Another Marine charged with kidnapping and murdering an Iraqi man has agreed to plead guilty to lesser charges, his attorney said Monday.Thomas Watt, attorney for Lance Cpl. Tyler Jackson, declined to discuss details of the agreement but confirmed that a deal has been reached and that his client is due in court next week to plead guilty to some charges.Jackson, 23, of Tracy, is the third service member to have made a plea deal in the case, in which seven Camp Pendleton-based Marines and a Navy corpsman were charged with murdering 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad.Last week, another Marine, Pfc. John Jodka III, pleaded guilty to assault and conspiracy to obstruct justice. The first to make a deal was Petty Officer 3rd Class Melson J. Bacos, the Navy corpsman on patrol with the Marines. He pleaded guilty to kidnapping and conspiracy.... http://www.usatoday.com censor News |
Editor - 17:17:00 10-30-06 |
Federal Lawsuit Challenges Pa. City's Crackdown on Illegal Immigrants |
Advocates for immigrants sued the city of Hazleton on Monday, seeking to block an ordinance that would impose steep fines on landlords who rent to people living in the country illegally. In its lawsuit filed in federal court in Scranton, the American Civil Liberties Union said the ordinance and a companion measure set to take effect Wednesday violate the Constitution because they trample on the federal government's exclusive power to regulate immigration. The laws would impose heavy fines on landlords who rent to illegal immigrants, deny business permits to companies that employ them, and require renters to register and purchase a renter's permit at City Hall. The plaintiffs which also include the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, several illegal immigrants facing eviction, landlords, and a businessman said they would also seek a federal injunction blocking the laws... http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2617228
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Editor - 17:12:00 10-30-06 |
Security firms 'abusing Iraqis' |
Private security firms operating in Iraq are committing human rights abuses, a charity has claimed. A report by War on Want says no prosecutions have been brought despite hundreds of complaints of abuse. And the charity is calling on the government to introduce legislation to ban private security in war zones. Lt Col Tim Spicer, whose Aegis security firm operates in Iraq, said they worked under "very strict rules" and could be prosecuted if they did anything wrong. 'Huge profits' War on Want claims UK ministers are increasingly using private security firms with a total of 48,000 employees in Iraq - six to every British soldier. John Hilary, the group's campaigns and policy director, said the Iraq war "has allowed British mercenaries to reap huge profits". ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6097372.stm
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Editor - 17:03:00 10-30-06 |
Saddam accuses court of violating law by appointing lawyers against his wishes |
Saddam Hussein accused the chief judge in his genocide trial Monday of violating the law by appointing defense attorneys against his wishes after the ex-president's own lawyer walked out of the proceedings.Khalil al-Dulaimi stormed out of the courtroom shortly he ended a month-long boycott of the trial in which Saddam and six others are charged for their alleged roles in Operation Anfal, a crackdown against Iraqi Kurds in the late 1980s.Al-Dulaimi submitted a dozen motions, including one to allow foreign lawyers to attend the trial without permission of the court.But chief judge Mohammed Oreibi al-Khalifa denied most of them, prompting the defense lawyer to announce that "I'm withdrawing" from the trial."I allow you to withdraw. Go ahead," the judge responded.Al-Khalifa rebuked al-Dulaimi for insisting on referring to Saddam as president of Iraq.... http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2006-10-30-saddam-trial_x.htm?csp=34
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Editor - 09:15:00 10-30-06 |
SHARING THE TIGRIS RIVER Iraq Worried about Turkish Dam |
The Ilisu Dam will, when it's finished, provide hydroelectric power in south-eastern Turkey. Iraq, though, is worried it may also cut flows of the vital Tigris River. Officials in Iraq are angered by Turkish plans to construct a gigantic dam on the river Tigris in southeast Turkey, near the Iraqi border. The so-called Ilisu Dam's 300 square kilometer reservoir would be a significant source of hydroelectric power, and Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at an opening ceremony on Aug. 5 that it "will bring big gains to the local people." But in Iraq, health officials are concerned that these gains will come at the expense of their own people. "There is no doubt that this will lead to a significant deterioration of the water quality" in Iraq, said Latif Rashid, Baghdad's Minister of Water Resources, in a letter to the Germany-based NGO World Economy, Ecology and Development (WEED). Iraq is also ... http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,445460,00.html
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Editor - 08:25:00 10-30-06 |
Fierce storm lashes Philippines |
One of the strongest typhoons to hit the Philippines for several years has battered the north of the country. Typhoon Cimaron's torrential rain and winds of 200km/h (124mph) shut schools and offices and disrupted transport. A 28-year-old woman and her child were among at least 13 people reported killed on the island of Luzon. Last month more than 200 people were killed by Typhoon Xangsane. Cimaron has weakened as it moves westward and is believed to be heading towards Vietnam. Forecasters predict it will reach the Vietnamese coast late on Wednesday. Cimaron - the most powerful typhoon to hit the Philippines since 1998 - made landfall on Sunday evening, lashing mountainous and agricultural regions of Luzon island. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6096606.stm
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Editor - 08:09:00 10-30-06 |
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