Gov. Roemer's Statement on Americans Elect

Baton Rouge, LA –Governor Buddy Roemer issued the following statement concerning the conclusion of the Americans Elect nomination process:

"I am disappointed in the decision of Americans Elect to discontinue their online nominating process. As in any new process, Americans Elect's procedure was ripe with difficulty related to access, validation and security issues. This is not unexpected, but I thank them for their effort at choice and reform.

Palestine: Four injured by Israeli army near Jenin

Palestinian medical sources reported that four residents were injured, on Tuesday evening, after inhaling fire fired by Israeli soldiers invading Zabbouba village, west of the northern West Bank city of Jenin.

The army invaded the village, and provoked dozens of residents by questioning them and checking their ID cards while pushing them around, an issue that pushed several residents to hurl stones and empty bottles at them, local sources reported.

FBI arrests man over hacking of naked photos of Hollywood stars

The FBI yesterday arrested a man as part of its investigation into the alleged hacking of Hollywood celebrities' phones and email accounts which saw naked pictures of actress Scarlett Johansson leaked online last month.

Christopher Chaney, 35, of Jacksonville, Florida, was arrested as part of a year-long investigation that has been dubbed "Operation Hackerazzi". He was released on a $10,000 bond after a brief court appearance. He has been charged with 26 counts of identity theft, unauthorised access to a protected computer and wiretapping. He faces up to 121 years in jail if convicted. 

Obama's Israel Problem

What is it about Israel that causes the American president and politicians to be afraid of criticising Israeli policies? 
By: Ian Buruma

On a rare foray outside his native Texas, Governor Rick Perry accused US President Barack Obama of "appeasement" towards the Palestinians.
Former New York City Mayor Edward Koch supported a Catholic Republican congressional candidate against a Jewish Democrat in New York, because the Republican supports Israel through thick and thin - and because Obama had voiced reservations about Israel's expansion of settlements on the West Bank. In Koch's words, Obama "threw Israel under the bus". The Republican won.

Yemen: Three civilians killed, 22 injured in heavy shelling

SANA'A, (Xinhua): At least three civilians were killed and 22 others were wounded when Yemeni government troops shelled several residential areas in the southern restive province of Taiz early Wednesday, medics and witnesses said.

"One of the residents identified as Hashid al-Amiry was killed in the random shelling, and 20 other civilians, including a child, were wounded, four of them in critical conditions," one doctor at a field hospital in a camp of anti-government protesters told Xinhua.

Pakistan: 26 killed as bus overturns on Motorway

ISLAMABAD, (APP): At least 26 persons were killed and 59 others injured when their bus overturned on Lahore-Islamabad Motorway on Monday evening.

According to Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Zahid Saeed, the ill-fated bus carrying students from the Faisalabad’s Millat Grammar School was returning to Faisalabad from Kallar Kahar after a field trip of salt mines when it overturned.

He said over 100 children, three teachers, principal and a servant were on board the bus at the time of accident.

The injured were rushed to District Headquarter Hospital (DHQ) Rawalpindi, DHQ Chakwal and Fauji Foundation Hospital.


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Growing Frustration in Egypt

Egyptians are becoming increasingly angry and frustrated about the slow pace of political change. The July 14 statement by Jose Manuel Barroso, head of a visiting European Union delegation, that the revolution "is not over yet...and is facing many challenges" captured the mood. Since July 8, the "Day of Persistence," protesters have continued sit-ins in three major cities. And on July 12, Maj. Gen. Mohsen al-Fangari of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) issued a stern warning against continued "disruptions to public order," which only aggravated the situation.