Manchester United 3-1 Chelsea 18 sept 2011

Manchester United 3-1 Chelsea 18 sept 2011

Manchester United claimed a record-equalling 18th successive home win by beating Chelsea 3-1 to march two points clear at the Premier League summit.

And that does not even scratch the surface of a day of drama against Chelsea.
First-half goals from Chris Smalling, Nani and Wayne Rooney - his ninth of the season - proved enough for the hosts.

However, Rooney also had a 'Moscow moment' missing a second-half penalty, slipping as he went to strike it, Fernando Torres scored only his second Chelsea goal, then unbelievably fired wide of a completely empty net after rounding David de Gea.

De Gea had already repelled a marginally less glaring chance for Ramires and in stoppage time, Dimitar Berbatov was denied by Cole, whose earlier poor challenge on Javier Hernandez had led the Mexican to hobble off in considerable pain.

It all ended with United matching an achievement from the 1904-05 season, when they were a Second Division club.

Correctly, Ferguson observed this was United's toughest test to date.
The same could also be said of Villas-Boas' Chelsea though. And they came up short.
Chelsea did carve out a succession of opportunities that at one stage turned the game into a personal contest between the Blues and De Gea.

The save that prevented Ramires prodding into an open goal was the best, drawing applause from Peter Schmeichel in the directors' box, and he knows a thing or two about the pressure of keeping net at Old Trafford.

In truth, Chelsea should have scored that one. Torres did his bit, rolling the ball across the box. A better placed Daniel Sturridge could not believe Ramires had nipped in ahead of him as the goal gaped.

That was the trouble though. Chelsea needed Torres to convert those chances, not create them. He eventually did. And then contributed to one of those bloopers videos that will haunt him for the remainder of his career.

As Chelsea pressed, United created nothing. Their opener already converted after slack marking that angered John Terry and must have alarmed Villas-Boas.
There was nothing special about Ashley Young's eighth minute free-kick, which was floated to the far post.

But Terry found himself the only one defending as United shirts piled in, Smalling the man to make a connection to turn home his first league goal.

Having escaped unscathed from Chelsea's pummelling, United went to the other end and doubled their lead thanks to a piece of brilliance from Nani.

Questions should be asked about the ease with which Juan Mata was brushed aside but once the midfielder was out of the way, Nani advanced with confidence and drove a 20-yard effort into the top corner.

By half-time, United had a third as Terry's attempted clearance bounced off Nani and into the path of Rooney, who tapped home his ninth of the season.

The credit went to Phil Jones, although the aura surrounding the summer arrival from Blackburn was punctured by the ease with which Torres got behind him to slot home Nicolas Anelka's through ball 30 seconds after the re-start.

It was only Torres' second goal since arriving from Liverpool and justified Villas-Boas' decision to introduce Anelka for Lampard at half-time.

Having already threatened on numerous occasions, Chelsea's confidence grew immediately.
United nerves would have been eased had they converted the penalty Jose Bosingwa gifted them when he tripped Nani after initially remaining static to allow the Portugal winger to seize on the loose ball after his own deflected shot had crashed against the bar.

Neither side will forget how Terry slipped as he went to slot home what would have been the decisive spot-kick in the shoot-out to decide the 2008 Champions League final.
Today Rooney emulated him, his standing foot giving way, the ball bouncing harmlessly wide after the striker had fired it into his own body.

United might easily have had another spot-kick when Cole flew into Hernandez after Rooney had pushed a glorious chance against the post.

The tackle was not great and resulted in Hernandez hobbling down the tunnel in obvious pain as he was replaced by Berbatov but, having fired into the side netting, Dowd felt the incident was worthy of a yellow card and no more.

Having scored once in front of the Stretford End, Torres suffered utter humiliation seven minutes from time as he raced on to Ramires' through ball, rounded De Gea and then somehow fired wide of a completely empty net.

Berbatov missed a golden opportunity himself in stoppage time, as Cole cleared off the line after Rooney had set the Bulgarian up with an admittedly misdirected pass.

Windows 8 Developer Preview Now Available for Download

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Windows 8 Developer Preview Now Available for Down
Can’t wait to try out Windows 8 for yourself after Microsoft’s big unveiling of the new OS at yesterday’s Build Conference? Well, you needn’t wait any longer, as the developer preview version of the OS is now available for download.

You can install it on a 32-bit or a 64-bit x86 machine. Activation is not required, but it’s far from a finalized version of the OS, so if you do install it, expect bugs and glitches. In any case, you should definitely check out Microsoft’s Windows 8 guide to get an idea of what you can expect from the next version of Windows.

Without further ado, the download is available here

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/home/ (click on skip ad)

Windows 8 with phone’s UI and Previewing ‘Windows 8’

Today, at the D9 Conference, we demonstrated the next generation of Windows, internally code-named “Windows 8,” for the first time. Windows 8 is a reimagining of Windows, from the chip to the interface. A Windows 8-based PC is really a new kind of device, one that scales from touch-only small screens through to large screens, with or without a keyboard and mouse.The demo showed some of the ways we’ve reimagined the interface for a new generation of touch-centric hardware. Fast, fluid and dynamic, the experience has been transformed while keeping the power, flexibility and connectivity of Windows intact.Here are a few aspects of the new interface we showed today:

• Fast launching of apps from a tile-based Start screen, which replaces the Windows Start menu with a customizable, scalable full-screen view of apps.

• Live tiles with notifications, showing always up-to-date information from your apps.• Fluid, natural switching between running apps.

• Convenient ability to snap and resize an app to the side of the screen, so you can really multitask using the capabilities of Windows.

• Web-connected and Web-powered apps built using HTML5 and JavaScript that have access to the full power of the PC.

• Fully touch-optimized browsing, with all the power of hardware-accelerated Internet Explorer 10.

Windows 8 boot time

When it comes to talking about "fundamentals" we want to start with boot time -- no feature gets talked about and measured more. We designed Windows 8 so that you shouldn't have to boot all that often (and we are always going to work on reducing the number of required restarts due to patching running code). But when you do boot we want it to be as fast as possible. - Steven Sinofsky

Transfer window shuts with a bang

As expected, Lionel Messi did not join Real Madrid, neither did Cristiano Ronaldo cross over to Barcelona. But there were many shock transfer deadline moves.

Here are some of the highest profile transfers that were made at the death of the transfer window:

Owen Hargreaves to Manchester City

Fee: Free transfer

Owen Hargreaves to Manchester City

Hargreaves signs for Manchester City

The shock deal came to light on Tuesday, when Hargreaves underwent an extensive medical, which he came through with flying colours.

Hargreaves' arrival will complete Mancini's extensive summer recruitment drive, becoming the Italian's sixth signing, all of them internationals, ensuring the Blues will not be lacking in experience on the tough road ahead.

Mikel Arteta - Everton to Arsenal

Fee: Undisclosed 

Mikel Arteta - Everton to Arsenal

Arteta completes Arsenal move

The Gunners looked to have missed out on Arteta earlier on deadline day after Everton rejected a bid for their star midfielder.

But Arteta reportedly forced the issue and Arsenal looked to have reached an agreement with their Premier League rivals before the 11pm deadline, revealing they had signed the 29-year-old on a four-year contract.

Raul Meireles - Liverpool to Chelsea

Fee: £12million

Raul Meireles - Liverpool to Chelsea

Chelsea complete swoop for Meireles

Chelsea succeeded in another last-gasp raid of Liverpool after completing the signing of Raul Meireles with minutes of the transfer window remaining.

In an echo of Fernando Torres' £50million January switch, the Blues left it until just before the deadline to complete a deal for Meireles.

Like Torres, the midfielder submitted a written transfer request, with Liverpool agreeing a fee with Chelsea reportedly in the region of £12million.

Yossi Benayoun - Chelsea to Arsenal

Fee: Season loan

Yossi Benayoun - Chelsea to Arsenal

Yossi Benayoun joins Arsenal on loan

Israel captain Benayoun had been linked with a number of clubs but opted for the Gunners, who will play in this season's Champions League.

The midfielder, who is currently on international duty, wrote on Twitter: "I sign with Arsenal, very happy and excited about it, but now my head is only in the game against Greece on Friday, thanks for the support."

Craig Bellamy - Man City to Liverpool

Fee: Free Transfer

Craig Bellamy - Man City to Liverpool

Craig Bellamy seals Liverpool return

The 32-year-old spent last season on loan at npower Championship side Cardiff after a rift with City boss Roberto Mancini saw him excluded from the first-team squad.

Bellamy's return to Anfield comes four years after he left having been brought to the club 12 months earlier by Rafael Benitez. 

He scored nine goals in 42 matches but off-field issues, most notably an infamous incident with a golf club and team-mate John Arne Riise and a strained relationship with Benitez, contributed to his departure to West Ham.

Per Mertesacker - Werder Bremen to Arsenal

Fee: £8million

Per Mertesacker - Werder Bremen to Arsenal

Arsenal seal Mertesacker deal

The Germany defender signed what the club described as "a long-term contract" for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around £8million.

Mertesacker said: "I had a great time at SV Werder Bremen and I'm grateful to the club."Moving to London enables me to fulfil a dream and a further step in my career. "The Premier League has always represented a great challenge for me."

Joe Cole - Liverpool to Lille

Fee: Season loan

Joe Cole - Liverpool to Lille

Joe Cole moves to Lille on loan

The 29-year-old travelled to France on Tuesday to undergo a medical and, despite a late bid by Aston Villa, the player has opted to join the Ligue 1 club.

The England midfielder has failed to impress at Anfield having moved on a free transfer from Chelsea last summer.

Aston Villa had made a late bid to take Cole to the midlands but it was always going to be difficult as Liverpool had the option to loan him to a club who were not a Barclays Premier League rival, which was preferable.

Peter Crouch - Tottenham to Stoke City

Fee: £10million

Peter Crouch - Tottenham to Stoke City

Peter Crouch seals Stoke move

Crouch has signed a four-year deal with the Potters after struggling for first-team opportunities at Spurs of late, and the forward completed a busy day for Tony Pulis' team on transfer deadline day, with Wilson Palacios and Cameron Jerome also signing from Spurs and Birmingham respectively.

The Crouch deal could even rise to £12million dependent on the fulfilment of various clauses.

Scott Parker - West Ham to Tottenham

Fee: £6million

Scott Parker - West Ham to Tottenham

Tottenham complete Parker signing

Parker, 30, had been a long-term target for Spurs manager Harry Redknapp, the former Charlton youngster having been voted Footballer of the Year for his efforts to keep West Ham up last season.

The England midfielder on Tuesday handed in a formal transfer request to West Ham, and the deal, believed to be worth £6million, was completed on Wednesday afternoon.

Hamilton out to attack in Valencia

Lewis Hamilton has vowed to retain his attacking style in a bid to bring his bad luck to an end at next weekend's European Grand Prix.

Hamilton has conceded his frustration following the last two races in Monaco and Montreal after becoming embroiled in a number of incidents.

The most high profile of those saw Hamilton collide with McLaren team-mate Jenson Button in Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix, forcing him into the wall and subsequent retirement with a puncture.

Considerable criticism has followed for Hamilton, although he has also received support, including from Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

Addressing the next situation, Hamilton said: "Those two races were particularly frustrating for me because we showed we had the pace to win both of them, yet I only came away with eight points.

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Torres reflects on worst season

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Chelsea striker Fernando Torres admits last season was his worst in the Barclays Premier League.

Torres switched Spain for England when he opted to leave his boyhood club Atletico Madrid for Liverpool back in 2007. The Spanish international enjoyed a rapid rise in the Premier League with a flurry of goals in his first few seasons.

The 27-year-old striker would move on to Chelsea for a British transfer record fee of £50million in the January 2011 transfer window, but since then he has scored just once in 19 appearances.

However, the striker insists he has no regrets about the move and is confident he will be firing on all cylinders again once the new campaign begins after what he has described as his worst season in England so far.

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Ronaldo not interested in Citizenship and money

Ronaldo not interested in Citizenship and money, wallpaper, poster, shooting ball

Real Madrid superstar has refused talk of a move to Manchester City, saying money is not everything.

According to reports in the Sun, the wing wizard was dismissive of reports that the Premier League big-spenders were keen to splash the cash for him, to the tune of £150 million in transfer fees, and £21 million a year in wages.

Ronaldo said: "It's not bad huh? We have to think about it well. I'm not going to City. I give you my word. I'm not going. Money is not the most important thing.

"If it was for money I could have the double of what I have.

"If it was for money I would leave. The most important thing is the behaviour of the people and they treat me tremendously here and I am very happy in Madrid."

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Hamilton to Red Bull rumours denied

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A spokesman for Lewis Hamilton has denied rumours talks were held over the weekend regarding a potential move to Red Bull.

Hamilton's future has been the source of considerable debate this season, with speculation gathering momentum in light of the year he is currently enduring.

With another year remaining on his current McLaren contract after this one, it has often been suggested Hamilton could move to Red Bull or Ferrari from 2013 onwards.

Fuel has been added to the fire in light of Hamilton meeting with Red Bull team principal Christian Horner in the marque's paddock buildings at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Saturday.

It is understood the two men held a 15-minute conversation, which has sparked supposition that Hamilton is eyeing up a move.

However, speaking to Press Association Sport, a spokesman for XIX Entertainment that represents Hamilton, said: "Neither Lewis nor his management team have had any discussions with regard to Lewis moving to another team.

"He is happy at McLaren, and is positive he can still have a say in this year's world championship."

To read more click here  

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Chelsea want Hiddink, Hughes pairing

Chelsea, Roman Abramovich, Guus Hiddink, Mark Hughes, wallpaper, photos

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is keen on pairing both Guus Hiddink and Mark Hughes into a managerial dream team.

While reports have been rife that both men are in the running for the top job at Chelsea, following Carlo Ancelotti's dismissal, it was revealed in the Daily Mail that the Russian billionaire intends to nab both candidates in order to try to conquer Europe once again.

Abramovich is keen to snap up Hiddink as a director of football, as well as grab ex-Chelsea forward Hughes as first team coach, and negotiations are in an advanced stage.

The club owner feels that Hiddink's experience and contacts will be crucial, and would work well with the training ground and pitch-side quality that 47-year-old Hughes will bring to the club.

Hiddink has already indicated his belief that United can be toppled by Chelsea next season.

The Dutchman said: " All teams can be beaten and no way is this going to be a one-horse race.

Chelsea, Roman Abramovich, Guus Hiddink, Mark Hughes, wallpaper, photos

"We all saw last season's top five or six shift and shuffle. Chelsea were on top in the beginning and came strong again towards the end.

"Manchester United and Arsenal were both top, Manchester City came with a strong run.

"United finished on top but it doesn't mean it has to be like that next season. It will be very open.'

It may not be so easy for Abramovich to get his dream team though, as, Chelsea will have to ward off attention from Inter Milan, who are also keen to add Hiddink to their ranks.

source:espnstar

Pride of Asia: Li wins French Open

Li wins French Open, Tennis, wallpaper, poster, photo

She became the first Asian player to win a grand slam singles title with her victory over defending champion Schiavone on Saturday.

The sixth seed produced a brilliant display of precision tennis to end her opponent's 13-match winning run at Roland Garros in an hour and 48 minutes.

Schiavone mounted an impressive fightback after being comprehensively outplayed for a set and a half but Li raised her game again in the tie-break.

The Italian was a hugely popular winner last year with her joie de vivre and unpredictable game, mixing spins and slices in a way rarely seen in the women's game these days.

Li is a much flatter hitter who relies principally on power, but her on-court nous marks her out while she had also shown herself to be mentally very strong in wins over Petra Kvitova, Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova.

With a 30-year-old taking on a 29-year-old for the first time since the Wimbledon final of 1998 between Jana Novotna and Nathalie Tauziat, much of the talk prior to the match had been about the value of experience.

Both were playing in their second grand slam final, with Li having lost to Kim Clijsters at the Australian Open in January.

The Chinese player certainly began the stronger and, after missing out on a break point in the opening game, she broke the Schiavone serve to move 4-3 ahead.

The fifth seed was being pulled all over the court, and it was a strategy she could not cope with as Li, who had been well beaten in their third-round meeting here last year, took the first set in 39 minutes.

The 29-year-old was serving superbly and she increased her advantage with a break at the start of the second set. The point of the match, ending with a lovely volley from Schiavone, gave the Italian a chance to respond but Li simply produced an ace.

She then had an opening to move 4-1 ahead but a netted forehand perhaps showed the challenger was not quite as relaxed as she appeared to be.

Schiavone saved two more break points at 4-2 as she battled desperately to hang onto the trophy, and in the next game she took her opportunity when Li faltered for the first time.

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Suddenly it was the sixth seed who was under pressure on her serve, and Schiavone felt she should have had a set point when a backhand from Li was called out but then overruled.

Instead the Chinese player held to force a tie-break, and she made a perfect start, winning the first four points. When Schiavone dumped a volley in the net on the fifth point, there was no way back, and Li sealed victory when the Italian sent a backhand long.

Schiavone was gracious in defeat, saying: "Today was really tough. I have to say congratulations to Na Li, she's grown up so much this year and she played really well today.

"It's been a fantastic tournament for me. To kiss the clay every day comes from my heart."

Li, who had never won a clay-court tournament before, congratulated Schiavone, thanked the crowd and promised to come back next year, while there was some booing for umpire Louise Engzell at the presentation ceremony following her controversial call.

Source: Espnstar 

Massa: Hamilton needs tougher penalty

Felipe Massa's race ended in the tunnel after contact with Lewis Hamilton at Loews

Felipe Massa thinks the FIA should take further action to penalise Lewis Hamilton's aggressive driving, after the pair came together at the Monaco Grand Prix.

Hamilton made contact with Massa as he tried to pass on the inside of the Loews Hairpin, causing the Ferrari to damage its front wing against the rear of Mark Webber's Red Bull. Massa then found himself on the outside of Hamilton through the tunnel and, struggling for grip, finished his race against the barriers.

"He tried to pass me on the kerbs [where] I didn't think it was possible to overtake," Massa was quoted by Autosport . "He was too aggressive, I think. Then when I got to the tunnel my car was damaged and I went on the dirty part of the track and hit the wall. What he did today was unbelievable. Not just with me, but with other drivers as well."

Hamilton was given a drive-through penalty for the Massa incident and later a post-race drive-through penalty for his move on Pastor Maldonado into turn one. But Massa thinks further sanctions are needed to make him change his ways.

"I think he needs to be penalised again, and in a good way - otherwise he doesn't learn," he said. "They [the FIA] need to think about something for him, or he will not learn."

Fernando Alonso signs new Ferrari contract

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Spanish driver Fernando Alonso has signed a new deal with Ferrari that will keep him with the Italian team until the end of the 2016 season.


The announcement comes just over a year into the three-year deal Alonso signed when he initially joined Ferrari.

"I am very happy to have reached this agreement," said the 29-year-old double world champion.

"I immediately felt comfortable within Ferrari and now it feels to me like a second family."

In signing such a lengthy deal, Alonso is convinced he will now remain with Ferrari for the rest of his F1 career.

"The intention is to finish my career with Ferrari and I can't imagine a better place to race," added Alonso. "I feel very privileged and very happy. Maybe in 2017 we can do another contract if I'm still quick and Ferrari are still happy with me.

"It's not a big change for me. I was feeling happy and comfortable. We started talking a week or two ago about the future. When two parties want to continue you find a decision very quickly.

"Stability is always good for an F1 team. Hopefully we can bring some success to Maranello.

"Ferrari have finished no lower than third in the championship virtually every year for a long time. This is one of the things Ferrari can offer to a driver. In the next six years I will try to enjoy my racing and hopefully we can have some success."

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo said: "It is a great pleasure to have renewed our agreement with a driver who has always demonstrated a winning mentality, even in the most difficult circumstances.


Ferrari can be champions - Alonso
"Fernando has all the required qualities, both technically and personally, to play a leading role in the history of Ferrari and I hope he will be enriching it with further wins very soon."

Last week, Di Montezemolo insisted that Ferrari would honour Felipe Massa's contract with the team which expires at the end of next season.

The Brazilian has been under pressure since Alonso's arrival but Massa has shown signs of recovering some of his best form this season out-scoring his team-mate in Malaysia and China.

Alonso, who will compete in his home Grand Prix in Barcelona this weekend, earned his and Ferrari's first podium finish of the season at the Turkish Grand Prix on 8 May, finishing third behind Red Bull duo Vettel and Mark Webber.

The result means he trails the German world champion Sebastian Vettel by 52 points after four races of the 2011 season.

Since winning the world championship with Red Bull, Vettel has spoken of his desire to drive for Ferrari in the future.

But Alonso's contraction extension appears to rule out a role for Vettel, who earlier this year extended his contract with Red Bull until the end of 2014, or McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, whose contract runs out in 2012.

In addition, Alonso, who famously spent a tumultuous season alongside Hamilton at McLaren in 2007, is known to favour only having one world-class driver in a team and would be expected to be reluctant to accomodate Vettel.

When it was pointed out to Hamilton that Alonso's contract closed off a potential future career option for the next five years, Hamilton said: "I don't have a drama being alongside him, but I assume he wouldn't allow it to be the other way around."

Asked how he felt about that, the Englishman responded: "I don't really care. I'll beat him in another car."

The German said: "I never said anywhere that the fact that Fernando - or Felipe, or any other driver - drives for Ferrari [means] it is impossible to go there.

"As far as I know, F1 teams have two cars. Probably that kicks off some headlines. But I am very happy where I am so at this stage I don't care.

"In the end, we are all in the same boat. Ultimately we are looking for a package that makes us happy, whether that is results or the environment inside the team."

Vettel pipped Alonso to last year's title, in what was an eventful debut Ferrari season for the Spaniard.

Alonso had started in stunning fashion with victory in the first race of the season in Bahrain in March 2010, but then had to wait until July to record his next win, in Germany, a triumph that was shrouded in controversy.

Leading the race, team-mate Massa was told in coded team orders that were banned at the time to let Alonso pass him.

The result proved to be the start of an Alonso charge as he reeled off three victories in four races in September and October that put him within touching distance of his third title.

However, a bungled pit-stop strategy proved costly in the last race in Abu Dhabi, meaning Alonso finished seventh and missed out on the title.

Alonso's title successes came in 2005 and 2006, when he was driving for Renault.


source: BBc news 

Most Wanted Terrorist Dead

Bin Laden was a suspect in a number of terrorist attacks around the world in addition to the 9/11 attacks. See Wanted Poster

Most Wanted Terrorist Dead
Bin Laden Killed in U.S. 'Targeted Operation'

05/02/11

The mastermind of the attacks on September 11, 2001 that killed thousands of innocent men, women, and children has been killed.
President Barack Obama made the announcement late Sunday evening, May 1, in a televised address to the world. He said he had been briefed by the intelligence community last August that bin Laden was in hiding “within a compound deep inside of Pakistan.” Over the intervening months, intelligence agencies worked to confirm the intelligence. Then last week, President Obama determined there was enough intelligence to take action.
“Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan,” the President said from the East Room of the White House. “A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.”
Well before the events of 9/11, Bin Laden had openly declared war on the U.S. and was committed to killing innocents. His al-Qaeda group was responsible for the 1998 bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya. The attacks killed over 200 people. Bin Laden was indicted for his role in planning the attacks and added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
Intelligence agencies quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by bin Laden’s terrorist organization, and in October 2001, his name was added to the U.S. Department of State’s Most Wanted Terrorists List.
“Tonight, we give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who’ve worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome,” President Obama said. “The American people do not see their work, not know their names. But tonight, they feel the satisfaction of their work and the result of their pursuit of justice.”
Resources:
- Watch and read President Obama's statement.
- Transcript of White House briefing

Further delay to Nasa's final Endeavour shuttle mission

By watchersnplayersScience correspondent, watchersnplayers
Endeavour: Waiting to start its final mission


The final mission of Nasa's Endeavour shuttle has been delayed further by a technical problem.

US space agency managers said the ship would not now lift off before 8 May.

It should have left Earth on Friday but has been held on the ground because of an electrical failure in a switchbox connected to a hydraulics power unit.

The youngest of America's reusable spaceplanes is set to deliver a $2bn (£1.2bn) particle physics experiment to the International Space Station (ISS).

On Sunday, Nasa announced the repairs would be lengthy but could not state precisely how long it would take to get the orbiter in a position to make another launch attempt.

"We can tell you pretty much that it's not going to be any earlier than the 8th," explained Mike Moses, the chair of the mission management team.

"That doesn't mean we're going to go launch on the 8th; that just means we know the 8th is our next available opening.

"So we'll kinda start looking at that but we're not ready to set the schedules today. There's still a whole lot of short-term work that has to be done."

Friday's glitch started with an errant heater in one of the three auxiliary power units (APUs) in Endeavour - all of which must be in perfect working order for a launch to be allowed to proceed.

The APUs provide hydraulic power to steer the vehicle during ascent and entry. The heater's job is to prevent hydrazine fuel in a feed pipe to a unit from freezing.

Nasa engineers were not sure at first whether the heater's reluctance to operate was a simple thermostat failure or a more deep-seated issue in an electrical switchbox.
Continue reading the main story
SPACE SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR

Endeavour was the last orbiter to be built and flew its maiden voyage on 7 May, 1992
It is named after the ship commanded by the British explorer James Cook from 1769 to 1771
Total space time to date: 280 days; Total Earth orbits: 4,429; Individual crew members: 133
Made the first American ISS construction flight, delivering the Unity Module
Carried out the mission to correct the Hubble Space Telescope's flawed vision
Its radar map of the planet is one of the most used Earth-observation data-sets ever acquired

Inspection work inside the orbiter over the weekend has established the problem to be the latter, and managers have decided the whole box, known as load control assembly, must come out and be replaced by a new one.

"There's a heck of a lot of work ahead of the team," said launch director Mike Leinbach. "I'm extremely proud of the work we've already done over the weekend to understand this problem, and now that we've essentially pinpointed the problem to inside of the load control assembly we'll get on with the business of taking that guy out and replacing it with the new one."

Complicating matters is the launch of an Atlas rocket on the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station scheduled for 6 May.

The complex task of switchbox replacement and testing means Endeavour's next opportunity to launch has to wait until after the Atlas has had a chance to get into space.

Managers need then to stage Endeavour's ascent so that the shuttle's movements in orbit do not conflict with a Russian Soyuz vehicle that is supposed to be leaving the space station later this month.

The extra delay means Endeavour's six astronauts have returned to their base at Nasa's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

The families of the crew were also told there was nothing to keep them at Kennedy.

This included the shuttle commander Mark Kelly's wife - Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. She is recovering from a gunshot wound to the head, but was allowed by her doctors to travel to Florida's Space Coast to see her husband's lift-off. She has now returned to the hospital, also in Texas, where she is undergoing rehabilitation

The life of Osama Bin Laden

2 May 2011 Last updated at 07:10

Al-Qaeda founder and leader Osama Bin Laden has been killed by US forces in Pakistan.

Born in 1957, Osama Bin Laden grew up in a rich Saudi Arabian construction family. However, he turned his back on his comfortable life and took up arms against the Soviet Union in the 1980s when its forces occupied Afghanistan.

He declared war on the United States in 1998, angry at the presence of American troops on what he considered Muslim soil in the Middle East. Rachel Harvey reports on his life.

A look at Osama Bin Laden's compound

2 May 2011 Last updated at 11:40

US President Barack Obama says al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has been killed by US forces in Pakistan.

Bin Laden was killed in a ground operation outside Islamabad based on US intelligence. Mr Obama said US forces took possession of Bin Laden's body after "a firefight" at a compound in Abbotabad.

Osama Bin Laden dead, US President Obama confirms

2 May 2011 Last updated at 05:39

US President Barack Obama has given a statement confirming the death of al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.

He said the operation to find Bin Laden had taken many years, but "last week I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action and authorised an operation to get" him.

Is Osama Bin Laden dead or alive?

By watchersnplayers.tk The Conspiracy Files The face of Bin Laden has become instantly recognisable around the world Osama Bin Laden died eight years ago during the battle for Tora Bora in Afghanistan, either from a US bomb or from a serious kidney disease. Or so the conspiracy theory goes. The theory that has developed on the web since 9/11 is that US intelligence services are manufacturing the Bin Laden statements to create an evil bogeyman, to justify the so-called war on terror in Afghanistan, Iraq and back at home. So is the world's most wanted man still alive? For a decade, Osama bin Laden has managed to evade the world's superpower and the biggest manhunt in history. Bruce Riedel, who chaired President Barack Obama's Afghanistan/Pakistan policy review, and who has seen the intelligence on Bin Laden, says the trail has not so much gone cold as "frozen over". "We don't have a clue where he is," he says. In the absence of any concrete intelligence, Bin Laden has become shrouded in myth and rumour. 'Certainly fake' Numerous audio and video statements purporting to be from Bin Laden have been released, but their authenticity has been continually questioned. The veracity of all of the videos is questioned by David Ray Griffin, a former theology professor and member of the 9/11 Truth Movement, which also questions mainstream accounts of the attack on the World Trade Centre. "None of them can be proven to be authentic," he says. "At least three of them can be shown to be almost certainly fake. "And if somebody is faking Bin Laden videos, then that leads to the suspicion that all the videos and audio tapes have been faked." Experts have examined many different images of Osama Bin Laden His first example is a video released by the US Department of Defense in December 2001. In it, Bin Laden confesses to 9/11, yet Mr Griffin points out that al-Qaeda has only rarely admitted responsibility for terrorist attacks. He also maintains that the Bin Laden figure looks very different to previous footage - fatter, with shorter fingers, and that he is even writing with the wrong hand. Most of Bin Laden's statements are audio only. Only two that show Bin Laden speaking have been issued since 2001. Griffin claims both are fakes. He argues that a video released in October 2004 - just days before the presidential election - lacks the religious rhetoric contained in previous statements. This video, he says, helped George W Bush secure a second term. But it is the last video, released in September 2007, that has attracted most attention. 'Western conspiracy' Mr Griffin calls it "Blackbeard: the terrorist tape". Bin Laden's trademark grey beard has been replaced with a neat, jet-black beard, and there are a number of frames in the video, where Bin Laden carries on speaking but the picture of him freezes. One former CIA agent also questions its authenticity. Robert Baer dismisses the suggestion of a conspiracy by Western intelligence but thinks that al-Qaeda may have faked the video. "[al-Qaeda has] an interest in manipulating it to look like current tapes," he says. "You can digitally manipulate voice to say anything. You can change months, years, you can tape vowels and syllables and put it into a recording and change it."  I think those conspiracy theories that he is dead are pretty much laughable  Art Keller, former CIA agent Andy Laws, a former military imaging analyst for the RAF, was asked by the watchersnplayers to forensically test an undisputed Bin Laden tape from 1998 against the 2001 so-called "confession tape" and the 2007 "blackbeard tape". He says the fact that Bin Laden appears fatter in the 2001 tape is down to the editing process, when subtitles were added and the image was squashed. His conclusion is that all the videos are of the same person - Bin Laden. Furthermore, Mr Laws says it is not realistic to think that the US military would fake such tapes. "Technologically in this day and age, those kinds of things can be done, but not quietly," he says.  If you stop the war, then that is fine. If you choose not to stop the war, then we have no other option but to continue the war of attrition against you on all possible axes  Audio statement attributed to Osama Bin Laden, 13 September 09 "There would be a number of people involved and word of it would have spread by now." Bin Laden has issued around 40 statements since 9/11, and many include clear contemporaneous date references. Two recent statements released last year mentioned US President Barack Obama. Mike Scheuer, the former CIA officer who set up and ran the agency's Bin Laden unit, thinks Bin Laden is still alive. 'Difficult reality' "Whenever he speaks on audio tape, he always says something in there that's fairly current. Also, the US National Security Agency (NSA) and UK Government Communication Headquarters (GCHQ) are very good at voice prints," he says. Mr Scheuer concludes that if it was not Bin Laden's voice, these organisations would make sure governments were well aware that the tapes were fakes. Another former CIA agent, Art Keller, is more damning: "I think those conspiracy theories that he is dead are pretty much laughable," he says. "It's easier to explain things away with a conspiracy than to face up to the difficult reality. "In this case, the difficult reality is that we're trying to operate in possibly the worst area in the world and track someone who's very crafty and elusive and putting considerable effort to stay off our radar."