A8

Stumble Upon

del.icio.us

Digg

Facebook

Print

Email

Speak Up

Military
Soldier killed last week returned home

TRENTON, Ont. - The body of the latest Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan is back on Canadian soil. Cpl. James Arnal, 25, was killed July 18 by a roadside bomb while he was on foot patrol. Friends, family, and dignitaries gathered at CFB Trenton to meet the Canadian Forces plane carrying Arnal's body. Arnal was on his second tour of Afghanistan and had already signed up for a third.

Weather

Dolly has become Category 1 hurricane

McALLEN, Texas - Forecasters say Dolly has become a hurricane and is heading toward southern Texas and northeastern Mexico. Dolly was upgraded from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane this afternoon and some strengthening is forecast before landfall Wednesday. At 5 p.m. the centre of the storm was located about 265 kilometres east-southeast of Brownsville, Texas. Dolly is moving toward the northwest near 16 kilometres per hour, and maximum sustained winds have increased to near 120 kilometres per hour.

Afghanistan

Taliban leader slain, another gives up

KABUL, Afghanistan - A senior Taliban leader has surrendered to Pakistani authorities and another insurgent commander was killed by a British air strike in southern Afghanistan, British officials announced Tuesday. A suicide bomber blew himself up earlier in the day in the Afghan capital, wounding three civilians, while clashes in the country's west prompted U.S.-led forces to use air strikes on Taliban militants, officials said. Lt.-Col. Robin Matthews, a spokesman at the British Defence Ministry in London, said Mullah Rahim, the most senior Taliban leader in Afghanistan's Helmand province, gave himself up to Pakistani officials Saturday.

Poll

Most in China happy with country

WASHINGTON - Strikingly large numbers of Chinese are happy with their country's direction and booming economy yet are deeply worried about rising prices, pollution and the gap between rich and poor, according to a newly released poll. The survey by the Pew Research Center says two-thirds of Chinese give their government high marks for handling important problems. Three of four approve of Beijing's policy of limiting most couples to one child, though it's more popular with well-off than lower-income people.

Narrow escape

Man rescued from gas well shaft

CRESSON, Texas - Emergency personnel have rescued a man about three hours after he fell 12 metres into a narrow gas well shaft outside Cresson, Texas. The man was pulled from the shaft at about 11 a.m. Tuesday. Cpl. Pam Jetsel of the Johnson County Sheriff's Department said he was wedged tightly in the 35-centimetre-by-45-centimetre shaft and having trouble breathing. Jetsel said an emergency call came in about 8 a.m. from the site of the shaft, which she said is 18 metres to 24 metres deep.