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Thursday, September 22, 2011 – Daily News 1D WORLD BRIEFING Ga. Supreme Court refuses to stop execution ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's top court has refused to halt the execu- tion of inmate Troy Davis, leaving him nearly out of options with less than two hours until he's scheduled to die for the killing of a policeman. Davis and his support- ers have maintained his innocence. Prosecutors have stood by the case. The Georgia Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected the last-ditch appeal by Davis' lawyers. Earlier, a Butts County Superior Court judge also declined to stop the exe- cution. Davis was con- victed in the 1989 slaying of off-duty Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail. His attorneys had filed an appeal challenging bal- listics evidence linking Davis to the crime, and eyewitness testimony identifying Davis as the shooter. The case could still end up before the U.S. Supreme Court. Obama and Sarkozy urge Palestinians to drop UN bid UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Furiously scram- bling to head off a U.N. showdown, the United States warned world lead- ers Wednesday that trying to create a Palestinian nation by simple decree instead of through hard negotiations is bound to fail as a shortcut to peace with Israel. Europeans pressed to defuse the dis- pute, too, France urging new talks within a month. Undeterred, the Pales- tinians pressed toward a formal bid for U.N. recognition that could bring the issue to a head on Friday. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, seen as a defin- ing test of peace in mod- ern times, overwhelmed other matters as members of the world body watched a crisis deepen before them. A frustrated President Barack Obama declared to U.N. members that ''there are no shortcuts'' to peace, and he implored Israelis and Palestinians to restart direct talks. His influence limited and his hopes for a peace deal long stymied, Obama did- n't directly call on the Palestinians to drop their bid for recognition from the U.N. Security Coun- cil. But the U.S. threat to veto any such U.N. action loomed unmistakably. ''Peace will not come through statements and resolutions at the United Nations,'' Obama told delegates. ''If it were that easy, it would have been accomplished by now.'' House kills stopgap spending bill WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has reject- ed a measure providing $3.7 billion for disaster relief as part of a bill to keep the government run- ning through mid- November. The surprise 230-195 defeat for GOP leaders came at the hands of Democrats and tea party Republicans. Democrats were opposed because the mea- sure contains cuts to a government loan program to help car companies build fuel efficient vehi- cles. For their part, many GOP conservatives feel the underlying bill per- mits spending at too high a rate. Americans freed from Iran prison MUSCAT, Oman (AP) — After more than two years in Iranian custody, two Americans convicted as spies took their first steps toward home Wednesday as they bounded down from a private jet and into the arms of family for a joyful reunion in the Gulf state of Oman. The families called this ''the best day of our lives,'' and President Barack Obama said their release — under a $1 million bail-for- freedom deal — ''wonder- ful news.'' The release capped com- plicated diplomatic maneu- vers over a week of confus- ing signals by Iran's leader- ship on the fate of Josh Fat- tal and Shane Bauer. Although the fate of the two gripped America, it was on the periphery of the larg- er showdowns between Washington and Tehran that include Iran's nuclear pro- gram and its ambitions to widen military and political influence in the Middle East and beyond. But — for a moment at least — U.S. officials may be adding words of thanks in addition to their calls for alarm over Iran. For Tehran, it was a chance to court some good- will after sending a message of defiance with hard-line justice in the July 2009 arrests of the Americans along the Iran-Iraq border. The Americans always maintained they were inno- cent hikers. Typhoon leaves 13 dead or missing TOKYO (AP) — A powerful typhoon slammed into Japan Wednesday, halt- ing trains and leaving 13 people dead or missing in south-central regions before grazing a crippled nuclear plant and heaping rain on the tsunami-ravaged north- east. Officials at the Fukushi- ma Dai-ichi plant, where engineers are still struggling with small radiation leaks due to tsunami damage, expressed relief that Typhoon Roke's driving winds and rain caused no immediate problems there other than a broken security camera. ''The worst seems to be over,'' said Takeo Iwamoto, spokesman for plant opera- tor Tokyo Electric Power Co., after the storm passed just west of the plant on its way north. But the typhoon brought new misery to the northeast- ern region already slammed by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, dumping up to 17 inches (42 centimeters) of rain in some areas. Authorities warned of a high risk of mudslides in that region. Hundreds of tsunami survivors in gov- ernment shelters in the Miyagi state town of Ona- gawa were forced to evacu- ate for fear of flooding. Romney raises new questions for rival Perry MIAMI (AP) — Repub- lican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Wednes- day questioned how Rick Perry would fix Social Security as the focus of the GOP presidential race turns to senior citizen-rich Florida this week. In a likely preview of a Thursday debate in Orlan- do, Romney took issue with Perry's contention in a recently published book that each of the 50 states would better handle the huge fed- eral program. ''In my opinion, this does not work in any way, shape or form,'' Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, said at a town hall meeting attended by about 75 people.'' Romney also asserted that Perry called Social Security ''unconsti- tutional'' and added: ''I believe it is constitutional. I think that's proven and set- tled.'' While Perry indeed roundly criticized Social Security in his book, he did- n't use the word unconstitu- tional. Rather, Perry brand- ed the program the ''best example'' of the ''fraud'' and ''bad disease'' spread by Washington in Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. Perry furthermore criticized the Supreme Court of that era for ''abdicating its role as the protector of constitu- tional federalism.'' R.E.M. quits NEW YORK (AP) — R.I.P. to R.E.M. The alter- native rock group that shook up the music world with its experimental, edgy sound and then earned multiplat- inum success and a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced on its website Wednesday that it has ''decided to call it a day as a band.'' ''A wise man once said — 'the skill in attending a party is knowing when it's time to leave.' We built something extraordinary together. We did this thing. And now we're going to walk away from it,'' front- man Michael Stipe said in a statement on the website. ''I hope our fans realize this wasn't an easy decision; but all things must end, and we wanted to do it right, to do it our way.'' Championing the concept of collaborative creation, nurture and promotion of new strategic branding for our region, communities, recreational opportunities and lifestyle.