Blast in coal mine kills 44, traps 21

BEIJING — A gas blast ripped through a coal mine today in northern China, killing 44 miners and trapping 21 more, state media said. State television channel CCTV reported that 21 workers remained trapped in the predawn blast at a mine belonging to the Shanxi Jiaomei Group in Gujiao city near Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi Province. In 2008, coal mine accidents killed about 3,200 in China. (AP)

TEHRAN - Iran has blocked two websites promoting the presidential bid of Mohammed Khatami, reformists said yesterday, in a sign that the ruling hard-liners might seek to thwart his challenge to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the June 12 election. Khatami declared on Feb. 8 that he would run again for president, setting the stage for a political showdown between the reformist - who made dialogue with the West a centerpiece of his eight years as president - and the hard-liners. Public discontent with Ahmadinejad has been growing, in part because of the sagging economy. (AP)

A 19th-century Belgian priest who ministered to leprosy patients in Hawaii will be declared a saint Oct. 11 at a Vatican ceremony presided over by Pope Benedict XVI. The canonization date for the Rev. Damien de Veuster was set during a meeting yesterday between Benedict and cardinals. He will be canonized along with four others. (AP)