The Islamic Jihad militant group rejected a call Tuesday from Mahmoud Abbas to halt rocket attacks on Israeli towns, dealing a new blow to the Palestinian leader. Israel responded to the attacks with airstrikes against Gaza targets. In another setback for Abbas, a last-minute dispute within his ruling Fatah Party threatened to divide the movement a day before a key election deadline. The dispute between Fatah veterans and its "young guard" was the latest sign of disarray in the party, which faces a stiff challenge from the Islamic group Hamas in Jan. 25 parliamentary voting. Abbas traveled to Gaza on Tuesday for talks with the militant groups, in part to halt growing violence along Israel's border with Gaza. Israel has put heavy pressure on Abbas to stop militants from firing rockets.... http://abcnews.go.com censor News |
Editor - 20:41:00 12-27-05 |
Most Japanese want Iraq troops home soon: poll |
Nearly three-fourths of Japanese voters want the country's troops withdrawn from Iraq within the next six months, a newspaper poll said on Wednesday.Twenty-eight percent of respondents to a poll out by the financial daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun said Japan should pull its troops out immediately. Another 46 percent want the forces withdrawn in the first half of next year "along with the British army and others," the newspaper said. Just 11 percent said the troops should stay until the United States withdraws its forces, it said. Japan recently extended to December 2006 the mandate for its 550 troops, who are based in the southern Iraqi town of Samawa. ... http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1447214
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Editor - 20:16:00 12-27-05 |
‘We did the honorable thing’ Hawaiian man jailed after refusing to reveal location of missing artifacts |
A federal judge on Tuesday found four leaders of a Hawaiian group in contempt of court for refusing to disclose where they buried native Hawaiian artifacts borrowed from a museum.Edward Halealoha Ayau, executive director of a group dedicated to the proper treatment of ancestral remains, was taken into federal custody after refusing the judge’s order to reveal the exact location of the 83 artifacts borrowed from the Bishop Museum.“We did the honorable thing,” Ayau told Chief U.S. District Judge David Ezra. The judge ordered Ayau to be held until he or others return the ancient objects or come forward with their location. Board members William Aila, Pualani Kanahele and Antoinette Freitas also were found in contempt but not jailed. All four belong to the group known as Hui Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawaii Nei.... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10620098/from/RSS/
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Editor - 20:14:00 12-27-05 |
Watchdog: Shooting will be black mark on N.O. police |
The officers who gunned down a knife-wielding man appeared to be justified in using lethal force, but the death will be perceived as a black mark on the beleaguered police department, the head of a watchdog group said Tuesday. Part of the confrontation leading to Monday's shooting was caught on videotape that shows about a dozen officers surrounding the man as he waved his arms and brandished a small knife. The shooting itself was not taped. "People will continue to have a negative opinion of police in this city," said Rafael Goyeneche, executive director of the Metropolitan Crime Commission of Greater New Orleans. "That goes back to some of the sins the department has been guilty of over the past 10 to 15 years." The victim was identified by the coroner's office as Anthony Hayes, 38, of New Orleans. His death follows a series of allegations of police misconduct in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, including the videotaped beating of a retired teacher and accusations that police ... http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-12-27-orleans-shooting_x.htm?csp=34
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Editor - 19:54:00 12-27-05 |
Bolivian threat to reject U.S. aid |
Bolivia's President-elect Evo Morales will reject U.S. economic and military aid if the United States requires continued coca-eradication efforts to get the money, a close aide to the former coca growers' leader said Tuesday.Morales also plans to withdraw Bolivia's military from anti-drug efforts and leave the job to police, said Juan Ramon Quintana, a member of the Morales' transition team.Morales, who won Bolivia's presidency Dec. 18 with a decisive 54 percent of the vote, campaigned on promises to end the eradication of coca plantations. Coca eradication is a condition for aid from the United States, which gave Bolivia $91 million in 2005.The decision was made "mainly for reasons of sovereignty," said Quintana, who described Bolivia's Special Force to Fight Drug Trafficking as "an appendix" of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration... http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/12/27/bolivia.aid.ap/index.html?section=cnn_world
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Editor - 19:45:00 12-27-05 |
Homeland Gestapo accused of dereliction Democrats say agency failing to keep its own promises on protecting nation |
The Homeland Security Department, created in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, has failed to fulfill 33 of its own pledges to better protect the nation, according to a report released Tuesday by House Democrats. The report concludes that gaps remain in federal efforts to secure an array of areas, including ports, borders and chemical plants. There also are still delays in the department’s sharing terror alerts and other intelligence with state and local officials, the review said. Compiled for 13 Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee, the report analyzes public statements and congressional testimony on Bush administration security goals since 2002. Thinking that any agency today is looking out to protect the Rights of Americans is forgetting that they now are only interested in protecting the government and themselves. ... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10620240/from/RSS/
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Editor - 19:34:00 12-27-05 |
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