War notes
Posted on Sun, Mar. 30, 2003 NOTEBOOK
POWs from first Gulf War sought
ORLANDO, Fla. - Specially trained U.S. forces behind enemy lines in Iraq are searching for evidence of allied prisoners of war, including Navy pilot Capt. Scott Speicher, whose F/A-18 fighter jet went down in the opening hours of the Persian Gulf War 12 years ago.
Speicher, initially thought killed in action Jan. 17, 1991, reportedly was seen alive on several recent occasions, including early this month by an informant near Baghdad, according to Amy Waters Yarsinske, a former U.S. Naval Reserve intelligence officer and expert on POWs and those missing in action. Lt. Cmdr. James Brooks noted that special military units are in Iraq on a variety of missions, including searching for the Jacksonville, Fla., pilot and father of two. -- ORLANDO SENTINEL
Pope pleads for religious harmony
VATICAN CITY -- Pope John Paul II urged the faithful Saturday not to allow the Iraq conflict to stir up hatred between Christians and Muslims, saying that would transform the war into a "religious catastrophe."The pontiff, who opposes the war, made the comments to bishops from Indonesia, a predominantly Muslim country with a small Christian community.
"War must never be allowed to divide world religions," he said. "I encourage you to take this unsettling moment as an occasion to work together, as brothers committed to peace ...
"Let us not permit a human tragedy also to become a religious catastrophe." -- ASSOCIATED PRESS
Australia increases assistance for Iraq
CANBERRA, Australia -- Amid warnings of a looming humanitarian crisis, Australia announced Saturday it will significantly increase its aid to Iraq.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said his government will donate $50 million to a U.N. appeal for Iraq, adding to the $10.5 million Australia has already sent through U.N. agencies and aid groups. -- ASSOCIATED PRESS
Grenade suspect returned to U.S.
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. -- A U.S. soldier suspected of a deadly grenade attack on his own comrades in the 101st Airborne Division in Kuwait is back in the United States, Army officials said Saturday. Hasan Akbar, 32, arrived in the United States on Friday.The Army had previously said Akbar's first name was Asan, though family members had insisted all along that he spelled it Hasan.
The statement did not indicate where Akbar was being held, or whether he had returned to Fort Campbell Akbar is the only person being held in the grenade attack that killed two U.S. officers and wounded 14 soldiers March 23. A military judge found probable cause to prosecute Akbar for the attack, the Army said. Akbar still has not been formally charged with any offense. -- ASSOCIATED PRESS
Peace rallies held around the globe
BERLIN -- Antiwar demonstrators turned out in the thousands from South Korea to Chile on Saturday, spattering streets with paint, jeering outside U.S. embassies and, in one case, forming a 31-mile human chain.
More than 100,000 people protested in strongly antiwar Germany, half of them at a rally in Berlin.
In the Arab world, 10,000 turned out at a rally organized by Egypt's ruling party in Port Said, and in Amman, Jordan, more than 3,000 people demanded the government expel U.S. troops.
Demonstrations also took place in Italy, Greece, Bangladesh, Malaysia, South Korea, Great Britain, Poland, Hungary, Russia, Ireland, Chile and Venezuela. -- ASSOCIATED PRESS