Nothing new so far 
VV
Hey, any news today?
VV
What about other news?
VV
Have you seen what happened this morning in Turkey? 
Terrible…
Yes, that’s terrible. 
VV
Python Attacks, Swallows Woman
Nov 21, 11:35 am ET
RANGAMATI, Bangladesh (Reuters) - A python killed and half-swallowed a woman in southeastern Bangladesh, police said Friday.
Basanti Tripura, 38, was collecting fruit with a friend in a forest when she was attacked Tuesday, a police official said. She was swallowed up to her waist.
The python, believed to have been more than 3-1/2 meters long, was killed and the body retrieved, the official said.
what do you thing about world war 3 ?
[quote]simsiukas rašė:
what do you thing about world war 3?
[/quote]
I’m hoping nobody ever has to find out… 
wow, I’m impressed for all the work you’ve done
Thanks
12/28/2003 07:00:00 PM EST – BBC MONITORING INTERNATIONAL REPORTS
Lithuania to send 54 soldiers to Iraq as replacements
The Lithuanian Grand Duke Algirdas mechanized infantry battalion is holding a farewell party on Monday [29 December] for the soldiers about to leave for Iraq. The Ministry of Defence said that 54 soldiers from the Litcon platoon number three would first go to Denmark where they will be trained for six weeks ahead of their mission in Iraq.
The farewell party will be attended by Linas Linkevicius, minister of national defence, Maj-Gen Jonas Kronkaitis, the army commander, and Brig-Gen Valdas Tutkus, the ground forces commander.
Approximately 100 Lithuanian soldiers are currently serving in international peacekeeping missions in Iraq. [Passages omitted]
Source: Delfi web site, Vilnius, in Lithuanian 29 Dec 03
BBC Monitoring
Copyright © 2003 BBC Monitoring/BBC. Source: Financial Times Information Limited
I sometimes watch BBC
GROZNY, Chechnya (CNN) – There was confusion on Sunday as to the fate of Chechen President Akhmad Kadyrov and the top Russian general in Chechnya, Valery Baranov, following a blast that rocked the republic’s capital Grozny.
Interfax news agency initially quoted a source in the Russian command as saying Baranov had been killed in the attack on a packed stadium on Sunday morning.
But it later quoted an "official source" as saying the general had been seriously injured and was undergoing an operation.
Baranov was the most senior commander of Russian troops in the North Caucasus region that includes separatist Chechnya.
Earlier, officials had said the attack had killed the pro-Moscow president of Chechnya, Akhmad Kadyrov.
Fourteen people died in the explosion, ITAR-TASS news agency reported local officials as saying.
The explosion happened just beneath the VIP stand in the stadium in Grozny crowded with people celebrating Victory Day.
The Russian Emergencies Ministry said a journalist was killed and 25 people were injured.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said Chechen separatists, fighting Moscow’s rule in the region since the mid-1990s, were behind the attack.
Television showed scenes of pandemonium at the stadium, with people running around in panic and smoke rising from the wreckage of the stands.
One man could be seen carrying a young boy, unconscious and bleeding from the mouth, down the terraces.
Brief spurts of automatic gunfire could be heard.
Kadyrov was elected last October to build an administration capable of establishing full Russian authority in Chechnya.
Victory Day is a major national celebration in Russia.
The Grozny ceremonies were mirrored by festivities throughout the country, including a marchpast on Moscow’s Red Square.
Chechen rebels have in the past targeted official events and public gatherings for attacks.
Russia has been fighting separatists in the mainly Muslim northern Caucasus region of Chechnya since it first tried to break away in the 1990s.
Moscow reimposed its rule in the capital Grozny in a 1999 invasion ordered by Putin but guerrilla resistance continues. Chechen rebels have also launched attacks in the Russian heartland, including Moscow.
Snapshots of Today’s Events 17 September 2004 IN TODAY’S ISSUE AMERICAS Brazil Caribbean Region Colombia United States MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Iraq SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Kenya South Africa [AMERICAS] Brazil (Country threat level - 3): On 16 September 2004, public university workers clashed with anti-riot police near the local seat of government in Rio de Janeiro causing traffic delays in the area. Approximately 300 demonstrators had gathered to demand an audience with Rio’s governor in order to negotiate salary hikes and budget reductions for the universities. According to reports, several demonstrators were injured during the clashes. Caribbean Region: Hurricane Jeanne hit the Dominican Republic’s northern coast on 16 September 2004, resulting in heavy rain and strong winds that damaged homes and caused mudslides. Thousands were evacuated to shelters and at least four people died. Jeanne lost strength as it moved along the Dominican coast and is currently a tropical storm. Jeanne, however, may regain hurricane strength as it moves toward the Bahamas and the southeastern United States. Heavy rains caused by Jeanne continued to affect Puerto Rico on 16 September, blocking a number of roads, cutting off electricity and water to many areas of the island and forcing thousands to remain at shelters. According to meteorologists with Wilkens Weather Technologies, as of 1500 UTC on 17 September 2004, Tropical Storm Jeanne is located near latitude 19.8 north and longitude 70.9 west, which is near the coastal Dominican city of Puerto Plata and approximately 115 mi/190 km south of Grand Turk island. Jeanne is moving west-northwest at a speed of 8 mph/7 kt. The storm has maximum sustained winds of 65 mph/55 kt with higher gusts. Tropical storm force winds extend outward to 70 mi/ 110 km. A tropical storm warning remains in effect for parts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. A hurricane warning is in effect for the southeastern Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos, while a hurricane watch is in effect for the central Bahamas. Colombia (Country threat level - 5): A group of approximately 40,000 indigenous demonstrators, who departed from the Cauca department on 14 September 2004, arrived in Cali, Colombia’s third largest city, on 16 September. The indigenous activists protested against the Free Trade Agreement with the United States, food shortages, health problems and demanded their exclusion from the 40-year long armed conflict. The march, which occurred along the Pan-American Highway, remained peaceful. United States (Country threat level - 3): American Airlines flight 1374 was forced to make an emergency landing after takeoff on 16 September 2004 after experiencing engine failure due to multiple bird strikes at Chicago O’Hare International Airport. At approximately 1415 local time, shortly after takeoff, the MD-80 aircraft carrying 107 passengers from Chicago to Philadelphia struck a flock of Canadian Geese. Several of the birds were pulled into the left engine, causing the turbine to shatter and rain debris down over the area of Touhy and Harlem Avenue in Chicago. The pilot was able to shut down fuel lines to the engine and activate fire suppression equipment before making a successful emergency landing at Chicago O’Hare International Airport. No injuries were reported. (… except for the birds 
[MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA] Iraq (Country threat level - 5): Two suicide car bomb attacks occurred in Baghdad on 17 September 2004. The first blast occurred at a security checkpoint near the Tigris River. Early in the morning hours of 17 September, U.S. soldiers monitoring the checkpoint opened fire on a car that refused to stop for inspection, igniting the bomb out of range of its intended target. No injuries were reported in that attack other than the driver of the vehicle, who was killed. A second car bomb exploded at 0830 UTC on 17 September 2004 near an Iraqi police convoy of six vehicles in a shopping district on Rashid Street. The blast killed up to 13 people and injured approximately 20 others. At the time of the explosion, the market area was mostly vacant. [SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA] Kenya (Country threat level - 4): On 16 September 2004, approximatly 2,000 of students at the University of Nairobi rioted throughout the campus and surrounding area after media reports emerged that administrators were planning to increase tuition fees. The students assembled in front of the block containing most administrative buildings and began demonstrating against the increase, threatening to throw petrol-bombs at the buildings if the administration refused to hear their concerns. Students then obstructed roads surrounding the campus to block traffic into the area. Several roads, including University Way, State House Road, and Nyerere Road were closed for a number of hours. Uhuru Highway was also briefly affected by the disturbance. Reports indicate that students robbed and harassed motorists in the area. Riot police were called in to control the situation, and soon dispersed the demonstrators with water cannons. The university has been closed until further notice. South Africa (Country threat level - 3): A group of approximately five armed assailants attempted to steal a cargo shipment of gold and diamonds from a guarded airport cargo terminal at Johannesburg International Airport on 16 September 2004. The shipment was being loaded onto a KLM flight en-route from Amsterdam. Three police officers guarding the shipment were shot during the attempted robbery. The assailants then fled the scene without the valuables. Airport authorities ordered the airport sealed and closed to flights after the robbery attempt, however the suspects have yet to be apprehended. Several dozen flight delays occurred as a result of the closure, however, the airport has since reopened. This criminal incident is the latest in a string of robberies to occur in the area of the airport, and the second during the month of September 2004 to take place on the airport’s grounds. At midnight on 5 September, a group of armed assailants robbed the Spur restaurant, a popular airport eatery that serves hundreds of passengers daily. According to reports, in that robbery, the assailants walked past a police checkpoint and past several dozen security cameras before the robbery took place. The Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) spokespeople indicated, however, in a later press conference on 11 September that the restaurant robbery was not the first such incident to take place at the airport. No details were provided at that time regarding the previous incidents. [SIGNIFICANT DATES] 17 September Angola: National Hero’s Day (Anniversary of the Birth of President Neto). Chile: Independence Day observed (Public holiday - Government and Business Offices close). San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens 18 September San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Burundi: Victory of Uprona Day. Chile: Independence Day. India: Ganesh Chaturthi/Vinayaka Chaturthi (Ganesh’s birthday; Marathi Hindu holiday. Celebrated in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andara Pradesh and Karnataka. Celebrations last for seven days, culminating in processions). Myanmar: Anniversary of military junta takeover. 19 September San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Chile: Armed Forces Day (Public holiday - government and business offices close). Italy - Naples: Feast of St. Jennaro, patron saint of the city. Kazakhstan: Parliamentary Elections (Lower House). St. Kitts-Nevis: Independence Day (Businesses, banks, government offices and schools close. Gatherings expected). 20 September San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Indonesia: Presidential run-off election (Protests and violence are concerns) Japan: Keiro no Hi - Respect for the Aged Day. Timor Leste: Freedom Day - Anniversary of the landing of U.N. peacekeeping forces (Most government and business offices close). 21 September San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Belize: Independence Day (Businesses, government offices and schools close). Malta: Independence Day (Government offices, schools and some businesses close). 22 September San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Bulgaria: Independence Day Mali: Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic. 23 September San Marino: Foundation Day (Public holiday). Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Armenia: Independence Day. Japan: Autumnal Equinox (Bank holiday) 24 September Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Bolivia: Local holiday in Santa Cruz. Cambodia: Constitution Day (Public holiday). Dominican Republic: Our Lady of Mercies (Some schools and a few businesses close). Saudi Arabia: Unification of the Kingdom (Not a holiday). South Africa: Heritage Day (National holiday to commemorate the country’s cultural diversity. Businesses and offices close) Sri Lanka: Opposition political party has called for a street demonstration in Colombo to protest the cost of living in Sri Lanka. 25 September Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Chile: Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Santiago. Protests expected Mozambique: Armed Forces Day - Public holiday (Everything close - Commemorates the armed struggle for national independence - Also known as Popular Liberation Forces Day). Rwanda: Kamarampaka Day (Banks, govt. offices and business likely to close). Judaism: Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) In Israel all businesses and government offices closed. No public transportation. Begins at sundown on 24 September in 2004 27 September Greece: Paralympic Games in Athens Chile: Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Santiago. Protests expected Belgium: French Community Holiday (Observed only by appropriate communities. Some businesses close). Eritrea: Meskel - Festival of the True Cross (Old Orthodox Calendar). Ethiopia: Meskal. Commemorates the revelation of the cross to Empress Helena, mother of Constantine the Great. In Addis Ababa, celebrations begin in the early afternoon when a procession bearing flaming torches approaches Meskal Square from various directions. United States: ASIS annual seminar in Dallas. [ASI THREAT LEVEL DEFINITIONS] 1 - A minimum threat of physical harm. Petty crime is the most common threat. 2 - A low threat of physical harm. Petty crime and infrequent demonstrations are the most common threats. 3 - A medium threat of physical harm. Petty crime and demonstrations are common and violent acts do occur. 4 - A high threat of physical harm due to violent acts associated with crime, demonstrations or terrorism. 5 - A very high threat of physical harm due to violent acts associated with crime, terrorism, demonstrations or war.