News In Brief
THE US
The US launched a cruise missile attack against Iraq. The Navy and Air Force fired 27 missiles against Iraqi defense installations in retaliation for Iraqi assaults on the Kurds this weekend. The attack received bipartisan support from Congress. President Clinton also announced the US is extending the no-fly zone in Iraq to deny military flights from Baghdad suburbs to Iraq's border with Kuwait. It was the first US attack against Iraq since 1993. That one was in retaliation for an alleged plot to assassinate former President Bush while he was visiting Kuwait.
Congress will return to work this week for a short session. Topping the agenda is passing spending authority to keep the government running past Oct. 1 and into the next fiscal year. Republican lawmakers say they'll do their part to avoid a replay of last fiscal year's government shutdowns. House Speaker Newt Gingrich says he'd like to wrap things up by the end of the month to give legislators more time to campaign for reelection.
Jury deliberations resumed in the trial of three men charged with plotting to blow up US airplanes. The three are accused of plotting to plant bombs on 12 US airplanes in Asia, and then blow them up over the Pacific to protest US support for Israel. Defendant Ramzi Yousef, who acted as his own attorney, claims the evidence against him was fabricated by the Philippine and Pakistani governments to curry US favor. The lawyers for the other defendants also say their clients were framed. If convicted, the three face life in prison.
Boeing tests indicate an explosion of a center fuel tank wouldn't be enough to down a 747, an investigator in the crash of TWA Flight 800 said. The test results make it less likely that the July crash was an accident. And the top FBI official investigating the crash says he's not telling everything he knows about the crash so as not to "alert potential co-conspirators."
Most Americans favor stiff penalties for drunk driving, according to a Louis Harris poll conducted over Labor Day weekend. Some 91 percent of adults surveyed think teenagers caught driving while intoxicated should have their licenses suspended immediately. And 78 percent oppose lowering the legal drinking age from 21 to 18. Also, two-thirds favor releasing photos of repeat drunken-driving offenders to newspapers and television stations once the suspects had their licenses revoked.
Western firefighters declared victory on some wildfires. A blaze near Castaic, Calif., that consumed 21,500 acres has been contained, as well as the last of dozens of Nevada fires that burned more than 300,000 acres. Also, about 500 marines headed to the Oregon fire lines, adding to about 17,000 firefighters battling fires in eight states. More than 5 million acres burned this summer, making this the worst fire season since 1969.
Argentina's government was to go on trial in Santa Monica, Calif., to face charges that its officials tortured a Jewish man and stole his property. It is the first time a foreign country has been forced to trial in the US on allegations of human rights abuses committed on its own soil.
The Federal Reserve is considering raising interest rates half a percentage point, unless it sees strong indication that the economy is slowing this month, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Fed meets again Sept. 24. Also, stocks opened lower on Tuesday after sagging at the end of last week. The drop was spurred by signs that the economy continues to grow - sparking concerns that interest rates will go up.
Hurricane Fran was heading for the Bahamas, and Floridians were told to brace for its arrival on their coast tomorrow morning. Forecasters say the storm, which boasted winds of 85 m.p.h., could reach Georgia or South Carolina by Friday.
A Tennessee man committed suicide in Detroit in the presence of Jack Kevorkian. Dr. Kevorkian has acknowledged attending 39 deaths since 1990.
THE WORLD
Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein said he no longer recognized the no-fly zone and ordered his armed forces to shoot down any enemy plane over Iraqi territory. World opinion was mixed about a US missile attack, launched in retaliation for Iraqi attacks on Kurds. Britain, Germany, and Japan applauded the strike, while France, Russia, China, and many Arab nations were critical. Iraqi officials said five people were killed and 19 others injured. Meanwhile oil prices shot up by $1.50 a barrel, and experts say if tensions continue prices may hit a five-year high.
A summit between Israeli and Palestinian leaders could be held as soon as today, an Israeli official said. Palestine spokesman Nabil Abourdeneh also hinted at such a prospect. Talks are being held up by an Israeli demand for a written pledge by Palestinians to renegotiate the terms of redeployment of Israeli troops in the West Bank city of Hebron.
In a show of solidarity, Bosnia's three armies pledged to ensure peaceful voting for the Sept. 14 nationwide elections. The announcement came after Serb, Muslim, and Croat military commanders met for the first time in five months. Also, UN officials evacuated 50 Bosnian Muslims after threats against relocating in the Serb-controlled city of Banja Luka continued.
A Bulgarian chartered plane, which took off from Beirut with 150 passengers aboard, was hijacked 15 minutes before it landed in Varna, Bulgaria, an airport official said. The hijacker, whose motives remained unknown, refused to negotiate and demanded refueling and a passage to Helsinki or Oslo.
The Chechen peace deal has the full support of President Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin was reported as saying. However, there was no official word from Yeltsin's office. Meanwhile, security chief Alexander Lebed, who struck the deal, said at least 70,000 people were killed in the separatist war, a figure that twice as much earlier estimates.
Zapatista rebels in southern Mexico broke off peace talks with the government. Rebel leader Subcomandante Marcos said little progress has been made in 16 months of negotiations and accused the government of arrogance and racism. There was no immediate response from the government.
Burmese authorities doubled the prison sentence of Win Htein, the personal assistant of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, dissidents said. He was sentenced last month to seven years in prison for allegedly trying to smuggle a videotape out of Burma that showed the failure of a summer rice crop.
Hutu rebels launched a major attack on the Tutsi-led Army in northwestern Burundi, an Army spokesman said. The Hutus stepped up their attacks in the past week, a month after African nations slapped sanctions against the Tutsi military, which seized power in a June coup.
Singapore said it will link all its on-line networks to build a single pool of information and services called the Internetwork-Hub. Currently, Internet users have to go through US Internet hubs and must use several leased telephone lines to interact with individual networks.
Drugs and the creation of a Latin American free-trade zone will top the agenda at the 10th presidential summit of the Rio Group of Latin American and Caribbean states, delegates said. The two-day summit is being held in Cochabamba, Bolivia.
ETCETERAS
"When you abuse your own people or threaten your neighbors, you must pay a price."
-- President Clinton, on why he ordered a missile strike against Iraq
in retaliation for Iraqi military attacks against the Kurds.
A rare original letter by Danish fairytale writer Hans Christian Anderson was found in the archives of the University of Odense. The four-page letter was written in June 1859, congratulating a friend on his wedding.
Customers at the Olde Fish Market in Portsmouth, N.H., can track the presidential race along with tuna prices, courtesy of the store's Presidential Fish Pole. In 1992, Bill Clinton won the survey. Now he's leading Bob Dole by 470 points. Locals claim the poll is a reliable gauge of political races.
THE DAY'S LIST
Fraternity of the Future
Greek Row may never be the same, thanks to billionaire Paul Allen, who spent $3.1 million to build a new house for Phi Kappa Theta at Washington State University. He was a member of the fraternity before dropping out of college to join Bill Gates in founding Microsoft. The revamped frat includes:
Built-in jacks to transmit voice, data, and cable television in each bedroom
An individual climate control system in each room which also provides outside temperatures
Heated parking lot to ward off ice
Built-in barbecue pit
Multi-line telephone system for each room that includes an intercom
Lighted outdoor basketball court
Guest bedroom for visiting alumni
An elevator
Computer center with six Gateway 2000 Pentium computers
Big-screen television
- Associated Press
