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Bombs kill 20 in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- At least 20 people were killed Tuesday in Iraq by a suicide truck bombing in Mosul and another bomb in Baghdad.

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The Mosul bomb gutted a police station, The New York Times reported. About 50 people were injured and 16 killed.

A man who witnessed the explosion said the bomber used side streets to get close to the police station.

"The explosion was huge, and the windows of all the houses in the neighborhood were blown out by the huge power," Ali Mishal told the Times.

In Baghdad, two police officers were among the four people killed by a bomb aimed at a police patrol, the Interior Ministry said. Witnesses were unsure if the bomb had been placed in a booby-trapped car or was set off by a suicide bomber.

The Multi-National Force disclosed Tuesday four Iraqi civilians were killed in a Monday attack in Al-Diwaniyah, the Kuwaiti news agency KUNA reported. At least two task force soldiers were among the 14 injured.

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The U.S. military reported the capture of a man suspected of being the organizer of a mortar attack last week on a U.S. base.


Italy's 'right to die' case gets new trial

ROME, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- An Italian man who wants to remove life support from his long-comatose daughter was given a new trial Tuesday by the nation's highest appellate court.

Beppino Englaro says he wants to release his daughter, Eluana, from "the inhuman and degrading condition" in which she has been "forced to exist" for 15 years, ANSA reported.

A Milan appellate court last year rejected his longstanding request that the feeding tube be removed from the 34-year-old woman, who has been called "Italy's Terri Schiavo," a reference to a U.S. case in which a Florida man ultimately was allowed to end life support for his comatose wife.

However, the Cassation Court ordered a retrial in the Englaro case, ruling a person's right to decide what medical treatment they receive should be respected even if it would cause death, the Italian news agency reported.

Eluana Englaro of Lecco was left in a vegetative state after being injured in a car crash in 1992.

Demetrio Neri of the National Bioethics Committee said the ruling was "important because it opens up a path." But Adriano Pessina, head of the bioethics center at Sacro Cuore Catholic University, countered that it "raises various serious doubts."

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Iowa GOP sets Jan. 3 caucus date

DES MOINES, Iowa, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Republican Party leaders in Iowa voted Tuesday to hold their state caucus Jan. 3, making it the first presidential delegate selection forum in the nation.

Chuck Laudner, executive director of the GOP's State Central Committee, said setting the date 80 days in advance "is a huge help to our counties and county chairs to get the ball rolling and start organizing."

"This is a definitive year for Iowa, and it is crucial that RPI, the State Central Committee and our county organizations run a smooth, successful caucus," Laudner said in a news release.

The Republicans said they will communicate and work with the Iowa Democratic Party to ensure the state's first-in-the-nation status. State Democrats had tentatively set Jan. 14 for their caucus and have been mum about whether they will realign their caucus with the Republicans.

Iowa politicos have been pressured to move up their caucuses because of jockeying by party officials in Michigan and other states to hold their presidential primaries in January. New Hampshire is expected to hold its primary election no later than Jan. 8, although that date has not been set.

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Bush to honor Dalai Lama

WASHINGTON, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. President George Bush, in the face of protests from China, is set to award the Dalai Lama the Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony Wednesday.

After meeting in private Tuesday with the Buddhist leader and exiled Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Bush will become the first sitting U.S. president to appear in public with the spiritual and political leader during the high profile ceremony.

"We understand that the Chinese have very strong feelings about this," White House spokesperson Dana Perino said during a news briefing, which is why Bush discussed the visit with Chinese officials about two months ago. "We feel we have a very strong relationship with them, and that will be maintained."

Chinese officials view the which views the Dalai Lama as a separatist because he seeks autonomy for Tibet.

Photos of Tuesday's meeting between Bush and the Dalai Lama were taken, but none were released, Perino said. Chinese officials asked that a photo not be distributed.

"(We) in no way want to stir the pot and make China feel that we are poking a stick in their eye, to a country that we have ... a good relationship with on a variety of issues," Perino said.

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