Terror suspect escaped during stop at mosque
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A British suspect in an alleged plot to blow up transatlantic jetliners slipped out the back door of a mosque after two police officers stopped en route to jail so he could say prayers, police said Monday. The police remained in the car while Rashid Rauf went into the mosque.
The details of Rauf’s escape, a major embarrassment for President Pervez Musharraf’s government, emerged two days after Rauf got away following a court appearance in Islamabad on Britain’s request for his extradition.
Interior Secretary Kamal Shah said security teams were combing the country and would report back within three days.
Congress to honor Myanmar opposition leader
WASHINGTON — The House voted Monday to bestow the Congressional Gold Medal, Congress’ highest civilian honor, on Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Supporters of the legislation, which passed 400-0, made clear the award was meant to send a message to the military leaders in Myanmar, formerly Burma, who have suppressed political freedoms in that Asian country.
Eighth grandchild for Elizabeth II
LONDON — Britain’s royal family welcomed the birth of its newest member Monday, the son of Prince Edward and his 42-year-old wife, Sophie, Buckingham Palace said Monday.
Edward, the youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II, and Sophie are the Earl and Countess of Wessex. The baby is the eighth grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
Edward said they had yet to decide on a name for the baby, who weighed 6 pounds 2 ounces and was delivered by cesarean section. He is expected to have the title Viscount Severn.
Bird flu alert issued
HANOI, Vietnam — The World Health Organization warned on Monday that countries should be on alert for bird flu because it is again on the move, with Pakistan reporting South Asia’s first human infections and Myanmar logging its first human case.
WHO experts traveled to Pak istan and were to visit affected areas today, said a WHO representative in Islamabad.
Four brothers and two cousins fell ill last month north of Islamabad, while three others nearby tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus this month. Two of the brothers died.
At least 208 people have died from the virus, which began plaguing Asian poultry stocks in late 2003. It remains hard for people to catch, but scientists worry it could mutate into a form that spreads easily among people, potentially sparking a pandemic.
Myanmar’s first human case was reported Friday in a 7-year-old girl who fell ill last month and survived.
Journalist deaths highest since ’94
More journalists have been killed worldwide in 2007 than in any year since 1994, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, an independent group that promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journalists.
The committee’s annual report, to be released today, indicates that 64 journalists died in connection with their work in 2007. Nearly half of those deaths, 31, took place in Iraq, which was ranked as the deadliest country for journalists for the fifth consecutive year.
