Reporters on the Job
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TIGHT SECURITY IN SHARM: Reporter Philip Smucker has covered several Arab summits at the Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh (
see story). But never has the security been this tight at the Mövenpick golf resort where President Bush and Arab leaders are staying. "The beefed up security is particularly noticeable. I saw two Egyptian military patrol boats off the beaches where people are sunning and swimming. All other watercraft have been banned. I saw a group of easily identifiable US soldiers - close-cropped hair, smoking cigars, speaking in American-accented English - strolling on the main drag downtown," says Philip. But, the Mövenpick golf course was still open for business. "At $75 a round, it was too rich for this reporter's budget. I'm sure that the battered Egyptian tourism industry would love to get a photo of President Bush on the links."
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PHONETIC REPORTING: The Monitor's Ilene Prusher attended a press conference in Baghdad Monday given by the top US civilian administrator in Iraq (
see story). She was sitting next to an Iraqi political scientist, who made reference many times to 'Mr. Breemeer.'
"At first I thought he was saying, 'Mr. Premier,' because in Arabic there's no 'P,' so many Arabic speakers, when speaking English, will turn their 'P's into 'B's," says Ilene.
"So, I was wondering, who is it that he is referring to? Is there someone who has ascended to power here and is being nicknamed 'Mr. Premier' already? Am I behind the political curve? Does he mean Iraqi National Congress leader Ahmad Chalabi?
And then I realized, oh, he's saying Paul Bremer, except that the way it's written in the newspaper, people here are liable to pronounce it 'Breemeer.'"
David Clark Scott
World editor
Cultural snapshot
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SAVED FROM THE POUND:
Thai soldiers parade a group of stray dogs trained to sniff out narcotics. They will replace the more expensive canines from abroad.
SUKREE SUKPLANG/REUTERS
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