Week ending: Saturday 27th November 2004 (part only)

Sweeping police powers to be unveiled in Queen's speech
Sweeping new powers to allow police to take DNA samples and fingerprints from minor offenders arrested on the street will be tucked away in a battery of law and order bills to be unveiled in today's Queen's speech. What is billed by senior Labour officials as a 'security and opportunity' programme for what is all but certain to end in a spring election is dominated by law and order-related legislation. It will be largely left to Gordon Brown's tax-and-spend decisions to address work/life balance and related issues. But senior lawyers and civil liberty campaigners last night launched pre-emptive attacks on the 'tidying up' decision by the home secretary, David Blunkett, to extend the power of arrest to all criminal offences. They called it 'utterly unacceptable and grossly disproportionate'.

Ukrainian Opposition Candidate Yushchenko Announces Victory
Ukrainian opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko and his campaign staff have issued a statement calling the elections results handing a victory to Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich falsified, and announcing Yushchenko’s victory. “On November 21 Yuschhenko won the Ukrainian elections for president,” the statement, reported by Lenta.ru, said. “The national exit polls have without doubt testified to this.” According to the statement, anonymous polls showed Yushchenko with a 10 percent lead. The statement called the events that occurred on the night of Nov. 21 a “state coup”. “The people have elected their president, but the people’s will is cynically being ignored” by the incumbent regime, which includes Prime Minister Yanukovich. It accused the authorities of employing “unprecedented” fraud.

Ukraine gripped by poll turmoil
Tens of thousands of Ukrainians have thronged major cities, protesting at an election result they consider flawed. Opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko told supporters to stage a civil disobedience campaign. The cities of Kiev and Lviv refused to recognise the official victory for Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. While Russia accepted the result, a US observer alleged 'concerted and forceful' fraud, and the EU called on Ukraine to review the election.

UN hostages freed in Afghanistan
Three UN workers kidnapped in Afghanistan have been released unharmed after nearly four weeks in captivity, officials said. ' They are out,' UN spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva said. Armed men seized Philippine diplomat Angelito Nayan, British-Irish citizen Annetta Flanigan and Shqipe Hebibi of Kosovo on 28 October, the first abduction of foreigners in the Afghan capital since the Taliban fell three years ago. Officials said the three were freed overnight and had undergone medical examinations at a Nato field hospital in Kabul that showed all were in good health.

UN DR Congo sex abuses 'on film'
The United Nations is investigating some 150 allegations of sexual abuse by UN civilian staff and soldiers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Accusations include paedophilia, rape and prostitution of refugees in UN camps, says UN official Jane Holl Lute. She told a news conference that there was photographic and video evidence for some of the allegations. Allegations of abuse at UN camps surfaced last year, prompting the UN's internal watchdog to launch an inquiry.

A2 protesters rally against School of the Americas
Protesters congregated in front of the Ann Arbor Federal Building Saturday to show solidarity with protests nationwide calling for the closing of the School of the Americas. The military institute, located in the military base of Fort Benning, Ga, is the U.S. Army’s principal Spanish-language training facility for Latin American military personnel, according to its website. But it has trained a long list of notorious alumni in combat, sniper training, interrogation tactics and counter-narcotic techniques. Gen. Hector Gramajo, Col. Pablo Belmar and Gen. Hugo Banzer Suarez compose only a sample of whom the school’s critics call past Latin American strongmen trained by the SOA over the past 60 years. Because of this perception, many protesters refer to SOA as the “School of Assassins.”

Something was not right'
Cameraman tells Falluja marines why he broadcast controversial shooting. The broadcast last week of footage showing a US marine shooting an injured Iraqi fighter in Falluja caused an international outcry. Yesterday the cameraman, Kevin Sites, published on his website this open letter to the marines with whom he had been embedded. Since the shooting in the mosque, I've been haunted that I have not been able to tell you directly what I saw or explain the process by which the world came to see it as well.

Ugandan MPs make beating claims
Four Ugandan MPs say they were beaten by soldiers as they tried to meet their constituents to discuss government proposals to change the constitution. The opposition politicians say they were there to discuss contents of a white paper, which proposes to lift the two-term limit on the presidency. Such a move would allow president Yoweri Museveni to run again in 2006. The attack comes as northern Ugandans are hoping for progress on peace talks to end 18 years of war in the region.

Ministry to investigate Black Watch killing
The Ministry of Defence has launched an investigation after Black Watch soldiers shot dead a man they believed was a suicide bomber. The man was shot as he drove his car at speed towards a checkpoint by the Euphrates river, near the Black Watch base at Camp Dogwood, a military spokesman said. The incident, which happened on 7 November, took place after the soldiers had ordered traffic to stop around 100 yards from the checkpoint. Traffic had built up and a car in the queue suddenly pulled out and drove towards the checkpoint at speed, the spokesman said. Warning shots were fired but the car continued to accelerate.

Increase in Iraq force is likely
Senior U.S. military commanders in Iraq say it is increasingly likely they will need a further increase in combat forces to put down remaining areas of resistance in the country. Convinced that the recent battle for Fallujah has significantly weakened insurgent ranks, commanders here have devised plans to press the offensive into neighborhoods where rebels have either taken refuge after fleeing Fallujah or were already deeply entrenched.

Former Israeli army chief drowns
Former Israeli Army Chief of Staff Raphael Eitan has drowned after being swept into the Mediterranean Sea at the Israeli post of Ashdod. Mr Eitan, who was 75, was an army general and the founder and leader of Tzomet, a nationalist and hawkish political party. Israeli media reports say Mr Eitan was working on a port renewal project when he was swept off a breakwater. He was lost in rough seas for more than an hour, Israeli Army Radio reported.

Arab Media Still Reporting Mark Kimmitt KIA in Baghdad
Remember Brig. Gen. Mark T. Kimmitt? He was one of the top brass US generals who gave countless press conferences detailing the American “progress” in the war in Iraq. For those who don’t know his background, Kimmitt's father, Joseph Stanley Kimmitt, is a former Col. in Army who morphed his military service into a Washington, DC, public relations, or lobbyist gig rather, called Kimmitt, Senter, Coates, & Weinferter. As son Mark promoted the war in Iraq, Dad was representing defense contractors such as Textron Defense Systems, Talley Defense Systems, and Boeing (makers of the Army's Apache attack helicopter). The Kimmitt’s are a classic example of the revolving-door syndrome of US military officers and defense contractors - the basis of the 'military-industrial complex', the self -cloning monster that feeds on war, death, and destruction.

Cage that held Bigley is found by US forces in Fallujah
A cage in which Kenneth Bigley is believed to have been held as a hostage has been found by American forces in Fallujah. It was discovered in one of 20 houses in the city where foreign captives are thought to have been kept by insurgents including a group led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The chicken-wire cage, 7ft high and 4ft deep, was seen in a video released by Zarqawi's group in which Mr Bigley, in chains, pleaded for his life. The walls of the room were bloodstained with Arabic writing and what appeared to be a fingerprint in dried blood. Mr Bigley was later beheaded but it is not clear whether that happened at the same house. There had been reports the murder took place in the town of Latifiyah, 20 miles south of Baghdad.

Conservative Christian Republican says listen to Sibel D. Edmonds
The following is an open letter to Eliot Spitzer, Attorney General for the State of New York and William Casey, Chief Investigator for the Attorney General?s Office. In fact, this was hand delivered to Mr. Spitzer's office before it was published as was a three-part expose I have written titled Pop Goes the Bush Mythology Bubble. That three-part article will break soon and is in the hand of investigators at this time. Sibel D. Edmonds was one of the many multilingual translators hired by our FBI to help track down terrorists and anticipate their next moves. At least, that was the plan and the purported 'job description.'

US Military Discussing Air Strikes for 'Regime Change' in Iran 
Pentagon hawks have begun discussing military action against Iran to 'neutralise' its nuclear weapons threat, including possible strikes on leadership, political and security targets. With a deadline of tomorrow for the Islamic republic to begin an agreed freeze on enriching uranium, which can be used to produce nuclear weapons, sources have revealed that the latest Pentagon gaming model for 'neutralising' Iran's nuclear threat involves strikes in support of regime change.

Iraq: The Uncounted
Approximately 300,000 American men and women have served at one time or another in Iraq. Most will return to the United States more or less intact. But some come home the hard way - on a stretcher, bloody and broken. And, as Correspondent Bob Simon says, there are few bloodier or more broken than Chris Schneider. Schneider says he believed in the war in Iraq, and liked wearing the uniform. '[I was] proud to wear it. I loved wearing it,' says Schneider, a Kansas boy straight off the recruitment poster.

Hoon: I'd blast Iran
Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon has said he would 'press the button' for a nuclear strike on Iran if it was menacing Britain with ballistic missiles. Mr Hoon's doomsday warning threatens to wreck Europe's current diplomatic efforts to prevent Iraq developing atomic weapons. It is under orders to stop its uranium enrichment programmes by today. Iran insists its nuclear work is aimed solely at meeting fuel needs. Mr Hoon marched into the delicate manoeuvring during a private speech at Nottingham University. He was under attack from students, who had condemned America's controversial Star Wars missile shield as a waste of money.

The Democrats Lost This Election Twenty Years Ago
I'm beginning to understand what it's like being an 'Angry White Male.' Angry at the outcome of this election. Angry at smarmy neocons. And particularly angry at the democratic leadership. But my anger doesn't just speak for whites. It's for anyone, woman or man, who works hard and tries like hell to make ends meet, only to fall short month after month, year after year. It's frustrating to consider why 59 million people vote for a guy who fights an illegal war, costing this country its youth and its future, and who trumpets freedom while he rips apart the Bill of Rights and reduces democracy to a talking point.

Journo freed from US 'cages'
The Al-Arabiya television channel said that its correspondent in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, Abdel Kader Al-Saadi, had been released after being held for 11 days by the US military. The Dubai-based station said that their correspondent had been arrested by US forces in a mosque in the city on November 11 during the US-led offensive to regain control of the city. He was wearing a vest identifying himself as a journalist at the time, it said.'He was freed after 11 days in detention.'

US withdraws 100 tanks from Republic of Korea
A US army officer in the Republic of Korea (RoK) said that the US has begun to withdraw 100 M1A1 tanks from the border area with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and transfer them to Iraq. The officer affirmed that the withdrawal of the tanks will by no means reduce the RoK's defence capacity because the US-RoK joint forces were reinforced with improved M1A1 Abrams tanks last summer.

Reporter: Wounded Iraqi Made No Movements
The NBC correspondent who filmed the fatal shooting by a Marine of an apparently injured and unarmed Iraqi by a U.S. Marine inside a Fallujah mosque has written on his Web site that the wounded man made no sudden movements before the Marine opened fire on him.Before the opening of the Nov. 8 assault on the rebel-held city, Marine commanders told infantrymen that the rules of engagement allowed for use of deadly force against men of military age deemed holding hostile intent, even if the enemy didn't fire on the Marines first. In a posting on his Web blog dated Sunday, Kevin Sites, a freelancer on assignment for NBC, wrote that he didn't see the wounded Iraqi make any movement before the Marine shot him - but that only the Marine can explain his mental state before the shooting.

The Angel of Death unrepentant to the end
The German doctor known as the Angel of Death for his part in the murders of hundreds of thousands of Jews during World War II was unrepentant to his end. Josef Mengele, who fled the Third Reich as it collapsed and finally settled in South America, kept dairies that have only recently been revealed. The diary material and letters, found last month at the federal police building in Sao Paulo, were seized in 1985 from the home of the German couple who hid Mengele, who died in 1979. His personal writings reveal an absence of remorse for his crimes against humanity, continued support for Adolf Hitler's plans to create a master race, and admiration for South Africa's apartheid.

Mysterious ‘George W. Bush: Our leader’ Clear Channel billboard
A billboard recently put up in Orlando bearing a smiling photograph of President Bush with the words “Our Leader” is raising eyebrows among progressives who feel the poster is akin to that of propaganda used by tyrannical regimes. Raw Story confirmed the billboard’s existence Monday evening. At our behest, a member of an Orlando media organization drove past the billboard on two occasions and verified that it was indeed the one pictured. The billboard pictured, which is on I-4, says that it is a “political public service message brought to you by Clear Channel Outdoor.”

US Media Propaganda Phase II: Preparations for attack on Iran
Are you ready for some more bloodshed? Pop the corn and pass down a cool one! Amerika and its partner in war crimes, Israel, are getting ready to sock it to Iran. Shortly before this worse than disgustingly useless farce we just participated in, hyped as a national presidential election, our government of razor wire mentality shipped specially designed long-distance F-16 Fighting Falcon jets to Israel. And as usual, these heavy duty F-16 fighter planes of superior design and capability when compared to those of our own Air Force were purchased by Israel with our tax money.

Iraqi civilians gunned down at checkpoint
US marines have killed several Iraqi civilians after opening fire at a bus which drove through a checkpoint in the city of Ramadi, the US military and Iraqi police say.
Police said seven died on Saturday while the military said three. 'The driver ignored verbal warning and several warning shots,' the military said in a statement. 'As US marines in the vicinity of the checkpoint attempted to disable the van, the van accelerated toward the marines. The marines then fired upon the vehicle to protect themselves and the integrity of the checkpoint.'

Turkish army reports 'hostile' activity by Greek jet in Aegean Sea
A Greek jet locked its radar on to a Turkish air force plane in international airspace over the Aegean Sea last week, forcing it to activate self-defense measures, the Turkish general staff said. The incident, which occurred on November 18 near the Greek island of Limnos, was the latest episode in long-running tensions between Turkey and Greece, traditional rivals though allies in NATO, over territorial rights in the Aegean. 'An F-16 airplane of the Turkish Air Force used three flares to protect itself against a Greek plane which locked its missile radar on to it during a training flight in international airspace south of the island of Limnos,' the general staff said in a statement.

'Security services foil 9/11 attack in UK'
ITV News understands that the security services have thwarted four or five September 11-style attacks on targets including Canary Wharf and Heathrow Airport. One plot is said to have involved pilots being trained to fly into target buildings, including London's famous financial centre and the world's busiest airport. It is one of a number of attacks planned by al-Qaeda since 9/11 that have come to nothing after the authorities intervened.

Civil war possible after Iraq elections: US' top soldier
US army chief General Richard Myers said in an interview that civil war could erupt in Iraq after forthcoming elections. However, Myers, the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, told the daily Publico there was no indication at present this would happen. 'Civil war is still a possibility. We know that there are forces for whom this is an objective,' Myers said, adding: 'We have not yet any signs that this will happen.' The upcoming elections, pencilled in for January, are seen as a major test of the shattered country's recovery. Myers predicted there would be more violence before the elections rather than afterwards.

Marines shoot insurgent who was 'playing dead'
The US military says Marines in Fallujah have shot and killed an insurgent who engaged them as he was faking being dead, a week after footage of a marine killing an apparently unarmed and wounded Iraqi caused a stir in the region. 'Marines from the 1st Marine Division shot and killed an insurgent who while faking dead opened fire on the marines who were conducting a security and clearing patrol through the streets,' a military statement said. The point-blank shooting on November 13 of a wounded Iraqi was caught on tape and beamed around the world. It raised questions about the degree of military restraint and fanned Arab resentment. The marine was withdrawn from combat and an investigation launched.

Falluja troops told to shoot on sight
On the eve of the assault on Falluja, the US military ordered troops to shoot any male on the street between the ages of 15 and 50 if they were seen as a security threat, regardless of whether they had a weapon. 'You are killers, not murderers. You are warriors not war criminals. Don't cross that line.' Those were the words of a US officer to his men before they took part in the recent assault on the Iraqi city of Falluja. Just days later, one US marine was in the spotlight, with questions being asked about whether he was a murderer and a war criminal.

Bomb found on commercial airliner in Iraq: US embassy
A homemade bomb was found on a commercial airliner in Iraq on Monday, the US embassy here said, adding that US citizens should beware of travelling on commercial carriers flying to the war-torn country. The embassy gave no further details in its statement, adding only that 'additional screening measures are being put into place at the Baghdad International Airport.' It did not say if the 'improvised explosive device' was found on a plane that had just arrived in Baghdad or on one about to depart, saying only that it was found on a plane 'inside Iraq.'

Zarqawi spotted south of Kirkuk
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the suspected al-Qaida leader in Iraq, was spotted south of the northern Iraqi oil-center of Kirkuk, reports said. The daily al-Taakhi, organ of the Kurdistan Democratic Party led by Massoud Barzani, quoted a police source in Kirkuk as saying Zarqawi had fled the battles in Fallujah to northern Iraq and might have been wounded. 'Zarqawi was able to sneak out of Fallujah with the help of his followers and moved in stages to the province of Toz Khormatu, south of Kirkuk,' said the source, who was not identified.

French 'decapitated' protestors
Ivory Coast leader Laurent Gbagbo said on Saturday he believed reports were true that French troops had decapitated local demonstrators during anti-French riots in the West African state this month. 'I wasn't in the hospitals myself but everyone who went there said so: you may take it that the evidence provided by several people is true,' he responded online from Abidjan to a website discussion in Paris. Asked by AFP, French army information services in Paris would say only: 'We have no comment to make on this kind of statement.' Cardinal Bernard Agre, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Abidjan, first made the decapitation charge, saying November 11 on Radio Vatican: 'I have just come from the hospitals. It's unbearable, these young people decapitated by the French army.'

Jackson fears Army will remain in Iraq for years
British troops will be sent to help the US in conflict zones anywhere inside Iraq, prompting fears that soldiers could be stuck in the most dangerous parts of the country fighting insurgents for years to come. General Sir Mike Jackson, the officer commanding the Army, said in an interview with The Independent yesterday that troops could again be dispatched outside the Basra area to help the US and Iraqi forces if the insurgent threat escalates. The deployment could also go on beyond the end of 2005 when the US mandate for the coalition to stay in the country expires. 'It is event-driven,' he said.

Rules of War Are Ignored in Iraq, Says Red Cross
The International Committee of the Red Cross is 'deeply concerned' about the killing of noncombatants in Iraq, operations director Pierre Kraehenbuehl said in a statement. He stressed that international law prohibits killing anyone who is not actively taking part in fighting. 'As hostilities continue in Fallouja and elsewhere, every day seems to bring news of yet another act of utter contempt for the most basic tenet of humanity: the obligation to protect human life and dignity,' Kraehenbuehl said. 'We are deeply concerned by the devastating impact that the fighting in Iraq is having on the people of that country.'

Huge poll protest grips Ukraine
The Ukrainian opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, has told tens of thousands of his supporters in the capital Kiev to stage a civil disobedience campaign. Independence Square was filled with Mr Yushchenko's supporters waving orange flags and insisting that he had won the presidential poll. 'We are launching an organised movement of civil resistance,' he told them. With nearly all the votes counted, the authorities say Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, has a narrow lead.

Blunkett gets tougher on drugs
New police powers to prosecute offenders for possession if they test positive for drugs when they are arrested, even if the only drugs they have are in their bloodstream, are to be announced this week. The measure is part of legislation to be unveiled tomorrow in the Queen's speech alongside plans to introduce identity cards and set up a national agency to tackle serious and organised crime in Britain. The home secretary, David Blunkett, confirmed yesterday that he was still looking at new anti-terror powers. He believed there was a 'strong case' for judges in some terrorist trials to sit without a jury.

Too much the good soldier
Caution became capitulation. The good soldier told a bad lie. That will always stain Colin Powell. He was the Walter Cronkite of politics, was so popular and so trusted across party lines that his job approval ratings as secretary of state were between 80 and 90 percent. He cashed in on that popularity on Feb. 5, 2003, when he carried the Bush administration's case against Iraq to the United Nations Security Council. Powell went at a time when known war hawks Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Dick Cheney, and President Bush himself were struggling to convince Americans that Iraq was a mortal threat to the United States.

On executions, beheadings, and other propaganda operations
The pattern has been consistent and obvious. Every news report or scandal that has been detrimental to the Bush/Anglo-American war agenda has been followed, within hours, with shocking executions (real and staged) that are attributed to 'terrorist insurgents,' despite questionable circumstances, non-verifiable evidence and unreliable sources, such as 'unnamed' intelligence and military officials. The parties responsible for these acts have not and likely will not be identified, thanks in large part to deliberate US/Pentagon blackouts of reporting from war zones, and disinformation-laden and Bush-controlled corporate media.

Bono's New Casualty: 'Private Ryan'
As American soldiers were dying in Falluja, some Americans back home spent Veteran's Day mocking the very ideal our armed forces are fighting for - freedom. Ludicrous as it sounds, 66 ABC affiliates revolted against their own network and refused to broadcast 'Saving Private Ryan.' The reason: fear. Not fear of terrorism or fear of low ratings but fear that their own government would punish them for exercising freedom of speech.

Five shot dead in deer hunting dispute
A dispute among deer hunters over a tree stand in north-western Wisconsin erupted in a series of shootings that left five people dead and three others injured, officials said. Jake Hodgkinson, a deputy at the county jail, identified the suspect as Chai Vang but would give no additional details. Several news organisations in Minneapolis-St Paul reported the suspect was 36 years old and from St Paul, Minnesota. The incident happened when two hunters were returning to their rural cabin on private land in Sawyer County and saw the suspect in one of their tree stands, County Chief Deputy Tim Zeigle said. A confrontation and shooting followed.

Tough new anti-terror laws planned
The government is considering new tough anti-terrorism laws to prevent an al Qaeda attack including plans to target suspects even if they have not committed an offence, Home Secretary David Blunkett will say today. The proposals would see the creation of special anti-terror courts which would sit without juries, allowing information obtained from phone taps to be used as evidence in trials, and civil orders against people suspected of planning terrorism. Those breaching such orders could face jail even if they have not committed a crime.

Fear is the key as Blair apes Bush's victory plan
Tony Blair will place national security and crime at the heart of his bid for a third term in Downing Street under a ‘scare’ strategy similar to the one that helped return George W Bush to the White House. ‘Operation Third Term’, led by campaign supremo Alan Milburn, has identified the issues of fighting terrorism and boosting public safety as the hard edge of a campaign originally intended to focus on reforms to public services. Beginning with this week’s Queen’s Speech, Labour’s pitch will now be a naked appeal to the electorate’s most fundamental concerns, a strategy known in the US as appealing to the ‘security moms’.

Arafat doctors found 'no poison'
Tests on Yasser Arafat's body showed no traces of any known poisons, according to newly released medical files. 'There is no clear diagnosis,' said Nasser al-Kidwa, the late leader's nephew, who collected the files on behalf of the Palestinian Authority. Mr Arafat died in a military hospital in France on 11 November from a so-far unexplained illness. France handed over the records to Mr Kidwa, the Palestinian envoy at the UN, despite objections from his widow.

Watchdog welcomes Iran nuclear move
The head of the world nuclear watchdog today welcomed Iran's promise to suspend uranium enrichment in the hope of allaying fears that it wants to make a nuclear bomb. Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told BBC radio that Iran's government still had a lot of work to do, but added: 'They need to build confidence and the suspension of uranium enrichment is a good step in the right direction.' The announcement came after an announcement on Iranian state television today that it was suspending the programme, in line with a deadline agreed with the European Union a week ago.

France Is Cast as the Villain in Ivory Coast
When the chanting mob descended on the strip mall that Jean Bobue Nguessam is paid to guard, he stood his ground, though not out of courage. 'If the French all leave, I will have no job,' Mr. Nguessam said as he stood a lonely watch over the pillaged remains last week, in the wake of riots that followed an airstrike on French peacekeepers and brought this country to the brink of war. Nightstick in hand, he had tried to reason with the crowd, but he was easily outnumbered. The mob made its way down the row of shops, stripping the shelves of a liquor store, then a video rental shop, a cellphone store and finally a hair salon.

Flight imbound to Washington from France Diverted 
Two Moroccan men were taken off a flight from Paris bound for Washington after officials determined one of the men was on the U.S. no-fly list. Air France Flight 026 was diverted to Bangor on Saturday night and the two men were being detained Sunday as officials investigated why the passenger was allowed to board the plane in Paris. The second man detained was traveling with the banned passenger. 'They are being detained and will be going through processing for expedited removal' from the country, said Janet Rapaport, spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Schwarzenegger's World Tour May Be a Presidential Campaign Trail
Govorner. Arnold Schwarzenegger is acting as if he wants to be president. Though he insists he is not aiming for the Oval Office, Schwarzenegger is keeping a public schedule that repeatedly puts him in forums that cast him as a political figure of global stature. He is using his office in ways that analysts and public officials say could strengthen a presidential bid if the U.S. Constitution is ever amended to allow foreign-born citizens to run. And all of this is helping to fuel a fledgling movement striving to pass such an amendment.

Iraq looks to world for approval
An international conference aimed at supporting the Iraqi political process begins in Egypt. The two-day conference in the resort of Sharm el-Sheikh will start with a meeting of the foreign ministers of Iraq, its six neighbours and Egypt. It will then be widened to include ministers from the G8 and China, as well as representatives of international organisations. Iraq's interim government hopes the event will boost support for elections. A spokesman said the whole country would take part in the elections, even areas beset by violence such as Falluja and Ramadi.

Arab Media Reporting 25 American Soldiers Die in Car Bomb Attack
Islamic Media outlets are reporting that twenty five American Soldiers died in this morning's car bomb attack, south of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. According to the Islam Memo correspondent, the car was filled with a large amount of TNT Explosives and at 9:30 this morning local time, as two American troop carriers crossed a bridge over the Euphrates River they became the target of the attack. Islam Memo is reporting that the correspondent noticed that the two carriers were transporting around thirty American soldiers and after the car bomb attack, not less than 25 had been killed.

'Smart Dust' may soon be watching you
It's a project first dreamed up by the military to get information from the battlefield.
They call it 'Smart Dust' and it may soon make it possible to keep track of anything, anywhere, including you. They are the world's smallest wireless sensors. And at about the size of a wristwatch, the contain a battery powered microphone, an accelerometer, as well as temperature and humidity sensors, according to Sam Godwin, Vice President of Crossbow. Scatter them 250 feet apart and they will form their own wireless network similar to a spider's web.

China plane 'flew like drunkard'
A Chinese passenger plane that crashed on Sunday was flying erratically moments before it plunged into an icy lake, eyewitnesses said. China's Xinhua news agency quoted one witness as saying the plane flew 'like a staggering drunkard'. Officials have ruled out sabotage as a cause of the crash, though the plane's black box has not yet been found. All 53 people on board, and one person on the ground, died in the crash, near the city of Baotou in Inner Mongolia. Witnesses have spoken of an explosion in mid-air.

Britain joins EU army
Britain is to commit more than 2,000 troops to a new 18,000-strong European Union army that will be deployed as a peacekeeper to the world’s trouble spots. Despite concerns within the military about overstretch, ministers will announce this week that at least one battle group will be ready by January. They will also say the force will expand by 2007 to comprise a multinational force of up to 12 elite rapid-reaction battle groups — each with 1,500 soldiers. At least two of these groups will be ready to deploy at 15 days’ notice to humanitarian or peacekeeping emergencies, primarily in Africa.

Rumsfeld showing no signs of leaving
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has been acting like a man who wants to keep his job. Rumsfeld has just returned from a week discussing regional security issues with his counterparts in Central and South America. He has been planning foreign travel well into next year. And he is marching ahead with his plans to make the military more agile, even as he is looking optimistically toward January and the scheduled first round of elections in Iraq.