Philippines arrests Communist Party leaders
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine security forces arrested the chairman of the underground Communist Party of the Philippines and his wife on Saturday, the military said, dealing the biggest blow in years to the decades-old rebel group.
Benito Tiamzon and his wife, Wilma, also a senior party officer, were arrested in central Cebu province’s Aloguinsan township, said military Chief of Staff Gen. Emmanuel Bautista.
The couple face charges of crimes against humanity, including multiple murders, Bautista said in a statement late Saturday. They were taken to a military camp in Cebu.
Police: Iraq president’s guard kills journalist
BAGHDAD – An officer in the Iraqi president’s guard shot dead a well-known radio journalist during a quarrel Saturday near the leader’s east Baghdad residence, police said.
The shooting of Radio Free Iraq’s Baghdad bureau chief Mohammed Bdaiwi drew condemnation from Iraqi politicians and highlights the resentment many residents of the capital feel toward the often aggressive bodyguards of Iraq’s VIPs.
Elsewhere in Iraq, a series of attacks killed 16 members of the security forces and civilians, officials said.
3 Palestinians killed in clash with Israeli army
JENIN, West Bank – Israeli troops killed three Palestinians in an early-morning raid that was followed by a clash with angry protesters in a West Bank town Saturday, the military and Palestinian security officials said, in the deadliest incident in months.
The violence came amid a recent spike in clashes in the West Bank that could complicate the already-troubled peace efforts as the sides near an April deadline set under U.S.-sponsored talks.
Pope taps women for sex-abuse panel
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis named the initial members of a commission to advise him on sex-abuse policy Saturday, signaling an openness to reach beyond church officials to plot the commission’s course and priorities: Half of the members are women, and one was assaulted by a priest as a child.
The eight members were announced after Francis came under fire from victims’ groups for a perceived lack of attention to the abuse scandal, which has seriously damaged the Catholic Church’s reputation around the world and cost dioceses and religious orders billions of dollars in legal fees and settlements.
Associated Press
