News Briefs
BY Wire Reports
Sunday, December 02, 2012
12/02/12 at 2:44 AM
Goma, Congo: M23 rebels complete pullout from city
Rebels believed to be backed by Rwanda completed their retreat from Congo's eastern provincial capital on Saturday, less than two weeks after taking control of the strategic city, a military official said.
The retreat, however, may be tentative after a leader for the M23 rebels said they now wanted to negotiate with the government within 48 hours.
Ugandan Brig. Jeffrey Muheesi, who is part of a mission sent by regional leaders to oversee the rebel retreat, said the rebels' pullout from Goma was complete.
"They have pulled out of Sake and Goma, and now Congolese government policemen are controlling the central bank, the governor's office and the border post," he said from the outskirts of Goma.
Beijing: China bulldozes house in middle of new road
Authorities have demolished a five-story home that stood incongruously in the middle of a new main road and had become the latest symbol of resistance by Chinese homeowners against officials accused of offering unfair compensation.
Xiayangzhang village chief Chen Xuecai said the house was bulldozed Saturday after its owners, duck farmer Luo Baogen and his wife, agreed to accept compensation of $41,000 for a house he had recently completed at a cost of about $95,000.
There was no immediate confirmation from Luo, 67, whose cellphone was turned off Saturday.
The couple had been the lone holdouts from a neighborhood that was demolished to make way for the main thoroughfare heading to a newly built railway station on the outskirts of the city of Wenling in Zhejiang province.
The razing comes a week after images of the house circulated widely online, triggering a flurry of domestic and foreign media reports about the latest "nail house," as buildings that remain standing as their owners resist development are called.
Gaza City, Gaza Strip: Hamas leader to visit Gaza Strip for first time
The leader of Gaza's ruling Hamas group will visit the Palestinian territory for the first time, an official said Saturday, a sign of increasing boldness of the Islamic militant movement.
Khaled Mashaal was set to arrive in the Gaza Strip next week by crossing the border from Egypt to mark Hamas' 25th anniversary and congratulate its leaders and fighters for battling Israel during the recent eight-day offensive, according to a senior Hamas official in Gaza.
Until recently, Mashaal was based in Syria, but after civil war broke out there he relocated to Qatar.
Seoul, South Korea: N. Korea says it will try another rocket launch
North Korea announced Saturday that it would attempt to launch a long-range rocket in mid-December, a defiant move eight months after a failed April bid was widely condemned as a violation of a U.N. ban against developing its nuclear and missile programs.
The launch, set for Dec. 10 to 22, is likely to heighten already strained tensions with Washington and Seoul as the United States prepares for Barack Obama's second term as U.S. president and South Korea holds its own presidential election on Dec. 19.
This would be North Korea's second launch attempt under leader Kim Jong Un, who took power following his father Kim Jong Il's death nearly a year ago.
Norfolk, Va.: USS Enterprise retired from active duty in Navy
The world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has been retired from active service in the U.S. Navy.
The USS Enterprise ended its notable 51-year career on Saturday during a ceremony at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia.
Thousands of former crew members, ship builders and their families lined a pier to bid farewell to one of the most decorated ships in the Navy.
The ship served in every major conflict since participating in a blockade during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
With the inactivation, the U.S. fleet is temporarily reduced to 10 aircraft carriers while the USS Gerald R. Ford is built. It will join the fleet in 2015.
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said in a recorded video message during the ceremony that a future aircraft carrier would be named USS Enterprise.
Associated Images:
The crew of the USS Enterprise, the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, stands at attention after disembarking the ship during its inactivation ceremony at Naval Station Norfolk on Saturday in Norfolk, Va. The ship served in the fleet for 51 years. STEVE HELBER / Associated Press
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