Tehran
Stuxnet targeted centrifuges: Experts analyzing the computer worm Stuxnet have found new evidence that it was designed specifically to cripple Iran’s nuclear program. Analysts from Symantec Corp. said the worm was calibrated to attack specific electrical converters used in Iran’s nuclear centrifuges. The converters direct motors to alternately surge and slow down until the centrifuge explodes, damaging the machines. Another expert who has studied the worm, German engineer Ralph Langner, said Stuxnet contained a second code designed to disable steam turbines at Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant. The worm’s two tasks were closely related, “deployed in combination as an all-out cyberstrike against the Iranian nuclear program,” Langner said. No one has claimed responsibility for the malware, but some analysts suspect Israeli involvement.
Kabul
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Fooled by impostor: Afghan President Hamid Karzai and NATO officials were duped by an impostor who claimed to be a top Taliban leader, The New York Times revealed this week. A man claiming to be Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour, a top aide to Taliban chief Mullah Muhammad Omar, was flown to Kandahar multiple times by British intelligence and given what officials describe as “a lot” of money. He had negotiated several times with Karzai before Afghan officials realized he was not Mansour. U.S. officials say they believe the man was motivated by money. U.S. Gen. David Petraeus has promoted the peace talks as a viable path to reconciliation, but the Taliban has always denied taking part in negotiations. “The Americans and their allies are very stupid and anyone could fool them,” said Taliban spokesman Qari Yusuf Ahmadi.
Bangkok
Fetuses in temple: The gruesome discovery last week of some 2,000 illegally aborted fetuses in a Buddhist temple in Bangkok has sparked a debate on easing Thailand’s abortion restrictions. They were found by officials investigating an unpleasant smell. Several morticians confessed to having regularly received aborted fetuses from illegal clinics; they said a shortage of cremation facilities had forced them to store the fetuses in the temple. Satit Pitutacha, a member of the Thai parliament, said the discovery revealed the need for a law to regulate abortion when parliament convenes in January. “This issue should be raised on the national agenda in order to let all parties discuss this sensitive topic, so we can find the optimal solution,” he said.
Greymouth, New Zealand
Miners dead: All 29 miners trapped by an underground toxic gas explosion last week are believed dead, authorities said this week. “We are a nation in mourning,” said Prime Minister John Key. “New Zealand is a small country, where we are our brothers’ keepers. To lose so many brothers at once strikes an agonizing blow.” Cameras lowered into the mine after the initial explosion found no sign of life, and a buildup of toxic gas prevented rescue workers from entering. After a second explosion this week, rescuers said there was no chance of survivors. Some miners’ relatives were angry that rescue workers had not entered the mine. “Now the truth can’t come out because no one down there will come out alive,” said Laurie Drew, father of one of the miners, 21-year-old Zen Drew.
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Deadly stampede: The annual Water Festival, which marks the end of the rainy season, turned fatal this week when a stampede broke out on an overcrowded bridge, killing more than 450 and wounding hundreds. When the crush began, some 10,000 people were crammed onto a bridge built to hold 1,000. They were trying to reach the manmade island in the Bassac River where the festival’s final ceremony was being held. Some survivors were trapped for hours, wedged among the standing dead, barely able to breathe. “This is the biggest tragedy in more than 31 years since the Pol Pot regime,” said Prime Minister Hun Sen. Observers said the city was unprepared to handle an unusually high volume of tourists. Some 4 million tourists, encouraged by an advertising campaign, attended the three-day event, briefly tripling the capital’s population.
