Top Stories
Bigger than Pluto, possible 10th planet found The definition of what is – and what is not – a planet is being challenged by a newly announced discovery Friday. Astronomers from the Palomar Observatory near San Diego, California said they found a chunk of ice and rock in the Solar system larger than Pluto. Armed police arrest two more 21 July bombing suspects in dramatic raids Armed police officers from SO19 have raided properties in the Notting Hill and North Kensington areas of London.

Featured story
Third union separates from AFL-CIO The UFCW broke away from the AFL-CIO, making it the third union to split from the AFL-CIO this week over disagreements about how to revive labor's diminishing influence. The departure of the three unions from the AFL-CIO means it is losing more than 4 million of its 13 million members.

Wikipedia Current Events
More torrential monsoon rains have returned to Mumbai in India, as it tries to recover from the recent floods. 7 more suspects are arrested in Brighton following the 21 July 2005 London bombings.

Anti-Mubarak protesters in Cairo beaten by the police

Egyptian riot police and government supporters have dispersed Saturday demonstration against President Hosni Mubarak's fifth re-election campaign.

Several hundred demonstrators from Kifaya, a movement against re-election of Mr Mubarak, as well as from other pro-reform organisations were to gather in Cairo's main square, but they were attacked by the security forces and plain-clothes police on their way.

Eyewitnesses reported that the protesters were beaten, kicked in the head, and finally thrown into police trucks.

19 members of Kifaya were arrested and they are still held, according to the organisation statement. Ayman Barakat, Mr Mubarak's most serious opponent in the upcoming election was among those arrested, but is now freed.

Mr Mubarak announced that he would stand in the election on Thursday. Under international pressure he introduced several serious constitutional reforms, including first in 24 years presidental elections with more than one candidate. However, opposition leaders say that is 'no guarantee' the elections will be fair.

Libya allows US oil company to return
Libya gave US-based Occidental Petroleum Corporation permission to resume business there for the first time in 19 years.

The company abandoned operations in the mid 1980's due to sanctions imposed on Libya by the United States.

The sanctions, enforced by Ronald Reagan's administration in 1986, were in response to Libya's backing of terrorist activities. The sanctions were lifted in 2004, giving the US companies opportunity to return.

Occidental is the first US oil company to resume operations in Libya. Daily output from their wells is expected to be 12,000 - 15,000 barrels per day.
Third union separates from AFL-CIO
The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union broke away from the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), making it the third union to split from the AFL-CIO this week over disagreements about how to revive labor's diminishing influence.

The departure of the UFCW, along with two other unions, theTeamsters, and Service Employees International unions from the AFL-CIO means it is losing more than 4 million of its 13 million members.

Union membership in the U.S. has been declining for many years, and the breakaway unions want to commit more money to recruiting members. They complain that the AFL-CIO has spent too much money on backing political candidates, particularly Democrats, instead of organizing labor.

UFCW President Joe Hansen wrote to AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney saying: "Tradition and past success are not sufficient to meet the new challenges."

AFL-CIO spokeswoman Lane Windham responded, saying "The UFCW leadership decision to leave the AFL-CIO, especially when working people are up against the most powerful, anti-worker corporate and governmental forces in 80 years, is a tragedy for working families. Only unions' enemies win when unions split our strength."

"The unions that split from the AFL-CIO now face the challenge of having to work together to maximize the power of labor," predicted Harley Shaiken, a professor of labor issues at UC Berkley.

Their clearest difference is in how they want a national labor organization to operate, Shaiken said. The breakaway unions favor a more authoritative federation that can compel member unions to act on its directives.

The departure is part of the biggest rift in organized labor since 1938, when the CIO split from the AFL.

When the groups merged to form the AFL-CIO in the 1950s, one of every three private-sector workers belonged to a labor union. Today, fewer than 8 percent of private-sector workers are unionized.

Today in History
1774 - Joseph Priestley discovered oxygen, corroborating the prior discovery of this chemical element by Carl Wilhelm Scheele.

1798 - French Revolutionary Wars: The Battle of the Nile started between French and British fleets.

1927 - People's Liberation Army was established in China.

1944 - The Warsaw Uprising against Nazi occupation began in Poland.

1981 - MTV debuted with the song Video Killed the Radio Star by The Buggles.

August 01 is Civic Holiday in Canada (2005), Emancipation Day in Trinidad and Tobago, National Day in Switzerland

Quote of the Day

"From without, no wonderful effect is wrought within ourselves, unless some interior, responding wonder meets it. That the starry vault shall surcharge the heart with all rapturous marvelings, is only because we ourselves are greater miracles, and superber trophies than all the stars in universal space." ~ Herman Melville

About Wikinews
We are a group of volunteer journalists whose mission is to create a diverse community where citizens from around the globe (including you) can collaborate to report the news on a wide variety of current events.If you would like to write, publish or edit articles, visit en.wikinews.org All stories on Wikinews are in the public domain. By making our content perpetually available for free redistribution and use, we hope to contribute to a global digital commons. Wikinews also aims to write stories from a neutral point of view. Got news and no computer? Call the Wikinews Hotline +1-866-653-4265 (toll-free in the U.S.) +1-202-742-5918 (outside the U.S.)
Audio Wikinews
Audio Wikinews is a public domain, non point-of-view news radio program recorded daily. http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Wikinews:Audio_Wikinews
About Wikinews Print Edition
For more information about Wikinews Print Edition visit: http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Wikinews:Print_edition

Monday, August 1, 2005	Wikinews	Page 3

If you would like to write, publish or edit articles, visit www.wikinews.org

August 1, 2005	The free-content news source that you can write!	Page 3

If you would like to write, publish or edit articles, visit en.wikinews.org

Wikinews Back Page

2005-07-31T20:27:19