Nation, World Briefs: Pentagon issues protest over Navy carrier incident
Published 10:27 pm Wednesday, November 28, 2007
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon issued a formal protest to China on Wednesday over its refusal to permit a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier to make a planned Thanksgiving port visit to Hong Kong. The Kitty Hawk, which has its home port near Tokyo, was forced to return early to Japan when Chinese authorities at the last minute barred the warship and its escort vessels from entering Hong Kong harbor. Hundreds of families of sailors aboard the Kitty Hawk had flown from Japan to spend Thanksgiving weekend in Hong Kong, but had to return home after China refused the port entry.
Air Force grounds Boeing F-15s
The Air Force grounded more than 450 Boeing F-15 fighter jets on Wednesday after investigating a crash earlier this month and finding defects in the aircraft’s fuselage. The Air Force investigation, which is still under way, found there were “possible fleetwide airworthiness problems” because of defects in metal rails that hold the F-15’s fuselage together. The Air Force seeks to replace aging F-15s, some more than 30 years old, with Lockheed Martin Corp.’s F-22 Raptor.
Oklahoma: ‘God’ told him to quit
Richard Roberts told students at Oral Roberts University Wednesday that he did not want to resign as president of the scandal-plagued evangelical school, but he did so because God insisted. Roberts told students in the university’s chapel that God told him on Thanksgiving that he should resign the next day. Roberts said he resisted the idea, and that “every ounce of my flesh said ‘no,’ ” but he prayed over the decision with his wife, Lindsay Roberts, and his father, Oral Roberts, and decided to step down.
Florida: Deputies die in pursuit
Two Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies who had tried to stop a stolen vehicle on a rural road in the Everglades were killed when they were struck by a fellow deputy’s patrol car early Wednesday. The driver of the patrol car was injured, authorities said. The deputies had put spikes on a road that punctured the stolen car’s tires. But when they ran to remove the spikes from the road they were struck at about 1:45 a.m. by a canine patrol vehicle that was pursuing the car thieves, the sheriff said.
Utah: Unhappy in-laws guilty
A couple accused of kidnapping their daughter on the eve of her wedding pleaded guilty in Provo on Wednesday to a reduced charge and a judge ordered mental-health professionals to evaluate them for actions he called “clearly irrational.” Julia Redd, 58, and husband Lemuel Redd, 60, pleaded guilty to custodial interference, a misdemeanor, capping the legal end of a family spat over their daughter Julianna’s choice for a husband. The plea spared them jail time.
Afghanistan: Civilian casualties
NATO warplanes hunting Taliban fighters in eastern Afghanistan mistakenly bombed an Afghan road construction crew sleeping in tents, killing 14 workers, Afghan officials said Wednesday. If confirmed that NATO hit the wrong target, the incident in mountainous Nuristan province late Monday would be the first major blunder by foreign troops in months. Gov. Tamim Nuristani said the attacks followed reports that “the enemy” was in the area, but they instead hit the road construction workers as they were sleeping.
Iran: New submarine claimed
Iran claimed Wednesday to have built a small submarine equipped with sonar-evading technology, saying the craft had been launched in the Persian Gulf. The navy chief was quoted by state television as saying the new Ghadir-class submarine is the second Iranian-built underwater craft outfitted with “state-of-the-art electronic equipment.” He said it took 10 years to build. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the new submarine is part of Iran’s drive toward self-sufficiency in arms production, the report said.
Britain: Relics at Olympic Park
Roman pottery and a coin from the Iron Age have been found on the site of the aquatics center planned for the London 2012 Olympics. Digs on the Olympic Park site have discovered evidence of Iron Age settlement, including 4th-century pottery and a Roman coin from the time of Emperor Constantine II. The Museum of London has been working with London 2012 staff who are preparing the 500-acre Olympic Park site in the capital’s East End for venue construction to begin next year.
Canada: Chocolate conspiracy?
Is there something underhanded going on with the price of Kit Kat, Snickers and Caramilk bars? Federal regulators have launched an investigation into allegations the Canadian divisions of Nestle, Cadbury, Hershey, Mars and others have teamed up in a price-fixing scheme in the multibillion-dollar Canadian business of chocolate bars. The Competition Bureau served search warrants on several major bar makers this week requiring them to turn over reams of documents on their pricing arrangements.
From Herald news services
