Over 2,000 Companies Involved in Oil-for-Food Scandal

October 27, 2005 --

Oil-for-Food Report Implicates '2,200 Firms'
About half of the 4,500 companies in the U.N. oil-for-food program paid $1.8 billion in kickbacks and illicit surcharges to Saddam Hussein's government, according to a U.N.-backed investigation obtained by The Associated Press. (AP)

Read the Final U.N. Oil-for-Food Report

Next Up: Italian Subpoenas for CIA Agents Who Abducted Qaeda Suspect
An Italian prosecutor is on the verge of formally requesting that U.S. authorities turn over almost two dozen CIA agents involved in the abduction of a suspected al Qaeda agent off a Milan street in 2003. (Congressional Quarterly)

Several Die in Thai Serial Attacks
Suspected Thai Muslim fighters have launched at least 15 coordinated attacks in southern Thailand, killing four people and seizing dozens of weapons, police said. (Al Jazeera)

Port Authority Found Negligent in 1993 Bombing
The jury found that the authority had not maintained the World Trade Center's parking garage "in a reasonably safe condition." (NY Times)

Changes to Syrian Draft Resolution Sought
China and Russia, two veto-wielding members of the U.N. Security Council, made clear in a first round of meetings that they would oppose a draft resolution threatening sanctions against Syria unless the document undergoes changes, diplomats said. (AP)

Egyptian Authorities Interrogate Brother of Fundamentalist Convicted In 1993 Trade Center Bombings
Authorities quizzed Thursday an Egyptian who returned to Cairo a day earlier after completing a U.S. prison sentence for aiding his detained brother, who was a key planner of the 1993 bombing of World Trade Center, officials said. (AP)

UN: Poultry Ban Unjustified
A United Nations agency has warned against pre-emptive bans of poultry imports to ward off a possible bird flu outbreak, saying they are unnecessary and could be damaging to world trade. (Al Jazeera)