BAGHDAD -- The Iraqi national security effort against Shiite militias may bring about a political and military showdown with the national government, analysts say.Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite, ordered a military crackdown against the Mehdi Army, the militia controlled by Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr's political party, in a response to criticism government forces were not as tough against Shiite militias as it was Sunni militias.A poor performance by Iraqi national forces against Shiite ... [full story]

MANILA, Philippines -- A Manila court Tuesday sentenced nine Philippine military officers to various prison terms in the 2003 coup plot against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.The nine were given sentences ranging from six to 40 years, GMANews TV reported.After five years of trial, the nine officers reportedly pleaded guilty to the charges. Copyright © 2008, by United Press International. All Rights Reserved. [full story]

BANGKOK -- A man armed with a small knife and threatening other passengers prompted a Bangladeshi airliner, flying to Dhaka from Malaysia, to stop in Bangkok Tuesday.The Bangkok Post reported the man holding a small fruit knife aboard a GMG Airline flight scuffled with the crew and other passengers but no one was injured in the incidentThe report said two fighter jets from the Royal Thai Air Force escorted the plane with 60 people aboard ... [full story]

CANNON BEACH, Ore. -- Police and the county medical examiner are working to positively identify a body found washed up on the shore south of Cannon Beach Sunday afternoon. According to an Oregon State Police (OSP) news release, a beachcomber discovered the partial remains of an adult male about 4:45 p.m., April 6, about 2 ½ miles south of Cannon Beach on the Oregon coast. OSP troopers, Clatsop County Sheriff’s deputies and Cannon Beach Fire ... [full story]

ONTARIO, Ore. – An inmate was shot and injured by a corrections staff member from an observation tower during a disturbance involving up to 120 inmates of Snake River Correctional Institution Sunday morning. According to an Oregon Department of Corrections (ODC) news release, the melee broke out about 9:40 a.m., April 6, in the Complex 2 Recreation yard. The unidentified inmate injured by gunfire was transported to a local hospital, as were three other inmates who received ... [full story]

MILWAUKIE, Ore. – Police have released the identity of a man found dead under suspicious circumstances in a wooded area of North Clackamas Park Saturday morning.   Gene Pisaneschi in 1995 - MPD  “The death was not the result of natural causes,” Milwaukie Police reported, but declined to go into further details citing the ongoing investigation, which closed a section of the park until late Saturday evening. Gene Lynn Pisaneschi, 45, of Sherwood, Oregon was found by a person walking ... [full story]

LA PINE, Ore. – Although deputies now believe a domestic dispute led to two roommates being shot and injured, and the fatal self-inflicted shooting of a third roommate on Thursday night at a La Pine home, they have yet to establish a motive. Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputies responded to 16054 Burgess Road in La Pine shortly after 9 p.m., April 3, to a report of gunshots, Captain Marc Mills said in a news release. While on ... [full story]

REDMOND, Ore. – An 80-year old driver was cited for disobeying a traffic control device and crashing into a car, sending it careening into a dental office following impact in southwest Redmond on Friday, police reported. Lois R. Bilyeu’s Toyota Avalon failed to stop at the intersection of SW 7th Street and SW Black Butte Blvd. and collided with a Chevrolet pickup driven by a 16-year-old Redmond girl. Following impact, the pickup left the road ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. – Police and park rangers closed Pilot Butte Saturday afternoon to facilitate a search for a severely diabetic 61-year old Bend man who has been missing since Thursday.   Louis Turner - photo provided by BPD  Louis Alfred Turner was last seen at his apartment about 1 p.m., April 3, and requires regular medication for his illness, Bend Police Detective Brian Beekman reported. Police received information that Turner may have walked to the Butte, and on ... [full story]

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A Colorado man suffered severe burns when his Cessna 210 Centurion crashed and caught fire while attempting to land at Bowman Field in Louisville, Ky.Neighbors used garden hoses to battle the fire after the aircraft skidded into the yard of a house north of Taylorsville Road Sunday, The Courier-Journal reported.Resident Mike Oost told the newspaper when he got to the plane the pilot "was laying crossways on the seat and his shirt ... [full story]