A round-up of today's other stories in brief.
US marine's mockery of killing Iraqis
WASHINGTON - The US Marine Corps is investigating whether a marine did anything wrong by singing an obscene song to a laughing and cheering crowd of fellow US troops in Iraq making light of killing Iraqis.
A four-minute video of the performance, posted on the internet, showed Cpl Joshua Belile, who returned home from Iraq in March, singing lyrics about encountering an Iraqi woman and her family.
He sings: "I grabbed her little sister and put her in front of me. As the bullets began to fly, the blood sprayed from between her eyes, and then I laughed maniacally." - (Reuters)
2,000 illegals held in US sweep
HOUSTON - US customs officials arrested more than 2,000 illegal immigrants, gang members and other fugitives in a nationwide sweep, the head of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said yesterday.
The sweep, codenamed "Operation Return to Sender", has yielded arrests in 34 states since May 26th and comes as Congress is debating several immigration measures. - (Reuters)
Islamic opposition held in Morocco
RABAT - Moroccan police rounded up 88 members of the country's main Islamic opposition as part of a crackdown to limit the unauthorised movement's influence, group members said yesterday. - (Reuters)
Amnesty seeks end to renditions
LONDON -Amnesty International yesterday urged EU governments to prevent their airports from being used for secret transfers of terror suspects to countries where they might be tortured, and called for compensation for victims of such alleged US operations.
In a report published this week, the human rights watchdog said seven European countries - including Germany, Britain and Italy - likely were complicit in abductions by US intelligence agents and have stonewalled attempts to investigate them. - (AP)
Soprano actors not made an offer
NEW YORK - The final series of The Sopranos could be missing some of its key characters because the actors want more pay, it was reported today. The New York Post said six stars were seeking big raises, but the show's maker HBO was refusing to meet them.
The actors who play Tony Soprano's daughter Meadow, his son AJ, Dr Melfi, Paulie "Walnuts", right-hand man Silvio Dante and Tony's brother-in-law Bobby Bacala, all reportedly remain unsigned - even though filming is set to begin next month.- (Reuters)
Italy to urge US Iraq pullout
ROME - Italy's foreign minister said yesterday he will use his first US visit since the centre-left government took power last month to spell out Rome's Iraq pullout plan and urge the US to close Guantanamo Bay. Massimo D'Alema, who meets secretary of state Condoleezza Rice tomorrow, described the issues as part of Rome's shift toward a more European-aligned foreign policy after five years under a US-focused centre-right government.- (Reuters)
Islamist militias extend control
MOGADISHU - Islamist militias tightened their grip over Somalia by seizing a key town yesterday and the parliament approved the deployment of foreign troops, a decision that is likely to imperil relations with the newly powerful Islamists.
Islamist fighters loyal to Sharia courts seized the town of Jowhar in a brief assault yesterday, routing onceinfluential warlords - whom they ran out of Mogadishu last week - from their last major stronghold. - (Reuters)