Your business:
Mobile
AFP Mobile provides live news and rich media content adapted to all mobile usage. Our offer includes reliable and mobile-ready feeds, a mobile publishing platform, embedded applications and technical solutions.
Rich and mobile-ready content, a mobile publishing platform, embedded applications (Java, iPhone) and technical solutions.
Quick access to all the latest news
Gaza rocket kills one in Israel, clouds Mideast peace moves
03/18 | 18:15 GMT
©AFP / David Buimovitch
An Israeli sapper removes the remains of a rocket launched from the nearby Gaza Strip and which landed in the southern Israeli Netiv Haasara Kibbutz. A flurry of Middle East diplomacy was marred on Thursday as a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip killed a civilian in Israel as the EU foreign policy chief was visiting the Palestinian enclave.
©AFP / David Buimovitch
An Israeli sapper removes the remains of a rocket
JERUSALEM (AFP) - A flurry of Middle East diplomacy was marred on Thursday as a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip killed a civilian in Israel as the EU foreign policy chief was visiting the Palestinian enclave.
A Thai agricultural worker was killed when the rocket slammed into a kibbutz just a few kilometres (couple of miles) from the Gaza border.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned the attack. "All such acts of terror and violence against civilians are totally unacceptable and contrary to international law," his office said.
The attack, claimed by the Al-Qaeda-inspired Ansar al-Sunna Brigade, came just as EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton was visiting the impoverished coastal strip which is still struggling with the aftermath of the 22-day offensive Israel launched in December 2008 in a bid to halt rocket fire.
©AFPTV
VIDEO: Ashton, in Gaza, condemns violence after fatal rocket fire. Duration: 00:54
"I'm extremely shocked by the rocket attack ... and the tragic loss of life," Ashton told journalists. "We need to move forward to get the peace process to move toward a successful resolution."
Ashton was to fly later on Thursday to Moscow for a meeting of the Middle East diplomatic Quartet also attended by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the UN chief.
Ban himself also plans to visit the Middle East, including Gaza, over the weekend amid mounting tension in the region as well as between Israel and the United States.
US-Israel ties 'unassailably solid': ambassador
US Middle East envoy George Mitchell, who brokered a now troubled deal for indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinians on a previous visit, is due back in the region on Sunday, a senior Palestinian official said.
The trip, initially scheduled for last Tuesday, was postponed amid a major row between Washington and the Jewish state over Israel's announcement of 1,600 new homes for settlers in annexed mainly Arab east Jerusalem.
animationSet
©AFP iactiv
Middle East: Riots in Jersualem amid calls for new "intifada"
Washington was all the more angered as the announcement was made while Vice President Joe Biden was in Jerusalem promoting the talks, but President Barack Obama has insisted there is no crisis.
"We and the Israeli people have a special bond that's not going to go away," he said in an interview with Fox News on Wednesday night.
He called on both Israelis and Palestinians to "take steps to make sure that we can rebuild trust." Hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet held a late night session on Wednesday to discuss its answer to the US administration's criticism amid concern that delaying the keenly awaited response would further exacerbate the rift between the two allies.
©AFP / Said Khatib
A Palestinian man shouts slogans during a protest against an Israeli decision to tighten the border area in Khan Yunis
But the prospects for a swift resumption of peace negotiations, halted when Israel launched its devastating Gaza offensive in December 2008, appeared dim.
Peace with Israeli government 'impossible': Assad
The thorny issue of settlement construction, which has long been a major hurdle in peace efforts, was certain to come up at the Quartet meeting on Friday.
The diplomatic activity comes at a time of heightened religious and political tension that saw several days of clashes between Palestinians and police in east Jerusalem.
©AFP / David Buimovitch
A homemade rocket launched from the Gaza Strip lays on the ground
An already charged atmosphere intensified over the opening this week of a rebuilt 17th century synagogue in the Jewish quarter of the Old City, a few hundred metres (yards) from the Al-Aqsa mosque compound.
The Ansar al-Sunna Brigade said Thursday's rocket attack was "an answer to Zionist aggression against the Al-Aqsa mosque and holy sites and our people in Jerusalem."
On Wednesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman sharply criticised international demands for a freeze of Jewish settlement construction in east Jerusalem, which Israel seized and annexed in 1967 in a move never recognised by the international community.
But Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas insisted Israel must abide by its "obligations" and "freeze settlement activity in all Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem."
Volume
Stories, images, videos and graphics
Languages
English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Arabic
A range of products and services covering all mobile usage
Services and technical solutions:
- A mobile publishing platform: Design your mobile site according to your needs, get AFP mobile rich content and integrate your own feeds, customize your mobile site to your “look & feel” and optimize the display for all devices. This platform has been developed in partnership with MoMac
- AFP mobile applications for iPhone, Java, BlackBerry and Android, developed in-house and with our partners Webwag and Handmark, are available as white label products.
Content in text, photos, videos and graphics
- AFP Direct Pocket, AFP news wires in real time available 24/7.
- SMS / MMS, breaking world news headlines selected and edited by AFP editorial teams.
- Internet Journal, AFP’s key multimedia product covering more than ten topics : complete stories, photos and videos.
- Mobile Journal, a rich media product designed for mobile – shorter illustrated stories going straight to the point.
- Video galleries, AFP’s worldwide video coverage adapted to mobile
- Photo galleries, the best of AFP’s photo service adapted to mobile.
Some examples of our mobile products
Honda dreams of steering CSKA to Champions League title
03/18 | 16:45 GMT
©AFP/File / Cristina Quicler
Japan midfielder Keisuke Honda, pictured on March 16, who helped steer CSKA Moscow into the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time, said Thursday he had always dreamed of scoring in Europe's elite competition.
©AFP/File / Cristina Quicler
Keisuke Honda
MOSCOW (AFP) - Japan midfielder Keisuke Honda, who helped steer CSKA Moscow into the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time, said Thursday he had always dreamed of scoring in Europe's elite competition.
The 23-year-old grabbed the winning goal in the last 16 win at Sevilla on Tuesday, and believes that the Russian side should fear nobody in the last eight.
"Of course, our goal is to win the (Champions League) title," said Honda.
"The first goal in the Champions League is a realisation of my schoolboy dream. When I started playing I was watching TV and dreaming that I will also score one day. I'm happy to fulfill it in just my second match."
"I didn't expect to score as I thought the 'keeper would get it, but the ball was a bit wet and maybe it surprised him.
"Perhaps I got a bit lucky but a goal is a goal," Honda said about his winner which was helped into the net by a blunder from Sevilla keeper Andres Palop.
Honda said that he didn't mind who his team faced in the last eight, the draw for which is on Friday and includes the likes of defending champions Barcelona as well as English giants Manchester United and Arsenal.
"We are set to improve our performance in the Champions League and I don't really care who we play in the next round," he said. "It would have been interesting to face Real Madrid but they were eliminated."
Honda, signed from Dutch side VVV-Venlo in January, marked his Russian league debut with an injury-time winner against Amkar Perm last weekend.
"It was really great to score the winner in the first match of the championship," he said. "But it was much more important to gain three points and I'm happy we did it."
The 23-year-old said his path to CSKA was not easy.
"I turned down the first transfer offer from CSKA last summer. However, the fact that CSKA won the UEFA Cup in 2005 changed my mind and I decided to come here."
"I took a risk in the transfer to CSKA because there's always a risk in any move, but I think I made the right one."
Honda added he was hungry for the trophies and ready to overcome any difficulties.
"The main target I set when I came here was winning trophies," he said.
"Though there are plenty of attacking midfielders in CSKA I'm ready to compete for a place in the starting line-up. Besides, our manager said he was set to use all of us in some matches.
"I understand that CSKA is a club with rich traditions and there are already a lot of top class players here. But I believe I can become one of its leaders in the future."
He also said that he has benefitted from new experiences in Moscow.
"I think here in CSKA I work three or four times harder than I was working in Holland," the midfielder said. "But focusing on the physical side is good for me as one of my goals is improving my strength."
Sports
Honda dreams of steering CSKA to Champions League ...Ashton, in Gaza, condemns violence after fatal rocket fire
03/18 | 16:15 GMT
©afp.com
VIDEO: EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton condemned "any kind of violence" on Thursday after Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, where she was on a brief visit, fired a rocket into Israel, killing one man. Duration: 00:54.
©afp.com
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton condemned "any kind of violence" on Thursday after Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, where she was on a brief visit, fired a rocket into Israel, killing one man. Duration: 00:54.
Video Gallery
Ashton, in Gaza, condemns violence after fatal rocket ...Bullock cancels London trip, film premiere called off
03/18 | 15:57 GMT
©AFP/Getty Images/File / Alberto E. Rodriguez
Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock, seen here March 7, has cancelled her upcoming trip to the capital for "personal reasons", forcing organisers to call off the London premiere of "The Blind Side".
©AFP/Getty Images/File / Alberto E. Rodriguez
Sandra Bullock said she had to pull out of the premiere due to "unforeseen personal reasons"
LONDON (AFP) - Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock has cancelled her upcoming trip to the capital for "personal reasons", forcing organisers to call off the London premiere of "The Blind Side".
In a statement released by Warner Brothers on Thursday, the 45-year-old actress said she had to pull out of the promotional event due to "unforeseen personal reasons".
The premiere was to take place at the Odeon in Leicester Square on March 23. Bullock was due to attend with her co-star, 25-year-old newcomer Quinton Aaron.
Bullock -- who is best known for her roles in romantic comedies -- won her first Academy Award for her performance as a suburban mother who takes in a homeless teenager in "The Blind Side" which is based on the true story of US sports star Michael Oher.
Bullock surprised critics with her powerful performance in the film and made history by becoming the first actress to win an Oscar and a Razzie -- an award given to the worst performer -- in the same week. The Razzie was for her comedy performance in "All About Steve" and Bullock made a point of picking up the raspberry award in person.
Accepting her best actress Oscar earlier this month, she joked: "Did I really earn this or did I just wear you all down?"
People
Bullock cancels London trip, film premiere called ...Daunting in-tray awaits new Nigerian cabinet
03/18 | 17:54 GMT
©AFP/File / Wole Emmanuel
Nigeria's acting president Goodluck Jonathan, seen here in November 2009, put the finishing touches Thursday to a new cabinet which will be tasked with tackling a mounting set of crises, including a new bout of sectarian slaughter.
©AFP/File / Wole Emmanuel
Goodluck Jonathan is expected to retain most of the 42 cabinet members
LAGOS (AFP) - Nigeria's Acting President Goodluck Jonathan put the finishing touches Thursday to a new cabinet tasked with tackling a mounting set of crises, including a new bout of sectarian slaughter.
A day after he dissolved the entire cabinet in a startling show of strength, Jonathan planned to unveil an invigorated ministerial team which have to address a daunting in-tray of problems.
Jonathan's spokesman Ima Niboro said the cabinet overhaul was designed "to inject fresh blood and bring even greater vigour to governance".
"It is part of a larger strategy to frontally confront the core challenges that face the nation at this critical moment of our history," added Niboro, quoted in the newspaper ThisDay.
Many analysts say that Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation and one of the world's biggest oil exporters, has been in a state of virtual governmental paralysis since President Umaru Yar'Adua was stricken by a heart condition last November.
Although the president did return home to Nigeria last month after a three-month stay in a Saudi hospital, he has yet to be seen in public -- let alone return to work.
©AFPTV
VIDEO: Women protest religious violence in Nigeria. Duration: 01:15
In his absence, Nigeria has been rocked by renewed unrest in the oil-producing Niger Delta region, where rebels staged a double bomb attack earlier this week, and large-scale killings of Christian villagers.
Only 10 days after machete-wielding Muslim herdsmen slaughtered at least 109 villagers near the flashpoint city of Jos, another dozen people were butchered early Wednesday.
The economy is also in trouble with Nigeria's foreign reserves falling last month by 510 million dollars as inflation edged up to 12.3 percent.
And earlier this month, former oil minister Rilwanu Lukman warned that losses and liabilities totalling more than 2.5 billion dollars are pushing Nigeria's giant state oil firm NNPC towards extinction.
Investors are keeping a close eye and looking for political backing for reforms.
"Reassurances will be sought that some kind of predictability can be reinstated quickly, and all-importantly, that the move will not trigger an escalation of political risk," said London-based Razia Khan, chief researcher on Africa for Standard Chartered Bank.
Time is not on Jonathan's side and sources in the presidency say the installation of the new government will be fast-tracked, with at least half of the old 42-strong cabinet re-instated.
©AFP/Graphic
Nigeria is Africa's most populous nation
A presidential source said that Jonathan had already held talks with parliamentary leaders in a bid to speed up the new team's installation.
He "is in talks already with the leadership of the senate so that it can expedite the clearance of the nominees," said the source.
He is unlikely to face opposition as the Senate overrode the reservations of Yar'Adua's ministers to vote him into office as acting head of state.
Jonathan's decision to dissolve the cabinet now gives him an opportunity to appoint his own team and thus strengthen his authority.
The opposition Action Congress said the sacked cabinet "failed when it mattered most: when a courageous act was needed to break a logjam that rattled Nigeria to its very foundation and threatened its fledgling democracy".
"It was the ministers’ lack of courage, flimsy loyalty and downright selfishness that eventually left the (cabinet) divided, thus paving the way for it to fall like a pack of cards," said AC.
The outgoing information minister Dora Akunyili, a supporter of Jonathan who is tipped to return to cabinet, said the government clean-out was needed.
"Even with the ongoing political tension in Nigeria the dissolution of the cabinet is probably in the best interest of the country," she said.
Observers said Jonathan's sacking of the entire cabinet would be somewhat risky and could face legal challenges from some of the ministers in the dissolved cabinet, especially those aligned to Yar'Adua.
