Former Mexican president favors legalizing drugs

(CNN) -- Former Mexican President Vicente Fox has come out in favor of legalizing drugs in an attempt to disrupt the illegal markets that have turned parts of Mexico into battlegrounds.

In a proposal published over the weekend on his website, Fox argued that drug addiction and drug-related violence should be treated as distinct and separate challenges.

"So, drug consumption is the responsibility of the person who consumes; of the family who is responsible for educating; and of the education system and the socioeconomic context," wrote Fox, who was president from 2000 to 2006. "What we have to do is legalize the production, the sale and the distribution".

Although Fox and current President Felipe Calderon both hail from the conservative National Action Party, or PAN, their views diverge on the issue of how to combat drug violence.

While Fox advocates weakening the cartels by legalizing their market, Calderon has launched an offensive against the drug cartels that has resulted in headline-grabbing drug-related violence in some parts of Mexico. According to the government, more than 28,000 people have been killed in the drug war since Calderon took office in 2006.

Fox said Mexican troops should return to the barracks. The army was not designed nor trained to fight organized crime, Fox said. Removing the troops would also ensure that soldiers would not cross the line into human rights abuses. CNN

Mortar rounds land in Baghdad's Green Zone; no word of casualties

(CNN) -- Two mortar rounds on Monday night landed inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses Iraqi government offices and U.S. and British embassies, Iraqi and U.S. security officials told CNN. There was no immediate confirmation of casualties.

Similar incidents have occurred in recent weeks inside the protected area, formerly known as the International Zone. Three mortar rounds struck harmlessly inside the zone last month during a July 4 visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden. A day later, an Iraqi interior ministry officials told CNN that two mortar rounds hit the Green Zone.

And on July 27, two mortar rounds landed inside the area, according to ministry officials.

The district was a frequent target of rocket and mortar attacks during the worst of the war that followed the U.S. invasion in 2003. A similar attack struck during a Biden visit in September 2009. CNN

Hezbollah chief accuses Israel of being behind Hariri assassination

Beirut, Lebanon (CNN) -- Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah accused Israel on Monday of having been behind the 2005 killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

"We accuse the Israeli enemy of this assassination," said Nasrallah, who spoke with reporters in Beirut via a video link from an undisclosed location. "Israel has the capabilities to execute this type of assassinations and similar attacks. They are well-known in this field and, indeed, have the expertise in targeting Palestinian and Lebanese figures, here and abroad.

"Lebanon offers Israel a fertile soil with the spies that they have on our land, and this is how Israel was plotting from the beginning to accuse Hezbollah of the assassination of Hariri".

There was no immediate reaction from the Israelis.

Hariri was assassinated February 14, 2005, when a bomb erupted near his motorcade in Beirut. A U.N.-sponsored investigation is under way. Last month, Nasrallah said Hariri's son, current Prime Minister Saad Hariri, had told him that the special tribunal would implicate rogue Hezbollah members for the killing but not the party itself.

Nasrallah said he would reject any such conclusion. CNN

Gamal Mubarak faces opposition

CAIRO, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- Vandals in northwest Egypt tore down posters lobbying for a presidential bid for the politician son of President Hosni Mubarak, campaign organizers said.

Mubarak assumed the presidency in 1981 following the assassination of Anwar Sadat. The 82-year-old president hasn't made his intentions regarding a 2011 bid for re-election known publicly.

Cairo spent late July deflecting claims that the Egyptian president's health was failing. Mubarak had his gall bladder removed earlier this year.

He was rumored to be grooming his son Gamal to take over as head of state.

Activists from the Gamal Mubarak Support Campaign said vandals torn down campaign posters in northwest Egypt during a signature drive, Egyptian newspaper al-Masry al-Youm reports. UPI

Seattle Mariners ax manager Wakamatsu

SEATTLE, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- The Seattle Mariners fired manager Don Wakamatsu and three coaches Monday in a shakeup aimed at getting the struggling franchise back on track, the team said.

Daren Brown, manager of the Mariners' Class-AAA team in nearby Tacoma, was brought in to run the team for the remainder of the season.

"New leadership is needed and it is needed now," General Manager Jack Zduriencik said in a written statement.

The statement said Wakamatsu, who was named manager before the 2009 season, was no longer seen as the "right long-term fit" for the Mariners, who had aims to contend in the American League West this season but instead find themselves mired in last place. UPI

Verizon, Google propose Web traffic rules

(Reuters) - Verizon Communications Inc and Google Inc on Monday proposed principles for policing Web traffic, but stopped short of saying they should apply to wireless devices.

The proposal came after the Federal Communications Commission failed to broker an agreement among Internet service providers and Web companies on "net neutrality".

Net neutrality is a term that means high-speed Internet providers should not block or slow information or charge Web sites to pay for a fast lane to reach users more quickly.

Google's and Verizon's chief executives said on a call with reporters that the proposal does not represent a business arrangement between them, and that they hope the proposal could be used as a model for possible congressional legislation.

"As far as we're concerned, there would be no paid prioritization of any traffic over the Internet," said Verizon Chief Executive Ivan Seidenberg.

Seidenberg and Google CEO Eric Schmidt said regulators should police Internet service providers to ensure that they do not block or slow Internet traffic on phone lines.

The principles would not apply to wireless devices, a lucrative business for companies expecting growth in wireless broadband Internet services as more people use mobile devices like smartphones and BlackBerries.

The FCC is trying to determine if net neutrality rules should apply to both "land lines" and wireless devices. Reuters

Kin agree to donate brain-dead man's organs

The family of a man left brain dead from a traffic accident agreed to donate his organs in the first such case under the revised transplant law, saying that although he hadn't consented in writing, he had voiced such wishes, a transplant group said Monday.

According to the family, "he told them in a conversation he hoped to donate organs so the family decided to respect his will," Setsuko Konaka, director of the Japan Organ Transplant Network, said at a news conference.

"In the past, there were family members who wanted organs of relatives to be transplanted because the patient had verbally expressed that will. But they couldn't (because it was before the legal revision). So this is a step forward," Konaka said.

The man, who was in his 20s, was officially declared brain dead at a hospital in the Kanto-Koshinetsu region at 11:55 a.m. Monday, according to the network.

Konaka said the man was involved in a traffic accident, and doctors at the hospital established that he was brain dead before he was legally certified as such with the permission of the family. Details of the location were not provided as per the family's wishes, she said.

The network received notice about the donor last Thursday. The family members decided Sunday to consent to donating the organs after discussing it among themselves for three days.

A transplant coordinator met with the man's family on Thursday. The coordinator explained about donating organs, including the revision of the transplant law and brain death. It took about an hour to an hour and a half for the process, which is generally the case, Konaka said.

"The family didn't reach the conclusion right after the talk with our coordinator," she said.

The network said the man's heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, pancreas and eyeballs will be donated.

Recipients have been chosen from among people on a waiting list who are deemed to be in the most dire need.

According to the network, a man in his 20s is to receive the donor's heart at National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center in Osaka Prefecture. His lungs will be donated to a man in his 20s at Okayama University Hospital, and the liver will go to a woman in her 60s at University of Tokyo Hospital, the network said.

A teenage boy in Gunma University Hospital will receive a kidney, while the other kidney and pancreas will be used for a woman in her 50s at Fujita Health University Hospital in Nagoya, the group said. The Japan Times

Former soldier becomes first to walk the Amazon

A former British army captain has become the first known person to walk from the origin of the Amazon river to its mouth, after enduring "50,000" mosquito bites, attacks by hostile Indians, and tropical disease in his nearly two-and-a-half-year odyssey.

Ed Stafford, a 34-year-old from Leicestershire, England, dived into the Atlantic Ocean after taking 859 days to walk the length of the world's second-longest river, starting at the peak of Mount Mismi in Peru in April 2008.

"It's just phenomenal to be here at the end of the journey after two-and-a-half years slogging our way through the jungle," he said after arriving at the beach about 150 kilometres north-east of the Brazilian city of Belem.

"It was really difficult to envisage how this was going to feel and I'm completely overwhelmed".

Stafford briefly collapsed from exhaustion with only 85km of the 9,650km journey to go, passing out by the roadside after breaking out in a rash. ABC News

Killed militants planned to blow up mosque - Chechnya's Kadyrov

Militants killed in a special operation in Grozny, the capital of Russia's volatile North Caucasus republic of Chechnya, on Sunday planned to blow up a shopping mall and the city's central mosque, Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov said Monday.

The two were killed on Sunday morning in a Grozny apartment in a shootout with police, who suspected them of killing other police officers.

"A memory stick was found on the militants with a video recording of their talks, in which they discussed their plans to blow up the Grozny City shopping and entertainment mall and the central mosque of Akhmad Kadyrov," Kadyrov said.

Militant violence is common in Russia's mainly Muslim North Caucasus republics, especially Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia.

The Kremlin has pledged to wage "a ruthless fight" against militant groups but also acknowledged a need to tackle unemployment, organized crime, clan rivalry and corruption as causes of the ongoing violence in the region.

Russia has been fighting militants in the North Caucasus for over a decade, including two separatist wars in Chechnya. RIA Novosti

Karzai Holds Talks with Petraeus and Gen. Kayani

Gen. Kayani and Gen. David Petraeus, the US commander of foreign forces in Afghanistan provided the Afghan President with the information about the previous joint Afghanistan-Pakistan-NATO summit which was held in Kabul.

The purpose of this high profile Pakistani military official's visit is to participate in the upcoming joint summit.

The visit of Pakistan's Army Chief comes as, WikiLeaks disclosed more than 90,000 US military logs on the Afghan war in which Pakistan's tie with the Taliban was clearly noted and the documents also revealed Pakistan's support to the Taliban insurgency.

In an interview published on Saturday by an Iranian website, the former head of Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) General Hamid Gull who is currently head of Afghanistan desk in the oraganisation had said Pakistan's relationship with the Taliban is supported by the US.

Meanwhile, WikiLeaks acknowledged it will soon publish some more secret US military logs on the Afghan war.

The spokesperson for the WikiLeaks, Daniel Schmitt remarked that the leak of files can help increase the understanding of people to what is going on in the regions. TOLO News

Brandenburg braces for flooding as Saxony soaks

Water levels continued to rise in the eastern German state ofBrandenburg on Monday, as an UNESCO heritage site was completely flooded in neighbouring Saxony.

The Saxon town of Bad Muskau was hit by flooding from the Neisse River, covering the main square and the UNESCO-protected historic Fürst PücklerPark.

"The park is completely flooded," said Bad Muskau Mayor Andreas Bänder, adding that the water had remained under the high level mark of 1981. 

Attempts to protect one main street with sand bags on Sunday night failed as experts repeatedly changed their warning levels, frustrating residents and rescue workers. But water levels, usually around one metre deep, peaked several metres higher.

Still, townspeople did all they could to protect their historic treasures and the Fürst Pückler palace had been secured with sandbags.

“Everything possible was done,” said Gerlind Walter of the state’s LHWZ high water alert authority.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière visited Saxony on Monday, pledging federal help for those regions hit by the flooding.

Rail firm Bombardier in Bautzen had to stop production as water 1.5 metres high flooded into the factory, causing millions in euros in damages.

Meanwhile the neighbouring state of Brandenburg awaited the floods after the water began rising overnight. The authorities were expecting to announce a state of emergency before the end of Monday. The Local DE

Germany closes Hamburg mosque 9/11 attackers used

The Taiba mosque in Hamburg, once frequented by some of the September 11 attackers, was searched by police and shut down today because German authorities believed it was again being used as a meeting point for Islamist radicals.

The Taiba mosque was closed and the cultural association that ran the mosque was banned, state officials said in a statement:. "We have closed the mosque because it was a recruiting and meeting point for Islamic radicals who wanted to participate in so-called jihad or holy war," said Frank Reschreiter, a spokesman for Hamburg's state interior ministry.

He said that said 20 police officers were searching the building and police had confiscated material, including several computers, but a spokesman was not aware of any arrests.

Officials have said the prayer house, formerly known as the al-Quds mosque, was a meeting and recruiting point years ago for some of the September 11 attackers before they moved to the United States.

The ringleader, Mohamed Atta, as well as Marwan Al-Shehhi and Ziad Jarrah, had studied in Hamburg and frequented the al-Quds mosque. Reschreiter said today marked the first time the mosque had been closed, and that it had been under observation by local intelligence officers for "quite a long time".

A 2009 report by a German intelligence agency said the mosque had again become the "centre of attraction for the jihad scene" in the port city. It said some people who belonged to the mosque's cultural association and prayed there had travelled to a radical training camp in Uzbekistan. The Guardian

Google, Verizon Propose Open vs Paid Internets

Google and Verizon announced a joint proposal on Monday that would allow ISPs to offer premium content bundles over an unspecified global network — an unexpected gambit that would seem to call for separate and unequal internets.

The two companies say the guidelines would ensure that no internet traffic of kind is prioritized over other (with the exception of viruses, spam and the like). On the flipside, it would grant content companies looking to deliver services that require too much bandwidth for the regular internet to do so in return for payment, via a second set of pipes.

“There should be a new, enforceable prohibition against discriminatory practices,” reads part of their proposal, posted on both Verizon’s and Google’s websites. “For the first time, wireline broadband providers would not be able to discriminate against or prioritize lawful internet content, applications or services in a way that causes harm to users or competition”.

But the bombshell is the carrot that would convince ISPs to accede to this basic tennet of net neutrality. The call by two giants of the internet in the midst of an already contentious debate would at first glance seem more likely to exacerbate the discussion than bring it to a swifter conclusion, by suggesting that an entirely new information highway be built to accomodate a “fast lane”.

“Our proposal also includes safeguards to ensure that such online services must be distinguishable from traditional broadband Internet access services and are not designed to circumvent the rules,” it continues. “The FCC would also monitor the development of these services to make sure they don’t interfere with the continued development of internet access services”.

The first question, assuming this tale of two internets ever gets written: To what extent would an inherently more private network mingle with the public internet? Would it be like pay cable and satellite TV, which now provides some content that had previously been available on “free” TV, without killing broadcasting entirely? Or would it be like network television and syndication, which killed local station production and innovation?

In the here and now, however, the proposal does not include the paid prioritization of one company’s traffic over another  – a victory for net neutrality proponents. But it does call for so-called “fast lanes” ISPs been clamoring for in ways even the two companies could not forsee, according to both Google president Eric Schmidt and Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg. Wired

BP pays first $3 billion to victims' fund

NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- BP said Monday it had made an initial deposit of $3 billion to its $20 billion fund for victims of the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The international oil giant had promised to make the first payment by Sept. 30 but did so earlier "to demonstrate its commitment to meet its pledge to restore both the livelihoods of those affected by the oil spill and the environment," the company said in a statement.

"We indeed intend to stand behind our commitment to (spill victims) and to the American taxpayers," said incoming Chief Executive Bob Dudley, who is leading BP's gulf restoration efforts. "Establishing this trust and making the initial deposit ahead of schedule further demonstrates our commitment to making it right in the Gulf Coast". UPI

Christian Charity to Remain in Afghanistan Despite Workers' Killings

A Christian aid group says it has no plans to withdraw from Afghanistan, despite the killing of 10 of its members in the country's north.

The director of International Assistance Mission, Dirk Frans, on Monday released the names of the victims, including six Americans, two Afghans, one Briton and one German.

The aid workers were part of a medical team providing eye and other health care to Afghans (in Nuristan and Badakhshan provinces), when they were shot in Badakhshan province last week.  The Taliban and another militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, accusing them of acting as spies and missionaries.

Frans told reporters in Kabul on Monday that the group (, which has been operating in Afghanistan since 1966,) does not proselytize and that the workers were not carrying Bibles in the local language.  

Afghan authorities are also investigating whether the killings were part of an armed robbery.  Frans says the lone survivor of the attack, an Afghan driver, is being questioned by the Afghan interior ministry in Kabul. VOA News

Two US women plead not guilty in Somali terror funding case

CHICAGO — Two women pleaded not guilty in a US court Monday to aiding the Shebab, a Somali-based Islamist group linked to Al-Qaeda, court records showed.

They were arrested last week as part of a broader investigation that had charged a total of 19 people, of whom nine had been arrested in the United States or abroad.

Amina Farah Ali, 33, and Hawo Mohamed Hassan, 63, are both naturalized US citizens who are originally from Somalia and live in Rochester, Minnesota.

Both women have been released on bond pending trial.

Ali is charged with 12 counts of providing material support to al-Shabaab and one count of conspiring to provide support.

She is accused of raising money under the "false pretense that such funds were for the poor and needy".

Ali was allegedly recorded on a fundraising conference call telling listeners to "forget about the other charities" and focus on "the jihad".

Hassan is accused of helping Ali raise the money and faces one count of conspiring to provide support to al-Shabaab and three counts of making false statements to the FBI.

If convicted, they face a potential 15 years in prison on the conspiracy count. Ali also faces a potential 15 years in prison on each material support count, and Hassan also faces a potential eight years in prison on each false statement count.

The Shebab claimed responsibility for July 11 suicide bombings in Kampala that killed 76 people and raised fears of a regionalization of the Somali conflict. AFP

Gas suspension to power plants cuts another 1825MW

LAHORE, August 09 (APP)- Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO) has suffered another 1825 mega watts shortage following suspension of gas supply to various power plants. The PEPCO spokesman told APP here Monday that Kandh Kot Gas Field, Sindh, and Qadirpur Gas Field, Punjab, have suspended gas supply to power plants including Fauji Power Kabirwala, Rose Power Plant Shorkot, Orient Power Plant Balloki, Saif Power Plant Sahiwal, Gas Thermal Power Station Faisalabad, Engro Power Plant, Dherki, Sindh, Liberty Power Plant in Balochistan, Altern Power Plant, and four units of Kot Addu Power Company (KAPCO).

The suspension of gas supply to power plants, he added, has reduced the electricity generation by 1825MW, which ultimately increase the load-shedding duration in the country.

The spokesman also appealed to the power consumers to cooperate with the PEPCO for better load-management.

Regretting for inconvenience to the consumers, he hoped that load-shedding duration would be reduced as soon the gas supply to power plants is restored. Associated Press of Pakistan

Bullet-ridden building in Liberia turns into fair-trade haven

Monrovia, Liberia (CNN) -- Chid Liberty's family business high-rise was corrupted into a site of conflict, mass graves and executions during Liberia's fourteen-year civil war.

A prominent building on Monrovia's cityscape, it was occupied by warring factions - including Charles Taylor. The family investment was pillaged, with even the metal electric wiring from the building stolen.

"There was talk that if you crossed the street and looked over, they would pull you in and execute you," Chid explained of his family building's role in the war.

"They didn't want anyone looking at what was going on in here".

The war is now over, but the bullet-holes remain. So many years after the end of the civil war, they are stark reminder of the challenges Liberia faces in trying to re-build.

And yet, that is exactly what Chid has come home from America to do.

He has refurbished the basement of the building and started the Liberian Women's Sewing Project. A FairTrade initiative to promote women's rights, higher wages and most importantly, business. CNN