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Trump sticks with 'birther' argument, Romney sticks with Trump

Donald Trump did not back down on Tuesday from his questioning of President Barack Obama's birthplace, keeping the issue alive on the day he is to fundraise alongside presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney. "I've never really changed. Nothing's changed my mind," he said on CNBC of his skepticism toward Obama's birthplace. In April 2011, Obama released the long-form version of his birth certificate, which showed he was born in Hawaii on Aug. 4, 1961. Natural born American citizenship is one of the Constitutional requirements for the presidency. "Is it the most important thing?" Trump asked in the interview. "In a way it is. You're not allowed to be the president if you're not born in the country." Obama's campaign released a web video on Tuesday that said the 2008 GOP nominee "John McCain stood up to the voices of extremism in his party... Why won't Mitt Romney do the same?" In the video, McCain is seen addressing a woman who called Obama an "Arab," saying, "He's a decent family man, citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with." White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday the White House was forced to address the issue last year, "but not because we chose to, but because it was such a ridiculous distraction from the important business that we should be doing here that the president is committed to doing and Congress should be doing to help the economy grow and help it create jobs." "We can revisit that but I think the American people are pretty fed up with this kind of nonsense," he said. Although Romney and Trump are to fund-raise in Las Vegas on Tuesday, the candidate on Monday chose not to rebuff Trump's suggestions. "You know, I don't agree with all the people who support me and my guess is they don't all agree with everything I believe in," Romney told reporters when asked about the issue. "But I need to get 50.1% or more and I'm appreciative to have the help of a lot of good people." Romney spokeswoman Andrea Saul said in an email on Tuesday, "Governor Romney has said repeatedly that he believes President Obama was born in the United States. The Democrats can talk about Donald Trump all they want -- Mitt Romney is going to talk about jobs and how we can get our economy moving again." In his television interview, the wealthy real estate mogul said, "I walk down the street, and people are screaming, please don't give that up." "A publisher came out last week and had a statement about Obama given to them by Obama when he was doing a book as a young man a number of years ago in the '90s: born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia," he continued. The literary agent apologized earlier for the mistake, which appeared in a promotional catalogue. Despite his views and the investigation into Obama's birth records, Trump maintained on Tuesday, "I don't consider myself birther or not birther" and said he is "not fanning flames." He also acknowledged interest in creating his own super PAC, saying, "we're looking into it right now." "We're thinking about $5 (million) or $10 million," he said. "I haven't thought about it too much. We haven't given it a lot of energy but we're starting to think about it very strongly." The Tuesday fundraiser is scheduled take place at Trump's Las Vegas hotel.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 21:46:49 GMT

Albright, Dylan among Medal of Freedom recipients

President Barack Obama on Tuesday bestowed the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, on 13 people from all walks of life, hailing them for changing the world for the better. One of them, Dr. William Foege, helped lead the effort to eradicate smallpox, saving millions of lives. Madeleine Albright was the first woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of State, and Toni Morrison was the first African-American women to win a Nobel Prize. Others who stood calmly while Obama placed the medal around their necks included singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, wearing dark glasses indoors and never smiling; civil rights enforcer John Doar; former U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens; worker and women's advocate Dolores Huerta; former University of Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt, and former astronaut and U.S. Sen. John Glenn. Three recipients were honored posthumously -- Jan Karski, the former Polish officer who escaped Nazi imprisonment and provided firsthand accounts to the Western Allies of atrocities he witnessed in Warsaw; Gordon Hirabayashi, who defied the forced relocation and internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, and Juliette Gordon Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts. A 13th winner, former Israeli President Shimon Peres, will receive his medal at a White House dinner later this year, Obama said. "What sets these men and women apart is the incredible impact they have had on so many people, not in short and blinding bursts, but steadily, over the course of a lifetime," the president said Tuesday. "They have moved us with their words, they have inspired us with their actions." They also affected his life, the nation's first African-American president noted. Referring to Doar, a Justice Department official in the 1960s who pushed for integration, Obama said: "I think it's fair to say that I might not be here had it not been for his work." "I remember reading 'Song of Solomon' when I was a kid and not just trying to figure out how to write but also how to be and how to think," he said in reference to Morrison's 1977 novel. "And I remember, you know, in college, listening to Bob Dylan and my world opening up, 'cause he captured something about this country that was so vital. And I think about Dolores Huerta, reading about her when I was starting off as an organizer. Everybody on this stage has marked my life in profound ways." Obama called the medal "one more accolade for a life well lived" and the crowd of dignitaries responded to his urging at the end with a lusty ovation. The president also injected some humor into the ceremony, beginning his remarks by noting the packed East Room was "a testament to how cool this group is -- everybody wants to check them out." The medal is awarded to those who make extraordinary contributions to world peace, national interest and security or other cultural endeavors. It was established in 1963 by President John F. Kennedy. Here is a list of this year's recipients and some of the information released by the White House on why they were selected: Madeleine Albright From 1997 to 2001, under President Bill Clinton, Albright served as the 64th United States secretary of state, the first woman to hold that position. During her tenure, she worked to enlarge NATO and helped lead the alliance's campaign against terror and ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, pursued peace in the Middle East and Africa, sought to reduce the dangerous spread of nuclear weapons and was a champion of democracy, human rights and good governance across the globe. John Doar Doar was a legendary public servant and leader of federal efforts to protect and enforce civil rights during the 1960s. He served as assistant attorney general in charge of the civil rights division of the Department of Justice. In that capacity, he was instrumental during many major civil rights crises, including singlehandedly preventing a riot in Jackson, Mississippi, after the funeral of slain civil rights leader Medgar Evers in 1963. Bob Dylan One of the most influential American musicians of the 20th century, Dylan released his first album in 1962. Known for his rich and poetic lyrics, his work had considerable influence on the civil rights movement of the 1960s and has had significant impact on American culture over the past five decades. William Foege A physician and epidemiologist, Foege helped lead the successful campaign to eradicate smallpox in the 1970s. He was appointed director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 1977 and, with colleagues, founded the Task Force for Child Survival in 1984. Foege became executive director of The Carter Center in 1986 and continues to serve the organization as a senior fellow. John Glenn Glenn is a former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States senator. In 1962, he was the third American in space and the first American to orbit the Earth. After retiring from the Marine Corps, Glenn was elected to the U.S. Senate in Ohio in 1974. He was an architect and sponsor of the 1978 Nonproliferation Act and served as chairman of the Senate Government Affairs committee from 1978 until 1995. Gordon Hirabayashi Hirabayashi openly defied the forced relocation and internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. As an undergraduate at the University of Washington, he refused the order to report for evacuation to an internment camp, instead turning himself in to the FBI to assert his belief that these practices were racially discriminatory. Consequently, he was convicted by a U.S. Federal District Court in Seattle of defying the exclusion order and violating curfew. Hirabayashi appealed his conviction all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled against him in 1943. After World War II and his time in prison, Hirabayashi obtained his doctoral degree in sociology and became a professor. In 1987, his conviction was overturned by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Hirabayashi died on January 2, 2012. Dolores Huerta Huerta is a civil rights, workers and women's advocate. With Cesar Chavez, she co-founded the National Farmworkers Association in 1962, which later became the United Farm Workers of America. Huerta has served as a community activist and a political organizer, and was influential in securing the passage of California's Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975, and disability insurance for farm workers in California. Jan Karski Karski served as an officer in the Polish Underground during World War II and carried among the first eyewitness accounts of the Holocaust to the world. He worked as a courier, entering the Warsaw ghetto and the Nazi Izbica transit camp, where he saw firsthand the atrocities occurring under Nazi occupation. Juliette Gordon Low Born in 1860, Low founded the Girl Scouts in 1912. The organization strives to teach girls self-reliance and resourcefulness. It also encourages girls to seek fulfillment in the professional world and to become active citizens in their communities. Toni Morrison One of our nation's most celebrated novelists, Morrison is renowned for works such as "Song of Solomon," "Jazz" and "Beloved", for which she won a Pulitzer Prize in 1988. When she became the first African-American woman to win a Nobel Prize in 1993, Morrison's citation captured her as an author "who in novels characterized by visionary force and poetic import, gives life to an essential aspect of American reality." Shimon Peres An ardent advocate for Israel's security and for peace, Shimon Peres was elected the ninth president of Israel in 2007. First elected to the Knesset in 1959, he has served in a variety of positions throughout the Israeli government, including in 12 Cabinets as foreign minister, minister of defense, and minister of transport and communications. Peres served as prime minister from 1984-1986 and 1995-1996. John Paul Stevens Stevens served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1975 to 2010, when he retired as the third longest-serving justice in the court's history. Known for his independent, pragmatic and rigorous approach to judging, Stevens and his work have left a lasting imprint on the law in areas such as civil rights, the First Amendment, the death penalty, administrative law and the separation of powers. Pat Summitt In addition to accomplishing an outstanding career as the all-time winningest leader among all NCAA basketball coaches, Summitt has taken the University of Tennessee to more Final Four appearances than any other coach and has the second best record of NCAA championships in basketball.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 21:45:06 GMT

Stocks gain as worries about Greece abate

U.S. stocks rose Tuesday as investors welcomed a lack of negative headlines out of Europe and hopes that China will move to support its economy. The gains came despite a weaker-than-expected report on U.S. consumer confidence and continued declines in home prices. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 126 points, or 1%, to end at 12,580. The S&P 500 added 14 points, or 1.1%, to 1,332. The Nasdaq rose 33 points, or 1.2%, to 2,871. Bank of America surged 4%, leading gainers on the Dow. Aluminum producer Alcoa was also strong, rising more than 3%. U.S. investors came off a holiday weekend with a renewed focus on Europe's debt crisis, which has been dominant in recent months. "We're still in a pattern where Europe is driving the bus," said Art Hogan, a managing director at Lazard Capital Markets. "Fortunately, for the moment there is no disaster du jour to take out our legs, so stocks are rallying." Investors were encouraged by signs over the weekend that pro-bailout parties in Greece were gaining in the polls. In addition, four major Greek banks received recapitalization funds under the nation's bailout program. The extra capital helped ease concerns that a so-called bank jog in Greece could develop into a full-blown run. Spain is also prominent in investors' minds amid fresh worries about the health of its banking system, after the Spanish government agreed last week to inject €19 billion into one of the nation's largest lenders. The yield on 10-year Spanish government bonds eased slightly Tuesday, one day after the spread between Spanish and German debt reached the highest level since the creation of the euro. Investors have also been fearful that the slowing of China's economy could cause a so-called "hard landing" for the world's No. 2 economy. But there is speculation Beijing will announce more stimulus spending in China, including a program to spur auto purchases. The Chinese government has disputed the talk of impending stimulus, said Dan Greenhaus, chief equity strategist at BTIG. "But it's clear China is inching closer to some level of fiscal support," he added. But the focus could shift back to the U.S. economy from overseas worries, given the importance of upcoming economic reports. Due later this week are the May jobs report, key readings on manufacturing and auto sales. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney forecast that employers added 150,000 jobs in May, and that unemployment remained at 8.1%. U.S. stocks fell Friday, but ended higher for the week, as concerns about the debt crisis in Europe continued to weigh on the market. U.S. markets were closed Monday for Memorial Day. Worries over Greece's future and the broader region's debt problems have already triggered deep losses in U.S. stocks and international markets this month. The S&P 500 and Dow are down almost 6% in May, and headed for their worst monthly losses since November 2011. CNNMoney's Fear & Greed index, which measures investor sentiment, remains firmly in extreme fear territory. Economy: The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index for May fell to 64.9, after falling to 68.7 last month. Economists had expected the index to ease to 69.4 in May, according to a consensus forecast from Briefing.com. The Case-Shiller 20-city Index, which tracks home prices, fell at a 2.6% annual rate in March, after falling at a 3.5% rate in the prior month. Economists had expected the index to have slipped 2.8%. Companies: Shares of Facebook fell another 9.7% to below $28.82, hitting a new low since the social media company debuted as a public company earlier this month. Facebook is trading at 22% below it's IPO price. Currencies and commodities: The dollar was slightly lower against the euro and British pound, but gained versus the Japanese yen. Oil for July delivery fell 10 cents to settle at $90.76 a barrel. Gold futures for June delivery fell $20.02 to $1,552.80 an ounce. Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, with the yield falling to 1.72% from 1.74% on Friday. World markets: European stocks closed higher. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.6%, the DAX in Germany added 1.2% and France's CAC 40 climbed 1.3% Asian markets ended higher on hopes for more Chinese stimulus. The Shanghai Composite rose 1.2%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong jumped 1.4% and Japan's Nikkei gained 0.7%.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 21:42:31 GMT

U.S. among countries expelling Syrian diplomats after massacre

Close to a dozen countries, including the United States, announced Tuesday they were expelling Syrian diplomats in a coordinated move reflecting the international outrage about a massacre in the town of Houla. A U.N. official said it's "clear" that Syrian government forces were involved in the massacre, which left more than 100 people dead, nearly half of them children. A "fairly small number appear to have been killed by shelling, artillery and tank fire which took place over a period of more than 12 hours," said Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the U.N. human rights office. The majority appear to have died as a result of "summary executions" by "armed men going into houses and killing men, women and children inside," he said. "What is clear is government forces were involved. They were shelling, using tanks and artillery. And it appears to be Shabiha militia (a government militia group), entering houses and slaughtering people in what is really an abominable crime that took place throughout the day on Friday." Syria has denied being behind the killings, insisting that "terrorists" carried them out. Syrian officials said the government would investigate. The bloodshed continued Tuesday, when at least 72 people were killed across the country, including nine children and two women, the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria said. Syria said 21 "army and law enforcement martyrs" were buried. The Netherlands, the United States, Australia, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Canada all announced Tuesday that they were expelling some Syrian diplomats. In some cases, it was just the ambassadors; in others, numerous diplomats were expelled. The U.S. State Department decided to expel the Syrian charge d'affaires, two State Department officials told CNN. Zouheir Jabbour was called to the department Tuesday morning and told he and his family had 72 hours to leave. He has been the top Syrian envoy in the United States since the ambassador, Imad Moustapha, was called back to Syria in October in a response move after the United States said it was pulling its ambassador out of Syria. "We hold the Syrian government responsible for this slaughter of innocent lives," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in a statement Tuesday. "This massacre is the most unambiguous indictment to date of the Syrian government's flagrant violations of its U.N. Security Council obligations ... along with the regime's ongoing threat to peace and security." White House spokesman Jay Carney was even more emphatic. "This weekend's massacre is a horrifying testament to this regime's depravity. The international community is united in its revulsion at the regime's actions through both its military and its thug forces, and we are ratcheting up the pressure on and isolation of this murderous regime," he said. Sen. Bob Carr, Australia's minister for foreign affairs, said in a statement, "The Syrian government can expect no further official engagement with Australia until it abides by the U.N. cease-fire and takes active steps to implement the peace plan agreed with Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan." The Spanish Foreign Ministry said it was declaring the ambassador persona non grata and expelling four other diplomats "for the unacceptable repression carried out by the Syrian regime on its population." But Annan, envoy for the United Nations and the Arab League, took a markedly different tone after meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. While he said he "conveyed in frank terms the grave concern of the international community about the violence in Syria, including the recent shocking events in Houla," he also said that Syria's vow to organize its own investigations "is very encouraging." He also said he "expressed appreciation for the cooperation of the Syrian government, which enabled the U.N. to deploy an observer mission to Syria, quickly." "We are at a tipping point. The Syrian people do not want the future to be one of bloodshed and division. Yet the killings continue and the abuses are still with us today," Annan said, according to a statement released by his office. He said he appealed to al-Assad "for bold steps now -- not tomorrow, now -- to create momentum for the implementation of the plan." "I also appeal to the armed opposition to cease acts of violence," he added. Talking to reporters in Damascus, Annan was asked what he thought would happen in Syria if the peace plan was not implemented. "If the plan is not implemented, I would worry for the future of Syria. I would worry about stability in the country. ... If we do not (implement the plan), may God help us," he said. "Words are wonderful, but action is better. What is important is demonstrate through action a real commitment to the plan and this is what the international community is asking for now: action, not words," he said. Al-Assad told Annan that "terrorist groups" have escalated operations, including killings and kidnappings, in recent days, and he stressed the urgency of getting countries that are "financing and harboring terrorist groups" to commit to Annan's plan, Syrian state-run TV reported. Residents in Houla say Syrian regime forces terrorized the town, a suburb of the anti-government bastion of Homs. "They crammed us into a room, pulled out their guns and sprayed us like sheep," one woman, apparently wounded, said in a video posted on YouTube. "My father, brother and mother died." CNN cannot verify the authenticity of the video. Months of diplomatic efforts and economic sanctions have yet to quash the violence, and anger over perceived inaction by world leaders boiled over after the Houla massacre, which the U.N. said left 108 people dead. "It's unbelievable that we have 7 billion people on this planet, and they all can't do anything about what they are seeing on TV," Abu Emad, an activist in Homs, said shortly after the massacre Friday. Horrific images of dozens of mutilated children's corpses in Houla prompted a rare moment of unity Sunday from the U.N. Security Council. Even Russia, the staunchest defender of the Syrian regime on the council, signed on to a statement that condemned the Syrian government for its "outrageous use of force against (the) civilian population." Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in a conversation with Annan, "expressed grave concern about the tragedy in Houla and emphasized that all sides in Syria must give up violence in order to avoid similar incidents in the future," according to a statement from the ministry. "An objective and independent investigation of all circumstances of the tragedy must be done under the U.N. Mission in Syria," the statement said. Yet few Middle East watchers predict the Houla massacre will break the diplomatic deadlock that has cemented itself around Syria for a year. As part of a campaign to crush what started out as a peaceful protest movement, al-Assad's security forces have shelled cities, carried out systematic torture in prisons and opened fire on opposition demonstrations and funerals. The U.N. Human Rights Commissioner has repeatedly accused al-Assad's regime of crimes against humanity. It did not take long for Western governments to call for al-Assad's ouster. But almost 15 months after the uprising began, opponents have been unable to formulate a plan to dislodge the family that has ruled Syria for more than 40 years. Unlike in Libya, where NATO-led airstrikes contributed to deposing longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi, al-Assad has powerful regional allies in his corner: Iran, Russia and, to an extent, China. U.N. officials say more than 9,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed and tens of thousands more have been uprooted since the crisis began in March 2011. Opposition groups report a death toll of more than 11,000 people. CNN cannot confirm death tolls and reports of violence from Syria, as the Syrian government limits access by foreign journalists.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 21:30:34 GMT

Beryl's waves sweep away, drown man in Florida

Tropical Depression Beryl claimed the life of a teenager who ventured into the Atlantic Ocean, a Florida beach patrol official said Tuesday. The 18-year-old man and a friend were in 5 to 6 feet of water about 6 p.m. Monday when a wave knocked him off his feet and swept him away, Volusia County Beach Patrol Capt. Tammy Marris said. The friend flagged down rescue workers, but a search late Monday was unsuccessful. The body of the man, whose name was not released, washed ashore about 6 a.m. Tuesday some six miles north of where he went under, Marris said. Volusia County Beach Patrol workers rescued approximately 170 swimmers from the surf over the Memorial Day weekend, Marris said. The National Weather Service had warned of dangerous rip currents along the coast from Florida up into the Carolinas as Beryl passed. The system came ashore early Monday as a tropical storm near Jacksonville Beach, Florida, and was downgraded to a tropical depression around midday. After dumping more than a foot of rain in at least one location, Beryl continued to soak coastal areas on Tuesday, prompting flood watches and warnings from Florida to North Carolina. Through Tuesday morning, the town of Midway, Florida, about 12 miles west of Tallahassee, had received a total of 12.65 inches of rain from Beryl, according to the National Weather Service. Other notable storm rainfall totals included more than 8 inches in Cooks Hammock, Florida, about 73 miles northwest of Gainesville; and 6 inches in Branford and Arlington, Florida. The 3.25 inches measured in Gainesville broke a daily record, the weather service said. As of about 5 p.m. Tuesday, the center of Beryl was about 40 miles north of Waycross, Georgia, and about 85 miles west-southwest of Savannah. Its maximum sustained winds were around 30 mph with higher gusts. Beryl was moving northeast at about 8 mph, and was expected to be near the coast of South Carolina by Wednesday morning and near the coast of North Carolina by Wednesday afternoon. "Beryl could regain tropical storm status on Wednesday as it moves along the coastline," the National Hurricane Center said. The storm is expected to produce 3 to 6 inches of rain in the eastern Carolinas, with isolated amounts up to 8 inches, the hurricane center said. In eastern Georgia and northern Florida, another 1 to 3 inches is likely, with the total rainfall from the storm running as high as 15 inches in spots, the forecasters said. Isolated tornadoes are possible in the eastern Carolinas, and dangerous rip currents remained likely from northeastern Florida to North Carolina, the hurricane center said. Flash flood and flood watches were posted on the South Carolina and North Carolina coasts. Flood warnings, watches and advisories were dropped Tuesday afternoon for parts of Florida and Georgia. However, the rain is much-needed in the region. According to the University of Nebraska Lincoln, which tracks drought nationwide, areas of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina are under drought conditions ranging from "severe" to "exceptional." "We welcome the rain," said Lisa Janak Newman, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency. No counties had requested assistance or reported damage from Beryl, she said: "It hasn't caused too many problems so far." In Jacksonville, Florida, the Matthews Bridge, which connects the city with the suburb of Arlington, remained closed Tuesday, according to CNN affiliate WJXT. Susan Newton, who delivers newspapers in Jacksonville's Riverside area, told WJXT that she was surprised that some dismissed Beryl, recounting her efforts battling high water. "I've been through four hurricanes out here in the 23 years I've done this," she said. "(I've) never seen anything like this, ever, and it was only a tropical storm. I was so surprised they were like, 'Oh, it's not a big deal.' It was a big deal."

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 21:26:45 GMT

Edwards jury concludes Day 7 of deliberations

Jurors in the John Edwards corruption trial will return Wednesday for their eighth day of deliberations. For the second straight day, Judge Catherine C. Eagles on Tuesday instructed them not to discuss the case in small groups or outside of the courtroom. Eagles also mentioned upcoming scheduling conflicts and the wish of some jurors to attend high school graduations. Edwards, a former presidential nominee, is charged with accepting illegal campaign contributions, falsifying documents and conspiring to receive and conceal the contributions. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine. Jurors last week asked to review all the exhibits, indicating they were in it for the long haul. Prosecutors said Edwards "knowingly and willingly" accepted almost $1 million from two wealthy donors to hide former mistress Rielle Hunter and her pregnancy, then concealed the donations by filing false and misleading campaign disclosure reports. Defense attorneys argued that Edwards was guilty of nothing but being a bad husband to his wife, Elizabeth, who died in 2010. They also argued that former Edwards aide Andrew Young used the money for his own gain and to pay for Hunter's medical expenses to hide the affair from Edwards' wife. Neither Edwards nor Hunter testified during the trial. The affair occurred as Edwards was gearing up for a second White House bid in 2008, and he knew his political ambitions depended on keeping his affair with Hunter a secret, Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Higdon told jurors in closing arguments. "There is no question it would destroy the campaign of John Edwards," Higdon said. Prosecutors argued that Edwards knowingly violated campaign finance laws by accepting the large contributions from Rachel Mellon and Fred Baron that went to support Hunter. Edwards "knew these rules well," Higdon said, and should have known that the contributions violated campaign finance laws. Edwards accepted $725,000 from Mellon and more than $200,000 from Baron, prosecutors said. The money was used to pay for Hunter's living and medical expenses, travel and other costs to keep her out of sight while Edwards made his White House run, prosecutors say. Defense attorneys argued that the donations cannot be considered campaign contributions. Prosecutors said Edwards manipulated Young and others to help keep his affair out of public view. Young testified that he allowed Hunter to move in with him and his wife at Edwards' request after newspapers began looking into a possible affair within the Edwards campaign. Young initially claimed to be the father of Hunter's baby girl and testified that Mellon was already funding Hunter's living expenses when he called Baron to complain about the situation. Baron offered to help out, telling Young to write up Hunter's expenses so Baron could reimburse them, the aide testified. Neither Baron nor Mellon appeared to know that the other was reimbursing Young for the same expenses, raising questions about whether and how much Young may have profited from the situation. Young acknowledged during the trial that he had used some donations for his own personal benefit, including paying for the construction of a home. Another former Edwards aide, speechwriter Wendy Button, testified that Edwards knew Baron was supporting Hunter and her child in 2009. Defense lawyer Abbe Lowell urged jurors to focus on Young's role in the case, saying he was a biased and unreliable witness with a financial and legal interest in the outcome. "There is nothing he won't lie about, nothing," Lowell said. Young, the author of a tell-all book about the Edwards scandal, testified under an agreement with the government in hopes that he will not be prosecuted. Prosecutors agreed that Young made several mistakes over the years, including keeping some of the money, failing to confront Edwards earlier about his behavior and falsely claiming paternity for Edwards' child with Hunter. But David Harbach of the U.S. Justice Department's public integrity section told jurors in a rebuttal argument that Lowell was merely trying to distract jurors from focusing on the charges against Edwards. "The defense is overplaying their hand," Harbach said.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 20:44:42 GMT

Another deadly earthquake shakes northern Italy

At least 16 people died, one was missing and 350 were injured after a 5.8-magnitude earthquake shook northern Italy Tuesday, Italian authorities said. The earthquake, which forced thousands of people from their homes, came nine days after a 6.0-magnitude quake struck the same region, killing seven people. Italian civil protection authorities said two of Tuesday's deaths were not directly caused by the quake. Tuesday's quake was followed by dozens of aftershocks. The U.S. Geological Survey recorded one aftershock of 5.6 magnitude. Look at high-res images of the disaster The quakes have displaced some 14,000 people, the civil protection agency said. Tuesday's earthquake was centered in the province of Modena, near Bologna. The towns of Mirandola and Cavezzo were closest to the epicenter, civil protection authorities said. Witnesses reported on Twitter that Cavezzo was about 70% destroyed. Pictures purportedly from the town, as well as a video stream from Italian newspaper Corriere de la Serra, show damaged and destroyed buildings. "People are very scared. It's been shaking nonstop for the past week," said journalist Andrea Vogt, who was near the epicenter. The earthquakes have been "a real shock," she said, adding that no residents she spoke with could remember so many quakes in such a short period of time. "Factories were full," said Vogt, a freelancer based in Bologna. "Many of the workers were working on repairs to the already damaged buildings." A spokeswoman for the government office in Modena said as many as 12,000 people could be displaced, including those affected by the previous earthquake. "Damages are very serious. The old centers of many villages have been closed down to (the) public and many little villages have been completely evacuated," she said. Authorities were setting up tents to house those forced from their homes, she said, and hotels and campsites were offering space to those in need. The Italian railway company was sending eight coaches -- expected to shelter 400 people -- to the village of Crevalcore, near Bologna, the civil protection agency said. At the time of Tuesday's quake, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti was meeting with the head of the civil protection agency and the governor of the region to discuss the previous quake. "The state will do all what needs to be done, in the quickest way, to assure the return to normal life to such a special and productive region of the country," Monti said in a televised statement. The quake response was expected to be among the issues discussed at a Cabinet meeting scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday. Some buildings that were damaged in last week's earthquake were further damaged on Tuesday, a spokeswoman said. "San Felice sul Panaro and Mirandola registered most of the damage," she added. Violetta Galia said she was afraid to remain in Bologna. "We've been having many quakes, so it's not safe to go back to work. We are having problems with communications, so it's not easy to get in contact with somebody by phone," she told CNN via Skype. "I don't feel safe -- I need to go away, I don't want to live (in) Bologna. If I don't leave Bologna, I will never feel safe because we are still having quakes every three or five minutes." CNN iReporter Martina Lunardelli, a freelance translator and interpreter, said she was at work in Pieve di Soligo, Italy, when she felt the earthquake. She said she heard "that thunder sound and my head spinning fast, as if I was drunk and could not see the others around since they were out of focus. I felt so strange." A spokeswoman for the prefecture in Ferrara province said people were in need of urgent help. "We need tents. The number of displaced is increasing. It will take time to check if homes are safe, and also people are terrified and don't want to sleep in their houses," she said. "We had enormous damage to all our factories, and there will be dramatic consequences on employment." The area's cultural heritage has also suffered, she said, with two churches destroyed in the village of Cento and another church facade collapsing. Authorities face an additional logistical challenge in helping local communities because emergency supplies were already depleted from the response to the earlier quake. Some railway routes were affected by the earthquake, but Trenitalia, the Italian train system, said late Tuesday afternoon that all had been reopened and that train service was returning to normal. Earlier in the day, some high-speed services from Bologna to Milan and Florence, among others, were running slower than usual. Northern Italy is the heartland of the country's manufacturing industry. "It's going to have an economic impact as well as a human impact," Vogt said of the earthquake.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 20:22:47 GMT

MSNBC host slammed for comment

After apologizing for questioning whether military casualties could be labeled heroes, the dust is still settling over an MSBC host's comments that quickly set off a firestorm this Memorial Day weekend. Chris Hayes, who hosts the Sunday program "UP with Chris Hayes," said in a long discussion on military service that he was "uncomfortable" with using the word "heroes" to describe those who die in combat. "I think it's interesting because it is I think very difficult to talk about the war dead and the fallen without invoking valor, without invoking the words 'heroes'," he said Sunday. He went on: "And why do I feel so (un)comfortable about the world 'hero'? I feel uncomfortable about the word 'hero' because it seems to me that it is so rhetorically proximate to justifications for more war." His comments followed an interview with Lt. Col. Steve Beck, a former U.S. Marines Casualty Officer whose job was to notify the families of those who died in combat. Naming his biases, however, Hayes on Sunday conceded he was speaking as a "liberal caricature of someone who doesn't have anyone serving in these wars" and "hasn't been personally affected by the deaths in the wars." With the remarks coming one day before Memorial Day, the conservative blogosphere quickly lit up with disapproval, spiking the comments as insensitive and evidence of what they described as a liberal agenda to discredit American troops. Newsbuster's Mark Finkelstein wrote that Hayes was "the human embodiment" of the word "effete." Breitbart's Kurt Schlichter characterized Hayes's views as an "object lesson in what our progressive elites really think about our military. And it's not much." High-profile, far-right commentators also voiced their opinions, including Ann Coulter, who mockingly tweeted, "Chris Hayes 'Uncomfortable' Calling Fallen Military 'Heroes' - Marines respond by protecting his right to menstruate." Veterans of Foreign Wars also made headlines when it released a strong statement hitting his comments as "reprehensible" and "disgusting." "His words reflect his obvious disregard for the service and sacrifice of the men and women who have paid the ultimate price while defending our nation. His insipid statement is particularly callous because it comes at a time when our entire nation pauses to reflect and honor the memory of our nation's fallen heroes," a statement from VFW national commander, Richard DeNoyer, said. Following the outcry, Hayes issued a statement of apology Monday evening. "In discussing the uses of the word 'hero' to describe those members of the armed forces who have given their lives, I don't think I lived up to the standards of rigor, respect and empathy for those affected by the issues we discuss that I've set for myself. I am deeply sorry for that," he wrote. Hayes added that he was attempting on Sunday to delve into the disconnect between those who serve in the military versus civilians who enjoy the benefits of that service - and the apparent disconnect between the two groups on days like Memorial Day, when Americans traditionally take the day off and celebrate with activities like barbecues and cook-outs. "But in seeking to discuss the civilian-military divide and the social distance between those who fight and those who don't, I ended up reinforcing it, conforming to a stereotype of a removed pundit whose views are not anchored in the very real and very wrenching experience of this long decade of war. And for that I am truly sorry," he stated. As he noted in his apology, television pundits and hosts have been known to wade into tricky territory when emphatically voicing their opinions in rapid-fire discussions. Howard Kurtz, host of CNN's "Reliable Sources" and The Daily Beast and Newsweek's Washington bureau chief, said while Hayes made a big mistake on air, his apology was appropriate. "If there's a more insensitive comment that a television pundit could make on Memorial Day weekend than that fallen soldiers aren't heroes, I can't think of it. These are people who died in service of their country, even if the military policy was wrong or misguided. Chris Hayes did the right thing by fully apologizing," Kurtz said. Others, meanwhile, came to Hayes's defense on Tuesday, saying the pundit was not being critical of the troops. "I'm not sure he was criticizing those young men and women. He was just saying that the word is overused," NBC's Matt Lauer said on the "Today" show in a panel discussion about the controversy. Conor Friedersdorf, a staff writer at The Atlantic, pointed to the controversy as an example of low-level dialogue about complicated topics on the national stage. "Our public discourse is such that anyone can find him or herself viciously denounced by complete strangers based on a single sound-byte from which everyone extrapolates wildly. This controversy is worth highlighting because Hayes' words and the reaction to them helps explain why so few broadcasters forthrightly discuss complicated, controversial subjects. Hayes subsequently issued an apology, but it's his critics who've behaved badly," he wrote.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 20:12:22 GMT

Postal Service offers $15,000 buyouts to 45,000 mail handlers

The U.S. Postal Service is offering buyouts to 45,000 mail handlers, part of the struggling agency's efforts to shed staff and cut costs. The $15,000 buyouts, pro-rated for part-time staff, are available to nearly all of the Postal Service's mail handlers, excluding around 2,000 who aren't career employees. Mail handlers work at post offices and mail processing centers sorting mail, transporting it within their facility and loading and unloading trucks. "The Postal Service is adjusting the size of its network to adapt to America's changing mailing trends," USPS spokesman Mark Saunders said in an email Friday. The Postal Service wants to reduce its workforce by 150,000 by 2015, though Saunders said he had "nothing to announce" regarding potential buyouts for other USPS employees. The offer for mail handlers, finalized earlier this week, came as a result of talks between the Postal Service and the National Postal Mail Handlers Union. In a statement Thursday, the union said the deal "is intended to provide a financial cushion, and added peace of mind, for Mail Handlers who might be prepared to move on to the next chapter of their lives." A USPS spokesman said accepting the buyout offer would have "no effect" on pre-existing pension agreements. As is the case in many pension plans, however, USPS employees receive reduced benefits if they retire early. The Postal Service reported a $3.2 billion loss for the first three months of this year. The recession, declining mail volumes and a congressional mandate to pre-fund retirement health care benefits drove the losses. The health care mandate is a major liability for the Postal Service, which doesn't have the cash to make a $5.5 billion payment that's due in August. The Postal Service supports itself on sales of postage and mail services, and gets no taxpayer funding. Earlier this month, the agency announced that it was averting previously-planned closures of rural post offices and delaying consolidations of postal plants. Some 48 plants are still set to be closed or consolidated in July and August, and others could follow in 2013 and 2014.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 18:19:08 GMT

Engine malfunction caused plane debris to fall

A malfunctioning jet engine on an Air Canada flight caused burning hot debris to fall to the ground after takeoff, an official with Canada's Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday. The incident Monday, which involved Air Canada Flight 001 bound for Tokyo from Toronto with 318 passengers and 16 crew members aboard, damaged vehicles on the ground and forced the Boeing 777 to return to Toronto. No injuries were reported. Don Enns, a regional manager at the independent Transportation Safety Board of Canada, told CTV and CP24 on Tuesday that "some sort of failure" inside one of the plane's two engines disrupted the airflow, causing part of the turbine section to fly out the back. "Those pieces as they were liberated from the engine, they came out the back of the engine," Enns said. "Essentially, it just fell out the back of the engine, fell down, and unfortunately, we had cars underneath them." He called such an occurrence "very rare," saying the last time he could remember a similar incident was a decade or more ago. Engineers would now dismantle the engine involved and study similar engines to try to learn why the malfunction occurred, Enns said. The flight took off 2:10 p.m. ET Monday, but one engine then shut down, prompting the flight crew to follow "standard procedure" and return to Toronto Pearson International Airport, said Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick. The crew requested an emergency landing, which Fitzpatrick said was standard because it gives certain planes first priority, though he also noted the aircraft involved is designed to run on a single engine if necessary. The plane landed normally, and passengers returned to the gate, according to Fitzpatrick. Constable George Tudos, spokesman for police in the regional municipality of Peel, said the aircraft returned to Toronto's airport at 3:53 p.m. More than an hour before that, around 2:30 p.m., people began reporting seeing smoke, and one spotted what may have been debris coming from a large airliner, according to Tudos. At least three vehicles on the ground were being investigated for damage. Sarabjit Sandhu told CP24, a CNN affiliate, that she and her husband had just gotten gas at a Petro-Canada station in Mississauga, outside Toronto, when they "heard a big noise, a bump, like boom." A number of vehicles in the service station's parking lot were damaged, including a Nissan Altima with its back window shattered to pieces while its owner was inside the station's convenience store. Pieces of gray, heavy material littered the scene, according to CP24. "It was so hot you couldn't even touch it," Sandhu said of the debris.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 18:16:30 GMT

Disney cruise ship rescues 4 men off Florida

A Disney cruise liner stopped to rescue four men signaling for help near Key West, Fla., a spokeswoman for the company said Tuesday. The Disney Fantasy was sailing from Port Canaveral, Fla., to Grand Cayman Sunday afternoon when it spotted the four men aboard a small raft, Rebecca Peddie of Disney Cruise Line said. The men were brought aboard the 130,000-ton ship, where they were given medical attention, along with food and water, she said. "We are proud of our Disney Fantasy crew members, who skillfully demonstrated their training and commitment to maritime protocols around saving lives at sea," she said. "We have notified the U.S. Coast Guard of this rescue and are working with the proper authorities to coordinate the debarkation of the group." The rescue by the Disney Fantasy follows recent claims that a ship operated by Princess Cruise Lines failed to stop for three Panamanian fishermen adrift at sea, despite passengers alerting crew to their plight. The sole survivor aboard the fishing boat, 18-year-old Adrian Vasquez, filed a lawsuit earlier this month against the company, arguing that its ship, the Star Princess, should have stopped and saved him. The fishing boat, Fifty Cents, had been adrift for 15 days when it crossed paths with the Star Princess on March 10, according to the lawsuit. At the time, all three fishermen aboard were alive. Vasquez was finally rescued by the Ecuadorian navy after 28 days adrift but his companions had died. His lawsuit seeks compensation for physical, emotional and psychological injuries that it alleges he suffered as a result of the conduct of cruise line employees. Princess Cruises said it deeply regrets the loss of life and was investigating the incident. It said it understands its responsibility under the law to aid a vessel in distress and noted its ships had carried out more than 30 rescues in the past.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 17:57:43 GMT

Consumer confidence falls to 5-month low

Consumer confidence fell to a five-month low in May, according to a closely watched survey that showed Americans less optimistic about current labor market and business conditions, as well as the short-term outlook. The survey released Tuesday by The Conference Board, a business research firm, showed an overall index reading of 64.9, down from 68.7 in April. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had expected confidence to tick up to 69.4 in the latest survey. Only 13.6% of those surveyed said business conditions are good at the current time, and only 7.9% believe that jobs are plentiful. Both readings were down from surveys in the previous two months. When asked about what they expected for six months in the future, only 16.6% said they thought business conditions would be better, while only 15.8% said they expected there to be more jobs. Both those readings were the lowest results since late last year. There was one slight sign of improvement: 15.2% of those surveyed by the Conference Board said they thought their own income would be better in six months than it is today, up from 13.9% in April. More of those surveyed are planning to buy cars and major appliances of one sort of another sometime in the next six months. Consumer spending is a major driver of the nation's economy, accounting for more than two-thirds of economic activity. Confidence about current conditions and the future can be an important driver of the nation's recovery. "The softening in [consumer confidence] suggests that the pace of economic growth in the months ahead may moderate," said Lynn Franco, the director of economic indicators at The Conference Board. The report came as Americans have seen U.S. stock markets fall sharply on worries about the European sovereign debt problems. The S&P 500 has fallen nearly 6% over the first four weeks of trading in May. Stock prices are one of the highest profile barometers that consumers use to judge the nation's economic health. According to CNNMoney's Fear & Greed Index, investor sentiment has been at an "extreme fear" level for the past two weeks. "I think the biggest negative [for confidence] is what's been happening with stock markets and Europe over the last month," said Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist for Capital Economics. "That appears to have been more important than the decline in gas prices." The report also came ahead of Friday's May jobs report, which is expected to show stronger job gains than reported in the previous two months' initial readings. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney forecast that employers added 150,000 jobs in May, up from 119,000 added to payrolls in April. The unemployment rate is forecast to remain at 8.1%. Ashworth said a strong jobs report could wipe away most of the concern among economists and investors reflected in the weak consumer confidence reading. But Ashworth said that the increase in those who believe that jobs are tough to find could be an indication that the unemployment rate is about to go up rather than drop; the jobless rate has fallen in seven of the last eight months.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 17:17:55 GMT

Poll: Obama way ahead in California

A new poll released Tuesday shows President Barack Obama with a wide lead in California, a state the president won by a landslide in 2008, along with its whopping 55 electoral votes. According to the USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll, Obama carries a 19-point advantage over Republican rival Mitt Romney, 56%-37%, a lead that comes as little surprise in the traditionally blue state. The survey, however, gives insight into voter attitudes in California and reveals big margins for Obama across a number of the state's demographic groups, such as women, Latinos and independents. Among women, who make up 53% of the state's voting population, about six in 10 prefer Obama, amplifying national trends that indicate a gender gap between the president and Romney, although some recent national polls suggest Romney is picking up support among women. As for California's Latinos, Obama has overwhelming support from the voting bloc with 75%, compared to Romney at 18%. Among independents, he also fares better against his likely opponent, 46%-37%. Latinos and independents each represent 20% of the state's voters. The Times' analysis notes that George H. W. Bush was the last Republican candidate to win California (in 1988), prior to the state's surge in Latino and independent voters. The survey also shows a lack of enthusiasm for Romney among GOP voters. Of those who said they would vote for the candidate, 51% said their choice was more of a vote against Obama than a vote in support of the presumptive GOP presidential nominee. And just weeks after Obama made a groundbreaking announcement that he supported same-sex marriage, three-fourths of voters said the issue was not a major issue this cycle, despite the topic being a heavy point of contention in California politics with the ongoing fight over Proposition 8. The USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times Poll, was conducted by Democratic polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner and Republican polling firm American Viewpoint between from May 17 and May 21. The full sample of 1,002 registered voters interviewed by phone has a sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 17:05:10 GMT

Facebook co-founder opens up about Zuckerberg

Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, known to many people more as an aggrieved movie character or perceived tax dodger than as an actual person, has finally spoken out. In an interview with a magazine in his family's native Brazil, Saverin -- a newly minted billionaire after Facebook's public stock offering -- talked about his taxes, his relationship with co-founder Mark Zuckerberg and life after "The Social Network." Many observers believe Saverin, who, according to the Facebook origin story was slighted by Zuckerberg as the site grew, was a primary source for the book "The Accidental Billionaires," on which "Social Network" is based. But the end result was "fantasy," he said. And, no, he never angrily threw a laptop at Zuckerberg as his Hollywood counterpart, Andrew Garfield, did in the film. It's a statement Fabio Altman, of magazine Veja, writes is instantly believable given Saverin's reserved nature. "That's Hollywood, not a documentary," the 30-year-old Saverin says in the interview conducted in his multimillion-dollar residence in Singapore. Saverin filed a lawsuit against Facebook over his reduced stake in the company, and the legal dispute was settled out of court. But despite well-documented friction over the years, Saverin says he bears no ill will toward Zuckerberg. "I can only speak well of Mark; I don't resent him," Saverin said. "His focus from Day One until today is admirable. He was a visionary and always knew Facebook would only grow if it remained true to its central idea of people presenting themselves truthfully and without pseudonyms. "That is the great power of Facebook that allowed it to transform into an instrument of protest, as in Egypt, but also as an instrument of business and, beyond that, a natural way to have contact with friends." Saverin has had little to do with Facebook in recent years. But he re-entered the public consciousness recently when, day's before Facebook stock was due to hit Wall Street, he renounced his U.S. citizenship in favor of Singapore, where he has lived since 2009. Many saw it as a dodge -- a way to avoid paying U.S. taxes on his share of the company, valued somewhere around $2 billion. He says that's not the case and noted that, as has been reported, he's paying his taxes. "The decision was strictly based on my interest of living and working in Singapore," he said. "I am obligated and I will pay hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes to the American government. I already paid and I will keep paying whatever taxes I owe based on my time as a U.S. citizen." Saverin's father, Roberto, echoed those thoughts in the article. "It was hard for me, because of the life I built in the U.S., hearing from Eduardo that he had to give up on his citizenship," he said. "But he did this not because he wanted to, but because he had no other choice as a foreigner living in Singapore, where financial transactions are more restricted and bureaucratic for those who hold a U.S. passport. There was no other way." Roberto and his family emigrated to the United States from Brazil amid political turmoil, and Saverin's registered place of birth is Miami. Saverin continues to work as an investor and partner in Internet startups from his Singapore apartment, where an office contains three, 27-inch Mac monitors on which he constantly monitors everything from stock prices to the weather, Altman writes. As for Facebook itself? Saverin still has his own profile, with more than 1 million people subscribed to it. But he uses it almost exclusively for news about his new startups, keeping the personal details to himself. "I don't like showing my private life online," he said.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 16:44:34 GMT

Official: 160 girls poisoned at Afghan school

A hospital in northern Afghanistan admitted 160 girls Tuesday after they were poisoned in their classrooms with a type of spray, a Takhar police official said. The incident, the second in a week's time, was reported at the Aahan Dara Girls school in Talokhan, the provincial capital. The girls, ages 10 to 20, complained of headaches, dizziness and vomiting before being taken to the hospital, according to Khalilullah Aseer, a police spokesman. More than half of them had been discharged within a few hours of receiving treatment, he said. Blood samples were taken and sent to Kabul for testing. Last week, more than 120 girls and three teachers were admitted to a hospital after a similar suspected poisoning. "The Afghan people know that the terrorists and the Taliban are doing these things to threaten girls and stop them going to school," Aseer said last week. "That's something we and the people believe. Now we are implementing democracy in Afghanistan and we want girls to be educated, but the government's enemies don't want this." But earlier this week, the Taliban denied responsibility, instead blaming the U.S. and NATO forces for the poisonings in an attempt to "defame" the insurgent group. There have been several instances of girls being poisoned in schools in recent years. In April, also in Takhar province, more than 170 women and girls were hospitalized after drinking apparently poisoned well water at a school. Local health officials blamed the acts on extremists opposed to women's education. While nearly all the incidents involve girls, earlier this month, nearly 400 boys at a school in Khost province fell ill after drinking water from a well that a health official said may have been poisoned. The Taliban is struggling with the country's government over Afghan schools. It recently demanded the closure of schools in two eastern provinces. In Ghazni province, the school closure was in retaliation for the government's ban on motorbikes often used by insurgents. Locals in Wardak province said the Taliban has been a little more lenient and has allowed schools to open late after making changes to the curriculum. The battle indicates broader fears about Afghanistan's future amid the drawdown of U.S. troops in the country. NATO leaders Monday signed off on U.S. President Barack Obama's exit strategy from Afghanistan, which calls for an end to combat operations next year and the withdrawal of the U.S.-led international military force by the end of 2014. During the Taliban's rule from 1996 to 2001, many Afghan girls were not allowed to attend school. The schools began reopening after the regime was toppled by the U.S.-led invasion in 2001. However, observers say abuse of women remains common in the post-Taliban era and is often accepted in conservative and traditional families, where women are barred from school and sometimes subjected to domestic violence. Afghan Education Minister Dr. Farooq Wardak told the Education World Forum in London in January 2011 that the Taliban had abandoned its opposition to education for girls, but the group has never confirmed that.

Published: Tue, 29 May 2012 11:12:37 GMT

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