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united arab emirates <tsp> abu dhabi , united arab emirates ( cnn ) lost luggage after a long flight is a common , frustrating occurrence of modern air travel . and sometimes , airlines lose things that are irreplaceable . american jennifer stewart says she was devastated to learn that etihad airways lost her most important baggage following a recent trip from abu dhabi to new york city : her 2-year-old pet cat , felix . stewart said that she and her husband , joseph naaman , booked felix on their etihad airways flight from the united arab emirates to new york 's john f. kennedy international airport on april 1 . shortly after the plane arrived in new york that evening , felix went missing somewhere on the grounds of kennedy airport , according to etihad airways . felix was able to get loose , stewart said she believes , because the cat 's plastic carrier was badly damaged at some point either during the flight or the transfer from the airplane to the pickup area . stewart said a cargo manager called the couple to an office after they landed at kennedy last week and notified them that their cat 's carrier had been crushed . photographs taken by stewart showed a large hole in the top of the cat 's carrier . at least one of the corners of the case appeared partially collapsed . nearly one week later , felix remains missing . for them to take a cat and ship him like he was cargo , not a live animal , makes me sick , ' stewart said . you trust that people care and are doing the job well , and then this happens . ' a representative for etihad airways told cnn that that the loss of pets during air travel is extremely rare . ' the airline shipped more than 200 pets last year . etihad airways is investigating the incident and is working with ground handlers at the new york airport to help locate the missing cat . the abu dhabi-based carrier also said it hired third-party specialists ' to help in the hunt for felix . we deeply regret this unfortunate incident and are keeping the owner apprised of the progress of the search , ' etihad airways told cnn in a statement . we will review our pet handling procedures in the wake of this incident , as the safety and care of pets traveling with etihad airways is a top priority . ' stewart and her husband booked the cat 's flight as part of their job relocation to the united states after living in abu dhabi for more than three years . the couple said they spent $ 1,200 to ship felix on the 14-hour flight . you pay all of this money , but for what ? people assume you pay extra to have your pets taken care of , but they 're treated no differently than a free piece of checked luggage , ' stewart said . it is n't the first time a pet has gone missing at new york 's busiest airport . in august 2011 , a cat escaped from its carrier before an american airlines flight from new york to san francisco . that cat was eventually discovered -- alive -- two months later in a customs room at the airport . but the cat later had to be euthanized because of injuries and malnutrition it suffered while lost . this weekend , stewart enlisted the help of a local nonprofit , which provided a highly trained detection dog , to help track down felix 's scent . a wildlife biologist who works with the airport has also placed traps to facilitate felix 's safe return , according to the port authority of new york and new jersey . officials at kennedy have offered to assist etihad airways as the airline investigates what happened , the port authority said . stewart said the couple will continue to search the airport until they have answers . we just want to find felix . but i just do n't know if we will , ' she said . | couple spends $ 1,200 to ship their cat , felix , on a flight from the united arab emirates |
felix <tsp> abu dhabi , united arab emirates ( cnn ) lost luggage after a long flight is a common , frustrating occurrence of modern air travel . and sometimes , airlines lose things that are irreplaceable . american jennifer stewart says she was devastated to learn that etihad airways lost her most important baggage following a recent trip from abu dhabi to new york city : her 2-year-old pet cat , felix . stewart said that she and her husband , joseph naaman , booked felix on their etihad airways flight from the united arab emirates to new york 's john f. kennedy international airport on april 1 . shortly after the plane arrived in new york that evening , felix went missing somewhere on the grounds of kennedy airport , according to etihad airways . felix was able to get loose , stewart said she believes , because the cat 's plastic carrier was badly damaged at some point either during the flight or the transfer from the airplane to the pickup area . stewart said a cargo manager called the couple to an office after they landed at kennedy last week and notified them that their cat 's carrier had been crushed . photographs taken by stewart showed a large hole in the top of the cat 's carrier . at least one of the corners of the case appeared partially collapsed . nearly one week later , felix remains missing . for them to take a cat and ship him like he was cargo , not a live animal , makes me sick , ' stewart said . you trust that people care and are doing the job well , and then this happens . ' a representative for etihad airways told cnn that that the loss of pets during air travel is extremely rare . ' the airline shipped more than 200 pets last year . etihad airways is investigating the incident and is working with ground handlers at the new york airport to help locate the missing cat . the abu dhabi-based carrier also said it hired third-party specialists ' to help in the hunt for felix . we deeply regret this unfortunate incident and are keeping the owner apprised of the progress of the search , ' etihad airways told cnn in a statement . we will review our pet handling procedures in the wake of this incident , as the safety and care of pets traveling with etihad airways is a top priority . ' stewart and her husband booked the cat 's flight as part of their job relocation to the united states after living in abu dhabi for more than three years . the couple said they spent $ 1,200 to ship felix on the 14-hour flight . you pay all of this money , but for what ? people assume you pay extra to have your pets taken care of , but they 're treated no differently than a free piece of checked luggage , ' stewart said . it is n't the first time a pet has gone missing at new york 's busiest airport . in august 2011 , a cat escaped from its carrier before an american airlines flight from new york to san francisco . that cat was eventually discovered -- alive -- two months later in a customs room at the airport . but the cat later had to be euthanized because of injuries and malnutrition it suffered while lost . this weekend , stewart enlisted the help of a local nonprofit , which provided a highly trained detection dog , to help track down felix 's scent . a wildlife biologist who works with the airport has also placed traps to facilitate felix 's safe return , according to the port authority of new york and new jersey . officials at kennedy have offered to assist etihad airways as the airline investigates what happened , the port authority said . stewart said the couple will continue to search the airport until they have answers . we just want to find felix . but i just do n't know if we will , ' she said . | felix went missing somewhere at john f. kennedy international airport , airline says |
felix <tsp> abu dhabi , united arab emirates ( cnn ) lost luggage after a long flight is a common , frustrating occurrence of modern air travel . and sometimes , airlines lose things that are irreplaceable . american jennifer stewart says she was devastated to learn that etihad airways lost her most important baggage following a recent trip from abu dhabi to new york city : her 2-year-old pet cat , felix . stewart said that she and her husband , joseph naaman , booked felix on their etihad airways flight from the united arab emirates to new york 's john f. kennedy international airport on april 1 . shortly after the plane arrived in new york that evening , felix went missing somewhere on the grounds of kennedy airport , according to etihad airways . felix was able to get loose , stewart said she believes , because the cat 's plastic carrier was badly damaged at some point either during the flight or the transfer from the airplane to the pickup area . stewart said a cargo manager called the couple to an office after they landed at kennedy last week and notified them that their cat 's carrier had been crushed . photographs taken by stewart showed a large hole in the top of the cat 's carrier . at least one of the corners of the case appeared partially collapsed . nearly one week later , felix remains missing . for them to take a cat and ship him like he was cargo , not a live animal , makes me sick , ' stewart said . you trust that people care and are doing the job well , and then this happens . ' a representative for etihad airways told cnn that that the loss of pets during air travel is extremely rare . ' the airline shipped more than 200 pets last year . etihad airways is investigating the incident and is working with ground handlers at the new york airport to help locate the missing cat . the abu dhabi-based carrier also said it hired third-party specialists ' to help in the hunt for felix . we deeply regret this unfortunate incident and are keeping the owner apprised of the progress of the search , ' etihad airways told cnn in a statement . we will review our pet handling procedures in the wake of this incident , as the safety and care of pets traveling with etihad airways is a top priority . ' stewart and her husband booked the cat 's flight as part of their job relocation to the united states after living in abu dhabi for more than three years . the couple said they spent $ 1,200 to ship felix on the 14-hour flight . you pay all of this money , but for what ? people assume you pay extra to have your pets taken care of , but they 're treated no differently than a free piece of checked luggage , ' stewart said . it is n't the first time a pet has gone missing at new york 's busiest airport . in august 2011 , a cat escaped from its carrier before an american airlines flight from new york to san francisco . that cat was eventually discovered -- alive -- two months later in a customs room at the airport . but the cat later had to be euthanized because of injuries and malnutrition it suffered while lost . this weekend , stewart enlisted the help of a local nonprofit , which provided a highly trained detection dog , to help track down felix 's scent . a wildlife biologist who works with the airport has also placed traps to facilitate felix 's safe return , according to the port authority of new york and new jersey . officials at kennedy have offered to assist etihad airways as the airline investigates what happened , the port authority said . stewart said the couple will continue to search the airport until they have answers . we just want to find felix . but i just do n't know if we will , ' she said . | couple spends $ 1,200 to ship their cat , felix , on a flight from the united arab emirates |
john f. kennedy international airport <tsp> abu dhabi , united arab emirates ( cnn ) lost luggage after a long flight is a common , frustrating occurrence of modern air travel . and sometimes , airlines lose things that are irreplaceable . american jennifer stewart says she was devastated to learn that etihad airways lost her most important baggage following a recent trip from abu dhabi to new york city : her 2-year-old pet cat , felix . stewart said that she and her husband , joseph naaman , booked felix on their etihad airways flight from the united arab emirates to new york 's john f. kennedy international airport on april 1 . shortly after the plane arrived in new york that evening , felix went missing somewhere on the grounds of kennedy airport , according to etihad airways . felix was able to get loose , stewart said she believes , because the cat 's plastic carrier was badly damaged at some point either during the flight or the transfer from the airplane to the pickup area . stewart said a cargo manager called the couple to an office after they landed at kennedy last week and notified them that their cat 's carrier had been crushed . photographs taken by stewart showed a large hole in the top of the cat 's carrier . at least one of the corners of the case appeared partially collapsed . nearly one week later , felix remains missing . for them to take a cat and ship him like he was cargo , not a live animal , makes me sick , ' stewart said . you trust that people care and are doing the job well , and then this happens . ' a representative for etihad airways told cnn that that the loss of pets during air travel is extremely rare . ' the airline shipped more than 200 pets last year . etihad airways is investigating the incident and is working with ground handlers at the new york airport to help locate the missing cat . the abu dhabi-based carrier also said it hired third-party specialists ' to help in the hunt for felix . we deeply regret this unfortunate incident and are keeping the owner apprised of the progress of the search , ' etihad airways told cnn in a statement . we will review our pet handling procedures in the wake of this incident , as the safety and care of pets traveling with etihad airways is a top priority . ' stewart and her husband booked the cat 's flight as part of their job relocation to the united states after living in abu dhabi for more than three years . the couple said they spent $ 1,200 to ship felix on the 14-hour flight . you pay all of this money , but for what ? people assume you pay extra to have your pets taken care of , but they 're treated no differently than a free piece of checked luggage , ' stewart said . it is n't the first time a pet has gone missing at new york 's busiest airport . in august 2011 , a cat escaped from its carrier before an american airlines flight from new york to san francisco . that cat was eventually discovered -- alive -- two months later in a customs room at the airport . but the cat later had to be euthanized because of injuries and malnutrition it suffered while lost . this weekend , stewart enlisted the help of a local nonprofit , which provided a highly trained detection dog , to help track down felix 's scent . a wildlife biologist who works with the airport has also placed traps to facilitate felix 's safe return , according to the port authority of new york and new jersey . officials at kennedy have offered to assist etihad airways as the airline investigates what happened , the port authority said . stewart said the couple will continue to search the airport until they have answers . we just want to find felix . but i just do n't know if we will , ' she said . | felix went missing somewhere at john f. kennedy international airport , airline says |
marquez <tsp> silverstone , england ( cnn ) -- if an unexpected fourth place at the czech motogp two weeks ago had given marc marquez 's rivals cause for hope , sunday at britain 's silverstone served as a reminder that his talents run deep . this was marquez at his imperious best , as well as a fine advertisement for a sport that thrives on white-knuckle tension ; in a scintillating contest , motogp 's youngest ever champion roared back to form . his victory means only a disaster for the 21-year-old catalan can prevent him lifting his second title well before the end of the season . repsol honda 's record-breaking star began on pole after a typically impressive qualifying session , but quickly found himself playing catch-up to an apparently rejuvenated jorge lorenzo . the movistar yamaha rider seized his chance in warmer than expected conditions , taking an early lead as a fierce skirmish developed behind him . ducati 's andrea dovizioso had gatecrashed the honda-yamaha power party on the starting grid , and the italian took his increasing confidence into battle with dani pedrosa and valentino rossi . gradually the front five eased away from the chasing pack , but remained close enough to one another to throw up some heart stopping moments as positions changed lap after lap . the contest reached an electrifying climax in the final moments , with marquez and lorenzo diving into an uncompromising dogfight . when lorenzo seized the initiative with just three laps remaining it looked as though the man from mallorca might be able to hold on for the win . the two riders knocked fairings as their battle raged , before an audacious and fearless pass from marquez fired the championship leader back to the front with two laps remaining . the champion held his lead to cross the line to claim his 11th victory from the 12 grand prix this season . marquez was delighted with the win , having missed out to lorenzo at silverstone last year . with higher temperatures it seems that both jorge and valentino took a step forward , ' he said . above all , jorge , because he had a great pace and we were fighting right to the end . it was important to win , after missing out at brno . i also had a score to settle from last year , when jorge beat me on the final corner , so i am happy to be back on the top step of the podium ! ' lorenzo , meanwhile , revealed that he had struggled to maintain the same pace as his rival , and blamed their coming together for the loss of valuable momentum . i lost a lot of time when he ( marquez ) touched me , ' he said . i knew that he was going to try to overtake me in this corner in first gear on the right , but i did n't let him enter . on the outside i opened the throttle and he touched me . in the next corner he touched me again as he went into the corner and i lost seven tenths of a second . ' even so lorenzo was pleased with his second place . i made a really good start and pushed 100 % , more than ever , so i am really proud of my riding , ' he said . rossi -- who set a new outright record of 246 starts in the premier class of grand prix racing -- won the battle behind the leaders to take third from pedrosa and a disappointed but philosophical dovizioso . the result confirms the improvements we are making , ' the italian said . finishing the race less than ten seconds behind the leaders was almost a dream before the start , but instead we did it and we were always in with a fighting chance of finishing on the podium . ' the home fans were left frustrated as one of their favorites , tech3 yamaha 's bradley smith , was knocked out of contention by a cracked rear wheel . the briton 's tyre deflated as a result , forcing him into the pits . when he re-joined with a new wheel his chances of a point-scoring finish had gone , but he did manage to ride to within a lap of the leaders , to loud cheers from the stands . i tried to stay out and fight through it but it just got too dangerous to ride , ' smith said . when we changed ( the wheel ) , i proved that i have the pace for sixth . it was a good weekend up until the race and the team did a great job , but these things happen sometimes . ' tech3 could , however , console themselves with an outstanding performance from rookie pol espargaro , who forced his way into a highly creditable sixth position . of the other top british talent , scott redding piloted his open class gresini honda to a solid tenth , but ducati 's cal crutchlow could only manage twelfth . the talented coventry-born rider must surely be counting the days until he leaves for his new team , lcr honda , at the end of an intensely trying season . the championship now takes a two week break before the san marino motogp , with marquez a titanic 89 points clear of pedrosa , and rossi a further 10 points back in third , with only six races remaining this season . | motogp leader marquez made a fearless pass three laps from the finish |
marquez <tsp> silverstone , england ( cnn ) -- if an unexpected fourth place at the czech motogp two weeks ago had given marc marquez 's rivals cause for hope , sunday at britain 's silverstone served as a reminder that his talents run deep . this was marquez at his imperious best , as well as a fine advertisement for a sport that thrives on white-knuckle tension ; in a scintillating contest , motogp 's youngest ever champion roared back to form . his victory means only a disaster for the 21-year-old catalan can prevent him lifting his second title well before the end of the season . repsol honda 's record-breaking star began on pole after a typically impressive qualifying session , but quickly found himself playing catch-up to an apparently rejuvenated jorge lorenzo . the movistar yamaha rider seized his chance in warmer than expected conditions , taking an early lead as a fierce skirmish developed behind him . ducati 's andrea dovizioso had gatecrashed the honda-yamaha power party on the starting grid , and the italian took his increasing confidence into battle with dani pedrosa and valentino rossi . gradually the front five eased away from the chasing pack , but remained close enough to one another to throw up some heart stopping moments as positions changed lap after lap . the contest reached an electrifying climax in the final moments , with marquez and lorenzo diving into an uncompromising dogfight . when lorenzo seized the initiative with just three laps remaining it looked as though the man from mallorca might be able to hold on for the win . the two riders knocked fairings as their battle raged , before an audacious and fearless pass from marquez fired the championship leader back to the front with two laps remaining . the champion held his lead to cross the line to claim his 11th victory from the 12 grand prix this season . marquez was delighted with the win , having missed out to lorenzo at silverstone last year . with higher temperatures it seems that both jorge and valentino took a step forward , ' he said . above all , jorge , because he had a great pace and we were fighting right to the end . it was important to win , after missing out at brno . i also had a score to settle from last year , when jorge beat me on the final corner , so i am happy to be back on the top step of the podium ! ' lorenzo , meanwhile , revealed that he had struggled to maintain the same pace as his rival , and blamed their coming together for the loss of valuable momentum . i lost a lot of time when he ( marquez ) touched me , ' he said . i knew that he was going to try to overtake me in this corner in first gear on the right , but i did n't let him enter . on the outside i opened the throttle and he touched me . in the next corner he touched me again as he went into the corner and i lost seven tenths of a second . ' even so lorenzo was pleased with his second place . i made a really good start and pushed 100 % , more than ever , so i am really proud of my riding , ' he said . rossi -- who set a new outright record of 246 starts in the premier class of grand prix racing -- won the battle behind the leaders to take third from pedrosa and a disappointed but philosophical dovizioso . the result confirms the improvements we are making , ' the italian said . finishing the race less than ten seconds behind the leaders was almost a dream before the start , but instead we did it and we were always in with a fighting chance of finishing on the podium . ' the home fans were left frustrated as one of their favorites , tech3 yamaha 's bradley smith , was knocked out of contention by a cracked rear wheel . the briton 's tyre deflated as a result , forcing him into the pits . when he re-joined with a new wheel his chances of a point-scoring finish had gone , but he did manage to ride to within a lap of the leaders , to loud cheers from the stands . i tried to stay out and fight through it but it just got too dangerous to ride , ' smith said . when we changed ( the wheel ) , i proved that i have the pace for sixth . it was a good weekend up until the race and the team did a great job , but these things happen sometimes . ' tech3 could , however , console themselves with an outstanding performance from rookie pol espargaro , who forced his way into a highly creditable sixth position . of the other top british talent , scott redding piloted his open class gresini honda to a solid tenth , but ducati 's cal crutchlow could only manage twelfth . the talented coventry-born rider must surely be counting the days until he leaves for his new team , lcr honda , at the end of an intensely trying season . the championship now takes a two week break before the san marino motogp , with marquez a titanic 89 points clear of pedrosa , and rossi a further 10 points back in third , with only six races remaining this season . | marquez started on pole , but jorge lorenzo took an early lead |
marquez <tsp> silverstone , england ( cnn ) -- if an unexpected fourth place at the czech motogp two weeks ago had given marc marquez 's rivals cause for hope , sunday at britain 's silverstone served as a reminder that his talents run deep . this was marquez at his imperious best , as well as a fine advertisement for a sport that thrives on white-knuckle tension ; in a scintillating contest , motogp 's youngest ever champion roared back to form . his victory means only a disaster for the 21-year-old catalan can prevent him lifting his second title well before the end of the season . repsol honda 's record-breaking star began on pole after a typically impressive qualifying session , but quickly found himself playing catch-up to an apparently rejuvenated jorge lorenzo . the movistar yamaha rider seized his chance in warmer than expected conditions , taking an early lead as a fierce skirmish developed behind him . ducati 's andrea dovizioso had gatecrashed the honda-yamaha power party on the starting grid , and the italian took his increasing confidence into battle with dani pedrosa and valentino rossi . gradually the front five eased away from the chasing pack , but remained close enough to one another to throw up some heart stopping moments as positions changed lap after lap . the contest reached an electrifying climax in the final moments , with marquez and lorenzo diving into an uncompromising dogfight . when lorenzo seized the initiative with just three laps remaining it looked as though the man from mallorca might be able to hold on for the win . the two riders knocked fairings as their battle raged , before an audacious and fearless pass from marquez fired the championship leader back to the front with two laps remaining . the champion held his lead to cross the line to claim his 11th victory from the 12 grand prix this season . marquez was delighted with the win , having missed out to lorenzo at silverstone last year . with higher temperatures it seems that both jorge and valentino took a step forward , ' he said . above all , jorge , because he had a great pace and we were fighting right to the end . it was important to win , after missing out at brno . i also had a score to settle from last year , when jorge beat me on the final corner , so i am happy to be back on the top step of the podium ! ' lorenzo , meanwhile , revealed that he had struggled to maintain the same pace as his rival , and blamed their coming together for the loss of valuable momentum . i lost a lot of time when he ( marquez ) touched me , ' he said . i knew that he was going to try to overtake me in this corner in first gear on the right , but i did n't let him enter . on the outside i opened the throttle and he touched me . in the next corner he touched me again as he went into the corner and i lost seven tenths of a second . ' even so lorenzo was pleased with his second place . i made a really good start and pushed 100 % , more than ever , so i am really proud of my riding , ' he said . rossi -- who set a new outright record of 246 starts in the premier class of grand prix racing -- won the battle behind the leaders to take third from pedrosa and a disappointed but philosophical dovizioso . the result confirms the improvements we are making , ' the italian said . finishing the race less than ten seconds behind the leaders was almost a dream before the start , but instead we did it and we were always in with a fighting chance of finishing on the podium . ' the home fans were left frustrated as one of their favorites , tech3 yamaha 's bradley smith , was knocked out of contention by a cracked rear wheel . the briton 's tyre deflated as a result , forcing him into the pits . when he re-joined with a new wheel his chances of a point-scoring finish had gone , but he did manage to ride to within a lap of the leaders , to loud cheers from the stands . i tried to stay out and fight through it but it just got too dangerous to ride , ' smith said . when we changed ( the wheel ) , i proved that i have the pace for sixth . it was a good weekend up until the race and the team did a great job , but these things happen sometimes . ' tech3 could , however , console themselves with an outstanding performance from rookie pol espargaro , who forced his way into a highly creditable sixth position . of the other top british talent , scott redding piloted his open class gresini honda to a solid tenth , but ducati 's cal crutchlow could only manage twelfth . the talented coventry-born rider must surely be counting the days until he leaves for his new team , lcr honda , at the end of an intensely trying season . the championship now takes a two week break before the san marino motogp , with marquez a titanic 89 points clear of pedrosa , and rossi a further 10 points back in third , with only six races remaining this season . | repsol honda 's marc marquez back to winning ways at silverstone |
jorge lorenzo <tsp> silverstone , england ( cnn ) -- if an unexpected fourth place at the czech motogp two weeks ago had given marc marquez 's rivals cause for hope , sunday at britain 's silverstone served as a reminder that his talents run deep . this was marquez at his imperious best , as well as a fine advertisement for a sport that thrives on white-knuckle tension ; in a scintillating contest , motogp 's youngest ever champion roared back to form . his victory means only a disaster for the 21-year-old catalan can prevent him lifting his second title well before the end of the season . repsol honda 's record-breaking star began on pole after a typically impressive qualifying session , but quickly found himself playing catch-up to an apparently rejuvenated jorge lorenzo . the movistar yamaha rider seized his chance in warmer than expected conditions , taking an early lead as a fierce skirmish developed behind him . ducati 's andrea dovizioso had gatecrashed the honda-yamaha power party on the starting grid , and the italian took his increasing confidence into battle with dani pedrosa and valentino rossi . gradually the front five eased away from the chasing pack , but remained close enough to one another to throw up some heart stopping moments as positions changed lap after lap . the contest reached an electrifying climax in the final moments , with marquez and lorenzo diving into an uncompromising dogfight . when lorenzo seized the initiative with just three laps remaining it looked as though the man from mallorca might be able to hold on for the win . the two riders knocked fairings as their battle raged , before an audacious and fearless pass from marquez fired the championship leader back to the front with two laps remaining . the champion held his lead to cross the line to claim his 11th victory from the 12 grand prix this season . marquez was delighted with the win , having missed out to lorenzo at silverstone last year . with higher temperatures it seems that both jorge and valentino took a step forward , ' he said . above all , jorge , because he had a great pace and we were fighting right to the end . it was important to win , after missing out at brno . i also had a score to settle from last year , when jorge beat me on the final corner , so i am happy to be back on the top step of the podium ! ' lorenzo , meanwhile , revealed that he had struggled to maintain the same pace as his rival , and blamed their coming together for the loss of valuable momentum . i lost a lot of time when he ( marquez ) touched me , ' he said . i knew that he was going to try to overtake me in this corner in first gear on the right , but i did n't let him enter . on the outside i opened the throttle and he touched me . in the next corner he touched me again as he went into the corner and i lost seven tenths of a second . ' even so lorenzo was pleased with his second place . i made a really good start and pushed 100 % , more than ever , so i am really proud of my riding , ' he said . rossi -- who set a new outright record of 246 starts in the premier class of grand prix racing -- won the battle behind the leaders to take third from pedrosa and a disappointed but philosophical dovizioso . the result confirms the improvements we are making , ' the italian said . finishing the race less than ten seconds behind the leaders was almost a dream before the start , but instead we did it and we were always in with a fighting chance of finishing on the podium . ' the home fans were left frustrated as one of their favorites , tech3 yamaha 's bradley smith , was knocked out of contention by a cracked rear wheel . the briton 's tyre deflated as a result , forcing him into the pits . when he re-joined with a new wheel his chances of a point-scoring finish had gone , but he did manage to ride to within a lap of the leaders , to loud cheers from the stands . i tried to stay out and fight through it but it just got too dangerous to ride , ' smith said . when we changed ( the wheel ) , i proved that i have the pace for sixth . it was a good weekend up until the race and the team did a great job , but these things happen sometimes . ' tech3 could , however , console themselves with an outstanding performance from rookie pol espargaro , who forced his way into a highly creditable sixth position . of the other top british talent , scott redding piloted his open class gresini honda to a solid tenth , but ducati 's cal crutchlow could only manage twelfth . the talented coventry-born rider must surely be counting the days until he leaves for his new team , lcr honda , at the end of an intensely trying season . the championship now takes a two week break before the san marino motogp , with marquez a titanic 89 points clear of pedrosa , and rossi a further 10 points back in third , with only six races remaining this season . | marquez started on pole , but jorge lorenzo took an early lead |
comanche <tsp> ( cnn ) the supermodel 's new super yacht could n't quite keep up with an established vessel in the annual rolex sydney-hobart race . comanche -- owned by netscape co-founder jim clark and his wife , australian model kristy hinze-clark -- had to settle for second behind history maker wild oats xi in the 70th running of the'bluewater classic .'wild oats xi became the first boat to achieve eight line honors , surpassing the seven line honors of morna -- later called kurrewa iv -- in the 1950s and 60s when it crossed the finish line in two days , two hours , three minutes and 26 seconds sunday . comanche had been closing the gap in the 628-nautical mile race but ultimately was 49 minutes slower than wild oats xi , which is owned by wine magnate robert oatley . to rewrite a bit of sailing history does n't come along every day , ' wild oats xi 's skipper , mark richards , was quoted as saying by the race 's official website . to win a hobart is a great honor but to win an eighth , i ca n't believe i am here . comanche was unbelievably impressive down sydney harbour and the whole first night she had the legs on us . we thought ,'how are we going to handle this thing ?' it was definitely our toughest race -- to have a boat so close for so much of the race , especially when she 's faster than you . i said to the guys'we 've got to hang in there , hang tough , minimize our losses and wait for the first opportunity we get to attack .'' that opportunity came in the bass strait . the lighter conditions suited wild oats xi , which opened up a big lead . we were about a quarter of the way into bass strait and expecting a westerly breeze , and all of a sudden stan ( navigator stan honey ) came up from down below and said ,'i just got a new weather file , this is not looking good ,'' comanche skipper ken read was quoted as saying by the race 's official website . we were two miles ahead of them , in bumpy seas , and they literally went by us , probably going a knot or two faster at the time , and they just sailed into more pressure and just kept extending on the whole fleet . both boats sailed a flawless race but they had their day . they had 12 hours where they had wild oats'weather , but that 's racing . ' while it was n't known whether comanche would return next year , oatley said wild oats xi would be back . we will be back next year , yes , we 'll definitely be back next year , ' oatley was quoted as saying by the race 's website . she is the best boat in the world . she 's proved that . ' | comanche is owned by netscape co-founder jim clark and his model wife |
comanche <tsp> ( cnn ) the supermodel 's new super yacht could n't quite keep up with an established vessel in the annual rolex sydney-hobart race . comanche -- owned by netscape co-founder jim clark and his wife , australian model kristy hinze-clark -- had to settle for second behind history maker wild oats xi in the 70th running of the'bluewater classic .'wild oats xi became the first boat to achieve eight line honors , surpassing the seven line honors of morna -- later called kurrewa iv -- in the 1950s and 60s when it crossed the finish line in two days , two hours , three minutes and 26 seconds sunday . comanche had been closing the gap in the 628-nautical mile race but ultimately was 49 minutes slower than wild oats xi , which is owned by wine magnate robert oatley . to rewrite a bit of sailing history does n't come along every day , ' wild oats xi 's skipper , mark richards , was quoted as saying by the race 's official website . to win a hobart is a great honor but to win an eighth , i ca n't believe i am here . comanche was unbelievably impressive down sydney harbour and the whole first night she had the legs on us . we thought ,'how are we going to handle this thing ?' it was definitely our toughest race -- to have a boat so close for so much of the race , especially when she 's faster than you . i said to the guys'we 've got to hang in there , hang tough , minimize our losses and wait for the first opportunity we get to attack .'' that opportunity came in the bass strait . the lighter conditions suited wild oats xi , which opened up a big lead . we were about a quarter of the way into bass strait and expecting a westerly breeze , and all of a sudden stan ( navigator stan honey ) came up from down below and said ,'i just got a new weather file , this is not looking good ,'' comanche skipper ken read was quoted as saying by the race 's official website . we were two miles ahead of them , in bumpy seas , and they literally went by us , probably going a knot or two faster at the time , and they just sailed into more pressure and just kept extending on the whole fleet . both boats sailed a flawless race but they had their day . they had 12 hours where they had wild oats'weather , but that 's racing . ' while it was n't known whether comanche would return next year , oatley said wild oats xi would be back . we will be back next year , yes , we 'll definitely be back next year , ' oatley was quoted as saying by the race 's website . she is the best boat in the world . she 's proved that . ' | comanche placed second after entering the race with much fanfare and making a fast start |
emmy <tsp> ( cnn ) -- may we spend a few minutes discussing a major part of american life where there has been a shocking lack of diversity ? this has to do with presidential elections . and it 's not what you think . throughout u.s. history , ivy league colleges have had an outsized proportion of alumni who became president . harvard alone has eight . if , as is widely expected , it 's barack obama versus mitt romney in november , the ivy league is the guaranteed winner again , because it will be harvard against harvard . ( harvard 's romney has even , in speeches , criticized harvard 's obama for spending too much time at the faculty lounge at harvard . ' ) in fact , it has been 28 years since a non-harvard-or-yale graduate has been elected president . george h.w . bush , bill clinton , george w. bush and obama all went to one ( or both ) of those universities . in four of those elections , the winning ivy leaguer ran against another ivy leaguer ( michael dukakis , incumbent president george h.w . bush , al gore , john kerry ) . but that 's not the oddity we 're discussing today . we all know , and have known for a long time , that in presidential elections , as in much of american life , the ivy league has a leg up . and many of our presidents , to their credit , have come from small , non-glitzy colleges . lyndon johnson hailed from southwest texas state teachers college . richard nixon went to whittier college . ronald reagan went to eureka college . nine presidents either never went to college at all , or never received a degree . they were no slouches ; they include abraham lincoln and harry truman . here , though , is the strange , almost inexplicable , thing -- and it stands out for those of us who attended , and really liked , big ten schools : no graduate of a big ten university has ever been elected president . is n't that something ? heart of the country , large student populations , fine faculties , national renown -- yet in the history of the united states , the voters have not even once seen fit to send a big ten graduate to the white house . it 's not that talent , leadership and creativity are lacking in big ten students . every member of the big ten ( there are 12 schools in the conference now , since the addition of penn state and nebraska ) has had numerous graduates -- undergraduate and advanced-degree -- who have done remarkable things . neil armstrong , of purdue , was the first human to set foot on the moon . jack welch , of the university of illinois , led general electric during glorious years . george gallup , of the university of iowa , founded the legendary public opinion poll . cynthia ozick , of ohio state , is a widely acclaimed author . barbara franklin , of penn state , went on to become a u.s. secretary of commerce . james earl jones , of the university of michigan , became an esteemed actor . arthur goldberg , of northwestern , was a justice of the u.s. supreme court . mildred jeffrey , of the university of minnesota , was a women 's movement , labor and civil rights leader who was awarded the presidential medal of freedom . william s. harley , of the university of wisconsin , was the co-founder of harley-davidson . alfred d. hershey , of michigan state , was a nobel laureate for physiology/medicine . ernie pyle , of indiana university , left for a reporting job just before graduating , and went on to become perhaps the most admired newspaperman who ever lived ; the university brought him back to present him with an honorary degree . and johnny carson , of the university of nebraska ... well , he was johnny carson . which just may have been better than being president . the list of big ten achievers goes on and on . yet voters have sent no one from a big ten school to the white house . ( if you 're thinking , what about gerald ford , the president from the university of michigan ? yes , he became president , but the voters never elected him on a presidential ticket , a fact that bothered him for the rest of his life . when he did run on his own , he was defeated by jimmy carter , of georgia southwestern college , georgia tech and the u.s . naval academy ) . you would think that being from the big ten would provide a campaign plus . heartland , breadbasket , center of the nation , the warm symbolism of all that . ivy league graduates may take pride in their education , but they tend not to stress their ivy leagueness to voters in a presidential campaign : like being rich , being from the ivy league is something that may be privately savored , but that , in national elections , is best not flaunted in front of those without the same advantages . being from the big ten , on the other hand , would seem to be a ticket to 1600 pennsylvania avenue . but it has n't . julian e. zelizer , professor of history and public affairs at princeton university ( alma mater of presidents james madison and woodrow wilson ) , said that he , too , is puzzled by this . one reason for it , he said , may be that at universities that have a tradition of educating future presidents , students often become part of networks of classmates who go on to do big things in washington . these networks are essential when potential candidates are identified to run for president . ' still , said zelizer , whose work regularly appears in the cnn opinion section , it is unclear why someone from the big ten would not be president , given the great quality of these institutions and impressive record , including in politics , of many of these graduates . ' so what could it be ? is it simply a jinx ? you might be tempted to say that the big ten is the chicago cubs of presidential politics -- except , even though it has been more than a century , the cubs did win a world series . you might be tempted to say that the big ten is the susan lucci of presidential politics -- except that the soap opera actress , after years of being passed over , finally was awarded an emmy . the big ten has a council of presidents and chancellors . i asked some of its members what they make of this . not surprisingly -- speaking from the middle of the country -- they were optimistic and proud . france a. cordova , president of purdue university , said : if you knew our current students and could witness their abilities as young leaders , you would be as confident as i am that we will see a boilermaker become the potus . ' ohio state president gordon gee expressed great contentment about his part of the nation : as to no president coming from the big ten , i would say that many have come from big ten country -- we just have sent them off elsewhere . that is ending , by the way . ' we did offer , twice , ' said university of minnesota president eric kaler , pointing out that minnesota graduates hubert humphrey and walter mondale were democratic nominees for president . they were defeated by nixon and reagan . you never say never , ' kaler said . of course it could happen . ' and sally mason , president of the university of iowa , summed it all up with a sure-handed sense of sunny big ten perseverance : ' in the words of randy travis and b.b . king , perhaps'it 's just a matter of time .'' the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of bob greene . | he says even the cubs won a world series , and susan lucci won an emmy |
egypt <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- with a rapidly deteriorating situation on the streets of cairo , the u.s. state department is urging americans who want help getting out of egypt to take advantage of u.s. government charter flights while they are available . ' as you know , we can not demand that an american leave , however , we certainly push for them to leave , ' said a senior state department official , who spoke on background because he was not authorized to use his name . according to the official , the state department is cutting back on the number of flights thursday because some of those charters have been leaving with empty seats . on thursday morning , one flight was fully booked and boarded , and takeoff was imminent , he said . an additional flight was on the ground , the official said , but is n't even near halfway full . ' about 3,000 americans have registered to be evacuated . so far , 2,000 have been flown out on u.s. government charters to european locations . since monday , the state department has been running an average of four flights a day . depending upon demand , more flights could be added , but the official said if circumstances suddenly got worse , they might have to order charters from other cities in the region and that could take time . the state department is urging u.s. citizens who want to leave to come to cairo international airport as soon as possible . they should bring travel documents with them , but even citizens who have passports that expired up to 10 years ago can come , and u.s. consular officials will assist them . commercial flights from cairo still are operating , and many americans , according to the state department , have already left via commercial airlines , private airlines and other governments'chartered flights . at last report , the cairo airport terminal is relatively orderly , according to the department . it continues to assess whether or not flights will operate friday and possibly saturday . | the state department is urging americans to leave egypt |
egypt <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- with a rapidly deteriorating situation on the streets of cairo , the u.s. state department is urging americans who want help getting out of egypt to take advantage of u.s. government charter flights while they are available . ' as you know , we can not demand that an american leave , however , we certainly push for them to leave , ' said a senior state department official , who spoke on background because he was not authorized to use his name . according to the official , the state department is cutting back on the number of flights thursday because some of those charters have been leaving with empty seats . on thursday morning , one flight was fully booked and boarded , and takeoff was imminent , he said . an additional flight was on the ground , the official said , but is n't even near halfway full . ' about 3,000 americans have registered to be evacuated . so far , 2,000 have been flown out on u.s. government charters to european locations . since monday , the state department has been running an average of four flights a day . depending upon demand , more flights could be added , but the official said if circumstances suddenly got worse , they might have to order charters from other cities in the region and that could take time . the state department is urging u.s. citizens who want to leave to come to cairo international airport as soon as possible . they should bring travel documents with them , but even citizens who have passports that expired up to 10 years ago can come , and u.s. consular officials will assist them . commercial flights from cairo still are operating , and many americans , according to the state department , have already left via commercial airlines , private airlines and other governments'chartered flights . at last report , the cairo airport terminal is relatively orderly , according to the department . it continues to assess whether or not flights will operate friday and possibly saturday . | many commercial airlines are still flying from egypt |
china <tsp> abu dhabi ( cnn ) -- china 's xi jinping , who is expected to be named president in march and likely next premier li keqiang will inherit a foreign policy that puts a premium on partnerships that can help china fuel its resource-hungry economy . in the world of geo-politics , symbolism goes a long way in forging lasting , strategic relations . this is certainly the case when it comes to china 's role within the middle east , specifically with saudi arabia , the country with the world 's largest proven oil reserves . when king abdullah took over the throne in saudi arabia , his first foreign visit in january 2006 was to beijing after an invitation of president hu jintao . six years later , the countries'two state-run energy giants , china 's sinopec and saudi aramco , inked a huge oil agreement guaranteeing the asian nation an additional 400,000 barrels a day from a red sea refinery in the saudi city of yanbu . this is on top of the estimated one million barrels of oil a day it now orders from the kingdom . we need china as much as china needs us , ' said khalid al-falih in a cnn interview right after he signed the agreement , but the energy corridor is only part of it . we envisage an exchange of goods and services and trade in other areas that add value to the chinese economy and to the saudi economy as well . ' that deal follows a major equity investment in the fujian province where saudi aramco invested in petrochemical manufacturing facilities along with u.s. energy giant exxonmobil . in the 19th century the battle over influence of central asia was described as the great game ' as the british and russian empires vied for control and influence in the region . in the 21st century , one may view china 's influence in the middle east in a similar vein . clearly there are mutual interests in terms of large energy suppliers and consumers , but there will be stress points , of course , ' said ben simpfendorfer , co-founder of silk road associates , an investment advisory firm specializing on trade between the middle east and far east asia . china , experts say , is keen to lock in strategic commodity supplies rather than exercise political influence at this juncture . this is reflected in its vetoes -- together with russia -- striking down resolutions against syria on the united nations security council . this strategy of non-intervention may not be sustainable , says simpfendorfer , i think china 's position will be challenged by the gulf countries and that is certainly a risk the new leadership has to look out for ' especially since beijing is so dependent on the region to fuel its economic expansion . but one can not doubt whether the world 's second largest economy is instrumental in rebuilding the ancient silk road . china continues to go to great lengths to foster developing market trade partners -- some argue to exploit their natural resources in the case of africa -- as part of its great game ' strategy . china rolls out the welcome mat on its soil , for example recently inviting arab leaders to yinchuan , in northern-central part of the country , for the 3rd china-arab states economic and trade forum . there are some lofty expectations for trade between china and the arab states . the united arab emirates'foreign trade minister , sheikha lubna al qasimi , said bilateral trade between the gulf and china could hit $ 300 billion by 2014 . trade between china and the uae grew 10 % last year alone , witnessing a fivefold increase in less than a decade . some see dubai 's jebel ali port as an excellent gateway for china into the african continent . this keen business interest in the middle east is not likely to change with xi jinping taking over the helm in 2013 , but is china ready for a g-2 world dominated by washington and beijing ? not yet , strategists suggest . beijing prefers the relative comfort of the broader g-20 world that brings the developed and developing world under one umbrella , with the ability for the new leaders of china to seek political alignment from brics partners brazil , russia , india and south africa . all the while , china continues to blaze new trails beyond the middle east in search of strategic supplies . this autumn , the country made inroads into afghanistan with the first high level visit in more than a half century . the bounty is a promising one with more than a trillion dollars of mineral deposits estimated in the country . china 's great game ' continues with an ever expanding footprint from the middle east well into south asia . | oil drives strategic relationship between middle east and china |
china <tsp> abu dhabi ( cnn ) -- china 's xi jinping , who is expected to be named president in march and likely next premier li keqiang will inherit a foreign policy that puts a premium on partnerships that can help china fuel its resource-hungry economy . in the world of geo-politics , symbolism goes a long way in forging lasting , strategic relations . this is certainly the case when it comes to china 's role within the middle east , specifically with saudi arabia , the country with the world 's largest proven oil reserves . when king abdullah took over the throne in saudi arabia , his first foreign visit in january 2006 was to beijing after an invitation of president hu jintao . six years later , the countries'two state-run energy giants , china 's sinopec and saudi aramco , inked a huge oil agreement guaranteeing the asian nation an additional 400,000 barrels a day from a red sea refinery in the saudi city of yanbu . this is on top of the estimated one million barrels of oil a day it now orders from the kingdom . we need china as much as china needs us , ' said khalid al-falih in a cnn interview right after he signed the agreement , but the energy corridor is only part of it . we envisage an exchange of goods and services and trade in other areas that add value to the chinese economy and to the saudi economy as well . ' that deal follows a major equity investment in the fujian province where saudi aramco invested in petrochemical manufacturing facilities along with u.s. energy giant exxonmobil . in the 19th century the battle over influence of central asia was described as the great game ' as the british and russian empires vied for control and influence in the region . in the 21st century , one may view china 's influence in the middle east in a similar vein . clearly there are mutual interests in terms of large energy suppliers and consumers , but there will be stress points , of course , ' said ben simpfendorfer , co-founder of silk road associates , an investment advisory firm specializing on trade between the middle east and far east asia . china , experts say , is keen to lock in strategic commodity supplies rather than exercise political influence at this juncture . this is reflected in its vetoes -- together with russia -- striking down resolutions against syria on the united nations security council . this strategy of non-intervention may not be sustainable , says simpfendorfer , i think china 's position will be challenged by the gulf countries and that is certainly a risk the new leadership has to look out for ' especially since beijing is so dependent on the region to fuel its economic expansion . but one can not doubt whether the world 's second largest economy is instrumental in rebuilding the ancient silk road . china continues to go to great lengths to foster developing market trade partners -- some argue to exploit their natural resources in the case of africa -- as part of its great game ' strategy . china rolls out the welcome mat on its soil , for example recently inviting arab leaders to yinchuan , in northern-central part of the country , for the 3rd china-arab states economic and trade forum . there are some lofty expectations for trade between china and the arab states . the united arab emirates'foreign trade minister , sheikha lubna al qasimi , said bilateral trade between the gulf and china could hit $ 300 billion by 2014 . trade between china and the uae grew 10 % last year alone , witnessing a fivefold increase in less than a decade . some see dubai 's jebel ali port as an excellent gateway for china into the african continent . this keen business interest in the middle east is not likely to change with xi jinping taking over the helm in 2013 , but is china ready for a g-2 world dominated by washington and beijing ? not yet , strategists suggest . beijing prefers the relative comfort of the broader g-20 world that brings the developed and developing world under one umbrella , with the ability for the new leaders of china to seek political alignment from brics partners brazil , russia , india and south africa . all the while , china continues to blaze new trails beyond the middle east in search of strategic supplies . this autumn , the country made inroads into afghanistan with the first high level visit in more than a half century . the bounty is a promising one with more than a trillion dollars of mineral deposits estimated in the country . china 's great game ' continues with an ever expanding footprint from the middle east well into south asia . | china 's great game ' seeks supplies rather than political influence |
china <tsp> abu dhabi ( cnn ) -- china 's xi jinping , who is expected to be named president in march and likely next premier li keqiang will inherit a foreign policy that puts a premium on partnerships that can help china fuel its resource-hungry economy . in the world of geo-politics , symbolism goes a long way in forging lasting , strategic relations . this is certainly the case when it comes to china 's role within the middle east , specifically with saudi arabia , the country with the world 's largest proven oil reserves . when king abdullah took over the throne in saudi arabia , his first foreign visit in january 2006 was to beijing after an invitation of president hu jintao . six years later , the countries'two state-run energy giants , china 's sinopec and saudi aramco , inked a huge oil agreement guaranteeing the asian nation an additional 400,000 barrels a day from a red sea refinery in the saudi city of yanbu . this is on top of the estimated one million barrels of oil a day it now orders from the kingdom . we need china as much as china needs us , ' said khalid al-falih in a cnn interview right after he signed the agreement , but the energy corridor is only part of it . we envisage an exchange of goods and services and trade in other areas that add value to the chinese economy and to the saudi economy as well . ' that deal follows a major equity investment in the fujian province where saudi aramco invested in petrochemical manufacturing facilities along with u.s. energy giant exxonmobil . in the 19th century the battle over influence of central asia was described as the great game ' as the british and russian empires vied for control and influence in the region . in the 21st century , one may view china 's influence in the middle east in a similar vein . clearly there are mutual interests in terms of large energy suppliers and consumers , but there will be stress points , of course , ' said ben simpfendorfer , co-founder of silk road associates , an investment advisory firm specializing on trade between the middle east and far east asia . china , experts say , is keen to lock in strategic commodity supplies rather than exercise political influence at this juncture . this is reflected in its vetoes -- together with russia -- striking down resolutions against syria on the united nations security council . this strategy of non-intervention may not be sustainable , says simpfendorfer , i think china 's position will be challenged by the gulf countries and that is certainly a risk the new leadership has to look out for ' especially since beijing is so dependent on the region to fuel its economic expansion . but one can not doubt whether the world 's second largest economy is instrumental in rebuilding the ancient silk road . china continues to go to great lengths to foster developing market trade partners -- some argue to exploit their natural resources in the case of africa -- as part of its great game ' strategy . china rolls out the welcome mat on its soil , for example recently inviting arab leaders to yinchuan , in northern-central part of the country , for the 3rd china-arab states economic and trade forum . there are some lofty expectations for trade between china and the arab states . the united arab emirates'foreign trade minister , sheikha lubna al qasimi , said bilateral trade between the gulf and china could hit $ 300 billion by 2014 . trade between china and the uae grew 10 % last year alone , witnessing a fivefold increase in less than a decade . some see dubai 's jebel ali port as an excellent gateway for china into the african continent . this keen business interest in the middle east is not likely to change with xi jinping taking over the helm in 2013 , but is china ready for a g-2 world dominated by washington and beijing ? not yet , strategists suggest . beijing prefers the relative comfort of the broader g-20 world that brings the developed and developing world under one umbrella , with the ability for the new leaders of china to seek political alignment from brics partners brazil , russia , india and south africa . all the while , china continues to blaze new trails beyond the middle east in search of strategic supplies . this autumn , the country made inroads into afghanistan with the first high level visit in more than a half century . the bounty is a promising one with more than a trillion dollars of mineral deposits estimated in the country . china 's great game ' continues with an ever expanding footprint from the middle east well into south asia . | china 's foreign policy values relationships to fuel its resource-hungry economy |
school <tsp> newtown , connecticut ( cnn ) -- attendance was taken at schools across this devastated town on tuesday as most students returned to the classroom for the first time since the deadly school shooting . not everyone was there . sandy hook elementary students wo n't resume classes until january , and victims of last week 's massacre will never return . jessica rekos and james mattioli , both 6 , were laid to rest tuesday , while the families of charlotte bacon , 6 , daniel barden , 7 , and victoria vicki ' soto , 27 , held calling hours , or visitations , for their lost loved ones . the teacher and children were among the 27 people killed when gunman adam lanza shot his mother and then went to the sandy hook , indiscriminately opening fire on staff and young students . the rampage reignited a debate about guns in america and sent shock waves through a nation that has seen mass killings before -- but not like this . she had an answer for everything , she did n't miss a trick , and she outsmarted us every time . we called her our little ceo for the way she carefully thought out and planned everything , ' the family of jessica said about their little girl , who loved horses and asked santa for a cowgirl hat this year . we can not imagine our life without her , ' they said . james liked to remind everyone that he was 6 and three-quarters . he would often sing at the top of his lungs , and once asked ,'how old do i have to be to sing on a stage ?'' his family wrote in an obituary . in an online posting about his funeral , the mattioli family called james our beloved prince . ' across town , hearses could be seen traveling along roads with police escorts . onlookers cried as they drove past . remembering the victims for sandy hook students , no school until january unlike students at other schools who returned tuesday , sandy hook students are not expected to go back until january . their school is a crime scene . the current plan is for them to resume classes next year at the former chalk hill middle school , eight miles away in neighboring monroe , newtown superintendent of schools janet robinson said in a letter to parents . we need to tend to our teachers'and students'needs to feel comfortable after this trauma in this new place , ' she wrote . teachers may call parents to invite you to visit chalk hill with your child this week to walk around and see the classroom and get familiar with this new sandy hook home . ' at other schools , students went back to class with their sense of normalcy shattered . they were met by police , counselors and teachers , who all face a tremendous burden . how do they explain to children what happened ? how do they help make them feel safe ? david schonfeld , a crisis counselor who gave a presentation to newtown teachers about how to talk to students , said they have to meet children where they are . i told them that as far as i was concerned , there was really only one lesson plan that they needed to teach before they broke for the ( holidays ) , and that was to make sure that the children knew that they were safe and that they cared about them and they were going to care for them , ' he said . the teachers'union said classes would discuss the tragedy in an age-appropriate manner . the gunman 's computer and grim new details investigators have so far been unable to retrieve data from a computer taken from the home of the gunman , adam lanza , a law enforcement official said tuesday . it appears lanza smashed the computer , extensively damaging the hard drive , the official said , adding that the fbi is assisting connecticut state police in trying to retrieve data from the computer . lanza 's mother was shot four times in the head while she slept in her bed , said connecticut chief medical examiner h. wayne carver , also tuesday . adam lanza killed himself with a shot to the front of his head from a handgun , the medical examiner said . toxicology tests are under way to determine whether adam lanza had taken medication . growing debate over gun laws what happened in newtown should never happen again , advocates on both sides of the gun-control debate agree . but they 're at staunch odds about how to turn words into reality . the national rifle association commented tuesday for the first time since the shooting , saying it was shocked and heartbroken by what happened . the group is planning to hold a news conference on friday . out of respect for the families , and as a matter of common decency , we have given time for mourning , prayer and a full investigation of the facts before commenting , ' it said . the nra is prepared to offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again . ' the grassroots group newtown united sent a delegation to washington to meet with the brady campaign to prevent gun violence as well as families from july 's movie theater massacre in aurora , colorado . the new group , which formed out of newtown on sunday , aims to create meaningful dialogue -- both locally and beyond -- about what may have led to the tragedy . until school shooting , 1 homicide in almost a decade the debate is playing out not just in newtown and washington , but across the united states . two national polls conducted shortly after the newtown massacre suggest that more americans want stricter gun control . in a washington post/abc news poll , 54 % of adults favor stricter gun control laws in the country , while 43 % oppose . and a new cbs news poll indicates that 57 % of americans back stricter gun laws , the highest percentage in a decade ; 30 % think gun laws should be kept as they are . however , less than half of the respondents in the cbs poll -- 42 % -- think stricter gun laws would have helped prevent what happened at sandy hook elementary . sen. joe manchin , a conservative democrat from west virginia and a proud gun owner , ' said he 's now committed to dialogue that would bring a total change ' after the massacre in newtown . who would have ever thought , in america or anywhere in the world , that children would be slaughtered ? ' he asked . it 's changed me . ' john licata told cnn 's ireport there needs to be better vetting before people buy guns , and assault weapons should be banned -- something sen. dianne feinstein , d-california , says she 'll propose once the new congress convenes in january . but some say the shooting illustrates the need for more armed guards -- and possibly armed teachers -- in schools . gun lobby has laid groundwork against any new laws texas gov . rick perry said that if school districts decide that arming teachers is the best way to keep schools safe , so be it . if texas residents are duly background-checked , trained and have a concealed handgun license , you should be able to carry your handgun anywhere in the state , ' perry said , according to cnn affiliate wfaa . out of respect for the newtown victims and their families , dick 's sporting goods has removed all guns from its store closest to newtown , the company said . dick 's , one of the largest sporting goods retailers in the world , also has suspended the sale of some semiautomatic rifles nationwide , the company said . it was unclear how long dick 's will keep its suspension of modern sporting rifles . ' shedding new light on the gunman while carver , the chief medical examiner , said he was told that adam lanza had asperger 's syndrome , officials are working to determine whether that diagnosis was correct , and whether he may have had other diagnosable problems . a former director of security for newtown public schools shed new light monday night on the gunman . richard novia said adam lanza had asperger 's syndrome , based on documents and conversations with lanza 's mother . novia said that as part of his job , which he left in 2008 , he would be informed of students who might pose problems to themselves or others . he also said he received intake information , ' which he said is common for any students troubled or impaired or with disabilities . ' the idea was to keep track of and help students who may need it . however , novia said he never thought lanza was a threat and certainly never thought he was capable of such violence . after shooting , cops take no-tolerance approach to copycat threats russ hanoman , a friend of lanza 's mother , previously told cnn that lanza had asperger 's and that he was very withdrawn emotionally . ' cnn has not been able to independently confirm whether lanza was diagnosed with autism or asperger 's , a higher-functioning form of autism . both are developmental disorders , not mental illnesses . many experts say neither asperger 's syndrome nor autism can be blamed for the rampage . there is absolutely no evidence or any reliable research that suggests a linkage between autism and planned violence , ' the autism society said in a statement . to imply or suggest that some linkage exists is wrong and is harmful to more than 1.5 million law-abiding , nonviolent and wonderful individuals who live with autism each day . ' dr. max wiznitzer , a pediatric neurologist and autism expert at rainbow babies and children 's hospital in cleveland , also said the gunman 's actions ca n't be linked to autism spectrum disorders . aggression and violence in the asd population is reactive , not preplanned and deliberate , ' he said . gun control :'this one feels different' cnn 's susan candiotti reported from newtown ; dana ford reported from atlanta . cnn 's holly yan , greg botelho , sandra endo , josh levs , miriam falco , wayne drash , carol cratty , paul steinhauser and david williams contributed to this report . | school wo n't start for sandy hook children until january |
ebola <tsp> while president barack obama acknowledged tuesday that the chances of an ebola outbreak in the united states are extremely low , ' roughly one in four americans are worried that they or someone in their family will become a victim of the virus , according to a new survey . the cnn/orc international poll , which was released tuesday , indicates that 27 % of americans are concerned , compared to 73 % who are not worried . more people , 41 % , are worried about being victimized by terrorism . obama : u.s. ready to take the lead in ebola fight speaking about the deadly ebola outbreak centered in west africa , obama said tuesday the world is looking to ' the united states to lead international efforts to combat the virus . he described the fight as a national security priority ' because its further spread could lead to dangerous instability in west africa and beyond . senator : ebola as serious as isis ' if the outbreak is not stopped now , we could be looking at hundreds of thousands of people infected , with profound political , economic and security implications for all of us , ' obama said from the atlanta headquarters of the u.s. centers for disease control and prevention . according to the new survey , more women than men fear that someone in their family will contract the disease , 32 % to 21 % . the poll was conducted for cnn by orc international by telephone with 1,014 adult americans on september 5-7 . the poll 's overall sampling error is plus or minus three percentage points . | a cnn survey finds 27 % of americans are worried about getting ebola |
benitez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- european champions inter milan have confirmed the appointment of rafael benitez as their new coach . the spaniard left english premier league side liverpool last month and has been in negotiations with the italian club for nearly a week . he takes over from jose mourinho , who left for real madrid just weeks after he led inter to their first champions league success for 45 years . a statement on inter 's official web site read : inter welcomes rafael benitez . the spanish coach signed a two-year contract this morning that will run until 30 june 2012 . benitez will be unveiled to the media in a press conference on tuesday 15 june . ' benitez spent six years at liverpool , winning the champions league in his first full season , but the premier league title eluded him . before that , benitez spent three years at valencia , leading the club to their first la liga title in 31 years . | benitez has signed a two-year deal with the european champions |
benitez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- european champions inter milan have confirmed the appointment of rafael benitez as their new coach . the spaniard left english premier league side liverpool last month and has been in negotiations with the italian club for nearly a week . he takes over from jose mourinho , who left for real madrid just weeks after he led inter to their first champions league success for 45 years . a statement on inter 's official web site read : inter welcomes rafael benitez . the spanish coach signed a two-year contract this morning that will run until 30 june 2012 . benitez will be unveiled to the media in a press conference on tuesday 15 june . ' benitez spent six years at liverpool , winning the champions league in his first full season , but the premier league title eluded him . before that , benitez spent three years at valencia , leading the club to their first la liga title in 31 years . | inter confirm rafael benitez as their new coach |
south africa <tsp> johannesburg , south africa ( cnn ) -- an elite south african police squad has arrested 19 suspected congolese rebels in a remote corner of northern south africa , an official said , in a raid that may have headed off a coup attempt . the grouping 's objective was to receive specialized military related training to overthrow the current drc government , under the leadership of president joseph kabila , ' makhosini nkosi , a spokesman for the national prosecuting authority , said in a statement tuesday . read more : why the world is ignoring congo war the alleged coup plotters were tracked to a remote area of limpopo province , suggesting long-term surveillance by south african law enforcement . the national prosecuting authority said that no south africans have been linked to the suspects but that further arrests were possible . congolese government officials were quick to blame m23 , a rebel group operating in the democratic republic of the congo 's north kivu province . the group embarrassed the congolese government by briefly seizing the key eastern city of goma late last year , before withdrawing to positions outside the city . we know very well that these men have links to m23 , ' said lambert mende , a drc government spokesman . why eastern dr congo is'rape capital of the world' ' they were planning terrorist attacks in south africa targeting congolese officials and in drc . their ultimate aim was to overthrow the regime , ' said mende , citing internal discussions with south african counterparts . but the national prosecuting authority said that no links have been established between the 19 men arrested tuesday and the m23 group . m23 rebel commanders , who are engaged in sporadic peace talks with the congolese government , were not immediately available for comment . mende said the arrested men also had links to former congolese strongman mobutu sese seko , who ruled the country , then known as zaire , for more than three decades . the arrested men will appear in court in pretoria , south africa , on thursday accused of contravening anti-mercenary laws . | police seized 19 suspected congolese rebels in south africa , an official says |
south korea <tsp> seoul , south korea ( cnn ) -- north korea test-fired a short-range missile off its western coast in the middle of last week , according to yonhap news agency . quoting an intelligence source , yonhap says pyongyang launched a kn-06 short-range missile in an attempt to improve it and increase its range . this launch would be the north 's first test of a short-range missile in 19 months . in july 2009 , north korea fired a series of short-range missiles off its east coast , a move criticized by the international community . the south korean ministry of defense tells cnn they can not comment on the report . tensions have been high between the two koreas since two attacks last year killed 50 south koreans . north korea also announced last week it will cut all ties with the south and threatened to strike with military force . it is not the first time pyongyang has threatened to attack seoul . cnn 's jiyeon lee contributed to this report . | south korea wo n't comment on it |
syria <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the international effort to respond to a suspected chemical weapons attack in syria begs the question : why intervene now , and not earlier in the civil war ? more than 100,000 people have died in the conflict , which has raged for more than two years . there have been massacres . populated areas have been bombed . blasts have targeted people lining up for food at bakeries . people have been decapitated . millions of syrians are displaced . but a single , horrifying attack has crossed what u.s. president barack obama called a red line . ' rebel officials say more than 1,300 people , including many women and children , died recently as a result of chemical weapons . the united states believes syria was behind it ; rebels blame the syrian government as well . the syrian regime denies it , and some syrians have told cnn they doubt their government used chemical weapons . given the massive human toll of attacks with conventional weapons , what makes this a potential turning point for the world to act ? what justifies intervening if syria uses chemical weapons ? conventional attacks called no'less evil' ' blowing your people up with high explosives is allowable , as is shooting them , or torturing them , ' complains dominic tierney , political science professor at swarthmore college . but woe betide the syrian regime if it even thinks about using chemical weapons ! ' in a column in the atlantic , tierney -- author of a book on what he calls the american way of war ' -- adds , a woman and her child under fire in aleppo might miss this distinction . it 's not obvious that high explosives are inherently less evil than chemical weapons . ' writer paul waldman makes similar comments in the american prospect : getting killed by mustard gas is surely awful . but so is getting blown up by a bomb . using one against your enemies gets you branded a war criminal , but using the other does n't . ' and the los angeles times'paul whitefield writes , bombs blowing up buildings , which fall on innocent civilians -- men , women , children -- that 's bad , but not cause for us to act ? but a chemical weapons attack : that we ca n't allow ? spare me . ' missile strikes on syria likely response to chemical attack obama tells cnn : u.s. interests at stake the white house argues there 's good reason to view chemical weapons attacks differently . the use of chemical weapons is contrary to the standards adopted by the vast majority of nations and international efforts since world war i to eliminate the use of such weapons , ' spokesman jay carney said this week . .... the use of these weapons on a mass scale and a threat of proliferation is a threat to our national interests and a concern to the entire world . ' he added , without question , there is ongoing barbarity in syria , perpetrated by the assad regime , and we have provided substantial assistance to the syrian opposition and will continue to provide substantial assistance to the syrian opposition in their struggle with assad . ' obama , in an interview with cnn last week , said , when you start seeing chemical weapons used on a large scale ... that starts getting to some core national interests that the united states has , both in terms of us making sure that weapons of mass destruction are not proliferating , as well as needing to protect our allies , our bases in the region . ' gingrich : stay out of syria 's civil war more than 1 million killed since world war i the geneva protocol , signed in 1925 , banned chemical weapons attacks . it was a response to one of the horrors of world war i , in which chemical agents -- including chlorine , phosgene ( a choking agent ) and mustard gas ( which inflicts painful burns on the skin ) caused nearly 100,000 deaths , according to the united nations . but since world war i , chemical weapons have killed more than a million people , the u.n. says . the cold war period saw significant development , manufacture and stockpiling of chemical weapons , ' the u.n. office for disarmament affairs says . the most notorious case in recent history came in 1988 , during the iran-iraq war . saddam hussein used them against kurds in iraq 's kurdish city of halabja , and against iranian troops . in 1992 , the chemical weapons convention was adopted , calling for the prohibition on chemical weapons .'should we have any boundaries in war ?'some analysts say it makes sense for the united states and the world to respond differently to chemical attacks . they 're so indiscriminate , ' says don borelli , a former fbi official now with the soufan group , a security consultancy . at least there 's some discrimination in conventional weapons . ' modern weaponry , while it 's grown more lethal , has also grown more precise , ' says michael rubin , a former pentagon official now with the american enterprise institute . but chemical agents disperse to affect large numbers of people and can produce horror for a lifetime . ' some conventional attacks do the same , he acknowledges . but there 's another reason that it makes sense to view a chemical attack as a reason for international intervention , rubin says . we want to establish the parameters of warfare . if you do n't , combatants will keep pressing the boundaries . ultimately , the question is , should we have any boundaries in war or not ? ' it 's a slippery slope , he says . if a chemical weapons attack goes unchecked , what about some other form of weapon of mass destruction -- a biological or nuclear attack ? some chemical attacks have gone unchecked . in the current conflict , chemical weapons are alleged to have been used on a smaller scale several times . and foreign policy reports this week that says the united states , back in 1988 , helped saddam as he gassed iran . ' rubin said he doubts that . but either way , he said , there 's a fundamental question : should we learn from our mistakes ? if we did the wrong thing should we simply sit by the wayside and allow that to happen again ? ' the united states and other countries , he said , want to restore a stigma ' against chemical weapons that was in place in the world 's psyche after world war i and halabja . ' intervening in middle east turmoil : mission impossible ? analyst : chemical weapons'impact'exaggerated' tony cordesman , a former defense department official now with the center for strategic and international studies , says the image people have of chemical weapons is often exaggerated . chemical weapons attacks are not necessarily any more horrifying than the use of conventional weapons , ' he said tuesday . and the lethality has always been far worse on paper than in reality . ' there are no definitive statistics on how many people were killed in halabja , he says . the prevailing image many people have is still from world war i , which was the last really mass use of chemical weapons , ' cordesman adds . tierney , in the atlantic , suggests a strategic self-interest ' for the united states to oppose chemical weapons . powerful countries like the united states cultivate a taboo against using wmd partly because they have a vast advantage in conventional arms , ' he writes . ... washington can defeat most enemy states in a few days -- unless the adversary uses wmd to level the playing field . ' rubin rejects that argument , saying the u.s. advantage in weapons of mass destruction precludes any possibility of a level playing field . and while the alleged previous , smaller-scale use of chemical weapons in the syrian civil war were not enough to bring about calls for action , he said , this is such a blatant example , we ca n't pretend not to see it . ' | more than 100,000 people have died in syria , the vast majority through conventional attacks |
noaa <tsp> ( cnn ) -- one of john athanson 's earliest memories is seeing mermaids at weeki wachee springs , the city of live mermaids . ' today , the 47-year-old is the public relations manager for weeki wachee springs state park , and has been for 10 years . the park north of tampa , florida , hosts shows year-round involving women dressed as mermaids . it bills itself as a magical entrance into a mysterious blue underwater world of mermaids , manatees , turtles and bubbles . ' if you ask me , ( mermaids ) do exist , ' athanson said thursday . they exist , and they exist right here in weeki wachee . ' photos : anniversary of the bikini he was responding to the u.s. government 's fresh announcement to the contrary . the national oceanic and atmospheric administration has published an unexpected statement to its website explaining that there is no evidence the legendary half-human , half-fish sirens of the sea ' have ever lived . we had gotten a couple of questions about mermaids recently , ' noaa spokeswoman keeley belva told cnn with a laugh . the timing may have been because there was a documentary or movie that came out . ' the discovery channel 's animal planet aired mermaids : the body found ' on may 27 , a two-hour special the show 's website says paints a wildly convincing picture of the existence of mermaids , what they may look like and why they 've stayed hidden ... until now . ' an editor 's note on the page states that the show is science fiction based on some real events and scientific theory . ' but the film takes on an air of academic authority . the documentary-style film features a number of people identified as marine experts as well as photographs and videos from fishermen who said they 've seen mermaids . former noaa employees share their thoughts on whale beachings and government secrecy .'the little mermaid'to get a dark remake but the main focus of the film is scientific evidence and theories that support the idea of aquatic humanoids , ' as the noaa calls them . filmmakers animate how early humans might have moved from land to sea and chronicle the appearance of mermaids in art throughout history and among various cultures . the experts , narrator and even music are somber . some viewers take the movie seriously . i honestly think it is selfish of people to think we are the only human creatures on earth , ' youtube user tjkitty67 wrote in a comment . there is stuff out there we ca n't explain . ' other users posted comments questioning government secrecy , debating the scientific veracity of physical similarities between humans and aquatic mammals or -- in most cases -- making fun of viewers who believed the fictitious aspects of the mockumentary . ' funny how the noaa has to make a news report that mermaids do n't exist because some misunderstood citizens of america start a debate of their existence just because they watch a documentary , ' wrote user wolfenonthedsi . but athanson sees no harm in believing mermaids exist . our mermaids here at weeki wachee can get really into it , ' he said . whatever you believe becomes true . and if you believe you 're a mermaid , you 're a mermaid . ' he said young visitors often ask whether or not the mermaids are real . just like with santa claus or any other mythical character , we always say yes , ' he said . we 're not going to tell them they 're not real . ' mermaid parade : a hidden exotic gem | the noaa announces that mermaids do not exist |
earth <tsp> ( cnn ) south america 's atacama desert , one of the driest places on earth , resembles some of the faraway planets monitored by giant telescopes there . the lack of humidity provides optimal conditions to watch the sky and study the origins of the universe . it is pure visual silence , ' said photographer andres figueroa . it is amazing . there is absolutely no humidity , and ( these conditions ) create some striking contrasts . ' there , in that clear , inhospitably arid environment , figueroa turned his camera lens toward another discussion on cosmology , one rooted in the ancient folklore of the andean people . taking along his mobile lighting studio , figueroa photographed a series of religious festivals that take place every july in the atacama . in his dancers of the deserts ' series , figueroa chronicles these festivals , which attract about 200,000 people to some otherwise quiet mining towns in chile . i have always wanted to see the desert . even though i am not very religious , i 've always been curious about their traditions , ' said figueroa , who is from the chilean capital of santiago . figueroa worked hard on cataloging and differentiating the ceremonies and their complex rituals -- at times playing the role of an artist , others as an anthropologist -- but he always remained faithful to his love for classic portraiture . from an anthropological standpoint , i was interested in documenting all the signs and symbols that appear in each costume and character , all the indigenous and catholic syncretism , ' he said . my lighting studio allowed me to pick up on these details . from a portraiture standpoint , i used a formal approach to explain this living culture that is constantly growing and reinventing itself . i asked each character to stop to be photographed , taking them away momentarily from the festival in a more intimate scenario . ' photographing adobe walls , desert landscapes and the ubiquitous camping sites where pilgrims come to gather , figueroa said each character is perched in his or her own context . social media follow @ cnnphotos on twitter to join the conversation about photography . bears and devils pose in the desert in striking contrast . these photos highlight the uniqueness of andean culture , which draws influences from europe , the inca and more recently , chinese traditions . there are endless nuances , not always perceived by the naked eye . it is a very special festival . when you see the bears , you see them participating in the different roles , blending in with the ( the devils ) , ' figueroa said . and sometimes , you see them as a central figure in a festival of their own . it is amazing , a tradition brought by the chinese near peru . ' figueroa , who befriended many of the musicians and dancers , said it was important to take part in the festival in order to understand its meaning to the community . i had to understand the hierarchy and protocols of each group , ' he said . as a photographer , it is important to create the conditions for things to happen . you can have it all planned and set up in order for things to naturally take place . ' figueroa said the desert festivals have a deeper role in a region that struggles with social problems such as drug trafficking and poverty . it is the glue that binds families , and young people heavily invest their time and money to make their costumes and parade with pride . the festivals are a form of social protection , ' figueroa said . i felt the presence of love ... their love and effort in communicating with their divinity and holding together as communities . ' andres figueroa is a chilean photographer . you can follow him on facebook . | photographer andres figueroa spent a week in one of the driest places on earth |
chileans <tsp> ( cnn ) south america 's atacama desert , one of the driest places on earth , resembles some of the faraway planets monitored by giant telescopes there . the lack of humidity provides optimal conditions to watch the sky and study the origins of the universe . it is pure visual silence , ' said photographer andres figueroa . it is amazing . there is absolutely no humidity , and ( these conditions ) create some striking contrasts . ' there , in that clear , inhospitably arid environment , figueroa turned his camera lens toward another discussion on cosmology , one rooted in the ancient folklore of the andean people . taking along his mobile lighting studio , figueroa photographed a series of religious festivals that take place every july in the atacama . in his dancers of the deserts ' series , figueroa chronicles these festivals , which attract about 200,000 people to some otherwise quiet mining towns in chile . i have always wanted to see the desert . even though i am not very religious , i 've always been curious about their traditions , ' said figueroa , who is from the chilean capital of santiago . figueroa worked hard on cataloging and differentiating the ceremonies and their complex rituals -- at times playing the role of an artist , others as an anthropologist -- but he always remained faithful to his love for classic portraiture . from an anthropological standpoint , i was interested in documenting all the signs and symbols that appear in each costume and character , all the indigenous and catholic syncretism , ' he said . my lighting studio allowed me to pick up on these details . from a portraiture standpoint , i used a formal approach to explain this living culture that is constantly growing and reinventing itself . i asked each character to stop to be photographed , taking them away momentarily from the festival in a more intimate scenario . ' photographing adobe walls , desert landscapes and the ubiquitous camping sites where pilgrims come to gather , figueroa said each character is perched in his or her own context . social media follow @ cnnphotos on twitter to join the conversation about photography . bears and devils pose in the desert in striking contrast . these photos highlight the uniqueness of andean culture , which draws influences from europe , the inca and more recently , chinese traditions . there are endless nuances , not always perceived by the naked eye . it is a very special festival . when you see the bears , you see them participating in the different roles , blending in with the ( the devils ) , ' figueroa said . and sometimes , you see them as a central figure in a festival of their own . it is amazing , a tradition brought by the chinese near peru . ' figueroa , who befriended many of the musicians and dancers , said it was important to take part in the festival in order to understand its meaning to the community . i had to understand the hierarchy and protocols of each group , ' he said . as a photographer , it is important to create the conditions for things to happen . you can have it all planned and set up in order for things to naturally take place . ' figueroa said the desert festivals have a deeper role in a region that struggles with social problems such as drug trafficking and poverty . it is the glue that binds families , and young people heavily invest their time and money to make their costumes and parade with pride . the festivals are a form of social protection , ' figueroa said . i felt the presence of love ... their love and effort in communicating with their divinity and holding together as communities . ' andres figueroa is a chilean photographer . you can follow him on facebook . | he took portraits of chileans who dress up in costume for popular religious festivals |
andres figueroa <tsp> ( cnn ) south america 's atacama desert , one of the driest places on earth , resembles some of the faraway planets monitored by giant telescopes there . the lack of humidity provides optimal conditions to watch the sky and study the origins of the universe . it is pure visual silence , ' said photographer andres figueroa . it is amazing . there is absolutely no humidity , and ( these conditions ) create some striking contrasts . ' there , in that clear , inhospitably arid environment , figueroa turned his camera lens toward another discussion on cosmology , one rooted in the ancient folklore of the andean people . taking along his mobile lighting studio , figueroa photographed a series of religious festivals that take place every july in the atacama . in his dancers of the deserts ' series , figueroa chronicles these festivals , which attract about 200,000 people to some otherwise quiet mining towns in chile . i have always wanted to see the desert . even though i am not very religious , i 've always been curious about their traditions , ' said figueroa , who is from the chilean capital of santiago . figueroa worked hard on cataloging and differentiating the ceremonies and their complex rituals -- at times playing the role of an artist , others as an anthropologist -- but he always remained faithful to his love for classic portraiture . from an anthropological standpoint , i was interested in documenting all the signs and symbols that appear in each costume and character , all the indigenous and catholic syncretism , ' he said . my lighting studio allowed me to pick up on these details . from a portraiture standpoint , i used a formal approach to explain this living culture that is constantly growing and reinventing itself . i asked each character to stop to be photographed , taking them away momentarily from the festival in a more intimate scenario . ' photographing adobe walls , desert landscapes and the ubiquitous camping sites where pilgrims come to gather , figueroa said each character is perched in his or her own context . social media follow @ cnnphotos on twitter to join the conversation about photography . bears and devils pose in the desert in striking contrast . these photos highlight the uniqueness of andean culture , which draws influences from europe , the inca and more recently , chinese traditions . there are endless nuances , not always perceived by the naked eye . it is a very special festival . when you see the bears , you see them participating in the different roles , blending in with the ( the devils ) , ' figueroa said . and sometimes , you see them as a central figure in a festival of their own . it is amazing , a tradition brought by the chinese near peru . ' figueroa , who befriended many of the musicians and dancers , said it was important to take part in the festival in order to understand its meaning to the community . i had to understand the hierarchy and protocols of each group , ' he said . as a photographer , it is important to create the conditions for things to happen . you can have it all planned and set up in order for things to naturally take place . ' figueroa said the desert festivals have a deeper role in a region that struggles with social problems such as drug trafficking and poverty . it is the glue that binds families , and young people heavily invest their time and money to make their costumes and parade with pride . the festivals are a form of social protection , ' figueroa said . i felt the presence of love ... their love and effort in communicating with their divinity and holding together as communities . ' andres figueroa is a chilean photographer . you can follow him on facebook . | photographer andres figueroa spent a week in one of the driest places on earth |
pakistan <tsp> ( cnn ) -- world leaders are meeting in seoul this week to discuss how to deal with the threat of nuclear terrorism . the effort to prevent the misuse of nuclear materials and the spread of nuclear weapons has long-placed most emphasis on defensive measures . these are essentially on the supply side ' -- aiming to choke off the flow of nuclear weapon components and radiological materials to terrorists . while there is a place for such steps , there is another , and perhaps more successful way , to accomplish the goal . one of the gravest threats to nuclear proliferation arises from the nations that use proxy groups -- seemingly independent organizations that are paid to further the interests of governments . ending or reducing the use of such proxy groups has real potential to reduce the availability of such materials to terrorists . perhaps the single , most dominant security threat stems from the nuclear-tipped country of pakistan , with its accepted use of proxy groups to promote the perceived national interest . third-party transfer , where a country receiving weapons sells or gives them to another party , is always a danger , and with it looms the possible catastrophe of nuclear weapons in the wrong hands . it is clear that the u.s. government is working hard with pakistani officials to ensure that security at nuclear facilities and radioactive material storehouses is more robust . this has been taking place for years . for example , david e. sanger and william j . broad 's new york times article in 2007 ( u.s . secretly aids pakistan in guarding nuclear arms ) describes initiatives undertaken from the time of the clinton and bush administrations and the complexities associated with efforts to work with an ally that remains fundamentally suspicious ' of our intentions . but the broader question remains : why does pakistani leadership continue its half-hearted support for counterterror practices aimed at those in a position to acquire such materials ? for one thing , pakistan has a legacy of using proxy groups to promote its national security interests that goes back at least to the 1950s . at the time , prime minister mohammad daud khan of afghanistan worked to stoke nationalist demands and aspirations from the pashtun population in geographical locales near the durand line , ' the disputed border between pakistan and afghanistan . in turn , pakistani leaders used islam as a framework and its own proxies as counterweights , to promote an alternate vision of a unified region unfettered by political instability and social unrest . lashkar-e-tayyiba ( army of the righteous ' ) is perhaps the most prominent pakistani proxy in the contemporary world because it is generally recognized as having carried out the mumbai terrorist assaults in 2008 . this terrorist group is long known for its fierce struggle in kashmir against indian-supported political leaders and indian security forces . to be sure , pakistan is not the only country in south asia that practices international politics in this way ; india has also used its own set of proxies to promote national interest in effective and sustained ways in places such as afghanistan and bangladesh . but while the use of proxies in the region is not especially new , the risks nowadays are compounded by the presence of nuclear weapons and radiological materials . it is vital that pakistan comes to grips with its use of proxy groups and explores alternatives . the use of proxies in pursuit of national policy also has implications with respect to iran , with its track record of trying to enhance its power in iraq by supporting insurgents and providing know-how for the building of improvised explosive devices . in afghanistan , where the weak karzai government remains unable or unwilling to meet its security obligations outside of kabul , iranian proxies wield their influence . it is likely that iranian leaders support the shia organizations in sunni-dominated pakistan as well as shia militant group sipah-e-muhammad with the broader aim of destabilizing pakistan , in no small part to undermine american efforts in the region . what does that portend for possible short-run relationships between israel and pakistan if iran is deemed a common threat ? in turn , what does that portend for the united states from its own geostrategic position ? we should take a page out of the conflict resolution literature playbook and use bargaining techniques that seek to isolate and identify motivations behind pakistan 's position on the use of proxy groups . for example , the fears and anxieties political leaders experience often drive hard-line ' bargaining positions on issues , and knowing what those fears are in the case of pakistan , u.s. leadership can work to relieve those fears by providing alternatives . another technique is to break down large seemingly unsolvable problems into smaller , more manageable ones . for instance , the broader policy of drone use by the u.s. can be broken down into smaller policies where agreement is possible . one possibility is putting in place tighter restrictions to satisfy pakistan 's leaders on when drones should be used , in what specific cases or as backups to other forms of interdiction . in turn , compromises like those can and should be linked to issues of importance to the u.s. such as stronger pakistani support for u.s. talks with the taliban and greater transparency by the pakistanis about security policies . such talks might start a process that could lead to new agreements that come closer to confronting pakistani proxy use . all of this requires unequivocal american commitment to pakistan for the long haul , to allay fears of abandonment . against that backdrop , such problem-solving efforts would generate alternatives that might lead to innovative thinking about new security arrangements in pakistan and other countries such as india and afghanistan . it is possible to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons and radiological material dissemination by reducing reliance on proxy groups , and that could be our most effective tool in this ongoing battle . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of richard chasdi . | he says nuclear-armed pakistan is one of the countries where proxy groups have been used |
carson kressley <tsp> ( instyle.com ) -- style-maker , tv host and opinionated fashionista carson kressley explains how to give yourself a complete makeover -- inside and out . style-maker carson kressley spills the naked truth on giving yourself a mental makeover . minimize the negative as coco chanel said , fashion is architecture : it 's a matter of proportions . ' in other words : no matter which part of your body you dislike , there 's a clever way to divert the eye elsewhere . try different styles and employ horizontal ( widening ) , vertical ( elongating ) and diagonal ( slimming ) lines as necessary . venture out of your comfort zone ' many women get used to dressing their body a certain way because they think it 's the only thing that works for them , ' says kressley . find a boutique or department store with well-trained salespeople and try on three styles you 've never worn . it might be a fabric such as jersey that you 've always deemed too clingy or an empire-waist camisole that you 're convinced looks too young . not every experiment will be a success , but even one new style or color will prove that there are more ways than you thought to look your best . do n't be ruled by your insecurities if you 've been avoiding the beach or missing out on parties because you 're afraid of being the largest person there , grab a friend and go to the very place that incites terror -- just be sure you 're wearing an amazing outfit . avoid a blackout ' have you ever seen a happy goth ? ' muses kressley . i think everyone needs color to feel good . ' too many women rely on head-to-toe black as a form of camouflage . but any hue can be slimming if worn monochromatically -- so instead of black , reach for plum , gray or chocolate brown . clean out your closet whether you 're holding on to clothes that are too small because you hope you 'll fit into them someday , or clothes that are too big for fear you 'll grow back into them , you 're keeping past wounds open . old clothes stop you from living in the present , ' says kressley . they reinforce what you used to look like . ' get rid of anything you have n't worn in two years and replace it with something new that makes you feel pretty . and while you 're out shopping , have a house-cleaner swing by for good measure . write yourself a love note some women are so obsessed with their hips that they fail to notice their flat tummy . remind yourself of your virtues by writing a note that says something like hey , you have a great chest ! ' tack it to the bathroom mirror so you 'll see it in the morning and before bedtime . we 're so trained to look for the negative that we need a physical reminder of the positive , ' explains kressley . have a princess moment treating yourself to a massage , a body exfoliation , a professional blow-out , a brow shaping or a mani-pedi can elevate your mood by affirming to yourself that you 're worth the splurge . get naked some women on kressley 's show are so self-conscious about their bodies that they 're reluctant to be naked around their husbands . that discomfort affects how they feel when dressed too . before you can move as if you own the room , you 'll have to be at ease inside your skin , and spending time in the buff can help . one idea : take a bath with the ( gasp ! ) lights on -- no candles . feeling comfortable with your body alone is the first step to feeling comfortable with your body around others , ' says kressley . if all else fails , fake it one of kressley 's favorite mantras is looking cute is feeling cute . ' so if you 're having a low day , force yourself to go through the motions . put on your makeup , do your hair , wear a great outfit . sometimes faking it can give you enough of a boost to lift you out of the doldrums . feeling pretty , ' kressley says , changes your whole outlook because you feel good about yourself . ' get a free trial issue of instyle - click here ! copyright © 2009 time inc. all rights reserved . | fashionista carson kressley : women get stuck in fashion ruts |
equatorial guinea <tsp> ( cnn ) -- british mercenary simon mann has been jailed for 34 years for his part in plotting a coup in equatorial guinea . simon mann was arrested after a plane carrying him and about 60 mercenaries landed in zimbabwe . the former british military officer confessed to trying to topple long-time ruler teodoro obiang nguema mbasogo - but denied being the plot 's leader . the goal of the plot was to install exiled opposition leader severo moto who is currently in spain awaiting trial on charges of arms trafficking , and to gain access to the former spanish colony 's oil wealth . during the trial , mann testified he was a junior ' in the organization which plotted to overthrow the tiny west african country 's president in 2004 , and that lebanese businessman eli calil was the man in charge . eli calil was known as the cardinal -- the cardinal -- which i think says it all , ' mann told the court . watch mann 's reaction to his sentences » footage of the proceedings was broadcast by britain 's channel 4 news , which says it has the only camera in the courtroom . as mann 's trial progressed last month , south africa rejected mann 's allegation that it had given its tacit support for the coup plot . south africa will never , tacitly or expressly , support the use of mercenaries to bring about fundamental political changes in any country in our continent or elsewhere in the world including equatorial guinea , ' the government said in a statement . mann testified that several governments , including spain and the united states , welcomed the idea of a coup . mann is a former british army commando who was arrested four years ago after a plane carrying him and about 60 mercenaries landed in zimbabwe . the government of equatorial guinea said the group was on its way to overthrow its president . mann said at the time they were going to guard a diamond mine in the democratic republic of congo . a zimbabwe court convicted mann of trying to buy weapons illegally . he served four years in jail there before being extradited to equatorial guinea 's capital of malabo earlier this year to face charges of leading an abortive coup . mann testified that his former friend mark thatcher -- the son of former british prime minister margaret thatcher -- was a main partner in the plot . thatcher was arrested along with mann in 2004 , and he pleaded guilty in south africa the following year to unwittingly bankrolling the plot . he escaped jail time by paying a fine . thatcher admitted giving $ 275,000 toward the charter of a helicopter , saying he thought was for commercial purposes and discovered only later it was to be used by mercenaries . but mann said thatcher paid $ 350,000 for a helicopter and a plane which he knew would be used in the plot , and that he attended meetings about the plan with calil in london . calil , mann said , initially asked him to assassinate president obiang and talked about the possibility of staging a guerrilla war . mann testified he refused both requests , considering them unethical , but he did agree to help stage a coup . though he said thatcher was a top figure in the plot , mann testified that even thatcher was under calil in the group 's hierarchy . mann , appearing in a gray prison outfit , emphasized that he was not the man in charge . mann 's defense lawyer took 45 minutes to question mann , channel 4 reported , in contrast to the four hours of prosecution questioning mann faced . mann smiled often in the footage shown by channel 4 and even stuck his tongue out playfully at the camera . after his stint in the british army , mann was affiliated with the south africa-based mercenary firm executive outcomes . the firm described itself on its now-defunct web site as a military advisory service ' that had played a crucial ' role in ending two african civil wars . | new : british mercenary simon mann jailed for plotting a equatorial guinea coup |
tom simpson <tsp> ( cnn ) -- mark cavendish capped a superb week for britain at the world cycling championships by winning the men 's road race title sunday with a trademark sprint finish . cavendish , the pre-race favorite on a course well-suited to his talents , timed his burst to perfection to take gold from australia 's matthew goss with andre greipel of germany taking the bronze medal . it was britain 's first men 's road race title since the legendary tom simpson won in 1965 and took them to the top of the medals table at the championships in copenhagen . they claimed two gold , two silvers and two bronze medals as their dominance in track cycling extended to the various road disciplines . cavendish paid tribute to his teammates after they had paced him through the majority of the 260km race over 17 laps but with a tough uphill finish . there could n't be any other result after the way the guys rode today , ' cavendish told eurosport . i 'm so proud . ' an early breakaway gained nearly 10 minutes , but with britain forcing the pace at the front , it was pulled back and the decisive action took place on the last lap . tour de france hero thomas voeckler made a typical charge , but with time trial silver medalist bradley wiggins and the experienced david millar to the fore , britain were able to nullify his attempt . in the uphill finish , it was the australians who moved to the front , but cavendish came through fast near the barriers and once he hit the front there was only one winner . milan-san remo winner goss closed on the line while greipel edged out switzerland 's fabian cancellara for the final podium spot . | cavendish first briton to win prestigioius race since tom simpson in 1965 |
sacagawea <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- when elizabeth fry 's likeness was bumped from the british £5 note in favor of winston churchill , it led to a public outcry and the announcement on wednesday that jane austen 's likeness would be added to the £10 note . true , the queen , as the country 's monarch , appears on british bills . but historical figures have been included on bank notes for decades . the vast majority have been men . in the united states , there is no shortage of notable women , but bank notes have n't been updated since 1929 , nine years after women gained the right to vote . all of the paper money in the united states features men -- nine presidents , two former treasury secretaries and one benjamin franklin . there 's only ever been one woman featured on a piece of paper american money . that was martha washington , who appeared on the silver certificates ' in 1886 , 1891 , and 1896 , according to lydia washington , a spokeswoman for the bureau of printing and engraving . there has never been an african american of either gender . washington explained that u.s. law gives power over the faces on bills to the treasury secretary . that 's jack lew , whose signature is featured on bank notes . it 's official : jack lew 's new signature being dead is the only technical requirement to appear on a bank note , but presidents have taken up most of the real estate , although there are exceptions , like franklin , the renaissance man and founding father who appears on the $ 100 bill . a newly redesigned benjamin ' with enhanced security features , raised printing and additional colors that shift in the light is set to enter circulation in october . but it will keep the portrait of franklin . here 's more from washington 's explanation of how the current faces got onto american dollars : ' the figures that currently appear on u.s. currency were chosen in 1929 when the size of currency was reduced and standardized . prior to the adoption of this smaller sized currency , a special committee was appointed by the secretary of the treasury to study this aspect of the design . it was determined that portraits of presidents of the united states have a more permanent familiarity in the minds of the public than any others . ' this decision was somewhat altered by the secretary of the treasury to include alexander hamilton , who was the first secretary of the treasury ; salmon p. chase , who was secretary of the treasury during the civil war and is credited with promoting our national banking system ; and benjamin franklin , who was one of the signers of the declaration of independence . records do not indicate the exact reasons why the portraits of these statesmen were chosen in preference to others of equal stature and importance , but all three were well known to the american public. washington did n't have anything to offer in response to the ascendance of jane austen to the £10 note . in regards to the currency of other countries , we do not comment . other countries do what they deem appropriate for their regions and social circumstances , ' washington wrote . here is more information on currency at bureau of printing and engraving website . currency , it should be said , is distinguishable from coins , which are produced by the u.s. mint . women have a better record when it comes to coins . helen keller was put on the alabama-themed quarter in 2003 . sacagawea , the native american who guided lewis and clark on their cross-country expedition , is on dollar coins produced since 1999 . susan b. anthony , the suffragette , was on dollar coins produced from 1979 to 1981 . up in canada , their $ 100 bill is n't paper , it 's some kind of fancy plastic , but it does have a woman on it . she 's supposed to be anonymous and represent canadian medical innovation . but a woman looking into a microscope does bear some resemblance to british scientist rosalind franklin , who photographed the dna double helix . side note : there was a rosalind franklin-themed google doodle running on thursday , her birthday . there does n't appear to be any sort of national movement to put a woman on a piece of paper money , but if there were , who should it be ? leave your suggestions in the comments below . | hellen keller , sacagawea and susan b. anthony have appeared on u.s. coins |
gonzalez <tsp> an iraq war veteran who was arrested after jumping a white house fence suffers from ptsd , his former stepson told cnn sunday . omar gonzalez hopped the north fence friday and sprinted just past the north portico white house doors when he was stopped , secret service spokesman brian leary said . the veteran carried in his pants pocket a spyderco vg-10 folding knife with a 3-and-a-half inch serrated blade , according to an affidavit . a secret service officer said he yelled at the intruder to stop . gonzalez told a secret service agent that he was concerned that the atmosphere was collapsing and needed to get the information to the president of the united states so that he could get the word out to the people , ' according to the affidavit . gonzalez is accused of unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon , officials said . as of saturday , gonzalez was in custody and set to appear in court monday . president barack obama and his family were not at home at the time . on sunday , gonzalez 's former stepson jerry s. murphy told cnn that gonzalez 's eight-year marriage to his mother ended two years ago -- information that marriage records supports . murphy said he last spoke to gonzalez around the time of the split but knows that gonzalez was seeing a therapist on base at fort hood in texas . gonzalez was diagnosed with ptsd and paranoia , and his base psychiatrist had prescribed the veteran medication for both conditions , murphy said . gonzalez did three tours in iraq and is a great , great guy , ' his ex-stepson said . murphy views gonzalez as a hero ' who took great pride in serving his country . but after each deployment , gonzalez 's mental state seemed to deteriorate , murphy said . the veteran acted constantly alert . ' murphy feels that gonzalez should have been given more help and does n't think gonzalez had intentions of hurting anyone at the white house . the knife that was found in gonzalez 's pocket was a weapon the veteran routinely carried , murphy said . criticism of white house security the fence jumping incident was not the only security breach at the white house over the weekend . in a second incident saturday , kevin carr of shamong , new jersey , was arrested after driving up to a security barrier and trying to enter the white house by walking to it . carr was arrested and charged with unlawful entry , leary told cnn . records show carr was born in 1995 , making him around 19 . according to leary , the incident happened at the entrance at 15th and e streets , where the driver did not stop when the secret service ordered him to do so . the man 's car did not hit the barriers at the entrance , and he then got out of his vehicle . carr was arrested after he refused to leave , leary said . the obamas were not at home at the time of the second incident either . minutes before gonzalez jumped the fence , the president and his daughters left the south lawn by helicopter . it is not clear where first lady michelle obama was , but officials tell cnn that the family was staying at camp david , maryland , for the weekend . the secret service said gonzalez should have been stopped faster and are investigating personnel and reviewing security policies and procedures . the secret service is planning to beef up its presence and enhance its surveillance measures around the white house on monday following friday 's security breach , a federal law enforcement official said . rep. mike rogers , a michigan republican and chairman of the house intelligence committee , suggested that the secret service has lapsed in the testing and audits that would have kept security up to standard . we see this a lot . it happens frequently in other places where there are static security forces , and it 's just a matter of the secret service upping their game to make sure that they can maintain that every detail matters . a door locked , a quick reaction when somebody hits the fence and over the gate , ' rogers said on cbs on sunday morning . i think they are going to have to reinstate some of these ongoing checks about what activities they participate in . ' rep. peter king , r-new york , demanded a full investigation and called for a congressional hearing to ensure that changes are made . there can be a lot of conspiracies against a president . a lot of very complex assassination plots , ' king said on fox news . this is the most basic , the most simple type of procedure and how anyone , especially in these days of isis , and we 're concerned about terrorist attacks , someone could actually get into the white house without being stopped is inexcusable . ' in a statement from white house on saturday night , spokesperson frank benenati said the president expressed his support for the secret service . the president has full confidence in the secret service and is grateful to the men and women who day in and day out protect himself , his family and the white house , ' the statement read . the secret service is in the process of conducting a thorough review of the event on friday evening , and we are certain it will be done with the same professionalism and commitment to duty that we and the american people expect from the usss . ' may : lost driver ends up in white house motorcade | the ex-stepson says omar gonzalez was being treated at fort hood in texas |
gonzalez <tsp> an iraq war veteran who was arrested after jumping a white house fence suffers from ptsd , his former stepson told cnn sunday . omar gonzalez hopped the north fence friday and sprinted just past the north portico white house doors when he was stopped , secret service spokesman brian leary said . the veteran carried in his pants pocket a spyderco vg-10 folding knife with a 3-and-a-half inch serrated blade , according to an affidavit . a secret service officer said he yelled at the intruder to stop . gonzalez told a secret service agent that he was concerned that the atmosphere was collapsing and needed to get the information to the president of the united states so that he could get the word out to the people , ' according to the affidavit . gonzalez is accused of unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon , officials said . as of saturday , gonzalez was in custody and set to appear in court monday . president barack obama and his family were not at home at the time . on sunday , gonzalez 's former stepson jerry s. murphy told cnn that gonzalez 's eight-year marriage to his mother ended two years ago -- information that marriage records supports . murphy said he last spoke to gonzalez around the time of the split but knows that gonzalez was seeing a therapist on base at fort hood in texas . gonzalez was diagnosed with ptsd and paranoia , and his base psychiatrist had prescribed the veteran medication for both conditions , murphy said . gonzalez did three tours in iraq and is a great , great guy , ' his ex-stepson said . murphy views gonzalez as a hero ' who took great pride in serving his country . but after each deployment , gonzalez 's mental state seemed to deteriorate , murphy said . the veteran acted constantly alert . ' murphy feels that gonzalez should have been given more help and does n't think gonzalez had intentions of hurting anyone at the white house . the knife that was found in gonzalez 's pocket was a weapon the veteran routinely carried , murphy said . criticism of white house security the fence jumping incident was not the only security breach at the white house over the weekend . in a second incident saturday , kevin carr of shamong , new jersey , was arrested after driving up to a security barrier and trying to enter the white house by walking to it . carr was arrested and charged with unlawful entry , leary told cnn . records show carr was born in 1995 , making him around 19 . according to leary , the incident happened at the entrance at 15th and e streets , where the driver did not stop when the secret service ordered him to do so . the man 's car did not hit the barriers at the entrance , and he then got out of his vehicle . carr was arrested after he refused to leave , leary said . the obamas were not at home at the time of the second incident either . minutes before gonzalez jumped the fence , the president and his daughters left the south lawn by helicopter . it is not clear where first lady michelle obama was , but officials tell cnn that the family was staying at camp david , maryland , for the weekend . the secret service said gonzalez should have been stopped faster and are investigating personnel and reviewing security policies and procedures . the secret service is planning to beef up its presence and enhance its surveillance measures around the white house on monday following friday 's security breach , a federal law enforcement official said . rep. mike rogers , a michigan republican and chairman of the house intelligence committee , suggested that the secret service has lapsed in the testing and audits that would have kept security up to standard . we see this a lot . it happens frequently in other places where there are static security forces , and it 's just a matter of the secret service upping their game to make sure that they can maintain that every detail matters . a door locked , a quick reaction when somebody hits the fence and over the gate , ' rogers said on cbs on sunday morning . i think they are going to have to reinstate some of these ongoing checks about what activities they participate in . ' rep. peter king , r-new york , demanded a full investigation and called for a congressional hearing to ensure that changes are made . there can be a lot of conspiracies against a president . a lot of very complex assassination plots , ' king said on fox news . this is the most basic , the most simple type of procedure and how anyone , especially in these days of isis , and we 're concerned about terrorist attacks , someone could actually get into the white house without being stopped is inexcusable . ' in a statement from white house on saturday night , spokesperson frank benenati said the president expressed his support for the secret service . the president has full confidence in the secret service and is grateful to the men and women who day in and day out protect himself , his family and the white house , ' the statement read . the secret service is in the process of conducting a thorough review of the event on friday evening , and we are certain it will be done with the same professionalism and commitment to duty that we and the american people expect from the usss . ' may : lost driver ends up in white house motorcade | gonzalez did three tours in iraq , his mental state worsened after each , ex-stepson said |
cnn <tsp> an iraq war veteran who was arrested after jumping a white house fence suffers from ptsd , his former stepson told cnn sunday . omar gonzalez hopped the north fence friday and sprinted just past the north portico white house doors when he was stopped , secret service spokesman brian leary said . the veteran carried in his pants pocket a spyderco vg-10 folding knife with a 3-and-a-half inch serrated blade , according to an affidavit . a secret service officer said he yelled at the intruder to stop . gonzalez told a secret service agent that he was concerned that the atmosphere was collapsing and needed to get the information to the president of the united states so that he could get the word out to the people , ' according to the affidavit . gonzalez is accused of unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon , officials said . as of saturday , gonzalez was in custody and set to appear in court monday . president barack obama and his family were not at home at the time . on sunday , gonzalez 's former stepson jerry s. murphy told cnn that gonzalez 's eight-year marriage to his mother ended two years ago -- information that marriage records supports . murphy said he last spoke to gonzalez around the time of the split but knows that gonzalez was seeing a therapist on base at fort hood in texas . gonzalez was diagnosed with ptsd and paranoia , and his base psychiatrist had prescribed the veteran medication for both conditions , murphy said . gonzalez did three tours in iraq and is a great , great guy , ' his ex-stepson said . murphy views gonzalez as a hero ' who took great pride in serving his country . but after each deployment , gonzalez 's mental state seemed to deteriorate , murphy said . the veteran acted constantly alert . ' murphy feels that gonzalez should have been given more help and does n't think gonzalez had intentions of hurting anyone at the white house . the knife that was found in gonzalez 's pocket was a weapon the veteran routinely carried , murphy said . criticism of white house security the fence jumping incident was not the only security breach at the white house over the weekend . in a second incident saturday , kevin carr of shamong , new jersey , was arrested after driving up to a security barrier and trying to enter the white house by walking to it . carr was arrested and charged with unlawful entry , leary told cnn . records show carr was born in 1995 , making him around 19 . according to leary , the incident happened at the entrance at 15th and e streets , where the driver did not stop when the secret service ordered him to do so . the man 's car did not hit the barriers at the entrance , and he then got out of his vehicle . carr was arrested after he refused to leave , leary said . the obamas were not at home at the time of the second incident either . minutes before gonzalez jumped the fence , the president and his daughters left the south lawn by helicopter . it is not clear where first lady michelle obama was , but officials tell cnn that the family was staying at camp david , maryland , for the weekend . the secret service said gonzalez should have been stopped faster and are investigating personnel and reviewing security policies and procedures . the secret service is planning to beef up its presence and enhance its surveillance measures around the white house on monday following friday 's security breach , a federal law enforcement official said . rep. mike rogers , a michigan republican and chairman of the house intelligence committee , suggested that the secret service has lapsed in the testing and audits that would have kept security up to standard . we see this a lot . it happens frequently in other places where there are static security forces , and it 's just a matter of the secret service upping their game to make sure that they can maintain that every detail matters . a door locked , a quick reaction when somebody hits the fence and over the gate , ' rogers said on cbs on sunday morning . i think they are going to have to reinstate some of these ongoing checks about what activities they participate in . ' rep. peter king , r-new york , demanded a full investigation and called for a congressional hearing to ensure that changes are made . there can be a lot of conspiracies against a president . a lot of very complex assassination plots , ' king said on fox news . this is the most basic , the most simple type of procedure and how anyone , especially in these days of isis , and we 're concerned about terrorist attacks , someone could actually get into the white house without being stopped is inexcusable . ' in a statement from white house on saturday night , spokesperson frank benenati said the president expressed his support for the secret service . the president has full confidence in the secret service and is grateful to the men and women who day in and day out protect himself , his family and the white house , ' the statement read . the secret service is in the process of conducting a thorough review of the event on friday evening , and we are certain it will be done with the same professionalism and commitment to duty that we and the american people expect from the usss . ' may : lost driver ends up in white house motorcade | white house fence jumper 's ex-stepson tells cnn jumper has ptsd |
garrido <tsp> ( cnn ) -- phillip garrido was registered as a sex offender , regularly visited by parole officers and fitted with an ankle bracelet to track his movements -- but nothing prevented him from being around children , according to a victims'advocacy group . phillip garrido , a registered sex offender , was arraigned in california on friday . garrido is charged with kidnapping jaycee lee dugard in 1991 , when she was 11 , and raping her over the course of years . police say dugard lived in a huddle of tents and outbuildings hidden behind garrido 's home , and gave birth to two daughters , now 11 and 15 , fathered by garrido . garrido and his wife nancy were arrested last week . both have pleaded not guilty . here we have a guy who is essentially under every kind of supervision we allow . law enforcement had every tool available to them , and [ the tools ] failed , ' said robert coombs , spokesman for the california coalition against sexual assault . gordon hinkle , spokesman for the state department of corrections and rehabilitation , said a parole officer visited garrido at his home , sometimes unannounced , twice a month . garrido was also required to go to the agent 's office once or twice a month , hinkle said . garrido wore a gps anklet , and his movements were tracked passively , hinkle said , meaning parole officers checked his location after the fact , as opposed to active monitoring , which involves watching parolees'comings and goings in real time . despite the tight supervision , garrido was technically allowed to be around minors , ' coombs said , because his parole stemmed from the november 1976 rape of katie callaway hall , who was 25 at the time of the assault . he was sentenced in 1977 to 50 years at the federal penitentiary in leavenworth , kansas , for kidnapping , because he abducted hall in california and transported her across the state line to reno , nevada , where he raped her in a warehouse , according to court documents . a nevada court separately sentenced him to five years to life for the rape conviction , the reno gazette-journal reported . while in prison in 1978 , garrido sent a handwritten letter to judge bruce r. thompson , saying he was recovering from seven years of lsd use and progressing well . i am so ashamed of my past . but my future is now in controle [ sic ] , ' he wrote . court documents show garrido requested that his 50-year sentence be reduced to 25 , making him eligible for parole in eight years , where he could be released to the state of nevada as an educated person and being a rehabilitated person . ' according to a 1978 court transcript , attorney willard van hazel jr. told a judge , without the influence of any of this drug involvement , i think mr. garrido would pause before carrying out sexual fantasies . ' after more than a decade at leavenworth , garrido received a federal parole but was sent to carson city , nevada , in january 1988 to serve his rape sentence . however , according to the reno gazette-journal , he was automatically eligible for state parole because of the time served in federal prison . the nevada offender tracking information system indicates he appeared four times before the parole board , which granted his request in august 1988 , about 11 years after he was incarcerated . he moved to antioch , california . three years later , 11-year-old dugard was abducted from her home in south lake tahoe , california , about 100 miles northeast . he served about 20 percent of his sentence , and it does n't take a mathematician to figure out if he served only one-third of his sentence , jaycee dugard does n't end up in the predicament that she 's in , ' said andy kahan , a crime victims'advocate in houston , texas . citing revised federal sentencing guidelines , kahan and illinois defense attorney stephen komie concur that this is not something that could happen today . if he got 50 years , say , he would have 600 months . he would only get 50 months off . he would do 550 months , ' komie said . so this would not be repeated in the federal system again . ' added kahan , you 're going to have to do at least a minimum of half of your term without any good time credits before you can even see the light of day or say hello to a parole board member . ' in 1993 , five years after his release from a nevada prison , garrido was jailed on a parole violation , but it 's unclear what that offense was . tom hutchinson , spokesman for the u.s. parole commission , said documents have been requested and should be available later this week . garrido was released later that year . california took over his parole supervision in 1999 , hinkle said , but regular visits did nothing to unearth dugard 's abduction or garrido 's backyard secrets . another visit by law enforcement was the direct result of a 2006 call a neighbor made to 911 , reporting that women and children were living in tents behind garrido 's house . contra costa county sheriff warren e. rupf said he did n't think the deputy who responded knew at the time that garrido was a sex offender and the deputy spoke to garrido in the home 's front yard . we should have been more inquisitive , more curious and turned over a rock or two , ' the sheriff said . we missed an opportunity to bring earlier closure to this situation . ' hinkle acknowledged that neighbors called police again with a similar complaint in 2008 . to his knowledge , hinkle said , the deputy did n't contact garrido 's parole officer in either instance . even if the deputy had made contact , there is no guarantee the parole officer would have found the compound . it was that well-hidden , hinkle said . if you were to walk in the backyard , you would see a fence that ran from one end to the other , ' hinkle said , describing how the fence created the illusion of a false backyard . ' it would not be immediately apparent that [ the tents and outbuildings were ] back there , ' he said . kahan partially blames the economics of the criminal justice system -- not just in california , but nationwide -- and said garrido likely became less of a priority as the time since his crimes passed . despite the heinous nature of garrido 's 1976 crime , it paled in comparison to allegedly holding a young girl hostage and raping her for 18 years , coombs said . nothing in this guy 's case history indicated he was capable of such evil , if you will , ' he said . it was so far out of the picture , they did n't even look for it . ' rather than there not being enough money to fund the proper supervision of parolees , it 's more a matter of priorities , coombs said , citing the gps device garrido wore on his ankle . although calcasa has no official tally , it estimates california has spent roughly $ 500 million on gps devices for 6,600 of the state 's sex offenders . garrido was fitted with a device after 2006 when voters ok 'd a law requiring felony sex offenders to wear tracking devices for life . we know where this guy is , so we think we 're safe , ' he said , but the place where we knew he was was the place where he was offending . gps just tells you where they are . it does n't tell you what they 're doing . ' each dollar spent on gps equipment is one dollar you 're not spending on real , traditional parole techniques , like talking to collateral contacts and neighbors , ' he said . coombs also criticized the lack of communication across jurisdictions . had garrido 's parole officer received a call from police and spoken to the neighbor who made the 911 call in 2006 , authorities might have found dugard three years earlier , coombs said . hinkle said the officer who flushed out garrido 's alleged crimes had only been supervising him since december . when the officer learned from campus police that garrido had 11- and 15-year-old girls in tow while proselytizing at the university of california-berkeley , he called garrido in for a meeting . garrido arrived with his wife , dugard and the two girls . hinkle would not provide details of the conversation -- it could affect the investigation and prosecution , he said -- but he did say garrido and his wife were not forthcoming about dugard 's and the girls'identities . it was the parole officer 's diligence that ultimately yielded the garridos'arrest and dugard and her daughters'freedom . said hinkle , they were coming in being elusive and deceptive about their identities , and the agent would not let go . ' cnn 's mallory simon , irving last and kiran chetry contributed to this report . | garrido likely became lower priority as time since his crimes passed , expert says |
garrido <tsp> ( cnn ) -- phillip garrido was registered as a sex offender , regularly visited by parole officers and fitted with an ankle bracelet to track his movements -- but nothing prevented him from being around children , according to a victims'advocacy group . phillip garrido , a registered sex offender , was arraigned in california on friday . garrido is charged with kidnapping jaycee lee dugard in 1991 , when she was 11 , and raping her over the course of years . police say dugard lived in a huddle of tents and outbuildings hidden behind garrido 's home , and gave birth to two daughters , now 11 and 15 , fathered by garrido . garrido and his wife nancy were arrested last week . both have pleaded not guilty . here we have a guy who is essentially under every kind of supervision we allow . law enforcement had every tool available to them , and [ the tools ] failed , ' said robert coombs , spokesman for the california coalition against sexual assault . gordon hinkle , spokesman for the state department of corrections and rehabilitation , said a parole officer visited garrido at his home , sometimes unannounced , twice a month . garrido was also required to go to the agent 's office once or twice a month , hinkle said . garrido wore a gps anklet , and his movements were tracked passively , hinkle said , meaning parole officers checked his location after the fact , as opposed to active monitoring , which involves watching parolees'comings and goings in real time . despite the tight supervision , garrido was technically allowed to be around minors , ' coombs said , because his parole stemmed from the november 1976 rape of katie callaway hall , who was 25 at the time of the assault . he was sentenced in 1977 to 50 years at the federal penitentiary in leavenworth , kansas , for kidnapping , because he abducted hall in california and transported her across the state line to reno , nevada , where he raped her in a warehouse , according to court documents . a nevada court separately sentenced him to five years to life for the rape conviction , the reno gazette-journal reported . while in prison in 1978 , garrido sent a handwritten letter to judge bruce r. thompson , saying he was recovering from seven years of lsd use and progressing well . i am so ashamed of my past . but my future is now in controle [ sic ] , ' he wrote . court documents show garrido requested that his 50-year sentence be reduced to 25 , making him eligible for parole in eight years , where he could be released to the state of nevada as an educated person and being a rehabilitated person . ' according to a 1978 court transcript , attorney willard van hazel jr. told a judge , without the influence of any of this drug involvement , i think mr. garrido would pause before carrying out sexual fantasies . ' after more than a decade at leavenworth , garrido received a federal parole but was sent to carson city , nevada , in january 1988 to serve his rape sentence . however , according to the reno gazette-journal , he was automatically eligible for state parole because of the time served in federal prison . the nevada offender tracking information system indicates he appeared four times before the parole board , which granted his request in august 1988 , about 11 years after he was incarcerated . he moved to antioch , california . three years later , 11-year-old dugard was abducted from her home in south lake tahoe , california , about 100 miles northeast . he served about 20 percent of his sentence , and it does n't take a mathematician to figure out if he served only one-third of his sentence , jaycee dugard does n't end up in the predicament that she 's in , ' said andy kahan , a crime victims'advocate in houston , texas . citing revised federal sentencing guidelines , kahan and illinois defense attorney stephen komie concur that this is not something that could happen today . if he got 50 years , say , he would have 600 months . he would only get 50 months off . he would do 550 months , ' komie said . so this would not be repeated in the federal system again . ' added kahan , you 're going to have to do at least a minimum of half of your term without any good time credits before you can even see the light of day or say hello to a parole board member . ' in 1993 , five years after his release from a nevada prison , garrido was jailed on a parole violation , but it 's unclear what that offense was . tom hutchinson , spokesman for the u.s. parole commission , said documents have been requested and should be available later this week . garrido was released later that year . california took over his parole supervision in 1999 , hinkle said , but regular visits did nothing to unearth dugard 's abduction or garrido 's backyard secrets . another visit by law enforcement was the direct result of a 2006 call a neighbor made to 911 , reporting that women and children were living in tents behind garrido 's house . contra costa county sheriff warren e. rupf said he did n't think the deputy who responded knew at the time that garrido was a sex offender and the deputy spoke to garrido in the home 's front yard . we should have been more inquisitive , more curious and turned over a rock or two , ' the sheriff said . we missed an opportunity to bring earlier closure to this situation . ' hinkle acknowledged that neighbors called police again with a similar complaint in 2008 . to his knowledge , hinkle said , the deputy did n't contact garrido 's parole officer in either instance . even if the deputy had made contact , there is no guarantee the parole officer would have found the compound . it was that well-hidden , hinkle said . if you were to walk in the backyard , you would see a fence that ran from one end to the other , ' hinkle said , describing how the fence created the illusion of a false backyard . ' it would not be immediately apparent that [ the tents and outbuildings were ] back there , ' he said . kahan partially blames the economics of the criminal justice system -- not just in california , but nationwide -- and said garrido likely became less of a priority as the time since his crimes passed . despite the heinous nature of garrido 's 1976 crime , it paled in comparison to allegedly holding a young girl hostage and raping her for 18 years , coombs said . nothing in this guy 's case history indicated he was capable of such evil , if you will , ' he said . it was so far out of the picture , they did n't even look for it . ' rather than there not being enough money to fund the proper supervision of parolees , it 's more a matter of priorities , coombs said , citing the gps device garrido wore on his ankle . although calcasa has no official tally , it estimates california has spent roughly $ 500 million on gps devices for 6,600 of the state 's sex offenders . garrido was fitted with a device after 2006 when voters ok 'd a law requiring felony sex offenders to wear tracking devices for life . we know where this guy is , so we think we 're safe , ' he said , but the place where we knew he was was the place where he was offending . gps just tells you where they are . it does n't tell you what they 're doing . ' each dollar spent on gps equipment is one dollar you 're not spending on real , traditional parole techniques , like talking to collateral contacts and neighbors , ' he said . coombs also criticized the lack of communication across jurisdictions . had garrido 's parole officer received a call from police and spoken to the neighbor who made the 911 call in 2006 , authorities might have found dugard three years earlier , coombs said . hinkle said the officer who flushed out garrido 's alleged crimes had only been supervising him since december . when the officer learned from campus police that garrido had 11- and 15-year-old girls in tow while proselytizing at the university of california-berkeley , he called garrido in for a meeting . garrido arrived with his wife , dugard and the two girls . hinkle would not provide details of the conversation -- it could affect the investigation and prosecution , he said -- but he did say garrido and his wife were not forthcoming about dugard 's and the girls'identities . it was the parole officer 's diligence that ultimately yielded the garridos'arrest and dugard and her daughters'freedom . said hinkle , they were coming in being elusive and deceptive about their identities , and the agent would not let go . ' cnn 's mallory simon , irving last and kiran chetry contributed to this report . | new : spokesman : deputy did n't call parole officer after 911 calls about garrido |
garrido <tsp> ( cnn ) -- phillip garrido was registered as a sex offender , regularly visited by parole officers and fitted with an ankle bracelet to track his movements -- but nothing prevented him from being around children , according to a victims'advocacy group . phillip garrido , a registered sex offender , was arraigned in california on friday . garrido is charged with kidnapping jaycee lee dugard in 1991 , when she was 11 , and raping her over the course of years . police say dugard lived in a huddle of tents and outbuildings hidden behind garrido 's home , and gave birth to two daughters , now 11 and 15 , fathered by garrido . garrido and his wife nancy were arrested last week . both have pleaded not guilty . here we have a guy who is essentially under every kind of supervision we allow . law enforcement had every tool available to them , and [ the tools ] failed , ' said robert coombs , spokesman for the california coalition against sexual assault . gordon hinkle , spokesman for the state department of corrections and rehabilitation , said a parole officer visited garrido at his home , sometimes unannounced , twice a month . garrido was also required to go to the agent 's office once or twice a month , hinkle said . garrido wore a gps anklet , and his movements were tracked passively , hinkle said , meaning parole officers checked his location after the fact , as opposed to active monitoring , which involves watching parolees'comings and goings in real time . despite the tight supervision , garrido was technically allowed to be around minors , ' coombs said , because his parole stemmed from the november 1976 rape of katie callaway hall , who was 25 at the time of the assault . he was sentenced in 1977 to 50 years at the federal penitentiary in leavenworth , kansas , for kidnapping , because he abducted hall in california and transported her across the state line to reno , nevada , where he raped her in a warehouse , according to court documents . a nevada court separately sentenced him to five years to life for the rape conviction , the reno gazette-journal reported . while in prison in 1978 , garrido sent a handwritten letter to judge bruce r. thompson , saying he was recovering from seven years of lsd use and progressing well . i am so ashamed of my past . but my future is now in controle [ sic ] , ' he wrote . court documents show garrido requested that his 50-year sentence be reduced to 25 , making him eligible for parole in eight years , where he could be released to the state of nevada as an educated person and being a rehabilitated person . ' according to a 1978 court transcript , attorney willard van hazel jr. told a judge , without the influence of any of this drug involvement , i think mr. garrido would pause before carrying out sexual fantasies . ' after more than a decade at leavenworth , garrido received a federal parole but was sent to carson city , nevada , in january 1988 to serve his rape sentence . however , according to the reno gazette-journal , he was automatically eligible for state parole because of the time served in federal prison . the nevada offender tracking information system indicates he appeared four times before the parole board , which granted his request in august 1988 , about 11 years after he was incarcerated . he moved to antioch , california . three years later , 11-year-old dugard was abducted from her home in south lake tahoe , california , about 100 miles northeast . he served about 20 percent of his sentence , and it does n't take a mathematician to figure out if he served only one-third of his sentence , jaycee dugard does n't end up in the predicament that she 's in , ' said andy kahan , a crime victims'advocate in houston , texas . citing revised federal sentencing guidelines , kahan and illinois defense attorney stephen komie concur that this is not something that could happen today . if he got 50 years , say , he would have 600 months . he would only get 50 months off . he would do 550 months , ' komie said . so this would not be repeated in the federal system again . ' added kahan , you 're going to have to do at least a minimum of half of your term without any good time credits before you can even see the light of day or say hello to a parole board member . ' in 1993 , five years after his release from a nevada prison , garrido was jailed on a parole violation , but it 's unclear what that offense was . tom hutchinson , spokesman for the u.s. parole commission , said documents have been requested and should be available later this week . garrido was released later that year . california took over his parole supervision in 1999 , hinkle said , but regular visits did nothing to unearth dugard 's abduction or garrido 's backyard secrets . another visit by law enforcement was the direct result of a 2006 call a neighbor made to 911 , reporting that women and children were living in tents behind garrido 's house . contra costa county sheriff warren e. rupf said he did n't think the deputy who responded knew at the time that garrido was a sex offender and the deputy spoke to garrido in the home 's front yard . we should have been more inquisitive , more curious and turned over a rock or two , ' the sheriff said . we missed an opportunity to bring earlier closure to this situation . ' hinkle acknowledged that neighbors called police again with a similar complaint in 2008 . to his knowledge , hinkle said , the deputy did n't contact garrido 's parole officer in either instance . even if the deputy had made contact , there is no guarantee the parole officer would have found the compound . it was that well-hidden , hinkle said . if you were to walk in the backyard , you would see a fence that ran from one end to the other , ' hinkle said , describing how the fence created the illusion of a false backyard . ' it would not be immediately apparent that [ the tents and outbuildings were ] back there , ' he said . kahan partially blames the economics of the criminal justice system -- not just in california , but nationwide -- and said garrido likely became less of a priority as the time since his crimes passed . despite the heinous nature of garrido 's 1976 crime , it paled in comparison to allegedly holding a young girl hostage and raping her for 18 years , coombs said . nothing in this guy 's case history indicated he was capable of such evil , if you will , ' he said . it was so far out of the picture , they did n't even look for it . ' rather than there not being enough money to fund the proper supervision of parolees , it 's more a matter of priorities , coombs said , citing the gps device garrido wore on his ankle . although calcasa has no official tally , it estimates california has spent roughly $ 500 million on gps devices for 6,600 of the state 's sex offenders . garrido was fitted with a device after 2006 when voters ok 'd a law requiring felony sex offenders to wear tracking devices for life . we know where this guy is , so we think we 're safe , ' he said , but the place where we knew he was was the place where he was offending . gps just tells you where they are . it does n't tell you what they 're doing . ' each dollar spent on gps equipment is one dollar you 're not spending on real , traditional parole techniques , like talking to collateral contacts and neighbors , ' he said . coombs also criticized the lack of communication across jurisdictions . had garrido 's parole officer received a call from police and spoken to the neighbor who made the 911 call in 2006 , authorities might have found dugard three years earlier , coombs said . hinkle said the officer who flushed out garrido 's alleged crimes had only been supervising him since december . when the officer learned from campus police that garrido had 11- and 15-year-old girls in tow while proselytizing at the university of california-berkeley , he called garrido in for a meeting . garrido arrived with his wife , dugard and the two girls . hinkle would not provide details of the conversation -- it could affect the investigation and prosecution , he said -- but he did say garrido and his wife were not forthcoming about dugard 's and the girls'identities . it was the parole officer 's diligence that ultimately yielded the garridos'arrest and dugard and her daughters'freedom . said hinkle , they were coming in being elusive and deceptive about their identities , and the agent would not let go . ' cnn 's mallory simon , irving last and kiran chetry contributed to this report . | garrido was released from prison early after saying he had drug use under control |
russian <tsp> ( cnn ) -- russia still has about 1,000 troops inside eastern ukraine , a nato military officer said thursday , a week after ukraine 's government and pro-russian rebels agreed to a ceasefire aimed at ending months of conflict . nato also sees 20,000 more russian troops aligned along the border , the nato officer told cnn . he was not named according to standard practice in the organization . nato believes that these numbers amount to a large and effective military force , the officer said . in addition to the troop numbers , nato continues to see sophisticated russian military equipment in ukraine . nato remains concerned and urges russia to engage with the international community and ukraine to find a political solution to the crisis , the officer said . moscow has consistently denied allegations by kiev and the west that russia has troops in ukraine , and that it has armed and supported the rebels . on wednesday , ukrainian president petro poroshenko said some 70 % of the russian troops believed to have been in ukraine had withdrawn back across the border , according to the national news agency ukrinform . information released by ukraine 's national security and defense council on thursday indicated that the rebel forces control a strip of eastern ukraine running from the city of luhansk down to the sea of azov .'very fragile'ceasefire the truce was signed friday after talks in minsk , belarus , between representatives of ukraine , the rebels and russia . but more substantive talks on issues , including the decentralization of power and constitutional reform in ukraine , must still take place before a lasting resolution can be found . russian foreign ministry spokesman aleksandr lukashevich told a briefing thursday that the ceasefire was very fragile ' and that both sides must implement the framework agreed to in minsk . there is mounting evidence of the kiev government strengthening its military groups in different areas , regions ; there are eyewitness reports to prove it , ' he said , though ukrainian authorities keep on reassuring us that they 're not planning a military operation . ' lukashevich said russia was also surprised by nato 's announcement of plans to hold joint military exercises with kiev in ukraine later this year . this might cause the escalation ( of the situation ) and put the progress in peaceful settlement of the crisis in ukraine under threat , ' he warned . new sanctions a new round of european union sanctions against russia over its actions in ukraine will come into force friday , european council president herman van rompuy said thursday . eu officials will review the implementation of the ceasefire before the end of the month , he said , after which the sanctions could be amended or lifted . the sanctions include tougher restrictions on russia 's access to eu capital markets ; a ban on loans by eu companies or individuals to five major russian state-owned banks ; a ban on debt financing to three major russian defense companies and three major energy companies ; and an asset freeze and travel ban against 24 more individuals . this means 119 people in total are now subject to sanctions , while 23 entities remain under an asset freeze in the european union . russia has warned it will respond to any additional measures . in his remarks , lukashevich said the deadly crash in july of malaysia airlines flight 17 -- which kiev and the west believe was shot down from rebel-held territory using a russian-made missile launcher -- was being used to justify the imposition of broad western sanctions against russia . a preliminary report into the crash released this week by dutch investigators did not apportion blame for the crash but said the plane was brought down by high-energy objects ' from outside . the united states will join the european union in implementing additional sanctions against russia over its illegal actions in ukraine , ' president obama said thursday . we will deepen and broaden sanctions in russia 's financial , energy , and defense sectors , ' he said . the administration will outline the specifics of the sanctions friday . we are implementing these new measures in light of russia 's actions to further destabilize ukraine over the last month , including through the presence of heavily armed russian forces in eastern ukraine . we are watching closely developments since the announcement of the ceasefire and agreement in minsk , but we have yet to see conclusive evidence that russia has ceased its efforts to destabilize ukraine , ' obama said . aid convoy lukashevich also said there had not yet been a breakthrough ' allowing a new russian aid convoy to start moving into ukraine in the next few days . we hope that the delivery will be carried out with participation of ukraine 's border guards and customs officers as well as officials from the international committee of the red cross , ' he said . we hope , however , that the coordination would not be dragged out . ' a previous convoy carrying aid for civilians caught up in the fighting in the donetsk and luhansk regions was sent over the border by russia without permission from ukrainian authorities . the presidents of russia and ukraine are broadly satisfied ' with the status of the ceasefire , kremlin foreign policy adviser yuri ushakov told russia 's interfax news agency on wednesday . cnn 's andrew carey in kiev and alla eshchenko in moscow contributed to this report . cnn 's james frater also contributed . | ceasefire in eastern ukraine is very fragile , ' russian foreign ministry spokesman says |
dam <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the director of iraq 's largest hydroelectric dam shot down reports monday that it had been seized by the radical islamic state , saying kurdish forces fended off an assault . fighters with the islamic state , formerly the islamic state in iraq and syria , or isis , were pushed back after gaining access to a housing compound for employees who work at the dam just north of iraq 's second largest city , mosul , abdul khaliq al-dabbagh , the director of the mosul dam , said . conflicting reports about who was in control of the dam on the tigris river began sunday amid news of fierce fighting between islamic state fighters and kurdish forces , known as peshmerga . a kurdish commander told cnn on sunday that isis had taken control of it , though employees remained at the dam . but al-dabbagh said the peshmerga held their positions until reinforcements arrived early monday morning . isis -- known for killing dozens of people at a time and carrying out public executions , crucifixions and other acts -- has taken over large swaths of northern and western iraq as it seeks to create an islamic state that stretches from syria into iraq . the united nations in iraq warned that 200,000 civilians were trapped in dire circumstances after the islamic state and associated armed groups seized control of nearly all of sinjar and tal afar districts ' in the northern ninevah province , including several small oil fields that border iraq 's kurdish region . most of the people who fled districts are minority kurdish yezidis , an ancient religious sect with ties to islam , christianity and judaism . a large number have taken refuge in the jabal sinjar mountains , the united nations said . kurdish fighters battled isis in an attempt top retake sinjar -- a small town inhabited by the yezidi sect -- on monday and have been engaged in house-to-house battles in some of the fiercest fighting since the fall of mosul to the islamic militant group in june , a kurdish commander said . both sides are using heavy weaponry , the source said . fighting has also been reported in the border town of rabia , with syria-based kurds joining the battle against islamic state militants . meanwhile , the head of the kurdistan regional government , massoud barzani , told a group of yezidi sect leaders that his government would liberate sinjar , according to a report on the government 's website . barzani said the kurds had been fighting without any help from the iraqi government or the international community . the state department said sunday that it was actively monitoring the situation ' in sinjar and tal afar , and said that the united states is supporting both iraqi security forces and peshmerga forces in the fight against the islamic state . the assault over the past 48 hours on territories along the border of the iraqi kurdistan region and focusing on towns and villages populated by vulnerable minorities , demonstrates once again that this terrorist organization is a dire threat to all iraqis , the entire region and the international community , ' state department spokeswoman jen psaki said in a statement . islamic state takes control of iraq 's largest dam u.s. agrees to send 5,000 more hellfire missiles to iraq | new : dam is in the hands of kurdish forces , not the islamic state , an official says |
sinjar <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the director of iraq 's largest hydroelectric dam shot down reports monday that it had been seized by the radical islamic state , saying kurdish forces fended off an assault . fighters with the islamic state , formerly the islamic state in iraq and syria , or isis , were pushed back after gaining access to a housing compound for employees who work at the dam just north of iraq 's second largest city , mosul , abdul khaliq al-dabbagh , the director of the mosul dam , said . conflicting reports about who was in control of the dam on the tigris river began sunday amid news of fierce fighting between islamic state fighters and kurdish forces , known as peshmerga . a kurdish commander told cnn on sunday that isis had taken control of it , though employees remained at the dam . but al-dabbagh said the peshmerga held their positions until reinforcements arrived early monday morning . isis -- known for killing dozens of people at a time and carrying out public executions , crucifixions and other acts -- has taken over large swaths of northern and western iraq as it seeks to create an islamic state that stretches from syria into iraq . the united nations in iraq warned that 200,000 civilians were trapped in dire circumstances after the islamic state and associated armed groups seized control of nearly all of sinjar and tal afar districts ' in the northern ninevah province , including several small oil fields that border iraq 's kurdish region . most of the people who fled districts are minority kurdish yezidis , an ancient religious sect with ties to islam , christianity and judaism . a large number have taken refuge in the jabal sinjar mountains , the united nations said . kurdish fighters battled isis in an attempt top retake sinjar -- a small town inhabited by the yezidi sect -- on monday and have been engaged in house-to-house battles in some of the fiercest fighting since the fall of mosul to the islamic militant group in june , a kurdish commander said . both sides are using heavy weaponry , the source said . fighting has also been reported in the border town of rabia , with syria-based kurds joining the battle against islamic state militants . meanwhile , the head of the kurdistan regional government , massoud barzani , told a group of yezidi sect leaders that his government would liberate sinjar , according to a report on the government 's website . barzani said the kurds had been fighting without any help from the iraqi government or the international community . the state department said sunday that it was actively monitoring the situation ' in sinjar and tal afar , and said that the united states is supporting both iraqi security forces and peshmerga forces in the fight against the islamic state . the assault over the past 48 hours on territories along the border of the iraqi kurdistan region and focusing on towns and villages populated by vulnerable minorities , demonstrates once again that this terrorist organization is a dire threat to all iraqis , the entire region and the international community , ' state department spokeswoman jen psaki said in a statement . islamic state takes control of iraq 's largest dam u.s. agrees to send 5,000 more hellfire missiles to iraq | there has been fierce fighting in the iraqi town of sinjar , close to syria , a source says |
sinjar <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the director of iraq 's largest hydroelectric dam shot down reports monday that it had been seized by the radical islamic state , saying kurdish forces fended off an assault . fighters with the islamic state , formerly the islamic state in iraq and syria , or isis , were pushed back after gaining access to a housing compound for employees who work at the dam just north of iraq 's second largest city , mosul , abdul khaliq al-dabbagh , the director of the mosul dam , said . conflicting reports about who was in control of the dam on the tigris river began sunday amid news of fierce fighting between islamic state fighters and kurdish forces , known as peshmerga . a kurdish commander told cnn on sunday that isis had taken control of it , though employees remained at the dam . but al-dabbagh said the peshmerga held their positions until reinforcements arrived early monday morning . isis -- known for killing dozens of people at a time and carrying out public executions , crucifixions and other acts -- has taken over large swaths of northern and western iraq as it seeks to create an islamic state that stretches from syria into iraq . the united nations in iraq warned that 200,000 civilians were trapped in dire circumstances after the islamic state and associated armed groups seized control of nearly all of sinjar and tal afar districts ' in the northern ninevah province , including several small oil fields that border iraq 's kurdish region . most of the people who fled districts are minority kurdish yezidis , an ancient religious sect with ties to islam , christianity and judaism . a large number have taken refuge in the jabal sinjar mountains , the united nations said . kurdish fighters battled isis in an attempt top retake sinjar -- a small town inhabited by the yezidi sect -- on monday and have been engaged in house-to-house battles in some of the fiercest fighting since the fall of mosul to the islamic militant group in june , a kurdish commander said . both sides are using heavy weaponry , the source said . fighting has also been reported in the border town of rabia , with syria-based kurds joining the battle against islamic state militants . meanwhile , the head of the kurdistan regional government , massoud barzani , told a group of yezidi sect leaders that his government would liberate sinjar , according to a report on the government 's website . barzani said the kurds had been fighting without any help from the iraqi government or the international community . the state department said sunday that it was actively monitoring the situation ' in sinjar and tal afar , and said that the united states is supporting both iraqi security forces and peshmerga forces in the fight against the islamic state . the assault over the past 48 hours on territories along the border of the iraqi kurdistan region and focusing on towns and villages populated by vulnerable minorities , demonstrates once again that this terrorist organization is a dire threat to all iraqis , the entire region and the international community , ' state department spokeswoman jen psaki said in a statement . islamic state takes control of iraq 's largest dam u.s. agrees to send 5,000 more hellfire missiles to iraq | sinjar fell to isis fighters over weekend , police say |
carrera <tsp> ( cnn ) -- police are looking for the husband of a bride who was found stabbed to death in her bathtub on sunday . she was still in the sequined cocktail dress she wore to her wedding reception , police said . authorities in the chicago suburb of burbank , illinois , are looking for arnoldo jimenez , 30 , on a first-degree murder warrant in the death of estrella carrera , 26 . jimenez is still at large , police said . jimenez and carrera were married on friday at city hall in chicago , according to authorities . carrera 's cousin , sandy lopez , told cnn affiliate wbbm the couple had been together for three years . they celebrated their union with family and friends with dinner and a limo ride to at least one nightclub , according to police . the newlyweds were dropped off around 4 a.m. on saturday , and proceeded home , police said . she was happy . she was fine . did nothing out of the ordinary at all , ' lopez told wbbm . on saturday relatives called police to say carrera had failed to pick up her children , ages 2 and 8 , police said monday . police later found carrera , wearing the same dress she wore at her reception , dead in the bathtub of her home . there were no signs of forced entry , police said . ( i ) t is important to know that this appears to be an isolated incident stemming from a domestic situation and the investigation is continuing , ' police said monday , before obtaining the warrant . lopez told wbbm she had no idea why somebody would do this to her . ' jimenez was last seen driving a black 2006 maserati . burbank police , in conjunction with the south suburban major crimes task force , continue to investigate the case . the police department did not immediately return a telephone call tuesday seeking comment . | carrera was found stabbed to death wearing formal dress |
carrera <tsp> ( cnn ) -- police are looking for the husband of a bride who was found stabbed to death in her bathtub on sunday . she was still in the sequined cocktail dress she wore to her wedding reception , police said . authorities in the chicago suburb of burbank , illinois , are looking for arnoldo jimenez , 30 , on a first-degree murder warrant in the death of estrella carrera , 26 . jimenez is still at large , police said . jimenez and carrera were married on friday at city hall in chicago , according to authorities . carrera 's cousin , sandy lopez , told cnn affiliate wbbm the couple had been together for three years . they celebrated their union with family and friends with dinner and a limo ride to at least one nightclub , according to police . the newlyweds were dropped off around 4 a.m. on saturday , and proceeded home , police said . she was happy . she was fine . did nothing out of the ordinary at all , ' lopez told wbbm . on saturday relatives called police to say carrera had failed to pick up her children , ages 2 and 8 , police said monday . police later found carrera , wearing the same dress she wore at her reception , dead in the bathtub of her home . there were no signs of forced entry , police said . ( i ) t is important to know that this appears to be an isolated incident stemming from a domestic situation and the investigation is continuing , ' police said monday , before obtaining the warrant . lopez told wbbm she had no idea why somebody would do this to her . ' jimenez was last seen driving a black 2006 maserati . burbank police , in conjunction with the south suburban major crimes task force , continue to investigate the case . the police department did not immediately return a telephone call tuesday seeking comment . | jimenez and carrera were last seen after their wedding reception |
huma abedin <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | he says bachmann witch hunt indicts hillary clinton 's longtime adviser huma abedin |
tarin <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | tarin : but michele bachmann , four others take conspiracy theory to an extreme |
tarin <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | haris tarin : american muslims in public life face constant scrutiny over loyalty |
tarin <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | tarin hopes this is a tipping point , when politicians stop tolerating this bigotry |
bachmann <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | tarin : but michele bachmann , four others take conspiracy theory to an extreme |
bachmann <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | he says bachmann witch hunt indicts hillary clinton 's longtime adviser huma abedin |
american <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is difficult being an american muslim engaged in civic activities , let alone working in government or politics . we muslims must always second-guess what we say , guard against people questioning our loyalty and make sure that nobody thinks we are trying to infiltrate the government to sabotage it from within and hand it over to the muslim brotherhood . most americans would dismiss these accusations , especially the last one , as outrageous conspiracy theories written by loonies on their blogs . yet american muslim public servants are facing these charges from sitting members of congress . the sad reality is that it has been happening for a decade , and has been met with complete indifference from the media and the public . recently , rep. michele bachmann , briefly the front-runner for gop presidential candidate , sent letters to the state department , department of justice and the department of homeland security asking them to investigate american muslim organizations , individuals and government employees to determine if they are infiltrating the government and sabotaging it from within . this week , newt gringrich wrote an op-ed defending bachmann 's request . bachmann and her friends -- republican representatives trent franks of arizona , louie gohmert of texas , tom rooney of florida and lynn westmoreland of georgia -- pulled out all the stops . they not only hurled these outrageous claims at our organization , the muslim public affairs council , and others like ours , but also accuse secretary of state hillary clinton 's deputy chief-of-staff of being part of the conspiracy . huma abedin , married to former new york rep. anthony weiner , has served clinton since she was the first lady . the slurs against her are beyond malicious . they accuse abedin 's late father and her family of being a part of an international conspiracy seeking to sabotage the united states . this latest witch hunt comes as no surprise to those of us in public life . this is a natural next step for hate mongers . first , people who do not have mainstream political backing start the rumors . next , if we take a page from sen. joseph mccarthy 's 1950s playbook , the rumors become accusations leveled by the most politically privileged . it 's simple -- the more accusations thrown at american muslims trying to serve their country , the harder it is for them to be hired and the more politicians shy away from engaging them . for years , we have watched presidential candidates talking about their discomfort with appointing muslims to senior positions in government . we have seen them sparring over our ethics and principles . legislation against sharia law has been introduced in 20 states , frightening residents into thinking sharia is an imminent threat . president obama still faces vicious and pointed accusations of being a muslim , as though it were a slur . these attacks are real and hurt people 's lives . public servants have been forced out of jobs , with suspicion shadowing them . very few public officials have had the courage to publicly condemn the escalating witch hunt . will this latest absurdity finally force our politicians and policy-makers to not only defend someone like huma abedin , whose public service needs no defense , but also all american muslims who serve this country every day ? a few republicans have rallied to abedin 's side . this week , ed rollins , bachmann 's former campaign chief , denounced her in an op-ed on fox news . speaker of the house john boehner defended abedin 's character . arizona republican sen. john mccain felt compelled to stand on the floor of the senate and denounce the accusations . ultimately , what is at stake in this matter is larger even than the reputation of one person . this is about who we are as a nation , and who we aspire to be , ' he said . the question is whether this incident will serve as a tipping point . will our political and religious leaders and the media push back against islamophobes whose clear agenda is to marginalize american muslims ? will this wave of mccarthyism be exposed , condemned and made politically unacceptable ? will american muslim public servants be able to serve their country without suspicion ? every year , my organization brings 25 young american muslim leaders to washington to help them better understand policy making . the majority are inspired to develop careers in government and public service . yet every year i ask myself : are these individuals better off in banking , medicine and less high-profile careers ? am i exposing them to a career that will be tarnished by the likes of michele bachmann ? in the end , i still believe that the sacrifice to serve this nation and make america a better place is worth the headache , and heartache , of dealing with bigots -- including those in congress . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of haris tarin . | haris tarin : american muslims in public life face constant scrutiny over loyalty |
benfica <tsp> ( cnn ) -- english premier league club liverpool have rejected chelsea 's bid for fernando torres and insisted the spain striker is not for sale . the merseyside club confirmed on their website that a bid had been received -- reported in british newspaper the daily telegraph to be around $ 63 million -- but that it was dismissed out of hand . the 26-year-old striker , who was part of spain 's world cup winning squad in south africa , has scored nine goals this season , including two when the reds beat reigning premier league champions chelsea back in november . he has found the net three times since club legend kenny dalglish took over the managerial reins from roy hodgson , and the scot is said to be insistent that his prize asset is not allowed to leave . liverpool agree fee with ajax for luis suarez a statement on the club 's official website read : liverpool football club have insisted fernando torres is not for sale despite the emergence of a bid from chelsea . when presented with the story by the media on thursday night , a lfc spokesman dismissed any notion that the spain international was for sale . chelsea have made a bid for fernando which has been turned down , ' the spokesman said . the player is not for sale . ' chelsea have also failed in their bid to sign brazilian defender david luiz from portuguese club benfica . a statement on the benfica website read : negotiations between benfica and chelsea over the possible transfer of david luiz reached a conclusion today without the parties having reached an agreement . contrary to reports in recent days , david luiz never tried to force his way out of the club and is a model professional . ' the news comes just days after spanish club atletico madrid reported they had turned down chelsea 's $ 82 million bid for argentina striker sergio aguero and 24-year-old defender diego godin , from uruguay . at a press conference on friday , chelsea 's italian manager carlo ancelotti refused to talk about transfers . he told reporters : i always speak just about my players and torres is not my player . i have to respect liverpool . it is the same with david luiz . i know very well what my club is doing now but i do n't want to speak about it . the club is trying to do everything to improve the squad . ' | new : chelsea 's move for benfica defender david luiz has fallen through |
chelsea <tsp> ( cnn ) -- english premier league club liverpool have rejected chelsea 's bid for fernando torres and insisted the spain striker is not for sale . the merseyside club confirmed on their website that a bid had been received -- reported in british newspaper the daily telegraph to be around $ 63 million -- but that it was dismissed out of hand . the 26-year-old striker , who was part of spain 's world cup winning squad in south africa , has scored nine goals this season , including two when the reds beat reigning premier league champions chelsea back in november . he has found the net three times since club legend kenny dalglish took over the managerial reins from roy hodgson , and the scot is said to be insistent that his prize asset is not allowed to leave . liverpool agree fee with ajax for luis suarez a statement on the club 's official website read : liverpool football club have insisted fernando torres is not for sale despite the emergence of a bid from chelsea . when presented with the story by the media on thursday night , a lfc spokesman dismissed any notion that the spain international was for sale . chelsea have made a bid for fernando which has been turned down , ' the spokesman said . the player is not for sale . ' chelsea have also failed in their bid to sign brazilian defender david luiz from portuguese club benfica . a statement on the benfica website read : negotiations between benfica and chelsea over the possible transfer of david luiz reached a conclusion today without the parties having reached an agreement . contrary to reports in recent days , david luiz never tried to force his way out of the club and is a model professional . ' the news comes just days after spanish club atletico madrid reported they had turned down chelsea 's $ 82 million bid for argentina striker sergio aguero and 24-year-old defender diego godin , from uruguay . at a press conference on friday , chelsea 's italian manager carlo ancelotti refused to talk about transfers . he told reporters : i always speak just about my players and torres is not my player . i have to respect liverpool . it is the same with david luiz . i know very well what my club is doing now but i do n't want to speak about it . the club is trying to do everything to improve the squad . ' | new : chelsea 's move for benfica defender david luiz has fallen through |
chelsea <tsp> ( cnn ) -- english premier league club liverpool have rejected chelsea 's bid for fernando torres and insisted the spain striker is not for sale . the merseyside club confirmed on their website that a bid had been received -- reported in british newspaper the daily telegraph to be around $ 63 million -- but that it was dismissed out of hand . the 26-year-old striker , who was part of spain 's world cup winning squad in south africa , has scored nine goals this season , including two when the reds beat reigning premier league champions chelsea back in november . he has found the net three times since club legend kenny dalglish took over the managerial reins from roy hodgson , and the scot is said to be insistent that his prize asset is not allowed to leave . liverpool agree fee with ajax for luis suarez a statement on the club 's official website read : liverpool football club have insisted fernando torres is not for sale despite the emergence of a bid from chelsea . when presented with the story by the media on thursday night , a lfc spokesman dismissed any notion that the spain international was for sale . chelsea have made a bid for fernando which has been turned down , ' the spokesman said . the player is not for sale . ' chelsea have also failed in their bid to sign brazilian defender david luiz from portuguese club benfica . a statement on the benfica website read : negotiations between benfica and chelsea over the possible transfer of david luiz reached a conclusion today without the parties having reached an agreement . contrary to reports in recent days , david luiz never tried to force his way out of the club and is a model professional . ' the news comes just days after spanish club atletico madrid reported they had turned down chelsea 's $ 82 million bid for argentina striker sergio aguero and 24-year-old defender diego godin , from uruguay . at a press conference on friday , chelsea 's italian manager carlo ancelotti refused to talk about transfers . he told reporters : i always speak just about my players and torres is not my player . i have to respect liverpool . it is the same with david luiz . i know very well what my club is doing now but i do n't want to speak about it . the club is trying to do everything to improve the squad . ' | liverpool turn down an offer from english champions chelsea for fernando torres |
java sea <tsp> ( cnn ) divers searching in the depths of the java sea for wreckage from airasia flight qz8501 say big waves on the surface are n't the only difficulty they 're facing . they also ca n't see in front of them down on the sea floor . the diving teams who made their way to the bottom of the sea sunday encountered muddy waters with zero visibility , according to officials . the indonesian navy has sent special equipment to try to tackle the muddy conditions , indonesian military chief gen. moeldoko said monday . u.s. navy divers assisting in the search have already been using side-scan sonar gear , which is designed to map the sea floor and capture accurate images for analysis . when they find submerged wreckage , divers could also face challenges like jagged edges , torn fuselage , things hanging all over the place , ' said geno gargiulo , an experienced commercial diver in the united states . it 's going to be dark inside -- a lot of things for a diver to get snagged on , for its umbilical to get caught up on , to get disoriented , ' said gargiulo , who says he 's helped in the aftermath of recent catastrophes , including the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in japan . highlighting the complexity of the challenge , moeldoko said monday that one large piece of wreckage initially believed to be part of the aircraft turned out to actually be from a ship . objects obscured by waves the ships and aircraft looking for remains from flight qz8501 have so far detected several large pieces of wreckage believed to be from the commercial jet , according to indonesian officials . but they still have n't located the main body of the plane and the all-important flight recorders . some of the bodies found over the weekend were still wearing seat-belts , search officials said . the bad weather conditions brought about by indonesia 's monsoon -- including strong winds , thick clouds , heavy rain and big waves -- have hindered the teams'efforts during nine days of searching . • hayati lutfiah hamid • grayson herbert linaksita • kevin alexander soetjipto • the meiji thejakusuma • hendra gunawan syawal • khairunisa haidar fauzi • jie stevie gunawan • juanita limantara • wismoyo ari prambudi • tony linaksita • shiane josal • lim yan koen • yongki jou • indra yulianto • hindarto halim • jou brian youvito ' as soon as you see something in the distance , it disappears behind a wave -- and then it 's very difficult to try and spot it again , ' said cnn 's paula hancocks , who spent 15 hours out on a search vessel sunday . flight qz8501 went down over the java sea on december 28 with 162 people on board . it lost contact with air traffic controllers during a scheduled flight from the indonesian city of surabaya to singapore . the cause of the disaster is still under investigation . how can a modern airliner vanish ? initial compensation offers so far , searchers have recovered 37 bodies and identified 19 of them . families who 'd been holding out hope are coming to terms with a devastating reality . i am very sad , ' the ie hua thejakusuma said monday as she sat near a candlelit altar in front of a pair of coffins -- two of seven of her family members who were aboard the flight . five of them are still missing . even up until now , ' she said , i ca n't accept it . ' details emerged over the weekend of initial compensation packages from airasia to the families of the victims . many family members have been waiting anxiously for news of their loved ones in surabaya , where officials have set up a crisis center to keep them updated as bodies are gradually recovered from the waves and identified on land . several relatives told cnn on sunday that families of those on board the plane were presented with a draft letter from airasia outlining details of preliminary compensation of about $ 24,000 for each family member who was on the plane . while some families signed the letters , others requested revisions to the wording . this compensation money is for any financial hardships ' during this period of the search , and in the letters airasia stressed that it was not a confirmation that the people on the plane were deceased . who was on the plane search area extended taking advantage of better weather , the surface search area was extended to the east , bambang sulistyo , head of the indonesian search and rescue agency , told reporters sunday . the surface search 's extension was based on predictions that the remains of the victims , along with wreckage from the aircraft , have drifted with the current . the priority surface and underwater search areas remained the same , he added . officials on friday had said they were concentrating on a 1,575-square-nautical-mile zone that they believe is the most probable area to find the remains of the aircraft . anguish revisited : relatives of mh370 victims speak suspension of flight route airasia 's indonesian affiliate , which operated flight qz8501 , did n't have a license to fly the surabaya-to-singapore route on the day that the plane disappeared , authorities said . the airline was approved to fly the route four days a week but that did not include sunday , indonesia 's ministry of transport said as it announced a full investigation and suspended airasia indonesia flights between the two cities . airasia indonesia has said it will cooperate fully with the investigation and would not be releasing any statement until the results were known , local media reported . but aviation authorities in singapore said there was no issue on their end . the singapore civil aviation authority said it had given airasia permission to fly the surabaya-to-singapore route daily through march 28 . it added that airasia was operating the flight four days a week , including sundays , but that airlines may adjust their flight frequencies in the course of a season in response to market demand or operational requirements . ' cnn 's gary tuchman , elizabeth joseph , tim schwarz , ben brumfield , andrew stevens , alina machado and euan mckirdy contributed to this report . journalist yosef riadi and translators michelle anugrah , azieza uhnavy and edi pangerapan also contributed . | divers report zero visibility as they search the bottom of the java sea |
haiti <tsp> port-au-prince , haiti ( cnn ) -- former alaska gov . sarah palin was in haiti on sunday , urging the u.s government and other americans to do more to help the earthquake-ravaged country . not to get political , but if some of the politicians would come here and see the conditions perhaps they would see the need for , say , a military airlift to bring the supplies that are so needed here , ' she said . palin spoke at a brief press conference at a warehouse owned by the samaritan 's purse organization north of port-au-prince . ( i ) do n't want americans to forget the need that is here , ' she said . more importantly , for americans and people across the world to know what an individual can do to make a difference , to contribute , to kind of get out of your comfort zone and volunteer to help . ' palin praised samaritan 's purse for doing god 's work . ' samaritan 's purse describes itself on its website as a nondenominational evangelical christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world . ' palin said she would not take questions from reporters . the reason i wo n't be answering questions is because we do n't need to be getting political here today , ' palin said . the former republican vice-presidential nominee thanked her husband and daughter bristol for joining her on the trip and said she hopes bristol could help raise awareness of haiti 's needs among young people . as she was whisked off the makeshift stage to her waiting car , palin answered one question from cnn 's gary tuchman , who asked what was different from what she expected to find in haiti . much harsher than i had expected , the conditions are much rougher , ' palin replied . palin is widely thought to be considering a run for president in 2012 . her visit comes as haiti is fighting a massive cholera outbreak that has killed more than 2,000 people and sickened nearly 100,000 . the country has been struggling to recover from january 's massive earthquake that left more than 220,000 dead . a disputed presidential election has threatened to plunge the country into further chaos . | the visit comes as haiti is fighting a massive cholera outbreak |
gaga <tsp> ( cnn ) -- lady gaga reached an out-of-court settlement with her former assistant who sued for unpaid overtime , according to a court filing . details of the deal were not revealed in a document filed in court last week asking the clerk to close the case . the lawsuit , which sought $ 350,000 in back pay from the singer , had been set for trial in new york starting next week . u.s. district judge paul g. gardephe ruled last month against gaga 's lawyer 's request that the case be dismissed . in her lawsuit , jennifer o'neill says that she worked 24/7 ' as gaga 's personal assistant . o'neill was employed in early 2009 , and again from february 2010 to march 2011 . after she was rehired , she was told her annual salary would be $ 75,000 . every day is a work day for her , so every day is a work day for the rest of us , ' o'neill said , according to court documents . there is no , we 're going to stay in , we 're going to sleep . there is no , let 's put on sweatpants and go out to the movies and be girlfriends . it does n't work like that . ' gaga , whose real name is stefani germanotta , testified that o'neill deserves every one of her $ 75,000 that we agreed to . but she does not deserve a penny more . ' cnn 's carolyn sung , rachel wells and susan candiotti contributed this report . | the former personal assistant sought $ 350,000 in back pay from lady gaga |
gaga <tsp> ( cnn ) -- lady gaga reached an out-of-court settlement with her former assistant who sued for unpaid overtime , according to a court filing . details of the deal were not revealed in a document filed in court last week asking the clerk to close the case . the lawsuit , which sought $ 350,000 in back pay from the singer , had been set for trial in new york starting next week . u.s. district judge paul g. gardephe ruled last month against gaga 's lawyer 's request that the case be dismissed . in her lawsuit , jennifer o'neill says that she worked 24/7 ' as gaga 's personal assistant . o'neill was employed in early 2009 , and again from february 2010 to march 2011 . after she was rehired , she was told her annual salary would be $ 75,000 . every day is a work day for her , so every day is a work day for the rest of us , ' o'neill said , according to court documents . there is no , we 're going to stay in , we 're going to sleep . there is no , let 's put on sweatpants and go out to the movies and be girlfriends . it does n't work like that . ' gaga , whose real name is stefani germanotta , testified that o'neill deserves every one of her $ 75,000 that we agreed to . but she does not deserve a penny more . ' cnn 's carolyn sung , rachel wells and susan candiotti contributed this report . | jennifer o'neill claimed she worked 24/7 ' for gaga |
crystal palace <tsp> ( cnn ) -- jose mourinho 's chelsea had the last laugh on london rival west ham to keep up its relentless pace at the top of the english premier league with a 2-0 boxing day home win . the pre-match build up had centered on mourinho 's remarks after the corresponding fixture last season -- when peeved by the west ham defensive tactics in a 0-0 draw -- he said manager sam allardyce and the team had been playing football from the 19th century ' -- amid other sharp criticism . mourinho backtracked on these remarks and has paid compliment to west ham 's fine form in the current campaign , in fourth place ahead of the latest round of games , but it did not prevent the hammers'official twitter feed from posting a witty rejoinder before the match . it featured a tweet with a sepia-colored picture of a horse and cart , accompanied by the caption : the west ham united team coach ( and horse ) has arrived at @ chelseafc for today 's game # 19thcenturyfootball ' . in truth , once the match got underway there was little the visitors could do to stem the tide of almost constant chelsea attacks , with very little in reply . eden hazard , recovered from the knock he received in the 2-0 win over stoke monday , was a strong influence again for the blues , who went ahead when john terry reacted quickly to a diego costa header from a cesc fabregas 's corner . it was the former england international 's second goal in two games and his team might have been further ahead but for adrian producing a fine save from nemanja matic and top scorer costa shooting over . hazard was nearly on the score sheet early in the second half , but it was the belgian international who turned provider as he played costa through to finish clinically for this 13th of the season just after the hour mark . further goals might have followed with the table toppers in confident mood , although west ham came close to cutting the deficit when substitute morgan amalfitano hit the post with a shot . we played a very good game against a very difficult opponent . when we scored , we had the game always under control , ' mourinho told sky sports . i am really happy . we are doing very well . ' later , defending champions manchester city kept the gap on chelsea to three points with a fine 3-1 win at west bromwich albion , while third-placed manchester united eased past newcastle 3-1 , with wayne rooney scoring twice . southampton won 3-1 at crystal palace to leapfrog west ham into fourth spot , the defeat the last match in charge for home boss neil warnock . he was sacked by the south london club sunday with keith millen coming in as caretaker boss . tottenham hotspur took closer order to the champions league spots with a 2-1 win at bottom club leicester . in the boxing day late game , alexis sanchez saw his penalty saved by rob green then put arsenal ahead in a 2-1 win over qpr at the emirates . the gunners had olivier giroud sent off for a headbutt on nedum onuoha , but added a second through tomas rosicky . a charlie austin penalty reduced the deficit but the 10-man home side hung on as arsenal went sixth . | new : crystal palace sacks boss neil warnock after 3-1 defeat to southampton |
manchester city <tsp> ( cnn ) -- jose mourinho 's chelsea had the last laugh on london rival west ham to keep up its relentless pace at the top of the english premier league with a 2-0 boxing day home win . the pre-match build up had centered on mourinho 's remarks after the corresponding fixture last season -- when peeved by the west ham defensive tactics in a 0-0 draw -- he said manager sam allardyce and the team had been playing football from the 19th century ' -- amid other sharp criticism . mourinho backtracked on these remarks and has paid compliment to west ham 's fine form in the current campaign , in fourth place ahead of the latest round of games , but it did not prevent the hammers'official twitter feed from posting a witty rejoinder before the match . it featured a tweet with a sepia-colored picture of a horse and cart , accompanied by the caption : the west ham united team coach ( and horse ) has arrived at @ chelseafc for today 's game # 19thcenturyfootball ' . in truth , once the match got underway there was little the visitors could do to stem the tide of almost constant chelsea attacks , with very little in reply . eden hazard , recovered from the knock he received in the 2-0 win over stoke monday , was a strong influence again for the blues , who went ahead when john terry reacted quickly to a diego costa header from a cesc fabregas 's corner . it was the former england international 's second goal in two games and his team might have been further ahead but for adrian producing a fine save from nemanja matic and top scorer costa shooting over . hazard was nearly on the score sheet early in the second half , but it was the belgian international who turned provider as he played costa through to finish clinically for this 13th of the season just after the hour mark . further goals might have followed with the table toppers in confident mood , although west ham came close to cutting the deficit when substitute morgan amalfitano hit the post with a shot . we played a very good game against a very difficult opponent . when we scored , we had the game always under control , ' mourinho told sky sports . i am really happy . we are doing very well . ' later , defending champions manchester city kept the gap on chelsea to three points with a fine 3-1 win at west bromwich albion , while third-placed manchester united eased past newcastle 3-1 , with wayne rooney scoring twice . southampton won 3-1 at crystal palace to leapfrog west ham into fourth spot , the defeat the last match in charge for home boss neil warnock . he was sacked by the south london club sunday with keith millen coming in as caretaker boss . tottenham hotspur took closer order to the champions league spots with a 2-1 win at bottom club leicester . in the boxing day late game , alexis sanchez saw his penalty saved by rob green then put arsenal ahead in a 2-1 win over qpr at the emirates . the gunners had olivier giroud sent off for a headbutt on nedum onuoha , but added a second through tomas rosicky . a charlie austin penalty reduced the deficit but the 10-man home side hung on as arsenal went sixth . | champions manchester city keep pace at top with 3-1 win at wba |
baradar <tsp> islamabad , pakistan ( cnn ) -- pakistan has released mullah abdul ghani baradar , one of the founding members of the afghan taliban , foreign ministry spokesman aizaz chaudhry told cnn on saturday . baradar , who had been held in a secret location , used to be the organization 's second-in-command , after mullah mohammed omar himself . afghan president 's office welcomes the release of mullah baradar from jail in pakistan , ' aimal faizi , spokesman for afghan president hamid karzai , said on twitter . pakistani officials this month announced their plans to release baradar in principle . ' baradar was captured in 2010 in karachi , pakistan 's largest city , which is known to be a haven for many militants from across the country and its bordering regions . this is the second peaceful overture by the newly elected pakistani government to neighboring afghanistan . on september 7 , it released seven taliban figures to facilitate the peace process . that release came just two weeks after afghan president hamid karzai visited the capital of islamabad and stressed pakistan 's assistance in a path to peace . karzai has long pushed for baradar 's release ; his government was suspected to be in secret talks with the wanted militant when he was captured . the afghan taliban said this month that it welcomed the pakistani government 's plan to release baradar and that it was assessing the wider situation . pakistan 's move to release seven top commanders at the weekend and plans to release mullah baradar is a positive development . we 'll respond as things shape up over the coming days and weeks , ' spokesman zabiullah muajhid told cnn at the time . a spokeswoman for the u.s. embassy in islamabad , meghan gregonis , had said pakistan and afghanistan should have proper coordination to ensure releases are effected in a responsible manner . ' baradar had been under united nations sanctions since february 2001 , with his assets frozen and travel banned . the u.n. had forbidden selling weapons to him . | mullah abdul ghani baradar was a founding member |
baradar <tsp> islamabad , pakistan ( cnn ) -- pakistan has released mullah abdul ghani baradar , one of the founding members of the afghan taliban , foreign ministry spokesman aizaz chaudhry told cnn on saturday . baradar , who had been held in a secret location , used to be the organization 's second-in-command , after mullah mohammed omar himself . afghan president 's office welcomes the release of mullah baradar from jail in pakistan , ' aimal faizi , spokesman for afghan president hamid karzai , said on twitter . pakistani officials this month announced their plans to release baradar in principle . ' baradar was captured in 2010 in karachi , pakistan 's largest city , which is known to be a haven for many militants from across the country and its bordering regions . this is the second peaceful overture by the newly elected pakistani government to neighboring afghanistan . on september 7 , it released seven taliban figures to facilitate the peace process . that release came just two weeks after afghan president hamid karzai visited the capital of islamabad and stressed pakistan 's assistance in a path to peace . karzai has long pushed for baradar 's release ; his government was suspected to be in secret talks with the wanted militant when he was captured . the afghan taliban said this month that it welcomed the pakistani government 's plan to release baradar and that it was assessing the wider situation . pakistan 's move to release seven top commanders at the weekend and plans to release mullah baradar is a positive development . we 'll respond as things shape up over the coming days and weeks , ' spokesman zabiullah muajhid told cnn at the time . a spokeswoman for the u.s. embassy in islamabad , meghan gregonis , had said pakistan and afghanistan should have proper coordination to ensure releases are effected in a responsible manner . ' baradar had been under united nations sanctions since february 2001 , with his assets frozen and travel banned . the u.n. had forbidden selling weapons to him . | baradar was captured in 2010 in karachi , known to be a haven for militants |
karachi <tsp> islamabad , pakistan ( cnn ) -- pakistan has released mullah abdul ghani baradar , one of the founding members of the afghan taliban , foreign ministry spokesman aizaz chaudhry told cnn on saturday . baradar , who had been held in a secret location , used to be the organization 's second-in-command , after mullah mohammed omar himself . afghan president 's office welcomes the release of mullah baradar from jail in pakistan , ' aimal faizi , spokesman for afghan president hamid karzai , said on twitter . pakistani officials this month announced their plans to release baradar in principle . ' baradar was captured in 2010 in karachi , pakistan 's largest city , which is known to be a haven for many militants from across the country and its bordering regions . this is the second peaceful overture by the newly elected pakistani government to neighboring afghanistan . on september 7 , it released seven taliban figures to facilitate the peace process . that release came just two weeks after afghan president hamid karzai visited the capital of islamabad and stressed pakistan 's assistance in a path to peace . karzai has long pushed for baradar 's release ; his government was suspected to be in secret talks with the wanted militant when he was captured . the afghan taliban said this month that it welcomed the pakistani government 's plan to release baradar and that it was assessing the wider situation . pakistan 's move to release seven top commanders at the weekend and plans to release mullah baradar is a positive development . we 'll respond as things shape up over the coming days and weeks , ' spokesman zabiullah muajhid told cnn at the time . a spokeswoman for the u.s. embassy in islamabad , meghan gregonis , had said pakistan and afghanistan should have proper coordination to ensure releases are effected in a responsible manner . ' baradar had been under united nations sanctions since february 2001 , with his assets frozen and travel banned . the u.n. had forbidden selling weapons to him . | baradar was captured in 2010 in karachi , known to be a haven for militants |
apple <tsp> once was a time when getting money out for the weekend meant going down to the bank branch and joining a long queue . since then atms , credit cards and internet banking have taken the place of the payday press at the grille of a bank teller . with all the facilities of a bank now fitting into a palm-sized smartphone , the drudgery of waiting to deposit or withdraw funds has been consigned to the waste paper basket of history . just a swipe of the finger can now transfer funds between accounts anywhere in the world and even taking a picture can deposit a cheque . increasingly high street branches -- many of them still occupying some of the most imposing buildings in town -- are becoming expensive white elephants for many banking corporations . one bank , however , is repurposing its more than 300 banks to bring people back to the branch ; making its physical space as enticing as the virtual one . the branch model is outdated and not relevant any longer we 're looking to create a different kind of bank one that offers all the products and services of a large bank but delivers them with real community engagement and the service of a great retailer or hospitality company , ' said eve callahan of oregon-based umpqua bank . using what it calls the store concept , umpqua bank aims to create for banking what apple or gap has done for computing and apparel -- that is set up a space where customers , or just the curious , can browse , rest or come in and do some banking . umpqua 's store in san francisco is the latest manifestation of the project . the slick , modern and comfortable space provides information on a touchscreen ( what it calls a catalyst wall ) rather than on the traditional brochures . customers that want a meeting room can use one of umpqua 's at no cost . even if all you want is a cup of coffee and some free wifi , then umpqua 's doors are always open . ultimately , banking is based on trust and umpqua has found its local branches a perfect place to build that relationship . there 's no pressure that you 're not a customer with us . we welcome everyone regardless of whether they have a relationship with us or not , ' said abdul sanger , universal associate , at umpqua bank . the model is now being emulated by large banks such as chase , citibank and barclays , all anxious to rebuild the face-to-face relationships that have been lost in the internet age . how companies come up with a model that captures a truly integrated customer experience , ' said callahan . i think those companies are the organisations that will really win in the future . ' | using what it calls the'store concept', umpqua bank aims to create for banking what apple has done for retail |
russia <tsp> have no fear , vladimir putin is here . that seems to be the message in an epic promo released ahead of the russian president 's annual news conference as the country 's economy plummets . the promotion , released by a state-owned russian channel , has the feel of a movie trailer , showing scenes of tanks , crying children and plenty of putin . he declares in a particularly memorable sound bite : the bear never asks permission . ' that seems to be a problem these days in russia -- it 's a bear , not a bull market . putin who has held power for 15 years , is expected to address the economic problems vexing russia as falling oil prices , a diving ruble and western sanctions have crippled the country 's economy . moscow is trying to prevent a currency crisis turning into an economic catastrophe , and finds itself more isolated than at any other point in the last 25 years -- due to its actions over ukraine . russia 's slide toward economic crisis and why it matters worried that their currency is now worth less , russians have been exchanging rubles for dollars and stocking up on imported goods . and russian banks and companies have lost access to western sources of finance because of sanctions imposed over ukraine , but still have foreign debts to pay . yet in the lead up to putin 's press conference , russia channel 1 's glossy promo does n't touch on any of the financial woes facing the world 's ninth largest economy . the promotion shows scenes of war and triumph at this year 's winter olympics in sochi as the narrator intones in a baritone about a year of tough decisions ' and long-awaited victories . ' how it turned out for russia and its president , he will tell himself . ' a defiant putin proclaims , russia has never changed its orientation . ' putin still enjoys approval ratings in the high 80s . his popularity surged as russia backed separatists in east ukraine and annexed crimea earlier this year . could economic turmoil lead to putin 's downfall ? | putin is expected to address the economic woes hitting russia |
russian <tsp> ( cnn ) -- when maria sharapova underwent shoulder surgery five years ago , many thought her tennis career would n't last . but there is now a good chance the four-time grand slam winner will play into her 30s before fully turning her attention to her numerous business interests . i think she 's going to play another four to five years and through the rio olympics ( in 2016 ) if she stays healthy and hungry , ' her long-time agent and close friend max eisenbud told cnn 's open court . sharapova 's motivation has never been an issue in the past , and the russian -- who turned 26 last week -- is now fully fit . that , however , was n't the case in 2008 , when the shoulder injury ruled her out for nine months and cast doubt on sharapova 's professional career , which began on the day she turned 14 . she had been experiencing discomfort in her right -- and serving -- shoulder , with initial tests leading doctors to believe inflammation was the cause . when the pain intensified after a win at a tournament in montreal in july 2008 , she underwent an mri that revealed two small tears in the tendon of her shoulder . so began the long process of rehabilitation , surgery , another stint of rehab and dealing with another injury , a bone bruise . it was a difficult time for sharapova . the shoulder , it 's a huge part of the tennis game , ' she told open court . the serve is huge and my game is all about being aggressive and powerful strokes , so when you 're out of the game nine months , when you do n't have too many examples of athletes coming back after such an injury , of course you have doubters . ' sharapova never lost faith that she would recover , but she would have to wait another three years before reaching another grand slam final , losing at wimbledon in 2011 . thankfully for sharapova , no such serious injuries have reoccurred , although she was troubled by an ankle problem later that year . i had to work through a lot of things , and more mentally as well because i always thought that during those months that i was away , everyone was working and everyone was training and everyone was playing so it kind of felt like i was left behind a little bit , ' she said . eisenbud 's pronouncement about sharapova 's future comes as a boost to the women 's tennis tour due to sharapova 's enormous star power and fan base , which increased when she won the french open last june to cap her comeback and become just the 10th woman to capture all four majors . forbes lists sharapova was last year named by forbes as the world 's 71st most powerful celebrity . she was the highest-ranked female athlete on the list , ahead of serena williams , despite the american now owning 11 more grand slam titles . sharapova is , according to forbes , the world 's highest-paid female athlete , pulling in almost $ 28 million -- more than her career prize money -- over a 12-month period that ended last july . sponsors including samsung , evian , nike , tiffany & co. , head , cole haan and , most recently , porsche help pad sharapova 's wallet . the florida-based russian has also launched sugarpova , her own premium candy line , in the u.s. and plans on expanding to china , japan , india and england . but sharapova remains adamant that success on the court is her first priority . the rest will follow . do i want my candy to sell ? do i want my partnership to continue for many years ? of course i do , ' sharapova said . that 's a no-brainer . but at the end of the day all the things that have come to me , that i 've been able to be a part of , is because i 'm a tennis player , not because i 'm a model or because of acting . the core of what i have is my tennis . ' her results in 2013 confirm sharapova 's drive . known as one of tennis'toughest competitors and hardest workers , she has showed no signs of slowing down . the power baseliner has reached at least the semifinals in all four of her tournaments and almost completed a rare double at the bnp paribas open in indian wells and miami 's sony open . she won the title in california in march but was defeated by williams in the finale in florida two weeks later . her poor record against williams might add to her hunger . williams beat sharapova for the 11th straight time , although sharapova won a set off the world no . 1 for the first time in five years . missing gold sharapova lacks an olympic gold medal , too , having been crushed by williams in the gold medal match at london 2012 and missing 2008 in beijing with the shoulder injury . i always feel like i can be better and when i do step on the court , i feel a certain power with what i 'm doing , ' sharapova said . i feel strong and i feel like i 'm good at what i do . i want to keep working , and i want to keep getting better because you ca n't stand still . everyone 's working . i 'm sure everyone 's getting stronger and getting faster and hitting the ball harder . you have to do it as well . ' sharapova begins her clay-court swing as defending champion in stuttgart this week before competing at the madrid open and italian open in rome ahead of her title defense at roland garros , which starts may 26 . her titles in stuttgart and rome in 2012 served as the springboard to her success in paris , where sharapova downed italian sara errani in the final . having come back from the abyss that her career-threatening injury presented , sharapova savored the success -- especially after being written off by many critics while she was rebuilding her career , suffering some morale-sapping defeats . losing is never easy , especially when you 've achieved so much great success and having lifted beautiful trophies , ' she said . and especially when you hear it from people that , you know , they sit there and comment on what you 're doing and they do n't comment on the work that you put in before something like that , before getting to the stage of a match in front of thousands of people . but it makes you so much stronger , and i 've looked back and , you know , the people i felt had that connection with me , i 've certainly spoken with them about it and especially had a few words with them after the french open . but it 's sport . it 's normal . i think the world revolves around comments and opinions , and i have absolutely nothing against it . ' | russian says she enjoyed proving her doubters wrong by returning from injury |
turkey <tsp> ( cnn ) -- two of turkey 's main political parties are pushing for a constitutional amendment to lift bans on headscarves at public universities , a move that has caused concern among turkey 's secular population . the lifting of the ban on headscarves has caused concern among turkey 's secular population . prime minister recep tayyip erdogan initiated the move , saying it would create equality in turkey 's higher education . the constitutional commission will discuss the proposal -- submitted by the akp and mhp parties -- in the coming days before sending it to the floor for a vote . if approved , it would need president abdullah gul 's approval , which is expected . under the proposal , veils , burqas or chaddors -- all of which cover a woman 's face -- would not be allowed . bans on headcoverings were imposed in the early 1980s by turkey 's universities because they were seen as political symbols and conflicted with turkey 's secular governing system . the proposal to change turkey 's constitution sent chills through turkey 's secular population . women 's groups went to parliament tuesday to voice their rejection . this is a direct threat to the republic and its foundations , ' said deniz baykal , leader of turkey 's main secular party , chp . another chp lawmaker said she fears that if the proposal is enacted , parents will feel pressure to have their daughters wear headscarves , even in elementary school . mustafa akaydin , head of turkey 's higher education commission , is against the proposal . he said that allowing headscarves would be a rejection of turkey 's secular system of government . it is an attempt to create a counterrevolution , ' akaydin said . it will be a breaking point . ' he said a majority of female high school students at one school were wearing headscarves during last weekend 's entry exams -- a rarity in turkish schools . the higher education commission will meet friday in ankara to discuss the proposed changes . e-mail to a friend | turkey 's ruling party agrees to lift ban on head scarves in universities |
turkey <tsp> ( cnn ) -- two of turkey 's main political parties are pushing for a constitutional amendment to lift bans on headscarves at public universities , a move that has caused concern among turkey 's secular population . the lifting of the ban on headscarves has caused concern among turkey 's secular population . prime minister recep tayyip erdogan initiated the move , saying it would create equality in turkey 's higher education . the constitutional commission will discuss the proposal -- submitted by the akp and mhp parties -- in the coming days before sending it to the floor for a vote . if approved , it would need president abdullah gul 's approval , which is expected . under the proposal , veils , burqas or chaddors -- all of which cover a woman 's face -- would not be allowed . bans on headcoverings were imposed in the early 1980s by turkey 's universities because they were seen as political symbols and conflicted with turkey 's secular governing system . the proposal to change turkey 's constitution sent chills through turkey 's secular population . women 's groups went to parliament tuesday to voice their rejection . this is a direct threat to the republic and its foundations , ' said deniz baykal , leader of turkey 's main secular party , chp . another chp lawmaker said she fears that if the proposal is enacted , parents will feel pressure to have their daughters wear headscarves , even in elementary school . mustafa akaydin , head of turkey 's higher education commission , is against the proposal . he said that allowing headscarves would be a rejection of turkey 's secular system of government . it is an attempt to create a counterrevolution , ' akaydin said . it will be a breaking point . ' he said a majority of female high school students at one school were wearing headscarves during last weekend 's entry exams -- a rarity in turkish schools . the higher education commission will meet friday in ankara to discuss the proposed changes . e-mail to a friend | turkey is a secular nation but its population is mainly muslim |
obama <tsp> critics of president barack obama 's foreign policy are getting louder by the day , and that poses risks for democrats this fall and even in 2016 . according to previews of hillary clinton 's memoirs , hard choices , ' the former secretary of state distances herself from obama on certain decisions , such as on the question of whether to arm syrian rebels . she wanted to be more aggressive ; he did not . democrats have grown more nervous about foreign policy as obama has been working hard to respond to critics who say has n't taken a tough-enough line . the controversy over the deal to secure the release of army sgt . bowe bergdahl in exchange for five taliban prisoners has flared into an extraordinarily heated debate . obama has watched as his approval rating for handling international affairs has fallen to 41 % . last month , obama had to stand by as republicans launched another round of congressional investigations into the deaths of four americans in benghazi , libya . russia 's aggressive moves into the ukraine stirred talk of a new cold war and concern that the president did n't really have a viable response to this kind of aggression . opinion : why we leave no man behind more recently , the controversies shifted to the president 's broader vision or lack thereof . republicans found a lot to dislike in his address at west point , where obama indicated that the nation should step back from using military power as freely as it has done in the past . soon after came the news about the release of bergdahl , in exchange for the release of five notorious taliban prisoners . republicans were quick to accuse the president of negotiating with terrorists . they have also accused him of violating the law by failing to inform congress of the impending deal . even though democrats point to a number of huge accomplishments during the obama presidency -- the killing of osama bin laden , the drawdown of the wars in afghanistan and iraq and diplomatic initiatives to bring nuclear disarmament in iran without bloodshed -- the critics have upped their volume . all of the recent stories add up to the potential for foreign policy to emerge as a potent issue in the midterm campaigns this fall . congressional democrats could suffer as a result of the unhappiness with the administration 's policies . even though midterm elections generally focus on bread and butter questions about the health of the economy , as well as local concerns , there are times when foreign policy can hurt the party of the president . in 1966 , for instance , republicans campaigned against lyndon johnson 's policies in vietnam . gop officials such as former vice president richard nixon said that johnson was not unleashing enough force against the north vietnamese communists and leaving u.s. troops in a quagmire . in 1978 , republicans railed against president jimmy carter for his alleged weakness in foreign policy , claiming that he gave away too much in the panama canal treaties and that he was pursuing a dangerous policy of détente with the soviet union . in 1982 , democrats , who were generally focused on the recession , also spoke in favor of a nuclear freeze and warned that president ronald reagan 's embrace of the military was bringing the nation close to war . more recently , republicans blasted democrats in 2002 for being weak on defense after having not supported the administration 's homeland security bill . and in 2006 , democratic candidates returned the favor by criticizing the president 's war in iraq as a reckless , unnecessary and extremely costly operation that had actually undermined the war on terrorism . gingrich : bergdahl , boko haram and benghazi while foreign policy carried different levels of weight in these midterms , in some of these contests , such as 1966 and 2006 , the administration 's actions overseas dismayed voters . will foreign policy play a factor in the 2014 midterms ? it is unlikely that it will be a major issue but there are ways it could have an indirect effect on the ballot box and cause trouble for democrats when americans turn out to vote . at the most immediate level , the foreign policy controversy has already distracted the news media from other kinds of stories upon which congressional democrats were hoping to focus . the foreign policy controversy intensified just as there was evidence that the economy was picking up steam and that the obama 's health care program was gaining strength . both signs of accomplishment were put on the back burner , overshadowed by the bergdahl debate . the stories also feed the perception of some voters who feel that democrats have not done a good job managing government . this is a white house that once prided itself on competence . obama , a well-educated politician who surrounded himself with bright staff , vowed to avoid the kind of mismanagement that had been on display with hurricane katrina during president george w. bush 's term . but that reputation has slowly been undercut , especially after the botched health care website rollout and the va scandal . opinion : bergdahl deal was an ugly decision but right some of the coverage of the foreign policy , including recent reports on how the deal with the taliban was handled , have played into these kinds of criticism . the new york times published a lengthy piece about the diminishing returns that obama was able to obtain over the past several years in exchange for the release of the taliban 5 and evidence of how his team had mishandled the process . the berghdal deal is also becoming a way to question the veracity of democratic promises . members of congress , in both parties , have alleged that obama violated the law by ignoring a federal statute that says the president must inform congress one month before such a deal is completed . they have said he is acting exactly like bush , whom he had accused of discounting legislative intent through sweeping notions of executive power . the foreign policy debate puts into focus the argument that obama , as well as the party he leads , lacks a bold vision . this is something that has even frustrated many democrats who feel that the president is too much of pragmatist and not enough of a visionary . the speech at west point fell flat for some americans because it almost seemed focus on excusing what he could n't do rather outlining what he wants to do . during his visit to the philippines , the president explained his outlook on foreign policy by saying , you hit singles , you hit doubles ; every once in a while you may be able to hit a home run . ' the debate over foreign policy helps republicans by riling up the party 's base at an opportune time , five months before the election , while at the same time dispiriting the democrats . yes , voters are thinking primarily about how they 're faring in today 's economy , but on the margins , their perception of their local candidate 's views on foreign policy could be a factor in november . opinion : how big a risk are former gitmo prisoners ? | hillary clinton 's book mentions her disagreement with obama on syrian rebels |
obama <tsp> critics of president barack obama 's foreign policy are getting louder by the day , and that poses risks for democrats this fall and even in 2016 . according to previews of hillary clinton 's memoirs , hard choices , ' the former secretary of state distances herself from obama on certain decisions , such as on the question of whether to arm syrian rebels . she wanted to be more aggressive ; he did not . democrats have grown more nervous about foreign policy as obama has been working hard to respond to critics who say has n't taken a tough-enough line . the controversy over the deal to secure the release of army sgt . bowe bergdahl in exchange for five taliban prisoners has flared into an extraordinarily heated debate . obama has watched as his approval rating for handling international affairs has fallen to 41 % . last month , obama had to stand by as republicans launched another round of congressional investigations into the deaths of four americans in benghazi , libya . russia 's aggressive moves into the ukraine stirred talk of a new cold war and concern that the president did n't really have a viable response to this kind of aggression . opinion : why we leave no man behind more recently , the controversies shifted to the president 's broader vision or lack thereof . republicans found a lot to dislike in his address at west point , where obama indicated that the nation should step back from using military power as freely as it has done in the past . soon after came the news about the release of bergdahl , in exchange for the release of five notorious taliban prisoners . republicans were quick to accuse the president of negotiating with terrorists . they have also accused him of violating the law by failing to inform congress of the impending deal . even though democrats point to a number of huge accomplishments during the obama presidency -- the killing of osama bin laden , the drawdown of the wars in afghanistan and iraq and diplomatic initiatives to bring nuclear disarmament in iran without bloodshed -- the critics have upped their volume . all of the recent stories add up to the potential for foreign policy to emerge as a potent issue in the midterm campaigns this fall . congressional democrats could suffer as a result of the unhappiness with the administration 's policies . even though midterm elections generally focus on bread and butter questions about the health of the economy , as well as local concerns , there are times when foreign policy can hurt the party of the president . in 1966 , for instance , republicans campaigned against lyndon johnson 's policies in vietnam . gop officials such as former vice president richard nixon said that johnson was not unleashing enough force against the north vietnamese communists and leaving u.s. troops in a quagmire . in 1978 , republicans railed against president jimmy carter for his alleged weakness in foreign policy , claiming that he gave away too much in the panama canal treaties and that he was pursuing a dangerous policy of détente with the soviet union . in 1982 , democrats , who were generally focused on the recession , also spoke in favor of a nuclear freeze and warned that president ronald reagan 's embrace of the military was bringing the nation close to war . more recently , republicans blasted democrats in 2002 for being weak on defense after having not supported the administration 's homeland security bill . and in 2006 , democratic candidates returned the favor by criticizing the president 's war in iraq as a reckless , unnecessary and extremely costly operation that had actually undermined the war on terrorism . gingrich : bergdahl , boko haram and benghazi while foreign policy carried different levels of weight in these midterms , in some of these contests , such as 1966 and 2006 , the administration 's actions overseas dismayed voters . will foreign policy play a factor in the 2014 midterms ? it is unlikely that it will be a major issue but there are ways it could have an indirect effect on the ballot box and cause trouble for democrats when americans turn out to vote . at the most immediate level , the foreign policy controversy has already distracted the news media from other kinds of stories upon which congressional democrats were hoping to focus . the foreign policy controversy intensified just as there was evidence that the economy was picking up steam and that the obama 's health care program was gaining strength . both signs of accomplishment were put on the back burner , overshadowed by the bergdahl debate . the stories also feed the perception of some voters who feel that democrats have not done a good job managing government . this is a white house that once prided itself on competence . obama , a well-educated politician who surrounded himself with bright staff , vowed to avoid the kind of mismanagement that had been on display with hurricane katrina during president george w. bush 's term . but that reputation has slowly been undercut , especially after the botched health care website rollout and the va scandal . opinion : bergdahl deal was an ugly decision but right some of the coverage of the foreign policy , including recent reports on how the deal with the taliban was handled , have played into these kinds of criticism . the new york times published a lengthy piece about the diminishing returns that obama was able to obtain over the past several years in exchange for the release of the taliban 5 and evidence of how his team had mishandled the process . the berghdal deal is also becoming a way to question the veracity of democratic promises . members of congress , in both parties , have alleged that obama violated the law by ignoring a federal statute that says the president must inform congress one month before such a deal is completed . they have said he is acting exactly like bush , whom he had accused of discounting legislative intent through sweeping notions of executive power . the foreign policy debate puts into focus the argument that obama , as well as the party he leads , lacks a bold vision . this is something that has even frustrated many democrats who feel that the president is too much of pragmatist and not enough of a visionary . the speech at west point fell flat for some americans because it almost seemed focus on excusing what he could n't do rather outlining what he wants to do . during his visit to the philippines , the president explained his outlook on foreign policy by saying , you hit singles , you hit doubles ; every once in a while you may be able to hit a home run . ' the debate over foreign policy helps republicans by riling up the party 's base at an opportune time , five months before the election , while at the same time dispiriting the democrats . yes , voters are thinking primarily about how they 're faring in today 's economy , but on the margins , their perception of their local candidate 's views on foreign policy could be a factor in november . opinion : how big a risk are former gitmo prisoners ? | julian zelizer : criticism of obama foreign policy has been on the increase |
afghan <tsp> ( cnn ) -- british prime minister david cameron arrived saturday in pakistan for talks with president asif ali zardari about building a strong relationship ' between pakistan and afghanistan , the prime minister 's office said . cameron acknowledged difficulties ' and blocks in the road ' to achieving that aim . the uk leader is also to discuss the potential for british business in pakistan 's growing economy . cameron arrived from afghanistan , where he made an unannounced visit saturday and met with uk troops in helmand province . he also spoke with afghan president hamid karzai . while visiting with karzai , cameron said his country has a good relationship with pakistan , ' the uk 's press association news agency reported . speaking in kabul at press conference with karzai , cameron added that it 's in pakistan 's short- , medium- and long-term interest to have a secure , stable and prosperous afghanistan with which they have a good and strong relationship . ' pakistan-afghanistan ties were always difficult , there are always blocks in the road , but i know that the president will see past them , ' cameron said . cameron 's visit in afghanistan coincided with armed forces day , a series of events held across britain on saturday to recognize the contribution of the nation 's servicemen and women , military veterans and their families . speaking after talks with karzai at the presidential palace in kabul , cameron said the two nations had a shared commitment to a strong partnership beyond 2014 , ' the press association reported . but cameron stressed that britain would be withdrawing all combat forces from afghanistan by the end of 2014 , from which point it will offer financial support and run an officer training academy . there are currently 8,000 british servicemen and women serving in afghanistan , alongside 68,000 from the united states , the largest contributor of troops . the nato-led international coalition formally handed over security responsibility to afghan national forces 10 days ago . they faced an early test of their capabilities tuesday when a group of attackers stormed the entrance to the presidential palace in kabul . the taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in which three guards died , according to the government . uk gen. nick carter , deputy commander of the nato-led coalition in afghanistan , told britain 's guardian newspaper saturday that he believes the west should have tried talking to the taliban in 2002 , in the aftermath of the 2001 invasion , to help find a political solution . u.s. secretary of state john kerry has cast doubt in the past week on whether potential u.s. peace talks with the taliban in qatar will happen . the taliban opened a doha office this month with a promise to renounce international terrorism and commit to peace negotiations , conditions the united states had set before it would support establishing the office as part of peace talks . asked about the prospect of such talks , cameron said the political process would only succeed if those who are involved in the taliban put down their arms and stop fighting , ' the press association reported . the coalition 's plan is to withdraw all international combat troops by the end of 2014 but to keep a residual force in the country to help train afghans and carry out counterterrorism operations when needed . the size of that force remains under discussion . cnn 's bharati naik contributed to this report . | he meets with afghan president hamid karzai at the presidential palace in kabul |
turkish <tsp> ( cnn ) -- rauf denktas , the first president of the turkish republic of northern cyprus , died friday in nicosia after a long illness , the self-declared republic 's current leader announced . denktas , 87 , was instrumental in the independence of turkish cyprus , which , outside of turkey , is not recognized internationally . he became its first president in 1983 and was re-elected in 1985 , 1990 , 1995 and 2000 . our sorrow is huge ... and it will be very hard for us , ' said his son , serdar denktas . we will try to overcome this sorrow with respect to his memory and with patience . ... he left us , turkish cypriots , and people of anatolia as orphans , but he met with heroes who made this land a nation . ' turkish troops invaded cyprus in 1974 in response to a coup , engineered by greece . the island remains divided despite years of efforts to resolve the deadlock . the southern part of the island joined the european union on its own after unity efforts failed . u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon expressed his condolences to the family and his supporters . mr. denktas was a long-serving and historic turkish cypriot leader with whom the united nations had a long relationship in the framework of u.n.-facilitated talks for the reunification of cyprus and related to its peacekeeping responsibilities on the island , ' a statement from ban 's spokesperson said . denktas was born in baf , cyprus , in 1924 and was educated in london . the lawyer eventually became active in political affairs . outside of politics , denktas was known for his photography , mostly of nature , and for his writings . | turkish cypriot leader rauf denktas dies after a long illness |
mladic <tsp> ( cnn ) -- ratko mladic , the former bosnian serb army commander who went on trial wednesday for crimes against humanity , is a notorious name synonymous with the dissolution of yugoslavia , the balkan wars of the 1990s and the bloody assaults on sarajevo and srebrenica . during the five-day orgy of slaughter at srebrenica , which mladic is accused of being directly involved in , up to 8,000 muslims were exterminated in what was described by the u.n. war crimes tribunal as the triumph of evil . ' a judge at the hague tribunal described what happened there in july 1995 as truly scenes from hell written on the darkest pages of human history . ' born in kalnovik , bosnia-herzegovina , during the height of world war ii , the 70-year-old was a career soldier who served in yugoslavia 's military before that nation dissolved in the early 1990s . mladic was shaped by the war when his father was killed by croat nazis when he was two years old . in 1965 he graduated from a military academy and joined the communist party in yugoslavia , an ethnic stew of six states -- bosnia , serbia , macedonia , slovenia , croatia , and montenegro . over the following three decades he rose rapidly through the ranks of the yugoslav army . by the time he took bosnia 's battlefields he had become a hero to many serbs , seen as defender of their dwindling fortunes .. in may 1992 , bosnia 's serbian political leaders picked him to head their forces and lead the assault on their enemies . bosnia 's muslim leaders wanted independence while the serbs wanted to remain part of yugoslavia -- and the ethnic majority . mladic wasted no time galvanizing his heavily armed forces to besiege sarajevo , cutting the city off from the outside world by shelling and sniping at its poorly prepared civilian population in the valley below them . more than 10,000 people , most of them civilians , were killed . over the course of the three-year war that raged across the whole country more than a quarter million people died , making the conflict the bloodiest in europe since world war ii . a french policeman who collected evidence from bosnian muslims , jean-rene ruez , told the hague tribunal in 1996 that bosnian serb forces killed and tortured refugees in srebrenica at will . streets were littered with corpses , he said , and rivers were red with blood . many people committed suicide to avoid having their noses , lips and ears chopped off , he said . among other lurid accounts of mass murder , ruez cited cases of adults being forced to kill their children or watching as soldiers ended the young lives . one soldier approached a woman in the middle of a crowd , ' he said . her child was crying . the soldier asked why the child was crying and she explained that he was hungry . the soldier made a comment like ,'he wo n't be hungry anymore .'he slit the child 's throat in front of everybody . ' as the war ended in the fall of 1995 , mladic went on the run . over the years , he eluded authorities while his cohort , karadzic , was apprehended and is facing various charges at the court in the hague . their mentor , former serbian president slobodan milosevic , died in jail in 2006 during his trial at the hague . eventually , more than 16 years later , he was captured an hour 's drive from the serbian capital living on a farm with a cousin . world leaders and human rights groups described the arrest as historic ' and an important step forward . ' key dates in hunt for mladic u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon called it a historic day for international justice . this arrest marks an important step in our collective fight against impunity . ' interpol called mladic europe 's most wanted war crimes suspect ' while amnesty international 's law chief widney brown said at last the people who suffered have hope he will be brought to justice . ' the arrest meant a major hurdle that once stood between serbia and its long-awaited entrance into the european union was overcome , but the trial could also usher in political backlash from the country 's electorate , some of whom consider mladic a hero . speaking to a serbian radical party demonstration outside belgrade 's parliament building immediate after the arrest , darko mladic described his father as a freedom fighter . ' the elder mladic defended his own nation , defended his people , which was his job , ' his son said . robertson : bosnia 's future is tied to justice his family and lawyer have tried to use his poor health to prevent his extradition to the international criminal tribunal on the former yugoslavia in the netherlands , but they failed . in the court room at the hague last year mladic appeared to have lost none of his visceral dislike of his enemies . cnn 's nic robertson said he saw the defendant drawing his finger across his throat , a gesture aimed directly at at some of the srebrenica widows sitting in front of me , whose husbands he is accused of killing . ' | former bosnian serb army commander ratko mladic on trial for crimes against humanity |
mladic <tsp> ( cnn ) -- ratko mladic , the former bosnian serb army commander who went on trial wednesday for crimes against humanity , is a notorious name synonymous with the dissolution of yugoslavia , the balkan wars of the 1990s and the bloody assaults on sarajevo and srebrenica . during the five-day orgy of slaughter at srebrenica , which mladic is accused of being directly involved in , up to 8,000 muslims were exterminated in what was described by the u.n. war crimes tribunal as the triumph of evil . ' a judge at the hague tribunal described what happened there in july 1995 as truly scenes from hell written on the darkest pages of human history . ' born in kalnovik , bosnia-herzegovina , during the height of world war ii , the 70-year-old was a career soldier who served in yugoslavia 's military before that nation dissolved in the early 1990s . mladic was shaped by the war when his father was killed by croat nazis when he was two years old . in 1965 he graduated from a military academy and joined the communist party in yugoslavia , an ethnic stew of six states -- bosnia , serbia , macedonia , slovenia , croatia , and montenegro . over the following three decades he rose rapidly through the ranks of the yugoslav army . by the time he took bosnia 's battlefields he had become a hero to many serbs , seen as defender of their dwindling fortunes .. in may 1992 , bosnia 's serbian political leaders picked him to head their forces and lead the assault on their enemies . bosnia 's muslim leaders wanted independence while the serbs wanted to remain part of yugoslavia -- and the ethnic majority . mladic wasted no time galvanizing his heavily armed forces to besiege sarajevo , cutting the city off from the outside world by shelling and sniping at its poorly prepared civilian population in the valley below them . more than 10,000 people , most of them civilians , were killed . over the course of the three-year war that raged across the whole country more than a quarter million people died , making the conflict the bloodiest in europe since world war ii . a french policeman who collected evidence from bosnian muslims , jean-rene ruez , told the hague tribunal in 1996 that bosnian serb forces killed and tortured refugees in srebrenica at will . streets were littered with corpses , he said , and rivers were red with blood . many people committed suicide to avoid having their noses , lips and ears chopped off , he said . among other lurid accounts of mass murder , ruez cited cases of adults being forced to kill their children or watching as soldiers ended the young lives . one soldier approached a woman in the middle of a crowd , ' he said . her child was crying . the soldier asked why the child was crying and she explained that he was hungry . the soldier made a comment like ,'he wo n't be hungry anymore .'he slit the child 's throat in front of everybody . ' as the war ended in the fall of 1995 , mladic went on the run . over the years , he eluded authorities while his cohort , karadzic , was apprehended and is facing various charges at the court in the hague . their mentor , former serbian president slobodan milosevic , died in jail in 2006 during his trial at the hague . eventually , more than 16 years later , he was captured an hour 's drive from the serbian capital living on a farm with a cousin . world leaders and human rights groups described the arrest as historic ' and an important step forward . ' key dates in hunt for mladic u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon called it a historic day for international justice . this arrest marks an important step in our collective fight against impunity . ' interpol called mladic europe 's most wanted war crimes suspect ' while amnesty international 's law chief widney brown said at last the people who suffered have hope he will be brought to justice . ' the arrest meant a major hurdle that once stood between serbia and its long-awaited entrance into the european union was overcome , but the trial could also usher in political backlash from the country 's electorate , some of whom consider mladic a hero . speaking to a serbian radical party demonstration outside belgrade 's parliament building immediate after the arrest , darko mladic described his father as a freedom fighter . ' the elder mladic defended his own nation , defended his people , which was his job , ' his son said . robertson : bosnia 's future is tied to justice his family and lawyer have tried to use his poor health to prevent his extradition to the international criminal tribunal on the former yugoslavia in the netherlands , but they failed . in the court room at the hague last year mladic appeared to have lost none of his visceral dislike of his enemies . cnn 's nic robertson said he saw the defendant drawing his finger across his throat , a gesture aimed directly at at some of the srebrenica widows sitting in front of me , whose husbands he is accused of killing . ' | mladic is charged with leading 1992 siege against city of sarajevo , an assault that lasted two years |
mladic <tsp> ( cnn ) -- ratko mladic , the former bosnian serb army commander who went on trial wednesday for crimes against humanity , is a notorious name synonymous with the dissolution of yugoslavia , the balkan wars of the 1990s and the bloody assaults on sarajevo and srebrenica . during the five-day orgy of slaughter at srebrenica , which mladic is accused of being directly involved in , up to 8,000 muslims were exterminated in what was described by the u.n. war crimes tribunal as the triumph of evil . ' a judge at the hague tribunal described what happened there in july 1995 as truly scenes from hell written on the darkest pages of human history . ' born in kalnovik , bosnia-herzegovina , during the height of world war ii , the 70-year-old was a career soldier who served in yugoslavia 's military before that nation dissolved in the early 1990s . mladic was shaped by the war when his father was killed by croat nazis when he was two years old . in 1965 he graduated from a military academy and joined the communist party in yugoslavia , an ethnic stew of six states -- bosnia , serbia , macedonia , slovenia , croatia , and montenegro . over the following three decades he rose rapidly through the ranks of the yugoslav army . by the time he took bosnia 's battlefields he had become a hero to many serbs , seen as defender of their dwindling fortunes .. in may 1992 , bosnia 's serbian political leaders picked him to head their forces and lead the assault on their enemies . bosnia 's muslim leaders wanted independence while the serbs wanted to remain part of yugoslavia -- and the ethnic majority . mladic wasted no time galvanizing his heavily armed forces to besiege sarajevo , cutting the city off from the outside world by shelling and sniping at its poorly prepared civilian population in the valley below them . more than 10,000 people , most of them civilians , were killed . over the course of the three-year war that raged across the whole country more than a quarter million people died , making the conflict the bloodiest in europe since world war ii . a french policeman who collected evidence from bosnian muslims , jean-rene ruez , told the hague tribunal in 1996 that bosnian serb forces killed and tortured refugees in srebrenica at will . streets were littered with corpses , he said , and rivers were red with blood . many people committed suicide to avoid having their noses , lips and ears chopped off , he said . among other lurid accounts of mass murder , ruez cited cases of adults being forced to kill their children or watching as soldiers ended the young lives . one soldier approached a woman in the middle of a crowd , ' he said . her child was crying . the soldier asked why the child was crying and she explained that he was hungry . the soldier made a comment like ,'he wo n't be hungry anymore .'he slit the child 's throat in front of everybody . ' as the war ended in the fall of 1995 , mladic went on the run . over the years , he eluded authorities while his cohort , karadzic , was apprehended and is facing various charges at the court in the hague . their mentor , former serbian president slobodan milosevic , died in jail in 2006 during his trial at the hague . eventually , more than 16 years later , he was captured an hour 's drive from the serbian capital living on a farm with a cousin . world leaders and human rights groups described the arrest as historic ' and an important step forward . ' key dates in hunt for mladic u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon called it a historic day for international justice . this arrest marks an important step in our collective fight against impunity . ' interpol called mladic europe 's most wanted war crimes suspect ' while amnesty international 's law chief widney brown said at last the people who suffered have hope he will be brought to justice . ' the arrest meant a major hurdle that once stood between serbia and its long-awaited entrance into the european union was overcome , but the trial could also usher in political backlash from the country 's electorate , some of whom consider mladic a hero . speaking to a serbian radical party demonstration outside belgrade 's parliament building immediate after the arrest , darko mladic described his father as a freedom fighter . ' the elder mladic defended his own nation , defended his people , which was his job , ' his son said . robertson : bosnia 's future is tied to justice his family and lawyer have tried to use his poor health to prevent his extradition to the international criminal tribunal on the former yugoslavia in the netherlands , but they failed . in the court room at the hague last year mladic appeared to have lost none of his visceral dislike of his enemies . cnn 's nic robertson said he saw the defendant drawing his finger across his throat , a gesture aimed directly at at some of the srebrenica widows sitting in front of me , whose husbands he is accused of killing . ' | mladic is accused of being involved in slaughter of 8,000 muslims at srebrenica |
mladic <tsp> ( cnn ) -- ratko mladic , the former bosnian serb army commander who went on trial wednesday for crimes against humanity , is a notorious name synonymous with the dissolution of yugoslavia , the balkan wars of the 1990s and the bloody assaults on sarajevo and srebrenica . during the five-day orgy of slaughter at srebrenica , which mladic is accused of being directly involved in , up to 8,000 muslims were exterminated in what was described by the u.n. war crimes tribunal as the triumph of evil . ' a judge at the hague tribunal described what happened there in july 1995 as truly scenes from hell written on the darkest pages of human history . ' born in kalnovik , bosnia-herzegovina , during the height of world war ii , the 70-year-old was a career soldier who served in yugoslavia 's military before that nation dissolved in the early 1990s . mladic was shaped by the war when his father was killed by croat nazis when he was two years old . in 1965 he graduated from a military academy and joined the communist party in yugoslavia , an ethnic stew of six states -- bosnia , serbia , macedonia , slovenia , croatia , and montenegro . over the following three decades he rose rapidly through the ranks of the yugoslav army . by the time he took bosnia 's battlefields he had become a hero to many serbs , seen as defender of their dwindling fortunes .. in may 1992 , bosnia 's serbian political leaders picked him to head their forces and lead the assault on their enemies . bosnia 's muslim leaders wanted independence while the serbs wanted to remain part of yugoslavia -- and the ethnic majority . mladic wasted no time galvanizing his heavily armed forces to besiege sarajevo , cutting the city off from the outside world by shelling and sniping at its poorly prepared civilian population in the valley below them . more than 10,000 people , most of them civilians , were killed . over the course of the three-year war that raged across the whole country more than a quarter million people died , making the conflict the bloodiest in europe since world war ii . a french policeman who collected evidence from bosnian muslims , jean-rene ruez , told the hague tribunal in 1996 that bosnian serb forces killed and tortured refugees in srebrenica at will . streets were littered with corpses , he said , and rivers were red with blood . many people committed suicide to avoid having their noses , lips and ears chopped off , he said . among other lurid accounts of mass murder , ruez cited cases of adults being forced to kill their children or watching as soldiers ended the young lives . one soldier approached a woman in the middle of a crowd , ' he said . her child was crying . the soldier asked why the child was crying and she explained that he was hungry . the soldier made a comment like ,'he wo n't be hungry anymore .'he slit the child 's throat in front of everybody . ' as the war ended in the fall of 1995 , mladic went on the run . over the years , he eluded authorities while his cohort , karadzic , was apprehended and is facing various charges at the court in the hague . their mentor , former serbian president slobodan milosevic , died in jail in 2006 during his trial at the hague . eventually , more than 16 years later , he was captured an hour 's drive from the serbian capital living on a farm with a cousin . world leaders and human rights groups described the arrest as historic ' and an important step forward . ' key dates in hunt for mladic u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon called it a historic day for international justice . this arrest marks an important step in our collective fight against impunity . ' interpol called mladic europe 's most wanted war crimes suspect ' while amnesty international 's law chief widney brown said at last the people who suffered have hope he will be brought to justice . ' the arrest meant a major hurdle that once stood between serbia and its long-awaited entrance into the european union was overcome , but the trial could also usher in political backlash from the country 's electorate , some of whom consider mladic a hero . speaking to a serbian radical party demonstration outside belgrade 's parliament building immediate after the arrest , darko mladic described his father as a freedom fighter . ' the elder mladic defended his own nation , defended his people , which was his job , ' his son said . robertson : bosnia 's future is tied to justice his family and lawyer have tried to use his poor health to prevent his extradition to the international criminal tribunal on the former yugoslavia in the netherlands , but they failed . in the court room at the hague last year mladic appeared to have lost none of his visceral dislike of his enemies . cnn 's nic robertson said he saw the defendant drawing his finger across his throat , a gesture aimed directly at at some of the srebrenica widows sitting in front of me , whose husbands he is accused of killing . ' | trial could usher in political backlash from bosnian electorate , some of whom consider mladic a hero |
bosnian serb <tsp> ( cnn ) -- ratko mladic , the former bosnian serb army commander who went on trial wednesday for crimes against humanity , is a notorious name synonymous with the dissolution of yugoslavia , the balkan wars of the 1990s and the bloody assaults on sarajevo and srebrenica . during the five-day orgy of slaughter at srebrenica , which mladic is accused of being directly involved in , up to 8,000 muslims were exterminated in what was described by the u.n. war crimes tribunal as the triumph of evil . ' a judge at the hague tribunal described what happened there in july 1995 as truly scenes from hell written on the darkest pages of human history . ' born in kalnovik , bosnia-herzegovina , during the height of world war ii , the 70-year-old was a career soldier who served in yugoslavia 's military before that nation dissolved in the early 1990s . mladic was shaped by the war when his father was killed by croat nazis when he was two years old . in 1965 he graduated from a military academy and joined the communist party in yugoslavia , an ethnic stew of six states -- bosnia , serbia , macedonia , slovenia , croatia , and montenegro . over the following three decades he rose rapidly through the ranks of the yugoslav army . by the time he took bosnia 's battlefields he had become a hero to many serbs , seen as defender of their dwindling fortunes .. in may 1992 , bosnia 's serbian political leaders picked him to head their forces and lead the assault on their enemies . bosnia 's muslim leaders wanted independence while the serbs wanted to remain part of yugoslavia -- and the ethnic majority . mladic wasted no time galvanizing his heavily armed forces to besiege sarajevo , cutting the city off from the outside world by shelling and sniping at its poorly prepared civilian population in the valley below them . more than 10,000 people , most of them civilians , were killed . over the course of the three-year war that raged across the whole country more than a quarter million people died , making the conflict the bloodiest in europe since world war ii . a french policeman who collected evidence from bosnian muslims , jean-rene ruez , told the hague tribunal in 1996 that bosnian serb forces killed and tortured refugees in srebrenica at will . streets were littered with corpses , he said , and rivers were red with blood . many people committed suicide to avoid having their noses , lips and ears chopped off , he said . among other lurid accounts of mass murder , ruez cited cases of adults being forced to kill their children or watching as soldiers ended the young lives . one soldier approached a woman in the middle of a crowd , ' he said . her child was crying . the soldier asked why the child was crying and she explained that he was hungry . the soldier made a comment like ,'he wo n't be hungry anymore .'he slit the child 's throat in front of everybody . ' as the war ended in the fall of 1995 , mladic went on the run . over the years , he eluded authorities while his cohort , karadzic , was apprehended and is facing various charges at the court in the hague . their mentor , former serbian president slobodan milosevic , died in jail in 2006 during his trial at the hague . eventually , more than 16 years later , he was captured an hour 's drive from the serbian capital living on a farm with a cousin . world leaders and human rights groups described the arrest as historic ' and an important step forward . ' key dates in hunt for mladic u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon called it a historic day for international justice . this arrest marks an important step in our collective fight against impunity . ' interpol called mladic europe 's most wanted war crimes suspect ' while amnesty international 's law chief widney brown said at last the people who suffered have hope he will be brought to justice . ' the arrest meant a major hurdle that once stood between serbia and its long-awaited entrance into the european union was overcome , but the trial could also usher in political backlash from the country 's electorate , some of whom consider mladic a hero . speaking to a serbian radical party demonstration outside belgrade 's parliament building immediate after the arrest , darko mladic described his father as a freedom fighter . ' the elder mladic defended his own nation , defended his people , which was his job , ' his son said . robertson : bosnia 's future is tied to justice his family and lawyer have tried to use his poor health to prevent his extradition to the international criminal tribunal on the former yugoslavia in the netherlands , but they failed . in the court room at the hague last year mladic appeared to have lost none of his visceral dislike of his enemies . cnn 's nic robertson said he saw the defendant drawing his finger across his throat , a gesture aimed directly at at some of the srebrenica widows sitting in front of me , whose husbands he is accused of killing . ' | former bosnian serb army commander ratko mladic on trial for crimes against humanity |
mosley <tsp> ( cnn ) -- fans of the character easy rawlins do n't want to hear it , but author walter mosley says he has officially moved on . author walter mosley found fame with his easy rawlins mysteries and has debuted a new series . the prolific writer seemingly wrapped up his beloved series -- which spawned the 1995 film devil in a blue dress ' starring denzel washington -- in 2007 with the 10th easy rawlins mystery , blonde faith . ' the ending saddened die-hard fans who had faithfully followed the adventures of the los angeles , california-based everyman-turned-private investigator whose stories played out in an era from the jim crow 1940s to the politically charged 1960s . now mosley , who has found success writing everything from erotica to science fiction , has launched a new mystery series with the release of his book the long fall ' ( riverhead ) . the book features an ex-boxer named leonid trotter mcgill , the latest colorfully named mosley character . three of his previous books involved ex-convict socrates fortlow , and another trio concerned bookseller paris minton . but the new novel takes mosley to a different place and time . instead of mid-20th century los angeles , the long fall ' is set in modern-day new york , where mcgill is finding it hard to leave his less-than-stellar past behind . that past includes a childhood as a red-diaper baby abandoned by his union organizer father and left to fend for himself at an early age , a loveless marriage to an unfaithful woman named katrina and a son who 's a burgeoning criminal mastermind . moreover , he 's at work on a case where you just know people are going to die . such page turners are nothing new for mosley , who is known for his strong , black male characters and his passionate musings on race , politics and the writing life . mcgill 's creator recently spoke with cnn about the new mystery novel , why he does n't miss easy , and how the changes in the united states are mirrored in his writing . the following is an edited version of the interview . cnn : why leave los angeles for a setting in modern-day new york ? walter mosley : i have been a resident of both cities . the new series being contemporary and about a character who in some murky ways reflects where america is right now , new york seemed the right place for that . cnn : how so ? where do you think america is right now ? mosley : i think that america has made a decision , after about 20 years of going in one direction , to go in another direction : to leave rampant and amoral kind of deregulation and also rampant and immoral wars and say , maybe we should be doing the right thing instead of the wrong thing , ' or redefining what the right thing is , at any rate . those kinds of decisions , there are only two places [ the setting ] can be , and that 's either in washington , d.c. , which i feel is very limiting because it 's a one-business town , or new york , where everything from economics to government is centered . so i decided on new york . cnn : mcgill is trying to leave behind his shady past . do you feel like america is trying to do the same ? mosley : yes , i think that 's exactly what 's happening . i think america is trying to seek redemption after having done many things wrong in the eyes of the world in general . leonid mcgill is trying to seek redemption after a long criminal history . his history is somewhat forgivable , but still it 's criminal . cnn : did you approach this book differently than you did when you were writing the easy rawlins mysteries ? mosley : yes and no . all books are different , so each of the easy rawlins books i wrote i approached differently . [ leonid ] is a new character and he has a unique life that i had to begin to learn . i knew easy very well , but leonid i had to learn who he was . cnn : in your new book , i love that mcgill 's wife 's name is katrina ' and she leaves lots of destruction in her wake . mosley : [ chuckling ] it 's true , but the first story i wrote about leonid [ a story called karma ' published in the anthology dangerous women ' ] was before the hurricane and that was a long time ago . it 's funny that it worked out like that . cnn : what do you like about mcgill ? mosley : this is the first time in my experiments in crime fiction that i 've written a hard-boiled detective character . this is going all the way back to the beginning of the genre in the '30s , where you have a guy who gets thumped upside the head a lot and he 's just as bad as the people he 's after . in the old style , you never knew what was going on inside the hard-boiled character 's head , but in these stories i am actually discovering the underlying character of the hard-boiled detective , and for me that 's been a great deal of fun . cnn : you 've written so many various genres . what is it about the genre of crime fiction that appeals to you ? mosley : originally i got into it because you can talk about worlds that people would n't read about ordinarily unless they had a particular interest in it . everybody reads crime fiction and they read it to find out about different worlds . i like writing in different genres . there 's all this stuff that i really enjoy doing because i think they all serve different purposes . and listen , i 'm known as a crime writer , people like it and i enjoy it . cnn : for your fans , a lot of them miss easy rawlins . do you miss him at all ? mosley : no , he 's right there on the shelf . all i have to do is reach up and pull him down . i 'm finished with that . i 'm moving on . | mosley says he enjoyed first time writing a hard-boiled detective ' novel |
mosley <tsp> ( cnn ) -- fans of the character easy rawlins do n't want to hear it , but author walter mosley says he has officially moved on . author walter mosley found fame with his easy rawlins mysteries and has debuted a new series . the prolific writer seemingly wrapped up his beloved series -- which spawned the 1995 film devil in a blue dress ' starring denzel washington -- in 2007 with the 10th easy rawlins mystery , blonde faith . ' the ending saddened die-hard fans who had faithfully followed the adventures of the los angeles , california-based everyman-turned-private investigator whose stories played out in an era from the jim crow 1940s to the politically charged 1960s . now mosley , who has found success writing everything from erotica to science fiction , has launched a new mystery series with the release of his book the long fall ' ( riverhead ) . the book features an ex-boxer named leonid trotter mcgill , the latest colorfully named mosley character . three of his previous books involved ex-convict socrates fortlow , and another trio concerned bookseller paris minton . but the new novel takes mosley to a different place and time . instead of mid-20th century los angeles , the long fall ' is set in modern-day new york , where mcgill is finding it hard to leave his less-than-stellar past behind . that past includes a childhood as a red-diaper baby abandoned by his union organizer father and left to fend for himself at an early age , a loveless marriage to an unfaithful woman named katrina and a son who 's a burgeoning criminal mastermind . moreover , he 's at work on a case where you just know people are going to die . such page turners are nothing new for mosley , who is known for his strong , black male characters and his passionate musings on race , politics and the writing life . mcgill 's creator recently spoke with cnn about the new mystery novel , why he does n't miss easy , and how the changes in the united states are mirrored in his writing . the following is an edited version of the interview . cnn : why leave los angeles for a setting in modern-day new york ? walter mosley : i have been a resident of both cities . the new series being contemporary and about a character who in some murky ways reflects where america is right now , new york seemed the right place for that . cnn : how so ? where do you think america is right now ? mosley : i think that america has made a decision , after about 20 years of going in one direction , to go in another direction : to leave rampant and amoral kind of deregulation and also rampant and immoral wars and say , maybe we should be doing the right thing instead of the wrong thing , ' or redefining what the right thing is , at any rate . those kinds of decisions , there are only two places [ the setting ] can be , and that 's either in washington , d.c. , which i feel is very limiting because it 's a one-business town , or new york , where everything from economics to government is centered . so i decided on new york . cnn : mcgill is trying to leave behind his shady past . do you feel like america is trying to do the same ? mosley : yes , i think that 's exactly what 's happening . i think america is trying to seek redemption after having done many things wrong in the eyes of the world in general . leonid mcgill is trying to seek redemption after a long criminal history . his history is somewhat forgivable , but still it 's criminal . cnn : did you approach this book differently than you did when you were writing the easy rawlins mysteries ? mosley : yes and no . all books are different , so each of the easy rawlins books i wrote i approached differently . [ leonid ] is a new character and he has a unique life that i had to begin to learn . i knew easy very well , but leonid i had to learn who he was . cnn : in your new book , i love that mcgill 's wife 's name is katrina ' and she leaves lots of destruction in her wake . mosley : [ chuckling ] it 's true , but the first story i wrote about leonid [ a story called karma ' published in the anthology dangerous women ' ] was before the hurricane and that was a long time ago . it 's funny that it worked out like that . cnn : what do you like about mcgill ? mosley : this is the first time in my experiments in crime fiction that i 've written a hard-boiled detective character . this is going all the way back to the beginning of the genre in the '30s , where you have a guy who gets thumped upside the head a lot and he 's just as bad as the people he 's after . in the old style , you never knew what was going on inside the hard-boiled character 's head , but in these stories i am actually discovering the underlying character of the hard-boiled detective , and for me that 's been a great deal of fun . cnn : you 've written so many various genres . what is it about the genre of crime fiction that appeals to you ? mosley : originally i got into it because you can talk about worlds that people would n't read about ordinarily unless they had a particular interest in it . everybody reads crime fiction and they read it to find out about different worlds . i like writing in different genres . there 's all this stuff that i really enjoy doing because i think they all serve different purposes . and listen , i 'm known as a crime writer , people like it and i enjoy it . cnn : for your fans , a lot of them miss easy rawlins . do you miss him at all ? mosley : no , he 's right there on the shelf . all i have to do is reach up and pull him down . i 'm finished with that . i 'm moving on . | writer walter mosley is best known for his easy rawlins mystery series |
mclaren <tsp> ( cnn ) -- after four months on the scrapheap paddy lowe will be back in the fast lane in june after his switch from mclaren to formula one rival mercedes was confirmed . lowe was recruited by mercedes in january only for mclaren to remove him from his role as technical director and insist he sees out his contract , which was set to expire at the end of the current season . it was originally thought lowe would replace current mercedes team principal ross brawn , but he will now work alongside his fellow briton as executive director ( technical ) ' from june 3 . the circuit : cnn 's f1 interactive ' i am excited to become part of a highly talented and capable technical organization , ' said lowe , who follows 2008 world championship-winning driver lewis hamilton in swapping mclaren for mercedes , in a statement . that is a challenge i am relishing . i have worked closely with mercedes-benz for almost 20 years and deeply admire the company 's phenomenal commitment to formula one . i look forward to much success together in the years ahead . ' lowe adds to a wealth of experience in the mercedes hierarchy . brawn oversaw all seven of michael schumacher 's world titles in addition to jenson button 's in 2009 . mercedes sit fourth in the constructors'championship ahead of sunday 's monaco grand prix , the sixth race of the 2013 season . i am delighted to welcome paddy to the team and to begin working together , ' said brawn . he has an excellent record of success in the sport and would be an asset to any of our rivals in the pit lane . paddy 's arrival will further strengthen our organization and puts us in a strong position for the future . ' while mercedes are able to invest in pursuit of race wins , other teams face more stark financial realities . this time last year williams were celebrating pastor maldonado 's win at the spanish grand prix . twelve months on maldonado and rookie teammate valtteri bottas both failed to make it out of the first round of qualifying last time out in barcelona . while results on the track have been disappointing , deputy team principal claire williams insists financial solvency is of greater importance . the budget is always the most important thing -- securing more revenue than i did last year , ' williams , whose father frank williams founded the team , told formula one 's official website . that is really important to me -- getting as much money in for the team as i possibly can . the more money you have the better your race car can be , in effect . secondly , making sure politically that the team is in the best position . and thirdly - and probably most importantly -- results . being at the top of the grid and fighting for world championships . i 'm not going to give up until we 're back again . ' bottas is yet to score a point in formula one , with his best finish of 11th coming at the malaysian grand prix . williams praised the young finn , suggesting he will be challenging at the front of the grid as his career progresses . i think we definitely have a future world champion at hand -- but of course we have to give him the car to allow him to prove his talent , ' declared williams . he has done a good job so far . he has finished every race , made up positions with great overtaking manoeuvres , and is giving strong feedback to the engineers in order to improve the car . ' | paddy lowe cleared to join mercedes from mclaren on june 3 |
cdc <tsp> ( cnn ) -- starting monday , students at the university of california santa barbara will be getting an unapproved vaccine scientists hope will stop a meningococcal disease outbreak there , the university said . the swiss pharmaceutical company novartis already has approval for its vaccine bexsero in europe , canada and australia . it is not approved for use in the united states . in this case , the food and drug administration had to grant special permission for its use at ucsb . the fda granted special permission to use the vaccine at princeton last december to fight an unrelated outbreak there . meningitis b outbreaks are rare but deadly , according to the centers for disease control and prevention . in 2012 , there were 480 cases of bacterial meningitis ; some 160 of those were group b , the agency said . there were eight confirmed cases at princeton and four ucsb students were confirmed as sick with meningococcal disease , which can cause meningitis or blood infections . one case at ucsb was so advanced , doctors had to remove a student 's lower legs in november . aaron loy had been a promising lacrosse and soccer player . after his operation his parents asked the fda to pick up the pace on bexsero 's approval . we hope that aaron 's horrific illness brings increased awareness and rapid approval by the fda of the vaccine ' for the type b strain , mike loy said . there are vaccines approved in the united states for other types of meningitis , but group b is the strain that does pack the most powerful punch , ' the cdc said . college students are especially vulnerable . students who drink a lot of alcohol can be particularly susceptible to catching it . dorms are the perfect breeding grounds for an outbreak . meningitis b spreads through coughing , sneezing , and kissing . it can also spread when people forget to wash their hands or clothes , or among people who drink out of the same cup . meningitis b is tricky since students who catch it may first think they have the flu . it starts with flu-like symptoms : fever , headache , stiff necks , vomiting and delirium . if the bacteria spread to the protective tissue around the spinal cord and brain , known as the meninges , patients can suffer hearing loss , permanent neurological damage and even death . the cdc sent a team of scientists to ucsb to study the outbreak in december . fortunately , scientists said , a meningitis b outbreak moves slowly than others . it smolders , ' said dr. tom clark , the chief of the cdc 's meningitis branch . you have a bit more time to get everything in place . ' bexsero will be offered to some 20,000 students at ucsb . more than 5,000 were vaccinated at princeton university and they are currently getting a second dose which is necessary for full immunity . novartis says it is seeking u.s. license for the vaccine 's use in all adolescents and young adults which they say would enable immediate response to future outbreaks , ' according to its press release . these recent outbreaks remind us how unpredictable the disease can be , ' said andrin oswald , division head for novartis vaccines . his company has submitted successful test results from 8,000 vaccinations of adults , children , adolescents and infants . that test data was used for vaccine approval in other countries . we will continue to work with the fda to pursue a potential license for bexsero in the u.s. to help fulfill this public health need , ' oswald said . | meningitis b is rare but can be deadly , the cdc said |
virginia <tsp> ( cnn ) -- philadelphia eagles quarterback michael vick , who served 18 months in federal prison for bankrolling a deadly dogfighting ring , now has a dog . i understand the strong emotions by some people about our family 's decision to care for a pet , ' he said in a statement released thursday . as a father , it is important to make sure my children develop a healthy relationship with animals . ' he added that our pet is well cared for and loved as a member of our family . ' michael vick helps park get a second chance ' this is an opportunity to break the cycle , ' vick said . to that end , i will continue to honor my commitment to animal welfare and be an instrument of positive change . ' in 2010 , humane society president wayne pacelle told hln 's jane velez-mitchell that the philadelphia eagles quarterback should n't get a pet immediately and should have to meet certain benchmarks whenever he did . but pacelle , whose group has worked with vick in public outreach efforts , said it would be wrong to close the door to his ever having a dog again . he 's been going through counseling , he 's been speaking to kids twice a month , and he needs to interact with animals , ' pacelle said at the time . if he continues to hit these markers , then if his daughter wants a dog two or three years down the line ... i 'm saying that we should be open to that possibility . ' under the terms of his conviction , vick had been barred from owning an animal . the nfl suspended vick in august 2007 after he pleaded guilty to a federal charge of paying for a dogfighting operation in virginia . he returned to the nfl in 2009 . michael vick on'piers morgan tonight ' | vick , 32 , pleaded guilty in 2007 to bankrolling a dogfighting operation in virginia |
afghan <tsp> kabul , afghanistan ( cnn ) -- a man in an afghan military uniform killed three u.s. troops friday in southern afghanistan , the latest in a series of assaults against nato soldiers by afghans clad in security force garb . the man opened fire on the troops in the volatile helmand province , said maj. lori hodge , a spokeswoman for the international assistance security force . hodge did not immediately provide details about the attack , one of a handful in recent weeks to target nato troops . a defense department official said the three troops killed were part of a special operations forces mission to stabilize a village in the sarwan qala area . they were meeting with local officials . nato and afghan troops have been searching for the gunman . it is too early to say that this latest incident is part of a stepped-up effort on the insurgents'part , ' white house spokesman jay carney said . we know they are trying to maximize media exposure of these events but our military believes that the operational impact has been negligible . nonetheless these incidents do concern us and our hearts go out to all the victims and their families . ' in the strikes , known as green-on-blue ' attacks , afghan security forces or militants dressed as local police or soldiers target coalition troops . the problem has sapped troop morale , and coalition forces have been working to address it . earlier this year , gen. john allen , commander of the nato-led force , said the systems that afghans and coalition forces had put in place to help prevent these attacks were having an effect . allen said coalition officials were working on a new procedure to check the backgrounds of afghans who sign up for the army or police force , and the afghans have taken a lot of steps themselves . ' bill roggio , a terrorism analyst , said afghan security personnel have killed an estimated 93 isaf soldiers since may 2007 , and they have killed 31 this year alone across the country . these attacks have taken place in all areas in afghanistan , not just in the south and east , said roggio , managing editor of the long war journal blog , which reports and analyzes terror issues . two other green-on-blue incidents occurred this week , roggio said . one was the killing of a u.s. soldier tuesday by two afghans wearing army uniforms . on thursday , u.s. troops killed an afghan soldier who tried to gun them down at a training center in laghman province . the attack types are about split : about half seem to be taliban infiltrators , or ansf members who were turned by the taliban , ' said roggio . ansf stands for afghan national security forces . remembering the chinook crash , a year later ' the other half seem to be disgruntled security personnel who have turned on troops for some sort of grievance . it is very difficult to know exactly what is happening given that isaf does not release a lot of information on these attacks . ' afghan intelligence agents have started going undercover during recruit training to spot signs of extremist tendencies among the newcomers , military officials say . the u.s. military has become so concerned with the green-on-blue attacks that it has ordered units to designate'guardian angels'in each unit whose job is to provide security for troops working with afghans . but the attacks have not abated , ' roggio said . elsewhere in helmand , a vehicle struck a roadside mine friday , killing six civilians and wounding five others , president hamid karzai 's office said . women and children were among the casualties in the bombing , which karzai condemned . the british defense ministry announced friday that one of its soldiers was killed in enemy action ' while on patrol in the nad ali district of helmand on thursday . high-profile insurgent attacks against nato and afghan targets persist as the united states reduces its troop strength ahead of an anticipated 2014 handover of responsibility to afghan forces . in a separate incident , a strike wednesday in kunar province left five people dead -- usaid foreign service officer ragaei abdelfattah , three isaf service members and an afghan civilian -- and injured a state department foreign service officer . the department of defense said that the three american troops died of wounds suffered when they encountered an insurgent who detonated a suicide vest . ' violence has raged during the afghan war in kunar province , on the border with pakistan . on behalf of president obama and the american people , i have sent my deepest condolences to ragaei 's family and to the entire u.s. mission in afghanistan , ' u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton said in a written statement released late thursday . the taliban claimed responsibility for the attack , saying two bombers targeted the american soldier near the entrance of the compound of the province council in asadabad , according to a statement released by spokesman zabiullah mujahid . mujahid said the attack occurred as the troops were exiting a military vehicle and gathering to enter the compound . the taliban claimed to have killed 17 soldiers , though the group is known to routinely claim responsibility for attacks and inflate casualty numbers . the defense department identified the slain soldiers : -- army command sgt . maj. kevin j. griffin , the senior enlisted soldier of the 4th brigade combat team , 4th infantry division from fort carson , colorado . -- army maj. thomas e. kennedy , 35 , of west point , new york . -- air force maj. walter d. gray , 38 , of conyers , georgia . kennedy served on the brigade staff , while gray was a flight commander attached as a liaison to the brigade , according to their respective service records . griffin , 45 , of laramie , wyoming , was the brigade 's senior ranking non-commissioned officer , the defense department said . he joined the army in 1988 and participated in the u.s.-led invasion of iraq in 2003 , according to his service records . griffin deployed twice more to iraq , once in 2007 and again in 2009 . he deployed to afghanistan in march with a headquarters company of the brigade . kennedy was commissioned as an officer in 2000 . he served two tours in iraq in 2003 and 2005 . according to his service record , kennedy deployed to afghanistan on july 18 . gray was assigned to the 13th air support operations squadron at fort carson . an afghan interpreter was also killed , the state department said . troops were also wounded in the attack , said maj. martyn crighton , a nato spokesman . he would not release the number of injured but said all the seriously wounded were evacuated to germany . ' complete coverage on afghanistan cnn 's ben brumfield , samuel gardner iii , greg morrison , and chris lawrence contributed to this report . carter and sterling reported from atlanta and popalzai from kabul . | gunman in afghan uniform killed 3 u.s. troops on a special operations forces mission |
asia <tsp> seoul , south korea ( cnn ) -- for many u.s. veterans it 's a trip they thought they 'd never take ; returning to south korea , the land where so many of their brothers-in-arms lost their lives . a mist hangs in the surrounding hills of the south korean national cemetery as dozens of returning veterans gather to honor the dead . it 's a difficult but necessary journey for most of them as they commemorate the 60th anniversary of the armistice that stopped the fighting in the korea war . i was in the pork chop hill in july 1953 and i remember the sounds of artillery and fighting . that is not something that you will forget . i never intended to come back to korea . it 's not like i did n't like the country but just did n't need to see it , ' says u.s. veteran danny peters . almost two million korean civilians lost their lives during the war as well as more than 200,000 south koreans and about 36,000 american soldiers by the time the ceasefire was declared in 1953 . read more : obama marks'forgotten'war a lone bugler plays taps as men in their 80s , many dressed in military regalia complete with medals and ribbons , march towards an altar of incense and flowers to honor the dead . some veterans now need canes and wheelchairs to help them complete the 40-meter stretch . sixty years on , they are n't the strapping teenagers they once were , the years show in the wrinkles crisscrossing their faces but the memories are still fresh . the korean war was very dangerous and i lost a lot of friends , ' says veteran daniel arthur . i remember all the battles i was in . i lost a lot of friends and saw a lot of people wounded . ' for infantryman philip dimenno it 's a journey he wanted to share with his two daughters , son and granddaughter . for him , it was about closing a chapter in his life , but for his children it was a chance to understand what the war was like . it 's dimenno 's first time back since he left the peninsula in 1954 . long gone are the dirt roads and huts . asphalt and high-rises have taken their place . but the memories of a young , scared 18-year-old rush back among the tombstones . read more : cosmetic change but no reform in n. korea ' i wanted to do the real thing . when i 'm saying do the real thing that was just a figure of talk at that time , because in all fairness i was a very , very scared kid and i had a lot of fear in me , ' says dimenno . the lively 81-year-old widower 's memory does n't fail as he recalls in descriptive detail to his family the two years he spent in south korea . to be with him here now ... i can see a huge difference in his emotions and how trying to gather everything that happened it 's unbelievable , absolutely unbelievable , ' says dimenno 's granddaughter , sara zepezauer . his daughter , renee dimenno-zepezauer , added : the great connection and almost a closure for my father to see a country in such despair and to see a country again with such prosperity . ' the thought of the war has brought up mixed emotions from the veterans . some of them express anger , sorrow and fear but most come to the same general conclusion . read more : talking peace with a backdrop of war ' it ( the korean war ) was pain in the ass . it disrupted a lot of lives of the americans and lives of the koreans . at the time , you always wondered if it was worth it . to think about it now , it accomplished a lot to the region and the world 's order . ' do n't tell the veterans that the war was nonsense , ' says dimenno with a sense of defiance and pride . it stopped the spread of communism in asia . ' the ceremony honoring the dead does n't last long , less than a half hour . the veterans salute the memorial , pour incense into a smoldering pot flanked by two giant statues and say their silent prayers . but for dimenno it ca n't last long enough . we were never told to cry and it makes you cry because we are the survivors . we are just a little patch of what we did . sure we survived for our country . the people who died should have these honors . ' | one summed up : the war was pain in the ass but it did prevent communism spreading in asia |
michael <tsp> ( ew.com ) -- two four characters on nbc 's smash ' are expected to leave the show -- and we suspect fans are not going to be disappointed . philandering fiancã© dev ( raza jaffrey ) and devious assistant ellis ( jaime cepero ) will not be regulars in the show 's second season , sources say . it 's possible one or both actors could appear in an episode or two to wrap up their storylines , but that 's it . the plan is to have neither character as a recurring presence in the show 's new-and-improved second season . dev annoyed fans by cheating on karen ( katharine mcphee ) while ellis infuriated viewers all season with his overeager meddlesome scheming . fans and critics have been pretty outspoken that the second season would be better off without either character ( ellis , in particular ) and it seems producers and/or nbc listened . nbc plans to return smash ' in midseason , giving time for new showrunner josh safran ( gossip girl ' ) to creatively polish the series . nbc had no comment . update : brian d'arcy james , who played julia 's ( debra messing ) husband frank , and will chase , who played julia 's former lover michael , are leaving smash , ' too . in the finale , frank saw julia comforting michael on stage and assumed the duo were back to their old , ahem , tricks . see the full story at ew.com . click here to try 2 risk free issues of entertainment weekly © 2011 entertainment weekly and time inc. all rights reserved . | dev , ellis , frank and michael will not be regulars in smash 's ' second season |
nigerian <tsp> two weeks ago i visited the africa village at london 's kensington gardens , to appear on a radio show being broadcast from there . after the interview , i lingered , wandering around the national stands , savoring the nigerian hip-hop that blared from the speakers . i stood in line to receive an inscription -- carefully traced out on paper by a cheerful , elderly man wielding a quill pen -- of my name in english and arabic . so you can imagine my shock when i heard news of the premature closure of the village -- fallout of a debt row involving the company managing events at the village , and a key supplier . for me that tragic turn of events symbolizes all that is wrong with sports administration in many african countries . government funds meant to help nigeria 's contingent prepare for london 2012 -- a total of $ 14 million , according to sports minister bolaji abdullahi -- were n't released to the ministry until april , just three months before the opening ceremony . abdullahi himself was only drafted to the ministry in december 2011 , in an acting capacity ; his substantive appointment was not announced until may . now i 'm not a sports technocrat , but something in the realm of common sense suggests to me that the olympics are generally won and lost long before the opening ceremony cauldron is touched by fire . watch : games medals versus gdp nigeria , an unrepentantly heavy trader in the stock market of optimism , went to london the way it likes to travel to global engagements ( be they sporting events or climate change summits ) -- eschewing serious preparation , expecting the best , and inevitably attracting the worst , which actually varies in degree depending on the amount of good luck in the air . in the end , the opening ceremony march-past turned out to be the high point of our london 2012 performance . from a tally of four medals in beijing ( 1 silver and 3 bronze ) we dropped into medal-less oblivion in london . as with nigeria , so has it been with ghana ( ghana 's last olympic medal was its barcelona 1992 bronze in the men 's soccer event ) . kenya , with a much better olympic record , has also disappointed in london . the east african country , 13th on the medals table four years ago , with a total of 14 medals , all in long-distance athletics ( six of which were golds ) , dropped to 28th place in london , with 11 medals ( only two of which were golds ) . from the tales of woe filtering out from the various national camps one might be forgiven for assuming it 's the same set of officials managing the nigerians , ghanaians and the kenyans . cameroon 's problems are of a slightly different nature -- seven of its athletes vanished from camp two weeks into the games , presumably envisaging brighter prospects as asylum-seekers than as home-bound olympians . across the continent there will be much handwringing and gnashing of teeth in the weeks and months to come . governments will set up probe panels and probe panels to probe those probe panels . two years ago , after nigeria 's disastrous outing at the 2010 world cup , president goodluck jonathan , still fresh in office , fired the football federation board and placed a two-year ban on nigeria 's participation in international football competitions . the purpose of that ban , according to a presidential spokesperson , was to enable us put our house in order and enable us work out a more meaningful way to engage the global stage in terms of football so that this kind of rather embarrassing outcome we had in south africa will not repeat itself . ' two years on , our embarrassments have grown muscle and wings . like usain bolt recycling his wins with a certainty bordering on the surreal , we have made a spectacle of recycling our sporting failures . different arenas , same scenarios . i should n't be too negative . it 's perhaps not a totally hopeless situation . in a recent interview a chastened minister abdullahi was quoted as saying : if we want to win and compete sustainably , we have to develop systems that establish clear connection between process and outcome . ' sadly systems are something nigeria is not very good at or keen on building or sustaining . but for now we 'll have to trust that the reform-minded minister has it all planned out . failure can have a galvanising effect . and , i believe it is easier to deal with failure than to deal with success . this failure is an opportunity to do the right thing , ' he went on to say . i bet he knows only too well that failure also presents an opportunity to fail again , and fail worse . which is where the bulk of nigeria 's experience lies . watch : looking back at london 2012 abdullahi will have to do several things all at once -- fight mafias and cabals for whom self-enrichment is the pre-eminent sport , enlist private sector funding ( long stifled by corruption ) on a larger scale , rebuild a comatose school sports , raise the standard of the national sports festival , and offer his unconditional support to the segun odegbamis and mobolaji akiodes and others who , against many odds , and often in spite of the government , are striving to build the next generation of sporting talent . none of these will be easy . if the past is anything to go by , time is not on his side . and this is not only because the countdown to rio 2016 has started . since democracy returned to nigeria in 1999 , we 've had a total of 12 ministers for sport , translating to a new minister roughly every 12 months . going by that arithmetic , abdullahi and his lofty dreams already have their expiry date bearing down on them with the speed of usain bolt , and the deadly accuracy of yi siling . he will therefore be needing large doses of good fortune ; the sort that every now and then transforms an underdog into an olympic champion . | nigerian sports minister bolaji abdullahi will have work cut out for him |
french open <tsp> ( cnn ) -- tennis star maria sharapova has been handed the honor of becoming the first woman to carry russia 's flag at the opening ceremony of an olympic games . the 25-year-old will be competing in her first olympics at london 2012 , where she will play in the women 's singles tournament . i was n't aware that i am the first woman but what a personal honor to be representing russia , ' she told cnn . i am grateful for the sincere support from my family , friends and fans from home and across the globe . i 'm truly proud and humbled to represent a country that is full of hopes and dreams . ' sharapova has battled her way back to the top of women 's tennis after two years of shoulder problems , returning to no . 1 in the world rankings after completing a career grand slam by winning last month 's french open . she lost top spot to victoria azarenka of belarus this week after a surprise defeat in the fourth round at wimbledon dropped her to no . 3 , but has the chance to make amends as the olympic event will also be held at the famous grass-court venue . this year 's upcoming olympics in london holds special meaning to me as this will be my first foray into the games , ' sharapova said . it 's a remarkable opportunity to not only compete in such a historically prestigious sporting moment , but i am looking forward to sharing this olympic experience with fellow athletes around the world . ' sharapova , who will reportedly marry basketball star sasha vujacic in november after the end of the tennis season , has been based in the united states for most of her life . she has played three times for russia 's fed cup team , all in quarterfinal ties , winning three of her four singles rubbers . sharapova did not qualify for the 2004 olympics in beijing , despite winning her first grand slam title at wimbledon as a 17-year-old . she missed out in beijing in 2008 due to injury , and compatriot elena dementieva -- who has since retired -- won the women 's gold . russia first took part at the summer olympics in 1912 , but did not appear again until 1952 as the soviet union . since then the honor of carrying the flag has usually gone to male gold medal-winners . this year , serbia and spain will also have a tennis star as flag-bearer as men 's world no . 2 novak djokovic and beijing champion rafael nadal have been given the role by their respective countries . | french open champion will be taking part for first time at london 2012 |
benjamin sherman <tsp> kabul , afghanistan ( cnn ) -- military divers have found the body of a u.s. paratrooper who went missing last week in a river in western afghanistan . the nato-led international security assistance force said the soldier was found close to where he disappeared november 4 . officials are continuing their search for a second paratrooper lost at the same time . both men -- from the 4th brigade combat team , 82nd airborne division -- disappeared in the morghab river near afghanistan 's border with turkmenistan . the men were on a routine resupply mission , the nato group said . family members identified the recovered body as that of benjamin sherman , 21 , of plymouth , massachusetts . they said he jumped into the river when he saw a fellow soldier struggling in the water . i know that day he jumped into the river to try to save his comrade was because he did n't just see another soldier in the water ; he saw his brother , ' said sherman 's sister , meredith , in a statement to cnn affiliate wcvb in boston , massachusetts . he did n't jump in because he was trained to but because that 's what his heart told him to do . ' sherman 's mother , denise , said the family called him the unstoppable one . ' i raised him with the understanding that when you choose to do something , you do it to the best of your ability , ' she said in a statement to wcvb . he was powerful , ingenuous and determined . ' cnn 's thomas evans contributed to this report . | family identifies recovered body as that of benjamin sherman of plymouth , massachusetts |
louis jordan <tsp> norfolk , virginia ( cnn ) the second mate of the houston express probably could n't believe what he was seeing . hundreds of miles from land there was a small boat nearby . at first it looked abandoned . it was in bad shape , listing to one side . the crew of the 1,000-foot long container ship thought it was a yacht that had wrecked . incredibly , as they got closer , they saw there was a man on it , signaling for help . he was moving , walking around , waving to us and in surprisingly good condition , ' capt . thomas grenz told cnn by phone friday . that man , louis jordan , 37 , had an amazing story . he 'd been drifting on the 35-foot pearson sailboat for more than two months since leaving conway , south carolina , to fish in the ocean . just a few days into his trip , a storm capsized his boat and broke his mast . one of his shoulders was broken , too , so he could n't fix the boat right away . eventually he was able to rig a makeshift mast and sail , but he could make little headway against the currents . it took so long , ' jordan said . it moved so slowly . ' the boat capsized two more times before he was rescued , according to jordan . his father , frank jordan , told cnn 's jim sciutto that he was expecting his son to look different . he looked good . had n't lost too much weight . he was n't badly sunburned like i thought he probably would be , ' he said . lost at sea for 66 days after his food and water ran out , it became an issue of survival . collecting fresh water was a nightmare for jordan . the weather would n't cooperate . records show there were more than a dozen storms off the coast of the carolinas during the time he was missing . the precipitation came at night during harsh conditions . i had tried to collect ( rain ) water ... but every time the waves would splash into the boat , ' jordan said . the waves would put saltwater into my freshwater and it tasted bad . finally the conditions were right . i filled up my water tank , which is 25 gallons . i filled up a bucket . ' then there was the issue of food . the fish were n't cooperating , but after a while jordan learned they were attracted to his laundry , which he would put out to sea for a rinse . the fish would swim in and out of his clothes and he could easily scoop them up with a hand net , he said . jordan came ashore thursday evening . cnn affiliate wavy in norfolk , virginia , reported that he was able to walk from the helicopter into sentara norfolk general hospital about 7:30 p.m. coast guard officials have said they have found no reason to doubt jordan 's incredible story . they noted that his father contacted them january 29 to report his son and his boat missing . frank jordan addressed the skepticism about his son 's appearance , saying the boat stayed afloat and upright most of the time . his son spent most of his days in the cabin , out of the sun . frank jordan said it was obvious when the jordans met at the hospital friday morning that his normally low-key and private son had been through an ordeal . i know he went through what he went through , ' frank jordan said . jordan is an unemployed truck driver who lived on his boat at a marina in conway . he had free rent and free food in the river , he said . but when it became difficult to catch dinner , he took off for the ocean in hopes he would land some bigger fish . frank jordan told cnn 's wolf blitzer on thursday that he had worried about his son , who is an inexperienced sailor , but he held hope because his son had a good boat . and he had the strength to make it . he 's got a very strong constitution and ( is strong ) not only physically , but spiritually , ' frank jordan said . and he told me on the phone that he was praying the whole time , so i believe that sustained him a great deal . ' rescue swimmer kyle mccollum was the first to care for jordan on the flight back to land . you would expect sunburns , severe sunburn , blisters maybe ... a bunch of medical issues that could possibly be wrong with him , ' he said . but for him to be in his current state was pretty amazing . ' grenz was also surprised by jordan 's condition , physically and mentally . the rescued sailor knew almost exactly what day it was , remarkable for someone who had been on the water for more than 60 days . jordan was dehydrated and said he was hungry . we took him to a rescue boat , ' the container ship captain said . he was given water and pea soup to gain some power again . ' derriel morris , a neighbor at the bucksport plantation marina & rv resort called jordan a nice guy who loved his 47-year-old boat , named angel . ' morris said : it was immaculate , it was gorgeous , beautifully painted . i mean it looked like a brand new sailboat . ' morris told cnn affiliate wpde that one day in january he was going to the store and jordan asked him to bring back some coffee creamer . but when he returned to the marina , jordan had slipped away . there was no shore line , no hose ; it was like he was never there , ' morris told the station . after he disappeared others who also live there held a candlelight ceremony . the marina 's manager , jeff weeks , told wpde that jordan is expected to be back at buscksport next week . tales of people who cheated death after days , weeks adrift | louis jordan was found on his sailboat , which was listing and in bad shape , rescuer says |
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