28 February: Reports suggest 20 countries have banned poultry imports from France, after nation seeks to curb spread of H5N1 bird flu strain by mass vaccination in southwest region known for foie gras production... Gov't of Philippine pres. Arroyo has charged 16 people with capital offense of plotting overthrow of gov't; group includes members of congress, Communist rebel leader, military officials; IOL reports "dozens of protesters" attempted to storm legislature in Manila... Hamas has announced Iran's gov't has pledged to cover any funding gap left by withdrawal of international aid to PA; special mid-East envoy James Wolfensohn has warned US, EU, UN, Russia that PA could "collapse" in matter of weeks if aid is not provided to pay bills, bolster civil order: $60 to $80 million needed this week to pay wages for 150,000 civil servants, roughly half in security—EU agreed Monday to give $144 million, allotting most for energy, social services, $20 million for salaries... Burundi gov't responds to HRW report citing ongoing summary execution, torture, saying it is "trying to stop torture"...

27 February: Tens of thousands march in Paris to protest against antisemitism; organizers say demonstrators numbered 200,000, police gave much lower figure... Philippines removes head of marines, some say he went voluntarily, Col. Querubin, relieved of duty for ties to coup plot says Gen. Miranda was forced out for alleged links to plot... "Senior US diplomat" tells Palestinian pres. Abbas US will continue humanitarian aid to Palestinians, even after Hamas-led gov't takes control in Ramallah... NYT reports fears mounting across Mid-East that sectarian conflict in Iraq, if not checked, could lead to broader sectarian conflict, political instability in as many as 9 countries that have "sizable populations of Shiites living side by side with Sunnis"; Jordan, already hosting a million Iraqi refugees, worries a new flood of Iraqis fleeing conflict could collapse economy... "Keystroke logging" Trojan horse programs are spreading through the Internet, lodged in malicious code within some websites and in programs downloaded through infected e-mails or files from infected computers: programs target specific websites or applications, record, transmit keystrokes as target users type them; criminal keystroke logging fraud rings have been busted in Brazil and France... Federal employee, fmr sailor who served 5 years on nuclear sub, warned by Homeland Security that bumber stickers against Iraq war were "illegal" violation of federal laws barring the posting of "signs" on "federal property"; Scarbrough, after removing truck from parking lot, documented some 40 vehicles not targeted which had signs supporting Iraq war or pro-life or pro-choice views; ACLU has taken case, says action was clear violation of law, attempt to stifle dissent; Scarbrough alleges superiors targeted him for his political views...

26 February: 2 days after declaring state of emergency, still in effect, Arroyo gov't raids newspaper headquarters, seizing "editorial materials", editions with headlines referring to emergency declaration; military camps are barricaded to prevent soldiers defecting to anti-arroyo demonstrations; no rallies today in face of heavy security... Hamas PM-designate Haniyah says Hamas will officially recognize Israel, if Palestinians gain full rights, state in occupied territories; Israel "caustiously" welcomes move... Museveni declared winner in Uganda, wife wins Parliament seat in contest against prominent opposition figure; Besigye, opposition say vote count shows "serious irregularities", possible "attempt to manipulate the results in favor of President Museveni"... Corporate watchdog says deal involving sale of 6 US port contracts from British firm P&O to Dubai-owned DPW, linked to "war traffic" passing through Dubai, involving Texas ports, firms, Halliburton subsidiary; deal currently on hold after DPW offered to delay purchase... 3-time US ambassador says middle East needs more US diplomacy with Palestinians... NYT reports Bagram airbase prison "rivals" Guantánamo, has become similar "legal void" where up to 500 prisoners are held without charge or judicial review, and indefinitely; article cites Defense official saying "Anyone who has been to Bagram would tell you it's worse"...

25 February: Iraq leaders in talks to end sectarian violence in wake of bombing of holy Shi'a al-Askari shrine; al-Sadr's Shi'a militia, Sunni scholars agree to help each other defend holy sites across Iraq; reports indicate 165 people are confirmed killed in sectarian clashes since Wednesday's mosque bombing in Samarra... Documents reveal FBI agents warned military officials interrogation techniques used at Guantánamo detention center were illegal; ACLU reports FBI also issued warning "such methods could easily result in the elicitation of unreliable and legally inadmissible information"... NYT reports gov't to spend $4 billion in subsidies to help major corporations maintain private retiree health plans... MediaMatters reports Wash. Post, NYT "adopted" White House claims regarding approval process for handover of ports to Dubai company, despite those claims being contradicted on factual grounds by reporting in both papers... More than 150,000 people march in Madrid to protest Spanish gov't plan to hold peace talks with Basque separatist group ETA; some allege talks will lead to negotiating or rewarding terrorist acts; gov't says talks needed to achieve peace (some victims support groups on both sides)...

24 February: Philippines pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo declares state of emergency after police clash with demonstrators at rally in Manila where former pres. calls for her to step down; Arroyo declared efforts an attempted coup d'état, "threat to the nation"; anecdotal reports suggest sporadic rioting may be spreading to wealthier outlying communities in Metro-Manila; reports throughout week have suggested coup planned for 24th... Amid allegations from Pres. Arroyo of a conspiracy among a small group of military officials, Army chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon has announced the arrest of 3 officers on charges of plotting a military coup, says Armed Forces stand behind the constitutional gov't; state of emergency coincides with 20th anniversary of People Power revolution that overthrew dictator Ferdinand Marcos... Controversial fmr Bush adviser John Yoo says president has sole authority to "make war" under Constitution (Constitution does not say this), that pres. retains "option" to ignore laws (despite Constitution requiring president "take care that the laws be faithfully executed")... With 16% of Ugandan votes counted so far, opposition leaders already allege fraud, manipulation, say ballot-boxes left unsealed by officials, inviting tampering; local media reportedly show Pres. Museveni, Dr. Besigye "neck and neck"...

23 February: Earthquake measuring 7.5 on Richter scale strikes Mozambique, with epicentre near port city of Beira; buildings shook in the capital Maputo, tremors also felt in Zimbabwe, S. Africa... White House says Bush did not learn of sale of 6 major US ports to Arab firm until after federal approval; revelation puts recent veto threats against legislation designed to stall deal in difficult light... Bush condemns bombing of revered Golden Shrine in Samarra, burial site of two of the Imams, descendents of the prophet Mohammed, says bombers are "enemies of all faiths", urges Iraqis to seek justice under constitutional law, pledges US support to restore holy site... Francis Fukuyama in Guardian editorial (extract from new book) says "Neoconservatism has evolved into something I can no longer support", accuses movement of misguided espousal of doctrine of "benevolent hegemony"; in NYT Magazine piece Fukuyama labels Weekly Standard editor Kristol, Robert Kagan, others "Leninist", criticizing their conviction "that history can be pushed along with the right application of power and will"... Massive US gov't "reclassification" program criticized for sealing documents already available in print, in public domain, in gov't-published history books; historians express dismay at "mundane" reports pulled from public shelves at National Archives, some allege wish to conceal "embarrasments" driving portions of reclassification program, so top-secret even the National Archives are not permitted to know which gov't agencies involved... NEJM reports medical outsourcing spreading in US hospitals, with physicians sometimes "a dozen time zones away" reading diagnostic scans...

22 February: Imam al-Askari shrine in Samarra, one of the holiest sites in Shi'a Islam, severely damaged by bomb blast; two devices reportedly destroyed the famed golden dome, part of the exterior walls; Iraq president Talabani, a Sunni Kurd, has declared three days of national mourning, warned against threat of civil war; authorities say Sunni insurgents were responsible, aiming to stoke sectarian tensions... Ecuador pres. Palacio declares "state of emergency" and suspension of civil rights in Napo region, where large part of nation's oil industry is based; violent protests by locals have closeda major crude oil pipeline, labeled Palacio a "murderer", demanding justice for local and indigenous populations... Investigative report says 98 prisoners have died in US military custody since August 2002; at least 34 were suspected or confirmed homicides; Pentagon says it will prosecute offenders where "necessary", but HRF says only 12 deaths have resulted in punishment of any kind, the most severe penalty 5 months "confinement"... Aristide says he will return to Haiti as soon as possible, now that a friendly gov't is taking power, but he will not return to politics from now on... Serbian general Ratko Mladic located, arrest operatioon underway; Mladic wanted for crimes of ethnic cleansing at Srebrenica and throughout 1992-1995 Bosnian war; arrest operation comes 10 years after UN indicted him... Serb media report confused events, some saying arrest already occurred, while authorities maintain negotiations for Mladic surrender still underway... US Supreme Court agrees to hear gov't appeal of federal ruling that late-term abortion ban is unconstitutional, on 1st day Alito serves in place of retired O'Connor; Court heard arguments in case which may roll back environmental regulations under the Clean Water Act; Post notes one new Alito clerk was aide to Ashcroft, "helped design administration policy on military tribunals and terrorism detainees", which could become conflict as related cases come before Court...

21 February: Reports suggest sustained White House effort to prevent investigation into warrantless domestic spying program... US Politicians express outrage as Bush admin. approves handover of 6 major US ports, including NY, NJ, to company based in United Arab Emirates; governors of NY, Maryland have said they will explore need, option of canceling contracts outright, state taking over security... Hamas selects candidate PM viewed as pragmatist who some believe would seek compromise over conflict... Austrian court has sentenced a British historian to 3 years in prison, for his denying the historical fact of the Nazi crimes in the holocaust on a visit to Austria 17 years ago; the court said it was not convinced Irving had changed his mind... British Medical Association says ties can pose serious health risk when worn by doctors, can carry MRSA "superbug", warns that ties must be dry-cleaned regularly if used in health-treatment centers... Riot sparked by local Quran controversy, following two anti-cartoon riots last week that left 13 or more dead, brings curfew in Nigeria... Bush applauds efforts to develop alternative fuels, asks for more funding for science, research into renewable resources; critics say his energy plan, instead of tackling oil "addiction" does little to increase automotive fuel efficiency... Motorists accuse UK RAF of emitting high amounts of radiation from a radar station near Norfolk; RAF has not yet responded to complaints...

20 February: Press freedom watch organization Reporters without Borders (RSF) has issued a report citing US military detention of two journalists, without charge, access to lawyers or contact with family: Abdel Amir Younes Hussein, with CBS News, was captured while reporting in Iraq and is being held at Camp Bucca; Sami Al-Haj, cameraman for Qatar-based Al-Jazeera was working in Afghanistan when he was captured and is now being held at Guantánamo Bay; RSF says they are "victims of a denial of justice" and must be tried or released... Slate reports on Guantánamo: "we have proof that most of the prisoners are guilty only of bad luck and that we are casually destroying their lives"... Catalán pres. Maragall, leaders of top 4 Catalán parties voice support for Saturday demonstrations against conservative opposition to Estatut reform, noting many political figures using the issue to stoke nationalist, anti-regional feelings "do not hide their having opposed the Constitution" itself which replaced fascism with democracy... Post reports US House slowing effort to bring lobbying ethics reforms that would reduce occurrence of corruption, new leader Boehner favors "disclosure" over limiting contributions, gifts, access... NYT accused of misleading reporting for saying Democrats support "revamping" FISA over investigating warrantless wiretaps, though no Democrats appear to have expressed this view... Bangladesh sentences militants to 40 years in prison for involvement in bomb attacks... France, India reach agreement on civilian nuclear cooperation "for peaceful purposes"...

19 February: Wash. Post reports Chinese editor posted memo on newspaper website informing public of efforts to punish reporters who offend Communist party (CCP) officials; before it was deleted, it had been copied and spread to other sites in China; gov't eventually bowed to public pressure, ceased nationwide erasure effort, this as US firms assist CCP censorship... Thousands attend rally in central Barcelona to voice support for draft regional Estatut, amid opposition from national conservative leaders... Acting Israel PM Olmert imposes sanctions on Hamas-led PA, calls it "terrorist authority", says humanitarian aid will still flow to Palestinian people... Pres. Bush has announced intentions to renew efforts to build new nuclear power plants, further research for reprocessing spent fuel, produce more nuclear energy... Tapes released at non-governmental "Intelligence Summit" include Saddam Hussein saying US faces threat of terrorists using WMD, but that Iraq would not be involved in such attacks, claims to have warned US, UK intelligence services of such threat prior to 2 August 1990; US intel director says tapes do not change Iraq Survey Group findings on WMD programs... Iraq war veteran, wounded female Blackhawk pilot, running as Democrat for seat vacated by Henry Hyde (R-IL)...

18 February: Exiled political opponents of Uzbek regime sent back by Ukraine to face persecution, possible abuse, disappearance... With no signs of halt in violence, ethnic cleansing, Bush asks for $500 million for Darfur, considers sending troops, bolstering AU forces with UN peacekeepers; senators Brownback, Biden to introduce resolution calling for NATO to help AU forces "stop the genocide"... Rioting spurred by Mohammed cartoon anger leads to 11 deaths, amid hours' long violent demonstration, police shooting, in Tripoli, Libya... Hamas-led gov't to take over Palestinian parliament; Abbas wants group to honor previous peace deals with Israel... ID fraud experts say UK biometric ID cards will not prevent identity theft, fraud... Google issues stern rebuke to Justice Dept. subpoena for 1 million search results, saying it holds user privacy rights sacrosanct, opposes gov't attempts to obtain information protected against unreasonable seizure... NBC cites Pentagon officials as saying many Guantánamo detainees "may never have a day in court"... Google, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Cisco accused by US Congress of collusion with Chinese regime in "cyber sledgehammer of oppression"; Congress may introduce laws to restrict export of technologyy to China, in effort to limit regime's efforts at control of internet, global information...

17 February: Landslide 650 km southeast of Manila kills at least 250, with 1,500 missing... Hamas names Ismail Haniya as top candidate for PM in new Palestinian government... China authorizes reopening of investigative newspaper it closed for criticizing regime... At US urging, Iraq to investigate evidence of new govt's interior ministry involvement in "death squads" targeting ethnic Sunnis for mass killing... In 80 to 1 vote, with 1 abstention, Ministers of the European Parliament passed resolution calling for US to immediately close Guantánamo detention center, bring detainees to trial under constitutional, international law... White House rejects UN report conclusions on need to close Guantánamo "without delay"; one Pentagon official tells British TV "these are not terrorists, these are not enemies; these were a mistake", says detainees at Guantánamo "pose no threat" to US; UK high court judge tells Parliament camp violates human rights law, cabinet minister Peter Hain openly called for the camp to be closed; Blair quoted as supporting that view... White House requests $65.3 billion in additional funding for ongoing wars in Afghanistan, Iraq; full cost of wars now reaches $400 billion over last 5 years... Head of Sun Microsystems says governments have obligation to create public services online, openly fund, drive development of new resources based on free, open-source software...

16 February: Haitian officials reach agreement on questioned vote count, declare René Préval winner, with 51.15%; gov't of interim pres. Boniface Alexandre says blank ballots were subtracted from total, giving Préval majority of actual votes cast, says Préval will be next president... UN report calls for US to close Guantánamo detention center, give fair trial to detainees or release them, "and to refrain from any practice amounting to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment" [UN report (PDF)]... BBC reports new findings show Greenland Ice Sheet melting faster than expected, accelerating sea level rise... China announces major plan to combat pollution, restore environment, citing fears of social unrest from ecological collapse... Amid pressure from VP, closed door meetings, some Republicans have shifted position to oppose inquiry into NSA spying program; some members openly oppose any investigation, support changing the law to make the program legal... US Congress hearing leads to Rep. Lantos citing "abhorrent actions" through which he says tech firms "caved in to Beijing for the sake of profits"... Access, which owns PalmSource, has announced it will discontinue Palm OS, replace it with open-source-based Access Linux Platform, designed to be more flexible, easier to expand, better adaptable to mobile phones, devices... Sotheby's sells photo by NY artist Edward Steichen, taken in 1904 for record $2.9 million, more than twice the previous record for a photo at auction... EU announces plans to punish dominant regional energy providers that engange in market-rigging or price-fixing...

15 February: Aid agencies warn 17 million people may face starvation in 6 countries (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi) without food aid for next 6 months; Red Cross has begun food shipments for 500,000 in Somalia... Thousands take to streets in new wave of protest, Préval says Haiti election suffered "massive fraud", after images broadcast on TV show hundreds if not thousands of ballots found in the trash; a commission will now investigate to determine whether fraud occurred, or how... After US gov't prosecutes Microsoft for anticompetitive behavior, it creates controversial Grants.gov website, which favors Windows users, requires Microsoft software to be implemented by 3rd parties to make Macs compatible with application processs—this despite defense contractor Northrop Grumman being paid $22 billion to create state of the art platform... UK House of Commons passes blanket workplace smoking ban, including all bars, pubs; legislation should take effect mid-2007; a 2005 poll showed 72% of Britons wanted full ban... Yahoo! calls for united front in combatting China's censorship laws —Yahoo!, along with Microsoft, Google, has come under heavy criticism for agreeing to censor web content in China—; Bill Gates defends Microsoft's participation in Chinese censorship, which famously included the banning of the word "freedom" on certain sites, says web openness will overcome censorship... US terror watch list now reported to include 325,000 names; as many as 125,000 estimated to be duplicate listings or people with similar names...

14 February: Haitian presidential candidate, vote-count frontrunner René Préval says he will contest vote count in which "error" and "fraud" appear to his supporters rampant; Préval urges Haitian people to be "responsible", to avoid violence, demonstrate support or opposition by non-violent means... HRW reports Uganda elections likely not free or fair due to gov't persecution of opponents... US gov't urges China to roll back internet censorship, announces interagency task force to develop methods to ensure broader opennes, reduce efforts by repressive regimes to restrict flow of information through web... Man shot by VP during hunting accident suffers mild heart attack due to shotgun pellet traveling to heart, in stable condition; Reagan press sec. Fitzwater tells E&P he is "appalled" by Cheney's handling of story, delayed admission, apparent unwillingness of White House to release story... White House complains congressional Republicans' report citing "fecklessness, flailing and organizational paralysis" at all levels of gov't is unfair, attempt "to rewrite history"... Baltimore Sun reports increasing numbers of US tourists traveling to Cuba, despite harsh new restrictions, possible prosecution... UK has detained 3 persons in connection with video showing violence against Iraqi civilians... US Senate votes 58-41 to block legislation to create $140 billion privately-financed fund to compensate asbestos victims...

13 February: Haitian demonstrators choke capital Port-au-Prince amid allegations election officials tampered with count to prevent Préval gaining presidency, force runoff; initial incomplete tallies showed Préval with 61% of vote, now withered to plurality of 48%... UK robiticist develops spider-like robot controlled by a yellow slime mold, a single-celled organism fearful of light... Congressional report leaked to US media designates Katrina response a "national failure" at all levels of gov't; blame is specifically leveled at DHS Sec. Chertoff, FEMA, officials who failed to press president to act... UK gov't to investigate allegations of abuse of Iraqi civilians, after airing of video showing troops beating Iraqi youths in street... Blair to miss Commons vote on controversial biometric universal UK ID card proposal; defeat could kill program...

12 February: Shi'a coalition votes to name sitting PM al-Jaafari to serve in post for 1st full-term gov't since fall of Hussein... US VP Dick Cheney shoots 78-year-old hunting partner in shotgun accident; Mr. Whittington was treated on site, taken to hospital, reported to be "alert", not in danger of dying... Denmark pulls diplomatic staff from Indonesia, Iran, Syria, warns Danes to leave these nations amid threats of violence, announces "Danish consular work will be handled by Finland in Iran, Germany in Syria, and the Netherlands in Indonesia"... Internet service providers ask US gov't to permit them to provide preferential treatment in data transmission, streaming video, use of their networks for internet; critics say such a move could lead to "segregated internet", severely limit freedom of expression, access to information; move could violate initial license under which telecoms took over public telephone networks...