AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Breakfast, Aug 20Breakfast Round-Up: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AAP RTV FILE AT 0430
Iraq (BAGHDAD)
A massive car bomb's devastated the UN headquarters in Baghdad, killing SERGIO VIEIRADE MELLO, the top UN envoy in Iraq, and at least 15 others.
The deadly blast has overshadowed the coalition's arrest of former Iraqi vice presidentTAHA YASSIN RAMADAN, SADDAM HUSSEIN's hawkish one-time right-hand man.
A senior UN official says VIEIRA DE MELLO is dead.
UN humanitarian coordinator RAMIRO LOPES DA SILVA says a car bomb exploded just outsidethe Canal Hotel UN headquarters, destroying a corner of the building.
The UN in New York says at least 15 other people were killed in the blast.
No group's immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing.
UN spokesman FRED ECKHARD says it's not clear how many of the 300 people employed atUN headquarters in Baghdad had been in the building at the time of the attack.
Meanwhile, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says no Australians have beenreported killed or seriously injured in the attack.
A DFAT spokeswoman says the Australian Representative Office in Baghdad is workingto locate and confirm the welfare of all Australians in Baghdad who work for or deal withthe UN office there.
However, a New Zealand Army officer is among those injured in the bombing of the UnitedNations headquarters in Baghdad.
The Chief of Defence Force, Air Marshal BRUCE FERGUSON says Major TODD HART was injuredin the explosion which took the lives of at least 15 people and injured scores of others.
Iraq Ramadan (ARBIL)
Former Iraqi vice president TAHA YASSIN RAMADAN has been captured by Kurdish fightersin the northern city of Mosul.
A senior official of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan says he has been turned overto US forces, although the US military hasn't confirmed this.
RAMADAN is listed among the 55 most wanted members of the former Iraqi regime and wasSADDAM HUSSEIN'S right-hand man before the fall of the former regime.
US President GEORGE W BUSH has welcomed the capture of the former vice president ofIraq and one of SADDAM HUSSEIN'S closest allies.
Mideast Bus (JERUSALEM)
Witnesses say an explosion's ripped through a bus in Jewish west Jerusalem killingthree people and wounding at least six others.
Reuters journalist BARRY MOODY says two buses were hit by the blast.
He says one was completely devastated, while the other had its windows blown out.
There's no immediate word on the cause of the explosion.
Gunman (PERTH)
A 31-year-old man will appear in court today after allegedly shooting dead a 21-year-oldwoman and taking four others hostage in a series of home invasions and carjackings inand around Perth.
Heavily-armed police swooped on RUSSELL JAMES MITCHELL in a taxi in the Perth suburbof Langford yesterday afternoon.
The arrest occurred soon after the man released his last alleged hostage, a 16-year-oldgirl who he allegedly abducted from a street in a nearby suburb.
Police allege he was still in possession of a sawn-off shotgun when he was caught.
The arrest came more than 12 hours after the shooting death of a woman at Warnbro,50km south of Perth, on Monday.
Baby Court (SYDNEY)
Three men charged over the vicious assault of a father and his baby are free aftera Sydney court granted them bail.
Five-week-old ELIZABETH NUNES was being cradled by her father JEREMY when he was attackedwhile walking to their home in Maroubra in Sydney's east last Thursday.
Baby ELIZABETH suffered a fractured skull.
Twenty-three-year-old ERIC NOEL MCKENNA of Chifley has been charged with involvementin assault occasioning grievous bodily harm and in assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
Twenty-year-old DAVID JAMES BETTS from Kingsford and 21-year-old TRENT BENISCHKE ofMascot were charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and maliciously inflictinggrievous bodily harm.
Tuckey (CANBERRA)
Federal government minister WILSON TUCKEY has defended intervening to try and overturna $193 driving fine given to his son by South Australian police.
Mr TUCKEY, the Minister for Regional Services, Territories and Local Government, sayshe did nothing improper.
He says as a responsible member of parliament he was trying to look after his constituent,who also happens to be his son.
On September the 26th in a letter on ministerial letterhead, Mr TUCKEY wrote to SouthAustralian Transport Minister PATRICK CONLON seeking to have the fine replaced by a warning.
In another letter dated November the 11th, Mr TUCKEY again wrote to Mr CONLON, complainingthe case had gone to a South Australian court where his son had been convicted.
Mr CONLON wrote back that the officer who issued the ticket to Mr TUCKEY'S son actedin line with police discretionary orders.
Hambali (JAKARTA)
A Malaysian professor who built the bombs used in last year's devastating attack onBali was also a leader of a group which blasted a Jakarta hotel this month.
Indonesia's detective chief ERWIN MAPPASENG says AZAHARI BIN HUSIN -- who remains atlarge -- is thought to have built the van bomb which killed 12 people and injured almost150 at the Marriott hotel on August the 5th.
Ten people are already under arrest for involvement in planning the Marriott blast.
MAPPASENG has also confirmed the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah carried out the hotel attack.
Meanwhile, a fighter from Jemaah Islamiah has delivered a chilling warning of moreterrorist attacks in South-East Asia.
BOBBY MAHMUD says the al-Qaeda linked group plans to escalate attacks against westerners.
Terror Aust (CANBERRA)
A Federal government MP has reignited debate on capital punishment, saying he has nodoubt most Australians would support the reintroduction of the death penalty for terrorism.
More than three decades after capital punishment ended, Federal Liberal MP ALBY SCHULTZsays he has no doubt Australia will again adopt the death penalty if the decision is leftup to voters.
Mr SCHULTZ'S call came as a newspaper poll yesterday revealed 56 per cent of peoplesurveyed support the death penalty for major acts of terrorism carried out in Australia.
The poll in The Australian newspaper shows most people also supported the death penaltyhanded out to the alleged quarter-master of the Bali bombing AMROZI.
AMROZI was sentenced to be executed by firing squad for his role in the attack thatkilled 202 people, including 88 Australians.
China Howard (CANBERRA)
Prime Minister JOHN HOWARD is under pressure to raise China's human rights record withPresident HU JINTAO when he travels to Australia on an official visit later this year.
In major diplomatic coup for the government, Mr HOWARD ended his whirlwind trip toBeijing with an announcement that the new Chinese leader would visit Australia in comingmonths.
Mr HOWARD says the visit will highlight the close relationship between the two countriesand how much Beijing values its links with Australia.
UK Kelly (LONDON)
British Prime Minister TONY BLAIR's top media adviser, ALASTAIR CAMPBELL, has rejectedclaims he sexed up a government dossier on Iraq before the war.
CAMPBELL's also denied he is responsible for the public naming of government scientistDAVID KELLY, revealed to have been the source of a BBC allegation that CAMPBELL orderedthe embellishment of the dossier to help justify the March invasion of Iraq.
KELLY apparently committed suicide in July, days after being grilled by two parliamentarycommittees after he was named by the defence ministry as the likely source of the BBCallegation.
BRIEFLY.................
A young Aboriginal woman has been found dead hanging in her cell at a jail in North Queensland.
A jury resumes its deliberations today on the legal fate, and indirectly the politicalfutures, of former One Nation co-founders PAULINE HANSON and DAVID ETTRIDGE.
Officials say 14 Europeans held hostage for more than five months by Algerian militantshave been released and are on their way home.
An accident involving a bus, a truck and two cars in Egypt has killed 22 people -- includingtwo infants -- and 38 others are injured.
AND IN SPORT.................
SOCCER AUST (DUBLIN)
Socceroos coach FRANK FARINA has confirmed HARRY KEWELL won't be playing for Australiain the friendly against Ireland in Dublin because of inflamed Achilles tendon.
KEWELL pulled up sore on Sunday after his first premier league match for Liverpoolagainst Chelsea.
NETBALL AVELLINO (ADELAIDE)
Former Australian netballer NATALIE AVELLINO will find out this afternoon if she canplay for Adelaide Thunderbirds for the remainder of the national netball league season.
AVELLINO was discarded by the Sydney Sandpipers and is seeking Supreme Court permissionto play for Adelaide despite league residency requirements.
ENDS BREAKFAST ROUND-UP
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