North Korea vows to go ahead with rocket launch plans

Syrian regime staged deadly attacks in Damascus, rebel captain says

(CNN) -- A Syrian rebel leader vehemently refuted the government's claim that so-called "terrorists" -- not the regime itself -- launched a series of explosions in Damascus that killed dozens.

"This is the regime's game. This is how they play their dirty tricks. They carry out these types of explosions from time to time to get more international support and compassion," Capt. Ammar al-Wawi of the rebel Syrian Free Army said Sunday. "They are desperately trying to prove to the world that they are fighting against armed gangs, but the reality is they are the ones who are doing all the killings."

Two explosions rocked parts of Damascus on Saturday, including Syrian government facilities, state-run media reported.

The Syrian Arab News Agency said 27 people were killed after two "booby-trapped" cars exploded in crowded areas in the capital. The blasts also injured 140 people and caused serious damage to surrounding buildings, SANA said. Read More

North Korea vows to go ahead with rocket launch plans

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) -- North Korea says it will go ahead with plans to launch an observation satellite into space and that criticism of it is provocative.

North Korea said Friday it would launch the satellite on a rocket next month. The U.S., South Korea and Japan condemn the plan as a disguised test of military missiles because the same type of rocket is used to launch long-range missiles.

Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency said Sunday such criticism is a "sinister" provocation by "hostile forces."

It says North Korea has a right to peaceful development in space.

The North says the hostile forces are "sadly mistaken" if they think it will cancel the launch plans.

Pyongyang said Saturday it has notified international agencies of its plans. Source

Japan starts mulling plan on intercepting N. Korean rocket

OMITAMA (Kyodo) -- Defense Minister Naoki Tanaka said Saturday that his ministry has started considering whether to take preparatory measures to destroy the rocket-mounted satellite North Korea is preparing to launch next month.

The ministry is considering whether to deploy ground-based Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptors and Aegis-equipped destroyers carrying Standard Missile-3 ballistic missile interceptors, Tanaka told reporters at the Air Self-Defense Force's Hyakuri air base in Omitama, Ibaraki Prefecture.

"We are currently doing a mental exercise to prepare (for the planned rocket launch), using the previous incident as our guide," Tanaka said, referring to the government's decision at the time of the launch of long-range ballistic missile by Pyongyang in April 2009.

In March 2009, Yasukazu Hamada, defense minister at the time, issued an order for the Self-Defense Forces to destroy a North Korean rocket or its debris in the event that it fell onto Japanese territory. Read More

wo 'terrorist bombs' kill 27 civilians and police in Syrian capital

Two 'terrorist bombs' killed civilians and police in the Syrian capital Damascus today, leaving the streets stained with blood and littered with mangled corpses.

The blasts were caused by car bombs that hit security targets at around 7.30am today, according to state news agency SANA.

Gruesome images of charred bodies and twisted steel were circulated as Sky News said 27 people died in the explosions.

The city's aviation intelligence department and criminal security department were the targets of the attacks, SANA claimed, although rebels say the bombings were a government plot to discredit them.

A year into the Syrian revolt, the fight to oust President Bashar Assad is transforming into a nascent civil war.

The government says it is fighting foreign terrorists and armed gangs and denies there is widespread support for the rebels. Read More

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