World Digest
Gas-price cut foreseen as U.S. election ploy

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Woodward, a senior editor at The Washington Post, appeared on CBS' "60 Minutes," where he was being interviewed about his new book, "Plan of Attack."

Woodward said the prince pledged the Saudis would try to fine-tune oil prices to prime the U.S. economy for the election, a move they think would help Bush be re-elected.

Questioned about his assertion at a time when oil prices are nearing a 13-year high, Woodward responded: "They're high. And they could go down very quickly. That's the Saudi pledge. Certainly over the summer or as we get closer to the election, they could increase production several million barrels a day and the price would drop significantly."

There was no immediate response from Saudi Arabia or the White House.

Russian rocket blasts off, ferrying three to space station

BAIKONUR, Kazakstan — A Russian rocket roared into space today carrying a new crew headed for the international space station.

American Michael Fincke, Russian Gennady Padalka and Andre Kuipers of the Netherlands were to spend two days en route to the space station aboard the Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft.

The Russian-built capsule is the only means to get to the orbital outpost since the suspension of U.S. space-shuttle flights following the Columbia disaster.

Padalka and Fincke will spend 183 days on the space station. Kuipers will return after nine days with the station's current crew, U.S. astronaut Michael Foale and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Kaleri, who have been in orbit since October.

Radical cleric says attacks on London being prepared
 
LISBON — Several Islamic militant groups are preparing attacks on London, a radical Muslim cleric said in an interview published yesterday.

"It's inevitable. Because several (attacks) are being prepared by several groups," London-based Sheikh Omar Bakri Muhammad told Lisbon's Publica magazine.

Referring to what he called a "very well organized" group in London calling itself al-Qaida Europe, he said, "I know that they are ready to launch a big operation."

The firebrand cleric, who has outraged moderate Muslims and non-Muslims alike with his uncompromising views, gave no further details.

Hope grows that Myanmar will free Nobel laureate

YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi may be freed from house arrest in a day or two, the chairman of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party said today. Speculation has been rife that the Nobel peace laureate will be freed after the military government allowed the NLD to reopen its Yangon headquarters Saturday, nearly a year after it was shut and its leader Suu Kyi detained.

Suu Kyi, 58, and her vice chairman Tin Oo are the last senior NLD leaders confined since a May 30 clash, which critics blamed on the junta. Yangon denied orchestrating the violence.

The military government, which has ruled the former Burma since 1962, has promised fresh constitutional talks next month as part of its "road map to democracy" announced last August.

Leader of Arab fighters in Chechnya reportedly killed

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — The leader of Arab fighters in Chechnya, Saudi-born Abu al-Waleed al-Ghamdi, was killed in the rebel Russian region a few days ago, his brother said yesterday.

Abu al-Waleed is said by Russia to be among those behind February's bombing of the Moscow subway that killed 41 people.

In Russia, a spokesman for the state security service declined to comment. Pro-Moscow Chechen leader Akhmad Kadyrov said there was a "real possibility" that Abu al-Waleed had been killed.

The insurgency in mainly Muslim Chechnya has attracted mujahedeen, or holy fighters, from many Arab countries.

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