War enters ninth year

War enters ninth year

WASHINGTON — The Afghanistan war reached its once-unthinkable eighth anniversary Wednesday as President Barack Obama, seeking a revamped strategy for the increasingly unpopular conflict, focused more closely with his war council on neighboring Pakistan’s role in the fight against al-Qaida.

The White House also revealed that Obama has in hand — and has for nearly a week — the troop request prepared by the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal. It is said to include a range of options, from adding as few as 10,000 additional combat troops to — McChrystal’s strong preference — as many as 40,000.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama asked for McChrystal’s request last Thursday, before he flew to Copenhagen.

Quakes hit South Pacific

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Three powerful earthquakes rocked the South Pacific near the Vanuatu archipelago today, generating a small tsunami just over a week after another, massive wave killed 178 people in the Samoas and Tonga.

There were no immediate reports of damage, and all tsunami warnings and watches for the Pacific were canceled two hours after they were first issued.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said sea-level readings indicated a tiny tsunami formed after a quake with a magnitude of 7.8 struck 183 miles northwest of the Vanuatu island of Santo, and 354 miles northwest of the capital of Port Vila, at a depth of 21 miles.

Just 15 minutes later, a second quake with a magnitude of 7.3 hit at the same depth but 21 miles farther north of Santo and Port Vila. A third of magnitude 7.1 was recorded nearly an hour later, 175 miles northwest of Santo at a depth of nine miles.

Ambassador nominee is openly gay lawyer

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama plans to nominate an openly gay lawyer as the United States’ ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa, an administration official said Wednesday.

David Huebner was the lawyer who would be announced for the post, said an official who would speak only on condition of anonymity ahead of an announcement.

If confirmed by the Senate, Huebner would the administration’s first openly gay ambassador. Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush both had openly gay ambassadors during their terms.

Huebner is based in Shanghai, where he handles international arbitration and mediation cases.

Famed photographer dies

NEW YORK — Irving Penn, whose photographs revealed a taste for stark simplicity whether he was shooting celebrity portraits, fashion, still life or remote places of the world, died Wednesday at his Manhattan home. He was 92.

Penn, who constantly explored the photographic medium and its boundaries, typically preferred to isolate his subjects — from fashion models to Aborigine tribesmen — from their natural settings to photograph them in a studio against a stark background. He believed the studio could most closely capture their true natures.

Nursing home resident, 100, was strangled

BOSTON — A 100-year-old woman who was found dead last month in a Massachusetts nursing home had been strangled.

Bristol County District Attorney Sam Sutter said Wednesday that Elizabeth Barrow was found dead in her bed during a routine check Sept. 24 by staff at Brandon Woods Nursing home in Dartmouth. The medical examiner ruled her death a homicide.

A law-enforcement official familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press that Barrow was found with a plastic bag over her head in a room she shared with a woman in her 90s. There were no obvious signs of a struggle. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to comment on an ongoing investigation.

Johnston to pose nude

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Levi Johnston is going for the ultimate exposure — the 19-year-old father of Sarah Palin’s grandchild will pose nude for Playgirl, his attorney said Wednesday.

To get ready for his close-up, Johnston is training three hours a day, six nights a week at an Anchorage gym.

A formal agreement hasn’t been reached with the online magazine, but the photo shoot is a “forgone conclusion,” said Johnston’s attorney, Rex Butler.

Johnston fathered a son with Bristol, the 18-year-old daughter of Sarah Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate who resigned as Alaska’s governor in July.

Associated Press