NORTH AFRICA

AL-ZAWAHIRI CALLS BUSH A “FAILURE” IN VIDEO

CAIRO, Egypt – In a new video aired yesterday, Al Qaeda’s no. 2 Ayman al-Zawahri mocked President Bush as a “failure” in the war on terror, called him a “butcher” for killing innocent Pakistanis in a miscarried airstrike and chastised America for rejecting Osama bin Laden’s offer of a truce.

Mr. al-Zawahri, wearing white robes and a white turban and speaking in a forceful and angry voice, also threatened a new attack in America – “God willing, on your own land.”

– Associated Press

WEST AFRICA

MILITIA RELEASES KIDNAPPED OIL WORKERS, INCLUDING AMERICAN

ABUJA, Nigeria – An American and three other foreign oil workers held hostage for two weeks were released yesterday after a secessionist leader appealed to their captors, who had demanded southern Nigerians benefit more from their region’s energy wealth. The four men – Louisiana native Patrick Landry, Briton Nigel Watson-Clark, Bulgarian Milko Nichev and Honduran Harry Ebanks – appeared alongside Nigeria’s president after being brought to the capital from southern Nigeria hours after their early-morning release. They did not speak.

– Associated Press

NORTH AMERICA

RESCUERS BRING UP 72 TRAPPED IN CANADIAN MINE

TORONTO – Seventy-two Canadian potash miners yesterday walked away from an underground fire and toxic smoke after being locked down overnight in airtight chambers packed with enough oxygen, food, and water for several days. The company said the textbook case of safe underground mining was due to those chambers, extensive training of rescue workers and support from the rural community. Analysts said the rescue could serve as a lesson for their counterparts in America, China and other countries.

– Associated Press

WESTERN EUROPE

MUSLIMS JOIN PLEA TO REJECT NEW RELIGIOUS HATRED LAWS

LONDON – An unlikely alliance of humanists, secularists, Muslims, and evangelical Christians issued an eleventh-hour plea to members of parliament to reject the British government’s proposed religious hatred legislation. The appeal will increase the pressure on ministers to make significant concessions when the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill returns to the House of Commons for a critical vote tomorrow. The group say in a letter to The Daily Telegraph Wednesday that the Bill, as it currently stands, will undermine free speech in a society where it is vital to allow debate.

– The Daily Telegraph

EASTERN EUROPE

MANAGERS BLAMED FOR ROOF CAVE-IN

KATOWICE, Poland – British managers were blamed yesterday for the collapse of a conference hall which killed 62 people. Poland’s justice minister, Zbigniew Ziobro, threatened those responsible with years in jail, saying that snow had not been cleared from the roof often enough.

– The Daily Telegraph

MIDDLE EAST

BOMB EXPLODES AT TURKISH-AMERICAN ASSOCIATION

ANKARA, Turkey – A bomb exploded yesterday at a Turkish-American friendship association in a southern city that hosts an American air base, wounding five Turks, authorities said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Turkish Islamic militants linked to Al Qaeda have been planning attacks on American targets in Turkey. Leftist and Kurdish militants also are active in the country.

A man who is believed to have placed the bomb at the entrance hall was seen running away, regional governor Cahit Kirac said. A janitor and four students taking English courses at the association were wounded, Mr. Kirac said.

– Associated Press

CENTRAL ASIA

ROADSIDE BOMBS, SUICIDE BUS BOMB THWARTED

KABUL, Afghanistan – Security forces defused two roadside bombs near the heavily guarded American Embassy and arrested a suspected suicide attacker driving a minibus packed with explosives and gas canisters close to an American base, officials said. The thwarted attacks came as international donors gathered in London to discuss Afghanistan’s future. Authorities fear militants opposed to the country’s American-backed government may time high-profile attacks to coincide with the meeting.

– Associated Press

FIVE-STAR LUXURY STANDS OUT AMID SQUALOR OF KABUL

KABUL, Afghanistan – With its marble corridors, chandeliers, and Thai restaurant, Kabul’s newly opened Serena Hotel points to what the Afghan government hopes will be an affluent future. The country’s first five-star hotel has been built by leader of the Ismaeli Muslim minority, businessman, and philanthropist, the Aga Khan. It has 300 staff and rooms costing up to $1,200 a night, equivalent to the per capita annual income of 12 Afghans. Across town the groundbreaking ceremony for another five star hotel, the Hyatt, took place recently.

– The Daily Telegraph