Rape claim fuels anti-U.S. protests

Angered over the alleged rape of a 22-year-old Filipina as she rode in a van with six Marines, demonstrators railed Monday against the presence of U.S. troops in the Philippines.

No charges have been filed in Wednesday's incident at the former Subic Bay naval base, but six Marines are being held by the U.S. Embassy in an undisclosed location. U.S. and Philippine officials are conducting separate investigations into allegations that the woman was raped and left by the roadside.

Lurid details of the incident have been widely published in the Philippine media. One senator called the Marines "sex terrorists." Some critics said the case, like the mistreatment of detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison, was part of a pattern of abuse by U.S. forces abroad.

New Delhi

Minister demoted over U.N. scandal

The Indian government stripped its foreign minister of his responsibilities Monday over accusations he profited from corruption in the U.N. oil-for-food program in Iraq, making him the first political casualty of a report accusing thousands of colluding with Saddam Hussein's regime to bilk the humanitarian effort.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday summoned Natwar Singh for an hourlong meeting at his residence and demoted him to minister without portfolio, the government said in a statement.

The accusation that the ousted foreign minister was among more than 2,200 prominent companies and politicians worldwide to illegally benefit from the program has roiled India for days and led to widespread calls that he step down.

Singh has said he received no favors or bribes from Saddam's government or benefited from the program that let Iraq sell limited and then unlimited quantities of oil, as long as most of the money was used to help ordinary Iraqis cope with U.N. sanctions.

Rafah Crossing, Gaza Strip

EU to monitor border crossing

The European Union agreed Monday to monitor a Gaza-Egypt border crossing that serves as the main gate to the world for Palestinians in the coastal strip.

The deployment of foreign inspectors at the Rafah terminal is a key element of an emerging Israeli-Palestinian deal on new border arrangements after Israel's pullout from the Gaza Strip in September.

EU foreign ministers agreed at a meeting in Brussels, Belgium, to "assume the third- party responsibility" for monitoring the border crossing, Javier Solana, the EU's security-affairs chief, said as a delegation from the bloc toured the border area.

Toronto

Prime minister loses key support

The leader of a Canadian opposition party said Monday he would not support Prime Minister Paul Martin's minority government in a confidence motion, raising the possibility of an early election.

New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton, whose support of Martin's scandal-plagued government helped Martin escape a political crisis this year, said he wanted more assurances the Liberal government would crack down on the increased use of private health care in Canada.

If the New Democrats put forth a confidence motion, the larger Conservative and Bloc Quebecois opposition parties say they would not support Martin's government either. Losing such a motion would force Martin to call for an early election.

Compiled from The Associated Press, Reuters and the Los Angeles Times