9/11 widow apparently on Buffalo flight

Sean Rooney and wife Beverly Eckert in an undated photograph.
Friends, relatives and acquaintances were shocked to hear news reports that Beverly Eckert, the widow of a September 11 victim, was aboard the Continental flight to Buffalo, New York, that crashed Thursday night.

“I am horribly saddened by this news,” said Valerie Lucznikowska, a member of September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows. Lucznikowska said she, Eckert and another woman traveled to Washington last Friday for a meeting between 9/11 family members and President Barack Obama. “I would very much like to honor her,” Lucznikowska said. “She was truly a wonderful person. She was someone who was trying to make society better.” Lucznikowska, whose nephew died in the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, said Eckert asked Obama whether the group would have ongoing meetings with his administration. Obama said meetings would continue, even though they wouldn’t necessarily be with him. Eckert backed Peaceful Tomorrows’ effort to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay and end the military commissions there, Lucznikowska said. The group elaborated on this stance in a signed letter to Obama, and Eckert gave a presidential aide a separate letter listing her own concerns, Lucznikowska said. A resident of Stamford, Connecticut, Eckert was the widow of Buffalo native Sean Rooney, who died at the World Trade Center. After that attack, Eckert co-founded “Voices of September 11,” an advocacy group for survivors and 9/11 families. She was traveling to Buffalo for a weekend celebration of what would have been her husband’s 58th birthday, according to the Buffalo News — the first news agency to report her presence on the fatal flight. The newspaper quoted Eckert’s sister, Sue Bourque, as saying: “We know she was on that plane,” even though the family hadn’t received official confirmation.

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Eckert also planned to take part in presenting a scholarship award at Canisius High School that was established in honor of her late husband, who was a Canisius alumni, according to the school’s president, John Knight. Knight said he couldn’t confirm Eckert’s presence on the plane. However, he said, the school postponed the scholarship presentation that had been scheduled for Friday. He said Eckert also had been active in a capital campaign fund-raising effort. “She struck me as a wonderful, beautiful person who clearly wanted to do something to remember her husband in a way that would have an everlasting impact on our community,” Knight said. Jay Winuk, who lost his brother in the World Trade Center attacks, said Eckert was “a terrific advocate for the 9/11 family community.” Continental Connection Flight 3407 crashed late Thursday about seven miles northeast of Buffalo Niagara International Airport, killing all 49 passengers and crew members aboard and one person on the ground. Also on the plane was Ellyce Kausner, 24, her brother Chris confirmed. The Buffalo News reported that she was a graduate of Clarence High School and Canisius College, who was studying law at Florida Coastal University in Jacksonville. “My parents are on vacation in Florida, and I had to call down there and tell my father what was going on,” Chris Kausner told CNN affiliate WIVB-TV. When asked how his parents were handling the news, a shaken Kausner responded: “To tell you the truth, I heard my mother make a sound that I have never heard before.” Watch victim’s brother discuss delivering tragic news » The Erie County Medical Examiner’s Office established a command post at the scene and had investigators there, a statement from the office said. Officials said relatives of passengers aboard the flight should call 800-621-3263 for information. Watch more on the plane crash »

Review: ‘Shopaholic’ is a big winner

Isla Fisher is out of control in
Playing Rebecca Bloomwood, the blissfully clothes-crazy heroine of "Confessions of a Shopaholic," Isla Fisher walks around with the mad gleam of a true believer.

She’s utterly rational as well (you can’t talk her out of buying things — she’s too busy trying to talk herself into them), and it’s that flaky combination that makes her an addict for our times. When Rebecca goes into a store, preferably of designer vintage, she’s in her own yum-yum version of paradise. She wants — needs — to acquire dresses, shoes, belts, handbags. That fantastic diaphanous forest-green scarf She simply must have it! Each of these things is a magical object that will upgrade her identity, making her over into something as gorgeous and perfect as the clothes themselves. Based on Sophie Kinsella’s fluffier-than-air novels, “Confessions of a Shopaholic” may have been shot before the economic crisis, but as the cautionary tale of one girl’s protracted shopping meltdown, it’s actually quite timely. It takes only a few scenes for Rebecca to learn that she has maxed out her credit cards, and when she lands a job at Successful Saving magazine, her atonement begins. (The gig she actually wanted, at the girly fashion bible Alette, was already taken.) This is a role you would imagine might be filled, with cheesy-klutzy charm, by Kate Hudson or Sandra Bullock. But Fisher has her own brain-working-a-mile-a-minute adorable magnetism, with eyes that widen like a naughty child’s and a smile so vivacious it could light up the next three rooms. Breathless and petite yet powerfully in-your-face, Fisher combines dizzy femininity and no-nonsense verve in the manner of a classic screwball heroine. She’s like Carole Lombard reborn as a tiny angel-faced dynamo. In movies from “Pretty Woman” to “Sex and the City,” the fun of couture capitalism has been a grown-up-girls-play-dress-up guilty pleasure. The disreputable, spangly headed joy of “Confessions of a Shopaholic” is that, as directed with infectious verve by P.J. Hogan (“My Best Friend’s Wedding”) — and starring costumes by Patricia Field that look froufy-chic enough to eat — the movie makes no apologies about its heroine’s addictive craving for clothes. (It has no illusions about it, either.) After writing a finance article based on that telltale green scarf, Rebecca becomes a star columnist, and she falls for her editor, played by Hugh Dancy, who’s like a warmer James McAvoy with Hugh Grant’s rare gift for making insecurity debonair. Yes, “Shopaholic” is “Bridget Jones” meets “SATC,” but the film is weirdly liberated by barely having the pretense of, you know, a plot. It’s just a moonstruck whirl of parties and buying sprees, with a few very funny Shopaholics Anonymous meetings thrown in, as Rebecca works to get control of her obsession. From its talking storewindow mannequins to its sneaky debauched heroine, the movie is romantic-comedy fizz, but it’s fizz that bubbles like champagne. EW Grade: A-

Russian warship apprehends Somali pirates

Russian missile cruiser
A Russian heavy missile cruiser stopped three pirate ships off the coast of Somalia, and detained 10 pirates, according to a statement released Friday by Russian Navy headquarters in Moscow.

The cruiser, Peter the Great, halted two small high-speed motor boats and a mid-size, support vessel on Thursday, the Russians said. “Ten pirates have been detained. All of them are citizens of Somalia,” the press release obtained by CNN stated. “Officials from the Northern Fleet’s military prosecutor’s office are currently questioning the detainees aboard the Peter the Great. Their future will be decided in coordination with the Russian Foreign and Justice ministries.” The Russians said a Russian helicopter Ka-27, which took off from the cruiser, had located two small boats, which were moving toward an Iranian fishing vessel at high speed last Thursday. When those in the boats spotted the helicopter overhead, the boats began slowing down, then veered off toward their support vessel, which was adrift nearby. The helicopter crew could see pirates in the two motor boats throwing weapons into the sea, and kept chasing the boats until the Russian cruiser arrived in the area. “The three boats were (captured and) delivered to the Peter the Great, and ten Somalian pirates were taken aboard.

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“The detainees possessed weapons, including a G-3 rifle, an Ak-47, two AKMS machine-guns, two grenade-launchers and two anti-infantry grenades, and also had a GPS receiver, a ladder, 500 grams of drugs, a large amount of money, a bag of sugar and a bag of rice. The detained pirates were high on drugs,” the press release said. Meanwhile, Somali pirates have released a Panamanian-flagged, Japanese-owned vessel that was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden in November, according to a non-governmental group that monitors piracy. The ship, named the MT Chemstar Venus, was released late Thursday, according to Ecoterra International. The 18 Filipino and five South Korean crew members were reportedly unharmed. The International Maritime Board, a group that also monitors piracy, told CNN that the company had not confirmed the release of the ship, but said shipping companies sometimes wait a few days before going public to ensure the safety of the crew.

The ship was hijacked on November 15. It was unclear whether the pirates were paid a ransom to release the ship. This incident comes a week after Somali pirates released a Ukrainian ship carrying tanks, ammunition and crew after receiving a ransom of $3.2 million.

Plane Crashes into House in Suburban Buffalo, 50 Dead

Plane Crashes into House in Suburban Buffalo, 50 Dead

A Continental commuter plane coming in for a landing nose-dived into a house in suburban Buffalo, sparking a fiery explosion that killed all 49 people aboard and a person in the home. It was the nation’s first fatal crash of a commercial airliner in 2 1/2 years.

Witnesses heard the twin turboprop aircraft sputtering before it went down in light snow and fog around 10:20 p.m. Thursday about five miles from Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Continental Connection Flight 3407 from Newark, N.J., came in squarely through the roof of the house, its tail section visible through flames shooting at least 50 feet high.
“The whole sky was lit up orange,” said Bob Dworak, who lives less than a mile away. “All the sudden, there was a big bang, and the house shook.”
Two others in the house escaped with minor injuries. The plane was carrying a four-member crew and an off-duty pilot. Among the 44 passengers killed was a woman whose husband died in the World Trade Center attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. By morning, with the rubble still smoking, the task of retrieving remains had not yet begun.
Erie County Emergency Coordinator David Bissonette said it appeared the plane “dove directly on top of the house.”
“It was a direct hit,” Bissonette said. “It’s remarkable that it only took one house. As devastating as that is, it could have wiped out the entire neighborhood.”
President Barack Obama voiced condolences, saying “our hearts go out to the families and friends who lost loved ones.”

No mayday call came from the pilot before the crash, according to a recording of air traffic control’s radio messages captured by the Web site LiveATC.net. Neither the controller nor the pilot showed concern that anything was out of the ordinary as the airplane was asked to fly at 2,300 feet.
At the time of the last radio contact, the controller said the plane was three miles from a radio beacon that stands about four miles northeast of the airport. The controller told the crew to turn the plane left to intercept a radio signal that would guide it to Runway 23. A female pilot aboard the plane calmly repeated the instructions back correctly.

35 women, children killed near Iraq festival

Devout Shia Muslims walk in Baghdad towards the holy city of Karbala.
A female suicide bomber detonated in a crowd of primarily women and children on their way to a religious festival Friday, killing at least 35 people and wounding 45 others, an Interior Ministry official said.

Two children were also killed in a separate incident when an old and unexploded mortar round exploded Friday morning just south of Baghdad. The children, who were younger than 15, were playing with the round when it exploded, a ministry official said. The deaths happened in the town of Mussayiab, which is 61 kilometers (38 miles) south of Baghdad. The suicide attack took place about noon between the towns of Iskandariyah and Mussayib, south of the capital, Baghdad, as hundreds of thousands of Shia pilgrims are making their way to Karbala for Arbaeen, one of the holiest Shia events. The suicide attack comes on the heels of other bombings targeting Shiite pilgrims earlier in the week and are signs that the sectarian conflicts that devastated Iraq in recent years are not over. An explosion in Karbala on Thursday killed at least five Shiite pilgrims and wounded 50 near a shrine. On Wednesday, a double car bombing struck a Baghdad bus station where Shiite pilgrims gathered for the holy day. Sixteen people were killed and 43 were wounded. Also, two pilgrims were killed and 16 were wounded Wednesday in roadside bombings in Baghdad. The holy day commemorates the end of a 40-day mourning period for Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed and one of the most revered Shiite figures. He died in battle in the seventh century and is buried in Karbala.

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In recent years, insurgents have targeted Shiite pilgrims, who usually walk to Karbala from across Iraq as a demonstration of piety and as part of tradition. The city is about 60 miles (100 km) southwest of Baghdad. Last year, a flurry of attacks on pilgrims killed at least 48 people. In 2007, more than 180 pilgrims were killed in a series of attacks, most from suicide bombings in Babil province, through which the pilgrims pass. More than 30,000 Iraqi Security Forces troops have been deployed in and around Karbala this year to protect the anticipated millions of pilgrims heading there for Monday’s commemoration, according to Karbala’s military commander, Gen. Othman al-Ghanemi.

After Gregg Jilts Obama, Washington Assesses the Damage

After Gregg Jilts Obama, Washington Assesses the Damage

Senator Judd Gregg ended his courtship with President Obama by resorting to one of the oldest lines in the book. “It’s not about them,” the New Hampshire fiscal conservative announced Thursday, describing the White House team. “It’s about my own sense of who I am.” All at once, politicos all over Washington had the same reaction: Yeah, right.

This town knows a thing or two about power-grabbing philanderers, the ones
who wine and dine you, take you to bed, collect some campaign cash, and then
move on to the next hot catch — but not before offering a hug, and the gentle
admonition, “It’s not you, babe. It’s me.” It doesn’t so much matter that by
all appearances Gregg is no gallant, that he seemed to actually be telling
the truth when he said the reason he got cold feet at the altar was that he couldn’t bring himself to fully support the president’s agenda. What matters is that he dumped the president. He was picked to be the next Commerce Secretary, he accepted the appointment, and then he walked away — breaking the news, as it turned out, at the very moment Obama was appearing at an event in Peoria, Illinois to build support for his $789 billion stimulus plan being hammered out by Congress. In this town, the president, especially one with a 63% approval rating just three weeks into office, is not supposed to get dumped.

And so the partisans had to react. Reputations were at stake. Honor
had to be defended. “Old ways die hard around here. I know our President
won’t give up on changing the unproductive partisan habits,”
Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri twittered within minutes. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs, who has logged a decade as a political knife fighter, issued sharp words through a press release, suggesting that it was the Senator himself who had thrown his hat into the ring in the first place. “Senator Gregg reached out to the president,” Gibbs noted, and was “very clear” that he would “support, embrace, and move forward with the president’s agenda.” Then Gibbs twisted

the rhetorical blade. “We regret that he had a change of heart,” the
spokesman said.

Republicans, meanwhile, were celebrating the ability of one of their own to
embarrass the president. “Senator Gregg made a principled decision,” crowed
House Republican leader John Boehner, in a press release. “The
Administration is taking another one on the eyelid here,” said Michael
Steele, the new chairman of the Republican National Committee, in an
interview with Fox News.

This was the spin, the echo chamber. And this is all most Americans will
know about Gregg’s withdrawal: The president was denied, yet again, in his
attempt to reach across the partisan aisle.

The real reasons for Gregg’s last minute decision was another matter. A former New Hampshire Governor turned legislator, Gregg has long been his own boss. As a relative moderate, he could have held considerable sway in the tightly divided Senate. The job of Commerce Secretary, traditionally the most ceremonial and least

influential Cabinet job, offered very limited potential to shape policy. And ever since his appointment was announced, Gregg had been criticized by some Republicans both in Washington and at home in New Hampshire for being a traitor to the party.

“I just realized, as these issues started to come at us,” Gregg said, “that
it really wasn’t a good fit, and that I wouldn’t be comfortable doing this,
and that it wouldn’t be fair to [Obama] to be part of a team and not be able
to be 100 percent on the team.”

With those words, Gregg offered what may be
the most blunt statement of the challenge Obama faces in moving beyond the
partisan and ideological divisions that have long defined national politics.
Gregg declined to specify the issues or events that made him
reconsider, or why he had only just now realized that it wasn’t a good fit when his differences with the Administration’s agenda were never a secret. As for the theory that he hadn’t been happy that the White House had moved to take away some of the Commerce Department’s traditional control of the Census after Democratic activists voiced concerns about a Republican overseeing the politically-charged process, Gregg was equally vague. “The census was only a slight catalyzing issue. It was not a major issue,” he said.

Gregg, who does not expect to seek reelection in 2010, first made his
concerns clear to Obama earlier this week. They met Wednesday at the White
House, just a day after Gregg had notably chosen not to vote at all on the Senate’s stimulus plan. The news was kept secret until Thursday. In a briefing to reporters at the White House, Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel said the news had

come as a blow. “My first thought was, it’s better we discovered it now than
later,” he said, according to the Wall Street Journal. “If I said it wasn’t
a disappointment, that would lack credibility.”

The Gregg news continues a string of disappointments that have hit the Obama
team, including the withdrawal of two other cabinet nominees, Health and Human Services secretary nominee Tom Daschle and the first Commerce Secretary choice, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. But those prior separations were different in kind. Both Daschle and Richardson volunteered to leave the nomination process once their appointments became political liabilities. Gregg was a political asset to the president, one he boasted of in his Monday press conference, until he withdrew his nomination. As any teenager will tell you, it’s far better when a break up is mutual, than to get dumped when you least expect it.

See video of Barack Obama’s historic Inauguration.See pictures behind the scenes on Obama’s big day.

Plane crashes into suburban Buffalo home; 50 killed

Continental Airlines Flight 3407 crashed into a house in Clarence Center, New York, late Thursday.
A Continental Airlines plane crashed into a home near Buffalo, New York, late Thursday, killing all 49 passengers and crew members and a person in the home, authorities said.

Four people were injured at the crash site, including a mother and daughter inside the house that was hit. They suffered minor injuries and were treated and released, said a spokeswoman at Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital in Williamsville. Two firefighters also were brought in for treatment of smoke inhalation and minor injuries. Continental Connection Flight 3407, a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 74-seat turboprop, operated by Colgan Air, was en route from Newark, New Jersey, to Buffalo when it went down at around 10:20 p.m. ET. The crash occurred about seven miles from Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Dave Bissonette, Clarence Center’s natural disaster services coordinator, said it was “clearly a direct hit” on the house. “The only recognizable piece of the plane left is the tail,” Bissonette said. The ferocity of the fire was such that officials don’t expect the crash site to be safe for investigators until about noon Friday, nearly 14 hours after the crash. iReport.com: Flames rise from crash site

Airline information
Continental Airlines’ statements

Relatives helpline 800-621-3263 

CNN has listened to a tape of communications between air traffic control and the flight crew. The first officer had no sign of stress in her voice. The plane was cleared for approach. About two minutes later, the air traffic controller came back, with stress in his voice. Radar contact was lost. The question goes out: Can other planes see anything No one responds. The controller says they might have a plane down. The pilot’s last comment was “Colgan Flight 3407.” There were no sounds of distress. Watch video from CNN affiliate WGRZ » It was not clear whether the mix of sleet and snow in the area played any role in the crash of Flight 3407. Other planes continued to arrive and land safely at Buffalo about the time the flight went down. Delta Flight 1998, an MD-88 jet, landed at approximately 10:17 p.m. The Delta crew did not see Flight 3407. The Delta flight reported rime icing, a condition in which ice quickly builds up on the leading edge of the wings. Authorities said the plane went down near a local fire hall, so firefighters were quick to respond to the crash site. At least nine volunteer fire departments responded to the scene. iReport.com: Are you there Let us know Area resident Keith Burtis said he was driving to the store about a mile from the crash site when he heard the plane go down. “It was a high-pitched sound,” Burtis said. “It felt like a mini-earthquake.” Watch officials on the scene: ‘This is not a rescue mission’ » Shortly after the crash, Burtis said he saw a steady stream of fire trucks rush by him as smoke billowed into the sky. Other witnesses told CNN they saw the plane nose-dive toward the ground.

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According to CNN affiliate WGRZ-TV in Buffalo, one of the crash victims, Beverly Eckert, was the widow of 9/11 terror attack victim Sean Rooney, a Buffalo native. Eckert was traveling to Buffalo for a weekend celebration of what would have been her husband’s 58th birthday. She also had planned to take part in presentation of a scholarship award at Canisius High School that she established in honor of her late husband, the Buffalo News newspaper reported. Twelve residents were evacuated from the area of the plane crash. Law enforcement officials are asking people not to go to the crash site in fear they may hinder the investigation. “I felt the impact … sounded like a large explosion,” said Brendan Biddlecom, who told CNN he lives two blocks from where the plane crashed. Watch report from witness: “All I saw was flames” » Biddlecom ran out his home and to within a couple hundred yards of the crash. The smoke was thick and acrid, and the heat was intense, he said. Chris Kausner, who had a sister on the flight, rushed to the Clarence Municipal Center, where he waited for additional information after emergency teams turned him back from the scene. “My parents are on vacation in Florida and I had to call down there and tell my father what was going on,” he told CNN affiliate WIVB-TV. When asked how his parents were handling the news, a shaken Kausner responded “To tell you the truth, I heard my mother make a sound that I have never heard before.” Watch victim’s brother discuss delivering the tragic news to his mother » The Erie County Medical Examiner’s Office established a command post at the scene and had investigators there, a statement from the office said. Officials said relatives of passengers aboard the flight should call 800-621-3263 for information. Watch what iReporter captured on film A statement from the airline said: “At this time, the full resources of Colgan Air’s accident response team are being mobilized and will be devoted to cooperating with all authorities responding to the accident and to contacting family members and providing assistance to them.” The National Transportation Safety Board said early Friday that was preparing a “go team” to head to Buffalo to investigate the crash. According to the National Weather Service weather observation for Buffalo, there was light snow, fog and mist shortly before 10 p.m. Flight 3407 was originally scheduled to depart at 7:45 p.m., but it was delayed. Watch more on the plane crash » “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the crew, the passengers and our residents on Long Street,” said Clarence Supervisor Scott Blylewski. Thursday’s incident is the first fatal crash of a commercial airliner in the United States since August 2006 when Comair Flight 5191 crashed when it attempted to take off from the wrong runway.

Chelsea count cost of managerial sackings

Guus Hiddink is the third coach to take charge at Chelsea since Jose Mourinho departed in 2007.
Chelsea posted losses of £65.7 million ($93.91m) as they were left to count the cost of managerial departures.

The results for the financial year ending on June 30, 2008 revealed that £23.1 million ($33.02m) had been paid in compensation to former Blues managers Jose Mourinho and Avram Grant and five coaching staff. They do not include the payout that Luiz Felipe Scolari is set to receive, reported to be in the region £8 million ($11.44m), following his sacking this week. The results come as Guus Hiddink took charge at Stamford Bridge until the end of the season, combining his duties as Russia national coach. The Dutchman gave an upbeat assessment of Chelsea’s prospects for the rest of the season, despite a string of indifferent results which led to Scolari’s replacement. “They are in several races, the FA Cup is there, the Champions League and also the league,” Hiddink told Chelsea TV. “There is a 10-point difference but if you look in the past of this league and other leagues as well, some things can happen during the final stages of the championship.” His assistant Ray Wilkins will stay in charge for the FA Cup fifth round tie against Watford on Saturday before Hiddink takes the reigns ahead of crucial matches against Aston Villa in the Premier League and Juventus in the last 16 of the Champions League. Hiddink only agreed to take on the job because of his close friendship with Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, whose billions have helped the west London become one of the leading clubs in Europe. Friday’s financial results represent a further improvement after the record losses of £140.5 million in 2004/05, with Abramovich reducing the debt the club owe him personally by half. He has turned £369.9 million of his loans into shares in the club, but it still means that Chelsea owe him £339.8m as an interest-free loan. Chelsea also pointed the “record group turnover and reduced losses for a third successive season” in an official statement on their Web site www.chelseafc.com. Chief executive Peter Kenyon said they were committed to breaking even by 2010 and gave a clear warning that the club would not be repeating the big-spending of recent seasons. “In line with our long-stated business aims, any squad structuring in the summer will be funded prominently by sales as we have consistently reduced our net transfer spend over the last five years and will attempt to continue this trend,” he told the Press Association. The new financial strictures will represent a challenge to Scolari’s long-term successor, with Hiddink continuing to insist he will honor his contract with Russia as he attempts to lead them to the 2010 World Cup finals. “I have seen it here now and I felt the atmosphere already in a few hours, but what happens after May is clear because it is rather difficult to do the two jobs, and I have my obligations in Russia,” Hiddink said.

Report: Somali pirates release Japanese ship

Ukrainian ship Faina arrives in the port of Mombasa, Kenya after its release.
Somali pirates have released a Panamanian-flagged, Japanese-owned vessel that was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden in November, according to a non-governmental group that monitors piracy.

The ship, named the MT Chemstar Venus, was released late Thursday, according to Ecoterra International. The 18 Filipino and five South Korean crew members were reportedly unharmed. The International Maritime Board, a group that also monitors piracy, told CNN that the company had not confirmed the release of the ship, but said shipping companies sometimes wait a few days before going public to ensure the safety of the crew. The ship was hijacked on November 15. It was unclear whether the pirates were paid a ransom to release the ship. This incident comes a week after Somali pirates released a Ukrainian ship carrying tanks, ammunition and crew after receiving a ransom of $3.2 million. On Wednesday night, a Ukrainian plane flew into Mombasa with a fresh crew for Faina that was intended to take over the vessel and then deliver it back to its home port, they reported.

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The plane also brought doctors, representatives of arms export companies, the ship owner, as well as a group of Ukraininan journalists, according to Interfax. The 20 freed crew members will be flown to the Ukrainian capital of Kiev on Friday, a spokeswoman for the Ukrainian president said. President Viktor Yushchenko has said he will go to the airport to greet the Faina’s crew.

$250K Microsoft bounty to catch worm creator

Experts say a single infected laptop could expose an entire network to the worm.
Software giant Microsoft is offering a $250,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of hackers behind a powerful computer virus that could lead to millions of PCs being hijacked.

Experts have so far been baffled by the true purpose of the Conficker or Downadup virus, but have described its spread as one of the most serious infections ever seen. The worm exploits a bug in Microsoft Windows to infect mainly corporate networks, then — although it has yet to cause any harm — it opens a link back to its point of origin, meaning it can receive further orders to wreak havoc. Microsoft has issued a patch to fix the bug, however if a single machine is infected in a large network, it will spread unchecked — often reinfecting machines that have been disinfected. The threat from the virus prompted Microsoft in collaboration with other technology industry names to this week announce a $250,000 reward for information to track down those behind Conficker.

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“As part of Microsoft’s ongoing security efforts, we constantly look for ways to use a diverse set of tools and develop methodologies to protect our customers,” said George Stathakopoulos, of Microsoft’s Trustworthy Computing Group. Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer at anti-virus firm F-Secure says the true scope of the virus is not known, but in the past 24 hours his company monitored Conficker signals from two million Internet protocol addresses. “That’s a lot,” he told CNN. “And one IP address here does not mean one infected computer, it means at least one infected computer. “Many of those IP addresses are obviously company proxies or firewalls, hiding hundreds of more infections behind it. Unfortunately this also makes it impossible to estimate the total count of infected systems. “So it’s still big. Very big.” Microsoft has previously paid out similar rewards to informants who helped identify the creator of Sasser, another notorious worm let loose in 2004. The perpetrator was tracked to Germany, where he was sentenced a year later.