The ESL Free Press

U.S. Commander Meets with Kandahar Leaders

The leader of the U.S. military traveled to Kandahar, Afghanistan, and talked to local leaders on Tuesday.

Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, met with tribal leaders and elders as well as Afghan officials. They met in the governor's palace, once used by Mullah Omar, leader of the Taliban.

This kind of meeting is called a shura. It's the traditional way for Afghan communities to make decisions.

The leaders talked about corruption (dishonesty in officials), but could not agree how to stop it. They all wanted security, but could not agree who should be in charge of it. These decisions will take time.

Mullen also talked to U.S. troops -- especially some soldiers whose time in Afghanistan was made ten days longer. He told them, "We worked like crazy to see if we could avoid that extension." But, he told them, it was not possible.

Source

Printable:Download U.S. Commander Meets with Kandahar Leaders.pdf (21.6K)

Store Owner and Son-in-Law Admit Pirating DVDs

A man who owned a video and CD store, and his son-in-law who worked for him, have pleaded guilty to infringing copyright (using works they had no right to).

Osborne Lowe owned the Movies and CDs store in Dallas, Texas. His daughter's husband, Robert Campbell, worked there. Customers often asked Campbell to copy the store's movies onto DVDs. They paid $5 for each copy. This, of course, was illegal. When movies are copied and sold this way, the makers get no money for their work.

Campbell and Lowe admitted that they pirated 151 movies in this way.

FBI agents seized about 3700 DVDs from the store.

Source

Printable: Download Store Owner and Son-in-Law

Links to March 31st's Top News Stories

Two more suicide bombings in Russia have killed at least 12 people. They happened near the Chechen border. Read more.

The Serbian Parliament has apologized for killing thousands of Bosnian Muslims in Srebenica in 1995. Read more.

A Colombian soldier has been freed after being held hostage by FARC for 12 years. Read more.

Which country has the world's fastest Internet connections? South Korea. Read more.

Pakistanis Go After Enemy

About 40,000 Pakistani soldiers are now in North Waziristan, near their country's border with Afghanistan, to fight rebels. They are making many small attacks instead of a large one.

A U.S. military official says the Pakistanis have made "impressive" gains.

Last year, the Pakistani Army drove rebels out of South Waziristan. Its Chief of Staff says this was the first time any military force had occupied the area.

Pakistan has become more concerned with fighting the rebels recently. The U.S. official thinks this is because rebels began moving into areas they had not held before. Also, there were bombings in several cities.

"It became their war, not our war, as it may have been portrayed," he said.

About 200 U.S. troops are helping the Pakistanis with training and security.

Source

Printable: Download pakistanis go after enemy.pdf (20.3K)

30 Somalis Rescued at Sea

A small boat with 30 people on board was stranded in the waters off Somalia for four days last week. The Somalis were rescued by a U.S. Navy ship watching for pirates.

The boat had sailed from a fishing village. Both its engines failed. The people on board -- men, women, and children -- had no food and very little water.

The U.S.S. McFaul found the boat. When the crew saw that the people were not dangerous and needed help, it took them on board.

The people have been taken back to their village, and their boat has been fixed.

Source

Printable: Download somalis rescued at sea.pdf (19.6K)

U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Cory Phelps 

Links to March 30th's Top News Stories

Leaders of the G8 countries -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, and the United States -- are meeting in Canada today to talk about Iran's nuclear program. Read more.

Rescue workers have not been able to get into the South Korean warship that sank last week. There are reports one diver has died. Read more.

Iyad Allawi, the winner of the Iraqi elections, says Iran interfered to stop him from becoming Prime Minister. Read and watch.

Chocolate Easter eggs may be good for your health. Read more.

Obama Visits Afghanistan

President Obama made a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Sunday. He met with President Hamid Karzai and spoke to U.S. troops.

Obama landed at Bagram Airfield after dark. He flew to Kabul and spent half an hour with Karzai. Obama says he is happy with military victories in Afghanistan. However, he wants the government to work harder on being honest. Government officials in Afghanistan are often accused of taking bribes and favoring their friends and family. Obama has asked Karzai to meet with him again in May, in Washington.

At Bagram, the President told U.S. troops, "One of the main reasons I'm here is just to say thank you."

source

printable:Download obama visits afghanistan.pdf (20.2K)

Women of FARC Plead Guilty

Three Colombian women have pleaded guilty to supporting a terrorist group, the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC). The group held three Americans hostage from 2003 till 2006. (They were freed by Colombian soldiers.)

Nancy Conde Rubio was in charge of getting and transporting supplies and equipment for FARC. The group traded drugs to help with this. The other women, Ana Isabel Pena Arevalo and Luz Mery Gutierrez, worked as radio operators. FARC used radios and satellite phones to communicate between the jungles of Colombia and the cities. There was no landline or cell phone service in the jungles.

The three were taken to the U.S. and charged there.

Source

Printable:Download Women of FARC Plead Guilty.pdf (20.4K)

Passover 2010

Passover, an important Jewish holiday, begins at sunset today. Here are some pages from a children's book about Passover. You can order it from Dover Publications.

 

 

 

Video: Obama Speaks to Troops in Afghanistan