■ Italy
Mob turf war erupts
The bullet-ridden bodies of three men were found in a car in Naples on Tuesday as police and government chiefs held emergency meetings over how to combat a mob turf battle in the southern Italian city. "There's a war under way," said General Vincenzo Giuliani, provincial commander of the Carabinieri police in Naples after visiting the murder scene. One of the dead men, all locals in their 20s and early 30s, was found in the trunk. Local media said the bodies showed signs of torture and speculated they were victims of a power struggle in a high-stakes trade in drugs, arms and prostitution.
■ Austria
Indecision over fusion plant
Talks on where to build the world's first nuclear fusion reactor ended indecisively on Tuesday, while the EU toned down threats to site the plant in France. "The six-party talks ended without an agreement on the site," a Western diplomat familiar with the discussions said. He said that both France and Japan remained equal candidates to host the US$12 billion reactor project. Nuclear fusion has been touted as a long-term solution to the world's energy problems, as it would be low in pollution and use limitless sea water as fuel. The idea is to replicate the way the sun generates energy.
■ United States
Kerry backers traumatized
Shocked supporters of defeated US presidential candidate John Kerry are seeking help from psychologists, who refer to their condition as "post-election selection trauma," the Boca Raton News reported Tuesday. The daily said Palm Beach, Florida trauma specialist Douglas Schooler alone has already treated 15 clients and friends with intense hypnotherapy since the Democratic candidate conceded on Nov. 3. "I observed patients threatening to leave the country or staring listlessly into space. They were emotionally paralyzed, shocked and devastated," Schooler said. "
■ United States
Twins born to 56-year-old
A 56-year-old single mother gave birth Tuesday to fraternal twins just three days before her 57th birthday. New York 1 broadcaster reported that the twins -- Francesca, and her brother Gian -- were delivered in a Caesarean procedure. With their delivery, the mother, Aleta St. James, a therapist, broke a national record as the oldest mother of twins in the US. The global record for late mother-of-twins-hood is held by a British woman who was 58 when she gave birth two years ago. St. James had postponed pregnancy while she was concentrating on her career and traveling. But she wanted children, and after two years of fertility treatment and using sperm from a former partner, the "miracle" occurred.
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