News Briefs
BY Wire Reports
Sunday, February 03, 2013
2/03/13 at 2:55 AM
Peshawar, Pakistan: 23 killed in Taliban attack on Pakistan army post
Taliban militants wearing suicide vests fired automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades at an army post in northwestern Pakistan in a pre-dawn raid Saturday, killing 23 people, including 10 civilians, officials said.
Twelve attackers also were killed in the assault.
The raid came a day after a suicide bombing at a Shiite Muslim mosque elsewhere in the northwest that killed 30 people, police said.
The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for both attacks.
The Taliban and allied militant groups have stepped up the pace of attacks in Pakistan in recent months, an indication of their strength despite numerous army operations against their strongholds in the northwest.
Chicago: Murderer released by mistake recaptured
Two days after a stunning series of errors allowed a convicted murderer to walk out of a Chicago jail where he did not need to be in the first place, police recaptured the man at a northern Illinois home where he was found watching TV.
Steven L. Robbins, 44, put up no resistance Friday night as police burst through the door of a townhome in Kankakee, about 60 miles south of Chicago, said Cook County Sheriff's Office spokesman Frank Bilecki.
Robbins was sent back to the Indiana State Prison, where he was serving a 60-year sentence for murder.
Ankara, Turkey: NYC woman traveling in Turkey found dead
A New York City woman who went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul was found dead on Saturday, and police were questioning 11 people in connection with the case, Turkey's state-run news agency said.
Sarai Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, was last heard from on Jan. 21, the day she was to fly home. Her disappearance attracted a lot of interest in Turkey, where the disappearance of tourists is rare. Istanbul police had set up a special unit to find her.
The state-run Anadolu Agency said the body of a woman was discovered Saturday evening near the ancient city walls and that police later identified it as Sierra's.
The agency said she was found with a head wound and a blanket near her body. She was wearing jeans, a sweater and a jacket, and still had her earrings and bracelet.
Volgograd, Russia: Russia marks defeat of Nazis at Stalingrad
An aged T-34 tank clattered into the center of the southern Russian city once known as Stalingrad and soldiers dressed in World War II-era uniforms marched solemnly as Russia marked the 70th anniversary of the end of one of modern warfare's bloodiest battles.
President Vladimir Putin came to the city later Saturday to take part in the events, including a visit to the famous hilltop memorial complex surmounted by a towering 280-foot statue of a sword-wielding woman representing the motherland.
"Stalingrad will forever remain a symbol of unity and invincibility of our people, a symbol of genuine patriotism, a symbol of the greatest victory of the Soviet liberator soldier. And as long as we are devoted to Russia, our language, culture, roots and national memory, Russia will be invincible," Putin said at an evening commemorative concert.
At least 1.2 million people are estimated to have died before fighting ended on Feb. 2, 1943.
Tehran, Iran: Tehran shows off newest Iran-made combat jet
Iran on Saturday unveiled its newest combat jet, a domestically manufactured fighter-bomber that military officials claim can evade radar.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in a ceremony broadcast on state TV that building the Qaher F-313, or Dominant F-313, shows Iran's will to "conquer scientific peaks."
The Qaher is one of several aircraft designs the Iranian military has rolled out since 2007.
Atlanta : School metal detectors out of order in shooting
School officials in Atlanta say metal detectors weren't working at a middle school when a 14-year-old student was shot and wounded there.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that public school administrators acknowledged in a statement late Friday that Price Middle school's two metal detectors were "not operable" Thursday.
Associated Images:
Russian soldiers march by the monument to Motherland during ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Stalingrad in the Russian city of Volgograd, once known as Stalingrad. ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO / Pool / Associated Press
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