A round-up of today's other stories in brief
13 accused of bomber group membership
BRUSSELS - A trial has opened in Belgium of 13 men accused of belonging to an Islamic militant group blamed for bombings in Madrid and Casablanca.
They face charges of providing false papers, safe houses and logistical help to members of the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, which is held responsible for the 2004 Madrid attacks on four commuter trains that killed 191 people.
The combatant group has also been linked to the 2003 bombings in Casablanca, which killed 45 people, including 12 suicide attackers. None of the 13 is accused of direct involvement in the bombings. - (Reuters)
Hamas backs off on ceasefire threat
GAZA STRIP - Hamas militants who had vowed not to renew a de facto truce with Israel backed off yesterday, saying they would extend it if Israel "stops its aggression" and releases Palestinian prisoners. Hamas also wants the Palestinian Authority to hold parliamentary elections as scheduled in January and reform its corrupt government, said Mahmoud Zahar, a Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip. - (AP)
Spain to consider Catalonia plan
MADRID - The Spanish parliament has agreed to study a proposal that seeks greater autonomy for the northeastern region of Catalonia. Yesterday's early- morning vote, with 197 in favour and 146 against, followed more than 10 hours of intense debate.
Only the conservative Popular Party, led by Mariano Rajoy, voted against the proposal, arguing that it put Spain on a path to dissolution.
Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero said the wealthy region had a constitutional right to seek more self-rule. - (AP)
Catholic magazine ad prompts storm
MILAN - Leading Catholic publication Famiglia Cristiana stirred up a media storm in Italy yesterday with its first photograph of a naked woman, part of an advertisement for a bathroom ventilation system. The photograph shows only a female bottom shot through a misty shower door.
But it has been enough to put Famiglia Cristiana, traditionally the most popular publication with Italian families, back in the headlines.
"There is no change of position or of our line. We saw the advert and approved it," director Don Antonio Sciortino told Corriere della Sera yesterday. "We count on our readers' maturity. - (Reuters)
Schwarzenegger return unlikely
CALIFORNIA - A majority of California voters say they are unlikely to support Arnold Schwarzenegger for re-election as governor next year, mostly because of his call for a special election next week, according to a state-wide survey yesterday. - (AP)
Two more die in Ethiopia clashes
ADDIS ABABA - Two people were shot dead yesterday in clashes between police and protesters in the Ethiopian capital, bringing the death toll from three days of anti-government protests to at least 36. - (Reuters)
Marines sought over alleged rape
MANILA - Police in the Philippines say they are investigating five US marines for allegedly raping a woman in a former US naval base, officials said yesterday.
Philippine authorities briefly delayed the departure of a US warship while searching for the five marines. They were not allowed to leave the country as scheduled yesterday, said Zosimo Paredes, executive director of a government commission overseeing joint Philippine-US military exercises. - (AP)