NATION + WORLD
NETHERLANDS
5 Somali pirates sentenced to 5 years Five Somali men were sentenced to five years in prison for attacking a Dutch-Antilles-flagged cargo ship with automatic weapons and a rocket-propelled grenade -- a landmark case in the fight against the escalating incidents of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean. One of the defendants called the decision unfair. "Netherlands don't like Muslim people," Sayid Ali Garaar, 39, said. He had said poverty had driven him to desperation.
SOUTH AFRICA
Mandela attends funeral for relative In a rare public appearance, Nelson Mandela, 91, attended funeral services for his 13-year-old great-granddaughter, Zenani, whose death in a car accident June 11 brought a somber start to the monthlong World Cup. Zenani was an "old soul who knew things even adults didn't know," her grandfather Oupa Seakamela told the hundreds of mourners.
UTAH
Killer to be executed by firing squad Utah is set to execute a killer by firing squad shortly after midnight Thursday, reviving an Old West style of justice that hasn't been used for at least 14 years. Barring the success of any final appeals, Ronnie Lee Gardner will be the third man killed by firing squad in the United States since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
FDA panel backs emergency pill Federal health experts said a new type of morning-after contraceptive that works longer than existing drugs is safe and effective. The Food and Drug Administration's panel of reproductive health experts voted unanimously that the pill ellaOne successfully reduces the chance of pregnancy up to five days after sex. Plan B is only effective if women take it within three days of sex. The FDA is to make a decision by late July.
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