2A - The Michigan Daily - Monday, November 17, 2003 NATION/WORLD Al-Qaida claims responsibility for attacks NEWS IN BRIEF."J Group linked to car their deadly blow," the statement .> 'E' I bombings in Turkey that killed 23 ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) - Two Arabic-language newspapers received separate statements yesterday claiming the Al-Qaida terrorist network carried out the car bombings outside two Istan- bul synagogues - attacks that killed 23 people. A statement received by the London- based daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, said a unit of al-Qaida executed the attack on Saturday because it learned that agents of the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad were in the synagogues. Abdel Bari Atwan, the newspaper's editor, told the pan-Arab cable station Al-Jazeera that the claim was received by e-mail from the Abu Hafs al-Masri brigades, which is suspected of links to Al-Qaida and which has sent at least three similar claims to the paper regard- ing previous attacks. "The Mujahedeen of Abu Hafs al- Masri Brigades ... after monitoring Mossad agents and confirming that five of the agents were present in two syna- gogues in central Istanbul, carried out said. Another e-mailed claim of responsi- bility sent to the London-based weekly Al-Majalla said al-Qaida carried out the Istanbul attacks as well as the car bomb outside Italian police headquarters in Nasariyah, Iraq, on Nov. 12 that killed 19 Italians and more than a dozen Iraqis. Al-Majalla, which does not publish until Friday, provided excerpts of the e-mail to the AP. The newspaper said the claim received yesterday was signed by an al-Qaida operative identified as Abu Mohammed al-Ablaj, whom officials in Washington have said in the past is believed linked to the terrorist network headed by Osama bin Laden. The sophisticated attacks on the synagogues used pickup trucks stuffed with nearly identical explo- sives detonated minutes apart, likely by suicide bombers, officials said. Israeli intelligence and explosives experts have teamed with Turkish investigators to investigate the bombings, which wounded more than 300 people, both Jews at the synagogues and Muslim bystanders on the streets. TBOGOTA, Colombia . . Colombia attacks ill one, injure many Colombian flags hung outside the Bogota Beer Garden Company in mourning and defiance yesterday, hours after suspected rebels exploded grenades at two bars frequented by Americans, killing a Colombian woman and injuring at least 72 other people. Police blamed the nation's largest rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, for the Saturday night attacks in the Zona Rosa - the first insurgent assaults on this popular nightclub district. It was not immediately known if Americans were among the casualties- or if Americans were the target. The United States backs hardline President Alvaro Uribe's crackdown on rebels, which is partly funded with $2.5 bil- lion from Washington. Now in its fourth decade, Colombia's war kills about 3,500 people, mainly civilians, each year. Ordinary people are worn down yet determined not to be bro- ken by the fighting, which pits leftist rebels against the government and right- wing paramilitary groups. A white banner reading, "Never give in to the violent ones" hung outside the Palos de Moguer, the other microbrewery attacked Saturday. "We cannot let the violence intimidate us," said owner Guillermo Alvarez Forero. BELGRADE, Serbia-Montenegro Low voter turnout cancels Serbian election Serbians' failed for the third time in a year yesterday to elect a president because of low voter turnout, threatening a political crisis in the Balkan nation. Amid widespread apathy caused by the lack of real economic benefits after for- mer President Slobodan Milosevic's ouster in 2000, elections have foundered with turnout below the 50 percent minimum. The turnout was 38.5 percent, said the independent Center for Free Elections and Democracy, a group that monitored the vote. "Without a president, we will have an institutional chaos," said Stefan Gredelj, an elections analyst, who blamed the result on voter's disillusionment with the country's leadership. "The politicians are getting what they deserve" he said. The vote was considered a major test for Serbia's pro-Western leadership, which ousted Milosevic in October 2000 and a year later sent him to the U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands. The third failure is likely to deepen the political malaise in Serbia, where labor protests are on the rise and people are generally dissatisfied with their living stan- dards after a decade of wars and economic decay. A PrPO Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom places a wreath during a visit to bombing scene outside of the Neve Shalom Synagogue in Istanbul. Militant groups may agree to cease-fire RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Palestinian militants are sending "very positive" signals that they are ready for a cease-fire with Israel, a top aide to the Palestinian prime minister said yester- day, a day before Egypt's intelligence chief arrives for truce talks. Cabinet secretary Hassan Abu Libdeh said in an interview with The Associated Press that he is confident Israel and the Palestinians can halt three years of fight- ing very soon. Whether a cease-fire can hold, he cautioned, will depend largely. on Israel. Abu Libdeh's boss, Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, hopes to reach a cease- fire as a first step of resuming talks on the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan, which envisions full Palestinian inde- pendence by 2005. The plan has stalled amid violence and Palestinian political wrangling. "The Palestinian factions are giving us very positive indications," Abu Lib- deh said. "I think that if Israel does not play around with us, they are willing to go as, far as possible ... but it is all in Paentsf Israel's hands." Qureia said yesterday that truce talks with the militants would begin soon after the arrival today of Egypt- ian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman. The Egyptian, who has helped mediate past cease-fires, is coming to assist Qureia in talks with cease-fire. A cease-fire also could strengthen Qureia, whose govern- ment was sworn into office last week. An earlier truce - hammered out by his predecessor - collapsed over the summer in a fresh wave of bloodshed. That cease-fire was declared uni- "The Palestinian factions are giving very positive indications:' - Hassan Abu Libdeh Palestinian cabinet secretary Beirut, Lebanon. Israel, however, has not said whether it would agree to halt its military opera- tions. Israeli officials have said they must continue acting against what they term "ticking bombs" - what they call militants who are on the verge of carry- ing out attacks, although critics say offi- cials define the term too broadly. Despite the misgivings; Abu Libdeh said he is confident the fighting can be halted. "My analysis is that it will hap- pen for sure," he told AP. Abu Libdeh, who holds a doctorate degree in statistics from Cornell Univer- sity, has emerged as an influential voice in the new Palestinian government. Closely involved in Palestinian contacts with Israel and the United States, he indicated that progress is already taking place behind the scenes. Meanwhile, Israeli forces in the West Bank town of Tulkarem arrest- ed a Palestinian actiOvist they said was armed. Naif Jarad, 47, a mem- ber of the Palestine National Coun- cil, a PLO body. Hamas and Islamic Jihad. It was unclear whether the two groups, responsible for dozens of suicide bombings over the past three years, would participate in the meetings. Qureia hopes to persuade Islamic militant groups to end attacks against Israel as a first step toward securing an Israeli-Palestinian l U.S.solder laterally by the militant groups. Yesterday, Hamas' political leader, Khaled Mashaal, said his group would only consider ending the vio- lence if Israel reciprocates. "If you can stop (Israel's) aggres- sion and get an initiative from it and from America, then come to the Palestinian resistance and we will study it," Mashaal said yesterday in blame WASH INGTON Medicare users may get new drug benefits Republican congressional leaders said they sealed a tentative agree- ment Saturday on a new prescription drug benefit for the nation's seniors, which would be the largest expan- sion in Medicare's history. "We have come to an agreement on principles," Senate Majority Bill Frist said. Talks that lasted most of the day smoothed over the last remaining wrinkles in the bill, including a pro- posal to have traditional Medicare compete directly with new private insurance plans and a plan to encourage employers to maintain drug coverage for retirees, officials said. Two key Democrats, Sens. Max Baucus of Montana and John Breaux of Louisiana, joined Frist, Speaker Dennis Hastert of Illinois and other top Republicans in Frist's office to announce the accord. MIAMI. Talks to create free- trade bloc will begin Hundreds of anti-globalization activists kicked off demonstrations yesterday as representatives of 34 Western Hemisphere nations started talks on creating the world's largest free trade bloc. Aides to trade ministers were preparing for meetings scheduled' to begin Thursday, when their bosses will try to create a framework for creation of a Free Trade Area of the Americas. A business forum starts today. Details of yesterday's meetings were not available to the public, said Richard Mills, spokesman for U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoel- lick. WASHINGTON Safetygroup raises seat bet concerns A private safety group estimates that more than 12,000 people died from 1995 through 2002 because their states lacked laws that allow police to ticket motorists solely for failing to buckle up. Twenty states and the District of Columbia have such primary seat 'belt laws. In 29 other states, police can issues tickets for failure to wear a seat belt only after they stop a motorist for another vio- lation. New Hampshire has no seat belt law. As a result of the National Safety Council study released today, federal officials are renewing a recommendation first made in 1995 that all states pass pri- mary belt laws. unit members for murder COLUMBUS, Ga. - The body was almost a skele- ton when investigators found it, hidden in the woods for nearly four months and so decomposed that knife marks etched in its bones were the only way to tell the man had been stabbed. Spc. Richard Davis had survived the war in Iraq, where he turned 25 during the march to Baghdad, only to be slain after celebrating his homecoming at a top- less bar near Fort Benning. With the discovery of his body earlier this month came an even more disturbing twist. The four men accused of turning on him with fists and a blade, then hiding his body, had served beside him in the same infantry unit. Now the Army is on the defensive, accused by Davis' family of writing him off as AWOL instead of quickly investigating his disappearance. Some people are also questioning the investi- gators' conclusion that the killing was simply the result of a brawl gone bad, wondering if trauma from the battlefield could have led to bloodshed at home. "All of the evidence says there was no bad blood" between the soldiers, said Mark Shelnutt, a defense attorney for Pfc. Douglas Woodcoff, one of the accused men. "They've all been to Iraq, they want to have a few drinks. ... You can't help but wonder. If this had happened a week before they deployed, would the result have been the same?" Davis returned from the Middle East on July 12 from his second deployment since May 2002. His unit - 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment of the Army's 3rd Infantry Division - had spent most of the past 14 months in the region training, fighting and waiting to go home. Davis never called his parents to tell them he was back. He had no wife or girlfriend in Columbus. So he piled into a car with four other soldiers from his com- pany for a night out to celebrate. They headed to the Platinum Club, a topless bar. At some point, Davis apparently insulted one of the dancers and the soldiers were kicked out, said Lt. Steve Cox of the Columbus Police Department. Davis's fellow soldiers later told police they were upset about it and started brawling with Davis in the parking lot. They left and drove about three miles before Pfc. Alberto Martinez pulled the car over. Two of the men, Pvt. Jacob Burgoyne and Pfc. Mario Navarrete, got out and continued their fight with Davis. They told police that Woodcoff watched without joining in. Then, they said, Martinez pulled a knife and stabbed Davis several times. The four soldiers drove to a convenience store and bought lighter fluid. Then they returned to the bloodied corpse, tried to burn it and left it in the woods. The account of the deadly brawl came from Bur- goyne, Navarrete and Woodcoff in police interviews following their Nov. 8 arrest, the day after Davis' body was found. Police don't believe the soldiers' combat experiences were a factor in the killing. Only two slayings have been linked to the 16,500 3rd Infantry soldiers who deployed to Iraq from Fort Benning and Fort Stewart, near Savannah. "There are murders committed every day, and most murders are committed by people who know you," Cox said. "We see best friends killing each other all the time - civilians, military, all walks of life." - Compiled from Daily wire reports. WWW.MiCHlaANDAILY.COM The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by, students at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily's office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $105. Winter term (January through April) is $110, yearlong (September through April) is $190. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscrip- tions must be prepaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press and The Associated Collegiate Press. ADDRESS: The Michigan Daily, 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1327. E-mail letters to the editor to letters@rmchigandally.com. - - - - - 6 0 Remy Davis and her husband hold a photo of their son, U.S. Army Spc. Richard Davis. Davis' father doesn't buy that argument. He's not sure why his son was slain but insists it wasn't a sim- ple, perhaps drunken, argument. "You don't go out and stab a guy and set his body on fire after you beat him half to death because you got kicked out of a bar," Lanny Davis said. "You don't go out and kill your buddies. There was something else that happened." NEWS Shabina S. Khatri, Managing Editor 763.2459, news@mlchlgandally cor EDITORS: C. Price Jones, Kylene K.anM Jennifer Misthal, Jordan Schrader STAFF: Jeremy Berkowitz, David Branson, Ashley Dinges, Adhiraj Dutt, Sara Eber, Victoria Edwards, Margaret Engoren, Alison Go, Michael Gurovitsch, Aymar Jean, Carmen Johnson, Michael Kan, Andrew Kaplan, Emily Kraack, Tomislav Ladika, EvanMcGarvey, Naila Moreira, Jameel Naqvi, Kristin Ostby, Michael Pifer, Mona Rafeeq, Adam Rosen, Karen Schwartz, Maria Sprow, Dan Trudeau, Trista Van Tine, Ryan Vicko.' OPINION Aubrey Henretty, Zac Pemkowitz, Editors 763.0379, opinionemlchlgandally.com ASSOCIATE EDITORS: Daniel Adams, Sravya Chirumamilla, Jason Pesick, Jess Piskor STAFF: Nicole Avenia. Benjamin Bass, DavidMBetts, Darryl Boyd,KAryeh Friedman, Emily HananChristineHeath. Bonnie Keilman, Sowmya Krishnamurthy, Andy Kula, Suhael Momin, Laura Platt, Keith Roshanger, Ben Royal, Courtney Taymour, Samantha WoB $ CARTOONISTS: Sam Butler, Colin Daly COLUMNISTS: Steve Cotner, Johanna Hanink, Joel Hoard, Ari Paul, Hussain Rahim, Lauren Strayer SPORTS J. Brady McCollough, Managing Editor 764.8585, sports@mlchlgandally.com SENIOR EDITORS: Chris Burke, Courtney Lewis, Kyle O'Neill, Naweed Sikora NIGHT EDITORS: Daniel Bremmer, Gennaro Filice, Bob Hunt, Dan Rosen, Brian Schick, Jim Weber STAFF: Jeremy Antar, Eric Ambinder, Kyle Carpenter, Waldemar Centeno, Mustafizur Choudhury, Ian Herbert, Josh Holman, Steve Jackson, Brad Johnson, Jamie Josephson, Melanie Kebler, Megan Kolodgy, Phil Kofahl, Matt Kramer, Julie Master, Shared Mattu, Ellen McGarrity, Michael Nisson, Jake Rosenwasser, Steven Shears, Matt Singer, Ryan Sosin, Anne Uible ARTS Todd Weiser, Managing Editor 763.0379, artspage~mchgandalyoom EDITORS: Jason Roberts, Scott Serilla WEEKEND MAGAZINE EDITORS: Charles Paradis, Rebecca Ramsey SUB-EDITORS: Katie Marie Gates, Johanna Hanink, Joel Hoard, Ryan Lewis, Sarah Peterson STAFF: Jennie Adler, Marie Bernard, Sean Dailey, Laurence Freedman, Andrew M. Gaerig, Lynn Hasselbarth, Mary Hillemeier, Andrew Horowitz, Alexandra Jones, Erin Kaplan, Michelle Kijek, Zach Mabee, Vanessa Miller, Jared Newman, Neal Pais, James Pfent, Christopher Pitoun, Archana Ravi, Adam Rottenberg, Melissa Runstrom, Julie Sills, Niamh Slevin, Jaya Soni, Justin Weiner, Douglas Wernert, Alex Wolsky r I 60 r r The Most Important Exam You'll Ever Take At U of M An eXccell , %el ver pa p ya adY' Quicken Loans and Rock Financial are "All of the above." As the leading online provider of home loans, we're revolutionizing the mortgage industry with quick and easy home financing. We work hard. We play hard. And, we're looking for energetic, creative people for our outstanding sales force as well as other great opportunities. With our advanced technology, mind-blowing benefits and perks, unlimited earning potential, empowering company philosophy, intensive and ongoing training, fast-paced, professional and PHOTO Tony Ding, Brett Mountain, Managing Edit 764.0563, photo~mlclgandalycorn ASSOCIATE EDITORS: Eliso Bergman, Seth Lower NIGHT EDITORS: Jason Cooper. Ryan Weiner STAFF: Trevor Campbell, Forest Casey, Joel Friedman, Ashley Harper, Curtis Hiller, Jeff Lehnert, Kelly Lin, Danny Moloshok, Brendan O'Donnell, Shubra Ohri, Laura Shlecter, Jonathon Triest, David Tuman ONLINE Geoffrey Fink, Managing Edi 763.2459, on1ne@mIchganday.com EDITOR: Ashley Jardina STAFF: John Becic, Kate Green, Janna Hutz, Mira Levitan ors tor w ww -9 w an ww . - .. _ 1901