 New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg asked Congress on Wednesday to reopen a compensation fund to cover more Sept. 11 terrorism attack victims, saying the city could otherwise lose billions of dollars to lawsuits. The $7 billion September 11th Victim Compensation Fund was created by Congress shortly after the attacks and quickly became the subject of intense debate among victims' family members and politicians for the rules by which it distributed money. Bloomberg on Wednesday appeared before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, where Democrats have pledged to do more for sick ground zero workers than the Republican-controlled Congress did. "It's imperative that Congress reopens the fund to take care of those who were not eligible to benefit from it before it closed in December 2003," Bloomberg said in a statement prepared for the committee....
http://abcnews.go.com
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Editor - 09:02:00 03-21-07
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 Iran threatens 'illegal' nuke work |
Iran's top leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned on Wednesday that the country will pursue nuclear activities outside international regulations if the U.N. Security Council insists it stop uranium enrichment."Until today, what we have done has been in accordance with international regulations," Khamenei said. "But if they take illegal actions, we too can take illegal actions and will do so."Khamenei did not elaborate what "illegal actions" could be pursued by Tehran as it faces new sanctions by the U.N. body over its refusal to halt enrichment which the West fears is used for arms making.Iran's top leader also issued a stark warning to the United States, saying Iran will "use all its capacities to strike" its enemies if his country is attacked....
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/03/21/iran.nuclear.ap/index.html?eref=rss_world
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Editor - 09:00:00 03-21-07
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| Toll in Clashes Between Local, Uzbek Militants in Pakistan Over 100 |
Fighting between local and Central Asian militants escalated in northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, as the death toll from three days of clashes rose to more than 100, officials said.Militants were exchanging mortar, rocket and assault rifle fire in four areas of South Waziristan, where the clashes broke out Monday. The government has been urging tribesmen to move against Al Qaeda-linked fighters in the region.Senior government and intelligence officials said about 105 people had died in the fighting, mostly Uzbeks and Chechens. The officials, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said their information came from army commanders and intelligence agents in the region....
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,260106,00.html
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Editor - 08:51:00 03-21-07
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| Episcopal Bishops Reject Ultimatum From Anglican Leaders, Risking Schism in Anglican Family |
Episcopal bishops meeting privately in Texas have rejected demands from the world's Anglicans that they provide an alternate leader for conservatives who oppose ordaining gays a move that brings the church to the brink of expulsion from the Anglican Communion. In the strongest and most direct language yet defending their support for gay relationships, the bishops said that accepting a second leader for traditionalists would violate Episcopal church law and the founding principles of the church. "We cannot accept what would be injurious to the church and could well lead to its permanent division," the bishops said in the resolution. Last month, Anglican leaders emerged from a meeting in Tanzania with an ultimatum for the U.S. denomination. They gave Episcopalians until Sept. 30 to unequivocally pledge not to consecrate another partnered gay bishop or authorize official prayers for same-sex couples. Otherwise, they said, the church risked a much-reduced role in ...
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2969783
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Editor - 08:50:00 03-21-07
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| Zimbabwe's crisis 'like Titanic' |
Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa has likened the current crisis in Zimbabwe to the sinking of the Titanic. He said the country's economic difficulties were forcing its citizens to leave like passengers jumping from the sinking ship to save their lives. He called for a new approach as quiet diplomacy was not producing results. Meanwhile, the UK's leader Tony Blair told the British parliament that the solution to Zimbabwe's problems had to come ultimately from within Africa. An estimated 3m Zimbabweans, about a quarter of the total population, have fled the country in recent years. Scores of activists have been arrested and allegedly assaulted after police broke up a banned rally in Harare on 11 March. Four senior MDC officials were prevented from leaving the country, some to seek treatment for injuries they say were sustained in police custody. ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6475851.stm
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Editor - 08:48:00 03-21-07
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| Virginia Harbor City's Brand New Fire Boat Sinks Before Going on Its First Run |
The city's $385,000, state-of-the-art fire boat sank Wednesday, still tied up at a dock and without ever being put to use. The boat, moored at a marina by the James River Bridge, was discovered with its stern sitting on the river bottom and the bow sticking up out of the water. Investigators had not yet determined the cause of the sinking. The fire department had not even taken ownership of the 33-foot boat because it was waiting for the manufacturer, MetalCraft Marine of Canada, to finish installing electronic equipment, department spokeswoman Dana Perry said. ...
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2969781
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Editor - 08:47:00 03-21-07
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