Part two (since I ran out of room on part one. Ha! )


Link between child porn and Muslim terrorists discovered in police raids
Paedophile websites are being used to pass information between terrorists

A link between terrorism plots and hardcore child pornography is becoming clear after a string of police raids in Britain and across the Continent, an investigation by The Times has discovered. Images of child abuse have been found during Scotland Yard antiterrorism swoops and in big inquiries in Italy and Spain.

Secret coded messages are being embedded into child pornographic images, and paedophile websites are being exploited as a secure way of passing information between terrorists.



Iran: Russia to ship nuke plant supplies

TEHRAN, Oct. 17 (UPI) -- Russia will ship nearly 1,000 tons of supplies to the Iranian city of Bushehr to help build a nuclear power plant, an Iranian official said Friday.

Iranian Atomic Energy Organization deputy chief Ahmad Fayaz Bakhsh said that the impending equipment delivery by Russia is part of an agreement reached between the two countries, RIA Novosti reported.

The $1 billion Bushehr nuclear power plant is part of a 1995 agreement between Russia and Iran regarding the proposed site in the southern Iranian city.



Kazakhstan Set To Increase Energy Cooperation With Iran

KazMunaiGaz, Kazakhstan's state-owned oil and gas company, is charting a new course under the leadership of its new president, Kayrgeldy Kabyldin, who took over in August. Kabyldin is guiding the company toward closer cooperation with Iran, and he has made it clear that international sanctions against the Islamic Republic will not stand in his way.

Kabyldin -- the third chief of KMG already this year -- addressed the Kazakhstan International Oil and Gas Exhibition (KIOGE) in Almaty last week, where he said that "there are proposals from Iran regarding the shelf of the Persian Gulf."

That suggestion of potential cooperation may have been a surprise for some, but it was only one of the recent statements Kabyldin has made about Kazakhstan and Iran increasing their oil industry ties.




Machete gangs bring fear to South Africa as they carry out mutilations for traditional medicine

Machete-wielding gangs in South Africa are mutilating young people to provide body parts for the traditional medicine market, an investigation has found.

The practice has brought terror to parts of South Africa, where it is estimated that at least 300 people are killed each year for the medicine, known as muti.

One victim was Fortune Khumalo, a boy of nine, who was attacked as he relieved himself in bushes.

His attacker sliced off his penis and testicles to sell to a traditional healer in Johannesburg, where body parts can fetch £250 and a human head up to £500, according to the research for Channel 4's Unreported World.

Fortune survived the attack but is in constant pain because his family cannot afford the reconstructive surgery he needs. His assailant was caught with the boy's genitalia wrapped in a towel in his pocket.



Delegation from Mennonite universities visits Iran

AKRON, Pa. – A delegation from six U.S. and Canadian Mennonite universities visited Iran from Oct. 4 to 10 to explore opportunities for academic collaboration with Iranian universities.

The delegation was warmly welcomed by Iranian educators and students and encouraged to pursue further interactions with Iranian universities, according to delegation members. Proposals include professor and student exchanges, academic conferences, joint research projects and video-conferencing between Iranian and North American students.



Iran Wants Upgraded Coordination with Arab States

Iran's ambassador to Lebanon Mohamad Riza Shibani on Thursday called for "upgraded cooperation and solidarity" between states of the Middle East that belong to the region's culture.

Shibani, talking to reporters after meeting Premier Fouad Saniora, said exchanging visits by officials of such Middle East states "would help bolster the required cooperation."




One Killed in Georgia Law Office Blast

An elderly man was killed and four others were injured by a bomb he was suspected of setting off at a small-town law office in northwestern Georgia on Friday.

The explosion set ablaze the three-story white house that served as the offices of McCamy, Phillips, Tuggle & Fordham, situated in a business district in Dalton, Ga., about 30 minutes from Chattanooga, Tenn.

In an afternoon news conference, Jason Parker, the Dalton police chief, identified the man as Lloyd Sylvester Cantrell, 78, a resident of a Dalton suburb.

“What we have here is not an act of terrorism,” said Scott Sweetow, an agent of the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms bureau. “What we have is a depraved individual, who by all accounts decided to commit what was in effect a suicide mission.”




Opec's weakest must bow to will of the Saudis

It may be good news for drivers filling up at the pumps, but the dramatic fall in the global price of crude could have grave consequences for the public finances of many oil-producing nations, especially against a backdrop of a broadening global economic crisis.

As they prepare to meet in Vienna next week, Opec member states are facing steep declines in tax revenues and, in some cases, rapidly swelling budget deficits.

With the oil price having slumped since July — it has more than halved, and stood at less than $70 per barrel on Thursday — an emergency meeting of the cartel of 13 producer nations is due to take place next Friday. Members such as Iran, Iraq and Nigeria will be hoping that, by implementing a cut in production, they will put a floor under recent price falls.

While wealthier producers such as the United Arab Emirates are cushioned from the falls by vast budget surpluses and foreign reserves, Iran relies on oil for 80 per cent of its revenues. Isolated from the rest of the world via a trade embargo, Opec's most hawkish member has repeatedly stated it would like to see prices stay around $100 per barrel — a level that many believe is unsustainable as the global economy sinks into recession, sapping energy demand.




Philippine court ruling deals blow to peace agreement with Muslim militants

The rejection of the Supreme Court of the Philippines of a government pact with Muslim militants has delivered another setback to efforts to end a four-decades long insurgency in the south.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said Wednesday it would now appeal to the international community before considering more talks with Manila. Commentators in the Philippines urged a continuation of the peace process, but some also characterized Tuesday's ruling as a victory for the rule of law.

The peace process was already in tatters after violence since August has left 100 dead and more than half a million people displaced.




UN rejects Iran, Iceland UNSC bid

Iceland and the Islamic Republic of Iran have failed to secure non-permanent membership in the United Nations Security Council.

The General Assembly, which convenes once a year to elect five of the 10 non-permanent members of the 15-nation council, voted for Japan, Turkey, Austria, Mexico and Uganda in a Friday meeting.

The permanent members, which were originally drawn from the victorious powers involved in World War II, include the United States, Russia, Britain, France and China.

Iran, which is currently under UN sanctions over its uranium enrichment activities, lost the Asian seat to Japan.




Putin May Use Credit Squeeze to `Destroy' Oligarchs

Oct. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Vladimir Putin came to power in 2000 vowing to destroy Russia's oligarchs "as a class.'' Within two years, he'd driven two into exile and imprisoned another.
Now, he may use the global markets meltdown to finish the job.

The $50 billion that the prime minister and President Dmitry Medvedev have pledged to lend cash-strapped companies will extend state control over business leaders. Billionaires seeking bailouts -- including Oleg Deripaska, Russia's richest man, and Mikhail Fridman -- will have to give authorities veto power over their companies' financing decisions.

"This will give the state more leverage over the country's biggest companies and main industries,'' said Chris Weafer, chief strategist at UralSib Financial Corp in Moscow. "In 2008, there is only one real oligarch: the state.''



A short, sharp shock or armageddon?
Downturns come in all shapes and sizes - are we facing a concentrated few months of pain or a long decade of misery?



Report: Bush offers Golan Heights to Syria


US President George W. Bush has reportedly offered to force Israel to fully surrender the Golan Heights and conduct a swift withdrawal from the strategic plateau if Syria will agree to sever ties to the regime of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

That according to a report in the Kuwaiti newspaper al-Jareida on Friday.

A senior Palestinian Authority official told the newspaper that Bush made the offer in a handwritten letter that was given to Syrian President Bashar Assad by US officials earlier this week.

[ Fool. If he thinks God is going to allow that he's gonna learn differently-- the easy way or the hard way.]




Iranians eat attempt to make world's longest sandwich

TEHRAN, October 17 (RIA Novosti) - An attempt by Iranian chefs to make the world's longest sandwich during a food festival in the capital, Tehran, was eaten before the record could be registered, local media reported.

It took two days to prepare the 1.4 metric tons of ostrich meat, chicken, mayonnaise, mushrooms, onions, garlic, spices and bread to make the 1.5-km (0.9-mile) sandwich, which was eaten in minutes.



Russia Profile Weekly Experts Panel: Time for a New Global Leader?

In a twist of fate, Russia is now emerging as a country that is ready and willing to resume the responsibilities of global leadership. In recent weeks, the Russian leadership has increasingly come to recognize its dependence on the world economy. The global financial crisis has had an impact on the Russian economy, with the Russian stock market losing more than 60 percent of its value since last May. Is President Dmitry Medvedev showing global statesmanship? Is Russia trying to position itself as a responsible global player that has the ideas and the will to lead?




Police fight police in Sao Paulo riots
Detectives on stroke clash violently with state troopers during protest march over pay

Riot police in Sao Paulo clashed violently yesterday with plainclothes detectives who were staging a protest march.

TV stations captured footage of hundreds of state police in riot gear using tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets after striking civil police tried to break through a barrier protecting a state government palace.

The nearby Albert Einstein hospital, in Sao Paulo's Morumbi district, treated 13 people who were injured in the clash, none seriously. It did not say whether they were police or detectives.



Iran’s ambassador meets Lebanese premier

TEHRAN – Iran’s ambassador to Beirut Mohammadreza Sheibani has held talks with Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, Beirut based Al-Safir newspaper reported on Friday.

During the meeting, the two sides held talks on ways to expand bilateral relations.




LAF commander inks deal for more US weaponry

BEIRUT: A senior US defense official signed an agreement in Beirut on Friday to give the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) additional military equipment. US Undersecretary of Defense Eric Edelman met with Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and the commander of the LAF, General Jean Kahwaji. A statement issued by the US Embassy said that Edelman and Kahwaji signed an agreement for the LAF to receive additional automatic grenade launchers.




Wall Street banks in $70bn staff payout
Pay and bonus deals equivalent to 10% of US government bail-out package

Financial workers at Wall Street's top banks are to receive pay deals worth more than $70bn (£40bn), a substantial proportion of which is expected to be paid in discretionary bonuses, for their work so far this year - despite plunging the global financial system into its worst crisis since the 1929 stock market crash, the Guardian has learned.

Staff at six banks including Goldman Sachs and Citigroup are in line to pick up the payouts despite being the beneficiaries of a $700bn bail-out from the US government that has already prompted criticism. The government's cash has been poured in on the condition that excessive executive pay would be curbed.




Analysts: Al-Qaida Has Funds Despite Economic Woes
Analysts Say al-Qaida Awash in Funds Despite Global Financial Crisis

Al-Qaida, which gets its money from the drug trade in Afghanistan and sympathizers in the oil-rich Gulf states, is likely to escape the effects of the global financial crisis.

One reason is that al-Qaida and other Islamic terrorists have been forced to avoid using banks, relying instead on less-efficient ways to move their cash around the world, analysts said.

Those methods include hand-carrying money and using informal transfer networks called hawalas.



Iraqi police: Suicide bomber kills mosque preacher

Iraqi police say a suicide bomber has killed a prominent Sunni mosque preacher in the former insurgent stronghold of Fallujah.

A police official says the bomber struck the imam at the entrance of his house and no other casualties were reported.

The official says the slain imam Sulaiman al-Jamaili was a member of Iraq's main Sunni Arab political party in the Anbar province city.




Men arrested in attacks on Iraqi Christians

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqi security forces Friday arrested four men in Mosul for allegedly committing criminal attacks against civilians in that northern city, particularly against Christians, a defense ministry spokesman said.

"We know that they are part of a criminal gang that has been committing criminal acts in Mosul and we will do our best to arrest the rest," Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari told CNN.

Killings and threats against Christians in Mosul have prompted at least 6,000 Christians to flee the city, Iraq's Ministry of Immigration and Displaced Persons announced Thursday. The number represents 1,424 families.

Iraq officials have said the families were frightened by a series of killings and threats by Muslim extremists ordering them to convert to Islam or risk death.

Fourteen Christians have been slain in the past two weeks in the city, which is about 260 miles (420 kilometers) north of Baghdad.

Mosul is one of the last Iraqi cities where al Qaeda in Iraq has a significant presence and routinely carries out attacks. The U.S. military said it killed the Sunni militant group's No. 2 leader Abu Qaswarah in a raid in the northern city earlier this month.

[Mosul is also ancient Nineveh. ]



The Axis of Diesel
The sharp decline in energy prices has huge economic and diplomatic implications. It is important that such shifts do not destabilise the global economy further




Somali pirates can divert maritime routes away from Suez Canal

Apart from hijacking Egyptian ships off the Somali coast and risking sailors’ lives, Egypt has to face a bigger threat. The Suez Canal could be in jeopardy of losing revenue due to the intensification of attacks along the coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden.

The International Maritime Bureau's Piracy Reporting Centre in Kuala Lumpur says 73 ships have been attacked off the Somali coast since January, turning it into the most dangerous maritime route in the world. No more than 15 ships were hit by piracy last year.



Tornado terror (New Zealand)

Residents of a Cambridge rest home had to be evacuated and firemen dived for their lives after a tornado ripped through the town this morning, leaving a trail of roofless homes and downed trees.

Emergency services received more than 30 phone calls between 3-3.30am as more than 100 houses in the tornado's west to east path across Cambridge and Leamington suffered lost or damaged roofs, while trees and power lines were left sprawled on the ground and many cars were damaged.

An 80-year-old old oak tree, on the corner of Carlyle and Browning Streets, was uprooted as the tornado hit the area around Gwyneth Common.




Couple Flee Home Invaded By Worms (Nebraska)

A Bellevue couple has been forced out of their home due to an invasion of thousands of worms.

John Lee claims some of his stored items are ruined because of the worms, but what he and his wife hate is when the worms crawl into everything in their home near 25th and Harrison.

During the daytime the worms curl up and keep to the basement and there are plenty of them. For Lee and wife Sharon Gallagher, the problem comes at night when they say the worms come crawling up from the basement.



Rat Population Increasing in Las Vegas Valley

Some of the Las Vegas valley's older neighborhoods have a big problem with roof rats. One homeowner is learning first-hand just how bad the problem is. In some cases, the infestation can be so extensive, it requires professional pest control.

Just like everything else in Clark County, the valley's roof rat population has continued to grow over the years -- ever since the early 90's when the urban rodents first reared their furry heads.

"They run on the wall. You see them all over the place. We're infested with rats," said don Martinez.
...
"I know this is Las Vegas, famous for the Rat Pack, but I never booked them for my backyard," said Martinez.




Crop prices set to rise up to 70% due to EU pest management restrictions

If the new restrictions come into effect:
• Wheat and potato prices will increase by at least 20%
• EU to become net importer of key crops
• The cost to be borne by European consumers



Rome workers uncover city of dead

ROME, Italy (AP) -- Workers renovating a rugby stadium have uncovered a vast complex of tombs beneath Rome that mimic the houses, blocks and streets of a real city, according to officials, who have unveiled a series of new finds.

Culture Ministry officials said Thursday that medieval pottery shards in the city of the dead, or necropolis, show the area may have been inhabited by the living during the Dark Ages after being used for centuries for burials during the Roman period.

It is not yet clear who was buried in the ancient cemetery, but archaeologists at the still partially excavated site believe at least some of the dead were freed slaves of Greek origin.


***

Magnitude 3.3 - NEVADA
2008 October 17 03:05:11 UTC
Magnitude 3.3 - ARIZONA
2008 October 18 02:27:38 UTC

Magnitude 1.5 - NEW YORK
2008 October 17 08:02:42 UTC

Earthquake hits northern Sweden

Magnitude 5.8 - EASTERN NEW GUINEA REG, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
2008 October 18 00:54:41 UTC