AP Top News at 8:54 p.m. EDT - July 13, 2003
Hurst reports Iraqis from several groups are to be part of Iraq's new governing council. (Audio)
Iraqi Governing Council Holds 1st Meeting
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - With the blessing of U.S. administrators, Iraqis inaugurated a broadly representative governing council Sunday dominated by the Shiites once oppressed by Saddam Hussein, planting the seeds of the nation's political future three months after the dictator's ouster. In a deeply symbolic first public action, the council set April 9 - the day Baghdad fell to U.S. forces - as a national holiday and banned celebrations on six dates important to Saddam and his Baath Party. And the act was announced, significantly, by a prominent Shiite cleric. Shiites, long oppressed by Saddam, now dominate the 25-member council.
Hurricane Watch Issued for South Texas
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas (AP) - A hurricane watch was posted Sunday along the South Texas coast as Tropical Storm Claudette crawled across the Gulf of Mexico, and campers packed up and left low-lying South Padre Island. The storm was expected to make landfall at near hurricane strength as early as Tuesday, said Miles Lawrence, a forecaster at the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Iraq Group Claims al-Qaida Links, Attacks
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - A group claiming to be an Iraqi branch of al-Qaida said it - and not Saddam Hussein - is behind recent attacks on U.S. forces, according to a videotape aired on an Arab TV station Sunday. The tape couldn't be immediately verified. Al-Arabiya, a satellite station based in Dubai, aired the 4-minute video showing a black-and-white still photograph of an unidentified man dressed like an Islamic cleric in a robe and white turban. He has a long white beard, also typical of Islamic clerics.
Aides Play Down Bush Claim on Uranium
WASHINGTON (AP) - Administration officials insisted Sunday that President Bush's disputed statement about Iraqi uranium shopping in Africa was accurate, even while conceding anew it should have been deleted from his State of the Union address. Both Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Condoleezza Rice, Bush's national security adviser, said the United States and Britain have intelligence that supports the contention that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein sought uranium in Africa for nuclear weapons.
Homes Evacuated Near Tampico, Wash. Fire
YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) - About 20 houses were evacuated Sunday in a remote area of south-central Washington and officials were concerned about others as a wildfire spread rapidly in nearby timber. The fire near Tampico, 20 miles west of Yakima, had burned 1,200 acres Sunday, up from 300 to 500 acres the day before, said David Widmark, spokesman for the Northwest Interagency Coordinating Center in Portland, Ore.
Minister Honors Five Slain Relatives
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) - A minister who lost five relatives in a deadly shooting led a nearly two-hour Sunday service in their honor. Minister Eddie Harper, whose mother, sister, two nephews and niece were slain Tuesday, brought congregants to their feet as they clapped, prayed and sang at the tiny Church of Christ.
Liberia Gov't: Rebels Broke Cease-Fire
MONROVIA, Liberia (AP) - Liberia's government accused two rebel groups Sunday of breaking the country's fragile cease-fire with attacks against four towns that killed at least 15 people. Defense Minister Daniel Chea said the government would report the alleged violations to regional officials mediating talks between the warring sides in neighboring Ghana. He insisted the government remained committed to the truce.
Jazz Master Benny Carter Dies at 95
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Jazz great Benny Carter, a master of melodic invention on the alto saxophone who also was a renowned composer, instrumentalist, orchestra leader and arranger, has died, friends said Sunday. He was 95. Carter died Saturday, after being hospitalized for about two weeks with bronchitis and other problems, said family friend and publicist Virginia Wicks.
Depp's 'Pirates' Steals Box-Office Haul
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Disney was rolling in doubloons as "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" plundered the box office for $46.4 million in its first weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Overall box-office revenues were up slightly, ending a string of four down weekends. The top 12 movies grossed $140 million, up 3.5 percent from the same weekend last year.
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