Information about July 29, 2004

July 29, 2004

• United States Senator John Kerry formally accepts the 2004 Democratic Presidential candidate nomination. In his acceptance speech he undertakes to "restore trust and credibility to the White House". (MSNBC)
• Pakistan announces the capture of Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, only the second person on the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list to be detained. He is wanted in connection with the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings. The US Government had offered a reward of up to $25m for information leading to the arrest of Ghailani. (BBC) CNN
• The Bank of England says that consumer debt in the United Kingdom has passed one trillion pounds for the first time. Coupled with increasing interest rates, this increased amount of debt has caused a sharp rise in the number of people seeking help with money problems – up 44% on five years ago. (BBC)
• Two Australian anti-war protestors who daubed "No War" in red paint on the top sail of the Sydney Opera House on March 18, 2003 take their case to the New South Wales Court of Appeal. David Burgess, 33, and Will Saunders, 42, claim their defence of self-defence was not heard by their original trial judge. (Sydney Morning Herald)
• The International Criminal Court says it will launch an investigation into ongoing atrocities at the Barlonyo refugee camp in northern Uganda. Reports say that more than 200 people have killed by rebels from the Lord's Resistance Army since the beginning of the year. (Mail & Guardian)
• In Vietnam, dissident pro-democracy activist Dr Nguyen Dan Que is sentenced by the Ho Chi Minh People's Court for "abusing democratic rights to jeopardise the interests of the state, and the legitimate rights and interests of social organisations and citizens". Que is the third dissident this month to be jailed after using the Internet to criticise the ruling Communist government. (Vietnam News Agency) (note the Agency is state-controlled), (Miami Herald).
• Doughnut maker Krispy Kreme announces that its accounting practices are the subject of an informal inquiry by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The inquiry is concerned with the company's repurchase of franchises as well as a recent earnings warning. (AP)
• Scientists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute announce the discovery of a new genus of deep sea worms, Osedax (meaning bone devourer). The worms feed on lipids found in the bones of whale carcasses. (MBARI)