Boston Herald - Boston Herald

Ousted premier seeks return to power in Caymans

Associated Press — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:16:01 -0400

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A former Cayman Islands premier who faces 11 criminal charges is heading into elections with a chance of returning to leadership of the British Overseas Territory.

McKeeva Bush's United Democratic Party is one of just two parties with a distant chance at winning outright in Wednesday's vote for all 18 seats in the legislature. But no party is fielding candidates for all the seats and most observers say a coalition government is likely for the three-island territory of about 56,000 people.

Toronto mayor avoids questions about crack video

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 19:23:53 -0400

TORONTO — Toronto Mayor Rob Ford continued to duck questions Tuesday about a video that purportedly shows him smoking crack cocaine despite calls by allies and rivals for further comment.

The video has not been released publicly and there is no way to verify whether it is authentic. Reports Thursday night on the gossip website Gawker and in the Toronto Star claimed it was taken by men who claimed they had sold the drug to Ford. The Associated Press hasn't seen the video.

Cuba lifts ban on energy-hogging appliances

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 17:27:01 -0400

HAVANA — Cuba has authorized individual imports of appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators and microwave ovens, lifting a ban imposed in 2005 amid a wave of energy shortages and blackouts.

Islanders can now bring up to two such appliances per person into the country for noncommercial purposes, according to a law enacted with its publication Monday in the Official Gazette.

The list of approved items includes air conditioners with a capacity of less than 1 ton, ovens that consume less than 1,500 watts and microwaves under 2,000 watts.

US envoy in Cuba engages critics on and offline

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:10:32 -0400

HAVANA — The meeting on a sunny Havana square was a little bit revolutionary for Cuba's revolution. And for U.S. diplomacy as well.

Dozens of young bloggers and tweeters gathered to talk about their place in a socialist society whose leaders have referred to the Internet as "a wild colt" to be tamed and make access difficult for all but a few.

Internet cable from Cuba to Jamaica comes online

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:41:15 -0400

HAVANA — A new branch of the Venezuela-to-Cuba undersea fiber-optic cable has reportedly come online, linking the island to nearby Jamaica, increasing Cuba's potential international communications bandwidth and providing a backup for the main line.

Doug Madory of Internet analysis firm Renesys told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he detected new traffic between Cuban state telecom monopoly Etecsa and Cable & Wireless Jamaica beginning May 13.

Besieged Mexican town cheers arrival of soldiers

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 00:08:35 -0400

LA RUANA, Mexico — Residents of a western Mexico area who endured months besieged by a drug cartel cheered the arrival of hundreds of Mexican soldiers Monday.

People in La Ruana in Michoacan state lined the main road to greet more than a dozen troop transports and heavily armed Humvees with applause and shouts of joy.

The town's supplies had been blocked after the Knights Templars cartel declared war on the hamlet. The cartel dominates much of the state, demanding extortion payments from businessmen and storeowners, and even low-wage workers.

Penn urges US to pressure Bolivia to free US man

Associated Press — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:38:36 -0400

WASHINGTON — Actor Sean Penn on Monday urged the U.S. government to pressure Bolivia to free an American businessman detained without charge since 2011 in a case that has drawn accusations he was the victim of corrupt local prosecutors.

Penn said international pressure on Bolivian President Evo Morales could help free Jacob Ostreicher of New York.

Guantanamo hack threat prompts WiFi shutdown

Associated Press — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:38:56 -0400

MIAMI — The U.S. military has shut down wireless internet service at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba because of online hacking threats.

A spokesman for the Guantanamo Bay prison says that officials have also blocked access to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter through military computer networks because of the threat.

Army Lt. Col. Samuel House says the precautions were taken because of online threats to disrupt activities at the base allegedly made by the international hacking group Anonymous. No disruptions have been reported so far.

Arrest for anti-gay Twitter threat in Puerto Rico

Associated Press — Mon, 20 May 2013 12:57:38 -0400

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A man has been arrested in Puerto Rico for a Twitter post that threatened a gay activist and made a reference to the Boston Marathon bombing, the FBI said Monday.

Joseph Morales Serrano was taken into custody at his home in San Juan on a charge of cyberbullying for allegedly posting the threatening message on May 6, according to Special Agent Moises Quinones, a spokesman for the FBI in the U.S. island territory.

Large earthquake strikes off coast of Chile

Associated Press — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:15:03 -0400

SANTIAGO, Chile — A magnitude-6.5 earthquake struck off the coast of Chile on Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, but Chilean officials said it was not felt on land and discarded the possibility that it might unleash a tsunami.

The quake was recorded at 5:49 a.m. local time (EDT; 0949 GMT) Monday, at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), some 600 kilometers (370 miles) from the city of Puerto Quellon.

Canada abuzz over purported crack video of mayor

Associated Press — Sat, 18 May 2013 01:38:31 -0400

TORONTO — A video purportedly of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford smoking crack has caused an uproar in Canada. Ford on Friday called the allegations "ridiculous."

The video has not been released publicly, and there is no way to verify whether it is authentic. Reports by gossip website Gawker and the Toronto Star said it was taken by a man who claimed he had sold crack to Ford. The Associated Press hasn't seen the video.

Canada abuzz over purported crack video of mayor

Associated Press — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:39:07 -0400

TORONTO — A video purportedly of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford smoking crack has caused an uproar in Canada. Ford on Friday called the allegations "ridiculous."

Correction: Honduras-Death Squads story

Associated Press — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:01:27 -0400

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — In a story May 13 about suspects disappearing or dying after being in the custody of the Honduran National Police, The Associated Press misquoted U.S. Assistant Secretary of State William Brownfield as suggesting that the Honduran armed forces have engaged in vigilantism. In fact, Brownfield was speaking of the danger of communities carrying out vigilantism.

Venezuelans scrambling to find scarce toilet paper

Associated Press — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:26:25 -0400

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelans scrambled to stock up on toilet paper Thursday as fears of a bathroom emergency spread despite the socialist government's promise to import 50 million rolls.

After years of economic dysfunction, the country has gotten used to shortages of medicines and basic food items like milk and sugar but the scarcity of bathroom tissue has caused unusual alarm.

"Even at my age, I've never seen this," said 70-year-old Maria Rojas. She said she had been looking for toilet paper for two weeks when she finally found it at a supermarket in downtown Caracas.

Tropical Storm Alvin strengthening in the Pacific

Associated Press — Thu, 16 May 2013 08:32:11 -0400

MIAMI — Tropical Storm Alvin, the first named storm of the east Pacific hurricane season is gradually strengthening off the coast of Mexico.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Alvin's maximum sustained winds early Thursday are near 50 mph (85 kph). The storm, which currently isn't a threat to land, could become a hurricane in the next day or two.

1st tropical storm of eastern Pacific season forms

Associated Press — Wed, 15 May 2013 23:09:13 -0400

MIAMI — Forecasters say the first tropical storm of the eastern Pacific hurricane season is strengthening off the coast of Mexico.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami says Tropical Storm Alvin formed Wednesday. As of 11 p.m. Eastern time, it had maximum sustained winds of about 45 mph and was moving west-northwest at 12 mph.

Alvin could become a hurricane in several days. It isn't currently a threat to land.

The eastern and north Pacific season began Wednesday and runs through Nov. 30.

Brazilian must register gay unions as marriages

Associated Press — Tue, 14 May 2013 14:54:34 -0400

BRASILIA, Brazil — Brazilian notary publics must register same-sex civil unions as marriages if the couple requests it, the country's National Council of Justice said Tuesday.

The council that oversees the country's judiciary said in a statement that notary publics cannot refuse to marry gay couples or convert a same-sex civil union into a marriage if that's what the pair wants.

Builders bulldoze big Mayan pyramid in Belize

Associated Press — Mon, 13 May 2013 18:49:35 -0400

BELIZE CITY — A construction company has essentially destroyed one of Belize's largest Mayan pyramids with backhoes and bulldozers to extract crushed rock for a road-building project, authorities announced on Monday.

The head of the Belize Institute of Archaeology, Jaime Awe, said the destruction at the Nohmul complex in northern Belize was detected late last week. The ceremonial center dates back at least 2,300 years and is the most important site in northern Belize, near the border with Mexico.

Mexico arrests 2 men in Malcolm X grandson's death

Associated Press — Mon, 13 May 2013 17:58:13 -0400

MEXICO CITY — Two waiters at a Mexico City bar will face homicide and robbery charges in the beating death of Malcolm X's grandson Malcolm Shabazz, authorities said Monday.

Prosecutors said police were seeking at least two other people believed to have participated in the attack on Shabazz, who was beaten early Thursday in a dispute over a $1,200 bar bill.

Prosecutor Rodolfo Fernando Rios said bar employees David Hernandez Cruz and Manuel Alejandro Perez de Jesus would be charged with aggravated robbery and homicide.

Canada deports convicted terrorist after 26 years

Associated Press — Mon, 13 May 2013 13:39:39 -0400

TORONTO — Canada's immigration minister says a convicted Palestinian terrorist who once hijacked an airliner has been deported from Canada 26 years after entering the country using an alias.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Monday that Mahmoud Mohammad Issa Mohammad made a false refugee claim in 1987. The government later learned he was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and had participated in a terrorist attack on an Israeli plane in Greece, which killed an Israeli citizen in 1968.