Israeli troops mobilize as Gaza assault widens

A Palestinian family reacts as they rush past a burning building after an Israeli missile strike in the Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip on Sunday. Israeli warplanes pressing one of Israel's deadliest assaults ever on Palestinian militants dropped bombs and missiles on a top security installation and dozens of other targets across Hamas-ruled Gaza on Sunday. Israel's Cabinet authorized a callup of at least 6,500 reserve soldiers, suggesting plans to expand an offensive against Gaza rocket squads that has already killed some 280 Palestinians. AP/Hatem Omar

Ibrahim Barzak and Karin Laub , The Associated Press , Gaza City Mon, 12/29/2008 2:56 PM World
Israel widened its deadliest-ever air offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers, targeting a house next to the Hamas premier's home early Monday after pounding smuggling tunnels and government buildings, sending more tanks toward the Gaza border and approving the call-up of thousands of reserve soldiers for a possible ground invasion.Israeli leaders said they would press ahead with the Gaza campaign, despite international criticism and enraged protests across the Arab world. Israel's foreign minister said the goal was to permanently halt the barrages of rocket fire from Gaza that have targeted civilians in growing swaths of Israel's south, but not to reoccupy the Palestinian territory.Early Monday, Israeli aircraft bombed the Islamic University and a central government compound in Gaza City, centers of Hamas power. Witnesses saw fire and smoke at the university, counting six separate airstrikes there just after midnight.Other targets were a guest palace used by the Hamas government and the house next to Gaza Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's home in a refugee camp next to Gaza City. He was not home, as Hamas leaders have gone into hiding.At first light Monday, strong winds blew black smoke from the bombed sites in Gaza City over deserted streets. The air hummed with the buzz of pilotless drones and the roar of jets, punctuated by the explosions of new airstrikes. Gaza officials counted at least 310 dead.Hamas fired missiles deeper than ever into Israel, hitting near the Israeli port city of Ashdod, and the Islamic organization continues to command some 20,000 fighters.Yet Hamas leaders were forced underground, most of the dead were from the Hamas security forces, and Israel's military intelligence chief said Hamas' ability to fire rockets had been reduced by 50 percent. Indeed, Hamas rocket fire dropped off sharply, from more than 130 on Saturday to just over 20 on Sunday.Israel's intense bombings - some 300 air strikes since midday Saturday - wreaked unprecedented destruction in Gaza, reducing entire buildings to rubble.On Sunday, crowds of Gazans breached the border wall with Egypt in an apparent attempt to escape the chaos. Egyptian forces, some firing in the air, tried to push them back into Gaza and an official said one border guard was killed.Late Sunday, Israeli aircraft attacked a building in the Jebaliya refugee camp next to Gaza City, killing five people, including a woman and her three daughters, one of them a 14-month-old toddler, Gaza Health Ministry official Dr. Moaiya Hassanain said. In the southern town of Rafah, Palestinians said a toddler and his two teenage brothers were killed in an airstrike aimed at a Hamas commander, and in the Zeitun neighborhood of Gaza City a strike killed a man and his wife.Shlomo Brom, a former senior Israeli military official, said it was the deadliest force ever used in decades of Israeli-Palestinian fighting. In the most dramatic attacks Sunday, warplanes struck dozens of smuggling tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border, cutting off a lifeline that had supplied Hamas with weapons and Gaza with commercial goods. The influx of goods helped Hamas defy an 18-month blockade of Gaza by Israel and Egypt, and was key to propping up its rule.Gaza's nine hospitals were overwhelmed. Hassanain, who keeps a record for the Gaza Health Ministry, said at least 310 people had been killed and over 1,400 wounded over two days of fighting, and that casualties were being taken to private clinics and even homes.Across Gaza, families pitched traditional mourning tents of green tarp outside homes. Yet the rows of chairs inside these tents remained largely empty, as residents cowered indoors for fear of new Israeli strikes.In Jerusalem, Israel's Cabinet approved a call-up of 6,500 reserve soldiers in apparent preparation for a ground offensive, in addition to several hundred reservists who have already been summoned to join their units. The final decision to call up more reserves has yet to be made by the defense minister, Ehud Barak, and the Cabinet decision could be a pressure tactic.Israel has doubled the number of troops on the Gaza border since Saturday and also deployed an artillery battery. It was not clear, though, whether the deployment was meant to intimidate Hamas or whether Israel is in fact determined to send in ground troops.Since Israel's withdrawal from Gaza in 2005 after a 38-year military occupation, Israeli forces have repeatedly returned to the territory to hunt militants firing rockets at Israeli towns, but has shied away from retaking the entire strip for fear of getting bogged down in urban warfare.Military experts said Israel would need at least 10,000 soldiers for a full-scale invasion.The diplomatic fallout, meanwhile, was swift. Syria decided to suspend indirect peace talks with Israel, begun earlier this year. "Israel's aggression closes all the doors" to any move toward a settlement in the region, said a Syrian announcement.The U.N. Security Council called on both sides to halt the fighting and asked Israel to allow humanitarian supplies into Gaza. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Israel to open its crossings "for the continuous provision of humanitarian supplies." In a statement, he said eight U.N. trainees and one staffer have been killed.Gaza border official Raed Fattouh said Israel informed him that two key crossings would be open Monday to allow in fuel and aid supplies.The prime minister of Turkey, one of the few Muslim countries to have relations with Israel, called the air assault a "crime against humanity," and French President Nicolas Sarkozy condemned "the provocations that led to this situation as well as the disproportionate use of force."The carnage inflamed Arab and Muslim public opinion, setting off street protests across the West Bank, in an Arab community in Israel, in several Middle Eastern cities and in Paris.Some of the protests turned violent. Israeli troops quelling a West Bank march killed one Palestinian and seriously wounded another. A crowd of anti-Israel protesters in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul became a target for a suicide bomber on a bicycle. In Lebanon, police fired tear gas to stop demonstrators from reaching the Egyptian Embassy.Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit called on Hamas to renew its truce with Israel. The cease-fire began unraveling last month, and formally ended more than a week ago. Since then, Gaza militants have stepped up rocket fire on Israel.A Hamas leader in exile, Osama Hamdan, said the movement would not relent. "We have one alternative which is to be steadfast and resist and then we will be victorious," Hamdan said in Beirut.Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said it was unclear when the Gaza operation would end but told his Cabinet was "liable to last longer than we are able to foresee at this time."Hundreds of thousands of Israelis live in cities and towns in Gaza rocket range. Schools in communities in a 20-kilometer (12-mile) radius from Gaza were ordered to remain closed beyond the weeklong Jewish holiday of Hanukkah which ends Monday.

From casinos to family entertainment

Bambang Nurbianto , The Jakarta Post , Macau Sun, 11/16/2008 10:30 AM Travel

Theodore racing car, one example from collections displayed in the Grand Prix Macau Museum. (JP/Bambang Nurbianto)
The common notion of wealthy people flying to Macau just to try their luck in casinos is not always true because there's much more than gambling in Macau.
But having said that, casinos - of various sizes - are easy to find in nearly all the island's hotels.
Portugal returned Macau to its mother country, China, in 1999. It has been diversifying its tourist attractions which include promoting its abundant historical sites and developing modern facilities for shopping, sightseeing and sports.
"Macau offers various kinds of entertainment facilities for all family members. The diversification of the leisure industry is still in process," said chief executive officer of Viva Macau Airline Con Korfiatis.
Seeing gold in the country's economic development and because of an increasing number of tourists to Macau, the airline offers Jakarta-Macau direct flights.
However, it is incontestable that casinos are the main attractions on the island, but other tourist spots are growing in popularity, as proven by how crowded they are everyday by both local and foreign tourists.
Macau is a tiny island measuring about 29 square meters or less than one-twentieth of Jakarta's total area.
You can enjoy all its major tourist attractions in two days using chartered vehicles or three days by public buses.
Public transportation is easy to access and very convenient to use throughout the city. Brochures and guide books provide easy-to-understand directions for getting on the buses, their routes and bus stops.
Senado area, the Macau Old Town, is the most recommended place for visitors who come to the island with all their family members. The area is home to many historical sites which have become more and more touristic, marked with a mushrooming number of restaurants and shops selling food and souvenirs.
For those who like automotive and motorcycle racing, they should not overlook the Macau Grand Prix Museum, which was opened by the Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) in 1993.
The museum displays collections of machines that have competed in and won Macau's Guia circuit. Museum archives include photographs, literature and various items related to the Grand Prix, which was first organized on the island in 1954.
In the same building there is the Wine Museum. Using various media, the museum aims to comprehensively examine its history which not only gives visitors information about wine and grapevines but also traditional and modern wine production.
There are at least 20 museums across the island, including the Macau Museum, the Museum of Arts, the Maritime Museum, the Treasure of Sacred Arts Museum, the Taipa Houses Museum, the Macau Tea Museum, the Communication Museum and the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Memorial House.
The Macau tourist office also lists religious buildings as tourist attractions such as Chinese and Buddhist temples as well as old churches.
A-ma Temple is the island's most historical site because Macau's name is derived from A-Ma-Gau or Place of A-ma. The temple is dedicated to the seafarers' goddess and dates from the early 16th century.
The legend has it that A-Ma, a poor girl looking for passage to Canton (Guang Dong), was refused by a wealthy junk owner but a poor fisherman took her on board. A storm wrecked her boat and on her arrival to Macau, she vanished only to appear as a goddess; it is on that spot where the fishermen built the temple.
The modern part of Macau, however, is no less interesting. It boasts contemporary buildings such as Macau Tower which is 338 meters high. The tower's observation deck provides restaurants, theaters, shopping malls and the Skywalk, a thrilling walking tour around the outer rim. It also offers the best view of Macau and has been used for adventurous activities.
All these efforts show how Macau's leaders want to convince travelers that the island not only offers gambling facilities, but also other attractions which are friendly for all family members.

DANCING THE BELLY AWAY

The Jakarta Post Sun, 12/14/2008 9:53 AM Life

Members of the Bellydance Jakarta Dancers perform at the third annual Ball and Recital Bellydance at Le Meridien Hotel on Jl Sudirman Saturday. The event marked the third anniversary of the group.

Ferrari F1 team plans to accelerate cost-cutting

The Associated Press , Milan, Italy Mon, 12/08/2008 7:30 PM Sports Formula One team Ferrari is planning to accelerate its cost-cutting plans for 2009 in the wake of Honda's pullout from the sport. "This process had already begun over the last few years. But now it's going to have a sharp acceleration," team director Stefano Domenicali said in an interview with Corriere della Sera on Monday without providing further financial details. Still, Domenicali warned that cuts in F1 spending shouldn't reach the point where it wouldn't allow healthy engineering competition. Ferrari announced in October that it too would leave F1 if the sport's governing body goes ahead with plans to have a sole engine and transmission supplier beginning in 2010. "We're at the forefront in the process of auto racing renewal, which has to remain a technological and sporting competition," Domenicali said. "Ferrari will continue to be a leader. The fans should stay calm." Honda quit F1 on Friday, saying that in the current economic downturn it needs to focus on its core business of making and selling cars rather than spending $291 million a year to race them on Grand Prix tracks. In three seasons, and with such massive investment, Honda managed just one race victory. Ferrari - the oldest team in F1 - has won more than 200 races. Domenicali called Honda's decision "a lightning strike in a clear sky." "It's a big crisis and you can understand the reasons that would force an automaker, faced with thousands of job firings, to engage in such drastic cost-cutting," he said. "F1 has already weathered some very tough times. It's key to react lucidly and avoid mistakes in strategy that you could pay a costly price for when things improve." Ferrari won the constructor's title this season, but Felipe Massa lost the driver's championship to McLaren's Lewis Hamilton in the final race. Ferrari does not feel a complete loser, though.

Real Madrid fires coach Bernd Schuster

The Associated Press , Madrid Tue, 12/09/2008 9:16 PM Sports Real Madrid has fired Bernd Schuster two days after the German coach said it would be "impossible" for the two-time defending Spanish champion to win against Barcelona next Saturday. Former Tottenham and Sevilla coach Juande Ramos will immediately replace the 49-year-old Schuster, who was let go only six months after guiding the Spanish powerhouse to its record 31st league title. Fifth-placed Madrid trails leader Barcelona by nine points going into Saturday's "classico" derby. Schuster said Sunday after a 4-3 home defeat to Sevilla that Madrid "would try to play a good game" but that this was Barcelona's season. "Madrid is a team that whichever game it has to play it will go in with maximum motivation to play it," said Ramos, who takes over for the remainder of the season. "Barcelona is playing really well but Madrid is playing well enough to not renounce a victory in any stadium in the world." Ramos is the eighth coach to lead the Spanish club since it fired Vicente del Bosque in 2003. The 54-year-old Ramos' first match in charge will be against Zenit St. Petersburg in the Champions League on Wednesday. Sports director Pedja Mijatovic said that after a Tuesday morning meeting with the board of directors, Schuster and Madrid parted ways "amicably." "We talked about all of the difficulties that we had over the past months ... and we decided to take this decision," Mijatovic said. "He accepted it with great humility." Schuster joined Madrid from Getafe last July, replacing current England coach Fabio Capello, who was fired after leading Madrid to its first league title in four years to snap its longest trophy drought for 53 years. Schuster, who had a contract through 2010, promptly defended the league title easily as Madrid finished 18 points ahead of bitter rival Barcelona. "He did a great job last year and we hoped things would work out, but as you know in the world of football their are streaks you can't shake," Mijatovic said. "We enjoyed our time with him." But fifth-ranked Madrid, which has already qualified for the knockout phase of the Champions League, has lost three of its last four league games and is in the middle of an injury crisis. Only three weeks ago, Mijatovic backed Schuster to continue "barring a catastrophe." But Schuster's comments about the match against Barcelona, where he all but threw in the towel, were never likely to be well received. "At the Camp Nou now, it's not possible to win," Schuster said after the match against Sevilla. "They (Barcelona) are playing really well there and it's their year. We can just try and hopefully play a good game." Schuster added that the way Barcelona was "demolishing" opponents, with the Catalans scoring an average of three goals a game, meant that it was their year. Barcelona is unbeaten in 20 matches in all competitions. The news of Schuster's firing comes during a turbulent time at the Spanish powerhouse, with president Ramon Calderon just surviving a vote of confidence at the club's general assembly on Sunday. Three days prior, the youth director quit the club citing Calderon's neglect as the reason for his leaving. Ramos led Sevilla to back-to-back UEFA Cup titles and a Copa del Rey trophy before taking over at Tottenham in October 2007. But he was fired by Spurs after its worst league start for 100 years, only six months after guiding Tottenham to its first trophy since 1999 in February with a League Cup triumph. Schuster was a former star for Madrid, FC Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. Besides Getafe, Schuster has also coached Spain's Levante - which he led to promotion to the first division in 2004 - Germany's Cologne, Spanish second-division side Xerez, and Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk.

BI supervision of banks comes under fire

Aditya Suharmoko , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta Thu, 12/04/2008 7:39 AM Headlines
Following the Bank Century trouble, the central bank is under pressure to improve its supervision amid the global financial downturn to prevent troubled banks from disrupting the country’s financial sector, legislators warn.
“Global crises impact Indonesia. Bank Indonesia needs to restructure its banking supervision, which is its weakest point,” Dradjad H. Wibowo, a member of the House of Representatives’ Commission XI, which oversees financial affairs, said Wednesday.
Last week, the National Police detained Robert Tantular, a key shareholder in ailing Century, for allegedly asking the lender’s management to breach existing bank regulations. That request led to the mess the bank is currently embroiled in.
The government, via the Deposit Insurance Corporation (LPS), then took over the lender and injected Rp 2.5 trillion (US$208.6 million) to keep it afloat, after the bank’s capital adequacy ratio (CAR) plunged to negative 2.3 percent in early November, from about 18 percent in September.
A bank’s CAR determines how healthy it is financially.
Century was formed in late 2004 through the merger of Bank CIC, Bank Danpac and Bank Pikko.
“Before the merger, I insisted CIC be liquidated, considering its poor track record. But BI gave it room to breathe, resulting in the mess,” Dradjad said.
He said BI, with its exemplary human resources, should take a strict line on banks and enforce heavy sanctions to prevent such incidents from happening again.
“If it continues, people may think Erick (Jazier Ardiansjah) is a hero rather than a rumormonger, because what he said turned out to be true.”
Erick, a Bahana Securities trader, was recently arrested for spreading an email about a deposit run on five banks — Bank Panin, Bank Bukopin, Bank Artha Graha, Bank Victoria and Century.
Fellow Commission XI member Rizal Djalil said BI should record each bank’s ownership structure and money distribution, to gain a clearer picture of the banking sector condition.
The legislators were speaking at a hearing with the Finance Ministry and BI on the issuance of three regulations in lieu of the law on the LPS, BI and the financial system safety net (JPSK).
The government needs House approval for the regulations within three months of their issuance last October, to give them proper legal standing.
The regulations are seen as crucial in preventing a crisis in Indonesia’s financial sector, by allowing the government and BI to take immediate action against a possible crisis that could cause systemic threats to the financial sector, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said.
“The JPSK is about (preventing) a systemic threat to the banking system. Without the JPSK, BI may be doubtful of providing a short-term financing facility or an emergency financing facility,” she said.
However, several legislators raised concerns that the regulation could be misused, saying it would grant BI greater authority and hence create a possible repeat of the BI liquidity support abuses from the 1997-1998 crisis.

Dalai Lama says he's anxious to meet Carla Bruni

Associated Press , Brussels Thu, 12/04/2008 9:55 PM World The Dalai Lama has used humor to brush off China's fury over his upcoming meeting with French Pesident Nicolas Sarkozy.The Tibetan spiritual leader told the European Parliament with a chuckle that he looks forward to meeting Sarkozy's "attractive wife," the former model Carla Bruni.Beijing has already canceled a major China-EU summit in protest of the meeting. The session has sparked concern that business ties between the two countries could suffer.China is fiercely opposed to foreign leaders meeting with the Dalai Lama. China regards Tibet as part of its territory.Beijing has denounced the Dalai Lama as a separatist who seeks to end Chinese rule of the Himalayan region.