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8A – Daily News – Monday, March 29, 2010 WORLD BRIEFING On surprise trip to Afghanistan, Obama calls for better governing KABUL (AP) — On an Afghanistan trip shrouded in secrecy, President Barack Obama demanded accountabili- ty from the country’s leaders, greater vigilance against cor- ruption and better governing as he widens America’s commit- ment to the 8-year-old war he inherited and then dramatically escalated. Obama said the U.S. would not quit in Afghanistan, but he made clear that he’s looking for an end to direct involvement in the fight against Taliban and al- Qaida extremists. He drove that point home in meetings with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his Cabinet in the capital, and in a speech before a cheer- ing crowd of about 2,500 troops and civilians at Bagram Air Field north of Kabul. At least 945 members of the U.S. military have died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to an Associated Press count. The number of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan has roughly dou- bled in the first three months of 2010 compared with the same period last year as Washington has added tens of thousands of additional soldiers to reverse the Taliban’s momentum. ‘‘The United States is a part- ner but our intent is to make sure that the Afghans have the capacity to provide for their own security, that is core to our mission,’’ Obama told the troops at Bagram, where he was greeted with thunderous applause. The president, having changed from a suit coat to a leather Air Force One flight jacket, said he would never send Americans abroad to fight unless there was a compelling threat. He said a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan would put more Americans in danger. ‘‘The Afghans have suffered for decades,’’ he said, ‘‘decades of war but we are here to help the Afghans forge a hard-won peace.’’ Obama’s speech to the troops, delivered in a cavernous tent known as the ‘‘clam shell,’’ was the final event on his brief, only hours-long trip that occurred entirely at night. Netanyahu says Israel and US are ’allies and friends’ JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s leader tried to play down tensions with the U.S. on Sunday after a rocky meeting at the White House last week, say- ing that relations with Washing- ton remain solid. In his first public comments on the matter, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his Cabinet that Israel and the U.S. can work out their differences. ‘‘The relationship between Israel and the U.S. is one between allies and friends, and it’s a relationship based on years of tradition,’’ Netanyahu said. ‘‘Even if there are dis- agreements, these are disagree- ments between friends, and that’s how they will stay.’’ The U.S. has criticized Israeli construction in east Jerusalem — the section of the holy city claimed by the Pales- tinians. It has asked Israel for gestures toward the Palestinians to help relaunch peace talks, which were about to start earli- er this month when the latest spat over settlements broke out. The planned negotiations were thrown into doubt after Israel announced plans to build 1,600 new apartments for Jews in east Jerusalem. Israel made the announcement while Vice President Joe Biden was visit- ing, drawing sharp condemna- tions from Washington and calls to cancel the construction plans. Minn. attorney has long pursued Vatican ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Jeff Anderson has filed thou- sands of lawsuits alleging sex abuse by priests and won tens of millions of dollars for his clients, but he has had a bigger goal in mind for nearly two decades. He wants to bring his career-long legal crusade against misconduct in the Roman Catholic Church right to the top. He would love to question Pope Benedict XVI himself under oath. Though that is extremely unlikely given that the pope is a head of state, doc- uments Anderson has unearthed have the potential to take a scandal that has plagued dozens of dioceses around the world and place it at the doorstep of Vatican leadership. The documents, which became publicly known in the past week after Anderson shared them with The New York Times, show that a Vati- can office led by the pope, then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, halted a church trial against a Wisconsin priest accused of molesting some 200 boys at a school for the deaf. ‘‘This is a tipping point,’’ Anderson said. He found the documents in handling one of the dozens of lawsuits he has pending against various church officials, and hopes to use them to bolster a separate federal lawsuit against the Vatican itself. Since 1983, Anderson and the five other attorneys at his downtown St. Paul firm have sued thousands of Catholic priests, bishops, and dioceses over allegations of sexual abuse by priests and other church leaders. He claims to have no idea how much he has won in settlements; in 2002 he estimated that it was around $60 million. More than 7,000 demonstrate to protest violence wracking Mexico MONTERREY, Mexico (AP) — More than 7,000 people have gathered in the northern Mexico city of Monterrey to protest a wave of violence that has affected the country’s third largest city in recent weeks. Most of the protesters wore white at a rally in Monterrey’s main park and some released white balloons and a white dove as signs of peace. Nuevo Leon state Gov. Rodri- go Medina led the protesters on a brief walk through Fundidora Park. His border state has seen a surge in violence that authorities blame on a turf war between the Gulf drug cartel and the Zetas, the cartel’s former hit men. Hours before the rally Sunday, two soldiers and a civilian were wounded in a shootout between troops and gunmen in Monterrey. Death of CIA detainee offers cautionary tale WASHINGTON (AP) — More than seven years ago, a sus- pected Afghan militant was brought to a dimly lit CIA com- pound northeast of the airport in Kabul. The CIA called it the Salt Pit. Inmates knew it as the dark prison. Inside a chilly cell, the man was shackled and left half-naked. He was found dead, exposed to the cold, in the early hours of Nov. 20, 2002. The Salt Pit death was the only fatality known to have occurred inside the secret prison network the CIA operated abroad after the Sept. 11 attacks. The death had strong repercussions inside the CIA. It helped lead to a review that uncovered abuses in detention and interrogation procedures, and forced the agency to change those procedures. Little has emerged about the Afghan’s death, which the Justice Department is investigating. The Associated Press has learned the dead man’s name, as well as new details about his capture in Pak- istan and his Afghan imprison- ment. The man was Gul Rahman (gool RAHK’-mahn), a suspected militant captured on Oct. 29, 2002, a U.S. official familiar with the case confirmed. The official said Rahman was taken during an operation against Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin, an insurgent group headed by Afghan warlord Gul- buddin Hekmatyar (gool-boo- DEEN’ hek-mat-YAR’) and allied with al-Qaida. Newly insured expected to strain doctors WASHINGTON (AP) — Bet- ter beat the crowd and find a doc- tor. Primary care physicians already are in short supply in parts of the country, and the land- mark health overhaul that will bring them millions more newly insured patients in the next few years promises extra strain. The new law goes beyond offering coverage to the unin- sured, with steps to improve the quality of care for the average person and help keep us well instead of today’s seek-care- after-you’re-sick culture. To ben- efit, you’ll need a regular health provider. Yet recently published reports predict a shortfall of roughly 40,000 primary care doctors over the next decade, a field los- ing out to the better pay, better hours and higher profile of many other specialties. Provisions in the new law aim to start revers- ing that tide, from bonus pay- ments for certain physicians to expanded community health centers that will pick up some of the slack. A growing movement to change how primary care is prac- ticed may do more to help with the influx. NOTICE TO TAXPAYERS Monday, April 12, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. is the last day for paying the second installment of real estate taxes without a 10% penalty and $20.00 cost. When the delinquent date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the time of delinquency is 5:00 p.m. on the next business day. Payment can be made at 444 Oak Street, Room D, Red Bluff CA or by mailing to the Tehama County Tax Collector, P.O. Box 769, Red Bluff CA, 96080. Copies of bills, tax information and credit card payment information is now available online at www.co.tehama.ca.us. Our office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. MAIL YOUR PAYMENT EARLY! PAYMENTS MUST BE POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE APRIL 12, 2010. All payments postmarked after 5:00 p.m. on April 12, 2010 will be charged a penalty. DANA HOLLMER Tax Collector ROUND-UP Red Bluff Weekend - Events Itinerary and Guide - 7,000 copies Published as an insert to The Daily News Wednesday, April 14 2,000 additional local distribution through Sunday April 18: Restaurants ★ Hotels ★ Weekend Event Sites Participating Local Businesses ★ Fairgrounds This magazine-size special section will reach and excite those folks already planning to attend Red Bluff’s “crown jewel” event – and the final Community events leading up to it; the mixer, the parade and more. Distribution will be through the Daily News, with additional freestanding distribution to reach non-subscribers and visitors. Here’s a low-cost, last minute option to “brand” your business with the Round-Up, and let folks from out of town know that you’re here – particularly valuable for restaurants, hotels and western-oriented retail businesses. Deadline for Space Reservations: Monday, April 5 at 5 PM ! Contact your Daily News Advertising Rep TODAY! 527-2151 D NEWSAILY RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY