Women in Jordan fight for their rights

SheFighter, the first gym in Jordan to provide specialised self-defence and martial arts training for women, was founded in 2012 and commended last year in a speech by US President Barack Obama.

Founder Lina Khalifeh says the gym's methodology unites classic martial arts techniques with self-defence and self-empowerment strategies, noting: "Training in SheFighter has a bigger impact on women's lives than 10 conferences on women's rights."

Years ago, Khalifeh said that she decided to begin teaching self-defence after she saw a colleague being physically abused by her brother. Today, SheFighter has trained more than 3,000 women, and Khalifeh hosts workshops outside the capital Amman and at universities. She is aiming to expand further, opening more gyms, both in and outside Jordan.

Each week, a stream of young women pour into the gym to learn self-defence and have fun. "She angry, SheFighter!" they scream at the end of each training session.

With Aljazeera

Dead baby resurrects just before burial

A Chinese baby boy who was declared dead and spent the night in a morgue showed signs of life just as he was about to be cremated, local TV reported.

Workers at the crematorium in Pan’an in the eastern province of Zhejiang were preparing to cremate the baby on Friday when he suddenly starting moaning, provincial television reported.

The boy had been declared dead the day before and had spent 15 hours in the morgue at a temperature of about -12 degrees Celsius (10.4 F).

After finding the child alive, the crematorium notified his father and the baby was taken to a hospital intensive care unit.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen this. It’s a true miracle,” said a doctor at the Pan’an hospital where the infant was born prematurely in January.

The child spent 23 days in an incubator and was then taken home by his father, who wanted him there for the start of the Lunar New Year which began Monday.

But the baby’s condition worsened a few days after returning home. He was declared dead on February 4 after a doctor decided his heart had stopped beating.

Before the baby was sent to the morgue, his father had wrapped him in two layers of clothing and a thick bag which may have saved his life.

However, doctors are cautious about his chances of recovery.

Breaking News: Andy Murray celebrates becoming a father after wife Kim gives birth to a baby daughter

Parents: Andy and Kim Murray have had a baby daughter, the couple's first child

Andy Murray has become a father after his wife Kim gave birth to a daughter, the couple's first child.

The tennis star had promised to fly home from the Australian Open if his wife went into labour during the tournament, and after losing in the final he said he would be on 'the first flight home' in an emotional message.

The Murrays' daughter was born on Sunday night, according to reports.

The baby girl, whose name has not yet been revealed, is the youngest member of Britain's foremost tennis family.

Mr Murray's brother Jamie won the Australian Open doubles championship last month, while his mother Judy is a successful coach who captains the British women's tennis team.

The new parents, both 28, have been together since they were teenagers, and they married last April in Mr Murray's hometown of Dunblane before announcing the pregnancy in the summer.

Among the hundreds of fans congratulating the couple today was Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who wrote on Twitter: 'Lovely news. Congratulations to @andy_murray and Kim on the birth of their daughter. Wishing every happiness. Congratulations to the (very glam) grandma @judmoo [Judy Murray] too!'

Presenter Gabby Logan added: 'Kim and Andy Murray have had a baby girl - huge congrats @judmoo - great news for Fed Cup team 2036...' 

Angus Robertson, the SNP's leader in Westminster, tweeted: 'Congratulations to Andy Murray and Kim Sears on the birth of their daughter.'

Speaking before his latest tournament, the world number two predicted that his life would have to change after he became a father.

'My child is more important to me, and my wife is more important to me, than a tennis match,' he said.

'It's a big change for me and my wife, but that's the current priority and I'll see after that.'

After being defeated by Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final, Mr Murray addressed Kim directly in a choked-up speech in front of the global TV audience.

He said: 'You've been a legend the last two weeks, thank you for all your support. I'll be on the next 

The family had a scare during a tournament when Mrs Murray's father Nigel Sears collapsed while watching Ana Ivanovic, the player he coaches, in her third-round match.

The 58-year-old was later cleared to fly back to the UK and Mr Murray said previously he would have pulled out of the tournament if there had been any doubts about his father-in-law's health. 

The player has already announced his plan to skip two tournaments in February and take the whole month off.

His next match is likely to be in the Davis Cup, where Great Britain are taking on Japan in the tournament's first round starting on March 4.  

The family had a scare during a tournament when Mrs Murray's father Nigel Sears collapsed while watching Ana Ivanovic, the player he coaches, in her third-round match. 

He will then play in the French Open - the only Grand Slam tournament where he has never reached the final.

Judy Murray recently spoke of her excitement at become a grandmother - but promised not to get involved in teaching the new arrival tennis, saying she had had enough of coaching her family.

'When it happens I shall be an active granny,' she told Hello! this week. 'My mum Shirley was very involved with Jamie and Andy when they were growing up and I hope to be the same with my grandchild.

'I'm actually looking forward to cutting back on my work and spending more time with my parents, and yes, the new baby.'

With daily mail

Power Minister Says Tariff Hike Will Attract Investment

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, says the new electrify tariff is the first major decision that will attract needed investment in the sector, according to Channel TV.

Fashola’s comment in Lagos on Monday came just as the Nigeria Labour Congress the Trade Union Congress and their allies held nationwide protest against the tariff hike of 45 per cent.

“The question on the lips of everybody is; why can’t we have power first before we pay?

“I wish we could do that, but if they understood that power business is funded from finance from banks. So, no bank is going to lend money to you if you can’t show a recovery price.

“That is the reason we can’t have power first before tariff. It has to be produced before we have it and it has to be paid for.

“The supplier of gas is not going to supply unless he sees his cash,” the Minister explained.

On the protest by the unions, Mr Fashola urged them not to start a new fight, saying “we don’t need one”.

“In any event, there are part of the employee of all these DISCOs and GENCOs that are still working, so let’s get to productivity. Let’s stop fighting (and) let’s produce.”

On the level of electricity supply which the unions are insisting must improve before a new tariff is issued, the Minister said that the capacity Nigeria had in January had never been reached before.

“In the last week of January, we recorded all time high generation of 5,000mw. Nigeria has never reached that level of generation (and) we need a lot more.

“But even with that 5,000mw, there is a lot of service work that needs to go on so that people can access the power.

“So not paying for power, you are disrupting the system; diverting lines, you are disrupting the system; vandalising pipes, you are disrupting the system, you are cheating the system, it is part of anti-corruption (and) everybody must pay for what he uses.

After a meeting with operators in the power sector, the Minister also inspected a transmission facility under construction.

He urged the contractor to expedite action so that incremental supply could be experienced.

Oil prices up slightly after sharp sell-off

Oil prices rose in Asia on Tuesday after a three-day sell-off that saw the US benchmark sink back below $30 a barrel, but analysts said the supply glut and world economic weakness would keep a lid on the commodity.

The pick-up in the two contracts comes despite a rout across Asian equity markets fuelled by renewed worries about the global outlook.

Traders had sent oil prices plunging Monday as talks between Saudi Arabia and Venezuela on bringing stability to the market came to nothing.

There had been hopes the Saudis would support calling a meeting of the OPEC producers’ group — of which it is the key member — but it was unwilling to do so.

OPEC has refused to cut output as it tries to maintain market share in the face of competition from US shale.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for March delivery sank 3.9 percent to $29.69 and Brent shed 3.5 percent to $32.88 Monday.

On Tuesday WTI was up 31 cents, or 1.0 percent, at $30.00 and Brent gained two cents, or 0.1 percent, to $32.90, a day before the US releases official data on its reserves which are at their highest levels since 1930.

Crude prices have crashed more than 70 percent since mid-2014, hit by a perfect storm of overproduction, oversupply, weak demand, a slowing global economy and a strong dollar.

Added to that is the imminent arrival of Iranian output onto world markets after international sanctions linked to its nuclear programme were lifted.

“It’s a particularly volatile and difficult time for oil,” Ric Spooner, a chief analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney, told Bloomberg News.

The market would continue to experience oversupply for the next few months, Spooner said. “We have Iran back on, there’s been no significant cut in US production and inventories are high, which means the downside pressure is there.”

With The Guardian