Jan 11 (Reuters) - Tiger Woods may guarantee packed galleries but even the oil-rich Qataris cannot afford the former world number one's appearance fee for the only European Tour event in the Gulf state. The American's involvement at the Jan. 23-26 Qatar Masters would cost a whopping $3 million, said Qatar Golf Association president Hassan al Nuaimi. "Tiger Woods demands $3 million just for an appearance, if he were to compete - which is not worth paying for a tournament of $2.5 million prize money," he told the Doha News. ...
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Mali hits back at Islamists with French, African backing
Labels: Technology
BAMAKO: Mali on Friday declared a state of emergency and unleashed an offensive against Islamists who control the north of the country with military backing from France, Nigeria and Senegal.
President Francois Hollande confirmed in Paris that French forces were involved in an attack aimed at repelling Al-Qaeda-linked radicals who have triggered international alarm with a push south towards the capital Bamako.
In the capital, officers said the first objective was to retake Konna, a central town that was captured by Islamist forces earlier this week, and confirmed that initial exchanges had resulted in casualties on both sides.
"As in any war, the Malian army has suffered losses, the enemy also," Colonel Oumar Dao told a press conference.
The colonel also confirmed that Nigerian and Senegalese troops were helping to support Malian forces who are, on their own, considered too weak and poorly organised to meet the challenge represented by the various Islamist groups who seized control of the north last year, taking advantage of the power vacuum created by a coup in Bamako.
Hollande gave no indication of the scale of French involvement in its former colony but said it would last "for as long as is necessary."
Sources said he had decided to authorise the deployment of French troops on Friday morning following an appeal for help from Mali's interim president Dioncounda Traore.
"Mali is facing a terrorist threat coming from the north, which the world knows for its brutality and fanaticism," Hollande said.
He said Mali's "very existence", the country's population and 6,000 French expatriates were under threat.
"France will always be there when it concerns the rights of a population that wants to live in freedom and democracy."
France had earlier advised its nationals in Mali to leave the country.
Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian held talks with US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and was due to talk to his British and German counterparts later in the day.
The offensive came a day after Mali's government appealed to France and the United Nations for help in pushing back the Islamists.
As well as capturing Konna, the rebel forces had moved about 1,200 fighters to within 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) of Mopti, a strategically important town on the frontier between rebel-held and government-held territories.
Hollande said France's support for Mali's action was legitimate in international law and in line with the wishes of the UN Security Council.
The Security Council has already given its blessing for a 3,000-strong African force to be sent to Mali but it will not be ready to deploy before September at the earliest.
That created pressure on France to act quickly and Hollande acknowledged earlier in the day that the situation had become critical.
"They are trying to deliver a fatal blow to the very existence of this country," he said. "France, like its African partners and the whole of the international community, cannot accept this.
Traore will visit Paris on Wednesday for talks with Hollande.
The Islamists' advance has exacerbated fears of Mali becoming an Afghanistan-style haven for extremists within easy reach of Western Europe.
France has led calls for an international response but had, until Friday, insisted its involvement would be limited to providing logistical support for the force being prepared, slowly, by the West African regional bloc ECOWAS.
That stance changed when the Islamists seized Konna, an advance that opened the door to an assault on the capital, according to French defence minister Le Drian.
"Given the political situation in Bamako, it would not take much for the country to fall into the most total anarchy," Le Drian said.
Le Drian said he had been struck by the level of coordination and military organisation shown by the rebels at Konna.
-AFP/ac
Math wins the Mobile App Showdown at CES 2013
Labels: Lifestyle
The team at Vision Objects were proud of the victory for MyScript Calculator.
(Credit:
Photo by Jason Parker/CNET)
LAS VEGAS--Every year at CES, the Mobile Apps Showdown pits dozens of downloads against one another to see which mobile app emerges as the best. This year's event was the biggest yet, and based on the excitement we saw at the event, we think it will only continue to grow.
Here's how it works: a panel of judges first narrows the pool of entrants down to 10 finalists. The developers of the finalists are then invited to present their apps to a live audience at the Mobile Apps Showdown here in Las Vegas, and the app that receives the loudest applause is crowned the winner.
This year, the 10 finalists in contention were:
At the end of the 10 presentations, the hosts of the event -- comedians, Jon Hein and Gary Dell'Abate -- did a quick roll call with their applause-o-meter. When all was said and done, it was clear by the deafening cheers and applause that the winner of the coveted award was MyScript Calculator, a groundbreaking tool that lets you perform mathematical operations with freehand writing of expressions on your touch screen.
MyScript Calculator may not sound all that sexy, but the handwriting recognition technology that powers it is unquestionably incredibly impressive. It can recognize radical symbols, trigonometric functions, and of course basic arithmetic operations. It can even solve for variables. For more details on MyScript Calculator, check out CNET's First Take.
Also, this is the first year that a single app won both the in-person App Showdown award and the online People's Choice award -- a noteworthy achievement, indeed.
Judge delays James Holmes arraignment to March
Labels: HealthLast Updated 12:11 p.m. ET
CENTENNIAL, Colo. A judge on Friday delayed the arraignment of the man charged with the Colorado theater shooting until March.
District Judge William Sylvester ruled Thursday night that prosecutors had presented sufficient evidence to proceed with charges alleging that James Holmes killed 12 people and injured 70 others at a suburban Denver movie theater on July 20.
James Holmes trial will proceed, according to Colo. judge
Holmes is charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder.
Holmes won't have to enter a plea until March 12 after the judge granted a defense motion to delay that proceeding.
A majority of the families of the victims objected to the delay.
A majority of the families of the victims objected to the delay.
Steve Hernandez, father of the slain Rebecca Wingo, was seated in the courtroom. At the end of the hearing he yelled out, "Rot in hell, Holmes!"
The judge reconvened court to address this outburst. Hernandez stood before the court and told the judge, "I meant no disrespect to the court or your honor." And then said, "I promise no further outbursts."
Prior to Mr. Hernandez's statement to the court, the judge told him, "I'm terribly sorry for your loss. I can only begin to imagine the emotions this must be raising."
Defense lawyers didn't give a reason for the delay.
One possible reason could be to seek a mental health evaluation by a doctor of their choosing. His lawyers have said Holmes is mentally ill, raising the possibility of an insanity defense.
If Holmes had entered an insanity plea, an evaluation would be done by state doctors.
Holmes' attorneys also objected to news media requests to bring cameras into the courtroom during the arraignment. Cameras have been barred from court since Holmes' initial appearance in July.
If Holmes, 25, is convicted of first-degree murder, he could face the death penalty. Prosecutors have not said whether they would pursue that sentence.
At a preliminary hearing this week, prosecution witnesses testified that Holmes spent weeks amassing an arsenal and planning the attack at a midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises." They also detailed an elaborate setup at Holmes' apartment designed to explode at the same time as the theater attack several miles away.
Prosecution witnesses testified that Holmes began acquiring weapons in early May and by July 6 had two semi-automatic pistols, a shotgun, a semi-automatic rifle, 6,200 rounds of ammunition and high-capacity magazines that allow a shooter to fire more rounds without stopping to reload.
Holmes' lawyers called no witnesses this week. They have said he is mentally ill.
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James Holmes Told to 'Rot in Hell' By Victim's Dad
Labels: Business
The father of a young woman allegedly slain by James Holmes in the Aurora movie theater massacre yelled "Rot in hell, Holmes" during a court hearing today.
The outburst by Steve Hernandez prompted judge William Sylvester to have an off-the-record conference with prosecutors and defense attorneys. Sylvester then reconvened court to address the issue while armed court deputies watched over Hernandez at the front of the gallery.
Hernandez's daughter, Rebecca Wingo, was one of Holmes' 12 murder victims when he opened fire in the crowded movie theater July 20 during the midnight showing of "Dark Knight Rises." Wingo, 32, was the mother of two young girls.
"I am terribly sorry for your loss," Sylvester told Hernandez. "I can only begin to imagine the emotions that this is raising."
He then lectured Hernandez about the decorum order in place to prevent outbursts in the courtroom.
"I meant no disrespect," Hernandez apologized, promising there would be no further trouble and he was let go.
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The judge decided on Thursday night that there is enough evidence against Holmes to proceed to trial and scheduled Holmes' arraignment for March 12. Holmes will enter a plea at the arraignment.
In an order posted late Thursday, the judge wrote that "the People have carried their burden of proof and have established that there is probable cause to believe that Defendant committed the crimes charged."
The ruling came after a three-day preliminary hearing this week that revealed new details about how Holmes allegedly planned and carried out the movie theater shooting, including how investigators say he amassed an arsenal of guns and ammunition, how he booby-trapped his apartment to explode, and his bizarre behavior after his arrest.
Holmes is charged with 166 counts, including murder, attempted murder and other charges. His shooting rampage left 12 people dead and 58 wounded by gunfire. An additional 12 people suffered non-gunshot injuries.
Sylvester also ordered that Holmes be held without bail.
Holmes' attorneys have said in court that the former University of Colorado neuroscience student is mentally ill. The district attorney overseeing the case has not yet announced whether Holmes, now 25, can face the death penalty.
Twin explosions kill 56 in Pakistani city of Quetta: police
Labels: World(Reuters) - Twin explosions killed at least 56 people in the Pakistani city of Quetta on Thursday evening, a police official said, hours after a bombing in Quetta's market killed 11.
The death toll in the latest blasts could rise, according to Deputy Inspector of Police Hamid Shakil.
The first explosion, in a snooker hall, appeared to be a suicide bombing, local residents said. About ten minutes later, a car bomb went off, they said, and five policemen and a cameraman were among the dead from that blast.
(Reporting by Katharine Houreld; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Venezuela stages inauguration rally without Chavez
Labels: Technology
CARACAS: With cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez hospitalised in Cuba, tens of thousands of flag-waving Venezuelans filled the streets of Caracas on Thursday to inaugurate his new term without him.
Bands played patriotic anthems from street-side stages as citizens clad in the red of Chavez's leftist movement poured out of buses to make their way on foot toward the Miraflores presidential palace.
There, they staged a symbolic swearing-in of the people, in place of Chavez, who is too sick to re-take the oath of office himself.
Shouts of "Chavez, Chavez!" and the anti-opposition "They will not return" could be heard as Chavista militants stoked the crowds with fiery speeches.
On one stage, an evangelical religious service was underway, and street vendors sold Chavez memorabilia on the sidewallk.
"I love the president," said Pedro Brito, a 60-year-old law professor, in a red T-shirt with the slogan "I am Chavez."
"He has done a lot for poor people, the ones who had no place to sleep of food to eat. He has shown us how to love the country."
Gladys Guerrero, 35, said she travelled by bus from the eastern state of Monagas "to repay love with love."
Vice President Nicolas Maduro hosted a meeting of leftist Latin America presidents and other foreign representatives who have come to show support for the Chavez government in a period of deep uncertainty about the future.
As pro-Chavez crowds built outside the presidential palace, the opposition called for counter-demonstrations on January 23, the day Venezuela's modern democratic era began in 1958 with the ouster of its last military dictatorship.
"We want to especially address the people of Venezuela, and summon the entire country to give a massive demonstration of force in the streets," said Miriam Montilla, a deputy speaking on behalf of the parliamentary opposition.
The Supreme Court cleared the ailing Chavez to indefinitely postpone his swearing-in and said his existing administration could remain in office until he is well enough to take the oath.
It was the last legal hurdle to a government plan for resolving the vacuum created by Chavez's illness that met fierce resistance from the opposition, which had argued it was unconstitutional.
Leopoldo Lopez, an opposition leader, said Chavez's failure to turn up to his own ceremony had created "an indefinite situation in which we can be without a president, and without clear signs that the president is governing."
Henrique Capriles, who ran unsuccessfully against Chavez in the October presidential elections, accepted the Supreme Court ruling as "binding" but said it did not end the uncertainties facing the oil-rich country.
But even without an official ceremony Venezuela's government turned the day into a celebration of Chavez, who won re-election in October by an 11-point margin, despite concerns about his failing health.
In televised speeches, on Twitter and in work places, the government has made blanket appeals for Venezuelans to turn out.
The military announced it was reinforcing security in the city and at other strategic points to ensure the day was observed peacefully.
And the government stopped a broadcaster, Globovision, from airing videos about the controversy over Chavez's non-inauguration, saying they risked inciting political "intolerance."
Globovision, known for being critical of the government, denounced the ban as an act of censorship.
It has been a month since Chavez, who is recovering from a fourth round of cancer surgery in Havana, has been seen in public -- his longest stretch of absence in 14 years in power.
The government has said that he is recovering from complications from surgery, most recently a severe pulmonary infection that had resulted in a "respiratory insufficiency."
Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said late Monday that Chavez's medical condition was unchanged.
Supreme Court president Luisa Estella Morales, who read out the decision upholding the inauguration delay, also ruled out convening a medical board to assess the health of the president.
Uruguay's President Jose Mujica was the first foreign leader to arrive here for Thursday's show of support.
Bolivian President Evo Morales, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, Haitian Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe, and Foreign Ministers Hector Timerman of Argentina and Ricardo Patino of Ecuador were in attendance.
Maduro highlighted the expressions of support he had received from other leaders who are not attending, like Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.
In Ecuador, President Rafael Correa said the Venezuelan leader's absence would be a "blow" for Latin America.
Throughout his illness, first detected in June 2011, Chavez has refused to relinquish the powers of the presidency, even when leaving for Cuba for his latest surgery.
The charter says new elections must be held within 30 days if the president-elect or president dies or is permanently incapacitated either before he takes office or in the first four years of his six-year term.
- AFP/jc
Apple's Schiller: A cheaper iPhone? Um, no
Labels: Lifestyle
"Read my lips..."
(Credit:
James Martin/CNET)
LAS VEGAS -- I had always fancied that when CES comes along, Apple's devious PR people sit around and wonder which little rumor to toss out, just to turn the heads of those who gawp here.
Of course, there's no proof that this week's hearty rumor -- that Apple will produce a cheaper iPhone -- came from Cupertino, but the leak seemed timed with a stroke of mischief regardless.
So as
CES reaches its later stages, news emerges that Apple's SVP of worldwide marketing, Phil Schiller, has declared himself on the subject -- a declaration that can be roughly summarized as "Hah."
The Next Web reports that Schiller gave an interview to the Shanghai Evening News yesterday in which he said: "Despite the popularity of cheap smartphones, this will never be the future of Apple's products. In fact, although Apple's market share of smartphones is just about 20 percent, we own 75 percent of the profit."
More Technically Incorrect
Some might interpret this as: "Do you really think we're going to go grubbing around in the basement, looking for a few coins?"
Wise and regular analysts estimated that a cheaper iPhone could reach half a billion customers.
But where would the cachet be if everyone was walking around with an iPhone? Some might say it's bad enough already when everyone and her ex already has an
iPad.
In Apple's world, if something is cheaper, it has to have some palpably positive -- and, hopefully, novel -- value.
It's hard to believe Apple would create something that is simply cheap for cheap's sake.
And anyway, if this thing were to be a smaller iPhone, that would be an
iPhone 4, right?
Locals: Trapped whales freed with sea ice shift
Labels: HealthUpdated at 11:01 a.m. ET
MONTREAL About a dozen killer whales that were trapped under sea ice appeared to be free after the ice shifted, a leader of a northern Canada village said Thursday.
The animals' predicament in the frigid waters of Hudson Bay made international headlines, and locals had been planning a rescue operation with chainsaws and drills.
Killer whales trapped in Quebec ice
Tommy Palliser said two hunters from Inukjuak village reported that the waters had opened up around the area where the cornered whales had been bobbing frantically for air.
"They confirmed that the whales were no longer there and there was a lot of open water," said Palliser, a business adviser with the regional government.
"It's certainly good news — that's good news for the whales," he said.
The Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans said it would send a helicopter to locate them, Isabelle Dubois of the Nunavik Tourism Association told CBS News.
Locals said the whales had been trapped around a single, truck-sized breathing hole for at least two days. A recent sudden drop in temperature may have caught the whales off guard, leaving them trapped under the ice.
Palliser said the winds seemed to shift overnight, pushing the floating ice further away from the shore.
The cornered animals were first seen Tuesday and appeared to have less energy by late Wednesday, Palliser said.
Inukjuak Mayor Peter Inukpuk has said Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans informed him that government icebreakers were too far from the area to smash the ice to free the whales.
Palliser said locals had agreed to try to enlarge the existing breathing hole and cut a second opening using chainsaws and drills.
"We certainly had our prayers with them last night during our meeting," he said.
Ice-trapped marine mammals are not unusual in the region.
Whales Trapped Under Sea Ice Free Themselves
Labels: Business
The killer whales trapped under ice near a remote Quebec village reached safety today after the floes shifted on Hudson Bay, according to the mayor's office in Inukjuak.
Water opened up around the area where the orcas had been coming up for air and the winds seemed to have shifted overnight, creating a passageway to the open water six miles away.
"Two men were sent to check on the whales around 8 a.m., and they found that a passage of water had been created, all of the way to the open sea," Johnny Williams, the town manager, told ABCNews.com. "The wind from the north shifted yesterday.
"This is great news," Williams said.
He said the local residents are rejoicing now that they've learned the news.
"They're all really happy and really celebrating," Williams said. "They have smiles, and are saying thank you -- everything!"
Williams said he was unsure how far the whales have moved, but that they were definitely not under the ice hole. The mayor, Peter Inukpuk, and others will be flying over the area as soon as a plane arrives from Montreal to see if the whales can be found, Williams said.
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Residents in the remote village of Inukjuak had been watching helplessly as at least 12 whales struggled to breathe out of a hole slightly bigger than a pickup truck in a desperate bid to survive.
The community had asked the Canadian government for help in freeing the killer whales, believed to be an entire family. The government denied a request to bring icebreakers Wednesday, saying they were too far away to help. Inukjuak, about 900 miles north of Montreal, was ill-equipped to jump into action.
Joe Gaydos, director and chief scientist at the SeaDoc Society in Eastsound, Wash., said that although the whales can go a long time without food, the length of time they can hold their breath, which they must do underwater, was the question.
"The challenge [was] to figure out where the next hole is," he told ABCNews.com before the whales found freedom. "If that lake freezes over, it's an unfortunate situation. It's a very limited chance. It's a matter of luck."
Inukjuak residents posted a video online to show the whales' struggles. In the clip, the whales are seen taking turns breathing. They can't bend their necks so they do a "spy-hopping" maneuver, Gaydos said, in order to look for another hole in the ice.
A hunter first spotted the pod of trapped whales Tuesday. It is believed that the whales swam into the waters north of Quebec during recent warm weather.
ABC News' Bethany Owings contributed to this report
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