A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Subpoenas to be issued to Bush aides
WASHINGTON- Congressional Democrats defied President George W Bush yesterday and authorised legal orders to compel White House aides, including political adviser Karl Rove, to testify under oath about the firing of eight US prosecutors.
Moving closer to a high-stakes showdown, a House of Representatives judiciary subcommittee agreed to authorise subpoenas if Mr Rove and others refuse to give sworn testimony before Congress.
The vote came a day after Bush vowed to oppose subpoenas. He offered instead to allow aides to answer questions, but only behind closed doors, not under oath and with no transcript taken of their exchanges. - (Reuters)
Helicopter with six people missing
MOSCOW -A Russian helicopter with six people on board went missing yesterday in northern Russia, a spokeswoman for the emergencies ministry said.
The Mi-8 helicopter, owned by a unit of gas giant Gazprom, did not return to base and has made no radio contact for over six hours, it was reported. At least 177 people have been killed in a trio of disasters in Russia in the past week. - (Reuters)
At least 50 dead in Pakistan clashes
WANA -At least 50 people were killed in fighting between al-Qaeda-linked militants and Pakistani tribesmen near the Afghan border yesterday, taking the death toll in three days of fighting to about 100.
The fighting follows a breakdown in relations between the militants and the tribesmen who previously sheltered them.
The government has been urging the ethnic Pashtun tribesmen to bring the foreigners under control. - (Reuters)
Nationwide strike in Israel called off
JERUSALEM -Israel's powerful Histadrut labour union called off a nationwide strike that had stopped international flights and public services yesterday after a deal was reached with the state on unpaid employees.
The open-ended strike began at 9am and union and finance ministry officials spent the day trying to hammer out a deal with the help of a labour court. - (Reuters)
Smith baby DNA directive appealed
NASSAU -Anna Nicole Smith's longtime lawyer and companion is appealing a judge's directive for a DNA swab test on the former Playboy Playmate's six-month old daughter, the subject of a custody battle in the Bahamas, legal sources said yesterday.
But Court TV reported the mouth swab test had been done and would be sent to a laboratory in Ohio.
A legal sources said lawyers for Howard K Stern were drawing up papers to block Judge Stephen Isaacs's directive on Tuesday that a swab be taken from Dannielynn Hope Marshall Stern. - (Reuters)