Malaysian ship attacked, captain and crew kidnapped:

Malaysian ship attacked, captain and crew kidnapped: The captain and two crew-members of a Malaysian-owned ship have been kidnapped after the vessel was boarded by armed pirates in Indonesian waters, marine police officials said on Wednesday. The M.T. Penrider, which was carrying 1,000 tons of fuel oil from Singapore to Penang in northern Malaysia, was attacked and robbed on Sunday by unidentified gunmen in the Malacca Strait, marine police spokesman Chief Inspector Fauzi Abdul Rauf said.

"A group of men in a boat, wearing military dress and armed with AK47 and M16 rifles, fired several shots at the ship," he said. The ship's captain, engineer and assistant engineer, who are all Indonesian nationals, were taken as hostages, he said. --AFP

Australian trains searched after package threat: Hundreds of police searched trains in Australia's biggest city on Wednesday after receiving a threat that four men might leave a package on a Sydney train, police said. Police had received unspecified information that four men described as being "of Melanesian descent" could be traveling on Sydney's extensive rail network and might attempt to leave a package on a train. --Reuters

Two U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq: Two U.S. soldiers were killed in roadside bombs targeting military convoys north of the Iraqi capital, as the army said it snagged four wanted loyalists of Saddam Hussein's toppled regime. "One 4th Infantry Division (4ID) soldier was killed and one wounded when their M-113 armored personnel carrier hit an (improvised) explosive device (IED) at approximately 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday, division spokesman Lt. Col. Bill MacDonald said. Central Command later said another 4th Infantry Division soldier was killed and two more were wounded late Tuesday "when their convoy was attacked by an improvised explosive device in the vicinity of Al-Taji". --AFP

UK says security threat in Saudi, BA halts flights: Britain said on Wednesday it had credible evidence of a security threat to its aviation interests in Saudi Arabia and British Airways suspended all flights to the kingdom. The announcement followed two clashes in three days in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, between police and Islamic militants that began with a shootout on Sunday and continued with a full-blown gunbattle on Tuesday. BA, which flies to the capital Riyadh and Red Sea port of Jeddah, is the only British carrier with scheduled flights to Saudi Arabia. Flights to both were canceled on Wednesday. --Reuters