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NEWS SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER
5, 2010 NEWS
Thousands
Of Indonesian Muslims Protest US Church's Plan To Burn Koran On 9/11
Thousands of Indonesian Muslims rallied outside the U.S. Embassy in
Jakarta on Saturday to denounce an American church's plan to mark the anniversary
of the 9/11 terrorist attacks by burning copies of the Koran. The Dove
World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, said it will burn the Islamic
holy book Wednesday, the ninth anniversary of the terror attacks. Local
officials have denied a permit for the bonfire on the church's grounds,
but the center — which made headlines last year by distributing T-shirts
that said "Islam is of the Devil" — insists it will go ahead with the plan.
Fox
News
VOA VIEW: The Dove church is only proving
that there are mad fanaticals in every religion.
U.S.
Will Bypass Turkey In Iraq Weapons Withdrawal
The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff on Saturday said the
United States does not plan to use Turkish territory in withdrawing its
weapons from Iraq. Adm. Mike Mullen, the highest-ranking military official
in the U.S. armed forces, spoke at a news conference in Ankara. News reports
suggesting his visit was about the transfer of heavy combat equipment from
Iraq via Turkey were "simply false and completely without merit," he said.
"We do not transport weapons through Turkey, nor do we plan to in the future,"
Mullen said. CNN
Suicide
Car Bomb Explodes In Baghdad Kills 8
Militants detonated a car bomb at a Baghdad military headquarters on
Sunday and then tried to shoot their way into the building, killing eight
people and wounding 29 in a brazen morning attack, Iraqi officials said.
Immediately after the car exploded, gunmen assaulted the headquarters,
battling the building's guards in a 15 minute firefight in downtown Baghdad,
according to police officials. Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed
al-Askari told the Associated Press Television News that some of the gunmen
were wearing explosives belts and were planning a second blast. Detroit
News
Few
Dieters Keep Off The Pounds
There's no easy victory in the war on weight. Only about one-sixth
of overweight or obese Americans who deliberately shed pounds succeed in
keeping them off over the long haul, say researchers from Penn State College
of Medicine. They based their findings on weight-loss status and history
of 14,306 people who had previously gone on a diet. About 36 percent of
the participants were able to maintain a weight loss of 5 percent of their
initial body mass. That's higher than the 10 to 20 percent usually found
in weight-loss clinical trials, possibly because the sample size of the
study included people who experienced temporary weight gain because of
a change in lifestyle. The study found that women, adults age 75 to 84,
non-Hispanic whites and those with less than a high-school education showed
stronger longer-term weight management. NT
Post
Scholar
Urges Iranian To Show 'Islamic Compassion' And Free Hikers
As the Muslim holy month of Ramadan comes to an end this week, Akbar
Ahmed, a prominent Islamic scholar, is asking Iran's supreme leader, Grand
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to show "Islamic compassion" by releasing three
Americans arrested more than a year ago. They are accused of illegally
entering Iran. Josh Fattal, 28, a 2000 graduate of Cheltenham High School;
Shane Bauer, 28, of Minnesota; and Sarah Shourd, 31, of California, were
hiking in a mountainous resort area of Iraqi Kurdistan and may have accidentally
crossed Iran's unmarked border, their supporters say. They were arrested
July 31, 2009, and are imprisoned in Tehran. Philadelphia
Inquirer
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In
Struggling Housing Market, Buyers And Sellers Are Out Of Sync
Across the Washington region and around the country, the expectations
of buyers and sellers are out of whack, thwarting deals that could potentially
lift the U.S. housing sector from its long funk. The nascent rebirth of
the market earlier this year proved to be a mirage. Despite record-low
interest rates, many would-be buyers are retrenching, hamstrung by meager
growth in their wages, gripped by fears over the possibility of losing
their jobs or another recession. Sales of existing homes plunged in July
to the lowest level in more than a decade, and sales of new homes were
slower than at any time since the government started tracking the data
in 1963. The results were far worse than some of the most pessimistic economists
had expected and added to the doubts nagging at prospective buyers, even
in areas such as Washington that have been relatively insulated from the
housing bust. Washington
Post
U.S.
Troops Have Left $324 Million In Back Pay Unclaimed
Uncle Sam wants to give free, no-strings-attached money to about 145,000
troops who were involuntarily kept on duty after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks,
but is having trouble persuading them that it's not a gimmick. Last October,
Congress approved retroactive bonus pay for military personnel who were
forced to remain on duty beyond their original discharge date, a controversial
policy known as "stop-loss." Lawmakers approved back pay of $500 for each
month of involuntary service; the average lump-sum due is between $3,500
and $3,800. To get the cash, an application must be submitted by Oct. 21;
only about a third of those eligible have handed in paperwork. With just
six weeks remaining before the deadline, the Department of Defense is scrambling
to track down about 90,000 veterans, as well as some active-duty troops,
to ask them to apply for their back pay. Washington
Post
GOP
Relying On Political Neophytes To Retake Senate
They are political newcomers — some buoyed by personal wealth, others
running on little more than populist heat — who have tapped the anti-Washington
vein of the American electorate. But while they are riding high on voter
discontent, these candidates, who are crucial to GOP hopes of retaking
the Senate, are among the least politically experienced contenders in a
generation. From Tea Party-backed Sharron Angle in Nevada, who is attempting
to unseat Senate majority leader Harry Reid, to former wrestling executive
Linda McMahon in Connecticut, who is up against the state’s longtime attorney
general, eight candidates styling themselves as outsiders are running neck-and-neck
with more entrenched Democratic opponents. Ordinarily, their inexperience
would be an impedi ment; but this year, the dynamic is far more volatile.
Boston
Globe
VOA VIEW: Change is good.
Afghan
Progress Slower Than First Hoped
International forces in Afghanistan have at times overstated the progress
being made this year, the deputy commander of the NATO-led force said on
Saturday, with advances coming slower than originally expected. British
Lieutenant-General Sir Nick Parker, second-in-command of the International
Security Assistance Force behind U.S. General David Petraeus, said progress
had been slowed by the complexity of the mission. Petraeus has said in
a range of interviews in recent weeks that progress was being made and
that the Taliban's momentum had been checked, though violence across the
country is at its worst since the hardline Islamists were ousted in late
2001. Reuters
Craigslist
Removes Adult Services Section
Craigslist closed the adult services section of its website Saturday,
replacing it with a black bar that says "censored," just over a week after
a group of state attorneys general said there weren't enough protections
against blocking potentially illegal ads promoting prostitution. The listings
came under new scrutiny after the jailhouse suicide last month of a former
medical student who was awaiting trial in the killing of a masseuse he
met through Craigslist. Critics have likened the services to virtual pimping,
while Craigslist maintained the site was carrying ads even tamer than those
published by some newspapers. MSNBC
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Egg
"Whistleblowers": Red Flags Went Unheeded
A couple who worked at one of the two Iowa egg farms faulted in the
recent massive recall say they blew the whistle on unsanitary conditions
at one plant -- and no one listened. Rather, Robert Arnold said on "The
Early Show on Saturday Morning," he and his wife, Deanna, were told the
practices and conditions they cited, such as repacking old eggs as fresh,
were standard operating procedure and to just go back to work. He says
he regrets that they didn't press on with their complaints. Some 550 million
eggs have been recalled and some 3,000 people report salmonella symptoms
apparently related to eating tainted eggs. The conditions described by
the Arnolds "nearly defy belief," observes CBS News Correspondent Cynthia
Bowers. CBS
Big-Name
Retailers Gap, Zara Hit The International Internet
As spending in malls and stores remains sluggish, the strength of online
fashion sales is enticing big-name international retailers to join the
move into cyberspace. Spanish clothing store Zara began selling online
in Britain this week, hot on the heels of U.S. retailer Gap's first Internet
shop outside the United States and just ahead of a planned launch by Sweden's
H&M. Zara, which also went live in France, Germany, Italy, Portugal
and Spain, already has around 4.5 million fans on social networking site
Facebook and its iPhone application has been dowloaded 3.5 million times.
USA
Today
Poll
Shows Waning Support For Congressional Democrats, Obama, Health Care Law
Democratic congressional candidates face a political landscape even
rockier than those in 1994 and 2006 that ended with election upheavals
that changed control of Congress, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds. As the
fall campaign begins in earnest over Labor Day weekend, dissatisfaction
with the nation's direction is higher and support for the party in power
lower than it was in those tumultuous midterms. This time, however, voters
are more likely to say their vote reflects opposition to the party in power
rather than support for the other side. Republicans are held in the same
low regard as when the GOP lost control of Congress four years ago. That
could create problems if they do score a net gain of 39 seats to control
the House of Representatives or 10 seats to control the Senate. ABC
VOA VIEW: Obama and Democrats are sinking
like the Titanic.
World
Bank Would Aim For Rapid Membership For Independent Southern Sudan
The World Bank would work to make a newly independent Southern Sudan
a member “speedily,” paving the way for the undeveloped region to gain
international financing it does not qualify for now, a top bank official
said. Under the terms of a 2005 peace agreement, Southern Sudan can choose
to vote to secede from the rest of the country in a January 2011 referendum.
The peace deal ended a 21-year civil war between the north and south in
which 2 million people died. “If a country is newly independent, we do
have precedence of how the country quickly qualifies to become a member
of the World Bank or the IMF, and so we would follow the same process to
grant an independent South Sudan its membership of the bank,” Obiageli
Ezekwesili, the World Bank vice president for Africa, said in an interview
today in the southern capital Juba. Bloomberg
Mideast
Talks To Resume In Egyptian Red Sea Resort
The second round of direct peace negotiations between Israelis and
Palestinians will take place in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh
on September 14-15, the Foreign Ministry said on Sunday. At the relaunching
of the talks in Washington on Thursday, U.S. mediator George Mitchell said
the coming round would be held on those dates in the region, without specifying
an exact venue, and that the two sides would meet every two weeks. "Egypt
will host the second round of Palestinian-Israeli negotiations in Sharm
el-Sheikh," Egypt's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said in a statement
carried by the state news agency MENA.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu will lead the negotiations with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton attending, Zaki added. NY
Times
Speaker-In-Waiting
Boehner Balances GOP Factions
John Boehner could walk down most American streets without turning
a head. But the perpetually tanned, chain-smoking Ohioan might be the next
House speaker and a huge force in national politics, trying to manage an
increasingly libertarian-leaning Republican caucus while leading the opposition
to President Barack Obama's policies. For those who know Boehner (pronounced
BAY'-nur), the question is which version of the House Republican leader
will emerge as speaker if the GOP takes at least 40 seats from Democrats
in November. Charlotte
Observer
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"Pharmageddon":
America's New Drug Crisis
A new drug problem is emerging in the United States: an alarming national
epidemic of pill popping and prescription drug abuse so bad it's being
called "Pharmageddon." The latest issue of Time magazine has numbers painting
a disturbing picture: Over the last two decades, deaths from accidental
drug overdoses have increased five-fold. And, for the first time, unintentional
overdoses have replaced car accidents as the leading cause of accidental
death in 15 states and the District of Columbia. It's a problem Dr. Barbra
Krantz describes as "the perfect storm." CBS
Basque
Separatists ETA Announce Cease-Fire
The Basque separatist militant group ETA declared a cease-fire in a
video statement issued on Sunday, suggesting it might turn to a political
process in its quest for independence. The video, which appeared in Basque
newspaper Gara's website and was also made available to the British broadcaster
BBC, showed three masked militants making a statement in Basque. Gara accompanied
the video with a transcription of the statement in Basque and Spanish.
There was no immediate response from Spanish government. "ETA makes it
known that as of some months ago it took the decision to no longer employ
offensive armed actions," the statement said, suggesting it is ready to
pursue a "democratic process," in trying to achieve its goals. Indy
Star
Afghan
Captors Release Japanese Reporter
A Japanese journalist who was abducted by apparent Taliban militants
in Afghanistan five months ago has been freed by his captors, reports said
Sunday. Kosuke Tsuneoka, a freelance journalist and veteran of war zones,
was released Saturday night in good health and was at the Japanese Embassy
in Kabul, Kyodo News agency cited government sources as saying. Japan's
Foreign Ministry and its embassy in the Afghan capital declined to comment.
Tsuneoka's mother told Kyodo that her 41-year-old son had called home from
the embassy after being released in the Dasht-e-Archi district of Kunduz
province. Tsuneoka's captors apparently decided to release him because
he is a fellow Muslim, Kyodo said. SF
Gate
Nation’s
Economic Woes Jeopardize Dems’ Prospects
Frustrated, discouraged and just plain mad, a lot of people who have
lost jobs _ or know someone who has _ now want to see the names of Democrats
on pink slips. And that's jeopardizing the party's chances in Ohio and
all across the country in November's elections. In this big swing-voting
state alone, Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland is in a dogfight for re-election.
Senate candidate Lee Fisher may be even worse off. As many as six House
Democrats could lose their jobs this fall. Recession-fueled animosity is
dominating every race, giving Republicans hope of huge victories. Las
Vegas Sun
VOA VIEW: Democrats caused and continue
to perpetuate the economic meltdown.
For
Mexican Cartels, Marijuana Is Still Gold
Times are good for the dope growers of the western Sierra Madre mountains.
The army eradication squads that once hacked at the illicit marijuana fields
have been diverted by the drug war that's raging elsewhere in Mexico. The
military's retreat has delighted farmers who are sowing and reaping marijuana.
Cannabis cultivation in Mexico soared 35 percent last year and is now higher
than at any time in nearly two decades, the State Department says. It's
also been a boon for Mexico's powerful organized-crime groups. Marijuana
is perishable, bulky and less profitable than their other exports - heroin,
cocaine and crystal meth - but drug trafficking experts say that every
major trafficking organization in Mexico reaps significant income from
marijuana, drawing on cross-border criminal networks that carry cannabis
to scores of U.S. cities. Kansas
City Star
For
US Muslims, A 9/11 Anniversary Like No Other
American Muslims are boosting security at mosques, seeking help from
leaders of other faiths and airing ads underscoring their loyalty to the
United States _ all ahead of a 9/11 anniversary they fear could bring more
trouble for their communities. Their goal is not only to protect Muslims,
but also to prevent them from retaliating if provoked. One Sept. 11 protest
in New York against the proposed mosque near ground zero is expected to
feature Geert Wilders, the aggressively anti-Islam Dutch lawmaker. The
same day in Gainesville, Fla., the Dove World Outreach Center plans to
burn copies of the Quran. Las
Vegas Sun
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evada
Candidate Pushes Pay-To-Speed Program To Solve Budget Crisis
One Nevada gubernatorial hopeful sees a speedy fix to Nevada's budget
crisis. Nonpartisan candidate "Gino" DiSimone believes people would pay
for the privilege to drive up to 90 mph on designated highways -- and fill
the state's depleted coffers. DiSimone calls his idea the "free limit plan."
He estimates the plan would bring in $1 billion a year. First, vehicles
would have to pass a safety inspection. Then vehicle information would
be loaded into a database, and motorists would purchase a transponder.
After setting up an account, anyone in a hurry could dial in, and for $25
charged to a credit card, be free to speed for 24 hours. The Nevada Highway
Patrol isn't keen on the idea, saying it would lead to increased injuries
and traffic deaths. Fox
News
U.S.
Withholds Aid To Mexico
Allegations of human rights abuses by Mexican soldiers in the country's
battle against drug cartels has cost Mexico $26 million in U.S. aid, officials
say. The U.S. State Department announced the action Friday, The Arizona
Republic reported. The department said the money would be cut from an upcoming
$175 million payment of aid for anti-drug initiatives. The sanction is
the first since the two countries launched the Merida Initiative in 2008.
The partnership includes more than $1 billion in U.S. aid. UPI
Earl Ends
With A Punch In Halifax, Canada
After toying with tens of millions of coastal residents and tourists
along the East Coast, Earl finally made landfall Saturday morning — but
in Canada's Nova Scotia province. The storm, downgraded overnight from
hurricane to tropical storm, again packed hurricane-speed winds when it
made landfall, and then weakened once more. Winds gusting to 80 mph downed
trees, flooded roads and left 200,000 customers without power. The province
has a population of about 940,000. "We are still classifying this storm
as a hurricane, based on the overnight presentation of the storm on satellite
and radar," said Chris Fogarty, program supervisor at Canadian Hurricane
Center. "The eye is still very much intact." MSNBC
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Ohio
Sees Whooping Cough Outbreak
Ohio health officials have declared a whooping cough outbreak in Franklin
County, urging people at risk to seek a booster shot against the infection.
Columbus City Medical Director Dr. Mysheika LeMaile-Williams said the number
of clusters of reported cases was rising, The Columbus Dispatch reported
Saturday. Officials said 410 cases have been reported this year in Columbus
and Franklin County and 258 have been laboratory-confirmed. People, especially
those in contact with infants, have been urged to get a booster shot to
protect against the bacterial infection, known formally as pertussis. UPI
BP
Gulf Well "Secured"
BP Plc's ruptured Gulf of Mexico oil well is secure with no threat
of spewing crude again, the top U.S. official overseeing the spill response
said on Saturday. "We basically have secured this well," retired Coast
Guard Admiral Thad Allen said. "We have essentially eliminated the threat
of discharge from the well at this point." A cap atop failed blowout preventer
equipment on the Macondo well had sealed in all oil flow since July 15.
On Friday, BP replaced the failed equipment with a new giant stack of valves
and pipes. Once the new blowout preventer is tested, BP can resume drilling
a relief well that will bore into the Macondo well and pump in mud and
cement to plug it for good. Reuters
Expert
Warns Of Complacency After Swine Flu Fizzle
A leading virus expert urged health authorities around the world Sunday
to stay vigilant even though the recent swine flu pandemic was less deadly
than expected, warning that bird flu could spark the next global outbreak.
A World Health Organization official also defended the U.N.'s health body
against accusations that it wasted governments' money and enriched pharmaceutical
companies with its strong warnings during the swine flu outbreak's early
days last year. WHO declared the swine flu pandemic over last month. The
latest death toll is just over 18,600 — far below the millions that were
once predicted. The head of the global health body has credited good preparation
and luck, since the H1N1 swine flu virus didn't mutate as some had feared.
Houston
Chronicle
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South
Korean Foreign Minister Offers To Resign
The South Korean foreign minister offered to resign Saturday amid a
brewing controversy over the hiring of his daughter, state media reported.
Yu Myung-hwan decided to step down because of allegations of nepotism,
Yonhap news agency reported. President Lee Myung-bak will likely accept
the resignation, the news agency said. Yu is the longest-serving Cabinet
minister under the current administration. He has served in the job since
the start of the Lee's administration in February 2008, the news agency
reported. This resignation comes on the heels of the August resignations
of South Korean prime minister-designate Kim Tae-ho and two other nominees
to Cabinet positions. CNN
Death
Toll Rises To 65 in Attack on Pakistanis
The death toll from a Pakistani Taliban suicide attack on a Shiite
Muslim procession rose from 43 to 65 overnight as critically wounded people
died in hospitals, police said Saturday. About 150 people were wounded
and some remained in critical condition after the bombing Friday in the
southwestern city of Quetta, police official Mohammed Sultan said. The
attack was the second in a week against Shiites for which the Pakistani
Taliban claimed responsibility. A triple suicide bombing Wednesday night
killed 35 people at a Shiite ceremony in the eastern city of Lahore. Washington
Times
Saudi
Shares Climb Most In Six Weeks After U.S. Jobs Data Beat Estimates
Saudi Arabian shares rose the most in seven weeks after U.S. and European
markets rallied on reports reassuring investors that the recovery in the
world’s biggest economy is not waning. The Tadawul All Share Index gauge
advanced 1.9 percent to 6,274.71 at the 3:30 p.m. close in Riyadh, the
biggest gain since July 10. Saudi Basic Industries Corp., the world’s largest
petrochemicals maker, known as Sabic, rallied the most since July 21. Bloomberg
Abbas:
Will Quit Peace Talks If No Building Freeze
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he has warned Israel's prime
minister that he'll quit peace talks unless Israel extends a curb on settlement
construction. Abbas and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched negotiations
at a summit in Washington last week. A 10-month freeze on settlement housing
ends Sept. 26, and Netanyahu is under pressure from hardline allies to
resume construction. Netanyahu has not said what he will do. He told his
Cabinet on Sunday that creative solutions are needed to make the talks
succeed. Seattle
Times
3
Killed In Suicide Attack On Russian Base
A suicide car-bomber killed three soldiers and wounded 32 others in
an attack on a military base in Russia's violence-plagued republic of Dagestan
on Sunday, officials said. The attack took place about 1 a.m. (2100 GMT
Saturday) at the base in the city of Buinaksk, said Vyacheslav Gasanov,
a spokesman for the republic's Interior Ministry. The driver of the explosives-laden
small Zhiguli automobile smashed through a gate of the base and headed
for an area where soldiers are quartered in tents, Gasanov said. But soldiers
opened fire on him before he reached the center of the base. Gasanov said,
the driver rammed the car into a military truck where it exploded. After
the blast, a roadside bomb hit a car taking investigators to the scene,
but there were no injuries reported in that explosion. Tampa
Tribune
Erekat:
Israel Has Agreed To Honor Olmert Concessions
J’lem remains mum on content of talks as negotiating teams prepare
to meet in Sharm e-Sheikh; Palestinian negotiator says framework agreement
will come within a year. Israel and the Palestinian Authority have agreed
on the “core issues” that will be discussed during their direct talks,
Saeb Erekat, the Palestinian chief negotiator, said over the weekend. Erekat
claimed that PA President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu
agreed at their meeting in Washington on Thursday that the peace talks
would be resumed from the point where they were stopped two years ago under
then-prime minister Ehud Olmert. Jerusalem
Post
IDF Beefs
Up West Bank Forces To Counter Terror Attacks
The IDF increased its forces in the West Bank last week following a
number of shooting attacks and amid assessments that Hamas will continue
to trying to perpetrate terror attacks as Israeli-Palestinian peace talks
continue. Two battalions were transferred to the West Bank last week and
were deployed along the roads to man checkpoints and patrol highways in
an effort to prevent additional shooting attacks. Last week, four Israelis
were killed in a shooting attack near Kiryat Arba. Two more Israelis were
wounded in an additional drive-by shooting near Ramallah. Palestinian Authority
security forces have launched an unprecedented wave of arrests throughout
the West Bank, rounding up close to 300 Palestinians affiliated with Hamas,
which claimed responsibility for the Wednesday’s deadly hit. Jerusalem
Post
Taxpayers Should
Not Fund Pope's Visit
Some 77% of Britons think taxpayers should not help pay for Pope Benedict
XVI's visit to Scotland and England, a survey suggests. An online poll
of 2,005 adults issued by think tank Theos also found 79% had "no personal
interest" in his visit. The Pope is due to arrive on 16 September, the
first papal visit since Pope John Paul II's 1982 trip. The cost of the
trip to UK taxpayers, previously estimated at £8m, could rise to
between £10m and £12m. The Catholic Church is also expected
to make a contribution of between £9m and £10m towards the
costs, which do not include an expected multi-million pound bill for policing
the visit. BBC
Iraq
WMD Dossier Was 'Reviewed' To Match Labour Spin
A Foreign Office official involved in drafting the discredited dossier
on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction suggested that he might have to review
an assessment of Saddam's nuclear capabilities so that it was in line with
briefings from Labour spin doctors, an internal Whitehall memo shows. The
March 2002 memo, written by Tim Dowse, head of the Foreign Office non-proliferation
department, and sent to a special adviser to the then foreign secretary,
Jack Straw, has been obtained by the Observer under the Freedom of Information
Act. In the memo, Dowse complains his department had been given "no forewarning"
of a paper the special adviser used to brief the Parliamentary Labour Party
and later the cabinet, which effectively contradicted the official assessment
of Iraq's nuclear capability. Guardian
International
Backing Grows For 'Robin Hood Tax' On Banks
European Union finance ministers will step up talks on raising extra
money from banks this week amid signs that the International Monetary Fund
is softening its opposition to a "Robin Hood tax" on financial transactions.
Treasury sources said the chancellor, George Osborne, was prepared to back
a financial activities tax on bank profits and pay at the Brussels meeting
provided it was universally introduced, but was wary of a broader Robin
Hood tax. Campaigners said last night, however, that a leaked IMF report
showed growing international backing for a broader tax and urged Osborne
to look at the revenue-raising potential of a levy of transactions. Guardian
Rocket
Fired From Gaza Hits Israel
Militants in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip fired a rocket into southern
Israel today, two days after the start of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks,
causing no injuries or damage, the Israeli military said. The cross-border
rocket fire was the first since Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington to relaunch
peace negotiations. Hamas Islamists routed forces loyal to Abbas to take
over the Gaza Strip in 2007. The group rejects Abbas' peace moves and has
vowed to continue attacks against Israel. Independent
British
Banks' Survival Plans Set For G20
Britain's biggest banks will hand over their worst economic case survival
plans to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) next month ahead of the
G20 summit in South Korea. The recovery and resolution plans, more commonly
known as "living wills", will form part of the G20 talks on reform of the
global banking system on 11 and 12 November. HSBC, Barclays, Royal Bank
of Scotland (RBS), Standard Chartered, Lloyds Banking Group and Santander
will all submit draft plans next month as part of the FSA's living will
pilot programme. Accountants Deloitte, KPMG, and Ernst & Young are
advising at least one bank each. Independent
Cockroaches
Could Help Combat MRSA And E.coli
Scientists at Nottingham University found that the insects, which are
widely reviled for their dirty image, could actually be more of a health
benefit than a health risk.
They have identified up to nine different molecules in the tissues
of cockroaches and locusts that are toxic to bacteria and they hope will
pave the way for new treatments for multi-drug resistant bacterial infections.
The tissues of the brain and nervous system of the insects were able to
kill more than 90% of MRSA and E.coli bacteria, without harming human cells.
Telegrpah
Taliban
Threaten To Attack Afghan Polling Stations
The Taliban vowed Sunday to attack polling places in Sept. 18 parliamentary
elections, warning Afghans not to participate in what it called a sham
vote. The threat issued Sunday comes just under two weeks before the vote
and follows the announcement of a final list of polling places to be opened
around the country. "It is only to the benefit of foreigners who want to
maintain their existence in the country by holding such a process and we
believe that the people will not get any benefit out of it," Taliban spokesman
Zabiullah Mujahid told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. Atlanta
Journal
Taxpayers
Spend Millions Paying For Trade Union Activities
Local authorities across the country are allowing hundreds of their
employees to devote all or part of their working week to union, rather
than council, duties - while their salaries are paid from public funds.
A survey of 77 English councils by this newspaper found that they spent
around £11 million last year on the salaries of individuals who were
employed by the councils, but in fact spent their time on trade union duties.
Some of the dedicated union workers were on salaries in excess of £50,000
a year. The system, known as "facility time", also operates in Whitehall
departments, the NHS, the BBC and other areas of the public sector - meaning
that the true extent to which taxpayers subsidise trade unions is actually
far higher. Telegraph
Ban
Stresses Protection For The Vulnerable Despite Global Economic Recession
Fiscal prudence and measures to protect the vulnerable can be implemented
at the same time, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, urging richer
countries not to abandon their commitments to helping poorer nations to
alleviate poverty and boost social development. “I commend those countries
whose most recent budgets have retained a strong commitment to global development
despite the fiscal pressures,” Mr. Ban told the European Forum on the International
Financial Crisis and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the western
Austrian village of Alpbach. UN
News
Aid
And Fairer Trade Crucial To Boost Africa's Poverty Reduction Efforts –
Ban
Africans need both foreign aid and fairer trading terms with other
regions to achieve the poverty reduction and social development targets
known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by their 2015 deadline,
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed today. “Far more than that, they
need the tools with which they themselves will create jobs, generate income
and unleash the continent's own potential,” Mr. Ban said in a message to
the two-day Africa Consultative Forum on the MDGs in the Rwandan capital,
Kigali. UN
News
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