Top Stories
Several blasts rock Mumbai commuter trains Several people have been killed in a series of blasts that ripped through local trains in the Indian financial capital. Building collapses in Manhattan A four-story building on 62nd Street on Manhattan has collapsed. Both the White House and New York Fire Department have said the preceding explosion was not caused by a terrorist attack. There have been injuries, but no deaths have been reported.

Featured story
Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett dies at age 60 Today, it was announced that Syd Barrett, the founding member of British rock band Pink Floyd died from a complication with diabetes. According to a Pink Floyd spokeswoman, he died days earlier but the announcement was withheld.

Wikipedia Current Events
Israeli troops cross the border into the central Gaza Strip in a new phase of their offensive. A fire and smoke buildup has occurred on a CTA train in the U.S. city of Chicago. Most injuries are from smoke inhalation. No fatalities have been stated at this time. Emergency personnel are on scene. The cause is from a rear derailment. U.S. broadcaster Bob Novak reveals his involvement in the Plame leak, stating "I learned Valerie Plame's name from Joe Wilson's entry in Who's Who in America." (Bob Novak/Human Events Online) News Corp's MySpace.com has surpassed Yahoo Mail for the first time, and has become the number-one most visited website in the United States. The United States government agrees to apply parts of the Geneva Convention to detainees held at the Guantanamo Bay detainment camp, but falls short of changing their status from enemy combatants to POWs. A three ton concrete ceiling tile falls on a car in a tunnel in Boston, United States, killing one female passenger and closing the tunnel. The Governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney, announces that the Massachusetts Government will be taking legal action to remove the Chairman of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, Matt Amorello. Eight explosions hit at least four commuter trains in the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay). India's other major cities are all placed on high alert. At least 174 people are reported dead, and at least 460 are reported injured. A suspect has been arrested in central Delhi. The Mujahideen Shura Council, a group linked to Al-Qaeda, posts a tape claiming responsibility for killing three US soldiers in retaliation for the killing of an Iraqi girl, allegedly by members of the same unit that the soldiers belonged to. Hurricane Bud forms in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, south of the tip of the Baja California Peninsula.

Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett dies at age 60
Today, it was announced that Syd Barrett, the founding member of British rock band Pink Floyd died from a complication with diabetes. According to a Pink Floyd spokeswoman, he died days earlier but the announcement was withheld. "He died peacefully at home. There will be a private family funeral in the next few days," said his brother Alan Barrett. "The band are naturally very upset and sad to learn of Syd Barrettâs death. Syd was the guiding light of the early band line-up and leaves a legacy which continues to inspire," noted a statement issued by Pink Floyd.

According to BBC News, at one point, Syd Barrett was considered to be the main member and songwriter of Pink Floyd. However, due to mental illness, he was forced to leave the band after recording only one album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. Barrett had since been a recluse. Pink Floyd recorded Wish You Were Here as a tribute following Barrett's leave. The album features Shine On You Crazy Diamond, which was recorded as a bald Syd Barrett wandered into the studio.

Canadian boy, sucked into water pump, loses feet
A seven-year-old boy's feet were severed after he was sucked into a water pump at a swimming pool. He is in intensive care as police investigate the water-park accident.

He was seriously injured yesterday when his feet became stuck in a pump that circulates water in one of the pools at Le Camping des Glissades d'eau St-Pie, in Sainte-Pie, Quebec, 55 km (35 miles) east of Montreal.

Doctors amputated the boy's legs below the knee They were not able to save both feet. The boy will be given prosthetic feet.

"He should be able to walk by the end of the summer and to be back to school," said, doctors. "He will have to learn to walk again."

Park spokesman Denis Arcand, the pump did not have a protective grill over it at the time of the accident.

The park is now closed and will stay closed while police are investigating.

Microsoft ends support for Windows 98 and Me
As Microsoft had previously announced, they will stop supporting three older versions of their flagship Windows operating system software, Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition and Windows Millennium Edition (Me).

On July 11, 2006 technical and public support and critical security updates for these products will end, as part of the Microsoft Lifecycle Policy. In their customer notification about the change, the software giant says they are ending support "because [these products] are outdated and these older operating systems can expose customers to security risks", and that customers are advised to upgrade to the company's newer Windows XP.

IDC analysts say that seventy million will be affected by the change. Because of the lack of security updates for Windows 98, it is possible that any still-existing security problems can be exploited.

Support questions on the Microsoft website relating to the software products can still be accessed and will remain for at least another year. Microsoft ended free support for these products in 2003. The end date of Extended Support for Windows 98 was originally January 16, 2004.

White House reverses Geneva Conventions stance
After the Supreme Court ruling from June 29, 2006, the White House has announced that from now on all U.S. detainees are entitled to the protection Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions, including the detainees at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay. The Supreme Court ruled that the system of military tribunals set up by the U.S. at Guantanamo was illegal. The announcement came just hours before Congress debates how to change the military tribunals to comply with the court ruling.

After September 11, 2001 the Bush administration argued that those captured by the U.S. in the global 'war on terror' are "illegal enemy combatants" rather than prisoners of war.

United States attorney general Alberto Gonzalez argued in 2002 that fighting the war on terror requires new techniques and that the Geneva Conventions are "obsolete".

White House press secretary Tony Snow denied that the announcement constitutes a major shift in policy. "It is not really a reversal of policy. Humane treatment has always been the standard," he said.

World Cup official attempts suicide
Top German FIFA World Cup official Juergen Kiessling was found in his Reinickendorf, Germany (a borough of Berlin) home after a neighbor heard a gunshot. He was rushed to the hospital shortly after midnight with what seems to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Two suicide notes were found, one addressed to his daughter, and one addressed to the remainder of his family. The motive for the apparent suicide attempt is not yet clear.

The 65-year-old is listed in serious condition at Virchow Clinical Center in Berlin.

Several blasts rock Mumbai commuter trains
Seven bombs exploded Tuesday at various local railway stations in the city of Mumbai, India between 6:24 pm and 6:35 pm IST (GMT+5:30).

The first blast ripped through the first-class compartment of a local train from Churchgate to Borivali, near the Khar station. Subsequent blasts occured at Bhayandar station near Mira Road, Mahim station, Matunga, Jogeshwari and Borivali. A seventh blast has occured in the Khar-Santacruz subway. Local phone lines in Mumbai have been jammed. The Press Trust of India, quoting railway officials, said all seven explosions had targeted first-class cars. An eighth bomb was later defused at the Borivali station.

Officials said at least 170 people have died and over 460 were wounded in the blasts, although the figures could rise given the fact that Western Railway trains are very crowded during the evening rush hour. Police are allegedly conducting raids throughout India in response to the bombings. Officials in Mumbai claim the explosions were a deliberate attack. India's Home Minister Shivraj Patil said authorities had "some" information that an attack was coming "but place and time was not known". Heavy monsoon downpours have hampered the rescue efforts of the emergency services.

The Indian capital New Delhi has reportedly been put on high alert after the blasts. Airports across the country are also on high alert as are sensitive installations in Mumbai. Mumbai's train system has been suspended and calls are made to keep the public away from the city's train stations.

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh called a emergency cabinet meeting and then released a statement saying that the bombings which have hit India lately are "shocking and cowardly attempts to spread a feeling of fear and terror among our citizens". The country's leading opposition party, BJP, claimed that the current policies of the government put the country in danger for terrorism.

There has been no claim of responsibility, but the attack has the trademarks of Kashmiri Islamic terrorist groups like the Lashkar-e-Toiba. The group is known to have has set off bombs in quick succession in Indian cities before. India's domestic intelligence agency, the Intelligence Bureau, claims that this attack, as also the grenade attacks in Jammu and Kashmir earlier today were aimed at diverting attention from the elections being held in Pakistani Kashmir.

A terrorist and key supplier of explosives were arrested in Jangpura area of Central Delhi on Monday after a tip-off. The police recovered 2 kg of RDX, an explosive widely used by the military, in his possession. The police is interrogating him to find out if he had anything to do with the recent bombings.

25 more NZ police head off to East Timor
25 New Zealand police officers have left today, July 11, for three months in East Timor. The force will carry pepper spray and pistols.

The police force will assist the 160 New Zealand Defence Force armed personnel that are already in East Timor as well as other country's personnel.

Grant O'Fee, contingent commander, said "attempts will be made to establish good relations with village chiefs."

The police teams will try to prosecute those who are responsible for arson and assault following the recent violence in East Timor.

The recent two weeks of violence has died down since the former Prime Minister (PM) of East Timor resigned giving his post to the former foreign and defence minister, Jose Ramos Horta. This appointment has been congratulated by the United Nations (UN) Secretary General, Kofi Annan. Horta said the main priority for his government will be "restoring security and moving 150,000 people in refugee camps back home."

Islamists win battle for Mogadishu
Two days of vicious fighting in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, has finally subsided with the surrender of troops loyal to the last remaining warlord in the city, Abdi Qeybdid.

Around 500 soldiers loyal to Qeybdid handed themselves over to the Union Of Islamic Courts (UIC) on Tuesday, giving the UIC control of around 99% of the capital. It was not without cost however. Estimates suggest that at least 70 people have been killed since fighting broke out on Sunday, although Reuters news agency puts the figure as high as 140.

One doctor at Medina hospital in Mogadishu told IRIN: "We confirmed 43 yesterday [Monday] and 54 Sunday, a total of 97 deaths," although he admitted that more were being buried on the battlefield.

Abdi Qeybdid is thought have been injured and still hiding inside the city. He is one of the last of the United States backed secular warlords who took control of the capital with the collapse of the government in 1991. The government itself is too weak to maintain the capital and so has been based in the southern town of Baidoa. It is now divided over whether to continue negotiations with the Islamists, who it accuses of breaking an agreed ceasefire; talks between the two sides were supposed take place on Sunday in Khartoum.

The U.S. has accused the Courts of links with Al-Qaeda, which is strongly denied by one of the UIC leaders, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys.

Relative calm has returned to Mogadishu, with people back on the streets and traffic returning to normal. In parts of the city already controlled by the Islamic Courts, road blocks have been lifted and the cost of food has dropped considerably. Many however are wary of the extremist elements within the Courts, which have so far seen the banning of the World Cup coverage and public floggings.

Now many in Mogadishu wish peace for a city that had taken damage as the site of many bloody fights over the past 16 years.

Searchers of pig farm for pig digested human remains receive counseling
The Vancouver Sun obtained two reports relating to the search of a British Columbia pig farm believed to be the location of 26 murders where the women's bodies were fed to the pigs which later went to market.

Police have said the investigation was "unprecedented in Canadian history" for its investigative and forensic aspects. The Canadian RCMP said that over 600 people waded through piles of animal waste, and uncovered the gruesome evidence.

The documents show that about 500 police and civilians, as well as 102 anthropology students were involved and received counselling throughout the search for forensic human remains.

"Water and soil analysis had to be done on a regular basis to check for contaminates that may cause health concerns for on-site personnel." the health services report said. "The investigators had to go through a lot of bird waste and animal waste, and infections from this was always a concern.... Gloves and masks (were) worn by all working on the site."

Today in History
1580 - Ostrog Bible, the first Bible in Old Church Slavonic, was printed in Ostroh, Ukraine by Ivan Fyodorov.

1806 - Sixteen German imperial states left the Holy Roman Empire and formed the Confederation of the Rhine.

1862 - The U.S. Army Medal of Honor was first authorized by the U.S. Congress.

1975 - São Tomé and Príncipe declared independence from Portugal.

1979 - The Gilbert Islands gained independence and became known as Kiribati.

July 12 is The Twelfth, commemoration of the Battle of the Boyne (1690) in Northern Ireland

Quote of the Day

"Posterity: you will never know how much it has cost my generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it."
~ John Quincy Adams

Word of the Day

oxymoron; n

A figure of speech in which two words of opposing meanings are used together to express two contrasting qualities in one concept.

(informally): A contradiction in terms.

About Wikinews
We are a group of volunteer journalists whose mission is to create a diverse community where citizens from around the globe (including you) can collaborate to report the news on a wide variety of current events. By making our content perpetually available for free redistribution and use, we hope to contribute to a global digital commons. Got news and no computer? Call the Wikinews Hotline +1-866-653-4265 (toll-free in the U.S.) +1-202-742-5918 (outside the U.S.) +44-871-218-6397 (U.K. / Europe)
License
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License. Articles published in this Print edition were created by Wikinewsies. To view a copy of this license, visit: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ or send a letter to Creative Commons 543 Howard Street, 5th Floor San Francisco, California, 94105, USA
Audio Wikinews
Audio Wikinews is a free non point-of-view news radio program recorded daily. http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Wikinews:Audio
About Wikinews Print Edition
For more information about Wikinews Print Edition visit: http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Wikinews:Print

Wednesday, July 12, 2006	Wikinews	Page 4

If you would like to write, publish or edit articles, visit www.wikinews.org

July 12, 2006	The free-content news source that you can write!	Page 4

If you would like to write, publish or edit articles, visit en.wikinews.org

Wikinews Back Page

2006-07-11T20:46:08