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Pope celebrates mass in Washington

WASHINGTON, April 17 (UPI) -- Thousands of worshipers packed Washington's baseball stadium Thursday for a mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI.

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Authorities said people arrived up to five hours early for 10 a.m. mass.

Temporary flight restrictions were in place for the stadium and authorities closed all nearby roads and bridges and a 1½-mile section of the Anacostia River.

Everyone entering the stadium had to go through metal detectors, CNN said.

The pontiff was officially welcomed to the United States Wednesday in a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House.

President Bush, first lady Laura Bush and more than 13,500 spectators were on hand to greet the pope amid tight security.

Later in the day, during a prayer service with U.S. bishops at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the pope addressed a wide range of issues, including the sex-abuse scandal involving Catholic priests.

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Perry praises ruling on lethal injections

WASHINGTON, April 17 (UPI) -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry applauded a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that upheld lethal injections and cleared the way for 36 states to resume executions.

The high court, in a 7-2 vote, upheld the constitutionality of lethal injections in a case brought by two Kentucky death row inmates, The Houston Chronicle reported Thursday.

"Texas is a law-and-order state, and I stand by the majority of Texans who support the death penalty as it is written in Texas law," Perry said. "It is an appropriate response for the most violent crimes against our fellow human beings.

In challenging Kentucky's method of execution, the two inmates contended administration of an anesthetic followed by a muscle relaxant violated the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

The high court disagreed Wednesday in a majority opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts.

Critics of the death penalty had hoped the Kentucky case would end all executions in the United States, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.


Calif. man found guilty of plotting attack

LONG BEACH, Calif., April 17 (UPI) -- A federal jury has convicted a California man accused of plotting a "violent overthrow of the Cambodian government" that killed three people.

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Yasith Chhun, 51, head of the Cambodian Freedom Fighters in Long Beach, Calif., was found guilty Wednesday of conspiring to kill in a foreign country and three conspiracy counts, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

The court's decision stems from a Nov. 24, 2000 attack aimed at the Ministry of Defense, the Council of Ministers and an army base in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

It is reported that three Freedom Fighter members died in the two-hour attack, deemed "Operation Volcano," and a number of Cambodian security officials and civilians were injured.

Chhun came back to the United States and told reporters he plotted the attack and would repeat it, Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Y. Lee said.

Chhun is set for sentencing Sept. 8, and could be sent to jail for life.


Blast at funeral in northern Iraq kills 50

BAGHDAD, April 17 (UPI) -- A suicide bomber detonated an explosive vest during a funeral in northern Iraq Thursday, killing at least 50 people and injuring 60, authorities said.

Police and Iraqi military officials said the attack took place in the predominantly Sunni village of Al-Bou Mohammed while mourners offered condolences to Sheik Ibrahim Aref al-Azzawi, whose sons were shot and killed, CNN said. Previous reports indicated the sheik had died.

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Iraqi police said they believe the attack was to intimidate members and sympathizers of the Awakening Council, a movement of mainly Sunni Muslims that works with the U.S. and Iraqi governments.

Both sons were members of the Awakening Council, but the sheik was not, police said, correcting previously released information. However, he was a supporter of the organization, which includes former insurgents.

In Baghdad's Sadr City, officials said at least two people were killed and 16 injured in overnight clashes and airstrikes.

Also in Baghdad, a roadside bomb killed a man and injured his child and the child's mother, the Interior Ministry said. The family was in a car when the bomb detonated.

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