Wikinews:Briefs/May 19, 2012

May 19, 2012

Promo
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Today on Wikinews: We briefly recap some of the stories appearing on Wikinews this week and from around the world.

Today is Saturday, May 19, 2012. I am Chad Tew and this is Wikinews.

UN convoy targeted in Syrian province of Idlib (0:27)
A United Nations convoy was hit by an improvised explosive device in the Syrian province of Idlib Tuesday. Three out of the four U-N vehicles were damaged but no U-N personnel were injured. Just before that around the same location, Syrian forces allegedly attacked a funeral that is said to have killed twenty people.

Bush, aides convicted of Iraq war crimes in absentia by Malaysia (0:52)
Former U-S President George W. Bush was found guilty of war crimes by the Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal on May 11. While the Malaysian tribunal has no powers, it did compile evidence and testimony during the trial of Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and 4 other Bush administration officials. The tribunal will submit its findings to the International Criminal Court and the United Nations Security Council.

Expedition 31 crew members arrive at International Space Station (1:30)
A Russian Soyuz spacecraft was launched on Tuesday and the three man crew arrived at the International Space Station Thursday. The crew includes two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut. The crew will be conducting research throughout their one hundred and twenty five day stay.

Cyprus leader says no to second term (1:52)
Cypriot President Demetris Christofias said he will not run for a second term. When he ran for the office to represent the Republic of Cyprus, he promised to make progress on the Cypriot conflict. The conflict has divided the island into the Greek and Turkish sectors since the Turkish military invasion in nineteen seventy four. The United Nations has backed out of talks because of the lack of progress, and Christofias cited the stalled process as his reason for not running for re-election. He is the first Cypriot president since nineteen sixty not to run for the second term of office.

Mexico authorities find over four dozen corpses (2:35)
Mexican authorities discovered forty nine bodies on the road between Monterrey and Reynosa last Sunday. The authorities claimed it was the work of drug cartels who are battling for control over access routes. A sign reading "One hundred percent Zetas" was used to pin the attacks on that cartel. However, the Zetas this week denied responsibility in the killings. The Mexican authorities are having a difficult time identifying the bodies as they were found decapitated and with their extremities removed.

Additional sources:

Swedish man denies serial shootings (3:10)
A forty-year-old Swedish man accused of a string of shootings in Malmö has pleaded not guilty. The prosecution plans to present evidence that links Peter Mangs to the murder of three, as well as twelve other attempted murders. Two immigrants in their sixties were killed in two thousand and three, and a local twenty-year-old woman who was sharing a car with an immigrant was also shot dead. A conviction could lead to a sentence of between ten to eighteen years in prison.

Australian media focuses on Olympic prospects against US for women's basketball (3:47)
The coach of the Australian women's national basketball team, Carrie Graf, is working on the final team roster and establishing a good team dynamic ahead of the summer Olympics in London. The team opened up a training camp to the media, and Wikinews was there. The current story line in the Australian media is that this team has the best chance of competing for a gold medal against competition from the U-K and U-S teams.

Fifteen players leave Bolton Wanderers F.C. after relegation (4:18)
Fifteen footballers have left the Bolton Wanderers after the club was relegated from England's Premier League at the end of the season. Eleven of the players were released after their contracts expired while Nigel Reo-Coker activated a clause in his contract that allowed him to leave the club. Three other players, who were on loan, returned to their parent clubs.

Disco diva Donna Summer dies at 63 (4:46)
Singer Donna Summer died at the age of sixty three of lung cancer. Summer was widely known for her contributions to disco music. This included songs like "Love to Love You Baby," which was banned by the B-B-C, and "Last Dance," which won an Academy Award for Best Song. However, Summer also contributed to early synth pop with the song "I Feel Love," and she was the first woman to win a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal with her song "Hot Stuff."

Outro (5:22)
And those are the headlines for this week.

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