Report: US builds war crimes cases
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- The Bush administration is preparing to charge Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and his inner circle with crimes against humanity if the Iraqi regime is toppled, The Washington Post reported Wednesday citing U.S. officials. Iraqi opposition groups have been urging U.S. officials to build cases more quickly. The White House has not yet decided how deeply to target the Iraqi leadership and who would lead any criminal case. But Undersecretary of State John R. Bolton said the rebirth of Iraq would require the removal of people "who are so fundamentally part of Saddam's entourage that their remaining in power would have the problem persist."
Sketches of Bali blasts suspects released
JAKARTA, Indonesia, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Indonesian police Wednesday released sketches of three "potential suspects" in the Oct. 12 bombings on the resort island of Bali that killed nearly 200 people, most of them foreign tourists. Police said the suspects could be part of a small group that planned and executed the blasts.
Serbia detains assassination suspects
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Serbian authorities said they have detained a group suspected of carrying out the assassination of the deputy police chief in June. State-run Serbian television said by Wednesday morning police had rounded up about 30 men believed to be involved with the group. Serbian Police Minister Dusan Mihajlovic told reporters Tuesday Belgrade police and state security troops had arrested a man suspected of killing the deputy police chief, Gen. Bosko Buha.
Palestinian gunman kills 3
TEL AVIV, Israel, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- A Palestinian militant penetrated the settlement of Hermesh in the northern West Bank late Tuesday, and killed a woman and two girls before he was shot to death, the army said. The army spokesman said a search of the gunman's body revealed several ammunition clips.
Over 100 reported dead in Vietnam fire
HO CHI MINH CITY, Viet Nam, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- More than 100 people have died in a fire in a six-story office and commercial building in Ho Chi Minh City and at least 50 others are being treated in hospitals, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported Wednesday. The report quoted Vietnamese state television as saying a fire broke out in a second-floor discotheque Tuesday. Lack of equipment and water hampered firefighters' efforts to put out the blaze, which burned for nearly five hours. The cause of the fire has not been determined.
Soyuz rocket blasts off for station
BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- The International Space Station crew is preparing for its next group of visitors, following the successful launch late Tuesday of a Russian Soyuz rocket carrying two cosmonauts and a Belgian astronaut. The Soyuz spacecraft will remain at the station to serve as a new emergency escape ship for the resident crew. The guests are scheduled to depart Nov. 9 aboard the station's old lifeboat, which is nearing the end of its six-month orbital lifespan.
Suspect's ex-wife supports death penalty
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- The former wife and son of sniper suspect John Allen Muhammad said they support the death penalty for Muhammad if he's found guilty of capital murder in a three-week shooting spree that killed 10 people in the Washington region. "If you can sit back in a car and kill someone ... if they find him guilty for that, yes," Carol Williams said Tuesday night on CNN's "Larry King Live." Muhammad's son, Lindbergh Williams, his face hidden, said: "If he's convicted and that's the law, he has to deal with it. Even though he is my father, in my eyes, you reap what you sow."
Wellstone, seven others remembered
MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Chants of "Wellstone, Wellstone, Wellstone" swelled Tuesday in Williams Arena as thousands gathered to mourn Sen. Paul Wellstone in a memorial service that at times sounded more like a campaign rally. Wellstone and seven others died Friday when their King Air Turboprop crashed in a peat bog near Eveleth on Minnesota's Iron Range as Wellstone headed for a friend's funeral. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who described Wellstone as his "best friend in the Senate," repeatedly brought the crowd to its feet. Former Vice President Walter Mondale is expected to announce Wednesday he is willing to replace Wellstone on the Nov. 5 election ballot.
West Coast longshoremen deny slowdown
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Leaders of the West Coast longshoremen's union officially informed the Justice Department Tuesday there was no work slowdown under way on the docks that have been cluttered with freight since a 10-day lockout ended earlier this month. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union said in a letter to the agency's civil division it was in legal compliance with a court order banning work slowdowns and other job actions while the union and the Pacific Maritime Association continue to attempt to reach a new contract agreement.
Tokyo shares up, rest of Asia mixed
SINGAPORE, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- While many Asian stock markets were lower Wednesday following the poor performance of Wall Street Tuesday, shares in Tokyo managed to buck the trend. The Japanese market showed little reaction to Bank of Japan's further monetary policy easing. The central bank raised both its reserve target and its amount of monthly government bond purchases. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average finished up 0.6 percent at 8,756.59 recovering some of Tuesday's losses ahead of the government's release of a long-awaited anti-deflation package. Hong Kong; Seoul, South Korea; and Taipei, Taiwan; all finished lower. Elsewhere, Sydney, Australia, also was lower.
