Four NYT Journalists Missing in Libya
Posted: March 16, 2011 Filed under: Afghanistan, Breaking News, Foreign Affairs, Libya | Tags: Anthony Shadid, journalists, Libya, Lynsey Addario, New York Times, Stephen Farrell, Tyler Hicks 14 Comments
Anthony Shadid
Four New York Times journalists disappeared while reporting on fighting in Libya, the newspaper said Wednesday.
Editors at the newspaper said they last heard from the journalists on Tuesday as they were covering the retreat of rebels from the town of Ajdabiya. Libyan officials told the newspaper they are trying to locate the four, executive editor Bill Keller said in a statement.
“We are grateful to the Libyan government for their assurance that if our journalists were captured they would be released promptly and unharmed,” Keller said.
The missing journalists are Pulitzer-Prize-winning reporter Anthony Shadid, the newspaper’s Beirut bureau chief; Stephen Farrell, a reporter and videographer; and photographers Tyler Hicks and Lynsey Addario. In 2009, Farrell was kidnapped by the Taliban and later rescued by British commandos.
Anthony Shadid has won two Pulitzer Prizes, including one in 2010 for reporting on Iraq at the Washington Post.
Lynsey Addario
Lynsey Addario is a brilliant photographer who was a 2009 recipient of a MacArthur “genius” grant. You can view some of her work here and here.
Libyan government forces said Wednesday that they have no information about where the journalists may be and that, if they were picked up by the Libyan military, they would be returned to Tripoli.
CNN quotes from an e-mail Addario sent to CNN correspondent Ivan Watson on Monday:
Addario called the Libya story “one of the most dangerous” of her career.
The e-mail said, “qaddafi’s forces heading back east, and the rebels are surrendering along the way…so exhausted. this story has been one of the most dangerous i have ever covered. getting bombed from the air and by land, with no cover, and no flack and helmet.”
Of the other missing writer and photography, CNN says:
Farrell routinely reports from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq. Before joining The New York Times in 2007, he worked for the Times of London. In April 2004, he was kidnapped on assignment in Iraq.
Hicks, a staffer for the paper, is based in Istanbul and has served as an embed in Afghanistan.
Tyler Hicks
Here is a recent post at the NYT Lens blog, with photos by Tyler Hicks along with his reflections on covering the Libyan conflict.
Stephen Farrell was taken prisoner by the Taliban in 2009. The Guardian has a report about the British soldier who died rescuing Farrell in Afghanistan.
Stephen Farrell
There is some good news. Guardian UK journalist Abdul-Ahad has been freed.
Abdul-Ahad, an Iraqi national, and Andrei Netto, a Brazilian journalist, were taken into custody on 2 March.
They were held in a prison outside Tripoli after being picked up in Sabratha, a coastal town.
Netto was released last week, but Abdul-Ahad, an award-winning correspondent was held until Wednesday.
Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger has said that Abdul-Ahad “is safely out of Libya”.
The recent conflicts in the Middle East have been dangerous for journalists. I only hope that these four fine journalists will soon be found safe and unhurt.
Hillary says No
Posted: March 16, 2011 Filed under: Democratic Politics, Diplomacy Nightmares, Domestic Policy, Egypt, Foreign Affairs, Hillary Clinton, Tunisia | Tags: CNN, interview with Hillary Clinton, politics, Wolf Blitzer 25 CommentsCNN’s Wolf Blitzer has released an interview with SOS Hillary Clinton. Blitzer asked if she was going to either serve a second term or run for
President in 2012. This is pretty clear evidence the Clinton is planning on returning to private life shortly. Blitzer interviewed Clinton during her visit to the U.S. Embassy in Cairo on March 16, 2011.
Q- If the president is reelected, do you want to serve a second term as secretary of state?
No
Q- Would you like to serve as secretary of defense?
No
Q- Would you like to be vice president of the United States?
No
Q- Would you like to be president of the United States?
No
Q- Why not?
Because I have the best job I could ever have. This is a moment in history where it is almost hard to catch your breath. There are both the tragedies and disasters that we have seen from Haiti to Japan and there are the extraordinary opportunities and challenges that we see right here in Egypt and in the rest of the region. So I want to be part of helping to represent the United States at this critical moment in time, to do everything I can in support of the president and our government and the people of our country to stand for our values and our ideals, to stand up for our security, which has to remain first and foremost in my mind and to advance America’s interests. And there isn’t anything that I can imagine doing after this that would be as demanding, as challenging or rewarding.
Q- President of the United States?
You know, I had a wonderful experience running and I am very proud of the support I had and very grateful for the opportunity, but I’m going to be, you know, moving on.
Q- I asked my viewers and followers on Twitter to send questions and a lot of them said, “Ask her if she’ll run in 2016 for the presidency.” A lot of folks would like to you to do that.
Well that’s very kind, but I am doing what I want to do right now and I have no intention or any idea even of running again. I’m going to do the best I can at this job for the next two years.
Clinton also spoke of democratic reforms in Egypt while visiting that nation and Tunisia. She was greeted with protests in Tunisia.
Clinton toured Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the pro-democracy uprising that led to last month’s resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Clinton said visiting the square was a “great reminder of the power of the human spirit and desire for freedom and human rights and democracy.”
She was welcomed by Egyptian citizens and shook hands with passersby in the square before meeting with Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf.
Before leaving for Tunisia on Wednesday, Clinton was set to meet with Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa. Moussa, 74, is a veteran Egyptian diplomat and has announced his candidacy for the country’s presidency.
Clinton also met with pro-democracy activists and members of Egypt’s civil society. She is the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Egypt since the anti-government protests.
Clinton arrived in Cairo Tuesday after attending a Group of Eight foreign ministers’ meeting in Paris.
After wrapping up talks in Egypt, she travels to Tunisia – the starting point of the pro-democracy movement that has swept through much of the Middle East and North Africa this year.
Dozens of Tunisians took to the streets in Tunis on Wednesday to protest against Clinton’s visit. The demonstrators said they oppose foreign intervention in their country.
There appears to be no break through in her meetings with the G8 in terms of backing a no-fly zone for Libya. While she met with Egypt’s Prime Minister, some details of their meeting have not been released.
On Tuesday, Clinton issued a strong statement of praise for Egypt’s political revolution, declaring she was “deeply inspired” by the dramatic change and promising new assistance for America’s longtime Middle East ally.
Clinton pledged $90 million in emergency economic assistance during a meeting in Cairo with Foreign Minister Nabil Al-Araby. She is the highest ranking U.S. official to visit Egypt since the overthrow of Mubarak.
“The United States will work to ensure that the economic gains Egypt has forged in recent years continue, and that all parts of Egyptian society benefit from these gains,” a State Department statement noted.
She’s not yet discussed her plans after she retires from the position of US Secretary of State.
Monday Reads: Interesting (and scary) times
Posted: March 14, 2011 Filed under: Barack Obama, Foreign Affairs, Japan, Libya, morning reads, The Media SUCKS, U.S. Politics, worker rights | Tags: Japan, Libya, Wisconsin protests 20 Comments
Good Morning! We sure do live in interesting times. There is so much happening in the news today that there is no way I could cover all of it. As I see it, the most disturbing news is that world events are spiraling out of control, while the U.S. President dithers and does as little as possible–fiddling while the world burns.
CRISES IN JAPAN
Japan is struggling with an overwhelming natural disaster and a massive humanitarian crisis, and at the same time they–and the rest of us–face a nuclear emergency. No one knows for sure yet how bad it is, but I can’t help but suspect that we are not getting the whole story.
Officials confirmed on Sunday that three nuclear reactors north of Tokyo were at risk of overheating, raising fears of an uncontrolled radiation leak.
Engineers worked desperately to cool the fuel rods in the damaged reactors. If they fail, the containers that house the core could melt, or even explode, releasing radioactive material into the atmosphere.
How bad could it get? Here’s what nuclear experts told Scientific American:
“Reactor analysts like to categorize potential reactor accidents into groups,” said Bergeron, who did research on nuclear reactor accident simulation at Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico. “And the type of accident that is occurring in Japan is known as a station blackout. It means loss of offsite AC power—power lines are down—and then a subsequent failure of emergency power on site—the diesel generators. It is considered to be extremely unlikely, but the station blackout has been one of the great concerns for decades.
[….]
Bergeron explained the basics of overheating at a nuclear fission plant. “The fuel rods are long uranium rods clad in a [zirconium alloy casing]. They’re held in a cylindrical-shaped array. And the water covers all of that. If the water descends below the level of the fuel, then the temperature starts going up and the cladding bursts, releasing a lot of fission products. And eventually the core just starts slumping and melting. Quite a bit of this happened in TMI [Three Mile Island], but the pressure vessel did not fail.”
So what if the worst happens and there is a meltdown?
“They’re venting in order to keep the containment vessel from failing. But if a core melts, it will slump to the bottom of the reactor vessel, probably melt through the reactor vessel onto the containment floor. It’s likely to spread as a molten pool—like lava—to the edge of the steel shell, and melt through. That would result in a containment failure in a matter of less than a day. It’s good that it’s got a better containment system than Chernobyl, but it’s not as strong as most of the reactors in this country.”
Basically, we’re talking about The China Syndrome. Except if a Japanese nuclear plant melts down, the core won’t be headed for China.
Breaking: Second Explosion at Nuclear Plant in Japan
Posted: March 13, 2011 Filed under: Breaking News, Foreign Affairs, Japan, just because, Surreality | Tags: disaster, hydrogen explosion, Japan, nuclear meltdown 4 CommentsAl Jazeera just reported that there has been a hydrogen explosion at the third nuclear power plant that nuclear engineers have been working on in Japan. Several workers are reported to be injured or missing after the blast. Here is the first story I’ve seen about on Google: Fukushima Explosion: Japan Nuclear Plant Blast Believed To Be Hydrogen Explosion
Japan’s chief cabinet secretary says a hydrogen explosion has occurred at Unit 3 of Japan’s stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant. The blast was similar to an earlier one at a different unit of the facility.
Yukio Edano says people within a 12-mile (20-kilometer) radius were ordered inside following Monday’s. AP journalists felt the explosion 30 miles (50 kilometers) away.
A second explosion has hit the nuclear plant in Japan that was damaged in Friday’s earthquake, but officials said it had resisted the blast.
TV footage showed smoke rising from Fukushima plant’s reactor 3, a day after an explosion hit reactor 1.
Japan’s nuclear safety agency said the blast was believed to have been caused by the build-up of hydrogen.
Government officials said the reactor core was still intact as they tried allay fears of a radioactive leak.
3 injured, 7 missing after second explosion at Japan nuclear plant
A massive column of smoke was seen belching from the plant’s No. 3 unit Monday. The No. 3 Unit reactor had been under emergency watch for a possible explosion as pressure built up there following a hydrogen blast Saturday in the facility’s Unit 1.
Second Blast Rocks Japanese Nuclear Powerplant
A second explosion has rocked a nuclear power plant in Japan. The plant is in an area that was devastated by a massive earthquake and tsunami on Friday.
The explosion occurred mid-morning Monday, while workers were battling to bring down temperatures inside the Fukushima Number One nuclear power plant’s number three reactor.
Television images showed a strong explosion obliterating the upper walls of the reactor building and causing a huge plume of white smoke.
Japanese Quake Survivors Evacuated Amid Fears of Radiation Leaks
At least 170,000 Japanese earthquake and tsunami survivors have fled their homes, fearing the spread of radioactive contamination from damaged nuclear power plants.
Officials say dozens of people could have been exposed to radiation while being evacuated from a town near one of the damaged plants. They and hundreds of others were being scanned for radiation exposure.
Authorities say a new hydrogen explosion occurred Monday morning at the Fukushima power plant north of Tokyo, sending a plume of white smoke into the air. Officials said at a news conference covered by NHK Television that the building is still safe and that there is little risk of a mass radiation leak.
Why am I not buying that?
I will continue to update as I get more information.
Disaster in Japan
Posted: March 11, 2011 Filed under: Breaking News, Foreign Affairs | Tags: Japan Quake, Japan Tsunami, Nuclear facilities 36 Comments
Last night, a 8.9 quake and tsunami hit Japan. Tsunami waves have hit Hawaii and are now hitting Washington state. The worst damage is in the northern sections of Japan. There is a worse danger looming that I wanted to mention here if you haven’t heard. The Japan earthquake has shut down two nuclear plants and the core is not cooling in one. This is a potentially dangerous situation. The U.S. is now rushing coolant to Japan at the request of the Japanese government.
Yet even light was on short supply, with nuclear power plants shutting down after fires broke out at some of the facilities and raised concerns of potential radiation leaks. Millions of buildings around Tokyo were reported without power.
The 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck northeast Japan at 2:45 p.m. local time, collapsing buildings 240 miles away in Tokyo, triggering a 30-foot tsunami that swept away everything in its path, and killing at least 300 people already. Hundreds more remain missing, including 100 crew on a lost fishing boat.
The plant experienced a fire. People in the area are being evacuated. No leaks have been reported so far but again, CNN said that the core is not cooling so they are preparing for the worst.
About 5,800 residents near a Tokyo Electric Power Co. atomic plant were ordered to evacuate because of a possible radiation leak and the failure of the cooling system after Japan was struck by a powerful earthquake.
People within 3 kilometers (2 miles) of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant were told to evacuate, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said in Tokyo today. Residents within 10 kilometers were told to stay indoors, said Ryohei Shiomi, a spokesman at the Emergency Information Center of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.
Emergency power supply at the 4,696-megawatt plant 210 kilometers north of Tokyo failed after the quake triggered automatic shutdowns of the reactors, officials at the trade ministry’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency told reporters without identifying themselves. Power is needed to keep cooling the reactor to prevent rising pressure and damage, they said.
A battery, which can last about eight hours, is being used to cool the reactor for now, the agency officials said. Another six batteries have been secured, and the government may use military helicopters to fly them in, they said.
CNN has just reported that radiation is rising in the Fukushima Daiichi plant. A refinery has also exploded.
Natural Gas prices are already on the rise in UK.
U.K. natural gas prices soared Friday after a major earthquake and tsunami hit Japan, shutting down nuclear plants and raising expectations that the country will import more liquefied natural gas as a replacement power source.
But with the global gas market so well-supplied, and the length of the nuclear plant outages unknown, the gains could prove short-lived, traders said.
Winter gas contract prices had risen to 68.8 pence per therm by 1420 GMT, around 4% higher from Thursday.
At least two nuclear power plants on Japan’s Pacific coast shut down following the 8.9 magnitude quake that hit the country Friday morning, leaving market watchers wondering as to the extent of the damage.
“The problem is there are a whole bunch of nuclear outages, which I’d think would be out for at least three to four weeks,” said a London-based trader.
Japan’s last major earthquake in 2007 caused an extended shutdown of the country’s largest nuclear power plant, sending the country scrabbling for LNG suplies as it sought alternative means of power generation.
However, the current rally in the natural gas market may be premature. The extent of the damage to nuclear facilities is still unknown and the market is better-supplied than it was a few years ago.
Unlike in 2007, the market today is oversupplied, said Noel Tomnay, head of global gas at Wood Mackenzie.
Japan quake area map from the BBC
Casualties from this quake/tsunami now number in the hundreds and may rise. Japan has requested help from the US. The navy is sending ships there now.
There are some amazing images at The Atlantic. Videotapes of the moments during the quake and tsunami can be found at the NYT at the Lede Blog.
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