WORLD WATCH: GLOBAL AND NATIONAL NEWS

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June 30, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)--ECM World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflecting all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views.

Top global and national news stories include:

 

U.S.

• U.S. strikes Al Qaeda affiliate in Somalia (CNN)
• Leading Senate Democrat says Medicare, Medicaid are off table in debt ceiling negotiations(Business Insider)
• Senate set to work next week on debt limit impasse (NBC)
• Obama to do Twitter session on economy July 6 (Reuters)
• Has Bachmann replaced Palin in the Tea Party’s heart? (CNN)
• Nuclear weapons lab closes due to danger (Reuters) – New Mexico
• TSA dismissed concerns about increased cancer diagnoses from body scanners (RawStory)
• The entire state of Texas has been declared a natural disaster area (Business Insider)

WORLD
• Kabul hotel attack: NATO forces kill Taliban (BBC)
• Tons of radioactive water leak from damaged Japan plant (Reuters)
• Gaza flotilla makes Internet splash (Reuters)
• Democracy protesters sexually assaulted, beaten in Iraq (Christian Science Monitor)


U.S.


 

U.S. STRIKES AL QAEDA AFFILIATE IN SOMALIA
 

June 28, 2011 (CNN)--CNN has learned that U.S. military aircraft conducted a strike near Kismayo in southern Somalia last week as part of new secret joint Pentagon and CIA war against a terrorist group the U.S. believes is targeting Europe and the United States.
 

The U.S. hit a stronghold of al Shabaab, a Somali-based al Qaeda affiliate now in the U.S. crosshairs.
http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/28/u-s-strikes-al-qaeda-affiliate-...
 

LEADING SENATE DEMOCRAT SAYS MEDICARE AND MEDICAID ARE OFF THE TABLE IN DEBT CEILING NEGOTIATIONS
 

June 30, 2011 (Business Insider)--In an appearance on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said Senate Democrats would not support a debt ceiling hike and deficit reduction plan that included cuts to Medicare or Medicaid.
 

On Tuesday Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Tom Coburn (R-OK) introduced a bill that would cut $600 billion from Medicare, a proposal many thought would form part of a final debt ceiling deal.
http://www.businessinsider.com/senate-democrats-say-medicare-medicaid-ar...


SENATE SET TO WORK NEXT WEEK ON DEBT LIMIT IMPASSE

 

June 30, 2011 (NBC News)— The Senate abandoned plans for a July 4 break as time dwindled for lawmakers to strike a compromise on avoiding a government default and reducing mammoth federal deficits.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43594122/ns/politics-capitol_hill/

 

OBAMA TO DO TWITTER SESSION ON ECONOMY JULY 6
 

June 30, 2011 (Reuters)--The White House used Twitter to announce the event on Thursday and invite potential participants to submit questions.
The White House Twitter account, which has 2.2 million followers, invited questions to a new account "@townhall" marked with the hashtag "AskObama."
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/30/us-obama-twitter-idUSTRE75T4IX...
 

HAS BACHMANN REPLACED PALIN IN THE TEA PARTY’S HEART?
 

June 30, 2011 (CNN)-- With U.S. Rep Michele Bachmann of Minnesota making a splash in the Republican presidential campaign while Sarah Palin sits on the sidelines, is Bachmann edging Palin out of the Tea Party's heart?
http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/06/30/bachmann.palin/index.html?hpt=hp_c2
 

NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB CLOSES DUE TO FIRE DANGER
* Fire has potential to double or triple in size (Recasts; adds suspected cause, details throughout)

 

June 28, 2011 (Reuters) – Los Alamos--New Mexico fire managers scrambled on Tuesday to reinforce crews battling a third day against an out-of-control blaze at the edge of one of the nation's top nuclear weapons production centers.
 

The fire's leading edge burned to within a few miles (kilometres) of a dump site where some 20,000 barrels of plutonium-contaminated waste is stored at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, fire officials said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/28/usa-wildfires-nuclear-idUSN1E7...

 

TSA DISMISSED CONCERNS ABOUT INCREASED CANCER DIAGNOSES FROM BODY SCANNERS
 

June 30, 2011 (RawStory)-- Documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request show that the Transportation Security Administration dismissed concerns from its employees about the radiation emitted by body imaging machines at airport security checkpoints.
 

In an email sent to a TSA official in May 2010, the leader of a Boston-based TSA union said that a growing number of security officers had been diagnosed with cancer. To investigate the matter, she asked for dosimeter devices to monitor how much radiation the security officers were being exposed to.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/06/30/tsa-ignored-concerns-about-increas...
 

THE ENTIRE STATE OF TEXAS HAS BEEN DECLARED A NATURAL DISASTER
 

June 30, 2011 (Business Insider)-- More than 200 Texan counties have been designated drought disasters by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and all remaining counties now qualify for federal aid
http://www.businessinsider.com/drought-state-of-texas-declared-natural-d...

 

 

WORLD

 

KABUL HOTEL ATTACK: NATO FORCES KILL TALIBAN
 

June 29, 2011 (BBC)--NATO helicopters have ended an attack by suicide bombers and gunmen on a hotel in Kabul, striking the militants on the roof of the building.
 

Two helicopters shot dead three attackers at the Intercontinental Hotel during an overnight clash that lasted nearly five hours.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13953883

 

TONS OF RADIOACTIVE WATER LEAKS FROM DAMAGED JAPAN PLANT
 

June 28, 2011 (Reuters)-- Tons of radioactive water were discovered on Tuesday to have leaked into the ground from Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant, the latest in a series of leaks at the plant damaged in a March earthquake and tsunami, the country's nuclear watchdog said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/28/us-japan-nuclear-idUSTRE75Q1EV...
 

GAZA FLOTILLA MAKES INTERNET SPLASH
 

June 29, 2011 (Reuters)- - They're all aTwitter about the flotilla.
 

It may still be anyone's guess when a small international convoy of vessels carrying pro-Palestinian activists and aid will set sail from Greece to the Gaza Strip in a challenge to Israel's naval blockade of the territory run by Hamas Islamists.
 

But, mindful of the bloodshed at sea and global outcry that marked a similar event last year, the opposing sides are already battling for hearts and minds in the social and mainstream media.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/29/palestinians-israel-flotilla-i...

DEMOCRACY PROTESTERS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED, BEATEN IN IRAQ
The takeaway for Iraq’s leaders—the authoritarian tactics seem to be working
 

June 30, 2011 (Christian Science Monitor)— Ah, the new Iraq. The freedom from Saddam Hussein, the flourishing young democracy the … beating and sexual molesting of peaceful protesters. While the country may be better off without Hussein, the sorts of tactics he relied on are increasingly being used by the powers that replaced him
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Backchannels/2011/0630/Democracy-proteste...|+World%29
 


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