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> Thur., Oct. 12, 2006
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
House Begins Hearing Testimony on Congressional Page Scandal
Voters May Face Challenges at Polls
Turkey Denounces France’s “Genocide” Vote
E. Coli Scares Prompts Some to Go Local
Casinos and Hotels May Replace Biloxi’s Vietnamese-American
Community
Federal Appeals Court Agrees That UPS Discriminated Against
Disabled Workers
FSRN Headlines
MEDIA ATTACKS IN BAGHDAD
Armed men raided the facilities of a satellite television
station in Baghdad today, killing 11 people inside. It is
the bloodiest attack on the media in Iraq to date. The station
had not yet begun regular broadcasts and Motives for the attack
are unknown. The station had reportedly never received a threat.
It is the second deadly attack on a Baghdad TV station since
the beginning of October. Also in Baghdad, family members
of a kidnaped Kurdish radio reporter have identified his body
after it was turned in earlier this week to the city morgue.
Iraq is by far the deadliest country in the world for media
workers. On average, just under 100 civilians die each day
in Baghdad alone. A study published yesterday by the Lancet
estimates the overall death toll in Iraq since March 2003
is just under 655,000.
ARMY TO MAINTAIN CURRENT TROOP LEVELS IN IRAQ
In other news on Iraq, the US Army has announced plans to
maintain troop levels through 2010. Over 140,000 US troops
are currently on the ground there. The Army has been failing
to meet recruitment goals and some military analyst doubt
the US can maintain current levels with an all-volunteer force.
BRITISH COURTS HEAR TERROR CASES
An appeal by three of the nine remaining British residents
still in Guantanamo Bay - to force the British government
to demand their return - has failed. The appeal judges rejected
the men's argument that they should be treated equally to
the UK citizens already returned. But the ruling was overshadowed
by another terror case in Britain's courts today. Naomi Fowler
has the story.
A British man has pleaded guilty of plotting to murder people
in terrorist attacks in Britain and the US. It appears that
Dhiren Barot had no outside funding, vehicles or bomb-making
equipment. However, the court alleged today that Barot was
planning to plant a radioactive so-called 'dirty bomb' in
the UK with the intention of causing "fear, terror and
chaos." Prosecuting attorney Edmund Lawson told the court
today that such an attack would have affected some 500 people
but would have been unlikely to kill anyone. His plans were
not at an advanced stage but targets are also said to include
the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington
and the New York Stock Exchange and Citigroup building in
downtown New York City. Seven others face charges in the alleged
conspiracy. Barot will be sentenced at a later date. This
is Naomi Fowler in London for Free Speech Radio News.
AT&T MEGAMERGER
The FCC has delayed until tomorrow a vote on whether to allow
AT&T to purchase BellSouth. The Justice Department approved
the $67 billion merger yesterday. The deal would create the
nation's largest telecommunications company and would in practice
reverse a 1984 anti-trust ruling that led to the break-up
of the country's phone monopolies.
HOSPITAL CONFLICT IN BUENOS AIRES
Nurses and maintenance workers at one of the oldest private
hospitals Buenos Aires are on strike in an attempt to prevent
the hospital's permanent closure. FSRN's Marie Trigona has
more.
The administrative directors at the hospital evacuated over
30 patients from Hospital Frances yesterday saying they lack
the resources to provide adequate care. Hospital workers have
been pushing for the national government to step in and nationalize
the hospital that began to lay-off workers and cut back medical
services two-years ago. This week, non-medical staff took
over administrative offices to prevent the hospital's closure,
while police surrounded the facility. A group of supporters
from the leading Peronist party attacked the striking workers
early yesterday morning, injuring 15 people, including two
journalists. Police on the scene did not intervene to prevent
the violence. Workers say the national government used the
Peronist party supporters as proxy bullies to force the permanent
closure of the hospital. The city government has refused to
take over the hospital's administration. For Free Speech Radio
News I'm Marie Trigona in Buenos Aires.
BUDGET SHORTFALL IN NIGERIA
Nigeria's president says the country will suffer a revenue
shortfall of $4.5 billion this year due to the ongoing crisis
in the Niger Delta region. Sam Olukoya reports from Lagos.
During the presentation of his 2007 budget, President Olusegun
Obasanjo asked Parliament to approve $4.5 billion from a special
account in order to implement next year's budget. The amount
is the equivalent of the shortfall Nigeria will suffer this
year as a result of the crisis in the Niger Delta. Oil exports
account for more than 90 percent of Nigeria's income...but
the Niger Delta where the oil comes from has in recent months
experienced series of attacks on oil installations from local
youths who want a share of the oil proceeds. Nigeria's crude
oil export dropped by 600,000 barrels per day at the height
of recent attacks. The Nigerian president predicts that the
country's oil losses are likely to continue until the end
of the year. For Free Speech Radio News, this is Sam Olukoya
in Lagos.
[top]
House Begins Hearing Testimony on Congressional
Page Scandal
The House of Representatives has begun hearing testimony
on the Congressional page scandal that’s rocked the
Republican Party. One of the first witnesses called will be
the former top aid who claims to have pertinent information
in the case. Washington Editor Leigh Ann Caldwell has more.
[top]
Voters May Face Challenges at Polls
Voters in several states may face the same problems they
have experienced at polling stations two years ago: that's
the conclusion of a report released by several civil rights
and election-watch groups. In some cases, the report says,
state laws have made it harder for voters to cast their ballots.
FSRN’s Yanmei Xie reports in Washington DC.
[top]
Turkey Denounces France’s “Genocide”
Vote
Turkey has responded angrily to a bill passed by France's
National Assembly today, which threatens to imprison anyone
denying that Turkey committed genocide against Armenians between
1915 and 1917. Tony Cross reports from Paris.
[top]
E. Coli Scares Prompts Some to Go Local
Last month's outbreak of E. Coli contaminated spinach, which
killed three and sickened 199 others in the US, has many consumers
on edge about food-born pathogens. It was the ninth deadly
E. Coli outbreak from leafy greens that originated in California's
Salinas Valley over the last decade. Another E.Coli scare
occurred this week when Salinas-based Nunes Company recalled
some 8,500 cartons of its Foxy brand “Green Leaf Lettuce”
from seven states. FSRN's Vinny Lombardo reports on the problems
with factory farms, and examines small, local, organic farms
as an alternative.
[top]
Casinos and Hotels May Replace Biloxi’s Vietnamese-American
Community
A sizable community of displaced Vietnamese-Americans has
been unable to return to the Mississippi coast town of Biloxi
more than a year after last fall’s hurricane. Biloxi
recently approved a controversial plan to promote casino and
hotel development over what was the heart of the Vietnamese
neighborhood, and community organizers say federal money for
housing isn't reaching those in the community who need it.
FSRN’s Christian Roselund is in Biloxi with the story.
[top]
Federal Appeals Court Agrees That UPS Discriminated
Against Disabled Workers
A federal appeals court in San Francisco upheld a lower
court ruling this week that package delivery giant United
Parcel Service discriminated against deaf and hearing impaired
employees, by denying them the opportunity to apply for delivery
driver positions. FSRN’s Max Pringle reports.
[top]
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