 A coalition airstrike destroyed a mud-brick home, killing nine people from four generations of an Afghan family during a clash between Western troops and militants, Afghan officials and relatives said Monday.It was the second report in two days of civilian deaths at the hands of Western forces. On Sunday, U.S. Marines fired on cars and pedestrians as they fled a suicide attack. Up to 10 Afghans died in that violence, and President Hamid Karzai condemned the killings.Both times, the U.S military blamed militants for putting innocent lives in danger.But Karzai has repeatedly pleaded for Western troops to show more restraint amid concern that civilian deaths shake domestic support for the foreign military involvement that the president needs to prop up his weak government _ increasingly under threat from a resurgent Taliban....
http://www.cbsnews.com
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Editor - 09:39:00 03-15-07
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 Iraqi exiles in deportation fear |
Iraqis are living in fear of deportation from Jordan as it struggles with a massive influx of refugees. They talk about the notorious white vans - police vans that patrol the streets of the Jordanian capital, picking up Iraqis who are here illegally, and sending them back home to Iraq and a very uncertain fate. Like almost everything to do with Iraqi exiles in Jordan, it is the subject of much rumour, and very few hard facts. So I set out to find the truth for myself. Nobody knows exactly how many Iraqi exiles, or refugees, there are in Jordan. It could be anything up to a million. With similar numbers in neighbouring Syria, it is the largest refugee exodus in the Middle East for half a century - one of the biggest flows of refugees anywhere since the World War II. But it is an invisible exodus. There are no refugee camps. Unless you know where to look, you will not spot crowds of Iraqis in Jordan. This small country, sandwiched in the middle of this troubled region, has ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/6446753.stm
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Editor - 09:33:00 03-15-07
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| Exxon mulls future in Venezuela |
US oil giant Exxon Mobil is considering its future in Venezuela as the country's president drives through nationalisation plans. Exxon has said it will comply with a decree by President Hugo Chavez to hand over its multi-billion dollar Orinoco reserve operations by 1 May. But the world's biggest oil company has yet to signal whether it will maintain a minority interest in the project. Exxon is currently in talks with the government over the state takeover. Mr Chavez has pledged to nationalise key Venezuelan companies as part of plans to transform the country into a full socialist state. He has said the government is prepared to negotiate terms should Exxon wish to continue its involvement in the Cerro Negro crude upgrading project, in which British oil giant BP also has a stake. ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6453793.stm
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Editor - 09:30:00 03-15-07
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| Security tight in China riot town |
Security is tight in a town in central China following riots that involved as many as 20,000 people. A BBC correspondent in the town, in Hunan province, has seen riot police and soldiers protecting government buildings and patrolling the streets. He says it appears the protests began after a local firm took over the town's bus routes and doubled the fares. Vehicles were burned and several people were injured in clashes with police as the protests climaxed on Monday. Reports said one person had been killed, although this was denied on Wednesday by the official Xinhua news agency, which played down the incident. The BBC's James Reynolds says calm has been restored to Zhushan town, near the city of Yongzhou, and the presence of the security forces is clearly felt....
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6453035.stm
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Editor - 09:26:00 03-15-07
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| US upholds medical marijuana ban |
A US federal appeals court has ruled that a California woman who uses marijuana to ease a number of ailments can be prosecuted on federal charges. Angel Raich pre-emptively sued the government for the right to use cannabis when legal drugs had failed. Her doctor testified that she could die if she stopped taking marijuana. She has an inoperable brain tumour. The Supreme Court ruled two years ago that federal drug laws override those in 11 states allowing medical cannabis. Eleven states, including California, allow the drug's use if doctors recommend it. "Today I found out I'm basically a dead man walking," said Ms Raich, a 41-year-old mother of two in Oakland, California...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6453239.stm
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Editor - 09:19:00 03-15-07
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| Cats Invade Neb. House, 3 Injured |
Two stray cats got into a house and attacked three people inside, then were euthanized and checked for rabies, authorities said. The cats entered Melissa Breva's house through an open front door on Monday, and attacked two women visitors and a boy, authorities said. "I thought I had seen it all, but I have never seen anything like this," Chief of Police Martin Gutschenritter said. Animal control officer John Pettit responded to a call for help, Gutschenritter said. One woman was scratched and bitten on her legs; the other woman was bitten on her right calf, authorities said. ...
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2954019
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Editor - 09:16:00 03-15-07
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