International News 12/14/2005

Raytheon Standard Missile-3 Intercepts Challenging Ballistic Missile Target 11/17/2005
Kauai, HA - A Raytheon Company-produced Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) destroyed a ballistic missile target outside the earth's atmosphere during a Missile Defense Agency / Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Program flight test over the Pacific Ocean. It was the sixth successful intercept for the Aegis BMD program using the SM-3.
Spy case patterns the Chinese style of espionage.
By Peter Grier Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
WASHINGTON – One of the shredded documents the FBI says it recovered from Chi Mak's trash seemed to be a set of instructions. Machine printed, in Chinese, it urged Mr. Mak - an engineer for a California defense firm and a naturalized US citizen - to attend more seminars on special subject matters. It went on to list technologies of interest to its unnamed author, including torpedoes, aircraft-carrier electronics, and a "space-launched magnetic levitational platform."
Catholic Church Destroyed by Force in Xian City, 16 Nuns Wounded, China Aid Dec 01, 2005
China Aid learned that on November 22, a Catholic church was bulldozed in Xi'an city, Shanxi Province. Sixteen nuns were wounded and hospitalized.
Obscure al-Qaida Chemist Worries Experts
By Charles J. Hanley, AP Special Correspondent, Sat Dec 3, 5:25 PM ET
ALEXANDRIA, Egypt - He's a mystery in a red beard, with a strange alias and a degree in chemical engineering. In the hands of this alleged al-Qaida operative, it's a specialty that summons visions of poison gas and mass terror.
Iran buying, developing missile defence system: official, Sun. Dec 4, 2:20 AM ET
TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran, under pressure over its disputed nuclear programme, has been developing a missile defence system and has bought such technology from Russia, the Islamic republic's top national security official told AFP.
Russia battles U.S. democracy efforts. By Joel Brinkley The New York Times, Sun., Dec. 4, 2005
WASHINGTON Groups paid by the United States to promote democracy in Central Asia are under sustained assault, not only from those governments, but also from Russia, which is locked in conflict with Washington for dominance in the region's former Soviet republics.
Russia Agrees to Sell Missiles to Iran, By Henry Meyer, AP, Mon. Dec. 5, 2005, 11:16pm ET
MOSCOW - Russia has struck a deal to sell short-range, surface-to-air missiles to Iran, the defense minister said Monday, confirming reports that have raised concern in the United States and Israel.
How to Tell Democrats from Terrorists, by Dr. Brooks A. Mick
It sure isn’t easy to differentiate Democrats from terrorists these days. 1) Both Democrats and terrorists want American troops out of Iraq. 2) Both Democrats and terrorists hate George W. Bush.
Massacre in China Draws Global Attention, By Zheng Tingwei, The Epoch Times Dec 12, 2005
The forced appropriation of farmers' land by the municipal authorities of Shanwei City, Guangdong Province has incited a mass protest by the residents. The land appropriation was conducted in order to build a power plant. The local authorities suppressed the protest using thousands of armed police who reportedly shot the protesters using submachine guns and tanks. Dozens are believed to have died. This latest attack on its own people by the Chinese government reminds the West of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and has drawn serious attention globally.
Venezuela jails opposition leader
A Venezuelan court has sentenced one of the most prominent leaders of the opposition to 15 years in prison. <...> Carlos Ortega, who once led powerful trade unions, was found guilty of inciting civil unrest during a strike that began in late 2002.
The Iranian military conducted a successful test of a Silkworm anti-ship missile Dec. 12 as part of military exercises that began on Dec. 9 in the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea. Iranian state television reported that the test of the Chinese-built Silkworm, with a range of 68 miles, was a central part in the maneuvers, which are the largest to date carried out by Iran's military.
Academia's dirty little secret is that intimidation of students over political, social, and religious views is common, and has been common for decades.