■ United Nations
Sonar hurting cetaceans
Increased naval military maneuvers and submarine sonars in the world's oceans are threatening dolphins, whales and porpoises that depend on sound to survive, a UN report said on Wednesday. The report said that the use of powerful military sonar is harming the ability of some 71 types of cetaceans to communicate, navigate and hunt. "While we know about other threats such as over-fishing, hunting and pollution, a new and emerging threat to cetaceans is that of increased underwater sonars," Mark Simmonds of the Whale and Dolphin Society said. "These low-frequency sounds travel vast distances, hundreds if not thousands of kilometers from the source."
■ United States
Bush protesters arrested
Police arrested about a dozen protesters near US President George W. Bush's Texas ranch on Wednesday, including the sister of a noted opponent of the war in Iraq, witnesses said. Among those detained near Bush's estate, where he was spending Thanksgiving, was Dede Miller, sister of Cindy Sheehan, who staged a month-long vigil outside the ranch in August, they said. Sheehan, who met with Bush not long after her son Casey was killed in Iraq, was expected to return to the town of Crawford later this week to resume her appeals for a meeting to discuss her opposition to the war.
■ United States
Bush targets Zimbabwe
US President George W. Bush has frozen the assets of 128 people and 33 entities deemed to be "hindering democratic reform in Zimbabwe," the White House said on Wednesday. By executive order, Bush widened an original list of 77 people, including Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, whose assets he froze in March 2003. "There is still time for the Government of Zimbabwe to avoid a further expansion of the sanctions list should it begin serious efforts to restore democratic norms and the rule of law," Bush spokeswoman Dana Perino said.
■ Malta
Queen gets warm welcome
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II was given a warm welcome on Wednesday as she arrived in Malta for a three-day official visit, her fourth to the Mediterranean island. Thousands of Maltese and British tourists lined the main street of Malta's capital Valletta to greet the queen and her husband Prince Philip. Heavy security was in place on the island, with army helicopters flying overhead to support security forces. The queen was received at the Presidential Palace by Maltese President Fenech Adami. She then went on a 10-minute "walkabout" down the main street, formerly known as Kingsway and now Republic Street, where she received bouquets of flowers and spoke briefly to well-wishers.
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