Five people hospitalized after Northside crash

Five people sustained injuries after a car ran a stop sign and caused a crash in Northside Sunday morning.

Sgt. Charles White said a Nissan Maxima was heading west on Chase Avenue and ran the stop sign at Virginia Avenue at about 10:25 a.m.

A blue truck hit the Nissan, forcing it up onto a sidewalk, where it struck three pedestrians.

“They were walking on the sidewalk when the car came up and hit them,” White said.

The woman who drove the Nissan will be given blood alcohol content test, White said.

The three pedestrians and two drivers were transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. White said their injuries do not appear to be life-threatening.

Five people hospitalized after Northside crash

Heroin: Cheap, pure, plentiful

Cincinnati is the key distribution site for the supply of heroin that has Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky in a choke-hold, narcotics agents say.

The drug, mainly in the form as Mexican brown powder heroin, gets here via the usual drug routes of Interstate 75 and 71, dumping into source cities and then, in the hundreds of pounds, into Cincinnati.

“It’s all from the Mexican cartels,” said Lt. Brad Winall, commander of the Regional Narcotics Unit (RENU) based in Hamilton County. “The cartels will have people who work for them in the U.S. The organizations transport to particular ‘source’ cities. The source cities distribute larger amounts to urban areas, like Cincinnati. Here, it’s cut, so the dealers can make a better profit.”

Heroin is a cheap drug – cheaper and a lot more accessible than the prescription painkillers, which are synthetic opiates called opioids, so many current heroin users were hooked on before they first snorted or injected heroin. Local police in Northern Kentucky estimate a cost of $10 to $20 for an addict to get a fix. A gram of heroin is about $150, said Bill Mark, director of the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force.

About five years ago it’d have been unusual to find a heroin dealer in Northern Kentucky, Mark said, but not anymore.

“You see much larger scale heroin trafficking,” he said.

“It bottlenecks here,” said Craig Donnachie, senior supervisory resident agent of the FBI Covington office. “It’s so concentrated.”

About 18 months ago Northern Kentucky hit hard, harder than the rest of the state and had overdose death statistics greater than Hamilton County.

Now, the addiction woes have spread.

Arizona: In desert, a hidden river flows in heroin

Epidemic: Feds taken to task over heroin

No way out: Heroin addicts trapped in deadly maze

The nation’s heroin epidemic is penetrating idyllic communities in Northern Kentucky as fiercely as New England states such as Vermont and Delaware.

In Delaware and around the country, heroin is in vogue again.

It’s a deadly fad. In the last eight months, fatal overdoses from all drugs, including alcohol, have jumped from 12 to 15 a month from 12 a month. Heroin’s resurgence is to blame for the rising death count, state officials say.

The problem is everywhere, and in all sections of New Castle County, from the Hunter’s Run Trailer Park in Bear to the upscale Country Creek community near Newark. Some users died in bedrooms, others on bathroom floors. One was found in a shed behind a home in Chelsea Estates. Another was lying on a driveway in Bear.

The victims in the 15 suspected heroin deaths that New Castle County Police responded to so far this year range in age from 22 to 51 years old. Nearly a third of them were female. All but one of them was white. Some already had been through drug rehab before heroin killed them. Four had been released from jail within days of their deaths.

Eight of the deaths statewide have been due to heroin laced with fentanyl, a synthetic painkiller added to the heroin to make it stronger and more attractive to the addict.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder calls says heroin in America is an “urgent public health crisis” in America. Delaware Health and Human Services Secretary Rita Landgraf says it’s an epidemic.

New Castle County Police Chief Elmer Setting, who once forced his teen daughter to watch an OD victim in a body bag get rolled into a medical examiner’s van, said the drug is his department’s top priority.

To fight the trade that’s bringing more death and addiction to a region that doesn’t have enough treatment to care for its addicts, the FBI and DEA in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky deputize regional narcotics officers and local police for specific investigations. When the federal agents work with the local police, convicted dealers can end up with harsher penalties.

Law enforcement agencies are watching heroin numbers of all kinds climb year to year.

RENU, which interdicts drugs transported by interstate, saw more than a 740 percent increase in its seized heroin from 2011 to 2013, Winall said.

The Kentucky Crime Laboratory is analyzing more heroin each year: Total heroin cases jumped from 451 in 2010, or 2.3 percent of all drug cases, to 3,570 in 2013, which amounted to 17.9 percent of all drug cases, according to Kentucky State Patrol records.

Heroin surged in Northern Kentucky before most of the rest of the commonwealth, garnering 60 percent of prosecutions in the state all in 2011 with only 8.4 percent of the population.

Cases involving heroin trafficking and possession in Boone, Kenton, and Campbell counties have gone from 409 cases filed in 2009 to 2,204 cases filed in 2013, according to the Kentucky Administrative Office of the Courts. In comparison to the number of cases filed statewide, the percentage in the three specified counties have gone from 61 percent of heroin cases filed in the state in 2009 to 37 percent of heroin cases filed in the state in CY2013.

“Nevertheless, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of cases involving charges for heroin trafficking and possession,” the KAOC reported to the Enquirer.

“It’s a disturbing trend,” Mark said, looking over the records. “The number of arrests in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties has doubled from year to year. The problem is growing.”

In order to keep track of its inmate housing issues, Campbell County Jail on Jan. 17 added a new designation a growing number of its inmates: “heroin alert.”

The alerts are the people brought in who either were charged with trafficking or possession of heroin or who, when prompted by jail staff, admit to being a heroin addict. Jailer Jim Daley says it’s easier to keep track of who might be withdrawing, as well as inform the Campbell County commonwealth’s attorney’s office.

The heroin alerts are climbing, Daley said. The average population in the Campbell County jail per month is 490 inmates, and an average of 235 of them are using or have heroin related charges, according to jail data. That’s 48 percent of the average population.

A commonly heard statement among cops in Ohio and Kentucky is, “we can’t arrest our way out of this epidemic.”

NKY FBI’s Donnachie agrees.

“We’re trying to cut the supply. That’s what I try to attack,” Donnachie said. “You also need public awareness and additional treatment.”

A grass-roots movement in Northern Kentucky that nearly two years ago morphed into a multi-tiered effort among public and private health care advocates, families, drug prevention groups and even the chamber of commerce is pushing for treatment funding and space.

Lt. Dough Ventre, commander of the multiagency Clermont County Narcotics Unit, said heroin is sold there, but not in large quantities.

“We’re seeing trafficking where people go into the city, buy a little bit,” Ventre said. “They sell some, they’re using some and they go back and re-up.”

“We’ve pinched a bunch of Mexican dealers, doing home delivery to people,” Ventre said. They’re sent into the region with a car and a cell phone, without a driver’s license, he said.

“Their job is every day to go around, drive and drop off heroin.”

Unlike Mark and Finall in Northern Kentucky and Hamilton County, Ventre said his unit sees mostly Mexican black tar heroin.

The difference in the heroin epidemic now and a heroin explosion in the 1970s is in its landing spots in affluent communities, such as Northern Kentucky’s Fort Mitchell.

“We had three people in one lot in Fort Mitchell with heroin paraphernalia,” Donnachie said. While police were questioning the trio, they spotted four more in another car in the same grocery store lot no farther than 30 yards away.

The overdosed addicts show up anywhere, slumped over steering wheels in shopping plaza lots, overdosed in fast-food restaurant restrooms, in homes and in parks throughout the region, police and paramedics say.

In the small river city of Bellevue, it’s not out of the ordinary for a cop who arrives to a heroin overdose call to recognize the victim.

“They are our friends and neighbors and they deserved better,” said Bellevue Police Chief Wayne Turner.

As the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force and FBI hit larger targets, Bellevue Police officers work on their own goal: “Shut down their curbside businesses,” Turner said.

“Every one of these victims has a name and a story,” Turner said. “I think what hits police departments like mine the hardest is the fact these are real people and someone’s family, not just a case number or a cataloged statistic.”

Turner’s force of 11 is out checking for suspected heroin dealing every day. If the chief gets a complaint about a suspicion of dealing at a house, he orders his officers to work on surveillance, but if that fails, be sure to make their presence known.

“We try to saturate that area with officers: Marked cruisers, unmarked cars, on bicycles,” directed patrol officer Craig Stephens said.

“I tell them to go there. Do your roll calls there. Be there every chance they can,” Turner said.

Bellevue Police carry gloves and sharps containers in their cruisers to collect discarded heroin syringes along streets and near the highways.

In Bellevue, police are taking the heroin crisis personally, Stephens said.

“It’s the girl next door,” he said, conveying the story of a teenage girl who, police had heard, was a heroin addict. They were anxiously awaiting a tragic call to her family’ s home, but officer Roy Catron intervened.

He’d met a heroin addiction counselor through his work as a street cop, and he introduced the counselor to the teenager. She was sent to Florida for treatment. “She’s now healthy. She’s in college,” Stephens said. “He did this all on his own.”

In Covington, police have been known to drop off heroin addicts at the NKY Med Clinic, the region’s only methadone clinic.

Everyone, it seems, has a story, and no one sees an end to the heroin epidemic.

“The short answer is no,” RENU’s Winall said, asked whether he sees relief coming.

“We target the heroin trafficker and make arrests and seize large quantities of heroin much like other drug task forces,” he said. The unit’s interdiction program finds the heroin comes from California, Texas and Arizona, frequently, and it often goes through Chicago before getting to Cincinnati.

“However, as long as there is the continued appetite and demand for heroin, the cartels will find ways to transport the heroin into the Greater Cincinnati area – and of course there will be a continuous supply of local traffickers willing to sell the smaller quantities to individuals addicted to this drug. ?

Kentucky Crime Laboratories heroin cases:

2010: 451

2011: 749

2012: 1,803

2013: 3,570

Campbell County Jail: total inmates housed on ‘heroin alert’ — in for possession, trafficking of heroin or admitted heroin addiction to jail staff:

 

	2013	2014
JANUARY	458	489
February	423	506
March	457	481
April	473	510
May	453	494
Source:Campbell County Jail

Heroin: Cheap, pure, plentiful

Obama: Clinton's 'broke' comments won't mean much

President Obama is defending Hillary Clinton over her “broke” comments, saying they won’t mean much in the long run.

“As soon as you jump back into the spotlight in a more explicitly political way, you’re going to be fly-spec like this,” Obama said in an interview aired Sunday on ABC’s This Week With George Stephanopoulos.

“She’s accustomed to it,” Obama said. “Anybody who gets involved in public life is accustomed to it. Over time I don’t think it’s going to make a big difference.”

Clinton, a former U.S. senator who served as Obama’s first secretary of state, may seek the presidency in 2016.

Republicans and others are criticizing Clinton for saying that she and ex-President Bill Clinton left the White House “not only dead broke, but in debt,” despite the prospects of lucrative speaking fees and book contracts.

Obama said Hillary Clinton will be just fine.

“I think that Hillary has been to this rodeo a bunch of times,” he told ABC. “She is in public service because she cares about the same folks that I talked to here today. Her track record on that speaks for itself.”

Obama: Clinton's 'broke' comments won't mean much

Iraq forces look to claw back Tikrit from insurgents

Iraqi helicopter gunships struck suspected insurgent positions in Tikrit on Sunday as part of an offensive using tanks and commandos to weed out Sunni militants who had taken over the hometown of former dictator Saddam Hussein.

The insurgents appeared to have repelled the military’s initial push, and remained in control of the city on Sunday, but clashes were taking place in the northern neighborhood of Qadissiyah, two residents reached by telephone said.

Muhanad Saif al-Din, who lives in the city center, said he could see smoke rising from Qadissiyah, which borders the University of Tikrit, where troops brought by helicopter established a bridgehead two days ago. He said many of the militants in Tikrit had deployed to the city’s outskirts, apparently to blunt the military attack.

Military spokesman Qassim al-Moussawi told reporters Sunday that the military was in full control of the university and had raised the Iraqi flag over the campus.

“The battle has several stages. The security forces have cleared most of the areas of the first stage and we have achieved results,” al-Moussawi said. “It is a matter of time before we declare the total clearing (of Tikrit).”

Jawad al-Bolani, a security official in the provincial operation command, said the U.S. was sharing intelligence with Iraq and has played an “essential” role in the Tikrit offensive.

“The Americans are with us and they are an important part in the success we are achieving in and around Tikrit,” al-Bolani told The Associated Press.

Washington has sent 180 of 300 American troops President Obama has promised to help Iraqi forces. The U.S. is also flying manned and unmanned aircraft on reconnaissance missions over Iraq.

The U.S. military said it is flying 30 to 35 missions a day over Iraq, primarily on surveillance missions. “Some of those aircraft are armed,” Pentagon press secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby said Saturday. The flights included both drones and manned aircraft.

The offensive in Tikrit, about 95 miles north of Baghdad, came as heavy clashes between Iraqi security forces and insurgents killed at least 21 troops about 30 miles south of Baghdad. Officials says dozens of militants were killed or captured. Separately, Iraq’s air force carried out several airstrikes against the city of Mosul, which fell to militants earlier this month.

Tikrit is one of two major cities to fall to the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.

Muhanad Saif al-Din said the city has emptied out in recent days as locals flee ahead of anticipated clashes.

“Tikrit has become a ghost town because a lot of people left over the past 72 hours, fearing random aerial bombardment and possible clashes as the army advances toward the city,” Saif al-Din said. “The few people who remain are afraid of possible revenge acts by Shiite militiamen who are accompanying the army. We are peaceful civilians and we do not want to be victims of this struggle.”

ISIL and its allies have overrun much of Iraq’s Sunni heartland, a vast territory stretching west and north from Baghdad to the Jordanian and Syrian borders. After a dramatic initial push, the onslaught appears to have slowed as the militants bump up against predominantly Shiite areas stretching south from Baghdad.

Iraq’s U.S.-trained and equipped military melted away in the face of the offensive, sapping morale and public confidence in its ability to stem the militant surge — let alone claw back lost ground. If successful, the Tikrit operation could help restore a degree of faith in the security forces.

It also would provide a boost to embattled Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who is fighting for his job as many former allies drop their support and Iraqis increasingly express doubts about his ability to unify the country.

Al-Maliki, however, has shown little inclination publicly to step aside and instead appears set on a third consecutive term as prime minister after his bloc won the most seats in April elections.

The United States and other world powers have pressed al-Maliki to reach out to the country’s Sunni and Kurdish minorities and have called for a more inclusive government that can address longstanding grievances.

Al-Maliki has widely been accused of monopolizing power and alienating Sunnis, who have long complained of being unfairly targeted by security forces.

Iraq forces look to claw back Tikrit from insurgents

Big, mean 'Transformers' truck goes green, lean

The lead “actor” in the new movie Transformers: Age of Extinction is a rip-snortin’ big tractor-truck that points to the future of highway freight hauling.

That’s because this big Western Star truck is more aerodynamic than the big haulers of the past in order to save more fuel.

The truck plays Optimus Prime in the new Michael Bay movie, which opened this weekend, leader of the group of hot vehicles that transform themselves into oversize robots, called “autobots.” The truck, badged as a 5700 model, looks a lot like the new aerodynamic model that will be sold to truckers around the country, according to Andy Johnson, brand manager for Western Star, a unit of Daimler Trucks North America.

He says it will be Western Star’s first true aerodynamic truck.

In slimming down the truck, Optimus Prime is “keeping up with the times,” Johnson says. The big machine is an example of the “the future of trucking,” where gas savings and emissions reductions play a big role.

Johnson won’t say how fuel efficient — that information will be available this fall when the new trucks, well, roll out.

But the bigger question might also be, how did Western Star get to play Optimus Prime in a mega-franchise when the star has usually been played by Peterbilt Trucks?

On that question, Johnson is not commenting.

Big, mean 'Transformers' truck goes green, lean

Missing boy: Stepmom put me in the basement

DETROIT — Charlie Bothuell V, missing for days before being found Wednesday, told authorities he was placed in the basement behind boxes and totes by his stepmother and told “not to come out, no matter what he hears,” according to court records obtained Friday by the Detroit Free Press.

In a petition filed Friday by Children’s Protective Services, 12-year-old Charlie told officials that although his stepmother — Monique Dillard-Bothuell — knew he was in the basement, she did not bring him food.

“Charlie reports sneaking upstairs to get food when everyone left the home,” the petition says.

These new details have emerged on the heels of authorities removing Charlie’s two younger siblings — ages 4 years and 10 months — from the custody of Dillard-Bothuell and Charlie Bothuell IV, who is Charlie’s father.

The document also offers more information about the abuse Charlie reported he suffered.

Charlie, who police found barricaded in the basement of his home while executing a search warrant, told authorities his father physically abused him with a PVC pipe.

According to the petition, when Charlie was taken to Children’s Hospital of Michigan for treatment after being found, a doctor observed a half-circular scar on the child’s chest. Charlie said the scar was “a result of his father driving a PVC pipe into his chest,” according to the petition, which also says the child had old scars on his buttocks from being hit with the pipe.

During a search of the home, authorities recovered a PVC pipe with blood on it, the petition says. It’s unclear whose blood it is.

Bothuell has denied abusing his son. Mark Magidson, Bothuell’s attorney, also denied that a pipe was used to beat Charlie. Magidson said that blood found on the child’s clothing was from eczema.

“The young man had eczema. … He scratched it like crazy,” Magidson said.

A warrant request in connection with the case has not yet been turned over to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, a spokeswoman for the office said shortly before 5 p.m.

Magidson said they expect charges.

“We’re ready,” he said.

Meanwhile, a probable cause hearing is scheduled for July 10 on the petition in juvenile court.

According to the petition, Charlie’s grandmother told an FBI investigator that the last time she saw Charlie, “he was very skinny, and almost looked like a cancer patient. He had marks all over his arms and chest.”

Charlie’s two younger siblings were removed by Michigan Children’s Protective Services on Thursday.

The petition says that because of the allegations of abuse involving Charlie, the other two children should not be in the care of their parents. Referee Leslie Graves ordered that the parents could have supervised visits with the two children at a CPS location.

Charlie Bothuell IV appeared in juvenile court with his attorney, while Dillard-Bothuell, who was arraigned earlier Friday on a probation violation, listened in by phone during the hearing. Dillard-Bothuell will retain her own attorney in the custody case, while Magidson will represent Bothuell.

“My client is presumed innocent of all charges, the children would not be placed in harms’ way,” Magidson said. “Up until yesterday, these two parents were taking excellent care of these two children.”

The petition filed in juvenile court claims that the “home or environment, by reason of neglect, cruelty, drunkenness, criminality, or depravity on the part of the parent, guardian, nonparent adult, or other custodian, is an unfit place for the child(ren) to live.”

It also claims that the parents “neglected or refused to provide proper or necessary support, education, medical, surgical, or other care necessary for the child(ren)’s health or morals, or he/she has subjected the child(ren) to substantial risk of harm to his or her mental well-being, or he/she has abandoned the child(ren) without proper custody or guardianship.”

The 4-year-old and 10-month-old are in the custody of Dillard-Bothuell’s family.

Dillard-Bothuell, on probation for a weapons charge from 2013, was given a $5,000 personal bond Friday and ordered to wear a GPS tether. A hearing on the probation violation is scheduled for July 11.

Outside of the courthouse Friday, Bothuell declined comment. A registered nurse, Bothuell was wearing scrubs as he dodged questions from reporters. He said Magidson had advised him not to speak.

Charlie is now staying with his mother and other relatives on Detroit’s east side.

Missing boy: Stepmom put me in the basement

Brennan: Tiger Woods is a changed man

BETHESDA, Md.– Tiger Woods has left another 2014 golf tournament early, but this time, he wasn’t unhappy about it.

Woods found all kinds of positive developments in his rounds of 74 and 75 that left him a whopping 7-over-par, four shots above the cut line at the Quicken Loans National Friday evening.

He spoke like any patient who underwent back surgery less than three months ago and could barely do anything for a month or so afterward. There was a perceptible stiffness as he walked the course and swung a club. There also was relief. There was perspective. There were silver linings.

This is what the back end of one of the great careers in sports looks and sounds like.

Woods is 38 1/2 years old, with a body that skews older due to the wear and tear he put himself through as a young man playing the game of golf, and life, at break-neck speed.

This doesn’t mean he isn’t going to win any more major championships. It would be silly to write Woods off now. It’s just too soon.

But what we are learning through cameos such as this two-day appearance at the tournament that benefits Woods’ foundation is that he’s not the same driven, god-like figure on the golf course that he used to be.

Spectators can cheer as they once did. But his body has had it.

And that’s why 74-75 was a good score for Tiger Woods, circa 2014

“I hate to say it,” he said after his second round, “but I’m really encouraged by what happened this week. I missed the cut by four shots. That’s a lot. But the fact that what I was able to do physically and the speed I had and distance that I was hitting the golf ball again, I had not done that in a very long time.

“And to recover like I did overnight, still leery about it, how am I going to recover? I felt great today. Then I made so many little mistakes, missing the ball on the wrong sides, not having the right feel for certain shots, not judging the wind correctly. All the little things, and speed on putts, all the little things that I know I can fix. But as I said, that’s very encouraging.”

Tiger really is a changed man.

This is going to take some getting used to. Woods hurried back to the PGA Tour this week to get the rust out, didn’t seem to get much if any of the rust out in a second round that featured four consecutive bogeys on the back nine, and now will disappear for nearly three weeks until he resurfaces for the first round of the British Open.

It’s an interesting strategy. He says he’s taking his kids on vacation, then will get back to practicing before going to Liverpool, England, to the Open at Hoylake, where he won the last time the championship was played there, in 2006.

Woods said he is “very excited” to get to Hoylake.

“I’m excited to play that golf course,” he said. “I don’t know how it’s changed since we played it. It’s been a bone-dry winter in England …”

In 2006, the course was dry and hard and fast, and Tiger loved it.

But in his news conference Friday, it was mentioned that at the moment, it’s now lush, with thick rough.

“Lush?” Woods said. “That’s very different than what we played it. When we played it, it was hard and fast and it was brown. So we’ll see what happens when we get there.”

A “lush” Open was not necessarily in his plans. Of course, almost nothing is as it seems anymore for Tiger.

At the moment, “We’ll see what happens when we get there” is as good a game plan as any for him.

TIGER WOODS’ PGA TOUR VICTORIES

Brennan: Tiger Woods is a changed man

Taliban’s Geedar group behind firing on PIA’s Peshawar flight, say officials

PESHAWAR: The Tariq Geedar group of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was behind the gun attack on a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight in Peshawar that left a woman passenger dead and two crew members wounded, security officials said.

They said the group was based in Darra Adamkhel and was headed by one Khalfa.

“We have some important leads,” claimed an official.

He said that the roof of a school in Suliemankhel, an area near Peshawar, was used for targeting the Airbus when it was landing at the Bacha Khan International Airport late on Tuesday night.

The school was closed for summer vacation and its watchman was absent from duty, the official said.

He said assailants had affixed an extra barrel to an AK-47 rifle to enhance its fire range and used tracer bullets to ensure that they hit the target.

Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in and around the airport following the incident. Officials said additional police personnel had been deployed in the funnel area, including Sheikh Muhammadi and Mashogagar.

Police are patrolling the Pishtakhara road round the clock.

The military has provided eight more units of the Quick Response Force to the district administration in case of any major incident or threat of terrorism.

“With these additional security measures, operations at the Bacha Khan International Airport have now been fully restored,” an official said.

Police have released over 200 people who were picked up for questioning from Nodeh Bala, Pishtakhara and Suliemankhel areas after the attack. It is said that the scope of investigation has been expanded following some leads from intelligence agencies.

Meanwhile, the corps commander of Peshawar ordered immediate evacuation of a family stranded in Miramshah. The order came following reports that a family of 10, including children, was stuck in Dandy Darpakhel after the truck that was supposed to bring them out broke down halfway.

The head of the family, Sifatullah, telephoned reporters and called for help.

Published in Dawn, June 27th, 2014

Taliban’s Geedar group behind firing on PIA’s Peshawar flight, say officials

Gas pipeline blast kills 16 in southern India: minister

HYDERABAD: A massive explosion Friday on a state-owned gas pipeline running through the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh killed at least 16 people and gutted scores of houses, a state minister said.

“At least 16 people are dead. We have recovered 13 bodies so far,” state home minister N. Chinna Rajappa told AFP after the blast near a refinery in East Godavari district.

A huge fire which broke out on the pipeline owned by the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) was now under control and the gas had been cut off, a senior administrative officer told AFP from the scene.

Witnesses contacted by phone told AFP that angry locals had entered the premises of the refinery in the coastal district, pelted it with stones and vandalised property.

The Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency quoted GAIL chairman B.C.Tripathi as saying the cause of the blast was not yet known. “We are currently focused on rescue and relief operations,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he had asked the petroleum minister and and other senior officers to ensure immediate relief at the accident site.

“My thoughts with the families of those who lost their lives in the GAIL pipeline fire. Prayers with the injured,” he tweeted.

Earlier this month six people were killed by a poisonous gas leak at one of India’s largest government-owned steel plants in central Chhattisgarh state.

India’s biggest offshore gas fields are located in the Bay of Bengal to the east of Andhra Pradesh.

Gas pipeline blast kills 16 in southern India: minister

Peshawar airport attack: 24 bullets recovered from Sulemankhel

PESHAWAR: Police have found an important lead in the Peshawar airport attack case and have recovered at least 24 types of different bullets from Sulemankhel area situated on the outskirts of Peshawar.

Investigation office Tajmalook Khan said that the bullet shells were recovered from a dried-up water channel in Sulemankhel included Short Machine Guns (SMGs), G3 and AK 47 which might have been used to target the PIA flight.

The investigation officer further said additional information in the case would be collected after coordination with the pilot and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), adding that it would help in establishing if the same kind of bullets were used to target the aircraft.

The KP police have also devised a strategy to secure the airport. Besides setting up a quick response force team, a special team comprising more than 175 personnel would also be raised besides night patrolling and surveillance of the airport in coordination with the CAA.

Peshawar airport attack: 24 bullets recovered from Sulemankhel

Nepal's Organ Trail: How traffickers steal kidneys

Kathmandu, Nepal (CNN) – On the streets of Kathmandu, the sight of people begging for kidney treatment has become common.

The capital of Nepal is no different from many places in the world where aging populations, poor diets and no health insurance systems mean increased organ disease.

The organ in highest demand is the kidney and black market traffickers are meeting that demand. Up to 7,000 kidneys are obtained illegally every year, according to a report by Global Financial Integrity.

Organ trafficking is an illegal, yet thriving trade around the globe.

That same report shows the illegal organ trade generates profits between $514 million to $1 billion a year.

In Kathmandu, we spotted a couple begging on the street for their son’s kidney treatment.

Jeet Bahadur Magar and his wife spent their entire savings to treat their son’s kidney disease.

Out of money and options, they are now out on the street hoping to raise enough funds to cover the medical bills.

“I pray to God that no one has to ever go through kidney failure problems,” Jeet Bahadur said.

But many Nepalis do.

During our visit, Nepal Kidney Center in Kathmandu was packed with patients having dialysis — a grueling four-hour process of purifying blood through a machine.

A patient can avoid the kidney transplant by having dialysis at least three times a week.

Those lucky enough to afford a transplant still face obstacles: the donor must match the blood group of the recipients and Nepali law requires the organ donor to be a family member.

Nepal’s ‘kidney bank’

We traveled to Kavre, a tiny district close to Kathmandu, and what activists and authorities say is a ground zero for the black market organ trade in Nepal.

Here, kidney trafficking rackets — well organized and well funded — dupe the poor and uneducated into giving away a piece of themselves.

The district has developed an unfortunate reputation as the “kidney bank of Nepal.”

For more than 20 years, activists say, people from villages in Kavre have been the primary source of kidneys for sick and desperate patients throughout Nepal. But now the numbers are being tracked.

In the last five years more than 300 people have been reported to be victims of kidney traffickers in this district alone, according toForum for Protection of People’s Rights, a Kathmandu-based non-profit human rights organization. Some activists say the number is much higher.

“Social stigma and threats from traffickers keep many victims from coming forward,” said Rajendra Ghimire, a human rights lawyer, and director of Forum for Protection of People’s Rights.

‘The meat will grow back’

Nawaraj Pariyar is one of the many victims of kidney traffickers.

Like many in Kavre, Pariyar makes a living from selling cattle milk and doing seasonal labor jobs on nearby farms. Poor and uneducated, all he has is two cows, a house and a tiny plot of land.

Pariyar used to visit Kathmandu to find construction work. He was on a site in 2000 when the foreman approached him with a dubious offer: if he let doctors cut out a “hunk of meat” from his body, he would be given 30 lakhs — about $30,000.

What he wasn’t told: the piece of “meat” was actually his kidney.

“The foreman told me that the meat will grow back,” Pariyar said.

“Then I thought, ‘If the meat will regrow again, and I get about $30,000, why not?’”

“What if I die?” Pariyar remembers asking the foreman.

The foreman assured Pariyar that nothing would happen. He was given good food and clothes, and was even taken to see a movie.

Then he was escorted to a hospital in Chennai, a southern state of India.

Traffickers assigned a fake name to Pariyar and told the hospital he was a relative of the recipient. The traffickers, Pariyar says, had all the fake documents ready to prove his false identity.

“At the hospital, the doctor asked me if the recipient was my sister. I was told by the traffickers to say yes. So I did,” Pariyar said.

“I heard them repeatedly saying ‘kidney’. But I had no idea what ‘kidney’ meant. I only knew Mirgaula (the Nepali term for kidney.)

“Since I didn’t know the local language, I couldn’t understand any conversation between the trafficker and the hospital staff.”

Pariyar was discharged and sent home with about 20,000 Nepali rupees — less than one percent of the agreed amount — and a promise he would have the rest shortly.

He never received any more money and never found the trafficker.

“After I came back to Nepal, I had a doubt. So, I went to the doctor. That’s when I found out I am missing a kidney,” Pariyar said.

Pariyar is now sick and getting worse by the day. He has a urinary problem and constant severe back pain.

But he cannot afford a trip to the doctor and is afraid he will die.

“If I die I can only hope for the government to take care of my two children. I don’t know if I will die today or tomorrow. I’m just counting my days,” Pariyar said.

Pariyar’s experience is one of many similar stories we heard in Kavre.

Understanding the economic situation in this district is the key to understanding why so many people here easily fall prey to kidney traffickers.

There are hardly any other economic opportunities other than substantial farming and rearing livestock. One bad harvest or a big medical bill can easily ruin families.

“The main reason is poverty and lack of awareness. It is very easy for the traffickers to brainwash the villagers. Also, the villages in Kavre are close to the capital and are easily accessible,” Ghimire said.

Indian links

Traffickers use proxies at different stages of the process. First, someone will approach the victim, another will create the donor’s fake documents and then another will escort the donor to the hospital.

Few hospitals in Nepal perform kidney transplants. And even the doctors in Nepal know most well-heeled patients prefer to go across the border to India.

They want better services, they want Indian doctors. That’s why they go to the hospitals in India,” said Dr. Rishi Kumar Kafle, Director of the National Kidney Center.

But activists have other explanations for the demand for Indian surgeries.

“It is hard to cross-check Nepali records across the border, so traffickers prefer to take the donors to India,” Ghimire said.

We noted, before any kidney operation can be carried out in India, the hospital requires a No Objection Certificate, a letter drafted by the Nepali embassy in New Delhi confirming the donor as the kidney recipient’s relative.

Photographs of the recipient and the relative, who would be the legitimate donor, were not included in the letter until recently.

Since Indian hospitals accept official Nepali documents, anyone could show up at the hospital, provide papers saying they were that person and have their kidney removed.

Activists say this is the loophole traffickers used for many years.

With the easy availability of forged documents, traffickers can beat the system.

While the Nepali government tries to tighten policies, Nepal’s police officers are trying to crack down on the criminal rings.

Last year authorities arrested 10 people accused of organ trafficking in Kavre. Their case is still in court.

Sub-inspector Dipendra Chand, who led the police investigation, says stopping the underground trade is difficult.

“If we crackdown in one village, the traffickers simply move to another,” Chand said.

Rajendra Ghimire says that the trafficking rings are now moving beyond Kavre.

“We have reports that this problem is expanding into other surrounding districts as well,” Ghimire said.

The attention to this problem is growing in Kavre. Kidney trafficking stories are making headlines on the local and national newspapers.

But for victims like Pariyar and others, the media attention is too late.

Nepal's Organ Trail: How traffickers steal kidneys

Primark investigating 'forced labor' notes found in clothing

(CNN) – A shopper in Northern Ireland may have gotten more than she bargained for when she reportedly discovered a chilling note stuffed in a pair of pants she purchased from European retailer, Primark.

Scrawled on a yellow piece of paper and wrapped around what appears to be a prison identification card, was a message claiming to be from an inmate at a Chinese prison making clothes for export under conditions of slave labor.

“We work 15 hours every day and eat food that wouldn’t even be fed to pigs and dogs. We’re (forced to) work like oxen,” the handwritten note said in Chinese.

The message appealed to the international community to “condemn these human rights abuses by the Chinese government.”

Tip of the iceberg?

Karen Wisinska, who lives in Northern Ireland’s Fermanagh county, said she bought the pants for about £10 ($16) on a trip to Belfast in 2011, but left the garment in her closet — unworn — after she discovered the zipper was broken.

She only found the note when she retrieved the item while packing for a holiday last week, she said. After getting a rough translation of the note, Wisinka sought help from Amnesty International, an organization that has documented the use of forced labor in Chinese detention facilities in the past.

“I was shocked to find this note and card inside the trousers from Primark and even more shocked to discover that it appears to have been made under slave labor conditions in a Chinese prison,” she told Amnesty.

“I am only sorry that I did not discover the note when I first purchased the clothing — then I could have brought this scandal to light much earlier.”

Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland program director, Patrick Corrigan, described the story as “horrific.”

“It’s very difficult to know whether it’s genuine, but the fear has to be that this is just the tip of the iceberg,” Corrigan said.

Investigation underway

Primark denied sourcing clothing made using forced laborin a statement Wednesday, noting the “considerable time delay” since the garment was purchased.

A spokesperson for the company said that particular line of pants was last sold in Northern Ireland in October 2009.

“We find it very strange that this … has come to light so recently, given that the trousers were on sale four years ago,” he said.

Since 2009, the company’s ethical standards team has carried out nine inspections of the supplier who made the garment, and found no prison or forced labor of any kind, the statement said.

Despite the company’s suspicions, the spokesperson said Primark “knows its responsibilities to the workers in its supply chain,” and has started a detailed investigation.

The company is also examining two other cases that have surfaced in Wales in recent days. On two separate occasions, women reportedly found desperate pleas sewn into labels on dresses purchased from the same Primark store in Swansea. One read “Forced to work exhausting hours,” while the other said, “Degrading sweatshop conditions.”

Primark investigating 'forced labor' notes found in clothing

United States casts doubt on North Korean missile claim

Washington (CNN) – A U.S. defense official on Thursday dismissed North Korea’s claim of testing newly developed missiles.

“There is no indication of new North Korean technology,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The U.S. military monitored what the defense official described as the routine launch of short-range missiles.

Earlier, North Korea’s state-run news agency KCNA reported that leader Kim Jong Un had “guided the test-fire of newly developed cutting-edge ultra-precision tactical guided missiles.”

“At the central monitoring post he acquainted himself with the tactical and technological information of the newly developed guided missiles before giving an order to test-fire them.

“The moment the guided missiles soared into the sky with thunderous roar,” the report read.

According to the U.S. and South Korean governments, North Korea launched three projectiles from its southeastern coast.

“I think we’re always concerned whenever North Korea launches anything,” said U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf.

She added: “We’re monitoring the situation, and we’re still evaluating the available information to identify the exact type of projectile that may have been launched.”

Kim Min-seok, a spokesman for the South Korean Defense Ministry, said Friday that what North Korea launched appears to have been an improvement of an existing weapon, rather than an entirely new technology.

The improvements were in the weapon’s range and the guided technology, he told a regular news briefing.

From the North Korean military’s point of view, the weapon may be new, Kim said, “but if you look at the international trend, this weapon technology was developed before.”

United States casts doubt on North Korean missile claim

Google's World Cup war room teases trends from tourney

SAN FRANCISCO — How hot was Thursday’s USA vs. Germany World Cup soccer match? Online searches for it beat queries about the weather.

The game emerged as the most searched term in the nation on Google during the course of the USA’s 1-0 loss to Germany, a result that nonetheless still finds Uncle Sam’s army moving to the Brazilian tournament’s next round.

But the world was curious, too: The game ranked fourth globally, after typically dominant searches for Facebook, YouTube and Google.

“There was all this talk before the tournament that Americans weren’t interested in soccer, and that no one cared about the U.S. team, and we’re able to use real-time data to show that’s not the case,” says Madeline Kane, a Google product marketing manager who took on the task of manning the World Cup Trends project.

“We just passed 1 billion searches for the Cup overall,” she says. “We knew this would be a great opportunity to share information from a global conversation.”

Teasing out trending statistics from the World Cup is the job of a few dozen soccer-mad Googlers, who since the tournament’s onset have gathered in an airy work space provided by digital agency R/GA in a hip corner of town. Dubbed the World Cup War Room, the place buzzes with youth and caffeine, its soundtrack the chatter of TV commentators and the occasional barking of staffers’ dogs.

Walls are papered with some of the 100 colorful trending factoids (found at google.com/worldcup) that are the numbers-crunching art-anchored work of the assembled team of engineers, artists, writers, many of them fluent in the 12 languages each blurb is translated into.

Immediately following the conclusion of the USA’s game, which played on large screens concurrently with Portugal’s 2-1 defeat of Ghana, two trending-fact cartoons were ordered up.

One touts the game’s aforementioned top ranking as a search term, and the other is a nod to the 18x jump in global game-time searches for Ghana’s striker Asamoah Gyan, whose tying goal in the Portugal match made him Africa’s all-time World Cup scoring king, with six.

While Google has long been tabulating trending statistics, this Cup effort, which started last fall, required a group of engineers from the company’s Israeli offices to build “a real-time tool that would allow us a look into samples of trending searches as they were happening,” says Kane.

Among the quirkiest search trends from the tournament so far:

• After Uruguay’s Luis Suarez bit an Italian player, there were 20 times more searches for his name than there were searches for snake, spider, tick, fly, dog and mosquito bites combined.

• When Ecuador’s Christian Noboa wore a strange headpiece during a match against France, searches for the player jumped 13 times.

• Although Brazil’s star player Neymar recently nabbed a yellow card during a game, Brazilian fans were unfazed and continued to search more about his yellow hair.

But one of the most shared World Cup search spikes is also one of its least expected. It concerns Germany’s deft striker Mesut Ozil, who is of Turkish decent. Searches for the player in Germany were actually topped by searches for him in not only Turkey, but also Indonesia and Malaysia.

“It’s one of those strange ones, but it turns out he’s very active on social media, and has a big following in those countries, so when we shared that fact with the world, lots of people forwarded it,” says Kane.

As the din from the USA game disappeared, the team chewed over the two most salient search trends from the match.

One was goalie Tim Howard eclipsing Clint Dempsey as the team’s most searched player, no doubt the result of the stellar performance in keeping the Germany attackers largely at bay.

And the other related to tenacious defender Jermaine Jones, who enjoyed a tripling of searches in Germany — topping searches for any German player — after he suffered a violent collision with the game’s referee. The headline? “A bump for Jermaine.”

The coming weeks will bring more matches. The trending war room stands ready, algorithms and wit at the ready.

Google's World Cup war room teases trends from tourney

Sherri Shepherd, Jenny McCarthy out at 'The View

Sherri Shepherd will no longer be part of The View – and Jenny McCarthy is leaving as well.

“It’s been seven wonderful years on The View and after careful consideration it is time for me to move on. I am extremely grateful to Barbara Walters and (executive producer) Bill Geddie for giving me the opportunity,” Shepherd said in a statement to The Wrap. “I look forward to the business opportunities that lay ahead for me and I am incredibly grateful to my View family and my fans for supporting me on this journey.

ABC confirmed McCarthy’s departure in an e-mail to USA TODAY, which included a statement: “The View will be moving in an exciting new direction next season and ABC has made decisions to evolve the show creatively.”

McCarthy also tweeted about leaving the show:

“My View will be changing too. As will with many hard working folks. Thanks to everyone at the show for your dedication and an amazing year.”

The departure of Shepherd and McCarthy comes a little over a month after The Viewco-creator Barbara Walters retired from hosting duties.

Shepherd, 47, joined the talk show as a guest co-host in 2006. That became a full-time gig the following year. Prior to that, she had a career as an actress and comedian.

McCarthy, 41, joined The View in 2013 after a career as a model, TV host and actress.

Sherri Shepherd, Jenny McCarthy out at 'The View

Police not ruling out abuse of found boy; stepmom held

DETROIT — The stepmother of a 12-year-old boy — who was found alive in the basement of his east-side Detroit home 11 days after he vanished — was taken into custody on a warrant issued for a probation violation, police said.

Meanwhile, police continue to investigate Charlie Bothuell V’s case, focusing on whether he was abused. Police said they have not ruled out the possibility of abuse.

Police have said evidence, including a PVC pipe, has been collected.

A person familiar with the investigation said the pipe was reportedly used to discipline the child. Blood was found on the child’s clothing in the house, but it is uncertain whose blood it is, the source said.

Police are working with the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office and will be in touch with the Department of Human Services and other agencies.

Charlie is now staying with his mother and other relatives in Detroit.

His father and stepmother —Charlie Bothuell IV and Monique Dillard-Bothuell — have come under increased scrutiny since 12-year-old Charlie, missing since June 14, was found Wednesday in the basement of their home while police executed a search warrant.

Maria Miller, a spokeswoman for Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, said the office has not received a warrant request in Charlie’s case; Detroit police said a warrant request could be turned over within the next couple of days.

Dillard-Bothuell’s two children have been taken into custody by Children’s Protective Services, Detroit police spokesman Michael Woody said.

She is on probation for a weapons offense, records show.

According to Wayne County Circuit Court records, Dillard-Bothuell was charged in 2013 with carrying a concealed weapon.

According to a police report, obtained by the Detroit Free Press, Dillard-Bothuell got a flat tire on May 19, 2013. When a Michigan State Police trooper offered assistance, she provided him with her expired concealed pistol license, told him she was in possession of a pistol, and was arrested, the report says.

In January this year she pleaded guilty to obtaining a pistol without a license, the concealed weapons charge was dismissed and she was given two years of probation, records show.

On the order of probation, it says Dillard-Bothuell, “may not own use or possess a firearm.”

On Monday, a bench warrant was issued for Dillard-Bothuell for violating her probation after a handgun was found in her home while police executed a search warrant.

According to court records, police recovered the gun while Dillard-Bothuell was present.

Woody said the investigation is continuing.

Police found Charlie concealed by a makeshift barricade, crouched behind a large container, Detroit Police Chief James Craig said Wednesday. He said police had searched the home several times before the one conducted Wednesday.

Woody said Thursday that Charlie had been in another location during earlier searches of the house. Police would have discovered Charlie otherwise, he said. Woody described the area in which the boy was found as a small mechanical room. Police found the boy Wednesday behind a large container with some food, including cereal and pop bottles.

“It was somewhat staged, but … you could tell he was there for a short while,” Woody said. “It wasn’t any grand, elaborate setup.”

Woody said that when he was found, Charlie was wearing the same clothes he’d had on when he disappeared. On Wednesday, Craig said Charlie was happy to see police.

Police said Charlie’s condition is good and he has been talking to them.

“He was in a hospital this morning. He is being closely monitored by us,” Woody said Thursday.

A woman leaving the mother’s house Thursday afternoon said police told the family not to speak with reporters but said the boy is fine and with his family before she drove away.

The saga of a family searching for a missing child took an abrupt and bizarre turn Wednesday. Craig held a news conference to announce that police were not ruling out the possibility of homicide in the case followed hours later with news that the boy had been found alive.

As Craig was making the announcement, Charlie’s father, Charlie Bothuel IV, learned the news from cable TV show host Nancy Grace on live television. He left the interview and rushed to his home, where video images showed him collapsing in the arms of WDIV-TV reporter Guy Gordon after learning the good news.

Bothuell was adamant that he did not know his son was in the basement and said “there was no abuse of my son.”

Mark Magidson, Bothuell’s lawyer, said it “defies logic” that the many searches failed to uncover Charlie.

“If that child was down there, they would have found him,” Magidson said.

Magidson noted that there is an underground hallway that connects the basements of the various units in the complex, part of the Mies van der Rohe townhouses, a collection of modernist structures listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Residents call the hallway a tunnel and keep their garbage and other items in that area. There is a door on the far end from Bothuell’s house that leads outside, although a neighbor noted Thursday that the door has an alarm.

Bothuell has yet to see his son and was unable to travel to the hospital while the boy was there because authorities had seized his car and his computers, Magidson said.

“He tried to see his son shortly after he was found. They said no,” Magidson said. “I told him, ‘You have an absolute right to see your son.’ ”

According to Bothuell, Charlie had been homeschooled for the last couple of years after some early struggles. However, recent discussions, apparently upsetting to Charlie, had focused on moving to the suburbs and enrolling Charlie in school there. Magidson said Charlie had been told that if he failed to do well he could be enrolled in military school.

Bothuell, who said he’s a registered nurse and runs a company based in Southfield, Mich., did not return a call seeking comment Thursday. He had earlier criticized police for their initial reaction to the case and their treatment of him and his family. He offered to take a public lie-detector test.

The boy left his home about 9 p.m. ET June 14 after the boy’s stepmother had a discussion with him over unfinished chores. The boy was in the middle of a workout when he left. The search began that night.

Police not ruling out abuse of found boy; stepmom held

Mary Rodgers, author of 'Freaky Friday,' dead at 83

NEW YORK (AP) — Mary Rodgers, the daughter of Broadway icon Richard Rodgers who found her own fame as composer of the 1959 musical “Once Upon a Mattress” and as the author of the body-shifting book “Freaky Friday,” has died. She was 83.

Rodgers died Thursday at her home in Manhattanafter a long illness, her son Alec Guettel said.

Rodgers’ hit “Once Upon a Mattress,” a musical adaptation of the Hans Christian Anderson fable “The Princess and the Pea,” made a star of Carol Burnett. A Broadway revival in 1996 starred Sarah Jessica Parker. Her other shows include“From A to Z,” a revue featuring her songs, and two other short-lived shows: “Hot Spot” and “The Madwoman of Central Park West,” a one-person musical starringPhyllis Newman.

She was also a children’s book author who scored big with “Freaky Friday,” in which a mother and daughter trade bodies. The book was twice adapted into a Disney movie, most recently in 2003 starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan. Her other books include “A Billion for Boris,” ”Summer Switch” and “The Rotten Book.”

The daughter of “South Pacific” and “Flower Drum Song” composer Richard Rodgers and Dorothy Rodgers, Mary Rodgers was also the mother of a musical theater composer, Adam Guettel, a Tony Award winner for “The Light in the Piazza.”

She had been married to Henry Guettel, former executive director of the Theatre Development Fund, who died last year. She is survived by her sister, Linda Rodgers Emory, and five children.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Mary Rodgers, author of 'Freaky Friday,' dead at 83

Obama requests $500M for Syria opposition

President Obama asked Congress Thursday for $500 million to train and arm members of opposition forces in Syria, part of an effort to stem insurgent violence that has spilled over into neighboring Iraq.

The proposed assistance can “help defend the Syrian people, stabilize areas under opposition control and facilitate the provision of essential services, counter terrorist threats, and promote conditions for a negotiated settlement,” the administration said in its budget request to Congress.

Potential recipients of the money — opponents of the Syrian government headed by Bashar al-Assad — will be vetted, officials said. Lawmakers have expressed concern that weapons and money sent to Syrian rebels might wind up with enemies of the United States.

“This funding request would build on the administration’s longstanding efforts to empower the moderate Syrian opposition, both civilian and armed, and will enable the Department of Defense to increase our support to vetted elements of the armed opposition,” said Caitlin Hayden, a spokesperson for the National Security Council.

The administration’s budget request includes $1.5 billion for a “Regional Stabilization Initiative” that involves the Syrian opposition as well as neighboring countries Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq.

Details of the assistance have not been determined by the Pentagon, but it will involve training outside Syria, possibly Jordan, said a senior defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details were not authorized to be released publicly.

The military could train a small cadre of fighters who would then return to Syria to share their knowledge or it could mean training entire units of rebels, the official said.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel “has directed his staff to begin developing more detailed plans to carry out the train-and-equip mission, if approved by Congress,” Rear Adm. John Kerry, the Pentagon press secretary, said in a statement.

The initiative would be part of the “Counter-Terrorism Partnerships Fund” that Obama proposed during a foreign policy address last month at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

Hayden said the United States continues to believe that “there is no military solution to this crisis,” and the United States “should not put American troops into combat in Syria.”

Jeff White of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and former Defense Intelligence Agency official, said the $500 million proposal is “a pretty good chunk of change,” and “would buy some substantial assistance.”

The United States has already been operating covert programs to supply rebels with weapons, and is providing non-lethal aid to opposition groups, White pointed out. The rebels have also been supplied with U.S. TOW anti-tank missiles, though it is not clear if they are coming from the United States or another country.

Those programs have allowed the administration to establish links with moderate groups, he said, and “sort of the set the groundwork for a larger lethal aid program.”

The United States is also looking to assist resistance to the Sunni extremist group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which has taken land on both sides of the Syria-Iraq border.

Hayden said the assistance request “marks another step toward helping the Syrian people defend themselves against regime attacks, push back against the growing number of extremists like ISIL who find safe-haven in the chaos, and take their future into their own hands by enhancing security and stability at local levels.”

The Syria proposals are part of an overall $65.8 billion budget request for overseas contingency operations that include a variety of Pentagon and State Department programs.

The overall budget plan includes a previously announced $1 billion in defense assistance to Central and Eastern European nations, a response to Russian annexation of land from Ukraine.

The total $65.8 billion overseas package is about $21 billion less than first projected, officials said, reflecting U.S. plans to withdraw U.S. combat troops from Afghanistan.

The counter-terrorism fund also includes money for stabilizing Syria’s neighbors, including Iraq, where Sunni extremists have seized towns and battled Iraqi security forces, posing a threat to Baghdad.

On Thursday, prominent Shiite leaders called for the removal of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, the Associated Press reported, as parliament prepared to start work next week on putting together a new government. The United States has put pressure on Maliki and his government to form a more inclusive government, though they have stopped short of calling for his removal.

Signs of sectarian violence are surfacing in Baghdad where 12 people were killed in a Shiite neighborhood of the capital and police found the bodies of eight Sunnis south of the capital, the Associated Press reported.

Obama requests $500M for Syria opposition

U.S. judge upholds Colorado gun restrictions

Colorado gun laws that mandate background checks on private sales and that limit ammunition magazines to 15 rounds are constitutional, a federal judge ruled Thursday.

The state’s Democratic-majority legislature passed the measures last year in reaction to the 2012 mass killings at a Denver-area movie theater and the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. In a backlash by voters, two Democratic senator subsequently were recalled and a third resigned.

In her 50-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Marcia Krieger wrote “evidence shows that large-capacity magazines are frequently used in gun violence and mass shootings, and that often a shooter will shoot continuously until a weapon jams or the shooter runs out of ammunition.”

“Most experts agree that the size of a magazine correlates to the number of rounds that are fired in both an offensive and defensive capacity,” she added.

But the plaintiffs — gun owners, advocates, manufacturers and sheriffs — had presented no evidence that someone’s ability “to defend him or herself is seriously diminished if magazines are limited,” Krieger declared.

The judge did express reservations about the laws, however.

“Whether adoption of a fifteen-round magazine limit is a sound public policy or a perfect fit with the General Assembly’s objective to improve public safety is not the question before this Court,” Krieger wrote. “The fit may not be perfect, but the evidence establishes both an important governmental policy and a substantial relationship between that policy and the restriction” of the law.

Addressing expanded background checks, Krieger, who was nominated to the court by President George W. Bush, ruled that if the government has the power to regulate sales from gun dealers, then “that same power to regulate should extend to non-commercial transactions, lest the loophole swallow the regulatory purpose.

“Thus, the Court has grave doubt that a law regulating (as opposed to prohibiting) temporary private transfers of firearms implicates the Second Amendment’s guarantee at all.”

She said requiring background checks for private transactions, whether in person or over the Internet, “does not prevent a person otherwise permitted to obtain a firearm from acquiring one, nor subject that person to any greater burdens than he or she would face if acquiring the weapon commercially.

“Nothing in the Second Amendment can be read to suggest that a permissible burden on commercial sales of firearms cannot similarly be extended to apply to those acquiring firearms by loan.”

She cited legislative statistics showing that almost 40% of gun buys are made through private sales, that 62% of private sellers on the Internet know that the buyers can’t pass a background check, and that 80% of criminals who use guns bought them privately..

The plaintiffs argued that despite exemptions for temporary loans between private parties, expanded background checks would make it legally difficult for friends or neighbors to loan firearm for protection or storage.

Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said that like Krieger, his office “has never asserted that the laws in question are good, wise or sound policy,” but that he was obligated to defend their constitutionality.

The Colorado State Shooting Association called the ruling “disappointing on many levels,” and said an an appeal to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals is expected.

The association said Krieger’s opinion “ignores or gives short-shrift” to many of the plaintiffs’ arguments, and “seemingly misunderstands those that are addressed.”

“The significance of the Second Amendment as a core portion of the Bill of Rights and its importance has virtually no reference in the decision,” the group said in astatement. “Most noteworthy was the court’s focus on the important government interest at hand while ignoring the complete absence of support for same in the legislative record.”

Noting the lawmakers who were ousted, the organization said it is “time to throw out each and every legislator that voted for these laws, and the governor that signed them.”

U.S. judge upholds Colorado gun restrictions

Iraq confirms Syrian air strikes against Isis militants

The prime minister of Iraq has confirmed to BBC News that Syria carried out air strikes on militants inside Iraqi territory this week.

Nouri Maliki said Syrian fighter jets had bombed militant positions around the border town of Qaim on Tuesday.

While Iraq did not ask for the raid, he added, it “welcomed” any such strike against the Islamist group Isis.

Isis and its Sunni Muslim allies have seized large parts of Iraq this month including the second city, Mosul.

Analysis: Jim Muir, BBC News, Irbil, northern Iraq

The Syrian air strikes show how the conflicts in Syria and Iraq are merging together, with Isis as a common factor. Once-rival fighters on the Syrian side of the border at Qaim have now pledged allegiance to Isis, giving it control of both sides.

If US drones are not yet involved, they soon could be, illustrating how the threat posed by Isis is creating a convergence of interests between players who so far have been adversaries.

That goes for Iran, too, which is deeply concerned about the sudden upheavals in Iraq. It has reinforced its positions along its own western border, where guards have been killed in an attack. There are reports that it has been heavily shelling border areas in the Kurdish mountains, where an Iranian Kurdish opposition group called Pejak has bases.

The Iraqi government has struggled to hold back the militants’ advance from the north and west and has also been receiving support from Iran, with whom its Shia Muslim majority has close links.

The US, which also backs the government, has stressed that the militants can only be defeated by Iraq’s own forces.

Mr Maliki will seek to form a new government in an effort to maintain national unity when parliament assembles again next week in Baghdad.

UK Foreign Secretary William Hague has arrived in Baghdad to meet political and community leaders.

“As a friend of Iraq, the UK believes the urgent priority must be to form an inclusive government that can command the support of all Iraqi people and work to stop [Isis] in its tracks,” he said.

‘Russian planes’

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Maliki said Iraq was buying Russian warplanes, which would arrive in a few days, as the US kept delaying the sale of F16 jets.

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the crisis with Mr Maliki by phone last Friday, the Kremlin reported on its website at the time.

Mr Putin confirmed his “full support” for the government’s efforts to rid Iraqi territory of “terrorists”, it said, without giving details.

In another development, reports say that a unit of al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch, the Nusra Front, pledged allegiance to Isis in the Syrian town of Albu Kamal, near the Iraqi border.

Until recently, the Nusra Front had been fighting in Syria against Isis, which it sees as harming its cause with its brutality and extremism.

Iraq confirms Syrian air strikes against Isis militants

At least 21 killed in rush-hour blast in Nigerian capital

ABUJA: At least 21 people were killed and 17 injured when an explosion tore through a crowded shopping district in the Nigerian capital Abuja during rush hour on Wednesday, a police spokesman said.

It was not immediately clear what caused the blast. Two witnesses at the scene said it shattered the glass of nearby stores and sent plumes of smoke billowing into the air.

The explosion rocked an area near the popular Banex Plaza shopping centre in the upscale Wuse 2 district, they said.

“After a preliminary investigation, we can confirm that 21 people were killed and 17 injured,” police spokesman Frank Mba told reporters at the scene of the explosion.

“I heard a loud blast, it shattered the windows of the shop. We ran out. A lot of people ran too, some with blood stains,” said Gimbya Jafaru, who was shopping nearby.

The blast came as the area was packed with shoppers and rush-hour commuters, an emergency services source said.

“This thing happened at a peak period,” the source said, estimating that around 40 cars had been badly damaged.

Soon after the blast, emergency services were on the scene and the police and army had blocked off the surrounding area, a Reuters reporter on the scene said. A haze of smoke lingered over the area as the bomb squad combed the area for explosives.

Separately, a roadside bomb blew up in the northeastern Adamawa state, although no one was injured in that explosion, local police spokesman Othman Abubakar said Nigeria has been hit by almost daily bomb and gun attacks, which are widely suspected to be the work of militant group Boko Haram.

The insurgents, who are trying to carve out an Islamic state in the north, have been increasingly moving beyond their traditional base in rural northeast Nigeria.

Abuja has been a target for bomb attacks in recent months. A suspected car bomb in May killed at least 15 and an attack on a bus station a month earlier killed at least 75.

At least 21 killed in rush-hour blast in Nigerian capital

Nato says soldier killed in southern Afghanistan

KABUL: A Nato service member was killed in an attack in southern Afghanistan, the US-led international coalition said Thursday.

Nato said the soldier died as a result of an enemy forces attack in the south on Wednesday.

The alliance provided no other details in its statement.

Coalition policy is for home countries to identify their military dead.

The death brought to 11 the number of Nato service members killed so far this month, with eight of the fatalities being American.

So far this year, 40 Nato troops have died in Afghanistan, including 29 Americans.

All foreign combat troops are scheduled to be withdrawn from the country by the end of this year.

Casualties have been falling in the US-led military coalition as its forces pull back to allow the Afghan army and police to fight the Taliban insurgency.

The Taliban have launched their annual spring offensive, promising to step up attacks against Afghan security forces in a bid to undermine the Western-backed government as foreign combat troops prepare to withdraw from the country by the end of the year.

On Wednesday, Afghan security forces fought back against a fierce Taliban onslaught by about 800 militants in the southern Helmand province, a Taliban stronghold.

Clashes in Helmand, which was touted as a showcase of a major US military offensive to drive out the militants in 2009, have been going on for the past four days and have killed dozens of people, including at least 35 civilians.

Wednesday’s attacks targeted checkpoints and government buildings in Helmand, in a stark reflection of the challenges facing government troops trying to defend the country against the resilient militants with diminishing help from the international community.

Nato says soldier killed in southern Afghanistan

FO instructs diplomats to restrict movement in Karachi

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office sent a memo on Thursday to Karachi-based foreign diplomats from various countries and advised them to be vigilant and cautious in viewof the security situation in the metropolis.

The memo has been sent to consulate generals and representatives of several countries who are based in Karachi, requesting them to restrict movement and avoid unnecessary travel in Karachi.

The Foreign Office sent the memo after consulting with the interior ministry and law enforcement agencies. The internal report of FO quoted to have said that foreign ministry and the law enforcement agencies may come under attack of the terrorist groups.

FO sources told Dawn.com that the memo has been shared with police personnel and security agencies in Karachi in the event that unforeseen incidents occur.

The diplomats have also been advised to stay in contact with the city police regarding their movement in certain areas so that adequate security can be provided to them.

In 2011, a Saudi diplomat was killed in a hail of bullets on his way to the country’s consulate in Karachi the second attack on Saudi interests in Pakistan‘s biggest city in less than a week.

Earlier, the Interior Ministry had also issued a warning to provincial governments of possible attacks on US consulates in Karachi over the anger regarding an anti-Islam film, which has led to protests around the world.

FO instructs diplomats to restrict movement in Karachi

Zarb-i-Azb: North Waziristan ground operation kicks off

PESHAWAR: Ground troops were moved in to Miramshah Bazaar on Thursday as tanks and artillery continued to pound militant hideouts in and around the bazaar.

Sources said that after weakening the targets with air assaults, security forces were now moving into the built area and clearing hideouts.

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Also read: Thousands flee North Waziristan region on last day of evacuation

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The officials said that security forces were also consolidating the positions in and around Miramshah Bazaar.

The official sources also said that the ground offensive in Miramshah has started at 6 am and would continue.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) is yet to issue an official confirmation of casualties in the operation.

The military operation named ‘Zarb-i-Azb’ was initiated in the North Waziristan region in June. At least 430,000 people have fled the region into nearby areas of Pakistan as well as neighbouring Afghanistan, the biggest movement of refugees in Pakistan in years.

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Examine: All-out military operation launched in North Waziristan

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Security officials had claimed that over 200 local and foreign militants had been killed in the aerial bombings.

Earlier a ground assault was delayed due to the issues that cropped up during evacuation ofinternally displaced people (IDPs).

Operation Zarb-i-Azb: Interactive map

Zarb-i-Azb: North Waziristan ground operation kicks off

U.S. is no. 1 at World Cup (in visiting fans)

It should come as no surprise to TV viewers who’ve seen the raucous red, white and blue sections at stadiums, but the U.S. is leading the World Cup in one vital statistic: fans who are passionate enough to travel to Brazil.

Facebook analyzed check-ins by non Brazilians in World Cup stadiums to offer a selective look at the traveling fan base. U.S. visitors accounted for the most activity, followed by North American neighbors Mexico, then Colombia, Chile and Argentina. Europeans, some of who witnessed dispiriting first-round exits by their national teams, made up slots 6-9, with the U.K, Italy, Germany and France. Number 10 is Australia, whose fans traveled a long way to join the party.

Among U.S. visitors, the top cities of origin for traveling fans are New York, L.A., Miami, Houston and Chicago. Facebook also breaks down demographic information to reveal that 68% of traveling fans are male, and the most-represented age group is 25-34, with 39% of users.

The complete lists are below, and be sure and check out this cool visualization of Facebook fan data on our For the Win site.

Who is visiting Brazil for the World Cup?

Countries

1. USA

2. Mexico

3. Colombia

4. Chile

5. Argentina

6. UK

7. Italy

8. Germany

9. France

10. Australia

Top 10 cities (world)

1. Mexico City (Mexico)

2. Bogota (Colombia)

3. Santiago (Chile)

4. Buenos Aires (Argentina)

5. London (UK)

6. New York (US)

7. Paris (France)

8. Monterrey (Mexico)

9. Medellin (Colombia)

10. Sydney (Australia)

Top 10 U.S. cities

1) New York

2) Los Angeles

3) Miami

4) Houston

5) Chicago

6) San Francisco

7) San Diego

8) Washington

9) Atlanta

10) Orlando

Ages of visitors

* 13-17: 7%

* 18-24: 30%

* 25-34: 39%

* 35-44: 17%

* 45-54: 6%

* 55+: 1%

Data represents Facebook check-ins into the 12 World Cup cities by people who live outside of Brazil from June 2 through June 16.

U.S. is no. 1 at World Cup (in visiting fans)

Knicks, Mavericks make 6-player Tyson Chandler trade

Tyson Chandler returned to the team he won a championship with in 2011, as the New York Knicks dealt the center to the Dallas Mavericks in a six-player trade Wednesday, two people with knowledge of the talks told USA TODAY Sports.

The people spoke on the condition of anonymity because the deal was not finalized, but the teams announced the trade later Wednesday.

The deal will send Chandler and Knicks point guard Raymond Felton to the Mavericks in exchange for Dallas point guard Jose Calderon, center Samuel Dalembert, shooting guard Wayne Ellington, 21-year-old point guard Shane Larkin and the 34th and 51st pick in Thursday’s draft.

KNICKS: Carmelo on options

MAVS: Offseason prospectus

“The journey to build this team for the upcoming season and beyond continues,” Knicks President Phil Jackson said in a news release. “We have added players with this move that will fit right in to our system while maintaining future flexibility.

“We would like to thank Raymond and Tyson for their time and hard work with the organization over the past few years.”

The Mavericks get the best player in the deal, Chandler, the 32-year-old 2013 All-Star who is coming off an injury-filled run with the Knicks but still can be an elite defender. They also get Felton, who has been criticized for his defense and fitness but has a reasonable contract for next year with a player option for 2015-16.

The Knicks, though, get some financial flexibility and Calderon, a veteran point guard who, because of his elite shooting and passing skills, could be a good fit in the option. Calderon is set to make about $7 million a year for the next three seasons. Dalembert has a partially guaranteed contract for next season, while Larkin is on the second year of his rookie contract.

Larkin, son of Baseball Hall of Famer Barry, played sparingly in an injury-filled rookie season after being drafted 18th overall from Miami last year. But his athleticism and output in college enticed scouts.

Knicks, Mavericks make 6-player Tyson Chandler trade

Wis. man arrested over 2 women's bodies in suitcases

Wisconsin police have arrested a 52-year-old man in connection with the bodies of two women found stuffed into suitcases in early June.

Town of Geneva police said Wednesday that Stephen Zelich, of West Allis, a Milwaukee suburb, was taken into custody, and that one of the victims had been identified. No charges were announced.

Police broke down the door to Zelich’s apartment Wednesday morning after no one answered, and investigators later began removing items from inside, neighbors toldthe Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

The bodies of 37-year-old Laura Simonson, of Farmington, Minn., and the second victim were found in separate suitcases June 5 by a highway worker mowing grass in the Town of Geneva, about 35 miles southwest of Milwaukee. Simonson’s mother had reported her missing in November from her Minneapolis-area home.

Police said the other woman may be Caucasian, between 15 and 34 years, with long dark hair, a pronounced overbite and a quarter-size heart tattoo on her lower abdomen.

Autopsies have been completed, but lab results could take up to two weeks more, Chief Steven Hurley said.

Wis. man arrested over 2 women's bodies in suitcases

IKEA to raise its minimum wage

IKEA, the iconic home furnishings chain, plans to announce Thursday that it will raise its minimum wage by 17%, joining a growing national movement to boost the pay of low-wage workers.

The Gap, whose stores include Gap and Old Navy, also has announced plans to increase its pay floor this year.

​The privately held Ikea plans to raise its average minimum wage from $9.17 an hour to $10.76 starting January 1. The increase will affect about half of the 11,000 employees at its 38 U.S. stores

“It’s driven from our vision of wanting to create a better everyday life for our coworkers,” acting IKEA President Rob Olson said in an interview.

Olson says the chain’s entry-level pay is already above the average of its competitors. It’s also well above the $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage. But IKEA, he says, wanted to ensure that its workers receive an adequate income based on the MIT living wage calculator, which estimates what a single adult should earn to afford basic expenses in each U.S. county.

The raise, he says, also will reduce employee turnover and bolster recruitment.

Critics say proposals to raise state and federal minimum wages often force employers to lay off workers or hire fewer people, and lead to price hikes that can hurt low-income Americans in particular.

But Olson says IKEA has no plans to raise prices, cut staff or reduce hiring. He says the company can absorb the pay increase partly because it has cut costs in recent years. The wage hike will narrow profit margins, Olson says, but it ultimately should benefit the bottom line.

Other retailers are also realizing benefits. The Gap told Bloomberg News this week that job applications to the Gap and Old Navy chains have surged by at least 10% since February when the company announced plans to boost hourly wages to $10 by 2015.

Don Thompson, CEO of McDonald’s — the biggest target of a wave of fast food worker strikes for better pay — said this month the company backs legislation to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. That proposal has been blocked by Republicans in Congress. But more than 20 states have set their pay floors above the federal minimum and about 30 are considering increases.

Jack Temple, policy analyst for the National Employment Law Project, says company wage increases “make a massive difference” for employees. But he says they can’t make up for a lack of federal action.

IKEA to raise its minimum wage