Galway, Ireland
Woman denied abortion dies: The death of an Indian woman in an Irish hospital has revived debate over Ireland’s strict anti-abortion laws. Savita Halappanavar, an Indian dentist living in Galway, went to the hospital with severe pain, and doctors determined that she was miscarrying. “Savita was really in agony,” her husband, Praveen, told The Irish Times. “She was very upset, but she accepted she was losing the baby.” She asked for an abortion, but doctors refused. The 17-week fetus died, and Halappanavar, 31, died a few days later of blood poisoning. The Irish Supreme Court ruled in 1992 that Ireland must legalize abortion to save a woman’s life, but successive Irish governments have failed to do so. The opposition called on the government to now introduce such a law.
London
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Radical cleric released: An extremist Islamic cleric wanted on terrorism charges in Jordan has been released in London after being held for most of the past 10 years. Abu Qatada was considered Osama bin Laden’s top man in Europe, and videos of his sermons were found in the Hamburg apartment of some of the 9/11 hijackers. U.K. Home Secretary Theresa May ordered his extradition, saying the Jordanian government had assured her it wouldn’t use evidence obtained from torturing his cohorts at his trial. But a special British court that deals with national security didn’t buy that argument and canceled the extradition. Abu Qatada will be under a strict curfew and monitored constantly by police, at an estimated cost of $8 million a year.
Venice
Inundated: Nearly three quarters of Venice was under water this week as the lagoon city suffered one of its worst floods in a century. Residents waded through waist-high water as tourists put on bathing suits and went swimming in St. Mark’s Square. It’s the fourth time since 2000 that Venice has been flooded, and city officials blamed global warming. An elaborate system of surge barriers is under construction, but won’t be completed before 2014 at the earliest. Venice wasn’t the only area inundated: Rivers flooded in Tuscany further inland, sweeping away bridges and destroying vineyards.
