Gunmen Seize 50 in Iraq Bus Station Raids
By QAIS AL-BASHIR , 06.05.2006, 11:51 AM
Gunmen in police uniforms raided bus stations Monday in central Baghdad, kidnapping at least 50 people, including drivers and passengers preparing to travel outside Iraq, an Interior Ministry official said.
The attackers also grabbed people working in the area, where several travel agencies are based and buses pick up passengers traveling mostly to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, Lt. Col. Falah al-Mohamedawi said.
The victims, including two Syrians, were herded into more than a dozen vehicles, according to witnesses. It was not known who was behind the attack.
"They took all workers from the companies and nearby shops," said Haidar Mohammed Eleibi, who works for the Swan Transportation Co. in the Salihiya business district.
He said his brother and a cousin were among those seized, along with merchants, passers-by and even a vendor selling tea and sandwiches.
"They did not give any reason for it," he said. "Police came afterward and did nothing."
http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2006/06/05/ap2793702.html
Rumsfeld presses Vietnam on finding MIAs
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, left, talks with Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai in Hanoi, Vietnam on Monday, June 5, 2006. Rumsfeld was on a three-day visit to boost military ties between the two countries. (AP Photo/ Tran Van Minh)
HANOI, Vietnam -- The U.S. is pressing Vietnam for underwater searches and access to aging witnesses in stepped-up efforts to recover remains of Americans missing from the Vietnam War, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Monday.
"We still have work to do," Rumsfeld said, though he added that he was pleased Vietnamese military officials had pledged in meetings with him to do more to help recover the remains. "As we all agree, we don't want to forget the importance of this."
Rumsfeld told reporters U.S. officials will work to see if the U.S. can provide technical assistance with underwater recovery efforts.
There are 1,805 American troops unaccounted for from the war, including 1,376 in Vietnam, according to Marine Maj. Jay Rutter, deputy commander of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, which heads the recovery efforts here.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1152AP_Rumsfeld_Vietnam.html
Clashing views on press freedom
Vladimir Radyuhin
Global newspaper conference in Moscow; Putin defends independence of the media in Russia
PEN'S MIGHT: World Editor Forum's President George Brock (right) hands over the forum's Golden Pen of Freedom award to Akbar Ganji, a prominent Iranian dissident and investigative reporter in Moscow on Monday.
MOSCOW: Freedom of the media in Russia dominated the opening day of a global newspaper conference in Moscow, with clashing views on the issue presented by the head of the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and the Russian President.
Opening the 59th World Newspaper Congress and 13th World Editors Forum on Monday, WAN President Gaivin O'Reilly said control of the media by the state in Russia was hindering the ability of a free press to contribute to national development.
Mr. O'Reilly noted "widespread scepticism, both inside and outside your country, about whether there exists any real willingness to see the media become a financially-strong, influential and independent participant in Russian society today."
Mr. Putin, who addressed the conference after Mr. O'Reilly, defended press freedom in Russia. He said the reforms "would have been impossible without free press," and insisted that "press freedom remains the main guarantee that [Russia's democratic choice] is irreversible." He said independent press had been growing by leaps and bounds in Russia.
http://www.hindu.com/2006/06/06/stories/2006060602181300.htm
By QAIS AL-BASHIR , 06.05.2006, 11:51 AM
Gunmen in police uniforms raided bus stations Monday in central Baghdad, kidnapping at least 50 people, including drivers and passengers preparing to travel outside Iraq, an Interior Ministry official said.
The attackers also grabbed people working in the area, where several travel agencies are based and buses pick up passengers traveling mostly to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, Lt. Col. Falah al-Mohamedawi said.
The victims, including two Syrians, were herded into more than a dozen vehicles, according to witnesses. It was not known who was behind the attack.
"They took all workers from the companies and nearby shops," said Haidar Mohammed Eleibi, who works for the Swan Transportation Co. in the Salihiya business district.
He said his brother and a cousin were among those seized, along with merchants, passers-by and even a vendor selling tea and sandwiches.
"They did not give any reason for it," he said. "Police came afterward and did nothing."
http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2006/06/05/ap2793702.html
Rumsfeld presses Vietnam on finding MIAs
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, left, talks with Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai in Hanoi, Vietnam on Monday, June 5, 2006. Rumsfeld was on a three-day visit to boost military ties between the two countries. (AP Photo/ Tran Van Minh)
HANOI, Vietnam -- The U.S. is pressing Vietnam for underwater searches and access to aging witnesses in stepped-up efforts to recover remains of Americans missing from the Vietnam War, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Monday.
"We still have work to do," Rumsfeld said, though he added that he was pleased Vietnamese military officials had pledged in meetings with him to do more to help recover the remains. "As we all agree, we don't want to forget the importance of this."
Rumsfeld told reporters U.S. officials will work to see if the U.S. can provide technical assistance with underwater recovery efforts.
There are 1,805 American troops unaccounted for from the war, including 1,376 in Vietnam, according to Marine Maj. Jay Rutter, deputy commander of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, which heads the recovery efforts here.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1152AP_Rumsfeld_Vietnam.html
Clashing views on press freedom
Vladimir Radyuhin
Global newspaper conference in Moscow; Putin defends independence of the media in Russia
PEN'S MIGHT: World Editor Forum's President George Brock (right) hands over the forum's Golden Pen of Freedom award to Akbar Ganji, a prominent Iranian dissident and investigative reporter in Moscow on Monday.
MOSCOW: Freedom of the media in Russia dominated the opening day of a global newspaper conference in Moscow, with clashing views on the issue presented by the head of the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and the Russian President.
Opening the 59th World Newspaper Congress and 13th World Editors Forum on Monday, WAN President Gaivin O'Reilly said control of the media by the state in Russia was hindering the ability of a free press to contribute to national development.
Mr. O'Reilly noted "widespread scepticism, both inside and outside your country, about whether there exists any real willingness to see the media become a financially-strong, influential and independent participant in Russian society today."
Mr. Putin, who addressed the conference after Mr. O'Reilly, defended press freedom in Russia. He said the reforms "would have been impossible without free press," and insisted that "press freedom remains the main guarantee that [Russia's democratic choice] is irreversible." He said independent press had been growing by leaps and bounds in Russia.
http://www.hindu.com/2006/06/06/stories/2006060602181300.htm
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