Al Gore made an emotional return to Congress on Wednesday in an appeal for an even more dramatic rescue: saving the planet. Gore implored lawmakers to adopt a list of policy prescriptions to stop global warming.
Iran’s supreme leader said Wednesday that Tehran will pursue nuclear activities outside international regulations if the U.N. Security Council insists it stop uranium enrichment. “Until today, what we have done has been in accordance with international regulations,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said. “But if they take illegal actions, we too can take illegal actions and will do so.”
Masked gunmen dragged slain soldiers through the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, on Wednesday. They then set the bodies on fire as jeering crowds threw rocks and kicked the dead after a fierce battle in a neighborhood loyal to Islamic insurgents. At least 16 people were reported killed and dozens were wounded in the hours-long firefight.
Senate Democrats have drafted a $121.5 billion war spending bill that would direct President Bush to begin bringing home troops from Iraq with the goal of ending U.S. combat missions there in just over a year. The provision is similar to a resolution the Senate narrowly rejected last week. It failed on a 50-48 vote, falling 12 votes shy of the 60 needed to pass, after President Bush vowed to veto the legislation.
Ukraine’s parliament overwhelmingly approved a new foreign minister on Wednesday. It ends a nearly two-month battle with President Viktor Yushchenko after he backed down and abandoned his first choice for the job. Arseniy Yatsenyuk, a former economics minister and close Yushchenko ally, became the new top diplomat.
Stocks surged ahead Wednesday after the Federal Reserve signaled that it is more concerned about inflation than it was in late January but also said the economy seems likely to continue growing at its current rate. Investors had nervously awaited the Fed’s economic assessment that accompanied its decision to leave short-term interest rates unchanged at 5.25 percent.
