Breaking World News Commentary

White House denies imminent plans to attack Iran --Report: President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney believe military action needed 20 May 2008 The White House on Tuesday dismissed an Israeli media report that President [sic] Bush intends to attack Iran before his term ends in January. The Jerusalem Post article cited an Israeli Army Radio report that quoted a "senior official in Jerusalem" saying a "senior member of the president's entourage" claimed Bush and Vice President [sic] Dick Cheney thought military action was called for against Tehran.

White House denies Army Radio report on plan to attack Iran 20 May 2008 The White House on Tuesday flatly denied an Army Radio report that claimed US President [sic] George W. Bush intends to attack Iran before the end of his term. Army Radio had quoted a top official in Jerusalem claiming that a senior member in the entourage of President Bush, who visited Israel last week, had said in a closed meeting here that Bush and Vice President [sic] Dick Cheney were of the opinion that military action against Iran was called for.

Military officer: Iran jeopardizing 'peace' in Iraq 20 May 2008 The top uniformed U.S. military officer told Congress Tuesday that Iran is directly jeopardizing any potential for peace in Iraq, prompting fresh calls from senators that the U.S. pursue diplomatic talks with Tehran. Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that "irresponsible actions" by Iran's Revolutionary Guard "directly jeopardize" 'peace' in Iraq. [*What* peace in Iraq?]

Oil close to $130 after buying surge 20 May 2008 The cost of oil was today poised to break through the $130-a-barrel barrier for the first time after supply shortages and forecasts of high prices for years to come led to a surge in buying on the world's energy markets. Rumours from Israel denied by the White House, that president [sic] Bush is planning a military strike on Iran, added to the frenzied mood [and Exxon Mobil's coffers].

W. House ignored FBI concerns on prisoner 'borderline torture' 20 May 2008 Top Bush administration security officials ignored FBI concerns over abusive treatment of terrorism suspects, which one agent called "borderline torture," a four-year Justice Department probe found. The FBI, alarmed by interrogation techniques such as the use of snarling dogs, sexual provocation and forced nudity, clashed with the Defense Department and CIA over their use, said the 370-page report, released on Tuesday by the Justice Department's inspector general.

Report: FBI Slow in Reporting Detainee Abuse 20 May 2008 FBI officials should have moved more quickly to sound alarms about abusive interrogation practices torture its agents witnessed in Cuba, Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a report by an agency watchdog released this morning. The lengthy study by the Justice Department's inspector general clears the FBI of engaging in coercive questioning of terrorism suspects, concluding that "the vast majority of FBI agents deployed in the military zones" adhered to bureau policies and balked at more aggressive tactics used by Defense Department and CIA employees and contractors mercenaries.

Lawyer: Terror suspect at Guantanamo attempted suicide 20 May 2008 The alleged "20th hijacker" in the Sept. 11 attacks tried to kill himself at Guantanamo last month, his lawyer disclosed Tuesday, saying the Saudi prisoner was distraught over a possible death sentence for charges later dropped by the Pentagon. Mohammed al-Qahtani cut himself at least three times and had to be hospitalized at the U.S. Navy base in Cuba, attorney Gitanjali Gutierrez said.

Efforts to close Guantanamo at standstill: Gates 20 May 2008 Efforts to explore ways of closing the military-run prison at Guantanamo Bay have reached a standstill due to legal and practical problems, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Tuesday. Human rights groups and many governments, including allies of the United States, have called on the Bush dictatorship to close the prison, saying it violates international legal standards and harms America's standing in the world.

Reuters seeks new inquiry into Iraq hotel deaths 20 May 2008 Reuters News said on Tuesday it was seeking a fresh inquiry into the 2003 killing of two journalists in Baghdad [Reuters cameraman Taras Protsyuk and Jose Couso, a cameraman with Telecinco] by a U.S. tank crew after a report raised new questions about their deaths. On May 15, Democracy Now posted an interview with a former U.S. army sergeant in military intelligence who said that prior to the invasion she had been given a list of targets for potential attack that included the Palestine Hotel. The sergeant, Adrienne Kinne, said she had also been ordered to eavesdrop on the telephone conversations of journalists who were staying at the hotel.

New Troops in Iraq Will Keep Number at 140,000 20 May 2008 Seven active-duty Army brigades have been scheduled to deploy to Iraq later this year, the Defense Department announced yesterday, a plan that would allow U.S. commanders to keep troop levels at about 140,000 through the end of the Bush regime and into the next president's term.

2 NATO soldiers killed in southern Afghanistan 19 May 2008 Two NATO soldiers were killed in separate incidents in southern Afghanistan on Monday, the alliance said. "One soldier was killed by enemy hostile action and another was killed in an improvised explosive device blast while supporting an Afghan National Police operation," the statement said.

Venezuela denounces U.S. after airspace violation 20 May 2008 (Caracas) The defense minister said Monday that an American fighter plane violated Venezuelan airspace over the weekend, prompting the government here to summon the United States ambassador to explain the incident and other recent statements about Venezuela by senior American officials.

Japan pays Australian rape victim $30,000 as US sailor walks free 20 May 2008 Japan will pay compensation of three million yen ($30,000) to an Australian woman who was raped in 2002 by a US sailor who never faced prosecution. But the victim, who uses the pseudonym of Jane, says it means little because the rapist is still free.

Home Office plans to create 'Big brother' database for phones calls, emails and web use --The Government wants to create the system to 'fight' terrorism and crime. 20 May 2008 The Home Office will create a database to store the details of every phone call made, every email sent and every web page visited by British citizens in the previous year under plans currently under discussion, it has emerged. Telecom firms and internet service providers (ISPs) have already been approached by the Home Office, which would be given customer records if the plans were realised.

Discrimination against military to become crime 20 May 2008 (UK) The Government is to bring in new laws making it a criminal offence to discriminate against people in military uniform and impose extra penalties on those convicted of assault or harassment of service personnel. The new legislation will be among 40 recommendations in a report adopted by the Government, including an Armed Forces Day bank holiday and a drive to enrol state school pupils into cadet forces.

In Presidential Memo, A New Designation for Classifying Information 19 May 2008 A new Bush memorandum, signed on the eve of his daughter Jenna's wedding, introduced "Controlled Unclassified Information" as a new government category that will replace "Sensitive but Unclassified." Such information -- though it does not merit the well-known national security classifications "confidential," "secret" or "top secret" -- is nonetheless "pertinent" to U.S. "national interests" or to "important interests of entities outside the federal government," the memo says. The information could be, for example, the steps taken to protect power plants from terrorists [hiring Blackwater mercenaries], or which pipelines are most vulnerable to attack.

Lieberman Calls on Google to Take Down 'Terrorist' Content 19 May 2008 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, R-Israel, Monday called on Google to remove Internet video content produced by terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda [al-CIAduh]. In a letter sent to Dr. Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO of Google, Inc., LieberBush wrote: "Today, Islamist terrorist organizations rely extensively on the Internet to attract supporters and advance their cause... Islamist terrorist organizations use YouTube to disseminate their propaganda, enlist followers, and provide weapons training %uFFFD activities that are all essential to terrorist activity."

YouTube refuses Lieberman request --LieberBush told to go f*ck himself 19 May 2008 The chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee today [Joe LieberBush] asked Google, the parent company of the popular online video-sharing site, YouTube, to "immediately remove content produced by Islamist terrorist organizations" from YouTube and prevent similar content from reappearing. However, the company immediately refused to comply with his request. "While we respect and understand his views, YouTube encourages free speech and defends everyone's right to express unpopular points of view," the company said.

US Rep Waxman Threatens to Throw Rep Issa Out of Hearing 20 May 2008 The chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee threatened to remove one of the panel's top [bottom-feeding] Republicans from a hearing as a dispute escalated over the refusal of the nation's top environmental regulator to say whether he had spoken with President [sic] George W. Bush before deciding on a host of environmental policies. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., banged his gavel six times in an effort to silence Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., before shouting "I will have you physically removed from this meeting if you don't stop."

Sen. Kennedy has malignant brain tumor 20 May 2008 Senator Edward M. Kennedy has a malignant brain tumor, according to a statement from his doctor. "Preliminary results from a biopsy of the brain identified the cause of the seizure as a malignant glioma in the left parietal lobe,'' said Dr. Lee Schwamm, vice chairman of the Department of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Dr. Larry Ronan, Kennedy's primary care physician, in a statement.

Senator Kennedy Has Malignant Brain Tumor 20 May 2008 Senator Edward M. Kennedy has a malignant tumor in his brain, his doctors said Tuesday. Tests performed over the weekend at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston indicted that Mr. Kennedy, 76, has a type of cancer known as a malignant glioma in the left parietal lobe, the upper left portion of his brain.

NY Gov. Paterson in hospital for migraine symptoms 20 May 2008 Gov. David Paterson (D) was taken to a hospital in Manhattan on Tuesday after experiencing migraine-like symptoms. Preliminary tests were normal and he was to undergo more tests later in the day, his office said in a statement. Paterson's health has been a concern in recent years, and he has been hospitalized at least twice before. Under the state constitution, New York was left without a lieutenant governor when Paterson, a Democrat, succeeded Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in March amid a prostitution scandal. Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, a Republican, is next in the line of succession.

Gov. Paterson In Hospital With Migraine 20 May 2008 New York Gov. David Paterson has been diagnosed with acute glaucoma in his left eye and is undergoing an outpatient laser procedure. Paterson admitted himself to Manhattan's Mount Sinai Medical Center earlier today after experiencing "migraine-like symptoms."

Sebelius vetoes bill requiring voters to show photo ID 19 May 2008 A bill requiring Kansas voters to show photo identification in 2010 elections was vetoed today by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D). The measure -- HB 2019 -- was similar to a measure she threatened to veto during last year%uFFFDs legislative session. Last year%uFFFDs measure failed, but this year%uFFFDs version passed through the efforts of the Republican majorities in the House and Senate. In her veto message, the governor said the bill created a roadblock that prevents citizens from voting.

Karl Rove's sly deal with Fox --The GOP mastermind is billed as a top campaign analyst for the cable news network. But he has his fingerprints all over John McCain's White House bid. By Amanda Terkel and Matt Corley 20 May 2008 Fox News hosts routinely introduce Rove as a "former senior advisor to President [sic] Bush," "the architect," a "political wizard" and a "famed political consultant." But never has he been introduced as he should be -- as an informal advisor and maxed-out donor to John McCain's presidential campaign.

Obama to reach delegate milestone today 20 May 2008 Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) will reach a significant milestone Tuesday as he marches toward the Democratic nomination for president -- a majority of pledged delegates at stake in all the primaries and caucuses.

Democrats Vote in Kentucky, Oregon 20 May 2008 Democrats in Kentucky and Oregon added their choices today to the presidential nominating contest between Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) and Sen. Hillary Clinton (N.Y.), a race the Obama campaign says is practically won but that Clinton's supporters insist is not yet over.

Cancer survivor Lester throws no-hitter vs Royals 19 May 2008 Jon Lester can now add pitching a no-hitter to his already amazing list of accomplishments. The 24-year-old lefty, who survived cancer to pitch the World Series clincher for the Boston Red Sox last fall, shut down Kansas City 7-0 Monday night for the first no-hitter in the majors this season.

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[Previous lead stories:] CIA death squads killing with "impunity" in Afghanistan By Joe Kay 19 May 2008 A United Nations investigator [Philip Alston] released a preliminary report last week citing widespread civilian deaths in Afghanistan, often at the hands of unaccountable units led by the CIA or other foreign intelligence agencies... In 2005, US media reported on the operations of US-backed deaths squads in Iraq, deployed to kill suspected opponents of the US occupation. Yasser Salihee, a special correspondent for news agency Knight Ridder who was investigating the death squads, was killed with a bullet to the head in June of that year. Separate reports related how the US military had modeled Iraqi units on the death squads deployed in Central America during the 1980s to eliminate left-wing opposition to US policies.

US says detains 500 juveniles in Iraq, 10 in Afghanistan --Civil liberties groups denounce detentions as abhorrent, and a violation of U.S. treaty obligations. 19 May 2008 The U.S. military is holding about 500 juveniles suspected of being "unlawful enemy combatants" in detention centers in Iraq and has about 10 detained at the U.S. base at Bagram, Afghanistan, the United States has told the United Nations. A total of 2,500 youths under the age of 18 have been imprisoned, almost all in Iraq, for periods up to a year or more in President [sic] George W. Bush's anti-terrorism campaign since 2002, the United States reported last week to the U.N.'s Committee on the Rights of the Child.

Iran busts CIA terror network 18 May 2008 The Intelligence Ministry on Saturday released details of the detection and dismantling of a terrorist network affiliated to the United States. In a coordinated operation on May 7, Iranian intelligence agents arrested the terrorist network%uFFFDs members, who were identified in Fars, Khuzestan, Gilan, West Azerbaijan, and Tehran provinces, the Intelligence Ministry announcement said. The group%uFFFDs plans were devised in the U.S., according to the announcement, which added that they had planned to carry out a number of acts such as bombing scientific, educational, and religious centers, shooting people, and making public places in various cities insecure. [Note: This is a CLG link to the item, as some readers were unable to access Tehran Times.]

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