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/ 7 February 2007

UK woman injured by suspected parcel bomb

A woman was injured on Wednesday in an explosion at Britain’s vehicle licensing agency, the third attack in three days on motoring-related agencies or companies. Police refused to confirm the nature of the explosion, but the BBC News reported that a parcel bomb had exploded at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in Swansea, Wales.

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/ 7 February 2007

Anti-crime campaign gathers momentum

A firm of commercial lawyers on Wednesday did what First National Bank (FNB) did not do and published an advertisement in Beeld newspaper voicing its grievances about crime. ”We might not have an advertising budget like that of FNB, but we have De la Rey courage,” read the advert, placed by Pretoria-based Van Huyssteens attorneys.

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/ 7 February 2007

Somali PM reshuffles Cabinet, sacks ministers

Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi reshuffled his Cabinet on Wednesday, sacking three ministers as the government seeks to reassert its authority in the chaotic nation after a war ousted rival Islamists. Gedi’s sackings are a contrast to last year when he narrowly escaped a no-confidence vote and struggled to keep his Cabinet intact amid a flurry of resignations.

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/ 7 February 2007

Umpire Hair sues for racial discrimination

Umpire Darrell Hair is suing both the International Cricket Council and the Pakistan Cricket board, claiming racial discrimination after he was prevented from appearing at Test matches, the BBC reported on Wednesday. Though Hair’s contract as a top official runs until 2008, he is now only allowed to officiate matches between non-Test nations.

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/ 7 February 2007

US singer Frankie Laine dead at 93

Frankie Laine, the full-voiced singer who became one of the most popular entertainers of the 1950s with such hits as I Believe, Jezebel and the theme to the TV Western Rawhide, died on Tuesday at 93. Laine died of a heart attack after hip-replacement surgery at the Scripps Mercy Hospital in San Diego.

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/ 7 February 2007

Morocco slashes cannabis crop, UN says

Morocco’s multibillion-dollar cannabis crop, the biggest in the world, has shrunk by almost half over three years due to a government eradication campaign and drought. But the next step — convincing farmers in the poor northern Rif region to seek other livelihoods — needs heavy support from the European Union.

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/ 7 February 2007

TAC criticises microbicide trial ‘myth’

It was a myth that participants in microbicide trials are encouraged to have unprotected sex, the Treatment Action Campaign said on Wednesday. ”This myth has been perpetuated by at least two senior South African politicians and we have encountered journalists who have mistakenly believed it,” the organisation said.