Wednesday, August 18, 2010
International Headlines
>TOP STORIES as of 0900 GMT -- 18 August, 2010
> FLOOD VICTIMS: 'SURVIVING IS VERY HARD'
A daughter dead, an infant barely alive, a great-grandfather
dragged through floodwaters to safety: One Pakistan family's
desperate bid to save itself.
> BP TO STOP HANDLING MOST GULF CLAIMS
BP has picked Wednesday as the deadline for accepting claims
from people and businesses affected by the Gulf oil disaster.
> JAKARTA SEEKS FRENCHMAN IN TERROR CASE
Indonesian anti-terror police are looking for a French man who
was allegedly involved in a terrorist plot foiled in May, a top
police official said Wednesday.
> ISRAEL HITS SUSPECTED WEAPONS SITE
The Israeli Air Force struck a suspected weapons manufacturing
site in central Gaza Wednesday, in response to two mortars that
were fired from the territory a day earlier, the military said.
> BUS CRASH IN PHILIPPINES KILLS 39
A minibus plunged into a 100-meter deep ravine in the
Philippines' Benguet province Wednesday morning, killing nine
passengers and seriously injuring eight others, official media
reported.
> COLOMBIA SURVIVORS RECALL PLANE BREAKUP
Aires Airlines Flight 8250 was seconds away from landing at San
Andres airport on a small island off the coast of Colombia early
Monday. The pilot had turned on the seat belt sign and told
passengers to stay in their seats. Passengers could see rain and
lightning outside their small cabin windows, but nothing was
amiss. Everything seemed calm. Normal. Routine.
> BLAGOJEVICH FOUND GUILTY OF LYING
Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was found guilty on Tuesday
of making a false statement to the FBI. The jury said it was
hung on the other 23 counts against him.
> EMBASSY IN ISRAEL HIT BY HOSTAGE DRAMA
A shooting incident apparently took place at the Turkish Embassy
in Israel, prompting police and emergency crews to race to the
scene.
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BUSINESS
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> BUSINESS RESISTS 'CONFLICT MINERALS' LAW
U.S. manufacturers are mounting a lobbying campaign over a
provision slipped into the financial reform legislation
requiring companies to declare products containing minerals from
the Democratic Republic of Congo.
> BP TO STOP HANDLING MOST GULF CLAIMS
BP said on Tuesday it would stop processing claims of people and
businesses hurt by the Gulf oil disaster as a
government-appointed group will take over responsibility on
August 23.
> POTASH REJECTS $39B BID BY BHP
BHP Billiton, the biggest and most cash-rich mining company,
returned to frontline dealmaking on Tuesday with a $39bn
(£25bn) preliminary offer for PotashCorp, a fertiliser maker
whose board rejected the approach.