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Rise of Hate in America: Man Shot in Tucson Rampage Is Arrested at a Televised Forum

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© Joshua Lott/NY Times
J. Eric Fuller
Tuscon - A victim of the shooting spree here that killed six people and wounded 13, including Representative Gabrielle Giffords, was arrested Saturday after he spoke threateningly at a televised forum intended to help this stricken city heal, the police and witnesses said.

The man, J. Eric Fuller, 63, a military veteran who supports Ms. Giffords, was involuntarily committed for a 72-hour mental health evaluation, said Jason Ogan, a spokesman for the Pima County sheriff's office.

The sheriff's office has forwarded charges against Mr. Fuller of threats and intimidation, as well as disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors, to the county attorney's office, Mr. Ogan said.

Mr. Fuller, who was shot in the left knee and back on Jan. 8, was among several victims, medical personnel and others who attended a special forum at St. Odilia Catholic Church hosted by Christiane Amanpour to be televised Sunday on ABC.

Phoenix

Protestors burn themselves up In Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt and Saudi Arabia

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© Unknown
As thousands continued to demonstrate in Tunisia over the weekend against the interim “national unity” government, antigovernment protests spread to Algeria, Yemen and Jordan. Photo: Demonstrators face riot police in Algiers, capital city of Algeria.
Inspired by the suicide of a Tunisian man who helped topple his government, more than a dozen men have set themselves on fire in the Middle East in the past few weeks to show their opposition to governmental repression and corruption.

Che Guevara

Images from the anti-government protests in Egypt

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© Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters
"We don't need no thought control..."

The situation in Egypt remains tense with people pouring into the streets across the country to protest against the government of President Hosni Mubarak.

Heavily armed riot police have been deployed in major cities as the Interior Ministry said that it would not tolerate demonstrations.

Reports say at least 14 protesters have been arrested in El Monofeya near the capital Cairo after clashes between riot police and demonstrators.

In Cairo, at least one person was wounded when police tried to disperse the angry people.

Mubarak's son and wife have reportedly fled to Britain amid the spreading unrest.

The opposition groups have called on people to take to the streets to continue anti-government protests.

Info

UK Council Plans to Use Crematorium to Heat Pool

swimming pool
© unknown
A British local council is planning to use excess energy from a crematorium incinerator to heat one of its swimming pools, it emerged Tuesday, but critics slammed the proposals as "sick"
A British local council is planning to use excess energy from a crematorium incinerator to heat one of its swimming pools, it emerged Tuesday, but critics slammed the proposals as "sick".

The council in Redditch, a town near Birmingham in central England, said the measure would help reduce its carbon footprint.

"Redditch Borough Council, with a commitment to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, is considering proposals to re-use energy at its crematorium to heat a nearby leisure centre," a spokesman said.

"The heat would otherwise be exhausted into the atmosphere."

However, the Unison trade union has condemned the plans, which are due to be discussed at a full meeting of the council on February 7.

Crusader

US: Woman Hanged Nephew's 'Devil Dog' from Tree Before Burning it After it Chewed Her Bible

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© unknown
Miriam Smith told officers she killed the female pit bull named Diamond because it was a 'devil dog'
A US woman has been charged with animal cruelty after allegedly hanging her nephew's pit bull from a tree with an electrical cord and burning its body after it chewed on her Bible.

Animal control officers said that 65-year-old Miriam Smith told them she killed a female dog named Diamond because it was a 'devil dog' and she worried it could harm neighbourhood children.

Smith's nephew left the one-year-old animal at the home he shared with his aunt during the recent winter weather while he went away.

When he returned, he could find no trace of the dog and assumed she had broken the chain where she was usually tied at the front porch of the house.

Ambulance

Germany: UK Pensioners Drive into German Church Directed By GPS

GPS system
© unknown
Two British pensioners landed in hospital in southern Germany after their car's global positioning system directed them to drive into a church.

While driving their Renault in the evening on a back road near the Austrian border, the navigation system instructed the couple to turn right where there was no road.

"They were confused and didn't notice that the navigation system was faulty," a police spokeswoman said.

Hardhat

Najib Mikati appointed new PM of Lebanon

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Lebanon's incoming Prime Minister Najib Mikati
Lebanese President Michel Sleiman has issued a decree appointing Hezbollah-backed candidate Najib Mikati as the country's new prime minister.

Mikati won 68 votes out of the parliament's 128 seats to be poised as the new prime minister following two days of discussions between lawmakers and Sleiman.

Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri had also nominated himself for the post.

His government collapsed nearly two weeks ago following the resignation of 11 ministers from the coalition cabinet in a dispute over a US-backed tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of Lebanese former Premier Rafiq Hariri.

In a televised speech shortly after his installation, Mikati reached out for all Lebanese factions and called on them to overcome differences and participate in an inclusive unity government.

"Nothing justifies the refusal of any political party to participate" in the next government, he added. "My hand is extended to all Lebanese."

He called for an end to all political divisions in the country and the establishment of mutual trust "based on national dialogue whereby we can discuss all issues of difference far away from any insult."

Light Sabers

2 protesters, 1 policeman killed in Egypt as demonstrations spread across Middle East

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© Adam Makary
Protesters gather in Tahrir square in downtown Cairo, Egypt.
Two protesters and a police officer have been killed in Egypt as anti-government demonstrators have taken to the streets to demand political and economic reforms.

The protesters were killed in clashes with security forces in the city of Suez on Tuesday, and the police officer was killed in a demonstration in Cairo on the same day, AFP reported.

On Tuesday, the opposition called on political activists to hold nationwide demonstrations against the government.

The protesters say it's a day of revolt against torture, poverty, corruption, and unemployment. Some have gathered outside the Supreme Court and the parliament building, calling for the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak.

The police have fired tear gas to disperse the protesters in Cairo, injuring several people.

Over 30,000 police officers have been deployed to the city center to crack down on the demonstrators.

Demonstrations have also been held in Alexandria and other parts of the country.

Light Sabers

Lebanon breaks out in protests as Hezbollah-backed candidate wins PM vote

Pro-Hariri supporters hold rallies on "day of rage", as lawmakers vote to back Hezbollah's candidate for prime minister.


Supporters of Saad Hariri, Lebanon's caretaker prime minister, have held violent demonstrations in protest against Hezbollah's nomination of a candidate for the post of prime minister, a move that brings the group one step closer to controlling the government.

Lawmakers in Beirut voted on Tuesday to back Najib Mikati, the candidate Hezbollah had proposed, as a prime minister. He gained 68 votes to Hariri's 60, putting the Hezbollah-led opposition in a position to form a government.

Demonstrations were called across the country, with thousands gathering in the northern city of Tripoli, and on the highway linking Beirut with the southern port city of Sidon. Hariri, the caretaker prime minister, held a national address after the protests calling for calm and rejecting violence in the public demonstrations.

Rula Amin, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Beirut, reported that the protests were "angry", and that journalists were being targeted by the crowds.

Family

Black Mother Jailed For Sending Kids to 'Wrong' School District

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© unk
An Ohio mother of two was sentenced to 10 days in jail and placed on three years probation after sending her kids to a school district in which they did not live. Kelly Williams-Bolar was sentenced by Judge Patricia Cosgrove on Tuesday and will begin serving her sentence immediately.

The jury deliberated for seven hours and the courtroom was packed as the sentence was handed down. She was convicted on two counts of tampering with court records after registering her two girls as living with Williams Bolar's father when they actually lived with her. The family lived in the housing projects in Akron, Ohio, and the father's address was in nearby Copley Township.

Additionally, Williams-Bolar's father, Edward L. Williams, was charged with a fourth-degree felony of grand theft, in which he and his daughter are charged with defrauding the school system for two years of educational services for their girls. The court determined that sending their children to the wrong school was worth $30,500 in tuition.