March 2, 2012 Events

Thousands Evacuated and at least 99 Hospitalized due to Chemical Leak in the Philippines

ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Ninety-nine people were hospitalized for suffocation, nausea and eye irritation, while thousands of residents were evacuated after a chemical leaked from an ice plant in a west coast village here.

The ammonia gas leak occurred around 10:15 p.m. Wednesday at the E & L Ice Plant located in Sitio Dumagasa, Ayala village, 16 kilometers west of the city, said the police.

Most of the victims were workers of the ice plant and members of the United Visayan Homeowners Association who are living nearby.

Renwel Balili, a checker of the E & L Ice Plant, said the ammonia gas leaked when an ice molder fell and hit one of the plant's cooling system pipes.

He said they were scheduled to produce ice for different fishing firms that are set to resume operation since the closed season for commercial fishing ended Wednesday when the incident happened.

The E & L Ice Plant has stopped operations and would only resume once the damaged cooling system pipe will be repaired or replaced, Balili said. Read More

4.9 Magnitude Earthquake OFF THE EAST COAST OF KAMCHATKA, RUSSIA - 2nd Mar 2012

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake has struck off the East Coast of Kamchatka, Russia at a depth of 29.8 km (18.5 miles), the quake hit at 12:18:38 UTC Friday 2nd March 2012
The epicenter was 112 km (69 miles) ESE from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Russia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this timePosted by Lynsey at 7:39 AM

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4.7 Magnitude Earthquake NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION - 2nd Mar 2012

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake has struck the Nicobar Islands, India Region at a depth of 35.1 km (21.8 miles), the quake hit at 12:11:30 UTC Friday 2nd March 2012
The epicenter was 96 km (59 miles) Southeast from Misha, Nicobar Islands, India
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Netanyahu and Obama play high-stakes poker over Iran

Haaretz's editor-in-chief Aluf Benn says PM's planned trip to Washington will be the most fateful of his political career.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's upcoming trip to Washington will be the most important one in his long career as ambassador, politician and national leader. On Monday, Netanyahu will meet President Barack Obama in the White House for a game of diplomatic poker, where the greatest gamble of all will be right on the table: an attack on Iran's nuclear installations.

Each of the two players will try to push the other to act. Netanyahu would prefer to see the American superpower, with its vast range of military capabilities, pulverize Iran's nuclear project. For his part, Obama would prefer, if an attack must be launched, that the job be done by Israel, while the United States would serve as the "responsible adult" who comes in afterward to make order in the Middle East. Source

London riots: Pair guilty over Malaysian student robbery

Two men have been found guilty of stealing from a Malaysian student as they pretended to help him during last summer's riots in London.

Ashraf Rossli, 20, had been in the UK for just a month when he was attacked on 8 August in Barking.

As he lay injured, John Kafunda, 22, of Ilford, and Reece Donovan, 24, of Romford, stole items from his bag.

Kafunda was found guilty of robbery while Donovan was convicted of theft at Wood Green Crown Court.

They were also found guilty of violent disorder.

The jury is still deliberating whether Donovan is guilty of robbery.

Footage of the incident, which was recorded on a mobile phone and posted on YouTube, caused widespread anger. Read More

Red Cross convoy arrives in Homs bringing Baba Amr aid

A Red Cross convoy has arrived in the Syrian city of Homs and is set to deliver supplies to the Baba Amr district after a month-long siege.

The Red Cross and Syrian Red Crescent have organised the seven-lorry aid convoy, and are also planning to evacuate the wounded.

The area has suffered heavy bombardment by government forces in recent weeks.

The rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) said on Thursday it was leaving the district in a "tactical withdrawal".

Of the 100,000 people who normally live in Baba Amr only a few thousand remain, with the FSA saying it had pulled back to save those still there from an all-out assault.

Meanwhile, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said it had received reports of "a particularly grisly set of summary executions" in Homs. Read More

Istanbul police 'targeted' by blast

Istanbul, Turkey (CNN) -- A bomb appearing to target police officers exploded Thursday in an Istanbul neighborhood near the ruling Justice and Development Party headquarters in the city, authorities said.
The blast left 15 officers and one civilian injured, Istanbul's police chief, Huseyin Capkin, said. It occurred in the Sutluce neighborhood in Beyoglu district.

"It seems the explosion was done by remote control, as a police van with 21 policemen in it was passing by," Capkin told reporters on the scene.

"Their conditions are all good," Capkin said. "There is no one in a life-threatening condition."
Istanbul Gov. Huseyin Avni Mutlu said the bomb was mounted on a motorcycle that was left by the side of the road. He said plastic explosive was used.

"We do not have clear information about the perpetrators," he said, promising an investigation and vowing that such attacks could not harm Istanbul's security. Read More

Sudan minister wanted for war crimes

(CNN) -- The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Sudan's defense minister for 41 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed in the Darfur region.

Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein is wanted for actions ranging from August 2003 to March 2004 in Darfur, where rebels have fought government forces and allied militiamen such as the Janjaweed since 2003.

The United Nations estimates as many as 300,000 people have been killed and almost 3 million people have been displaced from their homes.

Hussein was at the time the country's interior minister "during attacks upon the towns and villages of Kodoom, Bindisi, Mukjar and Arawala in the Wadi Salih and Mukjar localities of West Darfur," the court said.

The court said "there are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Hussein is criminally responsible for 20 counts of crimes against humanity (persecution, murder, forcible transfer, rape, inhumane acts, imprisonment or severe deprivation of liberty and torture) and 21 counts of war crimes (murder, attacks against civilian population, destruction of property, rape, pillaging and outrage upon personal dignity)." Read More