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Monday, June 5

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.

Abducted 5-day-old girl found in Texas; suspect under arrest

(CNN) -- An ailing 5-day-old girl, snatched from her mother by a woman who had posed as a hospital worker, has been found and is being evaluated at the University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas, police and hospital officials said.

"This little baby is in remarkably good shape," said Lt. Roy Bassett, a Lubbock Police Department spokesman.

After a tip called into police, Priscilla Nicole Maldonado was found unattended, laying in a car seat in a carport at a Lubbock condominium complex. Temperatures at the time were in the low 100s.

Police have arrested 33-year-old Stephanie Lynn Anderson Jones on kidnapping charges. According to Bassett, Jones could face additional charges, including endangerment. (posted 1:35 a.m.)

Marines may have committed "premeditated" murder of Iraqi man

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Navy investigators have evidence that some Marines from the 3rd battalion, 5th Marine regiment may have committed "premeditated" murder last April when they shot and killed an Iraqi man in Hamdania, a source close to the investigation told CNN.

The military officer, who has direct knowledge of the preliminary findings of an investigation by the NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service), says some of the Marines now in pre-trial confinement have admitted that the circumstances of the man's death were staged and that their statements form part of the evidence that suggest the Marines deliberately murdered the man.

"They went after someone, not necessarily this person, but they set out to get someone," the officer told CNN, referring to the Marines now under investigation.

The officer spoke to CNN under the condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to discuss the case publicly. (Posted 9:13 p.m.)

Islamic militia claims control over Somali capital Mogadishu

(CNN) -- An Islamic militia accused having ties to al Qaeda claimed to have wrested control of Somalia's capital Mogadishu on Monday after some of the worst fighting since the country's government collapsed in 1991.

The Islamic Courts Union, which supports the establishment of Islamic law in Somalia, announced that it had pushed an alliance of secular warlords out of nearly all of Mogadishu. And Oways Osman, a reporter for Somalia's Shabelle Radio, told CNN that the Islamic militia controlled "88 percent, if not 99 percent" of the Somali capital.

The last of the alliance warlords withdrew Saturday night, leaving only a small part of northern Mogadishu under their control, Osman said.

The Islamic Courts Union broadcast its claim on Somali radio stations Monday, promising to "engage the rest of the world in a way that takes into account the interest of our country," the independent U.N. news agency IRIN reported.

Neither U.S. nor U.N. officials could immediately corroborate the claim. (Posted 8:38 p.m.)

Small plane violates DC airspace

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A single-engine plane strayed into the restricted airspace Monday evening just northwest of Washington, prompting officials to scramble two F-16 jets from nearby Andrews Air Force Base.

The fighter jets intercepted the Cessna 182, which had been en route from Philadelphia to Charlottesville, Va., and forced it to land in Gaithersburg, Md., the FAA said.

Federal agents were interviewing the pilot. (Posted 7:48 p.m.)

Bloomberg decries proposed cuts to New York's bioterrorism preparedness

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Mayor Michael Bloomberg is the latest in a string of New York politicians to criticize the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's plans to slash federal funding for the city's bioterrorism preparedness programs.

Speaking Monday at a news conference, the mayor appeared bewildered over the proposal.

"There is no question New York City is, along with Washington and maybe one or two other cities, the most likely targets of terrorism," Bloomberg said. "I still don't for the life of me understand why the decision was made to reduce New York City and Washington D.C. as much as it was."

The proposal comes on the heels of last week's decision by the Department of Homeland Security to cut 40 percent of federal grant money allocated to New York City for emergency preparedness.

The latest proposal would cut funding for the city's overall public health and anti-terrorism programs by 12 percent, said Dr. Richard Besser, the agency's director of the office of terror preparedness and emergency response. (Posted 6:46 p.m.)

Federal report warns Germany about sex trafficking during World Cup

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States warned Germany that it must do more to curb the influx of prostitutes arriving for this month's World Cup soccer tournament.

"The U.S. government opposes prostitution," which is legal in Germany, the State Department's annual report on global trafficking, issued Monday, said. "These activities are inherently harmful and dehumanizing."

Iran and Syria joined the report's list of the worst offenders for failing to do enough to stop the modern-day slave trade. The report listed both as "Tier 3" countries, nations "whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards" set by American law and "are not making significant efforts to do so." (Posted: 5:55 p.m.)

Ex-NYPD cops-turned-hitmen promised life in prison

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A federal judge told two former New York City police detectives Monday that he will sentence them to the maximum penalty -- life in prison -- for moonlighting as hit men while on the force.

"This is probably the most heinous series of crimes ever tried in the courthouse," U.S. District Judge Jack B. Weinstein said. He said would delay formal sentencing on Louis Eppolito, 57, and Stephen Caracappa, 64, until June 23.

A federal jury deliberated for two days before finding the men guilty on all counts for working with the Mafia while serving as NYPD officers, Bob Nordoza, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York, told CNN. (Posted: 5:15 p.m.)

Ex-President Garcia leads Peru runoff election

LIMA, Peru (CNN) -- Former Peruvian president Alan Garcia declared victory in a runoff election Monday and appeared poised to stage a political comeback 16 years after his previous administration ended in economic ruin and social unrest.

With nearly 91 percent of the ballots counted, Garcia was leading with 54.7 percent of the vote. Ollanta Humala, a leftist former coup leader who campaigned for closer ties with the government of Venezuela's leader Hugo Chavez, had 45.3 percent, the National Electoral Process Office said.

Despite Garcia's claim of victory, many of the outstanding ballots were from rural areas where Humala is thought too have strong support. (Posted: 3:30 p.m.)

Bush repeats support for same-sex marriage ban

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush offered a new pledge of support Monday for a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage, a measure expected to fail in Congress and one critics blasted as an election-year diversion.

"This national question requires a national solution," Bush said in an event attended by supporters of the amendment. "And on an issue of such profound importance, that solution should come not from the courts but from the people of the United States."

Bush first endorsed a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages in 2004, when he was a candidate for re-election. The proposed amendment failed in the Senate that year -- but similar amendments to state constitutions passed in 11 states, and observers credited those measures with bringing enough religious conservatives to the polls in key states like Ohio to give Bush the election. (Posted: 2:38 p.m.)

Israel kills 2 Palestinian militants in Gaza air strike

JERUSALEM (CNN) -- The Israeli military launched an airstrike in northern Gaza Monday, killing two militant Palestinians, Israeli military and Palestinian sources said. The two killed were identified by Palestinian security sources as Majdi Hamad and Imad Assaliya, both from the Popular Resistance Committee. Three other Palestinians were wounded when the Israeli missile hit a car in northern Gaza, Palestinian medical sources said. (Posted: 2:13 p.m.)

Survey: e-mail violations led to firings at 1 in 3 U.S. companies

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Nearly one in three U.S. companies has terminated an employee for violating e-mail policy in the past year, a survey released Monday said. The survey of 294 U.S. companies with at least 1,000 employees found that, in many cases, employees who sent e-mails containing confidential information about the organization or e-mails that were considered obscene and offensive were disciplined or terminated. Although the survey suggests that 80 percent of U.S. companies have a written policy covering e-mails, violations remain common, said the study, which was carried out by Forrester Consulting and paid for by Proofpoint, a Cupertino, Calif.-based company that makes software to help companies reduce e-mail risks. (Posted: 1:47 p.m.)

Dozier remains critical but stable

CBS says LANDSTUHL, German (CNN) -- CBS Correspondent Kimberly Dozier, wounded in Iraq, remained in critical but stable condition at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center Monday, the network said. Dozier is "doing well, all things considered. She is expected to be transported back to the United States in the next few days," said a CBS statement. Officials at Ramstein Air Base said Dozier would not likely be flown to the United States before Wednesday. (Posted: 1:27 p.m.)

Police hope sketch, security video will identify infant kidnap suspect

(CNN) -- With few clues to guide them, police in Lubbock, Texas, searched Monday for an ailing 5-day-old girl who investigators said was snatched Sunday from her mother by a woman who had posed as a hospital worker. A composite police sketch is in the works and a search of hospital security camera video for a photo of the kidnapping suspect is under way, said Lt. Roy Bassett, a Lubbock Police Department spokesman. (Posted: 1:10 p.m.)

First Guard troops start work at Mexican border

SAN LUIS, Ariz. (CNN) -- The first of about 6,000 National Guard troops ordered to bolster patrols along the U.S.-Mexico border started work Monday as a 55-member detachment from Utah began working on projects in southern Arizona.

Members of the 116th Construction Support Equipment Company and elements of the 1457th and 489th engineering companies had been scheduled for several months to conduct their two-week annual unit training near the San Luis border crossing, said Maj. Hank McIntire, a Utah National Guard spokesman.

But the troops were told Friday that the would be placed under the umbrella of Operation Jump Start, the deployment President Bush announced in May.

(Posted: 1:08 p.m.)

1 dead in military zone mishap

ISTANBUL (CNN) -- One person was killed and another was hurt Monday when explosives they were playing with in a Skarya district military zone detonated, an official said.

Nuri Okutan, governor of the Sakarya district, told CNN Turk that the two casualties were among three people inside a prohibited zone when the accident occurred.

--From CNN Turk's Bora Bayrakta

High court rejects appeal over reporter privilege in Wen Ho Lee case

From CNN Supreme Court Producer Bill Mears

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- As expected, the Supreme Court Monday rejected an appeal from four reporters -- including one who used to work at CNN -- who had refused to reveal their sources in stories dealing with Wen Ho Lee, a government scientist once accused of stealing nuclear secrets.

The case could have served to clarify conflicting legal standards on how the press deals with sensitive information it obtains.

The justices decision, made without comment, came after Lee settled his lawsuit against the government, in which he claimed officials leaked damaging information against him to the press.

It made the separate high court appeals somewhat moot. At issue was what First Amendment privilege journalists may have, if any, to reject subpoenas in civil lawsuits demanding they reveal their sources of reporting.

If the case had gone to trial, the reporters would have faced a tough decision, deciding whether to testify about their sources or face civil contempt. The penalties might have included possible jailtime and up to $500 daily penalties imposed by the courts.

Among the reporters was Pierre Thomas, who was CNN's Justice Correspondent in 1999 and reported extensively on the government probe of Lee, a onetime Energy Department scientist who worked at the Los Alamos nuclear research facility. Bush Administration officials, including then-Energy Secretary Bill Richardson, had publicly named Lee as a target of a probe into the theft of highly secret documents from the lab, and investigators suspected he was spying for China. He was later cleared of espionage and nearly all the other serious charges.

After his release from prison, Lee sued the government under the Privacy Act, claiming officials leaked false and incriminating information to several reporters, including Thomas, who now works at ABC News.

Thomas and four other reporters were subpoenaed in 2002, and a federal district court ordered them to testify, or face contempt charges. A federal appeals court upheld the subpoenas against Thomas, James Risen of the New York Times, Bob Drogin of the Los Angeles Times, Walter Pincus of the Washington Post, and H. Josef Hebert of the Associated Press. A similar subpoena against Jeff Gerth of the New York Times was dismissed. Pincus was not a party in the Supreme Court appeal. (Posted 11:28 a.m.)

High court to review role of race in public school placement

From CNN Supreme Court Producer Bill Mears

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In a pair of cases that could re-ignite decades-old disputes over race and public education, the Supreme Court Monday agreed to decide what role affirmative action should play in the assignment of students to competitive spots in elementary and secondary schools.

The justices this fall will hear two appeals from Kentucky and Washington.

A ruling could help clarify when and to what lengths state and local officials can go to promote diversity in K-12 education.

In a landmark case three years ago, the Supreme Court affirmed racial quotas as unconstitutional, and offered a limited, but powerful endorsement of affirmative action in higher education. The justices agreed race can be used as a one factor in admissions to state-funded colleges, as part of an overall effort to achieve diversity in the classroom. (Posted 11:01 a.m.)

50 kidnapped, 12 dead, 4 wounded in Sunday night, Monday morning incidents

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Fifty people were kidnapped and another 12 were killed in several violent incidents in or near Baghdad Sunday evening and Monday morning, Iraqi officials said.

Gunmen posing as Iraqi police commandos kidnapped 50 people at three bus companies along a busy street in central Baghdad Monday morning, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official said.

The kidnappers, wearing police commando uniforms and driving at least 13 vehicles with Iraqi police markings, took an hour to carry out the kidnappings, officials said.

Separately, Baghdad police said they found the bodies of six unidentified people, tortured and shot to death, in the Dora neighborhood of Baghdad Monday morning.

A mortar attack in the Ghazaliyah neighborhood of western Baghdad wounded three residents at 9:30 a.m. Monday, Baghdad police said.

An official with the Badr organization -- the military wing of Iraq's largest Shiite party -- was found shot to death in the Bayaa neighborhood of southwestern Baghdad Monday morning, Baghdad police said.

A Shiite man and his three sons were shot to death Sunday evening while returning home from a doctor's visit in the town of Khan Bani Saad, about 20 miles north of Baghdad, an official with Baquba police said. The mother was wounded in the drive-by shooting, he said.

A water planning manager was shot dead by gunmen about 5 miles north of Baquba At 8:30 a.m. Monday, according to a Baquba police official. (Posted 9:55 a.m.)

Gunmen posing as Iraqi police kidnap 50 in central Baghdad

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Gunmen posing as Iraqi police commandos raided three transportation companies and kidnapped 50 people in central Baghdad Monday morning, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official said.

The kidnappers were wearing police commando uniforms and driving at least 13 vehicles with Iraqi police markings, but they were not Iraqi police, the official said.

Some of those taken captive were passengers on a bus that was about to depart for Syria or Jordan and included two Syrians, the official said. Office workers and bus company employees were also kidnapped, he said.

The Iraqi owner of one of the transportation company and his two sons were among those kidnapped, the official said.

The officials said the raid, which took at least an hour to complete, began around 11 a.m. (3 a.m. EDT) on a street in Baghdad's Salihiya district.

Although people initially believed this was an Iraqi police action, an official with the prime minister's office said there was no official police operation being conducted at the time.

It was not immediately clear why Iraqi police did not notice the hour-long raid was happening on a busy Baghdad street.

A series of incidents in which terrorists posed as police spurred the government to announce several months ago that it would re-issue Iraqi police uniforms to make them harder to copy, but it has not been done. Fake uniforms can easily be purchased on the street, officials said. (Posted 9:06 a.m.)

Gay marriage battle resumes center stage

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- With a push from President Bush, the Senate begins debate Monday on a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage -- returning to a 2004 election-year issue that helped draw social conservatives to the polls and boost Bush's re-election bid.

While Bush and fellow social conservatives describe the issue as necessary to "protect" the institution of marriage, Democrats and some moderate Republicans call it political positioning and unnecessary.

The amendment is not expected to win the necessary two-thirds of the Senate to pass, but could galvanize support for some individual lawmakers in the mid-term elections. In 2004, the proposed amendment won 48 votes in the Senate; now, backers are hoping for more than 50.

Below are quotes from some key voices in the debate:

-President Bush, on Saturday, in his weekly radio address:

"Marriage cannot be cut off from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening this good influence on society. Government, by recognizing and protecting marriage, serves the interests of all. Unfortunately, activist judges and some local officials have made an aggressive attempt to redefine marriage in recent years...

"An amendment to the Constitution is necessary because activist courts have left our nation with no other choice."

-Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press"

"The world's going to Hades in a hand basket. We are desperately concerned about the circumstance relating to avian flu. We don't have enough vaccines. We don't have enough police officers. And we're going to debate the next three weeks, I'm told, gay marriage, a flag amendment and God only knows what else.

"I can't believe the American people can't see through this. We already have a law, the Defense of Marriage Act. We've all voted -- or I've voted and others say, look, marriage is between a man and a woman and states must respect that. Nobody has violated that law. There's been no challenge to that law. Why do we need a constitutional amendment?" (Posted 8:57 a.m.)

Saddam trial adjourns after three hours

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- The 32nd session of the Saddam Hussein trial closed Monday after less than three hours, with defendant Mohammed Azzawi Ali, a low-level Baath Party member, loudly bemoaning a death sentence he expects to receive.

Chief Judge Raouf Abdel Rahman replied to him with "Why are you so pessimistic? Who told you before the fact that you'll get the death sentence?"

The Judge listened to various complaints by the defendants, since today's testimony was finished within an hour of the session's start.

Only two witnesses testified Monday, the wife and brother of Ali Dayem Ali, a local, Dujaili Baath-party official.

Abdel Rahman blamed the small number of witnesses on the defense for neither readying witnesses nor providing the court with an up-to-date list of witnesses. The chief judge threatened to disallow any further witnesses for the defendants if a final, and updated list of defendants prepared to testify was not submitted before Monday, June 12.

Abdel Rahman furthermore accused the defense of delay tactics and reminded the defense that everyone, including the defendants, was tired. In response to this Saddam Hussein stood and asked Abdel Rahman if it were the responsibility of the court or the responsibility of the defense to make sure that witnesses arrive to court.

The judge said it was indeed the court's responsibility to bring witnesses to trial, but again lay the fault at the defense's door for not submitting an accurate list of witnesses.

Meanwhile, the defense named at least 15 of 23 names from the list of 148 Shias whom Saddam is charged with ordering executed, who they allege are either alive and well or were executed for other crimes.

Abdel Rahman ordered the defense to provide more information on those allegedly still alive or those whose executions were mistakenly connected to the Dujail incident.

Finally, the defense closed with a complaint that one of their lead attorney's, Najib al-Nuaimi, had been accosted by joint Iraqi-U.S. security while in the International Zone and complained about the detainment of four of the defense witnesses.

The trial is now adjourned until next Monday, June 12th.

-- From CNN Producer Jennifer Deaton (Posted 7:40 a.m.)

Prosecutors arrest top Japanese investment manager

TOKYO (CNN) -- Tokyo prosecutors arrested Yoshiaki Murakami, one of Japan's top fund managers, on Monday amid allegations of insider trading.

Japanese television networks showed video of Murakami being taken away by prosecutors to a detention center after several hours of questioning.

In a press conference earlier in the day, Murakami admitted to engaging in insider trading during the purchase of Nippon Broadcasting System shares in 2005.

Murakami's fund bought the shares prior to a takeover bid by the scandal-hit internet firm, Livdeoor. Murakami now says that he had prior knowledge of Livedoor's bid before the purchase of shares.

-- From CNN's Atike Shubert

Solana to deliver nuclear proposal to Iran

(CNN) -- EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana was to arrive in the capital, Tehran, Monday night for meetings with Iranian leaders regarding the nation's nuclear program, a Solana spokeswoman said.

According to Cristina Gallach, Solana will meet on Tuesday with Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and the head Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani.

Six world powers -- Germany and the five veto-wielding members of the U.N. Security Council -- last week agreed on a package of incentives if Iran stops uranium enrichment, or penalties if it refuses. Solana is to present the package to Iranian officials during Tuesday's meetings.

Although Washington has no diplomatic relations with Iran -- which President Bush branded part of an "axis of evil" -- the United States last week agreed to join European allies in negotiations with Tehran if Iran suspends its uranium enrichment program and resumes full cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency. (posted 4:05 a.m.)

Lubbock police seek ailing infant in kidnapping report

(CNN) -- Police in Lubbock, Texas, are searching for an ailing 4-day-old girl investigators said was snatched from her mother Sunday by a woman who had posed as a hospital worker.

Priscilla Nicole Maldonado was diagnosed with jaundice soon after her birth Wednesday, and a woman wearing hospital scrubs stopped to check on her several times before she and her mother were discharged, said Lt. Roy Bassett, a Lubbock Police Department spokesman. The girl and her mother, Erica Ysasaga, were discharged Friday.

On Sunday, the woman -- who identified herself as "Lisa Stewart" -- went to Ysasaga's house offering to check up on the girl: Ysasaga told investigators she went for a walk with the woman, who supposedly wanted to show the infant to relatives nearby, and that the woman took off with her baby when she was distracted by another child. (posted 1:20 a.m.)

Bird flu death in Indonesia

(CNN) -- A 15-year-old boy died of bird flu in Indonesia last week, a World Health Organization spokeswoman said Monday.

According to Sari Setiogi, the teenager had contact with infected birds and died Wednesday, May 30. (posted 1:20 a.m.)

Earthquake death toll lowered

JAKARTA (CNN) -- Indonesian officials Monday lowered the death toll by more than 400 from last month's deadly earthquake that left hundreds of thousands of people homeless in central Java.

The Indonesian Social Affairs Ministry now attributes 5,782 deaths to the temblor -- down from 6,234. The ministry said double statistics from various agencies contributed to the overcount.

Officially, 36,299 people were injured in the quake, according to the ministry.

The 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck just before 6 a.m. Saturday (7 p.m. ET Friday), May 27, about 15 miles south-southwest of Yogyakarta (posted 1:18 a.m.)

Ex-president leads Peru runoff returns

(CNN) -- Former Peruvian president Alan Garcia led balloting in Peru's presidential runoff early Monday, staging a political comeback after his previous administration ended in economic ruin and unrest.

With nearly 84 percent of the ballots counted, Garcia led with 54.7 percent of the vote to 45.3 percent for Ollanta Humala, according to results from the National Electoral Process Office.

Ahead Sunday's election, some Peruvians said they felt voting for Garcia was choosing the lesser of two evils in the race with Humala, a leftist former coup leader who campaigned for closer ties with the government of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez.

Garcia, a socialist, led Peru from 1985 to 1990. During his term, the country was hit hard by inflation that topped 7,500 percent a year and a violent insurrection by the Maoist "Shining Path" guerrilla movement, and he went into self-imposed exile after leaving office.

Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo has asked both candidates to accept and respect the results. (Posted 1:25 a.m.)

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