For those who must know first
AFP – Rikimaru Toho doesn’t mind being stared at as long as he can hold the gaze of passers-by long enough to entice them to stop and sit down for an unusual show: a comic book reading.
Read More: Japan manga man revives story-telling with modern twist
(AFP)
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AFP – Wildfires that destroyed at least 28 homes in Australia were coming under control Sunday as a blistering heatwave that claimed dozens of lives eased, officials said.
Read More: Destructive wildfires tamed as Australian heatwave eases: officials
(AFP)
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AP – The biggest gains in the Gaza war have gone to the hard-liners on both sides. Hamas is declaring victory, while Israel’s leading hawk is the front-runner in elections just over a week away.
Read More: Hard-liners strengthened by Gaza war
(AP)
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AFP – Harry Redknapp defended himself against accusations made by Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez as the war of words regarding the future of Robbie Keane intensified.
Read More: Redknapp hits back at Benitez over Keane
(AFP)
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AP – An armed group vandalized Caracas’ oldest synagogue, shattering religious objects and spray-painting walls in what Jewish leaders called the worst attack ever on their community in Venezuela.
Read More: Venezuelan synagogue attacked as relations worsen
(AP)
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AP – Way before Prince, Paul McCartney or the Rolling Stones ever stepped onto a Super Bowl stage, there was Shirlee Bertolini. In her donkey costume.
Read More: From bands to Bruce, halftimes show Super growth
(AP)
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AFP – Carla Bruni and Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday celebrate their first wedding anniversary.
Read More: One year on, France's first couple settles in
(AFP)
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E! Online – Thursday TV’s Big Winner, Excluding American Idol: CSI (20.1 million, per Nielsen estimates) was way up over last week, and won’t have to hear about how the show can’t survive without William Petersen. Until, of course, the next time it’s down.
Read More: Laurence Fishburne Not a Jinx;Hell's Kitchen Hot
(E! Online)
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E! Online – A script for the Sex and the City sequel isn’t even written yet, but one thing that we probably won’t be witnessing again is something as dramatic as Carrie being left at the altar.
Read More: Sex and the City Sequel: What We Won't Be Seeing!
(E! Online)
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E! Online – If Benjamin Button traveled back in time just 15 years, would he wind up in Italy?
Read More: Italian Writer Files Suit Against Benjamin Button
(E! Online)
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 ABC News |
Hamas head in Tehran to meet Iranian leaders
Reuters - DAMASCUS, Feb 1 (Reuters) – A high-level delegation from Hamas arrived in Tehran early on Sunday as part of a regional push to reinforce support for the Palestinian group after the Israeli invasion of Gaza, a Hamas official said. Life in the Gaza Strip is not 'back to normal' Mitchell on last leg of peace tour |
Read More: Hamas head in Tehran to meet Iranian leaders – Reuters
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 New York Times |
Obama praises peaceful Iraq polls
BBC News - US President Barack Obama has congratulated Iraqis for holding a largely peaceful vote for provincial councils across the country. Video: Under Tight Security, Iraqis Go to the Polls Iraqis turn out in record numbers for crucial elections |
Read More: Obama praises peaceful Iraq polls – BBC News
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 TopNews |
Probe report awaited, says Mukherjee
Pakistan Dawn - By Jawed Naqvi NEW DELHI, Jan 31: Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday denied reported suggestions that Pakistan had briefed New Delhi on its findings in the Mumbai terror investigations and said India was still waiting for the report. It is for Pakistan to act: Chidambaram ‘Pak delegation told Indians unsettled disputes cause tensions’ |
Read More: Probe report awaited, says Mukherjee – Pakistan Dawn
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 Boston Globe |
KY deploys full Army Nat'l Guard for storm cleanup
The Associated Press - MAYFIELD, Ky. (AP) – Gov. Steve Beshear deployed every last one of his Army National Guardsmen on Saturday, with his state still reeling after a deadly ice storm encrusted it this week. Beshear activates 'virtually entire National Guard' Red Cross Goes to Help Powerless in Kentucky |
Read More: KY deploys full Army Nat'l Guard for storm cleanup – The Associated Press
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Legislators at odds over federal stimulus aid
San Francisco Chronicle - The federal stimulus package approved by the House of Representatives last week seems like welcome news for California's cash-strapped government, with billions of dollars earmarked for schools, roads and health care in the state. Contra Costa Times Editorial: It's time for California's lawmakers … Californians will get IOUs for refunds |
Read More: Legislators at odds over federal stimulus aid – San Francisco Chronicle
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 WANE |
Stadium Ceremony Welcomes Home Indiana Troops
93.1 WIBC Indianapolis - By AP About 4500 members of the Indiana Air and Army National Guard marched into Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday amid cheers of appreciation for their service overseas. Guardsmen gather for welcome-home event National Guard troop |
Read More: Stadium Ceremony Welcomes Home Indiana Troops – 93.1 WIBC Indianapolis
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 ABC News |
Five-Day Mail Delivery? Not So Fast.
Washington Post - By Joe Davidson The chances that Congress will allow the Postal Service to cut one delivery day each week are growing slim. Postmaster General John E. Potter asked Congress for that flexibility as a last resort to save money in the face of tumbling … Video: No Mail On 'Light' Days? US Postal Service mulls 5-day-a-week delivery |
Read More: Five-Day Mail Delivery? Not So Fast. – Washington Post
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 Canada.com |
US Panel Delays Requirement That Toys Be Tested for Lead
Bloomberg - By Mark Drajem Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) — A US panel delayed for a year the requirement that all children’s toys be tested for lead content. Children's product sellers get 1-year reprieve on lead testing Officials Delay New Toy-Testing Standards |
Read More: US Panel Delays Requirement That Toys Be Tested for Lead – Bloomberg
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 ABC News |
Alaskans brace for Redoubt Volcano eruption
MSNBC - ANCHORAGE, Alaska. – Volcanic activity is picking up at Alaska's Mount Redoubt, and that has meant an increase in business for hardware stores and auto parts shops in south-central Alaska. Scientist see holes in glacier at Alaska volcano Redoubt calms some, seismicity still above normal |
Read More: Alaskans brace for Redoubt Volcano eruption – MSNBC
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 TrustedReviews |
Hello there Palm, Will iPhones patent allows Dell Smarphones to …
International Business Times - Dell, the number 2 PC maker, which is struggling to stave off continued erosion in PC market share, may be planning a new line of smartphones featuring Android and Windows Mobile platforms according to a news report. Dissecting Apple's "Multitouch" Patent: Can It Stop Palm? Apple Gets iPhone Patent |
Read More: Hello there Palm, Will iPhones patent allows Dell Smarphones to … – International Business Times
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 Macworld |
Google Tips Hand on GDrive …
InternetNews.com - Source code with comment lines outline what GDrive is and will be used for, if it ever ships. By Andy Patrizio: More stories by this author: A Google source code file has given a clear indication that Google is indeed working on its rumored GDrive … Footprints Of Google's GDrive Spotted Google Chocolate Factory leaks (more) GDrive talk |
Read More: Google Tips Hand on GDrive … – InternetNews.com
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 Seattle Post Intelligencer |
EA readying Need for Speed threesome
GameSpot - By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot Q&A: Publisher trifurcating its street racing franchise into trio of new properties: the MMOG NFS World Online, the Nintendo-only NDS: Nitro, and NFS: Shift for the PS3, 360, PSP, and PC. EA announces three more 'Need for Speed' titles for 2009 EA reveals 3 new 'Need for Speed' games |
Read More: EA readying Need for Speed threesome – GameSpot
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 NewsOXY |
Battling Apple's iPhone …
InternetNews.com - By Judy Mottl: More stories by this author: In its quest to knock the high-flying iPhone off its perch, Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) spruced up components and design which led to higher costs for its latest release, the BlackBerry Storm 9530. Study: BlackBerry Storm Costs More to Build than iPhone The Eye of the (BlackBerry) Storm |
Read More: Battling Apple's iPhone … – InternetNews.com
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 Android Central |
T-Mobile USA faces stiff competition
CNET News - Competition is heating up in the wireless market and it looks like T-Mobile USA is getting singed. The company's parent company Deutsche Telekom, which owns the wireless company T-Mobile International and T-Mobile USA, reported earnings on Wednesday … T-Mobile's growth focusing on 3G T-Mobile Reports 32.8 Million Subscribers |
Read More: T-Mobile USA faces stiff competition – CNET News
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 ABC News |
Mars rover Spirit encounters more age-related problems
Los Angeles Times - Five years into a life expected to last 90 days, the rover failed to move after getting driving directions and didn't record a day's activities, NASA says. Mars Rover works through a technical bump in the road NASA: Mars rover back on its feet; probe continues |
Read More: Mars rover Spirit encounters more age-related problems – Los Angeles Times
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 Los Angeles Times |
Ostler: Knucklehead of the Week
San Francisco Chronicle - Torre co-authors a book, "The Yankee Years," with Sports Illustrated's Tim Verducci. Before the book is on the market, Torre goes into full vague-and-awkward-apology-based-on-alleged-media-distortion mode. Can you trust Joe? Torre's tell-all raises doubts about what he … Torre Says He Is Proud of ‘The Yankee Years’ |
Read More: Ostler: Knucklehead of the Week – San Francisco Chronicle
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 Point-Spreads.com |
LIVE BLOG UFC 94: Live updates and results
Detroit Free Press - By NICK MEYER • FREE PRESS SPECIAL WRITER • January 31, 2009 Good evening fight fans and welcome to the Detroit Free Press’ live blog of UFC 94: St-Pierre vs. BJ Penn and the pure fighting spirit Videogame based on UFC, Undisputed Launch |
Read More: LIVE BLOG UFC 94: Live updates and results – Detroit Free Press
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AP – Mississippi is the latest state trying to unload pricey property because of the economic meltdown.
Read More: eBay: Cars, boats and, just maybe, Miss.'s jet
(AP)
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Reuters – Win or lose on Sunday, having Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl could be a good luck charm for the U.S. stock market, according to a light-hearted analysis done to coincide with the biggest NFL game of the year.
Read More: Steelers in Super Bowl may bring luck to investors
(Reuters)
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AP – In a gut-busting display of championship eating, a man nicknamed Super Squibb has won Philadelphia’s Wing Bowl by downing 203 chicken wings in about 20 minutes. For his efforts, 23-year-old John Squibb of Berlin, N.J., gets a car, a $7,500 diamond ring and a crown of miniature chickens. And maybe a case of indigestion.
Read More: Gluttony and strippers reign at Philly Wing Bowl
(AP)
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AP – Al’Lonzo Coleman scored 17 points and Presbyterian used a second-half surge to defeat High Point 71-63 on Saturday night.
Read More: Presbyterian tops High Point 71-63
(AP)
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AP – Denis Clemente tied a Big 12 record with 44 points, leading Kansas State to an 85-81 overtime upset of No. 11 Texas on Saturday, ending the Longhorns’ 19-game home winning streak.
Read More: Kansas State beats No. 11 Texas 85-81 in OT
(AP)
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Reuters – Bob Hayes, known as “The World’s Fastest Human” after winning 100 meters gold at the 1964 Olympics, gave thanks on Saturday for being elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame despite having passed away in 2002.
Read More: Hayes's sister reads thank-you note after Hall of Fame entry
(Reuters)
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AP – Cam Ward made 19 saves for his second shutout in two weeks, and Matt Cullen had a goal and an assist for the second straight game in the Carolina Hurricanes’ 2-0 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers on Saturday night.
Read More: Ward, Cullen lead 'Canes past Atlanta, 2-0
(AP)
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AP – After erasing a four-stroke deficit in five holes, Kenny Perry wanted to be alone atop the FBR Open leaderboard.
Read More: Perry rallies to lead FBR Open
(AP)
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AFP – Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said he expected there to be tricky moments between now and the end of the season after seeing his side extend their Premier League lead.
Read More: Manchester United manager ready for title twists
(AFP)
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AP – Tony Parker prevailed in a clash of All-Star point guards, scoring 25 points and stretching San Antonio’s division lead over Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets in a 106-93 win Saturday night.
Read More: Paul scores 38, but Spurs still prevail
(AP)
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Reuters – U.S. President Barack Obama sought to rally support for his emerging economic rescue package on Saturday, as he stood by his latest cabinet nominee to run into tax problems that could impede confirmation.
Read More: Obama pushes economic plan; cloud over health pick
(Reuters)
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Reuters – The United Steelworkers Union said on Saturday it would extend by 24 hours talks for a new labor contract for U.S. refinery workers, delaying a possible strike that could affect over half of U.S. refining capacity.
Read More: Refinery talks extended, strike delayed
(Reuters)
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Reuters – An official in President Barack Obama’s administration said on Saturday the announcement of a rescue plan for the financial system was running on schedule.
Read More: Obama administration says rescue plan "on track"
(Reuters)
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Kids will do just about anything to convince their parents to get them a pet. But one boy took his mission to a whole new level. Steve Hartman explains in Assignment America.
Read More: A Boy And His Hedgehog
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Iran wants the group handed over for prosecution, but the U.S. has pledged to ensure its protection under international law
Read More: Iranian Group a Source of Contention in Iraq
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How the fate of a few Iranians in Iraq could provide a first test of the Obama Administration’s relations with Iran
Read More: Iran Group in Iraq Poses Thorny Issue for U.S.
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Last weekend, we brought the news that Japan is surprisingly close to doling out licences for 4G mobile-phone network operators, and today we see one reason why.
The market leader there, NTT DoCoMo, has announced that it has had enough of the old 2G standard and is ready to switch off those transmitters and move customers to either 3G or, presumably, 4G services.
Early problems
DoCoMo’s 54 million subscribers are almost all (88 per cent) on the 3G FOMA service anyway, so it should have little trouble bumping the remainder off the 2G PDC network by shutdown in March 2012.
The company’s W-CDMA 3G service began in late 2001 with a small selection of handsets that provided poor coverage and weak battery life. Nevertheless, DoCoMo and its rivals quickly moved on and 3G is now the norm in Japan.
In black ink
At the same time as the 2G announcementDoCoMo was, unlike many major technology firms, able to file an increased profit in its most recent financial results.
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The term hacker may be used to describe people who steal information from computers, but that’s just the dark side of the story.
Like the cowboy heroes of childhood, there are white hats as well as black, and the former are legal hackers: security professionals who aim to make the wilds of the internet a safer place for us all, tracking down and rounding up the exploits that endanger our computers.
The movie Sneakers features a team of hackers who are employed to show businesses just where their weak spots are.
The film may be a little dated, but security experts agree that it’s still one of the best depictions of just how they go about their work, which involves examining both networks and systems to find exploits based on both social and technological weaknesses.
The US Military runs exercises where ‘tiger teams’ of good guys think like bad guys in order to penetrate secure facilities, testing just how secure they really are.
That’s the idea behind network penetration tests, where security consultants are challenged to get inside a system or network in order to find holes, which are then filled with patches, policies or other security measures.
Penetration test teams include people with a wide-ranging mix of different skills, from social engineers and network specialists to hardware and software engineers. The exploits that they find vary, but they all share one fundamental element: they are ways into a network that compromise both data and computer systems.
The making of a legal hacker
Not everyone is cut out to be a security analyst; for one thing, it’s not easy to develop that level of professional paranoia. One of the most famous security analysts, Bruce Schneier, tells a story about how as a child he realised that a company that sold ant farms (and mailed out tubes of live ants) could be used to send ants to anyone, anywhere.
That’s a very different mindset to that of most of us, and essentially it means looking at the world to see how it can be broken or subverted. A security analyst would walk into a shop and think of three different ways to rob it and another dozen to defraud it. It’s a good job that those minds are on the side of good and serve to help protect us against their less than honourable counterparts.
Opportunities are everywhere. You might see a USB charging port at an airport as a quick way of getting your phone or iPod charged between flights, but a security analyst will be counting the connections in the port and wondering just how much data someone could steal from an idle phone using nothing more than a USB connection.
Penetration tests capitalise on that security mindset. White hat hackers working for security companies attempt to use their skills (and the tools that the black hats use) in order to find ways into a business network.
If you’re running a big network that carries data that needs to be secure, you’re likely to need certification from one of the big security consultancies before you’ll get any insurance – and that certification is going to require one or more major penetration tests.
These tests aren’t simply restricted to the computer side of things. Network security is about people, policy and technology. While you may be thinking about encrypting your network traffic and using two-factor authentication, your penetration testers may well be gaming your social network, tracking down backdoors into your network through staff who might have forgotten passwords one time too many and tailgating their way into the office building.
The slightest crack in your network’s armour and all the passwords in the world are rendered next to useless for keeping that precious data safe.
Penetration testing
One thing to remember about a penetration test is that it’s not just a glorified game of Capture the Flag. Many of the tools and techniques that are used by the security team doing the test have been used before – and not by the good guys.
Even so, the black hats out there use many more techniques, social engineering their way into systems and networks, and exploiting zero-day and little-known flaws in software and hardware.
A penetration test will reveal many of the problems in a network, but not all of them. A tested network may be more secure than others, but it’s certainly not safe from every possible attack.
Schneier implies that good security analysts are born, not made. Even so, you can work to inculcate some of that useful paranoia. Plenty of puzzle games allow you to challenge yourself against imaginary computer systems. Games like Cypher and SlaveHack simulate the dark side of hacking, helping you to develop the puzzle-solving skills that can help you find ways of deconstructing your own networks and systems. Then there’s the other option: finding software that can be paranoid for you and letting it loose on your network.
Network-analysis tools
You don’t need to hire a professional to break into your network – there’s software out there that will do it for you in the shape of network-analysis tools.
Dan Farmer’s SATAN (Security Administrator Tool for Analysing Networks) was one of the first of these tools. Written in the mid-1990s by Farmer and IBM security guru Wietse Venema, SATAN bundled up a whole raft of network vulnerability testing tools into one package. Administrators could load it onto a Unix machine and let it rip, delving into holes that even the most diligent network engineers had forgotten to patch.
The result of SATAN’s investigation was a comprehensive report that detailed where the problems were and how to fix them. No one had seen a tool like this before – especially one this easy to use.
Panicked articles focused on the tool’s name and declared that it was a tool for hackers, completely forgetting that SATAN was actually a tool to help stop crackers breaking into systems and that all it did was bundle up existing black-hat tools for over-worked system administrators.
In the resulting furore Farmer lost his job, but the foundations for a new class of security tools had been laid.
Scan your network
You can use the current generation of network-analysis tools to test your own network both inside and outside your firewall.
Tools like Nessus are easy to use and free to download. You’ll find packages for most operating systems, though the Unix versions are often the most mature.
Commercial security scanners like GFI’s LanGuard also help show up flaws, though they may not be as thorough as the more wide-ranging Nessus. Some of the latest generation of network-analysis tools will even manage to patch your systems for you by downloading system updates and remotely installing them on the machines that are most at risk.
Once you’ve downloaded a network scanner, install it on the machine that you intend to host your tests on. A laptop is a good idea because you can use it to scan any always-on broadband connections via a mobile broadband connection or from a friend’s network. The result is a very detailed report of system vulnerabilities and a surprising amount of information about the systems you’re running.
We ran Nessus over a typical small business network that supports a handful of laptops as well as numerous desktops, servers and network devices. The resulting report found several vulnerabilities that could have easily allowed someone with access to the network to quickly steal information and disrupt the network.
Not all the problems were ones we could solve (some were baked into NAS box and wireless router firmware), but all could be mitigated by locking down the network and increasing the security on its firewall.
Crack it to win it
One area where cracking tools and techniques have helped to secure the rest of the industry is the cracking contests held at major hacker conventions.
The format is simple. A group of machines running popular operating systems are set up in a secure area. Attendees are then given hacking tasks such as installing a certain file on the machines’ hard disks.
At a convention contest, attackers are initially denied all access to the machines, meaning that they have to attack them through their networking stacks and default applications and services. If the machines survive the first round of attacks, restrictions on access are removed one by one until a machine has been compromised using driveby attacks.
The attacks used can be published (unless a sponsor has a non-disclosure agreement in place), and security researchers keep a careful eye on the results. PR teams also keep track of the contests, as a win or a fail can affect how their products are perceived by an influential part of the market.
There are some problems with these contests, however. The winners get to keep the hardware that they compromise, so contestants are often more inclined to attempt to break into the more attractive machines. Cash can also make a difference, as if there’s more than one machine on offer, the attacker will go for the easiest machine to compromise.
That was the case at the PWN 2 OWN contest at CanSecWest in March 2008, where $10,000 was offered as a prize alongside three PCs. The winners broke into a new MacBook Air rather than attempting to gain access to Windows and Linux systems. While the exploit in question was a simple browser attack, it was kept under wraps by a security research company in order to give Apple time to clear it up.
These secrecy agreements aren’t put in place just to spare an individual company’s blushes. Releasing the details of an exploit before there’s a fix available would be irresponsible, instantly putting every vulnerable system out there straight into the firing line.
Rewarding the honest crackers
The contest was sponsored by TippingPoint, a security consultancy that runs its own Zero Day Initiative. This program is designed to keep significant exploits from leaking out into the black hat community.
Rewards are offered for exploit, and the more that you submit, the more you earn. It works like a frequent flyer program: you get points (as well as cash) for submitted exploits, and the more points you get, the more bonuses you receive – including access to the main security and hacking conferences, Defcon and Blackhat.
TippingPoint isn’t the only company that rewards security researchers for finding problems with their products. Most operating system vendors are rumoured to pay well for undisclosed exploits (and they also have the legal wherewithal to make sure that non-disclosure agreements stick).
The goal of these payment systems is to patch the holes in the software before a piece of zero-day malware gets out there, ready to use the exploit to compromise systems all over the world. If it means paying for an exploit, then that’s what it takes to make sure that millions of users are secure next time Patch Tuesday or its equivalent rolls around.
We may not all have our own tiger teams of security analysts and hackers, but the legal hacking tools and legal hackers out there certainly make our networks and PCs safer. They’re everyone’s penetration testers, finding the weak spots in our increasingly important – and always vulnerable – networks and making sure that the white hats get the information about them first.
Vulnerabilities need to be discovered and patched to avoid being turned into exploits. If there were no legal hackers out there, black hats would have even more ways to threaten our PCs.
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First published in PC Plus, Issue 278
Now read How to catch hackers on your wireless network
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We won’t lie to you. It’s been a very weird week. According to a new report, chicken parts could soon be used as alternatives to jet fuel. Or perhaps algae, or even Jatropha – an odorous subtropical plant nicknamed “black vomit nut”. Nice.
It’s all part of a multi-faceted attempt to replace the 19 million gallons of kerosene burned by US carriers every year. The US government, biofuels industry and a platter of other patrons are pushing the plans to help reduce the carbon footprint of air travel.
Army beetle
It doesn’t end there. Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, also set the tone by exhibiting a remote-controlled Rhinoceros beetle at a conference in Sorento, Italy. Six electrodes were planted into its brain and muscles, enabling researchers to control the beetle’s wings and pilot it around the room.
So far, so strange. Turns out the trusty beetle cyborg is capable of carrying well over twice the 1.3kg mass of the equipment on its back – a fact that will no doubt be fully utilised by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is funding the project.
‘Water me NOW!’
And it seems that talking to your botanical buddies just went next-gen. This week saw the launch of a new gadget that, oddly, allows you to interact with your beloved Begonia through Twitter.
Comprising of sensors and a microchip, the Botanicall kit wires your plant up to the internet, sending regular health updates to Twitter, such as: “‘URGENT! Water me!’”. And we thought the Tweet-aWatt was bad enough…
Online advance toilet pass?
Meanwhile, Oyster cards eat your heart out: there’s a new public service in town. Well, in Venice at least. Instead of paying the current 1 euro fee to visit a public toilet, forward-thinking tourists can now buy one-week or day bathroom-pass online as part of the city’s Venice Connected card.
Apparently caught-short tourists are an all-too-familiar sight down the back-streets of the city. You really will need to think ahead, though – the purchase has to be made at least 15 days before use.
“Islam is the light”
And over in Indiana, a mother was shocked to discover that a game for her 8-year-old daughter’s Nintendo DS, Baby Pals, contained the hidden message: “Islam is the light”.
“All of a sudden my daughter looked at me,” Rachel Jones told News 10, “and… said, ‘Mom, I think my baby said something.’ And so I played it back, and it says ‘Islam is the light.’”
That’s pretty weird, but it’s even stranger that Jones has come across the message before. Against the odds, her 4-year-old daughter’s baby doll relayed exactly the same message only a few months ago.
And finally…
If you think the last seven days have been somewhat sketchy, spare a thought for the 18-year-old Colorado man tasered four times by police on Wednesday – while on acid. Yeesh. Bad times.
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AP – Passing through razor-wire cordons and police checkpoints, Iraqi voters Saturday took another step in the nation’s quest for stability in provincial elections that were carried off without major violence but tarnished by claims of flaws and threats of challenges.
Read More: Iraqi elections avoid violence but complaints loom
(AP)
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AP – A French scientist who was shot in the head during a robbery near Mexico City’s airport died on Saturday.
Read More: French scientist shot by Mexican robbers dies
(AP)
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Reuters – Three people died and at least 20 were missing after fire gutted a remote, wooden care home in the northwestern Russian republic of Komi Saturday, a spokeswoman for the local branch of the Emergencies Ministry said.
Read More: Three dead, 20 missing in Russian care home fire
(Reuters)
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AP – Iraqi Christians still reeling from a string of murders last fall find themselves caught in the middle of a power struggle between Kurds and Sunni Arabs that was fueled by this weekend’s elections.
Read More: Iraqi Christians caught in middle of Mosul vote
(AP)
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