World in brief: Polanski loses bid to overturn arrest

Bern, Switzerland – Film director Roman Polanski, fighting extradition from a Swiss prison to the United States in a case from three decades ago involving sex with a teenage girl, has lost his first bid to have his arrest overturned.

Folco Galli, a spokesman for the Federal Office of Justice, said Tuesday that his office had rejected Polanski’s request for a reconsideration of the warrant leading to his arrest.

At the same time, the office of justice also recommended Monday to a federal criminal court that Polanski’s application for release from prison be denied.

“We are still persuaded that there is still a danger that he will escape, and that liberation on bail could not guarantee his presence through the extradition proceedings,” Galli said.

Polanski’s arrest came at the request of authorities in Los Angeles, who want Polanski back in court 31 years after he fled the U.S. before he could be sentenced for unlawful sex with a minor.

Car bomb kills 11 in residential area

Ramadi, Iraq – A car bomb exploded in a crowded residential area in the western Iraq town of Amiriyah Fallujah on Tuesday, killing at least 11 people and wounding 31 others.

Some politicians and security officials in Anbar province, where the town is located, described the attack as a harbinger of bloodier days in the countdown to national elections in January.

The bombing occurred as police officers ate in a nearby restaurant, wounding at least five of them.