world

Coast Guard sends troops to Persian Gulf

By Alyson Brodsy · Thursday, Jan. 30,2003 12:37 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- In its first mobilization of forces to a potential combat zone since the Vietnam war, the Coast Guard is sending roughly 1,400 personnel and eight cutters to the Persian Gulf.

First Israeli astronaut in space

By Alyson Brodsy and Marcia Dunn · Thursday, Jan. 30,2003 12:35 a.m.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Israel's first astronaut, Ilan Ramon, said Wednesday from shuttle Columbia that he wishes his homeland -- in fact, all of the Middle East -- were as quiet and peaceful as it looks from space.

Chavez winning battle in oil strike

By Alyson Brodsy and Alexandra Olson · Thursday, Jan. 30,2003 12:34 a.m.

CARACAS, Venezuela -- President Hugo Chavez appeared to be winning the battle for control of Venezuela's oil industry, overcoming efforts by workers at the state oil company to strangle it with a 58-day-old strike.

Explosion at North Carolina factory kills 2 people

By Alyson Brodsy and Estes Thompson · Thursday, Jan. 30,2003 12:32 a.m.

KINSTON, N.C. -- An explosion followed by a raging fire demolished a plastics factory Wednesday, killing at least two people and injuring at least 16. Others were feared trapped in the burning ruins, which sent black, acrid smoke billowing over the countryside.

Bush's speech condemned as 'cheap lies'

By Alyson Brodsy and Charles J. Hanley · Thursday, Jan. 30,2003 12:30 a.m.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Saddam Hussein, in remarks televised Wednesday, said Iraq "has huge capabilities" and is ready to face a U.S. attack, "destroy it and defeat it." A senior Baghdad official condemned President Bush's State of the Union speech, saying it was filled with "cheap lies."

Saddam declares Iraq is ready for an attack from US

By Alyson Brodsy and Charles J. Hanley · Thursday, Jan. 30,2003 12:28 a.m.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Iraq has no ties to al Qaeda terrorists and no weapons of mass destruction, a key Iraqi official said Wednesday, rejecting allegations made by President Bush in his State of the Union address Tuesday.

Bush outlines nation's course

By Alyson Brodsy and Ron Fournier · Wednesday, Jan. 29,2003 1:07 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Building a case for war against Iraq, President Bush said Tuesday night he will present fresh evidence to the United Nations next week of Saddam Hussein's illegal weapons and vowed the United States will lead a campaign to disarm the Iraqi regime if he refuses to surrender its arms.

Speech creates praise, skepticism

By Sheeba Madan · Wednesday, Jan. 29,2003 1:07 a.m.

President Bush delivered the State of the Union address Tuesday night, creating praise and skepticism around campus. Jeffrey Hart, IU professor of international politics, said he believed Bush's speech clearly pointed toward a possible war in Iraq. "The domestic policy basically lay the groundwork for an attack on Iraq," he said.

Sharon wins Israeli election

By Alyson Brodsy · Tuesday, Jan. 28,2003 11:56 p.m.

JERUSALEM -- Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who has taken a hard line against the Palestinian uprising, won a crushing victory in Israel's election Tuesday, and TV projections showed his Likud and other hawkish parties easily winning most seats in parliament.

US makes case for Iraq attack

By Alyson Brodsy and Barry Schweid · Tuesday, Jan. 28,2003 11:56 p.m.

WASHINGTON -- Pressing its campaign for worldwide support, the Bush administration is reaching out to world leaders and members of Congress with fresh disclosures that Iraq is hiding weapons of mass destruction and has links to the al Qaeda terror network.

Ivory Coast to address peace plan

By Alyson Brodsy · Monday, Jan. 27,2003 11:43 p.m.

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast -- Loyalist mobs opposing a French effort to end Ivory Coast's civil war returned to downtown streets Monday, charging foreigners, building checkpoints with burning debris and gathering outside the U.S. and French embassies.

Bush to touch on Iraq, US

By Alyson Brodsy and Ron Fournier · Monday, Jan. 27,2003 11:40 p.m.

WASHINGTON -- President Bush will broadly outline his case for possible war against Iraq in Tuesday night's State of the Union address, leaving it to Secretary of State Colin Powell to come forward later with what the administration says is fresh evidence of Saddam Hussein's ties to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network.

U.S. warns against inaction against Baghdad

By Dafna Linzer · Monday, Jan. 27,2003 1:38 p.m.

UNITED NATIONS - Top weapons inspector Hans Blix on Monday said Baghdad had not genuinely accepted U.N. resolutions demanding that it disarm, while his counterpart Mohamed ElBaradei said there was no evidence so far that Iraq was reviving its nuclear program and asked for a "few months" to complete the search.

Brazil's president addresses World Economic Forum

By Naomi Koppel · Sunday, Jan. 26,2003 11:43 p.m.

DAVOS, Switzerland -- To applause and cheers, Brazil's new leftist president appeared Sunday before the elite economic conference he once scorned and called for a massive drive to defeat poverty and hunger across the globe. "My greatest desire is that the hope that has overcome fear in my country will also help vanquish it around the world," Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told hundreds of delegates at the World Economic Forum, an annual meeting of corporate and political leaders.

Iraq not cooperating

By Dafna Linzer · Sunday, Jan. 26,2003 11:39 p.m.

UNITED NATIONS -- Iraq's arms declaration is incomplete, its scientists aren't fully cooperating with inspections and Baghdad is obstructing the use of a U-2 plane which could be helpful in the hunt for weapons of mass destruction.

Economic Forum held in Switzerland

By David McHugh · Sunday, Jan. 26,2003 11:38 p.m.

DAVOS, Switzerland -- Millions of people in the Middle East believe the United States is indifferent to the region's fate, Jordan's King Abdullah said Sunday, urging Washington to commit itself anew to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Powell speaks about Iraqi conflict

By George Gedda · Sunday, Jan. 26,2003 11:36 p.m.

DAVOS, Switzerland -- Secretary of State Colin Powell, citing Iraq's lack of cooperation with U.N. inspectors, said Sunday he has lost faith in the inspectors' ability to conduct a definitive search for banned weapons programs. A U.S.-led war to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, however, is not imminent, Powell told business and political leaders, and he did not explicitly call for the inspections to end.

4 Marines killed in Texas crash

By Alyson Brodsy · Friday, Jan. 24,2003 12:03 a.m.

FALCON HEIGHTS, Texas -- Two military helicopters crashed in flames while helping the Border Patrol on a drug mission, killing all four Marine reservists on board.

Suspect arrested in Kuwait

By Alyson Brodsy and Chris Tomlinson · Friday, Jan. 24,2003 12:02 a.m.

KUWAIT CITY -- A Kuwaiti civil servant confessed to opening fire on two Americans in Kuwait, killing one and wounding the other, and authorities have found the weapon he used, the Interior Ministry said Thursday. A Kuwaiti security officer said the suspect, Sami al-Mutairi, 25, was not working alone. And the Interior Ministry, in its statement, said he acknowledged following the ideals of Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda terror network.

Powell confident US will gain foreign support

By Alyson Brodsy · Friday, Jan. 24,2003 12:02 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Colin Powell, declaring Iraq's failure to disarm is "a challenge that must be met," said Thursday that many nations would fight alongside American forces if the United States went to war without U.N. Security Council approval. "I don't think we will have to worry about going it alone," Powell said as France and Germany stiffened their resistance to using force to disarm Iraq. "I am sure it will be a strong coalition."