■ United States
Stun-gun deaths increase
The number of people who have died after being shocked by police stun guns is growing rapidly, Amnesty International says in a report that catalogs 156 deaths in the past five years. Deaths after the use of Taser stun guns have risen from three in 2001 to 61 last year, the group said. Fourteen have died so far this year, it said, citing police and autopsy reports as well as press accounts. The rise in deaths accompanies a marked increase in the number of law-enforcement agencies employing Tasers. About 1,000 of the US' 18,000 police agencies used Tasers in 2001; more than 7,000 departments had them last year, according to a study by Congress' Government Accountability Office (GAO). Police had used Tasers more than 70,000 times as of last year, the GAO said.
■ Nigeria
Charles Taylor disappears
Former Liberian president Charles Taylor, wanted for war crimes by a court in Sierra Leone, has disappeared from his residence in southeastern Nigeria, the presidency said yesterday. Taylor disappeared on Monday night, two days after Nigeria said Liberia was free to take him into custody. Nigeria and Liberia were at odds about where he should go and confusion has reigned about his whereabouts since the Nigerian announcement. Taylor had lived in Nigeria since 2003, when he stepped down as president as part of a deal to end Liberia's 14-year civil war that spilled over into nearby countries. Lobby group Human Rights Watch, which had urged Nigeria to increase security around Taylor to prevent his escape, blamed Nigeria for his disappearance.
■ Norway
Size doesn't matter for win
Jan Petter Johansen won the prizes for both the largest fish and the second-largest fish in a contest on Sunday -- with one fish weighing 2g and the other just 1.3g. But that was enough to win him 6,000 kroner (US$925) since he was the only one among 66 fishermen in the first-ever ice-fishing contest on Vaagvannet to catch any fish. "I almost threw the whole catch away," he was quoted as telling the local daily. `"The stickleback [fish] were tangled in some seaweed I pulled up. Luckily, I noticed the big haul."
■ United States
Andrew Card stands down
After more than five years of service through often turbulent times, White House chief of staff Andrew Card resigned and will be replaced by budget director Josh Bolten, US President George W. Bush announced yesterday. Card's departure comes amid calls -- even within Republican circles -- for Bush to make changes that would revitalize his struggling team. In the Oval Office, Bush said Card had offered and he had accepted his resignation. He is to depart on April 14.
RSS