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Volume CXXXIII, Number 19 |
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News briefs
Suicide bomber causes "Passover Massacre" in
Israel
NETANYA, Israel-As 200 Israeli Jews celebrated Passover in a beachfront
hotel dining room on Wednesday night, a Palestinian suicide bomber carrying
40 pounds of explosives entered the room, killing himself and at least
19 others. One hundred other patrons were injured, many of them children,
and the blast of the bomb on the ground floor of the hotel has caused
concern about the stability of the entire building.
The bombing is being attributed to Hamas, a militant Islamic group who is believed to have carried out this massacre in protest of peace talks taking place this week in Lebanon.
Peace talks held to bring calm between Israelis and Arabs
BEIRUT, Lebanon-In attempts to settle the long-standing disputes between
Israel and the Arab states, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah asked
Israel to accommodate three key commands of the Arab nations.
Abdullah suggested that neighborly relations might be improved if Israel
were to return Palestinian refugees, create a Palestinian state, and remove
all forces from occupied areas.
Yasir Arafat was not in attendance, but in a public address said he embraced Abdullah's points.
Earthquake rocks Northern Afghanistan
AFGHANISTAN-An earthquake, registering 6.1 on the Richter Scale, brought
havoc to the northern regions of Afghanistan this past Monday. The region,
which is already plagued by poverty, is slowly beginning to recover with
the aid of United Nations rescue workers.
Though early reports estimated the death toll at around 2,000, recent
reports indicate that 1,000 is more likely.
The quake affected about 80 Afghan villages, leaving 13,000 homes damaged
and 7,000 completely destroyed.
Rescue efforts are continuing, though attempts to sift through the rubble
of collapsed villages have been hindered by aftershocks registering as
high as 5.1 on the Richter Scale.
Bush approves campaign finance reform
ATLANTA, Georgia-In a move that challenges the Republican-favored approach
to campaign finance, President Bush signed a bill that will dramatically
affect both hard and soft money donations.
The new bill will prohibit the donation of soft money, which totaled
over $500 million in the last presidential election, to national parties.
The new measures cap the donations that individuals can grant to local
and state parties at $10,000 per year. As a concession to accommodate
the new measures, the amount that any individual may contribute directly
to a candidate has been raised to $2,000.
The newly enacted campaign finance measures will not go into effect until after the coming November elections.
Oscars and all that jazz
HOLLYWOOD, California-The seventy-fourth annual Academy Awards ceremony
was held this past Sunday night. Some of the winners are listed below.
Best Picture: A Beautiful Mind
Best Actor: Denzel Washington for Training Day
Best Actress: Halle Berry for Monster's Ball
Best Supporting Actor: Jim Broadbent for Iris
Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Connelly for A Beautiful Mind
Best Director: Ron Howard for A Beautiful Mind
Best Cinematography: Andrew Lesnie for The Lord of the Rings
Best Song: Randy Newman for Monsters Inc.
Maine Native tribes pursuing casino possibility
AUGUSTA, Maine-The idea of casino gambling in Maine has been buzzing around
state offices, as the Passamaquoddy and Penobscot tribes recently expressed
interest in opening a multi-million dollar casino complex in the Kittery
area.
The state legislature is likely to soon designate nearly $7,000 to conduct a study that would survey the impact that a casino might have on the area.