Two suspected rebels killed in Aceh: Indonesian Military (TNI)

Two suspected rebels killed in Aceh: Indonesian Military (TNI)
soldiers have shot dead two suspected rebels in troubled Aceh
province, the police said on Wednesday. The two Free Aceh
Movement (GAM) rebels were shot dead early Wednesday after they
attacked soldiers who were investigating reports of blackmail by
GAM in the Limpok area of Pidie district, said city police chief,
Adj. Sr. Comr. Alfons Toluhula. Soldiers confiscated an automatic
rifle from the scene. A GAM representative in the Joint Security
Committee, Amri bin Abdul Wahab, confirmed the incident but
denied that the two rebels had carried automatic weapons. -- AFP

Scientists inch towards theory man descended from worms: Chinese
scientists believe new finds support a theory that man ultimately
descended from worms, state media reported on Wednesday.
Fossilized ancient worms found in southwestern Yunnan province
represent the "first step" in a long evolutionary process that
eventually led to the human species, the Xinhua news agency said.
The search should go on for more fossil evidence to test the
theory in line with clues provided by modern zoological
information, said Shu Degan, a professor at the Northwest China
University. --AFP

Israel carries out major roundup of Palestinians: Israeli troops
rounded up large numbers of Palestinians in the occupied West
Bank city of Tulkarm on Wednesday in a fresh sweep for wanted
militants. Soldiers in tanks and armored vehicles backed by
helicopters imposed a curfew and searched homes for militants
before telling males aged 14 to 40 to gather in the courtyard of
a local school or face punishment, residents said. Palestinian
witnesses said about 2,000 people were rounded up. The Israeli
army said it was about half that number. --Reuters

Cuban ferry hijacked, drifting in international waters:
A Cuban ferry was hijacked on Wednesday morning and was drifting
in international waters about 100 kms off Key West, Florida, the
FBI said. It was the second hijacking from Cuba in two days.
FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela said the Cuban government has told
the agency that the craft is a 14 meter boat with 15 to 20 people
on board. The FBI is sending hostage negotiators to the scene by
helicopter, where they will rendezvous with a U.S. Coast Guard
cutter, she said. Further details were not immediately available.
--AP

Russia to send navy to Arabian Sea: Russia is likely to send its
navy to the Arabian Sea near the Gulf region where the United
States is leading a war against Iraq, the Nezavisimaya Gazeta
reported on Wednesday. Russian navy officials had earlier
announced that at least two fleets -- the Pacific and the Black
Sea -- would stage exercises in the Indian Ocean next month.
However, there had previously been no mention of the Arabian Sea,
which is on the Indian Ocean's northern tip and washes the shores
of India, Iran, Oman and Yemen. --AFP