Syria
Weapons deadline narrowly missed
Syria missed its second deadline for the destruction of its chemical weapons arsenal, but it may be only days away from completing the job, according to international experts overseeing the process. The Syrian government had agreed to complete the destruction of about 1,200 tons of chemical agents by April 27 after missing a February deadline, but by Sunday it had shipped out or destroyed 92.5 percent of the arsenal, said Sigrid Kaag, the coordinator of the joint mission by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
Guantanamo Bay
Cole bombing judge gives video testimony
The military judge in the USS Cole bombing case called a rare Sunday session of the war court to conclude a week of hearings with video-link testimony from a vacationing Army psychiatrist somewhere in the United States. The doctor, until recently assigned to Guantanamo's clandestine Camp 7 prison for former CIA captives, was called to describe the medical treatment plan of Saudi captive Abd al Rahim al Nashiri, 49, days after an expert in treating torture survivors testified that Nashiri was a victim of mental, physical and sexual torture.
Libya
Gadhafi son goes on trial via video
Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, facing accusations that he aided his father, Moammar Gadhafi, in the brutal suppression of Libya's uprising three years ago, was not allowed to appear in court in person to answer the charges. A militia in the Libyan mountain town of Zintan has detained Gadhafi for 17 months, refusing to surrender him to the government. So instead, Gadhafi's face was beamed via video link to the courtroom from a secret location.
C. African Republic
Last Muslims escorted from capital
Heavily armed peacekeepers escorted some of the last remaining Muslims out of Central African Republic's volatile capital on Sunday, trucking more than 1,300 people who for months had been trapped by violent Christian militants. Within minutes of the convoy's departure, an angry swarm of neighbors descended upon the mosque and dismantled and stole the loudspeaker once used for the call to prayer and stripped the house of worship of even its ceiling fan blades. Some people mockingly swept the dirt in front of the building with brooms and shouted "We have cleaned Central African Republic of the Muslims!"
Saudi Arabia
More deaths from MERS reported
Saudi Arabia reported eight more deaths from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) as the number of cases in the outbreak climbed to 339. At least 102 people in the kingdom have died from MERS since it emerged in September 2012, according to the Saudi Ministry of Health.
California
Mother stabs infant to death in park
A young mother has admitted to investigators that she stabbed her 7-month-old son to death in a popular Northern California park, police said. Ashley Newton, 23, of San Jose, was arrested Saturday on suspicion of murder. The motive remains unclear, but Anderson said that Newton had a history of depression and appeared to have self-inflicted knife wounds on her wrist. Newton remains in jail with no possibility of release on bond, police said. She is due in court on Tuesday.
Father of stowaway to collect son in Hawaii
The father of the teenager who climbed into the wheel well of a jet at the San Jose, Calif., airport and survived a 5½-hour flight to Hawaii says he plans to fly to Hawaii soon to bring his son home to California. Abdulahi Yusuf said through a family spokesman that he's excited to get his son home and was relieved to hear of his safety. The boy remains hospitalized in Hawaii.
News Services
