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Jumat, 08 Juni 2012

Woman with blood disorder meets blood donor for first time

05.15    No comments


Achibar Sawh (l.) and wife Radhika meet Bridget Moore and her mother Geraldine for the first time at the New York Blood Center in Long Island City, Queens. Radhika Sawh has a blood disorder that requires regular transfusions. Bridget, 18, was one of her previously anonymous donors.
When 37-year-old Radhika Sawh finally met one of the hundreds of anonymous donors who keep her alive, she shed tears for those who had shed blood for her.

“The people who donate blood don’t get anything in return,” said Sawh, who has received over 1,200 units of blood from hundreds of donors. “But I get everything. I get to see my daughter come home from school. I get to live.”
As summer approaches, a time of historically slow blood donations and more incidents that increase the demand for blood, those who rely on donations get anxious.
Sawh met on Wednesday with high school student and formerly anonymous donor Bridget Moore, 18, at the New York Blood Center in Long Island City to raise awareness about the looming need for donors.
Sawh, a wife and mother of an 8-year-old, was born with Thalassemia or Cooley’s Anemia, a genetic blood disorder that can only be treated with regular transfusions.
“I get shudders when I hear about shortages in the news,” said Sawh, of Floral Park, L.I.
Sawh receives two units of blood every two weeks. Around 3,000 people nationwide have the most severe form of the disorder. Without regular transfusions, most would not survive childhood.
O-negative and B-negative blood types are currently in short supply, said Andrea Cefarelli, of the New York Blood Center. The center organized the meeting the permission of Sawh and one of her donors.
Shortages can mean long, physically exhausting waits for people with the disorder, said Gina Cioffi, the director of the Cooley’s Anemia Foundation.
“You get the transfusion and you feel terrific, but blood cells die off and you have lapses of energy,” said Cioffi. “Their whole life is a rollercoaster of up and down.”
It’s not just people with Thalassemia. One in three people will need a blood transfusion in their lifetime, according to the New York Blood Center.
With a hug, tears and a comforting back-rub, the often shrouded relationship between donor and recipient became tangible when Sawh met Moore,
who organizes blood drives at Wantaugh High School on Long Island, where she’s a senior.
“When I saw her, we were both wearing blue. We just clicked,” said Moore. “I had to hug her, it was so surreal.”



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The Daily Checkup: Adopting healthy lifestyle is the best way to reduce the risk of a stroke

05.13    No comments


The specialist:
As the director of the Mount Sinai Stroke Center, Dr. Stanley Tuhrim is a vascular neurologist who specializes in stroke and related conditions.
Founded in 1988, the stroke center provides care to about 500 patients a year.
Who’s at risk:
Every year, about 700,000 Americans suffer a stroke, which works out to one stroke every 40 seconds.
“A stroke is a disturbance in the blood flow to the brain, most often due to a clot or blockage in a blood vessel,” says Tuhrim. “The cells in the brain start to die if not enough oxygen gets to them — damage we can largely prevent if the stroke patient receives the correct drugs quickly enough.”
Doctor Stanley Tuhrim in his office at Mount Sinai Hospital (Anthony Lanzilote/New York Daily News)
Anyone experiencing a stroke should call 911 and go directly to the hospital.

Although strokes can affect anyone, 75% occur in patients over age 65. “Age is an important risk factor for stroke because fatty plaque deposits accumulate in the arteries over time,” says Tuhrim. “This hardening of the arteries, called atherosclerosis, makes the arteries narrower and thus more susceptible to blockages.”
For men, the risk of stroke increases around age 50. For most women, stroke risk goes up around age 60, after menopause.
Many other risk factors for stroke are considered modifiable, which means that making lifestyle modifications can reduce your risk.
“High blood pressure, or hypertension, is the most important risk factor in this country — it increases your risk three or four times,” says Tuhrim. “High cholesterol, cigarette smoking, diabetes and some heart arrhythmias are other common risk factors.”
Signs and symptoms:
For the current generation of anti-stroke drugs to work, patients have roughly a three-hour window to receive treatment and must get to the hospital as quickly as possible when stroke symptoms occur.
“Recognizing the signs of stroke is key because getting to the hospital quickly is crucial in terms of being able to treat it,” says Tuhrim.
“The classic symptoms are numbness or weakness of the face, arm and leg, especially on just one side of the body, difficulty in speaking or understanding what’s being said, trouble seeing or walking, or a sudden severe headache with no known cause.”
If you experience these symptoms or spot them in someone else, it’s essential to call 911 right away. “At the hospital, we say ‘time is brain,’ ” says Tuhrim. “The faster you get to a hospital, the fewer brain cells will have died.” Ambulance crews know to take stroke victims to the nearest stroke center.



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President Obama's possibly risqué comment about wife’s pushups provokes laughter at fund-raiser

05.10    No comments


A comment by President Barack Obama about his wife’s exercise routine reportedly sent snickers through a crowd at a fundraiser in Beverly Hills on Wednesday. Though the commander in chief reportedly seemed taken aback by the crowd’s reaction, at least some interpreted it as an attempt by at risque humor.
President Obama is chasing green, but his humor may be turning blue.

A comment by the commander-in-chief about his wife's exercise routine sent snickers through a crowd of Hollywood's gay and lesbian elite who gathered at an LGBT Leadership Council gala in Beverly Hills on Wednesday for a fund-raiser.
After being introduced by emcee Ellen DeGeneres, Obama called the comedian "a great friend who accepts a little bit of teasing about Michelle beating her in pushups" when the First Lady appeared on her show, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"I think she claims Michelle didn't go all the way down," Obama quipped.
The audience, which included cast members from "Glee," “Modern Family’s” Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Cher, reportedly giggled before breaking out in naughty laughter.
"That's what I heard," the President added, after pausing, according to a report published by Politico. He later noted the First Lady outdoes him in pushups as well.
Though Obama reportedly seemed caught off guard by the crowd's reaction to his comment, at least some interpreted it as bawdy.
"He told a very suggestive joke about his wife," Fox News commentator Todd Starnes wrote on Facebook.
Wednesday's gala and a $25,000-per-person dinner at the home of “Glee” co-creator Ryan Murphy that followed were expected to raise $3 million for the President's reelection, Variety reported.
Obama started his day Thursday with another fund-raiser — his 153rd since launching his reelection bid last year, according to Politico.
"It must be tough being President when there are so many parties to attend," Matt Connelly, a Republican National Committee spokesman told a Southern California wire service.



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George W. Bush is the most unpopular living ex-President: poll

05.07    No comments


US President George W. Bush holds a press conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room 20 December, 2007 at the White House in Washington, DC. Bush said Thursday that his biggest concern about Afghanistan was that US allies would get "tired" and abandon the strife-torn country. "My biggest concern is that people say 'well, we're kind of tired of Afghanistan, therefore we think we're going to leave,'" the US president said at a year-end press conference. AFP PHOTO / TIM SLOAN (Photo credit should read TIM SLOAN/AFP/Getty Images)George W. Bush has stepped out of the public eye since leaving office, but absence hasn't made the nation’s heart grow fonder.
The 43rd President of the United States is the most unpopular living former president, a CNN/ORC International poll has found, as only 43% of people surveyed said they had a favorable opinion of him and 54% viewed him unfavorably.
The negative rating puts Bush far behind his fellow living ex-Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Dubya’s father, George H.W. Bush.
Clinton nabbed a 66% favorable rating, Carter scored a 54% rating, and 59% of those polled said they had a positive view of Bush Sr.
"Don't be surprised if the Obama campaign mentions the name of George W. Bush at every opportunity, and don't be surprised if that strategy works," CNN polling director Keating Holland said in the network’s report. "And the mention of Bush's name appears to prompt at least a few people to take a more positive view of their current financial situation."
The poll found that when people were asked if they were better or worse off than they were four years ago, they were split 44% to 43%, but that they had a slightly more negative reaction when the question was phrased with Bush's name — as in, are you better off now than you were four years ago "when Bush was President?”
When phrased that way, 47% of people said they were better off now, while 41% preferred life under the former President.
Despite the bad ratings for Bush, the poll does represent an improvement over his popularity in 2009 as he handed over the White House to Obama.
“I don’t give a darn,” Bush told Larry King in 2009, when asked about polls that put his approval rating between 25% and 30%.
“I feel the same as when they had me at 90-plus,” he said. “These opinion polls are nothing but a shot of yesterday’s news.”


Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/george-w-bush-unpopular-living-ex-president-poll-article-1.1091445#ixzz1xCd94Iu5

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UN: Syrian forces shot at monitors trying to get to scene of latest massacre

05.03    No comments


Anti-Syrian regime protesters chant slogans and hold a banner in Arabic that reads, "Al-Qubair massacre challenges the world's humanity," during a protest against the massacre of Mazraat al-Qubair, in the northern village of Hass, in Idlib province, Syria, Thursday June 7, 2012. Syria on Thursday denied as "absolutely baseless" claims by opposition groups about a new massacre in the central Hama province in which government forces allegedly killed dozens of people, including women and children.
UNITED NATIONS — U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says U.N. monitors were shot at trying to get to the scene of the latest Syrian massacre.
The U.N. chief told the General Assembly on Thursday that the unarmed observers were initially denied access to the scene in central Hama and "were shot at with small arms" while trying to get there. He did not mention any casualties.
Ban said each day in Syria sees more "grim atrocities" and for many months it has been evident that President Bashar Assad and his government "have lost all legitimacy."
Ban said any regime that tolerates killings such as last month's massacre of more than 100 civilians in Houla and Wednesday's attack in Hama "has lost its fundamental humanity," and he condemned "this unspeakable barbarity."


Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/activists-dozens-dead-syria-massacre-article-1.1091403#ixzz1xCcYsnhF

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euro 2012 poland greece last minute training friday opener

05.01    No comments


Kostas Mitroglou, right, and defender Giorgos Tzavelas during a Greek training session in Legionowo, Poland.
Poland were on Thursday preparing to kick off Euro 2012 on home soil, with opponents Greece seeking a morale-boosting win to lift a beleaguered nation hit by political turmoil and crippling financial woes.

Both teams were due at the National Stadium in Warsaw for training, a day ahead of the curtain-raiser for the 16-team showpiece, as excitement builds across the country -- and in neighbouring co-hosts Ukraine -- for the start of the tournament.
The kick-off is not just being keenly anticipated for the football, where world champions Spain are looking to the retain the crown they won four years ago and beaten 2008 finalists Germany seek revenge.
The tournament is also the first behind the former Iron Curtain and a gamble by European football's governing body UEFA to develop the game beyond its traditional heartlands.
Franciszek Smuda's Poles are seeking to emulate the golden generation of the 1970s and 1980s while Greece want to prove that their 2004 victory was no fluke -- and give their cash-strapped compatriots something to smile about.
Captain Giorgios Karagounis, of Panathinaikos, said: "We want to give joy to the Greeks. We will do our best, without stress and pressure, and hopefully bring back beautiful memories."
The Poland-Greece opener is followed by Russia versus the Czech Republic in Wroclaw, where Dick Advocaat's side come into the tournament on a high after beating Italy 3-0 last week, prompting predictions that they may be a team to watch.
The experienced Dutchman may play down any talk of Russia as outside bets but captain Andrey Arshavin believes they are ready to take on and beat the best.
"The result of the friendly match with Italy boosted our fans' hopes ahead of the championship's start and all of our players also. However, for a long time we have believed our team is capable of playing at this level," he said.
The Czechs' Champions League-winning goalkeeper Petr Cech told fans in an online chat on Wednesday that Group A was wide open, with any one of them able to progress to the quarter-finals.
"Our chances are the same as those of the other three teams in Group A," he said, predicting that Spain, Germany and the Netherlands would win the title although he suggeted: "We may spring a surprise."
Czech coach Michal Balek, however, has injury concerns over captain Tomas Rosicky, who resumed training on Monday after a calf injury, as well as Galatasaray forward Milan Baros, who limped out of Tuesday's session with a thigh problem.


Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/euro-2012/euro-2012-poland-greece-last-minute-training-friday-opener-article-1.1091408#ixzz1xCbpE2Lb

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euro 2012 real madrid barcelona rift spanish squad alvaro arbeloa

04.58    No comments


Alvaro Arbeloa, right, argues with Spanish teammate Sergio Busquets during a typically contentious Real Madrid-Barcelona game.
The Spanish squad is united and not riven by a split between Real Madrid players and those from Barcelona said Real defender Alvaro Arbeloa on Wednesday.

The 29-year-old - a member of the Spanish squads that won both Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup - denied Barcelona midfield general Xavi Hernandez's assertion last week that there was an underlying bitterness between the two camps.
"No, there is no split," said Arbeloa, who was a key member of the Real side that wrested the La Liga title away from Barcelona last season.
"Relations between all of us here is very good. We know how to differentiate between the relations at club and national level where we all share a common goal: to defend our European title.
"If there are differences of opinion, we are here to make them go away. For the moment, the mood in the camp is good," added the former Liverpool defender, who has been suffering from a trapped nerve in his back.
Xavi, the playmaker behind both Spain's and Barcelona's dominance over the past four years, had said last week that the attitude of the players from both teams was very different.
"We congratulated Real Madrid for winning the title when they have patently failed to do so over the past few years," said the 32-year-old.


Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/euro-2012/euro-2012-real-madrid-barcelona-rift-spanish-squad-alvaro-arbeloa-article-1.1091040#ixzz1xCbHrcmW

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euro 2012 germany defense spotlight reliability mertesacker a question february ankle surgery

04.56    No comments


Per Mertesacker (c.) is coming off February ankle surgery
GDANSK, Poland - Questions have been raised about the reliability of Germany’s defense and the speed of its anchor, Per Mertesacker, whose match experience since February has been limited to two friendlies.

But coach Joachim Loew appears ready to take the risk with the center back for Germany’s European Championship opener against Portugal and its star forward Cristiano Ronaldo on Saturday.
Germany’s fans were horrified by the 5-3 loss to Switzerland in the first of the two warm-up games before Euro 2012, when Mertesacker looked more like the odd-man-out than the pillar of stability. Then Mertesacker got a new partner in central defense, Holger Badstuber, and things looked a lot smoother in the 2-0 win over Israel.
Mertesacker needed surgery after sustaining an injury to his right ankle playing for Arsenal in February.
Badstuber looked like the winner in the internal competition for a place in the central defense with Mats Hummels, who was Mertesacker’s partner against Switzerland.
Hummels won the German double and his team beat and outplayed Bayern Munich comprehensively in all three matches last season.
Badstuber’s statistics say he is one of the better passers among Bundesliga defenders and Loew likes his defenders to provide the first pass that will open up Germany’s attack. Hummels can produce long passes used by Borussia Dortmund but Loew prefers Bayern’s short-passing game.
“Whoever plays will know how to take responsibility,” Mertesacker said Wednesday. “We have many options. We’ve been together for a while and we know what the partner will be doing, which is the most important thing. We know the patterns.
“I’ve had good rehabilitation, it’s good to have had the two matches and I’ve had good feedback from my body,” he said. Mertesacker has been using a yoga teacher the Germans have brought in for the first time.
Asked to comment on his perceived lack of speed, Mertesacker said: “I always thought I was agile, but maybe it was hard to see because of my size (1.98 meters tall).”
Mertesacker said he knew it was a race against time to get fit for the tournament, “but I had great motivation.”
Badstuber said the competition for places in the starting 11 was great.
“Of course, everyone wants to play. The quality of the squad is very high, we have many positions that can be filled with equally good players. But overall we are a very close team,” Badstuber said.
On the flanks, Loew is expected to go with Bayern players, captain Philipp Lahm and Jerome Boateng — and both are likely to be out of position.
Lahm began the season in Bayern on the left back, then switched to his more natural right side. Loew has used Lahm on the left, for lack of an alternative, but he could return him to the right to confront Ronaldo on Saturday. Lahm did a good job covering Ronaldo in the Champions League semifinals against Real Madrid.
Boateng plays in the central defense in Bayern. But left back Marcel Schmelzer of Borussia Dortmund had a poor showing against Switzerland.
Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer will be one Germany’s biggest assets, although he has not had an error-free season. He stopped Ronaldo’s penalty in the semifinal shootout in Madrid that went Bayern’s way.
Neuer says Bayern’s second straight season without a trophy will not be a factor.
“This tournament comes just at the right time. We have top defenders and the coach will make the right decision. We know we can spread the responsibility around, we know our job,” he said.
Loew does not neglect his defense, but his concept involves a risky plan based on a quick transition and swift, clever passing to get to the goal as fast as possible.
If Germany loses possession, its forwards start attacking immediately, helping to leave the defense unexposed and to alleviate any shortcomings it may have.



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euro 2012 england striker jermain defoe leaves team death father

04.54    No comments


Jermain Defoe is viewed as a backup for England, which has Danny Welbeck and Andy Carroll vying for a starting berth against France Monday while Wayne Rooney serves out his two-game suspension. England striker Jermain Defoe has flown home from the squad's Euro 2012 training camp in Krakow following the death of his father, the Football Association confirmed Thursday.
Tottenham star Defoe, who only touched down in Poland with his England team-mates on Wednesday, will rejoin the squad at an unspecified date, the FA said in a brief statement.
"England striker Jermain Defoe has returned home to England this morning following the passing of his father overnight," the FA said.
"Jermain will re-join the England Euro squad in due course. There will be no replacement player called in.
"We would ask all media to respect Jermain and his family's privacy at this difficult time."
Defoe is regarded as England's reserve striker, with Danny Welbeck and Andy Carroll vying for a starting berth against France next Monday in Group D in the absence of the suspended Wayne Rooney.
-Agence France Presse,


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The silent issue that could doom President Obama in 2012 election

04.44    No comments


US President Barack Obama speaks at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial for ceremonies to commemorate the Vietnam War’s 50th anniversary on Memorial Day May 28, 2012 in Washington, DC. Memorial Day is observed in remembrance for those died while serving in the US military. AFP PHOTO/Mandel NGANMANDEL NGAN/AFP/GettyImagesThere will be so many things to talk about with Obama vs. Romney from here to November, but the one that nobody will want to talk about very much in polite society, even in what has a chance to be the meanest presidential campaign for all times, is race.
It works against the President this time, in a big way.
Last time, there were just weren’t enough reasons for enough white voters to vote against the black guy, as much as they wanted to. This time there are plenty.
And please don’t believe a single poll on this issue.
If there is one great truth about polling in this country, at least when it comes to race, is that people lie through their teeth. Mostly because they don’t want to look like some lousy, scummy bigot — even talking to an anonymous voice on the telephone.
Of course this election will be about the economy, and Obama’s record on it, no matter how much broad-daylight looting of this country went on during the eight years of Bush-Cheney.
You want to know why George W. Bush is still the only living President with an approval rating under 50%? It isn’t just because of all the Americans killed and wounded in a war built on lies in Iraq. It is also because of the economy Obama inherited from him, one nobody wanted to touch with a stick at the time.
Oh, Obama ran against the Bush economy once. But won’t be able to do it again, even though he’s sure going to try. He has to run on his own record this time, on the economy, on jobs. Does Romney have a better plan? He does not. His plan, his platform — and the reason Obama is in huge trouble against him — is as simple as Romney sounds sometimes on the stump:
He’s not Barack Obama in 2012 the way Obama wasn’t Bush in 2008.
“There has only been one real plan from the Republicans, really for the last four years,” Mario Cuomo says. “Get rid of Obama. That’s it. Now they try to convince you that whomever you replace him with will be better, even though that should be an absurdly childish and stupid and perhaps even greedy notion.”
Still: This isn’t ’08 for Obama.
It means he’s not only NOT running against Bush, he is not running against old John McCain, a terrible candidate, or Sarah Palin.
When it was over four years ago, even people who didn’t want to vote for a black presidential candidate — but did in the end — congratulated themselves on America finally putting a black man in the White House.
It won’t work that way this time. Race won’t be the only issue, not in a world of these gas prices, not in an America with this kind of unemployment. But you better believe it will be a huge issue.

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US military suicides rising, even as combat eases

04.42    No comments



WASHINGTON — Suicides are surging among America’s troops, averaging nearly one a day this year — the fastest pace in the nation’s decade of war.
The 154 suicides for active-duty troops in the first 155 days of the year far outdistance the U.S. forces killed in action in Afghanistan — about 50 percent more — according to Pentagon statistics obtained by The Associated Press.
The numbers reflect a military burdened with wartime demands from Iraq and Afghanistan that have taken a greater toll than foreseen a decade ago. The military also is struggling with increased sexual assaults, alcohol abuse, domestic violence and other misbehavior.
Because suicides had leveled off in 2010 and 2011, this year’s upswing has caught some officials by surprise.
The reasons for the increase are not fully understood. Among explanations, studies have pointed to combat exposure, post-traumatic stress, misuse of prescription medications and personal financial problems. Army data suggest soldiers with multiple combat tours are at greater risk of committing suicide, although a substantial proportion of Army suicides are committed by soldiers who never deployed.
The unpopular war in Afghanistan is winding down with the last combat troops scheduled to leave at the end of 2014. But this year has seen record numbers of soldiers being killed by Afghan troops, and there also have been several scandals involving U.S. troop misconduct.
The 2012 active-duty suicide total of 154 through June 3 compares to 130 in the same period last year, an 18 percent increase. And it’s more than the 136.2 suicides that the Pentagon had projected for this period based on the trend from 2001-2011. This year’s January-May total is up 25 percent from two years ago, and it is 16 percent ahead of the pace for 2009, which ended with the highest yearly total thus far.
Suicide totals have exceeded U.S. combat deaths in Afghanistan in earlier periods, including for the full years 2008 and 2009.
The suicide pattern varies over the course of a year, but in each of the past five years the trend through May was a reliable predictor for the full year, according to a chart based on figures provided by the Armed Forces Medical Examiner.
The numbers are rising among the 1.4 million active-duty military personnel despite years of effort to encourage troops to seek help with mental health problems. Many in the military believe that going for help is seen as a sign of weakness and thus a potential threat to advancement.



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Kamis, 07 Juni 2012

Syria not complying with peace plan, says Ban Ki-moon

20.07    No comments


There is little evidence that Syria's government is complying with a peace plan to try to end violence, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has said.
From left to right: UN envoy Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-ArabiAfter briefing the Security Council, he warned there was an "imminent" danger of civil war in Syria and it could go from tipping point to breaking point.
Meanwhile, UN envoy Kofi Annan said the council should put more pressure on Damascus to implement his peace plan.
The comments come after reports that 78 people were killed in central Syria.
Opposition activists blame the killings at the Qubair village on pro-government forces but the government accuses "terrorists".
UN monitors trying to reach the village just hours later were fired upon, Mr Ban said. None were hurt in the shooting.
Mr Ban earlier gave several examples of how UN observers had narrowly escaped injury, saying heavy weapons rounds had fallen near a patrol and armour-piercing bullets had been fired at at least one vehicle, a diplomat told the BBC's Barbara Plett at the UN headquarters in New York.


The UN has 297 unarmed observers in Syria to verify the implementation of Mr Annan's six-point plan. It includes a ceasefire, which was supposed to have taken effect in mid-April.
Syrians 'bleeding'
Mr Ban was speaking at a joint news conference with Mr Annan and also Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi after a Security Council meeting on the Syrian crisis.
"The danger of a full scale war is imminent and real," the UN chief said, urging the Security Council to "speak with once voice".
Mr Ban also warned that recent violence across Syria "may amount to crimes against humanity".
"Reports of yet another massacre in Qubair underscore the horrifying reality on the ground.
"How many more times have we to condemn them, and how many ways must we say that we are outraged? The Syrian people are bleeding."
And while reiterating the UN was committed to Mr Annan's six-point peace plan remained "at the centre of our focus", he said urgent talks were needed to discuss how to proceed further.
His comments were echoed by Mr Annan, who warned that "further militarisation of the conflict would lead to disastrous consequences".
The latest discussions at the Security Council have highlighted divisions among its members, our correspondent reports.
She says that the US is demanding decisive action, while Russia and China are both opposing any outside intervention.

Annan's six-point peace plan

1. Syrian-led political process to address the aspirations and concerns of the Syrian people
2. UN-supervised cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties to protect civilians
3. All parties to ensure provision of humanitarian assistance to all areas affected by the fighting, and implement a daily two-hour humanitarian pause
4. Authorities to intensify the pace and scale of release of arbitrarily detained persons
5. Authorities to ensure freedom of movement throughout the country for journalists
6. Authorities to respect freedom of association and the right to demonstrate peacefully
Iran controversy
At the news conference, Mr Annan also confirmed that discussions were taking place on forming a contact group of key nations on Syria.
He said that such group should exert more pressure on both the government of President Bashar al-Assad and the opposition to comply with the peace plan.
It has become clear that the idea of including Iran in this contact group would be likely to lead to new controversy, correspondents say.
Although Mr Annan expressed hopes that Iran would be part of the solution, the US and UK earlier ruled out Tehran's participation.


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