Philippines urged to allow wiretapping for suspects in extralegal killings

MANILA, Philippines — The head of a European Union team helping the Philippines halt extralegal killings of journalists and activists urged the government Friday to allow wiretapping of suspected guns-for-hire groups believed responsible for many of the murders.

The EU has pledged 3.9 million euros ($5.36 million) for the EU-Philippines Justice Support Program that is providing technical aid and training to bolster the country's criminal justice system. It also aims to help create a national monitoring group for killings and disappearances.

Detlev Mehlis, head of the program, told reporters and government representatives that wiretapping and electronic evidence gathering are needed to fight the country's "killing mafia."

Local human rights group Karapatan says more than 1,000 people have been executed without judicial process since former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo took office in 2001, most of them activists and farmers. The government has confirmed 156 killings since 2001.

Most of the victims are journalists or left-wing activists accused by the military of collaborating with communist insurgents. Many of the killings are carried out by suspected gunmen for hire who often operate from motorcycles.

Mehlis said it is difficult to understand why people suspected of rebellion, espionage or treason can be wiretapped under Philippine law but not those suspected of extralegal killings. Wiretapping is prohibited except for specific crimes.

"I can tell you from my experience you can only address this with electronic evidence through wiretapping, sophisticated methods, sophisticated crime intelligence," he said.

Mehlis also said judicial procedures need to be simplified, loopholes allowing cases to drag on for years should be plugged, and witness protection must be strengthened.

New President Benigno Aquino III, who took office Wednesday, has vowed to jail perpetrators and seek justice for hundreds of victims of extralegal killings.

Amnesty International, in a letter to Aquino, called for the immediate signing of a U.N. treaty on enforced disappearances, and the creation of a presidential commission to review all reported cases of extralegal killings and disappearances.

A media watchdog, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, said more than 100 journalists and media employees were killed in the nine years under Arroyo, sullying the image of the country, which prides itself on having among the freest media in Southeast Asia.

In the world's deadliest single assault on media employees, at least 30 reporters and their staff were among 57 people massacred Nov. 30 in the southern Philippines. The victims were in a convoy of vehicles targeted in political violence before the May national elections. (Associated Press - Canadian Press)


Link: http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5iSCbuaXI2Bjlkr9AgF0DfPg4Zx8A

US Navy Sees Mercy Missions Helping Image: AP

In this image released by the U.S. Navy, U.S. Navy Admiral Robert F. Willard, right, accepts a gift after a ceremony attended by Republic of Marshall Islands President Kessai Note, second right, and First Lady Mary N. Note, marking the visit of USS Peleliu in Majuro, Marshall Islands on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2007. Such humanitarian missions are becoming a core part of the Navy's operations. Commanders say they contribute to security by strengthening U.S. ties with other countries and helping weak, impoverished nations. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy, Matthew Jackson)

MAJURO, Marshall Islands — Hellenty Phillips' 6-year-old daughter Marian had a piercing earache, but her family couldn't afford to pay $5 for her to see a doctor.

So Phillips turned to doctors and nurses visiting her tiny Pacific island nation on a 10-day humanitarian mission organized by the U.S. Navy. For free, they diagnosed Marian's ear infection and gave her ear drops and Tylenol.

Such scenes are being repeated across the Pacific and Latin America this year as the Navy deploys two ships to nearly 20 poor nations to treat ailments and repair infrastructure.

Behind the bandages and new school roofs is the hope patients and nations receiving care will become better friends of the United States.

Military commanders also hope the assistance will bolster weaker nations plagued by poverty and unemployment, preventing them from becoming breeding grounds for extremist ideologies and terrorists.

"It's part of raising the bar throughout the region, raising the prosperity," said Adm. Robert F. Willard, Pacific Fleet commander, during a visit to the Marshalls, a former U.S. territory, to see the work on the ground. "There are real strategic benefits to what we're doing."

Willard told sailors such missions would become an annual event for the Pacific Fleet and a core part of the Navy's operations in coming years. U.S. commanders in the Middle East and elsewhere also are considering using the humanitarian ships to help boost security in their regions.

On Majuro Atoll, Phillips and her daughter Marian visited a makeshift clinic that one of the USS Peleliu's medical teams set up under tents on a converted tennis court.

Chinilla T. Pedro, who interpreted for Phillips and others seeking care, said some learned of the services by word of mouth.

"At the beginning today, they were kind of shy. They were coming around asking us what is going on? Do we have to pay $5? We said no, treatment is free here, so slowly they started coming around," Pedro said.

Such clinics generally serve several hundred people per day. Those needing operations are referred to the Peleliu, where surgeons can repair hernias and perform cataract surgery.

The amphibious assault ship also has construction engineers on board to do infrastructure repairs. One team on the remote atoll of Arno Arno in Marshalls worked to replace the roof on a schoolhouse for 80 students in grades 1 through 8.

At the end of the Peleliu's five-nation tour this month, its 180 doctors, nurses and other professionals will have treated some 30,000 people.

Its infrastructure projects in the countries visited — the Philippines, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and the Marshalls — are expected to affect the lives of 100,000 people.

Navy sailors have long done community service in their various ports of call in both rich and poor countries. But sending ships on monthlong missions takes military humanitarian work to a new level.
The strategic potential of such deployments dramatically came to light when the U.S. Pacific Command sent ships and planes to deliver food, tents, and medical care for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.

The assistance lifted U.S. approval ratings in predominantly Muslim Indonesia to 38 percent in 2005 from just 15 percent two years earlier, according to a poll by the Pew Global Attitudes Project.

Indonesian opinion of the U.S. declined again last year, with the Pew poll showing only 30 percent of respondents had a favorable view of the U.S. But the rate was still above its low.

The Pacific Fleet followed up last year by dispatching the USNS Mercy hospital back to Indonesia's tsunami-ravaged Aceh province.

The white-hulled vessel also stopped in places unaffected by the giant waves, like the southern Philippines, where U.S. forces are helping the Philippine Army fight insurgents linked to al-Qaida.

This year, the Navy sent the Atlantic Fleet's hospital ship, the USNS Comfort, on a four-month, 12-country voyage to Latin America.

The trip including stops in Colombia, Ecuador and Nicaragua. It's expected to treat some 85,000 patients with free vaccinations, eye care, surgeries and other procedures.

Willard said Central Command leaders — who oversee the U.S. military in the Middle East and Central Asia — want to run a similar mission in their area, as do officials at the European Command, which has responsibility for Europe and Africa. Each mission costs an average of $20 million, the admiral said.

"These aren't trivial missions and they're expensive. But we're willing to pay," Willard told several hundred USS Peleliu crew members as the ship sat anchored in a lagoon off the Marshallese capital.

The idea is expanding beyond the Navy.

The Pacific Command this summer tasked the Air Force with sending doctors, nurses and technicians to three remote Pacific island nations. A C-17 cargo jet flew down to Vanuatu, Kiribati and Nauru with 50 medical personnel for 10 days in late July.

"What better way to help improve our image, if you will, and to create friendships, than through aiding people with medical problems?" asked Lt. Gen. Loyd S. "Chip" Utterback, 13th Air Force commander. (Audrey McAvoy,AP)

Iraqi PM: Criticism 'signals' militants

An injured man is treated in hospital in the city of Baqouba, some 60 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2007. (AP Photo)

BAGHDAD - Iraq's beleaguered prime minister accused his American critics on Sunday of underestimating how hard it is to rebuild his country and failing to appreciate his government's achievements such as stopping the civil and sectarian war.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said told reporters that some of the criticism from Washington sends "signals to terrorists luring them into thinking that the security situation in the country is not good." He offered no specific examples.

He also said U.S. critics may not know "the size of the destruction that Iraq passed through" and do not appreciate "the big role of the Iraqi government and its achievements, such as stopping the civil and sectarian war."

The Democratic-controlled Congress is growing increasingly frustrated with the slow pace of political reform in Iraq. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, have called for al-Maliki to be replaced.

U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker and the top American military commander, Gen. David Petraeus, are to report to Congress during the week of Sept. 10 on the degree of progress achieved since President Bush ordered nearly 30,000 more troops to Iraq.

A draft report by the Government Accountability Office concluded Iraq has satisfied only three of 18 benchmarks set by Congress for measuring progress and partially met two others.

None of those five benchmarks are the high-profile political issues such as passage of a national oil revenue sharing law that the U.S. has said are critical to Iraq's future.

During an interview broadcast Sunday by Iraqi state television, Crocker also urged patience with the Iraqis as they try to reach power-sharing agreements among Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.

"After 35 years of injustice under Saddam Hussein, there are some problems since liberation and the problems of 40 years cannot be solved in a year or two," Crocker said, speaking in Arabic. "What is important is that there is progress."

Separately, al-Maliki ordered what he said would be an unbiased investigation into last week's deadly clashes surrounding a Shiite religious celebration in Karbala, which many have blamed on the Mahdi Army militia of anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Al-Sadr has himself demanded an investigation, while his followers have condemned the arrests of more than 200 people in Karbala — many of them supporters of the firebrand cleric. The bloodshed in Karbala saw more than 50 people killed and hundreds injured.

Al-Sadr, who has denied that the Mahdi Army provoked the confrontation, announced a surprise six-month suspension of the militia's activities last Wednesday following the fighting in Karbala, in an apparent attempt to deflect criticism.

"After the procrastination we had seen in the past two days, we warn the Iraqi government and the executive authorities in Karbala if they don't open a fair, neutral and quick investigation, the Sadr office will be obliged to take unspecified measures," spokesman Sheik Salah al-Obeidi said in Najaf.

Though the Iraqi government and U.S. commanders have praised al-Sadr's move to stand down his militia, security forces have been keeping the Mahdi Army under pressure, saying they are focusing on breakaway factions believed to be receiving weapons, training and money from Iran — a charge that Iranians deny.

A statement from Sadr's office said that more than 200 al-Sadr followers have been detained in the past three days in Karbala province, making al-Maliki's praise of the decision to freeze the Mahdi Army nothing more than "ink on paper."

Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Raid Shaker, commander of Karbala police, said 300 detainees are being questioned over the Karbala incident.

Jawad al-Hasnawi, a Sadrist member of Karbala's provincial council, accused the prime minister of reneging on promises to stop detaining people in the Karbala violence: "They have taken us back to the era of the former dictatorship."

Elsewhere, military spokesman Rear Admiral Mark Fox confirmed Sunday that U.S. forces arrested six people in a raid Thursday at the al-Sabah state-run newspaper in Baghdad. Fox said the military staged the raid on "actionable intelligence" and found illegal weapons when they searched the facility.

In the southern city of Basra, an Iraqi commander said that British forces would officially hand over its base at a palace complex within a few days.

"Iraqi forces are already deployed and concentrated in the palace," General Mohan al Fireji said at a press conference. "The Iraqi forces are ready to take security responsibility in Basra."

Following the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, Britain controlled security across southern Iraq, but has since handed over three of four provinces to Iraqi forces. Britain's Ministry of Defense has previously said it hopes to hand security responsibility for Basra, the last remaining province, over to Iraqi forces sometime this autumn.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has consistently refused to set a timetable for the withdrawal of British troops from the country, but Iraqi forces could take control of the country's second-largest city as soon as October, Britain's Sunday Times reported, citing unidentified government sources. (BASSEM MROUE, Associated Press Writer)

US Sen. Larry Craig Resigns: AP

BOISE, Idaho - In a subdued ending to a week of startling political theater, Sen. Larry Craig announced his resignation Saturday, bowing to pressure from fellow Republicans worried about damage from his arrest and guilty plea in a gay sex sting.

"I apologize for what I have caused," Craig said, his wife Suzanne and two of their three children at his side with a historic Boise train station as backdrop. "I am deeply sorry."

Craig, 62, said he would resign effective Sept. 30, ending a career in Congress spanning a quarter-century.

Making no specific mention of the incident that triggered his disgrace in his remarks, he spoke for under six minutes and took no questions.

Among those attending was Republican Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter, who will appoint a successor for the remaining 15 months of Craig's term.

It was a relatively quick end to a drama that began Monday with the stunning disclosure that Craig had pleaded guilty to a reduced charge following his arrest June 11 in a Minneapolis airport men's room.

Craig at first tried to hold on to his position, contending in a public appearance on Tuesday that he had done nothing inappropriate and that his only mistake was pleading guilty Aug. 1 to the misdemeanor charge.

But a growing chorus of leading GOP leaders called for him to step down to spare the party further embarrassment and possible harm in next year's elections.

Otter said Saturday he has not chosen a replacement, although several Republicans familiar with internal deliberations said he favored Republican Lt. Gov. Jim Risch.

Otter called speculation that he has made a choice "dead wrong" and declined to say when he would fill the seat.

Craig said he would remain in the Senate until Sept. 30 in hopes of providing a smooth transition for his staff and whoever is chosen as his successor.

President Bush called Craig from the White House after the senator's announcement and told him he knew it was a difficult decision to make, said White House spokesman Scott Stanzel.

"Senator Craig made the right decision for himself, for his family, his constituents and the United States Senate," Stanzel said.

Craig was arrested June 11 in a police undercover vice operation. The arresting officer, Sgt. Dave Karsnia, said in his report that the restroom where he encountered Craig is a known location for homosexual activity.

Craig has faced rumors about his sexuality since the 1980s. He has called assertions that he has engaged in gay sex ridiculous.

"I am not gay. I never have been gay," Craig said defiantly after a news conference Tuesday. He said he had kept the incident from aides, friends and family and pleaded guilty "in hopes of making it go away."

Other lawmakers embroiled in sex scandals also have resigned from Congress, albeit usually at the end of scenarios that took longer to play out than the one that claimed Craig.

Former Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., quit last fall over sexually explicit Internet communications with male pages who had worked on Capitol Hill.

Sen. Bob Packwood, R-Ore., resigned in 1995 amid allegations he had made unwanted sexual advances to 17 female employees and colleagues and altered his personal diaries to obstruct an ethics investigation.

On Saturday, Craig said he would pursue legal options to clear his name. He has retained Billy Martin, a Washington lawyer who represented Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick in his dogfighting case, to pursue his legal options. Washington lawyer Stan Brand will represent Craig before the Senate ethics committee, said spokesman Dan Whiting.

"The people of Idaho deserve a senator who can devote 100 percent of his time and effort to the critical issues of our state and of our nation," Craig said. "I have little control over what people choose to believe. But clearly my name is important to me, and my family is so very important also."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Craig "made a difficult decision, but the right one."

"It is my hope he will be remembered not for this, but for his three decades of dedicated public service," McConnell said.

McConnell had been one of Craig's harshest critics, calling his actions "unforgivable."

Some Idaho residents who attended Craig's public resignation said it felt like a "political funeral."

Bayard Gregory, from Boise, said Craig should have been more forthright after his arrest.

"It's a horribly embarrassing experience to go through," Gregory said. "But if it were me, and I had done nothing wrong, I wouldn't have pleaded guilty."

Craig spokesman Sidney Smith said he did not know whether Craig would return to Washington on Tuesday, the start of the post-Labor Day congressional session.

"We haven't decided that yet, whether he's going to return or not," Smith said.

Craig represented Idaho in Congress for more than a quarter-century, including 17 years in the Senate. He was up for re-election next year.

Republicans, worried about the scandal's effect on next year's election, suffered a further setback Friday when veteran Republican Sen. John Warner of Virginia announced he will retire rather than seek a sixth term. Democrats captured Virginia's other Senate seat from the GOP in the 2006 election.

Craig opposes gay marriage and has a strong record against gay rights. He was a leading voice in the Senate on gun issues and Western lands. Craig chaired the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and was a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, where he was adept at securing federal money for Idaho projects.

A fiscal and social conservative, Craig sometimes broke with his party, notably on immigration, where he pushed changes that many in his party said offered "amnesty" to illegal immigrants.

Much of the impetus behind Craig's push to ease bureaucratic hurdles to immigrant farm workers stemmed from his background as a rancher and the state's large rural, farming community.(AP)

US Sen. Larry Craig Plans To Resign From Senate: AP

BOISE, Idaho - Idaho Republican Sen. Larry Craig's decision to quit spares his party the embarrassment of an indefinitely prolonged scandal following his arrest during a sex sting in a Minneapolis airport bathroom.

Craig will announce his resignation, effective Sept. 30, at a news conference in Boise Saturday morning, GOP officials in Idaho and Washington told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Still, opting to wait a month before officially bowing out raises questions of what Craig hopes to accomplish in Washington once the post-Labor Day session begins.

Word of the resignation came four days after disclosure that Craig had pleaded guilty to a reduced misdemeanor charge arising out of his June 11 arrest during a lewd-conduct investigation at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

Craig's regional director in Boise, Will Hart, declined to say if the senator will appear in Senate chambers Tuesday. Craig, should he show up, could continue to be a liability for his party as it tries to shed negative publicity, said Jasper LiCalzi, a professor of political economy at Albertson College of Idaho in Caldwell.

"If he's trying to walk into the Senate chamber, everybody is going to be following him," LiCalzi said. "I've been surprised by everything — this is one more."

The three-term Republican senator had maintained he did nothing wrong — except for making the guilty plea without consulting a lawyer. But he found almost no support among Republicans in his home state or Washington.

Although several Republicans familiar with internal deliberations said Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter favored Lt. Gov. Jim Risch as a replacement, both Otter aides and Risch said no decision had been made.

"I have not been promised the job of U.S. senator, nor has there even been a hint that the governor would appoint me to that position," Risch told the AP. "At this point in time, that discussion is very premature."

Mark Warbis, a spokesman for Otter, said the governor would not comment until he hears from Craig.

Craig has been out of public view since Tuesday, when he declared defiantly at a Boise news conference: "I am not gay. I never have been gay." But Republican sources in Idaho said he spent Friday making calls to top party officials, including the governor, gauging their support.

There has been virtually none publicly.

GOP lawmakers stripped Craig of leadership posts Wednesday, a day after calling for an investigation of Craig's actions by the Senate Ethics Committee. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called Craig's conduct "unforgivable" and acknowledged many in the rank and file thought Craig should resign.

Craig, 62, has represented Idaho in Congress for more than a quarter-century and was up for re-election next year.

Larry LaRocco, a former Democratic House member who is campaigning for Craig's seat in 2008, said, "Obviously, change is in the air. I represent that change, and based on the last few days, people are really looking for that change."

Still, Idaho remains one of the nation's most reliably Republican states. The GOP controls the statehouse and all four seats in Congress, and Bush carried the state in 2004 with 68 percent of the vote.

Risch, the lieutenant governor, served for seven months as governor last year after former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne was named interior secretary. Risch had said earlier he was interested in Craig's Senate seat if Craig did not seek re-election in 2008.

Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, also had been mentioned as a possible replacement for Craig, but the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because Craig has not resigned, said Otter would probably choose Risch.(AP)

Bush Anuncia Medidas Para Aliviar Impactos Hipotecarios: AP

WASHINGTON - El presidente George W. Bush anunció el viernes medidas para ayudar a los propietarios que enfrentan la amenaza de perder sus viviendas por incumplimientos de pagos, en el primer esfuerzo del gobierno por lidiar con la crisis hipotecaria.

Las iniciativas, que no están destinadas a rescatar a prestamistas ni especuladores, se dirigen a ayudar a los propietarios con hipotecas riesgosas para conservar sus casas. Bush también delineó esfuerzos para impedir que el problema se repita.

"El gobierno tiene un papel que desempeñar, pero es limitado", dijo Bush. "Un rescate federal de prestamistas sólo alentaría una recurrencia del problema".

El presidente insistió que la economía estadounidense es robusta y podrá capear las recientes turbulencias en los mercados financieros. Agregó que el mercado hipotecario, especialmente el de las hipotecas de alto riesgo, ha mostrado tensión inusitada.

Uno de los sucesos más preocupantes ha sido un aumento en las hipotecas de tasas ajustables, que empiezan con bajas tasas de interés y luego se ajustan a tasas mayores después de unos pocos años.

"Esto ha impulsado a algunos propietarios a tomar préstamos mayores de los que podían solventar en base a suposiciones exageradamente optimistas sobre el futuro desarrollo del mercado de la vivienda", dijo el presidente.

"Otros pueden haberse confundido por los términos de sus préstamos, o haber sido inducidos a error por prestamistas irresponsables. Sea cual fuere el motivo por el que escogieron este tipo de hipotecas, algunos prestatarios ahora no pueden abonar sus pagos mensuales" a riesgo de perder sus viviendas.

Un elemento clave del plan de Bush permitiría a los propietarios con buenos antecedentes crediticios, pero que no pueden hacer sus pagos hipotecarios, refinanciar su deuda en hipotecas aseguradas por la Administración Federal de la Vivienda para impedir que incurran en mora.

Hace algunos días, Bush pronosticó que la continua declinación en el mercado de la vivienda no sería una caída vertical sino que se iría suavizando.

Asimismo rechazó toda ayuda directa del gobierno a los propietarios que pierdan sus viviendas por ejecución hipotecaria, argumentando que sólo apoya la ayuda del gobierno federal para estimular las refinanciaciones y educar a los compradores potenciales sobre los riesgos hipotecarios.

"Todo el que pierda su vivienda es alguien con quien nos solidarizamos enormemente", dijo Bush en una conferencia de prensa el 9 de agosto. "Con la palabra 'rescate' no sé exactamente qué quieren decir. Si quieren decir subvenciones directas a los propietarios, la respuesta sería que no, no lo apoyamos". (AP)

Teen Trades Hacked iPhone For New Car: AP

George Hotz, of Glen Rock, N.J., shows off his hacked iPhone. (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO - The teenage hacker who managed to unlock the iPhone so that it can be used with cellular networks other than AT&T will be trading his reworked gadget for a new car.

George Hotz, of Glen Rock, N.J., said he had reached the deal with CertiCell, a Louisville, Ky.-based mobile phone repair company.

Hotz posted on his blog that he traded his modified iPhone for "a sweet Nissan 350Z and 3 8GB iPhones."

"This has been a great end to a great summer," Hotz wrote.

The 17-year-old Hotz said he will be sending the three new iPhones to the three online collaborators who helped him divorce Apple Inc's popular product from AT&T's network. The job took 500 hours, or about 8 hours a day since the iPhone's June 29 launch.

Hotz made the deal with Terry Daidone, co-founder of CertiCell, who also promised the teen a paid consulting job.

"We do not have any plans on the table right now to commercialize Mr. Hotz' discovery," Daidone said in a statement.(AP)

10 Held In Killing Of Russian Journalist: AP

10 Held In Killing Of Russian Journalist: AP

MOSCOW - A Chechen crime boss, Russian police and security officers were involved in the death of the journalist Anna Politkovskaya, Russia's top prosecutor said Monday.

But he suggested that someone outside Russia masterminded the killing of the frequent Kremlin critic.

Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika spoke hours after announcing that 10 people were arrested in the October killing of Politkovskaya, a crime that has blackened the reputation of President Vladimir Putin's resurgent Russia.

Chaika's remarks echoed earlier statements by Putin and allies who have suggested Politkovskaya's slaying could have been plotted by Kremlin opponents abroad to damage Russia's image.

The prosecutor said investigators had determined that "only individuals located outside the bounds of the Russian Federation" could have had an interest in killing the journalist.

Politkovskaya, who criticized Putin and revealed human rights abuses in Chechnya, was shot dead Oct. 7 in her Moscow apartment building. Her killing drew international attention, deepening Western concerns about Russia's course and compounding concern about the safety of journalists and Kremlin critics in the country.
Chaika said the killing was set up by a Chechen native who led a Moscow organized crime ring that specialized in contract killings, Russian news agencies reported.

According to the news agencies, he said people involved in Politkovskaya's killing were also involved in the 2004 shooting death of American magazine editor Paul Klebnikov and the killing last year of Russian Central Bank deputy chief Andrei Kozlov.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

MOSCOW (AP) — Authorities said Monday they have arrested and will soon charge 10 people in the killing of journalist Anna Politkovskaya — an outspoken critic of the Kremlin whose death sparked global concern about the safety of reporters in Russia.

"We have made serious progress in the case of the murder of the journalist Politkovskaya," Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika told President Vladimir Putin in televised remarks. "As of today, 10 people have been arrested in this case, and literally in the nearest future they will be charged with the commission of this grave crime."

Politkovskaya, a critic of Putin who exposed human rights abuses in Chechnya, was shot dead in her Moscow apartment building in October.

Her killing drew international attention, compounding concern about the safety of journalists and Kremlin critics in Russia. Putin sparked outrage abroad when he seemed to dismiss Politkovskaya shortly after her killing, saying her influence on Russian political life was "very minor."

Chaika did not identify those arrested, or say when they were detained.

A Moscow district court approved the arrests of eight suspects in Politkovskaya's killing on Friday, city court spokeswoman Anna Usacheva said, suggesting the suspects were detained within the last few days. There was no immediate explanation for the different numbers of suspects.

Chaika's remarks were the first announcement of arrests in the Oct. 7 killing, which Western governments have urged Russian authorities to solve. The U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists said 13 journalists have been killed in contract-style murders since Putin took office in 2000.

There had been no word of specific progress in the case for months. In April, the journalists' advocacy group Reporters Without Borders said there appeared to have been no progress in the investigation, and called for an international commission or parliamentary inquiry if authorities produced no concrete and conclusive evidence.

Politkovskaya's killing came less than two months before the radiation poisoning death in London of Kremlin critic and former Russian security agent Alexander Litvinenko, which further damaged the Russian leadership's reputation abroad. Litvinenko blamed Putin for both his poisoning and the murder of Politkovskaya.

Days after Politkovskaya's death, Putin suggested her killing could have been plotted by Kremlin foes abroad to harm Russia's image, and his allies have made similar remarks about Litvinenko's death, pointing to Boris Berezovsky, a former Kremlin insider who is one of Putin's fiercest critics and lives in Britain, where he has refugee status.

In November, Chaika said a possible foreign connection was among several theories being investigated in the Politkovskaya case.

Politkovskaya, who was 48, was a highly respected journalist whose tireless reporting chronicling the killings, tortures and beatings of civilians by Russian servicemen in Chechnya put her on a collision course with the authorities but won her numerous international awards.

She also wrote a book critical of Putin and his military campaign in Chechnya, documenting widespread abuse of civilians by government troops. And she was a persistent critic of Kremlin-backed Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov, accusing his security forces of kidnapping and torturing civilians.

Much speculation about her slaying has focused on Kadyrov, who was prime minister of the war-scarred region when she was killed and became its president in March. He has denied involvement.

Alexei Simonov, chairman of the Glasnost Defense Foundation, a leading Russian media rights watchdog, said he and the staff of Politkovskaya's newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, knew of the arrests a week ago.

"I think these are serious arrests based on real evidence," Simonov said, asserting that the motive was "undoubtedly linked to Chechnya."

He said that those arrested likely included the shooter and accomplices who set up surveillance. But while he said he was confident investigators tracked down Politkovskaya's killers, he expressed concern that the truth about who was behind the slaying could prove more elusive.

He said the staff of Novaya Gazeta feared the authorities would "steer the case in the direction of London" and blame Politkovskaya's killing on Berezovsky.

Weeks after the killing the Russian newspaper Kommersant reported that investigators were focusing on former Russian police officers linked to crimes against civilians in Chechnya.

Pointing to Russian prosecutors' unenviable record in solving journalists' slayings, Igor Yakovenko, head of the Russian Union of Journalists, voiced caution about the prosecutor's announcement.

"I really want to hope that we have reached a turning point, but I think we should wait for concrete results," Yakovenko said on Ekho Moskvy radio.(AP)

Caymans Brace As Hurricane Dean Nears: AP

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands - Frantic vacationers lined up at ticket counters and slept on the airport floor, rushing to leave the Cayman Islands ahead of an expected brush Monday from Hurricane Dean, which has left a deadly trail of destruction across the Caribbean.

With winds nearing 150 mph, Dean was expected to pass to the south of the Caymans but the government said it still posed a "significant threat" to the islands and imposed a curfew on the British territory. Forecasters said the islands could receive up to 12 inches of rain.

Cayman Islands Gov. Stuart Jack said all but 1,500 tourists had been evacuated from the British territory by Sunday afternoon.

"It's kind of spooky," said George Mitchell, of Detroit, who missed his flight out. "We don't know what to do or where to go. It freaks you out."

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the first hurricane of the Atlantic season was a powerful Category 4 storm, and could reach the highest level — Category 5, with maximum winds greater than 155 mph — later Monday.

As of 8 a.m. EDT Monday, Dean was about 440 miles east of Belize City, traveling west at about 21 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

In Texas, already saturated after an unusually rainy summer, emergency operations centers opened, prison inmates were moved inland, and officials distributed sandbags — taking no chances even though Dean's path was still uncertain.

"Our mission is very simple. It's to get people out of the kill zone, to get people out of the danger area, which is the coastline of Texas," said Johnny Cavazos, chief emergency director of Cameron County, at Texas' southern tip.

In Mexico, travelers also slept on floors at Cancun's international airport, hoping for one of the last flights out Monday before Dean was expected to slam into Mexico's Caribbean coast.

Nicolas Martignoles, 27, a teacher from Paris, stretched out on the airport floor with friends, prepared to wait all night. "We came to the airport because we are on standby, but all the flights are full, so we are waiting for another flight tomorrow."

Dean killed at least eight people as it moved across the Caribbean, but Jamaica avoided a direct hit when the storm wound up passing to the south Sunday night.

Still, Dean uprooted trees, flooded streets and tore the roofs off many homes, businesses and a prison block in Jamaica. No prisoners escaped.

Police got into a shootout with looters at a shopping center in the central parish of Clarendon, but nobody was hurt, Constable Cheree Greaves said. Assistant Commissioner of Police Linval Bailey said curfews were in effect until Monday evening. Authorities also cut power on the island to prevent damage to the power grid.

The government set up more than 1,000 shelters in converted schools, churches and the indoor national sports arena, but only 47 shelters were occupied as the storm moved in, said Cecil Bailey of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management. More people trickled in later.

George Lee, mayor of the Portmore community near the Jamaican capital Kingston, said appeals to evacuate went unheeded. Some islanders said they were afraid for their belongings if they moved to shelters.

"Too much crime in Kingston. I'm not leaving my home," Paul Lyn said in Port Royal, east of Kingston.

Many tourists who did not get flights out took shelter at places such as Sandals Whitehouse, a resort that has buildings capable of withstanding a powerful storm.

Trinice Tyler, a postal worker from Lake Elsinore, Calif., said she would weather the storm there "on my knees praying."

"I'm celebrating my 40th birthday today, and it's going to be a birthday to remember," she said. "I have mixed emotions. It's exciting, but I'm nervous. Am I going to make it home?"

The hurricane created massive waves and surges up to 20 feet high as it passed the Dominican Republic on Saturday, flooding roads and drowning a boy. At least two people were killed and about 150 homes were destroyed in Haiti, emergency officials said.(AP)

Bush Seeks To Boost Canada, Mexico Ties: AP

OTTAWA - President Bush, tending to relations with two border nations, will try to give a boost Monday to his partnerships with the like-minded leaders of Canada and Mexico.

Bush's two-day summit with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexican President Felipe Calderon is the third of its kind during his presidency.

Each one has been meant to bolster an evolving compact — dubbed the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America — that serves as a way for the nations to team up on health, security and commerce.

Yet for Bush, the event also allows him to show he does not take his neighbors for granted; they are both vital trading partners and energy providers for the U.S.

"The message for Canada and Mexico is that despite the ongoing emphasis on Iraq and terrorism in U.S. foreign policy ... the U.S. is investing time and attention on relationships with our own region," said Chris Sands, a scholar of North American studies and senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The partnership of the countries is a framework for working out problems — not a deal that was ever intended to produce dramatic announcements. None are expected at the summit.

Personally, Bush shares plenty of views with Harper and Calderon, two fellow conservatives and free-market advocates who have come into power during his second term.

It's not all cheery. The summit is drawing protests from critics of Canada's troop presence in Afghanistan and of the partnership among the three countries. Some Canadians see it as an insidious threat to their sovereignty, led by the United States.

Police were out in force Sunday in Ottawa, where protests began even before Bush was to arrive Monday from his ranch in Crawford, Texas. The summit itself will take place about 50 miles to the east at a luxury resort in Montebello, Quebec, where security is even tighter.

The broad theme of the summit is economic prosperity, built around several topics: border security, competitiveness with India and China, product safety and energy solutions.

Bush will also be faced with matters of specific concern to each of the countries.

He will first meet with Harper at Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello, a luxury resort made out of one of the world's largest log cabins.

Bush is sure to thank Harper for Canada's commitment to keeping troops in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Harper is frustrated over a U.S. law that tightened passport rules for Canadians visiting the U.S., although Bush has pledged to enforce it and has little leeway.

Harper is also expected to assert his nation's claim to the fabled Northwest Passage through the resource-rich Arctic. Competition to control the Arctic has intensified with global warming; Russia sent two small submarines to plant a tiny national flag under the North Pole this month. The U.S. and Norway also have claims.

Bush and Calderon will have their own one-on-one session later Monday.

With them, the messy issue of immigration looms large. The last time these two leaders met, in March in Mexico, Bush was optimistic about getting a new immigration law.

Since then, his plan died in Congress.

So Bush recently issued an executive order meant to tighten border security, streamline guest-worker programs and pressure employers to fire illegal immigrant workers.

The U.S. government has been working on a major aid package to help Calderon fight drug trafficking in Mexico. The deal may be announced in part or in whole at the summit.

The three leaders will join at day's end for dinner, then resume talks Tuesday.(AP)

Taiwan Jet Explodes Into Fire In Japan: AP

NAHA, Japan - Passengers used emergency slides to evacuate a China Airlines jet just minutes before the plane burst into a fireball Monday after arriving in Okinawa from Taiwan.

All 165 people aboard escaped unhurt, including the pilot, who jumped from the cockpit at the last second.

Transport Ministry official Akihiko Tamura told reporters that airport traffic controllers had received no report from the pilot indicating anything was wrong with the Boeing 737-800.

"The fire started when the left engine exploded a minute after the aircraft entered the parking spot," Tamura said.

The plane exploded into flames seconds after what the last crew member escaped from a rear door and the pilot jumped from the cockpit window, according to footage from national broadcaster NHK.

The aircraft skidded on the tarmac on its way from the runway to the gate after landing, starting a fire that prompted the emergency evacuation, according to China Airlines spokesman Sun Hung-wen.

"After the plane landed, there were flames, and I heard explosions a few times, then saw black smoke," Hideaki Oyadomari, an airport worker, told NHK. "We felt the hot air coming our way."

Japan's National Police Agency said terrorism was not suspected.
Local fire official Hiroki Shimabukuro said two passengers — a 7-year-old girl and a man in his 50s — were hospitalized because they felt unwell, but not because they were injured. A ground engineer was knocked off his feet by the force of the blast, but was not hurt, the ministry said.

The fire was put out about an hour later, leaving the aircraft charred and mangled.

Several passengers told NHK they were preparing to get off the plane after what seemed like an ordinary landing when they were suddenly told to use the emergency slides to evacuate.

Some said they saw smoke and flames entering the cabin and that there was a stampede to exit. Minutes later, many said, they heard explosions.

"I suddenly saw flames beside me, and everybody started rushing to get out," a male passenger told NHK. "People were pushing and shoving in panic," he said.

"I felt the boom of the explosion behind me as soon as I got off," a female passenger said.

The cause of the fire was unknown.

Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration head Chang Kuo-cheng said authorities ordered China Airlines and its subsidiary Mandarin Airlines to ground their 13 other Boeing 737-800s pending a thorough inspection.

Japanese aviation authorities also ordered an emergency inspection of all Boeing 737-800 planes owned by Japanese air lines, as well as some 737-700 models that carry a similar engine.

"If there was a fire, it might have something to do with an oil leak," Chang said.

The Okinawa fire is a setback to China Airlines, which in recent years appeared to have improved on a troubled safety record among international carriers.

A China Airlines 747 crashed in 2002 as it flew from Taipei to Hong Kong, leading to 225 deaths, and some 450 people died in China Airlines accidents during the 1990s.(AP)

U.S. Forces Tracking Iranians In Iraq: AP

BAGHDAD - American forces are tracking about 50 members of an elite Iranian force who have crossed the border into southern Iraq to train Shiite militia fighters, a top U.S. general said Sunday.

In east Baghdad, a mortar barrage slammed into a mainly Shiite neighborhood, killing 12 and wounding 31, police said, and a major battle raged north of the capital where residents of a Shiite city were fighting what police said was a band of al-Qaida in Iraq gunmen.

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, whose command includes the volatile southern rim of Baghdad and districts to the south, said his troops are tracking about 50 members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps in their area — the first detailed allegation that Iranians have been training fighters within Iraq's borders.

"We know they're here and we target them as well," he said, citing intelligence reports as evidence of their presence.

He declined to be more specific and said no Iranian forces have been arrested in his territory.

"We've got about 50 of those," he said, referring to the Iranian forces. "They go back and forth. There's a porous border."

The military has stepped up allegations against Iran in recent weeks, saying it supplies militants with arms and training to attack U.S. forces.

Iran denies the allegations and says it supports efforts to stop the violence.

The Bush administration is moving toward blacklisting Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps as a "terrorist" organization, subjecting at least part of the entity to financial sanctions, U.S. officials said this week.

A decision has been made in principle to name elements of the corps a "specially designated global terrorist" group, but internal discussions continue over whether it should cover the entire unit or only the Guard's Al-Quds force, the most elite and covert of Iran's military branches, which has equipped and trained Muslim fighters outside Iran's borders.

Lynch, whose mission is to block the flow of weapons and fighters into the Baghdad area, said Sunni and Shiite extremists have become increasingly aggressive this month, trying to influence the debate in Washington before a pivotal progress report on Iraq.

He singled out the Shiite extremists as being behind rising attacks using armor-piercing explosively formed penetrators, or EFPs, which he said were largely assembled in Iraq from parts smuggled in from Iran.

He also noted a marked increase in Iranian-rockets that have been increasingly effective against U.S. bases.

There has been an overall decrease in attacks against U.S. and Iraqi forces, as well as civilians, south of Baghdad, but 46 percent of those were being carried out by Shiite extremists, Lynch said.

"The real difference now is we've got to spend as much time fighting the Shia extremists as Sunni extremists," he said.

Women and children were among the 12 victims of the mortar attack in eastern Baghdad. Some houses in the neighborhood were damaged, according to police, and witnesses said U.S. helicopters were hovering above the attack site.

Hussein Saadon, 56, an owner of a small minibus station, was soaked in blood after he drove four victims to the hospital. He said the district had been without electricity for several days and the people were suffering in the heat.

"It fills me with pain and anger to see an attack on such poor area where is no presence of police nor army bases or checkpoints," Saadon said.

In Khalis, 50 miles north of Baghdad, police said more than 1,500 people including sheiks and dignitaries had gathered near city hall to launch the counteroffensive against al-Qaida fighters who have been regularly firing mortars into the town and kidnapping residents at illegal checkpoints.

Police said five townspeople were killed in the early hours of the fighting.

At least seven people were killed and 18 wounded in a mortar attack on Khalis on Saturday.

Police said members of the city militia also said they were determined to push al-Qaida fighters out of the nearby town of Hibhib, where the terror organization's former leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed in an U.S. air strike.

In central Baghdad, gunmen driving several cars waylaid a minibus headed for Sadr City, the capital's Shiite enclave, and abducted 15 passengers, police said.(AP)

Hurricane Dean Poised To Hit Jamaica: AP

KINGSTON, Jamaica - Jamaicans headed inland and tourists fled the country hours before a large and powerful Hurricane Dean appeared poised to make a direct hit on the island Sunday after a deadly and destructive march across the eastern Caribbean.

Jamaica converted schools, churches and the indoor national sports arena into shelters and authorities urged people to take cover from a storm that could rake the country with winds of 150 mph and dump up to 20 inches of rain.

"It's going to be very, very serious," said Lawrence Samuel as he shopped for emergency groceries while his wife and son went to the hardware store for plywood and other supplies.

The storm, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, rolled through the Caribbean to the south of Hispaniola, the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic, where heavy rain and surging seas caused flooding Saturday in coastal areas.

In Gonave, an island with no electricity west of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, thousands of people huddled in shelters as the storm brought heavy rain and fierce winds, said Samuel Menager, an employee of the international aid group World Vision who helped evacuate people from the coast.

Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller said late Saturday the country was confronting a national emergency and urged people in flood-prone areas to head for shelter.

"Do not wait for the last minute to make the decision to move from where you are," Simpson Miller said. "Decide now and begin to make arrangements to leave now."

Thousands of alarmed tourists were not waiting. They jammed Caribbean airports for flights out of Hurricane Dean's path as the fierce storm that has claimed at least six lives began sweeping past the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

The storm's wrath could be felt Saturday in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, where a boy was pulled into the ocean and drowned while watching waves strike an oceanfront boulevard, the Dominican emergency operations center reported.

Rough surf churned by Dean destroyed five houses and damaged 15 others along the Dominican coast, emergency officials said.

In Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, which was also in the path of the Category 4 storm, fear gripped many islanders and tourists alike.

People jammed supermarkets and hardware stores in Kingston to stock up on canned food, bottled water, flashlights, batteries, lamps and plywood. In malls in the Jamaican capital, storeowners hammered plywood over windows.

Elaine Russell recalled Hurricane Ivan's destruction in 2004.
"I can't take it," she said. "The storm is bad enough but it's what happens afterwards — there's no light, no water."

Farther west, the low-lying Cayman Islands were expected to take a direct hit on Monday. Tourists there jammed Owens International Airport in snaking lines that stretched outside onto a lawn. A police officer with a bullhorn kept order.

Cayman Airways added 15 flights to Florida from the wealthy British territory, and they were quickly sold out.

The government ordered a mandatory evacuation by noon Sunday of Little Cayman, which is the smallest of the territory's three islands and has a population of about 150.

Authorities in the eastern Caribbean were assessing the damage after Dean hit on Friday as a Category 2 storm with winds of near 100 mph.

In the island of Martinique, an overseas department of France, authorities on Saturday confirmed two deaths, including a woman who apparently fell and drowned in her home.

Officials there estimated that up to $270 million is needed to repair infrastructure. Agriculture Minister Louis Daniel Berthome said all banana crops were destroyed.

Dean was on course to clip Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and enter the Gulf of Mexico by Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Forecasters said it was too soon to say whether it will strike the United States.

Playing it safe, NASA shortened the last spacewalk for astronauts aboard the shuttle Endeavour and ordered the spacecraft to return to Earth on Tuesday — a day early — fearing the storm might threaten the Houston home of Mission Control.

At 5 a.m. EDT, Dean was centered about 245 east-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 155 miles south-southwest of Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. The storm was moving west-northwest at 18 mph and had maximum sustained winds near 145 mph.

The Cuban government issued a tropical storm warning and said it was evacuating 50,000 people from three central and eastern provinces.(AP)

Elvis Presley Fans Boost Economies Of 2 U.S. States: AP

JACKSON, Mississippi - Even from beyond the grave, Elvis Presley still generates big bucks.That's even more true this week.

Fans from Europe, Asia, Australia, South America — and even from exotic locales like Kansas — are spending their hard-earned money for T-shirts, coffee mugs, salt and pepper shakers, refrigerator magnets and other trinkets during the events commemorating his death 30 years ago.

Many are making the 110-mile trek from Memphis, Tenn., where the King of Rock 'n' Roll enjoyed his fame and gaudy fortune in Graceland, to Tupelo, the northeast Mississippi city where Elvis came into the world on Jan. 8, 1935, in a tiny shotgun shack built by his father.

They're also filling hotel rooms as far away as northwest Mississippi's casino row in Tunica and are spending money on meals, rental cars and gasoline, giving a significant, although difficult to quantify, boost to the area's economy.

Dick Guyton, executive director of the Elvis Presley Memorial Foundation in Tupelo, estimated that fans will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars there and at area hotels and stores this week, which — even at the birthplace — is the busiest of the year for Elvis tourism.

The more lucrative earnings are in Memphis. Last year, Graceland took in $27 million in revenue, and the overall Elvis business brings in more than $40 million a year for CKX Inc., the New York-based company that controls most Elvis enterprises.

That made the King the second-highest grossing dead celebrity in 2006, behind only Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, according to Forbes magazine.

About 3,000 people went to Tupelo this past Saturday for an annual Fan Appreciation Day, and Guyton predicted the visitor totals could reach 5,000 by Friday.

Lillian Dunk, a 65-year-old homemaker from Birmingham, England, said she and her financial-broker husband have traveled to Tupelo every year since 1997 to feed her Elvis addiction.

"I'm just absolutely mad about Mr. Presley," said Dunk, who uses her favorite Elvis tune, the inspirational "If I Can Dream," as her cell phone ring tone.

Dunk said she and her husband are traveling with her sister and sister's husband for the 10-day trip. They're staying at a casino hotel in Tunica, about 20 miles south of Memphis. And, she wasn't shy in saying she and her husband were planning to spend about 4,000 British pounds — roughly $8,000 — not including air fare.

"I get withdrawal symptoms if I don't come every year," she said in a telephone interview from the birthplace. "I just absolutely love the place. I adore it. I just feel so relaxed here."

In Memphis on Wednesday, thousands of Presley fans braved 105-degree heat as they wound down Graceland's driveway in a graveside procession in advance of the 30th anniversary of the singer's death, on Thursday.

The heat led to the death of a fan from New Jersey, a 67-year-old woman. The Memphis Fire Department said it also treated at least six people overcome by heat, including an 8-year-old boy who was hospitalized.

Steve Martin, spokesman for the tourism division of the Mississippi Development Authority, said the agency doesn't specifically track spending for Elvis tourism. But he said for all tourists, the state figures two people traveling for three days will spend roughly $750.

In Tennessee, no one keeps exact figures, but the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau estimated up to 75,000 people would be drawn to town for the anniversary week.

Even hotels, museums and restaurants not specifically targeted for Elvis-related events may have reason to hope, authorities said.

"We would have a crossover with the Elvis fans in terms of blues music," Martin said. "If they're that close to the birthplace of the blues, they might go other places, too." (Associated Press writer Woody Baird in Memphis, Tenn., contributed to this report)

Strong Peru Quake Kills At Least 17: AP

LIMA, Peru - A powerful earthquake shook Peru's coast near the capital on Wednesday, reportedly killing at least 17 people as it toppled buildings and caused many residents to flee homes. Authorities said the quake had generated a small tsunami but it wasn't destructive.

Peru's highly respected Cable news station Canal N reported that the 7.9 magnitude quake had caused a church to collapse in the city of Ica south of Lima, killing 17 people and injuring 70.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake hit at 6:40 p.m. (7:40 p.m. EDT) about 90 miles southeast of Lima at a depth of about 25 miles. Four strong aftershocks ranging from magnitudes of 5.4 to 5.9 were felt afterwards.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center responded with a tsunami warning for the coasts of Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica and Panama. A tsunami watch was issued for the rest of Central America and Mexico and an advisory for Hawaii.

The center canceled all the alerts after about two hours, but it said the quake had caused an estimated 10-inch tsunami near the epicenter.

"It wasn't big enough to be destructive," said Stuart Weinstein, the center's assistant director.

An Associated Press photographer said that homes had collapsed in the center of Lima and that many people had fled into the streets for safety. The capital shook for more than a minute.

Firefighters quoted in radio reports said that many street lights and windows shattered in Lima but did not specify if there were any injuries. Hundreds of workers were evacuated from Lima office buildings after the quake struck and remained outside, fearing aftershocks.

Callers to Radioprogramas, Peru's main news radio station, said parts of several cities in southern Peru had been hit with blackouts. Callers reported homes in poor neighborhoods in Chincha and Cerro Azul had collapsed.

The quake also knocked out telephone service and mobile phone service in the capital. Firefighters were called to put out a fire in a shopping center. State doctors called off a national strike that began on Wednesday to handle the emergency.

The last time a quake of magnitude 7.0 or larger struck Peru's central coast was in 1974 when a magnitude 7.6 hit in October followed by a 7.2 a month later.

The latest Peru quake occurred in a subduction zone where one section of the Earth's crust dives under another, said USGS geophysicist Dale Grant at the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colo.

Some of the world's biggest quakes strike in subduction zones including the catastrophic Indian Ocean temblor in 2004 that generated deadly tsunami waves.

The tsunami warnings caused alarm up and down the coast.

Alex Kouri president of the Callao region, which includes the port of Callao, adjacent to Lima, urged residents to remain calm in the face of any possible tsunami, while other officials told Radioprograms they were going to evacuate La Punta, a Callao neighborhood, because of the potential threat of a tsunami.

In Colombia, President Alvaro Uribe ordered the partial evacuation of the southern city of Tumaco in response to the warning.

In a press conference, Uribe said residents living along the coastal areas of Tumaco, Colombia's southernmost city near the border with Ecuador, should immediately move to higher ground as a preventive measure in case a tsunami strikes.

"The reports we received about a possible tsunami are contradictory so we've asked that, according to emergency disaster plans, authorities immediately begin the partial evacuation of Tumaco," said Uribe. (Associated Press writer Alicia Chang in Los Angeles contributed to this report)