U.S. ally Bahrain arrests five men allegedly planning terror attacks - Nigeria oil workers launch indefinite strike over pay

www.staugustine.com By DULUE MBACHU Associated Press

MANAMA, Bahrain -- Bahraini authorities have broken up an alleged terrorist ring suspected of planning attacks in this Gulf kingdom, home of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, officials said Saturday.

Five Bahraini men aged 31-41 were arrested for plotting terrorist acts against the island's "national interests and endangering the lives of innocent people," the official Bahrain News Agency reported.

Police also seized weapons and ammunition that the detainees were planning to use "for carrying out acts of terrorism targeting the security of the country and the people," the agency reported.

Afghan president asks compatriots to help U.S. forces

KABUL, Afghanistan -- President Hamid Karzai on Saturday urged his countrymen to help U.S. soldiers track down suspected terrorists in southern Afghanistan, and asked American forces to take special care to avoid civilian casualties in their operations.

Karzai made the remarks to a group of village elders from the southern Baghran district of Helmand province, the scene of U.S. air and ground assaults on suspected Taliban hide-outs in the mountainous area this week, a statement from his office said.

Dolly co-creator says her death reveals cloning dangers

SINGAPORE -- A Singapore-based scientist who was part of the team that created Dolly the sheep, the first cloned mammal, said Saturday her premature death was proof of the many dangers of cloning.

Dolly was put to death Friday, after premature aging and disease raised questions about the practicality of cloning.

"I think it highlights more than ever the foolishness of those who want to legalize (human) reproductive cloning," said Alan Colman, one of the scientists behind Dolly's birth in 1996.

North Korea marks Kim's birthday with vows of loyalty

SEOUL, South Korea -- North Koreans on Saturday celebrated leader Kim Jong Il's upcoming birthday with vows to defend him at a time of "stern and harsh hardship" -- a reference to the dispute over the country's nuclear weapons program.

Kim, who rules his country with a personality cult, turns 61 on Sunday. On the eve of his birthday, senior party and military officials gathered in Pyongyang in an annual "national meeting" to renew their loyalty.

Nigeria oil workers launch indefinite strike over pay

LAGOS, Nigeria -- Nigerian oil workers on Saturday launched an indefinite strike that could shut down crude exports in the world's sixth largest oil exporter.

The strike over pay and working conditions comes as the threat of war in Iraq and a prolonged strike in Venezuela have pushed oil prices to two-year highs.

The action was launched by workers of the Department of Petroleum Resources, a key government unit overseeing operations of oil multinationals like ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco, Royal Dutch/Shell and TotalFinaElf. It is backed by the country's powerful Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, or PENGASSAN.

The strike aims to paralyze the loading of crude oil at export terminals, but PENGASSAN is threatening to shut down operations across the industry if the government does not meet its demands by the middle of next week.