US warns of al-Qaida reprisals over bin Laden

Associated Press, Washington | Mon, 05/02/2011 11:38 AM | World

The State Department is putting U.S. embassies on alert and is warning Americans abroad of possible reprisal attacks from al-Qaida and its affiliates around the world after the killing of the group's leader Osama bin Laden by American forces in Pakistan.

In a worldwide travel alert released shortly after President Barack Obama late Sunday announced bin Laden's death in a military operation, the department said there was an "enhanced potential for anti-American violence given recent counterterrorism activity in Pakistan." It said Americans living or traveling abroad, particularly in areas that have been hit by anti-American violence in the past should limit travel outside their homes and avoid large gatherings.

The alert said U.S. embassy operations would continue "to the extent possible under the constraints of any evolving security situation."

No removing state assets from PSSI office, govt warns

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 03/30/2011 3:31 PM | Sports

State Secretary Sudi Silalahi has warned the executives at the Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) against removing state assets from their office at Gelora Bung Karno stadium in South Jakarta.

“They can take their personal assets, but not state assets,” Sudi said at the State Palace on Wednesday, as quoted by tribunnews.com.

The PSSI management has been packing up and removing equipment from its office since Tuesday. The goods were stored in boxes and transported using a motorized pedicab, sources said.

Previously, Youth and Sports Affairs Minister Andi Malarangeng has previously said the government was no longer acknowledging PSSI leadership under its chairman, Nurdin Halid, and secretary-general, Nugraha Besoes.

Sudi said it was not his business if the PSSI management chose to move from its office at Bung Karno stadium. “That's [Nurdin's] business,” he said.

He highlighted that no instruction had ever been given to the PSSI management to leave its office.

“We'll leave this matter to Gelora Bung Karno stadium management to coordinate with the sports ministry,” he said.

BMKG warns of more showers in coming days

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 03/01/2011 2:01 PM | National

Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) on Tuesday announced that more heavy rains would affect most parts of greater Jakarta for the next three days.

Chief of the BMKG extreme weather division, Kukuh Ribudiyanto, said the rains would fall with equal intensity across the city, not only in traditionally wet areas such as Bogor, West Java, to the south of Jakarta.

“The rains could happen anywhere in the city and we cannot forecast yet whether [the downpour] will happen in the morning, afternoon or evening,” Kukuh said as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

However, Kukuh said his agency had forecast the exceptionally rainy days to last only three days.

A wet forecast has also been given for South Sumatra, Jambi, Bengkulu, Banten, southern West Java, northern and eastern Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Nusa Tenggara, western and southern West Kalimantan, southern Central Kalimantan, Central Sulawesi, South Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi.

The high precipitation is a result of the presence of low pressure areas in northern Australia, coupled with winds from southern Sumatra to East Nusa Tenggara, and from the Banda Sea to central Papua.