Capsized cruise ship may be tied to ledge
GIGLIO, Italy, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- The capsized Costa Concordia cruise ship may be lashed to a rock ledge to prevent the ill-fated vessel from sinking, officials in Italy said.
At least 11 people had died and 21 passengers remained missing Friday, a week after the ship, carrying 4,200 people, went aground near the small island of Giglio in theTyrrhenian Sea.
Rescuers were ordered off the ship after it slid close to a steep underwater ledge along the Tuscan coast, ANSA reported.
"We may have to secure her to the rock ledge," an officer in charge of the rescue operation said. "Otherwise she's going to slip to the bottom."
An impending storm and high waves could also jeopardize efforts to find the missing passengers.
The ship is carrying 500,000 gallons, or 2,300 tons, of semi-solid fuel in 17 separate tanks.
Amateur video posted online Thursday by Italy's Rainnews 24 shows a female crew member on the Costa Concordia asking passengers to go back to their cabins after the ship had started taking on water.
"We kindly ask you to return to your cabins, or go for a walk in the hall, if you like," the crew member, who said she was relaying a message from the commander, told passengers. "Everything is under control."
A ship's cook alleges Capt. Francesco Schettino ordered dinner for himself and a Moldovan woman after the liner hit the reef.
Occupy protesters target Super PAC ruling
WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- The Occupy movement is protesting a 2-year-old U.S. Supreme Court ruling that cut restrictions on corporate spending for federal campaigns, protesters said.
Demonstrators planned to dress as justices and sing songs at the court in Washington on the anniversary of its decision in the case of Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission, CNN reported.
The 2010 ruling made it legal for groups -- called Super PACs -- to raise and spend an unlimited amount of money for political campaigns as long as they don't coordinate with the candidates or contribute directly to their campaigns.
Protesters were expected at courthouses across the country for "Occupy the Courts" -- organized by a grassroots group called Move to Amend.
"Move to Amend volunteers across the USA will lead the charge on the judiciary which created -- and continues to expand -- corporate personhood rights," the Occupy the Courts Web site states.
In San Fransisco, Occupy activists called on homeowners going through foreclosure to join a mass protest Friday to disrupt the city's financial district.
"We're calling on every homeowner who's going through foreclosure to step up and occupy the financial district," Occupy Wall Street West activist Grace Martinez, 32, told United Press International ahead of a planned 12-hour series of demonstrations.
China warns Iran against nuclear weapons
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- China is warning Iran against developing nuclear weapons, observers said.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, on a visit the Middle East, appeared to be trying to send Iran the message that China will not alienate itself from the rest of the world with regard to Iran, a foreign policy expert told Britain's Daily Telegraph.
"China adamantly opposes Iran developing and possessing nuclear weapons," Wen said.
The Washington Post said China cut its oil imports from Iran this month nearly in half to 285,000 barrels a day.
"Iran would not have wanted China to make this statement, but Iran must understand that if it comes down to a choice China will not alienate itself from the rest of the world for the sake of a single country," Yu Guoqing, a researcher on the Middle East at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Telegraph.
On Wednesday, Wen said China opposed Iran's threats to blockade an important oil-transport route through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has threatened to close the strait if an oil embargo is imposed against the country.
Wicked weather headed for the Midwest
CHICAGO, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Midwesterners readied their snow shovels Friday as a winter storm headed straight for the nation's midsection.
The Chicago area was told to expect between 5 and 8 inches of snow before the storm moves on sometime during the night, the Chicago Tribune reported.
"It (the storm) is definitely going to affect the afternoon commute," said meteorologist Stephen Rodriguez of the National Weather Service. "Not just Chicago but northern Illinois and northwest Indiana."
Airlines at Chicago's two airports canceled hundreds of flights in anticipation of the storm, WBBM-AM, Chicago, reported.
Snow fell in Cleveland, Ohio, late Thursday and was expected to resume Friday afternoon, The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported.
Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber declared a state of emergency in four counties as the state battled near-record flooding from snow and then rain earlier in the week, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Cuban activist dies on hunger strike
HAVANA, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Cuban dissident Wilman Villar has died after a 50-day hunger strike, officials say.
Villar, 31, died late Thursday in the Juan Bruno Zayas de Santiago hospital in Cuba. The hunger strike was in protest of a four-year prison sentence imposed for taking part in a demonstration.
The Miami Herald reported Friday Villar was regarded as a martyr for the opposition movement as well as a defender of individual liberties and human rights.
Villar was kept alive on a respirator for several days before he succumbed to sepsis. Doctors told his family "only a miracle" could save his life.
Villar's wife, Maritza Pelegrino, said authorities would not permit her to see her husband's body.
