Ex-Gitmo detainee killed by NATO

Ex-Gitmo detainee killed by NATO

KABUL, Afghanistan

NATO and Afghan forces have killed a former Guantanamo detainee who eturned to Afghanistan to become a key al-Qaida ally, international officials said Saturday.

The militant’s death was a reminder of the risks of trying to end a controversial detention system without letting loose people who will launch attacks on Americans.

Sabar Lal Melma, who was released from Guantanamo in 2007, had been organizing attacks in eastern Kunar province and funding insurgent operations, NATO spokesman Capt. Justin Brockhoff said.

Magnitude-7.0 quake hits Vanuatu

NEW YORK

A magnitude-7.0 earthquake shook the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu this morning, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. No tsunami alert was issued.

Katia weakens to tropical storm

MIAMI

Katia has weakened to a tropical storm far out at sea, but it could regain hurricane strength as it chugs westward.

Late Saturday afternoon, Katia had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph. Fluctuations in strength were expected, and forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane center said it could become a hurricane again at any time.

It was located about 430 miles east-northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands. It was moving west-northwest at 10 mph.

Man sentenced to life for NC slayings

CARTHAGE, N.C.

Robert Stewart showed the same lack of emotion when a jury found him guilty of murder Saturday as witnesses say he displayed when he gunned down eight people at a North Carolina nursing home during one of the worst massacres in state history.

Stewart, 47, will not face the death penalty because jurors found him guilty of second-degree murder, meaning they believe he lacked the premeditation and deliberation necessary for a first-degree conviction. Instead, Moore County Superior Court Judge James Webb sentenced the disabled painter and National Guard veteran to between roughly 141 and 177 years in prison.

Associated Press