Shahi Imam meets PM on Batla House shootout

NEW DELHI – A top Muslim cleric Saturday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over the alleged fake shootout at the Batla House in which two suspected terrorists were killed following the 2008 serial bomb blasts in Delhi.

Shahi Imam Ahmed Bukhari, who leads the prayers in Delhi’s Jama Masjid, said he held a 35-minute meeting with …. Original article  : Shahi Imam meets PM on Batla House shootout.

Gunmen kill 25 in Iraqi village

BAGHDAD – At least 25 people were killed in Iraq when gunmen stormed houses in a village near the capital, an interior ministry source said Saturday.

The attack occurred late Friday in Sufiya in Rasheed district when gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms raided three houses, Xinhua reported quoting an interior ministry source.
The victims apparently were … Original source on Gaea Times at : Gunmen kill 25 in Iraqi village.

Death threats received by ESPN reporter, ‘Dancing With the Stars’ contestant Erin Andrews

Death threats prompt tighter security for Andrews

LOS ANGELES – First she was secretly videotaped in the nude. Now she’s receiving death threats. At least a dozen e-mails had been sent to a media outlet threatening ESPN reporter and “Dancing With the Stars” contestant Erin Andrews since September, her attorney Marshall Grossman said.
The messages discuss the … Read this article on Gaea Times at : Death threats received by ESPN reporter, ‘Dancing With the Stars’ contestant Erin Andrews.

Abducted Army linguist set to return home to San Diego

Kidnapped Army linguist returning to San Diego

SAN DIEGO – After more than two months in captivity in Baghdad, a U.S. Army linguist is set to return home to San Diego, authorities said.
Issa Salomi, 60, was expected to arrive sometime before Sunday, said Maj. Kimberly Holman, a spokeswoman for the California National Guard.
Salomi arrived in San … Read more »».

Gunmen in Iraqi army uniforms kill 25 people execution-style in Sunni village south of Baghdad

Men in Iraqi army uniforms kill 25 in Sunni area

BAGHDAD – Gunmen wearing Iraqi military uniforms raided homes in a Sunni village south of Baghdad, killing 25 people, including five women, execution-style, officials said Saturday.
In the hours after Friday night’s shootings, Iraqi officials cordoned off the area to search for suspects and helicopters swarmed overhead.
Most …. Source article  : Gunmen in Iraqi army uniforms kill 25 people execution-style in Sunni village south of Baghdad.

Blast in Lalgarh on eve of Chidambaram visit

KOLKATA – Suspected Maoist guerrillas triggered a landmine blast in rebel-hit Lalgarh in West Bengal’s West Midnapore district Saturday, a day ahead of union Home Minister P. Chidambaram’s visit to the area, police said.

The blast in Bamal village, a few km from Lalgarh town, created a four-feet crater on the road.
“Raids are on in … Original article on : Blast in Lalgarh on eve of Chidambaram visit.

Deposition: Levada in 2006 defended not telling faithful of sex allegations against priest

Deposition: Levada defends decision on Ore. priest

PORTLAND, Ore. – In a newly released court deposition, a top Vatican official who is a former Portland archbishop defends not telling Oregon parishioners about the sex abuse allegations against a priest he restored to duty.
The deposition also shows that the official, Cardinal William Levada, insisted he had given … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Deposition: Levada in 2006 defended not telling faithful of sex allegations against priest.

German soldiers kill five Afghan troops

BERLIN – German soldiers killed five Afghan troops who were riding in two civilian cars that did not stop at a check post, the German military said Saturday.

The incident occurred late Friday near Kunduz, the capital of the northern Afghan province also called Kunduz, said the German army’s Operations Command in Potsdam, outside Berlin.
The …. Read the original article  : German soldiers kill five Afghan troops.

Sorry kids, we destroyed your schools: Maoists

PATNA – Maoist guerrillas have apologised to students in Bihar for damaging their school buildings and affecting their education.

“Hundreds of copies of the apology have been distributed among schoolchildren. We told them that we were sorry for targeting their schools. We also told them what forced us to target their schools,” a Maoist leader told …. Read the original article  : Sorry kids, we destroyed your schools: Maoists.

Former boxing champion Johnny Tapia back in NM jail after urine tests positive for cocaine use

Ex-boxing champ back in New Mexico jail
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Former five-time world champion boxer Johnny Tapia is jailed in New Mexico again, this time for reportedly failing a drug test.

A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Detention Center says Tapia’s urine tested positive for cocaine and he was returned to jail Thursday. Tapia was undergoing the test … Read more : Former boxing champion Johnny Tapia back in NM jail after urine tests positive for cocaine use.

31-year-old man arrested in attempted sex assault that led woman to jump off Malibu cliff

Man, 31, arrested in attempted Malibu sex assault

MALIBU, Calif. – There has been an arrest in the attempted sexual assault of a Malibu jogger who escaped by jumping off a cliff and sliding about 100 feet down a steep hillside.
Sheriff’s Lt. Richard Erickson says 31-year-old Christian Marcus Verdin was arrested in San Bernardino Friday after …. Source  : 31-year-old man arrested in attempted sex assault that led woman to jump off Malibu cliff.

Indian couple beheaded in ‘honour killing’

A young couple was beheaded and their heads smashed beyond recognition before being thrown along a railway track for entering into inter-caste marraige in eastern India, police said today.

Police said Om Prakash Singh, a resident of Raghunathpur village in Bihar’s Buxur district, had fallen in love with a girl from the same village and wanted … Read : Indian couple beheaded in ‘honour killing’.

Attorney: Death threats sent to ESPN reporter, ‘Dancing With the Stars’ contestant Andrews

Lawyer: ESPN’s Erin Andrews getting death threats

LOS ANGELES – Erin Andrews has been getting death threats in a stream of e-mails to a media outlet, an attorney for the ESPN reporter and “Dancing with the Stars” contestant said Friday.
Attorney Marshall Grossman said that a man had sent at least a dozen e-mails since September threatening …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Attorney: Death threats sent to ESPN reporter, ‘Dancing With the Stars’ contestant Andrews.

Kidnapped Army linguist prepares for return to San Diego, reunion with family

Abducted Army linguist returning to San Diego

SAN DIEGO – An Iraqi-American who was kidnapped in Baghdad while working for American troops was overjoyed and fatigued as he prepared to return home to San Diego from an Army base in San Antonio, his family said Friday.
Issa Salomi, 60, was expected to arrive sometime before Sunday, said …. Source  : Gaea News Network.

What, them worry? Huggy Bear, Coach K make long-awaited returns to Final Four

Huggins, Krzyzewski back at Final Four
INDIANAPOLIS – On one bench, there’s Bob Huggins, a coach who has dealt with an NCAA investigation, suffered a heart attack, been arrested for DUI, endured the stain of a zero-percent graduation rate and the tumult of two contentious job changes.

On the other, there’s Mike Krzyzewski, a coach making his … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : What, them worry? Huggy Bear, Coach K make long-awaited returns to Final Four.

Ex-LA assistant fire chief is called ‘puppy killer’ after he gets 90 days for beating dog

Ex-LA fire official gets 90 days for dog beating

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Animal rights activists yelled “puppy killer” and obscenities at a retired Los Angeles County assistant fire chief Friday after he was sentenced to 90 days in jail for beating a dog so severely with a rock it had to be euthanized.
In a Riverside courtroom …. Read the original article  : here.

Atty: NYC subway stab suspect was defending himself after being attacked with bottle, headlock

Lawyer: NYC subway stab suspect was defending self

NEW YORK – A lawyer for a man charged with fatally stabbing two New York City subway riders says he was defending himself after a group of passengers broke a bottle over his head and grabbed him in a headlock.
Prosecutors charged Brenddy Garcia with second-degree murder Friday. They … Read more >>.

Pregnant American woman linked to ‘Jihad Jane’ charged in Pa. with terror plot

2nd American woman charged in ‘Jihad Jane’ case

WASHINGTON – Federal prosecutors filed terrorism charges Friday against a pregnant American woman in the so-called Jihad Jane case. The two American women are accused of plotting online to attend a terror training camp.
Jamie Paulin-Ramirez flew from Ireland Friday to Philadelphia, where she was arrested by agents with …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Pregnant American woman linked to ‘Jihad Jane’ charged in Pa. with terror plot.

AP: Ratzinger intervened in Arizona priest’s abuse case, then waited for years to defrock him

AP: Vatican waited years to defrock Arizona priest

The future Pope Benedict XVI took over the abuse case of an Arizona priest, then let it languish at the Vatican for years despite repeated pleas from the bishop for the man to be removed from the priesthood, according to church correspondence.
Documents reviewed by The Associated Press show … Original article on : AP: Ratzinger intervened in Arizona priest’s abuse case, then waited for years to defrock him.

San Fran crime lab scandal exposes deep problems, could lead to hundreds of cases tossed

SF crime lab scandal strains justice system

SAN FRANCISCO – The first hint of scandal at the San Francisco crime lab came in December when officials received a tip that a technician might be stealing cocaine used as evidence.
An investigation soon revealed that small amounts of cocaine were missing, and the scandal has just snowballed from …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : San Fran crime lab scandal exposes deep problems, could lead to hundreds of cases tossed.