The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Monday, September 23, 2013 - 3A
NEWS BRIEFS
ANN ARBOR, Mich.
Ann Arbor city
council considers
divestment
The Ann Arbor City Council is
considering a proposal to sell off
fossil fuel-linked investments in
its $429 million municipal pen-
sion plan.
The University of Michigan
campus community already
aims to make a 90 percent cut in
greenhouse gas emissions in the
city of 115,000 by 2050.
The city's Energy Commission
is urging the council to pass a
resolution directing the pension
board to sell holdings in the top
200 publicly traded fossil fuel
companies. The Ann Arbor News
says pension fund chief Nancy
Walker warns the move could
hurt the city financially.
The proposal has failed before
but now in on the City Council's
Oct. 21 agenda.
DETROIT
Campaign provides
two-million meals
to Michigan kids
Organizers say the annual
Hunger Free Summer campaign
provided more than 2 million
meals to hungry children in
southeastern Michigan.
The effort was coordinated by
Gleaners Community Food Bank
of Southeastern Michigan and
the Charter One Foundation.
They say the 2013 Hunger Free
Summer campaign raised more
money and distributed more
meals than the previous cam-
paigns.
According to officials with the
campaign, nearly 320,000 chil-
dren in southeastern Michigan
rely on free or reduced-fee meals
during the school year. When
the National School Lunch and
Breakfast Programs are unavail-
able, those kids and their families
risk missing meals.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.
Computer glitch
causes delay of
cargo launch to ISS
A brand new commercial cargo
ship making its orbital debut
experienced navigation system
trouble Sunday, and its arrival at
the International Space Station
was delayed at least two days.
The rendezvous was aborted
less than six hours before the
scheduled arrival of Orbital Sci-
ences Corp's Cygnus capsule,
packed with 1,300 pounds of food
and clothes for the space station
crew.
The Virginia-based company
said it already has developed a
software repair. The new soft-
ware will be tested on the ground
before it is transmitted to the
Cygnus and tested again. If all
goes well, the capsule will make
another docking attempt Tues-
day morning.
CAGLIARI, Sardinia
* Pope discusses
financial crisis
Pope Francis denounced what
he called big business's idolatry
of money as he traveled Sunday
to one of Italy's poorest regions to
offer hope to the unemployed and
entrepreneurs struggling to hang
on.
"Where there is no work, there
is no dignity," he said.
Francis left aside his prepared
remarks and spoke off the cuff to
thousands of people in Sardinia's
capital, telling them he knew well
what it was like to suffer from
financial crisis. He recalled that
his Italian parents, who immi-
grated to Argentina before he
was born, spoke about it often at
home.
"My young father went to
Argentina full of illusions of mak-
ing it in America," a somber Fran-
cis told the crowd at the start of a
daylongvisit to the island. "And he
suffered the terrible crisis of the
1930s. They lost everything. There
was no work."
-Compiled from
Daily wire reports
Engineering career fair
returns on Monday
Trucks of soldiers from the Kenya Defense Forces arrive after dawn outside the Westgate Mall. Kenyan authorities said
Islamic extremist attackers remain inside the upscale Kenyan shopping mall, holding an unknown number of hostages,
after killing and injuring scores of people in the attack.
Kenyan government takes back
mall in 'major' military assault
Attacks with links
to al-Qaida kills
68, injures 175
RIO NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -
Helicopters circling overhead,
Kenya's military launched a
major operation Sunday at an
upscale Nairobi mall and said it
had rescued "most" of the hos-
tages being held captive by al-
Qaida-linked militants during a
two-day standoff that killed at
least 68 people and injured 175.
The military assault began
shortly before sundown, with
one helicopter skimming very
close tothe roof of the shopping
complex as a loud explosion
rang out, far larger than any
previous grenade blast or gun-
fire volley.
Kenyan police said on Twit-
ter that security forces had
launched a "MAJOR" assault to
end the bloody siege.
"This will end tonight. Our
forces will prevail. Kenyans are
standing firm against aggres-
sion, and we will win," Kenya's
National Disaster Operation
Centre said on Twitter.
The Kenya Defense Forces
later said it had rescued "most"
hostages and had taken control
of most of the mall, though it did
not provide details.
Many of the rescued hos-
tages - mostly adults - were
suffering from dehydration, Col.
Cyrus Oguna, a military spokes-
man, told The Associated Press.
He refused to say how many
hostages were rescued or how
many were still being held. He
said some of the attackers had
"most probably" been killed in
the operation.
The assault came about 30
hours after 10 to 15 al-Shabab
extremists stormed the mall Sat-
urday from two sides, throwing
grenades and firing on civilians.
Loud exchanges of gunfire
rang out from inside the four-
story mall throughout Sunday.
Kenyantroopswereseencarrying
in at least two rocket-propelled
grenades. Al-Shabab militants
reacted angrily to the helicop-
ters on Twitter and warned that
the Kenyan military action was
endangering hostages.
Kenyan authorities said they
would do their utmost to save
hostages' lives, but no officials
could say precisely how many
people were being held captive.
Kenya's Red Cross said ina state-
ment, citing police, that 49 peo-
ple had been reported missing.
Officials did not make an explicit
link but that number could give
an indication of the number of
people held captive.
Kenya's Red Cross said the
death toll rose to 68 after nine
bodies were recovered Sun-
day. More than 175 people were
injured, including many chil-
dren, Kenyan officials said.
Somalia's al-Qaida-linked
rebel group, al-Shabab, claimed
responsibility for the attack that
specifically targeted non-Mus-
lims, saying it was in retribution
for Kenyan forces' 2011 push into
neighboring Somalia.
U.S. Secretary of State John
Kerry condemned what he called
"an enormous offense against
everybody's sense of right and
wrong," and called the attackers
"ruthless and completely reck-
less terrorists."
Kerry, who was in New York,
for meetings at the United
Nations, spoke Sunday with
Somalia's foreign minister and
U.N. ambassador.
State Department spokes-
woman Marie Harf said U.S. law
enforcement, military and civil-
ian personnel in Nairobi were
providing advice and assistance
to the Kenyan authorities. She
said five Americans were among
the scores of people injured in
the attack, but the U.S. had no
reports of any American deaths.
Earlier in the day, al-Shabab
said on its new Twitter feed -
after its previous one was shut
down Saturday - that Kenyan
officials were asking the hos-
tage-takers to negotiate and
offering incentives.
"We'll not negotiate with the
Kenyan govt as long as its forces
are invading our country, so reap
the bitter fruits of your harvest,"
al-Shabab said in a tweet.
Kenyan President Uhuru
Kenyatta, who lost a nephew
and the nephew's fiancee in the
attack, reiterated his govern-
ment's determination to contin-
ue fighting al-Shabab.
"We went as a nation into
Somalia to help stabilize the
country and most importantly
to fight terror that had been
unleashed on Kenya and the
world," said Kenyatta. "We shall
not relent on the war on terror."
Although this violent attack
had succeeded, the Kenyan lead-
er said, the country's security
forces had "neutralized" many
others.
FormerKenyanPrimeMinister
Raila Odinga told reporters that
"quite a number" of people were
being held hostage in two areas
of the sprawling complex, which
includes stores for such retail
giants as Nike, Adidas and Bose.
Many hostages were believed to
be in agrocery and general depart-
mentstore called Nakumatt.
Kenyan security officials
soughtto reassure the families of
hostages but implied that some of
those being held could be killed.
"The priority is to save as
many lives as possible," said Inte-
rior Cabinet Secretary Joseph
Lenku, adding that more than
1,000 people escaped the attack
inside the mall on Saturday.
1,500 students, 300
companies to take
over North Campus
By PAULA FRIEDRICH
Daily StaffReporter
After months of fielding more
than 100 e-mails per day, the
four directors of the Society of
Women Engineers and Tau Beta
Pi Career Fair are stepping back
to let recruiters and students
connect.
The annual SWE/TBP career
fair runs Monday through Tues-
day. The event typically attracts
about 1,500 students and 300
companies each year, but direc-
tors said even more were look-
ing for space.
"We basically take over
every single building on North
Campus," said Engineering
senior Emily Carroll, a mem-
ber of the University's chap-
ter of the Society of Women
Engineers and one of the fair's
directors.
That makes the SWE/TBP
fair the second-largest student-
run career fair in the country
for 2013, right behind Purdue's
Industrial Roundtable Career
Fair, which is also held for engi-
neers and attracted roughly 300
companies last year. It's also one
of the biggest fairs on campus -
the Career Center's biggest fair
is the Fall Expo, which brings in
about 140 companies.
"When you think about the
size of the events they're doing
and being able to do all the
logistics that are involved while
you are also a full-time student
is pretty amazing," said Sally
Schuenemann, the Career Cen-
ter's career events manager. ;
Schuenemann said loca-
tions often have to be reserved
almost two years in advance of
an event, making logistics the
most challenging partof putting
together a career fair.
Engineering senior Natalie
Eyke, one of the fair's directors
and a member of the Tau Beta
Pi, the University's engineering
honors society, said there are
a lot of things to stay on top of,
from making sure the caterer
is University-approved to orga-
nizing times for recruiters to
unload their gear.
But she said an adviser from
the Engineering Career Center
helps the student organizers
jump that hurdle.
"They are aware of resources
that we aren't necessarily aware
of," said Eyke.
Eyke said the fact that the
directors are students gives
them a beneficial perspective
that the University officials
might not have.
"We're more in touch with
other students," she said. "We
notonly know what we wanthbut
we can reach out to our friends
and say 'What are you looking
for?' more easilythan maybethe
University could."
That perspective resulted
in spreading out similar com-
panies across the space, so
students aren't professing
their desire to work for one
company only to do the same
within earshot of the another
recruiter.
That student perspective also
plays heavily in the prepara-
tion for the University's other
student-run fair, MPowered's
Startup Career Fair. MPow-
ered is a student-run group that
encourages student entrepre-
neurship.
"We spend a lot of time with
our team thinking 'How can we
make this a really great experi-
ence for the students?' " said
Engineering junior Natasja
Nielsen, a co-director of MPow-
ered's start-up fair.
Engineering senior Michael
Boyd, one of the SWE/TBP
career fair's directors, said a
strong reputation both within
and outside the University
makes it possible for students to
run a career fair.
Builders, soldiers hustle
to reconnect Colorado
towns impacted by flood
Suicide bombers kill 78 people
in attack on church in Pakistan
Pair of bombers
linked with
Pakistani Taliban
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP)
- A pair of suicide bombers
blew themselves up amid hun-
dreds of worshippers at a his-
toric church in northwestern
Pakistan on Sunday, killing 78
people in the deadliest-ever
attack against the country's
Christian minority.
A wing of the Pakistani Tali-
ban claimed responsibility for
the bombing, raising new ques-
tions about the government's
push to strike a peace deal with
the militants to end a decade-
'long insurgency that has killed
thousands of people.
The Jundullah arm of the
Taliban said they would contin-
ue to target non-Muslims until
the United States stopped drone
attacks in Pakistan's remote trib-
al region. The latest drone strike
came Sunday, when missiles hit a
pair of compounds in the North
Waziristan tribal area, killingsix
suspected militants.
The attack on the All Saints
Church, which wounded 141
people, occurred as worshippers
were leaving after services to get
a free meal of rice offered on the
front lawn, said a top govern-
ment administrator, Sahibzada
Anees.
"There were blasts and
there was hell for all of us,"
said Nazir John, who was at
the church in the city's Kohati
Gate district along with at least
400 other worshippers. "When
I got my senses back, I found
nothing but smoke, dust, blood
and screaming people. I saw
severed body parts and blood
all around."
Survivors wailed and hugged
one another in the wake of the
blasts. The white walls of the
church, which first opened in
the late 1800s, were pockmarked
with holes caused by ball bear-
ings contained in the bombs to
cause maximum damage. Blood
stained the floor and the walls.
Plates filled with rice were scat-
tered across the ground.
The attack was carried out by
two suicide bombers who deto-
nated their explosives almost
simultaneously, said police offi-
cer Shafqat Malik.
The 78 dead included 34
women and seven children, said
Interior Minister Chaudhry
Nisar Ali Khan. Another 37 chil-
dren were among the 141 wound-
ed, he said.
The number of casualties
from the blasts was so high that
the hospital ran short of caskets
for the dead and beds for the
wounded, said Mian Iftikhar
Hussain, a former information
minister of surrounding Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province who was
on the scene.
"This is the deadliest attack
against Christians in our coun-
try," said Irfan Jamil, the bish-
op of the eastern city of Lahore.
Pope Francis led several
thousand people in a prayer for
the victims while on a visit to
Sardinia. Those who carried
out the attack, he said, "took the
wrong choice, one of hatred and
war."
One of the wounded, John
Tariq, who lost his father in
the attack, demanded of those
behind the bombing: "What
have we done wrong to these
people? Why are we being
killed?"
Ahmad Marwat, who iden-
tified himself as the spokes-
man for the Jundullah wing of
the Pakistani Taliban, claimed
responsibility for the attack.
"All non-Muslims in Paki-
stan are our target, and they
will remain our target as long
as America fails to stop drone
strikes in our country," Marwat
told The Associated Press by
telephone from an undisclosed
location.
Natural disaster
damages over 2,000
square miles
LONGMONT, Colo. (AP)
- State highway crews and
National Guard troops worked
furiously Sunday to repair
highways to Colorado moun-
tain towns cut off by unprec-
edented flooding.
Other teams were assessing
how much damage needed to
be repaired on Colorado's east-
ern plains before trucks begin
hauling in the fall harvest.
"They're reallyhumming,"said
Jerre Stead, the corporate execu-
tive chosen by Gov. John Hick-
enlooper to oversee the state's
recovery from the catastrophic
floods, which killed seven and
wreaked havoc across 17 counties
and 2,000 square miles.
Stead and Don Hunt, execu-
tive director of the Colorado
Department of Transportation,
said they were optimistic they
can meet a Dec. 1 target to com-
plete temporary fixes to at least
some roads, if more bad weath-
er doesn't interfere.
Quick repairs are critical
because winter weather will
make highway work more dif-
ficult and force the closure of
the high-elevation Trail Ridge
Road through Rocky Moun-
tain National Park, one of only
two routes still open into Estes
Park, a small town at the park's
east entrance.
Also looming are the harvests
from Colorado's $8.5 billion-a-
year agriculture industry, which
relies on trucks to get cattle and
crops to markets.
Officials said it's too early
to know how much time and
money it will take to make per-
manent repairs, but they say it
will cost more than $100 million.
Some 200 miles of state
highways and 50 bridges were
destroyed.
On Sunday, Stead and Hunt
drove up flood-battered U.S. 36
northwest of Denver until they
reached a point where floodwa-
ters had obliterated the roadway.
Then they got out and hiked.
Holding his hands about
shoulder-width apart, Stead
said, "You're on paths this nar-
row where the roads used to be."
Residents who chose not
to evacuate aboard National
Guard helicopters gave them
a lift at one point, Hunt said.
Those isolated residents can
drive along unscathed sections
of highway but cart reach
either Estes Park on the north
or Lyons on the south.
Hunt said residents of Pine-
wood Springs had built make-
shift trails along highway
washouts and planned to escort
some children along those paths
to waiting vehicles on Monday.
He didn't know how many
children were makingthe trek or
how far they would have to walk.
Stead said the devastation
was worse than he expected,
but Hunt was more optimistic.
"It's maybe not as bad as I
thought," he said. "The damage
is severe, but it's highly concen-
trated" in a few areas, mostly
where roads share a narrow
canyon with a river.
Hunt said the biggest diffi-
culties will be getting construc-
tion materials into damaged
areas and protecting workers
and travelers from falling rocks
loosened by days of heavy rain.
Colorado will award sev-
eral contracts for emergency
repairs to construction compa-
nies on Monday. State employ-
ees and National Guard soldiers
are already on the job and mak-
ing quick progress, Stead said.
The federal government will
reimburse the state up to $100
million for road repairs, CDOT
spokeswoman Amy Ford said,
but Colorado officials are push-
ing to raise that to $500 million,
which she said was the cap for
mid-Atlantic states rebuilding
after Superstorm Sandy in 2012.