world

Judge: N.Y. 9-11 evacuees sent home too early

By Alyson Brodsy and Larry Neumeister · Friday, Feb. 3,2006 12:22 a.m.

NEW YORK -- A federal judge blasted former Environmental Protection Agency chief Christine Todd Whitman on Thursday for reassuring New Yorkers soon after the Sept. 11 attacks that it was safe to return to their homes and offices while toxic dust was polluting the neighborhood.

Twin Baghdad bombings kill at least 11 Iraqi citizens

By Alyson Brodsy and Paul Garwood · Thursday, Feb. 2,2006 11:19 p.m.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Two bombings 20 minutes apart killed at least 11 Iraqis on Thursday, and the U.S. military announced five more American battle deaths. A U.S. rocket attack on the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City killed a woman and enraged Shiites across Iraq.

House answers Bush's call, extends Patriot act

By Graham Gardner · Thursday, Feb. 2,2006 11:17 p.m.

President Bush urged members of Congress in his State of the Union address Tuesday to renew expiring portions of the USA Patriot Act, the controversial anti-terrorism legislation passed shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

Gunmen surround EU office as cartoons draw Islamic ire

By Alyson Brodsy and Ibrahim Barzak · Thursday, Feb. 2,2006 11:13 p.m.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- Armed militants angered by a cartoon drawing of the Prophet Muhammad published in European newspapers surrounded EU offices in Gaza on Thursday and threatened to kidnap foreigners as outrage over the caricatures spread across the Islamic world.

Iran vows to continue nuclear program

By Alyson Brodsy and Ali Akbar Dareini · Thursday, Feb. 2,2006 12:37 a.m.

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran's president lashed out Wednesday at the United States and vowed to resist the pressure of "bully countries" as European nations circulated a draft resolution urging that Tehran be brought before the U.N. Security Council for its nuclear activities. In a speech to thousands of supporters hours after President Bush's State of the Union address, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad derided the United States as a "hollow superpower" that is "tainted with the blood of nations" and said Tehran would continue its nuclear program.

Saddam, defense team boycott new session of trial

By Alyson Brodsy and Hamza Hendawi · Thursday, Feb. 2,2006 12:36 a.m.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Saddam Hussein and four other defendants refused to attend a new session of their trial Wednesday and their lawyers boycotted the proceedings, demanding the removal of the chief judge, who they claim is biased against the former Iraqi leader. Chief judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman pressed ahead with court-appointed defense lawyers and only three defendants present. Five prosecution witnesses were heard before the 4 1/2 hour session was adjourned until Thursday. One witness, a woman, testified that she was arrested by Saddam's security forces and tortured in prison. She said she was stripped naked, hung by her feet and kicked repeatedly in the chest by Barzan Ibrahim, Saddam's intelligence chief at the time and the top co-defendant in the trial. "What crime have we all committed to go through this agony?" she said, speaking from behind a beige curtain to preserve her anonymity.

Bush: Oil, economic reforms necessary for U.S.

By Ben Woodson · Wednesday, Feb. 1,2006 12:54 a.m.

President Bush's State of the Union Address resulted in contrasting reactions from IU students on both sides of the political spectrum. Bush concentrated on the Iraq War for much of the speech, but he didn't say anything new, said Emma Cullen, president of the IU College Democrats.

Bush delivers fifth State of the Union address

By Mike Malik · Wednesday, Feb. 1,2006 12:54 a.m.

Scripps Howard Foundation Wire WASHINGTON -- President Bush laid out Tuesday night his optimistic ideas of how the United States should fill its role as a global power and announced proposals for programs to make Americans more "competitive" in a global economy.

Senate confirms Alito to become next associate Supreme Court justice

By Mike Malik · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 11:51 p.m.

WASHINGTON -- The Senate voted Tuesday to confirm Judge Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. to be the 110th justice of the U.S. Supreme Court by a vote of 58-42, following a confirmation process that was marked with sharp partisan debate and a failed attempt at a filibuster. Alito, who has 15 years of experience as a circuit court judge, will replace the moderate swing vote on the high court of retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

Iraq on alert after 15-year-old girl dies from bird flu virus

By Alyson Brodsy and Yahya Barzanji · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 11:50 p.m.

SULAIMINYAH, Iraq -- Health authorities went on high alert Tuesday following Iraq's first reported case of the deadly bird flu virus, killing hundreds of thousands of birds and warning farmers across the country to inspect their flocks.

Samuel Alito sworn in as the 110th Supreme Court justice

By Alyson Brodsy and Jesse J. Holland · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 4:15 p.m.

WASHINGTON -- Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. was sworn in as the nation's 110th Supreme Court justice on Tuesday after being confirmed by the Senate in one of the most partisan victories in modern history. Alito was sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts in a private ceremony at the Supreme Court building across from the Capitol at about 12:40 p.m. EST, court officials said.

Coretta Scott King, widow of Martin Luther King, dies at 78

By Alyson Brodsy and Errin Haines · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 4:11 p.m.

ATLANTA -- Coretta Scott King, who worked to keep her husband's dream alive with a chin-held-high grace and serenity that made her a powerful symbol of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s creed of brotherhood and nonviolence, died Tuesday. She was 78.

Al-Qaida No. 2 taunts Bush in new videotape

By Alyson Brodsy · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 12:40 a.m.

CAIRO, Egypt -- Al-Qaida No. 2 Ayman al-Zawahri said in a videotape aired Monday that President Bush was a "butcher" and a "failure" because of a deadly U.S. air strike in Pakistan targeting the bin Laden deputy, and he threatened a new attack on the United States. Al-Zawahri, shown in the video wearing white robes and a white turban, said a Jan. 13 air strike in the eastern village of Damadola killed "innocents," and he said the United States had ignored an offer from al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden for a truce. "Butcher of Washington, you are not only defeated and a liar, but also a failure. You are a curse on your own nation and you have brought and will bring them only catastrophes and tragedies," he said, referring to Bush. "Bush, do you know where I am? I am among the Muslim masses."

Video of kidnapped journalist released

By Alyson Brodsy · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 12:39 a.m.

CAIRO, Egypt - Al-Jazeera aired a new videotape Monday of kidnapped U.S. journalist Jill Carroll, showing her wearing an Islamic veil and weeping as she purportedly appealed for the release of female Iraqi prisoners. The video is dated Saturday, two days after the U.S. military released five Iraqi women detainees. U.S. officials said the release had nothing to do with the kidnappers' demands. The video had no sound, but the Al-Jazeera newscaster said Carroll appealed to the U.S. military and the Iraqi Interior Ministry to free all women in their prisons and said this "would help in winning her release."

Democrats' filibuster attempt fails

By Alyson Brodsy and Jesse J. Holland · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 12:38 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- The Senate all but guaranteed Samuel Alito's confirmation as the nation's 110th Supreme Court justice Monday, shutting down a last-minute attempt by liberals to block the conservative judge's nomination with a filibuster. Republican and Democratic senators on a 72-25 vote agreed to end their debate, setting up a Tuesday morning vote on Alito's confirmation to replace retiring moderate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

U.S. will cut off aid to Hamas-led government

By Alyson Brodsy and Anne Gearan · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 12:37 a.m.

LONDON -- The United States and other would-be Mideast peacemakers struggled Monday to present a clear ultimatum to the Palestinians' incoming Hamas leaders that they must change their ways to keep the foreign aid they desperately need. The future of aid was unclear, with both Hamas and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas appealing for continued world support, President Bush insisting the United States won't give direct aid to a government that includes terrorists, and European leaders hedging their bets. Of the Palestinian Authority's $1.6 billion annual budget, $1 billion comes from Europe, the United States and other donor countries and international agencies, $70 million of that from the United States.

Bush to deliver State of Union address tonight

By Mike Malik · Tuesday, Jan. 31,2006 12:12 a.m.

Scripps Howard Foundation Wire WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush will attempt to get his presidency back on track tonight after coming off what some have called his worst year yet as president. He will also attempt the even bigger task of laying out a platform for the midterm elections.

ABC News co-anchor Woodruff injured in Iraq

By Alyson Brodsy and David Bauder · Monday, Jan. 30,2006 12:05 a.m.

NEW YORK -- ABC "World News Tonight" co-anchor Bob Woodruff and a cameraman were seriously injured Sunday when the Iraqi Army vehicle they were traveling in was attacked with an explosive device. Both journalists suffered head injuries, and Woodruff also has broken bones. They were in stable condition following surgery at a U.S. military hospital in Iraq, and due to be evacuated to medical facilities in Germany, probably overnight, said ABC News President David Westin.

IU professors respond to historic Saddam trial

By Nina Mehta · Monday, Jan. 30,2006 12:03 a.m.

Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein is on trial in possibly the most important case postwar Iraq has seen. "Everything (has ground) to a stop and (the Iraqis) are glued to their television sets," said John Walbridge, chair of IU's Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. "It's the biggest TV event as long as anyone could remember."

Hamas win raises questions of peace process

By Anne Purcell · Friday, Jan. 27,2006 12:22 a.m.

Members of the IU community disagreed Thursday on the merits of the Hamas party's upset of the ruling Fatah party. Hamas emerged with a majority win in the Palestinian elections earlier this week.