Agenda may keep Blair in post until 2008
LONDON, April 4 (UPI) -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair's agenda may help keep him in his post for two more years despite pressure to make way for his successor Gordon Brown.
Brown's supporters have been trying to force Blair to leave by next year. However, on Monday, Blair came up with a number of announcements to show he is back in control, the Telegraph reports.
Blair did not brush aside his public unpopularity, but noted much remained to be done under his leadership.
Speaking from outside his official residence, Blair told the nation on TV that in the coming days he would be announcing policies on London and the Olympics, council tax and crime and the "big issues in the health service and schools," the report said. He described media reports of a rift with Brown as "a soap opera."
Although Blair has promised an orderly handover, it is the latest suggestions that he is on his way out that have made Blair more determined to stay until he has secured his domestic legacy, says the Telegraph.
Admitted British agent killed in Ireland
BELFAST, Northern Ireland, April 4 (UPI) -- A former member of Northern Ireland's Sinn Fein Party who admitted serving for 20 years as a British agent was shot dead at his remote cottage.
Denis Donaldson's body was discovered by a neighbor, the BBC reported.
Donaldson, after admitting his ties to British intelligence last year, moved from Belfast in Northern Ireland to a cottage with no electricity or running water near the village of Glenties in County Donegal. He had been Sinn Fein's administrative chief at Stormont, the Northern Ireland parliament.
The killing occurred just before a planned visit to Belfast by British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his Irish counterpart, Bertie Ahern, in an effort to revive the Stormont parliament.
Michael McDowell, the Irish justice minister, said that an Irish police officer saw Donaldson alive Monday evening.
Gerry Adams, head of Sinn Fein, condemned the killing and said he spoke to Donaldson's family before the death became public.
"It has to be condemned. We are living in a different era, and in the future in which everyone could share," Adams said. "This killing seems to have been carried out by those who have not accepted that."
Red Cross's Katrina response blasted
NEW YORK, April 4 (UPI) -- A report by the International Red Cross has harsh words for the U.S. organization's response to Hurricane Katrina, The New York Times reported Tuesday.
Mike Goodhand, head of the international logistics division of the British Red Cross, and Thomas Riess, a German logistics expert with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found a mismatch between need and supplies and sloppy handling of supply deliveries.
"What is clear is that the basic needs of the beneficiaries are not being met," Goodhand said on Sept. 15, about two weeks into the relief effort.
The Times said that a former American Red Cross official who wanted to remain anonymous passed on the reports.
The American Red Cross has been critical of its own Katrina response. At least three volunteers have been dismissed after an investigation that could lead to criminal prosecution.
Goodhand described hurricane survivors begging for water and fruit juice when volunteers had only bleach. In another case, people on Mississippi's Gulf Coast needed prepared food but only bananas were available.
9-11 charity issues appeal
NEW YORK, April 4 (UPI) -- A charity for families of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attack victims has called for continued support although its founder was accused of diverting funds.
The charity called Tuesday's Children has acknowledged its founder and chief fundraiser had used the funds to pay his mortgage and credit card bills, reports Newsday.
Charity Chairman Jonathan Barnett said the man, whose brother was killed in the collapse of the World Trade Center, had admitted diverting $311,000 into a secret bank account, the report said. Barnett said the man's parents had made a restitution of $500,000 on his behalf.
Barnett said the charity moved swiftly to assure donors and recipients that financial safeguards had been put in place.
"This was uncovered by our employees. To withhold donations would be to punish the families," Barnett was quoted as saying.
