■MEXICO
Weed hidden in bananas
First bricks of cocaine were found stashed in statues of the Virgin Mary, then in a frozen shark. Now, authorities have seized a load of “over-ripe” bananas bearing 2.6 tonnes of marijuana. The defense ministry said on Wednesday the cargo was found hidden inside a truck by soldiers who caught a whiff of pot when they stopped the vehicle at a US border checkpoint, around 100km south of Tucson, Arizona. The soldiers “realized that the product [bananas] was over-ripe” and decided to poke around under the fruit, where they discovered 508 packages of marijuana weighing some 2,650kg, the ministry said in a statement.
■UNITED STATES
Military targets lesbians
Pentagon statistics obtained by University of California researchers show that women are far more likely than men to be kicked out of the military under the “don’t ask, don’t tell policy” banning openly gay service members. Every military branch dismissed a disproportionate number of women last year under the policy. But the discrepancy was particularly marked in the Air Force, where women were a majority of those let go under the policy, even though they made up only 20 percent of personnel. Across the military, women represented about one-third of the 619 people discharged based on sexual orientation. They account for just 15 percent of service members.
■CANADA
Fruity cigarettes banned
Ottawa has banned the manufacture, importation and sale of most flavored cigarettes and small cigars, which have been slammed as little more than an enticement to get children to start smoking. The law, which came into effect on Thursday, was backed by both government and opposition lawmakers. It also bans tobacco advertising in newspapers and magazines, closing a loophole that had allowed ads in publications that claimed they were read only by adults. Anti-smoking groups said fruit-flavored cigarettes were marketed like candy to lure young smokers.
■UNITED STATES
Karaoke singer attacked
Police say a woman singing karaoke in a sports bar was attacked by six other women who didn’t like her performance. The Advocate newspaper says five of the women were arraigned on assault and other charges on Wednesday in Stamford Superior Court. The other woman appeared in court on Monday on the same charges. Police say the Sept. 23 attack on the 25-year-old woman happened during karaoke night at Bobby Valentine’s Sports Gallery Cafe in Stamford. Authorities say the six women, all under the legal drinking age of 21, knocked the singer to the floor, punched her and pulled her hair.
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