No offer of U.N. troops yet for Lebanon
BEIRUT, Lebanon, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- The United Nations has received no offers of peacekeeping troops for Lebanon from any country but several had expressed interest by Wednesday.
Deputy Director of U.N. Peacekeeping Hedi Annabi said the plan is in the next 10 to 15 days to deploy 3,000 to 3,500 troops in southern Lebanon where a month of fighting between Hezbollah guerrillas and the Israeli military killed more than 1,000 people.
A U.N.-brokered cease-fire, which went into effect Monday morning, calls for Lebanon to put about 15,000 of its own soldiers in the south of the country.
As of Tuesday night, France is expected to make a significant offer to bolster the existing 1,990 U.N. Interim Forces in Lebanon troops, but Paris has not made a formal announcement of its commitment, CNN reported.
Countries including Italy, Malaysia, Indonesia and Turkey have expressed interest in taking part, and their representatives have attended technical meetings at U.N. headquarters, but there had been no firm pledges made by Tuesday night.
Baghdad bombing kills eight civilians
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- A bomb planted at a small, crowded market in eastern Baghdad killed eight civilians and wounded 28 others Wednesday, security officials said.
Two weeks ago, the Iraqi government has requested more U.S. soldiers be deployed in the capital to stem the Muslim sectarian violence.
Meanwhile, the holy city of Karbala was locked down by police Wednesday after fighting between Shiite militiamen and government forces killed 18 people, Middle East Online reported. The group attacked a police station and government offices Tuesday, prompting the lock-down in which only local residents are allowed in or out of the city.
In the southern city of Basra, the city council building was badly damaged when armed gangs attacked it in an apparent act of vengeance for the killing Tuesday of a tribal leader by Iraqi security forces, the BBC reported.
EU ministers meet for air terror talks
LONDON, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- British Home Secretary John Reid led a London meeting Wednesday of several EU interior ministers on last week's alleged airline terror plot.
Ministers from Finland, France, Germany, Portugal and Slovenia attended, along with EU Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini, and EU Counter-terrorism Coordinator Gijs de Vries, the BBC reported.
A statement from the Home Office said the nature of the alleged plot that led to the arrest of 24 British Muslims called for multinational cooperation.
"Investigation after investigation underlines the international nature of this current form of terrorism, and it is through working closely with our partners, both in Europe and beyond, that we are able to respond to the threat effectively," the statement said.
The investigation into the plan to down U.S.-bound aircraft using liquid explosives in carry-on baggage spawned several arrests in Pakistan, and there is evidence of terrorist connections in mainland Europe, the report said.
Security still hobbling British flights
LONDON, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- Security measures forced British Airways to cancel 46 flights Wednesday, six days after British airports were locked-down over an alleged terror plot.
The airline said three long-haul and 32 short-haul flights from Heathrow and 11 domestic flights from Gatwick Airport had been canceled, five more than it canceled Tuesday, The Telegraph reported.
Chief executive Michael O'Leary of the discount Ryanair airline said he hoped Wednesday would be the first day all scheduled flights could take off, the Guardian reported. He called the uproar over security "nonsensical" and said he was considering legal action against the British government to get airports running smoothly again, the newspaper said.
The heightened security has also created a glut of lost luggage. British Airways said it had as many as 5,000 bags it was struggling to reunite with owners, the report said.
The mayhem began last Thursday when police arrested 24 people in a plot they said involved blowing up U.S.-bound aircraft with liquid explosives from carry-on baggage.
