Archive for the ‘report’ Category
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. federal agents have been given new powers to seize travelers’ laptops and other electronic devices at the border and hold them for unspecified periods the Washington Post reported on Friday.
Under recently disclosed Department of Homeland Security policies, such seizures may be carried out without suspicion of wrongdoing, the newspaper said, quoting policies issued on July 16 by two DHS agencies.
Agents are empowered to share the contents of seized computers with other agencies and private entities for data decryption and other reasons, the newspaper said.
DHS officials said the policies applied to anyone entering the country, including U.S. citizens, and were needed to prevent terrorism.
The measures have long been in place but were only disclosed in July, under pressure from civil liberties and business travel groups acting on reports that increasing numbers of international travelers had had their laptops, cellphones and other digital devices removed and examined.
The policies cover hard drives, flash drives, cell phones, iPods, pagers, beepers, and video and audio tapes — as well as books, pamphlets and other written materials, the report said.
U.S. terrorism report finds Al Qaeda attacks rose in Pakistan – Los Angeles Times
Posted on: May 1, 2008
The State Department’s annual report says the group killed four times as many people last year from its haven in a tribal area.
Al Qaeda used a haven in Pakistan’s tribal areas to double the number of attacks in that country and kill four times as many people there in 2007, says a State Department report to Congress released Wednesday.
At a news briefing, Ambassador Dell L. Dailey, the State Department’s top counter-terrorism official, stopped short of blaming Pakistan for the increase and said the terrorist network was “weaker now than it was at the 9/11 time frame.”
The annual terrorism report itself, however, says that a primary reason for the terrorist network’s resurgence is a much-criticized cease-fire last year between the Pakistani federal government and tribal leaders beyond its authority near the border with Afghanistan. The agreement enabled Al Qaeda to more freely travel, train and plan attacks around the world, the report says.
Overall, there were nearly the same number of terrorist attacks worldwide in 2007 as the year before — about 14,500. But many more people were killed, especially as the number of suicide bombers rose, says the 312-page report, which is required by Congress and compiled using statistics from the National Counterterrorism Center.
Suicide bombings worldwide were up about 50%. Attackers have shifted their tactics, more often traveling on foot and using explosives-laden backpacks to strike in crowded areas rather than relying on vehicles that could be deterred by heightened security.
“I think it’s a fair statement that around the globe people are getting increasingly efficient at killing other people,” said Russell E. Travers, deputy director of the National Counterterrorism Center, at the news briefing.
One such attack in December in the garrison town of Rawalpindi, Pakistan, killed at least 20 people, including former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as she campaigned for elections.
Overall, an estimated 22,685 people were killed in terrorist attacks around the world in 2007, a 9% increase from 2006. The number of injured increased 15%, to 44,310, the report says. The numbers do not include military personnel on active duty or anyone working in an official capacity on behalf of the U.S. government.
As in previous years, the majority of terrorist attacks chronicled in the report occurred in Iraq. The number there dipped slightly in the last year, but still accounted for 60% of worldwide terrorism fatalities, including 17 of the 19 Americans killed, the report says. Two other Americans were killed in Afghanistan.
The report is considered to be the U.S. government’s benchmark in objective data on terrorist attacks, with some analysis on trends included to inform Congress and other policymakers, the American public and U.S. allies.
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Ryan Seacrest addresses “Paula Abdul rumors”
Ryan Seacrest addressed the rumors that Paula Abdul might get canned from “American Idol” after her loopy behavior on Tuesday night.
Abdul critiqued contestant Jason Castro on both of his performances even though he had only sang once.
This sparked speculation among gossip columns that someone else might be writing Paula’s comments or that “American Idol” might be scripted.
On Wednesday’s results show, Seacrest said Abdul was a part of the family and loved. Awww. Warm and fuzzies.
As for the other people competing to stay on the show, Brooke White got voted off. That leaves David Archuleta, David Cook, Jason Castro and Syesha Mercado as the top 4!
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – An estimated 5.2 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease, and it could steal the minds of one out of eight baby boomers, according to a report released on Tuesday by the Alzheimer’s Association.
The report found there were 411,000 new cases of Alzheimer’s in 2000, a number expected to grow to 454,000 new cases a year by 2010. By 2050, 959,000 people will be diagnosed with the disease every year, the report predicts.
The report, available on the Internet here, says that 14 percent of all people age 71 and over have dementia.
That includes 16 percent of women and 11 percent of men in that age group.
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia, accounting for 60 to 80 percent of cases.
It starts out with mild memory loss and confusion but escalates into complete memory loss and an inability to care for oneself. There is no cure and the handful of drugs that can treat Alzheimer’s only slow its progression for a short time.
The second most common cause of dementia is vascular dementia, often caused by strokes.
The causes of Alzheimer’s disease are not yet clear. The brains of patients are clogged with protein plaques and tangles of nerve fibers. Corporate and academic scientists are working on tests for disease risk, better drugs to treat the symptoms and vaccines that might prevent the brain damage. Continued…
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