Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/5680
Sensitivities, strict-rules limit airport security CHICAGO (AP) — With all the screening technology at U.S. air- ports, the last line of defense is still the human hand: the pat-down search. But aviation experts say the pat-down is often ineffective, in part because of government rules covering where screeners can put their hands and how frequently they can frisk passengers. As a result, even if the man accused of trying to blow up a Detroit-bound U.S. jetliner on Christmas Day got an airport pat- down, it probably would- n't have found the explo- sives authorities say were hidden in his crotch. ''To have people hold up their arms and just pat them — like I'm really going to carry a bomb there,'' said industry ana- lyst Michael Boyd, argu- ing that pat-downs were often of little value. ''You know where you're going to put it, and no one's going to go there.'' Most travelers at U.S. airports never get a pat- down when they pass through security. A metal detector must be set off first and then screeners would need to find out what triggered the alarm. That often amounts to screeners just lightly tap- ping on a passenger's arms, legs and clothes. But even if they go ahead with a pat-down, it likely would not turn up something nonmetallic, small and well-hidden. Bombing kills 75 in Pakistan PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomber detonated his explosives- packed vehicle in a crowd of people watching a vol- leyball tournament Friday in northwest Pakistan, killing 75 people in the deadliest attack in the country in more than two months. The attack in Lakki Marwat city appeared to be retaliation against resi- dents who formed militias to drive militants out of the area and a meeting of anti-Taliban leaders being held nearby may have been the actual target, police said. The blast underscores the difficulty Pakistan has had in stopping militants whose reach extends far beyond Pakistan's lawless tribal belt and who appear increasingly willing to strike civilians as well as security forces. The attack was not far from South Waziristan, where the army is waging an offensive against the Pakistani Taliban. That operation has provoked apparent reprisal attacks that have killed more than 500 people since October. No group claimed responsibility for Friday's blast, but that is not uncommon when large numbers of civilians are killed. Iraqis get bitter shock in Blackwater shooting case BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqis seeking justice for 17 people shot dead at a Baghdad intersection responded with bitterness and outrage Friday at a U.S. judge's decision to throw out a case against a Blackwater security team accused in the killings. The Iraqi government vowed to pursue the case, which became a source of contention between the U.S. and the Iraqi govern- ment. Many Iraqis also held up the judge's deci- sion as proof of what they'd long believed: U.S. security contractors were above the law. ''There is no justice,'' said Bura Sadoun Ismael, who was wounded by two bullets and shrapnel dur- ing the shooting. ''I expected the American court would side with the Blackwater security guards who committed a massacre in Nisoor Square.'' What happened on Nisoor Square on Sept. 16, 2007, raised Iraqi con- cerns about their sover- eignty because Iraqi offi- cials were powerless to do anything to the Blackwa- ter employees who had immunity from local prosecution. The shoot- ings also highlighted the degree to which the U.S. relied on private contrac- tors during the Iraq con- flict. The guards said they were ambushed at a busy intersection in western Baghdad, but U.S. prose- cutors and many Iraqis said the Blackwater guards let loose an unpro- voked attack on civilians using machine guns and grenades. Taliban claim attack on CIA MIR ALI, Pakistan (AP) — The Pakistani Taliban claimed Friday that they used a turncoat CIA operative to carry out a suicide bombing that killed seven American CIA employees in Afghanistan as revenge for a top militant leader's death in a U.S. missile strike. The announcement was nearly impossible to verify independently because it involves covert operations in a dangerous region. It is highly unusu- al for the Pakistani Tal- iban to claim credit for an attack in Afghanistan, and the proclamation fol- lowed indications the Afghan Taliban may have been involved in the attack. CIA spokesman George Little could not confirm the account. ''There is much about the attack that isn't yet known, but this much is clear: The CIA's resolve to pursue aggressive counterterrorism opera- tions is greater than ever,'' he told The Associated Press. The suicide bomber struck the CIA's operation at Camp Chapman in eastern Khost province on Wednesday. The base was used to direct and coordi- nate CIA operations and intelligence gathering in Khost, a hotbed of insur- gent activity because of its proximity to Pakistan's lawless tribal areas, for- mer CIA officials said. Among the seven killed was the chief of the oper- ation, they said. Time Warner Cable says 'up to Fox' to nail deal LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Fox television net- work pulled back from the brink on Friday, allowing its signals to continue for millions of cable subscribers beyond a midnight deadline as it continued to seek higher fees for its programming. The News Corp. broadcaster had threat- ened to force two cable companies — Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks — to drop the Fox broadcast signal from 14 of its TV stations and half a dozen of its cable channels as a contract expired at mid- night Thursday. Even as talks contin- ued into Friday, the con- ciliatory stance made it appear a disruption would not occur — likely pre- serving access to the Sugar Bowl college foot- ball game (starting at 8:30 p.m. EST) and other pro- gramming for more than 6 million cable subscribers in New York, Los Ange- les, Orlando, Fla., and other markets. It was unclear how long the reprieve would last, however. That left fans looking forward to the Florida-Cincinnati bowl matchup in doubt about whether they would need to head to sports bars with a satellite TV hookup to cheer on their teams. ''It leaves some people up in limbo as to whether to leave their homes to watch the game,'' said Dan Beiley, 28, president of the Gotham Gators, a University of Florida alumni club in New York. ''It's certainly unfortunate that it came to all this.'' Obama eyes intel system changes HONOLULU (AP) — President Barack Obama is reviewing reports from homeland security offi- cials as his administration tries to determine what U.S. policy and personnel failures preceded the attempted Detroit jetliner bombing. Intelligence officials, meanwhile, prepared for what was shaping up to be uncomfortable hearings before Congress about m i s c o m m u n i c a t i o n among anti-terror agen- cies and sweeping changes expected under Obama's watch. Democrats joined a chorus led by Obama in declaring the govern- ment's intelligence proce- dures in need of repair. Among them, Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., said that when the government gets tipped to trouble as it did before a 23-year-old Nigerian man boarded the Northwest Airlines jet with explosives, ''some- one's hair should be on fire.'' One senior administra- tion official told reporters traveling with the vaca- tioning president: ''The failure to share that infor- mation is not going to be tolerated.'' The official, like others involved in the reviews, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sen- sitive intelligence discus- sions. Nations gave to Clinton WASHINGTON (AP) — Foreign countries including Norway and Oman contributed to for- mer President Bill Clin- ton's charity, and donors ranging from the PGA Tour to multinational soft drink company Coca- Cola to singer Elton John's foundation also pitched in as Hillary Rod- ham Clinton served her first year as secretary of state. A donor list released on New Year's Day by the William J. Clinton Foun- dation shows that in all, Norway has given $10 million to $25 million to the charity since its founding roughly a decade ago. Oman gave $1 million to $5 million over the years. The list gave cumulative donation totals and didn't say how much each contributor gave last year. The foundation provid- ed The Associated Press with a donor list Friday morning under the head- ing ''William J. Clinton Foundation Publishes Names of 2009 Contribu- tors on Foundation Web- site'' but later said the dis- closure, which included many more foreign gov- ernments, covered donors dating back to the chari- ty's inception, and that it wouldn't identify who gave in 2009. The founda- tion changed course Fri- day afternoon and updat- ed the list to specify 2009 donors. The Clintons agreed to annually disclose the names of donors to the foundation to address concerns about potential conflicts of interest between the former presi- dent's fundraising abroad and his wife's role in helping direct Obama administration foreign policy. Then-President-elect Barack Obama made the disclosure a condition of his selection of Hillary Rodham Clinton for the post, and the two senior lawmakers on the Senate Foreign Relations Com- mittee, John Kerry, D- Mass., and Richard Lugar, R-Ind., said when the first list was released in December 2008 that the disclosure ''is designed to establish greater trans- parency and predictability with regard to the activi- ties of the Clinton Foun- dation in the context of Sen. Clinton's service as secretary of state.'' Limbaugh: Tests show nothing wrong HONOLULU (AP) — Conservative talk radio show host Rush Limbaugh said Friday that tests show nothing wrong with his heart after chest pains hos- pitalized him earlier this week. Limbaugh said at a Hon- olulu news conference that he was being released from The Queen's Medical Cen- ter, where he was rushed Wednesday during a vaca- tion. Doctors said he did not have a heart attack or heart disease. ''The pain was real, and they don't know what caused it,'' Limbaugh said. Asked whether he was taking painkillers, Lim- baugh said no. His medical problems have attracted attention in the past. In 2003, he acknowledged an addiction to pain killers for severe back pain and took a five- week leave from his radio show to enter rehab. 8A – Daily News – Saturday, January 2, 2010 AMERICAN SELF-STORAGE ★ ★ ★ 64 Mulberry Ave., Red Bluff • 527-1755 $ $ $ $ 2 5 2 5 p e r m o n t h p e r m o n t h 1 ST THREE MONTHS 8x10 units only Special rates on all unit sizes • Fully Fenced • Onsite Manager • Well Lit Property $ $ COUPON website: www.americanselfstorage.biz • RV & Vehicle parking now available 345 So. 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