hPlane crash kills 147

hPlane crash kills 147
MEDAN, Indonesia -- An Indonesian woman covers her mouth after trying to identify a relative among the charred victims of a Mandala Airlines plane that crashed just after takeoff Monday in Medan, Indonesia. After the crash, A 32-year-old woman clutched her baby as she stumbled from the flaming plane wreck, only to watch in horror as her eldest son burned to death. Another passenger fled through a hole in the shattered aircraft, leaping over charred bodies. Some 16 people managed to survive Indonesia's deadliest airline disaster. At least 147, many of them on the ground, were killed in the crash. Bound for Jakarta, the plane shook violently just seconds after takeoff, veered to the left and slammed into a busy residential neighborhood in overcast weather 500 yards from the Medan airport. The Boeing 737-200 shoved aside cars and motorcycles before plowing into a row of houses. Witnesses said some people were on fire as they fled the scene.
Blast in Gaza kills four
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- A mysterious blast after nightfall Monday leveled a building in Gaza City, killing four people and wounding at least 30, residents and hospital officials said. The violent Islamic Hamas group blamed Israel, but the Israeli military said it was not involved. The explosion came hours after Palestinian security forces got their first look at demolished Jewish settlements in Gaza, touring the area ahead of Israel's formal hand over in mid-September. The joint tour by Palestinian commanders and Israeli military officials marked the first time Palestinian authorities were allowed into the settlements, which were evacuated two weeks ago. The blast in the Gaza City neighborhood of Shajaiyeh destroyed a house where known Hamas members lived. Hamas charged that an Israeli missile hit the house, with a group spokesman, Munir al-Masri, accusing Israel of continuing its "dirty assassination policy, which gives us the right to respond and to defend ourselves." Some residents said it was apparently a case of explosives in the house detonating prematurely as Hamas militants worked on a bomb.
Authorities investigateterrorists in South Africa
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- One terror suspect sold Islamic CDs and DVDs at flea markets. Another worked at a hamburger joint, blending into a country whose porous borders, easy money-laundering and passports for sale have created a popular hideout for international fugitives. The arrests of the two -- a U.S. embassy bomber and a man accused of plotting to set up a militant training camp in the United States -- have authorities investigating whether Al-Qaida members are using southern Africa as a base to raise funds, recruit supporters and provide logistical support for global attacks. Members of South Africa's security forces and some government leaders warn the region must step up anti-terror vigilance or it could become a target itself -- much like Britain, accused of ignoring the danger of letting militants base themselves there before the July 7 mass-transit suicide bombings by homegrown Muslim radicals.
Associated Press