Showing posts with label Associated Press. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Associated Press. Show all posts

BAGHDAD (AP) -- A British archaeologist says he and his colleagues have unearthed a huge, rare complex near the ancient city of Ur in southern Iraq, home of the biblical Abraham.


Stuart Campbell of Manchester University's Archaeology Department says it goes back about 4,000 years, around the time Abraham would have lived there. It's believed to be an administrative center for Ur.


Campbell said Thursday it's roughly the size of a football pitch -- about 80 meters on each side. He says complexes of this size and age are rare.


He says one of the finds is a plaque of a worshipper wearing a flowing robe and approaching a sacred site.


It's the first British archaeological dig in southern Iraq since the 80s. It's possible because parts of Iraq are now relatively stable.




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:38

BISBEE, Ariz. (AP) -- A conservative Christian advocacy group says a former mining community-turned-artists' haven in rural southern Arizona can't legally recognize civil unions that would include same-sex couples.


A letter from the Phoenix-based Center for Arizona Policy says an ordinance scheduled for a Tuesday night vote by the Bisbee City Council would violate the Arizona Constitution's ban on same-sex marriage, and would be the subject of a costly legal fight.


If approved, the ordinance would make Bisbee the first Arizona city to legalize civil unions for same-sex couples, giving them the same rights in the city as married couples. The ordinance is reportedly more comprehensive than a Tucson measure enacted in 2003 that recognizes domestic partnerships.


Bisbee City Attorney John MacKinnon has said the ordinance's approval would mean people in civil unions would be considered spouses in such matters as property ownership and guardianship in cases of illness.




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.


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07:23

NEW YORK (AP) -- New York state Sen. Malcolm Smith and New York City Councilman Dan Halloran were arrested Tuesday in an alleged plot to rig the New York City mayor's race, federal authorities said.


Four other political figures also were charged in what U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara called "an unappetizing smorgasbord of graft and greed involving six officials who together built a corridor of corruption stretching from Queens and the Bronx to Rockland County and all the way up to Albany itself."


Smith "tried to bribe his way to a shot at Gracie Mansion," Bharara said in a statement, referring to the official mayor's residence. "Smith drew up the game plan and Councilman Halloran essentially quarterbacked that drive by finding party chairmen who were wide open to receiving bribes."


In meetings with a cooperating witness and an undercover FBI agent posing as a wealthy real estate developer, Smith agreed to bribe leaders of Republican Party county committees around New York City in an attempt to run for mayor as a Republican, even though he was a registered Democrat, the criminal complaint said.


Also charged are: Bronx County Republican Party Chairman Joseph Savino; Queens County Republican Party Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone; Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmin; and Spring Valley Deputy Mayor Joseph Desmaret.


In exchange for payments to Savino and Tabone, Smith agreed to use his power as a senator to help obtain state funds for a road project in Spring Valley. That, in turn, was to benefit a real estate project that Smith believed was being built by the undercover agent's company in suburban Spring Valley, the complaint alleged.


Charges in the case include bribery, extortion, and wire and mail fraud, Bharara said.


Smith denies wrongdoing, his lawyer, Gerald L. Shargel, told The New York Times.


"Malcolm Smith is a dedicated and highly respected public servant and he steadfastly denies these charges," Shargel said.


Representatives for the other politicians did not immediately respond to comment requests.




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:23

LONDON (AP) -- A flamboyant but unqualified lawyer whose clients included deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein has been sentenced to 14 years in jail for fraud.


Giovanni Di Stefano was nicknamed "The Devil's Advocate" for speaking on behalf of figures including Saddam, former Iraqi Vice President Tariq Aziz and British train robber Ronnie Biggs.


Prosecutors say he conned clients out of millions of pounds by operating as a lawyer when he had no legal qualifications and was not registered to practice in Britain or Italy, where he had offices.


He was convicted at London's Southwark Crown Court this week of 25 charges, including deception, fraud and money laundering.


Passing sentence Thursday, Judge Alistair McCreath said Di Stefano had caused distress to many people, adding: "Your only concern was to line your own pockets."




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:23

LONDON (AP) -- A Guantanamo detainee who allegedly revealed valuable information about 9-11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohamed is suing Poland in a European court.


Abu Zubaydah's lawyers say he was held in a CIA black site in Poland, which they say has withheld critical information needed to investigate his case. He was allegedly held in Poland between 2002 and 2003.


Abu Zubaydah has been held by U.S. authorities for more than a decade without being charged and is now in a secret location at the U.S. prison camp. His lawyers say he was repeatedly subject to water-boarding -- simulated drowning -- by U.S. interrogators.


The lawsuit against Poland was filed Monday by the London-based legal charity Reprieve at the European Court of Human Rights in the French city of Strasbourg.




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:53

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court is broadening its examination of affirmative action by adding a case about Michigan's effort to ban consideration of race in college admissions.


The justices already are considering a challenge to the University of Texas program that takes account of race, among many factors, to fill remaining spots in its freshman classes. The Texas case has been argued, but not yet decided.


The court on Monday said it would add the Michigan case, which focuses on the 6-year-old voter-approved prohibition on affirmative action and the appeals court ruling that overturned the ban.




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:08

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) -- Saudi Arabia's top religious cleric has criticized the social media website Twitter, calling it "a council for jokesters" and a place for unjust, incorrect messages.


Grand Mufti Sheik Abdul-Aziz Al-Sheik made his remarks late Friday during a speech to other Saudi clerics.


Twitter has been used by youth activists to galvanize protests in the Arab Spring uprisings, as well as by regional governments seeking to communicate with the public.


The mufti's remarks come on the same day that the imam at Mecca's Grand Mosque said people have the right to express themselves, but must do so cautiously in order to protect the nation's prestige and unity.


Rights groups have criticized Saudi Arabia for its limited freedoms and its ultraconservative mores.




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:53

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) -- President Barack Obama says each of his proposed steps to reduce gun violence should get a vote in Congress -- even an assault weapons ban that both parties agree stands little chance at passing.


Senate Democrats dropped the ban from the bill they plan to debate next month out of concern it could sink the whole package. Still, Obama says he's pushing for it.


In his weekly radio and Internet address released Saturday, Obama says the U.S. has changed in the three months since the December school shooting in Newtown, Conn. He says Americans support the ban, plus limits on high-capacity ammunition magazines, school security funding and a crackdown on gun trafficking.


"Today there is still genuine disagreement among well-meaning people about what steps we should take to reduce the epidemic of gun violence in this country. But you, the American people, have spoken," Obama said.


The White House said Saturday that Obama will make additional trips outside Washington to rally support for the measures, including the assault weapons ban. The White House also said that before Obama left for Israel earlier this week, his push for gun control was among the issues he raised with lawmakers from both parties as he embarked on a concerted effort to reach out to Congress.


In the Republican address, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah says the Senate Democrats' budget raises taxes by $1.5 trillion without doing anything to save entitlements like Social Security and Medicare. He says Republicans want a balanced budget that lives up to the nation's moral obligation to act in the best interest of future generations.


"Republicans recognize that keeping dollars, decisions, priorities and power in the hands of the people is what has made America the greatest civilization the world has ever known," Lee says. "Now is the time to return to that model."


___


Online:


Obama address: http://www.whitehouse.gov


Republican address: www.youtube.com/gopweeklyaddress




Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.












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07:23
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