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Beheading

Accused says he's willing to go to trial

PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, Man. - A man accused of beheading a fellow passenger on a Greyhound bus in southern Manitoba this summer has told his lawyers he understands the situation and is willing to go to trial. Vincent Li was charged with second-degree murder after the brutal death of Tim McLean, 22. "He is fit to stand trial," defence lawyer Gordon Bates said Monday. "There is enough evidence to put him on trial for that charge." The trial will hinge primarily on whether experts think Li was criminally responsible for his actions, defence lawyer Alan Libman said. A trial date is expected to be set on Nov. 6.

Afghanistan

Militants said to be key to future

U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates on Monday endorsed efforts to reach out to members of the Taliban or other militants in Afghanistan who may be considered reconcilable, much like what has happened in Iraq. And he rejected assertions made by a British commander that the Afghan war is not winnable. Speaking to reporters en route to international meetings in Macedonia and Hungary, Gates said that efforts must be made to determine who is willing to be part of the future of Afghanistan and who is not. Those who are not willing to work with the government must be dealt with militarily, he said.

Hurricane Ike

Body found, death toll rises to 71

GALVESTON, Texas - Searchers in Texas found a body on an island near where hurricane Ike barrelled ashore last month, pushing the national death toll from the storm to 71. The Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office says the body was found under debris on Goat Island, off the devastated Bolivar peninsula. The unidentified body was found Sunday. It pushed Ike's toll in Texas to 36 deaths. More than one million people evacuated the Texas coast due to Ike. The storm caused flooding and deaths as far away as Pennsylvania and Illinois.

Astronomy

Small asteroid about to burn up in sky

WASHINGTON - A small asteroid was headed for a fiery but harmless dive into Earth's atmosphere early this morning over Africa, astronomers said in a first of its kind advance warning. Harvard scientists announced late Monday afternoon that the asteroid 2008 TC3 would burn up in the sky, making a fireball potentially visible to people in northern Africa. Measuring between one metre and five metres in diameter, the rock was expected to enter Earth's atmosphere above Sudan at 11:46 p.m. ADT Monday, just before dawn in Africa. Harvard astronomer Tim Spahr said the asteroid was so small it wouldn't reach the ground before burning up and wouldn't hurt anyone.