Thursday, March 29, 2007

Headlines (5:15)

ETHIOPIAN TROOPS LAUNCH SECURITY CRACKDOWN IN MOGADISHU
Heavy fighting has erupted on the streets of Mogadishu as Ethiopian
troops carry out what they say is a 3 day operation to secure the
Somali capital. Ethiopian helicopters bombed a Mogadishu market today
and tanks have reportedly fired mortars in various parts of the
restive city. Insurgents have responded with automatic rifle fire and
rocket propelled grenades. Civilians have been left stranded in
different points of the city and dozens have been hospitalized. The
situation in Mogadishu has been deteriortating by the week and tens of
thousands have fled the city since the begining of February.

NIGERIAN GOVT CHARGES SHELL AND OTHERS OF MISHANDLING NUCLEAR WASTE
The Anglo Dutch oil company, Shell and three other oil firms have been
charged in Nigerian court with violating the nation's Nuclear Safety
and Radiation laws. Sam Olukoya reports from Lagos.

THE REACTIVATION OF PLAN PUEBLA PANAMA IN OAXACA
Mexican president Felipe Calderón and Oaxaca's Governor Ulises Ruiz
today inaugurated a controversial wind farm in the Isthmus of
Tehuantepec, where multinational corporations are promoting a large
energy generation project, on what, until very recently, was
indigenous farmland. Vladimir Flores reports.

DYNEGY SHAREHOLDER MEETING
Today, a Houston-based energy company took on the construction of 8
new coal fired power plants. The move makes Dynegy the new King of
Coal, and the target of environmentalists and investors. From Houston,
Renee Feltz reports:

FORMER AG AIDE GIVE TESTIMONY
A former Justice Department staffer told a Senate Panel today that
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has not been completely honest when
speaking about the controversial dismissals of US attorneys. Yanmei
Xie reports from Capitol Hill.

Features
Senate Passes Iraq Resolution with Timeline for Withdrawal (1:10)
The Senate has ignored President Bush’s veto threat and approved the
$122-billion spending bill – with a timeline for troop withdrawal. The
bill, which will continue to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,
orders Bush to start withdrawing troops from Iraq 120 days after its
passage, and sets a nonbinding target date for troop withdrawal by the
end of March, 2008.

House Committee Considers GITMO’s Future (4:32)
Human Rights activists protested against torture outside the Rayburn
Congressional Building while the House Armed Services Committee heard
arguments today in favor and against closing the detention center at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and rolling back the Military Commissions Act.
FSRN’s Nan McCurdy reports from the Capitol.

Tamil Tiger Air Raid Adds New Dimension to Decades-Long Conflict (2:24)
In Sri Lanka, Tamil Tiger rebels have yet to respond to a peace talk
offer by the country’s government, as violence continues. This week’s
first-ever rebel air raid on a highly secured air force base has
provoked a security crisis in Sri Lanka. The sudden emergence of rebel
air power has opened a new dimension in the country’s decades-long
civil war that has claimed the lives of nearly 70,000 people. FSRN's
Ponniah Manikavasagam has more.

Australia Revives Controversial “Offshore Processing” for Asylum Seekers (4:00)
Australia’s Government revived its controversial "offshore processing"
policy, with its decision to send 82 Sri Lankan asylum seekers to a
purpose-built detention centre on the neighbouring Pacific island
nation of Nauru. While the government maintains that this tough stance
is necessary to deter people smugglers, refugee advocates warn the
process grossly prejudices the group's chance of a fair hearing. Erica
Vowles reports from Sydney.

Arab Summit Address Crisis in Darfur (3:25)
As the humanitarian crisis in Darfur continues to take lives and
displace thousands of innocent Sudanese, the Arab summit in Riyadh
unanimously supported President Omar Bashir's utter rejection of
deploying UN forces in the desert region – but tried to ease a
potential conflict with the world community and the United Nations.
FSRN’s Oula Farrawati reports.

Report Indicates Child Sexual Abuse in African Great Lakes Refugee Camps (4:52)
The international Christian relief agency, World Vision, has released a
report stating that half of the children living in refugee and
internally displaced people's camps in Africa's Great Lakes region have
been sexually abused. Entitled "Their Future in Our Hands," the report
suggests that the biggest threat to children in the conflict zones
around the Great Lakes is not inadequate medical care, malnutrition or
military conscription, but sexual abuse. FSRN's Emmanuel Okella reports
from Kampala, Uganda.