President Obama Said We Got Him When Osama Bin Laden was Killed

The death of Osama Bin Laden had many reactions across the globe but the most famous so far is Obama's response. Barack Obama said "we got him" once it was clear that the U.S. Navy Seals had killed Bin Laden. President Barack Obama and his top aides were in the White House situation room when Osama Bin Laden was killed. They were monitoring the progress of the secret mission to capture or kill Bin Laden. Then the U.S. navy seals who where on the said mission said "Geronimo EKIA", a code for Osama Bin Laden had been killed in action. 

Situation room while the operation is in progress

U.S. officials said that Osama Bin Laden was given the code name "Geronimo," because it suited him. Geronimo is a 19th Century Apache leader who could walk without leaving any tracks. While "EKIA" stands for enemy killed in action.

While the White House says that it has photos of Osama Bin Laden's body, they are is debating whether to release the photos to the public. They are worried for the reactions that it will cause. But they insists that the photos are recognizable. Aside from the facial recognition, a DNA test was also conducted and is confirmed 99.9% match to Bin Laden. After all the tests, Bin Laden's body was buried at sea.

It was a Kuwaiti courier that led U.S. forces to Osama Bin Laden's Pakistan hideout. The three story mansion or compound had no communications and would not even throw trash.

Hillary Clinton left a strong message saying: "You cannot wait us out. You cannot defeat us. But you can make the choice to abandon al Qaeda"

Source: www.cnn.com ; www.washingtonpost.com

Pakistan's Intelligence Agency Failed to Detect Osama Bin Laded

Every country has its own national intelligence agency and Pakistan has one. Inter-Services Intelligence or ISI say on its website that it "is one of the best and very well organized intelligence agency in the world." But now, they had failed their country by not detecting Osama Bin Laden at their own backyard. ISI spokesman said that the agency is embarrassed by its failures regarding the Bin Laden incident. And said that they have raided the compound before for a different reason but failed to follow-up on the said place. And to make matters worst, the compound where Bin Laden was, is just few hundred meters from the  Pakistan Military Academy, which is equivalent to US's West Point. 
 
The ISI revealed some new information of killing of Bin Laden. They revealed that 

• There were 17-18 people in the compound at the time of the attack 
• The Americans took away one person still alive, possibly a Bin Laden son 
• Those who survived the attack included a wife, a daughter and eight to nine other children, not apparently Bin Laden's; all had their hands tied by the Americans 
• The surviving Yemeni wife said they had moved to the compound a few months ago 
• Bin Laden's daughter, aged 12 or 13, saw her father shot

The ISI official also added that the US soldiers wanted to take the surviving women and children but failed to do so because one f the helicopters malfunctioned. The helicopter crashed and then destroyed by US soldiers before departing form the compound. 


The US has yet to comment from these information given by the ISI.



Source: www.bbc.co.uk ; www.defense.gov

Canadians Owns the Unofficial Kate Middleton Website

Image from prweb.com

Canadians bought the domain name katemiddleton.com. Canadian blogger Greg Kureluk and his business partners have bought the domain name not to resell but as an unofficial website of Kate Middleton and the royal wedding last April 29. The website www.katemiddleton.com was launched just a few weeks ago and becoming a popular search for people looking for information about Kate, now Princess Catherine, the future Queen of England.

The unofficial website features the latest updates about Kate Middleton and now husband Prince William. They present very reliable information of "all things Kate." katemiddleton.com not only focuses on the Princess, but also Prince William, the Royal Wedding, the royal family and any other future royal events.

Kureluk was smart to buy the domain name in advance and anticipating its future potentials. Although Kureluk said that “we want to embrace the moment and really provide an outlet for anyone interested in Kate Middleton. She is an interesting story and her influence on all things fashion, pop culture, and marriage/motherhood will be told time and time again.” I think that the real reason is that it's a good business venture and I can see that it is doing quite well.

You can visit their Kate Middleton Website @ www.katemiddleton.com

Or follow katemiddleton.com's official twitter @TheKateUpdate


Source: www.prweb.com

Why was Osama Bin Laden Buried at Sea?

Hours after being killed on a raid by U.S. forces in Abbottabad, Pakistan, Osama Bin Laden's body was buried at sea. He was buried from the deck of a U.S. aircraft carrier. Officials stated that there was no alternative. Because Islamic law requires a body to be buried withing 24 hours. Officials at a White house briefing insists that "the burial of bin Laden's remains was done in strict conformance with Islamic precepts and practices. It was prepared in accordance with the Islamic requirements"

You woudl be surprise that even the burial of the terrorist leader was part of the planning of the operation. The army took into consideration the possibilities would be captured dead.

But I doubt this is the true reason for Bin Laden's sea burial. U.S. officials also said that Bin Laden's grave site could and would become a shrine. This is a more logical explanation why the U.S. buried Bin Laden at Sea. It would be easier for the U.S. to just dump the body at sea rather than bringing it back to the U.S.

Source: www.cnn.com

Bin Laden Dead - Killed by U.S. Navy Seals Forces

Terrorist leader Osama Bin Laden is dead! U.S. Navy Seals stormed a high-walled compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan on a mission to capture or kill Bin Laden. This was a top secret operation ordered by President Barack Obama. The mission lasted for 40 minutes and successfully killing Bin Laden. Osama Bin Laden was shot twice, one in the chest and one in the head right above his left eye.

The compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan was said to be built 5 years ago to hide the said terrorist. The compound is 31 miles away from Islamabad, Pakistan's capital. It has outer walls as high as 18 feet with barbed wires. It's a three-story building with few windows. It is said to value as high as $1 million. Bin Laden was with his family when the raid happened.

There were no fatalities on the U.S. forces. But one of the helicopters used for the raid crashed due to mechanical problems said officials. It was then destroyed before U.S. special forces departed.

Why was Osama Bin Laden not bombed instead? Officials said it was conducted in a surgical raid by a small team and with a purpose of as much as possible minimizing collateral damage. And the fact that people would wonder if Bin Laded was really killed. So officials said that the best option is the one that will show the world that Osama Bin Laden was really killed. And they got the proof. The U.S. soldiers departed from the compound with Bin Laden's body.

They used lots of methods to identify the terrorist leader before burying him at sea. Officials insisted that his body was "handled in accordance with Islamic practice and tradition. This is something that we take very seriously, and so therefore this is being handled in an appropriate manner."

Osama Bin Laden,54, was Al Qaeda's top leader and is responsible for multiple terror attacks against several countries. Including the September 11, 2011 (9/11) plane suicide attacks of the World Trade Center at New York and Washington, United States as well as other deadly bombings across the globe.

Here are some YouTube videos after the U.S. raid in Pakistan

Here's a first look of the house/compound in Pakistan where Osama Bin Laden was killed.






UPDATE: Osama or Usama Bin Laden was America's most wanted man for nearly a decade. So you bet that the US government will make damn sure that he is really dead. US officials say that the did a DNA tests and they are 99.9% positive that US forces did shot and kill Bin Laden.

UPDATE: Those that were killed on the raid at the Pakistan compound was said to be Osama Bin Laden, one of his sons Khalid, trusted personal courier Sheikh Abu Ahmed and the courier's brother, and an unidentified woman.

UPDATE: White House is still discussing what to release the video of the actual operation or a photo of the body of Osama Bin Laden. But they are concerned of the reactions once if ever it is released to the public.

Source: www.cnn.com ; www.bbc.co.uk ; www.defense.gov

Where was Osama Bin Laden Hiding and Killed

Image from maps.google.com

Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was in a huge compound at Abbottabad, Pakistan. It was 31 miles away from Pakistan's capital Islamabad. The city is located in a mountainous region that is not heavily populated. Ironically the place has a huge Pakistani army presence and most residents are army personnel. Abbottabad also houses the prestigious Pakistani military academy which is equivalent to West Point in the U.S.

Image from www.defense.gov

The compound where bin Laden hiding 18 feet outer walls and topped by barbed wires. The compound was said to be built 5 years ago with the purpose of hiding the terrorist leader. It is a three-story building with few windows. It is considered as a mansion and said to be worth as high as $1 million.

Bin Laden was with his family when the raid happened, Killing one of his sons and a woman who is still unidentified.

Source: www.cnn.com ; www.defense.gov

Where was Osama Bin Laden Hiding and Killed

Image from maps.google.com

Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was in a huge compound at Abbottabad, Pakistan. It was 31 miles away from Pakistan's capital Islamabad. The city is located in a mountainous region that is not heavily populated. Ironically the place has a huge Pakistani army presence and most residents are army personnel. Abbottabad also houses the prestigious Pakistani military academy which is equivalent to West Point in the U.S.

Image from www.defense.gov

The compound where bin Laden hiding 18 feet outer walls and topped by barbed wires. The compound was said to be built 5 years ago with the purpose of hiding the terrorist leader. It is a three-story building with few windows. It is considered as a mansion and said to be worth as high as $1 million.

Bin Laden was with his family when the raid happened, Killing one of his sons and a woman who is still unidentified.

Source: www.cnn.com ; www.defense.gov

Why Duke of Cambridge for Prince William of Wales?

Image from flickr - anonlinegreenworld

After the royal wedding of Prince William and now Princess Catherine, the Queen has confer a Dukedom on Prince William of Wales. He received titles of Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus. The title Duke is is the highest rank below that of monarch in the British nobility. While Princess Catherine will be known as the Duchess of Cambridge. Kate will also officially become Princess William of Wales.

Why Duke of Cambridge? We still have no official statements but base on history, the last Duke of Cambridge also married a commoner for love. Prince George was the 2nd Duke of Cambridge and his father Prince Adolphus Frederick was the 1st Duke of Cambridge. The 1st Duke of Cambridge was a Chancellor of St Andrews University where William and Kate met. He was also Prince William's distant grandfather. The 1st Duke of Cambridge was also the grandfather of Queen Elizabeth II's grandmother.
 

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk ; windsorknot.today.com ; www.flickr.com/photos/anonlinegreenworld

Kate Middleton's Wedding Gown is by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen

Image from Flickr - americanistadechiapas

Until the wedding day no one knew who would be the designer of Kate Middleton's gown. Since her engagement to Prince William, this information has been one of the most closely guarded secret of the royal wedding. Kate Middleton, now the new Princes Catherine wore a wedding dress designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. The wedding dress is an ivory gown with lace applique floral detail. She is also wearing shoes by Alexander McQueen and wearing a Cartier ‘halo’ tiara lent by Queen Elizabeth.

Why did Princess Kate chose Alexander McQueen? The official royal wedding website posted a statement saying, “Miss Middleton chose British brand Alexander McQueen for the beauty of its craftsmanship and its respect for traditional workmanship and the technical construction of clothing." The wedding gown's train is six feet long and shaped perfect arc when seen above. 

Compared to the late Princess Diana's gown. Princess Catherine's train was shorter. But they are both elegant, beautiful and very simple.

Source: news.instyle.com ; www.cnn.com ; www.flickr.com/americanistadechiapas

Prince William and Kate Middleton Royal Wedding Route Map

The royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is just a few hours away. This has become a tourist attraction for UK and the rest of the world. If you are planning to watch the actual wedding procession and ceremony take note of the royal wedding route map. The map shows a starting point from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey and back again to Buckingham Palace.

Kate Middleton's procession will start at at 10:30am from either Buckingham Palace, Clarance House or St. James's Palace. Then they will use the wedding route to Westminster Abbey. They would also pass by Whitehall, and Parliament Square. After the wedding ceremony, Prince William and by then, Prince Kate, will go back to Buckingham Palace for a reception held by the Queen. They will be using the same route. So you have two chances to see Kate Middleton.

More details on the schedule of the Royal Wedding of Prince William and future Princess Kate Middleton

Source: www.nowpublic.com

What Time Does the Royal Wedding Start?

It's finally happening! The wedding of the decade. The royal wedding of Prince William and future princess Kate Middleton is on the way. The actual wedding ceremony will be at 11am BST in the UK. But TV coverage will start earlier for Kate Middleton's procession. What to expect before the actual ceremony? Of course, celebrities, royalties and high profile guests arriving at the Westminster Abbey.

In United states and Canada the wedding ceremony begins at 6am for east coast and 3am for west coast. If you want to watch the wedding procession, it will start at 10:30am in the UK. So that would mean 5:30am for east coast and 2:30am for west coast of United States and Canada.

More details on the Royal Wedding Schedule of Prince William and Kate Middleton

Tornado Kills Hundreds in South United States

Image from flickr - southerntabitha

Tornadoes and thunderstorms slammed to six states at the south of united states. Death tolls are rising and currently reaching 250 dead. Alabama is one of the hardest hit by the massive tornadoes and is confirming almost 150 deaths of the total. Other deaths were reported in Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia and Virginia. The storm system even reached parts of Texas and New York. In parts of Alabama there is still no power and thousands of national guards are on the way to help with the search and rescue.

One of the worst damaged is Tuscaloosa, Alabama which was almost flattened by the storm. Tuscaloosa houses University of Alabama and affected thousands of students there.  Parents who have children studying there can call the University of Alabama (UA) hotlines (205) 348-1001 and 1-877-408-1001 or visit www.ua.edu.


Here's a raw video from CBS



You can also view more images of the destruction caused by the tornado on CBS's website. 

Source: abcnews.go.com ; www.cbsnews.com ; www.flickr.com/photos/tabithahawk/

Procter & Gamble Selling Pringles to Diamond Foods Inc. for $1.5 Billion

Procter & Gamble is selling its Pringles brand to Diamond Foods Inc. for $1.5 Billion. This deal will triple Diamond Foods' revenue to $2.4 billion a year. With Pringles, Diamond will be one of the top in the snack business next to PepsiCo's Frito-Lay. Diamond will most likely create a new company for Pringles where P&G shareholders will get about 57 percent and Diamond shareholders about 43 percent. The deal is on the works and just needs the Diamond stockholder approval. This huge deal is expected to close by end of this year.

Image from www.pg.com

P&G is known for Tide and Pampers, is apparently going to focus more on health and beauty. They have been selling their major food brands in recent years and Pringles is the last of P&G's major food brands. They have recently sold their other brands like Folgers coffee, Jif peanut butter, Crisco Shortening and Sunny Delight drinks. This leaves P&G with 23 brands with $1 billion or more in annual revenue.

Image from diamondfoods.com

Diamond, founded in 1912 by a group of California walnut growers and is well known for its Emerald nuts. It recently became public in 2005 and started to acquire snack brands. It recently acquired Pop Secret in 2008 and Kettle potato chips just last year.

Source: www.aolnews.com

Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Aftermath Aerial Images

Image from maps.google.com

Google Earth and Google Maps has just updated their satellite and aerial imagery of several places. The update includes high resolution aerial images. One of the most interesting update is the aerial images of Sendai, Japan. The recent tsunami to hit Japan caused devastation across the country and Sendai was among the hardest hit. I must warn you it's a bit depressing to look at. You can see in detail the destruction that the huge tsunami had caused.

In the image above you can see Sendai Airport in Sendai Japan. Notice the neighborhood beside the airport was flattened. Just few houses left standing. 

Places that received the high resolution aerial updates:

USA: Phoenix, Tuscon, Albuquerque, Amarillo, Wichita, Austin, Cape Cod

Japan: Sendai

Countries/Regions receiving high resolution satellite updates:

Antarctica, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Canada, Chad, China, Croatia, Egypt, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Haiti, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Madagascar, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Nigeria, North Korea, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Senegal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United States, Uruguay, Western Sahara, Yemen, Zambia

View Larger Map

You can compare the images of Sendai, before and after the earthquake and tsunami at the Google Earth Historical Imagery.

Source: maps.google.com; google-latlong.blogspot.com

Royal Wedding Details and Schedules

Prince William and fiance Kate Middleton will have their Royal Wedding this coming April 29. Most of us have been to weddings of friends and relatives. Can you imagine what it would be like to plan the royal wedding? With an ordinary wedding, we just have the church and the reception. Just to give you an idea, I saw a simplified schedule of the wedding day. It's more complicated than it looks.

Royal Wedding Day details from unveiled.blogs.cnn.com

• 8:00 a.m.-9:00 a.m.: It will be announced whether William and Kate will take a new title. The decision will be made by the couple and the Queen
• 8:30 a.m.: Guests will begin arriving at Westminster Abbey. Members of the general congregation and guests who arrive before 10 a.m. will use a side entrance known as the Great North Door
• 10 a.m.: The VIPs start to arrive - Government officials first (both foreign and domestic), to be followed by royal families. Kate Middleton is set to arrive before the Royal Family
• 10:40 a.m.-10:50 a.m.: The Royal Family will arrive, with the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh being the last of the family to enter the Abbey
• 10:50-11:00: Bridesmaids arrive
• 11:00 a.m.: Kate Middleton and her father will arrive (collective sigh/gasp!). Details about Kate's dress have not been released in-part because Kate wishes to surprise William (a traditional prerogative/superstition). The moment Kate steps out of the car, details about the dress, shoes and accessories will be released and distributed
• The service will be officiated by the Dean of Westminster. As is tradition, the marriage will be solemnized by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Prince Charles played a huge role in selecting the music. Only Kate will wear a wedding band
• 12:15 p.m. (approximately): Bells will ring as the couple exits the Abbey. A carriage procession will head to Buckingham Palace
• 12:30-12:40 p.m.: Carriage procession will arrive at the Palace
• 12:40 p.m.: Private family photographs will be taken inside Buckingham Palace - an official shot of the happy couple is expected to be released Saturday morning by 11 a.m.
• 1:25 p.m.: The couple, the Queen and their families will appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace
• 1:30 p.m. (precisely!): There will be a Royal Air Force fly-past
• 7:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.: Approximately 300 guests will return to Buckingham Palace for dinner and dancing hosted by Prince Charles. The crowd will mostly be friends and family, particularly William and Kate's young friends. Speeches will take place

Source: unveiled.blogs.cnn.com

Kate Middleton's Coat of Arms as the New Princess

Kate Middleton now has her own coat of arms. Supposedly, Kate has the right to apply herself a crest to the College of Arms which deals with coat of arms matters. But her father wanted the whole family to be able to use the crest. That's why Michael Middleton was the one who petitioned for the coat of arms which reportedly costs 4,400 pounds. This means that

his other children, Pippa and James, and his wife Carole Middleton can also use the crest. So technically, Kate Middleton's family is the ones who has the new coat of arms.

The new coat of arms is pretty simple in design compared to the prince's. The three acorns represents the three children including Kate. The two thin white chevron symbolizes snowy mountains which represents the family's love for skiing and outdoors. The gold chevron in the middle represents the mother, Carole. It was colored gold because Carole's maiden name was Goldsmith. The Colors red and blue in the background represents the Union flag of UK and matches the recently revised Prince William's coat of arms. 


For more information about Kate Middleton's coat of arms visit this link.




Source: www.dailymail.co.uk  

Royal Wedding Invitation of Prince William and Kate Middleton

With the upcoming royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, many are wondering what does a royal wedding invitation looks like. The picture above is said to be the "royal invitation". It's a 10 inch by 6 inch white card with gold lettering and at the very top is Queen Elizabeth's emblem. Over 1,900 invitations were sent with the card reading:

"The Lord Chamberlain has 
been commanded by the Queen to invite" the guest to the marriage at Westminster Abbey at 11 a.m. on April 29."

Source: www.eonline.com

Camp John Hay, Baguio Plane Crash Kills 2 and 4 Injured

A small place crashed in a mountain resort in Baguio, Philippines on Sunday. 2 were killed and 4 are said to be injured. The twin engine RPC 5140 Piper Aztec Plane took off from Baguio City's Loakan airport at 2:48P.M. and crashed in a horse riding trail in Camp John Hay. It was suppose to go to Plaridel, Bulacan. The control tower said that two minutes after taking off the place lost signal. 

All the victims were rushed to the Baguio General Hospital. Among those who was determined dead on site of the plane crash was Jose George. While the second fatality was said to be Grace Alvarez who died at Baguio General Hospital at around 6:30P.M. Other victims that were injured was pilot Col. Reynaldo Garcia, Jose Miranda, Ness Guerrero and Basil Matthew. 

As you can see on the image the plane was totally destroyed and burnt. Surrounding trees was said to have turned to "uling" or coal. Some witnesses claimed that there was even an explosion. Luckily there were no victims or injured on the ground. 




Source: www.miamiherald.com ; www.abs-cbnnews.com ; www.gmanews.tv

New Shanghai Disneyland Resort Breaks Ground in China

The New Shanghai Disney Resort is on the works! Walt Disney Company broke ground on Friday at Shanghai Disneyland. The Chinese central government in Beijing approved of the resort and is expected to be finished and operational in five years. It will have two themed hotels, large retail, dining and entertainment venues and recreational facilities. There will also be a lake in the middle of the resort. The total estimate costs of the construction is more than four billion dollars, which will be shouldered by Walt Disney Company and its China partners.

Robert A. Iger, president and CEO of The Walt Disney Company said that they are "Working with our Chinese partners, the Shanghai Disney Resort will be both authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese."

The groundbreaking ceremony was like any other traditional ceremonies. There was lots of performances including a children's choir with Mickey Mouse dressed in a traditional Chinese attire.

YouTube - DisneyParks

Here's a short clip of the Shanghai Disneyland ground breaking ceremony

Source: edition.cnn.com ; www.dailymail.co.uk ; www.youtube.com/user/DisneyParks

Official Website of the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton

St. James’s Palace launched an official website for the coming royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. It seems like the world is very interested on the most highly anticipated event of the year. Its just appropriate that the palace announces an official website so that people around the world can be updated about the wedding of the year.

On the "royal website", people can be informed on what's the latest news updates, pictures and videos on the preparations to the upcoming royal wedding. It will even have

details about Kate Middleton's wedding dress. It has yet to be announced if it will stream live broadcast of the royal wedding itself. 

Who built or developed the royal website for Prince William and Kate? No, not St. James Palace, Clarence House nor Prince William's staff. The website was built by Accenture and hosted by Google. Why Google? because they can handle huge web traffic, which we can assume the website will have on the wedding day.

Here is the Royal Website:

http://www.officialroyalwedding2011.org/

You can also follow the latest updates on the upcoming royal wedding on other social media sites with the following links:

Twitter

http://twitter.com/clarencehouse

YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/theroyalchannel

Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/TheBritishMonarchy

Flicker

http://www.flickr.com/photos/BritishMonarchy