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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

World in brief: Scientist defected to U.S., report says

From Wire Reports

WASHINGTON – An Iranian nuclear scientist who had been reported missing since last summer has defected to the U.S. and is assisting the CIA in its efforts to undermine Iran’s nuclear program, ABC News reported Tuesday.

The scientist, Shahram Amiri, has been resettled in the U.S., according to the report.

The CIA had no comment on the report, a spokesman said.

Amiri, who worked at Tehran’s Malek Ashtar University, an institution closely connected to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, disappeared last June while in Saudi Arabia on a pilgrimage. Citing people briefed on the intelligence operation, ABC News said Amiri’s disappearance was part of a long-planned CIA operation to persuade him to defect.

Mine safety rules ignored, panel says

XIANGNING, China – Safety rules and danger warnings had been ignored in a rush to open a coal mine in northern China where flooding of the shafts has left 153 workers trapped for nearly three days, a government safety body said today.

Officials say there have been no signs of life at the Wangjialing mine in Shanxi province following the flooding Sunday. A notice posted on the Web site of the State Administration of Work Safety said a preliminary analysis showed that during tunneling workers broke through into an old shaft, triggering the flood.

Storm hinders search for sailors

BAENGNYEONG ISLAND, South Korea – Stormy conditions forced the military to suspend the search for 46 sailors missing since a mysterious blast blew apart their navy ship last week, officials said today, a day after a diver died during the rescue mission.

Defense Ministry spokesman Won Tae-jae told reporters that divers could not go down to the wreckage of the Cheonan due to the prospect of rain, high winds and a swift current.