Dr. Drew: McCready Was 'Fearful of Stigma'

Troubled country singer Mindy McCready was "devastated" after the January death of her boyfriend and "fearful of stigma and ridicule," according to Dr. Drew Pinsky, who treated her in 2009 on "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew."

McCready died Sunday of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound at her Arkansas home, police said. She was 37.

The country singer who soared to the top of the charts with her debut album, "Ten Thousand Angels," struggled with substance abuse, served time in jail and fought a lengthy battle with her mother over custody of her son.

The singer appeared on the third season of Dr. Drew's VH1 show. She is the fifth person who has appeared on the show to die.

"I am deeply saddened by this awful news," Dr. Drew said in a statement posted in a VH1 blog. "My heart goes out to Mindy's family and children. She is a lovely woman who will be missed by many."

Dr. Drew said that he had not treated McCready for a few years, but "reached out to her recently" after her boyfriend and father of one of her two children David Wilson, died in January of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

"She was devastated. Although she was fearful of stigma and ridicule she agreed with me that she needed to make her health and safety a priority," Dr. Drew said. "Unfortunately it seems that Mindy did not sustain her treatment."

SEE PHOTOS: Notable Deaths in 2013

"Mental health issues can be life threatening and need to be treated with the same intensity and resources as any other dangerous potentially life threatening medical condition," the doctor's statement said. "Treatment is effective. If someone you know is suffering please be sure he or she gets help and maintains treatment."

Ron Galella/WireImage/Getty Images

Country Singer Mindy McCready Dead at Age 37 Watch Video

Mindy McCready Details Moment Cops Found Her, Son Watch Video

Deputies from the Cleburne County Sheriff's Office were dispatched to a report of gun shots fired at McCready's Heber Springs, Ark., home at around 3:30 p.m. on Sunday.

There they found McCready on the front porch. She was pronounced dead at the scene from what appeared to be a single self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to a statement from the sheriff's office.

Cleburne County Sheriff Marty Moss told the Associated Press that it appears that McCready killed Wilson's dog before apparently shooting herself. The dog's body was found next to McCready's body when authorities arrived, the AP reported.

Sheriff: McCready shot late boyfriend's dog before turning the gun on herself

When reached by phone today, the Cleburne County Sheriff's Office said the sheriff would be responding to questions later in the day.

RELATED: Mindy McCready: Police Take Son

McCready was ordered to enter rehab shortly after Wilson's death, and her two children, Zander, 6, and 9-month-old Zayne were taken from her. She was released after one day to undergo outpatient care.

McCready scored a number-one Billboard country hit in 1996 with "Guys Do It All the Time," but in recent years, the country crooner has received more media attention for her troubled personal life than her music.

McCready reportedly had a decade-long affair with baseball star Roger Clemens that began when she was a teen, the New York Daily News reported in 2008. Clemens' attorney at the time denied any improper relationship, but McCready discussed details of the relationship on television.

"This is sad news," Clemens said in a statement today, posted on the Houston Astros website. "I had heard over time that she was trying to get peace and direction in her life. The few times that I had met her and her manager/agent they were extremely nice."

She has been arrested multiple times on drug charges and probation violations and has been hospitalized for overdoses several times, including in 2010, when she was found unconscious at her mother's home after taking a painkiller and muscle relaxant.

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Israeli lawmakers to investigate Australian spy mystery

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli lawmakers announced plans on Sunday to investigate the 2010 jailhouse death of a reported Australian immigrant recruit to the Mossad spy agency.

The statement by Parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee followed calls by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a cabinet meeting to dim a growing media spotlight on the affair he saw as at risk of jeopardizing national security.

The case kept under wraps for two years then publicized by Australian television last Tuesday involves a 34-year-old immigrant, Ben Zygier, said to be a Mossad operative held on suspicion of security offences, who died of what has been labeled an apparent suicide behind bars.

In a terse communique, the legislative panel's subcommittee on intelligence said it has "decided to conduct an intensive examination of all aspects of the incident involving the prisoner found dead in his (prison) cell in December 2010."

While unlikely to have any immediate political consequences the investigation may lead to a wider inquiry with potentially broader repercussions.

Netanyahu's government has restricted reporting in Israel on the case, now overshadowing his victory in a national election held last month, using court gag orders, military censorship and direct requests to news editors.

Such steps have done little to douse demands for the authorities to come clean about the circumstances of Zygier's imprisonment and how he was able to kill himself in a highly-supervised isolation cell.

Without citing the case specifically, Netanyahu said on Sunday he "absolutely trusts" Israel's security services and what he described as the independent legal monitoring system under which they operated.

"We are an exemplary democracy," Netanyahu said in remarks aired by Israeli broadcasters.

"But we are also more threatened, more challenged, and therefore we have to ensure the proper operation of our security branches," Netanyahu also said.

"Therefore I ask over everyone: Let the security services continue working quietly so that we can continue to live in safety and tranquility in the State of Israel."

The few Israeli officials who have spoken of Zygier's case have not denied that he was linked to Mossad, which in early 2010 was accused by Dubai of using Australian passport-holders to assassinate a Palestinian arms procurer in the Gulf emirate.

BETRAYED MOSSAD MISSIONS?

Media reports have speculated that Israel suspected the Melbourne-born Jew of betraying or threatening to divulge Mossad missions, perhaps to Australia's security services, as they probed passport fraud.

Civil liberties groups and some Israeli lawmakers have demanded to know whether Zygier's rights were violated by his months of incarceration under alias.

In an apparent reversal from previous statements, Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr said on Thursday his ministry had known about Zygier's jailing as early as February 2010. On Wednesday he said Australian diplomats in Israel only found out about the detention after his death in custody later that year.

Avigdor Feldman, an Israeli lawyer with whom Zygier consulted in Ayalon prison, said last week that that meeting was arranged by a "Mossad liaison" and that his client had denied "grave charges" for which he awaited trial.

Feldman also said that Zygier's family, which has declined all comment on the affair, knew about his detention. The incarceration was approved by several Israeli courts.

Two senior cabinet members, Intelligence Minister Dan Meridor and Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Yaalon, told Israeli media on Saturday the case was rare but lawful.

"There are extreme situations...to do with our security and even the need to preserve human life, when we need to take an extreme step such as this," Yaalon told Channel Two television.

Meridor said that publishing the prisoner's identity would have risked "serious harm to security." He did not elaborate.

Tzachi Hanegbi, a lawmaker from Netanyahu's conservative Likud party said he had never been informed of Zygier's arrest as chairman of the parliamentary defence panel at the time.

"This requires explanation," Hanegbi said. "Usually, every significant subject, whether it is impressive achievements or embarrassing failures, is laid out before the subcommittee."

Former Mossad director Danny Yatom told Reuters the agency was under no legal obligation to brief oversight lawmakers in such circumstances.

(Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan and Dan Williams; Editing by Jason Webb)

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Tennis: Nadal back in business with Brazil triumph

SAO PAULO: Rafael Nadal showed he is back in business by clinching his first title since ending a seven-month knee injury layoff, winning the Brazil Open on Sunday.

The Spanish former world number one, who has yet to fully shrug off the lingering effects of his knee problems, beat Argentina's David Nalbandian 6-2, 6-3 in 78 minutes.

Currently the world number five, Nadal went on the attack from the start, breaking his opponent's service before racing to take the first set.

The 31-year-old Nalbandian, a former world number three who now languishes at 93 in the ATP rankings, fought back early in the second set but Nadal came from behind to win, sparking wild cheers from the crowd.

The Spaniard pocketed a check for $82,300 for his win and thanked the public for "the great support" he received throughout the tournament.

Nadal was the top seed in this $455,775 tournament, his second comeback event following his long absence.

He competed in the Vina del Mar Open in Chile earlier this month, losing the singles and doubles finals last Sunday.

"It's a great title and important for me," said the 26-year-old.

"Yesterday (during the semi-final) the knee hurt. Today it's better, rather bearable. I am happy to win in Brazil for the second time."

The world number five, who has 11 Grand Slam titles under his belt, first won the event in 2005, when it was held in Costa do Sauipe in eastern Bahia state.

Asked about his future plans, Nadal, who now has 37 claycourt titles in a 51-trophy career haul, replied: "I am going to think about Acapulco (later this month) and nothing else."

As to whether he feels confident enough now to compete against the world's top three of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray, Nadal said: "We are going to see how the knee responds and then take stock."

"I don't have any problem playing against better rivals because I accept that I can lose. Losing is not a problem for me," added Nadal, whose last title was his record-breaking seventh French Open victory in June.

"I just need time to continue improving and return to a more competitive level."

Considered by many to be the best ever claycourt player, Nadal was back on the court in Chile earlier this month for the first time since suffering a surprise second-round exit at Wimbledon in June.

Since then he had been sidelined by a torn tendon and inflammation in his left knee, with his return this year further delayed by a stomach virus.

His absence ruled him out of the Olympics, the US Open as well as January's Australian Open.

Earlier Sunday, Brazilian Bruno Soares teamed up with Austrian Alexander Peya to win the Sao Paulo doubles final against Frantisek Cermak of the Czech Republic and Slovak Michal Mertinak 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 10-7.

-AFP/ac

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Samajwadi Party aims to repeat backward caste vote formula in Lok Sabha polls

LUCKNOW: The Samajwadi Party rode to power in Uttar Pradesh last year by fetching a major chunk of backward caste votes. The party is eyeing to repeat the same winning formula in 2014 LokSabha elections and has set the ball rolling by demanding the inclusion of 17 backward castes in the scheduled castes list. The party has also declared a public holiday on April 5 on account of GuharajNishadrajJayanti, which was a long pending demand of the community.

The conference of party workers from the backward castes held at SP headquarters in Lucknow on Saturday was also a part of the state government's strategy to consolidate its position among this vote bank.

There was no immediate provocation for SP to hold such a conference. The SP had, in fact, marked its targets for the Mission 2014 while preparing for the 2012 assembly election. In its assembly election manifesto, the SP had promised to pursue the central government to include 17 backward castes in the SC list. The commitment worked, believe senior SP leaders.

For the SP, shifting focus on the backward castes is important after its vociferous protest against the quota in promotion bill. Though the move may have helped party to attract the upper caste voters disenchanted with the BJP or the Congress, it has alienated a section of the backward class. By targeting the backward castes, the party hopes to compensate for the alienated in order to benefit from the shift from the upper caste.

It was not therefore surprising that once the SP was in the saddle in UP, the Akhilesh Yadav government got down to work immediately thereafter. Akhilesh slotted the welfare of the backward castes on top priority in his first official document released on March 28, 2012. The chief secretary Jawed Usmani has since been heading the high level committee to study and design the welfare schemes for these castes in the state.

Not only the SP, even the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress too are trying to woo backward votes, which, till recently, was seen as the Bahujan Samaj Party's (BSPs) traditional vote bank. The BJP too had shown its inclination towards the backward section well in advance when more than 30% of the candidates won its organizational elections held before 2012 assembly election.

The Congress-led UPA government is also not lagging behind and has three key ministers from the backward castes -- Sriprakash Jaiswal, RPN Singh and Beni Prasad Verma.

Besides, the parties left nothing to chance during allotment of tickets for the UP assembly poll. Sample this: BJP fielded 126 backward castes, followed by SP with 125 such candidates. The BSP nominated 113 backward caste candidates while the Congress fielded 110 candidates. The allocations of these candidates exceeded far beyond the ratio of candidates from other castes and communities like 30% dalits, 20% OBCs, 20% Muslims, 15% Brahmins and 15% other castes.

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UN warns risk of hepatitis E in S. Sudan grows

GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations says an outbreak of hepatitis E has killed 111 refugees in camps in South Sudan since July, and has become endemic in the region.

U.N. refugee agency spokesman Adrian Edwards says the influx of people to the camps from neighboring Sudan is believed to be one of the factors in the rapid spread of the contagious, life-threatening inflammatory viral disease of the liver.

Edwards said Friday that the camps have been hit by 6,017 cases of hepatitis E, which is spread through contaminated food and water.

He says the largest number of cases and suspected cases is in the Yusuf Batil camp in Upper Nile state, which houses 37,229 refugees fleeing fighting between rebels and the Sudanese government.

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White House: Leaked Immigration Bill Draft Is Plan B

Feb 17, 2013 11:48am

Leaked draft legislation reportedly authored by the White House would be used as a backup proposal should negotiations fail in Congress over comprehensive immigration reform, administration officials said today.

White House Chief of Staff Dennis McDonough was asked about the USA Todaystory on political talk shows this morning. On ABC’s “This Week,” McDonough told Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl lawmakers would have to “make sure that it doesn’t have to be proposed.”

“Let’s make sure that that group up there, the ‘Gang of Eight,’ makes the good progress on these efforts as much as they say they want to,” McDonough said, referring to efforts of the Senate’s bi-partisan working group.

The president has previously stated that his administration would be prepared to offer their own bill should Congress fail to reach consensus. Some details of the draft, which has not been finalized or released to Congress, match previous White House proposals including a 2011 immigration blueprint.

Also appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” host David Gregory asked him whether the draft signaled President Obama would drive any potential reform, over ongoing bipartisan work on Capitol Hill.

“The fact of this report, David, I think all it says to me is that we’re doing exactly what we said we’d do,” McDonough replied. “Which is that we’ll be prepared, in the event that the bipartisan talks going on on the Hill — which by the way we are very aggressively supporting — if those do not work then we’ll have an option that we are ready to put out there, as the president said in Las Vegas.”

The newspaper says it obtained the unfinished bill from an anonymous administration official, one not authorized to disclose the information.

Analysis: Leaked immigration proposal puts pressure on Senate.

Among its particulars, if passed, would be the creation of a “Lawful Prospective Immigrant” status, that could be applied for by the nation’s estimated 11 million undocumented residents. The new visa would allow its holders to legally live and work in the United States, as well as leave the country for short periods of time. After eight years visa holders who passed the program would be allowed to apply for full citizenship.

Earlier this month Democratic Gang of Eight members Sen. Richard Durbin and Sen Bob Menendez indicated the group was weighing similar a proposal that would extend the wait to 10 years. But Saturday a leading Republican in the group, Sen. Marco Rubio, immediately lambasted the White House version as “dead on arrival” in Congress.

“This legislation is half baked and seriously flawed,” he said in a statement last night. “It would actually make our immigration problems worse.  If actually proposed, the president’s bill would be dead on arrival in Congress, leaving us with unsecured borders and a broken legal immigration system for years to come.”

Rubio said Republicans had not been consulted regarding the hypothetical legislation. On ABC, McDonough denied the claim.

“We’ve been working with all the members up there [of the Gang of Eight.] We have our staff working this very aggressively with their staffs and with the members, and we’re working this very aggressively, as you think we would with such a high priority for the country,” he said.

USA Today’s article states that immigrants who seek citizenship under the White House draft would first have to submit to biometric screening, pass a criminal background check, and pay fees for the visa. Successful bids could still be disqualified for crimes, including those that would equal one year in prison, or three separate 90-day sentences.

Also included in the document are undisclosed increases to the Border Patrol, expansion of Homeland Security technologies along the border, and the hiring of an additional 140 judges to handle immigration violations.

As of press time White House officials have refused to comment directly on the specifics of the report. On NBC another Republican on the Gang of Eight, Sen. John McCain, suggested the leak might have been planned as a bargaining position.

“I believe we are making progress on a bipartisan basis. I believe we can come up with a product,” McCain said. “Leaks don’t happen in Washington on accident. This raises the question many of us continue to worry about. Does the president want a result? Or does he want another cudgel to beat up Republicans so that he can get political advantage in the next election?”

An administration official told ABC News that the White House had not intentionally floated the draft obtained by USA Today as a negotiating point. According to this official Obama aides were surprised to see the draft language in print media and thought it was unfortunate, given what they believed was substantive progress on Capitol Hill. Officials also reached out to  Gang of Eight members of both parties after the report was published to try to assure them it was not planned, they said.

Senator Rubio’s office confirmed to ABC they had received such correspondence.

ABC’s Jordan Fabian and Reena Ninan contributed to this report, which has been updated.

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Bomb kills 64 in Pakistan's Quetta

QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Sixty-four people including school children died on Saturday in a bomb attack carried out by extremists from Pakistan's Sunni Muslim majority, police said.

A spokesman for Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a Sunni group, claimed responsibility for the bomb in Quetta, which caused casualties in the town's main bazaar, a school and a computer center. Police said most of the victims were Shi'ites.

Burned school bags and books were strewn around.

"The explosion was caused by an improvised explosive device fitted to a motorcycle," said Wazir Khan Nasir, deputy inspector general of police in Quetta.

"This is a continuation of terrorism against Shi'ites."

"I saw many bodies of women and children," said an eyewitness at a hospital. "At least a dozen people were burned to death by the blast."

Most Western intelligence agencies have regarded the Pakistani Taliban and al Qaeda as the gravest threat to nuclear-armed Pakistan, a strategic U.S. ally.

But Pakistani law enforcement officials say Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has become a formidable force.

TENSIONS

Last month the group said it carried out a bombing in Quetta that killed nearly 100 people, one of Pakistan's worst sectarian attacks. Thousands of Shi'ites protested in several cities after that attack.

Pakistani intelligence officials say extremist groups, led by Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, have escalated their bombings and shootings of Shi'ites to trigger violence that would pave the way for a Sunni theocracy in U.S.-allied Pakistan.

More than 400 Shi'ites were killed in Pakistan last year, many by hitmen or bombs, and the perpetrators are almost never caught. Some hardline Shi'ite groups have hit back by killing Sunni clerics.

The growing sectarian violence has hurt the credibility of the government, which has already faced criticism ahead of elections due in May for its inability to tackle corruption and economic stagnation.

The schism between Sunnis and Shi'ites developed after the Prophet Muhammad died in 632 when his followers could not agree on a successor.

Emotions over the issue are highly potent even today, pushing some countries, including Iraq five years ago, to the brink of civil war.

Pakistan is nowhere near that stage but officials worry that Sunni extremist groups have succeeded in dramatically ratcheting up tensions and provoking revenge attacks in their bid to destabilize the country.

(Reporting by Jibran Ahmed; Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Stephen Powell)

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Football: Reus bags hat-trick but Dortmund see red again

BERLIN: Germany midfielder Marco Reus netted a hat-trick in Borussia Dortmund's 3-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday, but the champions had a striker sent off for the second time in the space of a week.

Dortmund's win left them second in the league, but 15 points behind leaders Bayern Munich, who show no sign of releasing their grip on the Bundesliga after earning their 18th win in 22 matches with a 2-0 win at VfL Wolfsburg on Friday.

After Dortmund's Poland striker Robert Lewandowski had earned a three-game ban for being sent off against Hamburg last Saturday, his replacement Julian Schieber was dismissed for a second yellow against Frankfurt and is banned for the next game.

Dortmund's appeal against Lewandowski red card will be heard by the German Football Association (DFB) on Tuesday and they hope to have him back for next Sunday's match at Moenchengladbach.

Should the appeal fail, Reus is the obvious choice to be moved up front as he profited from Dortmund's constant pressure on the Frankfurt defence.

There were two goals, two yellow cards and the subsequent red in a frantic opening 30 minutes.

Reus hit the back of the net on eight minutes after a dream pass from Mario Goetze, while centre-back Mats Hummels produced a similar pass soon after as Reus made it 2-0 in as many minutes.

With Lewandowski suspended, Schieber was clearly eager to take his opportunity, but his over-zealous challenge on Frankfurt's Carlos Zambrano earned him a yellow card on 27 minutes.

He then saw red just four minutes later when his stray elbow on defender Bastian Oczipka earned him a second booking, despite furious protests from coach Jurgen Klopp.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, Reus moved up front to complete his hat-trick on 65 minutes when he fired home after Goetze had again caused havoc.

Frankfurt were also reduced to 10 men with 15 minutes left when Japan midfielder Takashi Inui earned a second yellow card.

Schalke's poor Bundesliga form continued on as they twice come from behind for a 2-2 draw at Mainz ahead of Wednesday's Champions League trip to Istanbul's Galatasaray.

Schalke face the Turkish league leaders in the last 16, first-leg clash having dropped from second to eighth in the Bundesliga with just one win in their last 11 games, conceding 25 goals in the process -- the league's worst record.

Brazil midfielder Michel Bastos scored both Schalke's goals, but his team struggled again having been thumped 4-0 by Bayern last weekend.

"We didn't start well, but that's not easy in our current situation," admitted Schalke coach Jens Keller.

While Schalke move up from 10th to eighth, the pressure remains on Keller, who has just one win in his six games in charge in December.

Bayer Leverkusen are third after their 2-1 win at home to relegation-threatened Augsburg as striker Stefan Kiessling and midfielder Lars Bender both scored.

Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart scored his first goal for Hamburg since May 2008 with a spectacular 24th-minute thunderbolt to secure a 1-0 win over Borussia Moenchengladbach to move his team up to sixth.

Freiburg stay fifth, and amongst the European places, with a 3-2 win at Werder Bremen while Greuther Fuerth stay bottom after their 1-0 defeat to Fortuna Duesseldorf.

- AFP/fa

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Global watchdog sees Chennai’s tiny shop as supplier to Iran’s nuclear programme

CHENNAI/NEW DELHI: A tiny firm in a dark alley in Chennai's electronic spare parts hub on Meeran Sahib Street has been unwittingly catapulted into the midst of a suspected nuclear smuggling operation. A reputed proliferation watchdog has cited the company as a likely supplier to Iran's nuclear programme.

Ferrito Plastronics, a modest establishment with a reported turnover of Rs 2 crore-Rs 5 crore, has found a mention in a report published by the Institute of Science and International Security (ISIS) for an enquiry of one lakh ring magnets posted on a Chinese commercial website by an Iranian trading firm, Jahan Tech Rooyan Pars.

The Chennai firm does supply magnets. But these, avers company proprietor Bala Subramanian, are the ones used in loudspeakers, coils and medical equipment. Besides these, there are decorative magnets for fridges, Subramanian's shop assistant displayed to TOI.

So how did Ferrito Plastronics become part of the cloak-and-dagger world of the nuclear mart? Subramanian says he has never had trade dealings with China — his only interaction being an occasion when he left his business card at a trade fair he had attended in that country a few years ago.

Indeed, going by the shop and its trappings, it seems far fetched to visualize the firm as a supplier for highly sophisticated magnets used to enrich uranium to make it weapons grade. Subramanian was close to panic while speaking to TOI over telephone, pleading his innocence, saying he has committed no crime.

"I largely supply coils to Singapore and Korea. I have never traded in China. I only once left my visiting card at a trade fair there. It seems they used my information from the card on the website," said Subramanian. He does business also in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

Subramanian's problems seem to have stemmed from Jahan Tech Rooyan Pars having posted the enquiry . In 2012, it was 'sanctioned' by Canada over 'nuclear proliferation' concerns. According to the ISIS report, specifications for ring magnets mentioned in the trade query matched those used in IR 1 centrifuges for uranium enrichment.

'Shouldn't I do business?'

Although the ISIS report does not offer any evidence to show Ferrito Plastronics ever supplied to the Iranian company or showed any interest in the query for ring magnets, it has mentioned the Chennai firm in the context of how dubious companies floated by Iran use certain channels to procure nuclear equipment from different sources while routing supplies through China, using its lax trade controls.

Founder and president of ISIS David Albright has said both Indian and Chinese governments should warn companies that there is zero tolerance for any of their domestic companies entering into such transactions.

A panicky Subramanian wondered what was wrong in a foreign company making an enquiry. "Shouldn't I do any business," he asked while maintaining he had nothing to do with nuclear-related magnets.

Subramanian's defence seems genuine, but Albright points out that small companies like Ferrito Plastronics could be used to procure the magnets from larger manufacturers. "I don't manufacture magnets. I source from a company (Winner Electricals) based in New Delhi. Also, we can't match prices of China. I largely supply in Tamil Nadu and Kerala," he claimed.

ISIS is a globally recognized institution dedicated to informing the public about science and policy issues affecting international security. Its primary focus is on stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and related technology, bringing about greater transparency in nuclear activities worldwide, strengthening the international non-proliferation regime and achieving reductions in nuclear arsenals, according to its website.

Claiming that his company's monthly turnover was "a mere Rs 1 lakh", Subramanian said. "The magnets we deal with are used in almirahs, loud speakers and in the field of medical therapy. Why should I be hounded when I have committed no crime?"

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UN warns risk of hepatitis E in S. Sudan grows

GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations says an outbreak of hepatitis E has killed 111 refugees in camps in South Sudan since July, and has become endemic in the region.

U.N. refugee agency spokesman Adrian Edwards says the influx of people to the camps from neighboring Sudan is believed to be one of the factors in the rapid spread of the contagious, life-threatening inflammatory viral disease of the liver.

Edwards said Friday that the camps have been hit by 6,017 cases of hepatitis E, which is spread through contaminated food and water.

He says the largest number of cases and suspected cases is in the Yusuf Batil camp in Upper Nile state, which houses 37,229 refugees fleeing fighting between rebels and the Sudanese government.

Read More..