Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Digest

Muslims may call for airline boycott

By TIMES WIRES
Published January 17, 2007

A group of Muslims is threatening to lead a boycott of Northwest Airlines over what they say is a pattern of profiling against Muslim passengers. About 40 pilgrims were prevented from boarding a connecting flight in Germany to Detroit on Jan. 7 while returning from a trip to holy cities in Saudi Arabia. The Muslim group, most of whom are Lebanese-American Shiites, held a news conference Tuesday to describe what they say happened to them. They called for Northwest to apologize, compensate them, and discipline the employees they said profiled them, otherwise they may call on all Muslim organizations to boycott the airline. Northwest officials defended their actions Tuesday, saying the pilgrims were unable to board because they weren't at the gate in time. The pilgrims dispute that.

Shoe screener disappoints fliers

New airport screening technology that was trotted out Tuesday was supposed to let passengers keep their footwear on while passing through security. But several travelers said they had to kick loafers or heels off anyway, even after standing in a kiosk that reads their biometric information and uses radio waves to test for explosives and metal. The scanners are part of a new program at Orlando International Airport that promises shorter screening lines for those who pass a federal background check and pay a $100 annual fee. But all shoes with metal must still be removed for additional screening because the agency has not approved the devices' ability to distinguish between safe and unsafe metals, said Shawn Dagg, Verified Identity Pass senior vice president.

Elsewhere

Covington, La.: Noah Benton Markham was born Tuesday to Rebekah Markham after growing from an embryo that nearly defrosted in a sweltering hospital during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Washington: Jury selection began Tuesday in the perjury trial of former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Two potential jurors who expressed negative views of Bush administration officials were dismissed.

Oklahoma City: The passengers in a minivan that crashed on an icy highway Sunday during the weekend snowstorm, killing seven people, were mostly illegal immigrants being carried across the country, Carl Rusnok, a spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Dallas office, said Tuesday.

Sacramento, Calif.: A radio station fired three morning disc jockeys and seven other employees Tuesday after a woman died from drinking nearly two gallons of water in a contest. The hosts of KDND-FM's "Morning Rave" were fired a day after the station announced it was suspending the show and investigating the death of 28-year-old Jennifer Lea Strange, who was trying to win a Nintendo Wii.

San Francisco: LaShuan Harris, 24, was convicted Tuesday of second-degree murder for drowning her three sons on Oct. 19, 2005. She claimed she was sacrificing them for God by tossing them in San Francisco Bay. Harris could receive life in prison.

Phoenix: Mark Goudeau, suspected of being the serial "Baseline Killer," has been indicted on 74 charges, including nine counts of first-degree murder, prosecutor Andrew Thomas said Tuesday. The charges stem from crimes committed between August 2005 and June 2006.

[Last modified January 17, 2007, 01:25:49]