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NEW YORK (CNN) -- Two U.S. customs agents were arrested on charges they helped smuggle drugs and other contraband through New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. The DEA says two customs officials at JFK International Airport helped smuggle drugs and contraband. Customs supervisor Walter Golembiowski and officer John Ajello face narcotics, bribery and conspiracy charges in the case, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Golembiowski and Ajello regularly solicited and accepted bribes to allow contraband to pass through undetected, the DEA said. Two airport workers and two others were also charged with importing counterfeit goods. Some of those items included Rolex, Cartier and Chanel watches and designer sunglasses, the DEA said. On several occasions, Golembiowski was captured on audio and video taking bribes to aid his co-conspirators in bringing in illegal drugs and counterfeit goods. "Smuggling any kind of illegal commodity raises troubling issues at a time of deep concern over national security," said Michael J. Garcia, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. "The threat is heightened when a government official accepts bribes to help smugglers breach our borders." The arrests came as a result of a lengthy sting operation by a state, local and federal task force. Prosecutors said numerous recorded meetings and phone calls captured the suspects talking about plans to smuggle hashish, ecstasy and other illegal items. The investigation has led to the indictment and prosecution of more than 20 people -- "from distributors to overseas sources of supply" -- and the seizure of more than 600 pounds of imported hashish and other drugs from the United States and France, according to the statement. | DEA says two agents regularly accepted and solicited bribes .
They and four others allegedly smuggled illegal contraband and drugs .
Investigation has led to the indictment and prosecution of more than 20 people .
Arrests follow a lengthy investigation by state and federal authorities . | 7ff39e1220c0f084434786ed145e15c6abe48def |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former Illinois Gov. George Ryan and a co-defendant lost another legal round at the Supreme Court on Tuesday and will remain in prison on federal racketeering and fraud convictions. Ex-Gov. George Ryan walks out of a Chicago, Illinois, courthouse after his April 2006 conviction. Ryan and businessman Larry Warner claimed they did not receive a fair trial, but the justices, without comment, refused to intervene in the case. Justice John Paul Stevens refused last fall to grant bail for the 74-year-old Ryan, a move that would have kept him out of jail to file more appeals. The disgraced ex-governor reported to a federal prison in Wisconsin in November to serve a 6½-year sentence. The men were convicted in April 2006 for fraud in a case stemming from bribes paid for various state licenses. Their lawyers claimed the trial judge improperly removed two jurors while deliberations in the case had commenced, but a federal appeals court upheld the convictions. Ryan, a Republican, served as governor from 1999 to 2003. He retired following investigations into political corruption in his administration. He also was noted for issuing a moratorium on capital punishment in his state in 2000 over concerns innocent inmates might be executed. The case decided Tuesday is Warner and Ryan v. U.S. (07-977). | George Ryan, co-defendant claim they didn't get fair trial in 2006 .
Justices refuse to intervene in case, give no reason why .
The men were convicted on charges related to bribery .
Ryan, a Republican, served as Illinois governor from 1999-2003 . | 87ef15064035db73cb29f5cec2f0442f2c527ef0 |
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Sixty-four cases of measles have been diagnosed in the United States this year, the most in seven years, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Measles is a respiratory disease whose familiar symptom is red blotches on the skin. In all but one of the cases, the people who contracted measles had not been vaccinated. Some were too young to have gotten the shots, which are administered from 12 to 15 months of age. The CDC released the statistics Thursday to "serve as a reminder that measles can and still does occur in the U.S. Ongoing measles virus transmission was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000, but the risk of cases and outbreaks from imported disease remains," the organization said in a news release. Interactive: More about measles » . In 54 of this year's cases the victims imported the measles from other countries, the CDC said. Dr. Anne Schuchat, the director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said many of the imported cases came from European nations and Israel. Watch more on the measles outbreak » . "Many people have forgot about measles in the United States," she said Schuchat at a news conference Thursday. "It is very important for travelers heading off to Europe to make sure their immunizations are up to date." The cases were reported in nine states, it said, and cases are being treated in Wisconsin, Arizona, Michigan and New York. Measles is a viral disease that can be deadly if not treated. The 64 patients ranged in age from 5 months to 71 years. Fourteen patients were hospitalized but no deaths were reported. E-mail to a friend . | CDC: 64 confirmed measles cases in nine states since January .
64 patients ranged in age from 5 months to 71 years .
63 of the 64 were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status .
Highest number reported for same time period since 2001 . | 02927c88776bcc84fc883435a5037b4c8ca70e83 |
MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- A judge has declared a mistrial in the retrial of six men accused of plotting terrorist acts with al Qaeda. Narseal Batiste, the group's alleged ringleader, testified he wasn't serious about the terrorism threats he made. The decision comes after 13 days of deliberation and marks the second time government prosecutors have failed to convince a jury that the six defendants were guilty of terror-related charges. It is unclear whether the government will pursue a third trial against the defendants. The first trial ended in a mistrial last December after nine days of deliberations left a jury hopelessly deadlocked on the six defendants. A seventh was acquitted. The defendants are known as the "Liberty City 7" because authorities say the men operated out of a warehouse in Miami's Liberty City housing project. After their arrests in June 2006, federal officials said the homegrown terror plot may have included as its possible targets the 110-story Sears Tower in Chicago -- the tallest building in North America -- as well as the FBI's Miami offices and other sites. E-mail to a friend . CNN's John Couwels contributed to this report. | Judge declares mistrial in the retrial of Miami terrorism case .
Men accused of plotting to target Chicago's Sears Tower and bomb FBI offices .
Defendants faced up to 70 years in prison if convicted of conspiracy charges .
First trial ended in a mistrial in December, also because of a hung jury . | f8ddc6d36f378757d27a244529f8fe11672baa41 |
(CNN) -- A U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent was killed Saturday when he was struck by a car driven by a suspected narcotics smuggler, officials said. Luis Aguilar, 32, who was assigned to the Yuma, Arizona, border patrol station, died Saturday, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Commissioner W. Ralph Basham said in a statement. "Agent Aguilar's death serves as another stark reminder of the risks our front-line agents and officers face each day," Basham said. Aguilar was trying to place spike strips in the path of two vehicles believed to have illegally entered the country from Mexico when one of the vehicles hit him, agent Michael Bernacke, a spokesman for the agency's Yuma sector, told The Associated Press. Both vehicles drove back across the border into Mexico, the AP said. The fatal incident occurred in the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area near Andrade, California, Basham said. Andrade is just over the California state line from Arizona. The area is popular with off-road vehicle enthusiasts but also is frequently used by smugglers carrying people or drugs, the AP said. Aguilar is survived by his wife and two children, along with his brother, who is also a border patrol agent, a Homeland Security Department statement said. "I am outraged by this tragic loss," said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Saturday. "I have spoken to the Mexican ambassador, who gives me both his condolences and deep assurance that their government will be resolute in tracking down the perpetrators and bringing them to swift justice." Federal, state and local authorities are working with Mexican police and military authorities to apprehend the suspected killers, he said. E-mail to a friend . | Officials: Luis Aguilar, 32, was placing spike strips to stop the smugglers .
Border agents believe two cars involved had entered the U.S. illegally .
The incident occurred over the California state line from Arizona .
Both vehicles drove back across the border and into Mexico . | 4e97228ceef1be54ab9151fc6759017e6a54a18d |
(CNN) -- Skybus Airlines announced Friday it is shutting down its passenger flights -- becoming the third airline this week to cease operations. Skybus Airlines joins ATA and Aloha Airlines, which announced shutdowns earlier this week. The low-cost carrier couldn't overcome "the combination of rising jet fuel costs and a slowing economic environment," the company said Friday. "These two issues proved to be insurmountable for a new carrier." Skybus, an Ohio-based airline founded in 2004, will cease operations effective Saturday. Earlier in the week, ATA Airlines and Aloha Airlines announced they would shut down flights as both companies work through bankruptcy filings. ATA, an Indiana-based low-cost charter airline, filed for Chapter 11 status Wednesday as a result of financial problems "following the loss of a key contract for our military charter business," the company said. The company started operation in 1973. Hawaii-based Aloha Airlines announced Sunday it would shut down its passenger operations this week after filing for bankruptcy protections last month, concluding 61 years of service. In its bankruptcy filing, Aloha said it was unable to generate enough revenue from its inter-island passenger flights because of below-cost fares by competitors Mesa Air Group's go! airline. The company said it was forced to match the competitor's fares during an unprecedented increase in the cost of jet fuel. Skybus said all flights Friday would be completed; passengers with reservations for Saturday and beyond were told to seek refunds from their credit card companies. E-mail to a friend . | Low-cost carrier cites high price of jet fuel .
ATA and Aloha also closing after bankruptcy filings .
Skybus says passengers can seek refunds from credit card firms . | 394f20c9bee9bc8d0e6a65bac48de57bd9f4733d |
TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Authorities have arrested a U.S. sailor on suspicion of robbery and murder in the death of a Japanese taxi driver. The U.S. military handed him over Thursday at Yokosuka Naval Base, south of Tokyo. A Yokosuka police spokesman identified the sailor as Olatunbosun Ogbogu, a 22-year-old Nigerian national. Taxi driver Masaaki Takahashi, 61, was found dead March 19 of stab wounds to the neck about a mile from the base in Yokosuka. The presence of U.S. in Japan has sparked controversy this year amid reports linking service members to crimes. In March, the U.S. military said it plans to court martial four Marines accused of raping a 19-year-old woman in Hiroshima last year. Authorities are also investigating allegations that a member of the U.S. military raped a Philippine woman on the island of Okinawa. And a U.S. Marine was detained in the rape of a 14-year-old girl until the girl dropped the allegations. As Ogbogu was arrested, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, Thomas Schieffer, met with Japan's foreign minister. "We're dealing with human beings that do criminal acts from time to time," Schieffer told reporters afterward. "And I think justice is going to be done in this matter because we've been able to work so closely together." Watch the U.S. ambassador to Japan discuss the case » . The U.S. military presence in Japan has at times bred resentment among locals, who have long complained about crime, noise and accidents. Anti-American sentiments boiled over in 1995 after three American servicemen kidnapped and gang-raped a 12-year-old Okinawan schoolgirl. Two years ago, a U.S. civilian military employee was jailed for nine years for raping two women. E-mail to a friend . | Japanese police arrest U.S. sailor for allegedly killing a Japanese taxi driver .
U.S. Navy presence in Japan has been marred by reports of rape and crime .
In 2006, U.S. civilian military staffer jailed for nine years for raping two women . | 6e63c8b1ae01ab91b4832222edaf4bb461b6c568 |
KAMPALA, Uganda (CNN) -- At least 19 schoolgirls died when fire erupted in their dormitory west of the capital, Kampala, late Monday, say police and school officials. Villagers surround the gutted school building Tuesday. Authorities also found the bodies of two adults in the ashes of the blaze at Buddo Junior School in Mpigi. The school's headmaster said 42 girls survived. Police said they were investigating the cause, but children who lived in the dorm said they heard an explosion shortly before the fire broke out. There were conflicting reports of the doors of the living quarters being barred, trapping the children inside. School officials insisted that the doors weren't locked, while girls who lived there said they were. Mpigi is about 60 kilometers west of Kampala. E-mail to a friend . | 19 schoolgirls and two adults die in primary school dormitory fire, police say .
School denies pupils' claim that dormitory door was locked from the outside .
Police investigate cause of blaze at school 60 kilometers from Kampala . | fdb2b65b9cb99b7d52559ae647cae293cb5910d3 |
(CNN) -- A bus carrying high school band students tipped over Saturday on Interstate 94 northwest of Minneapolis, Minnesota, killing one person. The bus that was carrying school band members rests upright after it crashed Saturday in Minnesota. Three people were critically injured, authorities said. A second bus traveling with the one that crashed wasn't affected, according to a report posted on the Web site of the Pelican Rapids School District. The students from Pelican Rapids High School were returning from a band trip to Chicago, Illinois, when the accident happened near Albertville, Minnesota, the Minnesota Highway Patrol said. Forty-eight people, including the driver, were on the westbound bus that tipped over about 6 a.m., the Minnesota Highway Patrol said. Everyone on that bus was taken to hospitals for treatment or evaluation, the school district said. Watch rescuers work at the scene » . Pelican Rapids is in west-central Minnesota. The cause of the accident is being investigated. E-mail to a friend . | Bus carrying high school students tips over on Minnesota interstate .
One person killed, three critically injured, authorities say .
Two buses from Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, were on way home from Chicago, Illinois . | 7241f8fe0e37c45db9684006a3fe1850c38f1287 |
NAIROBI, Kenya (CNN) -- Pirates have hijacked a Thai cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast, the Kenya Seafarers Association said Thursday. The ship, the MV Thor Star, was hijacked Tuesday with 28 Thai crew members on board, said Andrew Mwangura, a spokesman for the association, which acts on behalf of merchant vessels in the region. The Thai-flagged ship is owned by Bangkok-based Thoresen Thai Agencies. Pirate attacks are frequent in the waters off Somalia, a notoriously unsafe area for unescorted vessels. Earlier this month, Canada announced it was dispatching a warship to the area to protect U.N. aid ships after more than two dozen reported pirate attacks in the waters off Somalia this year. | MV Thor Star, was hijacked Tuesday with 28 Thai crew .
Cargo ship hijacked in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast .
Heavily armed pirates frequently hijack cargo ships off Horn of Africa . | 6d94f7f790a07b7d38ee1cec6b0a1e1b1ec66a81 |
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A New York appeals court Thursday overturned terrorism convictions for a Yemeni cleric and his personal assistant, saying they did not receive a fair trial. Sheik Mohammed Ali al-Moayad and Mohammed Mohsen Zayed, were sentenced in 2005 to 75 and 45 years in prison, respectively, after being convicted of conspiring to provide material support and resources to foreign terrorist organizations. They now can have new trials under a different judge. The lawyer for al-Moayad, Robert Boyle, said, "I'm extremely gratified at the court's decision. I believe it is legally and factually correct. I hope my client, who is elderly and not in good health, will be given the opportunity to return to his family in Yemen." The three-judge panel was unanimous in its decision, citing evidentiary errors that likely influenced the outcome of the trial. The judges found that certain pieces of evidence presented by prosecutors were prejudicial and had the effect of denying al-Moayad and Zayed a fair trial. Zayed and al-Moayad were arrested in 2003 in a sting operation that culminated in Germany. The government's case relied largely on secretly videotaped conversations between the defendants and a pair of undercover FBI informants at a Frankfurt hotel in 2003. One of the informants, Mohamed Alanssi, testified that al-Moayad boasted about giving money, weapons and recruits to al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The charges were brought in the Eastern District of New York because al-Moayad allegedly collected terrorist funds at the al-Farooq mosque in Brooklyn. Now that the appeals court has vacated the convictions, prosecutors have the option of appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court if they feel there is a constitutional issue. They can retry the case or move to dismiss. Al-Moayad, who is in his 60s, is incarcerated at the Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado, as is Zayed. Boyle said he had called the prison and as of 4 p.m. Thursday was still waiting to speak to his client. CNN's Deborah Feyerick contributed to this report. | Mohammed Ali al-Moayad, aide were convicted of supporting terrorism .
Court says prejudicial evidence denied pair a fair trial .
Al-Moayad, Zayed may be retried or cases may be dismissed .
Witness said al-Moayad boasted about giving money to Osama bin Laden . | d6a9bc3f37a5b71548289cd4c261dbb6a4f93009 |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday froze the U.S. assets of eight members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, which it has deemed a narco-terrorist organization. The Treasury's action, termed a "designation," also prohibited Americans from conducting business with FARC. "Today's designation exposes eight 'International Commission members' of the FARC," said Adam Szubin, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. "Through their service to the FARC as international representatives and negotiators, these persons provide material support to a narco-terrorist organization." The organization, comprised of Colombian leftist rebels, is best known as FARC, its Spanish acronym. The eight in Tuesday's designation represent the FARC in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela, Panama, Mexico and Canada, the Treasury Department alleged. "As representatives of the FARC and members of its International Commission, these individuals work abroad to obtain recruits, support and protection for the FARC's acts of terrorism," the department said in a written statement. "Some are also themselves violent criminals." One, Jairo Alfonse Lesmes Bulla, was arrested in August for allegedly plotting the assassinations of some South American officials, Treasury said. Bulla represents FARC in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay, according to the department. Another, Orlay Jurado Palomino, who represents FARC in Venezuela, is wanted in Colombia on charges of kidnapping, rebellion and terrorism, the department said. And Francisco Antonio Cadena Collazos, who represents FARC in Brazil, was arrested in August 2005 at the request of Colombia on charges of rebellion, the Treasury statement said. A fourth, Nubia Calderon de Trujillo, was recently granted asylum by Nicaragua, the department said. The other four are Ovidio Salinas Perez; Jorge Davalos Torres; Efrain Pablo Rejo Freire; and Liliana Lopez Palacios, according to the Treasury statement. | Treasury Department targets members of Colombia rebel group .
The group, known as FARC, has been deemed a narco-terrorist organization .
Action also prohibits Americans from doing business with FARC . | 2aadd878ccfc15b3d28a69841db932a69f6e6aa7 |
ISTANBUL, Turkey (CNN) -- Turkish authorities have arrested 13 people in connection with blasts that killed 17 people in Istanbul last week, Interior Minister Besir Atalay said Saturday. Video from last week's bombing in Istanbul shows bloodied people being loaded into ambulances. Of those arrested, 10 were sent to judicial court, Atalay said in a televised news conference. He described the attack as the "work of the bloody separatist group," but did not identify a group by name. No one has claimed responsibility for the blasts, which went off within minutes of each other in Istanbul's crowded Gungoren community. About 154 people were wounded, state-run Anadolu news agency reported. Istanbul Gov. Muammer Guler, who called the blasts "an act of terror," said last week that the explosive devices were placed 15 meters (49 feet) from each other. The first was a stun grenade that was detonated to draw attention before the second blast went off, he said. The other, a bomb, had been placed in a trash can. Turkey -- a candidate for European Union membership -- has pushed its anti-terror campaign on multiple fronts. Tensions between Turkey » and Kurdish rebels have risen over the Kurdistan Workers' Party's increasing attacks and Turkey's subsequent crackdown. The rebels, known as the PKK, have waged a decades-long battle for an autonomous Kurdish region in Turkey's southeast. Last month, 86 people -- including former military officials, journalists, politicians and businessmen -- were indicted on charges of being involved with an alleged terror group called Ergenekon, which aims to topple the Turkish government. The arrests and indictments dramatize the sharp and serious political tensions between the country's Islam-rooted ruling party -- the Justice and Development Party, or AKP -- and its outspoken critics from the nation's secularist population. | Attack was conducted by "bloody separatist group," Interior minister says .
2 explosions, minutes apart, hit residential area in Turkey's largest city Sunday .
Those arrested were responsible for earlier bombing June 15, says minister . | 7890546606d341c9570b4e9aa96936b25b4fdd31 |
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (CNN) -- A Sri Lankan government minister narrowly escaped injury Thursday when a suicide bomber in a car detonated explosives, police said. File image of Maithripala Sirisena taken in May, 2007. Two of the minister's bodyguards were hurt in the blast, which occurred in a southern suburb of the capital city, Colombo. The minister, Maithripala Sirisena, heads the agriculture department. He is also the secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, a partner in the ruling coalition. Authorities blamed the attack on Tamil Tigers rebels. The fighting in Sri Lanka pits government forces in a country dominated by the Sinhalese ethnic group against rebels from the Tamil minority. The rebels, formally known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, are fighting for the creation of an independent nation, citing discrimination by the Sinhalese. On Monday, a suicide bombing blamed on rebels killed at least 27 people, including a prominent politician and his wife. Another 60 were wounded. That bombing took place in Anuradhapura, the capital of Sri Lanka's North Central province. | Minister's bodyguards hurt in blast in southern suburb of Colombo .
Maithripala Sirisena heads the agriculture department .
Authorities blamed the attack on Tamil Tigers rebels . | b3fe558375557990a10b9eaffb80545a80cc7c5a |
KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Fighting raged in Afghanistan over the weekend, with a suicide bombing slaying six people, a NATO-led soldier and an Afghan police officer dying in an "altercation," and troops killing several insurgents in battles, authorities said. Fighting between the Taliban and NATO forces continues to rage in Afghanistan. The suicide bombing on Sunday killed six people in a bazaar in Spin Boldak, located in Kandahar province, NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Monday. Along with the deaths, at least 17 people were wounded, and ISAF condemned the assault. Four of those killed were Afghan border police officers, ISAF said. The location is in southern Afghanistan. The ISAF soldier and an Afghan police officer were killed after seven people were apprehended in connection with a roadside bombing in Paktia province on Sunday that targeted an Afghan National Police and ISAF patrol. The location is in eastern Afghanistan. "The detained civilians were then transferred to the ANP station at the Jaji District Center. While at the district center, there was an altercation during which an ANP officer and one ISAF soldier were killed," ISAF said in a Monday news release. The U.S.-led coalition on Monday reported fighting between U.S. and Afghan troops and insurgents over the last two days -- Sunday in Kandahar province and Saturday in Helmand province. "Several insurgents" were reported killed in both incidents. Two insurgents died in fighting on Friday in another southern region -- Zabul province, the coalition said on Monday. | Militants kill eight people and injure at least 17 in latest attacks .
Insurgents killed a coalition soldier in eastern Afghanistan .
Soldier's name and nationality held until family members could be notified . | 5fc40588d893f872511998f65d8acad13e567831 |
(CNN) -- Three aid workers have been shot over the last day in Somalia, two of them fatally, Somali media reports said. Somalis prepare Monday to bury murdered Osman Ali Ahmed, the head of the U.N. Development Program. The first fatality was a Somali, Mohamed Mohamud Qeyre. He was the deputy director of the group Daryeel Bulasho Guud (DBG), funded by a German company and affiliated with the group Bread for the World. Qeyre was shot in the Somali capital of Mogadishu Friday night in what appeared to be a targeted attack, the reports said. He was shot by three gunmen outside the facility where aid distribution is coordinated. The gunmen may have been staking out the facility waiting for Qeyre to exit. The head of DBG, in Nairobi, Kenya, said he will suspend all aid operations in Somalia for the time being. The second fatality was a member of the Sodra nongovernmental organization, which is helping with humanitarian efforts in Somalia. Officials said it appears that Ali Baashi was also specifically targeted by gunmen. Earlier this week, the World Food Program said a truck driver carrying its relief supplies was killed -- the fourth WFP driver killed in Somalia this year. Ahmed Saalim was shot when fighting broke out between convoy escorts and militiamen at a checkpoint, the U.N. aid agency said. A growing percentage of the Somali population has become dependent on humanitarian aid. A severe famine swept the nation in 1991-1993, devastating crops, killing up to 280,000 people and displacing up to 2 million, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The situation has been exacerbated by drought, continual armed conflicts in central and southern Somalia and high inflation on food and fuel. Journalist Mohamed Amin contributed to this report. | Three aid workers have been shot over the last day in Somalia, two of them fatally .
One victim worked for aid agency, DBG, which has suspended operations .
Four World Food Program drivers of relief supplies killed this year .
Somalis dependent on humanitarian aid since 1993 famine, ongoing war, drought . | 6d84a33340136642526de48759977a983d529b6f |
(CNN) -- A strong earthquake measuring 6.1 in magnitude struck southern Iran on Wednesday, according to a report from the U.S. Geological Survey. The citadel at the city of Bam, Iran in 2005, hit by a quake in 2003 when 30,000 people died. The quake demolished nearly 200 villages in Iran's Hormozgan Province, according to Iran's Press TV, citing the head of the provincial disaster management headquarters, Yasser Hazbavi. At least six people were killed and 46 others were injured, Hazbavi told Press TV. People panicked and fled buildings when the temblor struck in the quake-prone region around 3:30 p.m. Iranian time (1100 GMT), Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported. It also knocked out power to the region. See map of quake's epicenter » . The epicenter was located 35 miles (55 km) west-southwest of Bandar e-Abbas, Iran -- just across the narrow Strait of Hormuz from the United Arab Emirates -- according to USGS. Mehdi Rezapoor, head of the Iranian Seismological Center, said it was "a medium-sized quake." Speaking on Press TV, Rezapoor had no details on damage, but said that based on the quake's strength, "I don't think it was very extensive." The quake shook nearby Dubai, where CNN staff members said they felt the building they were in shake for about 15 to 20 seconds. "From my office window at the Dubai Media City where all foreign media are located, I can see that a lot of offices have evacuated buildings," CNN Dubai Bureau Chief Samson Desta said. "I can see up to perhaps 200 people who have taken refuge out in the streets, causing somewhat of a traffic jam." There was no evidence of any damage in Dubai, where there are a lot of high-rise buildings. Iran lies on a series of seismic fault lines and has experienced devastating earthquakes -- most notably in December 2003 when a 6.6 magnitude quake devastated the ancient city of Bam in southeast Iran, killing at least 30,000 people. | Strong quake measuring 6.1 in magnitude strikes southern Iran .
Epicenter located about 55 km west-southwest of Bandar e-Abbas, Iran .
NEW: Quake destroys nearly 200 villages, according to Iran's Press TV .
NEW: Head of provincial disaster management: At least 6 dead, 46 others injured . | 5474a9f81601abaa7ec81c6a9e1c5b7140acdc7b |
(CNN) -- The Wiggles have been officially wiggling for 17 years now, entertaining children with music, television, videos and films that have become modern classics. The Wiggles have been entertaining children with colorful, clean-cut songs since 1991. In Australia, their annual end of year national tour sells over 120,000 tickets, while their U.S. fans include John Travolta, Sarah Jessica Parker, Matthew Broderick, John Fogarty, Shaquille O'Neal, Chris Rock, Courtney Cox-Arquette and Cate Blanchett. And since 2003, in addition to their native English, they also wiggle in Mandarin and Spanish, reaching out to the Taiwanese and Latin American public, respectively. Anthony Field, Murray Cook and Greg Page met at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, where they were studying early childhood education and writing children's songs. Together with fellow musician Jeff Fatt, who played with Anthony in the popular 1980s band The Cockroaches, they formed The Wiggles and released a self-titled album on ABC Music in 1991. Fifteen years and 27 DVD releases later, they had been awarded with 17 Gold, 12 Platinum, 3 Double Platinum and 10 Multi Platinum Awards for sales of over 17 million DVDs and 4 million CDs worldwide. They have also been awarded with Highest Selling Children's Video Sales in 1995, 1996, 1998 and 1999 at the ADSDA Awards. The Wiggles made their U.S. debut at the famous Wall Mart in June 1999, while performing in shopping mall parking lots. In 2003 they performed 12 sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden in New York City and performed to over 250,000 people in November 2005. That year also initiated a series of amusement-park openings, from Wiggles World at Dream World on the Gold Coast of Australia, to a second Wiggly Play Centre to be launched in Dallas, Texas, USA. | Anthony Field, Murray Cook and Greg Page studied early childhood education .
Entertain children with music and visuals in English, Mandarin and Spanish .
U.S. fans include John Travolta, Sarah Jessica Parker, Chris Rock, Cate Blanchett . | be019561fa6ba2a4b00440d76fbb85d3c6f65a8f |
(CNN) -- Doctors at the Technical University of Munich have conducted the world's first double-arm transplant on a 54-year-old farmer who had lost both his arms in an accident, officials said. After transplant surgery, this farmer has new arms. His condition "is very good under the circumstances." The operation was conducted at the university's "Klinikum rechts der Isar" last week, the clinic said in a statement Friday, following several years of preparatory work. The man's condition "is very good under the circumstances," the statement said. "Now it is a matter of avoiding future wound healing disorders, infections, strong side-effects caused by the drugs and in particular any rejective reaction." A team of 40 people participated in the transplant surgery, conducted July 25 and 26. The donor matched the host in sex, age, skin color, size and blood group, the statement said. The transplant subject had lost both his arms at the upper arm level six years ago, and two attempts with artificial limbs had been unsuccessful. | Technical University of Munich doctors transplant arms on 54-year-old farmer .
Farmer had lost both his arms in an accident six years ago .
40 people conduct operation; several years spent preparing for the surgery .
Donor matched the patient in sex, age, skin color, size and blood group . | 02b501f3302ea6a83449667e944eadf4e7c56992 |
(CNN) -- Maoist insurgents killed a dozen soldiers and two civilians during an ambush in southeastern Peru, the military said Friday. The military blamed "narco-terrorists" of the Shining Path for the attack Thursday night in Tayacaja province as the soldiers were returning by truck to their counterterrorism base in Cochabamba Grande. The region is where most of the country's coca leaf and cocaine are produced. "At the height of the place named Sajona Curve, terrorists detonated an explosive charge under a civilian truck carrying villagers, and immediately fired with long-range weapons on all vehicles," the military said in a statement. "The military reacted immediately, engaging in a clash that lasted several hours," the statement said. "This unfortunate act shows that the narco-terrorist organization Sendero Luminoso [Shining Path] is continuing in its bloodthirsty actions ... without discriminating among women and children." The Shining Path and the smaller Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement are blamed for the deaths of thousands of Peruvians. The rebels have been targets of a fierce government crackdown in the mountainous region of Peru. | Ambush kills 12 soldiers and two civilians in southeastern Peru .
Peru's military blames "narco-terrorists" of the Shining Path for attack .
Rebels have been targets of a fierce government crackdown . | 6f95a187921b94549a5467b3d39a71089412e9d9 |
MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- A tropical storm watch was issued Friday for Bermuda as Hurricane Bertha moved closer to the Atlantic island, causing swells and high turf on its beaches. A satellite picture from 5:45 a.m. ET Friday shows Hurricane Bertha over the Atlantic. As of 8 p.m. ET Friday, the center of Bertha was about 250 miles (402 km) southeast of Bermuda. The Category 1 storm was moving north-northwest at near 5 mph (8 km/h). The National Hurricane Center said a gradual turn toward the north is expected Friday night and Saturday, followed by a continued slow motion toward the north or north-northeast on Sunday. "On this track, the center of Bertha is expected to slowly pass to the southeast and east of Bermuda during the next couple of days," the agency said in an advisory. Bertha's maximum sustained winds are at near 90 mph (145 km/hr), with higher gusts, the hurricane center said. See Bertha's path » . The Bermuda Weather Service issued a tropical storm watch for the island around midday, meaning tropical storm conditions are possible in the area, the hurricane center said. The center advised those on the island, a self-governing British colony, to monitor Bertha's progress closely. Bertha's intensity has fluctuated. At its peak Monday, it was a major Category 3 hurricane with top winds of 120 mph (193 km/h). Its wind speed dropped to 75 mph (121 km/h), barely hurricane strength, before picking up once again and reaching Category 2 intensity late Wednesday, with top sustained winds of 105 mph (169 km/h). See how hurricanes are classified » . The storm formed July 3 off Africa near the southern Cape Verde Islands. It strengthened into a hurricane Monday. The first tropical storm of the season, Arthur, formed May 31 near the coast of Belize and dumped heavy rain on Central America and southern Mexico. | NEW: Bermuda Weather Service issues tropical storm watch .
NEW: Hurricane Bertha's fringes expected to reach Bermuda on Saturday .
The Category 1 hurricane is causing large swells, high surf on Bermuda beaches . | cce5f389bea063d8bb0e123361e1fbffeeed39ca |
(CNN) -- Residents of a western Pennsylvania neighborhood can return home Sunday after a chemical leak forced them to evacuate the night before. Hundreds of residents were forced to flee Saturday after a chemical leak in Petrolia, Pennsylvania. Authorities surveyed the neighborhood in Petrolia and determined that no traces of the toxic chemical remained, said Freda Tarbell, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. A leak at the Indspec Chemical Corp. plant in Petrolia on Saturday formed a cloud affecting at least 2,000 residents -- some of whom fled their homes. Others huddled indoors with their windows shut, authorities said. Three people were taken to hospitals, but officials could not immediately say why. Watch why residents were asked to evacuate » . It was not immediately clear how many people were injured, though plant manager Dave Dorko said all employees and inspectors at the plant were safe and accounted for. Tarbell described the chemical as fuming sulfuric acid, which is also known as oleum. The plant uses the chemical during its production process, she said. The plant produces a chemical called Resorcinol -- essentially a strong glue used in the tire industry. The leak affected between 2,000 and 2,500 residents, Tarbell said. Some stayed the night with friends and relatives and some sought refuge in shelters. Others opted to stay indoors and "shut their windows and doors to make sure the acid cloud was not entering their home," she said. Ed Schrecengost, a former Indspec employee, said firefighters showed up at his son's wedding reception, urging the guests to leave. "It's about as dangerous as you can get," Schrecengost told CNN affiliate WPXI. "It's a very fuming acid. A quart bottle of this material could fill a household in two seconds." Dorko said the leak was caused by an overflow from a tank. The material, he said, evaporates easily, creating a toxic cloud. CNN's Saeed Ahmed and Janet DiGiacomo contributed to this report. | NEW: Environmental official says area surveyed, no traces of chemical remain .
Toxic cloud forms Saturday after chemical leak at Pennsylvania plant .
Three residents taken to hospital; extent of injuries not known . | 702c2aa8bae672c61d43b1a62707b224c5aff396 |
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (CNN) -- A court in Dubai has sentenced two Britons to three months in prison for having sex on a public beach in the Muslim country. File image of one of the co-accused -- Vince Acors -- arriving at court in Dubai in September. After they complete their sentence, the pair will be deported. They also have to pay a 1,000 dirhams ($367) fine for public indecency. Police charged Michelle Palmer, 36, and Vincent Acors, 34, with illicit relations, public indecency and public intoxication after their arrest at a beach shortly after midnight on July 5. Both denied that they had intercourse. "The public (prosecutor) failed to produce corroborative evidence against my clients concerning having consensual sex and committing indecent gestures in public," said the pair's lawyer, Hasan Mattar. He said the pair will appeal the verdict. Watch how case stirs up Dubai's bar scene » . The United Arab Emirates (UAE) -- where Dubai is located -- is home to thousands of expatriates and is among the most moderate Gulf states. Still, the oil-rich Gulf kingdom adheres to certain Islamic rules. More than a million British visitors traveled to the UAE in 2006, and more than 100,000 British nationals live there, according to the British Foreign Office. The country is in the midst of a building boom to position itself as one of the world's premier tourist destinations. It is already home to the world's largest mall, the world's largest tower, and -- despite being in the Middle East -- boasts the largest indoor snow park in the world. -- CNN's Caroline Faraj contributed to this report . | The two Britons will be deported after they complete their sentence .
The pair were arrested at a Dubai beach shortly after midnight on July 5 .
They were charged with with illicit relations, public indecency, public intoxication .
Although a relatively moderate Gulf state, Dubai adheres to certain Islamic rules . | 0ec4fb22f189f34e80f4e78812d04f0b40c9c57b |
ARLINGTON, Virginia (CNN) -- A suburban Washington man was bitten Monday by a rattlesnake that found its way into his luggage, a fire department spokesman said. An Eastern diamondback rattlesnake appears in a photo from the U.S. Geological Survey. "He felt a sharp pain, brought his hand out and saw the bite," said Benjamin Barksdale, assistant chief and chief fire marshal of the Arlington County, Virginia, Fire Department. Andrew Bacas zipped his bag shut and called 911 at about 9:30 a.m. ET, the official said. "He was conscious and alert but a little anxious," Barksdale said of the victim. The bite from the young Eastern diamond rattlesnake was not life-threatening, and the man is being treated at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, he said. "We took the bag outside and used a [carbon dioxide] fire extinguisher to freeze the snake," killing it, Barksdale said. Bacas, a high school rowing coach, had been on a six-day trip to Summerton, South Carolina, with about 80 students, said Mike Krulfeld, director of student activities at Yorktown High School in Arlington. Krulfeld said he did not think the incident was a student prank. "It's been rare to find a coach who is as well-liked and highly regarded as Andy. I would find it hard to believe they would do anything even in the name of a prank that would cause harm to him," Krulfeld said. The Web site of the school's crew team warned members to take precautions unpacking from the trip, adding, "It's advisable to open bags and unpack outdoors." "It got into his bag somehow at the location where they were staying," said Kay Speerstra, executive director of the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. "Nobody noticed it until he was unpacking, and then he definitely noticed it." Speerstra said the snake was about 10 inches long and appeared to be a juvenile. E-mail to a friend . | NEW: High school rowing coach had been on trip with students to South Carolina .
A 10-inch-long diamondback rattlesnake killed by blast from fire extinguisher .
Victim treated at hospital; bite reportedly not life-threatening . | 617fd2aa85a843dec2d605daf7ad3717860c4f70 |
(CNN) -- When news breaks, D.L. Hughley will be ready to mock it. D.L. Hughley starred in "The Hughleys" and "The Original Kings of Comedy." CNN announced Wednesday that it will premiere a new, "unconventional" weekend show hosted by comedian D.L. Hughley. "D.L. Hughley Breaks the News," as the show is currently titled, will feature Hughley's humorous take on the week's events. It will also include interviews with newsmakers and reporters, according to the network. "D.L. Hughley Breaks the News" is scheduled to debut Saturday, October 25. "I am very excited for the opportunity to work with the network that I have watched for a very long time, and that to a large extent, has shaped my comedic view," Hughley said in a press release. "CNN offers the perfect blend of news and information on a local, national and international level. What more can a comedian ask for?" "D.L. is a news junkie who is bursting with things to say about what is going on in the world -- most of them funny, all of them thoughtful, none of them predictable," said Jon Klein, president of CNN/U.S. "When you watch as much news as our audience does, there comes a time you just want to stop and laugh -- and that time will be Saturday nights at 10 on CNN." The show will resemble the late-night talk shows of Jay Leno and David Letterman more than Jon Stewart's "Daily Show," according to Hughley. Hughley is known for his acting and his standup performances. The comedian spent four seasons on his own sitcom, "The Hughleys," and was one of the stars of Aaron "West Wing" Sorkin's series, "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip." The performer was also one of the "Original Kings of Comedy," along with Bernie Mac, Steve Harvey and Cedric the Entertainer. CNN and CNN.com are units of Time Warner. | "D.L. Hughley Breaks the News" premieres on CNN October 25 .
Comedian Hughley known for "The Hughleys," "Studio 60"
Show to feature interviews, comedic takes on the news . | 8db128b7c4de968670d89ca4fe14aab13d537e3f |
DUNN, North Carolina (CNN) -- Barack Obama's campaign announced Sunday the Democratic presidential candidate raised $150 million in donations in September, setting a new high-water mark in campaign fundraising. Barack Obama calls a prospective voter from a headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday. In a campaign video, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said a record 632,000 new donors gave to the campaign, with the average contribution under $100. More than 3 million donors have given so far. The Obama campaign raised $65 million in August. Regardless of the stunning haul, Plouffe told supporters the campaign still needed more money because of "the slime that we're getting from the McCain campaign." Plouffe cited recent attack ads and automated phone calls in battleground states and said the campaign needed to have every resource to "fight back." "Their campaign is going to descend even more into the gutter," he said. Plouffe also said the campaign was expanding its reach to compete "aggressively" in West Virginia. Tightening polls in Georgia and North Dakota meant more money and resources could be sent to those two states in the remaining days, he said. "We can't afford to make any cuts. We have to execute everything we think is required to win," Plouffe said of their battleground strategy. "None of us can look back on the night of November 4 or the morning of November 5 and wished we had done something extra." The McCain campaign accepted $85 million in federal matching funds for the last two months of the campaign. The Obama campaign opted out of the matching funds program and is free to raise and spend as much money as it can. CNN's Paul Steinhauser and Sasha Johnson contributed to this report. | September amount is biggest monthly fundraising total for a presidential campaign .
Obama campaign added 632,000 new donors in September .
McCain accepted $85 million in federal funds for last two months of campaign . | a2454303758f0f74b8f00582145d852fd63ba279 |
Founded in 1805 in Geneva, Pictet & Cie is today one of Switzerland's largest private banks, and one of the premier independent asset management specialists in Europe. Moreover, it is considered one of the leading independent asset management banks in Europe. Pictet & Cie is a partnership owned and managed by eight general partners with unlimited liability for the bank's commitments. "Banque de Candolle Mallet & Cie" was founded on 23 July 1805. It was run by two partner-managers, Jacob-Michel François de Candolle and Jacques-Henry Mallet, and three limited partners, Jean-Louis Mallet, Paul Martin and Jean-Louis Falquet. Following a period of relative stagnation, marked by two world wars and the economic depression of the 1930s, Pictet & Cie began to develop extensively from the 1950s on. Despite the negative outlook in the aftermath of war, the western world experienced a period of prosperity and economic growth. Geneva became one of the world's leading diplomatic and financial centres. Since the turn of the millennium, the Pictet Group has experienced some significant changes and events, such as its continued strong growth, the Bank's Bicentennial in 2005 and, the following year, the inauguration of its new headquarters in Acacias, Geneva. The company boasts more than CHF 430 billion ($390 billion) in assets under management and custody as at end-September 2007. The Group employs over 2,800 people in the following locations: Geneva, Lausanne, Zurich, Barcelona, Florence, Frankfurt, Madrid, Milan, Paris, London, Luxembourg, Rome, Turin, Montreal, Nassau, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong and Tokyo. E-mail to a friend . | Pictet & Cie is one of Switzerland's largest private banks, founded in 1805 .
Managed by eight general partners with unlimited liability for its commitments .
In 2007, Pictet boasts more than $390 billion in assets under management, custody . | fa935d1c258d53b991cab9e0ae5a5dbdcc6dc34d |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy is having hundreds of its older F/A-18 fighter jets inspected, including some flying operations over Afghanistan, for cracks in part of a wing assembly, officials said Friday. Inspectors looking at F/A-18 fighter jets have found 15 with stress crack problems on the wings. Some 636 F/A-18 A through D model Hornets in both the Navy and the Marine Corps are being inspected for stress cracks on a hinge connecting the aileron to the flaps on the back side of the wings, according to Navy spokesmen. Inspectors started looking at the planes Thursday and have found 15 aircrafts with the problem. A panel on the wing can be swapped out with a new one to get rid of the problem. The Navy is still looking at the hinge in question to see whether the problem is severe enough to ground the Hornets and come up for a permanent fix for the hinge. Navy officials said there are no immediate plans to ground the 636 planes. This month, a post-flight inspection of one F/A-18 found a crack, and it was determined to be systemic enough to warrant an inspection of the older F/A-18s, according to Navy officials. The Navy also flies the Super Hornet, a newer version of the F/A-18. That plane is not part of this inspection. Navy flight operations around the world will not be interrupted because of the inspections, officials said. | 636 F/A-18 A through D model Hornets being inspected for stress crack .
Inspectors started looking at planes Thursday and have found 15 with problem .
Navy officials said there are no immediate plans to ground the planes . | e5cf3d6f753003ca45550ffb2873699530fb3c9c |
TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Bolivian President Evo Morales arrived Monday in Iran on his first official visit to the country, the Iranian Press TV reported. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, right, greets Bolivia's leader, Evo Morales, on Monday in Tehran. Morales is expected to meet with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to "review issues of mutual interest" between the Islamic republic and the leftist South American nation, according to the national news agency IRNA. The Bolivian leader arrived in Tehran from Libya, where he met with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Morales has described Iran and Bolivia as "two friendly and revolutionary countries," Press TV said. "The two countries are both energy producers and are staunchly opposed to U.S. hegemony." Morales, a former labor organizer and the country's first indigenous president, was elected in 2005. Like Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, with whom he maintains strong ties, Morales has sought to improve his relationship with Tehran. | Bolivian leader to "review issues of mutual interest" with Iran's president .
Bolivian President Evo Morales has sought to improve ties with Iran .
Bolivia, Iran "staunchly opposed to U.S. hegemony," Morales says .
Morales met with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi before Iran trip . | 3e0a592bb6e2bd6c645542cb4d21994c30f67e80 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- The family of a British soldier serving in Afghanistan has been forced from their home after a poisonous spider hitched a ride back with him and apparently killed their pet dog. The camel spider's bite is not deadly to humans but can kill small animals. Lorraine Griffiths and her three children, aged 18, 16, and 4, moved out of their house in Colchester, southeast England, and are refusing to return until the spider is apprehended, the UK Press Association reported. Griffiths told the East Anglian Daily Times that the spider appeared after her husband, Rodney, returned from a four-month tour of duty in Helmand province, the arid southern Afghan frontline in the fight against Taliban extremists. "My son Ricky was in my bedroom looking for his underwear, and he went into the drawer under my bed, and something crawled across his hand," she told the paper. She said their pet dog Cassie confronted the creature, which they identified on the Internet as a camel spider, but ran out whimpering when it hissed at her. Watch the family that has been terrorized by the spider » . "It seems too much of a coincidence that she died at the same time that we saw the spider," she said. The desert-dwelling camel spider, actually an insect rather than an arachnid, can run up to 25 kilometers (15 miles) an hour and reach 15 centimeters (6 inches) in length. Its bite is not deadly to humans but can kill small animals. | UK family forced from home as poisonous insect hitches in from Afghanistan .
Camel spider believed to have stowed away in soldier's luggage .
Family blames creature for death of pet dog Cassie . | a76bcc8a6ea58005f6699f52903c8059a365339e |
(CNN) -- A diamond unearthed in the southern African nation of Lesotho could yield one of the largest and highest quality round polished diamonds, according to a statement Monday from company that found it. A mining company unearthed this 478-carat diamond in the southern African nation of Lesotho. Experts in Antwerp, Belgium who analyzed the 478-carat stone determined it to be of the highest color grading available for a white diamond, said a statement from Gem Diamonds Ltd., the company that found the stone. "What makes it more remarkable is the color and quality of this stone," said diamond consultant Neil Buxton. "It's a D color, which is the highest possible graded color you can get, and we believe there is a chance -- a very good chance -- of getting a 100-carat plus" round stone with the highest color and clarity rankings. The company said such a stone would "to the best of our knowledge" be "the first one in history." Watch more on the diamond » . The diamond, which was found in September, ranks as the 20th largest rough diamond ever found, but is not the biggest ever taken from the Letseng Mine, which is co-owned by Gem Diamonds Ltd. and the Kingdom of Lesotho, a country of 2.1 million that is surrounded by South Africa. Two bigger stones -- 603 and 493 carats -- were found in the mine in 2006 and 2007, respectively, the company said. A 601-carat diamond was mined there in 1960, it said. | Diamond could yield one of the largest and highest quality round polished stones .
478-carat stone determined it to be of the highest color grading available .
Diamond found in Letseng Mine, in Lesotho . | 5d2bd08df8b8cc9c62bc438c060479dbebd1057c |
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani authorities have arrested four men in connection with the suicide truck bombing of a Marriott Hotel last month in Islamabad that killed more than 50 people, officials said Friday. More than 50 people died in last month's attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad. The men appeared Friday before a magistrate in an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi, police and Pakistan Federal Investigation Agency investigators said. Although they have not been charged, the magistrate is allowing police to hold them for a week while the investigation continues. The magistrate ordered them back to court on October 31. Authorities have not said how they believe these men are connected to the September 20 bombing. The men -- one of whom is a doctor -- were arrested at different times in different places, authorities said, but gave no additional details. They identified them as: Dr. Muhammad Usman and Tehseen Ulla Jaan, both from Peshawar; Ilyas Rana Muhammad, from a village near Faiselabad in Pakistan's Punjab province; and Hameed Afzal Muhammad, from Toba Taik Singh district, also in Punjab province. In addition to the dozens killed, some 250 people were wounded in the suicide truck attack, which sparked a fire that left the hotel in ruins. The hotel, located near the diplomatic section of Islamabad, had been popular among tourists visiting Pakistan. It was crowded the night of the bombing. | Four arrested on suspicion of involvement" in hotel blast in Pakistani capital .
More than people died in September 20 attack on Marriott hotel, 250-plus injured .
Authorities have not said how they believe the men are related to the blast . | 158d971eed0620519842ce4ca2a21f079303354b |
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani authorities have arrested four men in connection with the suicide truck bombing of a Marriott Hotel last month in Islamabad that killed more than 50 people, officials said Friday. More than 50 people died in last month's attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad. The men appeared Friday before a magistrate in an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi, police and Pakistan Federal Investigation Agency investigators said. Although they have not been charged, the magistrate is allowing police to hold them for a week while the investigation continues. The magistrate ordered them back to court on October 31. Authorities have not said how they believe these men are connected to the September 20 bombing. The men -- one of whom is a doctor -- were arrested at different times in different places, authorities said, but gave no additional details. They identified them as: Dr. Muhammad Usman and Tehseen Ulla Jaan, both from Peshawar; Ilyas Rana Muhammad, from a village near Faiselabad in Pakistan's Punjab province; and Hameed Afzal Muhammad, from Toba Taik Singh district, also in Punjab province. In addition to the dozens killed, some 250 people were wounded in the suicide truck attack, which sparked a fire that left the hotel in ruins. The hotel, located near the diplomatic section of Islamabad, had been popular among tourists visiting Pakistan. It was crowded the night of the bombing. | Four arrested on suspicion of involvement" in hotel blast in Pakistani capital .
More than people died in September 20 attack on Marriott hotel, 250-plus injured .
Authorities have not said how they believe the men are related to the blast . | 6f5ec209bf634b37f75d2e39e44dab3f796a4006 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- DJ and pop star Boy George has been denied a visa to enter the United States, his Web site said Tuesday. In 2007, George spent five days cleaning the streets of New York to fulfill a community service sentence. U.S. immigration authorities denied the visa because George, 48, faces trial in November in London on charges of false imprisonment relating to an April 2007 incident, according to a statement from Boy George's management, posted on his site. "George is astounded at the decision and is having his lawyers here in the States look at it in the hope that someone will change their mind," the statement read. Boy George, whose real name is George O'Dowd, was charged in London last November with false imprisonment following a complaint from a 28-year-old man, police said. The incident happened in East London the previous April, police said. George is free on unconditional bail and is not barred from traveling as he awaits trial, his management said. His upcoming schedule includes a series of U.S. club dates in July and August. George is best known as the singer of '80s pop group Culture Club, with hits including "Karma Chameleon" and "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" He quit the band in 1987 and embarked on a short solo career before reinventing himself as a club DJ and launching a fashion label, B-Rude. In August 2007, George spent five days cleaning the streets of Manhattan to fulfill a community service sentence for falsely reporting a break-in at his New York home. George's management said the denial of his U.S. visa had nothing to do with that case. | 48-year-old Boy George on trial in London in November .
Performer faces charges of false imprisonment relating to 2007 incident .
George is free on unconditional bail and is not barred from traveling .
Due to play series of U.S. club dates in July and August . | c6da0a82c7b7dc2f02e99d39f59cbb5397d495c2 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Pop star George Michael was cautioned by police in London after being arrested in public toilets on suspicion of possessing drugs, the UK's Press Association reported. George Michael has talked candidly about drug use in the past. In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said a 45-year-old man had been arrested in the Hampstead Heath area of London on Friday. He was later released with a caution for possession of class A and class C drugs. The statement did not name Michael, but other sources confirmed his identity. Reports Sunday said Michael had been arrested following a tip-off to police from a suspicious toilet attendant, PA said. The 45-year-old, who has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, has talked openly about his use of drugs in the past. In an inteview with the BBC last year he admitted: "I'm a happy man and I can afford my marijuana so that's not a problem." Last May he pleaded guilty to driving while unfit through drugs and was banned from driving for two years after being found slumped behind the wheel of his car. | George Michael cautioned after being arrested for drugs in London public toilet .
Pop star was released with a caution for possession of class A, class C drugs .
Press reports claim police were tipped off by a suspicious toilet attendant . | 71a483178d64864769034b45e7ced8ce89e21b27 |
LAS VEGAS, Nevada (CNN) -- A jury of nine women and three men -- none of them black -- was seated Thursday for the trial of O.J. Simpson on kidnapping and armed robbery charges. Judge Jackie Glass decided prosecutors had a "race-neutral" reason for dismissing the potential juror. The judge made no official mention of the jury's makeup, but prosecutors revealed in court that no blacks were on the jury. A black man and black woman, however, are among six alternate jurors. Defense attorneys had argued the prosecutors were deliberately trying to exclude blacks, but Judge Jackie Glass denied their challenges. Opening arguments are scheduled to begin Monday in the case against Simpson and a co-defendant, Clarence Stewart. Prosecutors say Simpson and five other men stormed into a Las Vegas hotel room on September 13, 2007 to recover sports memorabilia that Simpson said belonged to him. Prosecutors say at least two men with Simpson had guns as they robbed a pair of sports memorabilia dealers. If convicted on all counts, Simpson faces a possible sentence of life in prison. He has pleaded not guilty and has told CNN he was trying to get his property back. Four of five Simpson's original co-defendants have struck deals with the prosecution to testify against Simpson. One testified in a pre-trial hearing that "O.J. Simpson wanted me to have a weapon." Another testified that Simpson "wanted me to help him acquire some guns." An attorney for Simpson, Yale Galanter, has disputed that. "O.J. Simpson did not know that there were guns in that room," Galanter said. | NEW: Prosecutors revealed in court that no blacks were on the jury .
NEW: Opening arguments are scheduled to begin Monday .
Four of Simpson's original co-defendants have struck deals to testify against him .
Simpson faces robbery, kidnapping charges . | 23557ef12896a2409199577ea2831f675ee0fb36 |
HARARE, Zimbabwe (CNN) -- The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has introduced a $1,000 note -- $10 trillion in the old value -- as the country battles to end cash shortages in the hyper-inflationary environment. Zimbabwe's currency is trading around Z$350 -- $35 trillion in the old value -- against U.S. dollar. However, analysts said the new note -- which can only buy a loaf of bread -- will not ease pressure on cash shortages because of the ever-increasing prices. "It will not make even a small impact. What we need in Zimbabwe is a clear change of policies, start production and then inflation will start easing up," said John Robertson, an economic consultant. "The zeros seem to be coming back no matter how often they slash them." In August, Zimbabwe slashed ten zeroes on the currency; two years earlier the country slashed three zeros. The zeroes keep bouncing back in the country that has an inflation rate of 11.2 million -- the highest in the world. Zimbabwe's agro-based economy has been on a free-fall for more than a decade now. The situation was exacerbated by the destruction of commercial agriculture in 2000 when President Robert Mugabe's government embarked on a violent land grab from white farmers and gave it to inexperienced black farmers. Mugabe denies that he is to blame for the country's economic collapse, citing economic sanctions that have been placed on Zimbabwe. Since 2000, Zimbabwe's currency has been depreciating against major currency. It is trading around $350 Zimbabwean dollars -- $35 trillion in the old value -- against the U.S. dollar. | Z$1,000 note can only purchase a loaf of bread .
Zimbabwe's agro-based economy in free-fall for more than a decade .
Robert Mugabe blames country's economic collapse on sanctions . | b5b9281cd7c937fba6ccb79a7a3096a638118e3f |
(CNN) -- The Beijing Olympics has lost one of its major attractions after Maria Sharapova pulled out of the tennis tournament with a shoulder injury. Sharapova has treatment for a shoulder injury that has ruled her out of Olympics. The Russian world number three sustained the injury in beating Marta Domachowska of Poland at the WTA tournament in Montreal and immediately underwent an MRI scan to determine the extent of the problem. The result was not encouraging and Sharapova told her official Web site of her disappointment. "I'm currently packing up real quick to hop on a plane to New York for a second opinion (on the injury) but I wanted to let you all know first that there is no chance of me competing in Beijing," she said. "The timing is so unfortunate and this makes me more sad than anything." It is another shattering setback for 21-year Sharapova who started the year with a brilliant victory at the Australian Open but has since been struggling with injury and loss of form. Wednesday's match in Montreal was her first since a disappointing exit from Wimbledon. "After the match I knew there was something seriously wrong with my shoulder," she added. Sharapova's appearance in the final grand slam of the season at the U.S. Open, which takes place almost immediately after the Beijing Games, must also be in serious doubt. Sharapova joins a growing list of Beijing casualties, including Athens silver medallist Amelie Mauresmo and fellow Frenchwoman Mary Pierce. Meanwhile, Vera Zvonareva will replace Sharapova in the Russian team for Beijing, spokesman Vladimir Kamelzon has confirmed. | Maria Sharapova withdraws from the Bejing Olympics due to a shoulder injury .
Russian star aggravated the injury in three-set win at Rogers Cup Wednesday .
Sharapova now a serious doubt for the final grand slam at Flushing Meadows . | ad4ccc19383fe0b02fe0d72966db494994c1935e |
(CNN) -- A plane crash in eastern Guatemala on Sunday killed 10 people, including eight Americans, a Guatemalan official told CNN. A Cessna Caravan 208 carrying 14 people was en route from Aurora to El Estor when the pilot started making distress calls about engine failure about 45 minutes after takeoff, said Jose Carlos, Guatemala's director of civil aeronautics. The air traffic tower in Guatemala City lost communication with the plane at 9:45 a.m. The plane crashed in Zacapa, an agricultural hub about 115 kilometers (71 miles) east of Guatemala City, killing the pilot Monica Bonilla, co-pilot Luis Fernando LanFiesta and the Americans. Four other passengers were injured and taken to a local hospital. "It seems like the pilot tried her best to make a safe landing in a open field, but was not successful," said Ricardo Lemus, a Zacapa firefighter at the scene of the crash told reporters. "On impact, the aircraft was split into pieces." The charter flight was operated by Aero Ruta Maya. | Cessna Caravan 208 was en route from Aurora to El Estor .
Pilot started making distress calls about 45 minutes after takeoff .
Plane crashed in Zacapa, about 115 kilometers (71 miles) east of Guatemala City . | a16b42f38170030b1b9b7eda8c316d943c588aac |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- The British Museum plans to display a statue of supermodel Kate Moss that it bills as the largest gold statue built since ancient Egypt. The statue of Kate Moss will be displayed in the British Museum in a gallery holding anicent Greek sculpture. Called "Siren," the statue will be part of a group of major sculptures by leading British artists to go on display at the museum in October, the museum announced. The museum says the artist, Marc Quinn, claims it's the largest gold statue since ancient Egypt. His previous work included the marble sculpture Alison Lapper Pregnant, which appeared on a plinth in London's Trafalgar Square. The Kate Moss statue, weighing 50kg, will be displayed in a gallery of the museum that houses ancient Greek sculpture. The museum calls it a "fitting setting" for the statue of Moss, "interacting with the great Greek beauties that surround it." Moss, whose slight frame was at the forefront of the waif look in the mid-1990s, is now nearly as well known for her celebrity lifestyle as her modeling career. The one-time girlfriend of British rocker Pete Doherty is a tabloid newspaper and celebrity magazine favorite, and now dates Kills guitarist Jamie Hince. She has recently mixed her modeling work with designing collections for the British clothing giant, Topshop. Other artists exhibiting include Damien Hirst, who most recently created a $100 million diamond-covered skull, and Angel of the North creator Anthony Gormley. The exhibit is expected to run from October 4 through January 25, 2009. | Statue of Kate Moss billed as largest gold statue built since ancient Egypt .
Called "Siren," the statue will be on display at the British Museum .
Moss statue will be displayed in gallery housing ancient Greek sculpture . | f4e712962ec839fcbdd5cab8cd8586b53d960f1d |
(CNN) -- Two Russian bombers have landed at a Venezuelan airfield, from which they will carry out training flights for several days, the Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday. Russia's Tupolev TU-160, pictured here in 2003, is a long-range strategic bomber. The Tupolev Tu-160 strategic bombers landed at Venezuela's Libertador military airfield and "will spend several days carrying out training flights over neutral waters, after which they will return to the base," Interfax reported, citing the Russian Defense Ministry. Col. Alexander Drobyshevsky, a ministry spokesman, told Interfax that NATO fighters followed the bombers on their 13-hour flight over the Arctic Ocean and the Atlantic. "All flights by air force aircraft have been and are marked by strict conformity to the international rules on the use of air space over neutral waters," Drobyshevsky told Interfax. The U.S. will monitor the Russian training, said Pentagon officials who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak on the information. On Monday, Russia announced it might hold joint naval maneuvers with Venezuela in the Caribbean. The declaration came in the wake of increased tension between Russia and the United States over Russia's invasion last month of the former Soviet republic of Georgia, a U.S. ally that aspires to join NATO. Russia on Monday denied any link between that announcement and the conflict in Georgia, although Russia has criticized U.S. support for Georgia, and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has long antagonized Washington. Earlier this month, Chavez said Venezuela would welcome the Russian air force, according to Russian news agency Novosti. "If Russian long-range bombers should need to land in Venezuela, we would not object to that either. We will also welcome them," Chavez said on September 1, according to Novosti. CNN's Mike Mount contributed to this story . | Russian bombers will use airfield for training over neutral waters, Interfax reports .
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman: NATO fighters followed bombers .
Venezuelan president had said he'd welcome Russian air force, Novosti reports . | 06e7e7aac441a7c3f22f21c15a1958f3384f46ce |
(CNN) -- A 30-year-old dolphin at Sea World has died after colliding with another dolphin while performing aerial tricks, the Orlando, Florida, amusement park said Monday. The incident occurred about 4:30 p.m. Saturday at the Discovery Cove area of the park, according to a statement by Sea World spokeswoman Becca Bides. The animals were in the center of the lagoon and not near guests, she said. The dolphin who died was named Sharky. The other dolphin, Tyler, is being watched by veterinarians but appears to be fine, Bides said. "This is an unfortunate, random incident," Bides said in a written statement. "While it is not unusual to have two animals performing aerial behaviors at the same time, we are reviewing the situation to ensure even such a random incident does not occur again." E-mail to a friend . | Collision with another dolphin proves fatal to Sea World animal .
Dolphins were in center of lagoon, away from guests, when collision happened .
Park statement calls collision "an unfortunate, random incident" | b15a11d216a338d92e635539e48eac13b6a1e898 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is writing a prequel to her best-selling series to be auctioned for charity -- but at just 800 words, it may lack some of the magic fans of the boy wizard might be hoping for. Autographed copies of J.K. Rowling's work have fetched millions of dollars at auction. Rowling's hand-written prequel, signed by the author, will be auctioned alongside works by other famous writers to raise cash for a dyslexia charity. Despite the brevity of the piece, experts believe it could fetch big money, since other autographed works by the blockbuster author have sold for millions of dollars. "We never dreamed that J.K. Rowling would donate something so precious, and we're incredibly grateful," said Gerry Johnson, managing director of Waterstone's, the UK book chain organizing the auction. "I can't begin to guess how much it will raise at auction." A previous 93-word storycard from Rowling, which referred to the book "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," sold in 2002 for $53,000. Rowling later produced seven hand-written copies of a new work, "The Tales of Beedle the Bard," one of which sold for $3.9 million in 2007. "Given the enormous interest we have seen in recent times for autograph work by J.K. Rowling, the prospects for her storycard are good to say the least," said Philip Errington, a specialist at Sotheby's auction house, which is helping to organize the sale. The card on which the story is written -- measuring 14.6 by 20.9 centimeters (5.75 by 8.25 inches) -- is signed "JK Rowling 2008." The author signs off with the message: "From the prequel I am not working on -- but that was fun!" Alongside Rowling, 13 other authors invited to contribute to the June 10 auction include Margaret Atwood, Sebastian Faulks, Nick Hornby, and Tom Stoppard. A book featuring all 13 cards will go on sale in August. All profits from the book will benefit Dyslexia Action and English PEN, a writers' association, Waterstone's said. | Author J.K. Rowling pens Harry Potter prequel for charity auction .
Autographed 800-word piece will raise money for dyslexia charity .
Previous autographed Rowling pieces have raised millions of dollars . | 7d1ac9703ec57562903cb8238e356b04d7a01f72 |
(CNN) -- The mother of a missing toddler on Monday was arrested in connection with an alleged theft from one of her friends, Florida authorities said. Monday's arrest of Casey Anthony, mother of missing 3-year-old Caylee Anthony, was her second relating to the theft case and her third since the child disappeared three months ago. The latest charges -- passing a forged check, fraudulent use of personal identification and petty theft, according to an arrest affidavit released by the Orange County Sheriff's Office -- related to a theft from Casey Anthony's friend Amy Huizenga, authorities said. Anthony and her missing daughter have garnered national headlines and served as fodder for nightly crime shows, which show pictures of the wide-eyed toddler during their coverage. Watch Nancy Grace with the latest on the arrest » . Caylee disappeared in mid-June, and her mother waited nearly a month before reporting the disappearance, authorities said. Since then, evidence has mounted that Caylee is dead, authorities said. Anthony was first arrested on July 16 after she told detectives lies about her daughter's disappearance, according to police. She was charged with child neglect, making false official statements and obstructing a criminal investigation. While out on bail, Anthony on August 29 was arrested on suspicion of forgery, fraudulent use of personal information and petty theft related to the Huizenga case. She remained in jail until early September, when her $500,000 bail was posted anonymously. Police have labeled Anthony a "person of interest" in the case of her missing daughter. Anthony initially said she didn't immediately report her daughter missing because she was conducting her own investigation. Later, she told police she gave Caylee to a baby sitter. But investigators said they soon learned that the address she gave them was an apartment that hadn't been occupied for months. | Mother of missing 3-year-old Caylee Anthony charged with theft .
Arrest is her second relating to alleged theft from friend .
Authorities: Casey Anthony waited nearly a month before she reported girl missing .
Casey Anthony is "person of interest" in disappearance, authorities say . | 4c000361b448426117193f2ec0793ddd180cd17a |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Two men accused of failed car bomb attacks in London and a car bombing at Glasgow International Airport last year went on trial Thursday. Mohammed Asha, a doctor, is accused of conspiracy to murder and cause explosions. Bilal Abdulla and Mohammed Asha, both doctors, are charged with conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to cause explosions. Their trial at London's Woolwich Crown Court is expected to last up to 12 weeks. The case stems from the discovery in June 2007 of two explosives-filled Mercedes sedans in central London. One of the cars was parked across the street from a packed nightclub near Piccadilly Circus and the other was towed from an underground car park at Hyde Park. An ambulance crew notified police about the first car after they saw smoke coming from it. The second car was towed for a parking offense but drew suspicion because it smelled of gasoline. Officials said both cars cars were filled with fuel, gas canisters, and nails. Police managed to defuse them. The following day, with attention still focused on the averted attacks in the capital, a Jeep sped through the barriers outside Glasgow International Airport and slammed head on into the terminal. The Jeep, filled with propane gas, burst into flames and created a fireball. The driver and passenger jumped out of the car. One set himself on fire and later died in the hospital; the other was identified as Abdulla, an Iraqi doctor who had been practicing medicine in Scotland. Later that day, police arrested Asha as he was driving with his wife on a highway in Cheshire, England. Police said Asha, a doctor of Palestinian descent who grew up in Jordan, conspired with Abdulla to carry out the explosions. The incidents happened just days after British Prime Minister Gordon Brown took office. A third man charged in the case, Sabeel Ahmed, pleaded guilty in April to failing to disclose information about an act of terrorism. He was ordered to be deported to India. | Men accused of failed car bomb attacks in London and Glasgow go on trial .
Bilal Abdulla and Mohammed Asha charged with conspiracy to murder .
The men, both doctors, also charged with conspiracy to cause explosions . | 39fa44e35aa12d6c006b9d13f329a5732f7e78b7 |
(CNN) -- Police have arrested a 33-year-old man accused of killing his brother and five other people, including two children, at a Memphis, Tennessee, home. Jessie L. Dotson, who was recently released after serving 14 years in prison for murder, was captured Friday night. He faces six counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Cecil Dotson, his 30-year-old brother; Hollis Seals, 33; Shindri Roberson, 20; Marissa Rene Williams, 26; and two children, said Memphis Director of Police Larry A. Godwin at a news conference Saturday. Dotson will also be charged with the attempted murder of three other children -- ages 7, 4 and 10 months -- who received stab wounds and blunt force trauma, Godwin said. Dotson's brother Cecil was the father of all the children, The Associated Press reported. Those who survived the attack were under police custody at a hospital, according to the AP. The March 2 killings followed an argument between Jessie and Cecil Dotson, Godwin said. Jessie Dotson shot his brother dead and went on to kill the others to try to cover up the crime, he said. "[Dotson] thought everyone in the home was dead," Godwin said. "But as we all know, by the grace of God, three children had survived." Prosecutors said they are considering seeking the death penalty against Dotson. E-mail to a friend . | Jessie L. Dotson was recently released after serving 14 years in prison for murder .
He was captured Friday night and faces six counts of first-degree murder .
Four adults and two children were found dead; three children survived .
Prosecutors say they are considering seeking the death penalty . | d18243fb3919e08a39c96420ce2260faf78f53b4 |
(CNN) -- A passenger who landed at Tokyo's Narita airport over the weekend has ended up with a surprise souvenir courtesy of customs officials -- a package of cannabis. Sniffer dogs failed to find the cannabis after it had been slipped into a passenger's bag. A customs official hid the package in a suitcase belonging to a passenger arriving from Hong Kong as part of an exercise for sniffer dogs on Sunday, Reuters.com reported. However, staff then lost track of the drugs and suitcase during the exercise, a spokeswoman for Tokyo customs said. Customs regulations specify that a training suitcase be used for such exercises, but the official had used passengers' suitcases for similar purposes in the past, domestic media reported. Tokyo customs has asked anyone who finds the package to return it. | Customs official slips cannabis into passenger's bag to test sniffer dogs .
Cannabis slips through the net, with officials forced to ask for its return .
Cannabis hidden in bag of unwitting passenger from Hong Kong . | bf78014519d01ed9b18525cadb983003696cb8c7 |
(CNN) -- German logistics giant Deutsche Post said Monday it was cutting 9,500 jobs as part of a major program to restructure its loss-making DHL delivery service in the United States. DHL's restructuring is expected to result in heavy job losses. Deutsche Post said it would discontinue its U.S. ground and air delivery operations based out of Wilmington, Ohio, following an outsourcing agreement with UPS. DHL Express will continue to operate between the United States and other nations, the company said in a statement. DHL's 9,500 job cuts are on top of 5,400 job cuts announced earlier this year. The statement said DHL was shutting down all ground hubs and reducing its number of stations to 103 from 412. The company said it was making the cuts to improve profitability and "to prepare the company for the economic challenges ahead." DHL Express is owned by the German company Deutsche Post World Net. Officials in Ohio had been hoping to prevent layoffs. State senator Sherrod Brown sent a letter Sunday to DHL Express Chief Executive Officer John Mullen and urged employment officials in Washington for emergency funds to assist workers and communities affected. In May, Deutsche Post announced plans to outsource air services with UPS. Brown says the plan would mean shutting down DHL's hub in Wilmington and cutting at least 8,000 jobs. Brown testified at two congressional hearing this year that centered on the proposal. Prior to the announcement, Wilmington Mayor David Razik said he was preparing for the worst. "Given the state of the economy and the world wide economic collapse we know it can't be good news," he told CNN Sunday night. "Freight is down significantly, DHL is losing customers, they have laid off sales personnel in other locations. We really think it's certainly not going to be good for Wilmington." | German owners of DHL announce 9,500 job cuts .
Owner Deutsche Post says U.S. air and ground operations to wind up .
Officials in Ohio had hoped to prevent job losses . | 646df785949828d895020652ad0301afef17a96d |
(CNN) -- German logistics giant Deutsche Post said Monday it was cutting 9,500 jobs as part of a major program to restructure its loss-making DHL delivery service in the United States. DHL's restructuring is expected to result in heavy job losses. Deutsche Post said it would discontinue its U.S. ground and air delivery operations based out of Wilmington, Ohio, following an outsourcing agreement with UPS. DHL Express will continue to operate between the United States and other nations, the company said in a statement. DHL's 9,500 job cuts are on top of 5,400 job cuts announced earlier this year. The statement said DHL was shutting down all ground hubs and reducing its number of stations to 103 from 412. The company said it was making the cuts to improve profitability and "to prepare the company for the economic challenges ahead." DHL Express is owned by the German company Deutsche Post World Net. Officials in Ohio had been hoping to prevent layoffs. State senator Sherrod Brown sent a letter Sunday to DHL Express Chief Executive Officer John Mullen and urged employment officials in Washington for emergency funds to assist workers and communities affected. In May, Deutsche Post announced plans to outsource air services with UPS. Brown says the plan would mean shutting down DHL's hub in Wilmington and cutting at least 8,000 jobs. Brown testified at two congressional hearing this year that centered on the proposal. Prior to the announcement, Wilmington Mayor David Razik said he was preparing for the worst. "Given the state of the economy and the world wide economic collapse we know it can't be good news," he told CNN Sunday night. "Freight is down significantly, DHL is losing customers, they have laid off sales personnel in other locations. We really think it's certainly not going to be good for Wilmington." | German owners of DHL announce 9,500 job cuts .
Owner Deutsche Post says U.S. air and ground operations to wind up .
Officials in Ohio had hoped to prevent job losses . | efcd3ea5d9af29ba648aea49ce64eb1b8416efbe |
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (Reuters) -- The light from the cell phone screens allowed surgeons to complete an emergency appendix operation during a blackout in a city in central Argentina, reports said on Saturday. Leonardo Molina, 29, was on the operating table on July 21, when the power went out in the Policlinico Juan D. Peron, the main hospital in Villa Mercedes, a small city in San Luis province. "The generator, which should have been working correctly, didn't work," a hospital spokesman, whose name was not given, told TN television news station. "The surgeons and anesthetists were in the dark... A family member got some cell phones together from people in the hallway and took them in to provide light," he said. Ricardo Molina, 39, Leonardo's brother, told La Nacion newspaper that the lights were out for an hour and his brother's anesthesia was wearing off. E-mail to a friend . Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Surgeons complete emergency appendix operation with light from cell phones .
The power went out in the main hospital in Villa Mercedes, central Argentina .
The hospital's generator, which should have been working correctly, didn't work . | 629d8a7a68d3aebd127760d31077a01e8832c848 |
(CNN) -- A Warren Township, Ohio, man faces charges of felonious assault after authorities say he fired his rifle at two teens who were attempting to deface his McCain presidential campaign yard sign. Police say the man's sign is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs. Kenneth Rowles, 50, pleaded not guilty to the charge Monday, according to CNN affiliate WBNS. Bail was set at $10,000. Rowles told police he was sitting on his porch Saturday when a tan SUV pulled up and a black youth jumped out and ran toward his house, screaming, "This is for Obama." He said another male was hanging out of the passenger window screaming the same thing. Rowles said he went inside, got his rifle and fired three shots to scare the youths away, according to a Warren Township police report. He told officers he believes that the men "were the same two that have been destroying his McCain sign." Just hours before the shooting, Rowles called police and said that a car had stopped in front of his house and that a black male "ran up and said something about Obama," according to the report, and "damaged his sign again." One of the youths, 17-year-old Kyree Flowers, was shot in the arm, according to a police report. He and the second youth, Patrick Wise Jr., 16, told police they were in the car attempting to leave when Rowles fired at them. "Kyree stated that he witnessed the homeowner trying to shoot Patrick but he was having trouble chambering a round," the police report said. The teens admitted that they had defaced the McCain sign several times, Warren Township police Lt. Don Bishop told CNN. Rowles' is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs, he said. Bishop said the teenagers probably will not be charged -- and are unlikely to damage campaign signs again, as the incident scared them. Warren Township is in Trumbull County not far from Cleveland, Ohio. | Man pleads not guilty to charges of felonious assault .
Police: Youths admitted defacing McCain sign several times .
It is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs, police say .
Teenagers probably will not be charged; one was shot in arm . | 41b83a899c56109dc873905c8b177d8dd9dfbfbf |
(CNN) -- A Warren Township, Ohio, man faces charges of felonious assault after authorities say he fired his rifle at two teens who were attempting to deface his McCain presidential campaign yard sign. Police say the man's sign is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs. Kenneth Rowles, 50, pleaded not guilty to the charge Monday, according to CNN affiliate WBNS. Bail was set at $10,000. Rowles told police he was sitting on his porch Saturday when a tan SUV pulled up and a black youth jumped out and ran toward his house, screaming, "This is for Obama." He said another male was hanging out of the passenger window screaming the same thing. Rowles said he went inside, got his rifle and fired three shots to scare the youths away, according to a Warren Township police report. He told officers he believes that the men "were the same two that have been destroying his McCain sign." Just hours before the shooting, Rowles called police and said that a car had stopped in front of his house and that a black male "ran up and said something about Obama," according to the report, and "damaged his sign again." One of the youths, 17-year-old Kyree Flowers, was shot in the arm, according to a police report. He and the second youth, Patrick Wise Jr., 16, told police they were in the car attempting to leave when Rowles fired at them. "Kyree stated that he witnessed the homeowner trying to shoot Patrick but he was having trouble chambering a round," the police report said. The teens admitted that they had defaced the McCain sign several times, Warren Township police Lt. Don Bishop told CNN. Rowles' is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs, he said. Bishop said the teenagers probably will not be charged -- and are unlikely to damage campaign signs again, as the incident scared them. Warren Township is in Trumbull County not far from Cleveland, Ohio. | Man pleads not guilty to charges of felonious assault .
Police: Youths admitted defacing McCain sign several times .
It is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs, police say .
Teenagers probably will not be charged; one was shot in arm . | c3a4a74ec9a495510a6fd23211ba43d5b2dfa02a |
(CNN) -- Former first lady Barbara Bush was moved out of the intensive care unit of a Houston, Texas, hospital into a regular room Thursday after surgery to repair and seal a perforated ulcer, a hospital spokeswoman said. Ex-first lady Barbara Bush has been moved out of ICU and into a regular room. Bush, 83, was in good spirits and was joking with hospital staffers, the Methodist Hospital spokeswoman said. She was being fed intravenously. Her doctor said earlier she will be allowed no food by mouth for about a week, to avoid possibly stretching her abdominal area. The former first lady showed up at Methodist's emergency room Tuesday night complaining of severe abdominal pain, Dr. Patrick Reardon, who performed the surgery, told reporters Wednesday. Doctors determined Bush had a perforated ulcer in her duodenum, the first portion of the small intestine after the stomach, he said. In the operating room, doctors thoroughly cleaned her abdominal cavity of any contaminants that had leaked through the hole, described by the hospital as being one centimeter in diameter. Then, doctors repaired the ulcer and sewed a piece of the fat tissue in the abdomen, on top of it to seal it, Reardon said. Bush's husband, former President George H.W. Bush, was with her Thursday morning, but was leaving to attend Thanksgiving dinner with his son Neil, the Methodist Hospital spokeswoman told CNN. The ulcer was biopsied and is benign, Reardon said Wednesday. He suggested it might have been caused by anti-inflammatory medications. CNN's Sean Callebs contributed to this report. | Barbara Bush had surgery to repair and seal a perforated ulcer .
Bush, 83, is in good spirits and was joking with hospital staffers .
Former first lady being fed intravenously to avoid stretching abdomen .
The ulcer has been biopsied and is benign . | debd52f3efc13dee3dce1f10c5843213ca76dcbe |
SINGAPORE (CNN) -- Hundreds of customers flocked to the Singapore office of troubled insurer American International Group Inc. (AIG) on Wednesday, many hoping to pull their investments and policies from the company. People in Singapore queue outside the office of AIA, a subsidiary of AIG. The crowd formed just hours after the U.S. Federal Reserve Board authorized the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to lend $85 billion to a crumbling AIG. In return, the federal government will receive a nearly 80 percent stake in the company. One person who lined up in Singapore, retired teacher Wong Yoke Inn, said she was going to pull her investments from AIA even though it would cost her about $3,000 -- the equivalent of about $2,000 in the United States. She joined an orderly crowd whose members were each given a number and a time to return to meet with a representative of AIA Singapore -- AIG's division in the island nation. AIA tried to allay investors concerns in a statement distributed outside the Singapore office and posted on the company's Web site. "AIA Singapore has more than sufficient capital and reserves ... to meet our obligations to policyholders," the statement said. "The funds maintained in Singapore are segregated from American International Group, Inc. (AIG) and are held specifically for the purpose of meeting our obligations to policyholders." The U.S. government announced Tuesday night that it would act to save America's largest insurer from filing for bankruptcy. Such a move almost certainly would have further roiled world markets already reeling from the bankruptcy filling of Lehman Brothers and the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America. AIG has $1.1 trillion in assets and 74 million clients in 130 countries. | Hundreds queue outside AIG subsidiary in Singapore following news of U.S. bailout .
U.S. Fed announces $85 billion loan to one of world's largest insurers .
Singapore offices try to ease worries of policyholders . | 91a2af94dc01e4478f3fe8a96c2bb225f2d6ec73 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- A juvenile court in Ghana has sentenced two teenage girls from Great Britain to nine months in jail for trying to smuggle cocaine out of the country, Ghana's national news agency said Wednesday. The girls were stopped by customs officials at Accra trying to smuggle drugs back to Britain. The 16-year-olds will not have to serve the full sentence because they have already spent more than six months in jail, a British Foreign Office spokesman said. Fair Trials International, a UK-based group that provided legal assistance to the pair, said in a statement Wednesday that it will decide in the coming days whether to appeal. The girls faced a maximum sentence of three years but are expected to be released on April 18, the group said. For now, the girls are housed in a correctional home for girls in the country's capital, Accra. Ghanaian police arrested the teenagers as they were readying to board a British Airways flight back to London last July. When officials searched their laptop bags as part of departure formalities, they found about 6 kg (13 lbs) of cocaine, the Ghana News Agency and British media reports said. Authorities in Ghana said a man paid the girls 6,000 pounds (about $11,700) to fly to Ghana to retrieve the laptop bags containing the drugs from two of his associates, the news agency added. Those men have not been caught. Fair Trials called the girls "pawns in a larger operation. "It is deeply unfortunate that they, and not the men who lured them to Ghana, are bearing the consequences," said the group's chief executive, Catherine Wolthuizen. Ghana and other West African countries have become a transit point for drugs headed to Europe. The girls were arrested in a joint Britain-Ghana drug detection operation, the United Kingdom's customs agency said Wednesday. E-mail to a friend . | British teens sentenced to nine months in prison for trying to smuggle cocaine .
The duo, both 16, were arrested in Ghana on July 2, 2007 at Accra's airport .
Girls unlikely to serve whole sentence as have been in jail more than 6 months . | 6a7c84f9727de4f595b7ea476f273ba6eea7a4d1 |
David C. Novak became chairman of the board at Yum! Brands on January 1, 2001, and chief executive officer on January 1, 2000. Yum! Brands's CEO, David Novak talks to CNN's Maggie Lake in The Boardroom. He also serves as president of Yum, a position he has held since October 21, 1997. Mr. Novak previously served as Group President and Chief Executive Officer, KFC and Pizza Hut from August 1996 to July 1997, at which time he became acting Vice Chairman of Yum. He is a director of J.P. Morgan Chase. Novak is a member of the Yum! Brands Executive committee. In his spare time Novak is a keen golfer and has even played a round with golf legend Tiger Woods. E-mail to a friend . | David Novak was made CEO of Yum! Brands in January 2000 .
He is a director of Global financial services firm J.P. Morgan Chase .
A keen golfer, Novak has teed off with Tiger Woods . | 64c3f4b04f8ba41618bde6de0226b7f202396024 |
(CNN) -- Investigators have named Casey Anthony a suspect in the mid-June disappearance of her toddler daughter, Caylee, Florida authorities said Wednesday. Casey Anthony had been called a "person of interest" in her daughter's disappearance. Police had previously labeled Anthony -- who authorities said didn't report the 3-year-old child's disappearance until mid-July -- a "person of interest" in the case. "Casey is a suspect," said Orange County Sheriff's Department Capt. Angelo Nieves. "She has been uncooperative, leading investigators down the wrong path and lying to them. She has not provided any credible information about the last time she saw her or where she was left." Casey Anthony of Orlando, Florida, was arrested July 16 on suspicion of telling detectives lies about Caylee's disappearance. She was released on bail after that arrest and subsequent arrests on unrelated theft charges. Authorities said weeks ago that evidence suggests Caylee is dead. Investigators found evidence of human decomposition in the trunk of Anthony's car, authorities have said. Law enforcement sources also suggested that a strand of hair found in the trunk of the car was Caylee's. Watch Nancy Grace speak to Casey Anthony's "babysitter" » . Authorities also have said they found traces of chloroform in the car Anthony drove and Internet searches of chloroform Web sites on her computer. Anthony and her daughter have garnered national headlines and served as fodder for nightly crime shows. Protesters have held vigils outside Anthony's home pleading with her to give police more information about Caylee's whereabouts. In connection with her July arrest, Anthony was charged with child neglect, making false official statements and obstructing a criminal investigation. CNN's Andrew Iden and Natisha Lance contributed to this report. | Police: Casey Anthony has been "leading ... investigators down the wrong path."
Caylee Anthony, 3, reported missing month after her June disappearance, police say .
Police have said evidence suggests Florida toddler is dead . | abc858ceeefaa3815a64c87cff5eb777aaaff906 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Cholera is caused by becoming infected with a bacterium called vibrio cholera. It's a disease that affects the bowels and in its most severe form is characterized by acute watery diarrhoea that can lead to immediate death through severe dehydration and kidney failure. A man from Zimbabwe wheels his sick relative to a cholera clinic. Almost 12,000 people have contracted cholera since August in Zimbabwe, and the outbreak threatens to kill even greater numbers as the water situation becomes more desperate. Unicef says it plans on providing a month's supply of water treatment chemicals for the capital Harare where water supply has been cut off because the government of Robert Mugabe is unable to buy chemicals needed to clean tap water. With the world's eyes on Zimbabwe where it is estimated that more than 500 people have already died , many myths and misconceptions abound about cholera. CNN compiles some crucial cholera facts: . --Unlike other diarrhoeal diseases, cholera can kill a healthy adult within hours. --Cholera's short incubation period of two hours to five days enhances the potential for increased outbreaks . --Seventy-five percent of people infected with cholera do not exhibit any symptoms. --A total of 236 896 cases were reported in 2006, an overall increase of 79% compared with the number of cases reported in 2005 . --People who have HIV or are malnourished have a greater risk of dying from cholera than others. --The disease is mostly spread through contaminated water and food supplies. --The belief that cholera epidemics are caused by dead bodies after a disaster is false. --Cholera remains a problem in almost every developing country . --If untreated, as many as one in two people may die. --The true burden of the disease is grossly underestimated as not all cases are reported. Source: World Health Organization . | Cholera is a disease that affects the bowels and untreated .
Malnourished and HIV-infected people are at a high risk for death if infected .
Cholera is transmitted through contaminated water and food supplies . | e0b56eeb9daba3c14b4728b9edbdd50be12f2794 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- French speed sailing trimaran,l'Hydroptere has broken yet another world record as its crew draw closer to two major milestones. The flying yacht: French trimaran l'Hydroptere is closing in on two major speed sailing records. L'Hydroptere is now the fastest yacht in history over 500 meters and one nautical mile, after its average speeds of 46.88 knots and 43.09 knots respectively were ratified by the British World Sailing Speed Record Council (WSSRC). The records were set by Alain Thebault and his crew off Port Saint-Louis du Rhone near Marseille in the south of France. The boat is now poised to pass the 100km per hour mark (54 knots) after reaching a peak of 53.69 knots in training last month. The major record the l'Hydroptere is trying to claim is the world "absolute speed sailing record," which is currently held by American kite surfer Robert Douglas, who achieved 49.84 knots over 500m earlier this year. Thebault and his crew now have until 22 December to establish new records this year. These attempts will be presided over and measured by a representative from the World Sailing Speed Record Council. Thébault told CNN he had a long-held dream of skippering a boat that could "fly." He said several subtle design changes had been made to the boat in 2008 and he's confident the crew can produce the record speed in the near future. "I think the boat is ready now. I have always dreamed about a flying yacht. It was a big emotion for all of the crew and myself when we passed 50 knots," he said. | L'Hydroptere is the new fastest yacht over 500 meters and one nautical mile .
The boat is based in Marseille and is skippered by Frenchman Alain Thebault .
The crew are now poised to pass the 100 kilometers per hour mark (54 knots) | ff6ce6b88b20829714c9c980b948f8909f46d393 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- French speed sailing trimaran,l'Hydroptere has broken yet another world record as its crew draw closer to two major milestones. The flying yacht: French trimaran l'Hydroptere is closing in on two major speed sailing records. L'Hydroptere is now the fastest yacht in history over 500 meters and one nautical mile, after its average speeds of 46.88 knots and 43.09 knots respectively were ratified by the British World Sailing Speed Record Council (WSSRC). The records were set by Alain Thebault and his crew off Port Saint-Louis du Rhone near Marseille in the south of France. The boat is now poised to pass the 100km per hour mark (54 knots) after reaching a peak of 53.69 knots in training last month. The major record the l'Hydroptere is trying to claim is the world "absolute speed sailing record," which is currently held by American kite surfer Robert Douglas, who achieved 49.84 knots over 500m earlier this year. Thebault and his crew now have until 22 December to establish new records this year. These attempts will be presided over and measured by a representative from the World Sailing Speed Record Council. Thébault told CNN he had a long-held dream of skippering a boat that could "fly." He said several subtle design changes had been made to the boat in 2008 and he's confident the crew can produce the record speed in the near future. "I think the boat is ready now. I have always dreamed about a flying yacht. It was a big emotion for all of the crew and myself when we passed 50 knots," he said. | L'Hydroptere is the new fastest yacht over 500 meters and one nautical mile .
The boat is based in Marseille and is skippered by Frenchman Alain Thebault .
The crew are now poised to pass the 100 kilometers per hour mark (54 knots) | 80dbebbb6f7c1b314f18fc9193eab3f51edc95cd |
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (CNN) -- Auto insurers report that about 60,000 vehicles were stolen in just over a year in Mexico, the highest figure in the past decade. Mexico City, Mexico, has a well-deserved reputation for heavy traffic. Now car thefts may be added to the list. That's no surprise to Guillermo Cruz, who has bought two new cars this year: the first after his original car was stolen, and the second three months later after two armed men pointed guns at him, got in and drove off with Cruz inside. "They dropped me off in the street and I thought they had already left, and I went back" to where they had taken it, he said. "And still they hadn't left; they were inside the car. And one man said to the other, 'Let's shoot him because he's becoming annoying.' " According to the Mexican Association of Insurance Institutions, the capital of Mexico City is a favorite site for car thieves to work. "If we talk about data from the federal district, we can say that we have 16,000 automobiles stolen, an increase of 10 percent from October 2007 to September 2008," said Recaredo Arias, a spokesman for the association. He said drug traffickers have contributed to the increase by pushing other bands of criminals into new lines of business. "Perhaps they are taking up so much space from the point of view of the sources of income as from the point of view of supply and distribution of drugs to these bands and, as a result, the bands are looking for other types of crimes," he speculated. Authorities say they are making efforts to fight the crime, though some observers predict that the incidence of car theft will rise further as the world economic crisis worsens. | About 60,000 vehicles were stolen in just over a year, Mexican insurers report .
The problem is particularly acute in the capital of Mexico City .
Observers predict car thefts will rise further as world economic crisis worsens .
One Mexican man says he's had two new cars stolen in three months . | 27d7f005f5e28d8c3d4678e17e648389083b6842 |
HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) -- Former Cuban President Fidel Castro says he is open to the idea of meeting with U.S. President-elect Barack Obama. Former Cuban President Fidel Castro has largely been out of the political scene since falling ill in 2006. "With Obama, one can talk whenever he wants, because we're not preachers of violence or war," the communist leader wrote in an essay published Thursday on a state-run Web site. "He must be reminded that the carrot-and-stick theory cannot be applied in our country." Friday's missive marked the second time in recent weeks that a Cuban leader has said he is open to meeting with Obama. In the latest issue of The Nation, actor Sean Penn writes of his recent conversation in Havana with Raúl Castro, who took over as president this year from his ailing brother. According to Penn, Raúl Castro told him, "Perhaps we could meet at Guantanamo. We must meet and begin to solve our problems, and at the end of the meeting, we could give the president a gift. ... We could send him home with the American flag that waves over Guantanamo Bay." Obama has called for the U.S. detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay naval base on the island of Cuba to be closed. Despite the indications that the Cuban leadership is open to warmer relations with its neighbor to the north after 47 years of a U.S.-imposed trade embargo, some in Havana expressed skepticism that the impending change in leadership in the United States will translate in to a changed Cuban policy. "Obama is a product of the American empire," Carlos Pose said. But Elisany, a high school student, said she's hopeful. "We've got to wait and see. I hope things change." | "We're not preachers of violence or war," Castro writes in essay .
Actor Sean Penn writes that Castro's brother also open to meeting .
Some in Havana skeptical of change in U.S. policy . | 27d0b62b9dc9ab05db189f4963bcf42337701aa2 |
(CNN) -- The daughter of Sen. Dick Durbin died Saturday from a congenital heart condition, the Illinois Democrat's office said. "Chris Durbin, 40, fought a heroic lifelong battle with heart disease and our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Durbin family," said Durbin's spokesman, Joe Shoemaker. Chris Durbin worked for 16 years for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington. Survivors include her husband, Marty Johnson, and son, Alex. Her death comes as Dick Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate, seeks a third term in Tuesday's general election. Funeral arrangements for his daughter were not immediately announced. | Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin's daughter dies .
Chris Durbin, 40, had a congenital heart condition .
Funeral arrangements are pending . | a3f792d7c9889b5a4191a12e9346a28b5abb90a4 |
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- A 3-month-old girl born to an Indian surrogate mother has flown to Japan to join her biological father after spending the first months of her life in legal limbo. Baby Manjhi and her grandmother flew to Osaka, Japan, from the Indian capital, New Delhi, Saturday night, said family friend, Kamal Vijay Vargiya. While some countries have banned surrogacy as a money-making venture, it has been legal in India since 2002. Under the practice, infertile couples are matched with local women to carry babies for $12,000 to $30,000. Baby Manjhi was conceived when a Japanese couple paid a clinic in India to have the husband's sperm and an anonymous donor's egg implanted in the womb of an Indian surrogate. The plan worked. But a few months before Manjhi was born, the couple divorced. The intended Japanese mother decided she did not want the baby. Manjhi was born on July 25. Her father, Ikufumi Yamada, and grandmother traveled from Japan to pick her up and take her to her new home. But Indian law stipulates that a mother must be present in order for a baby to receive a passport. In this case, neither the birth mother nor the mother who had originally sought the child wanted to be involved. Manjhi's father looked into a legal adoption, but Indian law does not allow single men to adopt. The case garnered international headlines. Eventually, Manjhi was issued a birth certificate with just her father's name on it. And on Saturday, she left for Osaka to be reunited with him. "This is for the first time in 28 years in Jaipur that somebody (in such a situation) has been issued travel documents by Indian authorities. And this became possible mainly because of media," said Sanjay Arya, the doctor who treated Manjhi at a Jaipur hospital. -- CNN's Harmeet Shah Singh contributed to this report . | Surrogacy has been legal in India since 2002 .
Some countries have banned the practice as a money-making venture .
A few months before Manjhi was born, the couple divorced .
The intended Japanese mother decided she did not want the baby . | b3a313d6714be58fd3fa6e7453daeeddbb7ab319 |
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters collided Saturday night while landing in northern Baghdad, killing one Iraqi soldier, a U.S. military spokesman said. Two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, similar to this, crashed Saturday in northern Baghdad, the U.S. military says. Two U.S. troops and two Iraqi soldiers were injured, said military spokesman Lt. Patrick Evans. Enemy fire is not suspected, he said. However, two Interior Ministry officials said that a U.S. helicopter crashed in northeastern Baghdad as a result of clashes between U.S.-backed Iraqi forces and gunmen. The Iraqi officials said the area was sealed off, so they did not know casualty figures. One Iraqi official said the gunfight continued late into the night. U.S. officials said they did not know how many people were onboard. The crash occurred at Combat Outpost Ford in Adhamiya, a northern Baghdad neighborhood on the eastern bank of the Tigris River, the U.S. spokesman said. An Iraqi official said the helicopter went down in Talbiya, a stronghold of Shiite militia. | Two Blackhawk helicopters crashed while landing in Baghdad, U.S. military says .
Iraqi soldier killed; coalition soldiers, Iraqi troops are among the injured .
Interior Ministry officials say one helicopter crashed during military clashes . | c9a8fd1367f993937b0fb2af2f82a9be1dc317d0 |
LONDON, England -- Former Culture Club singer Boy George has been convicted of falsely imprisoning a male escort. The judge told Boy George he faced jail. Norwegian Audun Carlsen, 29, said the frontman with the 1980s band beat him with a metal chain as he tried to flee his London flat after a naked photo shoot. A jury at a London court found on Friday that the case was proven against the 46-year-old musician -- tried under his real name of George O'Dowd. The singer declined to give evidence during the trial but the jury heard he told police he handcuffed Carlsen to his bed while he investigated alleged tampering with his computer. Carlsen told the court O'Dowd invented the story about computer tampering so he could punish him for not having sex at a previous meeting. He said: "I think he couldn't handle the refusal -- me not having sex with him." O'Dowd looked grim as the verdict was delivered, according to the Press Association. The singer was bailed until sentencing on January 16. Judge David Radford warned him that he was likely to face jail. "The fact that your bail is being continued does not imply that this will be dealt with by a non-custodial sentence. I don't want any false expectations created," he said. | Boy George convicted by jury in London of falsely imprisoning male escort .
Norwegian Audun Carlsen said star beat him with metal chain after photo shoot .
Singer told police he handcuffed Carlsen while he investigated tampered computer . | 761bf72f1ae3fb685b394f3710ec5a76025f0b94 |
PARIS, France (CNN) -- Four armed robbers -- two of them men disguised as women -- walked into a luxury jewelry store in Paris and swiped an estimated €80 million (U.S. $101 million) in jewels, the Paris prosecutor's office said. Robbers dressed in drag stole more than $100M worth of jewelry from a Harry Winston store in Paris. The incident, which lasted about 15 minutes, took place Thursday around 5:30 p.m. at the Harry Winston store near the famed Avenue des Champs-Elysees, around the corner from a police station. The case has been turned over to the unit in charge of handling organized crime cases, said Isabelle Montagne, assistant to Paris prosecutor Jean Claude Marin. No shots were fired and no one was wounded, she said. Watch more on the heist » . After they entered the store, the four thieves pulled out their weapons, forced the customers and employees -- about 15 people in all -- into a corner, and grabbed jewels out of display cases and safes, the prosecutor's office said. The robbers seemed to know the locations of secret hiding places for jewels and called some employees by their first names, it said. The group then fled the store, which is located on a wide street near subways and other public transportation. French state radio reported that it was not immediately clear how the robbers left the area. Investigators believe it was the work of a highly professional group, and that the culprits were French or from elsewhere in Europe, state radio reported. In a written statement, the Harry Winston company said, "We are cooperating with the authorities in their investigation. Our first concern is the well-being of our employees." The same shop was robbed of millions of euros worth of jewelry just 14 months ago, in October 2007. -- CNN's Jim Bittermann and Niki Cook contributed to this report. | Robbers -- some in drag -- steal estimated $102m in loot from Paris jewelry store .
Thieves swiped rings, necklaces and luxury watches from display cases .
Harry Winston store is near the Champs-Elysees . | e1a11c97e810f6f843229195199e9c10e35fed0f |
(CNN) -- Christopher Lloyd picked through the charred remnants of his Montecito, California, home Monday morning, resigning himself to the fact it cannot be rebuilt. Christopher Lloyd's $11 million home in Montecito, California, was destroyed by the "Tea Fire." The "Back to the Future" and "Taxi" star showed ABC's "Good Morning America" what remained of his $11 million home in the exclusive celebrity neighborhood northwest of Los Angeles. "Boy, look at that," Lloyd said as he approached the rubble. "All this happens in a couple of minutes." Lloyd's home was among dozens of homes lost in wildfires in Southern California. The "Tea Fire" which started at the privately owned Tea Garden Estate, about a mile north of Santa Barbara's Westmont College, ripped through an area that Oprah Winfrey, Michael Douglas, Rob Lowe and other celebrities call home. Lloyd told "Good Morning America" that it was "just sort of sinking in" that his home was gone for good. "It's amazing, its just gone," Lloyd told "Good Morning America." "Rebuilding would be -- it's too much. You can't rebuild that." The home's windows were blown out, entire sections demolished, and piles of concrete, ashy trees and shrubbery were scattered across the property. "You watch TV, you see these kinds of incidents happening here and there, but you look with a kind of detachment because it's happening ... elsewhere," he told "Good Morning America." "But suddenly to be in the midst of it -- it's a very different awareness." Lloyd joked that he had been planning on organizing and storing memorabilia from the home, but never got around to it. "Kind of don't have to worry about that now," he said. | Christopher Lloyd's home one of dozens destroyed by California wildfires .
Lloyd: "Rebuilding would be -- it's too much. You can't rebuild that"
Lloyd: Having home destroyed brings "different awareness" than watching on TV . | 88b8d239aee192d01e410fab76cb969bf953fd7c |
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- One of Osama bin Laden's sons has been denied asylum in Spain, an Interior Ministry spokeswoman told CNN on Wednesday. Omar bin Laden pictured earlier this year during a television interview in Rome, Italy. Omar bin Laden, who is in his late 20s, stepped off a plane at Madrid's Barajas International Airport during a stopover late Monday and informed authorities that he planned to request political asylum, the spokeswoman said. Bin Laden has publicly called on his father to abandon terrorism. He prepared his formal asylum request Tuesday at the airport with the help of a translator, filing it around 1 p.m., the spokeswoman said. The Interior Ministry, which had 72 hours to reply to the request, was required to seek the opinion of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees on the matter. The UNHCR recommended against granting asylum, the spokeswoman said Wednesday. No reason was given for the denial. It was not immediately known what grounds bin Laden gave for his request, and the spokeswoman said it is unlikely to be disclosed. His flight Monday originated in Cairo, Egypt, and landed in Madrid on its way to Casablanca, Morocco, she said. The request caught Spanish authorities by surprise, she said. Bin Laden, who is married to a British citizen, previously was denied asylum in Britain. He holds a Saudi passport. Since Spain has denied his request, bin Laden has 24 hours to appeal before he is put on a plane back to Cairo, the spokeswoman said. If he appeals, the Spanish government has 48 hours to rule on it. Last year, 7,664 people requested asylum in Spain. The government granted that status to only 570, the spokeswoman said. Al Goodman, CNN's Madrid bureau chief, contributed to this report . | Official: Spain denies asylum to Omar bin Laden .
Spain did not give a reason for turning down the asylum appeal .
He has publicly called on his father to abandon terrorism .
He was previously denied asylum in Britain . | cf7c301f613ab00d6e07dd222ab9243ef3d272a6 |
MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- The Russian parliament approved a constitutional amendment Friday to extend the presidential term from four to six years. Vladimir Putin was barred constitutionally from seeking a third consecutive term as president. There is widespread speculation in Russian media that the change is aimed at paving the way for a return to the Kremlin by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who remains a popular and powerful figure since leaving the president's office in May. The Kremlin maintains the amendment -- along with other proposed changes to the terms in office for elected officials -- is necessary to ensure the stability of future Russian governments. President Dmitry Medvedev announced the measures just two weeks ago, in his first state-of-the-nation speech on November 5. The lower house of the Russian parliament had its third and final reading Friday before putting the measures to a vote. It passed by a vote of 392 to 57, with those against representing the Communist Party faction. There were no abstentions. Further approval is needed from the upper house of parliament and regional councils before the changes become law. The amendments will come into force when at least two-thirds of the nation's 83 regional parliaments and assemblies -- or 56 -- approve them. Analysts have expressed concern about the rapid movement of the measures through parliament. They say the government may be seeking to capitalize on Putin's popularity amid the financial crisis, which has dented support for the current leadership. The next Russian presidential elections are scheduled for 2012. There is speculation in Russia that the new measures could set the stage for fresh elections, allowing Putin to sidestep a ban on a third presidential term and stand again for president. -- CNN's Matthew Chance and Max Tkachenko contributed to this report. | Russian media speculates change intended to pave the way for Putin's return .
Kremlin says amendment needed to ensure stability of future governments .
President Dmitry Medvedev announced the measures two weeks ago .
Next Russian presidential elections set for 2012 . | d98865741a61a1590113fc32b9b0e60a90d1c8e1 |
TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Japanese scientists have produced clones of mice that have been dead and frozen for 16 years -- a feat that could lead researchers to one day resurrect long-extinct species, such as the mammoth. Dolly was cloned using cells from live animals. Now scientists believe they can resurrect extinct species. Until now, scientists have only been able to produce clones using cells from live animals. This is how researchers created Dolly the Sheep, the first mammal to be cloned from an adult animal. Researchers had thought that frozen cells were unusable because ice crystals would have damaged the DNA. That belief would rule out the possibility of resurrecting extinct animals from their frozen remains. But the latest research -- published in the journal, Proceedings for the National Academy of Sciences -- shows that scientists may have overcome the obstacle. Researchers at the Riken Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe, Japan, used cells from mice that had been frozen for 16 years at -20 Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit). They extracted the nucleus and injected it into eggs whose DNA had been removed. Several steps later, the scientists were able to clone the mice. "This is the first time a mammal has been cloned from a sample stored at conditions reasonably close to what might be expected in permafrost," Teruhiko Wakayama, who led the study, said in a statement. "(It) gives some hope for those who might seek to clone extinct species from frozen carcasses." | Japanese scientists produce clones of mice dead and frozen for 16 years .
Feat could lead researchers to resurrect long-extinct species, like mammoth .
Researchers used cells from mice that were frozen for 16 years at -20 Celsius . | 89dbc8653124d5caf46c516422c988a1074ac409 |
HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) -- Former Cuban President Fidel Castro says he is open to the idea of meeting with U.S. President-elect Barack Obama. Former Cuban President Fidel Castro has largely been out of the political scene since falling ill in 2006. "With Obama, one can talk whenever he wants, because we're not preachers of violence or war," the communist leader wrote in an essay published Thursday on a state-run Web site. "He must be reminded that the carrot-and-stick theory cannot be applied in our country." Friday's missive marked the second time in recent weeks that a Cuban leader has said he is open to meeting with Obama. In the latest issue of The Nation, actor Sean Penn writes of his recent conversation in Havana with Raúl Castro, who took over as president this year from his ailing brother. According to Penn, Raúl Castro told him, "Perhaps we could meet at Guantanamo. We must meet and begin to solve our problems, and at the end of the meeting, we could give the president a gift. ... We could send him home with the American flag that waves over Guantanamo Bay." Obama has called for the U.S. detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay naval base on the island of Cuba to be closed. Despite the indications that the Cuban leadership is open to warmer relations with its neighbor to the north after 47 years of a U.S.-imposed trade embargo, some in Havana expressed skepticism that the impending change in leadership in the United States will translate in to a changed Cuban policy. "Obama is a product of the American empire," Carlos Pose said. But Elisany, a high school student, said she's hopeful. "We've got to wait and see. I hope things change." | "We're not preachers of violence or war," Castro writes in essay .
Actor Sean Penn writes that Castro's brother also open to meeting .
Some in Havana skeptical of change in U.S. policy . | 84afdfbc7e693e818ba28da16631be71e6092535 |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Troubled singer Amy Winehouse has been admitted to a London hospital after suffering a bad reaction to medication, her representative said Tuesday. Amy Winehouse has undeniable talent, but has become better known for her wild behavior. Winehouse, 25, went to the private London Clinic on Sunday, said her spokesman, Chris Goodman. He said Winehouse's medication made her ill and her doctors asked her to come in so they could investigate. Goodman did not disclose what type of medication was involved, saying only it is part of her "ongoing treatment." It was not clear Tuesday whether she had been discharged. Yesterday Winehouse's husband Blake Fielder-Civil lost his appeal against his 27-month jail term for assault and perverting the course of justice. Earlier this month he was moved from prison to a drug rehabilitation unit. The Grammy-winning Winehouse has suffered a string of health problems in recent years, many related to her battles with drug addiction. She spent two weeks in a drug rehabilitation clinic in January. See a timeline of Winehouse's career » . One of her biggest hits is the song "Rehab," describing her reluctance to enter a clinic. Another bad reaction to medication prompted Winehouse to enter a London hospital in July, but she was discharged the next day. Winehouse won five Grammy awards earlier this year -- three for "Rehab," as well as Album of the Year and Best New Artist. | Amy Winehouse representative: Singer has had bad reaction to medication .
Another bad reaction to medication prompted Winehouse to enter hospital in July .
Grammy-winning Winehouse has suffered a string of health problems . | bca0927be2737db657d3c8f104dee25b7f7ccd8b |
(CNN) -- One Australian soldier, three civilians and Taliban militants were killed early Friday during heavy fighting in southern Afghanistan, according to information from Australian and NATO officials. Four Australian troops have now died in the conflict in Afghanistan. The incident occurred in Tarin Kowt in Uruzgan province, where Taliban militants killed an Australian commando, the Australian Defence Ministry said. The 26-year-old commando -- Pvt. Luke Worsley of Sydney -- served with the Special Operations Task Group. This is the fourth Australian troop to die in the Afghan conflict. "The action in which Private Worsley died only concluded in the last few hours and was characterized by heavy, close quarter fighting. The SOTG was conducting an operation to clear an identified Taliban bomb making facility in Uruzgan province, when the soldier was hit by small arms fire," Chief of the Defence Force Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston said. NATO's International Security Assistance Force said "a significant number of Taliban insurgents were killed or captured as part of the operation. Taliban insurgents initiated the firefight which lasted several hours." Gen. Carlos Branco, ISAF spokesman, said it is not known how the civilians, two women and a child, died. "However, we do know that the insurgents fired upon ISAF soldiers from the compound in which the Afghan civilians (two women and one child) were found after the fight. ISAF makes all effort to prevent losses of innocent civilian lives." E-mail to a friend . | Taliban militants kill Australian commando in southern Afghanistan .
He was shot during operation to clear Taliban bomb making facility in Uruzgan .
This is the fourth Australian soldier to die in the conflict in Afghanistan .
Several militants killed and a coalition troop injured in other fighting in southeast . | 46812e4db246fed228c4a24b36691965ad2e1676 |
(CNN) -- Adventurer and TV show host Bear Grylls injured his shoulder in Antarctica during an expedition to raise money for an international charity, the Discovery Channel said Sunday. Bear Grylls, host of "Man vs. Wild," was injured in Antarctica during an expedition to raise money for charity. Grylls was injured Friday night after falling during the expedition, which was not for the Discovery Channel, according to the network's statement. The statement said that Grylls is returning to the UK to receive medical attention. "Once he sees a doctor, we will have a better sense of the level of seriousness of his shoulder injury and the recovery time needed to get him back to his full physical activity," according to the statement. Grylls, 34, is the host of Discovery's "Man vs. Wild" in which he demonstrates extreme measures -- including eating snakes and insects -- used to survive in harsh environmental conditions. In his blog, Grylls said the aim of his expedition in Antarctica -- sponsored by Ethanol Venture -- is "to promote alternative energies and their potential." "We will be using lots of different forms of alternative power, including wind-powered kite-skiing, part bio-ethanol powered jetskis and inflatable boats, electric-powered paragliders, solar- and wind-powered base camps -- and good old foot work," Grylls wrote in a November 14 entry. Grylls is a former member of the British Special Forces and has broken his back in several places during his service. In his blog, he said he and his wife Shara are expecting their third child in January. | Adventurer and TV show host Bear Grylls injured his shoulder .
Grylls was in Antarctica on an expedition for charity .
Host going to UK for treatment, Discovery Channel says . | beed8cad0900366868ab6d994b8f5991a79149af |
MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck southern Kyrgyzstan late Sunday night killing an estimated 70 people and destroying more than 120 buildings, the government reported Monday. The earthquake occurred near Kyrgyzstan's border with China. Gulshat Kadirova, an official from the Kyrgyz Ministry of Emergency Situations, told CNN that casualty figures were preliminary and could rise as rescue efforts progress. The weekend quake, measured by the U.S. Geological Survey Report, rattled all of Central Asia; however destruction is concentrated in the remote village of Nura on Kyrgyzstan's border with China. "The remoteness of the villages hit by the earthquake, the absence of means of communications and the destruction of roads are hindering assistance to the injured," the Kyrgyz Health Ministry press service told Interfax. The Health Ministry of Kyrgyzstan has set-up a crisis center in the region, however rescue efforts remain difficult, according to a ministry official. The Kyrgyz Emergency Situations Ministry also sent humanitarian aid to the region. "Four helicopters have just left taking food and blankets to the people affected in the area," a ministry representative told CNN by phone. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev sent a letter of condolence to Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, according to the Kremlin's Web site. Medvedev noted Russia's readiness to offer assistance. Bakiyev is scheduled to visit the destroyed region of Nura this week to monitor the search-and-rescue operations, Kadirova told CNN. Temblors continued in Central Asia on Monday with two strong earthquakes striking part of Tibet within 15 minutes of each other. | Magnitude 6.6 earthquake strikes southern Kyrgyzstan Sunday night .
Around 70 estimated killed, 120 buildings destroyed, government says .
Quake rattled large area of Central Asia; damage concentrated near China border .
Kyrgyz Health Ministry has sets up crisis center to coordinate rescue effort . | 9ef2560300f77b261f3257533400c62b82e1c8fe |
(CNN) -- Former England cricket star Chris Lewis was remanded in custody by a British court Tuesday, charged with attempting to smuggle drugs through an airport. Chris Lewis joined Surrey to play in Twenty20 matches for the 2008 season. The 40-year-old all-rounder, who played 32 Tests and 53 one-day internationals for England in the 1990s, was arrested Monday when border officials at London's Gatwick Airport found cocaine hidden in luggage that had arrived on a flight from the Caribbean island of St. Lucia. Four kilograms of cocaine with a street value of around $350,000 was seized by the UK Border Agency, the UK's Press Association said. The drugs were in a liquid form hidden in fruit tins, officials said. Lewis and basketball player Chad Kirnon, 26, both from London, were held and questioned by Customs officials and later charged. British Revenue & Customs spokesman Bob Gaiger told PA: "This was an excellent detection by UK Border Agency officers. "HMRC, together with UKBA, play a vital role in the fight to prevent illegal drugs from entering the UK and in protecting our communities from the violence and corruption that always accompany this hideous trade." The two men made a brief appearance at Crawley Magistrates' Court in West Sussex on Tuesday afternoon, where Lewis had a bail application refused, PA reported. They were remanded in custody to appear via video link in court next Wednesday. | Four kilos of cocaine worth $350,000 seized at Gatwick Airport .
Officials: Drugs were in a liquid form hidden in fruit tins in luggage .
Chris Lewis played cricket for England during the 1990s . | 0b7a83bf0d1f093220ba88e5d934d3cd864be72b |
(CNN) -- Adventurer and TV show host Bear Grylls injured his shoulder in Antarctica during an expedition to raise money for an international charity, the Discovery Channel said Sunday. Bear Grylls, host of "Man vs. Wild," was injured in Antarctica during an expedition to raise money for charity. Grylls was injured Friday night after falling during the expedition, which was not for the Discovery Channel, according to the network's statement. The statement said that Grylls is returning to the UK to receive medical attention. "Once he sees a doctor, we will have a better sense of the level of seriousness of his shoulder injury and the recovery time needed to get him back to his full physical activity," according to the statement. Grylls, 34, is the host of Discovery's "Man vs. Wild" in which he demonstrates extreme measures -- including eating snakes and insects -- used to survive in harsh environmental conditions. In his blog, Grylls said the aim of his expedition in Antarctica -- sponsored by Ethanol Venture -- is "to promote alternative energies and their potential." "We will be using lots of different forms of alternative power, including wind-powered kite-skiing, part bio-ethanol powered jetskis and inflatable boats, electric-powered paragliders, solar- and wind-powered base camps -- and good old foot work," Grylls wrote in a November 14 entry. Grylls is a former member of the British Special Forces and has broken his back in several places during his service. In his blog, he said he and his wife Shara are expecting their third child in January. | Adventurer and TV show host Bear Grylls injured his shoulder .
Grylls was in Antarctica on an expedition for charity .
Host going to UK for treatment, Discovery Channel says . | 99a840f0fdb736f6c4a64c4112f4cb2a6f4350ef |
(CNN) -- Two airmen were found dead in the Pacific Ocean and rescuers were trying to find four others after a U.S. Air Force B-52 crashed off the island of Guam on Monday, the Air Force said. The B-52H Stratofortress, like this one, was in Guam as part of a four-month rotation. Rescuers found the bodies about 30 miles northwest of Guam, not far from where the bomber was believed to have crashed at about 9:45 a.m. local time, the Air Force said. One of the dead airmen was identified, but the identity was withheld pending family notification, the Air Force said. Search crews have found no survivors, but they are still looking, said Lt. Elizabeth Buendia, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Coast Guard in Guam, which is a U.S. territory. The B-52H Stratofortress had six airmen aboard and was on a training mission when it crashed, the Air Force said. It was scheduled to fly over crowds celebrating Liberation Day, which commemorates the U.S. capture of Guam from Japan in 1944, the Air Force said. The bomber was based at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana but was at Guam's Andersen Air Force Base as part of a four-month rotation, said Capt. Joel Stark, an Andersen Air Force Base spokesman. No weapons or munitions were aboard the aircraft and information on what led to the crash wasn't available, the Air Force said. In February, a B-2 stealth bomber crashed shortly after takeoff from Andersen Air Force Base. Two crew members ejected and were in good condition afterward. | NEW: Bodies of two airmen found in Pacific Ocean; four other airmen sought .
A U.S. Air Force B-52 with six airmen crashed off the island of Guam .
Rescuers search a point in the Pacific about 30 miles northwest of Guam .
The B-52H Stratofortress was based at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana . | 84ced5c56d8b021c11ed63055e0f8f26b1d15994 |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- China has canceled or postponed several military exchanges with the U.S. in reaction to last week's announcement that the U.S. is selling weapons to Taiwan, a Defense Department spokesman said Monday. Apache attack helicopters are part of the $6.4 billion weapons deal between the U.S. and Taiwan. Officials announced last week an intention to sell $6.4 billion in arms to Taiwan, though the deal still needs to be approved by Congress. Maj. Stewart Upton said the sale does not violate the Taiwan Relations Act, which allows the United States to provide Taiwan with items for self-defense . Taiwan split from the Chinese mainland in 1949 and the United States has vowed to support them if China initiates an unprovoked attack. The arms deal comes at a time when the United States needs China in negotiations over Iran's and North Korea's nuclear programs. "The Chinese reaction is unfortunate and results in missed opportunities," Upton said. "We feel that the global security environment calls for U.S. and [Chinese] officials to maintain close relations to address common security challenges." The "bilateral events" China called off or postponed involve "senior level visits and humanitarian assistance/disaster relief exchanges" scheduled to happen by the end of November, he said. The Chinese ambassador was said to be on his way to the State Department Monday afternoon to protest the proposed weapons sale to Taiwan. One U.S. official said the tension with China will not affect the role China is playing in negotiations with Iran or North Korea over its nuclear program. The official declined to speak for attribution because of the sensitive diplomacy involved. The arms deal package includes a variety of U.S.-made weapons systems, including Patriot III anti-missile system, Apache attack helicopters, Harpoon missiles and Javelin anti-tank missiles. | China protesting U.S. deal to sell $6.4 billion in arms to Taiwan .
Deal comes when the U.S. needs China in negotiations over Iran and N. Korea .
Chinese ambassador expected to protest sale to the State Department .
U.S. defended deal, saying it does not violate international agreement . | 9d51333fd37e94fad28581924fe1ab452fdbcf83 |
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a routine medical examination at a hospital in the Indian capital on Tuesday, his spokesman Tenzin Taklha told CNN Sunday. The Dalai Lama with French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy on a recent visit to France. The check-up in New Delhi is likely to take several hours, but the Dalai Lama will not be admitted to the hospital, the spokesman said. The Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in the north Indian hill town of Dharamsala, will travel to the Indian capital on Monday. The 73-year-old Tibetan leader was hospitalized in Mumbai in August for abdominal discomfort. Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a routine medical examination at a hospital in the Indian capital on Tuesday. | Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a medical exam this week .
Dalai Lama was recently admitted for tests after suffering abdominal discomfort .
The check-up in New Delhi is likely to take several hours . | b1065861c98843512e6f78bbab7e990c4ab37856 |
(CNN) -- British-based mining giant Rio Tinto announced plans to cut 14,000 jobs on Wednesday, just weeks after a planned buyout by rival BHP Billiton collapsed. Rio Tinto has nearly $39 billion in corporate debt. Rio Tinto made the announcement as part of a plan to cut its nearly $39 billion in corporate debt by an estimated $10 billion by the end of 2009. The company issued a gloomy forecast in October. "Since that time, demand conditions have worsened further, and as a result the group's priorities have reoriented around conserving cash flow and reducing near-term borrowings," it said in a statement announcing the cuts. The layoffs would include 5,500 direct employees and 8,500 contract jobs, the elimination of which would save about $1.2 billion a year, the company said. The layoffs would cost $400 million in severance packages, however. BHP withdrew from its planned buyout in late November, citing a high level of debt the combined company would be required to service in "difficult" economic conditions and concerns about whether it would be able to sell off units Rio Tinto already had targeted for divestment. Rio Tinto said it would consider selling off other elements of the company in an effort to raise more cash, but disclosed no details. | Rio Tinto announces cuts, citing worsening demand conditions .
BHP withdrew from planned buyout last month .
Layoffs would save $1.2 billion a year but cost $400 million in severance packages . | 7f23263671c3839bf2574e4bc5514169250f4de6 |
(CNN) -- Armored cars patrolled the streets of Zimbabwe's capital and residents flocked to banks Thursday after limits on cash withdrawals were lifted in the inflation-ravaged African nation. With prices rising even more than once a day, shopping is a mathematical proficiency test for Zimbabweans. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe had capped maximum daily withdrawals at 500,000 Zimbabwean dollars -- about 25 U.S. cents, and about a quarter of the price of a loaf of bread. But faced with mounting chaos in a country already in economic free fall, the bank decided last week to raise that limit to 100 million dollars ($50 U.S.) per week. Soldiers were deployed to all banks in anticipation of throngs of people lining up to withdraw money Thursday, when the increase took effect. Wednesday, police chased depositors away and arrested union leaders who planned to protest the limits. Zimbabwe's inflation rate of 231 million percent is the world's highest. In addition, the country is faced with a growing outbreak of cholera that its government declared a national emergency Thursday. The outbreak has killed at least 565 people and sickened more than 11,000, the U.N. Humanitarian Affairs Office said. Medical professionals blame the resurgence of the water-borne disease on the lack of safe water in many parts of the country. The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions said 69 people were arrested across the country during Wednesday's demonstrations. Amnesty International has demanded to know the whereabouts of human rights activist Jestina Mukoko, whom it said was abducted at dawn Wednesday by armed men in plainclothes posing as police. And angry, unpaid soldiers clashed with foreign currency exchangers and some civilians Monday, three days after troops who had failed to get cash from their banks looted shops they suspected to be illegally dealing in foreign currency. | Residents flock to banks after limits on cash withdrawals lifted; troops patrol streets .
Central bank caps maximum daily withdrawals at 500,000 Zimbabwean dollars .
Bank last week raise that limit to 100 million dollars ($50 U.S.) per week .
Zimbabwe's inflation rate of 231 million percent is the world's highest . | 1cf150392ff7dd119f71b8c17cb4ef691119d497 |
BEIJING, China (CNN) -- China has recalled two tainted leukemia drugs tied to "adverse reactions" in patients, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported Sunday. The factories involved in the production of the tainted drugs have been closed for investigation. According to Xinhau, the State Food and Drug Administration and the Ministry of Health suspended the production, sale and usage of methotrexate and cytarabin hydrochloride, produced by Shanghai Hualian Pharmaceutical Co., on September 5. There is no indication the drugs in question were ever exported outside of China. On Friday, the two agencies issued a notice saying that vincristine sulfate was the culprit -- an anti-cancer medicine which had been mistakenly mixed with the leukemia drugs, causing leg pains and retention of urine -- Xinhua reported. The factories involved have been closed, while the cause is being investigated. Separately, China returned to U.S. and Canadian exporters 42 tons of pork and turkey products after samples of the pork in the shipments showed traces ractopamine, Xinhua reported. Ractopamine is a hormone used to promote lean meat growth in some animals and is banned in many parts of the world, including China and the European Union. E-mail to a friend . | China has recalled two tainted leukemia drugs causing "adverse reactions"
Production, sale of drug by Shanghai Hualian Pharmaceutical suspended .
China returned to U.S., Canadian exporters 42 tons tainted pork, turkey products . | bf6f49b5fd09d942ab409bcda4938a0d61b081b6 |
(CNN) -- Former England cricket star Chris Lewis was remanded in custody by a British court Tuesday, charged with attempting to smuggle drugs through an airport. Chris Lewis joined Surrey to play in Twenty20 matches for the 2008 season. The 40-year-old all-rounder, who played 32 Tests and 53 one-day internationals for England in the 1990s, was arrested Monday when border officials at London's Gatwick Airport found cocaine hidden in luggage that had arrived on a flight from the Caribbean island of St. Lucia. Four kilograms of cocaine with a street value of around $350,000 was seized by the UK Border Agency, the UK's Press Association said. The drugs were in a liquid form hidden in fruit tins, officials said. Lewis and basketball player Chad Kirnon, 26, both from London, were held and questioned by Customs officials and later charged. British Revenue & Customs spokesman Bob Gaiger told PA: "This was an excellent detection by UK Border Agency officers. "HMRC, together with UKBA, play a vital role in the fight to prevent illegal drugs from entering the UK and in protecting our communities from the violence and corruption that always accompany this hideous trade." The two men made a brief appearance at Crawley Magistrates' Court in West Sussex on Tuesday afternoon, where Lewis had a bail application refused, PA reported. They were remanded in custody to appear via video link in court next Wednesday. | Four kilos of cocaine worth $350,000 seized at Gatwick Airport .
Officials: Drugs were in a liquid form hidden in fruit tins in luggage .
Chris Lewis played cricket for England during the 1990s . | 0685e2a0188f42b190674934a555f062d9cb4c3e |
PARIS, France (CNN) -- A plane with seven people aboard crashed into the Mediterranean Sea on Thursday, a French regional government official told CNN. A New Zealand Airbus 320 flying into Auckland from France, from a file picture taken in 2003. The Airbus A320 jet was on a training flight when the crash occurred about 5 p.m. (4 p.m. GMT), said the official at the Maritime Prefecture in Toulon, France. There were no immediate reports of survivors, but rescue efforts involving French navy vessels and a helicopter were launched. Floating debris had been located, the official said. Airbus confirmed the crash in a written statement, saying the jet was owned by Air New Zealand and operated by XL Airways Germany. "The aircraft was operating a local technical flight from Perpignan, France," the company said. The Airbus statement did not say how many people were thought to be on board. See a map of where the flight originated » . The twin-engine plane involved in the accident had accumulated about 7,000 flying hours, Airbus said. Learn more about the Airbus A320 » . "At this time, no further factual information is available," Airbus said. "In line with international convention, Airbus will provide full technical assistance to the authorities of France, who will be responsible for the investigation into the accident. A team of five specialists from Airbus is being dispatched to the site." People in a civilian vessel saw the crash take place off the coast near Perpignan, the French government official said. "The investigation remains the entire responsibility of the relevant authorities, and it would be inappropriate for Airbus to enter into any form of speculation into the cause of the accident," the Airbus statement said. "The concerns and sympathy of the Airbus employees go to the families, friends and loved ones affected by the accident." | French official: Airbus A320 Air New Zealand jet crashes off southern French coast .
Rescue efforts launched, no immediate reports of survivors, floating debris found .
Passenger jet was on a training flight when it crashed at about 4 p.m. GMT . | 418320c193f4722eccbc94b84cabc1daed5767b8 |
(CNN) -- The European Union has launched a fact-finding mission to determine the causes of the August war between Georgia and Russia, an EU spokeswoman said Tuesday. Heidi Tagliavini, a Swiss dipomat, will head the investigation into what started the Georgian conflict. The eight-month inquiry will examine the facts of the conflict in regard to international law, humanitarian issues and human rights, said the spokeswoman, who did not give her name because she was not allowed to speak publicly. Investigators will also assess the basis for all accusations made regarding the conflict, the spokeswoman said. Heidi Tagliavini, a Swiss diplomat and former United Nations special representative for Georgia, will head the mission, the spokeswoman said. The mission began its work Monday and was due to finish July 31, 2009, ending with a report to the EU, the U.N. and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the spokeswoman said. Georgia launched a campaign against South Ossetia, a Russian-backed separatist territory, on August 7. The following day, Russian tanks, troops and armored vehicles poured into South Ossetia and another breakaway Georgian territory, Abkhazia, advancing into Georgian cities outside the rebel regions. The two sides blamed each other for starting the conflict and have made accusations of ethnic cleansing. Moscow has since recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent regions. | European Union launches mission to determine causes of Georgian conflict .
Heidi Tagliavini, former U.N. special representative for Georgia, heads probe .
Georgia and Russia blame each other for starting the conflict . | 088edc3b3f5635f2cad734e5dad71ad946c644d1 |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Army intentionally denied benefits to soldiers suffering from a widespread stress disorder after they returned from service in Iraq and Afghanistan, a veterans advocacy group charges in a suit filed Wednesday. A soldier is welcomed home from Iraq by his son at Fort Stewart, Georgia, earlier this month. The lawsuit, filed by the National Veterans Legal Services Program, accuses the Army of illegally cutting off benefits to thousands of veterans and their families by refusing to assign a proper disability rating to those veterans after they had been discharged with a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As a result, the veterans have been denied benefits, including, among other things, lifetime monthly disability payments and free medical care for themselves and their families. "I experience firsthand the horrors of war" said Juan Perez, an Iraq veteran and one of five plaintiffs in the lawsuit. "My expectation was that the military would be there for me, and my country would be there for me. Instead, the way I was treated felt more like a slap to the face." All disabled veterans are assigned a disability rating from zero to 100 percent. According to the Legal Services Program, a rating of at least 30 percent is required to qualify for benefits such as monthly disability payments and free health care. Soldiers receiving less than a 30 percent rating are entitled only to a one-time lump sum severance payment after being discharged. On October 14, the Defense Department ordered the Army to assign at least a 50 percent rating to all soldiers discharged with PTSD in the future. The lawsuit seeks to provide full benefits to all veterans discharged with PTSD in the past six years. A Rand Corp. study released in April indicated that nearly 20 percent of all military service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have reported symptoms of PTSD or major depression. | Soldiers: Army denied them disability rating, so they were denied benefits .
Lawsuit filed by veterans advocacy group on behalf of vets with PTSD .
In October, Army ordered all future PTSD sufferers to be eligible for benefits .
Soldiers want eligibility to go back six years . | 8f25d842ee670060b0c08137dbbcd0cc0f412b6d |
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A bomb attached to a car carrying an Iraqi army general exploded Saturday afternoon, killing the driver and wounding the general and a bystander, an Interior Ministry official said. U.S. soldiers patrol the streets of Baghdad's central district on Saturday. The official said Gen. Abdul Karim Jabbar was seriously wounded when the bomb went off between al-Firdous Square and al-Andalus Square. The U.S. military refers to bombs attached to civilian vehicles without the driver's knowledge as "sticky bombs." Separately, a civilian was killed and five were wounded in afternoon clashes between gunmen and Iraqi National Police in the al-Shaab neighborhood of northeastern Baghdad, the ministry official said. In the same neighborhood, a roadside bomb exploded at an Iraqi army checkpoint Baghdad, killing a child, the Interior Ministry official said. The blast also wounded four Iraqi soldiers. Also Saturday, two Iraqi soldiers were killed and another was wounded when a roadside bomb struck an Iraqi army patrol on Palestine Street in eastern Baghdad. | Bomb attached to vehicle explodes in Baghdad, killing one and injuring two .
Civilian killed in clash between gunmen and Iraqi National Police in Baghdad .
Child killed by roadside bomb at Iraqi army checkpoint . | 545a6e2afd63930acd466d4023300ee0f99aff87 |
(CNN) -- A biker who posted videos of himself on YouTube performing stunts and speeding at up to 210 kph (130 mph) has been jailed after inadvertently confessing his misdemeanors to police. Sandor Ferenci posted video of himself online performing high-speed stunts. Sandor Ferenci, 28, was approached by police after a motorist saw him speeding on his powerful motorcycle and noted his registration number. When they called at his house in Oxfordshire, England, he unwittingly asked if they had seen his YouTube video -- prompting officers to search the Internet, where they found uploaded video of his hazardous riding. Ferenci was Monday sentenced to 12 weeks' jail after admitted two counts of dangerous driving at Oxford Crown Court. Judge Terence Maher told Ferenci that he had carried out "lunatic and grossly irresponsible maneuvers at considerable speed," according to CNN affiliate ITN. Ferenci's video footage, filmed by a friend from various angles including a footbridge, was shown to the court. In it the biker is seen performing wheelies, tire-smoking wheelspins and skids on his Yamaha R6 road bike as well as high speed undertaking maneuvers. Prosecutor Brian Payne said it was impossible to gauge Ferenci's exact speed in the video, but police estimated he was driving up to 210 kph, ITN reported. | Biker jailed for 12 weeks after posting YouTube stunts video .
Police estimates put his speed at up to 210 kph (130 mph)
Ferenci admitted two counts of dangerous driving . | 1e2e597f0b417b2bc1c5dac6aec33ba4059962e3 |
(CNN) -- Former first lady Barbara Bush was moved out of the intensive care unit of a Houston, Texas, hospital into a regular room Thursday after surgery to repair and seal a perforated ulcer, a hospital spokeswoman said. Ex-first lady Barbara Bush has been moved out of ICU and into a regular room. Bush, 83, was in good spirits and was joking with hospital staffers, the Methodist Hospital spokeswoman said. She was being fed intravenously. Her doctor said earlier she will be allowed no food by mouth for about a week, to avoid possibly stretching her abdominal area. The former first lady showed up at Methodist's emergency room Tuesday night complaining of severe abdominal pain, Dr. Patrick Reardon, who performed the surgery, told reporters Wednesday. Doctors determined Bush had a perforated ulcer in her duodenum, the first portion of the small intestine after the stomach, he said. In the operating room, doctors thoroughly cleaned her abdominal cavity of any contaminants that had leaked through the hole, described by the hospital as being one centimeter in diameter. Then, doctors repaired the ulcer and sewed a piece of the fat tissue in the abdomen, on top of it to seal it, Reardon said. Bush's husband, former President George H.W. Bush, was with her Thursday morning, but was leaving to attend Thanksgiving dinner with his son Neil, the Methodist Hospital spokeswoman told CNN. The ulcer was biopsied and is benign, Reardon said Wednesday. He suggested it might have been caused by anti-inflammatory medications. CNN's Sean Callebs contributed to this report. | Barbara Bush had surgery to repair and seal a perforated ulcer .
Bush, 83, is in good spirits and was joking with hospital staffers .
Former first lady being fed intravenously to avoid stretching abdomen .
The ulcer has been biopsied and is benign . | a8dc0380db5fd4613bfee0e59690649cb29b6c90 |
BOGOTA, Colombia (CNN) -- Colombia will freeze prices for gasoline and other petrofuels through March, the government has announced. Hernan Martinez Torres, in a photo from September, says gas prices will be frozen in Colombia through March. The freeze takes effect Thursday and sets prices at December levels, the minister of mines and energy said Monday. The measure will be funded through a $170 million Fund for the Stabilization of Prices for Combustibles, which goes into effect January 1, a release on the Colombian president's Web site says. "All this is being done to give consumers a clear signal of stability," Minister of Mines and Energy Hernan Martinez Torres is quoted as saying in El Pais newspaper. Gas prices also will not decrease, although there has been a significant drop in crude oil prices in the past few months, Martinez said. The price freeze pertains to gasoline, biogasoline (oxygenated gasoline), a product called ACPM (combustible oil for motors), and the mix of ACPM and biodiesel. For the time being, El Pais said, only propane will see a decrease in price, with the price going down 25 percent. It's the second price drop for propane, which decreased 10 percent in November. | Price freeze on gas, other fuels takes effect Thursday, runs through March .
Freeze is to give consumers "a signal of stability," energy minister tells newspaper .
Gas prices can't rise or fall under the freeze, Hernan Martinez Torres says .
Price freeze doesn't affect propane; its price is set to drop 25 percent, paper reports . | 37bd4ac49bd82023f7ba7ffd9a544d51753b52e7 |
KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A meeting between the leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan was canceled Friday when bad weather prevented Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari from traveling to the Afghan capital, Kabul. Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari (pictured) has met Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai before. An official in Pakistan's Foreign Office said the meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and top government officials will be rescheduled for the near future. The visit was to have taken place amid ongoing warfare and tension along the Afghan-Pakistan border and was to have focused on the nations cooperating in the fight against terror. Some of the Taliban militants conducting attacks in Afghanistan have been based in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province and nearby tribal regions. The group's resurgence has prompted U.S. commanders and the incoming Barack Obama administration to put more of a focus on confronting militants along the volatile border. In the past, Afghan and Pakistani leaders have blamed the other for the security problems in the region. Zardari was to have been accompanied on the trip by the governor of North West Frontier Province, as well as his foreign minister and adviser on internal affairs. The two presidents also planned to discuss the expansion of bilateral relations and trade. Both men have met before, when Karzai visited Pakistan in September to attend Zardari's swearing-in ceremony. | Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari due to meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai .
Visit to have taken place amid ongoing tension along Afghan-Pakistan border .
Taliban militants attacking Afghanistan from Pakistan's North West Province .
Both countries have previously blamed each other for the security problems . | e0804ec646e04713fb222b2e533a3a730d989642 |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- -- Federal officials have fined Exxon Mobil more than $6 million after it violated a three-year-old agreement to decrease air pollution at four of its refineries. Exxon Mobil's refinery in Baytown, Texas, is one of four that the EPA said had high sulfur emissions. The Justice Department announced Wednesday that the oil giant agreed to pay $6.1 million after Environmental Protection Agency officials determined the company had not sufficiently reduced sulfur emissions in its refineries in Baytown and Beaumont, Texas; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Torrance, California. Exxon Mobil had paid a $7.7 million fine in its original 2005 agreement with the government and promised to install new emissions controls at the refineries. The petroleum company said after the latest settlement its refineries now meet the required EPA standards on sulfur emissions. The company's role in environmental pollution has been in the spotlight ever since the 1989 Exxon Valdez accident in Alaska, the worst oil spill in U.S. history. This past summer, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the company to pay $507 million in punitive damages from the incident, down from an original $2.5 billion judgment. | EPA says company had not sufficiently reduced sulfur emissions at four refineries .
The facilities in question are in Texas, Louisiana and California .
Exxon Mobil says refineries now meet EPA standards on sulfur emissions . | a59fd993cb54210aa9448d2bb688a5e04d5acf02 |
(CNN) -- A Swedish truck and bus maker that assembled trucks in Iraq during the Saddam Hussein era has signed "an agreement in principle" with the government to open an assembly plant next year. Swedish truck and bus maker Scania is to reopen a former plant in Iraq. The company, Scania, issued a statement on its Web site confirming the deal to produce 500 trucks ordered by Iraq, with work starting during the third quarter of 2009. The work will be performed in the same Iskandariya factory south of Baghdad where the company's previous operation was housed. The operation comes under the auspices of Iraq's State Company for Automotive Industry. The deal reflects the Iraqi government's efforts to rehabilitate an economy decimated by warfare. "Scania has the necessary qualifications to satisfy the Iraqi government's desire to begin local production quickly. Assembly of the 500 trucks initially ordered is expected to employ about 500 people. The facility will be designed for the production of 3,000 vehicles per year," says Klas Dahlberg, vice president in charge of Scania's sales in the Middle East. The company said Iraq had been one of its largest markets during the 1980s. The Iskandariya factory assembled 3,900 trucks in 1981, Scania said, and many of the trucks assembled there during that era remain in service. The company said a memorandum of understanding signed by both sides specifies that Scania will work with an Iraqi distributor and "will assume responsibility for installation of production equipment as well as employee training." "In collaboration with our Iraqi distributor, we will also invest in the establishment of a service network in the country. Even today, there is a great need for workshops to take care of vehicles that operate in international traffic to Iraq," Dahlberg said. | Swedish truck and bus maker Scania is set to return to Iraq .
Company assembled trucks there during Saddam Hussein era .
500 trucks to be made in same factory it had previously used . | dcb3fa19687c4e71c3870a4b6b8f1ee5645e7a9d |
(CNN) -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom cited several examples in a recent report of abuse toward Christians in Iraq. Iraqis rush to a car bomb explosion at a Christian church in Kirkuk in January. | U.S. panel reports examples of intimidation, violence against Christians in Iraq .
Report: Christians urged to convert to Islam, attacked if they don't obey Islamic laws .
Christian priests, missionaries have been kidnapped and killed, report says . | 578d4784656d2b462895cfc89b3481a231ebfb51 |
BERLIN, Germany (CNN) -- Concerns were growing Wednesday for a polar bear born last month at a German zoo after its twin died and was possibly eaten by its mother. One year ago Vera gave birth to Flocke, pictured here playing in her enclosure in April. The young polar bear died Monday, less than two weeks after it was born, Nuremberg Zoo said. The surviving twin was doing well, the zoo said, but added that it was concerned the mother may not be able to care for it properly. Zookeepers watching a video feed from the bears' enclosure said they had noticed the baby bear looking thinner and weaker. They saw the bears' mother, Vera, nudging the dead bear with her nose and observing it -- and as of Wednesday, they said, the dead bear was nowhere to be seen. "It is very, very sad," said zoo director Dag Encke. "it is unfortunately frequently the case that with twins, one of the animals doesn't survive." Zookeepers had kept their distance from Vera and her babies, watching them only on camera so as not to make the mother feel threatened. Polar bears are known to eat their young if they sense any danger or interference. "We have to worry more about the surviving young animal and take care that the polar bear with her baby is not disturbed," Encke said. "So far, Vera is caring for the surviving baby in an exemplary way." One year ago Vera gave birth to Flocke, who became an instant celebrity across Germany. Flocke's first birthday is Thursday. | German zookeepers concerned for baby polar bear after its twin died .
Young polar bear died Monday, less than two weeks after it was born .
Baby nowhere to be found in enclosure; mothers often eat young if sense danger . | 4e91d616a08a8dfb97b65898ef146845cf5468b3 |
(CNN) -- What could be more powerful than the tears of a Native American Indian? Wax on, wax off: Does it make you want to save the rainforests? Iron Eyes Cody was the face of the Keep American Beautiful campaign of 1971 whose tears marked the plight of the environment, but more importantly kept the problems of pollution in the minds of millions. From teary Native Americans to witty skits or doom-ladened eco-horror scenarios, the environmental campaign video then has long been a powerful tool for environmental groups to spread their message and raise pubic attention. The rise of YouTube and other video sharing web sites has now meant that individuals can broadcast their own eco-awareness messages and form their own social action networks. But what makes a good video and how much impact do they have? Is it better to be funny or shocking? When you see Harrison Ford getting his chest waxed, do you immediately think about saving the rainforests? Or does the sight of celebrity pontificating about the plight of the environment make you want to watch their next film rather calculate your carbon footprint. We've featured three different videos that we like and want to know which ones you think are the best. Watch the featured videos » . Let us know which eco videos have got you going by using the Sound Off box below. Or, e-mail us at ecosolutions@cnn.com. We also want to feature your own environmental videos here on CNN's Eco Solutions. Use the iReport form to send in your film and you could find your environmental efforts make even more impact than Harrison Ford's chest. | Nominate your favorite environmental campaign video .
Rate our featured videos, including Harrison Ford getting his chest waxed .
Send in your own videos using our iReport page . | 6e8382e61be49c936e00a8eea24377a687622967 |
(CNN) -- Bayern Munich have agreed a deal to sign Croatian international striker Ivica Olic from Bundesliga rivals Hamburg, the German champions have revealed on their official Web site fcbayern.de. Olic will join Bayern Munich at the end of the season after proving a success in his time at Hamburg. "We've struck an agreement to sign Olic at the end of the season. All we need now are the signatures under the contract," said Bayern general manager Uli Hoeness following the team's arrival at a winter training camp in Dubai. Olic will complete his move on a free transfer on July 1 and will sign a three-year contract binding him to the club until 2012. "I'll do everything I can to mark my departure from Hamburg with a trophy," the 29-year-old Olic vowed on Friday, as he and his team-mates prepared for a winter training camp almost exactly parallel to Bayern's in Dubai. The two teams will meet on January 30 in Hamburg in a match marking the official start of the second half of the Bundesliga season. Olic joined Hamburg from CSKA Moscow in January 2007 having won three league titles and the UEFA Cup in Russia. He has already scored 12 goals this season and has netted 11 times in 61 internationals for Croatia. "We're certain Ivica will be a perfect compliment to our strikers Luca Toni and Miroslav Klose. One pleasing aspect is that he is out of contract at the end of the season," said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge last month. | Bayern Munich agree a deal to sign Croatian international striker Ivica Olic .
Olic will join from Bundesliga rivals Hamburg at the end of the current season .
The 29-year-old agrees a three-year contract and will not cost Bayern any fee . | 6e3657fabf186e1c31969e851e8934d41ae336fa |
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- An 850-pound emerald said to be worth as much as $370 million is in the hands of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department while a court decides who really owns it, a spokesman for the sheriff said. This enormous raw emerald was being kept in a Las Vegas, Nevada, warehouse. The "Bahia Emerald" -- one of the largest ever found -- was reported stolen in September from a secured vault in South El Monte in Los Angeles County. The report was made by someone who claimed to own the giant gemstone, Los Angeles Sheriff's Lt. Thomas Grubb said. Federal court papers showed the emerald has been at the center of a dispute between a California man who claimed ownership, a company he contracted with to sell it, and a potential buyer. Detective work traced the Brazilian stone to a Las Vegas, Nevada, warehouse, where the person in possession claimed to be the rightful owner, Grubb said. A federal judge ordered the sheriff to hold the 180,000-carat emerald until he can sort the case out, Grubb said. Investigators suspect someone used falsified papers to remove the stone from the secured vault in California, although no criminal charges have been filed, Grubb said. While Grubb said it was his understanding the stone had been appraised at $370 million, the value is unclear. The company hired by the owner to sell it said in court papers it had received a $19 million offer, which the company wanted to accept. It alleged the gemstone's owner then tried to go around the broker to sell the emerald to the same buyer for $75 million. At one point, the emerald was listed for sale on eBay for a "buy it now" price of $75 million. | L.A. sheriff takes custody of 180,000-carat gemstone pending resolution .
Seller, buyer, broker arguing over ownership, sale agreement .
Estimates of raw emerald's value range from $19 million to $370 million . | 726dafd6e5d3a0daac9a9bbc72028d882fc82d33 |