 Russian investigators say the mass hostage-taking in Beslan, which led to hundreds of deaths, was carefully planned by Chechen rebel leaders. The Beslan school siege in September 2004 killed at least 331 people, many of them children. The Russian parliamentary commission said the pro-Chechen gunmen who seized the school included a bodyguard of the late Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev. The local North Ossetian police were also blamed for security shortcomings. The commission chairman, Alexander Torshin, reported that not a single armed policeman was on duty outside the school on the day the gunmen assaulted it. Disputed evidence The commission concluded that 32 militants took part in the raid and that they set off the first explosion inside the school. ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk
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Editor - 08:39:00 12-22-06
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 British Woman With Two Wombs Gives Birth to Three Girls, in Possibly First Case of Its Kind |
A woman with two wombs has given birth to triplets, in what is believed to the first case of its kind, a hospital official said Friday. Hannah Kersey, 23, gave birth to three girls in September, said Richard Dottle, a spokesman for Southmead Hospital in Bristol where the babies were born. The children spent nine weeks in the hospital. The girls identical twins delivered from one womb and a single baby from the other were delivered by Caesarean section seven weeks early, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported. Kersey and her partner Mick Faulkner said they were "over the moon" at how healthy and happy the girls were. "They are three lovely and incredible children, all with very different personalities," the BBC quoted Kersey as saying. ...
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2745977
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Editor - 08:34:00 12-22-06
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| Parents found guilty in caged kids case |
A couple accused of forcing some of their 11 adopted special-needs children to sleep in chicken wire cages were convicted Friday of endangering and abuse.A jury found Michael Gravelle, 57, and his wife, Sharen, 58, each guilty of four felony counts of child endangering, two misdemeanor counts of child endangering and five misdemeanor counts of child abuse. Each was acquitted of 13 other charges.The parents argued during their three-week trial that they needed to keep some of the youngsters in enclosed beds rigged with alarms to protect them from themselves and each other and stop them from wandering at night.The couple face one to five years in prison and a maximum fine of $10,000 for each felony count. The misdemeanor penalties carry no jail time. ...
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-12-22-caged-kids_x.htm?csp=34
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Editor - 08:32:00 12-22-06
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| Iraq tribes 'taking on al-Qaeda' |
A group of Sunni tribal chiefs in Iraq say they have caught more than 100 al-Qaeda members in recent months. The tribal chiefs in the Iraqi province of Anbar joined forces in September in an attempt to defeat al-Qaeda. They set up the Salvation Council for Anbar and claim to have reduced the numbers of weapons and foreign fighters coming into the area. The restive Sunni dominated area has been a centre of activity for foreign jihadis linked to al-Qaeda. The head of the council, Sheikh Faisal al-Goud, told the BBC, however, that there were still thousands of al-Qaeda fighters operating in al Anbar province alone. "We are fighting the terrorists because they have caused the violent chaos in the country, the instability. They are killing innocent Iraqis and killing anyone who wants freedom and peace in Iraq," he explained....
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6203073.stm
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Editor - 08:31:00 12-22-06
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| Toyota 'to overtake GM in 2007' |
Japanese car firm Toyota is on course to overtake US rival General Motors as the world's biggest carmaker in 2007, according to the firm's own figures. Toyota said it expected to raise global car production by 4% to 9.42 million vehicles next year. GM plans to build 9.181 million vehicles this year. However, analysts do not expect the firm to increase production significantly in 2007. GM has plans to cut 30,000 jobs and close several factories by 2008. Toyota, meanwhile, has announced plans to build six more factories around the world by the end of the decade. ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6202545.stm
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Editor - 08:29:00 12-22-06
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| Chinese Christians in riot trial |
Eight Chinese Christians are going on trial in the eastern city of Hangzhou charged with instigating violence and interfering with the law. The charges relate to an incident in the village of Che Lu Wan in July. There were violent clashes when riot police moved in to demolish a church being built without official approval. All churches must be registered and sanctioned by the state but millions of Chinese Christians worship in unofficial or underground churches. 'Wider crackdown' Local Christians had been trying to get permission from the authorities to build the new church. But they got tired of all the delays involved and decided to go ahead anyway, without official approval. Hundreds began construction work. Then, a few days later, riot police were sent in to demolish the church. There were violent clashes between the two sides. Now, as a result, eight Christians involved - seven men and one woman - are standing trial. ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6202403.stm
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Editor - 08:20:00 12-22-06
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