Report: CIA operated secret prisons
The CIA ran secret prisons in Poland and Romania from 2003 to 2005 to interrogate Al Qaeda suspects, a European investigator said Friday, detailing harsh treatment that included months of solitary confinement, shackling and sleep deprivation. Top terror suspects Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Zubaydah were held and interrogated in Poland, according to the report.
Dawn raid leaves 14 dead
Carloads of attackers descended on a police chief’s house northeast of Baghdad at dawn Friday, killing the official’s wife, two brothers and 11 guards, and kidnapping three of his grown children, Diyala provincial police reported. The attack, which came when the police chief was not at home, was one of the boldest and bloodiest in months of stepped-up violence around the city of Baqouba.
HIV rate lower than thought
The number of Indians infected with HIV is far smaller than previously believed, according to new data that appears to vindicate critics who said earlier UN assessments of the country’s epidemic were overestimated. Experts say the still-unreleased survey is likely to show that India’s number of HIV cases, which last year was said to be the highest in the world at 5.7 million, is actually well below that mark.
A mixed bag on nutrition
It may be obvious that most Britons are overweight. What isn’t so obvious is that at least 2 million of them likely are malnourished — and that includes some of the people who are too fat. Experts say the poor state of the average British diet — often high in fat, salt and calories, but low on nutrition — means malnutrition is a problem even though food is plentiful.
AND FINALLY
Burger King’s back
Burger King and its famous Whopper burger returned to Japan on Friday after a six-year hiatus, and customers lined up for hours at the first new branch. “It feels more like you’re eating a burger,” said Shinichi Fujiki, 37, who wore a paper crown as one of the first 100 customers at the Tokyo restaurant’s opening. Many hamburgers sold here are small, with thin slices of meat. Fujiki said he had missed BK since it was forced to withdraw in 2001, partly due to a price war with McDonald’s.
