PERSIAN GULF

REPORTS OF SUNNIS KIDNAPPING SHIITES WERE EXAGGERATED

Iraqi security forces backed by American troops had the town of Madain surrounded yesterday after reports of Sunni militant kidnappings of as many as 100 Shiite residents, but there were growing indications the incident had been grossly exaggerated, perhaps an outgrowth of a tribal dispute or political maneuvering.

The town of about 1,000 families, evenly divided between Shiites and Sunnis, sits about 15 miles south of the capital in what the American military has called the “Triangle of Death” because it has become a roiling stronghold of the militant insurgency. An AP photographer and television cameraman who were in or near the town yesterday said large numbers of Iraqi forces had sealed it off, supported by American forces farther away outside Madain. The cameraman said yesterday morning people were going about their business normally, shops were open, and tea houses were full, he said. Residents contacted by telephone also said everything was normal in Madain.

– Associated Press

AMERICAN ACTIVIST KILLED BY CAR BOMB IN IRAQ

A woman who led an effort to help those ravaged by violence in Iraq fell victim to the war herself when a car bomb killed her and two other people, officials said yesterday.

The founder of Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict, Marla Ruzicka, died Saturday in the blast, which also killed an Iraqi and another foreigner, officials said. She had been in Iraq conducting door-to-door surveys trying to determine the number of civilian casualties in the country. Ruzicka, 28, of Lakeport, founded Civic in 2003 and was instrumental in securing millions of dollars in aid money from the federal government for distribution in Iraq. Senator Leahy, a Democrat of Vermont, said it was Ruzicka’s idea to put a special fund in last year’s multibillion-dollar foreign aid bill to help Iraqis whose businesses had been bombed by mistake or as collateral damage. “She was constantly calling us to say [lawmakers were] moving too slowly,” he said by telephone yesterday. “Just from the force of her personality, we decided to take a chance on it.”

– Associated Press

MIDDLE EAST

PRO-E.U. CANDIDATE ELECTED PRESIDENT OF TURKISH CYPRIOT STATE

A pro-European Union candidate was elected president of the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state yesterday, voted into office by Turkish Cypriots frustrated by decades of international isolation and a stagnant economy.

Mehmet Ali Talat’s victory signaled the end of the rule of Rauf Denktash, the hard-liner who has dominated the enclave’s politics for three decades. Mr. Talat won 56% of the vote for president of the self-declared Turkish Cypriot state, while his main rival, Dervis Eroglu, polled just 23%, according to official results with all of the ballot boxes counted.

“I want to underline again that Turkish Cypriots are calling for reunification and EU membership,” Mr. Talat said after his victory was announced. “I am also calling on the Greek Cypriot leaders that I am extending my hand for peace and this hand will be there until it is held. I sincerely believe that one day this hand will be held.”

– Associated Press