The US should immediately shut all secret detention facilities used in its campaign against terror groups, the UN Human Rights Committee has said. The committee called on the US to give the International Red Cross prompt access to those held in such jails. The UN report also covered the domestic human rights situation in the US. It urged the government to ensure the rights of poor people and blacks are respected in relief efforts. Both groups were "disadvantaged" in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the UN committee noted. The UN panel said the US should increase its efforts "to ensure the rights of poor people and in particular African-Americans are fully taken into consideration in the reconstruction plans with regard to access to housing, education and health care". ... http://news.bbc.co.uk censor News |
Editor - 09:22:00 07-28-06 |
N Korea rejects calls for talks |
Asian and Western nations have failed to persuade North Korea to resume talks on its nuclear programme at an Asian security forum in Malaysia. Officials from 10 countries met to discuss security in North Asia on the fringes of the Asean Regional Forum, but North Korea refused to take part. Its foreign minister threatened to leave the forum if a joint statement criticised its recent missile tests. The crisis in the Middle East was also high on the agenda, as was Burma. The Asean Regional Forum brings together 24 nations, as well as the EU, for one day of talks at the end of the annual Asean (Association of South East Asian Nations) meeting. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5222958.stm
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Editor - 09:17:00 07-28-06 |
Polish leader wants EU to return to death penalty |
Poland's conservative President Lech Kaczynski vowed on Friday to campaign for a return of the death penalty in the European Union.He said the EU, which has effectively banned capital punishment, would to come to see it was justified for murder. "Countries who give up this penalty award an unimaginable advantage to the criminal over his victim, the advantage of life over death," Kaczynski told public radio. Kaczynski and his twin brother Jaroslaw, Poland's prime minister, won power last year promising a tough stance against corruption and crime in the biggest ex-communist EU member. ... http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2247657
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Editor - 09:15:00 07-28-06 |
2 Maryland Inmates Charged With Stabbing Guard to Death May Face Death Penalty |
Two inmates already serving life sentences who are accused of fatally stabbing a corrections officer could face the death penalty, prosecutors said. Two aggravating factors — a murder committed by someone serving a life term and killing a law enforcement officer — could lead to a death sentence if the inmates are convicted of first-degree murder, said a spokeswoman for the Anne Arundel County state's attorney's office.Lee E. Stephens, 27, and Lamarr C. Harris Jr., 35, were charged Wednesday with first- and second-degree murder in the stabbing of corrections officer David McGuinn at the maximum-security Maryland House of Correction in Jessup.McGuinn, 42, was counting inmates alone late Tuesday when he was attacked and stabbed several times in the neck and back, authorities said... http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,206078,00.html
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Editor - 09:13:00 07-28-06 |
Malawi anti-graft chief suspended |
The head of Malawi's anti-corruption bureau has been suspended, hours after arresting ex-President Bakili Muluzi. Gustav Kaliwo's suspension was ordered by Malawi's current head of state, Bingu wa Mutharika, national TV said, but gave no reason for the decision. In an interview with the BBC, Mr Kawilo said he acted fully within the law when he detained Mr Muluzi on Thursday. Mr Muluzi has been released on bail after being charged with corruption and fraud. He denies the charges. Reuters news agency quoted an unnamed presidential aide as saying Mr Kawilo had "been suspended pending investigation into his disciplinary conduct". Mr Muluzi was arrested on Thursday morning and questioned by anti-corruption agents about financial transactions during his time in power.... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5223588.stm
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Editor - 09:11:00 07-28-06 |
Swiss map permafrost after signs Alps crumbling |
Switzerland has carried out its first ever survey of permafrost — the frozen soil that keeps its mountains glued together — as evidence mounts that global warming may trigger natural disasters in the Alps.Permafrost, found in mountains as well as in Arctic regions, was slowly thawing, the government's environment office said, increasing the risk of rockfalls and mudslides threatening farmers, villages and tourists. "The gradual melting of permafrost in the Alps is a consequence of climate warming. The example of permafrost shows that Switzerland, as an Alpine nation, is heavily affected," the office said in a statement. ... http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2247576
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Editor - 09:09:00 07-28-06 |
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