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Front Page: Plan to Aid Homeowners, Huge Blasts Hit India, Economy Officially Shrinking

CitizenSugar — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 06:56:11 -0700

Plan to Aid Homeowners:
The Bush administration is discussing a plan to help three million homeowners with their mortgages so they can stay in their homes. In what could be the most comprehensive effort directed at the housing crisis, the government would absorb half of the losses on home loans if mortgage companies lower payments for five years. The $50 billion cost would be part of the $700 billion bailout.

Huge Blasts Hits India:
A series of bomb explosions in India has killed at least 50 people and injured more than 150. There were at least 18 blasts, most in the main city of Guwahati. No one has yet claimed responsibility but police suspect the separatist United Liberation Front of Assam. The police chief says, "No other group can trigger so many blasts in so many places in such a coordinated fashion."
Economy Officially Shrinking:
The US economy shrank 0.3 percent during the period between July and September. Consumer spending, which makes up two-thirds of the US economy, shrank by 3.1 percent, the first contraction since 1991. The shrinkage means the US is halfway to the standard definition of a recession, which means two consecutive quarters of negative growth, though in the US, there's never a recession until the National Bureau of Economic Research decides there is.

Death Toll From Pakistan Hotel Blast Reaches 53

CitizenSugar — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 09:45:11 -0700

Death Toll From Pakistan Hotel Blast Reaches 53 Pakistan's prime minister says the death toll from the huge truck bombing of a luxury hotel in Pakistan's capital has reached about 53. One American citizen has been confirmed dead. The blast on Saturday evening shredded the hotel and triggered a fire that raged for hours through the building. More than 250 people were injured, including at least 21 foreigners.

Front Page: Shawn Johnson Grabs Gold, Russian Forces Detain Georgian Soldiers, Algeria Bombing Kills 43

CitizenSugar — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:53:25 -0700

Shawn Johnson Grabs Gold:
After three silver place finishes, US Gymnast Shawn Johnson finally won a gold medal for her balance beam routine in the last day of gymnastics competition. Johnson's coach is from Beijing, and her medal in his hometown meant the world. She said, “I really feel like I made him proud.” US teammate Nastia Liukin took silver.

Russian Forces Detain Georgian Soldiers:
Russian soldiers held 21 Georgian soldiers at a Black Sea port today, taking them bound and blindfolded to a military base, allegedly to protect against looters. The incident shows further evidence that Russia is continuing military activity in Georgia despite saying troops will withdraw. Indeed Russian forces are continuing to dig into position along the highway into Tblisi.
Algeria Bombing Kills 43:
A bombing in Algeria at a paramilitary training school killed 43 and left 38 wounded in one of the worst attacks in years. In recent months, the mountainous areas east of Algiers have been hit by numerous attacks by al Qaeda's north Africa unit, though there have been no claims of responsibility for this deadly attack.

Source

Front Page: Julia Child Was a Spy, Inflation Hits Major High, Lebanon Bombing Kills 15

CitizenSugar — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 06:55:03 -0700

Julia Child Was a Spy:
Newly released files show that famous chef Julia Child was a World War-II era spy. The CIA declassified 35,000 top-secret personnel files that detailed the huge spy network run by the OSS, which later became the CIA. Former OSS agents are pleased with the release of the information, a list which includes other notables like Ernest Hemingway's and Teddy Roosevelt's sons.

Inflation Hits Major High:
Consumer prices rose at twice the rate expected to post the fastest rate of growth in 17 years. Costlier energy and food made the Consumer Price Index balloon. Food alone is six percent more expensive than a year ago.

Lebanon Bombing Kills 15:
A briefcase bomb detonated in a bus packed with Lebanese soldiers on their way to work, killing 15 and wounding more than 40 people. The bombing distracted from the news from Damascus that Syria and Lebanon were to establish diplomatic relations for the first time since both won their independence from France in the 1940s. The bombing is the deadliest attack in Lebanon in more than three years.

Source

India Arrests Dozens In Bombings That Killed 45

CitizenSugar — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 11:55:07 -0700

India Arrests Dozens In Bombings That Killed 45 An obscure Islamic group claimed responsibility for a series of synchronized explosions that killed at least 45 and injured 161 people in western India, warning of "the terror of Death" in an email sent to several television stations minutes before the blasts. The email's subject line said "Await 5 minutes for the revenge of Gujarat," an apparent reference to 2002 riots in the western state which left 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, dead.

ETA Thought Behind Four Beach Explosions in Northern Spain

CitizenSugar — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 00:00:24 -0700

ETA has claimed responsibility for four bombings that struck popular coastal resorts in northern Spain yesterday. The group issued warning calls before the detonations and no casualties were reported. The explosions are considered the beginning of ETA's usual Summer bombing campaign that targets vacation spots as a way to gain attention for its 40 year struggle to win an independent Basque state in northern Spain.

The first warning call came mid morning from an ETA representative claiming responsibility and warning of the location of the bombs.

Vacationers were cleared immediately from the beaches prior to the first explosion which shattered windows and walkways. A government spokesman said, "There were no injuries because the area had been cleared and cordoned off." The Spanish government says that the group is weaker after a series of arrests, but as yesterday's attacks show, they're not planning to relinquish their fight soon. ETA has been listed as a terrorist organization by Spain, the US, and the EU. They've killed 800 people in the past 40 years, usually via explosions like this.

Source

Front Page: Doping Team Quits Tour, Madrid Bombing Convicts Freed, Obama Behind Republicans in Money

CitizenSugar — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 07:00:47 -0700

Doping Team Quits Tour:
After a third team rider tested positive for blood-doping, the Italian Saunier-Duval team withdrew from the Tour de France this morning. Rider Riccardo Ricco was found using EPO. The team director said, "He's our leader, we can't act as if nothing happened." Ricco was taken off the Saunier-Duval team bus by police ahead of the start of the day's race and booed by spectators. He was in ninth place overall before being removed.

Madrid Bombing Convicts Freed:
Spain's Supreme Court overturned the conviction of four people found guilty of connection to the 2004 Madrid train bombings. The four were part of 21 people convicted over the attacks, which left 191 dead. The court also upheld the acquittal of the suspected Egyptian mastermind as he'd already been convicted of the crime in Italy. The attackers were part of a local Islamist militant groups inspired by al Qaeda.
Obama Behind Republicans in Money:
Democrat Barack Obama raised $52 million last month (his second best take) ending June with the DNC and Obama with $92.3 million in the bank. Though the numbers still fall behind the Republicans and McCain. McCain raised more than $22 million in June (his best take) and combined with the RNC, Republicans start July with $95 million to spend.

Source

Londoners Mark July 7 Bombings Anniversary

CitizenSugar — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 09:55:12 -0700

Londoners Mark July 7 Bombings Anniversary Londoners on Monday marked the third anniversary of the July 7 suicide bombings that killed 52 commuters during a rush-hour attack. Hundreds of commuters and survivors stood silently as Mayor Boris Johnson and others laid flowers outside King's Cross train and subway station at 8:50 a.m. three years after the attacks in 2005. Johnson laid a memorial card that said: "We honor the memory of those who died on 7/7 2005. We salute the courage of those who were injured and our thoughts and prayers are with all victims and their families."

Front Page: North Korea Declares Nuclear Program, Iraq Bombings, Immigration Raid

CitizenSugar — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:02:25 -0700

North Korea Declares Nuclear Program:
North Korea has submitted for inspection the long-awaited declaration of the extent of its nuclear program. Immediately after the move, the Bush administration announced it would remove the country, formerly on the "axis of evil" list, from the list of states who sponsor terrorism, as well as lifting commercial restriction on the country. President Bush said, "this can be a moment of opportunity for North Korea. If it continues to make the right choices it can repair its relationship with the international community."

Attack Kills 33 in Iraq:
At least 33 people have been killed in two massive bombings in Iraq today, including 18 people hit by a car bomb in the northern city of Mosul. The US military gave initial reports from Mosul saying that another 71 civilians and nine policemen were wounded. The second attack was carried out by a suicide bomber, killing the mayor and 14 senior members of an anti-Qaeda group. US commanders have said that Mosul is the country's last urban stronghold of al-Qaeda.
Immigration Raid Leads to 160 Arrests:
Federal immigration agents raided a used clothing plant in Houston, leading to 160 arrests, 70 percent of whom were women. The raid was the largest ever in the area, and the second major raid in Houston in the past two months. Two hundred immigration agents were involved in what was part of a yearlong investigation. A lawyer for the company said, “We want to abide by the law, and we're going to abide by the law. If we have an illegal employee, we don’t know it. No way. Tell us what the law is, and we’ll obey it.”

Source

Front Page: Baghdad Blast Kills 51, Operation Launched Against Taliban, Bush and Offshore Drilling

CitizenSugar — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:00:30 -0700

Baghdad Blast Kills 51: An enormous car bombing shattered part of a busy marketplace and set a crowded apartment building alight in a heavily Shiite district of Baghdad yesterday, killing at least 51 people and wounding 75. As the blast occurred in the midst of a neighborhood where Sunnis had been savagely driven out, some of locals blamed the displaced Sunnis for the attack. The bombing was the deadliest attack in 3 months. One man whose wife and child were killed in the blast sceamed, “now the Americans are bringing outsiders to secure our neighborhood, and look what happened! Maybe we should bring back the old days.”

Operation Launched Against Taliban: NATO and Afghan forces begun a joint operation to drive Taliban insurgents from the outskirts of the city of Kandahar. Amid conflicting reports of casualties, troops backed by helicopter gunships are patrolling west of the Arghandab river, revealing "no major incidents so far". One resident says of the patrols, "most of the roads have been closed, there are check posts everywhere, planes are flying and military convoys belonging to the Afghan and foreign forces are patrolling the city." Last Friday about 350 Taliban fighters escaped with a total of 1,200 inmates from a jail in Kandahar. Only a handful of prisoners have been recaptured.
Bush and Offshore Drilling: President Bush will call on Congress today to reverse a long standing federal ban on offshore oil drilling. Bush wants to work with states to determine where drilling should occur. The move demonstrates how $4-a-gallon gas will be a major issue in the 2008 presidential campaign, and a growing number of Republicans are lining up in opposition to the federal ban. The Congressional moratorium on offshore drilling was first enacted in 1982, and has been renewed every year since. It prohibits oil and gas leasing on most of the outer continental shelf, 3 miles to 200 miles offshore.

Front Page: Gaza Blast Kills 5, US/Iraq Talks Stall, Midwest Pounded

CitizenSugar — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 06:55:45 -0700

Gaza Blast Kills 5: A large explosion in Gaza yesterday killed at least five Palestinians, including several Hamas militants and a baby girl. Despite the death and destruction of a residential building, responsibility is unclear. Hamas, the Islamist group that controls Gaza, first blamed the blast on an Israeli air strike, causing them to fire rockets and mortar rounds at Israeli towns and villages around Gaza. The Israeli military has vehemently denied any involvement in the explosion.

US/Iraq Talks Stall: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki declared that talks with the US aimed at reaching a long-term agreement allowing US forces to remain in Iraq have "reached an impasse". According to Maliki, the US demands compromised Iraqi sovereignty. President Bush has said he wants an agreement by the end of July, as the UN mandate for US forces to be in Iraq expires at the end of 2008. Maliki said of the proposal, "We cannot allow US forces to have the right to jail Iraqis or assume, alone, the responsibility of fighting against terrorism."
Midwest Pounded: Iowa's Cedar River broke its banks yesterday, forcing the evacuation of thousands of homes and causing a railroad bridge to collapse. Officials estimated that 100 blocks are underwater in Cedar Rapids, where preparations weren't enough to hold back the water. The sheriff said of the weather crisis, "We're just kind of at God's mercy right now, so hopefully people that never prayed before this, it might be a good time to start." Estimates show that 3,200 homes were evacuated and 8,000 residents have been displaced. This news comes after a deadly tornado hit an Iowa Boy Scout camp, and a similarly deadly twister tore through Kansas, leaving residents to dig out of the destruction.

To see an exclusive, first-hand photo account of the Kansas aftermath,

Baghdad Car Bomb Kills At Least 13

CitizenSugar — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 07:55:04 -0700

Baghdad Car Bomb Kills At Least 13 A suicide truck bomber struck near the Baghdad home of an Iraqi police general Wednesday, killing 16 people in the biggest such attack on the capital in months. Meanwhile, three US soldiers were shot dead in northern Iraq, and the bodies of at least 23 Iraqis were discovered in a shallow grave and a sewer shaft at separate sites near Baghdad. Wednesday's suicide bombing was the deadliest such attack in Baghdad since early March.

Bomb Blast at Danish Embassy in Pakistan Kills Eight

CitizenSugar — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 06:55:35 -0700

Bomb Blast at Danish Embassy in Pakistan Kills Eight According to the Telegraph: "A suicide bomber has attacked Denmark's embassy in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, killing up to eight people and leaving dozens more injured. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the blast came within weeks of al-Qa'eda number two Ayman al-Zawahri calling for attacks on Danish targets in response to the publication of caricatures in Danish newspapers depicting the Prophet Mohammed."

Britain Joins a Draft Treaty on Cluster Munitions

CitizenSugar — Thu, 29 May 2008 10:55:59 -0700

Britain Joins a Draft Treaty on Cluster Munitions The New York Times reports: The draft of a treaty to ban cluster munitions was adopted by a group of 111 nations on Wednesday in Dublin after Britain dropped its longstanding opposition to any limitations on the weapons. The pact would ban the use, production and sale of cluster munitions. “We have a strong treaty,” said Simon Conway, a former British soldier who is a co-chairman of the Anti-Cluster Campaign, a coalition of more than 200 groups that have worked for a cluster munitions ban. “The treaty will stigmatize the use of cluster munitions, and those countries that have not signed up will not be able to use them.”

Front Page: Curfew After India Blasts, China Quake Toll 15,000, Attack in Spain Blamed on ETA, Bush in Israel

CitizenSugar — Wed, 14 May 2008 06:58:35 -0700

Curfew After India Blasts: After a series of bomb blasts killed 63 and left 200 wounded yesterday authorities have imposed a curfew in the old city in Jaipur in western India. The blasts happened near historic monuments and the head of state police is calling it a terrorist attack. Police have detained a number of people for questioning, though no suspects or motives have yet been determined.

China Quake Toll 15,000: Nearly 15,000 people have died in the devastating earthquake that hit China according to media. Estimates say more than 25,000 are still trapped in the rubble two days after the 7.9 quake struck. Sichuan's Vice-Governor said preliminary figures suggested 14,463 people were dead, another 14,051 were missing, 25,788 were buried in the debris and 64,746 had been injured. One town, Yingxiu, was hit harder than expected — out of the town's population of 10,000, only 2,300 have been found alive.
Attack in Spain Blamed on ETA: A bomb exploded in Spain early today outside a police barracks killing one policeman and wounding four others. Local authorities have blamed the incident on the violent Basque separatist group ETA. A spokesman for the Socialist Party in the Basque region, said, "ETA has hurt us terribly this morning with this horrible attack. But the group is weaker than ever and we will win in the end."
Bush in Israel: President Bush arrived in Israel this morning. It's the first stop on a five-day, three-country Middle East tour marking the 60th anniversary of Israel’s founding as well as encouraging progress in peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians. Referring to Israel's democratic government Bush said, “what’s happened here is possible everywhere.”

Front Page: Plane Crash, Bombings, Berlusconi, Airline Merger

CitizenSugar — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:53:56 -0700

Plane Crash: Moments ago a DC-9 plane crashed into a residential neighborhood in the eastern Congo town of Goma. CNN is reporting at this moment, 78 have died in the crash.
Bombings: More than 50 people have been killed in car bomb explosions in two Iraqi cities. At least 40 people were left dead and another 70 were injured in a blast outside a restaurant in Baquba, north of Baghdad. Baquba is the capital of the Diyala province. It has been an insurgent stronghold, where militants linked to al-Qaeda are said to have regrouped after being driven away from Baghdad. Shortly after the bombing in Baquba, police said a bomb in the city of Ramadi had killed an additional 13 people.

Berlusconi: As we reported yesterday, Silvio Berlusconi and his center-right alliance have returned to power after two years in opposition. For the first time since World War II, Italy’s parliament will not have any communist representatives in part because of the disappearing support for the communist-green Rainbow Left alliance. The failure of many small parties like this to win even a single seat leads to a sharp reduction in the number of parliamentary groups and a greater possibility of stable government.
Airline Merger: Rival airlines Delta and Northwest have agreed to a merger, creating the world's biggest air carrier. The $5 billion deal ends in a new airline to be called Delta, which will have annual revenue of more than $35 billion and employ about 75,000 people. The new CEO says, "merging Delta and Northwest is the most effective way to offset higher fuel prices and improve efficiencies, increase international presence and fund long-term investment in the business."