Bahrain arrests four Shia activists on security charges

Authorities in Bahrain have arrested four Shia Muslim activists on security related charges, officials say.

One of those held is Abd al-Jalil Singace, head of the Shia-dominated Haq Movement for Liberty and Democracy.

He was arrested on his return from London where he had been giving a lecture on human rights in Bahrain.

Correspondents say the arrests could heighten tensions between the Sunni-led government and Bahrain's Shia majority ahead of elections in October.

The Shia community has long complained of discrimination.

Three of the arrests were made on Sunday, while Mr Singace was detained on Saturday, the BNA state news agency reported, citing officials. BBC News

Final verdict postponed for Iranian woman facing stoning

(CNN) -- An Iranian court has delayed the final verdict of a 43-year-old woman sentenced to death by stoning, a human rights group said Sunday, two days after the country announced she will not be executed during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The International Committee Against Stoning did not say how it got its information on the postponement of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani's final verdict, which had previously been scheduled to come down last Thursday.

The group said in a statement that the final verdict in Ashtiani's case is now expected on August 21, the date of her lawyer's next court appearance.

Iranian state TV broadcast a program about Ashtiani on Friday in which it said that she will not be executed during Ramadan, which began last week, the International Committee Against Stoning said Sunday. CNN

Strong earthquake hits remote area of Papua New Guinea

(CNN) -- A 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck a remote area of Papua New Guinea early Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The quake hit near the province of West New Britain at 1:09 a.m. Monday, some 435 kilometers (270 miles) northeast of Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, the USGS said.

The quake's center was 192 kilometers (119 miles) deep. CNN

Police: Accused Craigslist killer dead of apparent suicide

(CNN) -- A onetime medical student who was facing charges including first-degree murder in a killing tied to the Craigslist website died Sunday of an apparent suicide, police said.

Philip Markoff was found unresponsive in his Boston, Massachusetts, jail cell at 10:17 a.m. Sunday and pronounced dead by medics, according to officials.

The cause of death is under investigation, Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis and Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a statement.

"Markoff was alone in his cell and all evidence collected thus far indicates that he took his own life," the statement said. "Nonetheless, as with all such cases, a comprehensive investigation will be conducted to determine the facts and circumstances surrounding his death".

An autopsy is scheduled to be conducted Monday, according to Jake Wark, a spokesman for Conley. 

Markoff, 24, was charged with the April 14, 2009, fatal shooting and attempted robbery of Julissa Brisman, 25, at Boston's Copley Marriott Hotel. Police said that Brisman, a model, advertised as a masseuse on Craiglist, a popular online classifieds service, and said Markoff may have met her through the site.

Markoff was also charged with the April 10, 2009, robbery of Trisha Leffler at a Westin Hotel in Boston. Police reports said Leffler was robbed of $800 in cash and $250 in American Express gift cards and was held at gunpoint and bound.

At his arraignment in June 2009, Markoff pleaded not guilty to the Massachusetts charges.

He also was facing charges in an April 16, 2009, incident at a Holiday Inn Express in Warwick, Rhode Island. In that incident, police said Markoff tied up and demanded money from a 26-year-old dancer who had posted a Craigslist advertisement. The robbery was interrupted when the woman's husband entered the room, and the suspect fled after pointing his gun at the husband, according to Warwick Police Chief Col. Stephen McCartney. CNN

Zsa Zsa Gabor asks for 'last rites' from priest

Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Zsa Zsa Gabor asked her husband to call a priest to her hospital bedside "to read her the last rites" Sunday, according to her publicist.

Gabor, 93, is "in very serious condition" at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to her husband, Prince Frederic Von Anhalt.

"It's a sad time for them right now," spokesman John Blanchette said Sunday.

The actress has been hospitalized for most of the past month since breaking her hip in a fall from bed on July 17.

Saturday marked Gabor's 24th wedding anniversary with Von Anhalt, her eighth husband.

She was rushed to the hospital from her Bel Air, California, home Friday night, Blanchette said.

She underwent surgery for the removal of a blood clot that night, a complication relating to her recent hip replacement surgery, he said.

Gabor had just returned home from the hospital on Wednesday, three weeks after undergoing surgery to replace a hip broken in a fall from her bed. CNN

Police fear higher Sinai migrant death toll

ISMAILIA Egypt (Reuters) - Smugglers may have killed as many as 10 African migrants in an armed battle near the Egyptian-Israeli border last week and dozens more could be lost in the desert, Egyptian security sources said on Sunday.

The Sinai peninsula is a major transit route for African migrants and refugees seeking work or asylum in Israel. It also is used by smugglers to ferry narcotics and weapons into Israel and a range of goods into the besieged Gaza Strip.

At least four migrants were killed on Friday after they stole weapons from smugglers who had been holding them for ransom and tried to escape. Egyptian police later gunned down at least two more migrants trying to cross the border.

Egyptian police suspect the death toll among the migrants may be as high as 10 following Friday's shooting, with more bodies still to be discovered, a security source who asked not to be named said.

The smugglers had been holding about 50 Ethiopians and Eritreans for ransom and dozens of the escaped migrants are still missing, the source said. Reuters Africa

South African opposition parties to merge

Two South African opposition parties have announced plans to merge in a bid to form a united front against the ruling ANC.

The deal means the tiny Independent Democrat party will merge with the main opposition Democratic Alliance.

The deal is the start of a more ambitious plan to challenge the ANC and its overwhelming grip on power.

Corruption, infighting, and a failure to deliver on its election promises, have left the ANC vulnerable to attack.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is the country's main opposition party but much of its support comes from white voters around Cape Town.

It wants, and needs, to broaden its appeal.

Sunday's deal sees the DA more or less take over the tiny Independent Democrats who have strong support among mixed-race voters.

On its own, the merger poses no threat to the ANC but it points the way towards the next, crucial, deal between the DA and the Congress of the People (Cope). BBC News

Bulgarian Pilgrims Hail Mary at Rila Monastery

Thousands of believers flocked to Bulgaria’s famed Rila Monastery to celebrate the great Christian Orthodox holiday Dormition of the Holy Mother of God, reports Blagoevgrad24.bg.

Known to Catholics and Anglicans as Assumption of Mary, the holiday marks the day the mother of Christ passed away and was accepted in Heaven.

The grand service was given by the RilaMonastery abbot, the Bishop of Adrianople Evlogy in the presence of hundreds of believers.

Celebrations included a vigil on Saturday night and services in the many small shrines and chapels in the hills around the monastery.

The Dormition of Mary is traditionally the day on which the Rila Monastery marks the most visitors. Roads to the monastery were crowded in the morning, and Sunday evening the traffic on the Sofia-Thessaloniki international road is especially heavy, with pilgrims and holidaygoers returning. Novinite

PM talks peace, Naxals behead cop

RAIPUR: The headless body of a jawan belonging to the CRPF's elite anti-Naxal Cobra force was found near Jagdalpur in Bastar on Sunday afternoon, on a day when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asked Naxalites to "abjure violence" and "join hands with us to accelerate social and economic development". 

The jawan was identified as constable driver Kanhaiya Yadav of the 204 Battalion posted at Mazgaon, 15km from Jagdalpur. "He was returning from leave," said A Ponnuswamy, inspector-general of the CRPF. Cobra, or Combat Battalion for Resolute Action, is a special force of trained commandos, raised by the CRPF in 2008, to strengthen its anti-Naxal operations. Two battalions of Cobra are posted in Bastar region. 

A resident of Ghazipur in eastern Uttar Pradesh, Yadav was returning from a 45-day leave. He was expected to report at his post on Saturday night. Instead, his headless body was found just two kilometres from the national highway, near Bakavan, a few kilometres from Jagdalpur. 

Some reports said he was travelling on a civilian bus that was halted by suspected Maoists, who made all the passengers disembark. The CRPF jawan was identified and singled out even though he was not wearing a uniform. The police said it could not confirm the reports. 

"We identified the body on the basis of an identity card and driving licence. The force is searching the area, trying to locate the severed head," said a CRPF source. "We are not sure if he was beheaded by Naxalites or someone else," said Inspector General police T J Longkumer. The Times of India

Murray beats the showers and Federer to retain Toronto crown

(CNN) -- Andy Murray successfully defended his Masters 1000 crown in Toronto with a straight sets 7-5 7-5 victory over Roger Federer in Sunday's rain-interrupted final.

It was a timely return to his very best form for the Scot, who was winning his first tournament of 2010 heading into the U.S. Open, the final grand slam of the season.

He is the first man since Andre Agassi in 1995 to win back to back titles in the prestigious Canadian hard court tournament.

"It's so tough closing out a match against Roger," Murray told Sky Sports.

"It was incredibly difficult conditions for both of us".

Murray lost to Federer in the Australian Open, handing the Swiss his 16th grand slam crown, but both men have slipped down the rankings after relatively disappointing seasons.

Federer climbed his way back to world number two after beating Novak Djokovic in an epic semifinal, but could not reproduce that form in a match hit by no less than five rain delays.

Murray continued where he had left off in beating world number one Rafael Nadal in their last four clash and quickly gained two early breaks on the Federer service.

But Federer quickly gained one back and when Murray served for the set at 5-4 took advantage of sloppy play by the fourth seed to level. CNN

China mourns mudslide victims as relief work continues

ZHOUQU, Gansu - Amid sirens and horns wailing, people across China Sunday stood in silent tribute to victims of a massive mudslide in a remote northwestern town.

Chinese leaders, citizens, students and workers across the nation paused for three minutes at 10 am Sunday, a week after the devastating mudslide hit Zhouqu County, in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Gansu Province. At least 1,239 people have died and 505 are listed as missing.

At the Dongjie Village in Zhouqu, more than 5,000 rescuers and villagers stood still on the debris of mudslide, bowing their heads in commemoration of those killed in the disaster.

A huge black banner written in white words hung in front of the mourners, with wreaths laying around. The banner reads, "Mourning in deep grief for deceased compatriots of the Zhouqu massive mudslide".

"I only feel sad as I stand on the debris of our homes," said villager Zhang Xiujuan.

"Although my husband, my son and I survived, I lost more than 30 relatives in the mudslides," she said.

In Dongjie, two thirds of families with 848 villagers were buried when the mudslides struck. And 368 villagers have died in the disaster.

Before and after the three-minute mourning, rescuers including troops and medical workers continued to clear the debris, searching for bodies and spray disinfectant in the area.

Some survivors sat silently on the debris, still holding out hope that the bodies of their relatives could be found.

In temporary tents, some bowed their heads, some knelt down, and some put their palms together to pray for the dead. Loud cries could be heard from time to time in the shelters.

"May the deceased rest in peace. We the people who are still alive must be strong and continue our lives," said Han Ying, who lost all her family members in the disaster.

Tibetans account for about a third of the total population in Zhouqu. The county sits in the steep valley of the Bailong River, a tributary of the Jialing River, which meets the mighty Yangtze River in Chongqing, and is hemmed in by rocky mountains on both sides.

At the nearby Heiyu and Labrang monasteries of Tibetan Buddhism, monks and believers attended a religious ritual to mourn for the dead.

In Lanzhou, the provincial capital, about 10,000 people gathered at a main square to remember those killed in the mudslide. China Daily

Petraeus: Withdrawal 'conditions-based'

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. forces will begin turning over security to Afghans in July 2011 in a process shaped by progress, not a timetable, Army Gen. David Petraeus said.

"I'm not bowled over by the knowledge that July 2011 is out there," Petraeus said on NBC's "Meet the Press".

"In fact, the president (Barack Obama) has been very clear, Vice President Biden has been very clear as well more recently that this is a date when the process begins that is conditions-based," he said.

How many troops pull out and when depends on how quickly conditions improve enough to show Afghans are ready to take on security and form a stable government, he said.

"What the president very much wants from me and what we talked about in the Oval Office is the responsibility of a military commander on the ground to provide his best professional military advice," Petraeus said. "That's what I owe the country and our troopers who are fighting hard on the ground".

Petraeus said he is focused on preventing Afghanistan from once again becoming a sanctuary for extremists, as it had been before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. UPI

Driver, some victims identified in deadly California 200 crash; witnesses describe devastation

A truck taking part in the California desert race goes airborne, then rolls over spectators. 'It was just brutal,' says one off-roader watching the race. The driver, a San Marcos man, has not been charged in the crash

By Phil Willon and David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times

Reporting from Lucerne Valley, Calif. — 

Authorities said eight people were killed and 10 injured when a driver racing in the California 200 desert race in Lucerne Valley lost control of his off-roader, which went airborne and landed on top of spectators. The driver, who was uninjured, and seven of the eight people killed were identified Sunday by officials.

The driver "got airborne and, when he landed, rolled over straight into the spectators,'' said Officer Joaquin Zubieta of the California Highway Patrol, the agency investigating the deadly crash. "People didn't have much of a chance ... to get out of the way''.

Six spectators died at the scene. Nine others were airlifted to local hospitals, two of whom died later in the evening, Zubieta said. Of those hurt, five sustained major injuries and five had minor injuries, officials said. Brett M. Sloppy, of San Marcos, was the driver of the truck, according to Zubieta.

Sloppy, 28, lost control of his modified 2000 Ford Ranger while he was driving 45 to 50 miles per hour. He was not arrested, and alcohol was not a factor in the crash, officials said.

The San Bernardino County coroner's office identified seven of the dead: Brian Wolfin, 27, of Escondido; Anthony Sanchez, 23, of Escondido; Aaron Farkas, 25, of Escondido; Andrew Therrin, 22, of Riverside; Zachary Freeman, 24, of Fillmore; Dustin C. Malson, 24, of Ventura; and Danica Frantzich, 20, of Las Vegas.

Witnesses to the crash described a chaotic scene where the victims had no time to flee as the out-of-control vehicle plowed into fans.

Jeff Musgrave, an off-roader from Orange County who was watching the race, called it gruesome but defended the driver.

"All I saw was the dust, and then I saw about 30 people on the ground. It was just brutal,'' Musgrave, 43, told The Times. "The problem is the crowd was just too close. I don't think the [racer] did anything stupid. He just hit it way too hard".

Sloppy had to be escorted away from the area after the crowd "started to get rowdy," Zubieta said. "People were upset".

The 200-mile race, held on desolate Soggy Dry Lake on federal desert land just east of the San Bernardino Mountains, was sanctioned by Mojave Desert Racing and was part of a seven-race circuit. Off-roaders race around the 50-mile-long loop four times, reaching speeds upward of 60 mph.

A photographer at the race described a scene of devastation. "There was dust everywhere, people screaming, people running," David Conklin told the Associated Press. "When I got up to the vehicle, I could tell that several people were trapped. There were just bodies everywhere. One woman with a major head wound [was] lying in a pool of blood. Someone else was crushed beneath the car". Los Angeles Times

Two explosions rock Dagestan's capital

Two explosions rocked the capital of Russia's North Caucasus republic of Dagestan early on Monday, no one was injured, a police spokesman reported.

"An unidentified explosive device went off in Makhachkala on Magomedtagirova Street near a pizzeria," the spokesman said.

"Another explosion resounded on the same street in a few minutes when law enforcers were heading to the site," he said, adding that a police vehicle was damaged.

An investigation is underway.

Sporadic terrorist attacks and militant clashes are common in Russia's largely Muslim North Caucasus republics, especially Dagestan, Chechnya and Ingushetia. RIA Novosti

NASA satellites register 371 hotspots in Russia

Two NASA satellites registered a total of 371 hotspots across Russia on Sunday, according to the ScanEx website that receives information from the satellites.

The number of hotspots across Central Russia has substantively shrunk, Nadezhda Pupysheva, spokeswoman for the ScanEx company, said. The decrease in the number of hotspots identified is partially due to cloud coverage in several Russian regions, she added.

The Aqua satellite, equipped with an atmospheric infrared sounder, and Terra, equipped with a thermal emission and reflection radiometer register any hotspots across Russia, but from 40% to 80% of the hotspots registered are real fires, Pupysheva said.

Fined weather in Siberia has allowed the satellites to register a total of 103 hotspots in the Russia's Yakutia Republic, compared with 5 just a day earlier, Pupysheva said.

A scorching heat wave has gripped much of European Russia since mid-June, which coupled with the worst drought since the 1970s has made the countryside particularly susceptible to wildfires. RIA Novosti

Craigslist 'killer' found dead in Boston jail

A former US medical student accused of murdering a masseuse he met through the classified ads website Craigslist has been found dead in prison in Boston.

The body of Philip Markoff, 24, was found on Sunday morning after an apparent suicide, police said.

Markoff pleaded not guilty to the fatal shooting in April 2009 of Julissa Brisman, 26, whom he met through Craigslist's erotic services section.

He was also facing charges of armed robbery and kidnapping.

Markoff was expected to stand trial next March for the murder of Ms Brisman and the armed robbery of a woman from Las Vegas.

He was also accused of attacking a stripper in Rhode Island during the same week. BBC News

India offers talks to end Kashmir violence

India's prime minister has appealed to the people of Indian-controlled Kashmir to end violent protests and said his government was ready to hold talks to resolve their long-standing problems.

"The years of violence should now end. Such violence will not benefit anyone," Manmohan Singh said in a speech marking India's Independence Day. "We are ready to talk to every person or group which abjures violence".

Indian-administered Kashmir has been rocked by near-daily protests and clashes with security forces, leading to the deaths of at least 57 people over the past two months. The protesters have set official buildings and vehicles ablaze and government forces have used guns and tear gas in an effort to contain the unrest.

Singh insisted that "Kashmir is an integral part of India", adding that "within this framework, we are ready to move forward in any talks".

At an independence day ceremony in Srinagar, the main city, a policeman in the audience in civilian clothes hurled a shoe at chief minister Omar Abdullah, the region's top elected official, and shouted: "We want freedom". The shoe missed its target, and Abdullah continued his speech after a pause. Authorities later said the policemen had been suspended from work in May and described him as mentally unstable.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both. Anti-India sentiment runs deep in the portion of Kashmir it controls, with most people favouring independence from India or a merger with mostly Muslim Pakistan.

Singh said he had embarked on a new round of talks with political leaders from Kashmir last week and he wanted to take the process forward.

"India's democracy has the generosity and flexibility to be able to address the concerns of any area or group in the country," he said. In his 30-minute speech delivered from a bulletproof glass booth on the ramparts of a 17th-century fort in New Delhi, Singh referred to a host of other problems besetting India, including growing attacks by Maoist rebels and the need to speed up development programmes for millions of Indians still mired in poverty. The Guardian

Iraqis charged with Red Cap murders will not stand trial

Five Iraqis arrested in connection with the murder of six British Royal military police officers in 2003 have had charges against them dropped, the Ministry of Defence confirmed today.

The armed forces minister, Nick Harvey, has written to the families of the Red Caps telling them an Iraqi judge has ruled that the men had no case to answer.

The military policemen, who were training local police, were killed when a 400-strong mob of Iraqis descended on a police station in Majar al-Kabir in Maysan province, north of Basra.

The six officers were: Sergeant Simon Hamilton-Jewell, 41, from Chessington, Surrey; Corporal Russell Aston, 30, from Swadlincote, Derbyshire; Corporal Paul Long, 24, of South Shields, Tyne and Wear; Lance Corporal Benjamin Hyde, 23, from Northallerton, North Yorkshire; Lance Corporal Tom Keys, 20, from Bala, North Wales; and Corporal Simon Miller, 21, from Washington, Tyne and Wear.

An inquest into their deaths in 2006 was told that a nearby patrol that could have come to the men's aid was unaware they were there, and that the Red Caps had insufficient ammunition and no satellite phones.

A court in Baghdad issued arrest warrants in February 2006, and two years later the Iraqi interior minister, Jawad al Boulani, vowed to do his best to track down the killers after receiving a letter from three of the dead men's families. But there seemed to have been little progress until February this year, when eight Iraqis were arrested over the killings.

Charges against one of the eight Iraqis were dropped earlier this year, which leaves two men now facing court. "The judge indicated that, pending confirmation of the identity of one of the remaining two suspects in custody, both will face trial," Harvey said.

An MoD spokesman said: "The UK government is committed to seeing the killers brought to justice".

None of the families contacted by the Guardian wished to comment.

But, speaking after the arrests earlier this year, Russell Aston's father, Mike, said he was "absolutely" happy that the men were facing trial. The Guardian