Other stories from around the world in brief
Reid faces heckling from Muslims
LONDON - A heckler who accused the British police of "state terrorism" interrupted a speech to Muslim leaders by home secretary John Reid yesterday. The demonstrator called Mr Reid an "enemy of Islam" and attacked the government's anti-terrorism policies before being led away by police and stewards.
"How dare you come to a Muslim area. I am here to disrupt the meeting," said the man, who later identified himself as Abu Izzadeen. "Shame on all of us for listening to him."
Mr Reid was forced to interrupt his speech on the need for Britain's Muslims to do more to root out possible extremists. A second heckler also briefly disrupted the speech in east London. Mr Izzadeen told reporters outside that prime minister Tony Blair's "cronies" were not welcome in the area, saying: "They can all go to hell." - (Reuters)
Lawyers protest at Saddam trial
BAGHDAD - A new judge expelled a defiant Saddam Hussein from his genocide trial yesterday and defence lawyers stormed off in protest after the government sacked the chief judge, throwing the month-old case into turmoil.
The Iraqi government removed Judge Abdullah al-Amiri overnight, saying he had abandoned his neutrality for stating last week that Saddam was "not a dictator". International legal groups and the UN said it eroded the court's legitimacy. - (Reuters)
'Top Gear' man critical after crash
LONDON - Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond (36) was
critically injured yesterday after crashing in a jet-powered car while filming for the programme, the BBC announced.
He was taken by air ambulance to a hospital in Leeds which has a special neurological unit. He had been filming at a former Royal Air Force base when the accident happened. - (Reuters)
Plane overshoots Luton runway
LONDON - Flights into and out of London Luton Airport were suspended last night after a private plane overshot a runway.
Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to the airport at 6.28pm after a Cessna Citation suffered "hydraulic failure".
A spokesman said no one was injured in the incident. - (PA)
Vietnamese spy journalist dies
HANOI - Pham Xuan An, a Vietnamese spy who worked for Time magazine and other Western news media in Saigon during the US war in Vietnam, died on Wednesday after a long illness, a government official said. He was 78.
"He died this morning," said the official by telephone in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, where An had been admitted to a military hospital with emphysema. A heavy smoker, An was first admitted to hospital with emphysema in June 2003.
Foreign correspondents considered him the dean of Vietnamese journalists working for western media, but he doubled as an undercover agent for communist North Vietnam. - (Reuters)
Clinton promotes global initiative
NEW YORK - Former US president Bill Clinton called together some of the world's richest and most influential people yesterday in hopes of coming up with more than $2.5 billion and ideas on how to stop conflict, disease, poverty and climate change.
Among 1,000 people attending the second annual Clinton Global Initiative - many paying $15,000 each - were billionaire businessmen Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and Richard Branson, UN secretary general Kofi Annan and 50 current and former heads of state. - (Reuters)