shameen

Antioch, August 29: The twisted kidnapping case of a woman held captive for 18 years in a secluded backyard compound took another disturbing turn Friday as authorities searched the home of her alleged captor for evidence in the murders of several prostitutes and new evidence surfaced of missed opportunities to arrest him years ago.

Officers executed a search warrant at Phillip Garrido’s Antioch home for clues in the unsolved slayings, Contra Costa sheriff’s Capt. Daniel Terry said.

Argentina, August 29: South America’s presidents ended their debate Friday on a pending deal to expand the U.S. troop presence in Colombia, saying foreign troops should not be allowed to threaten any of the region’s nations.

The leaders also instructed their foreign and defense ministers to meet next month and come up with a cooperation agreement that would enable the UNASUR group to inspect military bases in each member country to confirm that promises are being kept.

United Nations, August 29: The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s new report on Iran sets the stage for a showdown between Western powers who want to hit Iran’s energy sector with sanctions and Tehran’s protectors — Russia and China.

The report by the Vienna-based U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency said that Tehran had failed to heed U.N. Security Council demands that it stop enriching uranium and cooperate with the agency’s investigation “to exclude the possibility of military dimensions to Iran’s nuclear program.”

Washington, August 29: The United States on Friday dismissed as limited and overdue Iranian steps to allow better monitoring of its nuclear program, saying Tehran was not fully cooperating and had not dispelled doubts about its activities.

The International Atomic Energy Agency’s latest report on Iran said it had slowed its nuclear expansion and met some demands for better monitoring but allegations of covert atomic bomb research look credible and Tehran must address them.

Beijing, August 29: A bomb killed one person in China in an area where thousands of refugees have fled across the Chinese border to escape fighting between Myanmar’s government and rebels, state media said Saturday.

Several other people were injured in the incident Friday in a remote mountainous region of China’s southern Yunnan province, the China Daily said, quoting a Chinese Red Cross official.

The report said the bomb was thrown across the border but gave no other details.

AFP calls to government and Chinese Red Cross offices in the area went unanswered.

Washington, August 29: Two Syrians held at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay have been sent to Portugal, the Justice Department said on Friday, the latest move as President Barack Obama tries to close the controversial facility by January.

“The United States has coordinated with the government of Portugal to ensure the transfers take place under appropriate security measures and will continue to consult with the government of Portugal regarding these detainees,” it said.

Kabul, August 29: An American service member died when his vehicle struck a bomb in eastern Afghanistan, making August the deadliest month for U.S. forces in the nearly eight-year war.

The grim milestone comes as the top U.S. commander prepares to submit his assessment of the conflict — a report expected to trigger intense debate on the Obama administration’s strategy in an increasingly unpopular war.

London, August 29: The closest challenger to Hamid Karzai in Afghanistan’s presidential election warned Saturday that the future of his country was at stake as the allegations grow of fraud in the poll.

Abdullah said in an interview with British newspaper the Daily Telegraph that he had been shocked at the extent of the vote-rigging in the August 20 election.

The former foreign minister said he would examine all legal avenues to counter what he said was “state-engineered fraud”, and if that was unsuccessful he would refuse to recognise the election.

Los Angeles, August 29: Pop star Michael Jackson’s death was ruled a homicide from drug overdose Friday, fueling speculation his personal physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, may soon be charged with manslaughter or another crime.

The Los Angeles County Coroner said in its ruling that the powerful anesthetic propofol, which is used in surgery and has been dubbed “milk of amnesia” by some doctors, as well as the sedative lorazepam were the primary drugs responsible for Jackson’s sudden death on June 25 at the age of 50.

United Nations, August 29: The United Arab Emirates has seized a ship carrying North Korean weapons to Iran, marking the first time a nation has acted on UN sanctions to stop the communist state’s proliferation, a diplomat said Friday.

The incident emerged despite a recent easing of tensions with the hardline communist nation, which has been seeking a resumption of talks with the United States three months after stunning the world with a nuclear test.

Brasilia, August 28: Brazil’s first nuclear submarine jointly built by Brazil and France would be launched in 2021, Defence Minister Nelson Jobim said.

Jobim told the country’s Parliament on Thursday that though the Brazilian nuclear-driven submarine would be equipped with conventional weapons, it would considerably enhance the deterrent force of the Brazilian Navy.

Under the agreement signed by the two countries, France was to provide the core nuclear technologies that would help Brazil improve its research and development and production capabilities, Jobim added.

–IANS

Havana, August 28: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro accused the United States of seeking to “eliminate” Venezuela’s leftist government and amass power in South America through its military deals with Colombia.

His attack came on the eve of a summit of South American presidents that could be overshadowed by a growing row over a deal between Washington and Bogota to give the American military access to seven Colombian bases.

Tokyo, August 28: Japan’s top political leaders took their appeals directly to the voters across the country on Friday ahead of crucial Parliamentary Elections that polls suggest the opposition could win in a landslide, breaking the ruling party’s nearly 54-year grip on power.

London, August 28: The reformist son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has called for closer business ties with Britain, saying it is time to move on from the argument about the decision to free the Lockerbie bomber.

Scotland freed former Libyan agent Abdel Basset al-Megrahi last week on compassionate grounds because he is dying of cancer. Megrahi was the only person convicted of bombing Pan Am flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988, killing 270 people.

Washington, August 28: Al Qaeda’s number two Ayman Zawahiri called on Thursday on Pakistanis to support jihadists in the country’s tribal areas, saying it was “the” battle against the American “crusaders”, said the US-based SITE Intelligence group.

Zawahiri’s comments were delivered in a video called ‘Path of Doom’ posted on jihadist websites and monitored by SITE, a private group that follows jihadist activities on the Internet.

Maputo, August 28: Madagascar’s power-brokers ended talks in Mozambique on Friday without reaching an agreement on the make-up of a transitional government to lead the country out of its political crisis, mediators said.

“The international joint mediation team regrets to inform … (that) the heads of the movements have found it impossible to come to a consensus on the key posts of the transition,” said a statement issued by the mediators.

Madagascar’s rival leaders have agreed to name an interim government by September 4, mediators said.

Baghdad, August 28: The US military says two American soldiers have died of wounds sustained during a roadside bomb attack in the Iraqi capital.

A military statement says the two soldiers died on Friday following an attack on a patrol in eastern Baghdad.

Military spokesman, Lt Col David Patterson, says the soldiers were assigned to Multi-National Corps Iraq. The statement says the two were with the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary).

It says the soldiers identities are being withheld pending notification of next of kin, and the incident is under investigation.

Jerusalem, August 28: Only four percent of Jewish Israelis believe US President Barack Obama’s policies are pro-Israel and 50 percent oppose a temporary freeze of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, a poll out on Friday showed.

The survey showed 51 percent considered Obama’s administration more pro-Palestinian than pro-Israeli, as compared with 50 percent in June, the Jerusalem Post said.

Beijing, August 28: Fresh fighting has erupted between Myanmar government forces and an armed ethnic group in the remote northeast, forcing an exodus of residents into neighbouring China, state media said.

Thousands of people crossed the border this month from Kokang in Myanmar’s Shan State after clashes there, which a US-based rights group said followed the deployment of troops in the area, home to a large number of ethnic Chinese.

Chisinau, August 28: Moldova’s new Parliament holds its first session on Friday amid uncertainty over whether the communists, who have run Europe’s poorest nation since 2001, will go into opposition or strike a political deal to keep control.

This first sitting is expected to kick-start the procedure for forming a new government in ex-Soviet Moldova and electing a president to replace outgoing communist president Vladimir Voronin, who cannot stand for a third consecutive term.