01-31- 2007

NEW COMMANDER OF AMERICAN FORCES IN THE MIDDLE EAST, ADM. WILLIAM FALLON,  SAYS 'TIME IS SHORT' IN IRAQ

   WASHINGTON, D.C.   --  Stabilizing Iraq will require "new and different actions" to improve security and promote political reconciliation, the Navy admiral poised to lead American forces in the Middle East said Tuesday. Adm. William Fallon, at his confirmation hearing, also told the Senate Armed Services Committee that it may be time to "redefine the goals" in Iraq.  "I believe the situation in Iraq can be turned around, but time is short," he said.

    Fallon, 62, who currently is commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, said he saw a need for a comprehensive approach to Iraq, including economic and political actions to resolve a problem that requires more than military force.  "What we have been doing has not been working," he said. "We have got to be doing, it seems to me, is something different."

HUGO CHAVEZ PLANS TO OBTAIN AIR DEFENSE MISSILES SYSTEM FOR VENEZUELA

  CARACAS, VENEAZUELA  -- Venezuela plans to obtain air defense missiles to guard strategic sites such as oil refineries and major bridges against any air strike, a top military adviser to President Hugo Chavez said Tuesday. Gen. Alberto Muller said Venezuela is looking to buy surface-to-air missile systems from Russia or another country to defend refineries, hydroelectric dams and "other strategic points in the country."

    "They are for air defense," Muller told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "They are not for attacking anybody... We are not the United States of America. We don't have imperialist ambitions." Chavez, a close ally of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, has repeatedly warned against a possible U.S. invasion, and his government is bolstering military defenses in Venezuela, one of the world's largest oil exporters. American officials insist they have no such military plans, but Chavez insists Venezuelans must be ready just in case.

    Russia's Interfax-Military News Agency reported Tuesday that between 10 and 12 Tor-M1 missile systems could be supplied to the South American country. The ITAR-Tass news agency said that report was denied by Venezuela's Defense Ministry, but Muller said there are indeed plans to purchase missiles, though he did not say what type.

WORKERS THREATEN TO HALT OIL ENHANCING PLANTS AT VENEZUELA ORINOCO BELT 

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Workers at the heavy-crude oil Orinoco belt are likely to take over oil enhancing facilities -operated by multinationals-, trade union supporting government-sponsored nationalization of the firms threatened on Monday.

    "Since this very moment we are setting off a red alert and, if necessary, we are absolutely willing to take control over operations and management of these companies to put them actually to the service of the revolutionary process and society," said five trade unions in a press release, as quoted by Reuters.

01-30- 2007

MEXICAN PRESIDENT FELIPE CALDERON REBUTS HUGO CHAVEZ'S "PERSONAL INSULTS"  

   LONDON, ENGLAND   -- Mexican President Felipe Calderón in London Monday asked Latin American governments to voice their disagreements in "a mature, respectful way" and avoid "personal insults," following Venezuelan ruler Hugo Chávez' harsh criticisms against him, DPA reported. Calderón made a halt in the second day of his visit to Great Britain and sent a "deeply respectful" message to the governments of Latin America, given this new clash with his Venezuelan counterpart.

    Subsequently, in a news conference together with Prime Minister Tony Blair, Calderón addressed the issue again, but claimed that "promoting unity and integration of Latin America does not involve uniform criteria." "I share other rulers' idea to encourage unity and integration among Latin American countries. For such purposes, government should be able to express their agreements and disagreements in a mature, respectful manner, and assess together the alternatives for our peoples, without falling into personal insults."

    Last Sunday, Chávez asked for respect from Calderón and called the Mexican ruler "little gentleman," following Calderón's criticisms against expropriations in some Latin American countries. At the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Calderón said Mexico is the country of the future and a safe destination for investments, unlike Venezuela, Bolivia, and Argentina, which are implementing outdated policies.salir de esas naciones por las estatizaciones.

BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA WARNS HUGO CHAVEZ NOT TO HIT VENEZUELAN DEMOCRACY

   RIO DE JANEIROS, BRAZIL  -- Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva advised Chávez "to avoid implementing moves that may weaken democratic institutions in Venezuela." Lula made this "cautious" advise reportedly last January 18, during a meeting eight South American rulers held in Rio de Janeiro during the 32nd Summit of Heads of State of the Common Market of the South (Mercosur), O Estado de Sao Paulo said..

    According to the Brazilian newspaper, Argentine President Néstor Kirchner -also present at the meeting- allegedly took the floor to question Chávez' move -announced a few days before the summit- to nationalize the country's energy and telecoms sectors. Chávez' announced nationalization plans caused alarm among foreign investors, to the extent that Argentina was forced to adjourn a USD 500 million sovereign debt bond issuance, O Estado de Sao Paulo reported.

    A few days later, in a speech during the launching of his Growth Acceleration Program, Lula -apparently concern about Chávez' moves and the need to take distance from such stance- said that "the right way to grow is growing while keeping and expanding civil freedoms and democratic rights. Here (in Brazil) growth does not involve sacrificing democracy

MEXICO D.F. MAYOR MARCELO EBRARD DEFENDS PRESIDENT CALDERON FOR HUGO CHAVEZ

       MEXICO CITY, MEXICO  --  Leftwing Mayor of Mexico City Marcelo Ebrard Monday defended President Felipe Calderón from Venezuelan ruler Hugo Chávez' harsh criticisms, AP reported.

    "I do not think the president of a foreign country has to play a role in labeling Mexican rulers," Ebrard said one day after Chávez called his Mexican counterpart "subordinate" of Washington and claimed he was following the footprints of his predecessor Vicente Fox, with whom he had a rugged relation, to the extent that diplomatic ties were cut down to the level of charges d'affaires.

     Calderón has rebutted expropriations in Latin American countries in general, and has invited investors who leave Latin American countries because of nationalizations to settle down in Mexico.

01-29- 2007

250 INSURGENTS DIE IN BATTLE, IRAQ SAYS

   NAYAF, IRAQ   -- U.S.-backed Iraqi troops on Sunday attacked insurgents allegedly plotting to kill pilgrims at a major Shiite Muslim religious festival, and Iraqi officials estimated some 250 militants died in the daylong battle near Najaf. A U.S. helicopter crashed during the fight, killing two American soldiers. "  Authorities said Iraqi soldiers supported by U.S. aircraft fought all day with a large group of insurgents in the Zaraq area, about 12 miles northeast of the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Col. Ali Nomas, spokesman for Iraqi security forces in Najaf, said more than 250 corpses had been found.

     raqi army Maj. Gen. Othman al-Ghanemi also spoke of 250 dead but said an exact number would not be released until Monday. He said 10 gunmen had been captured, including one Sudanese. Provincial Gov. Assad Sultan Abu Kilel said the assault was launched because the insurgents planned to attack Shiite pilgrims and clerics during ceremonies marking Ashoura, the holiest day in the Shiite calendar commemorating the 7th century death of Imam Hussein.

DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN CHARLES RANGEL WANTS TO REINSTATE THE DRAFT

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- The war in Iraq marks the first time in modern history that the United States has fought an extended conflict with an all-volunteer military. The strain of fighting nearly four years in a two-front war has put unprecedented stress on the Army and the Marine Corps -- which have borne the brunt of the fighting -- and has raised serious questions about whether an all-volunteer force can be maintained over the long term.

    Even if U.S. troops were to pull out of Iraq tomorrow, the United States faces a war of unknown duration against al Qaeda in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Other threats include Iran and North Korea. At least one lawmaker has proposed a radical alternative. Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., wants to reinstate the draft.

    His proposal would require all U.S. residents 18 to 42 years old to perform two years of national service, either in the military or as civilians working in ports, hospitals or some other public-service role. The only people exempted would be high school students up to 20 years old, conscientious objectors and those who are too unhealthy to serve. Rangel opposes the Iraq War and has put forth a draft bill every year since 2002. Critics accuse him of political grandstanding.

VENEZUELA STATE OIL FIRM JOINS WITH CUBA'S CUPET 

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  The state oil companies of Venezuela and Cuba will join in hunting petroleum in Venezuela as well as Cuba's part of the Gulf of Mexico, the Venezuelan government said on Friday.The deal between Petróleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, and Cubapetróleo, or Cupet, appears to bolster a growing oil industry in Cuba.

    It also further expands President Hugo Chávez's relationship with President Fidel Castro's communist government in Cuba. The deal was one of 16 agreements signed by Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage during a trip this week to Caracas.

01-28- 2007

SECRETARY GATES WARNS CONGRESS ON IRAQ OPPOSITION

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday that Congress' push to oppose President Bush's troop increase in Iraq "emboldens the enemy" and undercuts the commanders in the field.  Facing the prospect of a no-confidence vote in the Senate next week, Mr. Bush called for Congress to give his plan "a chance to work" before ruling it out. But opposition continues to build, with high-profile Republicans and Democrats who previously supported his stance announcing their opposition yesterday, saying the goal of a stable Iraq may be out of reach now.

    "A resolution that, in effect, says that the general going out to take command of the arena shouldn't have the resources he thinks he needs to be successful certainly emboldens the enemy and our adversaries," he said in his first press conference.  "Any indication of flagging will in the United States gives encouragement to those folks. And I'm sure that that's not the intent behind the resolutions, but I think it may be the effect," Mr. Gates said.

    Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat, called Mr. Gates' statement "a desperate attempt" to bolster the president's policy.  Mr. Bush and other administration officials have counted on the fact that all sides in the debate agree that victory is necessary. The president referred to that in his State of the Union address this week and again yesterday after a meeting with Mr. Gates and Army Lt. Gen.

SENATE APPROVES LT. GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS AS TOP U.S. COMMANDER IN IRAQ 

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- The Senate on Friday unanimously approved Lt. Gen. David Petraeus to become the new U.S. forces commander in Iraq, less than a month after President Bush outlined a new strategy in the war-torn country that is facing opposition in the Democrat-led Congress. Petraeus replaces Gen. George Casey, who has been nominated to be the next Army Chief of Staff.

    The Senate approved Petraeus' nomination in an 81-0 vote. Sen. John Warner, R-Va., a former secretary of the Navy who recently has become critical of the president's war planning offered advice to Petraeus before he cast his vote.

     "On the battlefield, decisions must be made in a matter of seconds, from the platoon level up the chain of command. We cannot have finger-pointing. We cannot have a mission where an Iraqi lieutenant said we should go left, the American embedded officer or whomever commands the Americans in that situation, says go right, [and] the mission not achieve its goal. ... It's going to be extremely complex," Warner said. Friday's vote followed a unanimous recommendation Wednesday from the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday approved Petraeus' nomination, and approval looked locked down before the vote took place.

us representative connie mack accuses hugo chavez of endangering diplomatic relations with THE united states  

       WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  US Republican Representative Connie Mack, a major critic of Venezuela in the US Congress, argued Friday that President Hugo Chávez is trying to break diplomatic relations. The official comments emerged when Chávez threatened to declare US Ambassador William Brownfield persona non grata.

    "If Chávez expels Ambassador William Brownfield from the country, the world will know once and for all about his true intentions -to end with diplomatic relations with the United States," said the congressman for Florida in a communiqué.

    Mack lamented also that the ruler has "started a new era of conflict and isolation that will change the Western hemisphere." "Chávez poses a serious threat to freedom, security and wellbeing of the Venezuelan people and all of Latin America. His words and actions should not be disregarded by the United States."

01-27- 2007

PRESIDENT BUSH AUTHORIZES TARGETING IRANIANS IN IRAQ

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  President Bush has authorized the U.S. military to kill or capture Iranian agents active inside Iraq, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing government and counterterrorism officials with direct knowledge of the plan. The move, approved last fall, is aimed at weakening Iran's influence in the region and forcing Tehran to abandon its nuclear program that the West believes is for nuclear weapons and not energy, the newspaper said, citing the unidentified officials.

    For more than a year, U.S. forces have at times held dozens of Iranians for a few days, taking DNA samples from some as well as photographs and fingerprints from all those captured, the report said. Several Iranian officials have been detained in three U.S. raids over the last month.  The new policy applies to Iranian intelligence operatives and members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard thought to be working with Iraqi militias, but not civilians or diplomats, the newspaper said.

    The newspaper said there were skeptics in the intelligence community, State Department and Pentagon, including CIA Director Michael Hayden, who said Iranians may try to kidnap or kill U.S. personnel in Iraq as payback. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice backed the plan to help pressure Iran on the nuclear issue, but raised concerns about the risk for mistakes and demanded there be some oversight, the Post reported. In response to questions about the "kill or capture" authorization, NSC spokesman Gordon Johndroe told the Post: "The president has made clear for some time that we will take the steps necessary to protect Americans on the ground in Iraq and disrupt activity that could lead to their harm. Our forces have standing authority, consistent with the mandate of the U.N. Security Council."

U.N. OFFICIALS: IRAN TO ASSEMBLE THOUSANDS OF NUCLEAR CENTRIFUGES NEXT MONTH

   DAVOS, SWITZERLAND  -- Iran expects to start installing thousands of centrifuges in an underground facility next month, the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency said Friday. The installation would pave the way to large-scale uranium enrichment, a potential way of making nuclear weapons.

    On the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, Mohamed ElBaradei said: "I understand that they are going to announce that they are going to build up their 3,000 centrifuge facility ... sometime next month." He did not elaborate. But U.N. officials, who demanded anonymity because the information was confidential, emphasized that Iran had not officially said it would embark on the assembly of what will initially be 3,000 centrifuges at Natanz. But they said senior officials have informally told the International Atomic Energy Agency the work would begin next month.

    Iran ultimately plans to expand its enrichment program to 54,000 centrifuges, which spin uranium gas into enriched material to produce nuclear fuel. That would give it the capacity to produce dozens of nuclear warheads a year, if it chose to develop weapons.  Diplomats briefed on the IAEA's latest findings said earlier this month the Iranians recently finished all pre-assembly work at their Natanz facility, which is underground as protection against attack. And senior Iranian officials have repeatedly said recently that large-scale installation work at Natanz would begin soon.

SALSA STAR ISSAC DELGADO DEFECTS TO THE UNITED STATES

        TAMPA, FLORIDA  --  World-renowned salsa singer Issac Delgado has defected from Cuba and plans to pursue his career from Tampa, becoming the biggest name in Cuban music in more than a decade to make the politically charged move away from the communist nation. Unlike the highly publicized defections in recent years of two other prominent Cuban vocalists, Manolin and Carlos Manuel, Delgado made his move under a cloak of secrecy. This week, concert promoters were notified that the William Morris Agency had signed Delgado for worldwide representation.

    "Issac is probably the most significant singer of his generation,''Michel Vega, head of Latin music for William Morris told the Los Angeles Times. ``We're thrilled to be working with him, and we think he's going to be a great addition to the American music landscape.'' Delgado was not immediately available for interviews. But Vega confirmed that the artist has settled into a new home in Tampa, along with his wife and children. Details of his entry into the country were not disclosed.

    Delgado is recording a new album in collaboration with award-winning salsa producer Sergio George, due out in the spring on La Calle Records, a division of the Univisíon Music Group. The CD will be followed by a world tour this summer. In 1998, Delgado, one of the top artists to come out of the dance music boom in Havana in the 1990s, became the first Cuban dance music act to break a decades-long taboo and play Miami. He had high hopes of a U.S. career: he had already released several albums in the States, talked of playing the Calle Ocho festival and performed at the Midem Americas international music conference in Miami in 1999. He returned to the U.S. in 2001 as a nominee for the Latin Grammys, performing for a benefit when the show was canceled in the wake of 9/11.

01-26- 2007

19 CUBAN MIGRANTS CAME ASHORE IN THE BACKYARD OF NAVAL AIR STATION KEY WEST'S COMMANDER

   KEY WEST, FLORIDA  --  Nineteen Cuban migrants came ashore in the backyard of the home of Naval Air Station Key West's commander, officials said. The group of 12 men, five women and two children was discovered Wednesday morning by an off-duty Defense Department officer who was jogging on U.S. military property at Truman Annex, Key West police said.

    The officer knocked on Capt. J.R. Brown's front door, alerting him to the situation and asking to use his phone to call authorities. The group arrived in what appeared to be a homemade boat, police said. Brown asked a Spanish-speaking neighbor to meet with the Cubans, who ''appeared to be in very good condition,'' he said.

    The captain said he knew the arrival of Cuban migrants near his backyard was a possibility when he took the post within the past year. The 19 were to be processed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Under U.S. policy, Cubans found on shore are generally allowed to stay, while those found at sea are usually returned.

CHILEAN DEPUTY ASKS OSA TO WATCH OVER UNBALANCES CREATED BY HUGO CHAVEZ

   SANTIAGO DE CHILE, CHILE  -- The leader of the faction of the Social Democrat Radical Party (PRSD) in Chilean Parliament, Carlos Abel Jarpa, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs should formally ask the Organization of American States (OAS) to conduct a comprehensive investigation into "the status of the military balance in Latin America."Jarpa's suggestion came following publication by the US Department of Defense of a report showing that President Hugo Chávez' Government spent USD 4.3 billion in weapons in 2005-2006, which represents an increase of 12.5 percent versus the two preceding years.

     Jarpa, a member of the Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee, said that while the information is a source of concern, "the data came from a US agency and we all know that there is constant clash between Presidents Hugo Chávez and George W. Bush." "The document would not explain whether the increased purchase of weaponry has a significant impact on Venezuela GDP. Therefore, these are hard figures that lack foremost importance if there is not a comprehensive study of the situation," he said, as quoted by El Mostrador.

     "What is important to delve into are the unbalances that could emerge among the different armed forces of Latin American countries. In this connection, our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through our Ambassador to the Organization of American States, Pedro Oyarce, should take the relevant steps to have investigations being conducted into this subject matter, with a view to achieve the longed for and evasive Latin American integration once and for all."

VENEZUELA GOVERNMENT ORDERS TAKEOVER OF PRIVATE AIRPORT 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Diosdado Cabello, Governor of Miranda state, Wednesday ordered expropriation of Oscar Machado Zuloaga private airport. "We shall perform and meet our obligations" at the Governor's Office, Cabello stressed. He claimed that the move responded to the need to create an international airport alternative to Simón Bolívar International Airport.

     "The airport shall become a space for public service and will no longer be at the service of a group of privileged people, as it is now." Oscar Machado Zuloaga Airport, in the outskirts of Caracas, is currently an airport for instrumental basic transportation, under the standards of the US Federal Aviation Agency.  The landing strip of the so-called Caracas Airport is only 2,000 m long and 30 m wide.

01-25- 2007

PRESIDENT BUSH EMPHASIZED SUPPORT FOR FREEDOM CAUSE IN CUBA

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  President Bush said Tuesday his administration would continue to ''speak out'' for freedom in Cuba, mentioning the island for the first time in a State of the Union address. ''We will continue to speak out for the cause of freedom in places like Cuba, Belarus and Burma, and continue to awaken the conscience of the world to save the people of Darfur,'' Bush said in a portion of his speech listing foreign policy priorities.

    Earlier, national security advisor Stephen Hadley said, ``we hope there is an opportunity for a democratic transition in Cuba, where the Cuban people will have an opportunity, really for the first time, to take control of their own future and define the kind of government they want going forward.'' The president did not mention Cuba when he listed nations that violate human rights in his State of the Union speech a year ago. At the time, Miami Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen praised Bush's overall speech but said she was ''bummed out'' by the Cuba omission.

     Tuesday, Ros-Lehtinen flashed Bush a thumbs-up when he included Cuba along with Belarus and Burma. And Florida Sen. Mel Martinez, who came to the States from Cuba as a child, said, “I think it's very important as we talk about countries that look to freedom that Cuba be among them.'' The mention of Cuba in Tuesday's address was seen by Cuban-American lawmakers as a sign that Bush will not waver on his tough position on Cuba, which includes maintaining travel and other sanctions until Cuba moves toward democracy.

FOUR AMERICANS ON COPTER SHOT EXECUTION STYLE

   BAGHDAD, IRAQ  -- Four of the five Americans killed when a U.S. security company's helicopter crashed in a dangerous Sunni neighborhood in central Baghdad were shot execution-style in the back the head, Iraqi and U.S. officials said Wednesday. A senior Iraqi military official said a machine gunner downed the helicopter, but a U.S. military official in Washington said there were no indications that the aircraft, owned by Blackwater USA, had been shot out of the sky. Two Sunni insurgent groups, separately, claimed responsibility for the crash.

     In Washington, a U.S. defense official said four of the five killed were shot in the back of the head but did not know whether they were still alive when they were shot. The defense official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the record. The helicopter was shot down after responding to assist a U.S. Embassy ground convoy that came under fire in a Sunni neighborhood in central Baghdad, said a U.S. diplomatic official in Washington.

     The doomed helicopter swooped into electrical wires before the crash. U.S. officials said it was not clear if gunfire brought the aircraft down or caused its pilot to veer into the wires during evasive manuevers. The Iraqi official, who also declined to be identified because details had not been made public, said the four were shot in the back of the head while they were on the ground. The crash occurred in an old neighborhood of narrow streets on the east bank of the Tigris River, north of the central city.

TOM SHANNON CLAIMS THAT CHAVEZ WANTS TO IMPROVE RELATIONS WITH THE US

        WASHINGTON, D.C.   --  US Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Tom Shannon disclosed Tuesday that Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez "expressed his desire" to improve relations with the United States during a parallel meeting at the investiture ceremony of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega last January 10th in Managua, AFP reported.

    "I had the opportunity to talk to President Chávez during the inauguration of Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua," said Shannon during a conference at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), based in Washington, D.C. However, the US diplomat clarified that such a decision lies in the Venezuelan Government.

01-24- 2007

U.S. DIPLOMAT:  U.S. SENDING WARNING TO IRAN WITH SECOND AIRCRAFT CARRIER O CHAVEZ TO THE UNITED STATES: "GO TO HELL, GRINGOS"

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  A second U.S. aircraft carrier strike group now steaming toward the Middle East is Washington's way of warning Iran to back down in its attempts to dominate the region, a top U.S. diplomat said here Tuesday. Nicholas Burns, U.S. undersecretary of state for political affairs, ruled out direct negotiations with Iran and said a rapprochement between Washington and Tehran was "not possible" until Iran halts uranium enrichment.

    "The Middle East isn't a region to be dominated by Iran. The Gulf isn't a body of water to be controlled by Iran. That's why we've seen the United States station two carrier battle groups in the region," Burns said in an address to the Dubai-based Gulf Research Center, an influential think-tank. "Iran is going to have to understand that the United States will protect its interests if Iran seeks to confront us," Burns continued.

     U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said the U.S. buildup in the Gulf was intended to impress on Iran that the four-year war in Iraq has not made America vulnerable. The American aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis and several accompanying ships are heading toward the Gulf to join an aircraft carrier group already in the region, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. The Stennis is expected to arrive in late February. The Stennis' arrival in the Middle East will mark the first time since the U.S.-led Iraq invasion in 2003 that the United States has had two carrier battle groups in the region.

LT. GENERAL DAVID PETRAEUS SAYS 'TOUGH DAYS' AHEAD IN IRAQ

   WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Army general who would carry out President Bush's new war plan urged a skeptical Congress and American public Tuesday to be patient, but acknowledged "the situation in Iraq is dire." "None of this will be rapid," Lt. Gen. David Petraeus told the Senate Armed Services Committee. "The way ahead will be neither quick nor easy." Many in Congress, including some Republicans, opposed Bush's plan, which would send an extra 21,500 U.S. troops to Iraq as part of a revised strategy for quelling sectarian violence in Baghdad and stabilizing the country. Before Bush's build up began in recent days, there were 132,000 U.S. troops there.

    President Bush nominated Petraeus to replace Army Gen. George Casey as the senior American commander in Iraq. Petraeus is considered a shoo-in to win Senate confirmation as commander of Multinational Forces-Iraq, but senators used his appearance Tuesday before the Senate panel to question him on how Bush's new strategy would work. Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the committee and a leading critic of Bush's policy, pressed Petraeus on whether the flow of additional U.S. troops could be halted in midstream if the Iraqi government failed to meet its commitment to provide thousands more Iraqi troops.

    "It could," Petraeus replied. Earlier he said there were no "specific conditions" the Iraqis must meet in order to keep the flow of U.S. forces moving. The last of five additional U.S. brigades are scheduled to arrive in the Iraqi capital in May; the first got there just days ago. Petraeus said that in the event the Iraqis did not meet their commitments, he would consult with Defense Secretary Robert Gates on how to respond. He said he would not have accepted the nomination to take command in Baghdad if he did not believe Bush's plan could achieve its goals.

al qaeda deputy ridicules president bush's plans to send more troops to iraq

        WASHINGTON, D.C.   --  In a video released Monday, al Qaeda's second in command ridicules President Bush's plan to send more U.S. troops to Iraq and predicts a fate "worse than anything you have yet seen."  "Security is a shared destiny," says Ayman al-Zawahiri, the chief aide to Osama bin Laden, on the video, which was tracked by lauramansfield.com, a Web site that analyzes terrorism.

     The video, released on the eve of Bush's planned State of the Union address, lasts about 14 minutes."If we are secure, you might be secure, and if we are safe, you might be safe. And if we are struck and killed, you will definitely -- with Allah's permission -- be struck and killed."  Al-Zawahiri cites Bush's plan to send more than 20,000 U.S. troops to Iraq, and asks, "Why not send 50,000 or 100,000?

"Aren't you aware that the dogs of Iraq are pining for your troops' dead bodies? Send your entire army to be annihilated at the hands of the mujahedeen to free the world from your evil and theirs because Iraq, the l Bush said he would send an additional 4,000 troops to Anbar province, where, he said, "local tribal leaders have begun to show their willingness to take on al Qaeda."

01-23- 2007

HUGO CHAVEZ TO THE UNITED STATES: "GO TO HELL, GRINGOS"

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --   Hugo Chavez told U.S. officials to "Go to hell!" on his weekly radio and TV show Sunday for what he called unacceptable meddling after Washington raised concerns about a measure to grant Venezuela's fiery leftist leader broad lawmaking powers. The National Assembly, which is controlled by the president's political allies, is expected to give final approval this week to what it calls the "enabling law," which would give Chavez the authority to pass a series of laws by decree during an 18-month period.

    On Friday, U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said Chavez's plans under the law "have caused us some concern." Chavez rejected Casey's statement in his broadcast, saying: "Go to hell, gringos! Go home!" Chavez, who was re-elected by a wide margin last month, has said he will enact sweeping reforms to remake Venezuela into a socialist state. Among his plans are nationalizing the main telecommunications company and the electricity and natural gas sectors.

    The president's opponents accuse him of using his political strength to expand his powers. Relations between Caracas and Washington have been tense since Chavez was briefly ousted in a 2002 coup that he claimed the U.S. played a role in. The Bush administration has repeatedly denied being involved, although it recognized an interim government established by coup leaders. Since then, Chavez has consistently accused the U.S. of conspiring to oust him and often asserts the CIA is working to destabilize his government. U.S. officials have denied trying to overthrow Chavez, but they have labeled him a threat to democracy.

WAVE OF ATTACKS LEAVES AT LEAST 100 DEAD ACROSS IRAQ

   BAGHDAD, IRAQ  -- At least 100 people were killed and more than 150 wounded Monday after two nearly simultaneous bombs struck a predominantly Shiite commercial area in central Baghdad in the deadliest attack in two months, officials said. The U.S. military reported the deaths of two Marines in a particularly bloody weekend for American forces in Iraq — a total of 27 dead in just two days.

     A separate bombing and mortar attack Monday evening in Khalis, a predominantly Shiite town about 50 miles north of Baghdad, killed at least 12 people and wounded 29 in the main market. Monday's first blast, a parked car bomb, tore through stalls of vendors peddling DVDs and secondhand clothes shortly after noon in the Bab al-Sharqi market between Tayaran and Tahrir squares — one of the busiest parts of Baghdad. Seconds later, a suicide car bomber drove into the crowd.

    Police estimated that each car was loaded with nearly 220 pounds of explosives. Hospital officials said at least 88 people were killed and over 150 wounded in the Baghdad attack. Those explosions left body parts strewn on the bloodstained pavement as black smoke rose into the sky. Police sealed off the area and ambulances rushed to the scene.

COMMUNIST CUBA CONTINUES PURCHASING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS FROM U.S.

        HAVANA, CUBA   --  Despite continuing U.S. Treasury restrictions on travel to Cuba and on financing U.S. exports, evidence of agricultural trade with the United States can be found across the island: Oakland, Calif.-based Crowley recently marked the fifth anniversary of its first shipment to Cuba with a business dinner with Alimport executives at Marina Hemingway just outside Havana. But trade with Cuba is now so routine, the anniversary ''was almost like a nonevent,'' said Brickman, Crowley's vice president of government services.

     The Cuba trade ''is pretty much a break-even operation,'' said Brickman, who is based at Port Everglades. ``Cuba certainly has the potential to be much more than it is. It is a question of trying to position ourselves to take advantage of that.'' The Cuban government also hires barges and other vessels to carry bulk imports: soy beans from Maryland, rice from Texas, dry beans from North Dakota and so on.

     Among the most active in forging ties has been Alabama Agricultural Commissioner Ron Sparks. ''Right after my election of 2002, I flew to Washington to sit down with the [Cuban] Interests Section,'' Sparks said, referring to the entity that takes the place of an embassy in the absence of diplomatic relations between Cuba and the United States. Alabama's Cuban exports last year totaled more than $100 million, Sparks said, adding that businesses just returned from Cuba with signed contracts for 2007.

01-22- 2007

IRAN TO TEST-FIRE MISSILES IN MILITARY EXERCISES

    TEHRAN, IRAN  -- Adamant not to budge under pressure, Iran on Sunday announced new short-range missile tests, and hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dismissed criticism that new U.N. Security Council sanctions were hurting the economy. The missile tests come days after the United States said it would deploy a second aircraft carrier to the volatile Gulf, the USS John C. Stennis. U.S. military officials have said the carrier, which is set to arrive in Mideast waters in a matter of weeks, was meant as a plain warning to Iran.

    The deployment appeared to alarm some in Iran's hard-line leadership, including a member of a powerful cleric-run body who last week warned that Washington plans to attack Iran in the coming months, possibly by striking its nuclear facilities. U.S. officials have long refused to rule out any options against Iran but said military action would be a last resort.

    Iranian state-run television reported the elite Revolutionary Guards planned to begin three days of missile tests near Garmsar city, located in northern Iran about 62 miles southeast of Tehran. The military maneuver, which would test the short-range Zalzal and Fajr-5 missiles, was set to begin Sunday, the broadcast said. It could not immediately be confirmed if the missile tests began. "The maneuver is aimed at evaluating defensive and fighting capabilities of the missiles," state-run television quoted an unnamed commander of the guards as saying.  Last year, Iran held three large-scale military exercises, testing what it called an "ultra-horizon" missile and the Fajr-3 missile, which reportedly can evade radar and use multiple warheads to hit several targets simultaneously.

27 CUBAN MIGRANTS LAND SOUTH OF KEY BISCAYNE

   MIAMI, FLORIDA   -- Twenty-seven Cubans made it to shore early today at Boca Chita, an island 16 miles south of Key Biscayne, the U.S. Coast Guard said. The migrants are in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security. Their arrival at about 6 a.m. on the small island in Key Biscayne National Park follows Coast Guard's repatriation of 91 Cubans intercepted at sea this month.

    The U.S. wet-foot/dry-foot policy, adopted by the Clinton administration after the 1994 Cuban rafter exodus, allows Cuban migrants who reach U.S. soil to stay and apply for residency. But those intercepted at sea are generally returned to Cuba.

     ''Throughout 2007, we will continue to maintain our robust presence in the Florida Straits and Caribbean with our assets as needed,'' said Howard White, assistant chief of law enforcement for the Seventh Coast Guard District. ”The Coast Guard, and its Department of Homeland Security partners, reiterate our important message that attempts to illegally enter the U.S. from the sea are inherently dangerous and have resulted in serious injury and death.''

01-21- 2007

MEXICO HANDS ALLEGED DRUG BOSS TO UNITED STATES

    MEXICO CITY, MEXICO  --   Mexico has extradited a purported drug cartel boss and three other alleged major traffickers to the United States, a move that Washington on Saturday called "unprecedented" in the cross-border fight against organized crime. Osiel Cardenas, the alleged Gulf cartel leader who was believed to still be running his gang from jail in Mexico, was sent north Friday along with 13 others wanted by U.S. authorities after their appeals against extradition ran out, the office of Mexico's attorney general said.

    U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales praised Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Saturday for the extradition, saying the U.S. had never before received from Mexico such a large number of drug suspects and others wanted for prosecution in the United States. "The actions overnight by the Mexican government are unprecedented in their scope and importance," Gonzales said in a statement released Saturday.

    In the past, Mexico has been reluctant to extradite major Mexican drug lords to the United States, arguing they should face justice here first. Officials also refused to send anyone to the U.S. who would face the death penalty, which is barred in Mexico. But that attitude changed under former President Vicente Fox, who last September promised to extradite "all of those who have pending matters with U.S. justice."

BRAZILIAN PRESS QUESTIONS CHAVES INFLUENCE IN THE REGION

    RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL  --  The Brazilian press Friday aimed at the frowned upon influence of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez on both the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) and Latin American integration. The most influential Brazilian newspapers Friday ironically called Chávez "caudillo" and branded his government as "dark Bolivarian model," "show of Bolivarian demagogy," or expanding "totalitarianism."  Commenting on the issues creating a divide among the original partners of Mercosur and the challenges facing the trade bloc as a result of new members joining the group, O Estado de Sao Paulo said in its editorial that "Hugo Chávez' Venezuela adds nothing to this bloc, but problems." "The caudillo has already expressed his opposition to liberalization of agriculture trade, which other regional partners advocate," said the newspaper.

    "Talking about strengthening of the bloc is near delirium: with partners such as Chávez' Venezuela and Morales' Bolivia, Mercosur is just going to become more inflated, while increasingly moving away from its original vocation," O Estado de Sao Paulo added. Folha de Sao Paulo also rejected Caracas' opposition to liberalized agriculture trade in the region, and slashed out at the "show of the Bolivarian demagogy," as Venezuelan "diplomats attacked" the final declaration of the summit.

    Meanwhile, O Globo editorial disapproved Chávez' plans to nationalize entire sectors of the Venezuelan economy, to create one single pro-government party and to seek indefinite presidential re-election. O Globo branded as "disgusting" Chávez' decision not to renew the broadcasting license to private TV network RCTV. "This is concrete evidence of the expansion of totalitarianism in Chávez' third mandate. Obviously he has plans to stay in power indefinitely, like Fidel Castro (in Cuba), until he leads Venezuela to the '21st Century Socialism', i.e., to chaos," O Globo underscored.

01-20- 2007

"THERE'S SOMETHING FISHY HERE," CUBA HOLDS REPUTED DRUG LORD SOUGHT BY UNITED STATES AND COLOMBIA

    HAVANA, CUBA  --   A reputed Colombian drug lord faces a possible life prison sentence in Cuba on charges of carrying false identification documents but not for alleged cocaine trafficking, his Miami-based lawyer says.  Hernando Gomez Bustamante is wanted by the United States on drug, racketeering and money-laundering charges filed in New York for his alleged role as a leader of Colombia's Norte Valle Cartel. He is also wanted in Colombia and Panama, but Cuba has refused requests to extradite him.

    Instead, according to Miami defense lawyer Oscar Rodriguez, Gomez has been held in Cuba since his 2004 arrest at a Havana airport on charges of carrying a Mexican passport under a false name. A Cuban prosecutor, he said, has recently asked for a sentence of life in prison on that charge.  "There's something fishy here," Rodriguez told El Nuevo Herald, the Spanish-language sister publication to The Miami Herald, in a story published Thursday. "Cuba's intentions are very dark."

    Documents provided to the newspaper by Rodriguez, from the People's Provincial Tribunal of Havana, indicate that prosecutor Isabel Barzaga is seeking a life sentence but does not refer to any drug trafficking by Gomez in Cuba. Trial could begin next month. The documents do quote from reports from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and from the Colombian and Panamanian governments linking Gomez to drug smuggling in those countries as well as Mexico.  

HUGO CHAVEZ GRANTED POWER TO RULE BY DECREE

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA   -- Venezuela's legislature on Thursday gave initial approval to a bill giving President Hugo Chávez extremely broad powers to rule by decree for 18 months on a wide range of social, political and economic issues. Chávez has called the measure ''the mother law of revolutionary law'' -- the legal basis for furthering the turn to the radical left that he undertook after his Dec. 3 landslide election to a second six-year term.

    A similar ''enabling law'' in 2000-2001 allowed the president to issue 49 decree-laws, which triggered a bitter three-year political conflict and saw Chávez briefly ousted in a 2002 coup. Opponents say Chávez's leftward turn seems likely to include severe curbs on political and economic freedoms. He already controls virtually all major institutions in Venezuela, from the high courts to the electoral authority.

     Chávez has promised that his next set of decrees will drastically reshape Venezuelan society. And although the published text of the measure is limited to generalities, a much more detailed version obtained by The Miami Herald gives Chávez extremely broad powers likely to become highly contentious. The new enabling law was given initial approval after a four-hour discussion in the National Assembly, where all 167 seats have been held by Chávez supporters since the opposition boycotted the last legislative elections in 2005, alleging that the electoral deck was stacked against them. A second and final approval is expected next week.

TRUCK BOMB DESTROYS PLANT OWNED BY FOOD GIANT NESTLE IN BOGOTA

        BOGOTA, COLOMBIA   --  A pickup truck carrying 660 pounds of explosives destroyed most of a dairy plant owned by Swiss food giant Nestlé in southern Colombia, an attack police attributed Thursday to leftist rebels who dominate the area. No one was killed and only one person was injured in the attack that occurred Wednesday evening in Doncello, 220 miles south of Bogotá, as milk trucks carrying the day's production were entering the plant, said Col. William Urrego, police commander in Caquetá state, where the blast took place.

01-19- 2007

IRAQI PRIME MINISTER PRESIDENT NOURI AL MALIKI: MORE WEAPONS, LESS ADVICE  

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki has been caricatured by his critics as either incompetent or a front-man for more powerful and more dangerous Shi'ite leaders — in either case increasingly irrelevant. But if Maliki is going down, he seems prepared to go down swinging. On Wednesday he said Iraq needed more weapons, not more advice, from the Bush administration.

    "I can strongly say that we could have been in a better situation right now regarding the equipment we have and the weapons we have," Maliki said through a translator in an interview with six reporters from Western media, including TIME. "And if that would have happened, it would have greatly decreased the level of our losses and the losses of the Multi-National Forces as well."

    American paratroopers are already pouring into the Iraqi capital as part of President Bush's troop surge. Maliki said those troops could soon leave if the U.S. provided the Iraqi security forces with more weapons and equipment. "If we succeed in implementing the agreement between us to speed up the equipping and providing weapons to our military forces," he said, "I think that within three to six months our need for the American troops will dramatically go down."

HUGO CHAVEZ SEEKS TO ENACT LAWS BY DECREE

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA   -- Hugo Chavez said he will seek special powers for 1 1/2 years to enact laws by decree and he suggested that sweeping changes to the country's constitution may be necessary to mold Venezuela into a socialist state. Fresh from his landslide re-election last month, Chavez has asked Congress for the authority to enact a series of "revolutionary laws" by presidential decree - a measure he says is necessary to advance his socialist reforms.

    The Venezuelan leader said Wednesday night during a speech that he would seek those powers through a "mother law of revolutionary laws.""We have requested a year and a half to have sufficient time," to push through the changes, Chavez said. He had said previously that such reforms would include nationalizations in the country's telecommunications, electricity and gas sectors. 

     He elaborated on Wednesday, saying that the "mother law" would allow him to enact political, economic, social, national security and defense changes by decree. Among other revisions, Chavez has said he is seeking an end to presidential term limits, which would allow him to run again for the presidency in December 2012.

01-18- 2007

MEXICAN PRESIDENT, FELIPE CALDERON, WANTS TO BE A COUNTERBALANCE FOR LIFE GOVERNMENTS IN LATIN AMERICA

    MEXICO CITY, MEXICO  --  Mexico has a chance to act as a counterbalance for "life governments" and "non-democratic regimes" in order to preserve balance in Latin America, said President Felipe Calderón in an interview published Wednesday in Mexican newspaper El Universal.

    "In many countries, the emergence of new signs of life governments or non-democratic regimes is a reason of concern that opens a space to play a role in the preservation of regional balance," the Mexican President said in reference to Venezuela. Last week, when taking office for the second six-year consecutive presidential term, the Venezuelan ruler announced plans to advance a constitutional reform allowing for indefinite re-election in Venezuela, AFP reported.

     Following Calderón's inauguration last December, Mexico and Venezuela have been holding talks to restore full diplomatic relations, which were reduced to charges d'affaires after a verbal clash between Chávez and the former Mexican President Vicente Fox at the end of 2004.

SPANISH PRESIDENT, JOSE LUIS RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO, CALLS FOR RESPECT FOR LATIN AMERICANS' POLITICAL WILL

   MADRID, SPAIN   -- The head of the Spanish Government José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero Wednesday called for respect for both the will of Latin American peoples and the electoral results in the region, regardless of who the winner is.

     "Whether we like it or not, let us respect the peoples of Latin America and their votes," Rodríguez Zapatero said in a news show when asked about the recent electoral victories of leaders seen as "populist" in Bolivia, Ecuador and Venezuela. He stressed that "Spain has an obligation to have positive relations with all of the Latin Americans," Efe reported. "The major issue in Latin America is not skin color or the profile of this or that ruler, but social acute inequalities and poverty."

VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT, HUGO CHAVEZ, OFFERS TO TRANSFER 10 PERCENT OF RESERVES TO BANCO DEL SUR 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- Hugo Chávez is ready to deposit at least 10 percent of his country's international reserves in the Banco del Sur. "We are prepared to move at least 10 percent of our reserves. Let the other countries do the same and let us organize a bank that will begin as a modest institution, but in five-six years we will need neither the World Bank nor begging around the world," Chávez said, as quoted by the Venezuelan official news agency ABN.

     Chávez' remarks came in Quito, Ecuador, where he attended the inauguration of Rafael Correa as Ecuadorian President. "Enough is enough; we are going to take decisions with a strategic liberating reach. We are going to transfer reserves and create a South American bank."

     President Chávez ended his visit to Quito by making a joint statement with his Ecuadorian counterpart launching a new stage in bilateral relations. Venezuela is to open an adviser's office of the Venezuelan Bandes (Economic and Social Development Bank). Caracas is also creating an economic and financial cooperation fund with a starting sum of USD 25 million, out of which USD 15 million have been earmarked to fund loans for cooperatives.

01-17- 2007

IRAQ: 109 DEAD IN BOMBINGS; 4 AMERICAN SOLDIERS KILLED

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  An explosion outside a Baghdad university as students were heading home for the day killed at least 65 people on Tuesday in the deadliest of several attacks on predominantly Shiite areas. The attacks, and the announcement of four U.S. military deaths, came on a day the United Nations said more than 34,000 Iraqi civilians died last year in sectarian violence.  Attacks in Baghdad, including the university explosion, blasts at a marketplace for used motorcycles and a drive-by shooting, killed more than 100 people in a spasm of violence ahead of a promised drive by the Iraqi government and U.S. forces to secure the capital.

    On Monday, the Iraqi government hanged two of Saddam Hussein's henchmen in an execution that left many of the ousted leader's fellow Sunni Muslims seething after one of the accused, the ousted leader's half brother, was decapitated on the gallows. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Tuesday's violence was the work of those seeking revenge for the executions, calling those responsible "a desperate group of terrorists and Saddamists."

    The military said four U.S. soldiers with Task Force Lightning were killed Monday in the northwestern province of Ninevah, home to the city of Mosul, which has seen a recent increase in violence. The deaths raised to at least 3,026 members of the U.S. military who have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.  In Baghdad, the deadliest attacks took place in primarily Shiite neighborhoods and appeared to be the work of Sunnis, who largely make up the insurgency targeting the Iraqi government and U.S. forces.

VENEZUELAN OFFICIALS SAID TO BE INVOLVED IN DRUG TRAFFIC

   BOGOTA, COLOMBIA   -- Both military and civilian Venezuelan officials are allegedly involved in drug traffic, doctor Farid Feris Domínguez, who was deported from Caracas to Bogota under charges of drug traffic, told Colombian and US authorities, as reported by journalist Gerardo Reyes in El Nuevo Herald. "I took drinks with them (Venezuelan officials), I went yachting and was invited to (military) promotions at the (military base of) Fuerte Tiuna (southwest Caracas)," Feris  explained. "When my deportation was ordered, some people begged me not to mention them."

    Andrés Peñate, head of Colombian secret police DAS, confirmed that Feris made such statement to El Nuevo Herald. "I have no doubt that this report contains true statements, but only investigations will help separate gold from scoria," Peñate said, in a reference to the enquiry the Colombian Attorney General Office is conducting.

    He added that he forwarded the information to the Venezuelan Government, based on the superb relations he has kept with the Venezuelan Ministry of the Interior and Justice. In his interview with El Nuevo Herald, Feris described how some Venezuelan officials helped him hide in this country by providing him a new identity, a false diplomatic passport and even bodyguards.

VENEZUELA GOVERNMENT REJECTS CLAIMS OF COLOMBIAN DRUG LORD

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- THE Venezuela GOVERNMENT Monday once again dismissed claims by an alleged Colombian drug lord Caracas deported to Bogota in 2006 who told El Nuevo Herald newspaper that senior Venezuelan officials were involved in drug traffic, Efe reported.

    The alleged drug trafficker Farid Feris Domínguez told El Nuevo Herald that Luis Correa, head of the Venezuelan Anti-Drug Bureau (ONA) was involved in drug traffic. Correa told reporters that Feris intends to obtain procedural benefits from US authorities seeking his extradition from Colombia. Correa added that the people Feris accused were somehow involved in the operation that led to his deportation to Bogota last September.

     According to Feris, the Minister of the Presidency of Venezuela and former director of the Bureau for Venezuelans and Foreigners' Identification (Onidex), Hugo Cabezas, the director general of the Scientific, Crime and Criminalistics Corps (Cicpc) Marcos Chávez were involved in drug traffic and gave him shelter and protection. He also claimed that Jesús Itriago, head of Cicpc National Anti-drug Office, and National Guard officer Jesús Armando Rodríguez, among others, were also involved in drug traffic.

01-16- 2007

v-p dick cheney: u.s. will work with allies to prevent iranian adventurism

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The United States is going to be a bulwark against Iranian adventurism in the world, Vice President Dick Cheney said Sunday, adding that Iran is "fishing in troubled waters" by trying to get a foothold in Iraq.  Cheney said that the United States is working through the United Nations to put the brakes on Iran's nuclear pursuits, going through the U.N. Security Council to impose sanctions, but the administration will continue its U.S. military presence in the Gulf and work with allies to stop Iran from stirring up trouble in the region.

    "I think it's been pretty well-known that Iran is fishing in troubled waters, if you will, inside Iraq," Cheney said on "FOX News Sunday With Chris Wallace." "The threat that Iran represents is growing, it's multi-dimensional, and it is, in fact, of concern to everybody in the region."

    On Sunday, the U.S. military in Baghdad said five Iranians arrested in northern Iraq last week were connected to an Iranian Revolutionary Guard faction that funds and arms insurgents in Iraq. Officials said the site where they were taken into custody had been described by various Iraqi officials as an Iranian liaison office, but it did not have diplomatic status as a consulate. Iran's government denied the five detainees were involved in financing and arming insurgents and said they should be released.

IRAN SAID TO INSTALL URANIUM CENTRIFUGES

   TEHRAN, IRAN  -- Iran said Monday it is installing 3,000 centrifuges to enrich uranium at one of its nuclear facilities, effectively confirming that its nuclear program is running behind schedule as the devices were to have been in place two weeks ago. Over the weekend, Iran dismissed reports from Europe that its uranium enrichment program had been stalled. Enriched uranium is used as fuel in nuclear reactors and, at a higher degree of enrichment, can also be used to make atomic bombs.

     But Iran had said the installation of the 3,000 centrifuges at its facility in Natanz, located in central Iran, would be completed by the end of 2006. Its failure to do so has prompted reports that it is encountering technical difficulties in mastering large-scale enrichment.  Diplomats in Vienna - where the International Atomic Energy Agency is based - said Thursday that the enrichment program in Natanz had ground to a halt.

    Some diplomats accredited or otherwise linked to the IAEA said some intelligence services believed the Natanz site could also be a front. While attention is focused on Natanz, Iranian scientists and military personnel could be working on a secret enrichment program at one or more unknown sites that is much more advanced, the diplomats said. They spoke on condition of anonymity in exchange for discussing restricted information.
President Gholamreza Aghazadeh, who heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, told reporters that about 50 centrifuges had exploded during a test.

LEFTIST RAFAEL CORREA ASSUMES PRESIDENCY OF ECUADOR 

   QUITO, ECUADOR -- Rafael Correa was sworn in as Ecuador's president Monday in a ceremony attended by members of the growing club of leftist Latin American leaders, and he pledged to fight a political establishment widely discredited as corrupt.

    Correa, 43, a tall, charismatic political outsider, took the oath of office in Congress and strapped on the red, yellow and blue presidential sash, smiling broadly and waving to cheering supporters on the floor and in the galleries. The ceremony drew some of Washington's fiercest critics including Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Iran's hard-line leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

     Ecuador has "a perverse system that has destroyed our democracy, our economy and our society," Correa said in his inaugural address. He said his first act as president will be to call a national referendum on a special assembly to rewrite the constitution - a move he says is vital to limiting the power of the traditional parties that he blames for the country's problems. That could quickly put him on a collision course with Congress, which is dominated by those same parties. Lawmakers have dismissed the last three elected presidents, violating impeachment proceedings, after huge street protests demanding their ousters.

01-15- 2007

CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO 'IN GOOD SPIRITS,' ELDEST SON, FIDEL CASTRO DIAZ-BALART, SAYS  

    SANTIAGO DE CHILE, CHILE  --  Cuban dictator Fidel Castro's eldest son said Saturday that his ailing father was on the mend and in good spirits. ''He is recovering, I see him recovering,'' Fidel Castro Díaz-Balart, 54, told reporters. ``He is in good spirits and optimistic.'' The Cuba leader has not appeared in public since undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in July and temporarily ceding power to his younger brother, Defense Minister Raúl Castro.

    Cuba has released little information on the 80-year-old Fidel Castro's condition, prompting much speculation and rumor in the country. A statement attributed to the elder Fidel Castro was released on New Year's Eve saying his recovery was ``far from being a lost battle.''

     José Luis García Sabrido, a Spanish surgeon who has treated Castro, said last month the Cuban leader does not have cancer -- as U.S. intelligence officials have claimed -- and is recovering slowly from a serious operation. Castro Díaz-Balart, a nuclear scientist, was in Chile for the inauguration of a scientific research center. On Friday, he attended a dinner hosted by President Michelle Bachelet.

MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD STARTING TOUR OF LEFT-LEANING NATIONS IN LATIN AMERICA

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chavez and Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- fiery anti-American leaders whose moves to extend their influence have alarmed Washington -- said Saturday they would help finance investment projects in other countries seeking to thwart U.S. domination. The two countries had previously revealed plans for a joint $2 billion fund to finance investments in Venezuela and Iran, but the leaders said Saturday the money would also be used for projects in friendly countries throughout the developing world.

     "It will permit us to underpin investments ... above all in those countries whose governments are making efforts to liberate themselves from the [U.S.] imperialist yoke," Chavez said. "This fund, my brother," the Venezuelan president said, referring affectionately to Ahmadinejad, "will become a mechanism for liberation." "Death to U.S. imperialism!" Chavez said.

    Ahmadinejad, who is starting a tour of left-leaning countries in the region, called it a "very important" decision that would help promote "joint cooperation in third countries," especially in Latin America and Africa. Ahmadinejad's visit Saturday -- his second to Venezuela in less than four months -- comes as he seeks to break international isolation over his country's nuclear program and possibly line up new allies in Latin America. He is also expected to visit Nicaragua and Ecuador, which both recently elected leftist governments.

01-14- 2006

THOUSANDS CLASH IN BOLIVIAN PROVINCIAL CAPITAL

    LA PAZ, BOLIVIA  --  Protesters and defenders of the local government in a central Bolivian state fought with sticks and rocks Thursday in clashes that left at least one person dead and dozens injured, according to television reports. Thousands of demonstrators demanded the resignation of Cochabamba Gov. Manfred Reyes Villa for his opposition to President Evo Morales. They clashed with the governor's supporters at various spots throughout the state capital, also Cochabamba.

     Local police reached by The Associated Press would not immediately confirm the protesters' death. Bolivian media reported that the dead man was a coca farmer. Protesters have blockaded highways in and out of Cochabamba, while Reyes, a former presidential candidate still widely considered to harbor larger political ambitions, renewed his vow not to resign. Thursday's riots were the latest in a series of escalating protests beginning last month in Cochabamba.

     On Monday, anti-Reyes protesters set fire to the heavy wooden doors of the state's historic capitol and took control of its first floor offices as the blaze spread, charring furniture and destroying some government records. Last month, Reyes publicly denounced Morales' handling of an assembly rewriting Bolivia's constitution, siding with opposition leaders who say each of the new charter's articles should be approved by two-thirds of the assembly's delegates.

CINDY SHEEHAN AMONG PROTESTERS OUTSIDE GUANTANAMO BAY 

   GUANTANAMO, CUBA  --  International peace activists marched to the Cuban military zone wrapping around the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay on Thursday to demand closure of the U.S. military prison for terror suspects five years after the first detainees arrived. The dozen protesters, including relatives of one of the prisoners and American "peace mom" Cindy Sheehan, walked along a lonesome asphalt highway connecting the Cuban city of Guantanamo to the military zone. Sheehan wore a peace sign medallion around her neck.

     They chanted "Gitmo prison is a source of shame, no more torture in our name" and held signs saying "due process is overdue" and "there are no justice-free zones." The brother of British citizen Omar Dehayes carried a large color photograph of the detainee that said "justice for my brother."

     The protest outside the base coincided with another demonstration of about 100 people in London outside the U.S. Embassy. Wearing orange, Guantanamo-style inmate outfits and surgical masks, the protesters formed eight long rows on a nearby street. Three "guards" wearing green camouflage outfits walked among them, shouting orders for them to stand up or kneel down. The group in Cuba planned to read the names of all the men still held at the prison.

ISABEL PERON ARRESTED IN INVESTIGATION OF 70'S RIGHTS ABUSES

   MADRID, SPAIN  -- Former Argentine President Isabel Peron was briefly detained Friday in Madrid as part of investigations into the South American country's past human rights abuses, police said. She appeared at Spain's National Court which released her conditionally three hours after her arrest, pending an extradition request from Argentina. The court said Argentina has 40 days to file the request and ordered Peron to appear at a police station every 15 days.

    As Peron walked free to a car awaiting her outside the court, a group of protesters shouted at her. She did not speak to reporters. Police acted on an international arrest warrant from an Argentine investigative judge who said he had questions about Peron's chaotic 20-month rule, a time when shadowy right-wing violence destabilized Argentina. The third wife of three-time president Juan Domingo Peron was ousted in the March 1976 coup that ushered in a seven-year dictatorship that waged a "dirty war" against its opponents.

    Peron, 75, has lived in exile in Spain since 1981. She was wanted for questioning about three decrees she approved in her brief presidential tenure, calling on armed forces to crack down on "subversive elements." She was also wanted for questioning in connection with the disappearance of leftist Hector Aldo Fagetti Gallego one month before the coup.

01-13- 2007

US NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR JOHN NEGROPONTE SAYS THAT DEMOCRACY IS IN DANGER IN VENEZUELA AND BOLIVIA

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  US National Intelligence Director John Negroponte Thursday stated before the US Congress that democracy is in "danger" in Venezuela and Bolivia, and he depicted Hugo Chávez as one of the most anti-American leaders in the world, reported AFP. "It is in Venezuela and Bolivia where democracy is in most danger," stated Negroponte when delivering his annual report on threats to the US before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

      "In both countries, the two presidents elected, Chávez and (Bolivian Evo) Morales, benefit from their popularity in order to undermine dissent and remove any restrictions to their authorities," added Negroponte.

BLAST AT U.S. EMBASSY IN ATHENS CALLED TERRORISM

   ATHENS, GREECE  --  Police cordoned off streets around the U.S. Embassy in Athens early today after an explosion inside the embassy compound that a senior police official said was an ``act of terrorism.'' The blast smashed glass in the front of the building near the U.S. emblem of the embassy. Police did not report any injuries and embassy officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

    ''This is an act of terrorism. We don't know where from,'' Attica police Chief Asimakis Golfis said. ``There was a shell that exploded in the toilets of the building. . . . It was fired from street level.'' Authorities were searching apartment buildings and a hospital nearby. ''I heard a loud bang; I didn't realize what was going on,'' said Giorgos Yiannoulis, who runs a kiosk near the embassy.

     Traffic came to a standstill across parts of central Athens, as police and emergency services scrambled to the embassy building. The U.S. Embassy -- a heavily guarded building -- is a frequent destination for protest groups, but American officials have not been targeted in more than a decade.

PENTAGON ENDS ACTIVE DUTY LIMITS ON NATIONAL GUARD, RESERVE TROOPS 

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- The day after President Bush announced his plan for a deeper U.S. military commitment in Iraq, Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters the change in reserve policy would have been made anyway because active-duty troops already were getting too little time between their combat tours.

     The Pentagon also announced it is proposing to Congress that the size of the Army be increased by 65,000, to 547,000 and that the Marine Corps, the smallest of the services, grow by 27,000, to 202,000, over the next five years. No cost estimate was provided, but officials said it would be at least several billion dollars. Until now, the Pentagon's policy on the Guard or Reserve was that members' cumulative time on active duty for the Iraq or Afghan wars could not exceed 24 months. That cumulative limit is now lifted; the remaining limit is on the length of any single mobilization, which may not exceed 24 consecutive months, Pace said.

01-12- 2007

PRESIDENT BUSH VOWS SURGE TO FIX 'MISTAKE' 

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  President George W. Bush last night conceded that he made a mistake by failing to increase troops in Iraq last year and committed to boosting more than 21,000 troops, setting up a battle with the congressional Democrats, who vowed to fight the new war strategy.  In rejecting the Iraq Study Group's call to withdraw most combat troops within 15 months, the president will push the U.S. military presence in Iraq to its highest level in more than a year.

    His plan, revealed last night in a prime-time address to the nation, came with no timetable, and senior administration officials said yesterday that the so-called "surge" in troops has no set end. But the president said the U.S. commitment to help Iraqis secure the war-torn nation is finite. In the 20-minute speech, the president demanded swift action by the fledgling government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has refused to crack down on the Shi'ite militias responsible for the recent spike in sectarian violence.

    "I have made it clear to the prime minister and Iraq's other leaders that America's commitment is not open-ended. If the Iraqi government does not follow through on its promises, it will lose the support of the American people -- and it will lose the support of the Iraqi people. Now is the time to act. The prime minister understands this," he said. The new strategy will increase U.S. troops in Iraq to about 153,500 at an extra cost of $5.6 billion through the rest of this fiscal year.

U.S. FORCES DETAIN 5 IRANIAN DIPLOMATIC STAFFERS IN OVERNIGHT RAID IN NORTHERN IRAQ  

   BAGHDAD, IRAQ    -- Iraqi officials said Thursday that multinational forces detained five Iranians in an overnight raid on Tehran's diplomatic mission in the northern city of Irbil. The forces stormed the building at about 3 a.m., detaining the five staffers and confiscating computers and documents, two senior local Kurdish officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the information. Irbil is a city in the Kurdish-controlled north, 350 kilometers (220 miles) from Baghdad.

     The report, which first appeared on Iraq state television, also was confirmed by a Shiite official in the capital, who declined to be named for the same reason. The U.S. military issued a statement saying it had taken six people into custody in the Irbil region but made no mention of a raid on the Iranian consulate. It declined further comment on the raid.

The motive for the raid was not known, but it came as tensions are high between Iran and the United States. The Bush administration has accused Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons and of helping fuel violence in Iraq. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, meanwhile, is trying to expand Iran's role in Iraq as a counter to U.S. influence in the Gulf region.

CUBA DISPUTES RESTITUTION FOR FAMILIES IN THE UNITED STATES

   HAVANA, CUBA  -- Cuba accused the U.S. government Wednesday of robbing the Caribbean country by awarding about $170 million in frozen Cuban assets to families that sued the Cuban government in recent years. A Foreign Ministry statement said that Cuba did not recognize the jurisdiction of U.S. courts and that the U.S. government had no right to grant any of the Cuban assets "to terrorist groups or families of U.S. citizens involved in aggressions against our country.''

    In November, a federal judge in New York ordered JP Morgan Chase Bank to turn over $91 million in Cuban assets to two families awarded damages against the Cuban government because it killed their relatives more than 40 years ago. The judge ordered the release of $67 million to the family of Howard Anderson, who was shot by a Cuban firing squad after the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, and $23.9 million to Janet Ray Weininger of Palmetto Bay, for the execution of her father, CIA pilot Thomas ''Pete'' Ray, after his aircraft was shot down during the failed invasion.

     The newspaper statement denied the versions of the plaintiffs, saying that Anderson was justly tried for ''his subversive activities . . . against the Cuban people,'' and that Ray was an ''aggressor'' who was ``taken down during the invasion.'' The plaintiffs used a 1996 U.S. law that allows victims of designated terrorist states to sue for damages. Both families had won cases in Miami-Dade Circuit Court in 2003 and 2004 against the Cuban government, which did not fight either family at trial. Other families have also been awarded payments from the frozen assets

01-11- 2007

OAS PLENARY SESSION SUPPORTS "ABSOLUTELY" SECRETARY-GENERAL

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The Organization of American States (OAS) Permanent Council voiced Tuesday "absolute" support to OAS Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza and demanded respect for his position. The move followed the remarks made by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez last Monday. Then, the ruler urged the OAS top official to quit and "retract" his allegations in defense of freedom of expression in Venezuela.

    Venezuelan minister counselor and alternative ambassador Nelson Pineda ratified Tuesday at the Permanent Council the position of the Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to them, Insulza should "retract" his comments on the government reluctance to renew a broadcasting license to private TV channel Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV). Insulza had hinted that this action was a "sort of censorship."

     Nevertheless, most representatives of the member-states expressed "full confidence" in the secretary-general management. The support came particularly from Chilean representative and Insulza's fellow citizen Francisco Bernales. Even Brazilian representative Fernando Sima stated that "opinion pluralism is a must" under democracy."

AHMADINEYAD'S VISIT TO VENEZUELA CONFIRMED FOR SATURDAY

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA   -- Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadineyad is to pay Saturday a brief official visit as part of his tour including Nicaragua and Ecuador, confirmed Wednesday the Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Iranian head of state will depart from Tehran next Friday to Venezuela. He and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez will review recent agreements and other instruments not yet disclosed.

     The following day, the ruler will head for Nicaragua, a spokesman of Foreign Vice-Minister for the Middle East and Asia told Efe. For consideration of Chávez' visits to Iran, Ahmadineyad arrived in Venezuela last September to seal "a strategic alliance" with ambitious bilateral cooperation agreements. There, he expressed willingness to join efforts against "the oppression of the world hegemony."

hugo chavez intends to create a new CUBA, say the brazilian

   RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL  -- Hugo Chávez is trying to turn his country into a "new Cuba" and this may weaken Mercosur democratic mindset, commented Wednesday major Brazilian newspapers. "Chávez heads at full speed for a totalitarian state," said O Globo concerning Chávez' decision to nationalize major companies during his new six-year term started Wednesday with the banner of the 21st Century Socialism, AFP reported.

    "The president is increasingly willing to turn Venezuela into a new Cuba," O Globo added. Like other media, the newspaper criticized Chávez for reversing a broadcasting license to a dissenting TV channel and lashing out at Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary-General José María Insulza.  O Globo warned against the "risk that Chávez could make Mercosur to lose moral strength." Venezuela joined last year the trade bloc composed of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay.

01-10- 2007

WIVES AND MOTHERS OF CUBAN POLITICAL PRISONERS MAKE PLEA TO U.S. LEFTIST ACTIVIST

    HAVANA, CUBA  --  Wives and mothers of Cuban political prisoners urged American peace activist Cindy Sheehan on Monday to visit the island's state-run jails during her weeklong trip to Cuba to call for the closure of the U.S.operated Guantánamo prison. The Ladies in White, a group of women demanding the release of their loved ones, described what they called ''inhumane'' conditions at Cuba's prisons in a letter for Sheehan that was sent to international reporters. The group said it was trying to get a copy to Sheehan as well.

     ''At the same time you and your noble followers fight for the closure of the U.S. prison at the Guantánamo naval base . . . just a few miles away at the provincial Guantánamo prison in Cuban territory, peaceful and defenseless political prisoners suffer inhumane conditions, [living] without potable water and with poor nutrition, deficient medical assistance, insects and rodents, limited visits and precarious communication,'' the letter said.

     ''We exhort you to visit the prisons of Cuba, chosen randomly, and not those prepared'' by authorities, it added. Sheehan arrived in Havana on Saturday with a dozen other peace activists and plans to attend a human rights conference in the city of Guantánamo on Wednesday. Thursday, the group is to hold a protest outside the U.S. Navy's Guantánamo Bay base, where nearly 400 men are being held on suspicion of links to al Qaeda or the Taliban. The exact location of the protest has not been announced, but it may possibly be at the Northeast Gate, the crossing between Cuba and the naval base.

HUGO CHAVEZ ASKS INSULZA TO RESIGN FROM OAS FOR HIS STATEMENTS ON TV CHANNEL 

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA   -- Hugo Chávez Monday insulted the Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza, using a vulgar word meaning "idiot." President Chávez demanded Insulza to resign for asking the Venezuelan Government to reconsider the decision not to renew the broadcasting license to TV channel RCTV.

    "The insipid Dr. Insulza," were the words used by Chávez to refer himself to OAS Secretary-General during the sword-in ceremony of his new Cabinet, which took place at the Teresa Carreño theater.  Chávez lashed out at Insulza, telling him that "Venezuela is free, Venezuela freed itself for good."

18 CUBAN MIGRANTS LAND ON ELLIOT KEY

   MIAMI, FLORIDA  -- A group of 18 Cuban migrants arrived on Elliott Key sometime Monday night, according to Biscayne National Park officials. There are 15 males and three females in the group. No other information is known at the moment.

    The migrants are currently waiting for U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials at the campground on Elliott Key. They will then be transported to Homestead Bayfront Marina or Blackpoint Marina. ''This is a pretty normal occurrence,'' said Tom Rutledge of the National Park Service. ``I've been a ranger 31 years and Cubans have been coming this way a long time.''

01-09- 2007

INCIDENT AT THE PORT OF MIAMI-DADE CAUSED BY 'MISCOMMUNICATION,' AUTHORITIES SAY 

    MIAMI, FLORIDA  --  The Iraqi national pulled up in his tractor-trailer truck for a routine delivery at the Port of Miami-Dade early Sunday. It was anything but. Port security guards stopped the driver, who lacked the proper identification to enter the port. He said he was alone. Miami-Dade police questioned him. His Iraqi relative and a Lebanese man were found in the cab -- one without any ID at all. In the back of the truck was a 40-foot cargo container holding auto wire parts.

    Within minutes, the port was on high security alert. And as the story leaked out on cable news networks, the media mobbed the port as local, state and federal authorities began investigating what seemed like a possible national security threat.

    It was not. By mid-afternoon, authorities found no explosive, hazardous or dangerous materials on the truck. The driver's manifest matched the contents in the cargo hold. The port stayed open to cruise ship passengers and everyone else. And ultimately, law enforcement officials concluded that the alert stemmed from ''miscommunication'' between the driver and security at the port's check point.

POLICE INVESTIGATE POSSIBLE EXPLOSIVES FOUND IN MATERIAL BEING LOADED INTO A CRUISE SHIP AT PORT MIAMI-DADE

   MIAMI, FLORIDA   -- Miami-Dade police are investigating the possible discovery today of explosive material in supplies being loaded onto a cruise ship at the Port of Miami-Dade. The incident comes a day after an incident at the facility sparked a national security scare.

    The Miami-Dade bomb squad was sent to the port -- for the second day in a row. Just after 3:30 p.m., the suspicious item was blown up. Federal authorities are determine if there were explosives involved, or just a false positive read by a bomb detecting machine, said Zach Mann, a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Miami.

GAS-LIKE ODOR WORRIES WORKER ACROSS NEW YORK CITY

   NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK   -- Authorities were investigating the source of a mysterious gas-like odor Monday that wafted over a large part of Manhattan, from Rockefeller Center through Greenwich Village. The Fire Department began getting calls about the odor around 9 a.m. Monday, said spokesman Tim Hinchey. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey temporarily suspended some of its PATH commuter train service between New Jersey and Manhattan as a precaution.

    Mayor Michael Bloomberg said there was no indication that the air was unsafe to breathe, and he said sensors did not show an unusually high concentration of natural gas. "It may just be an unpleasant smell," Bloomberg said. There was a small gas leak in Greenwich Village, but it wouldn't have been enough to account for the pervasive odor, the mayor said.

    Department of Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said there was no indication of terrorism and no credible intelligence to suggest any imminent threat to the city. He said the agency is closely monitoring the situation. Utility crews from Consolidated Edison were investigating, but they had found no abnormal changes in the gas flow with in its transmission system, said spokesman Chris Olert. "If there was a big leak, we would see a change in the gas flow," he said. In some areas, office buildings and apartment buildings were evacuated as a precaution.

01-08- 2007

ISRAEL HAS DRAWN UP SECRET PLANS TO DESTROY IRAN'S URANIUM ENRICHMENT FACILITIES

    LONDON, ENGLAND  --  A London paper cites several Israeli military sources saying that two Israeli air force squadrons are training to blow up an Iranian facility using low-yield nuclear “bunker-busters.” The Israeli Foreign Ministry denied the report. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office said it would not respond to the story. "We don't respond to publications in the Sunday Times," said Miri Eisin, Olmert's spokeswoman.

    Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev denied the report and said that "the focus of the Israeli activity today is to give full support to diplomatic actions" and the implementation of a U.N. Security Council resolution imposing sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt enrichment.

    According to the Sunday Times, under the plans, conventional laser-guided bombs would open “tunnels” into the targets. “Mini-nukes” would then immediately be fired into a plant at Natanz, exploding deep underground to reduce the risk of radioactive fallout. “As soon as the green light is given, it will be one mission, one strike and the Iranian nuclear project will be demolished,” said one of the sources. The plans, disclosed by Times last week, have been prompted in part by the Israeli intelligence service Mossad’s assessment that Iran is on the verge of producing enough enriched uranium to make nuclear weapons within two years. 

IRAQI ARMY KILLED 30 TERRORISTS AND CAPTURED 8 IN BAGHDAD TO LEAD ASSAULT TO TAKE BACK THE CITY

   BAGHDAD, IRAQ  -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Saturday that Iraq's armed forces are set for an assault on Baghdad to take out militias and rogue security forces. Aided by multinational troops, the Iraqi forces "will hunt down all outlaws regardless of their sectarian and political affiliations," al-Maliki said at an Iraqi Army Day parade. State TV indicated that the Iraqi army killed 30 insurgents and captured eight, five of them from Sudan.

    "We will also severely punish those [security forces] who do not carry out orders or operate in a partisan or sectarian way," he said.  Forces will search out insurgents neighborhood-by-neighborhood, The Associated Press reported, and will start the assault this weekend. The announcement came two days after al-Maliki and President Bush spoke by video conference for two hours.

    Al-Maliki's vow to control Baghdad came on the same day that the head of the city's emergency police survived an apparent assassination attempt. Gen. Ali al-Yassiri was not hurt when a car bomb detonated near his convoy Saturday morning, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official told CNN, but two police officers in his convoy were wounded. A bystander was killed, and another was hurt, the official added.

01-07- 2007

U.S. STANDS BY BELIEF THAT CASTRO IS TERMINALLY ILL

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  U.S. officials are sticking to the belief that Fidel Castro is terminally ill, saying they doubt a Spanish doctor's assertion that the Cuban leader doesn't have cancer.  "The bottom line: He is terminally ill," said Ross Feinstein, a spokesman for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the agency that coordinates the work of 16 U.S. intelligence-gathering centers.

    Feinstein also said that last month's statement by outgoing intelligence chief John Negroponte that Castro had "months, not years" to live still stood - but he carefully stayed away from using the word "cancer."  U.S. officials have been claiming that Castro suffers from cancer, which prompted a denial by Spanish surgeon Jose Luis Garcia Sabrido after his trip to Havana last month to examine the Cuban leader.

     Garcia Sabrido has said he had contacts with the island that go back many years and met with Fidel Castro for about 90 minutes last month. He said Castro had had "very grave" surgery and then suffered a series of complications that he declined to reveal, but he insisted that Castro does not have cancer.

EDUARDO AGUIRRE, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MADRID, CALLS PROPAGANDA PLOY DIAGNOSIS OF SPANISH SURGEON

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The U.S. ambassador to Madrid, Eduardo Aguirre, told reporters Friday that Spanish surgeon Jose Luis Garcia Sabrido’s  comments might have been part of a Cuban "propaganda" ploy.  The Spanish agency Garcia Sabrido works for says he is unavailable for comment.

Aguirre, in Washington for a gathering of U.S. ambassadors to Europe, said he considered the doctor's diagnosis suspicious, echoing similar claims that other U.S. officials have made before - but always in private.  "From what I've read (in media reports), a well-qualified doctor traveled a great distance to see a patient for a short period and tell us what he does not have," said Aguirre, a Cuban American and former banker.  "I'm not sure if his visit was focused on a professional, medical angle or a propaganda angle," he said.

01-06- 2007

HILTON-OWNED HOTEL IN NORWAY REFUSES TO HOST CUBAN DELEGATION

    OSLO, NORWAY  --  An Oslo hotel owned by the U.S.-based Hilton Hotel Corp. (HLT) faced protests, a boycott and a police complaint this week after refusing to book rooms for a Cuban delegation because of the United States' trade embargo against Cuba. The Cuban delegation, set to attend a travel fair in Oslo this month, planned to stay at the Scandic Edderkoppen Hotel in the city center, as they had on five previous visits.

    However, the 140-hotel Scandic company was bought by Hilton in March, and the Cubans were informed in December that they would have to find another hotel due to the American boycott. On Friday, the 300,000-member Norwegian Union of Municipal and General Employees announced that it was boycotting all Scandic hotels in Norway, joining a wave of protests that started when the ban on Cuban guest became news on Thursday.

     "We are already looking for other hotels for planned conferences," said the union's deputy leader Anne Grethe Skaardal. "For us, it is unacceptable for the U.S. to dictate to the whole world. In addition, we strongly oppose the U.S. boycott of Cuba."

GRAND JURY SUBPOENA SANTIAGO ALVAREZ AND OSVALDO MITAT AS WITNESSES ON LUIS POSADA'S CASE 

    EL PASO, TEXAS --  Two anti-Castro activists convicted in a South Florida weapons case have been subpoenaed as witnesses by a federal grand jury in Texas investigating whether detained exile militant Luis Posada Carriles lied about how he sneaked into the United States in 2005. Santiago Alvarez and Osvaldo Mitat, both in their 60s, were transferred in December from the Miami Federal Detention Center to a jail in El Paso to testify Thursday before the grand jury, a lawyer for Alvarez confirmed Thursday.

    The subpoenas were issued as Justice Department prosecutors pursue two investigations into Posada's past -- one in El Paso dealing with the perjury question and the other in Newark, N.J., probing the former CIA-trained explosives expert's alleged role in the bombing of Cuban tourist sites in 1997.

     A federal judge has set a Feb. 1 deadline for the U.S. government to justify Posada's continued custody as an immigration detainee in El Paso. Eduardo Soto, Posada's Coral Gables attorney, told The Miami Herald Thursday that he ''totally'' anticipates the judge ordering Posada's release -- unless the federal government provides solid evidence to justify further detention.

GUNMEN ATTACK NATIONAL GUARD BORDER PATROL SITE IN ARIZONA

    TUCSON, ARIZONA  -- National Guard troops working at an observatory post near the Mexican border were forced to flee after being approached by a group of armed individuals, authorities said. The event occurred about 11 p.m. Wednesday at one of the National Guard entrance identification team posts near Sasabe, said National Guard Sgt. Edward Balaban. He said the troops withdrew safely, no shots were fired and no one suffered injuries.

    U.S. Border Patrol officials are investigating the incident and trying to determine who the armed people were, what they were doing and why they approached the post before retreating to Mexico. The incident occurred in the west desert corridor between Nogales and Lukeville in the vicinity of Sasabe, Balaban said. "We don't know exactly how many because obviously it took place in the dark," Balaban said. "Nobody was able to get an accurate count."

     The Guard troops are not allowed to apprehend illegal entrants. "We don't know if this was a matter of somebody coming up accidentally on the individuals, coming up intentionally on the individuals, or some sort of a diversion," said Rob Daniels, spokesman for the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector. The west desert corridor has been the busiest in the Tucson Sector for marijuana seizures since last year. Agents have seized 124,000 pounds of marijuana there since Oct. 1, Daniels said.

01-05- 2007

thomas shannon says fidel castro stalls cuban change

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  Even with Fidel Castro seriously ill and power transferred to his brother, the ailing leader's presence is widely felt and is keeping the country from taking any new economic or political direction, says the U.S. government's top diplomat for Latin America. Thomas Shannon said that Raúl Castro has shown no sign that he will be any different from Fidel, despite Raúl Castro's call on Dec. 2 for the U.S. government to meet with the Cuban government to work through their differences.

    Shannon said four goals must be met before the U.S. government considers a change in policy: All political prisoners must be freed, human rights guaranteed, trade unions allowed to form and concrete moves made toward free elections.  ''We're not going to engage with Cuba just to engage,'' Shannon said. “Any engagement we have with Cuba has to be part of some kind of change process that leads toward this transition to democracy, and therefore we depend on what the Cuban people think and will want us to do.''

RETIRED VICE ADM. MIKE McCONNELL TO REPLACE JOHN NEGROPONTE AS NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR 

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- Retired Vice Adm. Mike McConnell, a veteran of more than 25 years in the intelligence field, will be named by President Bush to succeed John Negroponte as national intelligence director, a senior administration official said Thursday. Negroponte will move to the State Department to become the No. 2 to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. The nominations of McConnell and Negroponte are expected to be announced by Bush on Friday.

    The administration sought to dispel any suggestion that Negroponte's shift was a demotion. Bush personally reached out to Negroponte, an experienced diplomat, to take over the long-vacant job as deputy secretary of state, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because Bush has not announced the nomination.  Bush also talked personally with McConnell about taking the job as director of national intelligence, overseeing all 16 U.S. spy agencies.

     The personnel shifts in the intelligence community come as Bush is planning to announce changes in strategy for the war in Iraq. That speech -- once expected before Christmas -- now is not likely before the middle of next week, at the earliest.

 PANAMANIAN PRESIDENT MARTIN TORRIJOS IN CUBA

    HAVANA, CUBA  --  Panamanian President Martin Torrijos began an working visit to Cuba Wednesday, aimed at improving bilateral relations and solidarity. Torrijos, who arrived in Havana Tuesday accompanied by his wife and children, was welcomed at the Jose Marti International Airport by the secretary of the Council of State, Jose Miyar Barruecos, and Deputy Foreign Minister Alejandro Gonzalez. Upon his arrival, the Panamanian leader expressed thanks for the Cuban collaboration in health, and said his visit aims to honor what he rated as fruitful bilateral relations and historic solidarity between the two countries, particularly from Cuba to Panama.

     Torrijos praised the Operation Miracle, a Cuban-encouraged project that has provided free eye operations for over 1,700 low-income Panamanian patients so far. During his stay on the Island, to conclude on January 5, the Panamanian president will meet with Cuba s Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon and Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque.

01-04- 2007

CUBA'S SANTERIA PRIESTS FORESEE A GLOOMY 2007 MARKED BY WARS AND MILITARY INTERVENTION 

    HAVANA, CUBA  --  Now that the New Year celebrations are over, the high priests of Cuba’s Afro-Cuban Santeria religion have sobering visions for 2007: a “gloomy” year marked by war and military interventions.  The babalawos, or priests, issued their annual predictions for Cuba and the world Tuesday but declined to speculate about the health of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who has not appeared in public since giving up power in July to recover from intestinal surgery.

    “The outlook before us is a little gloomy,” babalawo Lazaro Cuesta said in a news conference announcing the “Letter for the Year” issued by the priests, whose Santeria religion has its roots in Africa’s Yoruba faith. “When one does not leave his place at the right time, one runs the risk that unpredictable things take place,” Cuesta said. “Despite an apparent tranquility,” he added, 2007 “speaks of a possible plot, military interventions and the breakup of agreements.”

    Babalawo Victor Betancourt had words of advice for Castro’s doctors, whose 80-year-old patient has yet to make a public appearance since handing power to his brother Raul on July 31 while he recovers from surgery. “The doctors treating this case must watch for any infection and maintain the neurological health,” Bentancourt said, adding that the ”greatest care” should be taken to avoid “future complications.”  The deity, or “orisha,” ruling over 2007 is “Oshosi,” a god of war who “collaborates with his brother by giving him the necessary help,” according to the “Letter for the Year.”

JOHN NEGROPONTE, NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR, WILL RESIGN TO BECOME DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- National Intelligence Director John Negroponte will resign to become deputy secretary of state, a government official said Wednesday night. Negroponte took over in 2005 as the nation's first intelligence chief, responsible for overseeing all 16 U.S. spy agencies. He will return to his roots as a career diplomat to become the No. 2 to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the official said.

    The official said that the timing of Negroponte's departure was uncertain but that it was expected soon. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because there has been no announcement of the move. Negroponte, 67, played a key role before the war in Iraq as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He then became ambassador to Baghdad before being named intelligence chief.  Now he is stepping down as President Bush develops a new strategy on Iraq.

 VENEZUELA CARDINAL UROSA CALLS FOR RECONSIDERATION OF HUGO CHAVEZ'S DECISION ABOUT  TV NETWORK

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  "Venezuela wins if there is both diverse media and full freedom of opinion," Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino, Caracas Archbishop, replied when asked about Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez' decision not to renew the broadcasting license to TV network RCTV. Monsignor Urosa Savino said he respected the Venezuelan Government move, but recommended "making efforts to find understanding, because the country wins if there is both diverse media and full freedom of opinion."

    He added that all citizens are entitled to have access to the information and that information must be "diverse," because listening to one single point of view is not democratic. "This decision -which has not been enforced yet- need to be reconsidered so that Radio Caracas Televisión, a long-standing and important TV channel, continues to exist."

01-03- 2007

IRAN VOWS TO "HUMILIATE' UNITED STATES AGAIN

    TEHERAN, IRAN  --  President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad scorned U.N Security Council sanctions imposed against Iran, telling a crowd Tuesday that Iran had humiliated the United States in the past and would do so again. Speaking in the southwestern provincial capital of Ahvaz, Ahmadinejad said the Security Council's resolution last month was invalid and had left the world body's reputation in tatters.

    The council voted unanimously to bar all countries from selling materials and technology to Iran that could contribute to its nuclear and missile programs. It also froze the assets of 10 Iranian companies and 12 individuals related to those programs. "Let the world know that from the Iranian nation's point of view, this resolution has no validity," Ahmadinejad said. He said the United States was the main power behind the resolution, and warned Washington: "I want you to know that the Iranian nation has humiliated you many times, and it will humiliate you in future."

    The U.S. has led the drive to stop Iran from enriching uranium -- a process that produces the material for either nuclear reactors or bombs. Iran denies that it seeks to build atomic weapons, saying its nuclear program is limited to the generation of electricity. Ahmadinejad said the sanctions were not important but were part of a campaign of psychological warfare against Iran that was designed to provoke dissent within the country.

Iraq prime minister orders probe of saddam hussein's execution

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ  -- Iraq's prime minister ordered an investigation Tuesday into Saddam Hussein's execution to try to uncover who taunted the former dictator in the last minutes of his life, and who leaked inflammatory footage taken by camera phone of the hanging.

    The unofficial video, on which at least one person is heard shouting "To hell!" at the deposed president and Saddam is heard exchanging insults with his executioners, dealt a blow to Iraq's efforts to prove it was a neutral enforcer of the law. Instead, the emotional, politicized spectacle raised tensions between the Shiite majority and Sunni Arabs who ran the country until their benefactor, Saddam, was ousted in the U.S.-led invasion of 2003.

    A prosecutor who saw the hanging said some of the taunting came from guards outside the execution chamber, not the masked ones who put the noose around Saddam's neck. The Iraqi government did not say what, if any, punishment would await anyone uncovered in its probe of guards and 14 selected witnesses who attended the execution at a Baghdad prison before dawn Saturday. Some were high-ranking officials or people affiliated with radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, a political ally of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who had wanted to speed up the timing of the execution after an appeals court upheld the death sentence.

01-02- 2007

CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO SAYS HE IS BATTLING TO RECOVER 

    HAVANA, CUBA  --  Dying leader Fidel Castro saluted Cubans on the eve of the revolution's 48th anniversary, thanking them for their support during his illness and telling them he had not lost his battle to recover. ''I am grateful to you for your affection and support,'' said the message read by a newscaster on state television and radio Saturday. ``Regarding my recovery, I have always warned that it could be a prolonged process, but it is far from being a lost battle. I collaborate as a disciplined patient, attended by the consecrated team of our doctors.

    Castro, 80, traditionally sends a similar message to Cuban citizens every New Year's Eve to mark the anniversary of the Jan. 1, 1959, triumph of the revolution that brought him to power. ''I have not stopped being in the loop on main events and information,'' he added. ``I have had exchanges with our closest comrades always when cooperation has been necessary on vitally important issues.''

    Earlier Saturday, Cuba's Communist Party daily reported that Castro telephoned the Chinese ambassador in Havana to wish his president, Hu Jintao, a happy new year. Castro's message to the Cuban people and the short story about his call to the Chinese ambassador seemed aimed at ensuring the world that the leader's recovery continues five months after he underwent emergency intestinal surgery. Saturday's story said Castro called Chinese Ambassador Zhao Rongxian on Thursday evening, and that they discussed relations between their countries. The ambassador also transmitted his president's wishes for Castro's speedy recovery.

ANTI-CHAVEZ TV STATIONS TO LOSE LICENSE

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- HUGO CHAVEZ will not renew the license of an opposition-aligned TV station when it expires next year, President Hugo Chávez said Thursday, accusing the broadcaster of backing plots to topple him. Chávez, who was reelected by a wide margin Dec. 3, said in a speech to troops that the head of Radio Caracas Televisión, Marcel Granier, was mistaken in believing ``that concession is eternal.''

     ''The television concession runs out on him in March,'' Chávez said. “So he had best start packing his bags and seeing what he's going to do after March. There will be no new concession for that coup-plotting television channel named Radio Caracas Televisión.'' The channel, also known as RCTV, is among a number of private TV and radio networks that in recent years have strongly criticized Chávez's government and favored the opposition.

    ''No media outlet will be tolerated here that is at the service of coup-ism, against the people, against the nation, against national independence, against the dignity of the republic,'' said Chávez, wearing a red beret and fatigues in his year-end speech to troops. 'I'm announcing it before the date arrives so that they don't keep on with their little story that `No, that it's for 20 more years,' '' Chávez said. The Venezuelan government decides on broadcast licenses, which are granted through the National Telecommunications Commission under the authority of the Infrastructure Ministry.