Saturday 15 January 2005, 12:16 Makka Time, 9:16 GMT
Army Reservist Charles Graner is the US soldier directly responsible for the abuse of prisoners in the Abu Ghraib's jail in Baghdad.
He has been under judgment lately about the well-known tortures he perpetrated to the prisoners of this penitentiary.
The sentence, previously thought to be about seventeen years, has been lessened to 15, after five hours of deliberating from the jury.
Graner's behavior has been described by his prosecutors as sadistic and dangerous, as it was proven that he derived pleasure in watching prisoners suffer.
Il Romanaccio at 12:16 PM
Friday 14 January 2005, 22:11 Makka Time, 19:11 GMT
Egyptian president Husni Mubarak, 76, has been leading the country since 1981. He has now to decide about his retirement from political activity or run again for the Presidential elections on September.
Mubarak was already been chosen by the ruling National Democratic Party (NPD), according to one of its senior officials, but Mubarak's son Gamal (also involved in the party) said that no decisions about the candidate to present on September fort the referendum have been taken yet, concluding that the decision has to be made by his father.
On an interview released to the US public boradcaster PBS on Thursday, he said: "This is too early to tell you about that. I haven't decided yet. We have a long time for that."
Il Romanaccio at 12:01 PM
Saturday 15 January 2005, 13:07 Makka Time, 10:07 GMT
Israeli's occupation soldiers have killed today two palestinians during an operation in a neighbourhood on the eastern Gaza City, as rerported by medical sources.
The two dead were a civillian and a policeman.
Palestinians resistance fighters were shooting with mortars at a jewish settlement, as result Israeli troops moved into the Gaza borders early in the morning.
According to witnesses and security sources, 10 armoured vehicles and two bulldozers commendering two houses in the Zaitun neighbourhood (east of Gaza).
The incursion took place after the Hamas movement claimed responsability for a series of mortar attacks towards Palestine.
Il Romanaccio at 11:33 AM
Thursday 13 January 2005, 20:32 Makka Time, 17:32 GMT
In Ramadi, capital of the western Anbar province, unidintified armed men stole milions from a bank on Thursday.
The group of armed men broke into the Al-Rashid Bank and stole $13.5 milion worth of Iraqi dinars.
According to a police official, "At 11am (0800 GMT), a group broke into the Al-Rashid Bank and locked all the employees in a room and took all the money from the bank before escaping."
Il Romanaccio at 12:01 PM
Friday 14 January 2005, 8:00 Makka Time, 5:00 GMT
According to the statement released by the US marines base in Falluja, two marines assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force were killed on Thursday.
They were "conducting security and stability operations" in al-Anbar area, western Iraq.
No further informations were available, as usually, due to the risk of spreading in formations beetween the insurgents.
A 1st Infantry Division soldier died while "supporting Task Force Olympia operations" near Iraq's northern city of Mosul on Thursday, as reported by the other military statement from Baghdad.
Il Romanaccio at 11:51 AM
Friday 14 January 2005, 12:32 Makka Time, 9:32 GMT
Palestinian resistence fighters caused an explosion at an important Gaza crossing on Thursday.
Six Israelis and three Palestians were killed after a bomb exploded, according to the military statement.
Fifteen other people were wounded in the attack on the Karni crossing on Thursday.
The attack started before 11 pm (2100 GMT), when the Palestinian resistence fighters entered the crossing in a bomb-laden truck.
Further comments from Palestinian officials were not available.
Abbas failed in trying to impose a ceasefire to the fighter groups such as Hamas and the Islamic Jihad.
Both the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades (affiliated with Abbas' Fatah faction) and Hamas claimed responsability for the act.
Il Romanaccio at 11:18 AM
Thursday 13 January 2005, 2:02 Makka Time, 23:02 GMT
The White House confirmed that the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq is now over.
The result of this search was negative as no weapons of that kind were found.
Scott McClellan, the White House official spokesman for this case, said that the Iraq Survey Group, which coordinated the search, is focused elsewhere now.
McClellan said that the group's chief, Charles Duelfer, "is continuing to wrap things up at this point... My understanding is that it is not going to fundamentally alter the findings of his earlier report." [negative about the presence of any WMD]
Il Romanaccio at 1:06 PM
Thursday 13 January 2005, 14:39 Makka Time, 11:39 GMT
According to the police, armed men have killed six Iraqis and seized a Turkish businessman in a central hotel of Baghdad, today at 6.30 a.m. (0330 GMT).
A group of armed men were shooting a minibus came to pick up the businessman at Bakhan hotel.
All the people inside the vehicle were killed immediately.
The Turkish businessman, named Abdulkadir Tanrikulu, was seized by at least 10 men.
Il Romanaccio at 12:55 PM
Thursday 13 January 2005, 3:05 Makka Time, 0:05 GMT
Two car bombs exploded in the city of Mosul on Wednesday, killing at least two Iraqi soldiers.
The first bomb was a van aiming to a joint convoy of US and Iraqi militay vehicles.
It exploded too early, killing an unknown number of civillians, as reported by US Sergeant Chris Schaeffer.
Another car parked in a nearby street exploded and killed two Iraqi soldiers.
Meanwhile, Iraqi interim President Ghazi al-Yawar is in Paris for an official visit and a meeting with Jacques Chirac, the French President.
Il Romanaccio at 12:40 PM
Wednesday 12 January 2005, 2:47 Makka Time, 23:47 GMT
In Western Iraq, an American marine was killed in action, as reported in a military statement.
The document claims only that the soldier was assigned to the First Marine Expeditionary Force in Falluja and died on Tuesday in al-Anbar area, west of Baghdad.
No further details were available, as routine.
In the area of al-Anbar, the struggle against the US army is quite violent, despite of all the soldiers used and attacks made, America's hope to free this area has yet to be realized.
Il Romanaccio at 1:59 PM
Wednesday 12 January 2005, 12:16 Makka Time, 9:16 GMT
An Israeli soldier was killed and three others wounded following an explosion at the border with Egypt, near an illegal settlement in the Gaza Strip.
Military sources say that the attack was aimed at a check point guarding the entrancetoMorag.
They also theorize that the bomb might have been placed in a tunnel.
The Islamic Jihad resistence movement, in claiming responsability for this attack, said that a bomb was placed in an Israeli military vehicle.
Palestinian witnesses said the bomb wounded a dozen soldiers around the vehicle.
Il Romanaccio at 1:46 PM
Wednesday 12 January 2005, 10:14 Makka Time, 7:14 GMT
In the West Bank today, two Palestinians were killed after a Israeli raid in the Gaza district.
Both of them were having an exchange of fire with the Israeli troops close to Ram Allah.
Israeli helicopters launched two missiles in the Shaikh Ajlin area, and were also shooting towards a open field claimed to be a suspected area of resistance.
An Al-Jazeera reporter nearby said that the violence was caused by Israel's raid.
Il Romanaccio at 1:24 PM
Monday 10 January 2005, 23:19 Makka Time, 20:19 GMT
An armed man killed two members of the State Security in Kuwait City, as reporetd by the interior ministry.
One of the suspects, a wanted Kuwaiti man named Fawaz al-Otaibi, died of his wounds later in the hospital.
Two other security personnel members were wounded on Monday, in a gun battle.
Just before the incident, the US embassy warned of a possible attack: [we are sending you]
"this urgent message because it has received credible information that an individual or individuals moving about Kuwait in a black-colored small sedan intend to randomly attack Westerners".
Il Romanaccio at 11:44 AM
Tuesday 11 January 2005, 11:21 Makka Time, 8:21 GMT
According to the US military, six Iraqi policemen were killed today in Tikrit (Northern Iraq) by a car bomb.
The bomb exploded close to an Iraqi police headquarters in Tikrit city, Saddam Hussein's hometown, which is situated 175 km north of Baghdad.
The US military reported: "At approximately 9.30am (0630 GMT) on 11 January in northern Tikrit, anti-Iraqi forces detonated a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device in the vicinity of a police station, killing six Iraqi police."
As a result, security was tightened by the Iraqi police.
Il Romanaccio at 11:31 AM
Tuesday 11 January 2005, 10:54 Makka Time, 7:54 GMT
During a meeting with international observation teams, the new Palestinian leader Abbas said that it is time for peace beetween Israel and Palestine.
"We are ready to make peace based on justice and we hope that the response will be positive."
and "The elections are only the beginning, not the end. We have a programme full of things to do in order to achieve peace," he said.
He also admitted that peace will be not easy to reach and maintain.
Ariel Sharon, commenting on Abbas' words, said:"The main focus at this stage should be Palestinian action on terror, he [Abbas] will be tested by the way he battles terror and acts to dismantle its infrastructure."
Sharon will have a meeting with Abbas very soon as reported by Israeli officials.
Il Romanaccio at 11:09 AM
Sunday 09 January 2005, 17:16 Makka Time, 14:16 GMT
A French member of a UN patrol was killed today during an Israeli air raid in south Lebanon.
A roadside bomb killed an Israeli officer and wounded three soldiers in a disputed area on the Lebanese frontier.
As reported by the Lebanese police the UN patrol was hit near the Sheeba Farms area, on Sunday.
A Swedish UN peacekeeper and a Lebanese driver were wounded in the attack as well.
The Sheeba Farms territory is Syrian land occupied by Israel, according to the United Nations.
Il Romanaccio at 3:59 PM
Monday 10 January 2005, 13:26 Makka Time, 10:26 GMT
With 95% of the votes counted, Fatah candidate Mahmud abbas won the Palestinian presidential elections yesterday.
He gained 67.7 % of the West Bank's votes and 65% of the Gaza Strip's.
Mustafa al-Barghuthi won 21% of the West Bank's votes and 18% of the Gaza Strip's.
Mahumud Abbas declared himself the winner early this morning and immediatly dedicated his victory to Yasir Arafat, died on November 11 of last year.
Il Romanaccio at 3:50 PM
Sunday 09 January 2005, 20:48 Makka Time, 17:48 GMT
Palestinians are voting for their new Authority chairman who will succeed Yasir Arafat, who died on November 11 of the last year.
Turnout in Sunday's elections was high in the rural areas but relatively low in some towns such as Hebron.
Palestinian electoral officials said they expected a boycott call by Hamas to have some impact in areas considered to be Islamist strongholds.
Some eligible voters however, were already convinced that the presidential election can't sufficiently affect the general political situation.
Il Romanaccio at 7:18 PM
Sunday 09 January 2005, 0:13 Makka Time, 21:13 GMT
A Kamikaze bomber killed four people at a checkpoint near Baghdad today.
In order to fight the rising violence, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a self-declared al-Qaeda ally, was arrested by the US military.
The civillian death toll has now reached 100 people during the last week, all of them killed by the fighters.
In the village of Mahawil, a car bomb exploded in a petrol station, killing four people and wounding 19 others.
Il Romanaccio at 7:05 PM
Sunday 09 January 2005, 0:13 Makka Time, 21:13 GMT
The Iraqi village of Aaytha was bombed last night by the US Air Forces.
According to the US military, a 500 lb laser-guided bomb was dropped into a civilian house mistaken for a suspected hideout of fighters.
14 civillians died in the attack, all from the same family.
Il Romanaccio at 6:57 PM
