Security tight for 'Holy Fire' ceremony
JERUSALEM, April 7 (UPI) -- Heavy security and a ban on cars were the order of the day Saturday in the Old City of Jerusalem ahead of the annual "Holy Fire" ceremony.
Thousands of police, assisted by volunteers, were to limit entry to pilgrims and pedestrians with permits, the Haaretz news agency said.
Orthodox Christians have been marking the "Holy Fire" ceremony at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as far back as 1106. It involves the church's Greek patriarch praying alone in the tomb of Jesus while the congregation outside chants. The patriarch emerges with an olive oil lamp he uses to light candles to be given to the faithful.
The patriarch is examined by Israeli authorities before entering the tomb to prove he has no means of lighting the lamp. Greek and Armenian Orthodox officials have argued in recent years over whether or not Armenian priests can enter the tomb with the Greek patriarch to observe.
The ceremony is broadcast annually in Greece, Russia and throughout the Orthodox world.
Fire bomb burns Yemen worshippers
AMRAN, Yemen, April 7 (UPI) -- At least 30 people were burned when unknown attackers fire-bombed a mosque in Yemen.
The attackers rushed into the al-Amriah Mosque in Amran Friday, sprayed the worshippers with gas and ignited them, the official Yemeni news agency Saba reported Saturday. At least eight people were seriously burned, an official said.
"Security authorities are investigating to identify the assailants and the motives of this criminal act," Amran Gov. Taha Hajar said.
It was not immediately clear whether the worshippers were Sunni or Shiite. Government forces have been fighting Shiite rebels in the area.
Roadside bomb kills 7 in Sri Lanka
VAVUNIYA, Sri Lanka, April 7 (UPI) -- No one has claimed responsibility for a mine that blew up a bus in Sri Lanka Saturday, killing seven passengers and injuring 26.
The explosion occurred on a road outside Vavuniya, the last government-held town before the northern region held by the rebel Tamil Tigers, the BBC said. The injured included seven soldiers.
A Sri Lankan military spokesman said the vehicle hit a claymore mine set by the Tamil Tigers, but the militant separatist group denied responsibility and, in turn, blamed the government military.
"It is part of series of incidents for the past few weeks continuously happening in the northeast," Tamil spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiraiyan said. "This is a program of military intelligence people to tarnish the Tigers in the international forum."
Sixteen people died Monday when another bus was decimated by an explosion. No one has claimed responsibility for that attack either.
Bush takes 3rd shot at food aid rules
WASHINGTON, April 6 (UPI) -- The Bush administration is making its third attempt to change U.S. law to allow some foreign aid to be spent on locally produced food.
Under current law, all U.S. food aid must be spent in the United States and shipped to the recipients, usually on U.S. vessels, which can take as long as six months. By that time, many of those people the food is intended for could be dead of starvation, The New York Times reports.
In Zambia, the World Food Program is struggling to feed people being treated for AIDS. As they recover, they need more to eat.
Opponents of the Bush proposal, which has failed to pass Congress twice, say the U.S. food program, the largest in the world, depends on the backing of agricultural and shipping interests.
"It is a mistake of gigantic proportions, because support for such a program will vanish overnight, overnight," said Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., Chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee.
