Ali al-Dabbagh, an Iraqi government spokesman has said that Iraq plans to take legal steps against security guards from the US firm Blackwater who killed 17 Iraqis last month.
The Iraqi government concluded that there was absolutely no evidence to suggest that the security convoy came under fire saying “It was not hit even by a stone,” calling the shootings a “deliberate crime” and calling for legal action.
Mr Al-Dabbagh said the Iraqi Cabinet was planning to weigh their findings with those of a joint commission “and subsequently adopt the legal procedures to hold this company accountable.” Read more »
The Oxford Research Group, an independent global security think tank in it’s latest study claims that the US “war on terror” has been a total disaster and that instead of removing the threat from Islamist extremism it had in fact fuelled it.
Report author Paul Rogers says in the report “Every aspect of the war on terror has been counterproductive in Iraq and Afghanistan, from the loss of civilian life through mass detentions without trial. In short, it has been a disaster.”
The report goes on to claim that an attack on Iran would sever for little more than to aggravate the current situation saying ” The mistakes already made will be completely overshadowed by the consequences of a war with Iran”. Read more »
Missouri: 41-year-old Scott A. Masters, who faces up to 15 years for robbing a convenience store could get double that due to his prior criminal history. He was stunned to find that because he shoved the clerk it is now seen as second-degree robbery.
Masters, known as a “frequent flyer” to those at the detention center, has over a dozen arrests related to stealing, missing court, marijuana possession and being drunk. He denies assaulting anyone, or having ever committed a violent crime.
Due to outstanding warrants he spent all summer in jail, completely forgetting about the case until he went to be released and found he had been indicted. Many people say it’s about the doughnut. “It’s not the doughnut. It’s the assault,” said police. Read more »
Another suicide bomber has claimed 5 lives this time, including one American GI in Kabul. Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman said they were responsible for the bomb attack. In eight days this is suicide bomber number 3.
The Taliban are also fighting in Oruzgan, where they killed 5 security guards and burned vehicles, and kidnapped ten workers.
Friday, a troop raid on Paktika was attacked by the Taliban. Several civilians were killed there. Military officials are accusing the militants of using civilians as shielding. Read more »
On Monday, Miami Beach’s Sagamore Hotel will be overrun with 600 nude volunteers, 500 bottles of champagne and 8-foot-tall curtains around the pool as photographer Spencer Tunick plans another one of his massive nude photo shoots.
“I’m going to have 100 to 200 women in pink rafts. We’re going to have people on the balcony posing very much like the Tower of Babel meets Logan’s Run,” said Tunick. Most volunteers are South Florida residents, including doctors, lawyers and a cop.
“Throughout the process there could be points where they think this is the oddest thing they ever did, and at the same time they’re wondering why they didn’t do it before,” he added. The work will go on display in December at the show Art Basel. Read more »
During summit talks with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun, the North Korean leader proclaimed “”I’m an Internet expert too. It’s all right to wire the industrial zone only, but there are many problems if other regions of the North are wired.”
The South Korean leader asked that SK businesses be allowed access to the internet. Il proclaimed if the problems were addressed there would be no problems allowing access to the internet.
North Koreans are only allowed TV and radio that picks up state run broadcasts, and regular citizens are not allowed cell phones, let alone internet services. Read more »
16-year-old Ahmad Rahimi was described by his class mates as a happy guy who got along with everyone. On his way to school he decided to take a shortcut across the railroad tracks frequented by students on a regular basis.
The stretch of tracks the students cross regularly sees trains going through at speeds close to 80 mph. Ahmad failed to notice one of these trains and was killed instantly. He is now the fourth person killed crossing the tracks since February 2005.
The tracks the students cross lead directly to the back of the high school as opposed to the designated crossing 200 yards away. School officials say students are counseled on the dangers and receive handbooks about crossing the tracks. Read more »
Dell has been sued by a New York State couple for $50.5 million, alleging their tech support not only sent four defective replacement laptops, but called at night and e-mailed pictures supposedly showing infants being dissected and eaten by Asians.
According to the suit, e-mails with subjects like “Devil people in East Asia” were sent for 45 days, allegedly causing so much distress that the wife suffered from multiple miscarriages and vomiting. She says she never did get a working computer.
Their lawyer claims outsourcing has caused a lack of quality control, but PC Magazine editor-in-chief Lance Ulanoff says that isn’t the issue, and also that the emails could’ve been spoofed. According to Dell, the employee has since been fired. Read more »
