SpaceX rocket has successful launch
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., May 22 (UPI) -- Cremains of space luminaries and everyday Joes went to the final frontier Tuesday when the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral, Fla.
"Success! Falcon 9 delivers Dragon to orbit," SpaceX said in a banner across its Web site Tuesday. The scheduled launch last week was aborted when the flight computer detected slightly high pressure in an engine combustion chamber
The vehicle's first stage performed perfectly Tuesday before separating from the second stage, SpaceX reported, and the second stage successfully put the Dragon spacecraft into its intended orbit.
Actor James Doohan, better known as "Scotty" on the original "Star Trek" series, was among the 308 people whose ashes were sent into space. He died in 2005, and some of his ashes were in a container in the rocket's second stage, ABC News reported.
Also making the flight were the cremated remains of Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper, who piloted the Faith 7 spacecraft, the last flight of Project Mercury in May 1963. He also was command pilot of Gemini 5 in 1965.
SpaceX founder Elon Musk acknowledged the importance of the collaboration.
"I would like to start off by saying what a tremendous honor it has been to work with NASA. And to acknowledge the fact that we could not have started SpaceX, nor could we have reached this point without the help of NASA … It's really been an honor to work with such great people," he said following Tuesday's launch.
U.S. warship evacuates nationals
SANAA, Yemen, May 22 (UPI) -- A U.S. warship docked at Hodeida, Yemen, Tuesday to begin evacuating U.S. nationals as violence throughout the country racheted up, Yemeni authorities said.
The action came in the wake of an attack Sunday in Hodeida on U.S. contractors. Mareb Press said the gunmen involved likely were linked to al-Qaida in Yemen.
The Yemen Post reported Tuesday the contractors were in Yemen to train the local coast guard as part of a military assistance agreement with the Pentagon.
Violence against foreign nationals is on the increase in Yemen, al-Masdar Online said on Tuesday.
A Spanish policeman who had vanished on his way to the airport for a trip home was found dead. Al-Masdar quoted anonymous sources as saying authorities could not establish the cause of death. A police investigator told the Web site al-Sahwa the victim had been found "with a firearm at his side."
The Socialist Forum said the suicide theory did not match witnesses' accounts of a kidnapping by unidentified gunmen.
Arpaio sends deputy to Hawaii
PHOENIX, May 22 (UPI) -- Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio said he sent a deputy to Hawaii to assist in an investigation into President Obama's birth documents because of "security issues."
Arpaio said the deputy is working on other cases from Hawaii, where he has joined a volunteer with the Maricopa County cold-case squad, The Arizona Republic reported.
"It's one deputy, so what? We have security issues, too, that I can't got into," Arpaio said. "For six months we were not spending any money. When you're doing investigations, sometimes things change. You put more resources into it."
Arpaio, sheriff in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix and surrounding suburbs, said the cold-case posse, a group of volunteers operating with donations, is paying for most of the investigation. He said he began the investigation last year when 250 members of the Tea Party in Surprise, Ariz., requested it.
He said the investigation is focused not on Obama's birthplace but on whether his birth certificate is legitimate.
Gunmen fire on Karachi rally, killing 10
KARACHI, Pakistan, May 22 (UPI) -- At least ten people were killed and 35 were wounded Tuesday when gunmen opened fire at a political rally in Karachi, Pakistan, officials said.
Ethnic parties were protesting proposals for a new province for the Urdu-speaking Mohajir urban majority, the BBC said.
The British broadcaster said two journalists were among those wounded.
Dawn News reported the rally was organized by members and workers of Awami Tehrik Party.
Police officer Mohammed Amir said the identity of the attackers remained unknown.
About a dozen vehicles and several shops were set ablaze.
Since the beginning of this year, hundreds of people have been killed in Karachi in the southern Sindh province, the BBC said.
Tuesday's rally came in response to demands for a separate province for the Mohajir ethnic group, which dominates much of urban Sindh, including Karachi, through the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, the BBC said.
Ethnic Sindhis have warned efforts to divide the southern province of Sindh could lead to widespread violence.
Egypt: Protests for release of detainees
CAIRO, May 22 (UPI) -- Some 31 Egyptian political groups Tuesday pledged to escalate protests until the government releases 89 detained demonstrators.
The most recent demonstration Sunday was a one-day hunger strike in which 400 citizens participated in solidarity with the 86 detainees already on hunger strike, Ahram Online reported.
The detainees in question were arrested during May 4 clashes between demonstrators and security forces outside the Defense Ministry in Cairo's Abbasiya district. More than 300 were originally arrested but 211 have since been released.
Political groups signing the statement issued Tuesday include the National Front for Justice and Democracy, the Free Islamist Alliance, the 'We Are All Detainees' Movement and the Egyptian Feminist Alliance.
The ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces has alleged the arrests only took place due to protesters' attempts to storm the Defense Ministry.
