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BERLIN (Reuters) - Islamist militants are increasingly funding themselves through kidnapping, with al Qaeda's north African wing likely to have brought in tens of millions of dollars in ransoms in the past few years, a senior U.S. Treasury official said.
The United States estimates militant organizations received $120 million in ransoms over the past decade, including to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in recent years, said David Cohen, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.
Kidnapping for ransom was an "urgent threat", particularly in the Sahel, a belt of land spanning nearly a dozen of the world's poorest nations on the Sahara's southern rim, Cohen told reporters in Berlin on Tuesday.
"It is what has become perhaps the most challenging and fastest growing technique that terrorist organizations, in particular the affiliates of al Qaeda in North Africa and in Yemen, have been using to fund themselves over the last couple of years."
Cohen said the average ransom had gone up consistently over the years and was in the range of $5 million per payment.
"So, it is a growing and really quite urgent threat, particularly in North Africa, in the Sahel and in Mali in particular, where AQIM has now managed to claim dominion over a large territory."
AQIM emerged out of Algeria's civil conflict and has expanded south into the Sahara, raising its profile in recent years with hit-and-run attacks and kidnappings of westerners.
Militant groups have benefited from lapses in security across the region as countries transition from years of dictatorship to more democratic government.
Cohen, on a week-long trip that includes stops in Britain, France, Germany and Italy, said he was talking with other governments in the hope of developing a unified approach to the kidnapping problem.
While the U.S. government has a policy of not paying ransoms, some European governments do so.
Talks were centered around steps to prevent kidnappings happening in the first place, the handling of hostage situations when they occur, and the tracing of financial flows when ransoms are paid, Cohen said.
Iran and Syria were the other main topics of discussion with his European counterparts, he said
Sanctions against Syria over the past 18 months had taken a "significant bite" out of the government's finances, he said, declining to give figures. "You have a situation where the Syrian government is spending at a greater rate.
"They are spending on security needs, on providing subsidies to their citizens, at the same time that the revenue side of the ledger is being significantly restrained. The natural impact of that is that their reserves are depleting."
(Editing by Dan Lalor)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/al-qaeda-north-africa-making-millions-kidnapping-u-155011734.html
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) ? Gas prices climbed by a cent in Rhode Island in the past week.
AAA Southern New England said Monday the average cost of a gallon of regular unleaded gas in the Ocean State is $3.96, up from $3.95
Over the last month, prices in Rhode Island have climbed 12 cents. The local price is 18 cents above the national average of $3.78 a gallon.
Rhode Islanders were paying on average $3.58 a gallon last year at this time.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/rhode-island-gas-prices-climb-cent-153908806--finance.html
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OMAHA, Neb. -- As they work to give away part of Warren Buffett's roughly $47 billion fortune, his three children have adopted an approach that looks remarkably similar to their father's technique for making all that money.
Like Buffett, each relies on tiny staffs. And just like their father invests only in businesses he understands, they restrict their giving to their targeted projects.
Warren Buffett doesn't direct how the foundations created by Susie, Howard and Peter Buffett spend the estimated $2.6 billion in Berkshire Hathaway stock they'll receive, but his children seem to have absorbed his philosophy.
"I think the only pressure I feel from him is making sure we're smart about how we spend the money," said Howard Buffett. "He's had no influence on where we give money, but he's had a big influence on how we go about it."
Buffett's children have focused on different topics, reflecting their divergent interests.
Howard Buffett is helping farmers in impoverished nations produce more to reduce world hunger. Susie Buffett is strengthening early childhood education and looking for ways to reduce teen pregnancy. And Peter Buffett wants to empower women and girls worldwide through education, collaboration and economic development to end violence against women.
"We're given this amazing opportunity to try and make change where we can," Peter Buffett said. "And being our father's children, we don't think small."
The Buffett children have all been running foundations their parents set up for them since the late 1990s, but they had to dramatically increase their giving after 2006 when Warren Buffett announced his overall giving plan and the children received their first annual gift of stock worth roughly $65 million to each of them.
They'll have to ramp up their giving again because Buffett's annual gifts of Berkshire Hathaway stock will increase to roughly $100 million to $125 million to each child next summer.
Although his children's foundations will each eventually receive stock worth about $2.6 billion, their charitable work is still overshadowed by their dad's main pledge to give the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation stock worth more than $44 billion.
Warren Buffett is also giving nearly $4.4 billion worth of stock to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named for the investor's first wife, who died in 2004. That organization promotes women's reproductive health and tries to limit the spread of nuclear weapons.
All three younger Buffetts said they're glad their father encouraged them to take risks, so they wouldn't be afraid to tackle difficult issues.
The Buffett children also said they are glad their parents had the foresight to set up separate foundations for each of them, so they could all go their own way.
Howard Buffett regularly travels to poverty-stricken parts of the world to talk with farmers and check up on projects his foundation has funded, but the 57-year-old often doesn't tell his dad where he's going until after he returns to avoid worrying him about the dangers of destinations like the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Howard Buffett, who raises corn and soybeans in Illinois, likes to get a close look at the challenges those farmers he's trying to help face. He said when he's travelling he's reminded of how his mother would try to help anyone in need she encountered.
"It's very hard for me to walk into those circumstances and not try to do something," he said.
In his giving, Howard Buffett tries to focus on programs that can be continued after the initial grant ends, so he doesn't support introducing expensive hybrid seeds and irrigation in places where farmers can't afford them.
The elder Buffett manages one of the world's largest conglomerates with a tiny staff of two dozen at its Omaha headquarters, and Howard, Susie and Peter run their foundations with staffs less than half that size.
Peter Buffett, 54, said the three children also have applied their father's belief in limiting his investments to areas he understands.
"You want to be as focused on an end goal as you can be," Peter Buffett said. "In a very practical way, it helps you say no."
Peter Buffett, who is a musician and composer, is working on leveling the playing field for women and girls worldwide through a variety of programs. He hopes that if girls, particularly in impoverished areas, can get access to more resources and education they'll be ready to play a larger role in their communities and decision making.
Peter Buffett's NoVo Foundation also support programs to help U.S. schools teach kids social and emotional skills and sound decision-making.
Susie Buffett said she enjoys trying to tackle messy, human problems that aren't easy to solve, much like her mom did.
"That comes directly from my childhood. It is what I watched my mother do," said Susie Buffett, 59. "She had me in the car with her at a very early age in the housing projects and deep in the community. She was very involved personally. It was not a check-writing thing. It was her being there."
Susie Buffett was always interested in education, but she decided to focus her giving on early childhood education after asking Omaha's schools superintendent where she could make the biggest difference.
Because Susie Buffett is the only one of Warren's children living in Omaha, she also uses her Sherwood Foundation to support Omaha nonprofits that help make the city a better place and help low-income neighborhoods.
Warren Buffett's decision to increase the amount of money he is giving his children's foundations indicates he supports their work, and he praised their philanthropy.
"Everything has impressed me," Buffett said "They're each doing things they have a special interest in which they have some special abilities too. And they work very hard at it."
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/01/warren-buffett-kids_n_1928665.html
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WASHINGTON (AP) ? A recall of peanut butter and other nut products has some of the country's largest grocery stores pulling store-brand products off their shelves.
New Mexico-based Sunland Inc. has expanded its recall of peanut butter and almond butter to include cashew butters, tahini and blanched and roasted peanut products. The company, which sells its nuts and nut butters to large groceries and other food distributors around the country, recalled products under multiple brand names last month after salmonella illnesses were linked to Trader Joe's Creamy Salted Valencia Peanut Butter, one of the brands it manufactures.
In addition to Trader Joe's, the recall includes some nut butters and nut products sold at Whole Foods Market, Target, Safeway, Fresh & Easy, Harry and David, Sprouts, Heinen's, Stop & Shop Supermarket Company, Giant Food of Landover, Md. and several other stores. Some of those retailers used Sunland ingredients in items they prepared and packaged themselves.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there are now 30 salmonella illnesses in 19 states that can be traced to the Trader Joe's peanut butter. No other foods have been linked to the illnesses, but Sunland recalled other products manufactured on the same equipment as the Trader Joe's product.
Some of the brand names included in the recall are Target's Archer Farms, Safeway's Open Nature, Earth Balance, Fresh & Easy, Late July, Heinen's, Joseph's, Natural Value, Naturally More, Peanut Power Butter, Serious Food, Snaclite Power, Sprouts Farmers Market, Sprouts, Sunland and Dogsbutter.
Sunland's recall includes 101 products, and several retailers have issued additional recalls including items made with Sunland ingredients.
Those sickened reported becoming ill between June 11 and Sept. 11, according to the CDC. Almost two-thirds of those who became ill were children under the age of 10. No deaths have been reported.
Salmonella can cause diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps 12 hours to 72 hours after infection. It is most dangerous to children, the elderly and others with weak immune systems.
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Find Mary Clare Jalonick on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mcjalonick
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/peanut-butter-recall-includes-major-retailers-152639303--finance.html
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NEW YORK (AP) ? A 25-year-old man initially arrested Sunday on an assault charge after Lindsay Lohan claimed he grabbed her in her New York hotel room in an argument over cellphone images was freed hours later and his arrest voided when the charge could not be substantiated, law enforcement officials said.
Instead, Christian LaBella of Valley Village, Calif., and Lohan filed harassment complaints with police against each other after they were interviewed by police about their run-in, law enforcement officials said.
Afterward, Lohan publicist Steve Honig expressed outrage that police did not charge LaBella.
"We think it's both distressing and outrageous," he said in a telephone interview. "Lindsey was assaulted and there needs to be a consequence for that."
LaBella could not be reached for comment.
LaBella was taken into custody about 6 a.m. after a 911 call came from the swank W Hotel in Manhattan's Union Square where Lohan apparently pulled the fire alarm, the two officials said. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
A former congressional aide, LaBella was arrested on a misdemeanor assault charge but released later Sunday. The charge could not be substantiated so the arrest will be voided, the officials said.
The paperwork was being completed on cross-harassment complaints, which are considered a violation, and no other legal action would be taken, the officials said.
Lohan and LaBella met hours earlier at a night club, though it was unclear whether they previously knew each other, the officials said. They went back to her room, when she noticed the cellphone photos of her on his phone and grabbed the device, the officials said.
She claimed LaBella grabbed her and threw her, but later he said she had forcefully taken his phone, the officials said. Lohan was injured but not hospitalized, Honig said in a statement.
"Lindsay has spoken with police and is fully cooperating with the investigation," he said after LaBella's arrest.
This is Lohan's second run-in with law enforcement in as many weeks in New York City. The 26-year-old was accused last week of clipping a pedestrian with her car outside a nightclub and driving away. She was given a ticket and was scheduled to appear in court Oct. 23. Honig has said he expects those allegations to be proven false.
The actress was also involved in a car accident in California this summer that sent her and an assistant to a hospital, but didn't result in serious injuries for anyone. The accident remains under investigation.
In May, she was cleared of allegations that she struck a Hollywood nightclub manager with her car.
Lohan remains on informal probation for taking a necklace from a jewelry store without permission last year. That means she doesn't have to check in with a judge or probation officer but could face a jail term if arrested again.
Lohan recently filmed "The Canyons," an indie film written by "Less Than Zero" and "American Psycho" author Bret Easton Ellis.
Steve Tomaszewski, a spokesman for Illinois Rep. John Shimkus, confirmed Sunday afternoon that LaBella has worked for the congressman in his Washington office. Tomaszewski said no one from the Republican's office had been contacted by LaBella.
Source: http://movies.yahoo.com/news/official-mans-nyc-arrest-lohan-dispute-voided-225652983.html
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