Six In The Morning

Clinton boosts Obama in convention speech

　Former US president makes economic case for re-election of Barack Obama in speech to party faithful in North Carolina.

Last Modified: 06 Sep 2012 04:53
Bill Clinton has told Americans he believes "with all my heart" that President Barack Obama saved the economy, had left them better off than four years ago and should be re-elected. The two-term Democratic president, who remains highly popular nearly 12 years after leaving office, delivered a comprehensive, unequivocal and glowing endorsement of Obama's presidency in a prime-time speech in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Wednesday night. "No president, no president - not me or any of my predecessors, no one could have fully repaired all the damage he found in just four years," Clinton said at the Democratic National Convention in the Time Warner Cable Arena. "He has laid the foundations for a new modern successful economy of shared prosperity and if you ever need the president's contract: You will feel it. You will feel it folks.

Human Rights Watch accuses US of covering up extent of waterboarding
The organisation alleges that opponents of Muammar Gaddafi were subjected to the torture at secret CIA prisons

Chris McGreal guardian.co.uk, Thursday 6 September 2012 05.00 BST
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused the US government of covering up the extent of waterboarding at secret CIA prisons, alleging that Libyan opponents of Muammar Gaddafi were subjected to the torture before being handed over to the former dictator's security police. The New York-based human rights group has cast "serious doubt" on Washington's claim that only three people, all members of al-Qaida, were waterboarded in American custody, claiming in a new report to have fresh evidence that the CIA used the technique to simulate drowning on Libyans snatched from countries in Africa and Asia.

The islands that divide superpowers
Japan's purchase of these uninhabited, barren rocks has enraged China and the US. Why? Peter Popham reports on a battle for influence – and oil

PETER POPHAM THURSDAY 06 SEPTEMBER 2012
Japan sensationally raised the stakes in its long-running territorial dispute with China yesterday, reportedly agreeing to buy three of the disputed Senkaku islands south-west of Okinawa from their private Japanese owners for 2.05 billion yen ($26m). The islands, which the Chinese call Diaoyu, form part of a series of barren and largely uninhabited clumps of rock south of China which have assumed an importance out of all proportion to their modest size and unimpressive appearance as China and the US jockey for power and influence in the region. Arguments over the claims and counter-claims have overshadowed a visit to China by the US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, which concluded yesterday with both sides admitting their differences with unusual frankness.

IMF approves bailout tranche to reformist Ireland
Ireland has met the reform targets set by its creditors through June of 2012. In turn, the IMF has transferred a new bailout tranche to Dublin, amid calls for direct EU investment in Ireland's banking sector.


The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released 920 million euros ($1.5 billion) in bailout money to Ireland on Wednesday, after confirming that Dublin had met all of its economic reform targets through the end of June 2012. The bailout tranche is part of Ireland's 85-billion-euro rescue package, backed by the European Union, IMF, Britain, Sweden and Denmark. Dublin applied for the bailout in 2010, after the government intervened to rescue the country's failing banking sector, which had been brought to its knees by a burst real estate bubble.

Libya to question extradited Gaddafi spy chief
Libya is set to question Muammar Gaddafi's spy chief Abdullah al-Senussi after his extradition from Mauritania, as rights groups urge a fair trial.

06 SEP 2012 07:03 - IMED LAMLOUM
Senussi is wanted by the Hague-based International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity but was extradited to his home country on Wednesday. The fugitive's extradition from Mauritania, where he was arrested in March as he tried to enter the country from Morocco using a Malian passport under a different name, was first announced by Mauritanian state television. Washington swiftly urged Libya to ensure that the former spy chief gets a fair trial, but stopped short of insisting he be handed over to the ICC. "It will be critical that Libya take all necessary steps to ensure that he's held securely, treated humanely and tried fairly in full compliance with Libya's international obligations," US State Department deputy spokesman Patrick Ventrell told journalists.

Jerusalem: Why Israelis and Palestinians, Democrats and Republicans fight over it
By leaving support for Jerusalem as Israel's capital off its platform, the Democratic party sparked the latest fierce debate on the much-disputed city. What's the back story?

By Christa Case Bryant, Staff writer
Jerusalem has been perhaps the world’s most coveted – and contested – piece of real estate for 3,000 years. In the latest battle, the city’s status has become a point of contention between Democrats and Republicans, who are vying for the support of American Jews, an influential and well-heeled bloc of voters. The latest furor erupted after the Democratic National Committee (DNC) released a draft copy of the party platform earlier this week that made no reference to Jerusalem as Israel's capital, which it included in its 2008 platform. The exclusion brings the party in line with White House policy on Jerusalem, but it still generated a firestorm, as well as confusion about whether it signals a policy change.