■ United States
Abuse ad to show on Arab TV
American spiritual leaders from various faiths condemn the prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib in a 30-second advertisement to be broadcast on the Arabic television networks al Jazeera and al Arabiya. "The impetus for this ad was from the deep sense of moral regret that we were hearing from people of faith across the country," said Tom Perriello, co-director of FaithfulAmerica.org, a month-old nonprofit advocacy group. "We believe that the abuses are both sinful and systematic and that the moral damage of this around the world will last a long time," he said. FaithfulAmerica.org -- raised about US$36,000 from more than 1,000 donors for the ad.
■ United States
Libel victory for pledge man
A man who challenged the reference to God in the Pledge of Allegiance in court won a US$1 million judgment Thursday against a minister who libeled him in an article on the Internet. Michael Newdow said he does not expect to receive any money from the Reverend Austin Miles. In 2002, Newdow won a suit on behalf of his daughter claiming that it was unconstitutional to force public school students to recite the pledge because of the phrase "under God." In an Internet posting shortly after the ruling, Miles accused Newdow of perjury, saying he lied about his daughter suffering "emotional damage" because of not reciting the pledge at school.
■ France
Dogs may sniff airport site
Nearly three weeks after a Paris airport terminal collapsed, killing at least four people, the judge investigating the accident may order sniffer dogs to the site to see if more bodies are hidden in the debris, the daily France Soir reported yesterday. According to the newspaper, the unusual amount of luggage that remained unclaimed on the day of the accident, May 23, at Charles de Gaulle Airport has led the judge, Roger Le Loire, and police investigators to harbor doubts that the official death toll is accurate. "Six or seven people could be missing," a source said.
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