Gunman kills 10 at school in Finland, then self

KAUHAJOKI, Finland (AP) — A masked gunman whose violent YouTube postings prompted police to question him just a day earlier opened fire Tuesday at his trade school in western Finland, killing 10 people and burning some of their bodies before shooting himself in the head.

Witnesses said panic broke out as the gunman, dressed in black and carrying a large bag, entered the school in Kauhajoki and started firing in a classroom where students were taking an exam. The shootings began just before 11 a.m. local time (0800GMT), as about 150 students were at the Kauhajoki School of Hospitality, 180 miles (300 kilometers) northwest of Helsinki.

"I heard several dozen rounds of shots, in other words it was an automatic pistol," school janitor Jukka Forsberg told Finnish broadcaster YLE. "I saw some female students who were wailing and moaning and one managed to escape out the back door."

On Monday, police questioned the gunman about YouTube postings in which he is seen firing a handgun, but he was released because there was no legal reason to hold him, Interior Minister Anne Holmlund said.

"The detective who handled the case did not think that the circumstances were such that they required a confiscation of the weapon or a withdrawal of the license," Holmlund told reporters.

Police spokesman Jari Neulaniemi said the attacker walked into the school armed with a .22-caliber pistol and explosive devices that were used to start a fire. He killed 10 people, burning some of them beyond recognition, Neulaniemi said. The big bag apparently contained the explosives.

It was Finland's second school massacre in less than a year and the two attacks had eerie similarities. Both gunmen posted violent clips on YouTube prior to the massacres, both were fascinated by the 1999 Columbine school shootings in Colorado, both attacked their own schools and both died after shooting themselves in the head.

The gunman was taken to a hospital in Tampere, about two hours away, along with a female victim he had shot in the head. The gunman later died, according to hospital's medical director.

The female victim's condition was not immediately clear. Police said two people were wounded, in addition to the 10 victims and dead shooter.

Finnish media identified the gunman as Matti Juhani Saari, a 22-year-old student at the school, which offers courses in catering, tourism, nursing and home economics.

"He was just a regular and calm guy. Nothing outstanding. He had lots of friends. Nothing that would have given an idea that something like this would happen," student Susanna Keranen told an AP television crew outside the school.

The ruling center-right government held an emergency meeting Tuesday, and some ministers planned to go to Kauhajoki (pronounced COW-ha-yer-key) — a town of 14,000 — on Wednesday.

"We have experienced a tragic day," Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said as he expressed condolences to the families of the victims and declared Wednesday a day of mourning.

Police have not released the names or ages of the victims. The school says most of its students are between 18 to 25 years old, with some older.

Finnish authorities did not confirm exactly what YouTube clips were linked to the shooter.

But in one YouTube clip posted by a 22-year-old "Mr. Saari," a young man wearing a leather jacket fires several shots in rapid succession with a handgun at what appears to be a shooting range.

The posting was made five days before the shooting and the location was given as Kauhajoki — the same town as Tuesday's shooting. The posting included a message saying: "Whole life is war and whole life is pain. And you will fight alone in your personal war."

"Mr. Saari" also posted three other clips of himself firing a handgun in the past three weeks.

Clips from the 1999 Columbine school shootings in Colorado were listed among his favorite videos.

Another clip shown by Scandinavian media showed the alleged gunman pointing his gun to the camera and saying "You will die next" before firing four rounds.

Shocked residents gathered for a special service late Tuesday at the local church, where Vicar Jouko Ala-Prinkkila and Bishop Simo Peura preached with trembling voices. The church bells tolled solemnly at the end of the service, as about 600 grieving congregants walked out in silence.

"Everybody is still in shock. It's hard to understand this," Ala-Prinkkila told AP.

Last November, another gunman killed eight people and himself at a school in southern Finland, an attack that triggered a fierce debate about gun laws in this Nordic nation with deep-rooted hunting traditions in the sub-Arctic wilderness.

Pekka-Eric Auvinen, described by police as a bullied 18-year-old outcast, opened fire at his high school in southern Finland on Nov. 7, killing six students, a school nurse and the principal before ending his own life.

Finnish investigators have said Auvinen left a suicide note for his family and foreshadowed his attack in YouTube postings.

With 1.65 million firearms in private hands, Finland is an anomaly in Europe, lagging behind only the United States, Yemen and Switzerland in civilian gun ownership, according to the 2007 Small Arms Survey, a Geneva-based watchdog organization.

After Auvinen's rampage, the government promised to raise the minimum age for buying guns from 15 to 18, but insisted there was no need for sweeping changes to Finland's gun laws. The age limit was never raised.

Associated Press writers Matti Huuhtanen and Jari Tanner in Helsinki and Karl Ritter in Stockhom, Sweden, contributed to this report.

Bernanke: Recession certain in absence of bailout

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS AND JEANNINE AVERSA
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITERS

	From left, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Christopher Cox, and Federal Housing Finance Agency Director James Lockhart testify on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2008, before the Senate Banking Committee. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

WASHINGTON -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke bluntly warned Congress on Tuesday it risks a recession, with higher unemployment and increased home foreclosures, if lawmakers fail to pass the Bush administration's $700 billion plan to bail out the financial industry.

Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee that inaction could leave ordinary businesses unable to borrow the money they need to expand and hire additional employees, while consumers could find themselves unable to finance big-ticket purchases such as cars and homes.

Bernanke's remarks came in response to a question from Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., the committee's chairman, who seemed eager to hear a strong rationale for lawmakers to act swiftly on the administration's unprecedented request.

"The financial markets are in quite fragile condition and I think absent a plan they will get worse," Bernanke said.

Ominously, he added, "I believe if the credit markets are not functioning, that jobs will be lost, that our credit rate will rise, more houses will be foreclosed upon, GDP will contract, that the economy will just not be able to recover in a normal, healthy way."

GDP is a measure of growth, and a decline correlates with a recession.

Bernanke outlined his grim scenario as committee members sat in silence, and as the Bush administration pressed lawmakers publicly and privately to act speedily.

Vice President Dick Cheney and Jim Nussle, the Bush administration's budget director, met privately with restive House Republicans, some of whom emerged from the session unpersuaded.

"Just because God created the world in seven days doesn't mean we have to pass this bill in seven days," said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas.

Added Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., "I am emphatically against it."

Dodd and other key Democrats have been in private negotiations with the administration since the weekend on legislation designed to allow the government to buy bad debts held by banks and other financial institutions.

Despite expressions of unhappiness in both parties, the prospects for legislation seemed strong, with lawmakers eager to adjourn this week or next for the elections.

Differences remained, though, including a demand from many Democrats and some Republicans to strip executives at failing financial firms of lucrative "golden parachutes" on their way out the door.

The administration balked at another key Democratic demand: allowing judges to rewrite bankrupt homeowners' mortgages so they could avoid foreclosure.

Despite the unresolved issues, President Bush predicted the Democratic-controlled Congress would soon pass a "a robust plan to deal with serious problems." He was speaking to the United Nations General assembly.

Stocks held steady in pre-noon trading on Wall Street as Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told the Senate Banking Committee that quick passage of the administration's plan is "the single most effective thing we can do to help homeowners, the American people and stimulate our economy."

But even before Paulson could speak, lawmakers expressed unhappiness, criticism of the plan and - in the case of some conservative Republicans - outright opposition.

"I understand speed is important, but I'm far more interested in whether or not we get this right," said Dodd, who spoke first. "There is no second act to this. There is no alternative idea out there with resources available if this does not work," he added.

Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, the panel's senior Republican, was even more blunt. "I have long opposed government bailouts for individuals and corporate America alike," he said. Seated a few feet away from Paulson and Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal reserve, he added, "We have been given no credible assurances that this plan will work. We could very well send $700 billion, or a trillion, and not resolve the crisis."

The legislation that the administration is promoting would allow the government to buy bad mortgages and other troubled assets held by endangered banks and financial institutions. Getting those debts off their books should bolster their balance sheets, making them more inclined to lend and easing one of the biggest choke points in the credit crisis. If the plan works, it should help lift a major weight off the sputtering economy.

Buttressing Paulson's comments, Bernanke said action by lawmakers "is urgently required to stabilize the situation and avert what otherwise could be very serious consequences for our financial markets and for our economy."

A third witness, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox, urged Congress to regulate a type of corporate debt insurance that figured prominently in the country's financial crisis.

"I urge you to provide in statute the authority to regulate these products to enhance investor protection and ensure the operation of fair and orderly markets," he said. The debt insurance is known as credit default swaps.

Over 12,000 Chinese children sick from tainted milk

China's Health Ministry says the number of children sickened by tainted milk products has doubled, with nearly 12,900 in hospital and 104 of them seriously ill.

In a statement posted on its website late Sunday, the ministry said the sick children consumed milk made from milk powder, most of it produced by the Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group. It said 12,892 children have been hospitalized.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visits an infant who suffered from kidney stones after drinking tainted formula milk at Beijing Children's Hospital, Sunday, September 21, 2008. [Xinhua]

Authorities continued over the weekend to contain public dismay over widespread milk contamination, punishing local officials for negligence while strengthening inspections of dairy products across the nation.

Officials promised to keep stores supplied with clean milk and set up medical hot lines nationwide to handle one of the worst food safety scandals in years.

Investigations found 22 manufacturers were involved in a melamine-tainted formula milk scandal, including leading companies, such as the Bright Dairy & Food, Yili Industrial Group, and Mengniu Group.

The Ministry of Health said on Sunday that as of 8 am, 39,965 children had visited hospitals for checks or consultation and 12,892 had undergone treatment.

A total of 104 infants were seriously ill and 1,579 were discharged from hospitals after treatment.

Most of the children under treatment had drunk Sanlu formula milk. Among the children under treatment, 99.2 percent were under age 3.

The ministry said no case related to liquid milk had been reported in the mainland.

On Saturday, Premier Wen Jiabao told senior officials that official misconduct contributed to the milk contamination and earlier product scandals.

"In some places, incidents of food and production safety have continuously arisen and seriously harmed people's lives and health," Wen was quoted as saying by Xinhua News Agency. "The social impact is vile and the lesson profound."

Yesterday, Wen visited Beijing Children's Hospital, a local community and a supermarket in Beijing.

"For such a big food safety incident, parents are concerned about their children; so are we," Xinhua quoted him as saying, when he was visiting a neighborhood near Fuxingmen Avenue.

"Although people have shown a great understanding to the government, as government officials, we are deeply sorry."

Vice-premier Li Keqiang made a trip to a dairy region south of Beijing at the center of the scandal, visiting farms, shops and a hospital, where he urged "all-out efforts on medical treatment" for the sick.

In Dingxing County Hospital of Hebei province, he went to the infant ward where he talked to parents, asking about their infants' symptoms and progress.

Governments and hospitals should provide support when equipment was needed for treating the babies, he said.

Recalls of Chinese-made dairy products were extended on Saturday to Japan, which followed Singapore's lead, while more products were recalled in Hong Kong and Macao.

The State Administration for Industry and Commerce initiated a nationwide monitoring of dairy producers and sellers on Saturday.

By 9 am on Saturday, the administration had received 106,143 complaints and had refunded 304.38 tons of dairy products.

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‘President, PM were to dine at Marriott’: Rehman Malik

ISLAMABAD: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Interior Rehman Malik on Monday said the suicide blast outside the Marriott Hotel was aimed at targeting the political leadership.

“The suicide blast was aimed at targeting the political leadership but the government foiled the malicious designs of the terrorists by changing the venue of the Iftar-dinner hosted by the National Assembly speaker from the Marriott Hotel to the Prime Minister House,” he said while talking to journalists here.

Agencies add: Rehman Malik said the “whole leadership was saved” by the switch ahead of Saturday’s devastating attack, including President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, and military top brass.

Rehman Malik, however, did not explain why the president and the prime minister decided to move the dinner from the Marriott to the PM House but said the decision was kept secret.

“Perhaps, the terrorists knew that the Marriott was the venue of the dinner for all the leadership where the president, the prime minister, the speaker and the entire leadership would be present,” he told reporters. “At the eleventh hour, the president and the prime minister decided that the venue would be the Prime Minister’s House. It saved the entire leadership,” he said.

However, a spokesman for the hotel owner said it had no plans to host a dinner for the government leaders.“We didn’t have any reservation for such a dinner that the government official is talking about,” Jamil Khawar told The Associated Press.

Reman Malik said he had been holding back the details of the dinner plans, and also insisted that the decision to change the venue had been kept secret.Malik separately told AFP that investigators were examining dramatic video footage of the attack “shot by shot, second by second” for clues, as well as probing who owned the vehicle.

Meanwhile, talking to VOA, Rehman Malik urged the nation to unite against anti-Pakistan forces who want to destabilise the country’s sovereignty and integrity. “I clearly said that this war is being waged by our enemies. I condemn Saturday’s attack and also appeal to the nation to be united against terrorism,” he added.

About security situation in Islamabad, Malik said, “The Islamabad administration does not allow any truck to enter the city in daytime. Whosoever planned it must have known that they can do it after 7 O’ clock.”

“No truck kept on moving on the roads freely and it entered the capital after Iftar,” he added.A 600-kilogram bomb had been placed in the truck, which Rehman called a dumper, and was covered by some cotton and bricks. However, a water pump was also seen there according to the eyewitnesses and such dumpers move on Islamabad roads on routine.

To a question, he said that there may be more than one bombers.Although with the government efforts, suicide bombing has been reduced by 98 per cent by adopting positive strategies, there is need to further expedite efforts to counter such heinous attacks,

Rehman Malik said. Regarding South Waziristan, he said two of the six arrested bombers have given open confession in courts. Besides, “we have 9 handlers behind the bars. All of them have links with Waziristan. We will welcome them if they lay down the arms”, he said.

However, if they continue militant activities, the operation against them will continue, he said. AFP adds: The management of the Marriott Hotel on Monday denied an official statement that top Pakistani leaders were due to have dinner at the hotel but cancelled it before the devastating suicide bombing.

Interior ministry chief Rahman Malik had earlier told reporters that President and Prime Minister were to have dinner at the Marriott on Saturday, when it was bombed, but the venue was changed at the last minute.

“There was no reservation from the government side,” Jamil Khawar, spokesman for the hotel owner Sadruddin Hashwani, told AFP. “I have checked from the management and the hotel administration. No booking had been made for an official dinner on that day,” he said.

Malik said: “The national assembly speaker had arranged a dinner for the entire leadership - the President, the Prime Minister and armed services chiefs at the Marriott that day.”

“The President and the Prime Minister changed the venue to the Prime Ministerís House and the function was not held at the Marriott.” Malik added.

End.

Mbeki challenges ruling on Zuma

Mr Mbeki has denied interfering in the case against Jacob Zuma

South Africa's outgoing President Thabo Mbeki has lodged an appeal against a judge's ruling which accused him of interfering in the judiciary.

Judge Chris Nicholson said there was evidence that the government had meddled in the corruption case against Mr Mbeki's rival, Jacob Zuma.

This led the ruling African National Congress (ANC) to recall Mr Mbeki as president - a decision he has accepted.

The ANC is to name a successor to Mr Mbeki on Thursday.

This is understood to be the ANC deputy leader Kgalema Motlanthe, an ally of Mr Zuma.

As ANC leader, Mr Zuma is expected to be elected president in polls due early next year.

In his challenge, Mr Mbeki said the ruling was "unfair and unjust".

Scores die as suicide bomb hits hotel

Westerners were targeted in an attack that devastated The Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, killing at least 60 people

A view of destruction caused by a suicide bomb explosion at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan (AP Photo/B.K.Bangash)

Javed Siddiq and Christina Lamb

A SUICIDE bomb attack last night on a hotel frequented by westerners in the centre of the Pakistan capital of Islamabad killed at least 60 people and injured more than 100. Police said it bore the hallmarks of Al-Qaeda or the Taliban.

At least two British people were wounded in the explosion at the Marriott hotel, in which more than a ton of explosive was thought to have been detonated. Two British children suffered superficial injuries. The blast was so powerful that it left the entire building in danger of collapse.

The five-star Marriott is a favourite place for overseas businessmen to stay in the city, even though it has previously been a target for militants. Scores of people, including westerners, were seen running out of the building, some of them covered with blood.

Gavin Earle, a British diplomat who was staying on the third floor of the hotel, escaped unhurt. He had been planning an early night, before catching a flight back to London today, when “suddenly there was a huge bang and all the windows shattered into the room.

Candidates slam bailout plan

Congress attacks 'blank cheque' rescue package for Wall St. firms Congress

Sheldon Alberts, with files from Eric Beauchesne, Canwest News Service

Published: Tuesday, September 23, 2008

WASHINGTON - Warning lawmakers that the "world is watching" how Congress responds to the U.S.'s financial crisis, President George W. Bush yesterday urged quick passage of his proposed $700-billion rescue package for companies burdened by toxic mortgage assets.

But early support for the White House plan ran up against new resistance from congressional Democrats who said any bailout must limit pay packages for Wall Street executives and see taxpayers get a share in the troubled companies who receive aid.

The emergency plan proposed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also met with sharp criticism from the two presidential candidates, with Republican John McCain bemoaning the possibility of "bloated golden parachutes" for chief executive officers and Democrat Barack Obama saying Congress cannot cut a "blank cheque" for Wall Street.

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U.S. President George W. Bush departs the White House yesterday for his trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. Earlier in the day, Mr. Bush appealed to Congress to pass a proposed $700-billion U.S. bailout package for struggling banks and investment firms.

The unease in Washington came as markets tumbled yesterday, with the Dow Jones falling 376 points after early excitement about the unprecedented bailout plan gave way to anxiety.

At the White House, Mr. Bush appealed to Congress to craft legislation dealing only with his specific request for the government to assume bad loan assets from struggling banks and investment firms.

"It would not be understandable if members of Congress sought to use this emergency legislation to pass unrelated provisions or to insist on provisions that would undermine the effectiveness of the plan," he said.

"The whole world is watching to see if we can act quickly to shore up our markets and prevent damage to our capital markets, businesses, our housing sector and retirement accounts."

While Mr. Bush said he believed Congress was making "good headway" on a bill to authorize the rescue plan, Democrats said it must include measures to strengthen oversight of Wall Street and help homeowners struggling through the ongoing housing crisis.

The Democratic counterproposal would give the U.S. government a share in companies allowed to dump bad assets on American taxpayers and the right to review the Treasury Department's decisions.

Amid fears of a backlash among voters wondering why the government is rushing to save Wall Street, Democrats also are backing a plan to provide assistance to homeowners struggling to meet their mortgage payments.

It would allow bankruptcy judges in the U.S. to rewrite the terms of some mortgages to lower payments, a plan hotly opposed by banks.

Executives at firms receiving government aid would be barred from receiving "inappropriate or excessive" pay packages.

Mr. McCain suggested CEOs of ailing companies be limited to annual salaries of $400,000 -- the amount earned by the U.S. president -- and be banned from receiving severance packages underwritten by taxpayers.

"We can't have taxpayers footing the bill for bloated golden parachutes," Mr. McCain said in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

He added that he was "deeply uncomfortable" with the Bush administration's bailout plan because Congress was being rushed into rubber-stamping a plan crafted predominantly by one man, Mr. Paulson.