Kerry, Lieberman lead among Dems for 2004

Kerry, Lieberman leadamong Dems for 2004
WASHINGTON -- John Kerry and Joseph Lieberman have the most support among Democrats when asked about the field of likely 2004 candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination, a poll released Saturday suggests.
But Hillary Rodham Clinton would lead if she were to enter the field.
Among the field of likely candidates, Democrats put Sens. Kerry of Massachusetts and Lieberman of Connecticut at 16 percent followed by Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri at 10 percent, with others in single digits. Twenty-four percent said they were unsure.
In an expanded field that included Clinton, the New York senator was the choice of 30 percent of registered Democrats in a Time/CNN poll. Clinton aides have said consistently that she does not plan to run in 2004.
Trailing Clinton with 13 percent each were Kerry and Lieberman, with others in single digits.
The telephone survey of 1,006 adults, 18 and older, was conducted Tuesday and Wednesday, and had an error margin of plus or minus 3 percentage points, larger for subgroups.
Mexican singer returnshome to face charges
CANCUN, Mexico -- Gloria Trevi, a Mexican pop diva known for her splashy sexuality, was extradited from Brazil to Mexico on Saturday to face charges that she lured starry-eyed girls into a sex cult run by her manager.
Trevi's arrival at the beach resort of Cancun ended a three-year odyssey in Brazil, during which she conceived a child while living in an all-female cell block and vowed to avoid extradition by marrying a Brazilian diplomat.
Trevi -- widely known as "Mexico's Madonna" -- was met by a swarm of federal agents, who kept reporters and fans far from the commercial plane's arrival gate.
Carrying her baby, Angel Gabriel, the 33-year-old singer left the plane and was driven a small distance to a private government jet, which took off for the northern city of Chihuahua.
Trevi, her ex-husband and manager Sergio Andrade, and backup singer Maria Raquenel Portillo were arrested in a beachfront apartment in Rio de Janeiro in January 2000.
Chihuahua state prosecutors have charged the women with aggravated rape, kidnapping and corruption of minors, saying they recruited adolescent girls for live-in "musical training" that included sex with Andrade.
The Brazilian Supreme Court authorized the extradition of Trevi, Andrade and Portillo in December 2000, but the suspects maintained their innocence and fought their return.
Palestinian girl diesof gunshot wound
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- An 11-year-old Palestinian girl died of a gunshot wound Saturday in the Gaza Strip, where Israeli troops reinforced a blockade aimed at deterring shooting attacks against Jewish settlers.
Late Saturday, an Israeli soldier was lightly injured in the Gaza Strip when a Palestinian militant threw grenades and opened fire as he tried to infiltrate the Jewish settlement of Morag, the army said. The Palestinian was shot and killed.
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine later took responsibility for the attack in a call to The Associated Press, saying it was retaliation for Israeli aggression against Palestinians.
The Palestinian girl died in Rafah Hospital while undergoing surgery for a gunshot wound to the leg, physicians said. Her family said she was hit while walking home from school and the bullet came from the direction of an Israeli army outpost.
Army Radio said soldiers were firing in the area in response to a grenade being thrown at the outpost, which guards Morag, just north of Rafah. The army did not comment on the shooting.
Smoking ban in Italy
ROME -- Smoking will get a little harder in Italy, where cigarettes are as common an accessory as a Vespa motorbike or a Fendi handbag.
The Senate passed a bill Saturday banning smoking in most public places. The law takes effect in a year.
The bill, already passed this month by the lower Chamber of Deputies, requires bar and restaurant owners to create separate smoking areas if they want to allow smoking.
Owners failing to enforce the law face up to $2,000 in fines. Individuals who light up in no-smoking areas face fines of $25-$250 -- although the amount can double if they smoke near a pregnant woman or child under 12.
Smoking currently is banned in some restaurants, offices and public places, but Italians frequently light up in no-smoking areas.
About 12 million Italians -- or 20 percent of the population -- smoke, and Health Minister Girolamo Sirchia has campaigned to get them to quit.
Associated Press