The Genocide in the Congo

Olivier, 16, was abducted in October 2009. He witnessed and was forced to participate in brutal attacks on civilians by the Lord’s Resistance Army.
© 2010 Marcus Bleasdale/VII


The humanitarian emergency in the DRC should interest you. Genocide is going in the Congo and we are still here dining and wining where hundreds of thousands of our fellow Africans are being raped, maimed and massacred by demonic soldiers and rebels on rampage in the DRC and CAR.

Kindly click on the following link to Read the full report.

U.S. Policy in Somalia

iPad Available in US on April 3

5 Mar 2010 14:30 Africa/Lagos


iPad Available in US on April 3

Pre-Order on March 12

CUPERTINO, Calif., March 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple® today announced that its magical and revolutionary iPad will be available in the US on Saturday, April 3, for Wi-Fi models and in late April for Wi-Fi + 3G models. In addition, all models of iPad will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in late April.


Beginning a week from today, on March 12, US customers can pre-order both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models from Apple's online store (www.apple.com) or reserve a Wi-Fi model to pick up on Saturday, April 3, at an Apple retail store.


"iPad is something completely new," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We're excited for customers to get their hands on this magical and revolutionary product and connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before."


Starting at just $499, iPad lets users browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more. iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds--thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook--and delivers battery life of up to 10 hours.*


iPad's revolutionary Multi-Touch(TM) interface makes surfing the web an entirely new experience, dramatically more interactive and intimate than on a computer. You can read and send email on iPad's large screen and almost full-size "soft" keyboard or import photos from a Mac®, PC or digital camera, see them organized as albums, and enjoy and share them using iPad's elegant slideshows. iPad makes it easy to watch movies, TV shows and YouTube, all in HD, or flip through the pages of an ebook you downloaded from Apple's new iBookstore while listening to your music collection.


The App Store on iPad lets you wirelessly browse, buy and download new apps from the world's largest app store. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for iPad and will run almost all of the more than 150,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®. Developers are already creating exciting new apps designed for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch interface, large screen and high-quality graphics.


The new iBooks app for iPad includes Apple's new iBookstore, the best way to browse, buy and read books on a mobile product. The iBookstore will feature books from the New York Times Best Seller list from both major and independent publishers, including Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Group and Simon & Schuster.


The iTunes® Store gives iPad users access to the world's most popular online music, TV and movie store with a catalog of over 12 million songs, over 55,000 TV episodes and over 8,500 films including over 2,500 in stunning high definition. All the apps and content you download on iPad from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBookstore will be automatically synced to your iTunes library the next time you connect with your computer.


Pricing & Availability


iPad will be available in Wi-Fi models on April 3 in the US for a suggested retail price of $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32GB, $699 for 64GB. The Wi-Fi + 3G models will be available in late April for a suggested retail price of $629 for 16GB, $729 for 32GB and $829 for 64GB. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple's retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers.


iPad will be available in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models in late April in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. International pricing will be announced in April. iPad will ship in additional countries later this year.


The iBooks app for iPad including Apple's iBookstore will be available as a free download from the App Store in the US on April 3, with additional countries added later this year.


*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.


Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.


© 2010 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, Multi-Touch, iPhone, iPod touch, iTunes and Apple Store are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.


Source: Apple

CONTACT: Natalie Harrison, +1-408-862-0565, harri@apple.com, or Natalie
Kerris, +1-408-974-6877, nat@apple.com, both of Apple


Web Site: Apple

US Justice Dept Closes Investigation of the Internet Search and Paid Search Advertising Agreement Between Microsoft and Yahoo

19 Feb 2010 01:01 Africa/Lagos


Statement of the Department of Justice Antitrust Division on its Decision to Close its Investigation of the Internet Search and Paid Search Advertising Agreement Between Microsoft Corporation and Yahoo! Inc.

Investigation Shows That Agreement Not Likely To Reduce Competition

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Justice's Antitrust Division issued the following statement today after announcing the closing of its investigation into the proposed Internet search and paid search advertising agreement between Microsoft Corporation and Yahoo! Inc.:


"The Antitrust Division obtained extensive information from Microsoft, Yahoo! and a wide range of market participants. Experience and expertise developed during our 2008 investigation of the proposed Google/Yahoo! search advertising agreement also informed our analysis. After a thorough review of the evidence, the division has determined that the proposed transaction is not likely to substantially lessen competition in the United States, and therefore is not likely to harm the users of Internet search, paid search advertisers, Internet publishers, or distributors of search and paid search advertising technology. In addition, the proposed agreement likely will enable more rapid improvements in the performance of Microsoft's search and paid search advertising technology than would occur if Microsoft and Yahoo! were to remain separate.


"The proposed transaction will combine the back-end search and paid search advertising technology of both parties. U.S. market participants express support for the transaction and believe that combining the parties' technology would be likely to increase competition by creating a more viable competitive alternative to Google, the firm that now dominates these markets. Most customers view Google as posing the most significant competitive constraint on both Microsoft and Yahoo!, and the competitive focus of both Microsoft and Yahoo! is predominately on Google and not on each other.


"The search and paid search advertising industry is characterized by an unusual relationship between scale and competitive performance. The transaction will enhance Microsoft's competitive performance because it will have access to a larger set of queries, which should accelerate the automated learning of Microsoft's search and paid search algorithms and enhance Microsoft's ability to serve more relevant search results and paid search listings, particularly with respect to rare or "tail" queries. The increased queries received by the combined operation will further provide Microsoft with a much larger pool of data than it currently has or is likely to obtain without this transaction. This larger data pool may enable more effective testing and thus more rapid innovation of potential new search-related products, changes in the presentation of search results and paid search listings, other changes in the user interface, and changes in the search or paid search algorithms. This enhanced performance, if realized, should exert correspondingly greater competitive pressure in the marketplace.


"Although this particular transaction is not likely to cause harm, the department will continue to be vigilant in our enforcement of the antitrust laws in the search and paid search advertising industry.


"The offices of the attorneys general from California and Washington actively participated in the division's investigation of the proposed transaction."


The division provides this statement under its policy of issuing statements concerning the closing of investigations in appropriate cases. This statement is limited by the division's obligation to protect the confidentiality of certain information obtained in its investigations. As in most of its investigations, the division's evaluation has been highly fact-specific, and many of the relevant underlying facts are not public. Consequently, readers should not draw overly broad conclusions regarding how the division is likely in the future to analyze other collaborations or activities, or transactions involving particular firms. Enforcement decisions are made on a case-by-case basis, and the analysis and conclusions discussed in this statement do not bind the division in any future enforcement actions. Guidance on the division's policy regarding closing statements is available at: http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/public/guidelines/201888.htm.


Source: U.S. Department of Justice

CONTACT: DOJ Office of Public Affairs, +1-202-514-2007, TDD
+1-202-514-1888


Web Site: http://www.justice.gov/

US Leads Global Rescue Efforts in Haiti

Breaking News: Nigerian UK Student Caught Trying to Blow Up US Bound Plane

Yahoo News reported that a Nigerian UK student has been caught as he attempted to detonate a powdery substance on a US plane from Amsterdam as it was about to land at the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport with 278 people on board.

The student, Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, an engineering student at University College London, has been identified as an al Qaida suspect.

"We believe this was an attempted act of terrorism," said an official of the US government.

More details.