Friday, June 22, 2007

NATO airstrikes, clashes kill 25 Afghans

NATO airstrikes, clashes kill 25 Afghans (AP)

An Afghan police officer (L) secures the area as investigators search for evidence in and around the wreckege of a Police bus (R) at the site of a bomb blast in Kabul.  A suicide bomber destroyed a police bus in Kabul on Sunday, killing 35 people and wounding dozens in the deadliest attack in Afghanistan since the Taliban regime was toppled in 2001, police said.(AFP/Nicolas Asfouri)AP - Taliban militants attacked police posts in southern Afghanistan, triggering NATO airstrikes that left 25 civilians dead, including three infants and the local mullah, a senior police officer said Friday.


Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Worst disaster for firefighters since 9/11

S.C. warehouse fire kills 9 firefighters (AP)

A firefighter takes a moment after helping to put out the fire that claimed the lives of nine Charleston area firefighters at the Sofa Super Store in Charleston, S.C., Tuesday, June 19, 2007. The fire began Monday evening. (AP Photo/Alice Keeney)AP - Fire swept through a furniture warehouse, collapsing the building's roof and claiming the lives of nine firefighters in a disaster the mayor described Tuesday as "difficult to fathom or quantify."


NoKor fires missile - Sokor

South Korea: North Korea fires missile (AP)

AP - North Korea fired a short-range missile toward waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, a South Korean intelligence official said Tuesday, amid signs of progress in ending North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Olmert begins US visit to bolster Abbas

Israel's Olmert begins U.S. visit to bolster Abbas (Reuters)

A file photo of Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert attending a Kadima party meeting at Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem June 4, 2007. Olmert began a U.S. visit on Sunday saying he considered a new emergency Palestinian government shorn of Islamist Hamas a partner for peace negotiations. (Eliana Aponte/Reuters)Reuters - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert began a U.S. visit on Sunday saying he considered a new emergency Palestinian government shorn of Islamist Hamas a partner for peace negotiations.


New cabinet

Abbas swears in new Palestinian cabinet (AFP)

Palestinian president and leader of the Fatah movement Mahmud Abbas takes part in the Friday noon prayers in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, 15 June 2007. Abbas has sworn in his new cabinet, further sealing the divide sparked by Hamas's bloody takover of the Gaza Strip, where fears of a humanitarian crisis are mounting.(AFP/File/Awad Awad)AFP - Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas swore in his new cabinet on Sunday, further sealing the divide sparked by Hamas's bloody takover of the Gaza Strip, where fears of a humanitarian crisis are mounting.


35 killed in Kabul bus bomb

35 killed in Kabul bus bomb attack (AP)

An Afghan police official wallks by the police bus after a bomb blast in Kabul, Afghanistan on Sunday, June 17, 2007. A bomb ripped through a police bus in a crowded civilian area in the Afghan capital on Sunday, killing at least 18 people and wounding more than 35 others, an official and witnesses said. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq)AP - An enormous bomb ripped through a police academy bus at Kabul's busiest transportation hub Sunday, killing at least 35 people in the deadliest insurgent attack in Afghanistan since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001. The Taliban claimed responsibility.


Saturday, June 16, 2007

Hundreds flee Hamas-run Gaza

Hundreds flee Hamas-run Gaza (Reuters)

Hamas fighters run to prevent people from entering Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' headquarters in Gaza June 16, 2007. Hundreds of Fatah loyalists fled Hamas-controlled Gaza by land and sea on Saturday as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas prepared to swear in a new government in the West Bank that will bring an end to a U.S.-led aid embargo. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)Reuters - Hundreds of Palestinians fled Hamas-controlled Gaza by land and sea on Saturday to the West Bank where President Mahmoud Abbas prepared to swear in a new government that will bring an end to a U.S.-led aid embargo.


Bush to veto big spenders

Bush: Will veto big spenders (AP)

U.S. President George W. Bush delivers remarks to the Associated Builders and Contractors in Washington June 14, 2007. Bush blasted Democrats on Saturday for bloated annual federal spending bills and threatened to use his veto liberally, despite failing to carry out similar threats in the past. (Jim Young/Reuters)AP - President Bush warned Congress on Saturday that he will use his veto power to stop runaway government spending.


Friday, June 15, 2007

In control

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Palestinian militants from Hamas stand at the desk of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas inside Abbas' personal office after it was taken over by Hamas in fighting in Gaza City, early Friday, June 15, 2007. Fatah forces collapsed under the...

Hamas fighters and looters control Gaza

Hamas fighters and looters control Gaza (Reuters)

Smoke rises from the Palestine Television building, which is run by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, after it was burnt in Gaza in June 15, 2007. (Suhaib Salem/Reuters)Reuters - Islamist Hamas fighters and looters ransacked the blood-spattered Palestinian presidential compound in Gaza on Friday as their leader ordered an end to reprisals against their routed, Western-backed Fatah rivals.


Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Hamas takes offense

Hamas on offensive as Palestinians battle in Gaza (Reuters)

A Palestinian Hamas militant takes position before storming the headquarters for security forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas in the southern Gaza strip, June 13, 2007. (Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters)Reuters - Hamas Islamist gunmen pressed on with their Gaza offensive on Wednesday, killing eight fighters loyal to Western-backed President Mahmoud Abbas in a Palestinian supremacy struggle escalating steadily into civil war.


Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Gaza close to civil war

Deadly fighting drives Gaza closer to civil war (AFP)

A relative mourns for murdered Jamal Abu al-Jadian, a local chief of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades loosely affiliated to Fatah, during his funeral in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Srip. Gunmen from rival Palestinian factions fought street battles in Gaza in a new surge of deadly violence that threatens to topple the government and drive the territory closer to civil war.(AFP/Mahmud Hams)AFP - Gunmen from rival Palestinian factions fought street battles on Tuesday in a new surge of deadly violence that threatens to topple the government and drive the territory closer to civil war.


Grenade fired at home of Palestinian PM

Grenade fired at home of Palestinian PM (AP)

Members of Hamas' Executive Force walk in the street near Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh's home after it was attacked in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, Tuesday, June 12, 2007. Palestinian gunmen fired a rocket-propelled grenade at Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh's Gaza home on Tuesday but he was unharmed as factional fighting raged for a fourth successive day, officials said . (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)AP - A rocket-propelled grenade hit the home of the Hamas prime minister Tuesday, while his fighters captured several positions from the rival Fatah movement and threatened to step up the offensive. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused his Hamas rivals of staging a coup and called for a cease-fire.


Bush to push Immigration bill

Bush to push immigration bill at Capitol (AP)

U.S. President George W. Bush gestures during a press conference with Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov at the Archaeological Museum on Monday, June 11, 2007, in Sofia, Bulgaria.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)AP - President Bush, wading deeper into an issue that bitterly divides his party, hopes a personal appeal to fellow Republicans at lunch Tuesday can save his immigration bill.


Monday, June 11, 2007

Palestinian infighting flares in Gaza

Palestinian infighting flares in Gaza (AP)

Palestinians walk over the rubble of houses destroyed during clashes between Hamas and Fatah gunmen at Rafah refugee camp, southern of Gaza Strip, Sunday, June 10, 2007. Fatah and Hamas gunmen battled in Rafah late Saturday, with the shootouts spilling into early Sunday and spreading from the city's western neighborhoods into the east. Snipers took positions on buildings, and rival factions set up roadblocks meant to help them identify and target enemy fighters, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)AP - Gunmen fired at the house of Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas early Monday and warring factions threw militants to their deaths from high-rise buildings, in a dangerous escalation of infighting in Gaza.


Iran upbeat on more talks with US on Iraq

Iran upbeat on more talks with US on Iraq (AFP)

US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker (L) and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Kazemi Qomi (R) attend a meeting on security in Iraq at Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's office in the Green Zone in Baghdad, May 2007. Iran said on Sunday it was prepared to "view positively" the prospect of new talks with the United States over Iraq, if the Baghdad government believes it is necessary.(AFP/Pool/File/Hadi Mizban)AFP - Iran said on Sunday it was prepared to "view positively" the prospect of new talks with the United States over Iraq, if the Baghdad government believes it is necessary.


What a show

AP INTERVIEW: Chavez connects with poor (AP)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez greets a pedestrian as he drives a four wheel drive during a road trip through the Venezuelan Apure State on Saturday, June 9, 2007. Chavez clasped hands and planted kisses on cheeks, heads and hands of the people who turned out in the pouring rain to see him — an emotional connection that he called the driving force behind the socialist revolution that has pitted him against Washington.(AP Photo/Fernando Llano)AP - The Toyota 4Runner pulled to a stop on the country road and a tinted window rolled down. Passers-by gawked, then broke into a run, screaming "president!" when they realized Hugo Chavez was at the wheel. "I love you!" cried a middle-aged woman with tears in her eyes, thrusting a fistful of flowers into the car.


GIs trapped after Iraq bridge bombing

GIs trapped after Iraq bridge bombing (AP)

U.S. troops and private security guards, in black, work to remove concrete rubble from atop wounded soldiers,  at a bridge destroyed by an apparent suicide vehicle bomber on Sunday, June 10, 2007, outside Mahmoudiya, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris).AP - With a thunderous rumble and cloud of dust and smoke, an apparent suicide vehicle bomb brought down a section of highway bridge south of Baghdad on Sunday, wounding several U.S. soldiers guarding the crossing and blocking traffic on Iraq's main north-south artery.


Bush wraps up Euro trip in Bulgaria

Bush wraps up European trip in Bulgaria (AP)

US President George W. Bush gestures after his arrival in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, Sunday, June 10, 2007.  (AP Photo/Petar Petrov)AP - President Bush faced fresh questions about U.S. plans to build an Europe-based missile defense system on Monday from Bulgarian leaders, who believe their loyalty in Iraq should be rewarded with the rocket shield.


Sunday, June 10, 2007

Taliban fire rockets at Afghan president

Taliban fire rockets at Afghan president (AP)

Afghan President Hamid Karzai gestures during a press conference at the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan in this Wednesday, May 2, 2007 file photo. Taliban militants fired up to six rockets near a gathering where President Karzai was giving a speech in central Afghanistan on Sunday, June 10, 2007,  but no one was hurt, officials said.  The attack happened as clashes and airstrikes in the country's south and northwest left 47 suspected militants and two police dead. Karzai was giving a speech to the elders and residents of Andar district in Ghazni province when rockets were fired nearby, said Ali Shah Ahmadzai, provincial police chief.(AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq, File)AP - Taliban militants fired rockets near a school yard where President Hamid Karzai was meeting with local leaders and residents on Sunday in central Afghanistan in an apparent assassination attempt, but no one was hurt, officials and witnesses said.


Bush - Kosovo will get independence

Bush says Kosovo will get independence (Reuters)

An Albanian woman decorated in U.S. and Albanian colours cheers as U.S. President George W. Bush arrives in central Tirana June 10, 2007. Bush arrived in Albania on Sunday for the first visit by a U.S. leader to the Balkan republic, once a byword for hardline communist isolationism but now a staunch ally of America. (Damir Sagolj/Reuters)Reuters - President George W. Bush said on Sunday the United Nations should grant independence quickly to the breakaway Serbian province of Kosovo, and if Russia continued to block it the West would act.


Saturday, June 09, 2007

UN Security Council refused to condemn Iran

Security Council refuses to condemn Iran (AP)

G8 opponents protest in Rostock, northeastern Germany, on the last day of the Group of Eight summit. The Group of Eight industrial powers ended their annual summit Friday by pledging 60 billion dollars to fight AIDS in Africa and warned Iran and North Korea over their nuclear programmes.(AFP/Joe Klamar)AP - The U.N. Security Council refused to approve a statement Friday that would condemn remarks about Israel's impending destruction attributed to Iran's hard-line president because of objections from Indonesia, council diplomats said.


Three-year sentence for preacher's wife

Tenn. wife sentenced in preacher's death (AP)

Mary Winkler, with lead attorney Steve Farese Sr. looking on, reads a statement to her in-laws in court following her sentencing in Selmer, Tenn., Friday, June 8, 2007. Winkler was sentenced to three years in prison Friday for the March 2006 shooting death of her preacher husband Matthew Winkler. (AP Photo/Russell Ingle)AP - A woman who killed her preacher husband with a shotgun blast to the back as he lay in bed was sentenced Friday to three years in prison, but with time served could be released on probation in a little more than two months.


Bush visits Pope

Bush visits Pope and Prodi in Rome (Reuters)

U.S. President George W. Bush meets with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican June 9, 2007. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)Reuters - U.S. President George W. Bush met Pope Benedict on Saturday and told the pontiff he believed the G8 summit in Germany had been a success.


Putin suggests Iraq for missile shield

Putin suggests Iraq for missile shield (AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to a question during a press conference at the end of the G8 Summit in Heiligendamm, Germany, Friday, June 8, 2007. (AP Photo/ Misha Japaridze)AP - Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that U.S. missile defense interceptors could be located in Turkey, or even Iraq or on sea platforms, offering yet another alternative to an American plan for a missile shield in eastern Europe.


Prober: CIA ran secret jails in Europe

Prober: CIA ran secret jails in Europe (AP)

Swiss senator Dick Marty, who is heading the investigation into alleged CIA prisons in Europe, gestures as he speaks during a press conference at the Council of Europe office in Paris Friday, June 8, 2007. He said that CIA ran secret prisons in Poland and Romania from 2003 to 2005 to interrogate detainees in the war on terror. He also accused Germany and Italy of obstructing investigations into alleged secret detentions by the CIA. (AP Photo/ Michel Euler)AP - The CIA ran secret jails in Poland and Romania to interrogate key terror suspects, shackling and handcuffing inmates, keeping some naked for weeks and reducing contact with the outer world to masked and silent guards, a European investigator said Friday.


Fujimori under house arrest

Ex-Peruvian president under house arrest (AP)

Former Peru's President Alberto Fujimori, center, is escorted by correctional officers in Santiago, in this May 18, 2006 file photo. A judge on Friday ordered Fujimori be put under house arrest, one day after a prosecutor recommended his extradition to face human rights and corruption charges in his home country, the Supreme Court's press office reported. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)AP - Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori was put back under house arrest Friday, a day after a Chilean prosecutor recommended his extradition to face charges of human rights abuses and corruption in his home country.


Bush signals missile shield to go ahead

Bush signals missile shield to go ahead (Reuters)

President George W. Bush gestures as he and Polish President Lech Kaczynski talk to reporters in Gdansk, Poland June 8, 2007. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)Reuters - President George W. Bush thanked Poland on Friday for being ready to host the U.S. missile shield and sent a clear signal he would not scrap the plan in the face of an alternative offer from Russia.


G8 pledges US$60B for Africa, warns Iran and N Korea

G8 pledges 60 bln dollars for Africa, warns Iran and N Korea (AFP)

US President George W. Bush(R) and Chinese President Hu Jintao take position for a family picture with G8 leaders, representatives of the top five developing nations and leaders of African countries in Heiligendamm, Germany. The Group of Eight industrial powers ended their annual summit Friday by pledging 60 billion dollars to fight AIDS in Africa and warned Iran and North Korea over their nuclear programmes.(AFP/DDP/Volker Hartmann)AFP - The Group of Eight industrial powers ended their annual summit Friday by pledging 60 billion dollars to fight AIDS in Africa and warned Iran and North Korea over their nuclear programmes.


Friday, June 08, 2007

Original Lincoln document found

Original Lincoln document found (AP)

Trevor Plante, a specialist in Civil War records at the National Archives, stands over the original hand written note by President Abraham Lincoln, dated July 7, 1863, addressed to Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck during the Civil War, as it is displayed for the first time at the National Archives in Washington, Thursday, June 7, 2007. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)AP - The National Archives has unveiled a handwritten note by Abraham Lincoln exhorting his generals to pursue Robert E. Lee's army after the battle of Gettysburg, underscoring one of the great missed opportunities for an early end to the Civil War.


Stem cell bill passes, faces new veto

Stem cell bill passes, faces new veto (AP)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., seated, signs a stem cell research bill on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 7, 2007. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Md., standing, left, Rep. Lois Capps, D-Calif., standing, second from left, and others, look on.  (AP Photo/Dennis Cook)AP - The Democratic-controlled Congress passed legislation Thursday to loosen restraints on federally funded embryonic stem cell research, but the bill's supporters lacked the votes needed to override President Bush's threatened veto.


Thursday, June 07, 2007

Veto fight on stem cells

Democrats push veto fight on stem cells (AP)

This handout photo released by The Whitehead Institute shows reprogrammed fibroblasts. Scientists have long hoped to bypass the embryo procedure, and simply reprogram ordinary body cells to behave like stem cells. Now three scientific teams say they've done that - at least in mice. (AP Photo/Marius Wernig, via The Whitehead Institute )AP - Congressional Democrats are spoiling for their second veto fight of the spring with President Bush, this one centered on embryonic stem cell research and its disease-fighting potential.


Costa Rica breaks relations with Taiwan in favor of Mainland

Costa Rica breaks relations with Taiwan (AP)

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi speaks during a news conference in Hamburg in this May 29, 2007 file photo. Costa Rica has switched its alliance from Taiwan to China and established full diplomatic relations with Beijing, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday. REUTERS/Morris Mac MatzenAP - President Oscar Arias announced Wednesday that Costa Rica has broken diplomatic ties with Taiwan and established relations with China, delivering a blow to the Asian island's fragile international standing.


Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Bush: Russia not our enemy

Bush says Russia "not our enemy" (AFP)

President George W. Bush makes a statement in Prague. Bush insisted that Russia had nothing to fear from a planned US missile shield in Central Europe, and invited Moscow's skeptical military brass to inspect the system.(AFP/Mandel Ngan)AFP - President George W. Bush insisted Tuesday that Russia had nothing to fear from a planned US missile shield in Central Europe, and invited Moscow's skeptical military brass to inspect the system.


Israeli tank in Gaza Strip

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An Israeli tank maneuvers along the the border of Gaza Strip with Israel Tuesday, June 5, 2007. Israeli tanks and infantry pulled out of the southern Gaza Strip early Tuesday, halting the largest ground operation in the area in months. (AP Photo/...

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Bush defends missile defense shield

Bush defends missile defense shield (AP)

U.S. President George W. Bush, left, and Czech President Vaclav Klaus view the Honour Guard during the welcome ceremony at Prague's Castle, Czech Republic, on Tuesday, June 5, 2007. U.S. President George W. Bush arrived to the Czech Republic Monday for a two-day working visit. (AP Photo/CTK, Michal Dolezal)AP - President Bush and the Czech Republic's leaders on Tuesday defended plans to base part of a U.S. missile shield here despite fierce opposition from Russia.


Wind power by 2030

Wind to make 20 percent of power by 2030: advocates (Reuters)

Windmill turbines sit on a wind farm near Thomas, West Virginia, August 28, 2006. The U.S. wind power industry will see half a trillion dollars of investment by 2030 to take the renewable source up to 20 percent of U.S. electricity generation, an industry conference heard on Monday. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)Reuters - The U.S. wind power industry will see half a trillion dollars of investment by 2030 to take the renewable source up to 20 percent of U.S. electricity generation, an industry conference heard on Monday.


Monday, June 04, 2007

23 days in jail

Hotel heiress Paris Hilton arrives at the Metropolitan Branch ...

photo(AFP/File) - Hotel heiress Paris Hilton arrives at the Metropolitan Branch Courthouse in Los Angeles, May 2007. Hilton, known for her non-stop partying and high-society romps, has surrendered herself to prison authorities to begin serving a 23-day jail sentence for violating her probation.(AFP/File/Gabriel Bouys)


Sunday, June 03, 2007

Cracks on climate as G8 leaders meet in Germany

Cracks on climate as G8 leaders meet in Germany (Reuters)

Water vapour rises from the cooling towers at the 'Staudinger' coal power plant of German RWE AG energy company, while a flock of sheep and goats gather in a field in front, in Grosskrotzenburg, 30km (18 miles) south of Frankfurt in this March 21, 2007 file photo. Leaders from the world's major industrialized nations will try to paper over deep divisions on global warming and a range of foreign policy issues when they meet on the Baltic coast this week for a G8 summit. (Kai Pfaffenbach/Files/Reuters)Reuters - Leaders from the world's major industrialized nations will try to paper over deep divisions on global warming and a range of foreign policy issues when they meet on the Baltic coast this week for a G8 summit.


Fighting continues in Lebanon

Newsvine - Fighting Continues in Lebanon Camp


Lebanese army soldiers from navy commandos units, stand alert as they prepare to replace another unit at the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr el-Bared during clashes with fighters from the Fatah Islam militant group, in the northern city of Tripoli, Saturday June 2, 2007. Lebanon's army suffered more casualties as it pressed ahead with an offensive to uproot al-Qaida-inspired militants, pounding their hideouts in a Palestinian refugee camp with artillery a day after sending tanks and armored vehicles to seize positions in the camp's outer neighborhoods.(AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Fighting Continues in Lebanon Camp

(AP) White smoke rose from a Palestinian refugee camp Sunday as the Lebanese army resumed its bombardment of Islamic militants holed up there, the third day of a military offensive aimed at crushing the al-Qaida-inspired fighters. After an overnight lull, artillery shelling could be heard in the morning.

But unlike the first two days of the offensive against Fatah Islam when the army targeted areas on the edges of the Nahr el-Bared camp, Sunday's artillery fire was directed at militant positions deep inside the camp, indicating that troops were advancing further inside.

Castro meets with Vietnamese chief

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(AP/Newsvine) In this photo released by Cuba's Juventud Rebelde newspaper, Cuba's President Fidel Castro is seen with Vietnamese Communist Party chief Nong Duc Manh in Havana, Saturday, June 2,2007.Convalescing leader Fidel Castro received visiting Vietnamese...

Birkhead's lawyer sues him

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Larry Birkhead's former attorney filed a lawsuit against him Tuesday, claiming he didn't pay his legal bills during a paternity dispute involving his and Anna Nicole Smith's baby.

Debra Opri wants to force binding arbitration under the terms of a contract in which she agreed to represent Birkhead in September, according to the lawsuit filed in Superior Court.

2 earthquakes rock China

3 killed, 290 hurt as 2 earthquakes rock China

(Update) At least three persons were confirmed killed, while at least 290 others were injured after two quakes, one of the measuring magnitude 6.2, rocked Yunnan province in China early Sunday (Manila time).

Car plows into DC festival injuring 35

Car plows into D.C. festival; 35 injured (AP)

This image taken from video provided by Fox 5 News WTTG shows a car that plowed into a street festival in Washington, Saturday, June 2, 2007. Officials say seven people are in critical condition, and a fire department spokesman says 35 people have been taken to hospitals. (AP Photo/Fox 5 News WTTG)AP - A woman plowed her car through a crowded street festival Saturday night, injuring about 35 people, including two police officers who drove their motor scooters into her path attempting to stop her, authorities said.


Britain planning Iraq pullout

Britain planning Iraq pullout within a year, focus on Afghanistan (AFP)

British soldiers take part in a military operation, in the Upper Sangin Valley, Helmand Province, Afhganistan, May 2007. British military chiefs are preparing to withdraw troops from Iraq within 12 months in order to concentrate on Afghanistan, The Sunday Telegraph said citing a senior military official.(AFP/HO/File)AFP - British military chiefs are preparing to withdraw troops from Iraq within 12 months in order to concentrate on Afghanistan, The Sunday Telegraph said citing a senior military official.


Bomb plot at JFK airport foiled

US authorities foil plot to blow up New York's JFK airport (AFP)

The inside of terminal four at John F. Kennedy Airport is seen in New York City. US authorities said Saturday they foiled a terrorist plot to bomb fuel tanks and pipelines at John F. Kennedy airport, averting an explosion they said would have also devastated large portions of the nearby Queens neighborhood(AFP/Getty Images/Chris Hondros)AFP - US authorities said Saturday they foiled a terrorist plot to bomb fuel tanks and pipelines at John F. Kennedy airport, averting an explosion they said would have also devastated large portions of the nearby Queens neighborhood.


Saturday, June 02, 2007

Violence at G-8 protest in Germany

Violence mars G-8 protest in Germany

ROSTOCK, Germany - Buses and trains from across Europe streamed into the northern port city of Rostock on Saturday, bringing thousands of protesters to the largest-yet demonstration over the upcoming G-8 meeting of industrialized powers.

Battle rages on

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Smoke billows from heavy shelling in the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr el-Bared in the northern city of Tripoli, Lebanon Saturday, June 2, 2007. The Lebanese army pressed ahead with an offensive to uproot al-Qaida inspired militants, pounding their hideouts in Nahr el-Bared with artillery, a day after sending tanks and armored vehicles to seize positions in the camp's outer neighborhoods. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

Battle Rages in Lebanon Refugee Camp

(AP/Newsvine) The Lebanese air force on Saturday joined tanks and artillery in pounding Islamic militant hideouts on the second day of an intensifying offensive to uproot al-Qaida-inspired gunmen barricaded in a Palestinian refugee camp.

A French-made Gazelle helicopter fired two missiles and directed machine gun fire at suspected militant hideouts on the western edge of the Noah el-Bared camp near the Mediterranean coastline, in an apparent attempt to block any sea escape route.

US eases tone on Chine

U.S. eases tone on China, Beijing agrees to hotline (Reuters)

A Jian-10 fighter plane of China Air Force takes off from an unidentified military base in this undated file photo. China and the United States are to set up a defense hotline, one of Beijing's top generals said on Saturday, a move aimed at improving military relations as Washington grows increasingly wary of China's military build-up. (China Daily/Files/Reuters)Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates played down concerns about China's military build-up on Saturday, signaling a shift in the Pentagon's tone intended to ease tensions and draw Beijing toward more transparency.

***Cocka-doodle-dee!


A surveillance photo

A surveillance photo released Wednesday, May 23, 2007, by the ...

photo(AP) - A surveillance photo released Wednesday, May 23, 2007, by the FBI shows masked gunman, at left, pointing his weapon inside the Illinois Service Federal Savings and Loan during a robbery, in this file photo from May 22, 2007, on Chicago's South Side. Two suspects have been arrested in a South Side bank robbery that exploded into gunfire, leaving a teller dead and two other people seriously wounded, a federal spokesman announced Friday June 1, 2007. (AP Photo/FBI, HO-File)


NW Florida braces for storm

Tropical storm threatens northwest Fla. (AP)

Al Caffrey braves the strong wind and rain as he crosses Las Olas Boulevard at A1A in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on his way to a restaurant Friday, June 1, 2007 .  Tropical Storm Barry formed Friday in the Gulf of Mexico, prompting the National Hurricane Center to issue a warning for a stretch of Florida's western coast. (AP Photo/The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Michael Laughlin)AP - Tropical Storm Barry was headed to northern Florida early Saturday and a tropical storm warning remained in effect for a stretch of the state's northwestern coast.


NW Florida braces for storm

Tropical storm threatens northwest Fla. (AP)

Al Caffrey braves the strong wind and rain as he crosses Las Olas Boulevard at A1A in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on his way to a restaurant Friday, June 1, 2007 .  Tropical Storm Barry formed Friday in the Gulf of Mexico, prompting the National Hurricane Center to issue a warning for a stretch of Florida's western coast. (AP Photo/The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Michael Laughlin)AP - Tropical Storm Barry was headed to northern Florida early Saturday and a tropical storm warning remained in effect for a stretch of the state's northwestern coast.


Scuba in Eiffel

Eiffel Tower hosts scuba diving lessons (AP)

A professional scuba instructor dives during a practice dip in a pool beneath the city's most famous monument, the Eiffel Tower, in Paris, Friday, June 1, 2007. The Red Sea, Belize and the Cayman Islands are all scuba-diving hotspots, but what about Paris? As of Friday, would-be divers can take the plunge in the landlocked French capital, with a practice dip in a pool beneath the  Eiffel Tower. A dozen professional scuba instructors are offering one-on-one lessons in the heated, above-ground pool at the foot of the tower as part of an initiative to promote the sport among Parisians and visitors. (AP Photo/Michael Sawyer)AP - The weather was nippy and overcast and the water just chest-high, but a new scuba-diving pool in Paris has something Bali, Belize and other diving hotspots don't: a terrific view of the Eiffel Tower.




Free At Last

Kevorkian out of prison after 8 years (AP)

Assisted suicide advocate Dr. Jack Kevorkian poses with his 'suicide machine' in Michigan, in this Feb. 6, 1991, file photo. Kevorkian is expected to leave prison Friday, June 1, 2007 after serving more than eight years of a 10- to 25-year sentence in the death of a Michigan man. (AP Photo/Richard Sheinwald, file)AP - Jack Kevorkian, the retired pathologist dubbed "Dr. Death" for claims that he participated in at least 130 assisted suicides, left prison after eight years Friday still believing people have the right to die.




Russia bullies BP

Russia bullies BP: Drivers take note (CNNMoney.com)

Russia is again flexing its energy muscle.

On Friday, reports said Russia may cancel a contract it has with BP to develop a huge natural gas field in the middle of the country, claiming BP wasn't producing enough gas at the project.

This would be the latest in a string of incidents generally interpreted as Russia strong-arming its partners into deals more favorable to the government. These moves, analysts say, could hurt worldwide production and drive up energy costs for consumers everywhere.

Friday, June 01, 2007

Arroyo says Asian region safe with Aussie-RP pact

Arroyo says Asian region safe with security pact (Reuters)

Philippines President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (R) speaks to Australian Prime Minister John Howard during a media conference in Canberra's Parliament House May 31, 2007. Arroyo said on Friday the Philippines' new security pact with Australia would make the Southeast Asian region safer and more secure from Islamic militants. (David Gray/Reuters)Reuters - President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said on Friday the Philippines' new security pact with Australia would make the Southeast Asian region safer and more secure from Islamic militants.


Heaviest shelling in Palestinian camp

Lebanese army pounds militants at Palestinian camp (Reuters)

Houses burn after fighting between the Lebanese army and Palestinian Fatah Islamist militants at the Palestinian Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon May 29, 2007. (Jerry Lampen/Reuters)Reuters - Lebanese troops fired at positions of al Qaeda-inspired militants entrenched in a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon on Friday with the heaviest shelling in 13 days of fighting.


Bush, Talabani Cite Progress in Iraq



President Bush on Thursday assured Iraqi President Jalal Talabani that he is "fully committed" to aiding the Iraqi government and dispatched a top aide to Baghdad to help leaders there make good on their promises.


Talabani, whose visit to the United States has included medical treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., looked hearty as he sat in the Oval Office and defended his country's progress.

Iraq Residents Rise Up Against al-Qaida


A battle raged Thursday in west Baghdad after residents rose up against al-Qaida and called for U.S. military help to end random gunfire that forced people to huddle indoors and threats that kept students from final exams, a member of the district council said.
Meanwhile, a suicide bomber hit a police recruiting center in Fallujah, killing as many as 25 people, police said — though the U.S. military said only one policeman was killed and eight were wounded. Elsewhere, three policemen and three civilians were killed and 15 civilians were wounded when a suicide truck bomber struck a communications center on the western outskirts of Ramadi, according to Anbar provincial security adviser Col. Tariq Youssef Mohammed.

Loch Ness is back




















Man Says He Captured Loch Ness on Film


The Loch Ness monster is back — and there's video. A man has captured what Nessie watchers say is possible footage of the supposed mythical creature beneath Scotland's most mysterious lake.


"I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this jet black thing, about 45 feet long, moving fairly fast in the water," said Gordon Holmes, the 55-year-old a lab technician from Shipley, Yorkshire, who took the video Saturday.

Nessie watcher and marine biologist Adrian Shine viewed the video and hoped to properly analyze it in the coming months.

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