Yesterday, I reported that opposition John Atta Mills had apparently prevailed. The key word was apparently for Ghana has yet to certify its results. From Ghana Elections 2008:

No Winner in Ghana’s 2008 elections, there is the need for auditing of results from Ashanti and Volta region and the constituency called TAIN where no elections took place, will hold their elections on January 2nd 2008. According the Electoral Commissioner of Ghana, Dr Afari Gyan at a press conference which was originally meant to announce the winner of Ghana Elections 2008.

Dr. Kwadwo Afari Djan has announced the presidential run-off will be held in the Tain constituency on January 2, 2009 before the election results are announced. Dr Afari Gyan explained the results of the polls are very close ,can be affected by results form the Tain constituency. Voters in Tain did vote in the December run-off following some misunderstanding over polling materials.Dr. Afari Djan however announced the results collated for the 229 out of 230 constituencies as follows:

Nana Akuffo Addo 49.87%

Professor Atta Mills 50.13 %

Tain constituency consists of about 56,000 registered voters, with the NDC winning the constituency on December 7 with 16,211 votes representing 50.25% while NPP got 14,935 representing 46.75 % of the votes.

Tain constituency in the Brong Ahafo region in Ghana is going to be the decider

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The secular Awami League led by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has swept to power in Bangladesh’s national elections winning two-thirds of all seats when combined with its coalition partner. Turnout was reported as heavy throughout the country in these elections that seek to restore civilian rule after two years of military rule. Sheikh Hasina was previously Prime Minister from 1996 to 2001 and is the eldest daughter of the founder of Bengladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The Election Commission has so far announced ‘unofficial’ results of 295 seats of the 300-seat parliament saying, the Hasina’s alliance won 258 seats while her archrival ex-premier Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led four-party grouping won in 31 constituencies. Five seats went to other small parties and independents while results of the four others were pending.

More from the New York Times.

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Of all the world’s flashpoints, none worries me more than Pakistan. It is a failed state and one with nuclear weapons. It has three power centers: its armed forces, the notorious state within a state Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI) and the Islamic street.

Al Jazeera’s Rageh Omaar investigates Pakistan’s role in the so-called ‘war on terror’.

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“The blogosphere and new media are another war zone. We have to be relevant there.” — Foreign Press Branch head Maj. Avital Leibovich of the Israeli Defense Force

The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has launched its own channel on YouTube to disseminate video and information to support Israel’s side of the story.

More from the Jerusalem Post:

In the midst of its Gaza operations, the IDF is entering yet another conflict zone: the Internet.

The Israeli army announced yesterday the creation of its own YouTube channel, through which it will disseminate footage of precision bombing operations in the Gaza Strip, as well as aid distribution and other footage of interest to the international community.

“The blogosphere and new media are another war zone,” said Foreign Press Branch head Maj. Avital Leibovich. “We have to be relevant there,” she said.

Her sentiment reflects a growing awareness in the Israeli government that part of the failure of the 2006 Lebanon campaign was Israel’s lack of readiness for the intense media debate surrounding its operations. Since the beginning of the Gaza air strikes, Israeli politicians have been appearing regularly on the largest international news networks to defend the IDF.

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That Somalia doesn’t exist, except in the minds of Western diplomats, is besides the point but the President of Somalia, Abdulahi Yusuf, has resigned. Mr. Yusuf’s effective control was that of Mogadishu, its environs and an area just to the north of the capital, areas under the protection of Ethiopian troops. The area around Kismaayo and the whole of the south of the country is now largely under control of the militant Islamistic organization, Al-Shabaab, which has ties to Al-Qaeda. The northern third of the country is divided into breakaway republics that are de facto independent. It’s time to recognize the reality on the ground and recognize both Puntland and North Somaliland as independent countries.

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Hundreds of Nepalese journalists demonstrated in the Kathmandu to protest the disappearance of a reporter who is believed to have been abducted by former communist rebels. The journalists carried photographs of fellow journalist Birendra Shah, who was last seen October 5, as they marched near Singha Durbar, the complex that houses the Prime Minister’s office, Parliament and most government offices.

More from the International Herald Tribune:

Mr. Shah, who has written critical stories about the rebels, disappeared while on a reporting trip near Unjanpipariya village, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of the Katmandu.

“Our protest rally is to condemn the abduction and demand that Birendra Shah be immediately freed,” said Mahendra Bista of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists, the umbrella body of media rights groups in Nepal.

The government and independent investigations have blamed the former communist rebels, widely known as Maoists, for Shah’s abduction.

About 200 journalists demonstrated in the Nepalese capital Tuesday to protest the disappearance of a reporter who is believed to have been abducted by former communist rebels.

Protesters carried photographs of Birendra Shah, who was last seen Oct. 5, as they marched near Singha Durbar, the complex that houses the prime minister’s office, parliament and most government offices.

Shah, who has written critical stories about the rebels, disappeared while on a reporting trip near Unjanpipariya village, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of the Katmandu.

“Our protest rally is to condemn the abduction and demand that Birendra Shah be immediately freed,” said Mahendra Bista of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists, the umbrella body of media rights groups in Nepal.

The government and independent investigations have blamed the former communist rebels, widely known as Maoists, for Shah’s abduction.

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One controversial issue President-elect Barack Obama will face after he takes office is whether to change the government’s decades-old policies toward Cuba. Support for the U.S. embargo and other tough measures against Cuba’s communist government is declining, including among Cuban-Americans. As VOA’s Brian Wagner reports from Miami, sentiment is changing in a community that once was dominated by harsh criticism of Havana.

It’s time for a different tact on Cuba. For starters, travel restrictions should be lifted immediately. The embargo hasn’t worked and isn’t likely to work. The Cuban Revolution turns fifty on New Year’s Day. It’s time for a different tact.

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Palestinian families are wondering whether they will become the next target after four days of Israeli air raids on the Gaza Strip. As Sherine Tadros reports for Al Jazeera, there are few places to hide, and civilian casualties, now over 400 dead and 700 wounded, continue to rise.

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