12-31- 2006

saddam hussein to be buried in his hometown of tikrit where his sons are buried 

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  Executed former Iraq dictator Saddam Hussein will be buried Sunday in the same cemetery as his sons, the son of a tribal leader said Saturday. The U.S. military delivered Hussein's body to heads of tribes and the governor of Salahedin hours after Hussein was hanged in Baghdad. The body was then taken to Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, north of the capital, where members of the Bou Nasser tribe and clerics prayed over it.

    The son of one tribal leader said Hussein will be buried Sunday at 9 a.m. (1 a.m. ET) in a cemetery in the Awja section of Tikrit. Some of Hussein's relatives are buried there, including sons Uday and Qusay. They were killed in a firefight with U.S. forces in 2003.  Hussein remained defiant to the end, arguing with guards and mocking Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr moments before he was hanged, a witness said Saturday.  The Iraqi government executed Hussein before dawn as punishment for his role in a massacre of his own people more than two decades before he was toppled by a U.S.-led invasion.

    A video of the execution broadcast on Al-Iraqiya state television showed Hussein, dressed in a black overcoat, being led into a room by three masked guards. A witness, Iraqi Judge Munir Haddad, said that one of the executioners told Hussein that the former dictator had destroyed Iraq, which sparked an argument that was joined by several government officials in the room. As a noose was tightened around Hussein's neck, one of the executioners yelled "long live Muqtada al-Sadr," Haddad said, referring to the powerful anti-American Shiite religious leader.

MADRID BOMB SHATTERS ETA CESAE-FIRE 

     MADRID, SPAIN  --  Spain has blamed a powerful bomb explosion at the country's busiest airport Saturday on Basque separatist group ETA, declaring it a violation of a nine-month cease-fire. Several people suffered minor injuries when a stolen van exploded in a parking lot near terminal four at Madrid's Barajas International Airport, which had been evacuated after police received a warning. One man is reported missing after the explosion. If found dead, he would be the first fatality caused by ETA in three years.

    Spanish Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said the government condemned the attack, "which breaks nine months without violence on the part of ETA, which breaks the permanent ceasefire." But the head of Batasuna, a political party banned for links with ETA said the peace process would continue. "The peace process...is not only not over, but now it is more necessary than ever," Arnaldo Batasuna told a news conference in the Basque city of San Sebastian, Reuters reported.

    A Spanish interior ministry official earlier said two calls had been received by police, the first a warning, the second specifying the type of car and claiming it was the work of ETA.  An end to ETA's cease-fire would be a major blow to Spain's Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. In March 2004, 191 people were killed by bomb attacks on Madrid commuter trains. Those attacks, blamed on al-Qaeda-linked militants, led to Spain's withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

12-30- 2006

THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT CALLED COSTA RICAN PRESIDENT OSCAR ARIAS AN 'OPPORTUNISTIC CLOWN'

    HAVANA, CUBA  --  The communist government of Cuba blasted Costa Rican President Oscar Arias on Wednesday for comparing ailing leader Fidel Castro to the late Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, calling Arias an ''opportunistic clown'' who does the bidding of the U.S. government.  In a statement published in the Communist Party daily Granma, the Cuban Foreign Ministry said it reacted with ''profound indignation'' to President Oscar Arias' comments likening Castro to his ideological foe.

    ''There is no difference'' between the men, Arias said in an interview in Costa Rica last week. “The ideology differs, but both were savage, brutal and bloody.'' Pinochet, who died on Dec. 10 at age 91, was blamed for a political crackdown that killed nearly 3,200 people during his right-wing military rule from 1973 to 1990. The 80-year-old Castro governed communist Cuba without interruption for more than 47 years until he temporarily ceded his powers to his younger brother Raúl following intestinal surgery on July 31.

    The Washington-friendly Arias, who won the Nobel Peace Price in 1997 for helping broker an end to Central America's civil wars, has exchanged salvos with Cuban officials since he was elected earlier this year.  In the statement on Wednesday, Cuba called Arias a ''vulgar mercenary'' of U.S. officials and said Washington 'always had on hand another opportunistic clown ready to follow its aggressive plans against Cuba. President Arias shamelessly supports the United States' annexation plan against Cuba and disrespects the heroic and selfless struggle of our people.''

hugo chavez denies opposition broadcaster's license renewal

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- Venezuela will not renew the license of an opposition-aligned TV station when it expires next year, President Hugo Chavez said Thursday, accusing the broadcaster of backing plots to topple him. Chavez, who was re-elected by a wide margin December 3, said in a speech to troops that the head of Radio Caracas Television, Marcel Granier, was mistaken in believing "that concession is eternal." "The television concession runs out on him in March," Chavez 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 Television." The channel, also known as RCTV, is among a number of private TV and radio networks that in recent years have strongly criticized Chavez'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 Chavez, 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 The press freedom group Reporters Without Borders has expressed concern the government is targeting the station for political reasons.

In a press release, Rangel stressed that the Venezuelan Government does not intend to revoke the license, but not to renew it, as it expires next May. "We are not talking about nullifying a license -which the Venezuelan State is also entitled to do, by the way, on fair grounds-, but about a move taken within the framework of discretion by announcing that a license will not be renewed. This not an expropriation either, like some people have suggested."

12-29- 2006

U.S. OFFICIALS:  SADDAM HUSSEIN TO BE EXECUTED THIS WEEKEND 

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is expected to be executed "this weekend," Bush administration officials told CNN on Thursday.  Hussein will be transferred from U.S. to Iraqi custody within the next day, one official said.  More than one administration source confirmed the impending transfer. But Homeland Security Advisor Fran Townsend, speaking on CNN's "The Situation Room," cautioned that the timing of the execution is up to the Iraqi government.

    Two defense attorneys Thursday told Hussein in his jail cell that his death sentence had been upheld. "He was not surprised at this. But he believes in his fate, and his only concern is the unity of the Iraqi people," chief defense attorney Khalil al-Dulaimi told CNN in Amman, Jordan. Al-Dulaimi described the former Iraqi dictator's morale as "normal." Hussein was convicted on November 5 for crimes against humanity in connection with the killings of 148 people after an attempt on his life.

    His death sentence was upheld Tuesday by an appellate court. Hussein was not in attendance. Hussein's execution by hanging must take place before January 27 -- or within 30 days after the Iraqi High Tribunal
 upheld the death sentence -- according to chief Judge Aref Shahee.  "He believes in his destiny," the attorney said.

12-28- 2006

FORMER PRESIDENT GERALD R. FORD DEAD AT 93

    LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA   --  Gerald Rudolph Ford, an Eagle Scout from Grand Rapids, Mich., whose earnest integrity helped Americans recuperate from the devious evils of the Watergate affair, has died at age 93. Ford, who was the longest living president, followed by Ronald Reagan who also died at 93, had battled pneumonia in January 2006 and underwent two heart treatments -- including an angioplasty -- in August at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.Ford was the nation's only unelected president, radiant with decency, successful without seeming ambitious, ''an ordinary man,'' according to biographer James Cannon, called to serve America in extraordinary circumstances.

    Nobody's fool -- Ford graduated in the top third of his Yale Law School class -- he profited all his life from people who underestimated him. But Ford was a wooden speaker, more consensus-builder than leader, and, in what was then the closest presidential election in 60 years, he lost in 1976 to Jimmy Carter. Ford, then House minority leader, intended to retire in 1976 and had promised his wife, Betty, that he would. But Richard Nixon picked Ford in October 1973 as his second vice president. Nixon's first, Spiro Agnew, had been forced to resign in a plea bargain after Justice Department investigators determined that Agnew had taken kickbacks from Maryland contractors.

    ''Well, it would be a good way to end my career,'' Ford responded with characteristic, slightly ungainly modesty. He was the choice, Nixon had determined, of most Democratic and Republican congressional leaders. Ford succeeded Nixon on Aug. 9, 1974, after irrefutable taped evidence showed that Nixon had, despite his denials, participated in the cover-up of a break-in at Democratic Party headquarters.

SPANISH DOCTOR SAYS CASTRO DOESN'T HAVE CANCER

      MADRID, SPAIN  --  Fidel Castro ''absolutely'' does not have cancer but is recovering from complications after surgery to treat a ''benign illness,'' a Spanish surgeon who examined the Cuban leader said Tuesday in the first independent medical opinion of Castro's health since he gave up power almost five months ago. Dr. José Luis García Sabrido, chief surgeon at Madrid's Gregorio Marañón General Hospital, flew to Havana on Thursday on a flight chartered by the Cuban government. In a press conference Tuesday in Madrid, García Sabrido offered few medical details about what is ailing the controversial Cuban leader but insisted Castro is not dying of cancer.

    ''Within [the rules] of confidentiality, what I can say is that President Castro doesn't suffer from a malignant illness,'' García Sabrido said at the televised news conference when asked whether Castro's illness was curable. ``It's a benign illness for which he has had a series of complications.'' Asked if he had cancer, García Sabrido said, ``From what I know, I absolutely deny it.'' The doctor's words did little to sway U.S. officials from their belief that the Cuban leader is gravely ill.

    On Dec. 13, U.S. Director of National Intelligence John D. Negroponte told The Washington Post that Castro had ''months, not years'' to live and ''we think he's terminally ill.'' That belief was reiterated by several officials Tuesday, though they were careful not to suggest that Castro was suffering from some form of terminal stomach cancer. One official said his government agency had ''no reason'' to reconsider its evaluation that Castro's condition was ''very serious indeed.'' The official spoke on condition that his name and affiliation not be revealed, given the sensitivity and speculative nature of the subject. The State Department declined to comment on the Spanish doctor's assessment. But privately officials reiterated the U.S. government's previously stated belief that Castro is more ill than Cuban officials have let on.

12-27- 2006

BOLIVIA TO DEPORT OUTSPOKEN CUBAN DISSIDENT

    LA PAZ. BOLIVIA  --  The Bolivian government has announced plans to deport a prominent Cuban dissident who publicly criticized President Evo Morales' close ties to Havana. Cuban doctor Amauris Samartino, who holds permanent residence status in Bolivia, will be expelled under a 1996 law forbidding immigrants to ''intervene in any form in internal politics or incite by any means the alteration of the social and political order,'' according to a government statement on Sunday.

    Samartino was arrested Saturday in the eastern city of Santa Cruz, a center of anti-Morales opposition, and later transferred to the Bolivian capital of La Paz. He will be flown home to Cuba once his case has been processed, the statement said. Opposition leaders on Santa Cruz have decried Samartino's arrest and say they plan to ask Bolivia's public defender's office to block the expulsion.

    Samartino was one of a group of Cuban dissidents who fled to Bolivia in 2000, but the Bolivian government announced on Sunday that Samartino does not hold refugee status. Since Morales took office a year ago as Bolivia's first Indian president, Castro has sent more than 1,500 Cuban doctors to provide much-needed medical services in South America's poorest country. Samartino has helped some of those doctors flee to neighboring Brazil or the United States.

TARGET PULLS CHE CD CASES AFTER BARRAGE OF CRITICISM

      WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  Images of the communist revolutionary figure -- his ears donned with an iPod-esque set of earphones and splashed on the latest CD cases -- have been pulled from the shelves locally and nationally.    ''The stores don't have pictures of Osama bin Laden or Adolf Hitler,'' said Miguel Saavedra, founder of the anti-Castro group Vigilia Mambisa. “It's disrespectful to the Cuban community.''

    Miami's Cuban exile community collectively gasped at the use of Fidel Castro's one-time right-hand man to sell music accessories, with community leaders saying Guevara was one of history's brutal mass murderers. Exiles weren't the only ones who angrily questioned Target's move to cash in on Guevara's cult status in some circles, particularly rebellious youth.

    ''We have made the decision to remove this item from our shelves,'' Target responded in a statement. ``It is never our intent to offend any of our guests through the merchandise we carry and we sincerely apologize for any discomfort this situation may have caused our guests.''

12-26- 2006

SPAIN CONFIRMS SENIOR SURGEON TRAVELED TO HAVANA TO TREAT DYING CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO

    MADRID, SPAIN  --  Health officials here are confirming a newspaper report that a leading Spanish surgeon traveled to Havana last week to consult on whether Fidel Castro should undergo more surgery. Moreover, Manuel Lamela, a Madrid region health official, told the Associated Press that Spain had been sending medicine for the ailing Cuban leader since June. He declined to elaborate -- on either the medication or the Cuban leader's health problems.

    ''If I did, I would be revealing the patient's pathology,'' Lamela said, ``and we would be violating medical confidentiality and the Cuban government's media policy.'' Castro, 80, has not appeared in public since undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in July. Castro put his younger brother, Raul, in charge of the government. Dr. Jose Luis Garcia Sabrido, chief surgeon at Madrid's Gregorio Marañón hospital, traveled to Cuba's capital Thursday, said Lamela, adding that Spain would continue to give support and assistance to the Cuban government.

    Castro's medical condition is a state secret. Cuban authorities deny he suffers from terminal cancer -- as alleged by U.S. intelligence officials -- but have been less insistent that the elder Castro will return to power. The Barcelona-based El Periodico newspaper broke the news of Sabrido's special mission over the weekend. The surgeon's assignment, according to the newspaper: ``To determine what steps can be taken to halt [Castro's] progressive deterioration.''

IRAN VOWED TO PUSH FORWARD WITH EFFORTS TO ENRICH URANIUM

     TEHRAN, IRAN  --  Iran on Sunday vowed to push forward with efforts to enrich uranium and to change its relations with the international nuclear watchdog after the U.N. Security Council imposed sanctions designed to stop the country's disputed nuclear efforts.

     Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the Security Council would regret voting in favor for the sanctions, saying he was sorry the West lost its chance to make amends with Iran. "I am sorry for you who lost opportunity of friendship with nation of Iran. You yourself know that you cannot damage nation of Iran an iota," the state-run news agency, IRNA, quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.

    Ahmadinejad also said the United Nations must accept Iran's nuclear program and warned that sanctions would not harm his country. "You have to accept that Iran has the technology of producing nuclear fuel. And it will celebrate it in coming anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution in February. You, resorting to these sort of activities, cannot achieve anything except dissolving your reputation," Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying.

12-24- 2006

PRESIDENT BUSH PRESENTS MEDALS TO WOUNDED TROOPS

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  President Bush presented Purple Hearts to wounded troops on Friday at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, an annual holiday tradition of comforting soldiers that he began after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.   ''We owe them all we can give them, not only for when they're in harm's way, but when they come home to help them adjust if they have wounds, or help them adjust after their time in service,'' Bush said after visiting the wounded and presenting medals to 14 men and women in the Army, Marines and Air Force.

    While at Walter Reed, the president and his wife briefly joined Girl Scouts and Brownies from Maryland and Virginia who were wrapping presents for families and children of wounded military personnel. Bush and first lady Laura Bush visited 38 patients being treated there for injuries suffered mostly in Iraq, but also in Afghanistan. Seeing troops with amputated limbs and other serious wounds, the president asked them how they were feeling and if their care was adequate, and talked with family members and medical staff.

U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL SLAPS SANCTIONS ON IRAN

    UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK  --  The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Saturday to impose sanctions on Iran for refusing to suspend uranium enrichment, increasing international pressure on the government to prove that it is not trying to make nuclear weapons. Iran immediately rejected the resolution. The result of two months of tough negotiation, the resolution orders all countries to stop supplying Iran with materials and technology that could contribute to its nuclear and missile programs. It also freezes Iranian assets of 10 key companies and 12 individuals related to those programs.

    If Iran refuses to comply, the council warned it would adopt further nonmilitary sanctions, but the resolution emphasized the importance of diplomacy in seeking guarantees "that Iran's nuclear program is exclusively for peaceful purposes." Iran insists its nuclear program is intended to produce energy, but the Americans and Europeans suspect its ultimate goal is the production of weapons. The Iranian government immediately rejected the resolution, vowing in a statement from Tehran to continue enriching uranium, a technology that can be used to produce nuclear fuel for civilian purposes or for a nuclear bomb. The government said it "has not delegated its destiny to the invalid decisions of the U.N. Security Council."

     The United States said it hopes the resolution will clear the way for tougher measures by individual countries, particularly Russia. "We don't think this resolution is enough in itself," Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said in Washington. "We want to let the Iranians know that there is a big cost to them," he added, so they will return to talks. The administration had pushed for tougher penalties. But Russia and China, which both have strong commercial ties to Tehran, and Qatar, across the Persian Gulf from Iran, balked. To get their votes, the resolution dropped a ban on international travel by Iranian officials involved in nuclear and missile development and specified the banned items and technologies.

12-23- 2006

A REPORT AUTHORED BY THE US SENATE SAYS THAT NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS (NGO) ARE DESPISED BY HUGO CHAVEZ

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The most serious troubles in the Latin American civil society occur in Venezuela, where the Government of President Hugo Chávez has "absolute contempt" for Non-Governmental Oganizations (NGO).  The report entitled "Non-governmental organizations and promotion of democracy -A voice for people," was drafted by the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee at the request of Chairman Richard Lugar for distribution on Friday. Lugar explained in the introduction that the experts prepared the 129-page report after visiting 16 countries in Africa, Asia, Central Europe and Latin America. In the hemisphere, they visited Venezuela, Chile and Peru.

    "There is a lot of concern about existing troubles in Venezuela, where there has been a shift towards the worst under the administration of President Hugo Chávez, particularly regarding separation of powers among the legislative, judicial and executive branches. A pending legislation at the National Assembly (AN) to rule and control the capability and work of NGOs is worrisome," the report found.

    "Under Chávez, Venezuela has shown total contempt for civil society actors and any form of political dissent; and there is distrust even of the restricted involvement of civil society groups through institutions like (the Organization of American States) OAS." Lugar requested the report to assess the "status of democracy" with an emphasis on the programs backed by the US Government through The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) -a private, nonprofit organization aimed at strengthening democratic institutions around the world through nongovernmental efforts- and other NGOs. The report also makes reference to Venezuelan NGO Súmate.

VENEZUELA ATTORNEY GENERAL OFFICE INDICTS 33 MILITARY OFFICERS

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Public prosecutors Turcy Simancas, Johnny Méndez and Didier Rojas filed Friday criminal charges against Brigadier Generals René Sericia García and Clinio Rodríguez. The military officers are accused of conspiracy, civil rebellion and solicitation to crime during the military uprising in Altamira square in October 2002. An additional group of 31 officers, including Major Generals Edgar Méndez and Brigadier General Eugenio Añez Núñez was accused of civil rebellion. The latter had been charged formerly with presumed involvement in the murder of public prosecutor Danilo Anderson.

12-22- 2006

NEW CUBAN DICTATOR  RAUL CASTRO SAYS BROTHER FIDEL IS 'IRREPLACEABLE'

    HAVANA, CUBA  --  new CUBAN dictator Raul Castro said in comments published Thursday he will delegate more duties and give fewer speeches than his "irreplaceable" brother Fidel, and further signaled a new leadership style by encouraging more public debate. Showing that he may be more open to divergent opinions than his ailing 80-year-old brother, Raul Castro told a group of about 800 young Communist university leaders they should "fearlessly" engage in public debate and analysis, the Communist Party newspaper Granma said.

    Raul  said that as Cuba's long-serving defense minister he had learned to listen to and discuss differing ideas. "The first principle in constructing any armed forces is the sole command. But that doesn't mean that we cannot discuss," he said, adding "that way we reach decisions, and I'm talking about big decisions." He  also echoed his earlier insistence that neither he or any one individual could replace his brother. Although some Cuban officials have insisted Fidel Castro will return to power, they privately acknowledge that it is unlikely he come back in the same all-powerful role.

    "Fidel is irreplaceable, save that we all replace him together, each one in his place" Granma quoted Raul Castro as telling the closing session of Cuba's University Student Federation annual congress. "The only substitute for Fidel can be the Communist Party of Cuba." The 75-year-old Raul Castro also spoke of the need to promote younger people to start taking over for Cuba's aging leaders, many of whom are now in their 70s. "We are finishing up the fulfillment of our duties and there has to be a slow opening up to the new generations," he said.

HUGO CHAVEZ ACCUSES U.S. AMBASSADOR OF LYING ABOUT INCREASED DRUG TRAFFICKING in venezuela

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  The U.S. ambassador's suggestion that better ties were possible with Hugo Chavez met a blunt reply on Wednesday when Chavez accused the ambassador of lying about drug trafficking. The lack of counter-drug cooperation between Venezuela and the U.S. has been one of many diplomatic sticking points between the two countries — one that has worsened as Chavez has accused American anti-drug agents of involvement in espionage.

    "A little while ago, the U.S. ambassador in Caracas told a big lie. He should retract it if it's really true that (U.S. officials) want good relations like they've been saying," Chavez told reporters who questioned him during an unrelated event on Wednesday. Ambassador William Brownfield told the Venezuelan newspaper El Nacional this week that U.S. officials estimate that the amount of cocaine smuggled through Venezuela has increased by 20 to 30 metric tons (22 to 33 U.S. tons) a year over the last five years, reaching about 300 metric tons (330 U.S. tons) in 2006.

      "The drug traffickers have identified a vacuum because there is less police collaboration than in any other country ... and as a result they take advantage of Venezuela to move their product toward the Caribbean," Brownfield told El Nacional. Brownfield also told El Nacional that Washington is seeking a pragmatic relationship with Chavez's government, cooperating on trade, energy and drug issues despite political differences. Chavez called Brownfield's claims about drugs "a lack of respect for the truth" and said they were "absolutely false."

12-21- 2006

PRESIDENT BUSH CALLS FOR INCREASING SIZE OF U.S. MILITARY

    WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  President Bush says the U.S. needs to increase the size of Army and Marines, and says strategy and tactics in Iraq will change to meet the situation on the ground. Bush also said Wednesday that insurgents in Iraq thwarted U.S. efforts at "establishing security and stability throughout the country" in 2006.  At a year-end news conference, Bush said the United States will "ask more of our Iraqi partners" in 2007, and he pledged to work with the new Democratic Congress, as well.

    Bush sidestepped one question - whether he would order a so-called surge of troops in Iraq as a first-step toward gaining control of the violent and chaotic situation there. "Nice try," he told a reporter who asked about his plans. The Baker-Hamilton Commission recommended a quick buildup of troops as part of an overall plan to arrest what it called a "grave and deteriorating" situation in Iraq. The president opened the question-and-answer session by conceding the obvious - things haven't gone well in Iraq, where the United States has lost more than 2,900 troops in almost four years of war, without quelling the insurgency.

     "The enemies of liberty ... carried out a deliberate strategy to foment sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shia. And over the course of the year they had success," he said.  Bush said Tuesday for the first time that American forces were not winning in Iraq. He also said the military would be expanded to fight a long-term battle against terrorism. The White House said Bush's decision about expanding the size of the military was separate from his search for a new approach to the war in Iraq. "This is necessary for the long term obligations in the war on terror," presidential spokesman Tony Snow said.

U.S. WEIGHS MILITARY BUILDUP TO WARN IRAN

     WASHINGTON, D.C. --  The Pentagon is considering a buildup of Navy forces in the Persian Gulf as a show of force against Iran, a senior defense official said Tuesday. Speaking on condition of anonymity because the idea has not been approved, the official said one proposal is to send a second aircraft carrier to the region amid increasing tensions with Iran, blamed for encouraging sectarian violence in neighboring Iraq as well as allegedly pursuing a nuclear weapons program.

    The United States and its European allies are seeking sanctions against Iran because of its refusal to stop uranium enrichment, a technology that can be used to produce nuclear fuel for civilian purposes or fuel for a nuclear bomb. In Tehran, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Tuesday that U.N. sanctions would not stop Iran from pursuing its uranium enrichment program, which he has said is for peaceful development of energy.

    Bush administration officials have repeatedly declined to rule out the use of force against Iran, though they have also said their first choice is to rely on diplomacy. The idea of building up U.S. Navy forces has been discussed over some time and it's unclear when a decision will be made, the defense official said. The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower is already in the region. It left the United States in late September with four other Norfolk-based ships and submarines carrying 6,500 sailors.

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR AND HIS WIFE ADMIT THEY WERE CUBA SPIES 

      MIAMI, FLORIDA  -- A Florida professor admitted Tuesday he had been a Cuban spy for nearly 30 years, and his wife -- also a professor -- admitted she knew of his conduct, authorities said.  Both Carlos Alvarez and his wife Elsa pleaded guilty to lesser charges in federal court in Miami.  The couple entered their pleas as part of a deal to avoid a jury trial on previous charges of being Cuban agents who failed to register with the U.S. government, the Miami Herald reported Tuesday.

    The more serious offense could have put the couple in prison for a decade, the paper said. A psychology professor at Florida International University, Alvarez faces up to five years in prison for conspiracy to become an unregistered foreign agent.  Elsa Alvarez, who also worked at the university, faces up to three years in prison for concealing her husband's participation in that conspiracy.  The two are scheduled to be sentenced February 27. In Washington, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein said the plea "demonstrates our firm commitment to protect our country and our citizens against the agents of foreign powers."

12-20- 2006

U.S. AMBASSADOR IN VENEZUELA, WILLIAM BROWNFIELD, NOTICES INCREASED DRUG-TRAFFIC IN THE COUNTRY

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- Drug-traffic through Venezuela has soared because of a lack of cooperation with the United States, said US Ambassador in Caracas William Brownfield, at a time when the two governments are making efforts to improve their deteriorated relations and reach a new anti-drug agreement, Reuters reported. Venezuela in 2005 terminated a cooperation agreement with the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) following President Hugo Chávez' claims that the agency was involved in espionage in Venezuela, amid tough verbal clashes between Washington and Caracas.

     "The reason in part is that drug smugglers perhaps are noticing a void in Venezuela, as there is no cooperation between Venezuelan and US police corps. I would like to eliminate such a void," said Brownfield in an interview broadcast on Sunday. According to the diplomat, the amount of processed cocaine passing through the Venezuelan territory has increased tenfold over the last five years to some 200-300 tons a year.

     Venezuelan authorities, however, claim drug seizures in Venezuela have increased since they severed ties with DEA, but Brownfield argues that increased seizures is the result of expanded flow of drugs passing through Venezuela. Because of its geographical location, Venezuela is a key point for drug shipments from Colombia -the world's largest producer of cocaine- in their way to the US and Europe. Following Chávez re-election last December 3rd, a triumph the Venezuelan opposition and the United States acknowledged, both countries have made attempts at smoothing their differences.

HUGO CHAVEZ CREATES ONE-PARTY CALLED UNIFIED SOCIALIST PARTY OF VENEZUELA

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- Venezuela's ruling party took the first step Monday toward creating a single pro-government party, a move opponents criticized as a push to consolidate more power in the hands of President Hugo Chavez after his landslide re-election. Ruling party leader Willian Lara said the Fifth Republic Movement was being dismantled in order to merge with other parties in the new Unified Socialist Party of Venezuela.

    Before he was re-elected December 3, Chavez proposed the new party to consolidate and unify a collection of loosely allied parties as he steers the oil-producing country toward socialism. "It's a new party that is born out of the revolutionary process," Lara said. Chavez also announced Monday he was planning to make changes in his Cabinet and called on top aides to tender their resignations. "I asked everyone to offer up their posts -- the vice president and the ministers," Chavez said. "I'm going to make some adjustments."

    Critics argue the push for one pro-government party is strikingly similar to Fidel Castro's creation of a single party in Cuba in the early 1960s.  The ruling-party move does not directly affect opposition parties, but some opposition leaders strongly criticized what they called another sign of Chavez's thirst for control. Teodoro Petkoff, editor of the opposition Tal Cual newspaper, predicted in an editorial Monday that Chavez would handpick party leaders rather than leaving the decision to rank-and-file supporters. "His tireless finger won't stop singling out those who are going to be the bosses," wrote Petkoff, who served as a top adviser to defeated presidential candidate Manuel Rosales.

FAKE MONEY PROMPTS ISSUANCE OF NEW "CHAVITOS IN CUBA

   HAVANA, CUBA  -- Responding to increasing reports of false convertible peso bills in Cuba, the Central Bank on Monday announced a new series of bills with enhanced security features. The bills are worthless anywhere else in the world, but are the main tender used for most shopping on the island. The new bills will include the denomination in the watermark, adding the value next to the hidden image of patriot José Martí.

    The back of each bill will also have a new picture, depending on its value. For example, the one-peso bill will show a picture of Martí's combat death; the three-peso bill, a picture of the 1958 battle of Santa Clara, in which rebels scored a victory over Batista's regime; the five-peso bill, a picture of the protest at Baragua in the struggle for independence from Spain. The bills maintain the security thread that reads ``Fatherland or death! We shall overcome!''

    The Cuban government first introduced the convertible peso in 1994, shortly after legalizing the U.S. dollar. The greenback was pulled off the market in 2004, making the so-called ''cuc'' the most widely used legal tender on the island and the only way to buy most consumer goods. It is worth $1.08 but cannot be exchanged anywhere but in Cuba. The Cuban government has denounced the use of fake bills as an exile-driven plot to destroy the Cuban economy. During a 1999 terrorism trial in Cuba, a self-proclaimed spy for the Cuban government testified that a Cuban American National Foundation board member gave him thousands of fake pesos to dump on the Cuban economy.

12-19- 2006

ROBERT M. GATES SWORN IN AS DEFENSE SECRETARY   

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  Robert M. Gates said today after being sworn in as secretary of defense that he's planning a trip to Iraq to assess the bloody, 45-month-old war.  Gates, 63, replaces Donald H. Rumsfeld, who announced his resignation on Nov. 7, a day after Republicans lost control of Congress and a month before the bipartisan Iraq Study Group sharply criticized the U.S. venture in Iraq, calling the situation there "grave and deteriorating."

    Gates, a former CIA chief who has served four previous presidents and who recently was president of Texas AandM University, called the Iraq war his "top of the list" priority. He did not directly address one of the study group's key recommendations -- that most of the 140,000 U.S. troops in Iraq should be withdrawn by early 2008. But he warned that failure in Iraq would be a "calamity" that would haunt the United States and "endanger Americans for decades to come."

    "All of us want to find a way to bring America's sons and daughters home again," Gates said. "But, as the president has made clear, we simply cannot afford to fail in the Middle East." Gates took the oath of office from Vice President Dick Cheney in the public Pentagon ceremony. He was officially sworn in six hours earlier at a private White House ceremony. At the Pentagon ceremony, President Bush said Gates recognizes that the war on terror is a "long struggle against an enemy unlike any our nation has fought before."

AHMADINEJAD'S ALLIES DEFEATED IN IRAN ELECTIONS

  TEHERAN, IRAN  --  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's allies failed to dominate elections for a powerful Iranian clerical body and local councils, early results showed on Sunday, in what analysts said was a setback to the president's standing.  Friday's twin elections for the clerical Assembly of Experts and local councils, the first nationwide vote since Ahmadinejad took office in 2005, will not directly impact policy.  But turnout of around 60 percent and Ahmadinejad's close identification with some candidates, particularly in Tehran, suggested a shift toward more moderate policies and away from the president's ultra-conservative line.

    Although not Iran's most powerful figure, Ahmadinejad's anti-Israel and anti-Western statements alarm the West, which fears Iran is seeking an atomic bomb despite Tehran's denials.  "The results show that voters have learned from the past and concluded that we need to support ... moderate figures," the daily Kargozaran said in an editorial. Kargozaran is close to former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a moderate cleric who state media said led the count in Tehran for the Assembly of Experts. Rafsanjani lost to Ahmadinejad in the 2005 presidential race.  

    Lower down the list but still with enough votes to retain a seat, was Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi, a firebrand cleric who advocates cultural isolation from the West and is widely seen as the spiritual mentor of Ahmadinejad. wo candidates, identified by clerics as Mesbah-Yazdi allies, were out of the running in Tehran, the official IRNA news agency said. Three Mesbah-Yazdi supporters lost in other regions though at least one was known to have secured a seat.  "This is a blow for Ahmadinejad and Mesbah-Yazdi's list," said one political analyst, who declined to be quoted by name.

12-18- 2006

U.S. CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION RETURNS TO U.S.A. WITHOUT MEETING RAUL CASTRO  --- FIDEL NOT TERMINAL ILL

     HAVANA, CUBA  --  Cuban officials told a group of visiting U.S. lawmakers that Fidel Castro does not have cancer or a terminal illness in the most comprehensive denial yet of rampant rumors about the ailing leader's health, the head of the U.S. delegation said Sunday. U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican, said Cuban officials did not provide further details on the 80-year-old leader's health, but did say he will eventually return to public life. Despite the high level delegation, Raul Castro, the new dictator, did not receive them.

    ''All the officials have told us that his illness is not cancer, nor is it terminal, and he will be back,'' Flake said. . Cuban officials have repeatedly insisted the elder Castro is recovering, and Vice President Carlos Lage previously dismissed reports that the leader was suffering from stomach cancer. But officials have not publicly denied rumors that he could have another type of cancer or some other terminal illness. U.S. officials have said they believe Castro suffers from some kind of inoperable cancer and will not live through the end of 2007. Some U.S. doctors have speculated he could have a colon condition called diverticulosis,  

    'They were more guarded than I expected about any suggestion that there might be any substantive change economically and politically,'' Flake, who supports lifting the U.S. embargo and travel ban on Cuba, said of Cuban officials. The group of 10 lawmakers arrived Friday and has met with Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque, Parliament Speaker Ricardo Alarcon and Basic Industries Minister Yadira Garcia. They had not met with Raul Castro as of Sunday afternoon, and no longer expected to. ''We had hoped to meet with Raul, but that is not going to happen,'' said Flake, on his fifth trip to the island. ``It seems that the Cuban government may not be ready to say that the new era has begun, and perhaps that meeting would suggest that.''

GUNMEN STAGE MASS KIDNAPPING IN BAGHDAD

   BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --Gunmen in Iraqi army uniforms burst into Red Crescent offices on Sunday and kidnapped two dozen employees and visitors at the humanitarian organization in the latest sign of the country's growing lawlessness.  British Prime Minister Tony Blair , in Iraq on his sixth visit since the 2003 invasion, appealed for international support for Iraq's fragile government, saying the bloodshed was being carried out "by the very forces worldwide who are trying to prevent moderation."

    Blair and his Iraqi counterpart, Nouri al-Maliki, discussed preparations by British military units in Basra, the main city in southern Iraq, to turn over security to Iraqi forces. Britain expects to withdraw several thousand troops from Iraq next year, despite concerns that Iraqi forces are not ready to keep order on their own. 

     In the latest violence, gunmen in five pickup trucks pulled up at the office of the Iraqi Red Crescent in downtown Baghdad and abducted 20 to 30 employees and visitors, the aid group and police said.  A Red Crescent official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of safety concerns, said the gunmen left women behind.  Mazin Abdellaha, the secretary-general of the Iraqi Red Crescent, appealed to the kidnappers to release the captives.

12-10- 2006

HUGO CHAVEZ CALLS FOR MORE UNITY IN SOUTH AMERICA

      MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY  --  Hugo Chavez called for greater South American integration and touted plans for a vast natural gas pipeline before stopping in Uruguay on Friday as part of a re-election victory tour of the region. Chavez arrived at a military base near the capital of Montevideo and was to have lunch with Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez before heading to Bolivia for a South American summit.

    Chavez, fresh from his landslide re-election to another six-year term Sunday, traveled from neighboring Argentina after visiting Brazil. During his tour, he has called for regional integration and promoted plans for a $20 billion natural gas pipeline stretching 9,000 kilometers (5,600 miles) from Venezuela's huge gas reserves to Brazil, Argentina and other countries. The project has interested many in an energy hungry region, but critics have expressed doubts it can really ever be carried out. No date has been set to begin the project.

    Chavez also seeks to advance Latin American integration as a counterweight to U.S. influence. He has been a fierce opponent of the U.S.-promoted Free Trade Area of the Americas, which would extend from Alaska to Patagonia. During his tour, Chavez has visited three of a growing group of leftist South American presidents: Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva, Argentina's Nestor Kirchner and now Vazquez. Chavez will also meet with Bolivian President Evo Morales, who is hosting the regional summit.

FORMER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE DONALD RUMSFELD BIDS FAREWELL TO PENTAGON

   WASHINGTON, D.C. --  Speaking to a gathering of Pentagon employees 10 days before he is scheduled to leave office, Donald H. Rumsfeld defended his record on Iraq and Afghanistan and warned of "dire consequences were we to fail" in Iraq.  He said he might write a book about his tenure at the Pentagon and he predicted that his successor, Robert Gates, would do a good job. He declined to say what advice he had offered Gates, who was confirmed by the Senate this week.

    Asked about the bipartisan Iraq Study Group's recommendations for a change in approach to the Iraq war, Rumsfeld said none of the suggestions were new.  In a question-and-answer session, he was asked what were his best day and his worst day. "Clearly, the worst day was Abu Ghraib, seeing what went on there and feeling so deeply sorry that that happened," he said without hestitation, referring to the scandal in the spring of 2004 that triggered worldwide condemnation and prompted him to twice offer his resignation to President Bush at that time. Bush rejected those offers.

    "I guess my best day, I don't know, may be a week from Monday," he said with a big grin, referring to the fact that his successor, Robert Gates, is scheduled to take over at the Pentagon on Dec. 18.

12-09- 2006

FORMER U.N. AMBASSADOR JEANE KIRKPATRICK, A DEAR FRIEND OF CAMCO, DEAD AT 80

      WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, an unabashed apostle of Reagan era conservatism and the first woman U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has died.  The death of the 80-year-old Kirkpatrick, who began her public life as a Democrat , was announced Friday at the senior staff meeting of the U.S. mission to the United Nations. Ambassador Kirkpatrick strongly defended Cuban sovereignty and the right of the Cuban people to democracy. She always demanded that the government of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro comply with the international agreements on democracy and human rights that he has signed.

     Spokesman Richard Grenell said that Ambassador John Bolton asked for a moment of silence. An announcement of her death also was posted on the Web site of the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative-oriented think tank here where she was a senior fellow.  Kirkpatrick's assistant, Andrea Harrington, said that she died in her sleep at home in the suburbs late Thursday. The cause of death was not immediately known.  

CONGRESSMAN LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART SADDENED BY THE DEATH OF AMBASSADOR JEANE KIRKPATRICK 

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) issued the following statement today after learning of the passing of former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Jeane Kirkpatrick:

     "Jeane Kirkpatrick was an extraordinary American patriot, a lover of freedom, a great human being. I deeply admired her, and will miss her wise counsel. May God bless that wonderful lady and great American, my friend Jeane Kirkpatrick." Jeane Kirkpatrick was a close advisor to President Ronald Reagan and a key leader in the defeat of the evil empire (the Soviet Union).

U.S. IS "READY, ENTHUSIASTIC AND WILLING TO ENTER INTO DIALOGUE" WITH HUGO CHAVEZ

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Both governments have philosophical, ideological and political stances that, in some ways, mirror significant, basic differences between the two countries. The point is whether the US and Venezuela may resume a positive relation in areas in which neither of them is forced to sacrifice its own fundamental principles Two days following Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's re-election, US Ambassador to Venezuela William Brownfield claimed Washington is willing to engage in a constructive dialogue with Caracas.

    "The two governments have publicly sent signals and messages, and Washington has clearly shown its willingness to talk, to make progress in subjects of mutual interest. It is premature to say when we are going to start the talks or whether we are heading in that direction. However, the US Administration is ready, enthusiastic and willing to do so. We have not begun to engage in a dialogue so far; let us consider that only two days have elapsed since the presidential election was held," claimed the diplomat. He went on to say that he has not met as yet with high-ranking officials of the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry.

12-08- 2006

ROBERT GATES CONFIRMED AS SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

      WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to confirm Robert Gates as defense secretary, with Democrats and Republicans portraying him as the man who will help overhaul President Bush's Iraq policies. The 95-2 vote was a victory of sorts for Bush, who named Gates to replace Donald H. Rumsfeld at the Pentagon on Nov. 8, a day after voters gave Democrats control of Congress for next year.

    Even so, much of Gates' support stemmed from his pledges to consider new options in Iraq. Overshadowing the vote was the release of an independent study lambasting Bush's approach to the war, increasing pressure on the White House to change course. The White House said Gates would be sworn in Dec. 18.

RAUL CASTRO STANDS IN for fidel AT ELIAN GONZALEZ PARTY

   HAVANA, CUBA --  Acting President Raul Castro sat in for his ailing brother Fidel Wednesday at the 13th birthday celebration for Elian Gonzalez, the boy at the center of an international custody dispute nearly seven years ago. Dressed in an olive-green uniform, Raul Castro sat in the front row of the auditorium in Elian's hometown of Cardenas, a coastal city about 85 miles east of Havana, for the event featuring a children's choir and dance troupe. He did not address the gathering.

     In past years, it has been Fidel Castro who has traditionally attended the annual birthday celebration for the boy, who was just 5 years old when a pair of fishermen found him floating on an inner tube in the ocean off Florida's southern coast. But Raul Castro, 75, has been increasingly taking on his brother's public duties amid persistent questions about when - or if - Fidel will ever return to power. Fidel Castro has not been seen in public in the more than four months since he temporarily ceded power to his brother after undergoing intestinal surgery. His medical condition remains a state secret.

GENERAL AUGUSTO PINOCHET OUT OF DANGER 

   SANTIAGO, CHILE  --  Gen. Augusto Pinochet's condition is no longer life-threatening, but doctors Tuesday dismissed claims that the former dictator's heart attack was exaggerated to allow him to avoid prosecution for abuses during his 1973-90 regime. A priest administered last rites to the 91-year-old Pinochet on Sunday after he suffered an acute heart attack and surgeons performed emergency angioplasty to enlarge an artery and restore the flow of blood to his heart.

     On Tuesday, doctors said Pinochet was out of danger but that he must remain for at least 10 days at the Santiago Military Hospital. ''He is no longer in critical condition,'' said Dr. Juan Ignacio Vergara, spokesman for the medical team treating Pinochet. ``His life is no longer at risk.''

    Vergara added that Pinochet would be allowed to leave his bed Tuesday to perform some exercises. Doctors dismissed comments by some lawyers and Pinochet foes that the former dictator's condition may have been exaggerated to allow him to duck charges he faces for human rights violations during his regime. ''The recovery of Gen. Pinochet is the result of a timely, efficient medical treatment,'' Vergara said.

12-07- 2006

IRAQ WAR PANEL WARNS OF 'SLIDE TOWARD CHAOS'  

      WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President Bush's policy in Iraq "is not working," a high-level commission said bluntly on Wednesday, prodding the administration to use diplomacy to stabilize the country and allow withdrawal of most American combat troops by early 2008. "The ability of the United States to influence events within Iraq is diminishing," the commission said in a report obtained by The Associated Press.

    "There is no path that can guarantee success, but the prospects can be improved," the commissioners said after an exhaustive review of a war that has taken the lives of more than 2,900 U.S. troops and grown so unpopular at home that it helped trigger a Democratic takeover of Congress in last month's elections. The commission recommended the United States reduce "political, military or economic support" for Iraq if the government in Baghdad cannot make substantial progress toward providing for its own security. Portions of the report were obtained by The Associated Press.

    President Bush received the report in an early morning meeting at the White House with commission members. He pledged to treat each proposal seriously and act in a "timely fashion." He was flanked by the commission's co-chairmen, former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, and former Rep. Lee Hamilton in a remarkable scene - a president praising the work of a group that had just concluded his policy had led to chaos.

CUBAN DISSIDENT HECTOR PALACIOS RELEASED AFTER 3 YEARS IN PRISON

   HAVANA, CUBA --  Hector Palacios, a well-known Cuban dissident jailed in a government crackdown on the opposition three years ago, was released from prison today for health reasons. Palacios told journalists he received the news “with happiness, to be able to be in my house.'' The 65-year-old leader of an outlawed opposition group said that although he felt physically ''destroyed,'' he remained ''morally strong'' in his opposition to the Cuban government.

    It was the first high-profile release of a political prisoner since 80-year-old leader Fidel Castro announced in July that he had undergone surgery for intestinal bleeding and provisionally ceded his powers to his brother Raúl. Leading democracy activist Oswaldo Paya, among well-wishers who rushed to greet Palacios at his home, called his colleague's early release “an act of justice.'' ''They should release all of them,'' added Paya, the key promoter of the Varela Project campaign to gather signatures demanding a referendum on civil rights such as freedom of speech and business ownership.

    ''This is good news, but we need 300 more good stories,'' said longtime rights activist Elizardo Sanchez, referring to the more than 300 political prisoners he says are still held on the island. Palacios was among 75 dissidents rounded up in March 2003 on charges they were U.S. mercenaries working to undermine Cuba's communist system -- accusations the activists and Washington denied. All 75 were convicted and sentenced to prison terms ranging from six to 28 years.

MOSCOW CLAMPING DOWN ON POISONING SPY PROBE

   MOSCOW, RUSSIA  -- The top prosecutor said Tuesday that Moscow will not extradite possible Russian suspects to Britain in the poisoning of the former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko and warned that British detectives would not be allowed to carry out interrogations in Russia.  ABC News reported Tuesday night that British detectives had identified Andrei Lugovoi, another former Russian spy who met with Litvinenko on the day he fell ill, as a prime suspect in the poisoning.

    The report, which cited an unnamed senior British official, also said Russia was barring access to Lugovoi, who is hospitalized with signs of radiation poisoning. Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika said that under Russian law, a Russian citizen who is accused of committing a crime abroad must face trial at home.   "If they want to arrest citizens of the Russian Federation, it would be impossible because of the Russian Constitution," he told reporters.  

    Litvinenko, 43, died Nov. 23 in London, and toxicologists found the radioactive isotope polonium-210 in his body. On his deathbed, Litvinenko blamed President Vladimir Putin for the poisoning. The Kremlin has vehemently denied the accusations.   Putin met Tuesday with Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema, who had pledged to press Moscow about Litvinenko's poisoning, but neither man mentioned the case in their public remarks.  

12-06- 2006

ROBERT GATES:  U.S. NOT WINNING IN IRAQ

      WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President Bush's defense secretary nominee told a Senate committee Tuesday that the United States was not winning the war in Iraq, and that the U.S. course there "over the next year or two" would shape the entire Middle East. At his Senate confirmation hearing, Robert Gates gave no timeline for ending the conflict in Iraq, but he repeatedly referenced "the next year or two" when discussing U.S. options in the war-torn nation.

    "Our course over the next year or two will determine whether the American and Iraqi people and the next president of the United States will face a slowly but steadily improving situation in Iraq and in the region or will face the very real risk and possible reality of a regional conflagration," he said.  Developments in Iraq during that time will "greatly influence global geopolitics for many years to come," he said. Also affecting regional stability, said Gates, is how the United States handles its acrimonious relationships with Iran and Syria.

    Gates has previously said the United States should include both countries in efforts to stabilize Iraq, an opinion Bush does not share. Though neither country is well-equipped militarily to exact harm on the United States, both pose threats to the region and U.S. interests, Gates said during the hearing. Iran concerns Gates because "their capacity to potentially close off the Persian Gulf to all exports of oil, their potential to unleash a significant wave of terror -- in the Middle East and in Europe and even here in this country -- is very real," he said. But, the nominee said, while the Islamic republic is working against U.S. interests, "I think they could do a lot more to hurt our effort in Iraq."

CUBAN EXILE GROUPS JOIN IN URGING EASING OF CUBA RESTRICTIONS  

   MIAMI, FLORIDA  --  An umbrella group of Cuban exile organizations has joined the growing chorus of Cubans on both sides of the Florida Straits calling for the United States to ease restrictions on travel and remittances to Cuba. About two dozen exile organizations, speaking in unison under the umbrella group Consenso Cubano, or Cuban Consensus, will release a report today calling for the Bush administration to ease travel restrictions. The groups say U.S. policies that restrict Cubans from visiting family members and that limit remittances and other humanitarian aid ``violate fundamental rights of Cubans, damage the Cuban family, and constitute ethical contradictions.''

     ''We are on the brink of potentially monumental changes in Cuba relating to Fidel Castro's demise,'' said state Rep. David Rivera, who spearheaded a call three years ago for the Bush administration to tighten the U.S. embargo.   “Now is not the time to be considering any relaxing of sanctions on the Castro dictatorship. That is not an option for the administration or the majority of Cuban Americans.''

    Consenso Cubano, which includes mostly exile groups such as the Cuba Study Group, Democracy Movement and the Cuban American National Foundation, plans to hold a news conference today. The announcement comes just a few days after top dissidents in Cuba signed a letter saying that easing remittance and travel restrictions to Cuba would help them in their struggle for freedom and democracy from within Cuba. The dissidents said restrictions on family travel and on sending humanitarian aid ``in no way help the struggle for democracy we wage inside our country."

CONGRESSMAN LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART COMMENTS ON THE DOCUMENT PUBLISHED BY "CONSENSO CUBANO" 

   WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) issued the following statement today regarding the document made public by various Cuban American groups under the title "Consenso Cubano":

    "The genuine consensus that needs to be emphasized at this critical moment must be focused upon the immediate liberation of all political prisoners without exceptions, and in the scheduling of free, multiparty elections in Cuba, not in unilateral concessions to the dictatorship."

12-05- 2006

PRESIDENT BUSH ACCEPTS AMBASSADOR JOHN BOLTON'S U.N. RESIGNATION

      WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Unable to win Senate confirmation, U.N. Ambassador John Bolton will step down when his temporary appointment expires within weeks, the White House said Monday. Bolton's nomination has languished in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for more than a year, blocked by Democrats and several Republicans. President Bush, in a statement, said he was "deeply disappointed that a handful of United States senators prevented Ambassador Bolton from receiving the up or down vote he deserved in the Senate." "They chose to obstruct his confirmation, even though he enjoys majority support in the Senate, and even though their tactics will disrupt our diplomatic work at a sensitive and important time," Bush said.

    "This stubborn obstructionism ill serves our country, and discourages men and women of talent from serving their nation." President Bush said he accepted Bolton's decision with deep regret. "He served his country with extraordinary dedication and skill, assembling coalitions that addressed some of the most consequential issues facing the international community," the president said. "During his tenure, he articulately advocated the positions and values of the United States and advanced the expansion of democracy and liberty.

    "Ambassador Bolton led the successful negotiations that resulted in unanimous Security Council resolutions regarding North Korea's military and nuclear activities. He built consensus among our allies on the need for Iran to suspend the enrichment and reprocessing of uranium," Bush added. "His efforts to promote the cause of peace in Darfur resulted in a peacekeeping commitment by the United Nations. He made the case for United Nations reform because he cares about the institution, and wants it to become more credible and effective."

HUGO CHAVEZ WINS RE-ELECTION IN VENEZUELA PRESIDENTIAL CONTEST

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- Leftist President Hugo Chavez won re-election in Venezuela by a wide margin Sunday, giving him free reign for a more radical turn toward socialism and six more years to counter U.S. influence in Latin America and beyond.  Challenger Manuel Rosales conceded defeat but vowed to remain in opposition, resisting a leader he accuses of edging Venezuela toward authoritarian rule.

    Minutes after the results were announced, Chavez appeared on the balcony of the presidential palace singing the national anthem. He pledged to deepen his effort to transform Venezuela into a more egalitarian society. "Long live the socialist revolution! Destiny has been written," Chavez shouted to thousands of flag-waving supporters wearing red shirts and braving a pouring rain. "That new era has begun," he said, raising a hand in the air. "We have shown that Venezuela is red! ... No one should fear socialism ... Socialism is human. Socialism is love," Chavez said. "Down with imperialism! We need a new world!"

    He said his victory was a blow to President Bush, whose government he calls dangerously imperialistic. "It's another defeat for the devil, who tries to dominate the world," Chavez said. "Down with imperialism! We need a new world!" Since he first won office in 1998, Chavez has increasingly posed a challenge to the United States while leading a growing bloc of Latin American leftists, influencing elections across the region, and allying himself with U.S. enemies like Iran and Syria.

12-04- 2006

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE DONALD H. RUMSFELD MEMO PROPOSED 'MAJOR ADJUSTMENT' IN IRAQ 

      WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Two days before he resigned as defense secretary, Donald H. Rumsfeld submitted a classified memo to the White House that acknowledged that the Bush administration’s strategy in Iraq was not working and called for a major course correction.  “In my view it is time for a major adjustment,” wrote Mr. Rumsfeld, who has been a symbol of a dogged stay-the-course policy. “Clearly, what U.S. forces are currently doing in Iraq is not working well enough or fast enough.”

    Nor did Mr. Rumsfeld seem confident that the administration would readily develop an effective alternative. To limit the political fallout from shifting course, he suggested the administration consider a campaign to lower public expectations. “Announce that whatever new approach the U.S. decides on, the U.S. is doing so on a trial basis,” he wrote. “This will give us the ability to readjust and move to another course, if necessary, and therefore not ‘lose.’ ”

    “Recast the U.S. military mission and the U.S. goals (how we talk about them) — go minimalist,” he added. The memo suggests frustration with the pace of turning over responsibility to the Iraqi authorities; in fact, the memo calls for examination of ideas that roughly parallel troop withdrawal proposals presented by some of the White House’s sharpest Democratic critics. The memo’s discussion of possible troop reduction options offers a counterpoint to Mr. Rumsfeld’s frequent public suggestions that discussions about force levels are driven by requests from American military commanders.

IRAN RESPONDS TO U.S. FINGERPRINTING LAW

   TEHRAN, IRAN  -- Iran has enacted a law requiring American citizens visiting the country to be fingerprinted upon arrival, an official said Saturday. Conservatives drafted the law in retaliation for the U.S. requirement that Iranian visitors be fingerprinted. The U.S. measure, which also applies to nationals of other countries, was implemented after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

    A spokesman for the Guardian Council, an Iranian constitutional watchdog that must review all bills before they become law, announced its approval of the legislation Saturday, the official Iranian News Agency reported. Council spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei said the government now "is required to inspect and fingerprint all American nationals at entry ports and visa issuance centers in consistency with the U.S. behavior."

    The council approved the law earlier this week, he said. Iran's parliament passed the bill Nov. 19. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad opposed the bill, saying in October: "We do not have a problem with American people. We oppose only the U.S. government's bullying and arrogance," according to the Islamic Republic News Agency. The power to cancel the law lies with parliament and the Guardian Council, which would have to pass new legislation annulling the measure. Since taking office last year, Ahmadinejad has widened the gap with Washington by taking a hardline on Iran's nuclear program and calling for Israel's destruction.

AUGUST PINOCHET SUFFERS HEART ATTACK 

   SANTIAGO, CHILE  --  Former Chilean dictator August Pinochet underwent surgery after suffering a heart attack early Sunday morning and was listed in critical but stable condition, Santiago Military Hospital officials said. Doctors said they performed an angioplasty procedure on Pinochet, 91, to "practically bring him back from death," his son told reporters outside the hospital. "He is in the hands of God and the doctors," said Marco Antonio Pinochet about his father.

    Chilean state television reported Sunday afternoon that doctors plan to perform a second operation on Pinochet's heart. He received last rites from a Catholic priest, according to a CNN reporter at the hospital. Hospital officials said Pinochet is now battling pulmonary edema, a condition where the lungs slowly fill with fluid. The former dictator, who came to power following a U.S.-backed coup in 1973, was under house arrest and heavily guarded Sunday when his wife, Lucia Hiriart, and an unspecified number of his children rushed him to the hospital at 2 a.m. (12 a.m. ET), the hospital said.

     Pinochet has a history of diabetes and was given a pacemaker after suffering a stroke in 2005. He marked his 91st birthday on November 25 by issuing a statement in which, for the first time, he took "full political responsibility for what happened" during his dictatorship.

12-03- 2006

CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO ABSENT FROM MASSIVE CELEBRATIONS

      HAVANA, CUBA --  Cuban dictator Fidel Castro was a no-show Saturday at a major military parade that doubled as his 80th birthday celebration, raising questions about whether the ailing dictator  will ever return to power as his public absence begins taking on a tone of permanence.  Many Cubans had hoped for at least a glimpse of Castro before dozens of aging olive-camouflaged tanks rumbled through the Plaza of the Revolution and jet fighters soared above the capital to mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces.

    Castro hasn't been seen in public since July 26, before he underwent secretive intestinal surgery and temporarily ceded power to his younger brother, Raul. He delayed his 80th birthday celebration from Aug. 13 to this week in order to give himself time to recover, and speculation had been rife whether he would appear.

    The military event, which lasted about two hours, culminated five days of events to celebrate Castro's birthday - none of which he attended. Instead, it was Raul Castro, the island's defense minister, who stood at the mahogany lectern reviewing the troops during Saturday's parade. The parade's most obvious purpose was to warn the U.S. against taking advantage of Fidel Castro's illness to attack the island. In the last 15 years the Cuban military has taken on a purely defensive role, and is trained to repel invaders.

RAUL CASTRO WANT TO NEGOTIATE WITH THE UNITED STATES BUT only under CERTAIN CONDITIONS

   HAVANA, CUBA  --   In a speech that lacked his brother's rhetorical flourishes, Raul Castro reached out to the U.S. government but with certain conditions.

    "We take this opportunity to once again state that we are willing to resolve at the negotiating table the long-standing dispute between the United States and Cuba," as long as the U.S. respects Cuba's sovereignty, said Raul Castro, who turned 75 in June. "After almost half a century, we are willing to wait patiently until the moment when common sense prevails in Washington power circles," he added.

     Raul Castro used the event to underscore cohesion among the Cuban people, the armed forces and the Communist Party - a recurring theme among officials in recent days. "This unity is our main strategic weapon, which has made it possible for this small island to resist and overcome so many aggressions from imperialism and its allies," he said.

IRANIAN PRESIDENT MAHMOUD AHMEDINEJAD WANTS TO NEGOCIATE WITH THE UNITED STATES  BUT only under CERTAIN CONDITIONS

    TEHRAN, IRAN  --  Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad has said Tehran is ready to talk to the US - once it changes its attitude.  His remarks follow suggestions that the US should start direct talks with the country to reduce the violence in Iraq. US President George W Bush has said Iran must halt nuclear activities before any talks could begin, but Mr Ahmedinejad rejected this.

    At a news conference, the Iranian president said his country sought positive interaction with the entire world, including the US - if the country changed its behaviour.  "We will talk to the US government under certain conditions. Should it correct its behaviour, we will talk to them," Mr Ahmedinejad said during a press conference.  The BBC's Tehran correspondent, Frances Harrison, says Iran is essentially re-stating its position - that the US must stop interfering in the internal affairs of other nations before any discussions can begin.

12-02- 2006

FELIPE CALDERON TAKES OATH AS MEXICAN PRESIDENT AMID JEERS

      MEXICO CITY, MEXICO  --  Felipe Calderon took the oath of office as Mexico's president in a lightning-fast ceremony Friday before Congress that was preceded by a brawl between lawmakers divided over the tight presidential election.  Calderon entered through a back door and appeared suddenly on the speaker's platform, which was the site of three days of fistfights and sit-ins by lawmakers seeking to control the stage.

    Physically protected by dozens of lawmakers and flanked by outgoing President Vicente Fox, Calderon swore to uphold the constitution in comments almost inaudible over the noise. Congress' leader ordered the national anthem played, momentarily stilling the catcalls and shouting, before Calderon made a quick exit and congress adjourned.  Foreign dignitaries -- including former President George H.W. Bush, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and Spanish Prince Felipe Asturias -- sat in a balcony overlooking the scene.

    Bush, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador Tony Garza and several bodyguards, said the chaos did not bother him. "I'm not worried at all. It will work out," he said, adding: "The U.S. will work with him every way we can." Calderon, in the midnight ceremony, acknowledged the political chaos. "I am not unaware of the complexity of the political times we are living through, nor of our differences," he said. "But I am convinced that today we should put an end to our disagreements and from there, start a new stage whose only aim would be to place the interests of the nation above our differences."

COLOMBIAN REBELS KILL 17 SOLDIERS IN AMBUSH

   BOGOTA, COLOMBIA  --  Rebels killed 17 soldiers in an attack on a Colombian army patrol, officials said on Friday, in one of the worst setbacks this year for the government's U.S.-backed fight for control of the country. The late Thursday night ambush occurred in Norte de Santander province near the Venezuelan border and was carried out by rebels from the 42-year-old Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, using rifles and home-made mortars.

    The army said new troops had been sent to regain control of the area. "The operation is continuing," an army spokesman told local radio.  The ambush came a month after the FARC, which uses Colombia's multibillion-dollar cocaine trade to fund its operations, killed 16 officers in an attack on a police command in the northern province of Cordoba.  Both Cordoba and Norte de Santander were home to a large number of right-wing militias formed in the 1980s to help landowners protect their property from the rebels.

    The FARC offensives have dampened hope that President Alvaro Uribe can negotiate an exchange of rebels held in government jails for hostages, including three American defense contractors and former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, held by the FARC in secret jungle camps.  This Andean country has received billions of dollars in U.S. aid aimed in part toward defeating the rebels and disbanding the paramilitaries, who have infiltrated Colombia's Congress and other institutions.

OIL SINKS BELOW $ 63, OPEC MULLS MORE CUTS 

   LONDON, ENGLAND  --  Oil fell below $63 a barrel Friday as investors booked profits after prices hit a two-month high in the previous session. U.S. crude reached a peak of $63.77 on Thursday, extending a rally sparked Wednesday when U.S. inventory data showed an unexpected fall in stocks of winter heating fuel. "The question as we go into December is how cold temperatures are going to be," Harry Tchilinguirian of BNP Paribas said.

    Dealers are bracing for colder winter weather in the U.S. Northeast, the world's leading consumer of heating oil, where temperatures are expected by forecaster Meteorlogix to fall to a few degrees Fahrenheit below normal by Monday.In spite of this week's rally above $60, Venezuela's oil minister said there was consensus within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to rein in more supply and that Venezuela could propose a further 500,000 bpd cut when the group gathers in Nigeria on Dec. 14.

    Algeria also threw its weight behind a deeper reduction, as did OPEC's Nigerian President Edmund Daukoru.  Daukoru told Reuters the volume of the cuts would depend on the circumstances when it meets, but the recent increase in price and drawdown in stocks would influence the group's decision.  So far Kuwait's oil minister stands alone in saying there is no need for more OPEC cutbacks if prices hold near $61 a barrel. According to a Reuters survey, the 10 OPEC members with a quota reduced output in November by 785,000 bpd compared with a promised reduction of 1.2 million bpd from Nov. 1.

12-01- 2006

BOLIVIAN SENATE APPROVES SWEEPING LAND REFORM

      LA PAZ, BOLIVIA --  Bolivia's leftist president won passage of an ambitious land redistribution bill and signed it into law to the cheers of impoverished Indian supporters, who stand to benefit from what eventually could be the confiscation of private holdings the size of Nebraska. Evo Morales, Bolivia's first Indian president, is intent on reversing centuries of dominance by a European-descended minority and granting greater power to its poor indigenous majority.

    He's already given poor farming communities some 8,500 square miles of government land this year, and hopes the new land reform bill will eventually allow his government to redistribute some 77,000 square miles of unproductive land. Morales has said the government will not seize productive land, but rather large tracts of Bolivia's sparsely populated east held by a handful of wealthy families.

   The president did not say Tuesday exactly how the land reform will proceed. The government's first step will likely be deciding how to determine whether a parcel of land is productive or not — a process sure to spark heated debate with Bolivian agribusiness leaders who have long fought against Morales' agrarian reform. Conservative leaders walked out of the Senate last week to block the bill, which was pushed through the Senate on Tuesday in a vote that saw a majority of lawmakers absent.

CZECH FIRM TRIES TO AVOID US VETO AND SUPPLY PLANES TO HUGO CHAVEZ

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Czech firm Aero Vodochody intends to offer the Venezuelan Government a "non-US" version of its L-159 training warplane, based on French avionics and Ukrainian engine in order to avoid a veto the US President George W. Bush administration imposed on sales of warplanes with US components to Venezuela.

    According to a report published by the Magazine on Aeronautics and Astronautics, Aero Vodochody chose to modify its training warplane for sale to Venezuela, and negotiations are pending for approval by the Czech Government.

    The L-159 Albatros training is a twin-engine, single-seat warplane for combat pilot training in reconnaissance and air-air and air-land attacks. It meets NATO standards and is currently in active service in the Czech Air Force.

POLICE BLeW UP SUSPICIOUS SUITCASE IN MIAMI'S LITTLE HAVANA 

   MIAMI, FLORIDA  --  Miami police this morning blew up a suspicious suitcase that was spotted on Calle Ocho across from the landmark Versailles Restaurant. The episode forced the temporary closing of Southwest Eighth Street from 34th Avenue to 37th Avenue in Little Havana.

     The large, green suitcase was abandoned on the south sidewalk, in front of a small shopping plaza. The Versailles is directly across the street. About 9:58 a.m., a bomb squad technician dressed in protective gear placed a small explosive device in the suitcase, someone yelled, ''Fire in the hole!'' three times and the suitcase exploded, landing in the middle of the street. It turned out the luggage was empty.