraordinary situation exaggerated by a poor decision-making process by national governments. Governments should help carriers recover the cost of this disruption."
Budget airline Easyjet said it had lost £50m during the flight ban and that it would be seeking government compensation.

Iceland volcano in maps

The eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull has brought disruption to the skies over Europe.
The maps above show how flights have been restricted to flying around the ash cloud, shown in red. Where the shading is darkest, it indicates the cloud is extending higher into the atmosphere.
The flight ban was partially lifted on Tuesday - five days after the eruption. EU transport ministers agreed to allow limited flights within Europe after flight tests showed the density of the volcanic ash in the air was diminishing.

10 people, ages 8-21, shot dead in Mexico

Ten children, youths and young adults between the ages of 8 and 21 were gunned down, presumably by drug traffickers, in the northern Mexican state of Durango, the state's attorney general said Monday.
The incident happened Sunday on a road near the town of Pueblo Nuevo in southern Durango.
Attorney General Daniel Garcia Leal said that unknown gunmen who had set up a fake checkpoint on the road shot and even threw grenades at the victims, the state-run Notimex news agency reported.
The victims were in a pickup truck, returning to their homes after having traveled to pick up money to support their school as part of a government social program, Garcia Leal said.
The gunmen motioned the truck to stop but the victims, out of fear of being robbed or assaulted, did not comply, the attorney general said.
No arrests had been made in the incident, which is the latest in which children have found themselves caught in the middle of the country's violent drug wars.

In January, in a case of mistaken identity, 15 people, mostly teenagers, were killed when gunmen attacked a house party in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

Passenger In Sea After Ship Breaks Loose

High winds have ripped a cruise ship from its dock, breaking the vessel's gangway as passengers were disembarking and tipping an elderly man into the sea.

The Italian-owned MSC Fantasia drifted away from the port wall in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, in gusts of up to 110km per hour.
Passengers were making their way off the liner when a strong blast caused her to break her moorings.
The boat then moved far enough away from the quay to cause the gangway to collapse, around 15m above the sea.
One passenger fell into the water and had to be rescued by four members of the ship's crew.
The man, an 80-year-old Egyptian, is believed to have hit his head on the side of the ship and was in a serious condition in hospital, according to thinkspain.com.

Inside the cruise liner

The crew members were also taken to hospital and have now been discharged.
Palma's local port authority closed the port to traffic as a safety measure.
The 333-metre MSC Fantasia can accommodate 4,000 passengers and 1,325 crew members.
It is advertised by its owners MSC Italian Cruises as "the world's most beautiful cruise ship".
All on-board entertainment was cancelled for the night as result of the incident on Thursday.