In a ruling that CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen says could influence South Dakota's vote next Tuesday on whether to ban nearly all abortions, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down the existing notification and consent component of the state's abortion statute. South Dakota can no longer enforce a 2005 law that would require doctors to give additional warnings to women who seek abortions. In a 2-1 ruling, the panel of judges upheld a lower court's ruling that has prevented the state from enforcing the law. Planned Parenthood, which challenged the measure, has demonstrated a likelihood it will win in its argument that the law violates the U.S. Constitution, the panel said. The law, passed by state lawmakers in 2005, would require doctors to tell women that abortions end human lives and may later cause serious psychological problems for women who have abortions. ... http://www.cbsnews.com censor News |
Editor - 07:35:00 10-31-06 |
Bomb targets Iraq wedding party |
A bomb has ripped through a wedding convoy in Baghdad, killing at least 15 people, four of them children, the interior ministry says. The bomb struck a procession of vehicles at dusk in Ur, on the outskirts of Baghdad's Sadr City. It was not immediately clear if the blast was carried out by a suicide bomber or a remotely detonated device. The bomb came as Iraq's prime minister announced a lifting of a blockade on the Shia stronghold of Sadr City. At total of at least 19 people were injured in the attack. Earlier, at least 30 bus passengers were kidnapped by an armed gang on a road north of Baghdad, according to Iraqi police. An official said the bus, carrying mainly Shia passengers to the town of Balad, was stopped at a fake checkpoint 40km (24 miles) from the capital. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/2/hi/middle_east/6102768.stm
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Editor - 07:32:00 10-31-06 |
Civilian deaths turn Afghans against NATO: report |
A leading human rights group on Monday urged NATO to do more to avoid civilian casualties in Afghanistan, saying reports of increasing civilian deaths were "turning the local population against" the Western alliance. Fighting between NATO forces and a resurgent Taliban this year has been the bloodiest since U.S.-led forces removed the strict Islamist movement from power after the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington.Afghan authorities are investigating allegations that about 60 civilians were killed last week as a result of NATO operations in Kandahar province, where the Taliban was born. Local leaders and villagers said dozens more were wounded and 25 houses were razed during several hours of NATO bombing."NATO's tactics are increasingly endangering the civilians that they are supposed to be protecting, and turning the local population against them," said Sam Zarifi, Asia research director for New York-based Human Rights Watch.... http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061030/wl_nm/afghanistan_casualties_dc
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Editor - 22:44:00 10-30-06 |
October U.S. death toll in Iraq hits 103 |
The American death toll for October climbed past 100, a grim milestone as a White House envoy turned up unexpectedly in Baghdad on Monday following a rough patch in U.S.-Iraqi ties. At least 81 people were killed across Iraq, including 33 in a bombing targeting workers.The U.S. military on Tuesday announced the deaths of two soldiers, raising the number of troops killed in fighting in Iraq this month to 103. In a brief statement, the military said one Baghdad-based soldier was killed at about 5:00 p.m. Monday after being hit by small arms fire during combat in a western district of the Iraqi capital.A second Baghdad-based soldier was killed at around 5:30 p.m. Monday when his vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb just south of the city.The names of the soldiers were being withheld pending notification of their families.... http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2006-10-30-troop-death-toll_x.htm?csp=34
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Editor - 22:35:00 10-30-06 |
A hidden enemy frustrates efforts to rebuild Afghanistan |
"Effing brilliant," said a Royal Marine as J Company, 42 Commando, returned to base from their heaviest clash with the Taliban since they arrived in Afghanistan a month ago. Their elation and relief was understandable, but the engagement also showed the movement remained a threat, even in the relatively secure centre of Helmand province. Up to a dozen Taliban fighters were believed killed. No marines were hurt, but the company found an Afghan civilian with a leg wound lying in the road after the encounter. He was brought to the Gereshk base and evacuated by helicopter to the hospital at Camp Bastion, the main British base in Helmand. The encounter began yesterday afternoon as the company was completing a patrol on the eastern bank of the Helmand river about six miles outside Gereshk, an area known to be heavily infiltrated by the Taliban. "Just as we were returning to our vehicles, we came under mortar fire from two positions, one on each side of the river," ... http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article1943287.ece
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Editor - 22:32:00 10-30-06 |
US force in Iraq swells to 150,000: Pentagon |
With the US death toll in Iraq passing 100 this month and mid-term elections just days away, the Pentagon said the US force in Iraq has grown to 150,000 troops, the biggest it has been since January. A Pentagon spokesman attributed the growth to overlapping unit rotations, but it came amid surging violence that so far this month has claimed the lives of 101 US troops and many more Iraqis. "Several units are transitioning out as several are transitioning in," said Lieutenant Colonel Mark Ballesteros, who said that as of Monday the number of US troops in Iraq was 150,000. A Pentagon official, who asked not to be named, said the US Army's 4th Infantry Division was near the end of its year-long rotation. US commanders in the past have timed the overlap of troop rotations to increase the US military presence during Iraqi elections and other critical milestones in the political process.... http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061031/pl_afp/usiraqmilitaryforces_061031001643
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Editor - 22:21:00 10-30-06 |
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