World / Nation briefs January 8, 2012
<p>John Bolstad, 9, right, of St. Charles, Mo., catches a drop of water dripping off an eagle ice sculpture in front of the Alton Visitor Center during the Alton Eagle Festival, Saturday in Alton, Ill.. The sculptured eagle and fish was carved from a 600-pound block of ice.</p>
Federal agengy cancels water delivery
ALLENTOWN, Pa. - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency abruptly changed its mind Saturday about delivering fresh water to residents of a northeastern Pennsylvania village where residential wells were found to be tainted by a natural gas drilling operation.
Only 24 hours after promising them water, EPA officials informed residents of Dimock that a tanker truck wouldn't be coming after all - an about-face that left them furious, confused and let down - and, once again, scrambling for water for bathing, washing dishes and flushing toilets.
Agency officials would not explain why they reneged on their promise, or say whether water would be delivered at some point.
It's not clear how many wells in the rural community of Dimock Township were affected by the drilling. The state has found that at least 18 residential water wells were polluted. Houston-based Cabot Oil & Gas Corp., which was banned in 2010 from drilling in a 9-square-mile area around the village, maintains that it is not responsible for the pollution and that the water is safe.
Ali returning home for 70th birthday
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Muhammad Ali is coming home to celebrate another milestone - his 70th birthday.
The iconic heavyweight boxing champion will bask in the limelight once again at a private birthday bash on the evening of Jan. 14 at the Muhammad Ali Center in downtown Louisville. Ali turns 70 on Jan. 17. The party will double as a fundraiser for the center - a cultural and education center that also features a museum focusing on Ali's long career as a boxer, social activist and humanitarian.
Ali Center spokeswoman Jeanie Kahnke said Saturday that Ali will be surrounded by old friends and people who made a difference in his life, including his longtime trainer Angelo Dundee. The party will feature a dinner, entertainment and speeches.
She described it as a "retrospective look and celebration" of Ali's life.
A few tickets remained available for the $1,000-per-person event, she said.
Kahnke said that Ali and his wife, Lonnie, are looking forward to returning for the celebration. The Alis have a residence in Louisville but have recently been staying at their home in Arizona, she said. Ali is battling Parkinson's disease.
A series of community events - titled "Seven Days for Seven Decades" - will be offered from Jan. 15-21 at the center, touching on both the serious and fun sides of Ali.
Horse left at Walmart needs a home
SOUTH RUSSELL, Ohio - Wally the Walmart horse is looking for a new home.
That's the nickname given to a 9-year-old standardbred horse that a humane society said was left at a northeast Ohio store by an Amish teenager more than two months ago. Humane Officer Christian Courtwright in Geauga County said the teen apparently unhooked the horse from a buggy, tied it to a rail at the Walmart in Middlefield and never came back for it.
He said store employees noticed the horse the next day and tended to it until police took it to a caregiver.
Afghan claim of US prison abuse strains key talks
KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan investigators accused the American military Saturday of abusing detainees at its main prison in the country, bolstering calls by President Hamid Karzai for the U.S. to turn over control of the facility and complicating talks about America's future role in Afghanistan.
The investigators also called for any detainee held without evidence to be freed, putting the U.S. and Afghan governments on a collision course in an issue that will decide the fate of hundreds of suspected Taliban and al-Qaida operatives captured by American forces and held indefinitely.
Former Pakistani President faces arrest
ISLAMABAD - Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will be arrested in connection with the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto if he returns to the country, a government prosecutor said Saturday.
There is no need for any "fresh arrest warrants" for him as a court has already issued orders for his arrest, prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali told reporters.
- The Associated Press