Foreigners get OK to go after pirates

Mogadishu, Somalia

Somalia authorized foreign powers on Wednesday to use force against pirates holding a ship loaded with tanks for $20 million ransom, raising the stakes for bandits being watched by the U.S. Navy.

The Faina has been anchored since being seized off central Somalia on Sept. 25. The Ukrainian cargo ship — carrying 33 Soviet-made T-72 tanks, rifles and heavy weapons — was the highest-profile act of piracy off this Horn of Africa nation this year.

Several U.S. ships patrolled nearby and Russia also has sent a warship to protect the few Russian hostages on board, Most of the 20 crew members are Ukrainian or Latvian, and one Russian has died, apparently of illness.

La Paz, Bolivia

Russians boost ties to Bolivia

Bolivia's plan to purchase five Russian civil defense helicopters is a "first step" in deepening ties between the two countries as Russia looks to expand its role across Latin America, Russia's top diplomat in Bolivia said Tuesday.

Ambassador Leonid Golubev said he would like to see Russia's ties to Bolivia one day "approach the level" of its growing partnership with Venezuela, which will host the Russian navy for military exercises in the Caribbean later this year.

"We want to show the United States that Latin America is not their backyard," Golubev said. "We also have interests in various spheres, including military ones."

San Francisco

Chinese Internet spy system found

A group of Canadian human-rights activists and computer-security researchers has discovered a huge surveillance system in China that monitors and archives certain Internet text conversations that include politically charged words.

The system tracks text messages sent by customers of Tom-Skype, a joint venture between a Chinese wireless operator and eBay, the Web auctioneer that owns Skype, an online phone and text-messaging service, said Citizen Lab, a group that focuses on politics and the Internet at the University of Toronto.

The list includes words related to the religious group Falun Gong, Taiwan independence and the Chinese Communist Party, according to the researchers. It includes not only words such as democracy, but also earthquake and milk powder. (Chinese officials are facing criticism over the handling of earthquake relief and chemicals tainting milk powder.)

Toronto

Canadians miffed over debate conflict

Canadians are criticizing the decision by Canada's TV networks to schedule the country's sole English-language debate before Oct. 14 national elections while Republican Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin goes head-to-head with Democrat Sen. Joseph Biden tonight.

Canadians traditionally have shown keen interest in U.S. presidential elections, but this year's race — with its historic dimensions of race and gender — has been watched even more closely.

"I'll be watching Palin and catching the highlights of the Canadian debate on the news," said Steve Weiner, a dentist.

Also

YouTube threat: Swedish police say they have arrested a 15-year-old boy after Florida police tipped them off about threats he allegedly posted on YouTube saying he would emulate last week's attack at a school in Finland in which a 22-year-old gunman killed 10 people and himself.

Bollywood strike: A coalition of 22 unions representing than 100,000 technicians, dancers and other film workers went on strike on Wednesday in Mumbai, home of India's film industry known as Bollywood.

Condoms stolen: An HIV/AIDS-awareness group said 5,000 condoms, sound equipment and a motor used to inflate a giant prophylactic were stolen Sunday from a "condom-mobile" in Mexico City.

Seattle Times news services