Nation/world roundup
Bush unaware of ports deal before approval
WASHINGTON -- President Bush was unaware of the pending sale of shipping operations at six major U.S. seaports to a state-owned business in the United Arab Emirates until the deal already had been approved by his administration, the White House said Wednesday. Defending the deal anew, the administration also said that it should have briefed Congress sooner about the transaction, which has triggered a major political backlash among both Republicans and Democrats.
Mosque attack pushes Iraq toward Civil War
SAMARRA, Iraq -- Insurgents posing as police destroyed the golden dome of one of Iraq's holiest Shiite shrines Wednesday, setting off an unprecedented spasm of sectarian violence. Angry crowds thronged the streets, militiamen attacked Sunni mosques, and at least 19 people were killed. With the gleaming dome of the 1,200-year-old Askariya shrine reduced to rubble, some Shiites lashed out at the United States as partly to blame.
NYC man in Pa. said infected with Anthrax
NEW YORK -- A New York City drum maker has been hospitalized with a case of inhaled anthrax that officials say he may have contracted from the raw animal hides that he imports from Africa. Authorities said Wednesday the infection appeared to be accidental, not terrorism, and did not pose a serious public health threat.
Modano rips USA hockey after elimination
TURIN, Italy -- Mike Modano took no shots in the loss that bounced the U.S. men's hockey team from the Olympics. He saved his best one for afterward. The three-time Olympian was benched for most of the third period in the Americans' 4-3 loss Wednesday night to Finland in the quarterfinals. Then he took aim at the people who put the disappointing squad together. "You'd think USA Hockey would be a well-oiled machine, but it's not," he said. "Basically we were on our own for hotels, tickets, flights, stuff like that."
Eight Neb. co-workers share $365M jackpot
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Eight workers at a Nebraska meatpacking plant are really bringing home the bacon now: They stepped forward Wednesday to claim the biggest lottery jackpot in U.S. history - $365 million.
The seven men and one woman bought the winning Powerball ticket at a convenience store near the ConAgra ham processing plant where they worked. At least three of the winners are immigrants - two from Vietnam and one from the Congo.
Steelworkers warn about chemical used in Teflon
LOS ANGELES -- A coalition including the United Steelworkers and several environmental groups is asking the state to list a chemical used in the production of Teflon and other products as a cancer-causing substance.
The groups have filed a petition with the state under Proposition 65, a 1986 law that requires companies to notify the public about potentially dangerous toxins.
If successful, California could mandate warnings to consumers who buy cooking equipment, outdoor wear, microwave popcorn bags and other products made using perfluorooctanoic acid, known as PFOA. Last week, a group of scientific advisers to the Environmental Protection Agency recommended that the chemical should be considered a likely carcinogen.
The chemical's sole manufacturer in the U.S. is Delaware-based DuPont Co., which also uses the chemical to make Teflon, a nonstick coating used in cookware, clothing and other products. The coalition argued Wednesday that animal tests on the chemical meet the guidelines to be considered a toxic substance under California law.
Search for survivors in buried school unsuccessful
GUINSAUGON, Philippines -- It was another day of frustration Wednesday with no sign of survivors as rescue workers tried to find an elementary school buried by a landslide under 100 feet of mud. Heavy rain forced troops to call off work, and a two-ton drill brought in by U.S. Marines sat idle with its braces missing.
Up to 300 children and teachers were thought to have been trapped in the school when a mountainside collapsed Friday after two weeks of heavy rain, burying the farming village of Guinsaugon in a 100-acre blanket of mud. Hopes for a miracle have focused on the school largely because of unconfirmed reports that survivors there sent mobile phone text messages to relatives shortly after the landslide.
From wire reports. E-mail news@thesantaclara.com.