AP Exclusive: Palestinians face steep court fees

In this Tuesday Oct. 11, 2011 photo, Assma Muhammad Abd el-Dayim, 4, holds a picture of her late brother Arafat, 13, who was killed on Jan. 5, 2009, at their family house in Jebaliya, northern Gaza Strip. Mohammed Abd el-Dayim, the childrens' father, is suing Israel over the deaths of four relatives: his nephew, a volunteer medic who died when Israeli tank fire struck the ambulance he was driving, and a son and two other nephews who were killed the next day when Israeli shelling struck a mourning tent where the family was grieving. Dozens of Palestinians who lost relatives in an Israeli military offensive in Gaza have been forced to put their attempts to seek compensation on hold, claiming Israeli financial barriers make it impossible to proceed with their cases. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

In this Tuesday Oct. 11, 2011 photo, Assma Muhammad Abd el-Dayim, 4, holds a picture of her late brother Arafat, 13, who was killed on Jan. 5, 2009, at their family house in Jebaliya, northern Gaza Strip. Mohammed Abd el-Dayim, the childrens' father, is suing Israel over the deaths of four relatives: his nephew, a volunteer medic who died when Israeli tank fire struck the ambulance he was driving, and a son and two other nephews who were killed the next day when Israeli shelling struck a mourning tent where the family was grieving. Dozens of Palestinians who lost relatives in an Israeli military offensive in Gaza have been forced to put their attempts to seek compensation on hold, claiming Israeli financial barriers make it impossible to proceed with their cases. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

In this Tuesday Oct. 11, 2011 photo, Palestinian Mohammed Abd el-Dayim gestures during an interview at his home in Jebaliya, northern Gaza Strip. Abd el-Dayim is suing Israel over the deaths of four relatives: his nephew, a volunteer medic who died when Israeli tank fire struck the ambulance he was driving, and a son and two other nephews who were killed the next day when Israeli shelling struck a mourning tent where the family was grieving. Dozens of Palestinians who lost relatives in an Israeli military offensive in Gaza have been forced to put their attempts to seek compensation on hold, claiming Israeli financial barriers make it impossible to proceed with their cases. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

In this Tuesday Oct. 11, 2011 photo, Palestinian Mohammed Abd el-Dayim, right, and his son Mayar, 14, hold pictures of their late relatives during an interview at their home in Jebaliya, northern Gaza Strip. Abd el-Dayim is suing Israel over the deaths of four relatives: his nephew, a volunteer medic who died when Israeli tank fire struck the ambulance he was driving, and a son and two other nephews who were killed the next day when Israeli shelling struck a mourning tent where the family was grieving. Dozens of Palestinians who lost relatives in an Israeli military offensive in Gaza have been forced to put their attempts to seek compensation on hold, claiming Israeli financial barriers make it impossible to proceed with their cases. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) ? Dozens of Palestinians who lost relatives in an Israeli military offensive in Gaza three years ago have been forced to put their compensation claims on hold, saying Israel has placed near-impossible barriers to proceeding with their cases.

Israeli restrictions prevent Gazans from entering Israel to testify, undergo medical exams or meet with their lawyers. But the biggest obstacle, the victims say, are steep court fees that can reach tens of thousands of dollars.

"The victim must pay for justice," said Gaza resident Mohammed Abdel-Dayim, whose son and three nephews were killed during a military assault. "Israel should be ashamed."

Israel says the fees prevent frivolous lawsuits. They say they are imposed on many foreigners ? not just Palestinians ? because they don't have local assets that the state could seize to cover legal fees and other court costs.

But Palestinians say the costs are part of a strategy to protect Israeli soldiers. If the fees aren't reduced, lawyers representing Palestinians say they will have to drop most cases.

Abdel-Dayim is suing Israel over the deaths of four relatives: His son was a volunteer medic who died when Israeli tank fire struck the ambulance he was driving. Three nephews were killed the next day when Israeli shelling struck a mourning tent where the family was grieving.

An Israeli court asked Abdel-Dayim to post $22,000 in court fees, or just over $5,000 per victim. His annual income is under $6,000.

About 1,000 Gazans have prepared cases seeking compensation, mostly alleging wrongful deaths during Israel's offensive in the territory, according to their lawyers.

Some 1,400 Gazans were killed during the three-week Israeli operation, including hundreds of civilians. Israel launched the offensive in December 2008 in response to heavy Palestinian rocket fire. Thirteen Israelis also died in the fighting.

Israel says Gaza's Hamas rulers are responsible for the civilian casualties, claiming the militant group endangered civilians by firing rockets from near schools and residential areas.

In civil suits in Israel, the losing party must pay legal fees and court costs of the winning side. Because foreign nationals could bolt without paying, Israeli courts often demand a security deposit. The money is returned to plaintiffs who win their cases.

The sum of the guarantee is left to individual judges.

For example, in July, Judge Nehama Munitz of the District Court in the northern city of Nazareth demanded a $5,500 deposit from each of 42 Gazan plaintiffs in a case involving the bombing of the Abdel-Dayim mourning tent, according to legal documents. Mohammed Abdel-Dayim's share was $22,000.

She said the fees are justified by the expensive and time-consuming investigative process, and dismissed claims of a financial barrier.

"The plaintiffs did not prove that they are unable to afford the expense of the court guarantee, and/or did not claim this in their brief," she wrote in a court document obtained by The Associated Press.

Tameem Younis, a lawyer representing the families, is now appealing. If the fees aren't reduced, "we will have to cancel the claims," he said.

Iyad Alami of the Gaza-based Palestinian Center for Human Rights, which takes on many cases, said they have raised money for some of the most important petitions, including a planned case where some two dozen members of the Samouni clan were killed after fleeing to what they thought was a safe house.

Nitzan Eyal, a spokeswoman for Israel's courts system, said the fees are set based on the chances of success.

"The lower the chances of the claim, the higher the justification for charging the plaintiff a court deposit to ensure the legal expenses of the defendant," she said.

Israelis, in contrast, typically don't have to pay up front because the courts can put liens on their properties. Likewise, families of victims from friendly nations often don't pay.

Hussein Abu Hussein, attorney for the American parents of Rachel Corrie, who was killed in Gaza in 2003 when she was run over by a military bulldozer, did not pay a deposit in their civil suit against Israel. He said it was waived because the U.S. and Israel enforce each others' court rulings.

Israel and the Palestinians have no such understanding.

Michael Karyanni, a law professor at Israel's Hebrew University, said the legal fees appeared excessive, given the impoverished circumstances of many Gazans. Some 40 percent of Gaza's 1.5 million residents live on less than $2 a day, according to U.N. figures.

"The Supreme Court has said in one of its judgments that the court needs to be sensitive to the financial abilities of the plaintiff, but I don't think from what I've seen that there is any kind of a serious attempt to have the costs be proportional to the plaintiff's ability," Karyanni said.

Israelis point out the practice of seeking upfront guarantees is also accepted in Europe. In the Netherlands, for instance, plaintiffs must pay 800 euros to 1,400 euros depending on the size of the claim. But the Dutch system lowers the fee to just 71 euros for indigent or low-income plaintiffs.

Karyanni said in Israel, only in rare cases have plaintiffs successfully appealed to reduce the fees.

In general, Israel says the system is fair to Palestinians.

"The fact that Palestinians who are not citizens of Israel routinely petition Israeli courts demonstrates more than anything else the stature of our courts," said government spokesman Mark Regev.

In the last two years, Palestinians won about $6 million in damages from the state, according to the Israeli Justice Ministry.

In August, Israel's Defense Minister settled a case related to the Gaza offensive out of court, paying about $137,000 to the family of a mother and daughter who were shot dead while waving white flags.

In the Iraq war, by contrast, Iraqis cannot claim civil damages from the U.S. under a 2008 agreement. In Afghanistan, the U.S. offers compensation to citizens when their property is damaged, but it's unclear whether they can claim damages for deaths or injuries caused by the U.S.-led military alliance.

There are no known cases of Israelis suing in Palestinian Authority courts for damages, said Palestinian spokesman Ghassan Khatib.

There is hardly any reason to test the system that way: Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, an Israeli lawyer who represents victims of Palestinian violence, said some 150 cases against the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority were pending in Israeli courts.

The Palestinian government defends itself in these cases, and so far, there have been no rulings against the authority, Darshan-Leitner said.

She said Israelis had also successfully sued Gaza's rulers, the militant Islamic group Hamas, which has killed hundreds of Israelis in suicide bombings. But it has been impossible to recover damages.

In other cases, Israelis have turned to U.S. courts, either because of joint American citizenship or under "crimes against humanity" laws. The Palestinian Authority has reached settlements in at least two cases, Darshan-Leitner said.

For most Gazans, just getting to the courtroom is a challenge.

Under restrictions imposed in 2002 at the height of violence between Palestinians and Israel, Palestinians have 60 days following an incident to file an initial letter of complaint with the Defense Ministry. After that, they have two years to take those claims to court.

Gazans are allowed into Israel only in rare cases, such as medical emergencies, and the state does not allow video testimony from Gaza, said Israeli attorney Michael Sfard, who frequently represents Palestinians in Israeli courts.

Israelis are also banned from entering Gaza, which means lawyers cannot meet clients and state doctors cannot give certified medical exams to verify claims.

The Israeli Arab advocacy group Adalah has filed a petition to allow Gazans entry permits to Israel for their legal proceedings. A court ruling is expected in the next few months.

"It's impossible to conduct a trial at all under these circumstances," said Sfard.

___

Cheslow reported from Jerusalem. Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City, Lara Jakes in Baghdad and Deb Riechmann in Kabul also contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-11-07-ML-Israel-Gaza-War-Compensation/id-7e3305ed0fb54a4da86eae8f97e17b75

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An incredible shrinking material

Monday, November 7, 2011

They shrink when you heat 'em. Most materials expand when heated, but a few contract. Now engineers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have figured out how one of these curious materials, scandium trifluoride (ScF3), does the trick?a finding, they say, that will lead to a deeper understanding of all kinds of materials.

The researchers, led by graduate student Chen Li, published their results in the Nov. 4 issue of Physical Review Letters (PRL).

Materials that don't expand under heat aren't just an oddity. They're useful in a variety of applications -- in mechanical machines such as clocks, for example, that have to be extremely precise. Materials that contract could counteract the expansion of more conventional ones, helping devices remain stable even when the heat is on.

"When you heat a solid, most of the heat goes into the vibrations of the atoms," explains Brent Fultz, professor of materials science and applied physics and a coauthor of the paper. In normal materials, this vibration causes atoms to move apart and the material to expand. A few of the known shrinking materials, however, have unique crystal structures that cause them to contract when heated, a property called negative thermal expansion. But because these crystal structures are complicated, scientists have not been able to clearly see how heat -- in the form of atomic vibrations -- could lead to contraction.

But in 2010 researchers discovered negative thermal expansion in ScF3, a powdery substance with a relatively simple crystal structure. To figure out how its atoms vibrated under heat, Li, Fultz, and their colleagues used a computer to simulate each atom's quantum behavior. The team also probed the material's properties by blasting it with neutrons at the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee; by measuring the angles and speeds with which the neutrons scattered off the atoms in the crystal lattice, the team could study the atoms' vibrations. The more the material is heated the more it contracts, so by doing this scattering experiment at increasing temperatures, the team learned how the vibrations changed as the material shrank.

The results paint a clear picture of how the material shrinks, the researchers say. You can imagine the bound scandium and fluorine atoms as balls attached to one another with springs. The lighter fluorine atom is linked to two heavier scandium atoms on opposite sides. As the temperature is cranked up, all the atoms jiggle in many directions. But because of the linear arrangement of the fluorine and two scandiums, the fluorine vibrates more in directions perpendicular to the springs. With every shake, the fluorine pulls the scandium atoms toward each other. Since this happens throughout the material, the entire structure shrinks.

The surprise, the researchers say, was that in the large fluorine vibrations, the energy in the springs is proportional to the atom's displacement -- how far the atom moves while shaking -- raised to the fourth power, a behavior known as a quartic oscillation. Most materials are dominated by quadratic (or harmonic) oscillations -- characteristic of the typical back-and-forth motion of springs and pendulums -- in which the stored energy is proportional to the square of the displacement.

"A nearly pure quantum quartic oscillator has never been seen in atom vibrations in crystals," Fultz says. Many materials have a little bit of quartic behavior, he explains, but their quartic tendencies are pretty small. In the case of ScF3, however, the team observed the quartic behavior very clearly. "A pure quartic oscillator is a lot of fun," he says. "Now that we've found a case that's very pure, I think we know where to look for it in many other materials." Understanding quartic oscillator behavior will help engineers design materials with unusual thermal properties. "In my opinion," Fultz says, "that will be the biggest long-term impact of this work."

###

California Institute of Technology: http://www.caltech.edu

Thanks to California Institute of Technology for this article.

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Congress and White House differ over icebreakers (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The country's only two heavy-duty icebreaker ships are old and broken, and Congress and the White House are at odds over how to respond as the melting of polar ice increases the economic and security stakes in the Arctic region.

The House on Friday was working on a Coast Guard spending bill that would decommission the Polar Star, slated to be the last somewhat seaworthy icebreaker after its sister ship, the Polar Sea, goes out of service in the near future.

The White House, in a statement issued Thursday, said it "strongly opposes" the legislation because decommissioning the Polar Star would "create a significant gap in the nation's icebreaking capacity."

In the Senate, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., is trying to block the decommissioning of either ship with a provision she added to a Coast Guard bill. The ships are based in the Seattle area and support hundreds of jobs there.

"Our nation needs icebreakers," she said at the committee meeting. "With Russia moving many troops to the Arctic, and Chinese investors buying parts of Greenland, this is also a national security issue."

There's little disagreement on the need for a U.S. presence in the Arctic. The Congressional Research Service, in a report last year, said the shrinking of the icecap will result in increased commercial and military ship activity and greater exploration for oil and other resources.

That calls into demand the functions of icebreakers: defending U.S. sovereignty and economic interests, monitoring sea traffic, law enforcement, conducting search and rescue operations and scientific research.

"We desperately need the Coast Guard and the administration to do what we have asked them to do really now for more than 10 years ? define what our mission is in the Arctic," said Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-N.J., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Coast Guard subcommittee.

He said it costs tens of millions of dollars a year to keep the two vessels tied up at the dock, and he hopes the House move to take them out of service will push the administration into deciding how large a fleet is needed in the future.

The lone Alaska congressmen, Republican Don Young, opposes decommissioning icebreakers and wants to increase the number of vessels in any way possible, spokesman Luke Miller said. Young has introduced a bill that would authorize the Coast Guard to enter into long-term lease agreements for two new icebreakers.

The icebreakers are supposed to have a 30-year service life. The Polar Star, commissioned in 1976, is docked in Seattle, in caretaker status since 2006. The Polar Sea, commissioned in 1978, suffered an engine breakdown last year and has been out of service. The Coast Guard also has a third, medium-duty icebreaker, the Healy, that is used mainly for scientific research.

The White House said Congress has previously approved funds to reactivate the Polar Star by the end of next year, extending the life of the ship for seven to 10 years. That, it said, "will stabilize the United States' existing polar fleet until long-term icebreaking capability requirements are finalized."

Cantwell cited estimates that the Coast Guard needs a minimum of six heavy-duty icebreakers and four medium-duty icebreakers to meet Coast Guard and Navy mission requirements.

That still wouldn't match Russia. The Congressional Research Service said last year that one estimate put the Russian fleet at 25, including six active heavy icebreakers. Finland and Sweden each had seven icebreakers, and Canada six, it said.

The CRS also put the cost of extending the service life of the existing ships for 25 years at about $400 million a ship, in 2008 dollars. It said that replacement ships might cost $800 million to $925 million.

Cantwell said refurbishing a vessel would take five years and employ more than 300 workers, while rebuilding it could take eight years and employ more than 1,000 workers.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111104/ap_on_go_co/us_congress_icebreakers

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Pentagon is asked to outline impact of budget cuts (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? Two senior Republican senators pressed the Pentagon Friday to release a detailed assessment of the impact more budget cuts would have on national security, saying Congress needs to hear specifics.

Senators John McCain and Lindsay Graham, two influential Republican voices on military matters, wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta urging him to "describe the specific options and types of actions" the Pentagon would have to take if forced to cut projected spending by an additional $600 billion over the next decade.

In doing so, they appeared to be trying to marshal evidence to argue against further cuts.

Panetta has said the cuts, which would come on top of $450 billion in spending reductions already approved by Congress and President Barack Obama, would be "devastating." But he has offered no details.

Obama and Congress approved the $450 billion in cuts in August in a deal aimed at reducing the $1.4 trillion deficit and $14 trillion U.S. debt. They created a congressional "super committee" to find at least $1.2 trillion more in savings.

McCain and Graham noted that a November 23 deadline is quickly approaching for the committee to report its recommendations and that Congress would have to vote by January 15 on any deal.

A failure by the committee to reach a deal or the failure of Congress to approve such a deal would trigger across-the-board spending cuts starting in January 2013.

An automatic across-the-board reduction -- known as a sequestration -- that would slash another $600 billion in U.S. national security spending over the next decade.

McCain and Graham noted in their letter that Panetta had testified that the additional cuts would have "devastating effects" and be like "shooting ourselves in the head."

'CONCRETE TERMS'

"What is lacking in these characterizations, however, is a frank and honest assessment describing in concrete terms what defense spending cuts of this magnitude would entail," the senators wrote.

"Given these looming deadlines, we believe it is imperative that the Congress be fully informed of the effects of a sequester on our military," they said. "Therefore, we ask that you describe the specific options and types of actions the department would be required to take should a sequester result from a failure of the select committee to reach agreement."

Pentagon officials said they had received the letter and would respond. They declined to be more specific about how additional budget cuts would affect the Defense Department.

Some analysts have questioned the Pentagon's contention that it cannot deal with deep spending reductions, noting that defense spending has risen robustly since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

The Pentagon launched a strategic review several months ago to help make decisions on spending cuts. Pentagon spokesman George Little said it was important to complete that before discussing where to make reductions.

He said Panetta met with top military leaders Thursday for another round of discussions on the budget, focusing on trying to define "our core national security interests and how the military will support those going forward."

Little said there is no plan to publicly release any results of the strategy review. The discussions are being carried out as part of the process for developing the 2013 budget, which will be unveiled early next year.

(Editing by Will Dunham)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111104/pl_nm/us_usa_defense_budget

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Case against Michael Jackson's doctor goes to jury (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? The case of Michael Jackson's doctor was placed in a jury's hands Thursday after contentious legal arguments over who was to blame for the superstar's death ? the celebrity who craved sleep at any cost or the doctor accused of providing the drugs that killed him.

In final statements delivered in a packed courtroom, a defense attorney cast Dr. Conrad Murray as a victim of Jackson's celebrity, saying he would never have been charged with involuntary manslaughter if his patient was someone other than Jackson.

"They want you to convict Dr. Murray for the actions of Michael Jackson," attorney Ed Chernoff said. "This is not a reality show. It is reality."

Prosecutor David Walgren portrayed Murray as a liar and greedy opportunist who put his own welfare before that of Jackson.

"Conrad Murray is criminally liable for the death of Michael Jackson," he told jurors. "Not because it was Michael Jackson but because Conrad Murray is guilty of criminal negligence."

Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor submitted the case to jurors after a full day of arguments and told them to begin deliberations Friday.

If convicted, Murray could receive a minimum sentence of probation or a maximum of four years. He would be unlikely to serve that much time, however, because of jail overcrowding.

Earlier, Walgren, in a carefully structured argument enhanced by video excerpts of witness testimony, spoke of the special relationship between a doctor and patient and said Murray had corrupted it by giving Jackson the anesthetic propofol as a sleep aid.

He ridiculed the defense theory that Jackson had injected himself with the fatal dose of the anesthetic and denounced the testimony of defense expert Paul White who blamed Jackson for his own death.

"What you were presented by Dr. White was junk science. It was garbage science," Walgren said.

Chernoff countered that Dr. Steven Shafer, a propofol expert who testified that evidence showed Murray killed Jackson, was wrong and overstepped his role as a scientist by becoming an advocate for Murray's conviction.

He said Shafer ignored Murray's statement to police in which the physician said he gave the singer a small dose of propofol and left the room after the drug should have worn off.

Walgren also projected images of Jackson's grief-stricken children on a giant screen and told jurors that Murray took away their father.

With Jackson's mother and siblings watching from the courtroom gallery, Walgren showed a photo of Jackson at his last rehearsal before the picture of the three Jackson children ? Prince, Paris and Blanket ? at their father's memorial.

He also reminded jurors of the scene in Jackson's bedroom when Paris came upon Murray frantically trying to revive her lifeless father and screamed, "Daddy!"

"For Michael Jackson's children this case goes on forever because they do not have a father," Walgren said.

The prosecutor repeatedly called Murray's treatment of Jackson bizarre and said there was no precedent for the cardiologist giving the singer propofol to help him sleep.

Still, Jackson trusted him and that eventually cost the singer his life, Walgren said.

"Conrad Murray looked out for himself and himself alone," the prosecutor said.

Walgren said Murray was more concerned with earning $150,000 a month as Jackson's personal physician and traveling to London for his "This Is It" concert than with the welfare of his patient.

He cited evidence showing Murray did not call 911 after finding Jackson unresponsive. Instead he called Jackson's personal assistant, a decision the prosecutor said was just one of the doctor's bizarre actions on the day the singer died.

He suggested Murray delayed the call until he could hide medical equipment and bottles that might incriminate him.

Evan after paramedics arrived, the doctor made no mention of giving Jackson propofol because of "a consciousness of guilt," Walgren said.

The prosecutor also played statements of several doctors who testified that they would never have agreed to give Jackson propofol for insomnia in a private home.

"The setting represents an extreme violation of the standard of care," Walgren said. "No one ever did it until it was done to Michael Jackson. It is gross negligence and it is a cause of Michael Jackson's death."

At one point, Walgren suggested Murray was conducting "an obscene experiment" on Jackson.

Chernoff contended that prosecutors hadn't proven that Murray committed a crime by giving Jackson doses of propofol in the singer's bedroom. He also suggested multiple prosecution witnesses had lied and that Shafer was "a cop" with an agenda.

The prosecutor responded with sarcasm to Chernoff's claim that Murray was the victim in the case and listed an array of witnesses who had been blamed by the defense.

"Poor Conrad Murray," he said repeatedly in a mocking tone. "Everyone is just allied against him."

Walgren told jurors the case is not complicated.

"What's unusual," he said, "is that Michael Jackson lived as long as he did under the care of Conrad Murray."

With only Jackson and Murray present in the singer's room on the day he died, there are things that will never be known about his death, Walgren said. But he said it was clear that Murray, untrained in anesthesiology, was incompetent.

"The people won't prove exactly what happened behind those closed doors," he said. "Michael Jackson could give answers, but he is dead.'"'

___

AP Entertainment Writer Anthony McCartney contributed to this report.

___

McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111104/ap_on_en_mu/us_michael_jackson_doctor

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Pressure on Syria's Assad to implement peace deal (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) ? Syria is under pressure from its Arab neighbors to end months of bloodshed, after agreeing to a plan to pull its military out of cities, release political prisoners and hold talks with the opposition.

"We are happy to have reached this agreement and we will be even happier when it is implemented immediately," said Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani of Qatar, which leads an Arab League committee behind the plan agreed in Cairo on Wednesday.

President Bashar al-Assad has deployed his army and security forces to crush protests inspired by uprisings elsewhere in the Arab world. He has said they are battling Islamist militants and armed gangs.

The United Nations says 3,000 people have been killed in the bloodshed.

Syria's opposition have dismissed Assad's offer of dialogue as insincere. Outside the Arab League's Cairo headquarters on Wednesday a group of protesters called for Assad to step down.

The United States reiterated its call for the Syrian president to quit.

"Our position remains that President Assad has lost his legitimacy to rule and should step down," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters.

Qatar's Sheikh Hamad said Syria had agreed to a complete halt to violence, the release of prisoners, removing the military presence from cities and residential areas and allowing the Arab League and media access for reporting.

He told a news conference the League would continue contacts between the Syrian government and the opposition "in preparation for a national dialogue within two weeks."

A League statement said: "The Arab committee (overseeing the plan) is responsible for submitting periodic reports to the ministerial council of the Arab League on the progress of carrying out the plan."

"BUYING TIME"

Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby told Al Arabiya in a telephone interview that the talks between the Syrian government and the opposition would be held in Cairo.

"The regime is trying to buy time. Its calls for reform and dialogue are false and deceiving," the opposition council said on Wednesday. It wants the League to take steps that include suspending Syria's membership in the pan-Arab body and ensuring international protection for civilians.

The Arab League has stopped short of suspending Syria, and has shown no sign of backing international military action, as it did against Muammar Gaddafi's Libya.

Syrian activists said on Wednesday that security forces shot dead at least 11 villagers at a roadblock near Homs.

A YouTube video distributed by anti-Assad activists purportedly showed several bodies, gagged and with their hands tied behind their backs. Another five were killed in Homs. All 11 were Sunnis, who form the majority of Syria's population.

Their killing follows reports by an activist in Homs, and on social network pages of Assad supporters, that nine members of the president's minority Alawite sect had been dragged from a bus and killed by gunmen near Homs on Tuesday.

Syrian state television showed tens of thousands of people rallying in Syria's eastern city of Raqqa, in the latest in a series of state-organized rallies designed to show Assad enjoys popular support nationwide. Similar demonstrations have taken place in Damascus, Aleppo, Latakia and Deir al-Zor.

With tight Syrian media restrictions in place, it is hard to verify accounts of violence or gauge the real levels of popular support for Assad or those demanding his removal.

(Additional reporting Marwa Awad in Cairo, Dominic Evans and Erika Solomon in Beirut and Khaled Yacoub Oweis in Amman; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Peter Graff)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111103/wl_nm/us_syria

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Freddie Mac reports Q3 loss, asks for $6B in aid (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Government-controlled mortgage giant Freddie Mac has requested $6 billion in additional aid after posting a wider loss in the third quarter.

Freddie Mac said Thursday that it lost $6 billion, or $1.86 per share, in the July-September quarter. That compares with a loss of $4.1 billion, or $1.25 a share, in the same quarter of 2010.

This quarter's $6 billion request from taxpayers is the largest since April 2010.

Freddie's losses are increasing mainly for two reasons: Many homeowners are paying less interest because they are able to refinance at lower mortgage rates. And failing and bankrupt mortgage insurers are not paying out as much money when homeowners default.

The government rescued McLean, Va.-based Freddie Mac and sibling company Fannie Mae in September 2008 after massive losses on risky mortgages threatened to topple them. Since then, a federal regulator has controlled their financial decisions.

Taxpayers have spent about $169 billion to rescue Fannie and Freddie, the most expensive bailout of the 2008 financial crisis. The government estimates it could cost up to $51 billion more to support the companies through 2014 after subtracting dividend payments.

Freddie and Washington-based Fannie own or guarantee about half of all U.S. mortgages, or nearly 31 million home loans worth more than $5 trillion. Along with other federal agencies, they backed nearly 90 percent of new mortgages over the past year.

Charles E. Haldeman Jr., Freddie's chief executive, said many homeowners are refinancing at lower mortgage rates or are shortening the terms of their mortgage. While that saves homeowners money, it is pushing Freddie deeper into the red.

"In fact, borrowers we helped to refinance will save an average of $2,500 in interest payments during the next year," he said.

For Freddie, those losses are temporary because interest rates will remain low for the foreseeable future, said Jim Vogel, an interest-rate specialist at FTN Financial.

Still, many homeowners are still defaulting on their mortgages. Unemployment remains stubbornly high at 9.1 percent. The percentage of those who are late by 90 days or more on their monthly mortgage payments was virtually unchanged at 3.51 percent in the July-September quarter.

Another reason Freddie needs more aid is because it has received less money from mortgage insurers.

Many riskier mortgage loans require insurance, which is meant to protect lenders and investors from losses if a homeowner defaults and the lender doesn't recoup costs through foreclosure. The borrower pays a monthly premium for the insurance, typically a set percentage of the total mortgage loan. But when those mortgage insurers fail, they pay out less in claims.

For example, the main subsidiary of private mortgage insurer PMI Group was seized by Arizona insurance regulators last month. That followed heavy losses the group incurred after the housing market collapsed. PMI is now paying claims at just 50 percent.

As a result, the amount that Freddie has set aside for losses increased from $2 billion in the January-March quarter to $3.6 billion in the July-September quarter.

Fannie and Freddie buy home loans from banks and other lenders, package them into bonds with a guarantee against default, and then sell them to investors around the world. When property values drop, homeowners default ? either because they are unable to afford the payments or because they owe more than the property is worth. Because of the guarantees, Fannie and Freddie must pay for the losses.

Fewer foreclosures and delays in foreclosure processing because of a yearlong government investigation into mortgage lending practices have reduced the companies' projected losses.

Fannie and Freddie are required to pay 10 percent dividends on the government money they receive. Freddie paid $1.6 billion in dividends to the Treasury Department in the July-September quarter.

Pressure continues on the government to eliminate Fannie and Freddie and reduce taxpayers' exposure to risk. The Treasury Department put forward a plan in February to slowly dissolve Fannie and Freddie, although that process could take years. Abolishing Fannie and Freddie would transform how homes are bought and redefine who can afford them.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111103/ap_on_bi_ge/us_earns_freddie_mac

eli manning eli manning new york giants cbs richard pryor richard pryor don t ask don t tell