President George W. Bush called the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington ``the first war of the 21st century'' and his administration labeled fugitive Osama bin Laden a prime suspect.
The United States promised Thursday to wage all-out retaliation against those responsible and any regime that protects them. Action could take weeks or months rather than days, a senior administration official indicated.
As part of the effort, the United States urged Pakistan to close its border with neighboring Afghanistan, where bin Laden operates, and to cut off funding for terrorist groups.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the United States also asked Pakistan for peas evacuated in the middle of a Senate vote Thursday evening because of a bomb threat. Members were allowed to return when bomb-sniffing dogs did not find explosives.
Tears welling in his eyes, Bush spoke earlier of a need to win the battle against terrorism.
``I'm a loving guy. And I am also someone, however, who's got a job to do and I intend to do it. And this is a terrible moment,'' Bush said, talking to reporters in the Oval Office.
Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said the administration's retaliation would be ``sustained and broad and effective'' and that the United States ``will use all our resources.''
``It's not just simply a matter of capturing people and holding them accountable, but removing the sad thousands of leads'' in the investigation of the attacks
Ashcroft said a total of 18 hijackers were on the four planes _ five on two and four on the other was an important U.S. ally during the Cold War, although relations more recently have been strained.
Bush announced he would visit New York to get a firsthand look at the devastation in lower Manhattan, where Washington Hospital Center with the first lady to visit victims of the plane crash at the Pentagon.
About 190 people perished in the terrorist attack on the Pentagon, including 64 aboard the plane.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique