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Monday, January 1

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Editor's Note: The CNN Wire is a running log of the latest news from CNN World Headquarters, reported by CNN's correspondents and producers, and The CNN Wire editors. "Posted" times are Eastern Daylight.

Roadside bomb kills American soldier

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- A U.S. soldier was killed southwest of Baghdad Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near his patrol, according to military statement released Tuesday.

"The combined patrol was moving through a village south of Baghdad talking to residents about the sectarian violence in the area," the statement said of the operation by U.S. and Iraqi forces.

"As the patrol conducted their mission, a roadside bomb exploded near one of their vehicles, killing one Soldier and wounding three others, including an interpreter."

Since the start of the war, the United States has suffered 3,003 military fatalities. (Posted 2:55 a.m.)

Indonesia plane crash kills 90; 12 survive

JAKARTA (CNN) -- Rescue teams Tuesday found the crash of an Indonesian passenger jet that dropped off radar Monday while on a flight from Surabaya to Manado on Sulawesi island, an airline spokesman told CNN.

Twelve people survived the crash, airline spokesman Capt. Hartono said.

The jet crashed Monday near Polewali village in western Sulawesi province, Hartono said, and 90 bodies have been recovered. Earlier, an official with the airline said the plane was carrying 96 passengers and six crew members.

Three of the passengers aboard the plane were Americans, he said, but it was not clear if they survived. (Posted 9:04 p.m.)

Iraqi MP: U.S. tried to delay Hussein's death

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- U.S. officials reportedly tried to slow last week's rush to execution for Saddam Hussein, fearing it would fuel perceptions that the death of the former Iraqi dictator was more about Shia retribution and less about justice -- fears that seemed borne out by an amateur recording of Hussein's last moments.

It was a caution that fell on deaf ears, however, as Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was determined to put Hussein to death before the beginning of the Eid al-Adha holiday, which began on Saturday for Iraqi Sunnis on Sunday for Shiites.

At mid-day Friday, amid reports that the United States had given the Iraqis custody of Hussein -- and public denials that the transfer had taken place -- U.S. officials were in private talks with Iraq's Shia prime minister.

At one point, according to a member of the Iraqi parliament close to al-Maliki, a top U.S. official suggested a delay of two weeks. But al-Maliki and his aides rejected that, citing security concerns and rumors of possible violence swirling around the capital. (Posted 6 p.m.)

Bushes, Clintons pay respects as Ford lies in state

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush, his father and his immediate predecessor were among thousands to pay respects Monday to the late President Gerald Ford, whose body lay in state in the Capitol rotunda the day before his funeral.

The president and first lady Laura Bush made a brief stop at the Capitol to stand at Ford's casket Monday afternoon after returning from their home in Crawford, Texas. An estimated 2,000 people an hour filed past Ford's flag-draped bier on Monday, the last day of viewing, with people lined up in the rain outside the Capitol throughout the afternoon.

Near the day's end, officials cleared the rotunda so Ford's widow, Betty, and their children could pay a visit as well. Mrs. Ford, 88, maintained her composure as she sat at the side of the casket for several minutes, observing the changing of the honor guard, before walking to her husband's coffin and standing briefly in prayer.

Ford, who died last week at age 93, is scheduled to be buried Wednesday in his home state of Michigan after a Tuesday service at the National Cathedral in Washington. (Posted 5:44 p.m.)

Iraqi government releases casualty figures

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- More than 12,000 Iraqi civilians lost their lives in Iraq in 2006, according to figures released Monday by the Iraqi Interior Ministry.

The numbers clash with figures released in July by the United Nations, which said more than 14,000 civilians had been killed in the first half of the year alone.

The Iraqi government figures were compiled from reports from the Health, Interior and Defense ministries.

According to the Iraqi government figures, 12,371 civilians were killed in 2006 and another 15,143 were wounded. The government said that 1,224 police officers and 603 soldiers were killed in 2006. Another 2,113 police officer were wounded, the ministry said, along with 519 soldiers.

The ministry also said that 2,131 insurgents or members of other armed groups had been killed and 17,053 were wounded. (Posted 5:11 p.m.)

Denver police seek white SUV in Broncos player's killing

DENVER (CNN) -- Denver police are searching for a white sport-utility vehicle Monday in connection with the early morning shooting death of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams, a police spokesman said.

Williams, 24, was shot along with two other passengers in a limousine on a downtown Denver street shortly after 2 a.m., Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital a short time later.

Investigators are looking for a white, General Motors-model SUV, possibly a Chevrolet Suburban or Tahoe, with dark-tinted windows, Jackson said. They are trying to determine whether the shooting stemmed from an argument at a nightclub during a New Year's party earlier in the evening, he said. (Posted 2:56 p.m.)

Positives, negatives in New York City's year-end crime stats

NEW YORK (CNN) Year-end crime figures released by New York City's police department suggest that while the Big Apple is becoming safer, improvement has not been uniform -- most crimes are down, but murder is up.

The total number of criminal complaints for 2006 dropped 4.57 percent. But while the year saw a fall in the rates of rapes, robberies, felony assaults, burglaries and larcenies, the city's murder rate increased by about 5 percent. --From CNN's Mythili Rao (Posted 2:25 p.m.)

Baathists promise 'grave consequences' if Saddam is executed

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Following the execution of Saddam Hussein, the late Iraqi leader's Baath party issued a statement calling on Hussein's supporters to "strike without mercy your two enemies in Iraq -- Iran and the U.S."

Several days before Hussein's execution, the Baath party issued a statement vowing "grave consequences," particularly for the United States, if the former Iraqi leader was executed.

Hussein was hanged on Friday, on the eve of the Eid al-Adha holiday.

The latest Baathist statement, dated Dec. 30 and recently posted on several jihadist Web sites, blamed the new Iraqi government for "(obeying) the orders of the criminal crusader George Bush through executing" Saddam Hussein.

"Our revenge is to strengthen the Iraqi Resistance unity and direct all its guns against the U.S. and Iran," the statement said. "Our revenge is to bring to accountability everyone who participated directly or indirectly in the martyr Saddam Hussein killing crime." (Posted 1:55 p.m.)

Explosion in Iraq's Diyala province kills 2 U.S. soldiers

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- An explosion in Iraq's Diyala province, north of Baghdad, on Sunday killed two U.S. soldiers and wounded two others, the U.S. military announced Monday.

The soldiers were assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.

With the deaths, 3,002 U.S. military personnel have died in the Iraq war. (Posted 12:11 p.m.)

Journalist kidnapped in Gaza

GAZA CITY, Gaza (CNN) -- A photographer with Agence France-Presse (AFP) was kidnapped Monday in Gaza, AFP's office in Jerusalem said.

The photographer, Jaime Razuri, is a 50-year-old of Peruvian nationality, AFP said. (Posted 10:36 a.m.)

Contact lost with with Indonesian plane carrying 102

JAKARTA (CNN) -- An Indonesian passenger jet carrying 102 people sent out a distress signal Monday before the airline lost contact with the plane, Indonesia's transport minister told an Indonesian radio program.

The transport ministry has dispatched rescue teams to search for the aircraft.

An official with the airline, Adam Air, said the plane was carrying 96 passengers and six crew members. An information center was being set up for families of passengers.

The plane was heading to Manado on Sulawesi island, the airline said. It had originated in Jakarta with a stopover in Surabaya, on Java Island. (Posted 9:53 a.m.)

Iraqi interior ministry orders closure of TV station's Baghdad bureau

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Iraqi security forces Monday shut down Al-Sharqiya's Baghdad bureau after the interior minister accused the Iraqi TV station of "spreading lies and fomenting sectarian violence and hate" in its news coverage, including the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, interior ministry spokesman Brig. Gen. Abdul Karim Khalaf told CNN.

Al-Sharqiya -- which is owned by a London-based Iraqi media tycoon who is a Sunni Arab -- is still on the air despite the interior minister's order to close its Baghdad office. The network has a large broadcast center in Dubai.

Khalaf said the station was warned several times about its coverage, including what he said was a false report that three girls from Baghdad University were kidnapped by militias.

"They made such a big deal out of it and it turned out to be false," he said.

The station is sympathetic to Iraq's resistance and former Baathists in its news coverage. (Posted 9:13 a.m.)

Ethiopian troops reach Islamist group's stronghold

MOGADISHU, Somalia (CNN) -- Ethiopian troops have reached the southern Somali town of Kismayo, a stronghold of the Islamic Courts Union, according to Omar Faruk Osman, secretary general of the National Union of Somali Journalists.

Ethiopia's foreign minister confirmed to CNN that "foreign troops" are in Kismayo. (Posted 8:31 a.m.)

Sunni lawmaker says enemies gave U.S. military bad info, sparking raid

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- A Sunni lawmaker says a U.S. military raid on his Baghdad office that killed six people was based on false information from his enemies in an effort to "settle scores with me."

The U.S. military said the Monday morning raid on a suspected al Qaeda in Iraq safehouse killed six terrorists and netted a seventh.

But Salih al-Mutlaq told CNN those killed included two of his guards and a family of four living next to his office. The Sunni lawmaker said no one killed in the raid had any affiliation to the terror group.

He said he believes the raid was based on false information because of his criticism of the Shia-dominated Iraqi government.

According to the U.S. military, coalition forces targeted a building in Baghdad that intelligence indicated was being used as a possible safe house for al Qaeda in Iraq. (Posted 8:17 a.m.)

Police: Indian forces raid suspected militant hideout in Kashmir; 2 militants dead

SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir (CNN) -- Indian forces cordoned off a suspected militant hideout in a Muslim neighborhood in northern Kashmir, sparking an overnight gunbattle that ended early Monday with two militants dead, according to police.

The Indian forces raided the house late Sunday in the town of Sopore, acting on specific intelligence that two militants from the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba group were hiding there, police said.

The violence put a damper on the town's Eid al-Adha festivities, a Muslim holiday marking the end of the annual Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca.

Indian security forces have been tracking militants in north Kashmir for the past two weeks, killing six militants in the operation so far.

More than 50,000 lives have been lost in the ongoing 17-year long violence in the territory. -- From CNN's Mukhtar Ahmad In Srinagar (Posted 7:23 a.m.)

U.S. death toll in Iraq hits 3,000

(CNN) -- The U.S. military reached a grim milestone last week as the Pentagon announced that the death toll among American troops in Iraq had hit 3,000 since the war began nearly four years ago.

The identity of the 3,000th servicemember could not be precisely determined as there were a number of U.S. fatalities on December 29 and the exact times of their deaths were not immediately available.

More than 22,000 other U.S. troops have been wounded in Iraq since the war started in March 2003. (Posted 5:30 a.m.)

Troops patrol Bangkok after bombings kill 3

BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- Thai troops were on the streets of Bangkok Monday after a string of New Year's Eve bomb blasts killed three people and wounded more than 20.

Authorities canceled major celebrations in Bangkok and Thailand's second largest city, Chiang Mai, after six explosions ripped through several downtown areas in Bangkok around 6:30 p.m. Sunday (6:30 a.m. ET).

Hours after the celebrations were canceled, two more explosions rocked Bangkok's Kasorn Plaza shortly after midnight, wounding eight people, most of them tourists, police and hospital officials said. (Posted 12:15 a.m.)

Chief justice blasts Congress over judges' pay

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In unusually harsh language, Chief Justice John Roberts used a year-end report to slam Congress over what he said was its "grievously unfair" failure to boost judicial salaries.

The 51-year-old chief justice, who has been in the post for just 15 months, highlighted a concern he said has gone largely unnoticed for more than two decades.

"The issue has been ignored far too long and has now reached the level of a constitutional crisis that threatens to undermine the strength and independence of the federal judiciary," wrote Roberts.

The remarks came in Roberts' 2006 Year-End Report on the federal court system, which he heads in his role as Chief Justice of the United States.

This year's remarks were unusual not only for their sharp rhetoric, but for Roberts' decision to focus on this issue alone. (Posted 12:15 a.m.)

Former U.S. Rep. Broomfield released from hospital after collapse at Ford ceremony

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former Michigan congressman William Broomfield, who collapsed during a service Saturday for the late President Gerald Ford at the U.S. Capitol, was released from the hospital Sunday, a hospital spokesman said.

Broomfield, 84, was tended after he collapsed by Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., a surgeon, then by a Capitol doctor, before being taken to George Washington University Hospital.

Broomfield served in Congress from 1957-1992. (Posted 12:15 a.m.)

Ethiopian, Somali troops push Islamist fighters out of southern Somali strongholds

MOGADISHU, Somalia (CNN) -- Islamist militia forces fled their two final strongholds in southern Somalia as transitional government forces, backed by well-equipped Ethiopian troops, closed on the towns of Jilib and Kismayo, witnesses said.

The retreat came four days after Islamic Courts Union fighters exited from the capital, Mogadishu, where they had implemented strict Islamic law for six months.

The ICU militia retreated ahead of an advancing army of Ethiopian and Somali government forces estimated at 10,000, equipped with tanks, artillery, and air support -- nearly all of it provided by Ethiopia.

There is not much room for a retreat, either. Kismayo is wedged in southern Somalia between the Indian Ocean and the closed Kenyan border about 100 miles (160 km) to the south. (Posted 11:40 a.m.)

Jackson death probe may turn criminal, LAPD says The Jackson family knows that the probe into singer Michael Jackson's death could turn into a criminal case, a source close to the family told CNN Thursday.

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