China uses Foley murder, Ferguson riots as propaganda

Chinese media has capitalised on the murder of kidnapped journalist James Foley and the riots in Ferguson, Missouri as a propaganda tool.

Certain sections of the press in China have exploited the incidents to criticise US foreign policy and point a finger at the disquiet and ethnic divisions that exist in some parts of the United States.

On August 20th, soon after video  emerged showing Foley's execution by Islamic extremists in Iraq, Beijing-based finance magazine Caijing and Hong Kong-based Phoenix Media both published posts on their official Weibo accounts about the US journalist.

Half truths

"The American reporter beheaded by ISIS blamed the US government for the tragedy," Caijing's Weibo post began. It then quotes Foley as saying, "I call on my friends, family, and loved ones to rise up against my real killers: the US government," who ordered recent air strikes targeting ISIS.

Whilst Foley did utter these words, Caijing crucially neglected to point out that ISIS militants had forced him to read them aloud in front of the camera.

Phoenix Media's Weibo post followed in a similar vein and posted several photos of the execution including a partly censored photograph of Foley's body lying in the desert.

"US negligence"

The state-run Global Times, known for its nationalist editorials, took another tack, intimating on its Weibo account that Foley's death resulted from US government negligence towards its own citizens. The Global Times asked rhetorically on its official Weibo account, "No matter where you are, can you always rely on the U.S. military?" and followed with a nose-picking emoticon.

Public screenings

Meanwhile in Beijing a large TV was used to display footage of the execution interspersed with riots in America that followed the shooting dead of black teenager Michael Brown by a police officer. Edited into the video loop were clips of "happy families skipping in front of various Beijing landmarks" and "photographs of local school children holding handicrafts and helping old people."

"This type of juxtaposition is fairly common in China," says George of That's Beijing, adding that images of peace and prosperity in China are typically contrasted with clips of violence around the world, promoting the narrative that "chaos looms beyond our pleasant and safe borders."

According to another online source, the video was unlikely to be mandated by the state. Dr. Xu Wu, an associate professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, told Quartz that if the government had the intention to use foreign violence as propaganda, it wouldn't just be in Dongzhimen in Beijing. "You'd see it across China…everywhere," he said.

However, the screen in question often shows broadcasts from the state run channel CCTV. Furthermore there was an official looking logo shown on the bottom right of the screen, which we've as yet been unable to identify.

Anger from citizens

Whilst the state media may be trying to exploit troubles abroad, Chinese citizens were outraged both by the murder of Foley and some of the media reportage.

"Global Times, how despicable," wrote one user. "All day you use a magnifying glass to look for dirt on other people." Another user asked sarcastically, "I wonder what the Chinese government would do if you, Little Editor, were kidnapped."

Across Chinese social networks there were  expressions of horror at Foley's death and anger at the extremists who killed him. Many called his killers "monsters" or asked for a moment of silence for war correspondents. Some users posted pictures of lit candles on Weibo as others wished for peace in the Middle East.

Reports: Foreign Policy / IBT / YouTube

tvnewswatch, London, UK

War on Terror is far from over...

Four people have been arrested in connection to what US authorities believe was a serious plan to launch a terror campaign in and around New York. Three of the persons have been named as James Cromitie (also known as Abdul Rahman), David Williams (aka Daoud and DL), and Onta Williams (aka Hamza). They were brought to court on Thursday and were ordered to be detained until the 5th June for a preliminary hearing. The three and a fourth man, Laguerre Payen (aka Amin and Almondo), have been accused attempts to bomb a synagogue and planning to target military jets at an airfield [BBC / Sky News / CNN].

The threat is being taken extremely seriously by authorities despite the group being infiltrated early on in their planning the attacks and supplied with fake explosives. According to reports the group attempted to detonate the explosives outside two synagogues in New York.

The foiling of the alleged terror plot comes as the US senate rejected an appeal by Obama for money to close Guantanamo Bay and will serve to reinforce the argument that the terror threat remains strong enough to maintain the camp. On Thursday it was also announced that the first trial for a former Guantanamo Bay detainee will take place in New York in the coming weeks. Ahmed Ghailani, who is suspected of taking part in al-Qaeda plots to bomb US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, will be the first former detainee to face trial in the United States [CNN].

Meanwhile terror attacks have continued in Iraq today. Scores have been killed in Baghdad and Kirkuk in an upsurge of violence that has swept the country in recent weeks. April was the bloodiest month since September, and despite reassuring statements from both the Iraqi government and the US military that things were getting better, most ordinary citizens are increasingly concerned [BBC / CNN].

In Kirkuk at least five were killed and 3 US soldiers were amongst 12 killed in a blast that struck in central Baghdad. Today’s attacks which left at least 23 dead came a day after 40 were killed in north-west Baghdad. More than 250 died in a series of attacks in April leading many to believe that insurgents may be regrouping as US troops prepare to downsize their operations [BBC].

Obama "optimistic" at G20 result

President Barack Obama: "confident and optimistic"

Appearing before journalists following the G20 Summit U.S. President Barack Obama said the meeting was “productive" and “historic”. There was no real sense of excitement as hundreds of journalists waited for the leader to give his thoughts on the outcome. Many were tired after a long day and it was, after all a repeat of what Gordon Brown had already said.

However, Obama was nonetheless the star of the show, exuding a sense of charisma not seen in other G20 leaders. Stepping onto the stage some 40 minutes later than expected, Obama said he was generally confident and optimistic in what had been achieved.

"By any measure the London Summit was historic,” he told the news conference, “not only because of the size and scope of the challenges we face, but also because of the timeliness and magnitude of our response."

"The challenge is clear, and the global economy is retracting," he declared, but said the world was now at the "turning point of our economic and global recovery."

"Today the world's leader have responded with a set of unprecedented and coordinated actions," Obama told reporters.

There was, he said a strong consensus in rejecting protectionism. "History tells us that turning inward can help turn a downturn into a depression" Obama said, declaring that the agreements reached signalled support for open markets. "Today we have learnt the lessons of history and we are committed to growth and job creation," Obama said

He said that there had been agreements on facilitating "bold action to help developing countries" and injecting huge sums into the IMF to help struggling economies. "In an age where our economies are more closely linked than ever before, the whole world is touched by this devastating downturn," Obama said.

The president then made a pledge to help those most vulnerable in the world. Obama saying he would seek authority from the U.S congress to enable 448 million dollars to be diverted into helping Africa's poor as well as those in Latin America. But he insisted this was not charity. It was, he said, an effort to help what he called "future markets" that would one day drive economic growth.

Turning to the importance if implementing a better regulatory system, Barack Obama said, "We must put an end to bust and bubble economic policies," adding that risk taking which had been so harmful to the economy must end. He and the G20 partners had also agreed to greater transparency and said new regulations would be applied to hedge funds and tax havens.

The President did concede that bringing together 20 nations and making a deal was not easy. “Each country has its own non-negotiable issues,” he said, and added that more work may yet need to be done.

"This is not a panacea but it is a critical step," he declared, "But we may have to take additional steps until we get it right." It was hard to bridge differences, Obama said, and not everything was solved. He therefore welcomed another meeting scheduled for late 2009. He said that the summit had however achieved a great deal, partly he said due to the hard work that Gordon Brown had put in to organise the meeting.

"America is a critical actor and leader on the world stage," he said boastfully, but, he added, "We may not always have the best answer" to the problems the world faces. "The proof of the pudding is in the eating."

While in general there was strong consensus, there did appear to be some conflicts of policy. In an apparent comment at Gordon Brown comments at attempting to stop the rampant bonus culture seen in Britain, Obama said, "We don't want the state dictating salaries." But he added that there must be more accountability.

There are no guarantees in life or economics, Obama said but insisted the steps in the communiqué were necessary.

In his final summing up Barack Obama was thoughtful and philosophical. He even joked with reporters during the Q&A that followed. But he also spoke as a true statesman, with confidence and with optimism.

"Ultimately the challenges of the 21st century cannot be met without collective action. Agreement will almost never be easy, and result will not always come easy. But I am committed to respecting different points of view and to forging a consensus instead of dictating our terms. That's how we made progress in the last few days and that's how we will advance the deals in the months and years to come."

"In a world that's more and more interconnected we all have responsibilities to work together to solve common challenges. And although it will take time, I am confident that we will rebuild global prosperity if we act with a common sense of purpose, persistence and the optimism that the moment demands."

Brown & Obama - an awkward relationship

The British press have ridiculed Gordon Brown's US visit

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrived in the United States on Tuesday with the hope of discussing a “global new deal”. But his effort to gather support to kick-start the world economy seemed to be getting a cold reception before it had even begun.

Snubs and criticism

Besides it being his first visit to the U.S. since Barack Obama became president, the Prime Minister’s itinerary was being downsized and rescheduled. Hopes of a joint press conference in the Rose Garden evaporated due to the heavy snow in Washington, though officials did not explain why the event was not moved inside. Some saw the move as a snub to the Prime Minister who has been particularly critical of the U.S. financial regulatory system.
During his monthly press conference last month [Feb 18th], Gordon Brown called for “an international system of regulation”, something he said was “absolutely essential”.
But his attempts of persuading others to join his plan have so far fallen on deaf ears. And it has not been helped by continued criticism of other countries. In his February statement he said there was a “failure in the American regulatory system.”

“If you take the sub-prime mortgage market in the United States of America, sub-prime mortgages, half of them were sold to Europe. So they were sold on by providers in the United States of America to Europe. But they were regulated by the American system and they were called Triple A. So the people who were buying these investments from America were buying what they were told was the most worthy investment of them all, Triple A rated, and there was a failure in the American regulatory system.”

However, while he said Britain was more tightly regulated, he conceded there was still room for improvement. “Our regulatory system has been a better system but it is still not good enough to meet the changing challenges of the times,” Gordon Brown said.

Despite his criticism of America, the Prime Minister has also praised Obama for his efforts in tackling the financial crisis saying they were doing “similar things” to what Britain was doing.
The atmosphere of Brown’s visit has already been soured by what some see as pointed gestures about the state of Britain’s so called “special relationship”. Barack Obama has already removed a bust of Winston Churchill that once sat in the Oval Office. And in what might be seen as another snub, former Prime Minister Tony Blair was invited to the national prayer breakfast in Washington last month and referred to by Obama as a “good friend”.

The White House insisted that a special relationship still existed between Britain in an attempt to brush off speculation. On his arrival at Andrews Airforce base the Prime Minister did receive a rather frosty reception in the form of extremely cold temperatures reportedly as low as minus 10 degrees Celsius.

'The special relationship'

His meeting with Rabbi Arthur Schneier of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation was somewhat warmer. During the visit Brown insisted the downturn could “only be resolved by people working together”. The Rabbi gave him a pot of honey in the shape of an apple in recognition of Britain’s work in tackling world poverty. But the Prime Minister will need more than a pot of honey to help him save global markets which have crashed to all time lows in recent days.
In an earlier interview with National Public Radio [NPR] he said that the priority was to “clean up the banking system”. But most of his discussions with Barack Obama were held behind closed doors. In a short question and answer session after the meeting Obama reaffirmed his belief in the special relationship between the U.S and Britain. “Rest assured it is not only strong but will get stronger as time goes on,” Obama said. He added that the relationship was important to the U.S and Great Britain. “It’s not just important to me but also the American people,” he emphasized.

Obama echoed the words of the British Prime Minister saying a “global new deal” was important. But he said the US banking sector had been dealt a heavy blow and economic recovery would not happen overnight.

Brown thanked Obama referring to their “partnership of purpose” which was founded on shared values and a need to solve world economic problems. He said that a “Big regulatory change” was needed. He was nonetheless positive saying, “There is a possibility of a global new deal in the next few months”.

Both leaders emphasized the need to work together with Obama declaring, “In this world we need to build alliances and not act unilaterally”. It was also important that all major G20 countries worked together with a common set of principles he said [BBC].

Despite much press speculation it appeared, that at least publicly, the two leaders were affirming their strong alliance.

'Weird and sinister'

However, Brown is certainly not running in the footsteps of his predecessor who was much admired in the US. Although he was welcomed by strong applause during his speech to congress, it was not in league to that seen in Tony Blair’s day.

The BBC’s Nick Robertson talked of 17 standing ovations, two less than that received by Prime Minister Blair. However not all pundits saw the reception as being so rapturous. Sky’s Adam Boulton described the so-called standing ovations as merely “seventeen bursts of applause”.
Blair was often described as Bush‘s poodle and recent cartoons have depicted Gordon Brown similarly as a dog sniffing at the butt of America. One could even descibe his speech as somewhat sycophantic. But his apparent obsequiousness did not go down well in the UK. Indeed his performance was even described as “dysfunctional” by one politician on the BBC’s Question Time. Shadow International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell said the interviews in the Oval Office were “rather dysfunctional and rather needy”, though he thought that the Prime Minister’s call to avoid protectionism was important. Writer and feminist Germaine Greer was less than impressed by Gordon Brown’s delivery at Congress saying it was “Weird and sinister”. She said the speech was full of clichés and described it as “over the top”.

Indeed, he had barely begun his address before the praise for America drooled from his lips. "The US is and always will be an inspiration to me and the whole world," Brown said in his opening remarks. And the praise didn’t stop there. “America is an irrepressible nation" he said. "America is a nation with the vision to protect & preserve our planet Earth", a nation whose “spirit” would not be destroyed by terrorists, Brown declared. And of course there was the obligatory tribute to the "sacrifice of American soldiers who have given their lives" in two world wars, as well as Afghanistan & Iraq.

After the praise, and the announcement that Senator Edward Kennedy had been awarded an honorary knighthood by the Queen, Brown then launched into his bidding.

'Building for the future'

He said it was a "time for renewal“ and “ building for the future". "Let us agree rules and standards of accountability and transparency," he said and called on America to “renew our special relationship” and get “every continent playing their part for a global new deal”.
He may well find it an uphill struggle to get the full support of America despite his stated optimism. "I have never before seen a world willing to come together so much," Brown said, while insisting that it was time to “seize this moment” and “build tomorrow, today” [Full speech]

'Saving the world..'

While the reception was generally warm there were moments when some members abstained from applauding the British leader. In fact he received only half-hearted applause when he called for agreement on overhauling the world of international finance at the G20 talks in April.
It should perhaps also be noted that several dozen members of Congress failed to attend the speech. Their seats in the chamber were taken by House and Senate staff and other guests.
In December as the world recession was just beginning to bite, Brown was mocked for his slip-up in Parliament when he said, “The first point of recapitalization was to save the banks that would have otherwise collapsed. And we not only saved the world...”. His attempts to correct himself by saying “save the banks” were drowned out with laughter. The faux pas was then capitalized upon by opposition leader David Cameron who exclaimed, “Well, it's now on the record. He is so busy talking about saving the world, he has forgotten about the businesses of this country.”
There are many who now feel he forgot about “this country” as he fawned for America and its new charismatic, but seemingly disinterested, leader.

'printing money'

Back home the Bank of England announced another interest rate cut and a plan to inject billions of pounds into the economy in the form of “quantitative easing”. It was not met with huge enthusiasm except perhaps by politicians. Twitter, the micro-blogging service, was alive with comments suggesting the proposal to effectively print money could lead to rampant inflation and risked a Zimbabwe style economy developing. The interest rate cut, which was halved to 0.5%, has also created consternation amongst many Britons. Savers will see little point in putting money into banks which give so little return on their investment.

It remains to be seen if Brown’s global new deal and other initiatives will have any effect on the economy, or if he can pull nations together in fighting the global recession.

China's war of words over human rights

In the week following Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's first visit to China a war of words has brewed over human rights. It is a subject that is never far away whenever China is mentioned. But this year is particularly poignant as the 20th anniversary to the pro-democracy protests in Beijing's Tiananmen Square approaches.

Mothers who lost their children in the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 have called for compensation, a full inquiry and a publication of those killed. In addition they have called on the Chinese government to punish those responsible for the deaths. The call comes as the twentieth anniversary to the protest approaches.

But the parents’ calls are likely to be ignored by authorities as China prefers to look towards the future instead of the past. In an open letter to the government the call is made to “break the taboo”.
The letter acknowledges the decision will be difficult for the government but insist it was important for everyone to know the truth. "This will require each deputy to demonstrate extraordinary courage and resourcefulness, political courage and wisdom, to break the taboo and face head-on the unspeakable tragedy that took place 20 years ago and resolve 'June Fourth' with the truth," part of the letter reads. "China has become like an airtight iron chamber and all the demands of the people about June 4, all the anguish, lament and moaning of the victims' relatives and the wounded have been sealed off" [BBC].

In 2006 it was reported that one mother had received some 70,000 yuan in compensation [BBC] Tang Deying had been given the money as a “hardship allowance”. Tang’s 15 year old son, Zhou Guocong, died in police custody in Chengdu days after the suppression of the Tiananmen Square protests. But he is only one of many killed or maimed on the 4th June 1989. Chinese authorities have defended their actions and say 241 died in the clampdown. However, although number remain disputed, it is widely believed the number of dead exceeds 2,000 [Wikipedia].

Protests still take place but have never reach the scale of those seen twenty years ago. Following the milk scandal there have been protests by parents calling for investigations and compensation. Even when some of those involved in contaminating milk with the industrial chemical melamine were found guilty, some parents were angry they were not all give death sentences. In the aftermath of the devastating Beichuan earthquake last year parents called for the government to investigate why so many schools collapsed. Private concerns are also voiced, sometimes with tragic consequences.

This week three protesters set themselves alight as police approached their car which was parked at the junction of Wangfujing and Chang'an Avenue, near to Tiananmen Square. One witness said an incendiary device exploded when police opened the door of a small silver-grey car which was bedecked with three small Chinese flags. The motive behind their apparent protest was not clear, though authorities say they were petitioners with “personal grievances” [BBC]. Signatories to the Charter 08 document have also been detained, questioned by the police and put under pressure at work. The charter calls for a radical overhaul of China's political system by introducing elections, a new constitution and an independent judiciary [BBC].

Many activists have been jailed or placed under house arrest. Even party members have not been immune to Beijing’s crackdown on dissent. Bao Tong, an adviser to the Communist Party's general secretary Zhao Ziyang at the time of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, was jailed for seven years after opposing the crackdown. Zhao Ziyang, who also voiced his opposition to the military crackdown, lost his position as party boss and replaced by Jiang Zemin. Even years after the protests, those reporting on events have felt the long arm of the law. Journalist Shi Tao was jailed for 10 years in 2005 after publicising the authority’s efforts in censoring news in the run up to the 15th anniversary [BBC].

The BBC and other western media often gives the impression that China is like living in a totalitarian police state. However, while it is true that raising voices of dissent will attract attention from authorities, most Chinese people get on with their daily lives without any direct interference. Not that everyone is entirely happy with their lot. Just as in many developed countries in the world there are grumbles about the government, the recession and domestic issues.

This week a US state department report said that in 2008 Chinese authorities had "committed extrajudicial killings and torture, coerced confessions of prisoners, and used forced labour". Its publication came a week after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited China. During her trip Clinton had “candid discussions on human rights issues” but many human rights organisations said she had failed to go far enough in criticising China’s abuse of human rights. China meanwhile has condemned the US state department report. Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma ZhaoXu said the US should “stop acting as a human rights guardian" and “reflect on its own human rights problems” [BBC / Xinhua].

The report [PDF] says China “continued to limit citizens' privacy rights and tightly controlled freedom of speech, the press (including the Internet), assembly, movement, and association”. In particular it accused Chinese authorities of committing “extrajudicial killings and torture, coerced confessions of prisoners, and used forced labour”. Amongst those who were subject to increased detention and harassment were “dissidents, petitioners, human rights defenders, and defense lawyers” according to the report. The 27 page document also singled out many African states including Zimbabwe, the DRC and Sudan. Other Asian countries were criticised for their abuse of human rights. Amongst them were Burma [Myanmar], Malaysia and Thailand where child labour and extrajudicial killings were said to be carried out. The Russian Federation also met with much criticism from the US report. But of some 40 countries mentioned in the document, it was the section on China [US govt] that the media focused upon.

Xinhua, the state news agency, dismissed the findings in the report saying it "turned a blind eye to the efforts and historic achievements China has made in human rights". And in a sharp response to the US report, China has released its own critique of America. Published in part by the state owned news agency Xinhua, the 9,000 word report says the US is gripped with an epidemic of crime, racism and social problems. Americans’ social, economic or cultural rights were not protected, the article claims, and says that many suffer from “personality disorders”. And with reference to this week’s report issued by the State Department, the article accuse the US of hypocrisy. The criticism of other countries by the US amounted to the “practice of throwing stones at others while living in a glass house”, Xinhua said.

The report, entitled Human Rights Record of the United States in 2008, was published by the Information Office of the State Council and is critical of the one-sidedness of the US report. "As in previous years, the reports are full of accusations of the human rights situation in more than 190 countries and regions, including China, but mention nothing of the widespread human rights abuses on its own territory" the report says.

The report was scathing of America’s social situation. “People in the United States saw their pension plans shrink, health insurance cut and school tuition increase, while drugs, suicide and other social problems prevailed” it states. The Chinese report also highlighted issues of civil rights saying that US government surveillance of online activities had increased and new legislation on wiretapping had been written into law. China also focused on the increasing crime rates across the US. Quoting figures published by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the report said crime was growing with over 1.4 million violent crimes, including 17,000 murders and 9.8 million property crimes in 2007 alone [report - full text / report - full text in Chinese].

China, is not itself in the habit of publishing crime figures, so it is difficult to make comparisons. But it is clear the US have certainly rattled some cages within China. The tit for tat in this propaganda war is however likely to continue for some time [BBC].

2008 leaves little to rejoice about

Oil prices, China, the US election & a global recession dominated 2008

2008 has been an eventful year but perhaps it is the cataclysmic events that have left the most lasting of memories. January saw the price of oil pass the $100 per barrel mark. The month also saw a stand off between Iranian forces and US warships over territorial water disputes. The year also started with Israeli incursions into Gaza leaving nearly 50 Palestinians dead. Financial markets were also rocked after rogue trader Jerome Kerviel lost more than €4.9 billion for the French bank Societe Generale in what at the time was described as a “large scale internal fraud” by President Sarkozy.

China saw the beginning of what was a turbulent year after thousands became stranded in the worst snow storms the country had seen for years. The clear up continued well into February and left dozens dead. The US also experienced rare February storms which left around 60 dead. The New York Philharmonic Orchestra played a rare concert in North Korea to soften the diplomatic tension between the two countries. But tensions continued in many other countries. Violent clashes occurred in Serbia and Kosovo after the latter declared its independence and bombings continued to wreak havoc in Iraq and Pakistan.

In March Dmitry Medvedev won the Russian election but was widely seen as Putin’s puppet. Attempts at developing a peace process in the Middle East once again fell on stony ground and incursions and terrorist attacks continued. China returned to the headlines after riots in Tibet left up to 100 dead and the fallout became a PR disaster for the country after protests followed the Olympic torch around the globe during April. There were further troubles after a train crash in Shandong province left 70 dead.

May became a cause for celebration for many Londoners after Boris Johnson won the Mayoral election. But it was the natural disaster in Myanmar which dominated headlines after a cyclone left thousands dead and without help as the country’s dictatorship refused foreign aid. China was the next victim after a massive earthquake struck Sichuan province. Around 80,000 died in the earthquake and a quarter of a million were injured, but China was far more accepting of foreign help, though it was less appreciative of the criticism of its building regulations after it emerged many schools appeared to have been badly built. May also saw oil rise beyond $135 per barrel leaving many motorists around the world with increased running costs.

June brought further rises in the price of fuel and tanker strikes in Britain which nearly saw the pumps run dry. Zimbabwe was once again in the news after Robert Mugabe stole another election. But in the US election Hillary Clinton finally conceded defeat in her bid as Democratic candidate and endorsed Barack Obama. China once again suffered the wrath of nature’s power after floods left millions homeless and more than a hundred dead.

July saw violence return to Israel after a man used a tractor to unleash an attack on civilians. Four were killed and nearly 40 were injured before the man was shot dead by police. Bomb attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan left more than 60 dead. July also saw the first signs of the impending recession after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ran into trouble and stock markets around the world began to fluctuate wildly. But it was the Olympics which hit the headlines as August arrived. However, despite the show of the century, the media could not help but criticise the poor air quality, the arrests of foreign journalists and highlight terrorist attacks that struck in parts of the country.

As the US election campaign got into full swing the financial crisis began to bite hard and one institution after another began to fold. China was also suffering from its own crisis after it was revealed that milk had been contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine leaving thousands sick and at least four babies dead. But it was the financial downturn that gripped most people’s attention well into October. Almost everyday there was further bad news as one company after another announced it was running into financial difficulty.

November brought with it a moment of history after Barack Obama became the first black American President. But the celebrations were short lived as the reality of the deepening financial crisis set in. There was further tragedy after Pakistani terrorists killed dozens on the streets of Mumbai in India. A three day siege ensued and around 156 were killed. India was left reeling from the attacks and there were calls from many to retaliate against Pakistan. THere was no retaliation, though tensions remain high between the two nuclear powers.

December saw Greece gripped by riots after police shot a young teenager dead. Zimbabwe, already suffering from financial collapse, was now becoming the victim of a cholera pandemic which Mugabe blamed on the West. But the West was more concerned with its own demise as one company after another shut its doors. For many retailers it was far from a very merry Christmas as many were forced to slash prices in order to drum up trade. And in the Middle East, the birthplace of Christ, it ended much as it had begun with Israeli bombardments on Gaza and with tanks preparing to roll into the Palestinian territory.

Military jet hits US town

At least one building is on fire after a military jet believed to be an F-18 crashed into a residential area of San Diego in California. Channel 10 News said the plane came down near Cather Avenue and Huggins Street in University City and that the pilot ejected safely. Around 60 firefighters have attended the scene of the crash. Pictures on the BBC showed at least one house almost entirely destroyed and clouds of white smoke enveloping the scene. Sky News and CNN have both broken the news but have not yet shown pictures.

Update [01:49] - at least 3 people have died following the crash CNN has reported

Update [02:47] - a fourth person is reported missing in the crash Sky News has reported